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The beneficial effect of intentional weight loss on mortality is controversial. The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review and analyze the quality of prospective studies that assess weight loss on mortality. An electronic search at MEDLINE/PubMed, SciELO, and EBSCO data base, of studies with a follow-up of five or more years, published from January, 2000 to October, 2009, was conducted. Quality of the studies was assessed by Simonsen's criteria. Twenty studies were analyzed. At the beginning of the studies, the age of the subjects ranged from 20 to 101 years. Nine studies included those who intended to loose weight. The quality of the studies ranged from 8 to 17 points (out of 20). Weight loss increased the mortality rate in 15 studies and decreased it in 5. Seven of the studies assessing intention to loose weight showed that weight loss increased the mortality rate, whereas in two the mortality rate decreased. In three out of the four studies that assessed weight fluctuation, the mortality rate increased. These results underline the importance of preventing weight increase, as well as the need to avoid gaining or loosing weight more than 4%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the bibliographical data included in the Web of Science, SCOPUS, Chemical Abstracts, and other specialized information services covering the period 1900-1950, the first publications in mainstream journals by Mexican researchers appeared only in the first decades of the 20th century. Contrary to expectations, we find that the academic community was not the protagonist in the early stages of Mexican scientific practices, but that there was a strong contribution coming from researchers associated with the public-health sector and the chemical and mining industries. We were able to identify in this half century four different modes of scientific production: amateur, institutional, academic, and industrial, which in turn correspond to distinct stages in the evolution of the Mexican scientific production. We characterize these modes of production with a variety of indicators: publication and citation patterns, author output, journal and subject categories, institutional collaborations, and geographical distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

En el presente artículo se expone el desarrollo de un método de diseño de estructuras ramificadas del tipo algas marinas o formas arbustivas que se basa en la agregación limitada por difusión (DLA) para definir su geometría. Se ha usado la DLA para reproducir unas reglas de crecimiento convincentes o verosímiles a partir de lo aprendido de visores programables como el NetLogo (Wilensky 1999). En concreto, las herramientas que reproducen la simulación aprendida de NetLogo son el software Grasshopper para generar las geometrías, el plug-in Exoskeleton para obtener superficies envolventes a dichas estructuras alámbricas, y el plug-in Weaverbird para suavizar transiciones entre caras de malla. Ésta última herramienta permite suavizar la malla mediante iteraciones que aumentan o no el número de caras, lo que permite entender algunas teorías sobre transiciones suaves en bifurcaciones de estructuras naturales (Mattheck 1990).Este artículo sirve además para reflexionar acerca de cómo modelos físico cinéticos basados en mecanismos inspirados en la Inteligencia Artificial ayudan a compartir métodos de análisis con otras disciplinas como la cibernética o la dinámica de fluidos o las ciencias sociales y del medioambiente. ¿Por qué puede ocurrir esto? Por el rigor en el lenguaje que todo el rato pretende referirse a poblaciones de individuos, a ciclos de vida, a sistemas multivariables, a reglas de reciprocidad o a pactos con partículas próximas.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this systematic review was to assess physical activity promotion programs in school children from 6 to 12 years old. METHODS: Randomized and non-randomized controlled trials of physical activity studies with an intervention period equal to or more than 12 months, published in the databases of MEDLINE/PubMed, SciELO, EBSCO and SPORTDiscus through may 2010 were searched. RESULTS: Seven studies were analyzed. Overall, the study design, the follow-up periods, the ethnic characteristics of the population, and the instruments used to evaluate the interventions were heterogeneous. The outcomes showed moderate impact of intervention programs to increase the physical activity in children and adolescents. In two of the studies was observed an increase in the physical activity and in five of the studies no significant difference in the physical activity assessed with accelerometers and pedometers. CONCLUSION: In five out of seven studies it was not shown statistical differences in cpm, including the longest experimental study. These results suggest the need of designing studies including modifications in different environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The short duration or lack of breastfeeding has been associated with maternal obesity. The purpose of this study was to systematically review prospective studies that assessed the effect of maternal obesity on lactation. Methods: A search of studies was conducted in Pubmed, these included prospective studies on maternal obesity and initiation, intention and duration of breastfeeding: 653 articles were found, only seven were prospective studies. After adding other studies found by hand, a total of nine studies were analyzed. Results: Three out of four papers observed a higher risk for delay lactogenesis among obese mothers, odds ratio ranging from 1.02 to 1.10. The study assessing the initiation of lactation showed that non-obese mothers initiated lactation sooner, OR: 0.39 (95% CI: 0.25-0.62). The overall risk for cessation of breastfeeding showed that obese mothers had higher risks of early cessation, HR: 1.50 (CI 95% 1.11-2.04). In one study it was observed that obese mothers were not more likely to never breastfeed, OR = 1.56 (95% CI: 0.97-1.50). Conclusions: This review shows that in prospective studies, obese mothers are more likely to have delayed lactogenesis and reduced lactation. Therefore, weight control and breastfeeding promotion should be reinforced before and during pregnancy. In overweight and obese mothers, breastfeeding should be closely monitored after birth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sunflower ( Helianthus annuus L.), a vital crop for global vegetable oil production, encounters sustainability challenges in its cultivation. This study assesses the effects of incorporating a winter cover crop (CC), Avena sativa (L.), on the subsequent growth of sunflower crops and the vitality of their rhizosphere microbial communities over a two-year period. It examines the impact of two methods for suppressing winter CC-chemical suppression using glyphosate and mechanical suppression via rolling-both with and without the addition of phosphorus (P) starter fertilizer. These approaches are evaluated in comparison to the regional best management practices for sunflower cultivation, which involve a preparatory chemical fallow period and the subsequent application of starter P fertilizer. The methodology utilized Illumina sequencing for the analysis of rhizosphere bacterial 16S rRNA genes and fungal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) amplicons. Findings indicate a significant improvement (9-37%) in sunflower growth parameters (plant height, stem diameter, head diameter, and head dry weight) when cultivated after glyphosate-suppressed winter CC compared to the chemical fallows. Conversely, rolling of winter CC generally negatively affected sunflower growth. Rhizosphere bacterial communities following chemical suppression of winter CC showed greater Pielou's evenness, indicating a uniform distribution of species. In general, this treatment had more detrimental effects on beneficial sunflower rhizosphere bacteria such as Hymenobacter and Pseudarthrobacter than rolling of the winter CC, suggesting that the overall effect on sunflower growth may be mitigated by the redundancy within the bacterial community. As for fungal diversity, measured by the Chao-1 index, it increased in sunflowers planted after winter CC and receiving P fertilization, underscoring nutrient management's role in microbial community structure. Significant positive correlations between fungal diversity and sunflower growth parameters at the reproductive stage were observed ( r  = 0.41-0.72; p  < 0.05), highlighting the role of fungal communities in plant fitness. The study underscores the positive effects of winter CC inclusion and management for enhancing sunflower cultivation while promoting beneficial microbes in the crop's rhizosphere. We advocate for strategic winter CC species selection, optimization of mechanical suppression techniques, and tailored phosphorus fertilization of sunflower to foster sustainable agriculture., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Morales, Allegrini, Basualdo, Iocoli, Villamil and Zabaloy.)

