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In the past few years, technological advancements enabled the development of novel electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS). Several empirical measures such as "nicotine flux" are being proposed to evaluate the abuse liability potential of these products. We explored the applicability of nicotine flux for clinical nicotine pharmacokinetics (PK) and 52-week quit success from cigarettes for a wide range of existing nicotine delivery systems. We found that the differences in nicotine flux for various nicotine delivery systems are not related to changes in PK, as nicotine flux does not capture key physiological properties such as nicotine absorption rate. Further, the 52-week quit success and abuse liability potential of nicotine nasal sprays (high nicotine flux product), and nicotine inhalers (nicotine flux similar to ENDS) are low, suggesting that nicotine flux is a poor metric for the assessment of nicotine delivery systems. PK indices are more dependable for characterizing nicotine delivery systems, and a nicotine plasma C max T max > 1 could improve 52-week quit success from cigarettes. However, a single metric may be inadequate to fully assess the abuse liability potential of nicotine delivery systems and needs to be further studied. A combination of in vitro and in silico approaches could potentially address the factors influencing the inhaled aerosol dosimetry and resulting PK of nicotine to provide early insights for ENDS assessments. Further research is required to understand nicotine dosimetry and PK for ad libitum product use, and abuse liability indicators of nicotine delivery systems. This commentary is intended to (1) highlight the need to think beyond a single empirical metric such as nicotine flux, (2) suggest potential PK-based metrics, (3) suggest the use of in vitro and in silico tools to obtain early insights into inhaled aerosol dosimetry for ENDS, and (4) emphasize the importance of considering comprehensive clinical pharmacology outcomes to evaluate nicotine delivery systems.
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Introduction: The radiotherapy workflow involves the collaboration of multiple professionals and the execution of several steps to results in an effective treatment. In this study, we described the clinical implementation of an electronic checklist, developed to standardize the process of the chart review prior to the first treatment fraction by the radiation therapists (RTTs). Materials and Methods: A customized electronic checklist was developed based on the recommendations of American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Task Groups 275 and 315 and integrated into the Record and Verify System (RVS). The checklist consisted of 16 items requiring binary (yes/no) responses, with mandatory completion and review by RTTs prior to treatment. The utility of the checklist and its impact on workflow were assessed by analysing checklist reports, and by soliciting feedback to RTTs through an anonymized survey. Results: During the first trial phase, from June to November 2023, 285 checklists were completed with a 98% compilation rate and 94.4% review rate. Forty errors were detected, mainly due to missing signed treatment plans and absence of Beam's Eye View documentation. Ninety percent of detected errors were fixed before the treatment start. In 4 cases, the problem could not be fixed before the first fraction, resulting in a suboptimal first treatment. The feedback survey showed that RTTs described the checklist as useful, with minimal impact on workload, and supported its implementation. Discussion: The introduction of a customized electronic checklist improved the detection and correction of errors, thereby enhancing patient safety. The positive response from RTTs and the minimal impact on workflow underscore the value of the checklist as standard practice in radiotherapy departments.
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The two stresses of weed competition and salt salinity lead to crop yield losses and decline in the productivity of agricultural land. These constraints threaten the future of food production because weeds are more salt stress tolerant than most crops. Climate change will lead to an increase of soil salinity worldwide, and possibly exacerbate the competition between weeds and crops. This aspect has been scarcely investigated in the context of weed-crop competition. Therefore, we conducted a field experiment on green beans (Phaseolus vulgaris ) to investigate the combined impact of weed competition and salt stress on key morpho-physiological traits, and crop yield. We demonstrated that soil salinity shifted weed composition toward salt tolerant weed species (Portulaca oleracea and Cynodon dactylon ), while it reduced the presence of lower tolerance species. Weed competition activated adaptation responses in green bean such as reduced leaf mass per area and biomass allocation to the stem, unchanged stomatal density and instantaneous water use efficiency, which diverge from those that are typically observed as a consequence of salt stress. The morpho-physiological modifications caused by weeds is attributed to the alterations of light intensity and/or quality, further confirming the pivotal role of the light in crop response to weeds. We concluded that higher yield loss caused by combined salt stress and weed competition is due to impaired morpho-physiological responses, which highlights the negative interaction between salt stress and weed competition. This phenomenon will likely be more frequent in the future, and potentially reduce the efficacy of current weed control methods.
