The Eighth World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery (WCPCCS) will be held in Washington DC, USA, from Saturday, 26 August, 2023 to Friday, 1 September, 2023, inclusive. The Eighth World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery will be the largest and most comprehensive scientific meeting dedicated to paediatric and congenital cardiac care ever held. At the time of the writing of this manuscript, The Eighth World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery has 5,037 registered attendees (and rising) from 117 countries, a truly diverse and international faculty of over 925 individuals from 89 countries, over 2,000 individual abstracts and poster presenters from 101 countries, and a Best Abstract Competition featuring 153 oral abstracts from 34 countries. For information about the Eighth World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, please visit the following website: [www.WCPCCS2023.org]. The purpose of this manuscript is to review the activities related to global health and advocacy that will occur at the Eighth World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery.

Acknowledging the need for urgent change, we wanted to take the opportunity to bring a common voice to the global community and issue the Washington DC WCPCCS Call to Action on Addressing the Global Burden of Pediatric and Congenital Heart Diseases. A copy of this Washington DC WCPCCS Call to Action is provided in the Appendix of this manuscript. This Washington DC WCPCCS Call to Action is an initiative aimed at increasing awareness of the global burden, promoting the development of sustainable care systems, and improving access to high quality and equitable healthcare for children with heart disease as well as adults with congenital heart disease worldwide.

Lemongrass essential oil (LEO) has been evaluated as a silage additive to improve silage fermentation and reduce fermentative losses. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of increasing levels of LEO on whole-plant sorghum silage (WPSS) fermentation profile, fermentation losses, chemical composition, dry matter (DM) and neutral detergent fibre (NDF) in vitro degradation and aerobic stability. Five cultivars and fifty experimental silos were used to evaluate the following LEO levels: 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 ml kg−1 DM of WPSS. The material was compacted (650 kg m−2) and the silos were sealed, weighed and stored at room temperature for 167 days. The addition of LEO linearly decreased butyric acid content and the ratio between lactic and acetic acids. Intermediate levels of LEO increased NH3-N and reduced lactic and acetic acids content. LEO linearly decreased silage gas losses. However, LEO did not affect total silage losses and DM recovery. Intermediate levels of LEO addition decreased organic matter and crude protein in the WPSS. The addition of LEO did not affect other chemical composition parameters, DM and NDF in vitro degradation, and pH and temperature of the silage after aerobic exposure. Thus, LEO supply in WPSS reduces gas losses, butyric acid concentration, and the ratio between lactic and acetic acids. However, LEO does not improve the chemical composition, in vitro degradation, and aerobic stability of WPSS.

The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of chitosan instead of microbial inoculants on fermentation profile, losses, chemical composition, in vitro degradation, and aerobic stability of sugarcane silage (SS). Forty experimental silos (PVC tubes with 28 cm i.d., 25 cm height) were used in a randomized block design to evaluate the following treatments: (I) Control (CON): SS with no additive; (II) LB: SS ensiled with 5.0 × 105 colony forming units (CFU) of Lactobacillus buchneri (NCIM 40788)/g as-fed; (III) LPPA: SS ensiled with 1.6 × 105 CFU of L. plantarum and 1.6 × 105 CFU of Pediococcus acidilactici/g as-fed; and (IV) Chitosan (CHI): SS ensiled with 6 g/kg dry matter (DM) of chitosan. Microbial inoculation of SS reduced (P ≤ 0.05) silage pH relative to CON and CHI treatment. The LPPA decreased ammonia-nitrogen and LB decreased (P ≤ 0.05) ethanol content and increased acetic acid content relative to other treatments. The LPPA-silos had higher (P ≤ 0.05) gas losses and lower (P ≤ 0.05) DM recovery than other treatment silos. Consequently, LPPA reduced (P ≤ 0.05) DM and non-fibre carbohydrates and increased (P ≤ 0.05) neutral detergent fibre (NDF) silage content compared to other treatments. Treatments did not affect (P ≥ 0.212) DM and NDF in vitro degradation and silage pH after aerobic exposure. However, LB reduced silage temperature after aerobic exposure. Thus, LB reduces alcoholic fermentation and improves SS aerobic stability. Inoculation of LPPA reduces DM recovery and negatively affects SS chemical composition. Although CHI positively affects SS conservation relative to CON, it shows higher gas losses and decreased SS temperature after aerobic exposure compared to LB.

