USA millennial and non-millennial beef consumers perception of beef, pork, and chicken

Millennials have been shown to have distinctly different behaviors; however, factors affecting their liking of beef, pork and chicken has not been fully elucidated. As millennials are current and future animal protein consumers, the question of if they have different drivers of liking for beef, pork, and chicken has not been answered. Top loin steaks cooked to 58.3 or 80 °C; and pork loin chops and chicken breasts cooked to 62.7 or 80 °C were cooked on a flat grill. Beef bottom round roasts cooked to 58.3 or 80°; and pork inside ham roasts and chicken thighs were cooked to 62.7 or 80 °C in a Crock-pot®. A descriptive flavor and texture attribute panel and a consumer central location test in four cities were used to evaluated flavor and texture attributes. Consumers were either millennials or non-millennials, and light or heavy beef-eaters. Meat descriptive flavor and texture attributes differed by cooking method, cut, and internal temperature (P < 0.05). Consumers preferred grilled meat more than meat cooked in the Crock-pot® (P > 0.05). Consumers rated grill flavor, juiciness, and tenderness (P ≥ 0.05) higher in grilled meat. Light beef-eaters, those who ate beef 2 to 4 times per month, rated overall, flavor, and species flavor lower (P < 0.05) than heavy beef-eaters, but consumers liked beef regardless of generational segment or their consumption of beef; however, millennials rated overall, overall flavor, and tenderness liking slightly lower than non-millennials. These results indicate that millennials have similar drivers of liking as non-millennials across beef, pork, and chicken protein sources.

Heavy metals concentration in soils across the conterminous USA: Spatial prediction, model uncertainty, and influencing factors

Assessment and proper management of sites contaminated with heavy metals require precise information on the spatial distribution of these metals. This study aimed to predict and map the distribution of Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn across the conterminous USA using point observations, environmental variables, and Histogram-based Gradient Boosting (HGB) modeling. Over 9180 surficial soil observations from the Soil Geochemistry Spatial Database (SGSD) (n = 1150), the Geochemical and Mineralogical Survey of Soils (GMSS) (n = 4857), and the Holmgren Dataset (HD) (n = 3400), and 28 covariates (100 m × 100 m grid) representing climate, topography, vegetation, soils, and anthropic activity were compiled. Model performance was evaluated on 20 % of the data not used in calibration using the coefficient of determination (R2), concordance correlation coefficient (ρc), and root mean square error (RMSE) indices. Uncertainty of predictions was calculated as the difference between the estimated 95 and 5 % quantiles provided by HGB. The model explained up to 50 % of the variance in the data with RMSE ranging between 0.16 (mg kg-1) for Cu and 23.4 (mg kg-1) for Zn, respectively. Likewise, ρc ranged between 0.55 (Cu) and 0.68 (Zn), respectively, and Zn had the highest R2 (0.50) among all predictions. We observed high Pb concentrations near urban areas. Peak concentrations of all studied metals were found in the Lower Mississippi River Valley. Cu, Ni, and Zn concentrations were higher on the West Coast; Cd concentrations were higher in the central USA. Clay, pH, potential evapotranspiration, temperature, and precipitation were among the model's top five important covariates for spatial predictions of heavy metals. The combined use of point observations and environmental covariates coupled with machine learning provided a reliable prediction of heavy metals distribution in the soils of the conterminous USA. The updated maps could support environmental assessments, monitoring, and decision-making with this methodology applicable to other soil databases, worldwide.

Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment for tobacco consumption, alcohol misuse, and physical inactivity: an equity-informed rapid review

OBJECTIVE

This rapid review systematically synthesizes evidence of the effectiveness of the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral (SBIR/T) approach for tobacco use, alcohol misuse, and physical inactivity.

STUDY DESIGN

This was a rapid review.

METHODS

We searched primary studies between 2012 and 2022 in seven electronic databases. The search strategy used concepts related to alcohol-related disorders, intoxication, cigarette, nicotine, physical activity, exercise, sedentary, screening, therapy, and referral. We reviewed both title/abstract and full-text using a priori set inclusion and exclusion criteria to identify the eligible studies. We appraised study quality, extracted data, and summarized the characteristics of the included studies. We applied health equity lenses in the synthesis.

RESULTS

Of the 44 included studies, most focused on alcohol misuse. SBIR/T improved patients' attitudes toward alcohol behavior change, improved readiness and referral initiation for change, and effectively reduced alcohol consumption. Few studies pertained to smoking and physical inactivity. Most studies on smoking demonstrated effectiveness pertaining to patients' acceptance of referral recommendations, improved readiness and attempts to quitting smoking, and reduced or cessation of smoking. Findings were mixed about the effectiveness of SBIR/T in improving physical activity. Minimal studies exist on the impacts of SBIR/T for these three risk factors on healthcare resource use or costs. Studies considering diverse population characteristics in the design and effectiveness assessment of the SBIR/T intervention are lacking.

CONCLUSIONS

More research on the impacts of SBIR/T on tobacco use, alcohol misuse, and physical inactivity is required to inform the planning and delivery of SBIR/T for general and disadvantaged populations.

