Blood parameter changes during stopover in a long-distance migratory shorebird, the bar-tailed godwit Limosa lapponica taymyrensis

Bar-tailed godwits migrate from West African wintering sites to breeding areas in northern Russia with only one stopover. We compared hematocrit (Hct), blood hemoglobin concentration (Hb), and mean cell hemoglobin concentration (MCHb; a measure of the relative proportion of Hb in the cellular blood fraction) between arriving godwits lured to land 60 km short of the stopover site and godwits during subsequent refueling. The Hct and Hb of arriving godwits was low when compared to that of refueling birds. On the stopover site, Hct and Hb correlated positively with size-corrected body mass. In addition, Hb and MCHb reached peak levels in the last days of stopover. We explored the possibility of regenerative anemia in arriving godwits by comparing the fraction of reticulocytes (young red blood cells) between arriving and refueling birds. No differences were found. Therefore, we suggest that the increase in Hct, Hb, and MCHb during refueling is not in response to a severe anemic state at arrival. Rather, we suggest that the increase in blood parameters may anticipate the increased aerobic requirements of impending migratory flight and possibly satisfy heightened oxygen demands of the larger body mass of fattened birds. The Hct increase on the stopover site may also serve to buffer the red blood cell population against possible red blood cell breakdown during long-distance flight.

Emergence of new firms: A test of the resource‐based view, signaling and behavioral perspectives

The resource-based view, signaling, and behavioral perspectives focus on different theoretical mechanisms through which human capital and the behavioral characteristics of nascent entrepreneurs, in combination with insider and outsider financing, may influence the emergence of new ventures. This work tests the relative explanatory power of these different theoretical perspectives. We estimate a mediation model to disentangle the direct effect of nascent entrepreneur personal characteristics on new firm creation from their indirect effects, mediated by the amount of insider financing committed to new ventures and access to greater outsider financing. Our empirical results are based on data from the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED II) and improve our understanding of the drivers of new firm creation and their underlying mechanisms. Our findings support the resource-based view and the behavioral perspective in our sample of nascent entrepreneurs, but do not provide evidence of the signaling perspective

Levofloxacin to prevent bacterial infection in patients with cancer and neutropenia.

BACKGROUND: The prophylactic use of fluoroquinolones in patients with cancer and neutropenia is controversial and is not a recommended intervention. METHODS: We randomly assigned 760 consecutive adult patients with cancer in whom chemotherapy-induced neutropenia (<1000 neutrophils per cubic millimeter) was expected to occur for more than seven days to receive either oral levofloxacin (500 mg daily) or placebo from the start of chemotherapy until the resolution of neutropenia. Patients were stratified according to their underlying disease (acute leukemia vs. solid tumor or lymphoma). RESULTS: An intention-to-treat analysis showed that fever was present for the duration of neutropenia in 65 percent of patients who received levofloxacin prophylaxis, as compared with 85 percent of those receiving placebo (243 of 375 vs. 308 of 363; relative risk, 0.76; absolute difference in risk, -20 percent; 95 percent confidence interval, -26 to -14 percent; P=0.001). The levofloxacin group had a lower rate of microbiologically documented infections (absolute difference in risk, -17 percent; 95 percent confidence interval, -24 to -10 percent; P<0.001), bacteremias (difference in risk, -16 percent; 95 percent confidence interval, -22 to -9 percent; P<0.001), and single-agent gram-negative bacteremias (difference in risk, -7 percent; 95 percent confidence interval, -10 to -2 percent; P<0.01) than did the placebo group. Mortality and tolerability were similar in the two groups. The effects of prophylaxis were also similar between patients with acute leukemia and those with solid tumors or lymphoma. CONCLUSIONS: Prophylactic treatment with levofloxacin is an effective and well-tolerated way of preventing febrile episodes and other relevant infection-related outcomes in patients with cancer and profound and protracted neutropenia. The long-term effect of this intervention on microbial resistance in the community is not known

Helium exhaust experiments on JET with Type I ELMs in H-mode and with type III ELMs in ITB discharges

An analysis of helium exhaust experiments on JET in the MkII-GB divertor configuration is presented. Helium is pumped by applying an argon frost layer on the divertor cryo pump. Measurement of the helium retention time, tau(He)(*),, is performed in two ways: by the introduction of helium in gas puffs and measurement of the subsequent decay time constant of the helium content, tau(He)(d*); and by helium beam injection and measurement of the helium replacement time, tau(He)(r*). In ELMy H-mode, with plasma configuration optimized for pumping, tau(He)(d*) approximate to 7.2 x tau(E)(th) is achieved, where tau(E)(th) is the thermal energy replacement time. For quasi-steady internal transport barrier (ITB) discharges, the achieved tau(He)(r*) approximate to 4.1 x tau(E)(th) is significantly lower. The achieved helium recycling coefficient, confirmed by an independent measurement to be R-eff approximate to 0.91, is the same in both scenarios. None of the discharges are dominated by core confinement. The difference in tau(He)(*)/tau(E)(th) is instead due to the confinement properties of the edge plasma, which is characterized by Type I ELMs for the H-mode discharges studied, and Type III ELMs for the quasi-steady ITB discharges. This difference is quantified by an independent measurement of the ratio of the helium replacement time with a helium edge source to the energy confinement time

