as a sentinel in the assessment of antimicrobial resistance in the tilapia production chain: from production environment to the final product.

Introduction: The intensification of tilapia production has increased animal density in tanks, leading to more frequent exposure to pathogenic agents and compromising the quality of fish products. Antimicrobial resistance is a global concern that affects human treatment, and sentinel microorganisms like are crucial for monitoring production chains, especially in aquaculture, where research is still limited. The aim of this study was to identify the presence of and investigate its antimicrobial resistance profiles throughout the entire tilapia production chain.

The thermodynamics of self-assembled monolayer formation: a computational and experimental study of thiols on a flat gold surface.

A methodology based on molecular dynamics simulations is presented to determine the chemical potential of thiol self-assembled monolayers on a gold surface. The thiol de-solvation and then the monolayer formation are described by thermodynamic integration with a gradual decoupling of one molecule from the environment, with the necessary corrections to account for standard state changes. The procedure is applied both to physisorbed undissociated thiol molecules and to chemisorbed dissociated thiyl radicals, considering in the latter case the possible chemical potential of the produced hydrogen.

Multi-locus sequence typing, antimicrobials resistance and virulence profiles of Salmonella enterica isolated from bovine carcasses in Minas Gerais state, Brazil.

The aim of this study was to identify virulence and antimicrobial resistance profiles and determine the sequence type (ST) by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) of Salmonella enterica isolates from bovine carcasses from slaughterhouse located in Minas Gerais state, Brazil, and its relationship with bovine isolates obtained on the American continent based on sequence type profile. The MLST results were compared with all Salmonella STs associated with cattle on American continent, and a multi-locus sequence tree (MS tree) was built. Among the 17 S.

Prevalence of cysticercosis in cattle slaughterhouses in the western region of Minas Gerais, Brazil (2013-2020): Influence of sanitary regulations in reducing risks to human health.

Bovine cysticercosis is a foodborne zoonosis that has a worldwide distribution, and its highest prevalence is found in developing countries with a large volume of cattle production, such as Brazil. The objective was to evaluate the prevalence of cysticercosis during seven years in three slaughterhouses located in the western region of Minas Gerais state, Brazil, and the impacts of the legislation on the identification and destination of infected carcasses. Three slaughterhouses (Sl) were selected for this study with averages of 200 (SlA), 721 (SlB) and 1138 (SlC) bovines slaughtered per day.

Time series evaluation of condemnation at poultry slaughterhouses enable to export in Southeastern Brazil (2009-2019): a tool for optimizing resources in the poultry production chain.

Background: Even with the technological advances in management, health and genetics applied to poultry farming worldwide, there is still a high rate of carcasses condemnation at slaughterhouses, which result in losses for the poultry production chain. Thus, this work aimed to evaluate the condemnation occurrence index (COI) and adjusted seasonal index (ASI) of poultry (turkey, griller, and heavy chicken) between 2009 and 2019, in a slaughterhouse enable to export in southeastern Brazil. Data were obtained from official spreadsheets from the Brazilian Federal Inspection Service (FIS) and used to calculate the COI, correlation analysis between the main causes of condemnation, and ASI assessments throughout the year.

Influence of Pore Size in Benzoin Condensation of Furfural Using Heterogenized Benzimidazole Organocatalysts.

A designed N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) catalyst was covalently anchored on a range of mesoporous and hierarchical supports, to study the influence of pore size in the benzoin condensation of furfural. The structural and spectroscopic characteristics of the anchored catalysts were investigated, also with the help of molecular dynamics simulations, in order to rationalize the degree of stability and recyclability of the heterogenized organocatalysts. Quantitative yields (99 %) and complete recyclability were maintained after several cycles, vindicating the design rationale.

Structure and stability of 7-mercapto-4-methylcoumarin self-assembled monolayers on gold: an experimental and computational analysis.

Self-assembled monolayers (SAM) of 7-mercapto-4-methylcoumarin (MMC) on a flat gold surface were studied by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, reference-free grazing incidence X-ray fluorescence (GIXRF) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), to determine the maximum monolayer density and to investigate the nature of the molecule/surface interface. In particular, the protonation state of the sulfur atom upon adsorption was analyzed, since some recent literature presented evidence for physisorbed thiols (preserving the S-H bond), unlike the common picture of chemisorbed thiyls (losing the hydrogen). MD with a specifically tailored force field was used to simulate either thiol or thiyl monolayers with increasing number of molecules, to determine the maximum dynamically stable densities.

