Utilizing conductive materials for reducing methane emissions in postharvest paddy rice soil microcosms.

Paddy fields are a major anthropogenic source of global methane (CH) emissions, a powerful greenhouse gas (GHG). This study aimed at gaining insights of different organic and inorganic conductive materials (CMs) - biochar, fungal melanin, and magnetite - to mitigate CH emissions, and on their influence on key microbial populations, mimicking the postharvest season throughout the degradation of rice straw in microcosms under anaerobic conditions encompassing postharvest paddy rice soils from the Ebro Delta, Spain. Results showed that fungal melanin was the most effective CM, significantly reducing CH emissions by 29 %, while biochar amendment also reduced emissions by 10 %.

[Burns].

In the Netherlands, an average of 92,000 patients with burn injuries are seen annually by a general practitioners. A burn injury is defined as skin damage caused by heat, radiation, electricity, and/or chemical agents. It is crucial to make an accurate assessment of the severity of the burn.

The genus Syllis Savigny in Lamarck, 1818 (Annelida: Syllidae: Syllinae) from Australia (Fourth part).

Syllis Savigny in Lamarck, 1818, the type genus of Syllidae, is the largest and most diverse within the family. This genus presents many taxonomic, biogeographic, and phylogenetic problems due mainly to the lack of molecular data and morphological synapomorphies for many of the species, but also due to poor or inadequate descriptions. In order to improve our understanding of the genus, we have undertaken a morphological revision of Australian species, based on type material and material collected over years by the Australian Museum.

Fluorescent labelling as a tool for identifying and quantifying nanoplastics.

Advancements in microplastic research are progressing rapidly, yet detecting and identifying nanoplastics remain challenging, especially in natural samples. In this study, we addressed these challenges by employing fluorescent labeling on nanoparticles of six prevalent plastic types (PP, LDPE, HDPE, PS, PET, and PVC) to enable their specific detection the analysis of 3D fluorescence spectra post-staining. Four fluorescent molecules were tested: cyanine-3 phosphoramidite, rhodamine-6G, fluorescein sodium salt, and Vat Red 15.

Outcomes of dermal substitutes in burns and burn scar reconstruction: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Dermal substitutes have been introduced in burn care to improve wound healing outcomes; however, their use remains limited in standard treatments. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the outcomes of dermal substitutes in patients with burns and patients requiring burn scar reconstruction and subsequently contribute to optimising the integration of dermal substitutes into clinical practice and reducing the knowledge gap. A comprehensive search across various databases included human studies from peer-reviewed journals on dermal substitutes for deep dermal and full-thickness burns, and scar reconstruction across all ages.

Dataset for image classification with knowledge.

Deep learning applied to raw data has demonstrated outstanding image classification performance, mainly when abundant data is available. However, performance significantly degrades when a substantial volume of data is unavailable. Furthermore, deep architectures struggle to achieve satisfactory performance levels when distinguishing between distinct classes, such as fine-grained image classification, is challenging.

Long-term agricultural reuse of treated wastewater and sewage sludge: developing a Time to Critical Content Index for metal species.

This study evaluates the sustainability of spreading wastewater or sewage sludge on agricultural land, balancing benefits with contamination risks. Conventional ecological risk indices often fail to address the long-term accumulation of metals in soils. We investigate the feasibility of spreading based on current knowledge of potentially contaminating metals and their behavior in soil.

Development of a value-based healthcare burns core set for adult burn care.

Background: Value-based healthcare (VBHC) is increasingly implemented in healthcare worldwide. Transparent measurement of the outcomes most important and relevant to patients is essential in VBHC, which is supported by a core set of most important quality indicators and outcomes. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a VBHC-burns core set for adult burn patients.

Sex differences in extinction and reinstatement of nicotine discrimination in rats: The effects of reinforcer devaluation.

Nicotine functions effectively as an interoceptive operant discriminative stimulus (S) that sets the occasion for voluntarily emitted behavior to be reinforced by biologically relevant outcomes (e.g., food).

Timing of surgery in acute deep partial-thickness burns: A study protocol.

For deep partial-thickness burns no consensus on the optimal treatment has been reached due to conflicting study outcomes with low quality evidence. Treatment options in high- and middle-income countries include conservative treatment with delayed excision and grafting if needed; and early excision and grafting. The majority of timing of surgery studies focus on survival rather than on quality of life.

Nanoplastic production procedure for scientific purposes: PP, PVC, PE-LD, PE-HD, and PS.

Studies on the environmental impact of nanoplastics face challenges in plastic analysis and a scarcity of nanoplastic materials necessary for the development of analytical techniques and experiments on biota impact. Here we provide detailed procedures for obtaining nanoparticles suspended in water for the most commonly used polymers: Polypropylene (PP), Polyvinylchloride (PVC), Low- and High-Density Polyethylene (PE-LD, PE-HD), and Polystyrene (PS). We dissolved larger size material to reprecipitate nanoparticles.

The genus Syllis Savigny in Lamarck, 1881 (Annelida: Syllidae: Syllinae) from Australia (Part 3): new species and redescription of previously described species.

Syllis Savigny in Lamarck, 1818, the type genus of Syllidae, is the largest and most diverse within the family. This genus presents many taxonomic, biogeographic, and phylogenetic problems due mainly to the lack of molecular data and morphological synapomorphies for many of the species, but also due to poor or inadequate descriptions. In order to improve the knowledge of the genus, we have undertaken a morphological revision of Australian species, based on type material and material collected over years by the Australian Museum.

Metal speciation in sludges: a tool to evaluate risks of land application and to track heavy metal contamination in sewage network.