Soil carbon sequestration potential of cultivated lands and its controlling factors in China

Understanding soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and carbon sequestration potential in cultivated lands can have significant benefit for mitigating climate change and emission reduction. However, there is currently a lack of spatially explicit information on this topic in China, and our understanding of the factors that influence both saturated SOC level (SOCS) and soil organic carbon density (SOCD) remains limited. This study predicted SOCS and SOCD of cultivated lands across mainland China based on point SOC measurements, and mapped its spatial distribution using environmental variables as predictors. Based on the differentiation between SOCS and SOCD, the soil organic carbon sequestration potentials (SOCP) of cultivated land were calculated. Boosted regression trees (BRT), random forest (RF), and support vector machine (SVM) were evaluated as prediction models, and the RF model presented the best performance in predicting SOCS and SOCD based on 10-fold cross-validation. A total of 991 topsoil (0-20 cm) SOC measurements and 12 environmental variables explaining topography, climate, organism, soil properties, and human activity were used as predictors in the model. Both SOCS and SOCD suggested higher SOC levels in northeast China and lower levels in central China. The cultivated lands in China had the potential to sequester about 2.13 ± 0.96 kg m-2 (3.25 Pg) SOC in the top 20 cm soil depth. Northeastern China had the largest SOCP followed by Northern China, and Southwestern China had the lowest SOCP. The primary environmental variables that affected the spatial variation of SOCS were mean annual temperature, followed by clay content and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). The assessment and mapping of SOCP in China's cultivated lands holds significance importance as it can provide valuable insights to policymakers and researchers about SOCP, and aid in formulating climate change mitigation strategies.

A genome-wide association study identifies novel gene associations with facial skin wrinkling and mole count in Latin Americans

BACKGROUND

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified genes influencing skin ageing and mole count in Europeans, but little is known about the relevance of these (or other genes) in non-Europeans.

OBJECTIVES

To conduct a GWAS for facial skin ageing and mole count in adults < 40 years old, of mixed European, Native American and African ancestry, recruited in Latin America.

METHODS

Skin ageing and mole count scores were obtained from facial photographs of over 6000 individuals. After quality control checks, three wrinkling traits and mole count were retained for genetic analyses. DNA samples were genotyped with Illumina's HumanOmniExpress chip. Association testing was performed on around 8 703 729 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across the autosomal genome.

RESULTS

Genome-wide significant association was observed at four genome regions: two were associated with wrinkling (in 1p13·3 and 21q21·2), one with mole count (in 1q32·3) and one with both wrinkling and mole count (in 5p13·2). Associated SNPs in 5p13·2 and in 1p13·3 are intronic within SLC45A2 and VAV3, respectively, while SNPs in 1q32·3 are near the SLC30A1 gene, and those in 21q21·2 occur in a gene desert. Analyses of SNPs in IRF4 and MC1R are consistent with a role of these genes in skin ageing.

CONCLUSIONS

We replicate the association of wrinkling with variants in SLC45A2, IRF4 and MC1R reported in Europeans. We identify VAV3 and SLC30A1 as two novel candidate genes impacting on wrinkling and mole count, respectively. We provide the first evidence that SLC45A2 influences mole count, in addition to variants in this gene affecting melanoma risk in Europeans.

Characteristics of people with mental disorders differ between currently smoking and ceased smoking

Introduction

Although the prevalence of smoking is higher among people with mental disorders compared to those without mental disorders, people with mental disorders are less successful for smoking cessation. This study examined the variation in characteristics of people with mental disorders across those who are current smokers and former smokers.

Methodology

This study used the Public Used Microdata File of the Canadian Community Health Survey 2012. (n = 25,113). People with any mental health disorder in the last 12 months were identified using the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview instrument. Smoking status was classified based on self-report responses as: current, former, and never smoking. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between the characteristics of people with mental disorders and smoking cessation (vs continuation).

Results

Overall, the prevalence of current smoking, former smoking, and nonsmoker were 37.5%, 33.6%, and 28.8% respectively. Immigrants compared to Canadian-born (OR = 0.6, 95% CI = 0.3, 0.8) and those who were single (either widowed or divorced or separated or single) compared to married or living with a partner (OR = 0.4, 95% CI = 0.1, 0.6) were less likely to quit smoking. Similarly, less educated and young people were also less likely to quit smoking.

Conclusions

Young people, living alone, less educated, and immigrants are less successful to quit smoking. Findings indicate the social disparity in smoking cessation among people with mental disorders. This may have been related to the barriers in accessing smoking cessation support among this group.

Key messages

Findings underscore the disparity in smoking cessation among people with mental disorder. Implementation of tailored, personalized smoking cessation support may be helpful to address the challenges.

Impacts of urbanization on soil organic carbon stocks in the northeast coastal agricultural areas of China

Dynamic changes in soil organic carbon pools have significant impacts on regional and global carbon balance. Due to rapid development in urbanized areas, the land use changes dramatically, impacting soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks in topsoil. This study aimed to document the impacts of urbanization on SOC stocks in a rapidly urbanized area from northeastern China. A total of 12 auxiliary variables were as SOC predictors including elevation, slope aspect, slope gradient, topographic wetness index, Landsat TM band3, Landsat TM band4, Landsat TM5, and normalized difference vegetation index. Urban-specific variables including population (POP), gross domestic product (GDP), distance to the socio-economic center, and distance to the roads are also considered. A set of 523 (in 1990) and 847 (in 2015) top soil samples with SOC measurement were collected. Two random forest (RF) models, one with all auxiliary variables except urban-specific variable (MA) and the other with all auxiliary variables (MB) were used to map the spatial distribution of SOC stocks in the two periods. Ten-fold cross-validation was conducted to evaluate the performance of RF models. We find that the full auxiliary variables model had a better performance for the both periods. POP and GDP were key auxiliary variables affecting spatial variability of SOC stocks in 2015. Over a 25-year period, SOC stocks decreased from 2.77 ± 1.09 kg m^-2 to 2.16 ± 0.93 kg m^-2, resulting in 3.78 Tg SOC loss in this region. Rapid urbanization led to drastic land- use change, which was the main reason for the decrease of SOC stocks. Additionally, urban-specific variables should be used as the main auxiliary variables when predicting SOC stocks in the areas that experience rapid urbanization. We believe that accurate prediction and mapping of SOC stocks will help manage land use and facilitate soil quality assessment so as to increase soil carbon sequestration in the region.

