Appropriateness of initial treatment for severe Crohn's disease: application of EPACT criteria to the EC-IBD European cohort

Background: The appropriateness of use of therapy for severe active luminal Crohn's disease (CD) cases has never been formally assessed. The European panel on the appropriateness of Crohn's disease therapy [EPACT (http://www.epact.ch)] developed appropriateness criteria. We have applied these criteria to the EC-IBD prospectively assembled, uniformly diagnosed European population-based inception cohort of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients diagnosed between 1991 and 1993. Methods: 426 CD patients from 13 European participating centers (10 countries) were included at the time of diagnosis (first flare, naive patients, no maintenance treatment, no steroids). We used the EPACT definition of the severe active luminal CD, agreed upon by the panel experts (acute flare, hospitalized patient, without documented fistula or stenosis and who did not undergo surgery for abscess drainage or a fistulectomy). The various treatments were analyzed to determine the appropriateness of the medical decision, according to the EPACT criteria. Results: 84 (20%) patients met the inclusion criteria. Considering at least one appropriate (A) treatment as appropriate: 60 patients (71%) received an appropriate treatment, 24 patients (29%) an inappropriate treatment (I). Furthermore, in 87% of the cases with one appropriate treatment an additional mostly inappropriate treatment was added or continued. Detailed results are indicated in the table below. Conclusion: In the EC-IBD cohort, the treatment for severe active luminal CD was appropriate for more than 70% of the patients, but frequently an inappropriate treatment was continued or added, thus increasing the risk of adverse reactions, drugs interactions and costs.

Cultivar response to fungicide application in relation to rice blast control, productivity and sustainability

Four field trials were conducted, from 1995 to 1997, with the objective of studying the response of four upland cultivars to foliar fungicide application in relation to panicle blast control, grain yield and sustainability. Differential disease control and yield response of cultivars to fungicide treatment were obtained. Losses in grain yield of cultivars IAC 202, Caiapó, Rio Paranaíba and Araguaia due to panicle blast were 44.8%, 27.4%, 24.4% and 18.2%, respectively. Two applications of tricyclazole or benomyl controlled panicle blast, as indicated by lower values of disease progress curve and relative panicle blast severity, and increased grain yield of the cultivar IAC 202. The losses in 100 panicle grain weight and grain yield were significantly reduced by 22.3% and 25.1% in IAC 202 and 23.6% and 20.5% in Caiapó, respectively, with two sprays of tricyclazole. Sustainable value index for yield was maximum with two applications of tricyclazole (0.59), followed by one application at booting (0.46) and at heading (0.40) in cultivar IAC 202. Results showed no yield response of the cultivars Rio Paranaíba and Araguaia to fungicide applications for panicle blast control.

Models for vertical wood density of Scots pine, Norway spruce and birch stems, and their application to determine average wood density

Abstract

Application of 1-methylcyclopropene, calcium chloride and calcium amino acid chelate on fresh-cut cantaloupe muskmelon

The objective of this work was to determine the effects of postharvest application of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) and two calcium salts, applied individually or combined, on firmness and visual quality of fresh-cut muskmelon stored in air, for 18 days. Two sets of fruits, one of them exposed to 1-MCP at 300 nL L-1, were cut into cubes, dipped in deionized water, or in 1% Ca solutions as CaCl2, or in calcium amino acid chelate (Ca-chelate), placed in clamshell containers, and stored in air at 5±1ºC and 90±5% RH, for 18 days. The assay was conducted using an entirely randomized design, with three replications, in a split plot array. Evaluation of visual appearance, color, flesh firmness, total soluble solids, titratable acidity, and pH was performed right after treatments, and every period of three days, up to eighteen days. Application of 1-MCP at 300 nL L-1, calcium chloride or Ca-chelate, or the combination 1-MCP and calcium, preserved initial freshness and reduced softening of the samples. Ca-chelate synergistically enhanced the effect of 1-MCP on firmness after nine days of storage, while calcium chloride improved firmness of the samples throughout storage. Ca-chelate may serve as an alternative for shelf life extension of cantaloupe fresh-cut muskmelon.

Estimating water application efficiency for drip irrigation emitter patterns on banana

The objective of this work was to evaluate root and water distribution in irrigated banana (Musa sp.), in order to determine the water application efficiency for different drip irrigation emitter patterns. Three drip emitter patterns were studied: two 4-L h-1 emitters per plant (T1), four 4-L h-1 emitters per plant (T2), and five 4-L h-1 emitters per plant (T3). The emitters were placed in a lateral line. In the treatment T3, the emitters formed a continuous strip. The cultivated area used was planted with banana cultivar BRS Tropical, with a 3-m spacing between rows and a 2.5-m spacing between plants. Soil moisture and root length data were collected during the first production cycle at five radial distances and depths, in a 0.20x0.20 m vertical grid. The experiment was carried out in a sandy clay loam Xanthic Hapludox. Soil moisture data were collected every 10 min for a period of five days using TDR probes. Water application efficiency was of 83, 88 and 92% for the systems with two, four and five emitters per plant, respectively. It was verified that an increase in the number of emitters in the lateral line promoted better root distribution, higher water extraction, and less deep percolation losses.

