Recent publications
Homogenization techniques are an appealing approach to reduce computational complexity in systems containing coils with large numbers of high temperature superconductor (HTS) tapes. Resolving all the coated conductor layers and turns in coils is often computationally prohibitive. In this paper, we extend the foil conductor model, well-known in normal conducting applications, to applications with insulated HTS coils. To enhance the numerical performance of the model, the conventional formulation based on A − V is extended to J − A − V. The model is verified to be suitable for simulations of superconductors and to accelerate the calculations compared to resolving all the individual layers. The performance of both the A − V and J − A − V formulated models is examined, and the J − A − V variant is concluded to be advantageous.
The International Muon Collider Collaboration (IMCC) has been formed with the aim of delivering a feasibility study on a Muon Collider facility, as recommended by the European Strategy for Particle Physics and supported by the European Union through the Grant Agreement 101094300. Such facility would allow to study frontier physics with a 10 km collider ring and a muon center of mass energy of 10 TeV. Several technical challenges arise due to the short rest lifetime of these particles (2.2
s), necessitating the use of cutting-edge technology for all components, particularly the superconducting magnets. In this contribution, we present the main challenges of such magnets, focusing on the performance limits of the available technology and the possible design choices. The LTS (Low Temperature Superconductor) materials Nb-Ti and Nb
Sn and the ReBCO HTS (High Temperature Superconductor) are analysed, comparing costs, mechanical structure feasibility and ease of protection from quench, taking into account also the sustainability of the cooling and the compatibility with the beam dynamics constraints. Furthermore, preliminary designs of arc dipoles in cos
coil and block coil configurations is discussed, focusing on the maximum achievable bore field, the stress induced by the electromagnetic forces and the AC losses due to magnetization.
Liver zonation is a fundamental characteristic of hepatocyte spatial heterogeneity, which is challenging to recapitulate in traditional cell cultures. This study presents a novel microfluidic device designed to induce zonation in liver cell cultures by establishing an oxygen gradient using standard laboratory gases. The device consists of two layers; a bottom layer containing a gas channel network that delivers high (cell incubator air, 19% oxygen) and low oxygenated (nitrogen) gases to create three distinct zones within the cell culture chamber in the layer above. Computational simulations and ratiometric oxygen sensing were employed to validate the oxygen gradient, demonstrating that stable oxygen levels were achieved within two hours. Liver zonation was confirmed using immunofluorescence staining, which showed zonated albumin production in HepG2 cells directly correlating with oxygen levels and mimicking in-vivo zonation behavior. This user-friendly device supports studies on liver zonation and related metabolic disease mechanisms in vitro. It can also be utilized for experiments that necessitate precise gas concentration gradients, such as hypoxia-related research areas focused on angiogenesis and cancer development.
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to create a prototype master protocol for benchmarking glaucoma real‐world data (RWD). Benchmarking is part of the digital innovation strategy of the Finnish aces‐rwm ecosystem (automation of care and evaluation of the system with real‐world monitoring).
Methods
We collected glaucoma RWD in 2012–17 at Tampere University Hospital (Tays) and compared them to six published RWD sets (one in Sweden and five in England). Visual field (VF) data at Tays were retrieved from the perimeter, and clinical RWD were collected manually. At baseline, VF data were available in 2511 of 4121 glaucoma patients (61%), of whom 1413 patients (56%) had 5 years of VF follow‐up by 2017 (34% of all 4121 patients). Mean deviation (MD) data were analysed in multiple ways, considering also age and intraocular pressure (IOP).
Results
In most data sets, higher age was related to faster progression. At Tays, the distributions of progression rates were similar in better and worse eyes. The proportions of eyes at Tays with the medium rate of MD progression (17% for 0.5–1.5 dB/year) and the fast rate (6% for >1.5 dB/year) were similar to the published RWD trial in England. The published datasets show significant variability in how their findings were reported.
Conclusions
This study represents a first step toward the development of a master protocol for real‐world benchmarking of glaucoma care. Further refinement of the protocol will encourage and require national and international collaboration in order to produce comprehensive and comparable real‐world EHR data sets.
Purpose
To investigate whether six selected anatomical variables were associated with non‐contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in female team sport athletes.
