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Adobe is an ancient construction technique, simple and low cost, still used in some parts of the world, mainly in rural areas. Normally, in these regions, a considerable amount of agricultural waste is generated that can be used for different purposes. An agricultural waste that has been increasingly studied in the construction sector is natural fibers. The addition of natural fibers in the soil matrix has been gaining prominence as it is a natural and easily accessible stabilizer. This work aimed to analyze and characterize adobe blocks reinforced with coconut fibers, with the addition of 1% and 2% compared to the reference block (without the addition of coconut fiber) through capillary absorption, fiber-soil adhesion, durability in the presence of water and mechanical, properties through of compression bending tests. The adobe blocks with the addition of fibers showed mechanical results above those required by the standard NBR 16814. The addition of fibers promoted higher capillary absorption results than the samples consisting only of soil and when exposed to drip erosion, no significant damage was observed in the adobe structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this research was to study the spatial variability of NDVI and chlorophyll sampled by different sensors, as well as to evaluate the correlation between them in a coffee field. The study was carried out on a coffee farm located in the municipality of Três Pontas, Minas Gerais. A sampling grid containing 30 points was created for the study area. Each sampling point was represented by one plant, which was georeferenced by a GNSS RTK. For each sample plant, NDVI and chlorophyll were obtained by the optical and active sensors GreenSeeker and ClorofiLOG, respectively. In addition, it was carried out a flight with an RPA equipped with a passive and multispectral sensor. Using the data obtained by active sensors, a geostatistical analysis was carried out to evaluate the spatial variability of NDVI and chlorophyll. The geostatistical analysis verified the existence of spatial dependence for the two attributes, and thus it was possible to generate spatialization maps through kriging. The images obtained by the passive sensor resulted in five multispectral orthomosaics, making it possible to calculate the NDVI, thus generating a spatialization map of this index. It was possible to observe in the generated maps, points that presented a certain similarity and for this purpose a correlation analysis was carried out for the values of each attribute, sampled directly in the maps, and in different sampling grids (30, 60, 90 and 120 points). By analyzing the Pearson coefficient (R) it was possible to quantify the level of correlation between the data obtained by the different sensors and through the t test it was possible to find significant correlations between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geostatistics is a crucial tool for data analysis in the field of precision agriculture, allowing the characterization of spatial variability magnitude, optimizing profitability and yield in agricultural areas. In this context, the present study aimed to evaluate the spatial dependence of the variables yield, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and surface temperature in winter wheat plants. This was achieved through fitting semivariograms with different statistical models and interpolating the study variables using Ordinary kriging. The experiment was conducted at Fazenda Santa Helena, located in the municipality of Lavras in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, with a 12-hectare winter wheat crop of the TBIO Calibre variety. Data were collected using a grid sampling method at different stages of wheat plant growth (tillering and elongation). The analyzed variables included yield, NDVI, and surface temperature. Statistical analyses were performed using the R software. Initially, the spatial dependence of the study variables was analyzed by fitting semivariograms using the Restricted Maximum Likelihood (REML) method and considering spherical, exponential, and gaussian models. The evaluation of errors was carried out through cross-validation, and subsequently, the data interpolation was performed using ordinary kriging with the best-fitted semivariogram model. The results demonstrated a proper fit of semivariograms for the study models, with the spherical model standing out for surface temperature variables (elongation and tillering), NDVI (tillering), and the exponential model for NDVI (elongation) and yield. Therefore, the use of geostatistics is emphasized as an important tool to assist in precision agriculture management in winter wheat crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the thermal environment on behavioral and physiological parameters of crossbred cows of different productivity levels confined in a compost barn system. For this, air temperature (Tdb) and relative humidity (RH) data were measured using sensors/registers and wind speed (Vair) was recorded with the aid of an anemometer. Subsequently, these data were used to calculate the Temperature and Humidity Index (THI). Bedding material variables (pH and humidity) were also evaluated. The animals were evaluated for physiological variables (respiratory rate - RR and surface temperature - ST), scores (body condition, locomotion and dirt) and behavior. The analyses were carried out on two groups of cows (Group 1: high production vs. Group 2: medium and low production). The average pH of the bedding material was 8.5, within the recommended range. In the case of the physiological responses of the cows, the respiratory rate (RR) of Group 1 indicated better conditions of thermal comfort in the morning vs. the afternoon. The system was efficient in both groups based on body condition