Search results for: point of care

Authors: Laura Kocsor, Laszlo Peter, Laszlo Kovacs, Zsolt Kis

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The aim of our research is to prepare rare-earth-doped lithium niobate (LiNbO3) nanocrystals, having only a few dopant ions in the focal point of an exciting laser beam. These samples will be used to achieve individual addressing of the dopant ions by light beams in a confocal microscope setup. One method for the preparation of nanocrystalline materials is to reduce the particle size by mechanical grinding. High-energy ball-milling was used in several works to produce nano lithium niobate. Previously, it was reported that dry high-energy ball-milling of lithium niobate in a shaker mill results in the partial reduction of the material, which leads to a balanced formation of bipolarons and polarons yielding gray color together with oxygen release and Li2O segregation on the open surfaces. In the present work we focus on preparing LiNbO3 nanocrystals by high-energy ball-milling using a Fritsch Pulverisette 7 planetary mill. Every ball-milling process was carried out in zirconia vial with zirconia balls of different sizes (from 3 mm to 0.1 mm), wet grinding with water, and the grinding time being less than an hour. Gradually decreasing the ball size to 0.1 mm, an average particle size of about 10 nm could be obtained determined by dynamic light scattering and verified by scanning electron microscopy. High-energy ball-milling resulted in sample darkening evidenced by optical absorption spectroscopy measurements indicating that the material underwent partial reduction. The unwanted lithium oxide loss decreases the Li/Nb ratio in the crystal, strongly influencing the spectroscopic properties of lithium niobate. Zirconia contamination was found in ground samples proved by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy measurements; however, it cannot be explained based on the hardness properties of the materials involved in the ball-milling process. It can be understood taking into account the presence of lithium hydroxide formed the segregated lithium oxide and water during the ball-milling process, through chemically induced abrasion. The quantity of the segregated Li2O was measured by coulometric titration. During the wet milling process in the planetary mill, it was found that the lithium oxide loss increases linearly in the early phase of the milling process, then a saturation of the Li2O loss can be seen. This change goes along with the disappearance of the relatively large particles until a relatively narrow size distribution is achieved in accord with the dynamic light scattering measurements. With the 3 mm ball size and 1100 rpm rotation rate, the mean particle size achieved is 100 nm, and the total Li2O loss is about 1.2 wt.% of the original LiNbO3. Further investigations have been done to minimize the Li2O segregation during the ball-milling process. Since the Li2O loss was observed to increase with the growing total surface of the particles, the influence of ball-milling parameters on its quantity has also been studied.

Keywords: high-energy ball-milling, lithium niobate, mechanochemical reaction, nanocrystals

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Authors: Joao Almeida, Ana Azevedo, Myriam Kanoun-Boule, Maria Ines Santos, Antonio Tadeu

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The effects of the increasing expansion of cities and climate changes have encouraged European countries and regions to adopt nature-based solutions with ability to mitigate environmental issues and improve life in cities. Among these strategies, green roofs and urban gardens have been considered ingenious solutions, since they have the desirable potential to improve air quality, prevent floods, reduce the heat island effect and restore biodiversity in cities. However, an additional consumption of fresh water and mineral nutrients is necessary to sustain larger green urban areas. This communication discusses the main technical features of a new system to manage urine recovery at the building level and its application in green roofs. The depletion of critical nutrients like phosphorus constitutes an emergency. In turn, their elimination through urine is one of the principal causes for their loss. Thus, urine recovery in buildings may offer numerous advantages, constituting a valuable fertilizer abundantly available in cities and reducing the load on wastewater treatment plants. Although several urine-diverting toilets have been developed for this purpose and some experiments using urine directly in agriculture have already been carried out in Europe, several challenges have emerged with this practice concerning collection, sanitization, storage and application of urine in buildings. To our best knowledge, current buildings are not designed to receive these systems and integrated solutions with ability to self-manage the whole process of urine recovery, including separation, maturation and storage phases, are not known. Additionally, if from a hygiene point of view human urine may be considered a relatively safe fertilizer, the risk of disease transmission needs to be carefully analysed. A reduction in microorganisms can be achieved by storing the urine in closed tanks. However, several factors may affect this process, which may result in a higher survival rate for some pathogens. In this work, urine effluent was collected under real conditions, stored in closed containers and kept in climatic chambers under variable conditions simulating cold, temperate and tropical climates. These samples were subjected to a first physicochemical and microbiological control, which was repeated over time. The results obtained so far suggest that maturation conditions were reached for all the three temperatures and that a storage period of less than three months is required to achieve a strong depletion of microorganisms. The authors are grateful for the Project WashOne (POCI-01-0247-FEDER-017461) funded by the Operational Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization (POCI) of Portugal 2020, with the support of the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER).

Keywords: sustainable green roofs and urban gardens, urban nutrient cycle, urine-based fertilizers, urine recovery in buildings

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Authors: Faris Mohsin Alabeedi

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Pemphigus Vulgaris (PV) is a life-threatening autoimmune blistering disease characterized by the presence of autoantibodies directed against the epidermis's surface proteins. There are two forms of PV, mucocutaneous and mucosal-dominant PV. Disruption of the cell junctions is a hallmark of PV due to the autoantibodies targeting the desmosomal cadherins, desmoglein-3 (Dsg3) and desmoglein-1, leading to acantholysis in the skin and mucous membrane. Although the pathogenesis of PV is known, the detailed molecular events remain not fully understood. Our recent study has shown that both the PV sera and pathogenic anti-Dsg3 antibody AK23 can induce ROS and cause oxidative stress in cultured keratinocytes. In line with our finding, other independent studies also demonstrate oxidative stress in PV. Since Nrf2 plays a crucial role in cellular anti-oxidative stress response, we hypothesize that the expression of Nrf2 may alter in PV. Thus, treatment of cells with PV sera or AK23 may cause changes in Nrf2 expression and distribution. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of AK23 and PV sera on Nrf2 in a normal human keratinocyte cell line, such as NTERT cells. Both a time-course and dose-dependent experiments with AK23, alongside the matched isotype control IgG, were performed in keratinocyte cultures and analysed by immunofluorescence for Nrf2 and Dsg3. Additionally, the same approach was conducted with the sera from PV patients and healthy individuals that served as a control in this study. All the fluorescent images were analysed using ImageJ software. Each experiment was repeated twice. In general, variations were observed throughout this study. In the dose-response experiments, although enhanced Dsg3 expression was consistently detected in AK23 treated cells, the expression of Nrf2 showed no consistent findings between the experiments, although changes in its expression were noticeable in cells treated with AK23. In the time-course study, a trend with induction of Nrf2 over time was shown in control cells treated with mouse isotype IgG. Treatment with AK23 showed a reduction of Nrf2 in a time-dependent manner, especially at the 24-hour time point. However, the earlier time points, such as 2 hours and 6 hours with AK23 treatments, detected somewhat variations. Finally, PV sera caused a decrease of Dsg3, but on the other hand, variations were observed in Nrf2 expression in PV sera treated cells. In general, PV sera seemed to cause a reduction of Nrf2 in the majority of PV sera treated samples. In addition, more pronounced cytoplasmic expression of Nrf2 has been observed in PV sera treated cells than those treated with AK23, suggesting that polyclonal and monoclonal IgG might induce a different effect on Nrf2 expression and distribution. Further experimental studies are crucial to obtain a more coincide global view of Nrf2-mediated gene regulation. In particular, Pemphigus Voulgaris studies assessing how the Nrf2-dependent network changes from a physiological to a pathological condition can provide insight into disease mechanisms and perhaps initiate further treatment approaches.

Keywords: pemphigus vulgaris, monoclonal antibody against desmoglein-3, Nrf2 oxidative stress, keratinocyte cultures

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Authors: Alexander Guzman Urbina, Atsushi Aoyama

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The sustainability of traditional technologies employed in energy and chemical infrastructure brings a big challenge for our society. Making decisions related with safety of industrial infrastructure, the values of accidental risk are becoming relevant points for discussion. However, the challenge is the reliability of the models employed to get the risk data. Such models usually involve large number of variables and with large amounts of uncertainty. The most efficient techniques to overcome those problems are built using Artificial Intelligence (AI), and more specifically using hybrid systems such as Neuro-Fuzzy algorithms. Therefore, this paper aims to introduce a hybrid algorithm for risk assessment trained using near-miss accident data. As mentioned above the sustainability of traditional technologies related with energy and chemical infrastructure constitutes one of the major challenges that today’s societies and firms are facing. Besides that, the adaptation of those technologies to the effects of the climate change in sensible environments represents a critical concern for safety and risk management. Regarding this issue argue that social consequences of catastrophic risks are increasing rapidly, due mainly to the concentration of people and energy infrastructure in hazard-prone areas, aggravated by the lack of knowledge about the risks. Additional to the social consequences described above, and considering the industrial sector as critical infrastructure due to its large impact to the economy in case of a failure the relevance of industrial safety has become a critical issue for the current society. Then, regarding the safety concern, pipeline operators and regulators have been performing risk assessments in attempts to evaluate accurately probabilities of failure of the infrastructure, and consequences associated with those failures. However, estimating accidental risks in critical infrastructure involves a substantial effort and costs due to number of variables involved, complexity and lack of information. Therefore, this paper aims to introduce a well trained algorithm for risk assessment using deep learning, which could be capable to deal efficiently with the complexity and uncertainty. The advantage point of the deep learning using near-miss accidents data is that it could be employed in risk assessment as an efficient engineering tool to treat the uncertainty of the risk values in complex environments. The basic idea of using a Near-Miss Deep Learning Approach for Neuro-Fuzzy Risk Assessment in Pipelines is focused in the objective of improve the validity of the risk values learning from near-miss accidents and imitating the human expertise scoring risks and setting tolerance levels. In summary, the method of Deep Learning for Neuro-Fuzzy Risk Assessment involves a regression analysis called group method of data handling (GMDH), which consists in the determination of the optimal configuration of the risk assessment model and its parameters employing polynomial theory.