Approaches to rapidly collecting global biodiversity data are increasingly important, but biodiversity blind spots persist. We organized a three-day Datathon event to improve the openness of local biodiversity data and facilitate data reuse by local researchers. The first Datathon, organized among microbial ecologists in Uruguay and Argentina assembled the largest microbiome dataset in the region to date and formed collaborative consortia for microbiome data synthesis., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

This paper proposes the transformation S→C→, where S is a digital gray-level image and C→ is a vector expressed through the textural space. The proposed transformation is denominated Vectorial Image Representation on the Texture Space (VIR-TS), given that the digital image S is represented by the textural vector C→. This vector C→ contains all of the local texture characteristics in the image of interest, and the texture unit T→ entertains a vectorial character, since it is defined through the resolution of a homogeneous equation system. For the application of this transformation, a new classifier for multiple classes is proposed in the texture space, where the vector C→ is employed as a characteristics vector. To verify its efficiency, it was experimentally deployed for the recognition of digital images of tree barks, obtaining an effective performance. In these experiments, the parametric value λ employed to solve the homogeneous equation system does not affect the results of the image classification. The VIR-TS transform possesses potential applications in specific tasks, such as locating missing persons, and the analysis and classification of diagnostic and medical images.

Power ultrasound and salt reduction effects on meat emulsions' physicochemical and rheological properties were determined. Therefore, meat emulsions with different NaCl concentrations (1, 1.5, 2, and 2.5%) were treated in an ultrasonic bath (40 kHz, 200 W, & 9.34 W/cm 2 ) at different times (0, 15, and 45 min). Results showed that salt reduction and ultrasound time significantly (p < 0.05) affected the cooking loss, water holding capacity, water activity, pH, color, hardness, viscosity, storage modulus (G'), loss modulus (G″), and phase angle δ. Meat emulsions with low salt content (1 and 1.5% NaCl) showed significantly higher values of cooking loss than standard emulsions (2.5% NaCl), while ultrasound duration of 15 min reduced the cooking loss (12 to 27%). Hardness, color, pH, and water activity (aw) decreased with salt reduction. Ultrasounds increased the hardness, viscosity, G', and G'' values in reduced-salt meat. The experimental data of apparent viscosity were properly fitted to the mathematical model of Ostwald-de-Waele. Ultrasound increased consistency (k) and decreased flow behavior index (n) in emulsions with 1.5 to 2.5% NaCl. Ultrasound at 15 min induced gelation in emulsions with 1.5 and 2.0% NaCl (40 and 20% NaCl reduction). The formulation with 2.0% NaCl was found to be the maximum concentration that did not sacrifice meat emulsion quality. When combined with 15 min of ultrasound, this formulation yielded results comparable to the standard formulation. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Results contribute to developing reduced-salt meat emulsions using power ultrasounds. Therefore, using ultrasounds allows for a 20% reduction in salt content while maintaining the quality of the meat emulsion., (© 2023 Institute of Food Technologists.)

In industrial applications based on texture classification, efficient and fast classifiers are extremely useful for quality control of industrial processes. The classifier of texture images has to satisfy two requirements: It must be efficient and fast. In this work, a texture unit is coded in parallel, and using observation windows larger than 3×3, a new texture spectrum called Texture Spectrum based on the Parallel Encoded Texture Unit (TS&#95;PETU) is proposed, calculated, and used as a characteristic vector in a multi-class classifier, and then two image databases are classified. The first database contains images from the company Interceramic ®® and the images were acquired under controlled conditions, and the second database contains tree stems and the images were acquired in natural environments. Based on our experimental results, the TS&#95;PETU satisfied both requirements (efficiency and speed), was developed for binary images, and had high efficiency, and its compute time could be reduced by applying parallel coding concepts. The classification efficiency increased by using larger observational windows, and this one was selected based on the window size. Since the TS&#95;PETU had high efficiency for Interceramic ®® tile classification, we consider that the proposed technique has significant industrial applications.