Natural parenting : back to basics in infant care

Peer reviewe

Carotenoids and Antioxidant Nutrients following Burn Injury a

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72213/1/j.1749-6632.1993.tb26193.x.pd

Push ‘o ver: in situ pushover tests on as built and strengthened existing brickwork constructions

In the last decades several experimental tests were performed to analyse the seismic capacity of unreinforced masonry, mostly involving small size structural elements or small-scale building models, not accounting for the actual complexity of existing constructions. This paper illustrates experimental pushover tests on two very similar portions of an existing masonry building. The first portion was tested as built, while the second one was tested after a strengthening intervention with Composite Reinforced Mortar (CRM) system with Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) components. The retrofit consisted in the application of a reinforced plaster on both sides of the walls of the first storey and on the external side only of the second storey, a solution that preserves the continuity of use. Comparisons between the experimental response of the two portions as well as the observed behaviour of the intervention at the first storey (both wall sides) and second storey (only outer side) provide very interesting insights and preliminary information on the degree of upgrading, essential steps to support the assessment of seismic vulnerability reduction

Push ‘o ver. In situ pushover tests on as built and strengthened existing brickwork constructions

In the last decades several experimental tests were performed to analyse the seismic capacity of unreinforced masonry, mostly involving small size structural elements or small-scale building models, not accounting for the actual complexity of existing constructions. This paper illustrates experimental pushover tests on two very similar portions of an existing masonry building. The first portion was tested as built, while the second one was tested after a strengthening intervention with Composite Reinforced Mortar (CRM) system with Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) components. The retrofit consisted in the application of a reinforced plaster on both sides of the walls of the first storey and on the external side only of the second storey, a solution that preserves the continuity of use. Comparisons between the experimental response of the two portions as well as the observed behaviour of the intervention at the first storey (both wall sides) and second storey (only outer side) provide very interesting insights and preliminary information on the degree of upgrading, essential steps to support the assessment of seismic vulnerability reduction

Investigating the Performance of a Degraded Prestressed Concrete Box Girder Half-joint Bridge in the Spirit of the Italian Guidelines

The paper investigates a paired pre-stressed box-girder concrete bridge, according to the framework suggested by the new Italian Guidelines for the risk assessment of existing bridges. The bridges, selected as case study within the research agreement signed by the FABRE Consortium and ANAS S.p.A. for first applications of the Italian Guidelines, present significant age-related degradation phenomena known to the Administrator, who decided for the bridges demolition and reconstruction. Visual inspections confirmed defects in the pre-stressing system, a permanent deflection of the deck, and cracks at half-joints, possibly due to pre-stressing loss and creep effects triggered by the poor quality of concrete. Also, preliminary safety verifications revealed not to meet code requirements in most cross-sections. Consequently, the most degraded bridge was closed. From March 2022, experimental campaigns have been performed by the FABRE Consortium and ANAS for improving their experience on the behaviour of old pre-stressed concrete bridges, as well as to control possible performance loss of the open bridge, sustaining the overall route traffic. The paper summarises these activities and presents some possible future investigations to be carried out before bridge demolition

COVID-19 in patients with hematologic disorders undergoing therapy: perspective of a large referral hematology center in Rome

Introduction: Patients with cancer may be more susceptible to and have higher morbidity and mortality rates from COVID-19 than the general population, while epidemiologic data specifically addressed to hematologic patients are limited. To investigate whether patients with hematologic diseases undergoing therapy are at increased risk for acquiring SARS CoV-2 infection compared to the general population, a retrospective study was carried out at a referral hematologic center in Rome, Italy, during the period of the greatest epidemic spread (March 8 to May 14, 2020). Methods: All adult and pediatric patients with a diagnosis of a neoplastic or a nonneoplastic hematologic disease who underwent treatment (chemotherapy or immunosuppressive or supportive therapy) during the study period or in the previous 6 months were considered. The prevalence of COVID-19 in the overall outpatient and inpatient population undergoing hematologic treatment compared to that of the general population was analyzed. The measures taken to manage patients during the epidemic period are described. Results: Overall, 2,513 patients with hematological diseases were considered. Out of 243 (9.7%) patients who were screened for SARS CoV-2, three of 119 (2.5%) outpatients with fever or respiratory symptoms and none of 124 asymptomatic patients were diagnosed with COVID-19. Three further patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 and managed in other hospitals in Rome. As of May 14, 2020, the prevalence of COVID-19 in our hematologic population accounted for 0.24% (95% CI 0.23-0.25; 6 of 2,513 patients: 1 case in every 419 patients) as compared to 0.12% (7,280 of 5,879,082 residents; 1 case in every 807 residents) in the general population (p = 0.14). Three of 6 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 required critical care and 2 died while still positive for SARS CoV-2. Out of 225 healthcare providers on duty at our Institution during the study period, 2 (0.9%) symptomatic cases were diagnosed with COVID-19. Conclusion: In our experience, the prevalence of COVID-19 in hematologic patients, mainly affected by malignancies, was not significantly higher compared to that of the general population. Definition of adapted strategies for healthcare services, while continuing to administer the standard hematologic treatments, represents the crucial challenge for the management of hematologic diseases in the COVID-19 era