Uptake and translocation of metals in different parts of crop plants irrigated with contaminated water from DEPZ area of Bangladesh.

Metal contamination in arable soils and crops grown in and around an industrial area of Bangladesh were measured, and the transfer factor from soils to crops was calculated accordingly. The highest concentration was observed for Fe and the order of metal concentration was Fe > Zn > Cr > Pb > Cu > Ni > Cd in soils. Bioaccumulation and translocation of metals from roots to edible parts of the crop plants were varied for almost all elements studied. Absorption of metals was significantly more in the roots compared to other plant parts. Accumulation of all metals in the edible parts of the plants was compared with the recommended maximum tolerable levels proposed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives. Bioconcentration factors values based on dry weights were below one for all metals except Cu in the rice roots and decreased in the order of Cu > Zn > Fe > Pb > Ni > Cd > Cr.

Conversion to drip irrigated agriculture may offset historic anthropogenic and wildfire contributions to sediment production.

This study is an investigation into the roles of wildfire and changing agricultural practices in controlling the inter-decadal scale trends of suspended sediment production from semi-arid mountainous rivers. In the test case, a decreasing trend in suspended sediment concentrations was found in the lower Salinas River, California between 1967 and 2011. Event to decadal scale patterns in sediment production in the Salinas River have been found to be largely controlled by antecedent hydrologic conditions. Decreasing suspended sediment concentrations over the last 15years of the record departed from those expected from climatic/hydrologic forcing. Sediment production from the mountainous headwaters of the central California Coast Ranges is known to be dominated by the interaction of wildfire and large rainfall/runoff events, including the Arroyo Seco, an ~700km(2) subbasin of the Salinas River. However, the decreasing trend in Salinas River suspended sediment concentrations run contrary to increases in the watershed's effective burn area over time. The sediment source area of the Salinas River is an order of magnitude larger than that of the Arroyo Seco, and includes a more complicated mosaic of land cover and land use. The departure from hydrologic forcings on suspended sediment concentration patterns was found to coincide with a rapid conversion of irrigation practices from sprinkler and furrow to subsurface drip irrigation. Changes in agricultural operations appear to have decreased sediment supply to the Salinas River over the late 20th to early 21st centuries, obscuring the influence of wildfire on suspended sediment production.

Rheumatoid nodulosis: a puzzling variant of rheumatoid arthritis.

Four patients with rheumatoid nodulosis are here described, together with a review of cases reported to date in the literature. This particular variant of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by the presence of subcutaneous rheumatoid nodules, scanty or absent systemic manifestations and a clinically benign course. Joint involvement appears more commonly as palindromic rheumatism, although patients with arthralgia episodes alone and others with chronic polyarthritis have been described. Seldom reported up to now, a consideration of this entity may help to avoid diagnostic pitfalls and the use of aggressive therapy.

Joint involvement in polymyositis/dermatomyositis.

The frequency and features of joint involvement were evaluated in 29 patients with polymyositis/dermatomyositis (PM/DM); eight of them (27.5%) presented arthritis. Mean age was 30 years, and mean disease duration was 5.3 years. Oligoarthritis was observed in 5 cases, while 3 presented polyarthritis; in most cases arthritis was concurrent with the musculocutaneous picture. On comparing the 8 arthritis patients with the remaining 21, no significant clinical or serological differences were found. However, males predominated in the arthritis group, 75% vs 19% (p < 0.05). Arthritis responded favourably to underlying disease treatment and articular sequelae were not observed.

[Wunderlich's syndrome: report of 3 cases]. / Síndrome de Wunderlich: a propósito de tres casos.

Report of three cases of Wunderlich Syndrome secondary to renal adenocarcinoma, hydronephrosis and non-filar blood dyscrasia, highlighting its uncommon etiology. Brief review of the etiopathogenic, diagnostic and therapeutical aspects, pointing out the relevance of renal ultrasonography and, most specially, abdominal CAT to achieve a definitive diagnosis and to determine the attitude to follow, trying to use conservative surgery whenever possible, although our three cases were treated with nephrectomy.

Alkaline CuO oxidation with a microwave digestion system: lignin analyses of geochemical samples.

A novel approach for the analysis of lignin in geochemical samples has been developed as an alternative to the alkaline CuO oxidation procedure first developed in 1982. The new procedure utilizes microwave digestion technology, as opposed to conductive heating, to carry out oxidative hydrolysis of six samples in an oxygen-free atmosphere at 150 degrees C for 90 min. Ethyl acetate is used as the extraction solvent in place of diethyl ether. Additionally, the new method incorporates a simplified extraction procedure that minimizes solvent handling and the amount of glassware needed. Under these novel conditions, the yields and compositions of lignin phenols from four different samples (modern and ancient sediments; woody and nonwoody tissues) match those obtained by the "traditional" procedure. The significant advantages of this new alkaline CuO oxidation method include faster reaction times, the ability to accurately measure and control reaction conditions, added flexibility for the analyst, and a marked increase in the achievable sample throughput.

[Attitude to tobacco and prevalence of smokers among primary care physicians in Guipúzcoa]. / Actitud ante el tabaco y prevalencia de fumadores en médicos de atención primaria de Guipúzcoa.

OBJECTIVE: To discover the evolvement of Primary Care doctors' tobacco consumption in Guipuzcoa and their attitudes to tobacco dependency. DESIGN: A descriptive study of a crossover type. October 1992. SETTING: Primary Health care. PARTICIPANTS: 381 general physicians and paediatricians from Guipuzcoa province. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: A self-filled questionnaire was distributed at Health Centres for subsequent return by mail. The reply rate was 60.89%, 42.3% were smokers; 33.6%, ex-smokers. 43% of smokers smoked in the Centre; 2% in front of patients. We found significant differences (p < 0.05) with a study carried out in 1988, where doctors who smoked were 52.4%, ex-smokers 19% and doctors who smoked in front of patients, 18.2%. 45.7% of women smoked, 39.2% of men. 78% of the doctors under study stated that they questioned patients about tobacco consumption. 95.2% did so when patients had specific pathologies. CONCLUSIONS: There has been a significant decline in tobacco smoking by doctors in Guipuzcoa. There are more women than men smokers. There is a higher proportion of ex-smokers among doctors than in the population as a whole. There has been a positive change of attitude as to smoking in front of patients. Centres should become more involved in the struggle against tobacco by offering to set up dependency counselling groups.