Keywords: deep learning, risk assessment, neuro fuzzy, pipelines

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Authors: Katharina Lapin, Debashis Sanyal

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Worldwide urban areas are growing. Urbanization has a great impact on social and economic development and ecosystem services. This global trend of urbanization also has significant impact on habitat and biodiversity. The impact of urbanization on the biodiversity of cities in Europe and North America is well studied, while there is a lack of data from cities in currently fast growing urban areas. Indian cities are expanding. The scientific community and the governmental authorities are facing the ongoing urbanization process as an opportunity for the environment. This case study supports the evaluation of urban biodiversity of the city Raipur in the North-West of India. The aim of this study is to assess the overview of the environmental and ecological implications of urbanization. The collected data and analysis was used to discuss the challenges for the sustainable city development. Vascular plants were chosen as an appropriate indicator for the assessment of local biodiversity changes. On the one hand, the vegetation cover is sensible to anthropogenic influence, and in the other hand, the local species composition is comparable to changes at the regional and national scale, using the plant index of India. Further information of abiotic situation can be gathered with the determination of indicator species. In order to calculate the influence of urbanization on the native plant diversity, the Shannon diversity index H´ was chosen. The Pielou`s pooled quadrate method was used for estimating diversity when a random sample is not expected. It was used to calculate the Pilou´s index of evenness. The estimated species coverage was used for calculating the H´ and J. Pearson correlation was performed to test the relationship between urbanization pattern and plant diversity. Further, a SWOT analysis was used in for analyzing internal and external factors impinging on a decision making process. The city of Raipur (21.25°N 81.63°E) has a population of 1,010,087 inhabitants living in an urban area of 226km², in the district of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Within the last decade, the urban area of Raipur increased. The results show that various novel ecosystems exist in the urban area of Raipur. The high amount of native flora is mainly to find at the shore of urban lakes and along the river Karun. These areas of high Biodiversity Index are to protect as urban biodiversity hot spots. The governmental authorities are well informed about the environmental challenges for the sustainable development of the city. Together with the scientific community of the Technical University of Raipur many engineering solutions are discussed for implementation of the future. The case study helped to point out the importance environmental measures that support the ecosystem services of green infrastructure. The fast process of urbanization is difficult to control. Uncontrolled creation of urban housing leads to difficulties in unsustainable use of natural resources. This is the major threat for the urban biodiversity.

Keywords: India, novel ecosystems, plant diversity, urban ecology

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Authors: Nirit Gavish, Rotem Halutz, Liad Neta

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Nowadays, chatbots are gaining more and more attention due to the advent of large language models. One of the important considerations in chatbot design is how to create an interface to achieve high user satisfaction, trust, and acceptance. Since WhatsApp conversations sometimes substitute for face-to-face communication, we studied whether WhatsAppization of the chatbot -making the conversation resemble a WhatsApp conversation more- will improve user satisfaction, trust, and acceptance, or whether the opposite will occur due to the Uncanny Valley (UV) effect. The task was a drive-sharing task, in which participants communicated with a textual chatbot via WhatsApp and could decide whether to participate in a ride to college with a driver suggested by the chatbot. WhatsAppization of the chatbot was done in two ways: By a dialog-style conversation (Dialog versus No Dialog), and by adding WhatsApp indicators – “Last Seen”, “Connected”, “Read Receipts”, and “Typing…” (Indicators versus No Indicators). Our 120 participants were randomly assigned to one of the four 2 by 2 design groups, with 30 participants in each. They interacted with the WhatsApp chatbot and then filled out a questionnaire. The results demonstrated that, as expected from the manipulation, the interaction with the chatbot was longer for the dialog condition compared to the no dialog. This extra interaction, however, did not lead to higher acceptance -quite the opposite, since participants in the dialog condition were less willing to implement the decision made at the end of the conversation with the chatbot and continue the interaction with the driver they chose. The results are even more striking when considering the Indicators condition. Both for the satisfaction measures and the trust measures, participants’ ratings were lower in the Indicators condition compared to the No Indicators. Participants in the Indicators condition felt that the ride search process was harder to operate, and slower (even though the actual interaction time was similar). They were less convinced that the chatbot suggested real trips and they trusted the person offering the ride and referred to them by the chatbot less. These effects were more evident for participants who preferred to share their rides using WhatsApp compared to participants who preferred chatbots for that purpose. Considering our findings, we can say that the WhatsAppization of the chatbot was detrimental. This is true for the both chatbot WhatsAppization methods – by making the conversation more a dialog and adding WhatsApp indicators. For the chosen drive-sharing task, the results were, in addition to lower satisfaction, less trust in the chatbot’s suggestion and even in the driver suggested by the chatbot, and lower willingness to actually undertake the suggested ride. In addition, it seems that the most problematic WhatsAppization method was using WhatsApp’s indicators during the interaction with the chatbot. The current study suggests that a conversation with an artificial agent should also not imitate a WhatsApp conversation very closely. With the proliferation of WhatsApp use, the emotional and social aspect of face-to face commination are moving to WhatsApp communication. Based on the current study’s findings, it is possible that the UV effect also occurs in WhatsAppization, and not only in humanization, of the chatbot, with a similar feeling of eeriness, and is more pronounced for people who prefer to use WhatsApp over chatbots. The current research can serve as a starting point to study the very interesting and important topic of chatbots WhatsAppization. More methods of WhatsAppization and other tasks could be the focus of further studies.

Keywords: chatbot, WhatsApp, humanization, Uncanny Valley, drive sharing

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Authors: Sanaz Alizadeh, Yves Comeau, Arshath Abdul Rahim, Sunhasis Ghoshal

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The application of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in personal care products, various household and industrial products has resulted in an inevitable environmental exposure of such engineered nanoparticles (ENPs). Ag ENPs, released via household and industrial wastes, reach water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs), yet the fate and transport of ENPs in WRRFs and their potential risk in the biological wastewater processes are poorly understood. Accordingly, our main objective was to elucidate the impact of long-term continuous exposure to AgNPs on biological activity of aerobic wastewater biofilm. The fate, transport and toxicity of 10 μg.L-1and 100 μg.L-1 PVP-stabilized AgNPs (50 nm) were evaluated in an attached growth biological treatment process, using lab-scale moving bed bioreactors (MBBRs). Two MBBR systems for organic matter removal were fed with a synthetic influent and operated at a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 180 min and 60% volumetric filling ratio of Anox-K5 carriers with specific surface area of 800 m2/m3. Both reactors were operated for 85 days after reaching steady state conditions to develop a mature biofilm. The impact of AgNPs on the biological performance of the MBBRs was characterized over a period of 64 days in terms of the filtered biodegradable COD (SCOD) removal efficiency, the biofilm viability and key enzymatic activities (α-glucosidase and protease). The AgNPs were quantitatively characterized using single-particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (spICP-MS), determining simultaneously the particle size distribution, particle concentration and dissolved silver content in influent, bioreactor and effluent samples. The generation of reactive oxygen species and the oxidative stress were assessed as the proposed toxicity mechanism of AgNPs. Results indicated that a low concentration of AgNPs (10 μg.L-1) did not significantly affect the SCOD removal efficiency whereas a significant reduction in treatment efficiency (37%) was observed at 100 μg.L-1AgNPs. Neither the viability nor the enzymatic activities of biofilm were affected at 10 μg.L-1AgNPs but a higher concentration of AgNPs induced cell membrane integrity damage resulting in 31% loss of viability and reduced α-glucosidase and protease enzymatic activities by 31% and 29%, respectively, over the 64-day exposure period. The elevated intercellular ROS in biofilm at a higher AgNPs concentration over time was consistent with a reduced biological biofilm performance, confirming the occurrence of a nanoparticle-induced oxidative stress in the heterotrophic biofilm. The spICP-MS analysis demonstrated a decrease in the nanoparticles concentration over the first 25 days, indicating a significant partitioning of AgNPs into the biofilm matrix in both reactors. The concentration of nanoparticles increased in effluent of both reactors after 25 days, however, indicating a decreased retention capacity of AgNPs in biofilm. The observed significant detachment of biofilm also contributed to a higher release of nanoparticles due to cell-wall destabilizing properties of AgNPs as an antimicrobial agent. The removal efficiency of PVP-AgNPs and the biofilm biological responses were a function of nanoparticle concentration and exposure time. This study contributes to a better understanding of the fate and behavior of AgNPs in biological wastewater processes, providing key information that can be used to predict the environmental risks of ENPs in aquatic ecosystems.

Keywords: biofilm, silver nanoparticle, single particle ICP-MS, toxicity, wastewater

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Authors: Mohammad H. Yarmohammadian, Fatemeh Rezaei

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Introduction: Improving patient safety in health systems is one of the main priorities in healthcare systems, so clinical risk management in organizations has become increasingly significant. Although several tools have been developed for clinical risk management, each has its own limitations. Aims: This study aims to develop a comprehensive tool that can complete the limitations of each risk assessment and management tools with the advantage of other tools. Methods: Procedure was determined in two main stages included development of an initial model during meetings with the professors and literature review, then implementation and verification of final model. Subjects and Methods: This study is a quantitative − qualitative research. In terms of qualitative dimension, method of focus groups with inductive approach is used. To evaluate the results of the qualitative study, quantitative assessment of the two parts of the fourth phase and seven phases of the research was conducted. Purposive and stratification sampling of various responsible teams for the selected process was conducted in the operating room. Final model verified in eight phases through application of activity breakdown structure, failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA), healthcare risk priority number (RPN), root cause analysis (RCA), FT, and Eindhoven Classification model (ECM) tools. This model has been conducted typically on patients admitted in a day-clinic ward of a public hospital for surgery in October 2012 to June. Statistical Analysis Used: Qualitative data analysis was done through content analysis and quantitative analysis done through checklist and edited RPN tables. Results: After verification the final model in eight-step, patient's admission process for surgery was developed by focus discussion group (FDG) members in five main phases. Then with adopted methodology of FMEA, 85 failure modes along with its causes, effects, and preventive capabilities was set in the tables. Developed tables to calculate RPN index contain three criteria for severity, two criteria for probability, and two criteria for preventability. Tree failure modes were above determined significant risk limitation (RPN > 250). After a 3-month period, patient's misidentification incidents were the most frequent reported events. Each RPN criterion of misidentification events compared and found that various RPN number for tree misidentification reported events could be determine against predicted score in previous phase. Identified root causes through fault tree categorized with ECM. Wrong side surgery event was selected by focus discussion group to purpose improvement action. The most important causes were lack of planning for number and priority of surgical procedures. After prioritization of the suggested interventions, computerized registration system in health information system (HIS) was adopted to prepare the action plan in the final phase. Conclusion: Complexity of health care industry requires risk managers to have a multifaceted vision. Therefore, applying only one of retrospective or prospective tools for risk management does not work and each organization must provide conditions for potential application of these methods in its organization. The results of this study showed that the integrated clinical risk management model can be used in hospitals as an efficient tool in order to improve clinical governance.