Armadillos are considered important reservoir hosts for Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease. The first report of T. cruzi infection in pichis (Zaedyus pichiy), a small armadillo species endemic to central Argentina and Chile, dates back to 1935. However, more recent reports on T. cruzi in this species are scarce. The objective of this study was to assess T. cruzi infection and parasite load in Z. pichiy from Mendoza Province, an area endemic to human Chagas disease. Blood samples were obtained in 2014-2016 from pichis from Lavalle (low Monte), Malargüe (Patagonian steppe), and San Carlos (ecotone) departments, Mendoza Province, Argentina. The detection and quantification of T. cruzi was performed through qPCR amplification using satellite primers. Of the 265 analyzed samples, 201 (76%) were positive for T. cruzi. Parasite loads varied between < 0.1-55.8 parasite-equivalents/mL (par-eq/mL), with a median of 1.1 par-eq/mL in quantifiable samples. The prevalence was similar in Malargüe and Lavalle (85-94%), but significantly lower in pichis from San Carlos (50%). Animals from Lavalle captured after hibernation had significantly higher parasite loads (median 2.0 par-eq/mL). In Malargüe, T. cruzi infection and parasite loads were significantly lower before than after hibernation in 2016. The high prevalence and low median parasite load suggest a chronic and persistent infection of T. cruzi in pichis. Regional differences and a marked increase in precipitation during 2015-2016 could have influenced annual and seasonal infection rates of this vector-borne disease., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Introduction: Allergen immunotherapy (AIT) brings along changes in the immune system, restoring dendritic cell function, reducing T2 inflammation and augmenting the regulatory cell activation. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections, interferes with the immune system causing immune suppression during the first phase and over-activation in more advanced disease. We decided to explore the interaction of both in a real-world observational trial., Methods: We registered COVID-19 outcomes in patients with allergic disorders in Latin America, treated with and without AIT. The registry was conducted during the first 1.3 years of the pandemic, with most of the data collected before COVID-19 vaccination was concluded in most countries. Data collection was anonymous via a web-based instrument. Ten countries participated., Results: 630/1095 (57.6%) of the included patients received AIT. Compared to patients without AIT, those treated with AIT had a reduced risk ratio (RR) for COVID-19 lower respiratory symptoms (RR 0.78, 95% CI: 0.6703-0.9024; p = 0.001662) and need for oxygen therapy (RR 0.65, 95% CI: 0.4217-0.9992; p = 0.048). In adherent patients on maintenance sublingual immunotherapy/subcutaneous immunotherapy (SLIT/SCIT) the RR reduction was larger [RR = 0.6136 (95% CI 0.4623-0.8143; p < 0.001) and RR: 0.3495 (95% CI 0.1822-0.6701; p < 0.005), respectively]. SLIT was slightly more effective (NS). We excluded age, comorbidities, level of health care attendance, and type of allergic disorder as confounders, although asthma was related to a higher frequency of severe disease. When analyzing patients with allergic asthma (n = 503) the RR reduction favoring AIT was more pronounced with 30% for lower respiratory symptoms or worse (RR 0.6914, 95% CI 0.5264 to 0.9081, p = 0.0087) and 51% for need of oxygen therapy or worse (RR 0.4868, 95% CI 0.2829-0.8376, p = 0.0082). Among severe allergic patients treated with biologics (n = 24) only 2/24 needed oxygen therapy. There were no critical cases among them., Conclusion: In our registry AIT was associated with reduced COVID-19 severity., Competing Interests: None of the authors has any direct COI related to the content of this manuscript., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Sprouts, mainly from cereals, legumes, and some pseudo-cereals, are rich in nutrients and contain biocompounds, making them attractive for consumption. This research study aimed to develop treatments with UV-C light in soybean and amaranth sprouts and evaluate their effect on biocompounds content, compared with chlorine treatments. UV-C treatments were applied at distances of 3 and 5 cm and times of 2.5, 5, 10, 15, 20, and 30 min, whereas chlorine treatments were applied as immersion in solutions at 100 and 200 ppm for 15 min. Phenolics and flavonoid content were higher in UV-C-treated sprouts than in those treated with chlorine solutions. Ten biocompounds were identified in soybean sprouts, with increasing in apigenin C-glucoside-rhamnoside (105%), apigenin 7-O-glucosylglucoside (237%), and apigenin C-glucoside malonylated (70%) due to UV-C application (3 cm, 15 min); for amaranth sprouts, five biocompounds were identified, with higher contents of p-coumaroylquinic acid (17.7%) after UV-C treatment (3 cm, 15 min). The best treatment to achieve the highest bioactive compounds concentration was UV-C at a distance of 3 cm for 15 min, without significant modification on the color parameters, Hue and chroma. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: UV-C can be used to increase the biocompound content in amaranth and soybean sprouts. Nowadays, there is UV-C equipment available for industrial applications. In this way, sprouts may be maintained as fresh through this physical technology, and they will retain or increase the concentration of health-related compounds., (© 2023 Institute of Food Technologists.)

A new graphical user interface (GUI) for the parsimony program TNT is presented that works under the Linux and Mac operating systems, as well as the Cygwin environment (which runs under Windows). The new interface is based on the GIMP Tool Kit, GTK (version 3). Formerly, only Windows versions of TNT had a GUI. The new interface improves upon the existing Windows GUI in several respects. These changes, together with several additions to the program since the publication of version 1.5, warrant a change in minor version, thus moving from version 1.5 to 1.6. Among the most notable improvements are the possibility to access graphical user dialogs by means of simple commands, to easily save trees in SVG format ("Scalable Vector Graphics") directly from any tree-diagram being displayed, and to manage analyses in parallel (using multiple processors, by means of the PVM system or "Parallel Virtual Machine"), as well as a generally more stable and consistent behaviour. As the binaries for the new version are compiled as native 64-bit applications, this removes the limitations for accessing large amounts of memory in the previous GUI Windows interface (which is a 32-bit application)., (© 2023 Willi Hennig Society.)

BACKGROUND Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory disease caused by endometrial tissue that grows outside the uterus. Deep endometriosis surgery is associated with considerable rates of complications, although such rates are lower in surgical procedures carried out by expert surgical teams. This report details a case of a rare but life-threatening complication in the postoperative period following 72 h of endometriosis surgery: a giant subcapsular hepatic hematoma, which was successfully managed conservatively. CASE REPORT Here we describe the case of a 39-year-old woman with deep endometriosis with ureteral, ovarian, and intestinal involvement requiring multidisciplinary surgery. She presented with severe anemia, respiratory distress, and oliguria 72 h postoperatively. A 3-phase computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a giant intrahepatic subcapsular hematoma (180×165×50 mm) lateral to the right hepatic lobe, which was managed conservatively. The patient evolved favorably and the hematoma was reduced (77×16 mm) in a follow-up CT scan performed 5 months later. CONCLUSIONS Giant liver hematoma is a rare, life-threatening complication. The current experience relating to its management remains largely limited owing to the rarity of the condition and paucity of published cases. Actually, we found no articles on hepatic hematoma in the context of endometriosis surgery. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential to reduce the patient's risk of death. Imaging diagnosis plays an essential role.