Methods
Two hundred eighty‐seven female athletes (age 13–38 at baseline) from basketball, floorball, ice hockey and volleyball completed a baseline physical examination, including measurements of anterior‐posterior (AP) knee laxity, knee hyperextension, generalized joint hypermobility, femoral anteversion, hamstring extensibility, and navicular drop. Athletes entered the study either in 2011, 2012 or 2013 and were followed up until the end of 2015. During the follow‐up, all complete and magnetic resonance‐verified ACL injuries were recorded.
Results
Twenty‐three non‐contact ACL injuries were recorded. There were no significant differences in baseline physical examination variables between athletes who sustained ACL injuries and those who did not. However, a side‐to‐side difference in AP knee laxity greater than 2 mm was observed in 20% of the ACL injury group compared to 12% of the non‐injured group, although this difference was not statistically significant.
Conclusions
In this study, AP knee laxity, knee hyperextension, generalized joint hypermobility, femoral anteversion, hamstring extensibility and navicular drop were not associated with increased risk for non‐contact ACL injury in female team sport athletes. This study was powered to detect moderate to strong risk associations; thus, smaller risk associations may not have been identified.
Level of Evidence
Level II.
Bacteria evolved genes whose single-cell distributions of expression levels are broad, or even bimodal. Evidence suggests that they might enhance phenotypic diversity for coping with fluctuating environments. We identified seven genes in E. coli with bimodal (low and high) single-cell expression levels under standard growth conditions and studied how their dynamics are modified by environmental and antibiotic stresses known to target gene expression. We found that all genes lose bimodality under some, but not under all, stresses. Also, bimodality can reemerge upon cells returning to standard conditions, which suggests that the genes can switch often between high and low expression rates. As such, these genes could become valuable components of future multi-stable synthetic circuits. Next, we proposed models of bimodal transcription dynamics with realistic parameter values, able to mimic the outcome of the perturbations studied. We explored several models’ tunability and boundaries of parameter values, beyond which it shifts to unimodal dynamics. From the model results, we predict that bimodality is robust, and yet tunable, not only by RNA and protein degradation rates, but also by the fraction of time that promoters remain unavailable for new transcription events. Finally, we show evidence that, although the empirical expression levels are influenced by many factors, the bimodality emerges during transcription initiation, at the promoter regions and, thus, may be evolvable and adaptable.
Aim
Although the physical environment is frequently studied in the context of domestic accidents, behavioral factors, particularly individual and interpersonal behavior, have received less attention. This scoping review aimed to address two research questions: 1) What social environmental factors are most relevant for fall risk assessments in home-dwelling older adults? 2) How do physical environmental factors influence individual and interpersonal behaviors that increase domestic fall risk?
Method
The review followed the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, and the search was conducted in April 2022 across multiple databases, including MEDLINE, CINAHL, Nursing & Allied Health, Applied Social Sciences Index & Abstracts (ASSIA), Sage, ScienceDirect, Social Science Premium Collection, Scopus, and Web of Science. A total of 44 peer-reviewed studies reporting on domestic fall risk factors for older adults living at home were included.
Results
Findings indicate that both inattentive and attentive individual behaviors can increase fall risk. In terms of interpersonal behavior, social interaction and connectedness were highlighted as critical contributors to overall fall risk. Additionally, health-related factors were found to associate with environmental risk factors.
Conclusion
The study proposes a theoretical fall risk framework compassing individual factors, interpersonal behavior, and physical environmental factors. Specific physical environmental factors can trigger unsafe behaviors that elevate fall risks among older adults, particularly those with existing health conditions. Both social and physical environmental factors should be a key focus in fall prevention strategies.