Keywords: failure modes and effective analysis, risk management, root cause analysis, model

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Authors: Tessa Heeren

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The following proposal pertains to the complex process of successfully implementing health policies that are based on public health research. A systematic review was conducted by myself and faculty at the Cluj School of Public Health in Romania. The reviewed articles covered a wide range of topics, such as barriers and facilitators to multi-sector collaboration, differences in professional cultures, and systemic obstacles. The reviewed literature identified communication, collaboration, user-friendly dissemination, and documentation of processes in the execution of applied research as important themes for the promotion of evidence in the public health decision-making process. This proposal fits into the Academy Health National Health Policy conference because it identifies and examines differences between the worlds of research and politics. Implications and new insights for federal and/or state health policy: Recommendations made based on the findings of this research include using politically relevant levers to promote research (e.g. campaign donors, lobbies, established parties, etc.), modernizing dissemination practices, and reforms in which the involvement of external stakeholders is facilitated without relying on invitations from individual policy makers. Description of how evidence and/or data was or could be used: The reviewed articles illustrated shortcomings and areas for improvement in policy research processes and collaborative development. In general, the evidence base in the field of integrating research into policy lacks critical details of the actual process of developing evidence based policy. This shortcoming in logistical details creates a barrier for potential replication of collaborative efforts described in studies. Potential impact of the presentation for health policy: The reviewed articles focused on identifying barriers and facilitators that arise in cross sector collaboration, rather than the process and impact of integrating evidence into policy. In addition, the type of evidence used in policy was rarely specified, and widely varying interpretations of the definition of evidence complicated overall conclusions. Background: Using evidence to inform public health decision making processes has been proven effective; however, it is not clear how research is applied in practice. Aims: The objectives of the current study were to assess the extent to which evidence is used in public health decision-making process. Methods: To identify eligible studies, seven bibliographic databases, specifically, PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, Science Direct, Web of Science, ClinicalKey, Health and Safety Science Abstract were screened (search dates: 1990 – September 2015); a general internet search was also conducted. Primary research and systematic reviews about the use of evidence in public health policy in Europe were included. The studies considered for inclusion were assessed by two reviewers, along with extracted data on objective, methods, population, and results. Data were synthetized as a narrative review. Results: Of 2564 articles initially identified, 2525 titles and abstracts were screened. Ultimately, 30 articles fit the research criteria by describing how or why evidence is used/not used in public health policy. The majority of included studies involved interviews and surveys (N=17). Study participants were policy makers, health care professionals, researchers, community members, service users, experts in public health.

Keywords: cross-sector, dissemination, health policy, policy implementation

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Authors: Afif J. Arabi

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On April 15, 2024, Iran announced its unprecedented military attack by sending waves of more than 300 drones and ballistic missiles toward Israel. The Attack lasted approximately five hours and was a widely covered, distributed, and followed media event. Iran’s military action against Israel was a long-awaited action across the Middle East since the early days of the October 7th war on Gaza and after a long history of verbal threats. While people in many Arab countries stayed up past midnight in anticipation of watching the disastrous results of this unprecedented attack, voices on traditional and social media alike started to question the timed public announcement of the attack, which gave Israel at least a two-hour notice to prepare its defenses. When live news coverage started showing that nearly all the drones and missiles were intercepted by Israel – with help from the U.S. and other countries – and no deaths were reported, the social media response to this media event turned toward sarcasm, mockery, irony, and humor. Social media users posted sarcastic pictures, jokes, and comments mocking the Iranian offensive. This research examines this unique media event and the sarcastic response it generated on social media. The study aims to investigate the causes leading to media sarcasm in militarized political conflict, the social function of such generated sarcasm, and the role of social media as a platform for consuming frustration, dissatisfaction, and outrage passively through various media products. The study compares the serious traditional media coverage of the event with the humorous social media response among Arab countries. The research uses an eclectic theoretical approach using framing theory as a paradigm for understanding and investigating communication social functionalism theory in media studies to examine sarcasm. Social functionalism theory is a sociological perspective that views society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. In the context of media and sarcasm, this theory would suggest that sarcasm serves specific functions within society, such as reinforcing social norms, providing a means for social critique, or functioning as a safety valve for expressing social tension.; and a qualitative analysis of specific examples including responses of SM commentators to such manifestations of political criticism. The preliminary findings of this study point to a heightened dramatization of the televised event and a widespread belief that this attack was a staged show incongruent with Iran’s official enmity and death threats toward Israel. The social media sarcasm reinforces Arab’s view of Iran and Israel as mutual threats. This belief stems from the complex dynamics, historical context, and regional conflict surrounding these three nations: Iran, Israel, and Arabs.

Keywords: social functionalism, social media sarcasm, Television news framing, live militarized conflict coverage, iran, israel, communication theory

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Authors: Kaaryn M. Cater

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Students with sensory processing sensitivity (SPS), Meares-Irlen Syndrome (MIS) and dyslexia can become overwhelmed and struggle to thrive in traditional tertiary learning environments. An estimated 50% of tertiary students who disclose learning related issues are dyslexic. This study explores the relationship between SPS, MIS and dyslexia. Baseline measures will be analysed to establish any correlation between these three minority methods of information processing. SPS is an innate sensitivity trait found in 15-20% of the population and has been identified in over 100 species of animals. Humans with SPS are referred to as Highly Sensitive People (HSP) and the measure of HSP is a 27 point self-test known as the Highly Sensitive Person Scale (HSPS). A 2016 study conducted by the author established base-line data for HSP students in a tertiary institution in New Zealand. The results of the study showed that all participating HSP students believed the knowledge of SPS to be life-changing and useful in managing life and study, in addition, they believed that all tutors and in-coming students should be given information on SPS. MIS is a visual processing and perception disorder that is found in approximately 10% of the population and has a variety of symptoms including visual fatigue, headaches and nausea. One way to ease some of these symptoms is through the use of colored lenses or overlays. Dyslexia is a complex phonological based information processing variation present in approximately 10% of the population. An estimated 50% of dyslexics are thought to have MIS. The study exploring possible correlations between these minority forms of information processing is due to begin in February 2017. An invitation will be extended to all first year students enrolled in degree programmes across all faculties and schools within the institution. An estimated 900 students will be eligible to participate in the study. Participants will be asked to complete a battery of on-line questionnaires including the Highly Sensitive Person Scale, the International Dyslexia Association adult self-assessment and the adapted Irlen indicator. All three scales have been used extensively in literature and have been validated among many populations. All participants whose score on any (or some) of the three questionnaires suggest a minority method of information processing will receive an invitation to meet with a learning advisor, and given access to counselling services if they choose. Meeting with a learning advisor is not mandatory, and some participants may choose not to receive help. Data will be collected using the Question Pro platform and base-line data will be analysed using correlation and regression analysis to identify relationships and predictors between SPS, MIS and dyslexia. This study forms part of a larger three year longitudinal study and participants will be required to complete questionnaires at annual intervals in subsequent years of the study until completion of (or withdrawal from) their degree. At these data collection points, participants will be questioned on any additional support received relating to their minority method(s) of information processing. Data from this study will be available by April 2017.

Keywords: dyslexia, highly sensitive person (HSP), Meares-Irlen Syndrome (MIS), minority forms of information processing, sensory processing sensitivity (SPS)

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Authors: Pawel Kiper, Alfonc Baba, Mahmoud Alhelou, Giorgia Pregnolato, Michela Agostini, Andrea Turolla

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Impairment of cervical spine mobility is often related to pain triggered by musculoskeletal disorders or direct traumatic injuries of the spine. To date, these disorders are assessed with goniometers and inclinometers, which are the most popular devices used in clinical settings. Nevertheless, these technologies usually allow measurement of no more than two-dimensional range of motion (ROM) quotes in static conditions. Conversely, the wide use of motion tracking systems able to measure 3 to 6 degrees of freedom dynamically, while performing standard ROM assessment, are limited due to technical complexities in preparing the setup and high costs. Thus, motion tracking systems are primarily used in research. These systems are an integral part of virtual reality (VR) technologies, which can be used for measuring spine mobility. To our knowledge, the accuracy of VR measure has not yet been studied within virtual environments. Thus, the aim of this study was to test the reliability of a protocol for the assessment of sensorimotor function of the cervical spine in a population of healthy subjects and to compare whether using immersive or non-immersive VR for visualization affects the performance. Both VR assessments consisted of the same five exercises and random sequence determined which of the environments (i.e. immersive or non-immersive) was used as first assessment. Subjects were asked to perform head rotation (right and left), flexion, extension and lateral flexion (right and left side bending). Each movement was executed five times. Moreover, the participants were invited to perform head reaching movements i.e. head movements toward 8 targets placed along a circular perimeter each 45°, visualized one-by-one in random order. Finally, head repositioning movement was obtained by head movement toward the same 8 targets as for reaching and following reposition to the start point. Thus, each participant performed 46 tasks during assessment. Main measures were: ROM of rotation, flexion, extension, lateral flexion and complete kinematics of the cervical spine (i.e. number of completed targets, time of execution (seconds), spatial length (cm), angle distance (°), jerk). Thirty-five healthy participants (i.e. 14 males and 21 females, mean age 28.4±6.47) were recruited for the cervical spine assessment with immersive and non-immersive VR environments. Comparison analysis demonstrated that: head right rotation (p=0.027), extension (p=0.047), flexion (p=0.000), time (p=0.001), spatial length (p=0.004), jerk target (p=0.032), trajectory repositioning (p=0.003), and jerk target repositioning (p=0.007) were significantly better in immersive than non-immersive VR. A regression model showed that assessment in immersive VR was influenced by height, trajectory repositioning (p<0.05), and handedness (p<0.05), whereas in non-immersive VR performance was influenced by height, jerk target (p=0.002), head extension, jerk target repositioning (p=0.002), and by age, head flex/ext, trajectory repositioning, and weight (p=0.040). The results of this study showed higher accuracy of cervical spine assessment when executed in immersive VR. The assessment of ROM and kinematics of the cervical spine can be affected by independent and dependent variables in both immersive and non-immersive VR settings.

