Strategies of use of a specific immunoglobulin-rich egg yolk powder in weaning piglets

Two experiments were performed to determine the best strategy of use of the product TRACTcare® 4P (ITPSA) (TC, specific immunoglobulin-rich egg yolk powder within an energetic fatty acid matrix) in piglets from weaning and for 6 weeks, in diets without or with inclusion of antibiotics. Each trial was performed with 144 piglets in 24 pens, in a completely randomized design blocked by initial body weight. Feeds were formulated according to animal requirements in two periods. In the first trial no antibiotics were included in the feeds and no room disinfection from previous trial was performed; treatments were: 1) Negative control (NC); 2) NC+TC on top of the feed within the hopper for the first 3 days on trial (30 g/pig×day), and eventually if diarrhea appeared (TCOT); 3) NC+TC ad libitum provided in an extra hopper within the pen (TCAL); and 4) NC+TC at 5 g/kg added to the feed in the mixer (TC5). In the second trial, treatments were: 1) Positive control: basal diet that included 250 mg/kg amoxiciline (BD)+100 mg/kg colistine (AC); 2) BD+2 g/kg TC (TC2A); 3) BD+5 g/kg TC (TC5A); and 4) BD+8 g/kg TC (TC8A). In diets without antibiotics, the product TC at 5 g/kg in the feed numerically improved BW by 8% compared to Control animals, while G:F was almost identical between both groups. When antibiotics were used in the feed, replacement of colistin at 100 mg/kg for TC at 2 g/kg in feed numerically improved the performance compared to Positive control animals (for the whole trial period ADG 8% better: 390 g vs. 361 g; G:F 1% better: 0.748 kg/kg vs. 0.742 kg/kg), possibly due to the stimulation of feed consumption at weaning. In both trials, the lower number of dead and culled animals from TC5 and TC2A together with higher BW represented an advantage over Control treatments of 6% to 10% animals more and 15% to 17% total BW more at the end of the trial.

Evidence for the presence of tetrodotoxin in a powder used in Haiti for zombification.

A powder prepared by Haitian voodoo sorcerers for the making of zombis was extracted with acetic acid, the extract concentrated and applied to a small cation exchange column followed by elution with water and then acetic acid. The water and acetic acid eluents were analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The analyses indicated the presence of an alkaline degradation product of tetrodotoxin, namely 2-amino-6-hydroxymethyl-8-hydroxyquinazoline, after base treatment, and of tetrodotoxin and an isomer on direct thermospray mass spectral activity.

Combination of diatomaceous earth and powder deltamethrin for insect control in stored corn

The use of diatomaceous earth (DE) is a very efficient insect control measure in stored grain IPM due to its low cost, easy application, reduction of active ingredient residues, lower environmental contamination and operator safety. The objective of this research was to evaluate the efficacy of different dosages of DE mixed with powder deltamethrin for controlling Sitophilus zeamais in stored corn. Samples of 100 g of clean and dry corn, in three replicates, were submitted to the following treatments: DE (Keepdry®), at the dosages of 500, 750 and 1000 g/t; powder deltamethrin (K-Obiol®) at 0,5 g a.i. /t and 1,0 g a.i. /t; and combinations of the lowest and highest DE dosages with the two dosages of deltamethrin. Thirty adults of S. zeamais were placed in each vial with the treated grains and kept in environment chambers at 25ºC. Mortality was evaluated from the 1st to the 28th day. In the treatments mixing DE with deltamethrin or deltamethrin alone, the mortalyti was registered since the first day. In the treatments using only DE, the first dead insects were recorded after the 3rd day, especially in the highest dosages. After the 7th day, however, there was no statistical difference among all treatments, except for the lowest dosage of DE which reached a satisfactory control level only by the 14th day. It was concluded that treatments using DE combined with low dosages of powder deltamethrin represent an efficient control measure against S. zeamais in stored corn because insect mortality is faster than in treatments using DE alone and residues of active ingredients are much lower than using the insecticide in high dosages.

Occupational asthma in workers exposed to Mesalazine powder inhalation

Background: Due to complains of respiratory symptoms of some employees a pharmaceutical company asked in 2008 the occupational medical department of the Institute for Work and Health in Lausanne to evaluate the health status of their workers exposed to Mesalazine powder, which is the active agent of a drug used for the treatment of bowels inflammation. Therefore we examined the 21 workers exposed to Mesalazine powder. Method: After a visit of the pharmaceutical company in order to investigate the Mesalazine powder production, we performed an individual medical evaluation of the 21 workers. Our medical protocol was based on the safety data sheet of Mesalazine, the data found in the scientific literature and the «Compendium Suisse des Médicaments» and covered upper and lower respiratory tract as well as skin and eyes. Results: Sixty two percent (62%) of the exposed employees had symptoms of skin, eyes and throat irritation. Three employees reported respiratory symptoms such as dyspnoea, cough and expiratory wheezing, which appeared during the working hours. The Peak Flow series performed at the workplace was lowered in the three employees with lower respiratory tract symptoms. None of the three had consulted a physician, even though the symptoms had been present since some months. The pneumological evaluation confirmed for all three cases the asthma diagnoses. Conclusion: It is known that patients who are treated with drugs including Mesalazine can develop adverse health effect such as asthma. However occupational asthma in workers exposed to Mesalazine powder inhalation is until now not described in the literature. Immunologic investigations in order to know if the occupational asthma caused by Mesalazine is of allergic or mechanical irritation nature are still ongoing. Concerning the three workers with asthma, inability to work with Mesalazine was pronounced. Furthermore, the SUVA recognized the three patients with asthma as occupational respiratory diseases. Following our results and recommendations, the company undertook some measures to reduce the exposure to Mesalazine. A new health evaluation of the employees in the Mesalazine production is hence planned in 2009. As each year new causes of occupational asthma are described, the possible work relation of new asthma onset has to be carefully investigated as the consequences for the patient e.g. removal from exposure and for the exposed co-workers are of substantial importance.

