Cholesterol Interference in the Assessment of Vitamin D Status: A Canadian Health Measures Survey Biobank Project.

Background: Matrix effects are a known problem with immunoassays measuring serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D].

Objectives: To determine if the inverse association between serum 25(OH)D and serum cholesterol concentrations is a function of assay method: Diasorin Liaison 25(OH) Vitamin D Total Assay (Liaison Total Assay), an immunoassay, compared with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

Methods: Canadian Health Measures Survey data and biobank serum (White males aged 20-79 y, n = 392) were evaluated for bias in serum 25(OH)D using Bland-Altman plots.

(Rathke, 1862) as a vector of potentially pathogenic fungi in aquatic ecosystems.

The aim of the study was to check the integument and alimentary tract of for the occurrence of fungi. Moreover, the mycological purity of water sources from which leeches were collected was analyzed. The potential role of the duck leech in transmitting pathogenic fungi has not been studied until now.

Sucking of human blood by (O. F. Müller, 1846) (Hirudinida: Glossiphoniidae): Case study with notes on body form.

Four events of sucking human blood are described.Human blood was sucked by both adult and juvenile specimens of . .

Three-Dimensional Outdoor Analysis of Single Synthetic Building Structures by an Unmanned Flying Agent Using Monocular Vision.

An algorithm designed for analysis and understanding a 3D urban-type environment by an autonomous flying agent, equipped only with a monocular vision, is presented. The algorithm is hierarchical and is based on the structural representation of the analyzed scene. Firstly, the robot observes the scene from a high altitude to build a 2D representation of a single object and a graph representation of the 2D scene.

The Concept of the Constructional Solution of the Working Section of a Robot for Harvesting Strawberries.

Strawberry fruits are products of high commercial and consumption value, and, at the same time, they are difficult to harvest due to their very low mechanical strength and difficulties in identifying them within the bush. Therefore, robots collecting strawberries should be equipped with four subsystems: a video object detection system, a collecting arm, a unit for the reception and possible packaging of the fruit, and a traction system unit. This paper presents a concept for the design and operation of the working section of a harvester for strawberry fruit crops grown in rows or beds, in open fields, and/or under cover.