Keywords: virtual reality, cervical spine, motion analysis, range of motion, measurement validity

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Authors: Madison Hall

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The Assisted Colonization of Polar Bears to Antarctica requires a careful analysis of treaties to understand existing legal barriers to Ursus maritimus transport and movement. An absence of land-based migration routes prevent polar bears from accessing southern polar regions on their own. This lack of access is compounded by current treaties which limit human intervention and assistance to ford these physical and legal barriers. In a time of massive planetary extinctions, Assisted Colonization posits that certain endangered species may be prime candidates for relocation to hospitable environments to which they have never previously had access. By analyzing existing treaties, this paper will examine how polar bears are limited in movement by humankind’s legal barriers. International treaties may be considered codified reflections of anthropocentric values of the best knowledge and understanding of an identified problem at a set point in time, as understood through the human lens. Even as human social values and scientific insights evolve, so too must treaties evolve which specify legal frameworks and structures impacting keystone species and related biomes. Due to costs and other myriad difficulties, only a very select number of species will be given this opportunity. While some species move into new regions and are then deemed invasive, Assisted Colonization considers that some assistance may be mandated due to the nature of humankind’s role in climate change. This moral question and ethical imperative against the backdrop of escalating climate impacts, drives the question forward; what is the potential for successfully relocating a select handful of charismatic and ecologically important life forms? Is it possible to reimagine a different, but balanced Antarctic ecosystem? Listed as a threatened species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, a result of the ongoing loss of critical habitat by melting sea ice, polar bears have limited options for long term survival in the wild. Our current regime for safeguarding animals facing extinction frequently utilizes zoos and their breeding programs, to keep alive the genetic diversity of the species until some future time when reintroduction, somewhere, may be attempted. By exploring the potential for polar bears to be relocated to Antarctica, we must analyze the complex ethical, legal, political, financial, and biological realms, which are the backdrop to framing all questions in this arena. Can we do it? Should we do it? By utilizing an environmental ethics perspective, we propose that the Ecological Commons of the Arctic and Antarctic should not be viewed solely through the lens of human resource management needs. From this perspective, polar bears do not need our permission, they need our assistance. Antarctica therefore represents a second, if imperfect chance, to buy time for polar bears, in a world where polar regimes, not yet fully understood, are themselves quickly changing as a result of climate change.

Keywords: polar bear, climate change, environmental ethics, Arctic, Antarctica, assisted colonization, treaty

Procedia PDF Downloads 421

Authors: Eric Spruth, Lindsey Herbert, Danielle DiCristofano, Isis Violet Spruth, Drake Von Spruth

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Turning dreams into reality, the lifelong passion of Mr. Spruth and the company is to transform garbage-filled courtyards into flourishing flower and vegetable gardens, bringing light, hope, and wellness to not just the space but to the populations served within these public and private spaces. As an Expressive Art Therapist at Cook County Jail, Eric Spruth has implemented gardening projects, mobile radish carts, plant fostering systems, and large-scale murals. Lindsey Herbert, the Manager of Operations and Events at the International Museum of Surgical Science, supports gardening projects with Mr. Spruth along the front lawn of the museum, which will eventually accumulate into a community wellness garden. Mr. Spruth and Ms. Herbert both have dedicated efforts towards fostering awareness of hope and help and accountability for physical and mental wellbeing. Medicinal plants can rightfully be called one of nature’s wonderful healing tools with therapeutic powers. They can inhibit and kill bacteria, lower blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and blood sugar, prevent blood clotting, boost the immune system, and serve as a digestive aid. Some plants have the ability to stimulate the lymphatic system, which expedites the removal of waste products from the body to fight off evil toxins. Many plants are considered effective antioxidants to protect cells against free radical damage, serving to prevent some forms of cancer, heart disease, strokes, and viral infections. Garlic alone can provide us with over two hundred unusual chemicals that have the capability of protecting the human body from a wide variety of diseases. Besides the medicinal qualities of plants, plant and vegetable gardens also have an echoing effect on non-participants to look at something beautiful rather than a concrete courtyard or an unkempt lawn in front of a beautiful building. Plants also purify spaces and affect mood with color therapy. Collective gardening can foster a sense of community and purpose. Additionally, by recognizing the ever-evolving planet with global warming, horticulture therapy teaches important lessons in responsibility, accountability, and sustainability. Growing local food provides an opportunity to be involved in your own mental and physical health and gives you a chance for your own self-resilience, combating depression and a lack of nutrition. In adolescents, the process of watering and caring for plants can teach important life lessons that transcend beyond the garden by providing knowledge on how to care for yourself and how to be an active member of society. It also gives a sense of purpose and pride in transforming a small seed into a plant that can be consumed or enjoyed by others. Mr. Spruth and Ms. Herbert recognize the importance of bringing more green spaces to urban areas, both to serve a nutritional benefit and provide a beautiful transformation to underutilized areas. Gardens can bring beauty, wellness, and hope to dark spaces and provide immeasurable benefits for all.

Keywords: growth, hope, mental health, sustainability, transformation, wellness

Procedia PDF Downloads 92

Authors: Ali Baker, Russel Krawitz

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This paper describes a rare occurrence where a potentially fatal complication of COVID-19 infection (MIS-A) was misdiagnosed as an acute abdomen. As most patients with this syndrome present with fever and gastrointestinal symptoms, they may inadvertently fall under the care of the surgical unit. However, unusual imaging findings and a poor response to anti-microbial therapy should prompt clinicians to suspect a non-surgical etiology. More than half of MIS-A patients require ICU admission and vasopressor support. Prompt referral to a physician is key, as the cornerstone of treatment is IVIG and corticosteroid therapy. A 32 year old woman presented with right sided abdominal pain and fevers. She had also contracted COVID-19 two months earlier. Abdominal examination revealed generalised right sided tenderness. The patient had raised inflammatory markers, but other blood tests were unremarkable. CT scan revealed extensive lymphadenopathy along the ileocolic chain. The patient proved to be a diagnostic dilemma. She was reviewed by several surgical consultants and discussed with several inpatient teams. Although IV antibiotics were commenced, the right sided abdominal pain, and fevers persisted. Pan-culture returned negative. A mild cholestatic derangement developed. On day 5, the patient underwent preparation for colonoscopy to assess for a potential intraluminal etiology. The following day, the patient developed sinus tachycardia and hypotension that was refractory to fluid resuscitation. That patient was transferred to ICU and required vasopressor support. Repeat CT showed peri-portal edema and a thickened gallbladder wall. On re-examination, the patient was Murphy’s sign positive. Biliary ultrasound was equivocal for cholecystitis. The patient was planned for diagnostic laparoscopy. The following morning, a marked rise in cardiac troponin was discovered, and a follow-up echocardiogram revealed moderate to severe global systolic dysfunction. The impression was post-COVID MIS with myocardial involvement. IVIG and Methylprednisolone infusions were commenced. The patient had a great response. Vasopressor support was weaned, and the patient was discharged from ICU. The patient continued to improve clinically with oral prednisolone, and was discharged on day 17. Although MIS following COVID-19 infection is well-described syndrome in children, only recently has it come to light that it can occur in adults. The exact incidence is unknown, but it is thought to be rare. A recent systematic review found only 221 cases of MIS-A, which could be included for analysis. Symptoms vary, but the most frequent include fever, gastrointestinal, and mucocutaneous. Many patients progress to multi-organ failure and require vasopressor support. 7% succumb to the illness. The pathophysiology of MIS is only partly understood. It shares similarities with Kawasaki disease, macrophage activation syndrome, and cytokine release syndrome. Importantly, by definition, the patient must have an absence of severe respiratory symptoms. It is thought to be due to a dysregulated immune response to the virus. Potential mechanisms include reduced levels of neutralising antibodies and autoreactive antibodies that promote inflammation. Further research into MIS-A is needed. Although rare, this potentially fatal syndrome should be considered in the unwell surgical patient who has recently contracted COVID-19 and poses a diagnostic dilemma.