Microbiological assessment at slaughter of chicken carcasses from commercial, backyard and semi-backyard production systems.

Introduction: Smaller scale, alternative, chicken production systems are gaining popularity globally. However, this brings public health and market confidence concerns, especially where there are no established standards of production. The aim of this study was to carry out a microbiological analysis of chicken carcasses from the commercial, backyard and semi-backyard production systems, slaughtered in the same slaughterhouse.

Semi-Rigid (Aminomethyl) Piperidine-Based Pentadentate Ligands for Mn(II) Complexation.

Two pentadentate ligands built on the 2-aminomethylpiperidine structure and bearing two tertiary amino and three oxygen donors (three carboxylates in the case of AMPTA and two carboxylates and one phenolate for AMPDA-HB) were developed for Mn(II) complexation. Equilibrium studies on the ligands and the Mn(II) complexes were carried out using pH potentiometry, H-NMR spectroscopy and UV-vis spectrophotometry. The Mn complexes that were formed by the two ligands were more stable than the Mn complexes of other pentadentate ligands but with a lower pMn than Mn(EDTA) and Mn(CDTA) (pMn for Mn(AMPTA) = 7.

Predicting the Conformation of Organic Catalysts Grafted on Silica Surfaces with Different Numbers of Tethering Chains: The Silicopodality Concept.

Hybrid catalysts are attracting much attention, since they combine the versatility and efficiency of homogeneous organic catalysis with the robustness and thermal stability of solid materials, for example, mesoporous silica; in addition, they can be used in cascade reactions, for exploring both organic and inorganic catalysis at the same time. Despite the importance of the organic/inorganic interface in these materials, the effect of the grafting architecture on the final conformation of the organic layer (and hence its reactivity) is still largely unexplored. Here, we investigate a series of organosiloxanes comprising a pyridine ring (the catalyst model) and different numbers of alkylsiloxane chains used to anchor it to the MCM-41 surface.

Effect of educational intervention on clinical reasoning skills in nursing: A quasi-experimental study.

This study evaluated the effect of an educational intervention based on virtual clinical simulation and problem-based learning using a mobile application in a clinical nursing education context as a tool to improve clinical reasoning skills of students on the second year of nursing graduation. A prospective quasi-experimental study was conducted in the year 2018, and assessments were performed before and after the educational intervention. A random convenience sample (n = 32) of nursing students in the second year of a public university in Brazil was divided equally into experimental and control groups.

Prophylactic anticoagulants for people hospitalised with COVID-19.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a serious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The primary manifestation is respiratory insufficiency that can also be related to diffuse pulmonary microthrombosis in people with COVID-19. This disease also causes thromboembolic events, such as pulmonary embolism, deep venous thrombosis, arterial thrombosis, catheter thrombosis, and disseminated intravascular coagulopathy.

Ab initio modeling of 2D and quasi-2D lead organohalide perovskites with divalent organic cations and a tunable band gap.

We describe theoretically the structure and properties of layered lead organohalide perovskites, considering purely bi-dimensional (2D) PbI layers, and quasi-2D systems where the inorganic layers are formed by more than one lead iodide sheet. The intercalating organic dications were designed to have low lying virtual orbitals (LUMO), so as to induce in the perovskite the appearance of virtual bands, localized in the organic layer, either close to the inorganic conduction band bottom or valence band top, or in some cases in the middle of the inorganic band gap. Such a feature is quite uncommon for this class of materials, and deserves attention since it allows one to tune the effective band gap of the material, possibly leading to the absorption of visible light and influencing the optical properties deeply.

Perioperative Use of Gabapentinoids for the Management of Postoperative Acute Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: Widely used for acute pain management, the clinical benefit from perioperative use of gabapentinoids is uncertain. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the analgesic effect and adverse events with the perioperative use of gabapentinoids in adult patients.

Methods: Randomized controlled trials studying the use of gabapentinoids in adult patients undergoing surgery were included.

A Porous Carbon with Excellent Gas Storage Properties from Waste Polystyrene.

In this paper, we describe the synthesis and gas adsorption properties of a porous carbonaceous material, obtained from commercial expanded polystyrene. The first step consists of the Friedel-Craft reaction of the dissolved polystyrene chains with a bridging agent to form a highly-crosslinked polymer, with permanent porosity of 0.7 cm 3 /g; then, this polymer is treated with potassium hydroxide at a high temperature to produce a carbon material with a porous volume larger than 1.

On the Gas Storage Properties of 3D Porous Carbons Derived from Hyper-Crosslinked Polymers.

