Virtual Water Flows of Brazil’s International Trade

The study aims to measure virtual water flows in Brazil’s international trade. The methodology is based on the input-output matrix, and the database used was the Eora Global Supply Chain Database. The results showed that Brazil exported 230.8 billion m3 of virtual water per year, representing approximately 34.7% of the water footprint of the national production system in 2015. Virtual water imports totaled 111.6 billion m3 with a positive balance (net exports) of 119.2 billion m3. The country is a net exporter of this resource except for trade relations with South America and Africa, regions with negative balances of −36 billion m3 and 3 billion m3, respectively. The main destinations for virtual water exports from Brazil are Europe, with 41% of the total exported, followed by Asia and North America, with values close to 20%. The fact that Brazil is a net exporter of water makes sustainable use of the resource important, as the diversity of climate, soil, and water availability at a regional level is a challenge, which makes it essential to increase the efficiency of the use and management of water resources.

Acute renal injury after partial hepatectomy

Currently, partial hepatectomy is the treatment of choice for a wide variety of liver and biliary conditions. Among the possible complications of partial hepatectomy, acute kidney injury(AKI) should be considered as an important cause of increased morbidity and postoperative mortality. Difficulties in the data analysis related to postoperative AKI after liver resections are mainly due to the multiplicity of factors to be considered in the surgical patients, moreover, there is no consensus of the exact definition of AKI after liver resection in the literature, which hampers comparison and analysis of the scarce data published on the subject. Despite this multiplicity of risk factors for postoperative AKI after partial hepatectomy, there are main factors that clearly contribute to its occurrence. First factor relates to large blood losses with renal hypoperfusion during the operation, second factor relates to the occurrence of post-hepatectomy liver failure with consequent distributive circulatory changes and hepatorenal syndrome. Eventually, patients can have more than one factor contributing to post-operative AKI, and frequently these combinations of acute insults can be aggravated by sepsis or exposure to nephrotoxic drugs.

Risk factors for acute kidney injury after partial hepatectomy

To identify risk factors for the occurrence of acute kidney injury (AKI) in the postoperative period of partial hepatectomies. METHODSRetrospective analysis of 446 consecutive resections in 405 patients, analyzing clinical characteristics, preoperative laboratory data, intraoperative data, and postoperative laboratory data and clinical evolution. Adopting the International Club of Ascites criteria for the definition of AKI, potential predictors of AKI by logistic regression were identified. RESULTSOf the total 446 partial liver resections, postoperative AKI occurred in 80 cases (17.9%). Identified predictors of AKI were: Non-dialytic chronic kidney injury (CKI), biliary obstruction, the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score, the extent of hepatic resection, the occurrence of intraoperative hemodynamic instability, post-hepatectomy haemorrhage, and postoperative sepsis. CONCLUSIONThe MELD score, the presence of non-dialytic CKI and biliary obstruction in the preoperative period, and perioperative hemodynamics instability, bleeding, and sepsis are risk factors for the occurrence of AKI in patients that underwent partial hepatectomy.

Agronomic and Productivity Performance for Quinoa Genotypes in an Agroecological and Conventional Production System

The objective of this research was to evaluate the agronomic performance and productivity of sixteen genotypes of Chenopodium quinoa cultivated in agroecological and conventional production systems. The evaluations were carried out, based on agronomic characteristics and yields of sixteen C. quinoa genotypes, grown in two simultaneous experiments, in an agroecological production and a conventional production system carried out at the town of Entre Rios do Oeste, Paraná, Brazil in the harvest 2015/16. Each experiment was composed of three replicates, following the randomized block design. Number of plants in flowering, number of plants per linear meter, height of insertion of the first panicle, number of days for maturation and productivity were the parameters evaluated. The data were submitted to statistical analysis with the aid of the GENES computational application. Genotype Q13-24 showed a more suitable production for the conventional production system. While the genotype Q13-01, presented the increase of productivity, being more indicated to the system of agroecological production. The characteristics height of plant flowers (HPF) and height of insertion of the first panicle (HIP) had higher values when the plants were cultivated in a conventional system. The number of plants per linear meter (NPLM) was higher in the agroecological crop, when compared to conventional cultivation. The same quinoa genotype can behave differently depending on the area management, being a productivity and the genotype cycle depends on the production system and the genotype used.

Use of geospatial tools to predict the risk of contamination by SARS-CoV-2 in urban cemeteries

Urban cemeteries are increasingly surrounded by areas of high residential density as urbanization continues world-wide. With increasing rates of mortality caused by the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2,urban vertical cemeteries are experiencing interments at an unprecedented rate. Corpses interred in the 3rd to 5th layer of vertical urban cemeteries have the potential to contaminate large adjacent regions.The general objective of this manuscript is to analyze the reflectance of altimetry, normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI) and land surface temperature(LST) in the urban cemeteries and neighbouring areas of the City of Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. It is assumed that the population residing in the vicinity of these cemeteries may be exposed to SARS-CoV-2 contamination through the displacement of microparticles carried by the wind as a corpse is placed in the burial niche or during the first several days of subsequent fluid and gas release through the process of decomposition. The reflectance analyses were performed utilizing Landsat 8 satellite images applied to altimetry, NDVI and LST, for hypothetical examination of possible displacement, transport and subsequent deposition of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The results showed that two cemeteries within the city, cemeteries A and B could potentially transport SARS-CoV-2 of nanometric structure to neighboring residential areas through wind action.These two cemeteries are located at high relative altitudes in more densely populated regions of the city.The NDVI, which has been shown to control the proliferation of contaminants, proved to be insufficient in these areas, contributing to high LST values. Based on the results of this study, the formation and implementation of public policies that monitor urban cemeteries is suggested in areas that utilize vertical urban cemeteries in order to reduce the further spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Impacts of Residual Phosphorus on the Production of Cowpea in the Cerrado Region