The agricultural spreading of dehydrated sewage sludge from urban sewage treatment plants is economically profitable provided that the soil agronomic quality and the absence of contamination, in particular of heavy metals, are maintained. We evaluated the variability of sludge between five treatment plants in northern Algeria. We determined parameters that account for their agronomic quality and total content of Ag, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Ti and Zn.

Considering the ionic strength for proper use of 1 or 2-ligands model for static fluorescence quenching or enhancement.

We formally describe a 1- or 2-ligands fluorescence quenching or exhaustion model that takes ionic strength into account. We give ready-to-use formulas, which are easy to implement on a common spreadsheet, to determine complexing capacities and apparent stability constants of fluorescence ligands by adjusting quenching or enhancing experimental curves. The strength of our model is to consider parameters that have rarely taken in account in the literature, resulting in a significant improvement in the quality of the modeling: the charge associated with one or two ligands, and ionic strength.

Evidence of humic acid-aluminium‑silicon complexes under controlled conditions.

The chemistry of silicon (Si), the second most abundant element in soil after oxygen, is not yet fully understood in the soil-water-plant continuum. Although Si is widely accepted as an element that has little or no interaction with natural organic matter, some data seems to show the opposite. To identify a potential interaction between natural organic matter and Si, batch experiments were achieved at various pH and Si concentrations, involving also Al as a common ion in soil and using humic acid (HA) as a typical model for natural organic matter.

Coordinated Pembrolizumab and High Dose IL-2 (5-in-a-Row Schedule) for Therapy of Metastatic Clear Cell Renal Cancer.

Introduction: The ligation of the interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptor and immune checkpoint blockade may each alter lymphocytes, thereby inducing regression in various cancers. Single agent objective response rates of 14% to 25% have been reported for usual schedule 14-dose-in-a-row IL-2 therapy of metastatic clear cell renal cancer (ccRCC), with a notable subset of responses being durable. Pembrolizumab yielded a 33% response rate in patients with metastatic ccRCC.

Optical biopsy mapping on endoscopic image mosaics with a marker-free probe.

Gastric cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Early diagnosis significantly increases the chances of survival; therefore, improved assisted exploration and screening techniques are necessary. Previously, we made use of an augmented multi-spectral endoscope by inserting an optical probe into the instrumentation channel.

Pose estimation of a markerless fiber bundle for endoscopic optical biopsy.

We present a markerless vision-based method for on-the-fly three-dimensional (3D) pose estimation of a fiberscope instrument to target pathologic areas in the endoscopic view during exploration. A 2.5-mm-diameter fiberscope is inserted through the endoscope's operating channel and connected to an additional camera to perform complementary observation of a targeted area such as a multimodal magnifier.

Three new species of Syllis Savigny in Lamarck, 1818 (Annelida, Syllidae) from Chilean Patagonia.

Three new species of the genus Syllis Savigny in Lamarck, 1818, from the Chilean Patagonia are described, figured and discussed. The specimens were collected in boulders, sediment bottoms, Macrocystis pyrifera holdfasts, and inside tubes of Chaetopterus cf. variopedatus.

Soil sample conservation from field to lab for heterotrophic respiration assessment.

We evaluated (1) whether the sample transport time could lead to a significant loss of carbon through microbial respiration and to a change of measured respiration rates, which can be a problem in areas difficult to access, with a long travel time from field to laboratory; (2) whether the method used to quantify heterotrophic respiration for agricultural soils is adequate for horizons that remain always water-saturated or close to saturation. Surface horizons and deep Bh of Amazonian podzols were sampled and kept under refrigeration to maintain moisture of sampling time. Incubations of aliquot of the same sample were initiated on the sampling day and 3, 6, 9 and 12 days after sampling.

PDMPO: a specific silicon or silica, pH sensitive fluorescent probe?

In order to understand Si behavior and biodisponibility in soils and plants, we evaluated the use of PDMPO (2-(4-pyridyl)-5-((4-(2-dimethylaminoethylaminocarbamoyl)methoxy)phenyl)oxazole) that was supposed to be a Si-specific fluorescence marker and to have a pH-dependent fluorescence. We studied the interactions between PDMPO and water-dissolved Si, Al and natural organic matter (humic acids, HA). Six systems with different HA, Si and Al concentrations were studied by fluorescence spectroscopy at pH 4, 7 and 9.

Course of scar quality of donor sites following split skin graft harvesting: Comparison between patients and observers.

There exists little to no data on the development of donor-site scars that remain after split skin graft harvesting. The objectives of this study were to (a) examine changes in characteristics of donor-site scar quality over time and (b) assess the agreement between patient-reported and observer-reported donor-site scar quality in a burn population. A prospective cohort study was conducted including patients who underwent split skin grafting for their burn injury.

Polyarteritis nodosa with genital necrosis.

Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a multisystemic disease that is characterized by the presence of necrotizing vasculitis of small and medium-sized blood vessels. Genital compromise is rare. Our patient presented a systemic disease associated to genital signs (penis and scrotum skin necrosis).

Wound Size Imaging: Ready for Smart Assessment and Monitoring.

We introduce and evaluate emerging devices and modalities for wound size imaging and also promising image processing tools for smart wound assessment and monitoring. Some commercial devices are available for optical wound assessment but with limited possibilities compared to the power of multimodal imaging. With new low-cost devices and machine learning, wound assessment has become more robust and accurate.

Markerless tracking of micro-endoscope for optical biopsy in stomach.

This paper presents a landmark-free approach to estimate the fiberscope pose during endoscopic exploration for in-vivo optical biopsy. The fiberscope pose is estimated by fitting the projection of a virtual 3D cylinder into the endoscopic images. The cylinder axis is estimated based on the apparent contours using Plücker coordinates and its insertion is estimated by maximizing the similarity between binary masks.