Pathways from research to sustainable development: Insights from ten research projects in sustainability and resilience.

Drawing on collective experience from ten collaborative research projects focused on the Global South, we identify three major challenges that impede the translation of research on sustainability and resilience into better-informed choices by individuals and policy-makers that in turn can support transformation to a sustainable future. The three challenges comprise: (i) converting knowledge produced during research projects into successful knowledge application; (ii) scaling up knowledge in time when research projects are short-term and potential impacts are long-term; and (iii) scaling up knowledge across space, from local research sites to larger-scale or even global impact. Some potential pathways for funding agencies to overcome these challenges include providing targeted prolonged funding for dissemination and outreach, and facilitating collaboration and coordination across different sites, research teams, and partner organizations. By systematically documenting these challenges, we hope to pave the way for further innovations in the research cycle.

Feasibility and performance of cross-clone Raman calibration models in CHO cultivation.

Raman spectroscopy is widely used in monitoring and controlling cell cultivations for biopharmaceutical drug manufacturing. However, its implementation for culture monitoring in the cell line development stage has received little attention. Therefore, the impact of clonal differences, such as productivity and growth, on the prediction accuracy and transferability of Raman calibration models is not yet well described. Raman OPLS models were developed for predicting titer, glucose and lactate using eleven CHO clones from a single cell line. These clones exhibited diverse productivity and growth rates. The calibration models were evaluated for clone-related biases using clone-wise linear regression analysis on cross validated predictions. The results revealed that clonal differences did not affect the prediction of glucose and lactate, but titer models showed a significant clone-related bias, which remained even after applying variable selection methods. The bias was associated with clonal productivity and lead to increased prediction errors when titer models were transferred to cultivations with productivity levels outside the range of their training data. The findings demonstrate the feasibility of Raman-based monitoring of glucose and lactate in cell line development with high accuracy. However, accurate titer prediction requires careful consideration of clonal characteristics during model development.

Near-infrared hyperspectral image analysis for monitoring the cheese-ripening process.

Ripening is the most crucial process step in cheese manufacturing and constitutes multiple biochemical alterations that describe the final cheese quality and its perceived sensory attributes. The assessment of the cheese-ripening process is challenging and requires the effective analysis of a multitude of biochemical changes occurring during the process. This study monitored the biochemical and sensory attribute changes of paraffin wax-covered long-ripening hard cheeses (n = 79) during ripening by collecting samples at different stages of ripening. Near-infrared hyperspectral (NIR-HS) imaging, together with free amino acid, chemical composition, and sensory attributes, was studied to monitor the biochemical changes during the ripening process. Orthogonal projection-based multivariate calibration methods were used to characterize ripening-related and orthogonal components as well as the distribution map of chemical components. The results approve the NIR-HS imaging as a rapid tool for monitoring cheese maturity during ripening. Moreover, the pixelwise evaluation of images shows the homogeneity of cheese maturation at different stages of ripening. Among the chemical compositions, fat content and moisture are the most important variables correlating to NIR-HS images during the ripening process.

Flexible Organic Electronic Ion Pump Fabricated Using Inkjet Printing and Microfabrication for Precision In Vitro Delivery of Bupivacaine.

The organic electronic ion pump (OEIP) is an on-demand electrophoretic drug delivery device, that via electronic to ionic signal conversion enables drug delivery without additional pressure or volume changes. The fundamental component of OEIPs is their polyelectrolyte membranes which are shaped into ionic channels that conduct and deliver ionic drugs, with high spatiotemporal resolution. The patterning of these membranes is essential in OEIP devices and is typically achieved using laborious microprocessing techniques. Here, the development of an inkjet printable formulation of polyelectrolyte is reported, based on a custom anionically functionalized hyperbranched polyglycerol (i-AHPG). This polyelectrolyte ink greatly simplifies the fabrication process and is used in the production of free-standing OEIPs on flexible polyimide (PI) substrates. Both i-AHPG and the OEIP devices are characterized, exhibiting favorable iontronic characteristics of charge selectivity and the ability to transport aromatic compounds. Further, the applicability of these technologies is demonstrated by the transport and delivery of the pharmaceutical compound bupivacaine to dorsal root ganglion cells with high spatial precision and effective nerve blocking, highlighting the applicability of these technologies for biomedical scenarios.

Perinatal risk factors for mortality in very preterm infants-A nationwide, population-based discriminant analysis.

AIM: To assess the strength of associations between interrelated perinatal risk factors and mortality in very preterm infants. METHODS: Information on all live-born infants delivered in Sweden at 22-31 weeks of gestational age (GA) from 2011 to 2019 was gathered from the Swedish Neonatal Quality Register, excluding infants with major malformations or not resuscitated because of anticipated poor prognosis. Twenty-seven perinatal risk factors available at birth were exposures and in-hospital mortality outcome. Orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis was applied to assess proximity between individual risk factors and mortality, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to estimate discriminant ability. RESULTS: In total, 638 of 8,396 (7.6%) infants died. Thirteen risk factors discriminated reduced mortality; the most important were higher Apgar scores at 5 and 10 min, GA and birthweight. Restricting the analysis to preterm infants <28 weeks' GA (n = 2939, 16.9% mortality) added antenatal corticosteroid therapy as significantly associated with lower mortality. The area under the ROC curve (the C-statistic) using all risk factors was 0.86, as determined after both internal and external validation. CONCLUSION: Apgar scores, gestational age and birthweight show stronger associations with mortality in very preterm infants than several other perinatal risk factors available at birth.