An improved similarity-based approach to predicting and mapping soil organic carbon and soil total nitrogen in a coastal region of northeastern China

Soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil total nitrogen (STN) are major soil indicators for soil quality and fertility. Accurate mapping SOC and STN in soils would help both managed and natural soils and ecosystem management. This study developed an improved similarity-based approach (ISA) to predicting and mapping topsoil (0-20 cm soil depth) SOC and STN in a coastal region of northeastern China. Six environmental variables including elevation, slope gradient, topographic wetness index, the mean annual temperature, the mean annual temperature, and normalized difference vegetation index were used as predictors. Soil survey data in 2012 was designed based on the clustering of the study area into six climatic vegetation landscape units. In each landscape unit, 20-25 sampling points were determined at different landform positions considering local climate, soil type, elevation and other environmental factors, and finally 126 sampling points were obtained. Soil sampling from the depth of 0-20 cm were used for model prediction and validation. The ISA model performance was compared with the geographically weighted regression (GWR), regression kriging (RK), boosted regression trees (BRT) considering mean absolute prediction error (MAE), root mean square error (RMSE), coefficient of determination (R ²), and maximum relative difference (RD) indices. We found that the ISA method performed best with the highest R² and lowest MAE, RMSE compared to GWR, RK, and BRT methods. The ISA method could explain 76% and 83% of the total SOC and STN variability, respectively, 12-40% higher than other models in the study area. Elevation had the largest influence on SOC and STN distribution. We conclude that the developed ISA model is robust and effective in mapping SOC and STN, particularly in the areas with complex vegetation-landscape when limited samples are available. The method needs to be tested for other regions in our future research.

A small proton charge radius from an electron-proton scattering experiment

Elastic electron-proton scattering (e-p) and the spectroscopy of hydrogen atoms are the two methods traditionally used to determine the proton charge radius, r_p. In 2010, a new method using muonic hydrogen atoms¹ found a substantial discrepancy compared with previous results², which became known as the 'proton radius puzzle'. Despite experimental and theoretical efforts, the puzzle remains unresolved. In fact, there is a discrepancy between the two most recent spectroscopic measurements conducted on ordinary hydrogen^3,4. Here we report on the proton charge radius experiment at Jefferson Laboratory (PRad), a high-precision e-p experiment that was established after the discrepancy was identified. We used a magnetic-spectrometer-free method along with a windowless hydrogen gas target, which overcame several limitations of previous e-p experiments and enabled measurements at very small forward-scattering angles. Our result, r_p = 0.831 ± 0.007_stat ± 0.012_syst femtometres, is smaller than the most recent high-precision e-p measurement⁵ and 2.7 standard deviations smaller than the average of all e-p experimental results⁶. The smaller r_p we have now measured supports the value found by two previous muonic hydrogen experiments^1,7. In addition, our finding agrees with the revised value (announced in 2019) for the Rydberg constant⁸-one of the most accurately evaluated fundamental constants in physics.

Assessing soil organic carbon stock of Wisconsin, USA and its fate under future land use and climate change

Carbon stored in soils contributes to a variety of soil functions, including biomass production, water storage and filtering, biodiversity maintenance, and many other ecosystem services. Understanding soil organic carbon (SOC) spatial distribution and projection of its future condition is essential for future CO₂ emission estimates and management options for storing carbon. However, modeling SOC spatiotemporal dynamics is challenging due to the inherent spatial heterogeneity and data limitation. The present study developed a spatially explicit prediction model in which the spatial relationship between SOC observation and seventeen environmental variables was established using the Cubist regression tree algorithm. The model was used to compile a baseline SOC stock map for the top 30 cm soil depth in the State of Wisconsin (WI) at a 90 m × 90 m grid resolution. Temporal SOC trend was assessed by comparing baseline and future SOC stock maps based on the space-for-time substitution model. SOC prediction for future considers land use, precipitation and temperature for the year 2050 at medium (A1B) CO₂ emissions scenario of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Field soil observations were related to factors that are known to influence SOC distribution using the digital soil mapping framework. The model was validated on 25% test profiles (R²: 0.38; RMSE: 0.64; ME: -0.03) that were not used during model training that used the remaining 75% of the data (R²: 0.76; RMSE: 0.40; ME: -0.006). In addition, maps of the model error, and areal extent of Cubist prediction rules were reported. The model identified soil parent material and land use as key drivers of SOC distribution including temperature and precipitation. Among the terrain attributes, elevation, mass-balance index, mid-slope position, slope-length factor and wind effect were important. Results showed that Wisconsin soils had an average baseline SOC stock of 90 Mg ha^-1 and the distribution was highly variable (CV: 64%). It was estimated that WI soils would have an additional 20 Mg ha^-1 SOC by the year 2050 under changing land use and climate. Histosols and Spodosols were expected to lose 19 Mg ha^-1 and 4 Mg ha^-1, respectively, while Mollisols were expected to accumulate the largest SOC stock (62 Mg ha^-1). All land-use types would be accumulating SOC by 2050 except for wetlands (-34 Mg C ha^-1). This study found that Wisconsin soils will continue to sequester more carbon in the coming decades and most of the Driftless Area will be sequestering the greatest SOC (+63 Mg C ha^-1). Most of the SOC would be lost from the Northern Lakes and Forests ecological zone (-12 Mg C ha^-1). The study highlighted areas of potential C sequestration and areas under threat of C loss. The maps generated in this study would be highly useful in farm management and environmental policy decisions at different spatial levels in Wisconsin.