The transmission cycles of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, include a wide variety of mammals and hematophagous triatomine insects. Infection with this blood parasite has been confirmed in many armadillo species; however, information on infection in Zaedyus pichiy, a small armadillo that inhabits areas endemic to Chagas disease, is scarce. Our objective was to determine the infection frequency and parasite load of T. cruzi in 49 wild Z. pichiy confiscated dead from poachers in Mendoza, Argentina, 2010-2017. We detected T. cruzi DNA in 32 of 49 armadillos (65%) using real-time PCR, confirming infection with T. cruzi in a high proportion of confiscated pichis. No differences were found related to sex, age, or ecoregion origin of the assessed pichis. Parasite loads ranged between <0.1 and 8.88 parasite equivalents/microgram cardiac tissue. Additional studies on the infection status of Z. pichiy are needed to determine their role in the maintenance of the sylvatic transmission cycle and the potential zoonotic risk from hunted pichis., (© Wildlife Disease Association 2023.)

Phylogenetic inference, which involves time-consuming calculations, is a field where parallelization can speed up the resolution of many problems. TNT (a widely used program for phylogenetic analysis under parsimony) allows parallelization under the PVM system (Parallel Virtual Machine). However, as the basic aspects of the implementation remain unpublished, few studies have taken advantage of the parallelization routines of TNT. In addition, the PVM system is deprecated by many system administrators. One of the most common standards for high performance computing is now MPI (Message Passing Interface). To facilitate the use of the parallel analyses offered by TNT, this paper describes the basic aspects of the implementation, as well as a port of the parallelization interface of TNT into MPI. The use of the new routines is illustrated by reanalysis of seven significant datasets, either recent phylogenomic datasets with many characters (up to 2,509,064 characters) or datasets with large numbers of taxa (up to 13,921 taxa). Versions of TNT including the MPI functionality are available at: http://www.lillo.org.ar/phylogeny/tnt/., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The relationship between ecology and morphology is a cornerstone of evolutionary biology, and quantifying variation across environments can shed light on processes that give rise to biodiversity. Three morphotypes of the Steller's Jay ( Cyanocitta stelleri ) occupy different ecoregions in western North America, which vary in climate and landcover. These morphotypes (Coastal, Interior, Rocky Mountain) differ in size, plumage coloration, and head pattern. We sampled 1080 Steller's Jays from 68 populations (plus 11 outgroups) to address three main questions using data on morphology, plumage, genetics (mtDNA, microsatellites), and ecological niches: (1) How do phenotypic and genetic traits vary within and among populations, morphotypes, and ecoregions? (2) How do population-level differences in Steller's Jays compare with other sister species pairs of North American birds? (3) What can we infer about the population history of Steller's Jays in relation to past climates, paleoecology, and niche evolution? We found substantial morphological, genetic, and ecological differentiation among morphotypes. The greatest genetic divergence separated Coastal and Interior morphotypes from the Rocky Mountain morphotype, which was associated with warmer, drier, and more open habitats. Microsatellites revealed additional structure between Coastal and Interior groups. The deep mtDNA split between Coastal/Interior and Rocky Mountain lineages of Steller's Jay (ND2 ~ 7.8%) is older than most North American avian sister species and dates to approximately 4.3 mya. Interior and Rocky Mountain morphotypes contact across a narrow zone with steep clines in traits and reduced gene flow. The distribution of the three morphotypes coincides with divergent varieties of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. Species distribution models support multiple glacial refugia for Steller's Jays. Our integrative dataset combined with extensive geographic sampling provides compelling evidence for recognizing at least two species of Steller's Jay., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Twenty-five percent of cases of endometrial cancer appear in women with unfulfilled reproductive desires . An adequate selection of patients and a close hysteroscopic follow-up to monitor the endometrial response to the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) may be a valid and safe option for these patients . This is a case series and review of the literature study. We included eight patients diagnosed of complex endometrial hyperplasia with atypia (CEHA) or stage 1AG1 well-differentiated endometrial cancer without myometrial invasion who desired to get pregnant and opted for a conservative treatment. Follow-up was performed with hysteroscopy and directed biopsy at 3, 6 and 12 months. Of the 854 cases of complex endometrial hyperplasia with atypia (CEHA)/endometrial cancer were diagnosed, 2.3% were candidates for conservative management. We obtained a favourable regression of 71.2% at 6 months and 57% at one year with hormonal treatment. Conservative treatment in complex endometrial hyperplasia with atypia (CEHA)/low-grade endometrial cancer in reproductive age patients with a strong desire for pregnancy is feasible.

Meat is a nutrient-rich matrix for human consumption. However, it is also a suitable environment for the proliferation of both spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms. The growing demand to develop healthy and nutritious meat products with low fat, low salt and reduced additives and achieving sanitary qualities has led to the replacement of the use of synthetic preservatives with natural-origin compounds. However, the reformulation process that reduces the content of several important ingredients (salt, curing salts, etc.), which inhibit the growth of multiple microorganisms, greatly compromises the stability and safety of meat products, thus posing a great risk to consumer health. To avoid this potential growth of spoiling and/or pathogenic microorganisms, numerous molecules, including organic acids and their salts; plant-derived compounds, such as extracts or essential oils; bacteriocins; and edible coatings are being investigated for their antimicrobial activity. This review presents some important compounds that have great potential to be used as natural antimicrobials in reformulated meat products.

In recent years, consumer perception about the healthiness of meat products has changed. In this scenario, the meat industry and the scientific and technological areas have put their efforts into improving meat products and achieving healthier and functional formulations that meet the demands of today's market and consumers. This article aims to review the current functional fermented meat products, especially on sausage development. Firstly, an emphasis is given to reducing and replacing traditional ingredients associated with increased risk to consumer's health (sodium, fat, and nitrites), adding functional components (prebiotics, probiotics, symbiotics, and polyphenols), and inducing health benefits. Secondly, a look at future fermented sausages is provided by mentioning emerging strategies to produce innovative healthier and functional meat products. Additional recommendations were also included to assist researchers in further development of healthier and functional sausages.

