Effects of Adding Different Levels of Hydroponic Barley Fodder on the Productive Performance and Economic Value of Broiler Chickens.

The present study was conducted to disclose the impact of adding different levels of hydroponic barley fodder (HBF) on some productive features of the economic value of broilers chickens. One hundred forty-four one-day-old Ross 308 chicks were used in this study. Birds were randomly distributed into four treatments, with three replicates per each treatment (12 birds per replicate): The first treatment had no addition (T1:control). As for T2 and T3 treatments, 10% and 20% of HBF were added to the feed pellet. In T4, fresh HBF was chopped and fed as an additional free fodder. Results reflected an increase in the weekly live body weight (BW), body weight gain (BWG), feed intake (FI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) of T2 birds; along with an improvement in the cumulative BWG, FI, and FCR of T2 and T4 during the 3rd to 5th weeks compared with the other treatments. Bacteriology and gut morphology demonstrated a decrease in total fungi, bacteria, and E. coli count with an increase in Lactobacillus count, in conjunction with an increase in the villus height and crypt depth of the jejunum of T2 birds. Economic value measures showed an increase in the production index and economic marker for broilers treated with T2 and T4. It can be concluded that there is an opportunity to include HBF by 10% or present it as freshly chopped HBF to ameliorate production performance, improve economic indicators and reduce broiler production costs by 9%.

Evaluation of a Video-Assisted Patient Education Program to Reduce Blood Pressure Delivered Through the Electronic Medical Record: Results of a Quality Improvement Project.

BACKGROUND: Low-cost, automated interventions that increase knowledge and skills around diet and lifestyle modifications are recommended for cardiovascular disease risk reduction. METHODS: We initiated a quality improvement program to assess the impact of a web-based diet and lifestyle intervention utilizing short animated videos in adults with high blood pressure (BP) at a primary care clinic in Saudi Arabia. We enrolled adults with elevated BP, not on BP medications, who were identified using the electronic medical record. We delivered a web-linked diet and lifestyle intervention using animated videos covering diet and lifestyle topics. Videos and reminders were sent weekly for 5 weeks. Outcomes were proportion who engaged in the program, returned for a repeat BP within 3 months, and change in BP. RESULTS: We enrolled 269 adult participants, with a mean (SD) age of 41.6 (12.4) years; 77% were male. At the conclusion of the pilot, we demonstrated a high level of engagement: overall, 69% of materials were viewed and 67% of patients returned for BP. Patients who returned had a mean (SD) baseline systolic BP of 138.0 (7.2) mm Hg and a large mean reduction in systolic BP from baseline, -10.5 mm Hg (12.4; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the feasibility of a video-assisted, web-based, diet and lifestyle intervention as a support tool for hypertension management demonstrated a high participation rate and a high return rate for reassessment of BP. These findings suggest that this low-cost, automated intervention may have a great potential as a scalable tool for blood pressure management. However, randomized trials to understanding the effectiveness of the support tools are needed.

Efficacy and safety of inferior turbinates coblation in children.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness and safety of coblation in relieving inferior turbinate hypertrophy in children. METHODS: An observational cohort study was undertaken. The severity of allergic rhinitis and the severity and degree of nasal obstruction were assessed using subjective and clinical symptom grading tools, a visual analogue scale, and endoscopy. Any post-operative complications were noted at 1 week, and at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months post-operatively. Data from extended follow-up periods were included when available. The statistical significance of changes in parameter values was assessed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. RESULTS: Thirty-two patients were recruited (mean age, 11.28 years; range, 6-17 years). Significant post-operative improvement (p<0.001) was noted in the severity and degree of nasal obstruction. This improvement was maintained after a mean follow-up period of 10.5 months (range, 1 month to 4 years). No mucosal ulceration or adhesion was encountered. Minimal crusting was noted in 8.57 per cent of patients at 1-week follow up. Allergic rhinitis symptoms improved significantly. CONCLUSION: Inferior turbinate reduction by coblation is an effective and safe procedure in children aged six years and older. The positive outcomes seem to be long-lasting.

Hypertension prevalence, awareness, treatment and control, and associated factors: results from a national survey, jordan.

The study examined prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension (HTN), and associated factors and to evaluate the trend in hypertension between 2009 (period 2) and 1994-1998 (period 1). A national sample of 4117 adults aged 25 years and older was selected. Prevalence rate of HTN (SBP ≥ 140 or DBP ≥ 90 or on antihypertensive therapy) was 32.3% and was higher than the 29.4% prevalence rate reported in period 1. Prevalence rate was significantly higher among males, older age groups, least educated, obese, and diabetics than their counterparts. The rate of awareness among hypertensives was 56.1% and was higher than the 38.8% rate reported form period 1 data. Awareness was positively associated with age, smoking, and diabetes for both men and women, and with level of education and body mass index for men. Rate of treatment for HTN among aware patients was 63.3% and was significantly higher than the 52.8% rate reported in period1. Control rate of HTN among treated hypertensives was 39.6%; significantly higher than the 27.9% control rate in period 1. Control of HTN was positively associated with age but only for women. In conclusion, HTN is still on the rise in Jordan, and levels of awareness and control are below the optimal levels.