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Adaptation, Physiological , Phaseolus , Plant Weeds , Salt Stress , Phaseolus/physiology , Phaseolus/drug effects , Plant Weeds/drug effects , Plant Weeds/physiology , Plant Leaves/physiology , Plant Leaves/drug effects , Crops, Agricultural/growth & development , Salinity , Soil/chemistry , BiomassABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Statistical process control (SPC) is a powerful statistical tool for process monitoring that has been highly recommended in healthcare applications, including radiation therapy quality assurance (QA). The AAPM TG-218 report described the clinical implementation of SPC for Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) pre-treatment verifications, pointing out the need to adjust tolerance limits based on plan complexity. However, the quantification of plan complexity and its integration into SPC remains an unresolved challenge. PURPOSE: The primary aim of this study is to investigate the incorporation of plan complexity into the SPC framework for VMAT pre-treatment verifications. The study explores and evaluates various strategies for this incorporation, discussing their merits and limitations, and provides recommendations for clinical application. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 309 VMAT plans from diverse anatomical sites using the PTW OCTAVIUS 4D device for QA measurements. Gamma Passing Rates (GPR) were obtained, and lower control limits were computed using both the conventional Shewhart method and three heuristic methods (scaled weighted variance, weighted standard deviations, and skewness correction) to accommodate non-normal data distributions. The 'Identify-Eliminate-Recalculate' method was employed for robust analysis. Eight complexity metrics were analyzed and two distinct strategies for incorporating plan complexity into SPC were assessed. The first strategy focused on establishing control limits for different treatment sites, while the second was based on the determination of control limits as a function of individual plan complexity. The study extensively examines the correlation between control limits and plan complexity and assesses the impact of complexity metrics on the control process. RESULTS: The control limits established using SPC were strongly influenced by the complexity of treatment plans. In the first strategy, a clear correlation was found between control limits and average plan complexity for each site. The second approach derived control limits based on individual plan complexity metrics, enabling tailored tolerance limits. In both strategies, tolerance limits inversely correlated with plan complexity, resulting in all highly complex plans being classified as in control. In contrast, when plans were collectively analyzed without considering complexity, all the out-of-control plans were highly complex. CONCLUSIONS: Incorporating plan complexity into SPC for VMAT verifications requires meticulous and comprehensive analysis. To ensure overall process control, we advocate for stringent control and minimization of plan complexity during treatment planning, especially when control limits are adjusted based on plan complexity.
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Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated/methods , Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted/methods , Humans , Retrospective Studies , Radiotherapy Dosage , Quality Assurance, Health CareABSTRACT
This article describes a dataset of acceleration signals acquired from a low-cost Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) during seismic events that occurred in Central Italy. The WSN consists of 5 low-cost sensor nodes, each embedding an ADXL355 tri-axial MEMS accelerometer with a fixed sampling frequency of 250 Hz. The data was acquired from February 2023 to the end of June 2023. During this period, several earthquake sequences affected the area where the sensor network was installed. Continuous data was acquired from the WSN and then trimmed around the origin time of seismic events that occurred near the installation site, close to the city of Pollenza (MC), Italy. A total of 67 events were selected, whose data is available at the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) Seismology data center. The traces acquired from the WSN were then manually annotated by analysts from INGV. Annotations include picking time for P and S phases, when distinguishable from the background noise, alongside an associated uncertainty level for the manual annotations. The resulting dataset consists of 328 3 × 25,001 arrays, each associated with its metadata. The metadata includes event data (hypocenter position, origin time, magnitude, magnitude type, etc.), trace-related data (mean, median, maximum, and minimum amplitudes, manual picks, and picks uncertainty), and sensor-specific data (sensor name, sensitivity, and orientation). Furthermore, a small dataset consisting of non-seismic traces is included, with the goal of providing records of noise-only traces, relative to both electronic and environmental/anthropic noise sources. The dataset holds potential for training and developing Machine Learning or signal processing algorithms for seismic data with low signal-to-noise ratios. Additionally, it is valuable for research about earthquakes, structural health monitoring, and MEMS accelerometer performance in civil and seismic engineering applications.