The inclusion of winter cover crops (WCC) in no-till (NT) systems in replacement of bare fallow is a promising alternative to improve soil health and consequently, contribute to environmental sustainability of agricultural systems. This review provides a comprehensive evaluation of the effects of the use of WCC in rotation with summer cash crops under NT systems on the soil microbiome versus bare fallows. A systematic literature search was conducted to evaluate the impact of WCC on microbial parameters indicative of abundance, activity and diversity. Twenty-two papers were selected based on seven combined criteria. The results of this review show that enzyme activities in soil are enhanced with the inclusion of WCC in the rotation, particularly those that include legumes and mix of species. In general, more than half of the analyzed papers report higher microbial biomass in soils with WCC than in bare fallow. Interestingly, the effects of WCC on microbial parameters are independent of the duration of the experiments. However, more basic research is necessary to reduce the heterogeneity of the studies and to better understand the complexity of the interactions between WCC and the soil microbiome., (Copyright © 2021 Asociación Argentina de Microbiología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Exogenous neuroprotective protein neuroglobin (Ngb) cannot cross the blood-brain barrier. To overcome this difficulty, we synthesized hyaluronate nanoparticles (NPs), able to deliver Ngb into the brain in an animal model of stroke (MCAO). These NPs effectively reached neurons, and were microscopically identified after 24 h of reperfusion. Compared to MCAO non-treated animals, those treated with Ngb-NPs showed survival rates up to 50% higher, and better neurological scores. Tissue damage improved with the treatment, but no changes in the infarct volume or in the oxidative/nitrosative values were detected. A proteomics approach ( p -value < 0.02; fold change = 0.05) in the infarcted areas showed a total of 219 proteins that significantly changed their expression after stroke and treatment with Ngb-NPs. Of special interest, are proteins such as FBXO7 and NTRK2, which were downexpressed in stroke, but overexpressed after treatment with Ngb-NPs; and ATX2L, which was overexpressed only under the effect of Ngb. Interestingly, the proteins affected by the treatment with Ngb were involved in mitochondrial function and cell death, endocytosis, protein metabolism, cytoskeletal remodeling, or synaptic function, and in regenerative processes, such as dendritogenesis, neuritogenesis, or sinaptogenesis. Consequently, our pharmaceutical preparation may open new therapeutic scopes for stroke and possibly for other neurodegenerative pathologies.

This research analyzed the influence of fat content (1%, 3%, 5%, and 10%, w.b.) and of water activity (0.85, 0.90, 0.95, and 0.99) on the effectiveness of microwave heating within model systems (agar gel). Findings indicate that an increased fat content promotes more uniform heating in the model systems and results in longer heating times to reach the target temperature of 50°C. In the model systems with different a w values, the warming of the central model zone was slower while in the corners, heating was accelerated. Additionally, in these models, heating times increased as the a w was decreased. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The study of model systems allows for a detailed assessment of food when subjected to microwaves; and how heating is influenced by food properties such as a w and fat content. Findings indicate that changes in product formulation could improve the heating of ready-to-eat foods, either by increasing the fat content (better uniformity) or having high a w (shorter heating time)., (© 2021 Institute of Food Technologists®.)

Cover crops (CC) have demonstrated beneficial effects on several soil properties yet questions remain regarding their effects on soil microbial communities. Among them, ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) have a key role for N cycling in soil and their responses in the rhizosphere of terminated CC deserve further investigation. A greenhouse experiment was established to assess N fertilization (with or without N) and termination methods (glyphosate, mowing, and untreated control) of common oat ( Avena sativa L.) as potential drivers of AOA and AOB responses in the rhizosphere. The abundance of amoA genes was determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR), the community structure was assessed with Illumina amplicon sequencing of these genes, while the function was assessed from potential nitrification activity (PNA). While N fertilization had no influence on AOA, the termination method significantly increased amoA gene copies of AOA in mowed plants relative to glyphosate termination or the untreated control (1.76 and 1.49-fold change, respectively), and shifted AOA community structure (PERMANOVA, p <0.05). Ordination methods indicated a separation between AOA communities from control and glyphosate-terminated plants relative to mowed plants for both UniFrac and Aitchison distance. Converserly, N fertilization significantly increased AOB abundance in the rhizosphere of mowed and control plants, yet not in glyphosate-treated plants. Analyses of community structure showed that AOB changed only in response to N fertilization and not to the termination method. In line with these results, significantly higher PNA values were measured in all fertilized samples, regardless of the termination methods. Overall, the results of this study indicated that bacterial and archaeal nitrifiers have contrasting responses to fertlization and plant termination methods. While AOA were responsive to the termination method, AOB were more sensitive to N additions, although, the stimulative effect of N fertilization on amoA AOB abundance was dependent on the termination method., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Allegrini, Morales, Villamil and Zabaloy.)

Expression of L1 mRNA, the first step in the L1 copy-and-paste amplification cycle, is a prerequisite for L1-associated genomic instability. We used a reported stringent bioinformatics method to parse L1 mRNA transcripts and measure the level of L1 mRNA expressed in mouse and rat organs at a locus-specific resolution. This analysis determined that mRNA expression of L1 loci in rodents exhibits striking organ specificity with less than 0.8% of loci shared between organs of the same organism. This organ specificity in L1 mRNA expression is preserved in male and female mice and across age groups. We discovered notable differences in L1 mRNA expression between sexes with only 5% of expressed L1 loci shared between male and female mice. Moreover, we report that the levels of total L1 mRNA expression and the number and spectrum of expressed L1 loci fluctuate with age as independent variables, demonstrating different patterns in different organs and sexes. Overall, our comparisons between organs and sexes and across ages ranging from 2 to 22 months establish previously unforeseen dynamic changes in L1 mRNA expression in vivo. These findings establish the beginning of an atlas of endogenous L1 mRNA expression across a broad range of biological variables that will guide future studies., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.)