The lipid lysyl-phosphatidylglycerol is present in membranes of Rhizobium tropici CIAT899 and confers increased resistance to polymyxin B under acidic growth conditions.

Lysyl-phosphatidylglycerol (LPG) is a well-known membrane lipid in several gram-positive bacteria but is almost unheard of in gram-negative bacteria. In Staphylococcus aureus, the gene product of mprF is responsible for LPG formation. Low pH-inducible genes, termed IpiA, have been identified in the gram-negative alpha-proteobacteria Rhizobium tropici and Sinorhizobium medicae in screens for acid-sensitive mutants and they encode homologs of MprF. An analysis of the sequenced bacterial genomes reveals that genes coding for homologs of MprF from S. aureus are present in several classes of organisms throughout the bacterial kingdom. In this study, we show that the expression of lpiA from R. tropici in the heterologous hosts Escherichia coli and Sinorhizobium meliloti causes formation of LPG. A wild-type strain of R. tropici forms LPG (about 1% of the total lipids) when the cells are grown in minimal medium at pH 4.5 but not when grown in minimal medium at neutral pH or in complex tryptone yeast (TY) medium at either pH. LPG biosynthesis does not occur when lpiA is deleted and is restored upon complementation of lpiA-deficient mutants with a functional copy of the lpiA gene. When grown in the low-pH medium, lpiA-deficient rhizobial mutants are over four times more susceptible to the cationic peptide polymyxin B than the wild type.

Iterative least squares functional networks classifier.

This paper proposes unconstrained functional networks as a new classifier to deal with the pattern recognition problems. Both methodology and learning algorithm for this kind of computational intelligence classifier using the iterative least squares optimization criterion are derived. The performance of this new intelligent systems scheme is demonstrated and examined using real-world applications. A comparative study with the most common classification algorithms in both machine learning and statistics communities is carried out. The study was achieved with only sets of second-order linearly independent polynomial functions to approximate the neuron functions. The results show that this new framework classifier is reliable, flexible, stable, and achieves a high-quality performance.

Hypoxia induces major effects on cell cycle kinetics and protein expression in Drosophila melanogaster embryos.

Hypoxia induces a stereotypic response in Drosophila melanogaster embryos: depending on the time of hypoxia, embryos arrest cell cycle activity either at metaphase or just before S phase. To understand the mechanisms underlying hypoxia-induced arrest, two kinds of experiments were conducted. First, embryos carrying a kinesin-green fluorescent protein construct, which permits in vivo confocal microscopic visualization of the cell cycle, showed a dose-response relation between O2 level and cell cycle length. For example, mild hypoxia (Po2 approximately 55 Torr) had no apparent effect on cell cycle length, whereas severe hypoxia (Po2 approximately 25-35 Torr) or anoxia (Po2 = 0 Torr) arrested the cell cycle. Second, we utilized Drosophila embryos carrying a heat shock promoter driving the string (cdc25) gene (HS-STG3), which permits synchronization of embryos before the start of mitosis. Under conditions of anoxia, we induced a stabilization or an increase in the expression of several G1/S (e.g., dE2F1, RBF2) and G2/M (e.g., cyclin A, cyclin B, dWee1) proteins. This study suggests that, in fruit fly embryos, 1) there is a dose-dependent relationship between cell cycle length and O2 levels in fruit fly embryos, and 2) stabilized cyclin A and E2F1 are likely to be the mediators of hypoxia-induced arrest at metaphase and pre-S phase.

A new implant designed to maximize contact with trabecular bone: survival to 18 months.

PROBLEM: A roughened, commercially pure titanium (CP-Ti) implant design has been developed that features a different length and pitch for each screw thread to direct functional stresses away from cortical bone and to the more resilient trabecular bone. Abutment-implant connection is made using a conical taper to provide a seal against invasion by microorganisms. PURPOSE: To assess short-term (18 months) clinical performance of this innovative implant design. METHODS: A total of 1,419 implants were placed in 313 patients to support 419 prostheses in a multidisciplinary, multicentered, prospective clinical study conducted by the Ankylos Implant Clinical Research Group (AICRG). More than 100 dentists at 32 centers in the United States, 1 in Korea, and 1 in Taiwan are involved in the study. Failure was defined as implant removal for any reason. The influence of mobility at placement, implant length and diameter, incision type, augmentation, crestal bone reduction, bone density, and the use of the operating room or dental clinic on survival were evaluated over 18 months. Crestal bone loss between placement and uncovering was also determined. RESULTS: Crestal bone loss ranged from 0.2 to 0.5 mm. The overall success rate from placement to 18 months was 96.6%. Implants mobile at placement failed more frequently (16.9%) compared with stable implants (3.1%). Wide-diameter implants and longer implants exhibited higher survival rates. Incision design and surgery location did not influence survival. Bone density was important to clinical survival.

