Badania nad przeżywalnością bakterii w wodzie prowadzono na szczepach: Escherichia coli K 12 J62- l oraz Escherichia coli KI 2 J62- l RI otrzymanych od cir P.J. McDermott' a z Uniwersytetu w Staffordshire. W wodzie pobranej z 2 punktów zbiornika Dzierżno Duże: filtrowanej (0,5 um - Syn por), sterylizowanej oraz po wprowadzeniu dodatkowego substratu odżywczego - glukozy, porównano przeżywalność plazmidowego i bezplazmidowego szczepu £. Coli. Wykazano, że liczba komórek bakteryjnych wprowadzonych do wody obniża się z różną szybkością zależnie od obecności czynników biotycznych. Obserwowano znaczący spadek liczebności bakterii w próbkach wody sączonej (92% i 46% w 3 dniu doświadczenia). Jest to prawdopodobnie wynikiem obecności w wodzie bakteriofagów charakterystycznych dla Ee coli Kl 2, których obecność, specyficzną zarówno dla szczepu plazmidowego jak i bezplazmidowego stwierdzono w użytej do badań wodzie. W próbkach wody sterylnej, pozbawionej flory autochtonicznej, obserwowano powolny, niewielki spadek liczebności od 7 do 21 dnia. W zastosowanym układzie doświadczenia nie stwierdzono istotnego polepszenia przeżywalności w obecności plazmidu. a niekiedy lepiej przeżywał szczep bezplazmidowy. Wprowadzenie glukozy spowodowało, że mimo obciążenia metabolicznego jakim jest plazmid dla komórki, przeżywalność obydwu szczepów była zbliżona.

One of the methods of sewage sludge disposal, which is based on its fertilizing properties, is its use in nature, e.g. in farming (if all the permissible standards are met). However, the sludge used for soil fertilization might also contain heavy metals, pathogenic microorganisms, thus causing contamination in soil foundation and deterioration of the conditions for development of indigenous organisms. Particular threat is posed by the existence of drug-resistant microorganisms in sewage sludge. This problem has not been researched in detail yet.

The authors of the present study aimed to determine qualitative changes in drug-resistant microorganisms in sandy soil fertilized with selected sewage sludge. Sewage sludge after different types of drying process (natural and solar) was added to the degraded sandy soil. The effect of the methods of sewage sludge drying on concentration of drug-resistant microorganisms in soil fertilized with the sludge was analysed.

The study demonstrated that sewage sludge dried naturally in drying beds pose threat to soil environment and, potentially, to people and animals which have contact with fertilized soils. In sandy soils fertilized with these types of sewage sludge, pathogenic forms which exhibit resistance to first-line antibiotics can be found.

We are setting new sports records and conquering space, but are helpless against climate change and new viruses. Prof. Andrzej W. Ziemba talks about the human body’s abilities.

Background/Aim: Factors influencing the survival of the nursing home population have not yet been clearly defined. The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of nutritional, mental, functional, disease and pharmacological factors on the survival of nursing home residents with severe disabilities.
Material and Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted with a 9-year follow-up period among nursing home residents with a Barthel score ≤40. The initial assessment included the following scales: Mini Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA-SF), Abbreviated Mental Test Score (AMTS), the Barthel Index, and blood pressure (BP) measurements. Comorbidities, medications and all-cause mortality were extracted from medical records. The analyzed cohort was divided into two groups: Deceased — residents who died ≤3 years and Survivors — those who survived >3 years of observation.
Results: Survivors (n = 40) and Deceased (n = 48) did not differ significantly in terms of age, sex, systolic and diastolic BP, the Barthel Index, number of diseases and medications used. Survivors had significantly higher scores in MNA-SF (p <0.001) and AMTS (p <0.003) than Deceased. Moreover, Survivors had hyper-tension significantly more often and took aspirin and ACE inhibitors (p <0.05). The multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the MNA-SF score significantly affected mortality [OR = 0.62, (95%CI, 0.46– 0.84), p <0.001].
Conclusion: Higher MNA-SF scores were a factor that significantly affected the survival of nursing home residents, while functional status assessed using the Barthel Index had no effect on survival. MNA-SF was found to be a useful tool for assessing the risk of death in a nursing home.

Postharvest insect pests constitute major threats to food security because they cause qualitative and quantitative damage to agricultural produce. Therefore, eco-friendly and cost-effective measures should be used for their management. In this study, five botanical powders ( Trema orientalis and Crataeva religiosa leaves; and Citrus tangelo, Citrus maxima and Citrus aurantifolia peels) were admixed with Spintor® [1.25 active ingredient (a.i.) mg · kg ^–1] and evaluated as toxicants against Tribolium castaneum. Each botanical powder and spintor was solely applied at 1000 mg · kg ^–1 millet seeds. Spintor-botanical powder mixtures admixed at a ratio of 1 : 1 (w/w) were applied at 500 and 1000 mg · kg ^–1, corresponding to 0.313 and 0.625 a. i. mg · kg ^–1 for spintor in the mixtures, respectively. On the 14th day of exposure, the Citrus species admixed with spintor and applied at 500 mg · kg ^–1 evoked significantly (p < 0.05) higher percentage mortality (72.22–90.28%) than what was observed in the mixture of spintor with T. orientalis (22.08%) or the mixture of spintor with C. religosa (17.92%) applied at 500 mg · kg ^–1. There was a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the Kaplan-Meier estimates of the treatments against the insects. The time required to kill 50% of the assayed insects (LT50) when Citrus species were admixed with spintor at 500 mg · kg ^–1 (10 days) was shorter than 14 days observed in the mixture of spintor with T. orientalis or C. religiosa. Therefore, admixing spintor with any of the Citrus powders [at 1 : 1 (w/w)] applied at 500 mg · kg ^–1 seed is recommended for the protection of millet seeds against T. castaneum.,

