Newborn screening for congenital hypothyroidism: worldwide coverage 50 years after its start.

Background: Congenital hypothyroidism (CH) is a preventable cause of neurodevelopmental delay in children, detectable by newborn screening programs (NBS) for CH. Since NBS for CH was started in Canada in 1974, numerous countries have successfully implemented this public health strategy. However, in 2014, only 29.

Identification of genomic regions and pathways associated with traits related to rumen acidosis in feedlot Nellore cattle.

There may be an increased risk of metabolic disorders, such as rumen acidosis, in cattle fed high-concentrate diets, particularly those from Bos taurus indicus genotypes, which have shown to be more sensitive to ruminal acidification. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate (co)variance components and identify genomic regions and pathways associated with ruminal acidosis in feedlot Nellore cattle fed high-concentrate diets. It was utilized a dataset containing a total of 642 Nellore bulls that were genotyped from seven feedlot nutrition studies.

Autoimmune adrenal insufficiency in children: a hint for polyglandular syndrome type 2?

Background: Primary adrenal insufficiency (PAI) in childhood is a life-threatening disease most commonly due to impaired steroidogenesis. Differently from adulthood, autoimmune adrenalitis is a rare condition amongst PAI's main aetiologies and could present as an isolated disorder or as a component of polyglandular syndromes, particularly type 2. As a matter of fact, autoimmune polyglandular syndrome (APS) type 2 consists of the association between autoimmune Addison's disease, type 1 diabetes mellitus and/or Hashimoto's disease.

Piezoresistive Behavior of a Conductive Polyurethane Based-Foam for Real-Time Structural Monitoring.

Smart flexible materials with piezoresistive property are increasingly used in the field of sensors. When embedded in structures, they would allow for in situ structural health monitoring and damage assessment of impact loading, such as crash, bird strikes and ballistic impacts; however, this could not be achieved without a deep characterization of the relation between piezoresistivity and mechanical behavior. The aim of this paper is to study the potential use of the piezoresistivity effect of a conductive foam made of a flexible polyurethane matrix filled with activated carbon for integrated structural health monitoring (SHM) and low-energy impact detection.

Ruminal fermentation pattern of acidosis-induced cows fed either monensin or polyclonal antibodies preparation against several ruminal bacteria.

This study was designed to evaluate a spray-dried multivalent polyclonal antibody preparation (PAP) against lactate-producing bacteria as an alternative to monensin (MON) to control ruminal acidification. Holstein cows (677 ± 98 kg) fitted with ruminal cannulas were allocated in an incomplete Latin square design with two 20 days period. Cows were randomly assigned to control (CTL), PAP, or MON treatments.

Experimental evidence of shock wave measurements with low-velocity (<100 m s) and fast dynamics (<10 ns) capabilities using a coupled photonic Doppler velocimetry (PDV) and triature velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) diagnostic.

We present a series of shock-wave measurements on aluminum based on the use of a simultaneous Photon Doppler Velocimetry (PDV) and triature velocity interferometer system for any reflector. Our dual setup can accurately measure shock velocities, especially in the low-speed range (<100 m s) and fast dynamics (<10 ns) where measurements are critical in terms of resolution and unfolding techniques. Especially, the direct comparison of both techniques at the same measurement point helps the physicist in determining coherent settings for the short time Fourier transform analysis of the PDV, providing increased reliability of the velocity measurement with a global resolution of few m s in velocity and few ns FWHM in time.

Feedlot performance, rumen and cecum morphometrics of Nellore cattle fed increasing levels of diet starch containing a blend of essential oils and amylase or monensin.

Feed additives used in finishing diets improve energy efficiency in ruminal fermentation, resulting in increased animal performance. However, there is no report evaluating the effect of BEO associated with exogenous α-amylase in response to increased starch content in feedlot diets. Our objective was to evaluate increasing levels of starch in the diet associated with a blend of essential oils plus amylase or sodium Monensin on performance, carcass characteristics, and ruminal and cecal morphometry of feedlot cattle.

Neural-network-backed evolutionary search for SrTiO(110) surface reconstructions.

The determination of atomic structures in surface reconstructions has typically relied on structural models derived from intuition and domain knowledge. Evolutionary algorithms have emerged as powerful tools for such structure searches. However, when density functional theory is used to evaluate the energy the computational cost of a thorough exploration of the potential energy landscape is prohibitive.

Assessment of corn wet distillers grains fed to crossbred bulls on feeding behavior, rumen morphology, liver abscesses and blood parameters.

Corn ethanol production has been growing in Brazil in the last ten years, generating by-products to feedlot diets. This study evaluates the effects of the inclusion of low-fat corn wet distillers grains (LF-WDG) on feeding behavior, ruminal health, liver abscesses and blood parameters of F1 Angus-Nellore bulls feedlot finished. Our hypothesis is that evaluation of data from feeding behavior, rumen and liver health would help to explain animal performance.

