Spatial–temporal variability of phytoplankton community and potentially harmful species in the Golden Horn Estuary (Sea of Marmara) was investigated from October 2018 to September 2019 together with some environmental factors. A total of 148 phytoplankton taxa were identified during the study period. Among these, 134 taxa (90.5%) consisted of diatoms (71 taxa, 48%) and dinoflagellates (63 taxa, 42.5%), while 14 taxa (9.5%) were other groups. Seventeen species were recorded for the first time in the study area. Species richness was highest in October, while it was lowest in August. The species diversity (H') varied according to sampling stations. Cell abundances were higher especially in the middle and upper estuary in spring and summer than in autumn and winter. The abundance of diatoms and euglenophyceans was highest in spring, while the abundance of raphidophycean and cryptophycean was highest in summer. Temperature was correlated positively with total abundance (P < 0.01), but negatively with species diversity (H') (P < 0.01). Several dense algal blooms causing discolouration in surface water occurred in spring and summer. A total of 12 microalgae species known as potentially toxic were detected during this study period. Among these, dinoflagellates Alexandrium cf. tamarense and Dinophysis infundibulum were recorded for the first time in the study area. The increase in species diversity and richness in the upper estuary, and the decrease in frequency of bloom events compared with the previous years indicated the changes in environmental conditions in this study period. Findings showed that phytoplankton might be used as an indicator of the changing environmental conditions in such ecosystems.

The past two decades have seen an enormous proliferation in writings on economic development, planning, and programming. Equipped with the aggregative tools of economic analysis acquired since the Thirties, economists have searched for methods and policy measures by which to further economic development. In many developing countries the government has assumed the responsibility of pursuing a deliberate, rational, and consistent economic policy in achieving the objectives of development, in accordance with established priorities, by direct and/or indirect interventions into the performance of the economy. With this expanded role of the public sector, the budget has come to acquire an important role as a policy instrument, since it reflects the qualitative and quantitative aspects of public policy, and puts into effect public policy measures influencing economic activity.

Phtytoplankton group composition determined by microscopy was compared with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) derived from pigment signatures in surface water samples taken bi-weekly and monthly between October 2018 and September 2019 in the Golden Horn Estuary (Sea of Marmara). A total of 80 eukaryotic phytoplankton taxa belonging to eight algal classes were identified in surface water during the study period. Forty-three taxa (54%) were diatoms, 29 taxa (36%) were dinoflagellates and eight taxa (10%) were other phytoflagellates. The average contribution of diatoms to total phytoplankton abundance decreased considerably (41 to 25%), while the average contribution of dinoflagellates and other phytoflagellates increased markedly (59 to 75%) from the lower to the middle estuary. Chlorophyll-a and seven other group-specific pigments, including fucoxanthin, peridinin, chlorophyll-c1 + c2, alloxanthin, 19′-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin, 19′-butanoyloxyfucoxanthin and divinyl chlorophyll-a were identified in the study area. The relative contribution of the major phytoplankton groups to chlorophyll-a was estimated on three different initial ratio matrices by CHEMTAX. The results obtained were compared with those from microscopic examination. It was concluded that the CHEMTAX method was not accurate enough to characterize the phytoplankton community in the Golden Horn Estuary ecosystem and microscopic analysis was essential to determine the major contributing species to chlorophyll-a.

The large outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is spreading all over the world rapidly. There have recently been publications in the literature regarding the relationship between COVID-19 and Kawasaki disease, but there is no sufficient knowledge about the treatment and follow-up.

Rahnev & Denison (R&D) argue against normative theories and in favor of a more descriptive “standard observer model” of perceptual decision making. We agree with the authors in many respects, but we argue that optimality (specifically, reward-rate maximization) has proved demonstrably useful as a hypothesis, contrary to the authors’ claims.

The convergence hypothesis, which is developed in the context of growth economics, asserts that the income differences across countries are transitory, and developing countries will eventually attain the level of income of developed ones. On the other hand, convergence clubs hypothesis claim that the convergence can only be realized across groups of countries that share some common characteristics. In this study, we propose a new method to find convergence clubs that combines a pairwise method of testing convergence with maximum clique and maximal clique algorithms. Unlike many of those already developed in the literature, this new method aims to find convergence clubs endogenously without depending on a-priori classifications. In a Monte Carlo simulation study, the success of the method in finding convergence clubs is compared with a similar algorithm. Simulation results indicated that the proposed method perform better than the compared algorithm in most cases. In addition to the Monte Carlo, a new empirical evidence on the existence of convergence clubs is presented in the context of real data applications.