In order to use entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) as biological control agents, it is necessary to mass produce the EPF in an economical and cost-effective manner. Currently, the mass production of EPF is carried out mainly in two ways: solid-state fermentation in which the aerial conidia are produced, and liquid fermentation in which the blastospores and submerged conidia are produced. This research compares the survival of Beauveria bassiana A1-1spores from solid and liquid culture media, after 0, 3, 6 and 9 months of storage at room temperature (25 ± 5°C) and in the refrigerator (4°C). Furthermore, it compares the pathogenicity of spores immediately after production and after 9 months of storage on third nymphs of greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum. The aerial conidia and blastospores were slightly more virulent than the submerged conidia on whitefly nymphs. In laboratory bioassays, blastospores indicated more pathogenicity on nymphs than submerged conidia, even though there was no significant difference in the pathogenicity of the spores produced in liquid culture media in greenhouse bioassays. Moreover, survival of the aerial conidia at a low temperature (4°C) was higher than that kept at room temperature (25 ± 5°C). This storage temperature comparison revealed a positive effect on the stability and survival of blastospores and submerged conidia as well. Meanwhile, the survival of spores drastically decreased after 3 months of storage at room temperature.

Accurate determination of the probability structure of the multistate model is significant from the valuation and profitability assessment of insurance contracts standpoint. This article aims to analyse the effect of spouses' future lifetime dependence on premiums and prospective reserves for marriage insurance contracts. As a result, under the assumptions that the evolution of the insured risk is described by a nonhomogeneous Markov chain and the dependence between spouses' future lifetime is modelled by the copula, we derive formulas for the elements of the transition matrices. Based on actual data, we conduct a comparative analysis of actuarial values for three scenarios related to future lifetimes of husband and wife. We test the robustness of premium value to the changing degree of dependency between spouses' future lifetimes.

In this article the author makes an attempt to characterize the main factor – mobility – which is to be taken into consideration while designing the ground radar component (passive and active radars) of the Air Defense systems in order to enable them to operate on the contemporary battlefield. He presents the latest theoretical views on the relationship between the usage of anti-radiation missiles and the mobility of the passive and active radars as the key ability to protect them against such weapons. In particular the author emphasizes that the antiradiation missiles present nowadays the biggest threat for the effective Air Defense systems, which are today characterized by a high complexity degree. He also stresses the need to combine the radars, both passive and active, into one system allowing for the streamlining of their work parameters and thus ensuring their complex usage. The gaining of those capabilities shall guarantee that the parameters of the air surveillance radar area can be defined effectively.

Clinical records of dogs with spontaneous degenerative mitral valve disease (DMVD) with clinical signs related to congestive heart failure (CHF) recruited during routine clinical practice between 2001 and 2018 at the Cardiology Unit of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital (University of Milan) were included in this retrospective cohort study. Baseline echocardiographic data were evaluated. Median survival time (MST) was calculated. Data on therapeutic treatment, ISACHC (International Small Animal Cardiac Health Council) or ACVIM (American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine) classes were reviewed based on the inclusion period and type of endpoint (i.e. cardiac death or death for other causes). A univocal classification was needed, and the patients classified in ISACHC classes II, IIIa and IIIb, visited before 2009, were reallocated to ACVIM class C. The main goal of this data review was to retrospectively evaluate 259 clinical records of subjects belonging to ACVIM C class examined between 2001 to 2018 and 202 dogs examined between 2010 to 2018. In this way, in the second group, the bias of the reclassification was avoided. The MST (median survival time) of these subjects was 531 d (2001-2018) and 335.5 d (2010-2018), respectively. Univariate survival regression analysis for subjects included from 2010 to 2018 showed as significantly related to cardiac death (CD): left atrium to aorta ratio (LA/Ao) (HR 2.754, p=0.000), E wave (HR 2.961, p=0.000), E/A ratio (HR 1.372, p=0.000), end-diastolic (HR 1.007, p=0.000) (EDVI) and end-systolic (HR 1.012, p=0.026) (ESVI) volume indexes, allometric diastolic (HR 4.018, p=0.000) (LVIDdN) and systolic (HR 2.674, p=0.049) (LVIDsN) left ventricular internal diameters, age (HR 1.006, p=0.009) and pulmonary hypertension severity (HR=1.309, p=0.012) (PH). Multivariate analysis, adjusted for age, showed that the only variable that determined a statistically significant difference in MST was PH severity (HR 1.334, p=0.033). The type of therapeutic treatment within this class was not significant for the MST of the subjects.

In this paper we analyze the phenomenon of quitting academic science and show how quitting differs between men and women, academic disciplines and over time. The approach presented is comprehensive: global, based on cohorts of scientists, and longitudinal – we observe the publication activity of individual scientists over time. Using metadata from Scopus, a global bibliometric database of publications and citations, we analyze the publication careers of scientists from 38 OECD countries who began publishing in 2000 ( N = 142 776) and 2010 ( N = 232 843). The paper tests the usefulness of large bibliometric datasets for a global analysis of academic careers.