Spoiled silage at the shoulders of bunker silo is common. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of two systems for covering corn silage in bunker silos. The first system comprised a ...sheet of 45-µm-thick oxygen barrier film (OB; polyethylene + ethylene-vinyl alcohol) placed along the length of the sidewall before filling, with approximately 2 m of excess draped over the wall. After filling, the excess film was pulled over the wall, and a sheet of polyethylene was placed on top. The second system involved using a standard sheet (ST) of 180-µm-thick polyethylene film. Eight commercial bunker silos were divided into two parts lengthwise so that half of the silo was covered with OB and other with ST system. During the filling, three bags with chopped corn were buried in the central part of the bunkers (CORE) in three 10-m-apart sections. After filling, 18 bags (9 per covering system) were buried in the upper layer of the three sections. These bags were placed at three distances from the bunker walls (0 to 50, 51 to 100, and 101 to 150 cm). During unloading, the bags were removed from the silos to determine the DM losses, fermentation end products, and nutritive value. The Milk2006 spreadsheet was used to estimate milk per ton of DM. The experiment was set up as randomized blocks with eight replicates (silos). Two orthogonal contrasts were tested to compare silages under the two covering systems with that in the CORE (OB versus CORE and ST versus CORE). Three orthogonal contrasts compared the distances from the bunker walls (OB50 versus ST50, OB100 versus ST100, and OB150 versus ST 150). Variables were analyzed with the PROC MIXED procedure of the SAS at 5%. The OB method produced well-fermented silages, which were similar to the CORE, whereas the PE system showed less lactic acid and greater pH and mold counts compared with the CORE. The PE method had 116.2 kg of milk/ton less than the CORE (P = 0.0016), as the OB system and the CORE were similar (1,258.3 and 1,294.0 kg/ton, respectively). Regarding the distances from the walls, the effects were more pronounced in the corner zones (0 to 50 cm). OB50 silages had better fermentation profile and lower spoiled microorganisms and DM losses than ST50. Corn silage at the shoulders has quality similar to the CORE when the OB system is used.
The use of pig manure in fish farming reduces the environmental pollution from this material and gives it an economic application. However, the microbiological implications of such a process are not ...completely understood. Five hundred and forty tilapia Oreochromis niloticus L. from an integrated fish farm (using pig excrements as food) were collected and evaluated microbiologically for the presence of Edwardsiella tarda. Samples of the external surface (skin, gills and fin), intestines and muscle were analysed. E. tarda was isolated from 93 (17.2%) of the external surface samples, 77 (14.3%) of the muscle samples and 61 (11.2%) of the intestine samples. These rates were compared using the chi‐squared test, which showed that the skin samples had higher contamination than the others. Selenite–cystine (SC) broth was better than Rappaport–Vassiliadis (RV) enrichment broth for the microbiological assay. Salmonella–Shigella (SS) agar presented superior performance to that of Hektoen enteric (HE) medium. The combination SC and SS showed the best efficiency for E. tarda detection, isolating the bacterium in 107 (6.6%) out of 1620 samples studied.
New tungstate-based ceramic pigments, with ZnxNi1-xWO4 stoichiometry, were obtained at low temperature using a polymeric precursor method. The powder precursors were milled in an attritor mill in an ...alcoholic medium and heat treated for 12 h, yielding homogeneous and crystalline powder pigments. Characterisation (TG/DTA, XRD, IR and colorimetry) showed that mass loss increased with increasing Zn content. Despite the presence of secondary phases and impurities, the wolframite phase was present in all samples. IR analysis revealed bands related to Me-O and WO66- group stretching was seen. The intensity of the yellow colour of the pigments increased with increasing nickel content. 25 refs.
Mechanical alloying has been used successfully to produce nanocrystalline powders of hydroxyapatite (HA) using three different procedures. The milled HA was studied by X-ray diffraction, Infrared, ...Raman scattering spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). We obtained HA with different degrees of crystallinity and time of milling. The grain size analysis through SEM and XRD shows particles with dimensions of 36.9, 14.3 and 35.5 nm (for (R1), (R2) and (R3), respectively) forming bigger units with dimensions given by 117.2, 110.8 and 154.4 nm (for (R1), (R2) and (R3), respectively). The Energy-Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) analysis showed that an atomic ratio of Ca/P=1.67, 1.83 and 1.50 for reactions (R1), (R2) and (R3), respectively. These results suggest that the R1 nanocrystalline ceramic is closer to the expected value for the ratio Ca/P for hydroxyapatite, which is 5/3≅1.67. The bioactivity analysis shows that all the samples implanted into the rabbits can be considered biocompatible, since they had been considered not toxic, had not caused inflammation and reject on the part of the organisms of the animals, during the period of implantation. The samples implanted in rabbits had presented new osseous tissue formation with the presence of osteoblasts cells.