Equilibrium curves and growth models to deal with forests in transition to uneven-aged structure : application in two sample stands

Abstract

Soil carbon and nitrogen mineralization caused by pig slurry application under different soil tillage systems

The objective of this work was to evaluate the change in soil C and N mineralization due to successive pig slurry application under conventional tillage (CT) and no tillage (NT) systems. The experiment was carried out in a clayey Latossolo Vermelho eutrófico (Rhodic Eutrudox) in Palotina, PR, Brazil. Increasing doses of pig slurry (0, 30, 60 and 120 m³ ha-1 per year) were applied in both tillage systems, with three replicates. Half of the pig slurry was applied before summer soil preparation, and the other half before the winter crop season. The areas were cultivated with soybean (Glycine max L.) and maize (Zea mays L.) in the summers of 1998 and 1999, respectively, and with wheat (Triticum sativum Lam.) in the winters of both years. Soil samples were collected at 0-5, 5-10, and 10-20 cm depths. Under both CT and NT systems, pig slurry application increased C and N mineralization. However, increasing pig slurry additions decreased the C to N mineralization ratio. Under the NT system, C and N mineralization was greater than in CT system.

Radiological impact of phosphogypsum surface application in a no-till system in Southern Brazil

The objective of this work was to determine the impact of phosphogypsum application on 226Ra and 228Ra activities in the soil and on their accumulation in soybean grains. A field experiment was carried out in Paraná state, Brazil, on a loamy Typic Hapludox, under no-till system, with increasing phosphogypsum rates: 4, 8, and 12 Mg ha-1. GammA ray spectrometry was carried out using HPGe detectors with 45 and 10% relative efficiencies, for soybean grains and soil, respectively. No increment of 226Ra and 228Ra activities was observed due to the increase in phosphogypsum rates in the soil, and a small reduction was noticed in the grains. Average values found for 226Ra and 228Ra activities were 37 and 57 Bq kg-1 in the soil and 1.44 and 3.19 Bq kg-1 in soybean grains. The application of phosphogypsum for no-till soybean production is a safe practice regarding the risks of radiation damage to human health

Soil fertility and upland rice yield after biochar application in the Cerrado

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of biochar made from Eucalyptus on soil fertility, and on the yield and development of upland rice. The experiment was performed during two years in a randomized block design with four replicates, in a sandy loam Dystric Plinthosol. Four doses of NPK 05-25-15, annually distributed in stripes (0, 100, 200 and 300 kg ha-1), and four doses of biochar (0, 8, 16 and 32 Mg ha-1), applied once in the first year - alone or with NPK - were evaluated. In the first year, biochar positively affected soil fertility [total organic carbon (TOC), Ca, P, Al, H+Al, and pH], at 0-10 cm soil depth, and it was the only factor with significant effect on yield. In the second year, the effect of biochar diminished or was overcome by the fertilizer. TOC moved down in the soil profile to the 0-20 cm depth, influencing K availability in this layer. In the second year, there was a significant interaction between biochar and the fertilizer on plant growth and biomass dry matter accumulation.

Effect of conservation tillage and peat application on weed infestation on a clay soil

Selostus: Kynnöstä luopumisen ja turvelisäyksen vaikutus savimaan rikkakasvillisuuteen kevätviljakasvustossa

Chemical attributes of a Hapludox soil after nine years of pig slurry application

The objective of this study was to evaluate the pig slurry application effects on chemical attributes of a Hapludox soil managed under no-tillage system. Treatments consisted of 50, 100 and 200 m³ ha-1 per year of pig slurry application, and a control with replacement of P and K exported through harvested grains. Attributes related to soil chemical reaction, exchange complex, and nutrient contents were determined in soil samples collected in the ninth year of experimentation from 0 - 0.025, 0.025 - 0.05, 0.05 - 0.10, 0.10 - 0.20, 0.20 - 0.40 and 0.40 - 0.60 m soil depths. The continuous application of high doses of pig slurry on the Oxisol surface under no-tillage acidifies the soil and increases Al, P, Cu, and Zn contents down to 0.2-m depth, and K levels down to 0.6-m depth.

Ethephon use and application timing of abscisic acid for improving color of 'Rubi' table grape

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of ethephon and of abscisic acid (ABA) application timing on the color of 'Rubi' Table grape. Eight treatments were evaluated: control, without application; ethephon 500 mg L‑1 applied seven days after veraison (7 DAV); and two concentrations of ABA (200 and 400 mg L‑1) arranged with three application timings at 7 DAV, at 15 days before harvest (DBH), and at 7 DAV + 15 DBH. ABA does not modify physical‑chemical characteristics of the cluster and improves the color of grapes, especially when applied twice (7 DAV + 15 DBH) at the concentration of 400 mg L‑1.

Linear prediction application for modelling the relationships between a large number of stand characteristics of Norway spruce stands

Abstract