196 research outputs found
Farm nitrogen budgets for the assessment of the effectiveness of agri-environmental measures in the Watershed of the Venice Lagoon
No full textOne of the main concerns of the environmental scientists and policy-makers is related to the environmental compatibility of current agricultural systems and, in particular, to the losses of chemical fertilizers and manure in surface and ground-waters, as a consequence of run-off and leaching phenomena. In most cases European recent agri-environmental schemes envisaged specific measures for the reduction of fertilizer rates and the control of manure applications, in order to limit the releases of nutrients in surface and ground-waters. Substantial financial resources are invested in those measures and therefore the issue raises interest in monitoring and evaluating their effectiveness. Nutrient balance indicators are often used for quantitative assessment of the effectiveness of the measures in limiting the environmental impact of farming activities. N-surplus is one of the most commonly used indicators. The paper refers the results of a research project aimed at assessing the outcomes of agri-environmental measures implemented in the Venice Lagoon Watershed with an approach based upon the gross nitrogen balance, called “Nboxes”.
The results of applying the Nboxes procedure to a sample of 550 farms set are presented, evidencing the expectations of greater effectiveness in terms of nitrogen surplus reduction from the measure C.5.1.3a and C.5.1.3b (low input farming and buffer strips). Measures supporting improved irrigation systems, controlled drainage and more rational livestock nutritional programmes and technologies, showed instead only limited potential for meaningful contributions to the reduction of nitrogen surplus in cultivated soils
Evaluation of Agri-Environmental Measures in the Venice Lagoon Watershed. Nitrogen Budgets and Surplus Indicators
No full textOne of the main concerns of the environmental scientists and policy makers is related to the environmental compatibility of current agricultural systems and, in particular, to the losses of chemical fertilizers and manure in surface and ground-waters, as a consequence of run-off and leaching phenomena. In most cases European recent agrienvironmental schemes envisaged specific measures for the reduction of fertilizer rates and the control of manure applications, in order to limit the releases of nutrients in surface and ground-waters. Substantial financial resources are invested in those measures and therefore the issue raises interest in monitoring and evaluating their effectiveness. Nutrient balance indicators are often used for quantitative assessment of the effectiveness of the measures in limiting the environmental impact of farming activities. N-surplus is one of the most commonly used indicators. The paper refers the results of a research project aimed at assessing the outcomes of agri-environmental measures implemented in the Venice Lagoon Watershed with an approach based upon the gross nitrogen balance, called “Nboxes”. The results of applying the Nboxes procedure to a sample of 550 farms set are presented, evidencing the expectations of greater effectiveness in terms of nitrogen surplus reduction from the measure C.5.1.3a and C.5.1.3b (low input farming and buffer strips). Measures supporting improved irrigation systems, controlled drainage and more rational livestock nutritional programmes and technologies, showed instead only limited potential for tangible contributions to the reduction of nitrogen surplus in cultivated soils
Normality of closure of nilpotent conjugacy classes
No full textIn this work the author studies the geometry of the conjugacy classes in the space of matrices and in its subspaces of symmetric and skew-symmetric matrices under the actions of the general linear group, the orthogonal group and the symplectic group. An extensive and self-contained review of the current state of the art concerning the description of nilpotent conjugacy classes and their closures is provided. Many geometrical properties of the closure of a conjugacy class are interesting from a representation theoretic viewpoint; in particular, their normality. A complete discussion of the normality of the closures of the conjugacy classes for the stated actions takes a prominent role in this work. The main new result completes the picture and it states that a nilpotent symmetric conjugacy class for the orthogonal group has normal closure if and only if the associated partition has consecutive parts of length differing by at most one
Human chorionic gonadotropin assays for testicular tumors : closing the gap between clinical and laboratory practice
No full textBACKGROUND: Clinical practice guidelines recommend the measurement of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and/or hCG in serum for management of testicular germ cell tumors (GCTs). These guidelines, however, disregard relevant biochemical information on hCG variants to be detected for oncological application. We set out to provide a critical review of the clinical evidence together with a characterization of the selectivity of currently marketed hCG immunoassays, identifying assays suitable for management of GCTs.
CONTENT: Evidence sources in the available literature were critically appraised. Most instances of misdiagnosis and mismanagement of testicular GCTs have been associated with hCG results. According to the clinical evidence, 36% of patients with seminoma show an exclusive hCG increase, and 71% of patients with nonseminomatous GCTs (NSGCTs) show an increase of intact hCG and/or hCG hCG, whereas the hCG increase in NSGCTs is variable according to the tumor stage and histology.
SUMMARY: hCG hCG assays that display an equimolar recognition of hCG and hCG, or at least do not overtly underestimate hCG, may be employed for management of testicular GCTs. Assays that underestimate hCG are not recommended for oncological application. In addition to the hCG hCG assay in service, an additional assay with broader selectivity for other hCG variants should be considered when false-negative or false-positive results are suspected on the basis of clinical data
Evaluating water-repellents applied to brick masonry: An experimental study by thermal imaging and water transport properties’ characterization
No full textMoisture is one of the main problems that affect new and historic masonry buildings, which are the most common ones in Europe and worldwide. The application of surface treatments based on water-repellents is a very common solution to protect masonry from rain and hence from moisture-related problems. However, there are very few studies on the monitoring of water-repellents in real buildings and a deeper knowledge would be necessary on the long-term effectiveness and compatibility of water repellents, especially considering that defects and flaking issues are often reported in-the-field. In this paper, infrared thermography was proposed as a totally non-invasive technique to monitor the behaviour of brick masonry subjected to wetting, both from outside (rain) and inside (internal moisture). An active thermal approach was used to simulate internal and external wetting. The behaviour of the masonry during wetting and drying was investigated both in laboratory walls and in brick samples, to elucidate their water transport properties. All the materials were tested both in untreated conditions and after the application of two different hydrophobic coatings. The results show that the drying behaviour of treated masonry materials is a critical issue, as the coatings may strongly slow down the drying of internal moisture, even if the coefficient of resistance to water vapour diffusion of the products is very low. The results also suggest that the methodology used to process thermal images using multi-temporal analysis is a promising way to interpret the water transport in treated walls and to monitor real buildings where water-repellents were applied
High prevalence of unrecognized celiac disease in an unselected hospital population in north-eastern Brasil (Recife, Pernambuco).
No full textCirculating tumor markers: a guide to their appropriate clinical use | Comparative summary of recommendations from clinical practice guidelines (PART 2)
No full textInsufficient uptake of systematic search methods in oncological clinical practice guideline: a systematic review
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