Spatial Distribution of Soil Phosphorus, Calcium, and pH after Long-term Broiler Litter Application

Water movement over and through soil is largely driven by topography and soil management across landscapes. This research tested the hypothesis that the water movement determines the potential for P and Ca redistribution and pH variance across landscapes. This hypothesis was evaluated by using digital elevation model-derived terrain attributes in fields after 55 yr of broiler litter applications on pastures in Smith County, Mississippi. Results show that soils receiving broiler litter had mean Mehlich-3 P levels of 1221.8 mg kg at 0- to 15-cm depth and 618.6 mg kg at 15- to 30-cm depth, and Ca with mean values of 768.3 and 645.0 mg kg at 0- to 15-cm and 15- to 30-cm soil depths, respectively. Across fields, soils in areas of predicted convergent flow contained higher P, Ca, and lower pH values in the upper 0 to 15 cm, suggesting contributions via surface overland flow from areas with higher elevation and lower slope gradient. On the other hand, soils in areas with lesser slope and higher elevation also contained high levels of P, Ca, and pH for the subsurface soil depth, suggesting that vertical flow of water on this landscape is a mechanism for movement of P and Ca deeper in the profile. The incorporation of topographic characteristics across fields offers promising results that may be incorporated into improved P indices and management, making them more robust indicators of P mobilization to waterways.

Marination and cooking performance of portioned broiler breast fillets with the wooden breast condition

The wooden breast (WB) condition in broiler breast meat negatively influences technological meat quality. However, it is unknown if the WB effects are uniform throughout the Pectoralis major. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of WB on the marination and cooking performance of the dorsal and ventral portions of broiler breast fillets. Sixty butterfly breast fillets were collected from the deboning line of a commercial plant and sorted into normal (no WB) and severe WB categories. Each fillet was horizontally portioned into dorsal and ventral halves. Portions from one side of each butterfly were used as non-marinated controls, while portions from the other side were vacuum-tumble marinated (16 rpm, -0.6 atm, 4°C, 20 min) with 20% (wt/wt) marinade to meat ratio. Marinade was formulated to target a final concentration of 0.75% salt and 0.45% sodium tripolyphosphate in the final product. Samples were cooked to 78°C in a combination oven. Marinade uptake and retention were lower (P < 0.001) in both the ventral and dorsal portions of the WB fillets. The dorsal portions had greater (P < 0.001) marinade uptake and retention than the ventral portions in both normal and WB fillets. For non-marinated samples, cook loss was greater (P < 0.05) in both the ventral and dorsal portions of WB fillets. In marinated samples, however, cook loss was similar between the dorsal portions of normal and WB fillets. Final cooked product yield was calculated based on pre-marination and post-cook weights. Non-marinated WB samples exhibited lower (P < 0.001) cooked product yields than normal samples in both portions. For marinated samples, cooked product yields were greater (P < 0.001) in the dorsal portions. Data demonstrated that the dorsal portion of the Pectoralis major more readily absorbs and retains marinade during vacuum tumbling and storage than the ventral portion. Although the WB condition negatively influenced marination and cooking performance in both fillet portions, the effects were less severe in the dorsal portion.

Descriptive sensory analysis of marinated and non-marinated wooden breast fillet portions

The wooden breast (WB) myopathy influences muscle composition and texture characteristics in broiler breast meat. It is unknown if marination reduces the negative influence of WB on meat sensory quality or if WB effects are uniform throughout the Pectoralis major. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of marination on the sensory attributes and instrumental shear force measurements of the ventral (skin-side) and dorsal (bone-side) portions of normal and severe WB meat. Sixty butterfly fillets (30 normal and 30 severe WB) were selected from the deboning line of a commercial processing plant. Individual fillets were portioned into ventral and dorsal halves. Portions from one side of each butterfly were used as non-marinated controls, and portions from the other side were vacuum-tumble marinated (16 rpm, -0.6 atm, 4°C, 20 min) with 20% (wt/wt) marinade to meat ratio. Marinade was formulated to target a concentration of 0.75% (w/v) salt and 0.45% (w/v) sodium tripolyphosphate in the final product. Descriptive sensory analysis (9 trained panelists) was conducted to evaluate visual, texture, and flavor attributes (0-15 point scale) of breast portions along with Warner-Bratzler shear force. Significant interaction effects between WB and marination were not observed for the sensory attributes. Greater springiness, cohesiveness, hardness, fibrousness, and chewiness scores were observed in WB samples (P < 0.001). Marination decreased cohesiveness, hardness, and chewiness (P < 0.05) and increased juiciness (P = 0.002). The effects of WB on sensory texture attributes were more apparent in the ventral portions of the breast fillets. Flavor attributes (salty and brothy) increased (P < 0.001) with marination. In non-marinated samples, shear force was similar between normal and WB samples. In marinated samples, however, shear force was greater (P < 0.001) in WB samples. Data suggest that the WB effect on meat sensory quality is not uniform throughout the Pectoralis major and that WB-related differences in cooked meat sensory texture attributes are lessened but not eliminated by vacuum-tumbling marination.