The abundance pattern and species diversity of phytoplankton in the surface waters of the Golden Horn Estuary were investigated between August 2011 and July 2012 in relation to environmental factors. Seventy-eight phytoplankton taxa (38 diatoms, 30 dinoflagellates and 10 phytoflagellates) belonging to eight taxonomic classes were identified in bottle and net samples. Phytoplankton abundance increased in spring and summer (from March to August) and reached its highest (10,429 × 103 cells L−1) during the bloom of Heterosigma akashiwo (Raphidophyceae) in the middle and upper estuary in late May. In general, phytoplankton abundance was higher in the middle estuary indicating more suitable conditions for phytoplankton growth, while species richness and diversity was higher in the lower estuary. The most abundant species were Skeletonema marinoi and Thalassiosira sp. among diatoms; Scrippsiella trochoidea among dinoflagellates; Plagioselmis prolonga and Heterosigma akashiwo among phytoflagellates. Diatoms were more abundant in the lower and middle estuary, while dinoflagellates and phytoflagellates in the upper estuary. The main factors causing the spatio-temporal variation of phytoplankton in the study area were temperature, salinity, water transparency and nutrients. Water transparency in the upper estuary is mostly influenced by organic and inorganic matter carried by two streams. As a result, this area should be considered a potential risk area for future algal blooms.

This study focused on the mineralogical and physico-chemical properties of heulandite/clinoptilolite (Heu/Cpt)-rich zeolitic tuffs SE of Ankara (Turkey) and evaluated their potential for use as adsorbents. The main Heu/Cpt minerals correspond to the intermediate type and the Cpt-type of the heulandite series. Minor chabazite, erionite and rarely analcime and accessory feldspars, mica, smectite, and quartz were also detected. Three types of Heu were recognized according to their thermal behaviour. Cpt (type-III Heu) was thermally stable at 600°C, whereas type-I Heu collapsed and type-II Heu partially collapsed. The Si/Al ratios of the Hul/Cpt ranged from 3.54 to 5.03, the Γ parameter (Γ = Ca/Al + 0.115*Al) varied between 0.78 and 1.85 and Al + Fe3+ varied between 6.27 and 8.00. The Na, K and Ca contents of Heu/Cpt varied widely and the Heu had an intermediate composition between types II and III. The Mg + Ca content is greater than the Na + K content in Heu-type II and smaller in Heu-type III zeolites. The BET surface area and the pore-size of the samples varied between 10.15 and 194.27 m2/g, and between 1.41 and 12.42 nm, respectively. The N2 adsorption and desorption isotherms were comparable, but the adsorption/desorption capacity is greater in type III than in type II Heu zeolites. The cation exchange capacities of the Heu/Cpt-rich samples ranged from 185 to 280 meq/100 g.

Purpose: Previous studies have shown that the underlying pathophysiologic mechanism in children with breath holding may be generalised autonomic dysregulation. Thus, we performed cardiac rhythm and heart rate variability analyses using 24-hour Holter monitoring to evaluate the cardiac effects of autonomic dysregulation in children with breath-holding spells. Methods: We performed cardiac rhythm and heart rate analyses using 24-hour Holter monitors to evaluate the cardiac effects of autonomic dysregulation in children during a breath-holding spell. Our study group consisted of 68 children with breath-holding spells – 56 cyanotic type and 12 pallid type – and 39 healthy controls. Results: Clinical and heart rate variability results were compared between each spell type – cyanotic or pallid – and the control group; significant differences (p<0.05) in standard deviation of all NN intervals, mean of the standard deviations of all NN intervals for all 5-minute segments, percentage of differences between adjacent RR intervals >50 ms, and square root of the mean of the sum of squares of the differences between adjacent NN intervals values were found between the pallid and cyanotic groups. Conclusions: Holter monitoring for 24 hours and heart rate variability parameters, particularly in children with pallid spells, are crucial for evaluation of cardiac rhythm changes.

