A pot experiment was carried out with maize to determine the phosphorus (P) plant-availability of different secondary P-fertilizers derived from wastewater. We analyzed the respective soils by P ...K-edge X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy to determine the P chemical forms that were present and determine the transformation processes. Macro- and micro-XANES spectroscopy were used to determine the chemical state of the overall soil P and identify P compounds in P-rich spots. Mainly organic P and/or P adsorbed on organic matter or other substrates were detected in unfertilized and fertilized soils. In addition, there were indications for the formation of ammonium phosphates in some fertilized soils. However, this effect was not seen in the maize yield of all P-fertilizers. The observed reactions between phosphate from secondary P-fertilizers and cofertilized nitrogen compounds should be further investigated. Formation of highly plant-available compounds such as ammonium phosphates could make secondary P-fertilizers more competitive to commercial phosphate rock-based fertilizers with positive effects on resources conservation.
Purpose
Fermentation and composting of biowaste has become a preferred method for municipalities to recycle organic byproducts and their valuable nutrient content. Pelletization or agglomeration of ...the resulting digestates may improve their transportability and storability. The aim of this study was to determine the nutrient content and nutrient release from processed biowaste digestates and the immediate as well as the longer-term effect of their application on the early root and shoot development of oat (
Avena sativa
L.).
Methods
Rhizoboxes were used in which rooting compartment and soil are separated by nylon gauze, which allows nutrients and water to pass through, but denies direct contact between roots and soil or digestate products. The obtained root images were analyzed with the WinRhizo Software and chemical properties of the soil were determined at three dates over a period of 28 weeks.
Results
Pelletization and agglomeration of digestates led to an increased immobilization of nutrients and organic matter contained in the digestate. The treated products remained in the soil rather unchanged over many months. A significant influence of the biowaste digestates on plant development was observed only during the first weeks after the application. The application of the digestate products did lead to an increase of total carbon and especially hot water-soluble carbon content in the soil.
Conclusions
The application of biowaste digestates seems therefore well suited for the improvement of humus content in soils. The fertilizing value of processed digestates, however, must be considered as very limited, regardless of their actual nutrient content.
Full text
Available for:
EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Fermentation in combination with subsequent composting of biowaste is a preferred method for municipalities to recycle organic byproducts and transform them into useful end products for soil ...amelioration or plant fertilization. These compost products, especially if obtained from household wastes, can be a source of hazardous components, e.g. heavy metals, pathogens, synthetic chemicals or toxic organic compounds. An avoidance test with two earthworm species (Eisenia fetida and Aporrectodea caliginosa) was conducted to assess the impact of differently processed biowaste based digestate products on soil invertebrates. Body weight changes were recorded, as well as differences in effects on adult versus juvenile earthworms.
While E. fetida showed no avoidance towards the digestate products (negative avoidance, meaning that the tested products were preferred, of 80 to 100 %), A. caliginosa rejected the crude biowaste digestate compost in higher concentrations (avoidance of 45 %), but not the agglomerated or pelletized variants. A clear weight gain of up to 25 % was observed only for individuals of E. fetida. The developmental stages of the worms were not crucial for the outcome of the avoidance test.
Based on the results of this study the application of biowaste products on arable land cannot be recommended without constraints.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, GIS, IJS, KISLJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM, UPUK
In einem dreijährigen Feldversuch wurden kompostierte Gärreste aus Bioabfällen hinsichtlich ihrer pflanzenbaulichen Einsatzmöglichkeiten und ihrer Wirkung auf bodenchemische Parameter geprüft. ...Zudem wurden die Aufbereitungsverfahren Pelletierung und Agglomeratbildung und deren Auswirkung auf die Gärprodukteigenschaften untersucht. Es wurde festgestellt, dass die unmittelbare Düngewirkung der Produkte aufgrund der niedrigen Stickstoffverfügbarkeit gering ist. Allerdings zeigte sich nach der Anwendung eine deutliche Erhöhung der Kohlenstoffgehalte im Boden, was auf ein relevantes Humusreproduktionspotential durch derartige Gärprodukte schließen lässt. Agglomeratbildung und Pelletierung scheinen die Mineralisierung der Produkte weiter zu verlangsamen, was sich auf die Nährstofffreisetzung negativ, auf eventuelle Kohlenstoffsequenzierung jedoch positiv auswirkt. Problematisch sind speziell bei Bioabfällen hohe Gehalte an Schwermetallen und anderen Störstoffen. Die gesetzlich vorgegebenen Grenzwerte wurden in 50% der untersuchten Chargen überschritten, wobei jedoch nur max. 7% der ausgebrachten Schwermetalle im oberirdischen Pflanzenmaterial wiedergefunden wurden.