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INTRODUCTION: Both cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and surface-guided radiotherapy (SGRT) are used for breast patient positioning verification before treatment delivery. SGRT may reduce treatment time and imaging dose by potentially reduce the number of CBCT needed. The aim of this study was to compare the displacements resulting in positioning from the Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT) 3D and SGRT methods and to design a clinical workflow for SGRT implementation in breast radiotherapy to establish an imaging strategy based on the data obtained. METHODS: For this study 128 breast cancer patients treated with 42.5 Gy in 16 fractions using 3D conformal radiotherapy with free breathing technique were enroled. A total of 366 CBCT images were evaluated for patient setup verification and compared with SGRT. Image registrations between planning CT images and CBCT images were performed in mutual agreement and in online mode by three health professionals. Student's paired t-test was used to compare the absolute difference in vector shift, measured in mm, for each orthogonal axis (x, y, z) between SGRT and CBCT methods. The multidisciplinary team evaluated a review of the original clinical workflow for SGRT implementation and data about patients treated with the updated workflow were reported. RESULTS: Comparison of the shifts obtained with IGRT and SGRT for each orthogonal axis (for the x-axes the average displacement was 0.9 ± 0.7 mm, y = 1.1 ± 0.8 mm and z = 1.0 ± 0.7 mm) revealed no significant statistical differences (p > 0.05). Using the updated workflow the difference between SGRT and IGRT displacements was <3 mm in 91.4 % of patients with a reduction in total treatment time of approximately 20 %, due to the reduce frequency of the CBCT images acquisition and matching. CONCLUSIONS: This study has shown that IGRT and SGRT agree in positioning patients with breast cancer within a millimetre tolerance. SGRT can be used for patient positioning, with the advantages of reducing radiation exposure and shorter overall treatment time.
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Breast Neoplasms , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated , Spiral Cone-Beam Computed Tomography , Female , Humans , Breast Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging , Breast Neoplasms/radiotherapy , Image Processing, Computer-Assisted/methods , Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted/methods , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated/methods , Retrospective StudiesABSTRACT
An effective earthquake early warning system requires rapid and reliable earthquake source detection. Despite the numerous proposed epicenter localization solutions in recent years, their utilization within the Internet of Things (IoT) framework and integration with IoT-oriented cloud platforms remain underexplored. This paper proposes a complete IoT architecture for earthquake detection, localization, and event notification. The architecture, which has been designed, deployed, and tested on a standard cloud platform, introduces an innovative approach by implementing P-wave "picking" directly on IoT devices, deviating from traditional regional earthquake early warning (EEW) approaches. Pick association, source localization, event declaration, and user notification functionalities are also deployed on the cloud. The cloud integration simplifies the integration of other services in the architecture, such as data storage and device management. Moreover, a localization algorithm based on the hyperbola method is proposed, but here, the time difference of arrival multilateration is applied that is often used in wireless sensor network applications. The results show that the proposed end-to-end architecture is able to provide a quick estimate of the earthquake epicenter location with acceptable errors for an EEW system scenario. Rigorous testing against the standard of reference in Italy for regional EEW showed an overall 3.39 s gain in the system localization speed, thus offering a tangible metric of the efficiency and potential proposed system as an EEW solution.
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PURPOSE: Colorectal cancer is usually accompanied by liver metastases. The prediction of patient evolution is essential for the choice of the appropriate therapy. The aim of this study is to develop and evaluate machine learning models to predict KRAS gene mutations and 2-year disease-specific mortality from medical images. METHODS: Clinical and follow-up information was collected from patients with metastatic colorectal cancer who had undergone computed tomography prior to liver resection. The dominant liver lesion was segmented in each scan and radiomic features were extracted from the volumes of interest. The 65% of the cases were employed to perform feature selection and to train machine learning algorithms through cross-validation. The best performing models were assembled and evaluated in the remaining cases of the cohort. RESULTS: For the mortality model development, 101 cases were used as training set (64 alive, 37 deceased) and 35 as test set (22 alive, 13 deceased); while for KRAS mutation models, 55 cases were used for training (31 wild-type, 24 mutated) and 30 for testing (17 wild-type, 13 mutated). The ensemble of top performing models resulted in an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.878 for mortality and 0.905 for KRAS prediction. CONCLUSIONS: Predicting the prognosis of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer is useful for making timely decisions about the best treatment options. This study presents a noninvasive method based on quantitative analysis of baseline images to identify factors influencing patient outcomes, with the aim of incorporating these tools as support systems.
