The objective of this study was to evaluate the response of the giant reed (
Arundo donax
L.) to drought stress at early stages, as well as to determine the effects of limited soil water availability ...on plant growth, gas exchange, and water-use efficiency. Plantlets of a commercial clone were grown in a greenhouse under two water treatments: at 100% of field capacity and progressive drought for 66 days (until 20% of field capacity). Soil water content, leaf elongation rate, plant water consumption, and gas-exchange parameters were measured throughout the experiment. Total plant biomass, leaf water, and osmotic potential were determined at the end of the experiment. Plant growth and leaf gas-exchange parameters were significantly affected by soil water availability, but only when it was below 40% of field capacity. At early stages,
Arundo donax
showed drought stress acclimation due to leaf plasticity, stomatal regulation, and osmotic adjustment.
Phosphate-solubilizing and nitrogen-fixing bacteria are crucial in increasing soil fertility and restoring soil properties damaged by salinity and other abiotic environmental factors. The presented ...study aims to explore and identify the morphological characteristics of phosphate-solubilizing and nitrogen-fixing bacteria in saline soil. This study took place from August until November 2022 in the field and laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara, Medan, Indonesia. Isolation of potential microbes proceeded to characterize phosphate-solubilizing and nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Sampling began with the soil planted with rice and palm oil at the sampling location. Morphological parameters observed were color, form, margin, surface, and elevation of pure colonies. The result showed that exploring various species in saline soil revealed 19 colonies and 14 cells of phosphate-solubilizing bacteria and 16 colonies and 14 cells of nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The pure colonies of the phosphate-solubilizing and nitrogen-fixing bacteria showed differences in the morphological characteristics, i.e., color, form, margin, surface, and elevation. The potential microbes obtained sought to increase soil fertility and crop production.
Many soils have the problem of high phosphate retention values (> 85%) thus P is not available for plants. The activity of phosphate solubilizing microbes (PSM) is able to facilitate the availability ...of phosphorus in the soil. The ability of each microbe to dissolve inorganic phosphate varies and depends on the type of microbe and the microbial growth factors. In nature, almost all forms of life are surrounded by various types of sounds and they also interact with these sounds. Previous research found that the soil that had been applied with the murottal Al-Qur'an sound for 2 hours per day for 7 days increased the total population of soil microbes 23.08% more than without applying murottal sound. This research was carried out in the laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara from April to August 2019. This treatment was sounds on 9 rhizosphere of corn, were put into the box. The sounds were treat every morning during 2 hours at 08.00 -10.00 o'clock and compared with 9 rhizosphere of corn was not treated with sounds. The result showed that sound treatment affected the growth of phosphate solubilizing microbes and all microbes that were not pathogenic to plans.
Options for optimizing the energy and spatial resolution of gamma-ray imaging detectors based on thick, monolithic crystals shaped like flat-topped pyramids were studied. Monte Carlo simulations were ...made of the scintillation light transport for evaluating the effect of four parameters on the energy resolution, the spatial resolutions, and the depth of interaction (DOI) resolution of the gamma-ray imaging detector. These four parameters are: the reflectivity of the surface coating; the scatter mean free path; the absorption mean free path of the scintillation light; and the angle that defines the inclination of the sides of the pyramidal frustum. In real detectors, the values for the mean free paths for optical photons are normally not known. We estimated these by comparing MC simulations of detector resolutions to measurements for three gamma-ray imaging detectors with LYSO and LSO from different suppliers and with different surface coatings and geometries. The gamma-ray imaging detector measures the energy, centroids, and depth of interaction of the gamma-ray. DOI enhanced charge dividing readouts were used to measure the depth of interaction.
We present an Optimal Filtering (OF) algorithm to reconstruct the energy, time and pedestal of a photomultiplier signal from its digital samples. The OF algorithm was first developed for liquid ...ionization calorimeters, its implementation in scintillator calorimeters, specifically in the ATLAS hadronic Tile calorimeter (TileCal), is the aim of this study. The objective is to implement the algorithm on the DSPs of the Read Out Driver cards in order to reconstruct online the energy of the calorimeter and provide it to the second level trigger. The algorithm is tested and compared with a plain filtering algorithm using both calibration and real data from the TileCal detector. The results are promising specially in the regions where the electronic noise contributes significantly to the resolution
In 2010, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) partnered with the Government of Bihar (GoB), India to launch the Ananya program to improve reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health and ...nutrition (RMNCHN) outcomes. The program sought to address supply- and demand-side barriers to the adoption, coverage, quality, equity and health impact of select RMNCHN interventions. Approaches included strengthening frontline worker service delivery; social and behavior change communications; layering of health, nutrition and sanitation into women’s self-help groups (SHGs); and quality improvement in maternal and newborn care at primary health care facilities. Ananya program interventions were piloted in approximately 28 million population in eight innovation districts from 2011-2013, and then beginning in 2014, were scaled up by the GoB across the rest of the state’s population of 104 million. A Bihar Technical Support Program provided techno-managerial support to governmental Health as well as Integrated Child Development Services, and the JEEViKA Technical Support Program supported health layering and scale-up of the GoB’s SHG program. The level of support at the block level during statewide scale-up in 2014 onwards was approximately one-fourth that provided in the pilot phase of Ananya in 2011-2013. This paper – the first manuscript in an 11-manuscript and 2-viewpoint collection on Learning from Ananya: Lessons for primary health care performance improvement – seeks to provide a broad description of Ananya and subsequent statewide adaptation and scale-up, and capture the background and context, key objectives, interventions, delivery approaches and evaluation methods of this expansive program. Subsequent papers in this collection focus on specific intervention delivery platforms. For the analyses in this series, Stanford University held key informant interviews and worked with the technical support and evaluation grantees of the Ananya program, as well as leadership from the India Country Office of the BMGF, to analyse and synthesise data from multiple sources. Capturing lessons from the Ananya pilot program and statewide scale-up will assist program managers and policymakers to more effectively design and implement RMNCHN programs at scale through technical assistance to governments.