Keywords: acute-abdomen, MIS, COVID-19, ICU

Procedia PDF Downloads 123

Authors: Yiorgos Hadjichristou

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The paper will focus on the strategic development deriving from the evolution of the traditional courtyard spatial organization towards a new, contemporary sustainable way of living. New sustainable approaches that engulf the social issues, the notion of place, the understanding of weather architecture blended together with the bioclimatic behaviour will be seen through a series of experimental case studies in the island of Cyprus, inspired and originated from its traditional wisdom, ranging from small scale of living to urban interventions. Weather and nature will be seen as co-architectural authors with architects as intelligently claimed by Jonathan Hill in his Weather Architecture discourse. Furthermore, following Pallasmaa’s understanding, the building will be seen not as an end itself and the elements of an architectural experience as having a verb form rather than being nouns. This will further enhance the notion of merging the subject-human and the object-building as discussed by Julio Bermudez. This eventually will enable to generate the discussion of the understanding of the building constructed according to the specifics of place and inhabitants, shaped by its physical and human topography as referred by Adam Sharr in relation to Heidegger’s thinking. The specificities of the divided island and the dealing with sites that are in vicinity with the diving Green Line will further trigger explorations dealing with the regeneration issues and the social sustainability offering unprecedented opportunities for innovative sustainable ways of living. The above premises will lead us to develop innovative strategies for a profound, both technical and social sustainability, which fruitfully yields to innovative living built environments, responding to the ever changing environmental and social needs. As a starting point, a case study in Kaimakli in Nicosia a refurbishment with an extension of a traditional house, already engulfs all the traditional/ vernacular wisdom of the bioclimatic architecture. It aims at capturing not only its direct and quite obvious bioclimatic features, but rather to evolve them by adjusting the whole house in a contemporary living environment. In order to succeed this, evolutions of traditional architectural elements and spatial conditions are integrated in a way that does not only respond to some certain weather conditions, but they integrate and blend the weather within the built environment. A series of innovations aiming at maximum flexibility is proposed. The house can finally be transformed into a winter enclosure, while for the most part of the year it turns into a ‘camping’ living environment. Parallel to experimental interventions in existing traditional units, we will proceed examining the implementation of the same developed methodology in designing living units and complexes. Malleable courtyard organizations that attempt to blend the traditional wisdom with the contemporary needs for living, the weather and nature with the built environment will be seen tested in both horizontal and vertical developments. A new social identity of people, directly involved and interacting with the weather and climatic conditions will be seen as the result of balancing the social with the technological sustainability, the immaterial and the material aspects of the built environment.

Keywords: building as a verb, contemporary living, traditional bioclimatic wisdom, weather architecture

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Authors: Serdar Delice, Mehmet Isik, Nizami Hasanli, Kadir Goksen

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Researchers have donated great interest to ternary and quaternary semiconductor compounds especially with the improvement of the optoelectronic technology. The quaternary compound Tl2Ga2Se3S which was grown by Bridgman method carries the properties of ternary thallium chalcogenides group of semiconductors with layered structure. This compound can be formed from TlGaSe2 crystals replacing the one quarter of selenium atom by sulfur atom. Although Tl2Ga2Se3S crystals are not intentionally doped, some unintended defect types such as point defects, dislocations and stacking faults can occur during growth processes of crystals. These defects can cause undesirable problems in semiconductor materials especially produced for optoelectronic technology. Defects of various types in the semiconductor devices like LEDs and field effect transistor may act as a non-radiative or scattering center in electron transport. Also, quick recombination of holes with electrons without any energy transfer between charge carriers can occur due to the existence of defects. Therefore, the characterization of defects may help the researchers working in this field to produce high quality devices. Thermoluminescence (TL) is an effective experimental method to determine the kinetic parameters of trap centers due to defects in crystals. In this method, the sample is illuminated at low temperature by a light whose energy is bigger than the band gap of studied sample. Thus, charge carriers in the valence band are excited to delocalized band. Then, the charge carriers excited into conduction band are trapped. The trapped charge carriers are released by heating the sample gradually and these carriers then recombine with the opposite carriers at the recombination center. By this way, some luminescence is emitted from the samples. The emitted luminescence is converted to pulses by using an experimental setup controlled by computer program and TL spectrum is obtained. Defect characterization of Tl2Ga2Se3S single crystals has been performed by TL measurements at low temperatures between 10 and 300 K with various heating rate ranging from 0.6 to 1.0 K/s. The TL signal due to the luminescence from trap centers revealed one glow peak having maximum temperature of 36 K. Curve fitting and various heating rate methods were used for the analysis of the glow curve. The activation energy of 13 meV was found by the application of curve fitting method. This practical method established also that the trap center exhibits the characteristics of mixed (general) kinetic order. In addition, various heating rate analysis gave a compatible result (13 meV) with curve fitting as the temperature lag effect was taken into consideration. Since the studied crystals were not intentionally doped, these centers are thought to originate from stacking faults, which are quite possible in Tl2Ga2Se3S due to the weakness of the van der Waals forces between the layers. Distribution of traps was also investigated using an experimental method. A quasi-continuous distribution was attributed to the determined trap centers.

Keywords: chalcogenides, defects, thermoluminescence, trap centers

Procedia PDF Downloads 282

Authors: Chung-Ming Lo, Chung-Chien Lee

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In many countries, the lifetime prevalence of shoulder pain is up to 70%. In America, the health care system spends 7 billion per year about the healthy issues of shoulder pain. With respect to the origin, up to 70% of shoulder pain is attributed to rotator cuff lesions This study proposed a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system to assist radiologists classifying rotator cuff lesions with less operator dependence. Quantitative features were extracted from the shoulder ultrasound images acquired using an ALOKA alpha-6 US scanner (Hitachi-Aloka Medical, Tokyo, Japan) with linear array probe (scan width: 36mm) ranging from 5 to 13 MHz. During examination, the postures of the examined patients are standard sitting position and are followed by the regular routine. After acquisition, the shoulder US images were drawn out from the scanner and stored as 8-bit images with pixel value ranging from 0 to 255. Upon the sonographic appearance, the boundary of each lesion was delineated by a physician to indicate the specific pattern for analysis. The three lesion categories for classification were composed of 20 cases of tendon inflammation, 18 cases of calcific tendonitis, and 18 cases of supraspinatus tear. For each lesion, second-order statistics were quantified in the feature extraction. The second-order statistics were the texture features describing the correlations between adjacent pixels in a lesion. Because echogenicity patterns were expressed via grey-scale. The grey-scale co-occurrence matrixes with four angles of adjacent pixels were used. The texture metrics included the mean and standard deviation of energy, entropy, correlation, inverse different moment, inertia, cluster shade, cluster prominence, and Haralick correlation. Then, the quantitative features were combined in a multinomial logistic regression classifier to generate a prediction model of rotator cuff lesions. Multinomial logistic regression classifier is widely used in the classification of more than two categories such as the three lesion types used in this study. In the classifier, backward elimination was used to select a feature subset which is the most relevant. They were selected from the trained classifier with the lowest error rate. Leave-one-out cross-validation was used to evaluate the performance of the classifier. Each case was left out of the total cases and used to test the trained result by the remaining cases. According to the physician’s assessment, the performance of the proposed CAD system was shown by the accuracy. As a result, the proposed system achieved an accuracy of 86%. A CAD system based on the statistical texture features to interpret echogenicity values in shoulder musculoskeletal ultrasound was established to generate a prediction model for rotator cuff lesions. Clinically, it is difficult to distinguish some kinds of rotator cuff lesions, especially partial-thickness tear of rotator cuff. The shoulder orthopaedic surgeon and musculoskeletal radiologist reported greater diagnostic test accuracy than general radiologist or ultrasonographers based on the available literature. Consequently, the proposed CAD system which was developed according to the experiment of the shoulder orthopaedic surgeon can provide reliable suggestions to general radiologists or ultrasonographers. More quantitative features related to the specific patterns of different lesion types would be investigated in the further study to improve the prediction.

Keywords: shoulder ultrasound, rotator cuff lesions, texture, computer-aided diagnosis

Procedia PDF Downloads 284

Authors: Jone Ibarruri, Mikel Manso, Marta Cebrián

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A high amount of food is lost or discarded in the World every year. In addition, in the last decades, an increasing demand of new alternative and sustainable sources of proteins and other valuable compounds is being observed in the food and feeding sectors and, therefore, the use of food by-products as nutrients for these purposes sounds very interesting from the environmental and economical point of view. However, the direct use of discarded fruit and vegetables that present, in general, a low protein content is not interesting as feeding ingredient except if they are used as a source of fiber for ruminants. Especially in the case of aquaculture, several alternatives to the use of fish meal and other vegetable protein sources have been extensively explored due to the scarcity of fish stocks and the unsustainability of fishing for these purposes. Fish mortality is also of great concern in this sector as this problem highly reduces their economic feasibility. So, the development of new functional and natural ingredients that could reduce the need for vaccination is also of great interest. In this work, several fermentation tests were developed at lab scale using a selected mixture of fruit and vegetable discards from a wholesale market located in the Basque Country to increase their protein content and also to produce some bioactive extracts that could be used as additives in aquaculture. Fruit and vegetable mixtures (60/40 ww) were centrifugated for humidity reduction and crushed to 2-5 mm particle size. Samples were inoculated with a selected Rhizopus oryzae strain and fermented for 7 days in controlled conditions (humidity between 65 and 75% and 28ºC) in Petri plates (120 mm) by triplicate. Obtained results indicated that the final fermented product presented a twofold protein content (from 13 to 28% d.w). Fermented product was further processed to determine their possible functionality as a feed additive. Extraction tests were carried out to obtain an ethanolic extract (60:40 ethanol: water, v.v) and remaining biomass that also could present applications in food or feed sectors. The extract presented a polyphenol content of about 27 mg GAE/gr d.w with antioxidant activity of 8.4 mg TEAC/g d.w. Remining biomass is mainly composed of fiber (51%), protein (24%) and fat (10%). Extracts also presented antibacterial activity according to the results obtained in Agar Diffusion and to the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) tests determined against several food and fish pathogen strains. In vitro, digestibility was also assessed to obtain preliminary information about the expected effect of extraction procedure on fermented product digestibility. First results indicated that remaining biomass after extraction doesn´t seem to improve digestibility in comparison to the initial fermented product. These preliminary results show that fermented fruit and vegetables can be a useful source of functional ingredients for aquaculture applications and a substitute of other protein sources in the feeding sector. Further validation will be also carried out through “in vivo” tests with trout and bass.