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Colonic Neoplasms , Rectal Neoplasms , Humans , Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)/genetics , Machine Learning , Mutation , Retrospective StudiesABSTRACT
The aim of this randomized controlled trial (RCT) was to evaluate whether placement of a soft tissue graft substitute (STGS) could decrease peri-implant tissue shrinkage at immediate postextractive implants. Twenty patients with one missing tooth between two adjacent healthy teeth in esthetic areas and at least 4 mm of bone apical to the tooth apex were randomly allocated (after tooth extraction) to receive (n = 10; test group) or not receive (n = 10; control group) a subepithelial buccal STGS. Implants were inserted with a torque of at least 30 Ncm, and sites were grafted with a cancellous particulate allograft. All patients were restored with nonoccluding immediate provisional screw-retained crowns, replaced after 6 months by definitive metal-ceramic crowns. One year after loading, no dropouts, crown or implant failure, or complications occurred. No statistically significant difference or trends in volume shrinkage, esthetics, peri-implant marginal bone loss, and keratinized mucosa heights between the two groups were observed. Acknowledging that the sample size was small, no clinical benefit could be observed for the use of a STGS in immediate postextractive implants.
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Dental Implants, Single-Tooth , Immediate Dental Implant Loading , Humans , Dental Implantation, Endosseous/methods , Treatment Outcome , Immediate Dental Implant Loading/methods , Patient Satisfaction , CrownsABSTRACT
Oral cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in Europe and its large diffusion requires, together with prevention, the development of low-cost and reliable portable platforms for its diagnosis, with features of high selectivity and sensitivity. In this study, the development and characterization of a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP)-based electrochemical sensor for TGF-ß1 detection are reported. The optimized biosensor is a potential tool for the early screening of oral cancer. A biomimetic surface has been obtained by electropolymerization of o-phenylenediamine (o-PD) on platinum electrodes, in the presence of TGF-ß1 as a template molecule. MIP synthesis, template removal and TGF-ß1 rebinding have been monitored by Differential Pulse Voltammetry (DPV). Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) has been performed to investigate and characterize the surface morphology and the influence of the washing step on MIP and NIP (non-imprinted polymer as the control) while the thickness of the polymer layer has been measured by Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM) analysis. The MIP sensor performance has been tested in both buffer solution and saliva samples with TGF-ß1, showing a linear response in the considered range (from 20 ng ml-1 down to 0.5 ng ml-1), an outstanding LOD of 0.09 ng mL-1 and affinity and selectivity to TGF-ß1 also in the presence of interfering molecules. The sensor was used also for the detection of target molecules in spiked saliva samples with good recovery results suggesting the possibility of the use of the proposed system for large scale fast screening in oral cancer diagnosis.
Subject(s)
Molecularly Imprinted Polymers , Mouth Neoplasms , Humans , Transforming Growth Factor beta1 , Mouth Neoplasms/diagnosis , Polymers , Liquid BiopsyABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Data on immunoresponse after SARS-CoV-2 vaccines for patients treated with exclusive radiotherapy (RT) are scarce. Since RT may affect the immune system, we conducted the MORA trial (Antibody response and cell-mediated immunity of MOderna mRNA-1273 vaccine in patients treated with RAdiotherapy). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data regarding humoral and cellular immune response of patients treated with RT were prospectively collected after the second and third dose of mRNA vaccines. RESULTS: Ninety-two patients were enrolled. With a median of 147 days after the second dose, the median SARS-CoV-2 IgG titer was 300 BAU/mL: six patients were seronegative (Spike IgG titer ≤ 40 BAU/mL), whereas 24, 46 and 16 were poor responders (Spike IgG titer:41-200 BAU/mL), responders (Spike IgG titer:201-800 BAU/mL) and ultraresponders (Spike IgG titer > 800 BAU/mL), respectively. Among seronegative patients, two patients were negative also for cell mediated response, as tested with IFN-γ release Assay (IGRA) test. With a median of 85 days after the third dose, the median SARS-CoV-2 IgG titer was 1632 BAU/mL in 81 patients: only two patients were seronegative, whereas 16 and 63 patients were responders and ultraresponders, respectively. Among the 2 persistently seronegative patients, IGRA test was negative in one who had previously received anti-CD20 therapy. Documented paucisymptomatic (n = 3) or asymptomatic (n = 4) infection occurred after the third dose, during the Omicron wave. CONCLUSION: In patients treated with exclusive RT, even during the Omicron breakthrough, robust humoral response and clinical protection from severe SARS-CoV-2 disease were achievable with three doses of mRNA vaccine.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Neoplasms , Humans , 2019-nCoV Vaccine mRNA-1273 , COVID-19 Vaccines/therapeutic use , COVID-19/prevention & control , SARS-CoV-2 , mRNA Vaccines , Neoplasms/radiotherapy , Antibodies, Viral , Immunoglobulin GABSTRACT
This work presents a novel methodology for the accurate and efficient elastic deformation reconstruction of thin-walled and stiffened structures from discrete strains. It builds on the inverse finite element method (iFEM), a variationally-based shape-sensing approach that reconstructs structural displacements by matching a set of analytical and experimental strains in a least-squares sense. As iFEM employs the finite element framework to discretize the structural domain and as the displacements and strains are approximated using element shape functions, the kind of element used influences the accuracy and efficiency of the iFEM analysis. This problem is addressed in the present work through a novel discretization scheme that combines beam and shell inverse elements to develop an iFEM model of the structure. Such a hybrid discretization paradigm paves the way for more accurate shape-sensing of geometrically complex structures using fewer sensor measurements and lower computational effort than traditional approaches. The hybrid iFEM is experimentally demonstrated in this work for the shape sensing of bending and torsional deformations of a composite stiffened wing panel instrumented with strain rosettes and fiber-optic sensors. The experimental results are accurate, robust, and computationally efficient, demonstrating the potential of this hybrid scheme for developing an efficient digital twin for online structural monitoring and control.