Whole-plant soybean silage (WPSS) is a potential high-protein roughage source for ruminant diets. However, WPSS can be difficult to ensile and fermentation is a challenge. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of chitosan and microbial inoculants on fermentation profile, fermentation losses, chemical composition, and in vitro degradation of WPSS. Forty experimental silos (PVC tubing with 28 cm i.d. and 25 cm height) were produced. Soybean plants from 10 plots were ensiled in a completely randomized block design to evaluate the following treatments: (1) control (CON): WPSS without additives; (2) chitosan (CHI): WPSS additive with 6 g/kg DM of chitosan; (3) LBB: WPSS treated with 5.0 × 107 colony-forming units (CFU) of Lactobacillus buchneri (NCIM 40788) per kg of fresh matter and (4) LPP: WPSS treated with 1.6 × 108 CFU of Lactobacillus plantarum and 1.6 × 108 CFU of Pediococcus acidilactici per kg of fresh matter. Silos were opened 120 days after ensiling. Microbial inoculants reduced silage pH, whereas LPP-treated silos showed the lowest concentration of NH3-N, ethanol, butyric, acetic, branched-chain, and propionic organic acids. LBB-treatment decreased lactic acid bacteria (LAB) count relative to other treatments, and LPP-treatment showed the lowest fermentation losses, improving dry matter (DM) recovery. Relative to other treatments, LPP increased silage DM, organic matter, and decreased acid detergent insoluble crude protein (CP), improving DM and neutral detergent fibre in vitro degradation. Treatments showed no effect on silage aerobic stability. Thus, LPP-treatment improves fermentation profile, reduces fermentation losses, and increases the nutritional value of WPSS.

The influence of pharmaceutical industry (PI) on clinical practice and research in psychiatry has been considered a serious problem. Strict rules and guidelines were developed to regulate the interactions between doctors and PI. However, there is an ongoing debate whether these were thoroughly implemented in practice and internalized by physicians. The objective of our study was to assess the attitudes and behaviors of trainees in psychiatry and child & adolescent psychiatry toward PI across Europe. Methodologically, a validated questionnaire with additional items was administered to1444 trainees in 20 European countries. The minimum response rate was set at 60%. We found a high variation across countries in number of interactions between trainees and PI representatives; Portugal and Turkey had the highest number of interactions. The majority (59.76%) agreed that interactions with PI representatives have an impact on physicians’ prescribing behavior; whereas only 29.26% and 19.79% agreed interactions with PI representatives and gifts from PI have impact on their own prescribing behavior, respectively. Most of the gifts were considered appropriate by the majority, except tickets to vacation spot and social dinner at a restaurant. Of the sample, 70.76% think they have not been given sufficient training regarding how to interact with PI representatives. Only less than 20% indicated they have guidelines at institutional or national level. In conclusion, there is substantial interaction between trainees and PI across countries. The majority feel inadequately trained regarding professional interaction with PI, and believes they are immune to the influence of PI.

A completely randomized experiment was designed to evaluate the effects of α-amylase (AMY) and glucoamylase (GLU) on total losses, fermentative profile, chemical composition and amylolytic activity of rehydrated maize. Eighty-four experimental silos of rehydrated maize [0.33 litres/kg ground maize, 4-mm theoretical particle size, and 625 g/kg dry matter (DM)] were assigned to the following treatments: (1) control (CON), no enzyme addition; (2) GLU added at 300 µl/kg of ground maize (as-fed); and (3) AMY added at 300 µl/kg of ground maize. Seven silos from each treatment were opened after 7, 14, 21 and 28 days. Differences among treatments were evaluated through orthogonal contrasts (CON v. enzymes, and AMY v. GLU). Time effects were decomposed using polynomial regression. Glucoamylase silage exhibited greater total losses than AMY. Enzymes increased acetate and lactic acid concentrations and decreased ethanol concentration. Regardless of treatment, gas, effluent and total fermentative losses linearly increased, whereas DM recovery linearly decreased with higher storage length. Glucoamylase silage had lower ammonia nitrogen and higher lactic acid concentrations than AMY. Enzyme treatments decreased silage neutral detergent fibre content and increased in vitro DM degradation. Glucoamylase silage exhibited a more moderate starch content and greater in vitro DM degradation than AMY. Storage time linearly decreased DM, starch and fibre content of rehydrated maize. In vitro degradation of DM linearly increased as the storage length increased. This study showed evidence that enzymes with amylolytic activity, particularly GLU, improve the fermentative profile and DM degradation of rehydrated maize silage.