Ba3Yb(BO3)3 single crystals. Growth and spectroscopic characterization

We obtained Ba3Yb(BO3)3 single crystals by the flux method with solutions of the BaB2O4Na2OYb2O3 system. The evolution of the cell parameters with temperature shows a slope change at temperatures near 873 K, which may indicate a phase transition that is not observed by changes appearing in the x-ray powder patterns or by differential thermal analysis (DTA). The evolution of the diffraction patterns with the temperature shows incongruent melting at temperatures higher than 1473 K. DTA indicates that there is incongruent melting and this process is irreversible. Ba3Yb(BO3)3 has a wide transparency window from 247 to 3900 nm. We recorded optical absorption and emission spectra at room and low temperature, and we determined the splitting of Yb3+ ions. We used the reciprocity method to calculate the maximum emission cross section of 0.28 10-20 cm2 at 966 nm. The calculated lifetime of Yb3+ in Ba3Yb(BO3)3 is trad = 2.62 ms, while the measured lifetime is t = 3.80 ms.

Aggregation of subtropical soil under liming: a study using laser diffraction

Laser diffraction (LD) provides detailed analysis of particle size distribution. Its application to testing the stability of soil aggregates can assist studies on the aggregation of soils with contrasting electrochemical properties. The objectives of the present work were: (a) to propose a protocol for using LD to study soil aggregation, (b) to study the aggregation of an Acrisol under the influence of different doses and forms of lime. Samples were collected in 2005 from a Brazilian Acrisol that in 1994 had received 0.0; 2.0; 8.5 and 17.0 Mg ha-1 of lime, left on the soil surface or incorporated. Aggregates from 4.76 to 8.00 mm diameters were studied using the traditional method proposed by Kemper & Chepil (1965), with wet sieving, while aggregates from 1.00 to 2.00 mm were studied using a CILAS® laser diffractometer that distinguishes particles ranging from 0.04 to 2,500.00 μm. LD readings were made after six consecutive pre-treatments, using agitation times, a chemical dispersion agent and ultrasound. Mean Weighted Diameter (MWD) and the Aggregate Stability Index (ASI) calculated, using the traditional method does not discriminate the treatments. However, LD is able to produce detailed data on soil aggregation, resulting in indexes of stability of aggregates that are linearly related to the doses of lime applied (MWD: R² = 0.986 and ASI: R² = 0.876). It may be concluded that electrochemical changes in the Brazilian Acrisol resulting from incorporated lime affect the stability of aggregates, increasing stability with increased doses of lime.

Analysis of micro- and nano-structures of the corneal surface of Drosophila and its mutants by atomic force microscopy and optical diffraction.

Drosophila melanogaster is a model organism instrumental for numerous biological studies. The compound eye of this insect consists of some eight hundred individual ommatidia or facets, ca. 15 µm in cross-section. Each ommatidium contains eighteen cells including four cone cells secreting the lens material (cornea). High-resolution imaging of the cornea of different insects has demonstrated that each lens is covered by the nipple arrays--small outgrowths of ca. 200 nm in diameter. Here we for the first time utilize atomic force microscopy (AFM) to investigate nipple arrays of the Drosophila lens, achieving an unprecedented visualization of the architecture of these nanostructures. We find by Fourier analysis that the nipple arrays of Drosophila are disordered, and that the seemingly ordered appearance is a consequence of dense packing of the nipples. In contrast, Fourier analysis confirms the visibly ordered nature of the eye microstructures--the individual lenses. This is different in the frizzled mutants of Drosophila, where both Fourier analysis and optical imaging detect disorder in lens packing. AFM reveals intercalations of the lens material between individual lenses in frizzled mutants, providing explanation for this disorder. In contrast, nanostructures of the mutant lens show the same organization as in wild-type flies. Thus, frizzled mutants display abnormal organization of the corneal micro-, but not nano-structures. At the same time, nipples of the mutant flies are shorter than those of the wild-type. We also analyze corneal surface of glossy-appearing eyes overexpressing Wingless--the lipoprotein ligand of Frizzled receptors, and find the catastrophic aberration in nipple arrays, providing experimental evidence in favor of the major anti-reflective function of these insect eye nanostructures. The combination of the easily tractable genetic model organism and robust AFM analysis represents a novel methodology to analyze development and architecture of these surface formations.