Projecting Soil Organic Carbon Distribution in Central Chile under Future Climate Scenarios

Soil organic C (SOC) is the largest terrestrial C pool, and it influences diverse soil properties and processes in a landscape. At global scales, SOC is related to climate; as climate changes, we expect that SOC will change at broad scales as well, but how SOC will respond to climate change in diverse environments is complex and highly uncertain. To evaluate the potential impact of predicted changes in temperature and precipitation across central Chile, we first estimated current SOC content using pedon descriptions and environmental variables (temperature, rainfall, land use, topography, soil types, and geology) as predictors. A random forest statistical model was used to predict SOC content by pedon data. Maps were created for six standard depths of the GlobalSoilMap project. Results showed mean SOC of 54 g kg at a depth interval of 0 to 5 cm, 51 g kg at 5 to 15 cm, 42 g kg at 15 to 30 cm, 29 g kg at 30 to 60 cm, 17 g kg at 60 to 100 cm, and 11 g kg at 100 to 200 cm. Model validation, withholding 25% of pedons, showed values of 0.70, 0.73, 0.75, 0.65, 0.56, and 0.29 for six depths, respectively. Two future temperature and precipitation for climate change scenarios, representative concentration pathways RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 from the NASA GISS-E2-R models, were considered in predicting SOC in 2050 and 2080. We found that central Chile would experience a loss of SOC in the depth range of 0 to 30 cm, averaging 9.7% for RCP4.5 and 12.9% for the RCP8.5 scenarios by the year 2050, with additional decreases of 8% in the RCP4.5 scenario and 16.5% under RCP8.5 by 2080.

Scaling up a tobacco control intervention in low resource settings: a case example for school teachers in India

Research on processes of bringing effective tobacco control interventions to scale to increase quit rates among tobacco users is uncommon. This study examines processes to bring to scale one such intervention for school teachers, i.e. Tobacco Free Teacher-Tobacco Free Society (TFT-TFS). This intervention provides a foundation for an effective and low cost approach to promote cessation through schools. The present study was conducted in the states of Bihar and Maharashtra in 2014 using quantitative and qualitative methods. Focus group discussions (FGDs) were analysed using immersion crystallization method. The data presented are from a survey of 291 principals and seven FGDs. This study examined characteristics of principals and teachers, organizational environment, external environmental factors and program characteristics to determine facilitators and barriers for successful dissemination and implementation of the TFT-TFS program. Some facilitators were, incorporation of the program in existing channels like staff meetings and trainings, certification and recognition by the department of education; while some barriers were routine time bound duties (mainly teaching) of teachers and prevalence of tobacco use among teachers and administrators. Principals and teachers expressed a need and high level of interest in the adoption and implementation of the TFT-TFS program in their schools.

Disease Profile and Hospital Outcome of Newborn Admitted to Neonatal Intermediate Care Unit at Tertiary Care Center in Nepal

Background Neonatal mortality rate (NMR) is decreasing in Nepal but at a slower pace than infant and child mortality. In order to improve neonatal outcome, Care of sick children can be done better so as to aid in reducing neonatal mortality rate. Objective The objective was to identify pattern of diseases and outcome admitted to Neonatal Intermediate care Unit (NIMCU). Method A retrospective study was conducted at Neonatal Intermediate care Unit of Kanti Children's hospital from Bhadra 2071 to Shravan 2073 (August 2014 to July 2016). Result Total 1286 neonates were admitted in Neonatal Intermediate care Unit with the highest admission in the months of Bhadra (August-September) 12.52% and the lowest in Push (December-January) 4.82%. Among the admitted cases, 1,028 (80.0%) were full term while 256 (20.0%) were preterm. Among the total admission, 43.6% were less than 7 days old which is the most vulnerable period during the newborn phase. Admission due to neonatal sepsis was 892 (69.36%). Among them, 628 (70.40%) were late onset neonatal sepsis while 264 (29.60%) were early onset. Neonatal jaundice accounted for 12.36% (159) of the cases while Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy accounted for 4.80% (62) of cases. Congenital Heart Disease were 53 (4.12%) and neonatal pustulosis were 27 (2.20%). Meningitis accounted for 45 (3.49%) of cases and UTI 29 (2.22). Death during treatment were 18 (1.39%). 7% of cases deteriorated and referred to NICU while, 3.2 % of cases were referred to other centers and 5.1% of cases were either discharged on request or left against medical advice. Conclusion Neonatal sepsis including both early and late onset, Congenital Heart disease, birth asphyxia and neonatal Jaundice accounted for majority of admission in NICU. Three of four these etiologies are preventable up to some extent.

Retrospective study of HIV infection in Anti Retroviral Treatment center of Mahendranagar, Nepal

Background Being the most backward region, The Far Western Development Region has high illiteracy rate, low socioeconomic status and high migration rate contributing the progression of epidemiological status of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) towards generalized form. Objective To study the demographic profile of the HIV positive patients, along with their CD4 status and tuberculosis during diagnosis. Method A retrospective descriptive study carried out from May 2006 to July 2012 in 271 HIV patients registered in HIV clinic of Mahakali Zonal Hospital, Mahendranagar. Result Among 271 patients enrolled, 48.30% (131) were male and 51.7% (140) were females. Thirty seven (13.7%) were less than 15 years and 76.3% (207) were of age 16-45 years. 38.7% were household workers by occupation and 34.50% were involved in agriculture and 3.70%were migrant labour. At the time of presentation, 22.4% (60) were stage I according to WHO staging and 18.5% (50), 58.5 (158) and 0.7% (2) were of stage II, III and IV respectively. Similarly, 33.0% (89) had more than 350 CD4 count at the time of presentation. 20.8% (56) of patients were infected with tuberculosis. Among 236 families, 2 or more members were found to be affected in 24 families. In most of the cases, female were diagnosed first followed by male in the families, where both the couple were infected. Conclusion Most of the HIV infected patients were of productive age group. Majority of patients were uneducated and Tuberculosis was found to be common opportunistic infections associated with HIV infection.