score, indicating favorable conditions for the health of the animals. Regarding the behavioral evaluation, Group 1 and 2 were statistically similar and had the longest rumination times, in relation to the other evaluated behaviors. Regarding active periods, medium production were the most active. Regarding idle time, low production spent more time idle than the other animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coffee grower seeks to increase productivity, as well as reduce the operating costs of his crop. Precision Agriculture (PA) is composed of a cycle of tools and technologies that can bring a good return to coffee growers, seeking to optimize production processes, bringing better yields and minimizing costs. Therefore, the objective of this research is to evaluate the spacetime behavior of productivity in a coffee plantation, aiming to apply AP techniques. The study was carried out in a coffee plantation of the species (Coffea arabica), cultivar Topázio MG1190, located in the municipality of Três Pontas, Brazil, with an area of 1.2 ha. With the aid of a GNSS RTK, 30 plants were georeferenced, from which their yields were later sampled in the years 2020, 2021 and 2022. The collected data were evaluated in two statistical processes in the RStudio software. The first stage consisted of a one-way analysis of variance with repeated measures, from the results it is concluded that there are differences between the production averages when buying the productivity of the years 2020, 2021 and 2022 and, in addition, the coefficient of variation for the three sets of samples was quite high (CV > 30%) indicating a heterogeneity between the data. The second stage consisted of a geostatistical analysis the data were fitted in a model and interpolated by ordinary kriging; the result was maps of spatial variability. Through these maps it was possible to evaluate the behavior of productivity spatially and temporally, as well as to quantify areas that had higher and lower levels of this attribute. It is concluded that productivity, even in the case of such a small productive area, can vary substantially in space and time, and the use of PA can help producers in decision making regarding management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of lignocellulosic material residue in cement composites can be considered as a good option because they allow good thermal behaviour. This paper aimed to compare three kinds of cement panels reinforced with different lignocellulosic materials (Coffee husk, Coconut shell, and Banana pseudostem) based on their thermal properties. To produce each panel, the methodology suggested by Souza (1994) was used. Six replicates of each lignocellulosic panel with dimensions of 7.0×7.5 were evaluated. The thermal analysis was performed in a chamber composed of MDP (medium density particleboard). The chamber contained the heat source (incandescent lamp) connected to a thermostat that maintained the temperature at 48.0 °C. The porosity and thickness of the panels and the thermal behaviour of each sample panel (thermal conductivity, resistivity, resistance, and transmittance) and the difference in temperature of both sides of the panel were evaluated. The temperature difference to stabilization was obtained after a sampling time of 200 minutes, with 1,000 readings of 12 s each. Although all the panels were submitted under the same temperature, the inner and external superficial temperatures of the coffee husk panels reached smaller values. Besides, coconut and banana pseudostem panels presented the best results of thermal transmittance and thermal resistance. Thus, coconut shell panels present the best thermal performance, which means that this panel might be an attractive alternative building material, in terms of heat insulation for indoor applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Adoptively transferred, ex vivo expanded multi-antigen-targeted T cells (multiTAA-T) represent a new, potentially effective, and nontoxic therapeutic approach for patients with breast cancer (BC). In this first-in-human trial, we investigated the safety and clinical effects of administering multiTAA T cells targeting the tumor-expressed antigens, Survivin, NY-ESO-1, MAGE-A4, SSX2, and PRAME, to patients with relapsed/refractory/metastatic BC. Materials and methods: MultiTAA T-cell products were generated from the peripheral blood of heavily pre-treated patients with metastatic or locally recurrent unresectable BC of all subtypes and infused at a fixed dose level of 2 × 10 7 /m 2 . Patients received two infusions of cells 4 weeks apart and safety and clinical activity were determined. Cells were administered in an outpatient setting and without prior lymphodepleting chemotherapy. Results: All patients had estrogen receptor/progesterone receptor positive BC, with one patient also having human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive. There were no treatment-related toxicities and the infusions were well tolerated. Of the 10 heavily pre-treated patients enrolled and infused with multiTAA T cells, nine had disease progression while one patient with 10 lines of prior therapies experienced prolonged (5 months) disease stabilization that was associated with the in vivo expansion and persistence of T cells directed against the targeted antigens. Furthermore, antigen spreading and the endogenous activation of T cells directed against a spectrum of non-targeted tumor antigens were observed in 7/10 patients post-multiTAA infusion. Conclusion: MultiTAA T cells were well tolerated and induced disease stabilization in a patient with refractory BC. This was associated with in vivo T-cell expansion, persistence, and antigen spreading. Future directions of this approach may include additional strategies to enhance the therapeutic benefit of multiTAA T cells in patients with BC.