Keywords: fungal solid state fermentation, protein increase, functional extracts, feed ingredients

Procedia PDF Downloads 64

Authors: Kakali Roy, Sahana P. Raju, Subhra Dhar, Sandipan Dhar

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Introduction: Xeroderma pigmentosa (XP) is a rare inherited (autosomal recessive) disease resulting from impairment in DNA repair that involves recognition and repair of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) induced DNA damage in the nucleotide excision repair pathway. Which results in increased photosensitivity, UVR induced damage to skin and eye, increased susceptibility of skin and ocular cancer, and progressive neurodegeneration in some patients. XP is present worldwide, with higher incidence in areas having frequent consanguinity. Being extremely rare, there is limited literature on XP and associated complications. Here, the clinico-pathological experience (spectrum of clinical presentation, histopathological findings of malignant skin lesions, and progression) of managing 8 cases of XP is presented. Methodology: A retrospective study was conducted in a pediatric tertiary care hospital in eastern India during a ten-year period from 2013 to 2022. A clinical diagnosis was made based on severe sun burn or premature photo-aging and/or onset of cutaneous malignancies at early age (1st decade) in background of consanguinity and autosomal recessive inheritance pattern in family. Results: The mean age of presentation was 1.2 years (range of 7month-3years), while three children presented during their infancy. Male to female ratio was 5:3, and all were born of consanguineous marriage. They presented with dermatological manifestations (100%) followed by ophthalmic (75%) and/or neurological symptoms (25%). Patients had normal skin at birth but soon developed extreme sensitivity to UVR in the form of exaggerated sun tanning, burning, and blistering on minimal sun exposure, followed by abnormal skin pigmentation like freckles and lentiginosis. Subsequently, over time there was progressive xerosis, atrophy, wrinkling, and poikiloderma. Six patients had varied degree of ocular involvement, while three of them had severe manifestation, including madarosis, tylosis, ectropion, Lagopthalmos, Pthysis bulbi, clouding and scarring of the cornea with complete or partial loss of vision, and ophthalmic malignancies. 50% (n=4) cases had skin and ocular pre-malignant (actinic keratosis) and malignant lesions, including melanoma and non melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) like squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC) in their early childhood. One patient had simultaneous occurrence of multiple malignancies together (SCC, BCC, and melanoma). Subnormal intelligence was noticed as neurological feature, and none had sensory neural hearing loss, microcephaly, neuroregression, or neurdeficit. All the patients had been being managed by a multidisciplinary team of pediatricians, dermatologists, ophthalmologists, neurologists and psychiatrists. Conclusion: Although till date there is no complete cure for XP and the disease is ultimately fatal. But increased awareness, early diagnosis followed by persistent vigorous protection from UVR, and regular screening for early detection of malignancies along with psychological support can drastically improve patients’ quality of life and life expectancy. Further research is required on formulating optimal management of XP, specifically the role and possibilities of gene therapy in XP.

Keywords: childhood malignancies, dermato-pathological findings, eastern India, Xeroderma pigmentosa

Procedia PDF Downloads 76

Authors: Mehari Teshome, Lara Agostini, Anna Nosella

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The current knowledge-based economy extends intellectual property rights (IPRs) legal research themes into a more strategic and organizational perspectives. From the diverse types of IPRs, patents are the strongest and well-known form of legal protection that influences commercial success and market value. Indeed, from our pilot survey, we understood that firms are less likely to manage their patents and actively used it as a tool for achieving competitive advantage rather they invest resource and efforts for patent application. To this regard, the literature also confirms that insights into how firms manage their patents from a holistic, strategic perspective, and how the portfolio value of patents can be optimized are scarce. Though patent management is an important business tool and there exist few scales to measure some dimensions of patent management, at the best of our knowledge, no systematic attempt has been made to develop a valid and comprehensive measure of it. Considering this theoretical and practical point of view, the aim of this article is twofold: to develop a framework for patent management encompassing all relevant dimensions with their respective constructs and measurement items, and to validate the measurement using survey data from practitioners. Methodology: We used six-step methodological approach (i.e., specify the domain of construct, item generation, scale purification, internal consistency assessment, scale validation, and replication). Accordingly, we carried out a systematic review of 182 articles on patent management, from ISI Web of Science. For each article, we mapped relevant constructs, their definition, and associated features, as well as items used to measure these constructs, when provided. This theoretical analysis was complemented by interviews with experts in patent management to get feedbacks that are more practical on how patent management is carried out in firms. Afterwards, we carried out a questionnaire survey to purify our scales and statistical validation. Findings: The analysis allowed us to design a framework for patent management, identifying its core dimensions (i.e., generation, portfolio-management, exploitation and enforcement, intelligence) and support dimensions (i.e., strategy and organization). Moreover, we identified the relevant activities for each dimension, as well as the most suitable items to measure them. For example, the core dimension generation includes constructs as: state-of-the-art analysis, freedom-to-operate analysis, patent watching, securing freedom-to-operate, patent potential and patent-geographical-scope. Originality and the Study Contribution: This study represents a first step towards the development of sound scales to measure patent management with an overarching approach, thus laying the basis for developing a recognized landmark within the research area of patent management. Practical Implications: The new scale can be used to assess the level of sophistication of the patent management of a company and compare it with other firms in the industry to evaluate their ability to manage the different activities involved in patent management. In addition, the framework resulting from this analysis can be used as a guide that supports managers to improve patent management in firms.

Keywords: patent, management, scale, development, intellectual property rights (IPRs)

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: Abdelkhalek Bouchikhi, Elyes Benmokhtar, Sebastien Saletzki

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The aeronautical field is experiencing issues with RF spectrum congestion due to the constant increase in the number of flights, aircrafts and telecom systems on board. In addition, these systems are bulky in size, weight and energy consumption. The cognitive radio helps particularly solving the spectrum congestion issue by its capacity to detect idle frequency channels then, allowing an opportunistic exploitation of the RF spectrum. The present work aims to propose a new use case for aeronautical spectrum sharing and to study the performances of three different detection techniques: energy detector, matched filter and cyclostationary detector within the aeronautical use case. The spectrum in the proposed cognitive radio is allocated dynamically where each cognitive radio follows a cognitive cycle. The spectrum sensing is a crucial step. The goal of the sensing is gathering data about the surrounding environment. Cognitive radio can use different sensors: antennas, cameras, accelerometer, thermometer, etc. In IEEE 802.22 standard, for example, a primary user (PU) has always the priority to communicate. When a frequency channel witch used by the primary user is idle, the secondary user (SU) is allowed to transmit in this channel. The Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) is composed of a UHF transmitter/receiver (interrogator) in the aircraft and a UHF receiver/transmitter on the ground. While the future cognitive radio will be used jointly to alleviate the spectrum congestion issue in the aeronautical field. LDACS, for example, is a good candidate; it provides two isolated data-links: ground-to-air and air-to-ground data-links. The first contribution of the present work is a strategy allowing sharing the L-band. The adopted spectrum sharing strategy is as follow: the DME will play the role of PU which is the licensed user and the LDACS1 systems will be the SUs. The SUs could use the L-band channels opportunely as long as they do not causing harmful interference signals which affect the QoS of the DME system. Although the spectrum sensing is a key step, it helps detecting holes by determining whether the primary signal is present or not in a given frequency channel. A missing detection on primary user presence creates interference between PU and SU and will affect seriously the QoS of the legacy radio. In this study, first brief definitions, concepts and the state of the art of cognitive radio will be presented. Then, a study of three communication channel detection algorithms in a cognitive radio context is carried out. The study is made from the point of view of functions, material requirements and signal detection capability in the aeronautical field. Then, we presented a modeling of the detection problem by three different methods (energy, adapted filter, and cyclostationary) as well as an algorithmic description of these detectors is done. Then, we study and compare the performance of the algorithms. Simulations were carried out using MATLAB software. We analyzed the results based on ROCs curves for SNR between -10dB and 20dB. The three detectors have been tested with a synthetics and real world signals.

Keywords: aeronautic, communication, navigation, surveillance systems, cognitive radio, spectrum sensing, software defined radio

Procedia PDF Downloads 175

Authors: Francisco Luis Reyes

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The multiple-case study explores the intricacies of three Puerto Rican Community Music (CM) initiatives. This research concentrates on the teaching and learning dynamics of three of the nation’s traditional musical genres, Plena, Bomba, and Música Jíbara, which have survived for centuries through oral transmission and enculturation in community settings. Accordingly, this research focuses on how music education is carried out in Puerto Rican CM initiatives that foster and preserve the country’s traditional music. This study examines the CM initiatives of La Junta, in Santurce (Plena), Taller Tambuyé in Rio Piedras (Bomba), and Decimanía (Música Jíbara), an initiative that stems from the municipality of Hatillo. In terms of procedure, 45–60-minute semi-structured interviews were conducted with organizers and administrators of the CM initiatives to gain insight into the educational philosophy of each project. Following this, a second series of 45–60-minute semi-structured interviews were undertaken with CM educators to collect data on their musical development, teaching practices, and relationship with learners. Subsequently, four weeks were spent observing/participating in each of the three CM initiatives. In addition to participant observations in these projects, five CM learners from each locale were recruited for two one-on-one semi-structured interviews at the beginning and end of the data collection period. The initial interview centered on the participants’ rationale for joining the CM initiative whereas the exit interview focused on participants’ experience within it. Alumni from each of the CM initiatives partook in 45–60-minute semi-structured interviews to investigate their understanding of what it means to be a member of each musical community. Finally, observations and documentation of additional activities hosted/promoted by each initiative, such as festivals, concerts, social gatherings, and workshops, were undertaken. These three initiatives were chosen because of their robust and dynamic practices in fostering the musical expressions of Puerto Rico. Data collection consisted of participant observation, narrative inquiry, historical research, philosophical inquiry, and semi-structured interviews. Data analysis for this research involved relying on theoretical propositions, which entails comparing the results—from each case and as a collective— to the arguments that led to the basis of the research (e.g., literature review, research questions, hypothesis). Comparisons to the theoretical propositions were made through pattern matching, which requires comparing predicted patterns from the literature review to findings from each case. Said process led to the development of an analytic outlook of each CM case and a cross-case synthesis. The purpose of employing said data analysis methodology is to present robust findings about CM practices in Puerto Rico and elucidate similarities and differences between the cases that comprise this research and the relevant literature. Furthermore, through the use of Sound Links’ Nine Domains of Community Music, comparisons to other community projects are made in order to point out parallels and highlight particularities in Puerto Rico.