Modeling Soil Organic Carbon at Regional Scale by Combining Multi-Spectral Images with Laboratory Spectra

There is a great challenge in combining soil proximal spectra and remote sensing spectra to improve the accuracy of soil organic carbon (SOC) models. This is primarily because mixing of spectral data from different sources and technologies to improve soil models is still in its infancy. The first objective of this study was to integrate information of SOC derived from visible near-infrared reflectance (Vis-NIR) spectra in the laboratory with remote sensing (RS) images to improve predictions of topsoil SOC in the Skjern river catchment, Denmark. The second objective was to improve SOC prediction results by separately modeling uplands and wetlands. A total of 328 topsoil samples were collected and analyzed for SOC. Satellite Pour l’Observation de la Terre (SPOT5), Landsat Data Continuity Mission (Landsat 8) images, laboratory Vis-NIR and other ancillary environmental data including terrain parameters and soil maps were compiled to predict topsoil SOC using Cubist regression and Bayesian kriging. The results showed that the model developed from RS data, ancillary environmental data and laboratory spectral data yielded a lower root mean square error (RMSE) (2.8%) and higher R² (0.59) than the model developed from only RS data and ancillary environmental data (RMSE: 3.6%, R²: 0.46). Plant-available water (PAW) was the most important predictor for all the models because of its close relationship with soil organic matter content. Moreover, vegetation indices, such as the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), were very important predictors in SOC spatial models. Furthermore, the ‘upland model’ was able to more accurately predict SOC compared with the ‘upland & wetland model’. However, the separately calibrated ‘upland and wetland model’ did not improve the prediction accuracy for wetland sites, since it was not possible to adequately discriminate the vegetation in the RS summer images. We conclude that laboratory Vis-NIR spectroscopy adds critical information that significantly improves the prediction accuracy of SOC compared to using RS data alone. We recommend the incorporation of laboratory spectra with RS data and other environmental data to improve soil spatial modeling and digital soil mapping (DSM).

Sensory factors affecting female consumers' acceptability of nail polish

OBJECTIVE

The objectives of this study were to determine what sensory factors impact consumers' acceptability of nail polishes, to explore how these sensory factors impact consumers' acceptability of nail polishes, to investigate whether there are any consumer segments according to their overall acceptability on different nail polishes and to scrutinize how the consumer segments are related to the sensory factors.

METHODS

Ninety-eight females participated in a nail polish consumer study at Kansas State University. Eight commercial products belonging to four categories - regular (REG), gel (GEL), flake (FLK) and water-based (WAT) - were evaluated. Each nail polish sample was evaluated twice by each participant in two different tasks - a task devoted to applying and evaluating the product and a task devoted to observing the appearance and evaluating the product. Pearson's correlation analysis, analysis of variance (ANOVA), external preference mapping, cluster analysis and internal preference mapping were applied for data analysis.

RESULTS

Participants' scores of overall liking of the nail polishes were similar in the application task and in the observation task. In general, participants liked the REG and GEL product samples more than the FLK and WAT samples. Among all the sensory attributes, appearance attributes were the major factors that affected participants' overall liking. Aroma seemed to be a minor factor to participants' overall liking. Some sensory attributes, such as runny, shininess, opacity, spreadability, smoothness, coverage and wet appearance, were found to drive participants' overall acceptability positively, whereas others such as pinhole, fatty-edges, blister, brushlines, pearl-like, flake-protrusion, glittery and initial-drag impacted participants' overall acceptability negatively. Four clusters of participants were identified according to their overall liking scores from both the application task and the observation task.

CONCLUSIONS

Participants' acceptability, based on different sensory attributes, could help a nail polish manufacturer modify or improve their nail polish formulas. Nail polish manufacturers could use the consumer cluster information to improve their marketing strategies for specific categories of their products and to target their advertising on particular consumer groups.

Longitudinal target-spin asymmetries for deeply virtual compton scattering

A measurement of the electroproduction of photons off protons in the deeply inelastic regime was performed at Jefferson Lab using a nearly 6 GeV electron beam, a longitudinally polarized proton target, and the CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer. Target-spin asymmetries for ep→e^{'}p^{'}γ events, which arise from the interference of the deeply virtual Compton scattering and the Bethe-Heitler processes, were extracted over the widest kinematics in Q^{2}, x_{B}, t, and ϕ, for 166 four-dimensional bins. In the framework of generalized parton distributions, at leading twist the t dependence of these asymmetries provides insight into the spatial distribution of the axial charge of the proton, which appears to be concentrated in its center. These results also bring important and necessary constraints for the existing parametrizations of chiral-even generalized parton distributions.

Assessment of phenol infiltration resilience in soil media by HYDRUS-1D transport model for a waste discharge site

The movement of contaminants through soil imparts a variety of geo-environmental problem inclusive of lithospheric pollution. Near-surface aquifers are often vulnerable to contamination from surface source if overlying soil possesses poor resilience or contaminant attenuation capacity. The prediction of contaminant transport through soil is urged to protect groundwater from sources of pollutants. Using field simulation through column experiments and mathematical modeling like HYDRUS-1D, assessment of soil resilience and movement of contaminants through the subsurface to reach aquifers can be predicted. An outfall site of effluents of a coke oven plant comprising of alarming concentration of phenol (4-12.2 mg/L) have been considered for studying groundwater condition and quality, in situ soil characterization, and effluent characterization. Hydrogeological feature suggests the presence of near-surface aquifers at the effluent discharge site. Analysis of groundwater of nearby locality reveals the phenol concentration (0.11-0.75 mg/L) exceeded the prescribed limit of WHO specification (0.002 mg/L). The in situ soil, used in column experiment, possess higher saturated hydraulic conductivity (KS  = 5.25 × 10(-4) cm/s). The soil containing 47 % silt, 11 % clay, and 1.54% organic carbon content was found to be a poor absorber of phenol (24 mg/kg). The linear phenol adsorption isotherm model showed the best fit (R(2) = 0.977, RMSE = 1.057) to the test results. Column experiments revealed that the phenol removal percent and the length of the mass transfer zone increased with increasing bed heights. The overall phenol adsorption efficiency was found to be 42-49%. Breakthrough curves (BTCs) predicted by HYDRUS-1D model appears to be close fitting with the BTCs derived from the column experiments. The phenol BTC predicted by the HYDRUS-1D model for 1.2 m depth subsurface soil, i.e., up to the depth of groundwater in the study area, showed that the exhaustion point was reached within 12 days of elapsed time. This clearly demonstrated poor attenuation capacity of the soil to retard migration of phenol to the groundwater from the surface outfall site. Suitable liner, based on these data, may be designed to inhibit subsurface transport of phenol and thereby to protect precious groundwater from contamination.