Recurrent metastatic rhabdomyosarcoma remains largely incurable. Here, the authors describe a child with metastatic rhabdomyosarcoma who has durable response to HER2-specific CAR T cells and shows endogenous immune reactivity.

This research project aims at identifying a new network of routes and historical itineraries for the development and promotion of rural tourism in the Tuscany Region, by promoting forms of sustainable mobility in rural areas, particularly marginal ones. Religious tourism is defined as tourism, which includes visits to religious sites such as shrines, churches, abbeys, hermitages and sacred places; such places are an attraction for their religious essence as well as their artistic and cultural beauty. The ancient obsolete road system, which often survives as an archaeological relic as a precursor of the present road system, especially in rural areas, is more widespread than a layman would think. The paper refers the results of the study aimed at recovering the entire historical road that allowed pilgrims and travelers to reach La Verna (a place where St. Francis received the Stigmata) coming from Florence.

Robotic milking systems are successful innovations in the development of dairy cattle. The objective of this study was to analyse the milking characteristics and behavior of dairy cows of different calving orders in "milk first" robotic milking systems. The data were collected from a commercial herd located in the Midwest region of Minas Gerais (Brazil), which uses an automatic milking system (AMS TM, DeLaval). Were analysed 26,574 observations of 235 Holstein cows were available. Data were evaluated by multivariate analysis of variance and the Tukey test. - Tthe characteristics milk flow and milking efficiency were more favourable for multiparous cows (p <0.01), while the time in the stall was more favourable for primiparous females (p <0.01). The values of handling time were better in the primiparous cows (p <0.01). Primiparous cows had higher amounts of kick-off (p <0.001), and multiparous cows had higher incomplete milkings (p <0.001). The number of incomplete milkings showed a higher ratio in terms of reduction in milk production in 26.6% in primiparous cows and 26.7% in multiparous cows (p <0.01). Regarding the behavioral characteristics, primiparous cows had higher amounts of kickbacks, while multiparous cows had greater quantities of incomplete milkings.

The main challenge in milk production has been to maintain a focus on efficient processes that enhance production outcomes while aligning with animal welfare and sustainability and being valued by society. As an alternative to improve cow welfare in production and provide better handling of the waste generated by the activity, the system called the compost-bedded pack barn (CBP) has been widely adopted in countries with temperate climates and higher milk production. This CBP has been attracting global interest, including from countries with tropical and subtropical climates, such as Brazil, where many producers have started to use it due to the response in terms of milk productivity. A CBP can be designed either in (a) an open facility with natural ventilation or a positive-pressure ventilation system or (b) totally closed facilities, equipped with negative-pressure ventilation systems and permanent thermal control. The latter system is being implemented in Brazil, despite insufficient knowledge about its efficiency. The objective of this study was, through a review, to gather and describe the most recent information on the use of open and closed CBP systems for dairy cattle housing, mainly covering how it is applied in tropical climate regions. To achieve the proposed objective, this review study included the following topics related to CBPs: (i) implementation, (ii) bedding, (iii) general construction and architectural characteristics, and (iv) ambient thermal conditioning. Knowledge gaps and directions for future research are also identified here.

Allowing dairy cattle to access pasture or outdoor areas is known to be beneficial for cows' welfare and is considered important by the general public. However, in confinement-based operations with high-yielding cows, pasture access may be difficult to implement, especially for lactating animals. Providing pasture access to heifers and dry cows seems a more feasible option for most farms. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of providing high-yielding dairy cows with free-choice pasture access during the dry period on their health, behavior, and milk production. Over the study period, a total of 78 Holstein cows were assigned to 1 of 2 treatments during the dry period (51 ± 8 d): housing with free-choice access to the pasture (PAST) or housing continuously without any access to the outdoors (CTRL). After calving, all cows from both treatments were mixed and housed continuously. To assess the effects of the treatment on cows' performance, all animals enrolled were monitored both before calving and during the first 100 d in milk of the following lactation. The behavior of all cows involved was monitored continuously during the whole observation period using collar-based sensors. All cows were inspected monthly to assess lameness, hock lesions, cleanliness, and body condition score. During the period after calving (0-100 d in milk), milk production and composition were also monitored. Results showed that free-choice pasture access affected cows' feeding behavior. Before calving, the animals in PAST spent more time feeding than in CTRL and, interestingly, this difference tended to persist for several weeks after calving. During the dry period, cows in PAST were cleaner than in CTRL but no differences in locomotion and body condition score were found between the 2 groups. Free-choice pasture access during the dry period also affected milk production during the following lactation. The cows that spent the dry period in PAST produced more milk than CTRL counterparts, particularly for the animals that calved during summer. In the current study we have found that providing free-choice pasture access during the dry period can positively affect the performance of dairy cattle and represents a desirable practice in confinement-based dairy production systems., (© 2023, The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. and Fass Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).)