Hintergrund und ZieleDie epidurale und intravenöse patienten-kontrollierte Analgesie (PCEA, PCIA) gilt als Standardverfahren für die Behandlung starker Schmerzzustände nach operativen Eingriffen. ...Abhängig von der Art des Eingriffs ist in der überwiegenden Mehrzahl der Fälle auch nach Beendigung der PCA-Therapie eine bedarfsgerechte Schmerztherapie notwendig. Das Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war es, die Qualität der postoperativen Schmerztherapie nach Beendigung der PCA zu untersuchen und eine eventuell auftretende analgetische Lücke (analgesic gap) aufzuzeigen.MethodenVon August 2005 bis August 2008 wurden 1020 konsekutive Patienten (600 Männer, 420 Frauen), welche sich einem operativen Eingriff an dem Universitätsklinikum Erlangen unterziehen mussten und eine PCA-Therapie erhielten, in die prospektive Studie eingeschlossen. Neben den demographischen Daten und dem Schmerzmittelbedarf wurden auch die Schmerzwerte (NRS 0-10) und die Nebenwirkungen vor Beendigung der PCATherapie ermittelt und mit der Qualität der sich anschließenden Schmerztherapie am darauf folgenden Tag mittels vergleichender Statistik verglichen. Ein p<0,05 wurde als signifikant angenommen.Ergebnisse447 Patienten (272 männlich/175 weiblich) erhielten eine PCEA, das mittlere Alter betrug 52±22 (Mittelwert±SD) Jahre. Die durchschnittliche Therapiedauer betrug 5,0±1,3 Tage. Die letzten NRS-Werte unter PCEA-Therapie waren 0,9±1,1 bzw. 3,0±1,6 (in Ruhe bzw. bei Belastung). Am darauf folgenden Tag wurden NRS-Werte von 1,2±1,4 (p<0,001) bzw. 3,2±1,9 (p=0,13) ermittelt.573 Patienten (328 männlich/245 weiblich) erhielten eine PCIA, das mittlere Alter betrug 57±17 Jahre. Die durchschnittliche Therapiedauer betrug 5,4±2,2 Tage. Die letzten NRS-Werte unter PCIA-Therapie waren 1,1±1,2 bzw. 3,7±1,6 (in Ruhe bzw. bei Belastung). Am darauf folgenden Tag wurden NRS-Werte von 1,2±1,3 (p=0,66) bzw. 3,3±1,7 (p<0,001) ermittelt.In der Gesamtpopulation waren die Schmerzwerte in Ruhe nach Beendigung der PCA-Therapie geringfügig höher (1,2±1,3 vs. 1,0±1,2, p<0,01), die Schmerzwerte unter Belastung dagegen geringfügig niedriger (3,3±1,8 vs. 3,4±1,6, p<0,001).Praktische Schlussfolgerungen Sowohl die PCEA als auch die PCIA führten in dieser Studie zu einer guten analgetischen Wirkung. Nach Beendigung der PCA-Therapie wurden geringfügige Änderungen der NRS-Werte beobachtet, die zum Teil zwar statistisch signifikant waren, deren Größenordnung aber klinisch nicht relevant ist. Im vorliegenden Fall konnte eine analgetische Lücke daher klinisch nicht nachgewiesen werden. Es wäre sinnvoll, die Daten der vorliegenden Studie mit den Daten anderer Häuser zu vergleichen, um die Inzidenz und mögliche Ursachen von Versorgungslücken in der postoperativen Schmerztherapie weiter zu untersuchen.
INTRODUCTIONThe pathogenesis of Crohnʼs disease is unclear, but an abnormal immune response seems to play an important role. This study investigated whether serum tryptase could be shown in Crohnʼs ...disease as a marker of disease.
MATERIALS AND METHODSMast cell tryptase was detected in sera of 48 patients with active Crohnʼs disease, 31 patients with inactive Crohnʼs disease, 17 patients with mastocytosis, and 50 controls. Tryptase detection was carried out by UniCap System. Tryptase levels are given as U/l×m body surface area to overcome variations of body weight, height, etc. between malnourished and normal persons.
RESULTSSerum tryptase levels (U/l×m body surface area) of controls were 2.4±1.0, of patients with Crohnʼs disease 2.5±2.0. In contrast, serum tryptase values were significantly increased in untreated patients with mastocytosis (21.19±18.55).