Digital mapping of soil organic carbon contents and stocks in Denmark

Estimation of carbon contents and stocks are important for carbon sequestration, greenhouse gas emissions and national carbon balance inventories. For Denmark, we modeled the vertical distribution of soil organic carbon (SOC) and bulk density, and mapped its spatial distribution at five standard soil depth intervals (0-5, 5-15, 15-30, 30-60 and 60-100 cm) using 18 environmental variables as predictors. SOC distribution was influenced by precipitation, land use, soil type, wetland, elevation, wetness index, and multi-resolution index of valley bottom flatness. The highest average SOC content of 20 g kg(-1) was reported for 0-5 cm soil, whereas there was on average 2.2 g SOC kg(-1) at 60-100 cm depth. For SOC and bulk density prediction precision decreased with soil depth, and a standard error of 2.8 g kg(-1) was found at 60-100 cm soil depth. Average SOC stock for 0-30 cm was 72 t ha(-1) and in the top 1 m there was 120 t SOC ha(-1). In total, the soils stored approximately 570 Tg C within the top 1 m. The soils under agriculture had the highest amount of carbon (444 Tg) followed by forest and semi-natural vegetation that contributed 11% of the total SOC stock. More than 60% of the total SOC stock was present in Podzols and Luvisols. Compared to previous estimates, our approach is more reliable as we adopted a robust quantification technique and mapped the spatial distribution of SOC stock and prediction uncertainty. The estimation was validated using common statistical indices and the data and high-resolution maps could be used for future soil carbon assessment and inventories.

Cross-cultural perception of six commercial olive oils: A study with Spanish and US consumers

A cross-cultural study was conducted with Spanish and US consumers to gain an insight into the preferred characteristics of olive oils in both countries. Six commercial olive oils (four samples from Spain and two samples from the US) were analyzed by a highly trained panel (descriptive analysis) and also by two consumers’ groups (100 consumers from Spain and 100 from the US). Demographic, acceptability, and Just-About-Right data were collected to study the preferences of both groups, and the relationships with descriptive data were explored to determine the drivers of like/dislike. The Spanish extra virgin olive oils and the imported US extra virgin olive oil were characterized by having bitter, pungent, and more green notes, and were preferred by the Spanish consumers. The US consumers liked the bland Spanish refined olive oil, and the Californian olive oil that was characterized by fruity, floral, and sweet notes. The results showed that the Spanish consumers were more aware about olive oil quality in general than their US counterparts, maybe because of a higher usage of the product in Spain. The present study provides essential data which might help producers in designing and promoting olive oils matching US consumers’ requirements, an emerging market for this Mediterranean product.

Gender differences on risk factors of non-communicable diseases--a community based cross-sectional study in central Nepal

BACKGROUND

Non-communicable diseases are the leading causes of death globally, killing more people each year than all other causes combined. As many other developing countries, Nepal is also facing double burden of diseases. The aim of present study was to assess gender wise differences on prevalence of risk factors of non-communicable diseases.

METHODS

This was a community based cross sectional study which was based on WHO's STEP approach for surveillance risk factors of non-communicable diseases among males and females. Multi-staged sampling technique was used to get required study sample. Descriptive and inferential statistics were applied to compare the risk factors between two genders.

RESULTS

More than two-fifth of male and one-fifth of female respondents were currently using tobacco. The proportion of current alcohol users was found higher among the male respondents (28.6%) than their female counterparts (13.6%) (P<0.001). Only 35 (5.3%) of males and 13 (2.3%) of females were found consuming adequate (≥5 serving) intake of fruits per day. Study revealed that hypertension was slightly higher in male 165 (24.8%) than their female counterparts 111 (19.3%) but differences between two genders were statistically not significant.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of present study suggest that there is high prevalence of risk factors of non-communicable diseases among both sexes in central Nepal. The finding emphasises the need for a focused national strategies targeting to tackle this modern epidemic of non-communicable diseases by incorporating primordial prevention activities to all adult population irrespective to gender.

Influence of various traditional seasonings on beef flavor: United States, Spanish, and Argentinian practices

A consumer study was conducted to determine the most popular beef seasonings used in three countries: Argentina, United States (US), and Spain. Once the typical cooking methods and seasonings in these countries were established, descriptive analysis was used to determine the differences in the main flavor attributes, particularly the impact on beef characteristics, of the samples. Large variations were found in the consumer practices in the studied countries, and the preferred seasonings from each country were identified. This study showed that on average US consumers would prefer beef products with more initial flavor impact, brown/roasted and salty characteristics than Argentinian or Spanish consumers. The addition of seasonings changed some of the main beef attributes, but the changes were dependent on the cooking method. Beef identity (Beef ID), brown/roasted, and bloody/serumy were the attributes most affected when adding different seasonings.