Self-rated health is a major indicator of an individual’s overall health status, but its development during midlife to old age, as well as influence of sociodemographic and work-related factors on it, are poorly understood. We used longitudinal individual-level data to examine trajectories of self-rated health and their determinants in 38,163 participants (median age 50 (range 36–66) years at baseline) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, the Finnish Longitudinal Study on Aging Municipal Employees, and the French GAZ and ELectricité study from Europe and the Health and Retirement Study from the US. A group-based latent trajectory analysis showed that self-rated health was constantly good for over half of the participants, constantly suboptimal for about 11–21%, and it was changing, either improving or declining, for the rest. Pooled evidence suggests that being single (summary odds ratio 1.20, 95% confidence interval 1.07–1.35), medium educational attainment (1.26, 1.16–1.37), medium occupational class (1.22, 1.10–1.34), and exposure to high physical job demands (1.18, 1.08–1.29) were associated with declining self-rated health. Suboptimal self-rated health was more prevalent among those in low occupational class (1.81, 1.56–2.10), and those who experienced high physical job demands (1.52, 1.33–1.74). In these European and US populations, 23–40% of people experienced suboptimal or declining health trajectories. In conclusion, large variation in development of self-rated health from midlife to old age was observed and it was partly determined by sociodemographic and work-related factors.
This second progress report addresses the understanding of place in legal geography, and asks how it resonates with the wider philosophies and conceptualizations of place. By taking four viewpoints to place – territory and location, legal signification, law on the move, and place agency – the report argues that place thinking can offer intellectual tools for overcoming territorial legal thinking, and for acknowledging the legal relevance of situations and places that fall outside of a sovereign legal system. There is also potential for refreshing the rather stagnant human geographical discussions on the concept of place more widely.
Objectives
Atypical ulcerative colitis (UC) presenting reverse gradient colitis, backwash ileitis, or rectal sparing and/or positive atypical antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody serology is often associated with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and can be resistant to conventional medical therapies (CMT) for inflammatory bowel diseases. We report short-term and long-term outcomes of oral vancomycin therapy (OVT) in children with atypical UC and confirmed PSC in imaging/biopsy (PSC-UC) or treatment-resistant atypical UC without detectable PSC (aUC-non-PSC).
Methods
In this retrospective real-world observational study from a tertiary paediatric centre in Brisbane, Australia, 44 children with aUC (29 PSC-UC, 15 aUC-non-PSC) received 79 OVT courses between 2014 and 2023. Pre–post-OVT characteristics were compared and relapses/repeated courses were recorded.
Results
Pre-OVT, all had active colitis by Paediatric Ulcerative Colitis Activity Index (PUCAI), Feacal Calprotectin (FC) and/or colonoscopy. Post-OVT, PUCAI reduced from 15 (IQR 5–33) to 0 (IQR 0–5); 85% of children with pre-OVT PUCAI ≥10 achieved clinical remission (100% PSC-UC vs 64% aUC-non-PSC, p=0.019). FC reduced from 995 (IQR 319–1825) to 44 (IQR 16–79) µg/g; 83% of children with pre-OVT FC ≥100 µg/g achieved biochemical remission (92% PSC-UC vs 64% aUC-non-PSC, p=0.063). Colonoscopy confirmed Mayo 0 healing in 62% (67% PSC-UC vs 54% aUC-non-PSC, p=0.443) and 46% achieved pan-colonic histological remission (54% PSC-UC vs 31% aUC-non-PSC, p=0.173). All pre–post-OVT changes in these four markers were significant in both groups. After ceasing first OVT, 25/44 relapsed within 8.2 (IQR 1.9–14.5) months. Recommencing OVT regained biomarker remission in 13/25. During 3.8 (IQR 2.0–5.3) years of follow-up, 79 OVT courses in conjunction with CMT maintained deep remission in 67%. Routine stool testing (n=138) detected no vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE).
Conclusions
OVT induced and reinduced remission in children with atypical UC. Relapse often followed ceasing vancomycin, half responded to reinduction. No VRE was developed.
Background
Assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of motor control impairments are among the most widely implemented management strategies for chronic low back pain (CLBP). Low back movement control tests described by Luomajoki et al. are reliable and valid for assessing the presence and severity of motor control impairment. However, very little is known about the importance of demographic and well-established CLBP contributing factors in explaining the presence and severity of any type of motor control impairment.
Objective
The study objectives were to evaluate the associations of the presence and the severity of movement control impairment with age, gender, BMI, CLBP and its intensity and duration, postural stability, self-reported central sensitization, kinesiophobia, and CLBP-related disability with logistic and ordinal regressions and Wald chi-squared tests.