[Detection of viral genomes of the Herpesviridae family in multiple sclerosis patients by means of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)]. / Determinación de genomas de virus de la familia Herpesviridae en enfermos de esclerosis múltiple, por la reacción en cadena de la polimerasa (PCR).

BACKGROUND: The multiple sclerosis seems to be the junction between genetics alteration and an unknown environmental factor, that they would originate an autoimmune alteration, that they would be the reason of the inflammation and demyelinization responsible of the disease. Our objective has been the determination of this possible environmental factor and to reach it, we have studied the appearance of Herpesviridae family viruses. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 204 blood samples were studied: 102 from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients (43 were undergoing beta-interferon treatment), and 102 from blood donors with the same age and sex than multiple sclerosis patients. From this samples, we extracted the DNA of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and we analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect the appearance of herpes simplex virus, varicella zoster virus, Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), human herpesvirus 7 and human herpesvirus 8. RESULTS: a) we only found significative difference (p = 0.0001) in HHV-6: 21.5% donors positive samples (22/102), opposite to 49.02% of positivity in mulytiple sclerosis patients (50/102); b) we didn't found significative differences in none of other viruses studied, between patients treated with beta-interferon and non-treated ones. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest us that HHV-6 can play an important role in the multiple sclerosis development. The beta-interferon treatment doesn't affect to DNA prevalence of none of studied viruses.

[A case of pneumonia by cytomegalovirus in a patient with acute myeloid leukemia]. / Neumonía por citomegalovirus (CMV) en una enferma con leucemia aguda mieloide.

The objective of this clinical case is to suggest that Cytomegalovirus (CMV) should be taken into consideration when dealing with infections produced by opportunistic microorganisms in immunocompromised patients who have fever of unknown origin and especially when accompanied by symptoms and signs of interstitial pneumonia. In the case we report of CMV active infection in a patient with acute myeloid leukemia, the anti-CMV specific treatment (ganciclovir) was iniciated following a positive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) result for CMV. The patient initially experienced an improvement but later worsened and expired. At present there are sensitive and specific techniques such as PCR which make it possible to start specific treatment as soon as the diagnosis of CMV active infection is made.

[Cytomegalovirus: comparative study of diagnostic techniques]. / Citomegalovirus: estudio comparativo de técnicas de diagnóstico.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to undertake a comparative study of a series of diagnostic techniques of active infection by cytomegalovirus (CMV) in blood (isolation of CMV by shell vial, detection of specific anti-CMV IgG and IgM, antigenemia-detection of pp65 antigen by staining with peroxidase- and two variants of qualitative polymerase chain reaction [PCR]-conventional PCR or in one step and nested PCR-for detection of viral DNA). METHODS: Fifty kidney transplant patients were followed for the first 6 post transplant months. All except 6 were seropositive for CMV prior to transplantation and only one seronegative patient had a seronegative donor. RESULTS: A total of 750 blood samples were analyzed, 8 of which were positive by shell vial, 91 by specific IgM detection, 115 by antigenemia, 225 for conventional PCR and 440 for nested PCR. No positive sample was detected throughout follow up by any of the techniques used in only 4 patients (one being the seronegative receptor with a seronegative donor). CONCLUSIONS: Antigenemia was found to be the fastest, cheapest and simplest method of diagnosing CMV, presenting the advantage of providing quantitative results which allow the establishment of a relationship with the appearance of symptomatic infections. With the two variants used qualitative PCR was observed to be the earliest and most sensitive technique, while being the most difficult and the most expensive, with the disadvantage that its great sensitivity limits its clinical usefulness.

[Relationship between bronchial and ileal carcinoma (author's transl)]. / Corrélation entre tumeur carcinoïde iléale et bronchique. A propos d'un cas opéré et vivant.

This article concerns a patient who underwent surgery, first for carcinoma of the right upper pulmonary lobe, then, ten months later, for carcinoma of the ileum revealed by an occlusive episode. At the present time, the patient is still alive, and receiving complementary radiotherapy and chemotherapy. the authors emphasize the originality of their observation, as well as the significant relationship between these two forms of apparently primary bronchial and ileal tumors.