Can the application of farm dairy effluent enhance cadmium leaching from soil?

The application of amendments such as farm dairy effluent (FDE) to soils which contain dissolved organic carbon (DOC) has the potential to increase cadmium (Cd) leaching through the formation of soluble organo-Cd complexes. However, the extent of Cd leaching loss is currently unknown. A lysimeter study measured Cd leaching from coarse and fine-textured Pumice soils amended with either FDE or single superphosphate (SSP) fertilizer. Results showed that despite FDE having a DOC concentration of 3000 mg L-1, concentrations in drainage were low (7.2 to 14.6 mg DOC L-1), probably reduced by microbes and/or sorption onto iron and aluminium oxides in the soil. As a result, there was no significant difference in the amount of Cd lost from the soil amended with FDE (0.79 g ha-1) or SSP (0.70 g ha-1). In comparison, greater amounts of Cd were lost from the fine-textured (0.92 g ha-1) than from the coarse-textured soil (0.57 g ha-1), primarily due to significantly higher Cd concentrations in drainage. The study indicates that a one-off application of FDE at the maximum rate allowed by regulators is unlikely to affect Cd leaching losses, although this still should be confirmed for other soil types that receive FDE.

[The televideoconsultation in support of home management of the patient with CoViD-19 by general practitioner: the results in some municipalities of the Marche Region.] / La televisita in supporto alla gestione domiciliare del paziente affetto da CoViD-19 da parte del medico di medicina generale: i risultati in alcuni comuni delle Marche.

The lockdown of Italy, the re-orientation of many hospital departments into CoViD-19 patient care wards, the need to prevent the general practitioners from being infected has been arising the need of access to medical care in patients isolated at their homes. The specialists of the De Martinis Telemedicine Panel, addressing e-health issues, have been responding to the requests of general practitioners in 14 municipalities of Marche region, by implementing the televideoconsultation to 98 patients, 68 of whom with, certain, probable or supposed to be CoViD-19 infection. The patients were managed from remote until the symptoms were over. Sixty-five patients adhere the televideoconsultation completely and were cured, also with home oxygen therapy and other treatments additional to the standard anti-inflammatory and antibiotic drugs. However, they got stuck to full isolation while making use of no external human resources for health and relying entirely on the electronic prescription of their general practitioner and the help of the cohabiting family members. Two patients abandoned, including one owing to the lack of support from the cohabiting family member, and addressed themselves to the hospital care. However, they required no mechanical ventilation and were discharged being recovered within shortly. One over 90 years' old patient was hospitalised in agreement with the general practitioner for management problems. The results are discussed in relationship to the procedures put in practice, to the perspectives in the use of clinical televideoconsultation in the Italian health system, mainly in support to the primary health care, and to the limitations due to the poor development of other e-health tools such as the citizen's electronic health record.

The effect of drought and nitrogen fertiliser addition on nitrate leaching risk from a pasture soil; an assessment from a field experiment and modelling.

BACKGROUND: A combination of field experiment and modelling tested the hypothesis that dry summers increase the risk of nitrogen (N) leaching from pasture owing to a combination of: soil N accumulation in a dry summer; slow recovery of drought-affected pasture in the autumn; and the resultant inefficient use of fertiliser N by the pasture. RESULTS: In the experiment, pasture response to urea and apparent N recovery in autumn after the drought was half that of irrigated pasture (7 vs 13 kg dry matter kg-1 N; 28 vs 52% apparent recovery; P < 0.05). There was more soil mineral N at the start of drainage (P < 0.001) as a result of this inefficient fertiliser N use. Modelling of pasture growth in six different drought years demonstrated that subsequent N leaching risk after rewetting was inversely related to pasture N uptake during rewetting in the autumn. CONCLUSION: When the period between post-drought pasture recovery and the onset of drainage is short, N leaching risk increases. Nitrogen leaching is determined by the type of autumn (slow or fast growing conditions before drainage) and the amount of fertiliser N applied. The latter can be managed by a farmer, but the former cannot. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

Bayesian network for point and diffuse source phosphorus transfer from dairy pastures in South otago, new zealand.