Methods
This cross-sectional study included 161 subjects with CLBP and 42 pain-free controls. The study was carried out in single private chiropractic clinic.
Results
Higher age and BMI were distinctly greater associated with a higher presence and severity of movement control impairment compared to the pain-related factors, namely the CLBP or its intensity or duration, central sensitization, kinesiophobia, and CLBP-related disability.
Conclusions
Results highlight the importance of considering demographic factors, such as age and BMI, when interpreting motor control impairment findings. Accordingly, the findings challenge the validity of testing motor control impairment in the management of CLBP.
The accelerating growth of scientific literature overwhelms our capacity to manually distil complex phenomena like molecular networks linked to diseases. Moreover, biases in biomedical research and database annotation limit our interpretation of facts and generation of hypotheses. ENQUIRE (Expanding Networks by Querying Unexpectedly Inter-Related Entities) offers a time- and resource-efficient alternative to manual literature curation and database mining. ENQUIRE reconstructs and expands co-occurrence networks of genes and biomedical ontologies from user-selected input corpora and network-inferred PubMed queries. Its modest resource usage and the integration of text mining, automatic querying, and network-based statistics mitigating literature biases makes ENQUIRE unique in its broad-scope applications. For example, ENQUIRE can generate co-occurrence gene networks that reflect high-confidence, functional networks. When tested on case studies spanning cancer, cell differentiation and immunity, ENQUIRE identified interlinked genes and enriched pathways unique to each topic, thereby preserving their underlying context specificity. ENQUIRE supports biomedical researchers by easing literature annotation, boosting hypothesis formulation, and facilitating the identification of molecular targets for subsequent experimentation.
In vivo phage display is a method used for identification of organ- or disease-specific vascular homing peptides for targeted delivery of pharmaceutics. It is agnostic as to the nature and identity of the target molecules. The current in vivo biopanning lacks inbuilt mechanisms to select for peptides capable of vascular homing that would also be capable of tissue penetration to reach therapeutically relevant cells in the tissue parenchyma. Here, we combined in vivo phage display with microdialysis-based parenchymal recovery and high-throughput sequencing to select for peptides that, besides vascular homing, facilitate extravasation and tissue penetration. We first demonstrated in skin wounds that the method can selectively separate known homing peptides from those with additional tissue-penetrating ability. Screening of a naïve peptide library identifies peptides that home and extravasate to extravascular granulation tissue in vascularized and diabetic wounds and cross blood–retina barrier in retinopathy. Our work suggests that in vivo phage display combined with microdialysis can be used for the discovery of vascular homing peptides capable of extravasation and tissue penetration.
Novel non-volatile memories are under intense investigation to revolutionize information processing for ultra energy-efficient implementation of artificial intelligence and machine learning tasks. Ferroelectric memories with ultra-low power and fast operation,...
Purpose
This study aims to examine food waste behaviours among university students in Indonesia by adapting the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) alongside the theory of domains of knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 518 students at five Indonesian universities participated in an online survey, answering questions about their food waste behaviours based on the TPB and the domains of knowledge frameworks. Among them, 250 students had taken a course that covered the food waste topic, while 268 students had not taken the course. The data were later analysed by using partial least squares-structural equation modelling and measurement invariance across the composite models.
Findings
The findings reveal that environmental awareness, attitude towards food waste behaviours, subjective norms and different types of knowledge which are procedural knowledge, declarative knowledge, personal and social knowledge significantly influence food waste behaviour. Students who attended a course related to the food waste topic were more likely to align their intentions to reduce food waste with their reduction behaviour.
Originality/value
While previous research has highlighted the importance of the TPB in understanding food waste intentions and behaviour, studies also show that students’ knowledge about food waste plays a crucial role in shaping these intentions. This study builds on these insights by combining the TPB with the domains of knowledge theory, specifically looking at how participating in food waste-related courses influences food waste behaviours among Indonesian students.
Purpose
The purpose of the work was to compare the performance of different ultrasound quality assurance methods in finding transducer defects. For this, three different commonly used ultrasound QA methods were studied and compared.