Hyptis leucocephala e Hyptis platanifolia (Lamiaceae) são espécies aromáticas endêmicas do semiárido nordestino e possuem grande importância econômica devido ao seu potencial medicinal. O presente ...trabalho teve por objetivo obter o protocolo para o estabelecimento inicial in vitro das espécies H. leucocephala e H. platanifolia. O meio de cultura WPM promoveu a maior porcentagem de germinação (96,81%) para H. leucocephala, porém não diferiu estatisticamente dos resultados obtidos no MS½ na última semana de cultivo. Para a germinação de sementes de H. platanifolia, o MS½ foi o meio que proporcionou a maior porcentagem (40,83%). O tipo de esterilização não interferiu na germinação in vitro para as duas espécies. Para a espécie H. platanifolia, quando se utilizou o fechamento dos tubos de ensaio com tampão de algodão, a hiperidricidade foi eliminada; porém, a porcentagem de germinação das sementes foi menor. Avaliando-se o tipo de meio de cultura no crescimento in vitro de H. leucocephala observou-se que este fator não influenciou no número de brotações, nem o comprimento de parte aérea e da matéria seca de raiz. O meio MS proporcionou incremento para o número de folhas, matéria seca da parte aérea, e comprimento da maior raiz, enquanto o meio MS½ foi o que promoveu maior número de raízes. O meio de cultura ideal para a germinação de H. leucocephala e H. platanifolia foi o MS½, podendo ser esterilizado com hipoclorito de sódio, enquanto que o MS foi o melhor meio de cultura para o crescimento in vitro de H. leucocephala.
Since probiotics have proved to be a viable alternative to antibiotics as enhancers of animal growth, the performance, uniformity and mortality rates of the jundia (Rhamdia quelen) larvae fed on ...diets with different probiotics were evaluated. Jundia larvae, aged four days post hatching, were fed during 21 days with the following diets, in four replicates, namely, CO: control feed, without probiotics; PP: feed with Pichia pastoris; SB: feed with Saccharomyces boulardii; BT: feed with Bacillus cereus var. toyoi. Among the tested probiotic, Bacillus cereus var. toyoi had the best results due to the fact that the larvae were 25% heavier than CO at the end of the first week; the difference increased to 28% by the end of the trial. Further, BT also improved uniformity and Fultons condition factor. Larvae fed on Saccharomyces boulardii had the lowest body weight, whereas those fed on Pichia pastoris grew similarly to the control diet. Mortality rate was not affected by treatments. Bacillus cereus var. toyoi improves the performance and uniformity of the larvae, but does not affect mortality rate.
Clusters of cardiovascular risk (CVR) factors are associated with an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). This cross-sectional study assessed the associations between classic ...CVR factor clusters and inflammatory markers in Brazilian adolescents.
Measurements included anthropometric, clinical and biochemical parameters and selected inflammatory markers in 487 adolescents (236 boys/251 girls; 12.06 ± 1.41 years).
After stratifying the population by gender and adjusting for potential confounding variables, principal component analysis was performed and it produced 5 independent components in both genders: adiposity, glucose metabolism, blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)/triacylglycerols (TG), and cholesterol/low-density lipoprotein. Glucose metabolism was inversely associated with interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in both genders (r = -0.026; r = -0.021); blood pressure was inversely associated with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) in girls (r = -0.046); HDL/TG was positively associated with interleukin-6 in girls (r = 0.012), with IL-1β (r = 0.010) TNF-α (r = 0.045) in boys, and inversely associated with adiponectin in both genders (r = -0.015; r = -0.013).
The results suggest that lipid metabolism alterations, as potential early events in the development of CVDs, have a strong link to the inflammatory process, in contrast to other clusters of risk factors.
A areia de fundição residual (AFR) consiste em um resíduo arenoso proveniente dos moldes utilizados no processo de fundição de metais. O presente trabalho foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de avaliar a ...influência do uso da AFR nas propriedades concreto. Para tanto, utilizou-se cimento CPV-ARI RS, aditivo plastificante, AFR e areias fina, média natural e de britagem. As propriedades no estado fresco foram avaliadas através da determinação da consistência e teor de ar incorporado. No estado endurecido avaliou-se a resistência à compressão axial. Os resultados indicaram que o uso da AFR resulta no aumento do teor de ar incorporado, fissuração por reações expansivas e conseqüente redução de resistência. Visando investigar a origem das tendências observadas, realizou-se um estudo complementar empregando AFR de diferentes composições. Todavia, independente da composição utilizada, os resultados indicaram tendência semelhante à observada anteriormente. Por fim, considerando os materiais empregados nesta pesquisa, conclui-se que a utilização da AFR em concreto é inadequada, pois prejudica não apenas a resistência mecânica, mas também a durabilidade do material.
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