Effects of feeding 25-hydroxyvitamin D with an acidogenic diet during the prepartum period in dairy cows: Mineral metabolism, energy balance, and lactation performance of Holstein dairy cows.

Our objective was to determine the effects of feeding 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], or vitamin D (cholecalciferol) on plasma, mineral, and metabolite concentrations, mineral balance, mineral excretion, rumination, energy balance, and milk production of dairy cows. We hypothesized that supplementing 3 mg/d of 25(OH)D during the prepartum period would be more effective than supplementing vitamin D at the National Research Council (2001) levels to minimize calcium imbalance during the transition period and improve milk production of dairy cows. Forty multiparous, pregnant nonlactating-Holstein cows were enrolled in this study.

Effects of the association between whole cottonseed and calcium salts of fatty acids on nutrient intake, feedlot performance, and carcass characteristics of animals offered a high-concentrate diet.

This experiment evaluated the effects of feeding whole cottonseed (WC) and/or calcium salts of fatty acids (CSFA) on dry matter intake (DMI), performance, and carcass characteristics of animals receiving a high-concentrate diet during the finishing phase. On day 0, 96 Nellore bulls were blocked according to initial shrunk body weight (BW; 302 ± 26.7 kg) into group pens (four animals/pen) and, within blocks, pens were randomly assigned to receive: 1) 15% of WC and 2% of CSFA (dry matter [DM] basis) of palm, cottonseed, and soybean oil (15WC; = 6); 2) 10% of WC and 3% of CSFA (DM basis) of palm, cottonseed, and soybean oil (10WC; = 6); 3) 5% of WC and 4% of CSFA (DM basis) of palm, cottonseed, and soybean oil (5WC; = 6); and 4) 0% of WC and 5% of CSFA (DM basis) of palm, cottonseed, and soybean oil (0WC; = 6).

The Potential of Shortening the Adaptation of Nellore Cattle to High-Concentrate Diets Using Only Virginiamycin as Sole Feed Additive.

Feedlot cattle are usually adapted to high-concentrate diets containing sodium monensin (MON) in more than 14 days. However, for finishing diets with lower energy content, the use of MON during adaptation may hold dry matter intake (DMI), and virginiamycin (VM) may be an alternative. This study was designed to determine the potential of shortening the adaptation of Nellore cattle to high-concentrate diets using only VM as a sole feed additive relative to feedlot performance, feeding behavior, and ruminal and cecum morphometrics.

Experimental and Analytical Study of under Water Pressure Wave Induced by the Implosion of a Bubble Generated by Focused Laser.

In various domains of material processing, such as surface cleaning and surface treatment, cavitation phenomenon may become an alternative to traditional methods if this phenomenon is well understood. Due to experimental and mathematical difficulties in theoretical models, it is still a challenge to accurately measure the physical mechanism of the fluid/structure interactions. In this study, we verified the feasibility of using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) sensors to quantitatively measure the under-water pressure wave generated by the collapse of a single cavitation bubble.

PVDF Based Pressure Sensor for the Characterisation of the Mechanical Loading during High Explosive Hydro Forming of Metal Plates.

High explosive hydro forming (HEHF) is a suitable technique for large metal plate forming. Manufacturing stages of such a part requires an adapted design of explosive charge configurations to define the mechanical loading exerted on the part. This mechanical loading remains challenging to be experimentally determined but necessary for predictive numerical simulation in the design of parts to form.

Phosphate-Templated Encapsulation of a {Co O } Cubane in Germanotungstates as Carbon-Free Homogeneous Water Oxidation Photocatalysts.

The ever-growing interest in sustainable energy sources leads to a search for an efficient, stable, and inexpensive homogeneous water oxidation catalyst (WOC). Herein, the PO templated synthesis of three abundant-metal-based germanotungstate (GT) clusters Na [Ge PCo (H O) W O ] ⋅ 38H O (Co ), Na K [Ge PCo (OH) (H O) W O ] ⋅ 45H O (Co ), Na K [Ge P Co (OH) (H O) W O ] ⋅ 61H O (Co ) with non-, quasi-, or full cubane motifs structurally strongly reminiscent of the naturally occurring {Mn Ca} oxygen evolving complex (OEC) in photosystem II was achieved. Under the conditions tested, all three GT-scaffolds were active molecular WOCs, with Co and Co outperforming the well-known Na [Co (H O) (PW O ) ] {Co P W } by a factor of 2 as shown by a direct comparison of their turnover numbers (TONs).

Effects of fatty acid profile of supplements on intake, performance, carcass traits, meat characteristics, and meat sensorial analysis of feedlot bulls offered a high-concentrate diet.