Organophosphate poisoning in pregnancy

Organophosphate poisoning during pregnancy is rarely reported in the literature. In our retrospective study, we report the outcome of 21 cases of organophosphate poisoning during pregnancy. All patients received atropine injection until the tracheobronchial tree is cleared of the secretions and most secretions were dried. In addition, ventilatory care was needed in five women. Two patients (9.52%) died of the organophosphorus poisoning during the acute stage of poisoning and three patients were lost to follow-up. One woman had a spontaneous abortion. The remaining 15 women had no significant complication during pregnancy or labour and delivery. There was no congenital abnormality and no neurological deficit in any baby. However, long-term follow-up of neonates was lacking in our study population.

Pork quality attributes associated with bilateral carcass variation

The objective of this study was to identify bilateral differences in pork carcass quality as influenced by single leg shackling and suspension of electrically stunned pigs. Fifty-six Genepacker x EB market barrows (118 kg) were rendered unconscious and insensible to pain via electrical stimulation. Pigs were then shackled and suspended by the right hind leg before exsanguination and remained suspended until scalding. Initial (45-min) pH values of the LM at the 10th to 11th rib interface were different (P = 0.016); shackled side loins possessed a greater i.m. pH than those loins associated with the free side of the carcass (6.26 vs. 6.10). At 24 h postmortem, loins from the shackled side had lower (P < 0.001) L* values than loins from the free side in both the sirloin (53.08 vs. 57.61) and blade (54.61 vs. 57.09) regions. Additionally, b* values were greater (P < 0.001) for loins from the shackled side than loins from the free side in the center (13.81 vs. 13.01) and blade (14.72 vs. 13.68) regions, and in the blade region, a* values were greater (P < 0.001) in the LM from the shackled side than loins from the free side (7.37 vs. 6.26). Moreover, LM chops of loins from the shackled side that were aged 21 d were rated less (P < 0.05) tough (2.74 vs. 3.95) and more (P < 0.05) juicy (4.24 vs. 3.19) than chops from the free-hanging side. However, these differences were not evident after 41 d aging. From the results of this study, it can be concluded that bilateral differences exist within the LM of a pork carcass and that these differences are likely associated with the single-leg shackling and suspension of electrically stunned pigs.

Effectiveness of Teaching of Neonatal Resuscitation Programme at a Workshop for a Mixed Population of Medical Personnel

We evaluated the effectiveness of teaching at a neonatal resuscitation programme (NRP) workshop held for 35 medical personnel (including postgraduate trainee doctors, general duty medical officers, nursing officers and probationer nurses) using a one-group pretest-posttest design. None of the participants had any formal exposure to the NRP guidelines. A pre-workshop test of 20 multiple-choice questions was administered to all the participants. At the end of the workshop, the same 20 questions were administered and the two scores compared using t-test for paired data on SPSS statistical software. The mean pre-workshop score was 9.03 (SD 2.66) which improved to a mean of 15.53 (SD 1.93) post-workshop. This improvement was highly significant with p < 0.0001 (two-tailed) and the 95% confidence interval being -7.41 to -5.59. Subgroup analysis revealed that nursing officers and probationer nurses showed highly significant improvement in the post-workshop scores while trainee doctors doing Medicine, Pediatrics and the general duty medical officers showed statistically significant improvement in the post-workshop scores. This study shows that a medical workshop is an effective means of imparting knowledge to a mixed group of medical personnel.

Changes in the profile of genistein, daidzein, and their conjugates during thermal processing of tofu

Profiles of genistein, daidzein, genistin, daidzin, and their acetyl- and malonyl-beta-glycosides were determined in tofu as affected by temperature and time. Tofu was heated in water at 80, 90, and 100 degrees C for 0 (control), 10, 20, 30, and 40 min, and the contents of the isoflavones of interest were quantified using reversed-phase HPLC. Total isoflavone content decreased most likely due to leaching of isoflavones into the water. Because the content of the isoflavones of the genistein series was little affected by the treatments, the decrease in the total isoflavone content was almost exclusively due to a decrease of the daidzein series. Changes in the profile of the daidzein series suggest little decarboxylation of the malonylglycoside to the acetylglycoside, but considerable de-esterification of the malonyl- and acetylglycoside to the beta-glucoside. Strongly temperature dependent decreases of the aglycon suggest possible thermal degradation of daidzein in addition to losses due to leaching.

Viability of microencapsulated bifidobacteria in set yogurt during refrigerated storage

Bifidobacteria are probiotic organisms that improve the microbial balance in the human gut. They can be incorporated as live cultures in fermented dairy foods, including yogurt, for transmission to humans. Because bifidobacteria are sensitive to high acidity, their viability in yogurt is limited. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of microencapsulation on the viability of bifidobacteria in yogurt during refrigerated storage for 30 d. Live bifidobacterial cells were encapsulated in kappa-carrageenan. Cell enumeration, determination of titratable acidity and pH, quantitation of lactic and acetic acids, and sensory evaluation (consumer test) were carried out on the yogurt samples. Microbiological results showed a decline of 78 and 70.5% in the population of Bifidobacterium longum B6 and B. longum ATCC 15708, respectively, for the treatments containing nonencapsulated cells. No difference in bifidobacterial population was observed in the encapsulated treatments. The acetic acid content in the yogurt with nonencapsulated bifidobacteria was higher than that in the plain yogurt (control) and encapsulated treatments. The increase in lactic acid content during storage was not different among the various treatments for B. longum B6, but was greater for nonencapsulated than encapsulated B. longum 15708 and the control. Consumers judged the nonencapsulated treatment as the most sour, which was likely due to the higher acetic acid content. Consumers preferred the control and nonencapsulated treatments over the encapsulated treatment. Microencapsulation appears to increase the viability of bifidobacteria in yogurt. This technique can be used to transmit bifidobacteria via fermented products provided that sensory characteristics of the product are improved or maintained.