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The European Union Publications Office has recently presented a report on the European Union's coordinated action with the Joint Research Centre to determine certain fraudulent practices in the honey sector, in which it has been indicated that 74% of the samples analyzed, imported from China, and 93% of the samples analyzed, imported from Turkey, the two largest honey producers worldwide, presented at least one indicator of exogenous sugar or suspicion of being adulterated. This situation has revealed the critical state of the problem of honey adulteration worldwide and the need to develop analytical techniques for its detection. Even though the adulteration of honey is carried out in a general way with sweetened syrups derived from C4 plants, recent studies have indicated the emerging use of syrups derived from C3 plants for the adulteration of honey. This kind of adulteration makes it impossible to analyze its detection using official analysis techniques. In this work, we have developed a fast, simple, and economical method based on the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy technique, with attenuated total reflectance, for the qualitative, quantitative, and simultaneous determination of beetroot, date, and carob syrups, derived from of C3 plants; whose available bibliography is very scarce and analytically not very conclusive for its use by the authorities. The proposed method has been based on the establishment of the spectral differences between honey and the mentioned syrups at eight different points in the spectral region between 1200 and 900 cm-1 of the mid-infrared, characteristic of the vibrational modes of carbohydrates in honey, which allows the pre-discrimination of the presence or absence of the syrups studied, and their subsequent quantification, with precision levels lower than 2.0% of the relative standard deviation and relative errors lower than 2.0% (m/m).

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The adulteration of honey (Apis mellifera) is a global problem due to its economic, commercial and health implications. The world's leading beekeeping organisation, APIMONDIA, considers that the detection of adulteration in honey is a problem that has not yet been resolved. This evidence of the importance of the intensive development of analytical techniques that allow the unequivocal detection of adulterants in honey, especially those whose use as honey adulterants has recently emerged. This work aims to develop a fast, easy-to-perform, low-cost analytical method to qualitatively and quantitatively determine rice syrup using the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) technique with attenuated total reflectance (ATR) mode without complex mathematical procedures and sophisticated sample preparation. This study involved the analysis of 256 intentionally rice-syrup-adulterated honey samples and 92 pure honey samples of bee multifloral honey from Spain. The method, based strictly on the determination of the absorbance directly from the samples, at 1013 cm-1 The methodology used no need for previous treatments or preparations and demonstrated the scope for the unequivocal detection of rice syrup in adulterated honey containing equal to or higher than 3% (m/m) or more of this adulterant. Using the Exponential Plus Linear model (r = 0.998) shows high accuracy and precision, in terms of relative error (0.32%, m/m) and coefficient of variation (1.4%). The results of this study have led to the establishment of a maximum absorbance threshold of 0.670 for honey without rice syrup.

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PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the prognostic impact of maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) in patients with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) undergoing pretreatment [F-18] fluoro-D-glucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG PET/CT) imaging. MATERIALS/METHODS: Fifty-eight patients undergoing FDG PET/CT before radical treatment with definitive radiotherapy (±concomitant chemotherapy) or surgery + postoperative (chemo)radiation were analyzed. The effects of clinicopathological factors (age, gender, tumor location, stage, Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS), and treatment strategy) including primary tumor SUVmax and nodal SUVmax on overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), locoregional control (LRC), and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) were evaluated. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were generated and compared with the log-rank test. RESULTS: Median follow-up for the whole population was 31 months (range 2.3-53.5). Two-year OS, LRC, DFS and DMFS, for the entire cohort were 62.1, 78.3, 55.2 and 67.2%, respectively. Median pretreatment SUVmax for the primary tumor and lymph nodes was 11.85 and 5.4, respectively. According to univariate analysis, patients with KPS < 80% (p < 0.001), AJCC stage IVa or IVb vs III (p = 0.037) and patients undergoing radiotherapy vs surgery (p = 0.042) were significantly associated with worse OS. Patients with KPS < 80% (p = 0.003) or age ≥65 years (p = 0.007) had worse LRC. The KPS < 80% was the only factor associated with decreased DFS (p = 0.001). SUVmax of the primary tumor or the lymph nodes were not associated with OS, DFS or LRC. The KPS < 80% (p = 0.002), tumor location (p = 0.047) and AJCC stage (p = 0.025) were associated with worse cancer-specific survival (CSS). According to Cox regression analysis, on multivariate analysis KPS < 80% was the only independent parameter determining worse OS, DFS, CSS. Regarding LRC only patients with IK < 80% (p = 0.01) and ≥65 years (p = 0.01) remained statistically significant. Nodal SUVmax was the only factor associated with decreased DMFS. Patients with a nodal SUVmax > 5.4 presented an increased risk for distant metastases (HR, 3.3; 95% CI 1.17-9.25; p = 0.023). CONCLUSIONS: The pretreatment nodal SUVmax in patients with locally advanced HNSCC is prognostic for DMFS. However, according to our results primary tumor SUVmax and nodal SUVmax were not significantly related to OS, DFS or LRC. Patients presenting KPS < 80% had worse OS, DFS, CSS and LRC.