Keywords: community music, Puerto Rico, music learning, traditional music

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Authors: E. Poupelloz, S. Gauffinet

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Ettringite Ca₆Al₂(SO₄)₃(OH)₁₂26H₂O is one of the major hydrates formed during cement hydration. Ettringite forms in Portland cement from the reaction between tricalcium aluminate Ca₃Al₂O₆ and calcium sulfate. Ettringite is also present in calcium sulfoaluminate cement in which it is the major hydrate, formed by the reaction between yeelimite Ca₄(AlO₂)₆SO₄ and calcium sulfate. About the formation of ettringite, numerous results are available in the literature even if some issues are still under discussion. However, almost all published work about ettringite was done on cementitious systems. Yet in cement, hydration reactions are very complex, the result of dissolution-precipitation processes and are submitted to various interactions. Understanding the formation process of a phase alone, here ettringite, is the first step to later understand the much more complex reactions happening in cement. This study is crucial for the comprehension of early cement hydration and physical behavior. Indeed formation of hydrates, in particular, ettringite, will have an influence on the rheological properties of the cement paste and on the need for admixtures. To make progress toward the understanding of existing phenomena, a specific study of nucleation and growth processes of ettringite was conducted. First ettringite nucleation was studied in ionic aqueous solutions, with controlled but different experimental conditions, as different supersaturation degrees (β), different pH or presence of exogenous ions. Through induction time measurements, interfacial ettringite crystals solution energies (γ) were determined. Growth of ettringite in supersaturated solutions was also studied through chain crystallization reactions. Specific BET surface area measurements and Scanning Electron Microscopy observations seemed to prove that growth process is favored over the nucleation process when ettringite crystals are initially present in a solution with a low supersaturation degree. The influence of stirring on ettringite formation was also investigated. Observation was made that intensity and nature of stirring have a high influence on the size of ettringite needles formed. Needle sizes vary from less than 10µm long depending on the stirring to almost 100µm long without any stirring. During all previously mentioned experiments, initially present ions are consumed to form ettringite in such a way that the supersaturation degree with regard to ettringite is decreasing over time. To avoid this phenomenon a device compensating the drop of ion concentrations by adding some more solutions, and therefore always have constant ionic concentrations, was used. This constant β recreates the conditions of the beginning of cement paste hydration, when the dissolution of solid reagents compensates the consumption of ions to form hydrates. This device allowed the determination of the ettringite precipitation rate as a function of the supersaturation degree β. Taking samples at different time during ettringite precipitation and doing BET measurements allowed the determination of the interfacial growth rate of ettringite in m²/s. This work will lead to a better understanding and control of ettringite formation alone and thus during cements hydration. This study will also ultimately define the impact of ettringite formation process on the rheology of cement pastes at early age, which is a crucial parameter from a practical point of view.

Keywords: cement hydration, ettringite, morphology of crystals, nucleation-growth process

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Authors: Farnaz Alborzi, Angelika Schmitz, Rainer Stamminger

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Reducing water temperatures in the wash phase of a washing programme and increasing the overall cycle durations are the latest trends in decreasing energy consumption of washing programmes. Since the implementation of the new energy efficiency classes in 2010, manufacturers seem to apply the aforementioned washing strategy with lower temperatures combined with longer programme durations extensively to realise energy-savings needed to meet the requirements of the highest energy efficiency class possible. A semi-representative on-line survey in eleven European countries (Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom) was conducted by Bonn University in 2015 to shed light on consumer opinion and behaviour regarding the effects of the lower washing temperature and longer cycle duration in laundry washing on consumers’ acceptance of the programme. The risk of the long wash cycle is that consumers might not use the energy efficient Standard programmes and will think of this option as inconvenient and therefore switch to shorter, but more energy consuming programmes. Furthermore, washing in a lower temperature may lead to the problem of cross-contamination. Washing behaviour of over 5,000 households was studied in this survey to provide support and guidance for manufacturers and policy designers. Qualified households were chosen following a predefined quota: -Involvement in laundry washing: substantial, -Distribution of gender: more than 50 % female , -Selected age groups: -20–39 years, -40–59 years, -60–74 years, -Household size: 1, 2, 3, 4 and more than 4 people. Furthermore, Eurostat data for each country were used to calculate the population distribution in the respective age class and household size as quotas for the consumer survey distribution in each country. Before starting the analyses, the validity of each dataset was controlled with the aid of control questions. After excluding the outlier data, the number of the panel diminished from 5,100 to 4,843. The primary outcome of the study is European consumers are willing to save water and energy in a laundry washing but reluctant to use long programme cycles since they don’t believe that the long cycles could be energy-saving. However, the results of our survey don’t confirm that there is a relation between frequency of using Standard cotton (Eco) or Energy-saving programmes and the duration of the programmes. It might be explained by the fact that the majority of washing programmes used by consumers do not take so long, perhaps consumers just choose some additional time reduction option when selecting those programmes and this finding might be changed if the Energy-saving programmes take longer. Therefore, it may be assumed that introducing the programme duration as a new measure on a revised energy label would strongly influence the consumer at the point of sale. Furthermore, results of the survey confirm that consumers are more willing to use lower temperature programmes in order to save energy than accepting longer programme cycles and majority of them accept deviation from the nominal temperature of the programme as long as the results are good.

Keywords: duration, energy-saving, standard programmes, washing temperature

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Authors: Tristance Kee

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With the unprecedented increase in elderly population globally, it is critical to search for new sustainable housing and urban development alternatives to traditional housing options. This research examines concepts of elderly migration pattern in the context of a high density city in Hong Kong to Mainland China. The research objectives are to: 1) explore the relationships between soon-to-be-old elderly and their intentions to move to Mainland upon retirement and their demographic characteristics; and 2) What are the desired amenities, locational factors and activities that are expected in the soon-to-be-old generation’s retirement housing environment? Primary data was collected through questionnaire survey conducted using random sampling method with respondents aged between 45-64 years old. The face-to-face survey was completed by 500 respondents. The survey was divided into four sections. The first section focused on respondent’s demographic information such as gender, age, education attainment, monthly income, housing tenure type and their visits to Mainland China. The second section focused on their retirement plans in terms of intended retirement age, prospective retirement funding and retirement housing options. The third section focused on the respondent’s attitudes toward retiring in Mainland for housing. It asked about their intentions to migrate retire into Mainland and incentives to retire in Hong Kong. The fourth section focused on respondent’s ideal housing environment including preferred housing amenities, desired living environment and retirement activities. The dependent variable in this study was ‘respondent’s consideration to move to Mainland China upon retirement’. Eight primary independent variables were integrated into the study to identify the correlations between them and retirement migration plan. The independent variables include: gender, age, marital status, monthly income, present housing tenure type, property ownership in Hong Kong, relationship with Mainland and the frequency of visiting Mainland China. In addition to the above independent variables, respondents were asked to indicate their retirement plans (retirement age, funding sources and retirement housing options), incentives to migrate to retire (choices included: property ownership, family relations, cost of living, living environment, medical facilities, government welfare benefits, etc.), perceived ideal retirement life qualities including desired amenities (sports, medical and leisure facilities etc.), desired locational qualities (green open space, convenient transport options and accessibility to urban settings etc.) and desired retirement activities (home-based leisure, elderly friendly sports, cultural activities, child care, social activities, etc.). The finding shows correlations between the used independent variables and consideration to migrate for housing options. The two independent variables indicated a possible correlation were gender and the frequency of visiting Mainland at present. When considering the increasing property prices across the border and strong social relationships, potential retirement migration is a very subjective decision that could vary from person to person. This research adds knowledge to housing research and migration study. Although the research is based in Mainland, most of the characteristics identified including better medical services, government welfare and sound urban amenities are shared qualities for all sustainable urban development and housing strategies.

Keywords: elderly migration, housing alternative, soon-to-be-old, sustainable environment

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Authors: Ángel O. Aldape, José M. Bustos, José G. Guízar

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Building companies providing public housing in Mexico, such as INFONAVIT, Casas GEO, Casas ARA, among others, provide low-interest home loans for thousands of Mexican families and individuals to buy a home. However, once this goal is achieved, these companies are not responsible for the care and maintenance of green areas and waste collection services because, technically, it is the local municipalities’ responsibility to provide these services to the community. However, this does not always occur with local municipalities. To study this problem, the San Buenaventura public housing complex was selected. This housing complex is located in the municipality of Ixtapaluca, State of Mexico (Estado de Mexico), Mexico. To our best knowledge, there are currently no formal studies about San Buenaventura that can offer effective options and/or better ways of sorting and disposing households’ wastes, as well as improving local green areas (community gardens and parks). Only a few web-blogs and periodical reports have addressed these serious problems that directly affect the social and psychological well-being of residents. The main goal of this research project aims to improve our understanding towards the existing ontological elements that emerge from residents’ discourses (in the form of informal talks and gossip) and discover the socio-physical elements that they use to assign moral positions onto others or onto themselves. The theoretical framework used in this study is based on two constructionist theories: positioning theory and site ontology. The first theory offered the opportunity to explore the rights, duties, and obligations assigned to a social role (or moral position) of the participants. The second theory provided a constructionist philosophical base that includes various socio-physical elements that are considered to assign personal or community meanings to particular contexts. Both theories contributed to defining personal dispositions and/or attitudes to carry out concrete social action or practice. The theoretical framework was guided by a relativistic ontology that allowed the researcher to better interpret the reality of the participants of this study. A descriptive-interpretative methodology was used, and two qualitative methods were arranged based on the theoretical framework proposed as follows: a semi-structured focus group interview, and direct observations. The semi-structured focus group was carried out with four residents of San Buenaventura and covert observations of public spaces and houses were carried out. These were analysed and interpreted by the researcher and assisted by NVivo software. The results suggest that the participants assigned moral traits of responsibility to other residents regarding the problem of the neglect of the green areas and waste pollution. The results suggest that all participants agreed to assign moral traits to other residents making them liable for the environmental degradation and the decay of green areas. They neither assigned any moral duty nor responsible moral traits onto themselves towards environmental protection or destruction. Overall, the participants in this study pointed out that external ontological elements such as the local government, infrastructure or cleaning services were not main cause of these environmental problems but rather the general lack of moral duty and disposition of other residents.