Phosphate fertilizers when applied to the soil, besides being harvested by the crops, promote a residual effect that can be offered to subsequent crops. The objective of this research was to evaluate the residual effect of phosphate fertilization applied to maize cultivation on the successor crop, cowpea, in the Cerrado region in Maranhao. The research was carried out in the experimental area of Federal University of Maranhao (UFMA), located in the city of Chapadinha, MA (3°44'30"S, 43°21'37''W). The experimental design was in randomized blocks, with six treatments and four replications. The treatments were composed of the following residual P doses: 0, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100 kg·ha-1 of P2O5. The cultivation of cowpea (cultivar BRS guariba) was sown at a spacing of 1.0 × 0.20 m. The cowpea proved to be efficient in the use of residual phosphate fertilization, since it promoted grain yield close to the national average. The cultivation of cowpea in previously cultivated areas is feasible, in order to take advantage of the residual phosphate fertilization in the Cerrado of East of Maranhao. The phosphorus dose applied in the predecessor crop corresponding to 80 kg·ha-1 of P2O5 promoted higher grain yield (393.44 Mg·ha-1) and a greater profit margin (US $326.26). Thus, it is feasible to grow cowpea in previously cultivated areas, in order to take advantage of residual phosphate fertilization.

Phytosociology and Floristic Composition of the Infesting Community in Rice Crop Waterlogged

The objective of this study is to identify and quantify the floristic composition of the weed community in the rice crop waterlogged in the municipality of Arari-MA. The botanical material was obtained in three areas by randomly a hollow rectangle of 0.50 m × 0.30 m by forty five times in each plot. The aerial parts of weeds were harvested, identified, counted and oven dried with forced air ventilation at 333.15 K to 343.15 K. These data were used to determine the phytosociological parameters and the Shannon-Wiener diversity index was also calculated. A total of 6607 plants were collected, being 4115 (62.28%) in the vegetative phase and 2492 (37.72%) in the reproductive phase. The monocotyledonous group obtained the largest number of plants, 2882 in the vegetative phase and 1535 in the reproductive phase. The Cyperaceae family recorded nine species and four genera and the Poaceae, seven and four species in the vegetative and reproductive phases, respectively. The species of higher IVI in the vegetative phase was E. sellowiana in the area A1 with 82.86%, and in the reproductive F. dichotoma with IVI of 90.49% in the area A3. The individuals density and species richness were higher in the vegetative phase of the culture and the monocotyledonous group predominated with the Cyperaceae and Poaceae families, and the weed diversity among the areas was low.

Artificial neural network for prediction of acute kidney injury after liver transplantation for cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma

Acute kidney injury(AKI)has serious consequences on the prognosis of patients undergoing liver transplantation(LT)for liver cancer and cirrhosis.Artificial neural network(ANN)has recently been proposed as a useful tool in many fields in the setting of solid organ transplantation and surgical oncology,where patient prognosis depends on a multidimensional and nonlinear relationship between variables pertaining to the surgical procedure,the donor(graft characteristics),and the recipient comorbidities.In the specific case of LT,ANN models have been developed mainly to predict survival in patients with cirrhosis,to assess the best donor-to-recipient match during allocation processes,and to foresee postoperative complications and outcomes.This is a specific opinion review on the role of ANN in the prediction of AKI after LT for liver cancer and cirrhosis,highlighting potential strengths of the method to forecast this serious postoperative complication.

Production of Lettuce Seedlings with Association of Diazotrophic Bacteria and Humic Acids

The objective of this work was to verify the responses in agronomic and physiological characters of lettuce seedlings when submitted to different doses of humic acids and the presence or absence of inoculation of the bacterium Azospirillum brasilense. The experiment was carried out at the Protected Cultivation Station and Biological Control Teacher Mário César Lopes, belonging to the Experimental Stations Nucleus of the State University of the West of Paraná. The experimental design was a randomized block design, in a 5 × 2 factorial scheme, with four repetitions, totaling 40 plots. The first factor consisted of five solutions containing humic acid (100%, 75%, 50%, 25% and 0%) and the second factor was the presence or absence of the diazotrophic bacterium Azospirillum brasilense obtained by commercial product. Germination tests were carried out in addition to the determination of agronomic characters such as the number of fully expanded leaves, plant height, stem diameter, main root length, shoot dry mass, root dry mass, total dry mass, and Dickson quality index. The association of diazotrophic bacteria and humic acids did not influence the emergency rate, mean emergence time, mean speed of emergency, emergence speed index, plant height, and root length of lettuce seedlings. The dilutions of humic acids, regardless of inoculation with bacteria diazotrophic favored the development of the number of leaves, stem diameter and Dickson quality index. Inoculation of lettuce seeds with diazotrophic bacteria associated with the addition of humic acids, favored the development of the dry mass of root and total dry matter.