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Fiber Optic Technology , Finite Element AnalysisABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To demonstrate the feasibility of characterising MLCs and MLC models implemented in TPSs using a common set of dynamic beams. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A set of tests containing synchronous (SG) and asynchronous sweeping gaps (aSG) was distributed among twenty-five participating centres. Doses were measured with a Farmer-type ion chamber and computed in TPSs, which provided a dosimetric characterisation of the leaf tip, tongue-and-groove, and MLC transmission of each MLC, as well as an assessment of the MLC model in each TPS. Five MLC types and four TPSs were evaluated, covering the most frequent combinations used in radiotherapy departments. RESULTS: Measured differences within each MLC type were minimal, while large differences were found between MLC models implemented in clinical TPSs. This resulted in some concerning discrepancies, especially for the HD120 and Agility MLCs, for which differences between measured and calculated doses for some MLC-TPS combinations exceeded 10%. These large differences were particularly evident for small gap sizes (5 and 10 mm), as well as for larger gaps in the presence of tongue-and-groove effects. A much better agreement was found for the Millennium120 and Halcyon MLCs, differences being within ± 5% and ± 2.5%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The feasibility of using a common set of tests to assess MLC models in TPSs was demonstrated. Measurements within MLC types were very similar, but TPS dose calculations showed large variations. Standardisation of the MLC configuration in TPSs is necessary. The proposed procedure can be readily applied in radiotherapy departments and can be a valuable tool in IMRT and credentialing audits.
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Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated , Humans , Radiotherapy Dosage , Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted/methods , Phantoms, Imaging , Radiometry/methods , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated/methodsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: In this work we report our experience with the use of in vivo dosimetry (IVD) in the risk management of stereotactic lung treatments. METHODS: A commercial software based on the electronic portal imaging device (EPID) signal was used to reconstruct the actual planning target volume (PTV) dose of stereotactic lung treatments. The study was designed in two phases: i) in the observational phase, the IVD results of 41 consecutive patients were reviewed and out-of-tolerance cases were studied for root cause analysis; ii) in the active phase, the IVD results of 52 patients were analyzed and corrective actions were taken when needed. Moreover, proactive preventions were further introduced to reduce the risk of future failures. The error occurrence rate was analyzed to evaluate the effectiveness of proactive actions. RESULTS: A total of 330 fractions were analyzed. In the first phase, 13 errors were identified. In the active phase, 12 errors were detected, 5 of which needed corrective actions; in 4 patients the actions taken corrected the error. Several preventions and barriers were introduced to reduce the risk of future failures: the planning checklist was updated, the procedure for vacuum pillows was improved, and use of the respiratory compression belt was optimized. A decrease in the failure rate was observed, showing the effectiveness of procedural adjustment. CONCLUSION: The use of IVD allowed the quality of lung stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) treatments to be improved. Patient-specific and procedural corrective actions were successfully taken as part of risk management, leading to an overall improvement in the dosimetric accuracy.