The objective of this study was to characterize the dependence and spatial distribution of bedding attributes in an open compost-bedded pack barn (CBP) system with positive pressure ventilation during the winter period in Brazil. The study was conducted in July 2021, in the Zona da Mata region, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The bedding area (shavings and wood sawdust) was divided into a mesh with 44 equidistant points. At each point, the bedding temperature at the surface (t B-sur ) and at a depth of 0.2 m (t B-20 ) and the air velocity at bedding level (v air,B ) were measured, and bedding samples were collected. The bedding samples were used to determine the moisture level and pH at the surface (M B-sur e pH B-sur ) and at a depth of 0.2 m (M B-20 and pH B-20 ). The spatial behavior of the variables was evaluated using geostatistics techniques. For all variables, the occurrence of strong spatial dependence was verified. Through the maps, it was observed that t B-sur , t B-20 , M B-sur , M B-20 , and v air,B showed high spatial variability, whereas pH B-sur and pH B-20 demonstrated low variation. On the surface, values of t B-sur < 20 °C and M B-sur > 60% were observed. At the subsurface, there was a predominance of t B-20 < 40 °C, M B-20 > 60%, and pH > 9, which are indications of low bedding composting activity.

External egg quality is an essential parameter of egg production as it relates directly to economic losses. This study evaluated the spatial variability of external egg quality in five naturally ventilated caged vertical aviaries. Differences caused by bird age and thermal and luminous variability within aviaries during winter and summer were analyzed. Data on aviary air temperature, relative humidity, light intensity, and external egg quality were collected at evenly distributed points along the aviary length within three levels of cages. The experimental design was completely randomized in a factorial scheme. In the summer, the highest air temperature and lowest relative humidity were found in central cages, mainly in upper center cages; hens produced eggs with a lower weight and shape index in this area. Similar results were obtained in the winter. In the summer, eggs with lower shell weight and thickness were also produced by hens housed in the central cages, but in the winter, the opposite result was obtained. This study of the spatial variability of external egg quality proved efficient in detecting areas within an aviary with poor quality eggs; improvements to design and management in these areas could help management improve production efficiency and contribute to a sustainable egg supply., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

This study was conducted to describe the building layout and dimensions, characterize the bedding material, and observe the management practices in 42 compost-bedded pack (CBP) barns in Kentucky (USA). The average herd size found in the study was 90 cows and the breeds consisted of Jersey (6.8%), Holstein (72.7%), and mixed (20.5%). The average CBP barn dimensions were 49.1 m (length) by 21.9 m (width). Many of these barns had feed alleys and driveways; overshot ridges with frequent orientation from NE to SW; and green sawdust, kiln-dried sawdust, or a mixture of both as the most common bedding materials. The bed-turning process was performed mechanically at depths of less than 0.25 m, and the loading of fresh material was performed every one to five weeks, varying by season, weather conditions, barn size, and cow density. The average bedding moisture content was found to be 59.0% (wet bulb-w.b.) and ranged from 36.2 to 71.8%. Coliforms were not present in barns that had a higher compost temperature, and the E. coli , Bacillus , and Streptococcus counts were higher in the barns that had a lower moisture content. In conclusion, it was observed that heterogeneous management was used among the barns and that the producers were satisfied with the compost barn system.

The thermal, chemical, and physical properties of compost bedding materials play an important role in every phase of compost production. Based on this, we aimed to assess the thermal, chemical and physical properties of bedding materials for compost-bedded pack (CBP) barns. The database for this study was registered from 42 CBP barns, distributed throughout the state of Kentucky (USA). The thermal conductivity showed a linear relationship with moisture content and bulk density, while thermal resistivity decreased with increasing particle size. The bedding moisture average was 46.8% (±11.5). The average finer index (p < 0.05) was the highest weight percentage (30.1%) in the samples studied. Water-holding capacity (WHC) increased with increasingly fine particle size. The higher bulk density value was 3.6 times that of the lowest bulk density value. The chemical characterization of the bedding material provided the following results: 42.7% (±3.8%) C, 1.6% (±0.4%) N, and 28.2 (±8.0) C:N ratio. However, thermal properties are strongly dependent on particle size. Producers can use the bedding material as fertilizer in their crops, due to the chemical characteristics of the materials. Beds with good physical and chemical properties improve their moisture content.