The preparation of porous carbons by post-synthesis treatment of hypercrosslinked polymers is described, with a careful physico-chemical characterization, to obtain new materials for gas storage and separation. Different procedures, based on chemical and thermal activations, are considered; they include thermal treatment at 380 °C, and chemical activation with KOH followed by thermal treatment at 750 or 800 °C; the resulting materials are carefully characterized in their structural and textural properties. The thermal treatment at temperature below decomposition (380 °C) maintains the polymer structure, removing the side-products of the polymerization entrapped in the pores and improving the textural properties.

Delay in Growth in Adolescents: Clinical Validation of a Proposed Nursing Diagnosis.

Purpose: This study aims to analyse the accuracy of clinical indicators of the proposed diagnosis of delayed growth in school-aged adolescents.

Design And Methods: This is a diagnostic accuracy study of 385 adolescents in public schools from July to September 2017 that aimed to assess the accuracy of clinical indicators of the proposed nursing diagnosis of delayed growth; the sensitivity and specificity values were calculated using latent class analysis.

Results: Growth velocity less than expected was associated with sensitivity and specificity.

Microbiological Testing for the Proper Assessment of the Hygiene Status of Beef Carcasses.

Microbiological testing is an important quality management tool in the food industry. In this study, the hygiene status of beef carcasses sampled in eight Brazilian slaughterhouses was assessed by enumeration of different hygiene indicator microorganisms, and a model to establish potential associations among these counts was proposed. The carcasses ( = 464) were surface sampled at four slaughtering steps (step 1: Hide after bleeding; step 2: Carcass after hide removal; step 3: Carcass after evisceration; step 4: Carcass after end washing) and subjected to a counting of mesophilic aerobes (MA), Enterobacteriaceae (EB), total coliforms (TC), and (EC) using Petrifilm™ plates.

Influence of Silicodactyly in the Preparation of Hybrid Materials.

The organic⁻inorganic hybrid materials have attracted great attention due to their improved or unusual properties that open promising applications in different areas such as optics, electronics, energy, environment, biology, medicine and heterogeneous catalysis. Different types of silicodactyl platforms grafted on silica inorganic supports can be used to synthesize hybrid materials. A careful evaluation of the dactyly of the organic precursors, normally alkoxysilanes, and of the type of interaction with the inorganic supports is presented.

Perioperative use of gabapentinoids for the management of postoperative acute pain: protocol of a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Opioids are commonly used for the management of postoperative pain, but their use is limited by important adverse events, such as respiratory depression and the potential for addiction. Multimodal opioid-sparing analgesia regimens can be effectively employed to manage postoperative pain and reduce exposure to opioids. Gabapentinoids (pregabalin and gabapentin) represent an attractive class of drugs for use in multimodal regimens.

Pruritus in hemodialysis patients: association with phosphorus intake and serum calcium level.

Objective: To analyze the association between the occurrence of pruritus and adherence to the prescribed diet, biochemical indicators of renal function and the quality of hemodialysis in chronic renal patients.

Method: A cross-sectional study performed at a dialysis clinic in the Northeast of Brazil, with 200 patients undergoing hemodialysis in the first half of 2015.To analyze the data, inferential statistics were used, using Chi-Square and Fisher's Exact tests; and Mann Whitney U test.

Combined solid-state NMR, FT-IR and computational studies on layered and porous materials.

Understanding the structure-property relationship of solids is of utmost relevance for efficient chemical processes and technological applications in industries. This contribution reviews the concept of coupling three well-known characterization techniques (solid-state NMR, FT-IR and computational methods) for the study of solid state materials which possess 2D and 3D architectures and discusses the way it will benefit the scientific communities. It highlights the most fundamental and applied aspects of the proactive combined approach strategies to gather information at a molecular level.

Optimizing the Relaxivity of MRI Probes at High Magnetic Field Strengths With Binuclear Gd Complexes.

The key criteria to optimize the relaxivity of a Gd(III) contrast agent at high fields (defined as the region ≥ 1.5 T) can be summarized as follows: (i) the occurrence of a rotational correlation time τ in the range of ca. 0.

Predictors of pressure ulcer risk in adult intensive care patients: A retrospective case-control study.

Objectives: To evaluate the predictive power of risk factors for pressure ulcers in adult intensive care patients.

Method: A retrospective case-control study was performed utilising a heterogeneous sample group allocated into a case group with pressure ulcers (n=90) and a control group without pressure ulcers (n=90). The analysis explored the predictive power of risk factors for pressure ulcers using a hierarchical logistic regression model.