DISCUSSIONMast cell tryptase is not elevated in sera of Crohnʼs disease. It might thus be speculated that this highly mast cell associated mediator might only contribute to local symptoms of Crohnʼs disease such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, etc., but not to its systemic inflammatory effects (Th 1 cytokine pattern). Tryptase may be well used for the screening of patients with mastocytosis.
Human capital theory establishes that the human capital gained in prior work experience, such as in traditional corporations, is associated with subsequent entrepreneurial success. However, this ...perspective does not accommodate increasingly boundaryless careers, during which individuals switch between career tracks in both directions. As a result, research to date is unable to explain whether experience with entrepreneurial failure drives corporate career success. We extend existing human capital research by theorizing that and testing empirically whether entrepreneurial activity builds human capital that is conducive to a subsequent corporate career, even when the new venture fails. We provide two main studies, a résumé experiment with 80 recruiters and a study with a matched sample of 326 failed entrepreneurs and comparable graduates who started a career in a corporation, that support this notion. We find that failed entrepreneurs can have a corporate career advantage over those graduates who started a career in a corporation.
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
BackgroundThe inflammatory tumor microenvironment (TME) is formed by various immune cells, being closely associated with tumorigenesis. Especially, the interaction between tumor-infiltrating T-cells ...and macrophages has a crucial impact on tumor progression and metastatic spread. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether oscillating-gradient diffusion-weighted MRI (OGSE-DWI) enables a cell size-based discrimination between different cell populations of the TME.MethodsSine-shaped OGSE-DWI was combined with the Imaging Microstructural Parameters Using Limited Spectrally Edited Diffusion (IMPULSED) approach to measure microscale diffusion distances, here relating to cell sizes. The accuracy of IMPULSED-derived cell radii was evaluated using in vitro spheroid models, consisting of either pure cancer cells, macrophages, or T-cells. Subsequently, in vivo experiments aimed to assess changes within the TME and its specific immune cell composition in syngeneic murine breast cancer models with divergent degrees of malignancy (4T1, 67NR) during tumor progression, clodronate liposome-mediated depletion of macrophages, and immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) treatment. Ex vivo analysis of IMPULSED-derived cell radii was conducted by immunohistochemical wheat germ agglutinin staining of cell membranes, while intratumoral immune cell composition was analyzed by CD3 and F4/80 co-staining.ResultsOGSE-DWI detected mean cell radii of 8.8±1.3 µm for 4T1, 8.2±1.4 µm for 67NR, 13.0±1.7 for macrophage, and 3.8±1.8 µm for T-cell spheroids. While T-cell infiltration during progression of 4T1 tumors was observed by decreasing mean cell radii from 9.7±1.0 to 5.0±1.5 µm, increasing amount of intratumoral macrophages during progression of 67NR tumors resulted in increasing mean cell radii from 8.9±1.2 to 12.5±1.1 µm. After macrophage depletion, mean cell radii decreased from 6.3±1.7 to 4.4±0.5 µm. T-cell infiltration after ICI treatment was captured by decreasing mean cell radii in both tumor models, with more pronounced effects in the 67NR tumor model.ConclusionsOGSE-DWI provides a versatile tool for non-invasive profiling of the inflammatory TME by assessing the dominating cell type T-cells or macrophages.
With the use of two transparent electrodes, organic polymer–fullerene solar cells are semitransparent and may be combined to parallel-connected multijunction devices or used for innovative ...applications like power-generating windows. A challenging issue is the optimization of the electrodes, to combine high transparency with adequate electric properties. In the present work, we study the potential of sputter-deposited aluminum-doped zinc oxide as an alternative to the widely used but relatively expensive indium tin oxide (ITO) as cathode material in semitransparent polymer–fullerene solar cells. Concerning the anode, we utilized an insulator–metal–insulator structure based on ultrathin Au films embedded between two evaporated MoO3 layers, with the outer MoO3 film (capping layer) serving as a light coupling layer. The performance of the ITO-free semitransparent polymer–fullerene solar cells was systematically studied as dependent on the thickness of the capping layer and the active layer as well as the illumination direction. These variations were found to have strong impact on the obtained photocurrent densities. We performed optical simulations of the electric field distribution within the devices using the transfer-matrix method, to analyze the origin of the current density variations in detail and provide deep insight into the device physics. With the conventional absorber materials studied here, optimized ITO-free and semitransparent devices reached 2.0% power conversion efficiency and a maximum optical transmission of 60%, with the device concept being potentially transferable to other absorber materials.
Full text
Available for:
IJS, KILJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
PDF