The current study aims to evaluate the effects of increasing levels of xylanase enzyme (XYL) on sugarcane silage fermentation, fermentative losses, chemical composition, dry matter (DM), neutral detergent fibre (NDF) degradation and aerobic stability. A completely randomized design trial was performed with five treatments and 50 experimental silos. Treatments were: 0, 100, 200, 300 and 400 mg of XYL per kg of DM. XYL contained 10 000 U/g. There was a quadratic effect of XYL on silage pH and acetic acid concentration: lower pH and higher acetic acid concentrations were found at intermediary levels of the enzyme. XYL decreased lactic acid concentration linearly. Furthermore, the enzyme had a quadratic effect on effluent and total losses, with higher losses at intermediary XYL levels. There was a quadratic effect of XYL on organic matter (OM), non-fibre carbohydrates (NFC) and crude protein (CP) content. In addition, a quadratic effect of XYL was observed on NDF content and degradation. Intermediary levels of XYL showed higher concentration of OM and NFC. The addition of XYL had no effect on silage temperature and pH after aerobic exposure. Thus, intermediate levels of XYL increased acetic acid and decreased silage pH. Besides positive effects on silage composition, intermediary XYL levels decreased NDF degradation.

It has been previously shown that Lactobacillus plantarum CRL 2130 is able to produce riboflavin in soyamilk. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficiency of this riboflavin-bio-enriched soyamilk to revert and/or prevent the nutritional deficiency of riboflavin using different animal models. When used to supplement the diets of previously depleted animals, it was shown that the growth, riboflavin status and morphology of the small intestines reverted to normal parameters and were similar to animals supplemented with commercial riboflavin. In the prevention model, the same tendency was observed, where animals that received soyamilk fermented with L. plantarum CRL 2130 did not show signs of riboflavin deficiency. This new bio-fortified soya-based product could be used as part of normal diets to provide a more natural alternative to mandatory fortification with riboflavin for the prevention of its deficiency.

This study was designed to assess the effects of four reading-training procedures for children with reading disabilities (RD) in a transparent orthography, with the aim of examining the effects of different spelling-to-sound units in computer speech-based reading. We selected a sample of 83 Spanish children aged between 7 years 1 month and 10 years 6 months (M = 105.2, SD = 7.8) whose pseudoword reading performance was below the 25th percentile and IQ > 90. The participants were randomly assigned to five groups: (a) the whole-word training group (WW) (n = 17), (b) the syllable training group (S)(n = 16), (c) the onset-rime training group (OR) (n = 17), (d) the phoneme training group (P) (n = 15), and (e) the untrained control group (n = 18). Children were pre- and post-tested in word recognition, reading comprehension, phonological awareness, and orthographic and phonological tasks. The results indicate that experimental groups who participated in the phoneme and syllable conditions improved their word recognition in comparison with the control group. In addition, dyslexics who participated in the phoneme, syllable, and onset-rime conditions made a greater number of requests during computer-based word reading under conditions that required extensive phonological computation (low frequency words and long words). Reading time, however, was greater for long words in the phoneme group during computer-based reading. These results suggest the importance of training phonological processes in improving word decoding in children with dyslexia who learn in a consistent orthography.

This article examines the dynamics of collective behavior in Santiago, Chile every September 11, the date of the 1973 coup that brought General Augusto Pinochet to power. It uses a multiple-method strategy that includes participant observation, personal interviews, and content analysis of three major newspapers during the period 2003–8. The theoretical approach emphasizes time and space coordinates of specified social actors, sociocultural emergence, a limited range of dominant emotions, and dramaturgy to describe the complexity of ritualized commemorations. It shows that incidents occurring on this date are not primarily caused by the actions of social movement organizations. Moreover, the dichotomy of “day and night” used to understand the peaceful and violent commemorations is an oversimplification of a complex network of events, actors, and scenarios that has the effect of denying any legitimacy to actions that fall outside the state-approved practices.