Pollution due to waste generated by the oil industry has led to serious damage to ecosystems and the environment. Therefore, preventive and corrective actions must be taken to mitigate the ecological impact of waste resulting from oil-related activities, to explore and implement environment-friendly approaches, and achieve sustainable development. In this study, an alternative treatment for cuttings generated during the drilling of oil wells was investigated by extracting the hydrocarbons present in such cuttings through the use of carbon dioxide under supercritical conditions. The extractions were performed in a Supercritical Fluid Technologies Inc. Model SFT-150 extractor, under varying pressure (2300-6600 psi) and temperature (52-109 °C), while maintaining constant carbon dioxide flow rate and extraction time, to analyse the effect of these two thermodynamic variables on the extraction efficiency. During supercritical extraction, 21.51 g of total hydrocarbons from drill cuttings (oil/kg) were recovered at 6000 psi and 100 °C. The results indicated that pressure had the strongest effect on the extraction yield, with only a small amount of hydrocarbons recovered at the lowest pressure for all fractions. At <3000 psi pressure, increasing the temperature led to a decrease in the amount of recovered hydrocarbons; at >3000 psi pressure, increasing the temperature led to an increase in the extraction yield., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Alu elements are the most abundant source of nonallelic homology that influences genetic instability in the human genome. When there is a DNA double-stranded break, the Alu element's high copy number, moderate length and distance and mismatch between elements uniquely influence recombination processes. We utilize a reporter-gene assay to show the complex influence of Alu mismatches on Alu-related repeat-mediated deletions (RMDs). The Alu/Alu heteroduplex intermediate can result in a nonallelic homologous recombination (HR). Alternatively, the heteroduplex can result in various DNA breaks around the Alu elements caused by competing nucleases. These breaks can undergo Alt-nonhomologous end joining to cause deletions focused around the Alu elements. Formation of these heteroduplex intermediates is largely RAD52 dependent. Cells with low ERCC1 levels utilize more of these alternatives resolutions, while cells with MSH2 defects tend to have more RMDs with a specific increase in the HR events. Therefore, Alu elements are expected to create different forms of deletions in various cancers depending on a number of these DNA repair defects., (© 2021 The Authors. Human Mutation published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

The knowledge of the dielectric properties of oils is of great importance for several industrial applications, such as microwave-assisted oil frying for foods and high voltage electric power transmission. In this paper, we present the complex permittivity of vegetable oils (canola, olive, soybean, coconut) at 2.50 GHz using the cavity perturbation technique from 28 to 200 °C (temperature close to the smoking point of oils). The measurements were taken with a cylindrical cavity operating at the TE 111 mode with an unloaded Q of 4950. In addition, free fatty acids, peroxide index and color were measured before and after heating., (© Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) 2020.)

Dielectric properties (DPs) of fresh rabbit meat in the microwave range (0.5 to 20 GHz) were determined. Three different muscles (Biceps femoris, Tensor fasciae latae, and Longissimus thoracis) from California rabbits (male and female) were measured with the open-ended coaxial probe method at temperatures of 20, 40, and 60 °C. To assess the possible effect of age, females of 100 and 180 days old were analyzed. DPs were affected by frequency, muscle type, age, gender, and temperature (p < 0.05). Dielectric constant decreased with increasing frequency. Loss factor decreased from 0.5 to 2.5 GHz due to ionic conduction, followed by an increase up to 20 GHz, dominated by dipolar relaxation. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: These results are key parameters for further quality sensing applications and for heating processes of meat rabbit using microwaves. Longer penetration depths were achieved at 915 MHz; this frequency is recommended for further applications. Besides, dielectric properties have potential to be a tool for identification of gender and age for slaughtered rabbits., (© 2021 Institute of Food Technologists®.)

Objective: To summarize the current literature on disparities in the treatment of chronic pain., Methods: We focused on studies conducted in the United States and published from 2000 and onward. Studies of cross-sectional, longitudinal, and interventional designs were included., Results: A review of the current literature revealed that an adverse association between non-White race and treatment of chronic pain is well supported. Studies have also shown that racial differences exist in the long-term monitoring for opioid misuse among patients suffering from chronic pain. In addition, a patient's sociodemographic profile appears to influence the relationship between chronic pain and quality of life. Results from interventional studies were mixed., Conclusions: Disparities exist within the treatment of chronic pain. Currently, it is unclear how to best combat these disparities. Further work is needed to understand why disparities exist and to identify points in patients' treatment when they are most vulnerable to unequal care. Such work will help guide the development and implementation of effective interventions., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Academy of Pain Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Plants are rich in bioactive compounds (BACs), mainly polyphenols, which are valuable choices to replace synthetic antioxidants in meat products. These natural antioxidants from plants, in the form of extracts and essential oils (EOs), have been obtained from different sources such as fruits (dragon fruit, guarana, pomegranate), vegetables, (cabbage, onion), herbs, and spices (epazote, ginger, rosemary, sage, thyme, turmeric, winter savory) by several extraction processes. However, in the context of current directives there is a notable incentive for "green" solvents to replace organic ones and conventional techniques, in order to avoid harm to the environment, operator, and consumer health. In addition, the recycling of co-products from the processing of these plant materials allow us to obtain valuable BACs from under-exploited materials, contributing to the revalorization of these wastes. The resulting extracts allow us to maintain the quality of meat products, exhibiting similar or better antioxidant properties compared to those shown by synthetic ones. Their incorporation in fresh meat products would maintain the oxidative stability, stabilizing colour parameters, decreasing the formation of metmyoglobin, lipid, and protein oxidation and the generation of lipid-derived volatile compounds, without affecting sensory attributes. In addition, these novel ingredients contribute to improve both technological and functional characteristics, thus diversifying the offer of so-called "wellness foods". In this review, the application of plant extracts as natural antioxidants in several fresh meat products is presented, showing their efficacy as scavenging radicals and imparting additional health benefits.