Separate studies investigating the relationship of essential hypertension (EH) with the HLA system and with Chlamydia pneumoniae (C. pneumoniae) infection have given conflicting results. Our aim was ...to clarify these relationships and determine whether the HLA system and C. pneumoniae infection interact with respect to the risk for EH. An association study (110 essential hypertensives and 107 controls) was conducted in a highly homogeneous population in the Balearic Island of Majorca (Spain). Molecular typing of HLA-B and HLA-DRB and quantification of serum levels of IgG antibodies to C. pneumoniae (sIgGa-Cp) were determined. Student's t-test, chi(2)-statistics, logistic regression analysis, and general linear model ANOVA were used for statistical analysis. The results showed that EH was related with HLA-DRB3*0202 in the whole study population, and with levels of sIgGa-Cp>63.5 BU/ml in the group of individuals with sIgGa-Cp>30 BU/ml (OR (95% CI) adjusted for obesity, familial history of EH and diabetes=2.06 (1.07-3.97), P=0.03, and =4.60 (1.06-19.90), P=0.04, respectively). The association between EH and sIgGa-Cp was observed in the DRB3*0202(+) individuals, but not in the DRB3*0202(-) subgroup (OR (95% CI)=11.14 (1.92-64.54), P=0.004, and =0.98 (0.22-4.43), P=0.64, respectively (P of the Mantel-Haenszel test for homogeneity of OR=0.06)). In our population, EH was positively associated with HLA-DRB3*0202 and with high levels of sIgGa-Cp. Moreover, a significant interaction of DRB3*0202 on the effect of sIgGa-Cp was observed, as the association of EH with these antibodies depended on the presence of DRB*0202.
Abstract Background The treatment of posttransplant secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHP) with vitamin D analogues is determined by their effectiveness to reverse hypercalcemia. Calcimimetics inhibit ...parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion by modulating the calcium-sensing receptor in the parathyroid gland. Cinacalcet, a calcimimetic drug, has proven its effectiveness for the treatment of SHP among patients in phase V of chronic renal disease. Patients and Methods This retrospective analysis included 48 patients with SHP who were treated with cinacalcet. The initial dose of 30 mg/d could be increased to 180 mg, administering calcitriol also, depending on the serum calcium and PTH levels. The objectives were a PTH level between 75 and 125 pg/mL or a decrease >40%, and a serum calcium level below 10.5 mg/dL. Results The average PTH at baseline was 244 pg/mL, decreasing to 131 pg/mL at 1 year ( P < .01). The average calcium at baseline was 10.1 mg/dL descending to 9.2 mg/dL at 1 year ( P < .01). Among patients with hypercalcemia, the calcium decreased from 11 to 9.6 mg/dL at 1 year ( P < .01). Seventy percent of patients without hypercalcemia reached the desired value of PTH, and 100% of those with hypercalcemia. Among patients with hypercalcemia, the desired calcium level was reached in 91% of cases. Ten patients developed hypocalcemia. In 3 cases we stopped the treatment with cinacalcet due to digestive intolerance. Conclusions Treatment with cinacalcet controlled hyperparathyroidism and hypercalcemia among patients with posttransplant SHP. It was a safe drug, with a low incidence of side effects.
Intermediate silicon layers detector for the CDF experiment Affolder, A; Azzi-Bacchetta, P; Bacchetta, N ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
10/2000, Letnik:
453, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
The Intermediate Silicon Layers (ISL) detector is currently being built as part of the CDF II detector upgrade project. The ISL detector will significantly improve tracking in the central region and, ...together with the Silicon Vertex detector, provide stand-alone 3D track information in the forward/backward regions. In this article, we present the quality of the production sensors manufactured by Hamamatsu Photonics, which account for roughly half of the silicon sensors used in the ISL detector.
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