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AIMS: To determine the abundance and diversity of entomopathogenic fungi in tejocote orchard soils and evaluate their ability to infect Rhagoletis pomonella Walsh., the main pest of tejocote. METHODS AND RESULTS: Surveys were made in two locations in Mexico state and two in Puebla state. Soil from selected locations was baited for entomopathogenic fungi with Galleria mellonella (L.). All isolates were identified morphologically to genus level and to species level using Bloc and elongation factor 1-α gene sequence information, respectively; Beauveria bassiana ((Bals.-Criv.) Vuill.), B. pseudobassiana (S.A. Rehner & Humber) and Metarhizium robertsii (J.F. Bisch., Rehner & Humber) were found, with B. bassiana being the most abundant and widely distributed. Pathogenicity of five selected B. bassiana isolates and three M. robertsii isolates was evaluated against larvae and pupae of R. pomonella. All isolates infected larvae resulting in an average mortality of 35%. Pupae were not susceptible; however, adults emerging from inoculated pupae did die due to infection. CONCLUSIONS: At least three species of entomopathogenic fungi are present in the soil from tejocote orchards, with B. bassiana being the most abundant and widely distributed. Rhagoletis pomonella larvae were more susceptible to infection than pupae. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Our study has produced new information about the distribution of entomopathogenic fungi in cultivated soils from this region of North America, contributing to a better understanding of their natural occurrence and underpinning the development of biological control approaches.

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OBJECTIVE: To describe capabilities and difficulties in emotional adjustment experienced by children living in the Chilean Aymara city of Arica. PATIENTS AND METHOD: 610 students between 5th and 8th grade, in addition to their parents and teachers were surveyed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), comparing Aymara children to those without indigenous heritage. 25 items divided into five scales were evaluated: Emotional, behavioral problems, hyperactivity, relationship problems with peers and prosocial behaviors, classifying the respondents into three levels, Normal, Border and Abnormal. RESULTS: There were no significant differences among the groups studied, where discrepancies in almost all cases show a slight effect (d≥|0.2|). Also, no relevant effects were observed regarding the type of assessor on the assessment of each dimension. Despite this, it was observed that Aymara children showed lower scores than their peers in "behavioral problems" according to their teachers, but this difference was also mild (partial η2>0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Aymara Children showed similar strengths and difficulties than non-Aymara students in situations that require emotional adjustment.

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Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is a common consumed vegetable and a major source of income and nutrition for small farmers in Mexico. This crop is infected with at least nine viruses: Mirafiori lettuce big-vein virus (MiLBVV), Lettuce big-vein associated virus (LBVaV), both transmitted by the soil-borne fungus Olpidium brassicae; Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV), Tomato chlorotic spot virus (TCSV), Groundnut ringspot virus (GRSV), Lettuce mottle virus (LMoV), Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), Bidens mosaic virus (BiMV), and Lettuce mosaic virus (LMV) (1). From March to May 2012, a disease on lettuce was observed in the south region of Mexico City displaying mild to severe mosaic, leaf deformation, reduced growth, slight thickening of the main vein, and plant death. At the beginning of the epidemic there were just a few plants with visible symptoms and 7 days later the entire crop was affected, causing a loss of 93% of the plants. It was estimated by counting the number of severely affected or dead plants in three plots. No thrips, aphids, or whiteflies were observed in the crop during this time. Twenty plants with similar symptoms were collected and tested by RT-PCR using the primers LBVaVF 5'-AACACTATGGGCATCCACAT-3' and LBVaVR 5'-GCATGTCAGCAATCAGAGGA-3' specific for the coat protein gene of LBVaV, amplifying a 322-bp fragment. Primers CP829F 5'-CCWACTTCATCAGTTGAGCGCTG-3' and CP1418R 5'-TATCAGCTCCCTACACTATCCTCGC-3' were used to detect MiLBVV (2). No amplification was obtained for MiLBVaV in any plants tested. PCR products of approximately 300 bp were obtained from four out of 20 symptomatic lettuce samples tested for LBVaV, but not from healthy plant and water controls. These results suggest the presence of another virus in symptomatic lettuce plants. Amplicons were gel-purified and sequenced using LBVaVF and LBVaVR primers. A consensus sequence was generated using the Bioedit v. 5 program. Both sequences of these Mexican lettuce isolates were 100% identical (Accession Nos. KC776266.1 and KC776267.1) and had identities between 94 and 99% to all sequences of LBVaV available in GenBank. Additionally, when alignments were made using ClustalW, these sequences showed identities of 99.7% to Almeria-Spanish isolate (Accession No. AY581686.1); 99.4% to Granada-Spanish isolate (AY581689.1); 99.1% to Dutch isolate (JN710441.1), Iranian isolate (JN400921.1), Australian isolate (GU220725.1), Brazilian isolate (DQ530354.1), England isolate (AY581690.1), and American isolate (AY496053.1); 96.2% to Australian isolate (GU220722.1); 96.3% to Japanese isolate (AB190527.1); and 92.8% to Murcia-Spanish isolate (AY581691.1). Twenty lettuce plants were mechanically inoculated with leaf tissue taken from the four plants collected in the field and tested positive for LBVaV by RT-PCR; 12 days after inoculation, mosaic symptoms were observed in all inoculated plants and six of them were analyzed individually by RT-PCR obtaining a fragment of the expected size. To our knowledge, this is the first report of LBVaV infecting lettuce in Mexico. Further surveys and monitoring of LBVaV incidence and distribution in the region, vector competence of olpidium species, and impact on the crop quality are in progress. References: (1) P. M. Agenor et al. Plant Viruses 2:35, 2008. (2) R. J. Hayes et al. Plant Dis. 90:233, 2006.