Dual-Regge approach to high-energy, low-mass diffraction dissociation

A dual-Regge model with a nonlinear proton Regge trajectory in the missing mass (MX2) channel, describing the experimental data on low-mass single diffraction dissociation (SDD), is constructed. Predictions for the LHC energies are given.

Neutron diffraction analysis on FINEMET alloys

Neutron diffraction has been used to study in situ the nanocrystallization process of Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si22.5-xBx (x = 5, 9, and 12) amorphous alloys. Nanocrystallization results in a decrease of both the silicon content and the grain size of the Fe(Si) phase with increasing value of x. By comparing the radial distribution function peak areas with those predicted for ideal bcc and DO3 structure, it can be concluded that the ordering in DO3 Fe(Si) crystals increases with the silicon content.

Structural and magnetic characterization of maghemites prepared from Al-substituted magnetites

Synthetic aluminum-substituted maghemites were characterized by total chemical analysis, powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Mössbauer spectroscopy (ME), and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). The aim was to determine the structural, magnetic, and hyperfine properties of γ-Fe2-xAl xO3 as the Al concentration is varied. The XRD results of the synthetic products were indexed exclusively as maghemite. Increasing Al for Fe substitution decreased the mean crystalline dimension and shifted all diffraction peaks to higher º2θ angles. The a0 dimension of the cubic unit cell decreased with increasing Al according to the equation a o = 0.8385 - 3.63 x 10-5 Al (R²= 0.94). Most Mössbauer spectra were composed of one sextet, but at the highest substitution rate of 142.5 mmol mol-1 Al, both a doublet and sextet were obtained at 300 K. All hyperfine parameters from the sub-spectra were consistent with high-spin Fe3+ (0.2 a 0.7 mms-1) and suggested a strong superparamagnetic component associated with the doublet. The magnetic hyperfine field of the sextets decreased with the amount of Al-substitution [Bhf (T) = 49.751 - 0.1202Al; R² = 0.94] while the linewidth increased linearly. The saturation magnetization also decreased with increasing isomorphous substitution.

Diffraction theory of Fresnel lenses encoded in low-resolution devices

A mathematical model that describes the behavior of low-resolution Fresnel lenses encoded in any low-resolution device (e.g., a spatial light modulator) is developed. The effects of low-resolution codification, such the appearance of new secondary lenses, are studied for a general case. General expressions for the phase of these lenses are developed, showing that each lens behaves as if it were encoded through all pixels of the low-resolution device. Simple expressions for the light distribution in the focal plane and its dependence on the encoded focal length are developed and commented on in detail. For a given codification device an optimum focal length is found for best lens performance. An optimization method for codification of a single lens with a short focal length is proposed.

Diffraction theory of optimized low-resolution Fresnel encoded lenses

A mathematical model describing the behavior of low-resolution Fresnel encoded lenses (LRFEL's) encoded in any low-resolution device (e.g., a spatial light modulator) has recently been developed. From this model, an LRFEL with a short focal length was optimized by our imposing the maximum intensity of light onto the optical axis. With this model, analytical expressions for the light-amplitude distribution, the diffraction efficiency, and the frequency response of the optimized LRFEL's are derived.

Effect of rock powder and vinasse on two types of soils

Can vinasse accelerate the change of minerals in rock dust to obtain fertilizers, using residues from alcohol agro-industries and mining? Answering this question was the main objective of this study. Therefore, an experiment was set up in the laboratory in a completely randomized design using Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) columns, in which the 0-50 cm layers of a clayey soil (eutroferric Red Oxisol) and sandy soil (Typic Quartzipsamment) were reproduced. We applied three different rates of basalt powder (0.0; 2.0, and 4.0 t ha-1) and one rate of vinasse (200 m³ ha-1) to the soils. The control was made by treatments with water (200 m³ ha-1) with the same rates of rock powder. Samples were first collected on the surface of each column (1, 15, 30, 45, 60, and 90 days after the application of vinasse and rock powder), and, at the end of the experiment, at the various depths and in leached water, to determine pH and the concentration of soluble Ca2+, Mg2+, and K+. There was a significant effect of the solvent and the soil on the surface layer, with higher concentrations found in the treatments with vinasse and in clayey soil, confirming the potential of vinasse to alter minerals in basalt powder. The resulting levels from the beginning to the end of the experiment suggest that sorption phenomena with neoformed mineral phases or organic acids may have occurred. It may be concluded that the use of rock powder and vinasse mixtures is a promising alternative for soil fertilization and recycling of waste from the sugarcane and mining industries.

High-Temperature magnetic ordering in a new organic magnet

Magnetization, heat capacity, and neutron diffraction experiments on the beta-phase of the dithiadiazolyl radical, p-NC.C6F4.CNSSN., provide conclusive evidence that this system exhibits noncollinear antiferromagnetism at 35.5 K, an unprecedented temperature for an organic radical. On the basis of magnetization and powder neutron diffraction results, coupled with theoretical calculations of the spin distribution within the molecule, a magnetic structure for this compound is proposed in which the interactions propagate through S . . .N contacts.