Introduction: Dilated cardiomyopathy is usually idiopathic and may arise secondary to infections or metabolic or genetic causes. Another rare cause is hypocalcaemia. Owing to the fact that calcium plays an essential role in excitation and contraction of myocardial muscle, myocardial contractility may decline in patients with hypocalcaemia. Materials and Methods: Patients with symptoms of congestive heart failure and rickets-related hypocalcaemia were assessed clinically and by echocardiography in a paediatric cardiology clinic. Echocardiography was performed for all patients. Rickets was diagnosed according to the clinical, laboratory, and radiologic findings. Maternal lifestyle and living conditions were investigated, and the maternal 25-OH vitamin D3 blood level was measured. Results: We evaluated eight patients who developed heart failure as a result of severe hypocalcaemia associated with rickets between August, 1999 and June, 2012. The age distribution of the patients was 3–12 months. Laboratory results were consistent with advanced-stage rickets. Severe hypocalcaemia was detected in all patients. The maternal 25-OH vitamin D3 levels were low. Echocardiography revealed increased pre-treatment left ventricle end-systolic and end-diastolic diameters for age and reduced ejection fraction and fractional shortening. After clinical improvement, the patients were discharged. Conclusions: Severe hypocalcaemia associated with rickets must always be kept in mind among the causes of dilated cardiomyopathy and impaired cardiac function in infants. If diagnosed and treated in time, dilated cardiomyopathy and severe heart failure related to rickets respond well.

We conducted an epidemiological, observational cohort study to determine the incidence and complications of acute otitis media (AOM) in children aged <6 years. Data on physician-diagnosed AOM were collected from retrospective review of medical charts for the year preceding enrolment and then prospectively in the year following enrolment. The study included 5776 children in Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and the UK. AOM incidence was 256/1000 person-years [95% confidence interval (CI) 243–270] in the prospective study period. Incidence was lowest in Italy (195, 95% CI 171–222) and highest in Spain (328, 95% CI 296–363). Complications were documented in <1% of episodes. Spontaneous tympanic membrane perforation was documented in 7% of episodes. Both retrospective and prospective study results were similar and show the high incidence during childhood in these five European countries. Differences by country may reflect true differences and differences in social structure and diagnostic procedures.

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the neurodevelopmental outcome at 12–18 months’ corrected age between multiples and singleton preterm infants. Methods: We designed a prospective study of preterm infants (≤32 weeks gestation) born and hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit between November 2008 and November 2009, whose assessments were performed at 12–18 months’ corrected age. Neurodevelopmental impairment was defined as the presence of any one of the following: moderate or severe cerebral palsy, severe bilateral hearing loss or bilateral blindness, mental developmental index score, or psychomotor developmental index score less than 70. Results were compared for both multiples and singleton infants. Results: One hundred and fifty-nine multiples and 211 singleton infants were assessed at 12–18 months’ corrected age. The neurodevelopmental outcome including all parameters at 12–18 months’ corrected age in multiples was not significantly different from singleton preterm infants. Conclusions: Multiple gestation in preterm infants is not associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental impairment at 12–18 months’ corrected age compared with singleton preterm infants. For further information, long term and high participation in neurodevelopmental follow-up and evaluation at pre-school age will be needed.

Twin pregnancies are becoming common as a result of increased assisted reproduction. Studies have shown that the smaller twin of a pair is at greater risk of morbidity and mortality. Our aim was to determine if there is a relation between birth-weight discordancy and neonatal morbidity and mortality and to test the occurrence of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in discordant twins. For 5 years all twins admitted to our intensive care unit were included in the study. Discordance was calculated as the difference between twins' weights divided by the heavier weight. Diagnosis of RDS was made by typical clinical and radiographic methods. Multiple logistic regression was performed with gender, weight order and birth order as the independent variables and RDS as the dependent variable. Two hundred and sixty-six twin pairs with a mean gestation of 33 weeks and a mean birthweight of 1890 g were evaluated. Multiple logistic regression revealed that being the heavier twin was a more important risk factor for RDS (odds ratio 4.5; 95% confidence interval 2.2–9.2) than being the male or second-born twin. Based on neonatal outcomes a birthweight discordance equal or greater than 20% in twin pairs was accepted as the discordance criterion. Discordant and concordant groups were statistically different in neonatal mortality, necrotizing enterocolitis, polycytemia and hypoglycemia. Our data demonstrated that being the heavier twin is a risk factor for RDS and a birth-weight difference of 20% or more in twin pairs should be accepted as discordance.