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INTRODUCTION: Diseases that involve the nervous system and the musculoskeletal system are particularly likely to produce different limitations and deficits, and to affect the individual conception of quality of life. AIM: To determine the impact on quality of life generated by chronic autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Sjogren's syndrome (SS), ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and chronic musculotendinous diseases like osteoarthritis (OA) and fibromyalgia (FM), using the Short Form 36-item (SF-36) health questionnaire. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted between January 2004 and June 2006 and included 509 individuals, of whom 56 had MS, 36 SS, 24 AS, 200 RA, 65 SLE, 54 OA and 74 FM. Guided interviews were conducted to evaluate each sphere of the SF-36 health questionnaire. The statistical analysis was performed using the general lineal model, with means differences according to each diagnosis. RESULTS: Compared to patients with RA, those with MS showed significant differences in the physical functioning and social functioning dimensions. The lowest score was recorded in those with FM, except in physical functioning, where MS had the lowest mean. No differences were found in the mean scores on general conception of the state of health in each condition analysed. CONCLUSIONS: Different neurological functions deteriorate progressively in MS, which has repercussions on the musculoskeletal system; this leads to a poorer quality of life, mainly in the physical and social functions. The disability generated is not only defined by deficit but also by the degrees of functional limitation within the context of personal health. Quality of life thus becomes a global biopsychosocial phenomenon.

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Heart failure is a complex clinical syndrome. The pharmacological therapy for chronic heart failure has been changing in the past decade with acquired knowledge of the pathophysiology of this medical condition. Primary care physicians currently treat a significant number of patients. This article summarizes core topics of heart failure including epidemiological information, etiology, pathophysiology, clinical features and diagnostic tools. Also, we review some of the most relevant research studies that have led to the current recommendations for the pharmacological therapeutic strategies in the management of chronic heart failure. We make reference to the latest guidelines in the management of chronic heart failure submitted by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association (ACC/AHA). New technological advances, such as the biventricular-pacing devices, are an important adjuvant to the established pharmacological therapies for chronic heart failure

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Symptoms of interveinal chlorosis, necrotic flecking, thickening, and rolling of leaves were observed on leaves of field-grown tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) plants in Jauna Diaz, Puerto Rico. These symptoms are indicative of those produced by the whitefly-transmitted criniviruses, Tomato infectious chlorosis virus (TICV) and Tomato chlorosis virus (ToCV) (1). Samples collected from two symptomatic plants were examined by leaf dip and were found to contain long flexuous rods approximately 800 nm in length, characteristic of criniviruses. Symptomatic leaves were used for extraction of total nucleic acid and for whitefly transmission studies. The greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood), is a highly efficient vector of TICV, but an inefficient vector of ToCV, whereas the banded wing whitefly, T. abutilonea (Haldeman), is an efficient vector of ToCV but does not transmit TICV (2). Whiteflies of both species were allowed to feed separately on symptomatic tomato leaves for 24 h and then transferred to healthy Physalis wrightii and Nicotiana benthamiana indicator plants. Symptoms characteristic of ToCV infection developed on 3 of 3 P. wrightii plants and 2 of 3 N. benthamiana plants following transmission by T. abutilonea. Only 1 of 3 P. wrightii plants developed such symptoms following transmission by T. vaporariorum, while no N. benthamiana plants developed symptoms, suggesting that the virus responsible for the tomato disease was ToCV. Dot blot hybridizations were performed on total nucleic acids extracted from 0.1 g of symptomatic leaves of field samples using probes specific for TICV or ToCV (2), as well as probes specific for four additional criniviruses. Symptomatic and asymptomatic leaves of plants in transmission tests, as well as comparable leaves from control plants, were also tested by dot blot. Although no criniviruses could be detected by dot blot in the original tomato tissue, these hybridizations identified ToCV in all symptomatic plants from the transmission experiments, confirming the presence of ToCV in Puerto Rico. No additional criniviruses were detected in any samples, and negative controls were virus-free. This is the first time a tomato crinivirus has been detected in the Caribbean, outside of the continental United States. The ability of ToCV to be transmitted by four different whitefly species increases the potential for this virus to spread throughout the Caribbean Basin. References: (1) G. C. Wisler et al. Plant Dis. 82:270, 1998. (2) G. C. Wisler et al. Phytopathology 88:402, 1998.