The dielectric properties and specifically the complex relative permittivity of foods are key elements for the design of pasteurization processes with high frequency electromagnetic waves. Mexican sauces are recognized worldwide for their flavor and nutritional properties. In this work, the complex permittivity of four of the most representative sauces of Mexican cuisine (chipotle chili, habanero chili, red and green sauce) is presented. The permittivity was measured with the open coaxial probe method at temperatures of 25, 40, 55, 70, 85 °C and in the frequency range of 500 MHz to 6 GHz. Additionally, moisture content, specific heat, viscosity, water activity, density and electrical conductivity are reported, these last three at 25 °C. Dielectric properties were affected by the sauce formulation. The loss factor of each sauce sample at any temperature presents significant changes in relation to the frequency. At 915 and 2,450 MHz, d ε ' ' d T > 0 , which would cause a thermal runaway effect or the uncontrolled rise in temperature in the sauces during the microwave pasteurization. At 5,800 MHz, d ε ' ' d T < 0 , which would give better control for microwave heating than at 915 and 2,450 MHz. At 915 MHz, the loss factor of all sauces is higher than at 2,450 and 5,800 MHz, therefore, more rapid heating can be produced. Moreover, at 915 MHz, microwaves exhibit higher penetration depth than at 2,450 and 5,800 MHz; therefore, at 915 MHz, the greatest uniform microwave dielectric heating would be achieved. Thus, 915 MHz is the frequency recommended for the studied sauces pasteurization. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: This work provides the dielectric properties of Mexican sauces at different temperatures and their penetration depths in the microwave range, which are key information for further microwave-assisted pasteurization process and for getting safer sauces for consumers. Moreover, this research supplies suggestions about what frequency for ISM (Industrial, Scientific and Medical) applications is the best for microwave-assisted pasteurization according to the penetration depth of the electromagnetic wave in the sauces and microwave dielectric heating speed of the sauces., (© 2020 Institute of Food Technologists®.)

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, adherence to hygiene measures is an objective aimed at reducing morbidity and mortality., Objective: To evaluate adherence to hand hygiene and protection measures during the COVID-19 pandemic in a tertiary care hospital., Methods: Cross-sectional study on health personnel handwashing at the five moments recommended by the World Health Organization, as well as on the use of specific personal protective equipment., Results: One hundred and seventeen hand hygiene opportunities were observed in health personnel. Hand washing was observed in 40 (34 %) and omission in 76 (65 %). Adherence to the use of face shield was observed in five (4 %), and lack of adherence in 112 (96%). Adherence to the use of face mask was observed in 65 nursing professionals (87 %), with appropriate use of the mask in 56 of them (60 %) and use of face shield in one (1 %)., Conclusion: Health personnel showed low proportions of adherence to hand hygiene and use of equipment for specific protection during the COVID-19 pandemic., (Copyright: © 2021 Permanyer.)

Mendoza province, in central west Argentina, is considered among the high-risk provinces for vector transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease. Extensive goat farming is common in large parts of rural Mendoza, and goats may act as a reservoir for this parasite. The objective of this study was to determine infection rates, parasite loads, and seasonal variation of these parameters in T. cruzi infection in goats from rural areas of three departments of Mendoza. A total of 349 peripheral blood samples with EDTA / guanidine were analyzed from goats on 11 farms (three in Lavalle, three in San Carlos, and five in Malargüe department) in spring of 2014, 2015, and 2016; and in fall of 2015 and 2016 (only Malargüe). DNA was extracted using a Phenol: Chloroform: Isoamyl protocol. The detection and quantification of T. cruzi was performed through qPCR amplification using satellite oligonucleotides. Of the 349 blood samples, 267 (77%) were positive, with parasite loads ranging between <0.10 and 10.90 par-eq/mL (median 0.10). In spring, frequencies of infection in the three departments ranged between 86% and 95%, but differences were not significant. Median parasite loads were higher in Lavalle than in the other departments, while those in goats from San Carlos were consistently low. The frequency of infection and parasite loads in Malargüe were significantly higher in spring than in fall. This seasonal variation may have been related to a reduced nutritional status and impaired immune response of goats in spring. In conclusion, the high proportion of positive goats confirms the persistence of T. cruzi in rural Mendoza., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors have no competing interests to declare., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The dielectric properties of litchi fruit were determined using the open-ended coaxial probe method. The measurements were performed in the frequency range from 0.5 to 20 GHz during 3 days of storage at room temperature (~  24 °C). The dielectric properties increased with storage time. Additionally, measurements at different temperatures (24, 30, 40 and 50 °C) were determined. The dielectric constant ( ε ') decreased with increasing temperature in a frequency range of 0.5-5 GHz; at higher frequencies, ε' increased with increasing temperature. The loss factor ( ε ″) value increased at frequencies higher than 2 GHz and decreased with increasing temperature. The results will be useful for further applications using microwaves, such as microwave-assisted drying, sensing of quality parameters, modeling, and heating to protect against molds or insects, among other applications., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) 2020.)