Subject(s)
In Vivo Dosimetry , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated , Humans , Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated/methods , Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted/methods , In Vivo Dosimetry/methods , Radiotherapy Dosage , Lung , Radiometry/methods , Risk ManagementABSTRACT
Smart objects and home automation tools are becoming increasingly popular, and the number of smart devices that each dedicated application has to manage is increasing accordingly. The emergence of technologies such as serverless computing and dedicated machine-to-machine communication protocols represents a valuable opportunity to facilitate management of smart objects and replicability of new solutions. The aim of this paper is to propose a framework for home automation applications that can be applied to control and monitor any appliance or object in a smart home environment. The proposed framework makes use of a dedicated messages-exchange protocol based on MQTT and cloud-deployed serverless functions. Furthermore, a vocal command interface is implemented to let users control the smart object with vocal interactions, greatly increasing the accessibility and intuitiveness of the proposed solution. A smart object, namely a smart kitchen fan extractor system, was developed, prototyped, and tested to illustrate the viability of the proposed solution. The smart object is equipped with a narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) module to send and receive commands to and from the cloud. In order to evaluate the performance of the proposed solution, the suitability of NB-IoT for the transmission of MQTT messages was evaluated. The results show how NB-IoT has an acceptable latency performance despite some minimal packet loss.
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Autisms Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are characterized by core symptoms (social communication and restricted and repetitive behaviors) and related comorbidities, including sensory anomalies, feeding issues, and challenging behaviors. Children with ASD experience significantly more feeding problems than their peers. In fact, parents and clinicians have to manage daily the burden of various dysfunctional behaviors of children at mealtimes (food refusal, limited variety of food, single food intake, or liquid diet). These dysfunctional behaviors at mealtime depend on different factors that are either medical/sensorial or behavioral. Consequently, a correct assessment is necessary in order to program an effective clinical intervention. The aim of this study is to provide clinicians with a guideline regarding food selectivity concerning possible explanations of the phenomenon, along with a direct/indirect assessment gathering detailed and useful information about target feeding behaviors. Finally, a description of evidence-based sensorial and behavioral strategies useful also for parent-mediated intervention is reported addressing food selectivity in children with ASD.
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Autism Spectrum Disorder , Autistic Disorder , Feeding and Eating Disorders , Humans , Child , Food Preferences , Feeding Behavior , Autism Spectrum Disorder/diagnosis , Autism Spectrum Disorder/therapyABSTRACT
Heated tobacco products (HTP) have become increasingly common in many countries worldwide. The principle of heating tobacco, without combustion, to produce a nicotine-containing aerosol with remarkably reduced levels of other known toxins, compared to combusted tobacco cigarettes, is now well established. As these products are intended as alternatives to traditional combusted products, during the early stages of their development, it is important for manufacturers to ensure that the design of the product does not lead to any unintentionally increased or new risk for the consumer, compared to the traditional products that consumers seek to replace. There is limited guidance from tobacco product regulations concerning the requirements for performing such preliminary toxicological assessments. Here, we review the published literature on studies performed on HTPs in the pursuit of such data, outline a proposed approach that is consistent with regulatory requirements, and provide a logical approach to the preliminary toxicological assessment of HTPs.
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Chiral lattice modes are hybrid states arising from the chiral plasmonic particles assembled in ordered arrays with opportune periodicity. These resonances exhibit dependence on excitation handedness, and their observation in plasmonic lattices is strictly related to the chiroptical features of the fundamental plasmonic unit. Here, the emergence of chiral surface lattice resonances (c-SLRs) is shown in properly engineered arrays of nanohelices (NHs), fully three dimensional (3D) chiral nano-objects fabricated by focused ion beam processing. By tuning the relative weight of plasmonic and photonic components in the hybrid mode, the physical mechanism of strong diffractive coupling leading to the emergence of the lattice modes is analyzed, opening the way to the engineering of chiral plasmonic systems for sensing applications. In particular, a coupling regime is identified where the combination of a large intrinsic circular dichroism (CD) of the plasmonic resonance with a well-defined balance between the photonic quality factor (Q factor) and the plasmonic field enhancement (M) maximizes the capability of the system to discriminate refractive index (RI) changes in the surrounding medium. The results lay the foundation for exploiting CD in plasmonic lattices to high performance refractometric sensing.
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In this research work, we present a study on time-sequenced plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD) processes towards the achievement of high-quality α-MoO3 thin films which are suitable for exfoliation. In particular, a conventional precursor injection method along with a boosted precursor delivery approach are discussed and analysed. In the latter, the proposed gas supply mechanism ensures a large number of deposited Mo atoms per unit of time, which, along with a proper thermal energy, leads to high-quality and oriented orthorhombic α-MoO3 films. The proposed boosted approach is also compared with post growth annealing steps, resulting in more effective achievement of a highly oriented orthorhombic α-MoO3 phase and less time consumption.