Many factors affect the magnitude of nutrient losses from dairy farm systems. Bayesian Networks (BNs) are an alternative to conventional modeling that can evaluate complex multifactor problems using forward and backward reasoning. A BN of annual total phosphorus (TP) exports was developed for a hypothetical dairy farm in the south Otago region of New Zealand and was used to investigate and integrate the effects of different management options under contrasting rainfall and drainage regimes. Published literature was consulted to quantify the relationships that underpin the BN, with preference given to data and relationships derived from the Otago region. In its default state, the BN estimated loads of 0.34 ± 0.42 kg TP ha for overland flow and 0.30 ± 0.19 kg TP ha for subsurface flow, which are in line with reported TP losses in overland flow (0-1.1 kg TP ha) and in drainage (0.15-2.2 kg TP ha). Site attributes that cannot be managed, like annual rainfall and the average slope of the farm, were found to affect the loads of TP lost from dairy farms. The greatest loads (13.4 kg TP ha) were predicted to occur with above-average annual rainfall (970 mm), where irrigation of farm dairy effluent was managed poorly, and where Olsen P concentrations were above pasture requirements (60 mg kg). Most of this loading was attributed to contributions from overland flow. This study demonstrates the value of using a BN to understand the complex interactions between site variables affecting P loss and their relative importance.

Massive myocardial infarction in a full-term newborn: a case report.

A full-term female newborn with neonatal asphyxia and severe anemia (Hb 2.5 g/dL) with normal heart developed a massive myocardial infarction. No examinations were performed during pregnancy for parental nomadism. The baby had immediate external cardiac massage, ventilatory assistance, and blood transfusion. Cardiomegaly was evident at chest X-ray and marked signs of ischemia-lesion at ECG. Echocardiography showed dilated, hypertrophic, and hypocontractile left ventricle (LV), mitral and tricuspid regurgitation, and moderate pericardial effusion. Rh isoimmunization and infective agents were excluded at laboratory tests. Despite the treatment with inotropes, hydrocortisone, and furosemide, the baby worsened and died at 45 hours of life. Postmortem examination showed diffuse subendocardial infarction of LV and diffuse parenchymal hemorrhages and myocardial hypertrophy, increase of eosinophilia, and polymorphonucleated cells at histology. Our patient suffered apparently from longstanding fetal anemia of unknown etiology that led to perinatal distress, severe hypoxia, and massive myocardial infarction, unresponsive to the therapy.

Oxytocin stimulates in vitro angiogenesis via a Pyk-2/Src-dependent mechanism.

We previously reported that the hypothalamic hormone oxytocin (OT), best known for its uterotonic activity, also stimulates migration and invasion in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), thus suggesting a possible role for the peptide in the regulation of angiogenesis. We identified the Gq coupling of OT receptors (OTRs) and phospholipase C (PLC) as the main effectors of OT's action in HUVECs. Moreover, the pro-migratory effect of OT required the OTR-induced activation of the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI-3-K)/AKT/endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) pathway. To better characterize the proposed pro-angiogenic effect of OT in HUVECs, we have now utilized a three-dimensional (3-D) in vitro angiogenesis assay, and demonstrated that OT stimulates the outgrowth of capillary-like structures from HUVEC spheroids to an extent comparable to that of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). This OT effect was abolished by inhibitors of PLC, PI-3-K and Src kinase. It was also found that OT phosphorylates proline-rich tyrosine kinase-2 (Pyk-2) and Src kinase in a PLC- and calcium-dependent manner. Furthermore, knockdown of Pyk-2 expression by RNA interference markedly impaired Src phosphorylation, migration and endothelial cell sprouting induced by OT. In conclusion, by using a pharmacological and genetic approach, the OT pro-angiogenic action and the cascade of intracellular signals responsible for it were defined by showing for the first time that OT, by interacting with its Gq-coupled receptor, induces HUVEC capillary outgrowth via Pyk-2 phosphorylation, which activates Src which in turn activates the PI-3-K/AKT pathway.