Motivation: TNT (a widely used program for phylogenetic analysis) includes an interpreter for a scripting language, but that implementation is nonstandard and uses several conventions of its own. This article describes the implementation and basic usage of a C interpreter (with all the ISO essentials) now included in TNT. A phylogenetic library includes functions that can be used for manipulating trees and data, as well as other phylogeny-specific tasks. This greatly extends the capabilities of TNT., Availability and Implementation: Versions of TNT including the C interpreter for scripts can be downloaded from http://www.lillo.org.ar/phylogeny/tnt/., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Phosphonates are organic phosphorous (P) compounds frequently detected in the environment due to a very stable CP bond that render them relatively recalcitrant. Glyphosate [N-phosphonomethyl glycine] is the most widely used and best-known synthetic phosphonate, and one of the most concerning herbicides in the world today. Microbial degradation of glyphosate and organophosphonates in general, is the main dissipation mechanism operating in most environments. One microbial metabolic pathway in this process is the CP lyase pathway, entailing an enzymatic complex encoded by about 14 genes (the Phn operon). Our goal was to develop a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay for a key enzyme, the CP lyase that breaks down the CP bond, via quantification of the codifying phnJ gene. The primers designed in this study fulfill the requirements for a successful qPCR assay, with high efficiency and sensitivity, as well as specific detection of the target sequence in a wide range of taxonomic groups. This is, to our knowledge, the first report of primers designed to target phnJ in both pure cultures and metagenomic DNA from different environmental sources. Direct quantification of phnJ may be a cost-effective proxy to determine glyphosate degradation potential in different matrixes., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Interferometry sensors are frequently analyzed by applying the Fourier transform because the transformation separates all frequency components of its signal, making its study on a complex plane feasible. In this work, we study the relation between the optical path difference (OPD) and poles location theoretically and experimentally, using the Laplace transform and a pole-zero map. Theory and experiments are in concordance. For our study, only the cosine function was considered, which is filtered from the interference pattern. In experimental work, two unperturbed low-finesse Fabry-Pérot interferometers were used. First, a Fabry-Pérot interferometer that has a cavity length of ~1.6 mm was used. Its optical path difference was 2.33 mm and the poles were localized at points ±i12. rad/nm. Secondly, a Fabry-Pérot interferometer with a cavity length of ~5.2 mm was used, and its optical path difference was 7.59 mm and the poles were localized at points ±i40.4 rad/nm. Experimental results confirmed the theoretical analysis. Our proposal finds practical application for interferometer analysis, signal processing of optical fiber sensors, communication system analysis, and multiplexing systems based on interferometers., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Use of fungicides is a common practice as a postharvest treatment to control fruit decay. Nowadays, environment friendly technologies, such as heat treatments, are viable replacements. This study evaluated the effects of post-harvest heat treatments (traditional and microwave-assisted) on mandarins intentionally inoculated with Penicillium digitatum . For the studied heat treatments, the target temperature was 50 °C, which was held for 2.5 min. After heating, mandarins were cooled and stored at 25 °C for 13 days. MW treatments effectively prevented mold growth during storage, while HW only delayed it. Control mandarins (without treatment) showed the highest significant weight loss. Neither thermal treatment nor storage affected fruit juice pH (p > 0.05). Treated mandarins had a significantly lower vitamin C content than control fruits throughout storage, and all mandarins lost firmness by the 13 th day (p < 0.05). Control and MW-treated mandarins had lower citric acid content; however, they retained color, total soluble solids (TSS) and had a higher maturity index. While HW mandarins did not have changes in citric acid content, they had higher TSS, and lower maturity index. MW-assisted treatments were effective at inactivating molds and helped retain some nutritional and physical-chemical characteristics of mandarins. However, juice of MW-treated mandarins was not preferred by judges in the sensory tests, the juice was rated lower than that obtained from the other treatment. Postharvest heat treatments may constitute a helpful application to control mandarin' fungal decay., (© 2020 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Background: Retrotransposons are one of the oldest evolutionary forces shaping mammalian genomes, with the ability to mobilize from one genomic location to another. This mobilization is also a significant factor in human disease. The only autonomous human retroelement, L1, has propagated to make up 17% of the human genome, accumulating over 500,000 copies. The majority of these loci are truncated or defective with only a few reported to remain capable of retrotransposition. We have previously published a strand-specific RNA-Seq bioinformatics approach to stringently identify at the locus-specific level the few expressed full-length L1s using cytoplasmic RNA. With growing repositories of RNA-Seq data, there is potential to mine these datasets to identify and study expressed L1s at single-locus resolution, although many datasets are not strand-specific or not generated from cytoplasmic RNA., Results: We developed whole-cell, cytoplasmic and nuclear RNA-Seq datasets from 22Rv1 prostate cancer cells to test the influence of different preparations on the quality and effort needed to measure L1 expression. We found that there was minimal data loss in the identification of full-length expressed L1 s using whole cell, strand-specific RNA-Seq data compared to cytoplasmic, strand-specific RNA-Seq data. However, this was only possible with an increased amount of manual curation of the bioinformatics output to eliminate increased background. About half of the data was lost when the sequenced datasets were non-strand specific., Conclusions: The results of these studies demonstrate that with rigorous manual curation the utilization of stranded RNA-Seq datasets allow identification of expressed L1 loci from either cytoplasmic or whole-cell RNA-Seq datasets., Competing Interests: Competing interestsThe authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© The Author(s). 2020.)

Therapies against stroke can restore the blood supply but cannot prevent the ischemic damage nor stimulate the recovery of the infarcted zone. The neuroglobin protein plays an important role in the neuro-regeneration process after stroke; however, the method for its effective systemic application has not been identified yet, as neuroglobin is unable to pass through the blood-brain barrier. Previously, we developed different types of sodium hyaluronate nanoparticles, which successfully cross the blood-brain barrier after stroke. In this work, these nanoparticles have been used to carry neuroglobin through the bloodstream to the nerve cells in rats submitted to stroke. We have biosynthesized rat-recombinant neuroglobin and determined the formulation of sodium hyaluronate nanoparticles loaded with neuroglobin, as well as its size and ζ-potential, encapsulation efficiently, in vitro release, and its kinetic of liberation. The results show that the formulation achieved is highly compatible with pharmaceutical use and may act as a delivery system to transport neuroglobin within the blood. We have found that this formulation injected intravenously immediately after stroke reached the damaged cerebral parenchyma at early stages (2 h). Neuroglobin colocalizes with its nanocarriers inside the nerve cells and remains after 24 h of reperfusion. In conclusion, the systemic administration of neuroglobin linked to nanoparticles is a potential neuroprotective drug-delivery strategy after stroke episodes.

There are few trials published on treatment in elderly women with low-risk breast cancer. Although the clinical behavior is like younger patients, there is a tendency to undertreat them, which may lead to an increase in the risk of local relapses and decrease their survival. The local recurrences omitting adjuvant treatment (tamoxifen or radiotherapy) after breast conserving surgery (BCS) even in low-risk patients is high, reaching up 20%, which is unacceptable. Although tamoxifen and radiotherapy seem to have a similar effect in reducing local recurrence with equal overall survival, the combination of both achieves the maximum benefit with local relapses of less than 2%. In recent years two studies have been published and were designed specifically for elderly patients. The CALGB 9343 and the PRIME II trials recommend omitting radiotherapy in patients with low-risk tumors treated with BCS and tamoxifen based on a similar survival, but with an increase in local relapses when radiotherapy is omitted, 10% at 10 years vs. 2%. There is no basis to ensure that a treatment with tamoxifen has less toxicity in this group of patients who are usually poly-treated, and it seems that treatment compliance is much lower than expected. The decrease in the number of sessions in external radiotherapy with hypofractionation and accelerate partial breast irradiation, especially intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) with a single session, makes this recommendation very controversial. Elderly patients may benefit from radiation therapy after BCS., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at http://dx.doi.org/10.21037/tcr.2019.06.49). The series “Radiotherapy for Breast Cancer in Advanced Age” was commissioned by the editorial office without any funding or sponsorship. The authors have no other conflicts of interest to declare., (2020 Translational Cancer Research. All rights reserved.)