T Tauri stars are low mass, pre-main sequence stars. These objects are surrounded by an accretion disk and present strong magnetic activity. T Tauri stars are copious emitters of X-ray emission which belong to powerful magnetic reconnection events. Strong magnetospheric shocks are likely outcome of massive reconnection. Such shocks can accelerate particles up to relativistic energies through Fermi mechanism. We present a model for the high-energy radiation produced in the environment of T Tauri stars. We aim at determining whether this emission is detectable. If so, the T Tauri stars should be very nearby.

Introduction. Rhizopus stolonifer is the causal agent of Rhizopus rot disease in various fruit and vegetables. Materials and methods. The effect of chitosan was evaluated in vitro on mycelial growth, sporulation, morphological characteristics and germination of spores of three isolates of R. stolonifer (from peach, papaya and tomato). The effect of chitosan on controlling Rhizopus decay in peach, papaya and tomato fruit in situ in comparison with the synthetic fungicide dichloran was also studied. Results and discussion. Our results showed that the mycelial growth and sporulation of the three isolates were markedly inhibited at all tested chitosan concentrations. The highest antifungal indexes and sporulation reduction were observed with chitosan at 2 mg·mL–1. In our study, the morphological characteristics of the spores of R. stolonifer showed different behavior depending on the evaluated isolates. In general, the highest effect on germination was observed at the chitosan concentration of 2 mg·mL–1. Our results demonstrated that chitosan was effective in reducing the percentage of infection and the severity index on peach, papaya and tomato fruit compared with those of non-treated control. The chitosan was not more effective than dichloran in reducing the percentage of infection. The results of the study suggest that chitosan (2 mg·mL–1) is a good alternative for the control of Rhizopus decay on peach, papaya and tomato fruit; it could be considered as a potential agent in natural alternatives to control postharvest diseases.

The atmospheric and fuel conditions that led to the case of extreme fire behaviour registered in Puerto Madryn in north-eastern Patagonia, Argentina, on 21 January 1994 were analysed in this study. The analyses included surface and upper-air meteorological conditions, fuel composition and load, and morphometry of the burnt area. When the fire occurred the total fuel load was 16 688 ± 2 611 kg of dry matter per hectare, with fine fuel representing 66% of the total fuel load. At the time of the major fire run, the air temperature reached 32 °C and relative humidity decreased to 13%. The fuel load and its high proportion of fine fuels, the extreme temperatures, the low relative humidity, and the changes in wind directions which resulted from the conjunction of synoptic and local-scale phenomena, enhanced the development of a large convection column which favoured the interaction of surface and upper-air winds. As in similar cases reported for other ecosystems, the combination of these phenomena led to this case of extreme fire behaviour. It is intended that this analysis will contribute to the future development of fire alert systems for the region and to the worldwide knowledge of extreme fire behaviour in different scenarios.

Paranasal and rhinocerebral mucormycosis refers to uncommon opportunistic fungal infections, reported to occur especially in association with diabetic acidosis (the most common), immunosuppressive therapy, malignancy, or other chronic debilitating disorders. However, patients who have no underlying disease have occasionally been affected. According to the literature reviewed, only 13 well-documented cases without any predisposing factor have been previously reported. We describe a unique case of sphenoidal mucormycosis in an otherwise healthy individual, and the first patient to present with headache as the only symptom. We emphasize the importance of a high index of suspicion for early diagnosis and prompt management.

Measurements of modulated chlorophyll a fluorescence emission and chlorophyll content were made in thalli of Parmelia quercina collected from northern Castellon(Spain). Althoug high air pollution concentrations have been measured in this area, the ratio of variable to maximal fluorescence is unaffected. Following dark-adaptation, the response to irradiance of chlorophyll fluorescence was examined. With respect to control samples, thalli collected in northern Castellon consistently showed differences in fluorescence quenching, the efficiency of excitation energy capture and quenching of basal fluorescence. However, the quantum ield of photochemistry and non-cyclic electron flow were not affected. The changes in chlorophyll fluorescence parameters were observed in the absence of both visual injuries and decrease in chlorophyll content. The results are discussed with regard to the possible role of environmental stress in chlorophyll fluorescence yield.