This experiment was designed to evaluate the effects of lipid source and fatty acid (FA) profile on intake, performance, carcass characteristics, expression of enzymes, and sensorial analysis of animals offered a high-concentrate diet. On day 0, 96 noncastrated animals were blocked by initial body weight (400 ± 19.3 kg), randomly allocated to 1 of 24 pens (4 animals/pen), and pens were randomly assigned to receive: 1) control: basal diet composed of whole cottonseed and corn germ as lipid substrates (CONT; = 6), 2) calcium salts of fatty acids (CSFA) of soybean: CSFA of soybean oil as replacement for whole cottonseed and corn germ (calcium salts of soybean oil [CSSO]; = 6), 3) CSFA-Blend: CSFA of palm, cottonseed, and soybean oil as replacement for whole cottonseed and corn germ (calcium salts of vegetable oils [CSVO]; = 6), and 4) Mix: basal diet containing whole cottonseed, corn germ, and CSVO (MIXT; = 6).

Feedlot performance and rumen morphometrics of Nellore cattle adapted to high-concentrate diets over periods of 6, 9, 14 and 21 days.

The energy content of finishing diets offered to feedlot cattle may vary across countries. We assumed that the lower is the energy content of the finishing diet, the shorter can be the adaptation period to high-concentrate diets without negatively impacting rumen health while still improving feedlot performance. This study was designed to determine the effects of adaptation periods of 6, 9, 14 and 21 days on feedlot performance, feeding behaviour, blood gas profile, carcass characteristics and rumen morphometrics of Nellore cattle.

Evaluation of liquid and powdered forms of polyclonal antibody preparation against Streptococcus bovis and Fusobacterium necrophorum in cattle adapted or not adapted to highly fermentable carbohydrate diets.

Objective: Feed additives that modify rumen fermentation can be used to prevent metabolic disturbances such as acidosis and optimize beef cattle production. The study evaluated the effects of liquid and powdered forms of polyclonal antibody preparation (PAP) against Streptococcus bovis and Fusobacterium necrophorum on rumen fermentation parameters in ruminally cannulated non-lactating dairy cows that were adapted or unadapted to a high concentrate diet.

Methods: A double 3×3 Latin square design was used with three PAP treatments (control, powdered, and liquid PAP) and two adaptation protocols (adapted, unadapted; applied to the square).

A comparative first-principles investigation on the defect chemistry of TiO anatase.

Understanding native point defects is fundamental in order to comprehend the properties of TiO anatase in technological applications. The previous first-principles reports of defect-relevant quantities, such as formation energies and charge transition levels, are, however, scattered over a wide range. We perform a comparative study employing different approaches based on semilocal with Hubbard correction (DFT+U) and screened hybrid functionals in order to investigate the dependence defect properties on the employed computational method.

Dynamic imaging of a capillary-gravity wave in shallow water using amplitude variations of eigenbeams.

Dynamic acoustic imaging of a surface wave propagating at an air-water interface is a complex task that is investigated here at the laboratory scale through an ultrasonic experiment in a shallow water waveguide. Using a double beamforming algorithm between two source-receiver arrays, the authors isolate and identify each multi-reverberated eigenbeam that interacts with the air-water and bottom interfaces. The waveguide transfer matrix is recorded 100 times per second while a low-amplitude gravity wave is generated by laser-induced breakdown at the middle of the waveguide, just above the water surface.

The inclusion of de-oiled wet distillers grains in feedlot diets reduces the expression of lipogenic genes and fat content in Longissimus muscle from F1 Angus-Nellore cattle.

The inclusion of agro-industry by-products originated from corn ethanol production has increased in animal nutrition in Brazil, reducing formulation costs. In the literature, there is no consensus on how the high inclusion of de-oiled wet distillers grains can affect beef quality and the expression of lipogenic genes in Longissimus muscle. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of WDG in the diet of F1 Angus-Nellore cattle on meat quality characteristics, chemical composition and expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism.

Use of site symmetry in supercell models of defective crystals: polarons in CeO.

In supercell calculations of defective crystals, it is common to place a point defect or vacancy in the atomic position with the highest possible point symmetry. Then, the initial atomic structure is often arbitrary distorted before its optimization, which searches for the total energy minimum. In this paper, we suggest an alternative approach to the application of supercell models and show that it is necessary to preliminarily analyze the site symmetry of the split Wyckoff positions of the perfect crystal supercell atoms (which will be substituted or removed in defective crystals) and then perform supercell calculations with point defects for different possible site symmetries, to find the energetically most favorable defect configuration, which does not necessarily correspond to the highest site symmetry.

Effects of restricted vs. step up dietary adaptation for 6 or 9 days on feedlot performance, feeding behaviour, ruminal and blood variables of Nellore cattle.

This study was designed to determine effects of quantitatively restricted intake of the final finishing diet as a means of dietary adaptation compared with diets increasing in concentrate (step up) over periods of 6 and 9 days on feedlot performance, carcass characteristics, feeding behaviour, blood gas profile and rumen morphometrics of Nellore cattle. One hundred twenty 22-month-old Nellore bulls (352 ± 20 kg) were randomly allocated in 24 pens and fed for 84 days. The experimental design was a completely randomized block with 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments: adaptation using either step up protocol for 6 days or 9 days or restriction protocol for 6 days or 9 days, where the pen (five bullocks/pen; six pens/treatment) was considered the experimental unit.