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Two different areas of metropolitan zone in Venezuela were studied in relationship to the immunological condition associated with A, B, C and D viral hepatitis in 557 healthy subjects. We performed clinical history with personal information, that was subsequently correlated with results of the hepatitis markers. General results show prevalence different from previous reports: Anti-HAV: 90.84%, HBsAg: 1.62%, Anti-HBc: 10.6%, Anti-HCV: 0.36% y Anti HDV: 0%.

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The usefulness of vasodilating agents in congestive heart failure depends on their ability to diminish left ventricular afterload; this effect does not necessarily persist with long-term treatment. The present study reports the clinical response of 16 patients in heart failure; the trial was double blind with enalapril and/or placebo during 24 weeks. Diagnoses were dilated cardiomyopathy in six, rheumatic heart disease in five, ischemic heart disease in four und hypertensive heart disease in one. Two patients on enalapril died of non cardiac causes and one was withdrawn from the study due to pregnancy. In those patients treated with enalapril the NYHA functional class improved from 2.9/0.8 to 1.1/0.4 (p less than 0.001), and the effort capacity increased from 545/171 to 888/160 seconds (p less than 0.01). Left ventricular systolic function evaluated by echocardiogram and Tc 99 m ventriculogram, radiologic size of the heart and echocardiographic left ventricular diameters showed no significant changes. There were no adverse clinical effects nor laboratory abnormalities. It is concluded that in this study, enalapril produced sustained clinical improvement in patients with heart failure and it was well tolerated during long-term treatment.

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Enalapril (E) was used to treat 16 patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, 6 primary and 10 secondary, 5 of the latter with congenital heart disease and 5 with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The average dose of E was 20 mg/day. All patients underwent pre and post-treatment cardiac catheterization with determination of pressures at: right atrial (RA), main pulmonary artery (MPA), pulmonary capillary wedge pressure ( VCP) and systemic arterial (SA). Resistances forces were also measured as; total pulmonary (TPR), pulmonary arteriolar (PAR) and total systemic (TSR) as well as cardiac output (CO), and echo and electrocardiograms, chest x ray, stress test and respiratory function test. The functional class (NYHA) improved in all (p less than 0.001). The initial mean pressures were: RA 12.24 +/- 4.35; MPA 73.81 +/- 25.16; VCP 12 +/- 2.73 and SA 89 +/- 14; TPR 1477 +/- 761; PAR 1243 +/- 730 and TSR 1684 +/- 505.5; CO 4.5 +/- 1.29. The final values were: RA 9.66 +/- 2.46 (p less than 0.001); MPA 63.26 +/- 24.45 (p less than 0.001); VCP 11.33 +/- 2.38 (p = NS); SA 81 +/- 10 (p less than 0.001); TPR 1009.5 +/- 536.7 (p less than 0.001); PAR 829 +/- 511.5 (p less than 0.001); TSR 1309.6 +/- 296.3 (p less than 0.001); CO 5.2 +/- 1.44 (p less than 0.001). The average of minutes on treadmill was initially 8.2 +/- 2.45 and final 12.46 +/- 3.0 (p less than 0.001). It is concluded that enalapril is a useful drug in the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension of any etiology.

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El etomidate, en infusión continua, por su estabilidad hemodinámica y disminución de la presión intracraneal, puede ser un importante hipnótico durante la neuroanestesia

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El etomidate, en infusión continua, por su estabilidad hemodinámica y disminución de la presión intracraneal, puede ser un importante hipnótico durante la neuroanestesia (AU)

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