Methods
The integrity of 99 US transducers was measured using the FirstCall transducer test in two tertiary healthcare centers in Finland. Thereafter, the ability of three different quality assurance methods (the FirstCall sensitivity test, in-air reverberation test, and uniformity test) to find defective probes was evaluated with a sub-group (N=37) of probes. All sensors were classified as either defective or functional according to predefined criteria.
Results
According to the 99 FirstCall measurement reports, 31% of the transducers were defective. The sensitivity test, in-air test, and uniformity test identified 27, 27, and 14% of the transducers, respectively, as defective. The agreement between the three quality assurance methods was 78%.
Conclusion
Even if ultrasound quality assurance is performed systematically, the number of undetected defective transducers can still be high. FirstCall allows the transducers to be measured independently and is useful in testing the sensitivity and capacitance of each element and the wiring. The in-air reverberation test is effective in finding transducer failures. It is the easiest and fastest to implement and is therefore recommended to be performed regularly for all ultrasound transducers in clinical use along with the mechanical inspection. The uniformity test requires a phantom and can be used to confirm a possible defect found by the two other methods.
The sequential digital design and manufacturing of components play a crucial role in realizing the industrial potential of directed energy deposition (DED), particularly when employing an electric arc as the energy source to melt a filler wire (DED-ARC). This study explores the application of DED-ARC for manufacturing large-scale, load-bearing structures, using a railway bogie as a case study. Originally a cast Bettendorf-type design, the bogie was redesigned using a multi-material approach. High-strength low-alloy (HSLA) steel was utilized in high-stress areas, while low-carbon steel was used elsewhere to reduce mass, enhance manufacturability, and improve repairability. The workflow included computer-aided design (CAD), topological optimization, finite element analysis (FEA), material selection, and iterative CAD modifications to address process constraints. The redesigned bogie underwent pre-manufacturing, fabrication, and a final scan of the as-built part. Representative multi-material wall samples were characterized, revealing typical microstructures and elastic limits of 468 MPa and 737 MPa for ER70S-6 and ER100S-G, respectively. These tensile properties were incorporated into FEA verification simulations, demonstrating a higher safety factor compared to the original design. A CAD-to-part analysis, including scan comparisons, highlighted manufacturing-induced deformation, material-dependent over-thickness, and localized geometric variations. This study offers a comprehensive overview of the DED-ARC process, from design through characterization, and demonstrates its capability to produce high-quality industrial components. The findings underscore the manufacturability and potential of DED-ARC for fabricating robust, multi-material structures for demanding applications.
Background
RSV is an important cause of lower respiratory tract illness (LRTI) in older adults. RSVpreF is a bivalent stabilized prefusion F vaccine containing antigens against RSV-A and RSV-B. In this phase 3 trial in ≥60-year-olds, RSVpreF demonstrated vaccine efficacy (VE) of 88.9% and 77.8% against RSV-associated LRTI with ≥3 symptoms at the end of RSV seasons 1 and 2, respectively. Here we describe final safety and efficacy results and present immunogenicity data.
Methods
This study was conducted over 2 RSV seasons. Participants were randomized (1:1) to 1 dose of RSVpreF 120-µg or placebo. A secondary objective was to describe RSVpreF immunogenicity 1-month postvaccination and before season 2 visits in a participant subset from the USA and Japan.
Results
One-month postvaccination neutralization titer geometric mean fold rise (GMFR) was 12.1 for combined RSV-A/RSV-B. Geometric mean titers decreased at the preseason 2 visit, but remained substantially higher than baseline (RSV-A/RSV-B GMFR=4.7). One month postvaccination, GMFRs for RSV-A/RSV-B neutralizing responses ranged from 12.0−13.0 for subgroups stratified by age (60−69, 70−79, ≥80 years). RSV-A/RSV-B GMFRs in participants with prespecified chronic conditions were generally similar to those without (range, 11.4−14.4). A consistent favorable safety profile and durable VE was seen through 2 RSV seasons.
Conclusion
High RSV neutralizing titers were observed 1 month after RSVpreF vaccination in ≥60-year-olds, with similarly robust responses across age subgroups and baseline chronic conditions. These robust immune responses corresponded with high RSVpreF VE against RSV-associated LRTI. RSVpreF had a favorable safety profile over 2 seasons.
NCT05035212; EudraCT, 2021-003693-31
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