Keywords: conversation, environment, housing, moral, ontology, position, public, site, talks

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Authors: Ebtehal Qulisy, Geoffrey Dougherty, Kholoud Hothan, Mylene Dandavino

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Background: For more than 200 years, journal clubs (JCs) have been used to teach the fundamentals of critical appraisal and evidence-based practice (EBP). However, JCs curricula face important challenges, including poor sustainability, insufficient time to prepare for and conduct the activities, and lack of trainee skills and self-efficacy with critical appraisal. Andragogy principles and modern technology could help EBP be taught in more relevant, modern, and interactive ways. Method: We propose a fresh educational activity to teach EBP. Educational sessions are designed to encourage collaborative and experiential learning and do not require advanced preparation by the participants. Each session lasts 60 minutes and is adaptable to in-person, virtual, or hybrid contexts. Sessions are structured around a worksheet and include three educational objectives: “1. Identify a Clinical Conundrum”, “2. Compare and Contrast Current Guidelines”, and “3. Choose a Recent Journal Article”. Sessions begin with a short presentation by a facilitator of a clinical scenario highlighting a “grey-zone” in pediatrics. Trainees are placed in groups of two to four (based on the participants’ number) of varied training levels. The first task requires the identification of a clinical conundrum (a situation where there is no clear answer but only a reasonable solution) related to the scenario. For the second task, trainees must identify two or three clinical guidelines. The last task requires trainees to find a journal article published in the last year that reports an update regarding the scenario’s topic. Participants are allowed to use their electronic devices throughout the session. Our university provides full-text access to major journals, which facilitated this exercise. Results: Participants were a convenience sample of trainees in the inpatient services at the Montréal Children’s Hospital, McGill University. Sessions were conducted as a part of an existing weekly academic activity and facilitated by pediatricians with experience in critical appraisal. There were 28 participants in 4 sessions held during Spring 2022. Time was allocated at the end of each session to collect participants’ feedback via a self-administered online survey. There were 22 responses, were 41%(n=9) pediatric residents, 22.7%(n=5) family medicine residents, 31.8%(n=7) medical students, and 4.5%(n=1) nurse practitioner. Four respondents participated in more than one session. The “Satisfied” rates were 94.7% for session format, 100% for topic selection, 89.5% for time allocation, and 84.3% for worksheet structure. 60% of participants felt that including the sessions during the clinical ward rotation was “Feasible.” As per self-efficacy, participants reported being “Confident” for the tasks as follows: 89.5% for the ability to identify a relevant conundrum, 94.8% for the compare and contrast task, and 84.2% for the identification of a published update. The perceived effectiveness to learn EBP was reported as “Agreed” by all participants. All participants would recommend this session for further teaching. Conclusion: We developed a modern approach to teach EBP, enjoyed by all levels of participants, who also felt it was a useful learning experience. Our approach addresses known JCs challenges by being relevant to clinical care, fostering active engagement but not requiring any preparation, using available technology, and being adaptable to hybrid contexts.

Keywords: medical education, journal clubs, post-graduate teaching, andragogy, experiential learning, evidence-based practice

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Authors: Ekta Yadav, Sukanta Bhattacharya, Brijesh Yadav, Ariel Hus, Jagjit Yadav

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Background and Significance: Respiratory exposure to toxicants (chemicals or particulates) causes disruption of lung homeostasis leading to lung toxicity/injury manifested as pulmonary inflammation, edema, and/or other effects depending on the type and extent of exposure. This emphasizes the need for investigating toxicant type-specific mechanisms to understand therapeutic targets. Aquaporins, aka water channels, are known to play a role in lung homeostasis. Particularly, the two major lung aquaporins AQP5 and AQP1 expressed in alveolar epithelial and vasculature endothelia respectively allow for movement of the fluid between the alveolar air space and the associated vasculature. In view of this, the current study is focused on understanding the regulation of lung aquaporins and other targets during inhalation exposure to toxic chemicals (Cigarette smoke chemicals) versus toxic particles (Carbon nanoparticles) or co-exposures to understand their relevance as markers of injury and intervention. Methodologies: C57BL/6 mice (5-7 weeks old) were used in this study following an approved protocol by the University of Cincinnati Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The mice were exposed via oropharyngeal aspiration to multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) particles suspension once (33 ugs/mouse) followed by housing for four weeks or to Cigarette smoke Extract (CSE) using a daily dose of 30µl/mouse for four weeks, or to co-exposure using the combined regime. Control groups received vehicles following the same dosing schedule. Lung toxicity/injury was assessed in terms of homeostasis changes in the lung tissue and lumen. Exposed lungs were analyzed for transcriptional expression of specific targets (AQPs, surfactant protein A, Mucin 5b) in relation to tissue homeostasis. Total RNA from lungs extracted using TRIreagent kit was analyzed using qRT-PCR based on gene-specific primers. Total protein in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid was determined by the DC protein estimation kit (BioRad). GraphPad Prism 5.0 (La Jolla, CA, USA) was used for all analyses. Major findings: CNT exposure alone or as co-exposure with CSE increased the total protein content in the BAL fluid (lung lumen rinse), implying compromised membrane integrity and cellular infiltration in the lung alveoli. In contrast, CSE showed no significant effect. AQP1, required for water transport across membranes of endothelial cells in lungs, was significantly upregulated in CNT exposure but downregulated in CSE exposure and showed an intermediate level of expression for the co-exposure group. Both CNT and CSE exposures had significant downregulating effects on Muc5b, and SP-A expression and the co-exposure showed either no significant effect (Muc5b) or significant downregulating effect (SP-A), suggesting an increased propensity for infection in the exposed lungs. Conclusions: The current study based on the lung toxicity mouse model showed that both toxicant types, particles (CNT) versus chemicals (CSE), cause similar downregulation of lung innate defense targets (SP-A, Muc5b) and mostly a summative effect when presented as co-exposure. However, the two toxicant types show differential induction of aquaporin-1 coinciding with the corresponding differential damage to alveolar integrity (vascular permeability). Interestingly, this implies the potential of AQP1 as a differential marker of toxicant type-specific lung injury.

Keywords: aquaporin, gene expression, lung injury, toxicant exposure

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Authors: D. Olszewska, J. Niewiedzial

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In some types of Li-ion batteries carbon in the form of graphite is used. Unfortunately, carbon materials, in particular graphite, have very good electrochemical properties, but increase their volume during charge/discharge cycles, which may even lead to an explosion of the cell. The cell element may be replaced by a composite material consisting of lithium-titanium oxide Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) modified with copper and nickel ions and carbon derived from sucrose. This way you can improve the conductivity of the material. LTO is appropriate only for applications which do not require high energy density because of its high operating voltage (ca. 1.5 V vs. Li/Li+). Specific capacity of Li4Ti5O12 is high enough for utilization in Li-ion batteries (theoretical capacity 175 mAh·g-1) but it is lower than capacity of graphite anodes. Materials based on Li4Ti5O12 do not change their volume during charging/discharging cycles, however, LTO has low conductivity. Another positive aspect of the use of sucrose in the carbon composite material is to eliminate the addition of carbon black from the anode of the battery. Therefore, the proposed materials contribute significantly to environmental protection and safety of selected lithium cells. New anode materials in order to obtain Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12 have been prepared by solid state synthesis using three-way: i) stoichiometric composition of Li2CO3, TiO2, CuO, NiO (A- Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12); ii) stoichiometric composition of Li2CO3, TiO2, Cu(NO3)2, Ni(NO3)2 (B-Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12); and iii) stoichiometric composition of Li2CO3, TiO2, CuO, NiO calcined with 10% of saccharose (Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12-C). Structure of materials was studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical properties were performed using appropriately prepared cell Li|Li+|Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12 for cyclic voltammetry and discharge/charge measurements. The cells were periodically charged and discharged in the voltage range from 1.3 to 2.0 V applying constant charge/discharge current in order to determine the specific capacity of each electrode. Measurements at various values of the charge/discharge current (from C/10 to 5C) were carried out. Cyclic voltammetry investigation was carried out by applying to the cells a voltage linearly changing over time at a rate of 0.1 mV·s-1 (in the range from 2.0 to 1.3 V and from 1.3 to 2.0 V). The XRD method analyzes show that composite powders were obtained containing, in addition to the main phase, 4.78% and 4% TiO2 in A-Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1O12 and B-Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1O12, respectively. However, Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1O12-C material is three-phase: 63.84% of the main phase, 17.49 TiO2 and 18.67 Li2TiO3. Voltammograms of electrodes containing materials A-Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1O12 and B-Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1O12 are correct and repeatable. Peak cathode occurs for both samples at a potential approx. 1.52±0.01 V relative to a lithium electrode, while the anodic peak at potential approx. 1.65±0.05 V relative to a lithium electrode. Voltammogram of Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12-C (especially for the first measurement cycle) is not correct. There are large variations in values of specific current, which are not characteristic for materials LTO. From the point of view of safety and environmentally friendly production of Li-ion cells eliminating soot and applying Li3.8Cu0.1Ni0.1Ti5O12-C as an active material of an anode in lithium-ion batteries seems to be a good alternative to currently used materials.

Keywords: anode, Li-ion batteries, Li₄O₅O₁₂, spinel

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