High magnetoelectric coupling of Metglas and P(VDF-TrFE) laminates.

Magnetoelectric (magnetic/piezoelectric) heterostructures bring new functionalities to develop novel transducer devices such as (wireless) sensors or energy harvesters and thus have been attracting research interest in the last years. We have studied the magnetoelectric coupling between Metglas films (2826 MB) and poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) in a laminate structure. The metallic Metglas film itself served as bottom electrode and as top electrode we used an electrically conductive polymer, poly(3,4-ethylene-dioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS). Besides a direct electrical wiring via a graphite ink, a novel contactless readout method is presented using a capacitive coupling between the PEDOT:PSS layer and an electrode not in contact with the PEDOT:PSS layer. From the experimental result we determined a magnetoelectric coupling of 1445 V/(cm·Oe) at the magnetoelastic resonance of the structure, which is among the highest reported values for laminate structures of a magnetostrictive and a piezoelectric polymer layer. With the noncontact readout method, a magnetoelectric coupling of about 950 V/(cm·Oe) could be achieved, which surpasses previously reported values for the case of direct sample contacting. 2D laser Doppler vibrometer measurements in combination with FE simulations were applied to reveal the complex vibration pattern resulting in the strong resonant response.

Milking system and premilking routines have a strong effect on the microbial community in bulk tank milk.

In this study, we investigated the variation in the microbial community present in bulk tank milk samples and the potential effect of different farm management factors. Bulk tank milk samples were collected repeatedly over one year from 42 farms located in northern Sweden. Total and thermoresistant bacteria counts and 16S rRNA gene-based amplicon sequencing were used to characterize microbial community composition. The microbial community was in general heterogeneous both within and between different farms and the community composition in the bulk tank milk was commonly dominated by Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter, Streptococcus, unclassified Peptostreptococcaceae, and Staphylococcus. Principal component analysis including farm factor variables and microbial taxa data revealed that the microbial community in milk was affected by type of milking system. Milk from farms using an automatic (robot) milking system (AMS) and loose housing showed different microbial community composition compared with milk from tiestall farms. A discriminant analysis model revealed that this difference was dependent on several microbial taxa. Among farms using an automatic milking system, there were further differences in the microbial community composition depending on the brand of the milking robot used. On tiestall farms, routines for teat preparation and cleaning of the milking equipment affected the microbial community composition in milk. Total bacteria count (TBC) in milk differed between the farm types, and TBC were higher on AMS than tiestall farms (log 4.05 vs. log 3.79 TBC/mL for AMS and tiestalls, respectively). Among tiestall farms, milk from farms using a chemical agent in connection to teat preparation and a more frequent use of acid to clean the milking equipment had lower TBC in milk, than milk from farms using water for teat preparation and a less frequent use of acid to clean the milking equipment (log 3.68 vs. 4.02 TBC/mL). There were no significant differences in the number of thermoresistant bacteria between farm types. The evaluated factors explained only a small proportion of total variation in the microbiota data, however, despite this, the study highlights the effect of routines associated with teat preparation and cleaning of the milking equipment on raw milk microbiota, irrespective of type of milking system used.

Composition and properties of bovine milk: A study from dairy farms in northern Sweden; Part I. Effect of dairy farming system.

This study was part of a larger project that aimed to understand the causes for increasing variation in cheese ripening in a cheese-producing region in northern Sweden. The influence of different on-farm factors on raw milk composition and properties was investigated and is described in this paper, whereas the monthly variation in the milk quality traits during 1 yr is described in our companion paper. The dairy farming systems on a total of 42 dairy farms were characterized through a questionnaire and farm visits. Milk from farm tanks was sampled monthly over 1 yr and analyzed for quality attributes important for cheese making. On applying principal component analyses to evaluate the variation in on-farm factors, different types of farms were distinguished. Farms with loose housing and automatic milking system (AMS) or milking parlor had a higher number of lactating cows, and predominantly Swedish Holstein (SH) breed. Farms associated with tiestalls had a lower number of lactating cows and breeds other than SH. Applying principal component analyses to study the variation in composition and properties of tank milk samples from farms revealed a tendency for the formation of 2 clusters: milk from farms with AMS or a milking parlor, and milk from farms with tiestall milking. The interaction between the milking system, housing system, and breed probably contributed to this grouping. Other factors that were used in the characterization of the farming systems only showed a minor influence on raw milk quality. Despite the interaction, milk from tiestall farms with various cow breeds had higher concentrations (g/100 g of milk) of fat (4.74) and protein (3.63), and lower lactose concentrations (4.67) than milk from farms with predominantly SH cows and AMS (4.32, 3.47, and 4.74 g/100 g of milk, respectively) or a milking parlor (4.47, 3.54, and 4.79 g/100 g of milk, respectively). Higher somatic cell count (195 × 103/mL) and lower free fatty acid concentration (0.75 mmol/100 g of fat) were observed in milk from farms with AMS than in milk from tiestall systems (150 × 103/mL and 0.83 mmol/100 g of fat, respectively). Type of farm influenced milk gel strength, with milk from farms with predominantly SH cows showing the lowest gel strength (65.0 Pa), but not a longer rennet coagulation time. Effects of dairy farming system (e.g., dominant breed, milking system, housing, and herd size) on milk quality attributes indicate a need for further studies to evaluate the in-depth effects of farm-related factors on milk quality attributes.

Composition and properties of bovine milk: A study from dairy farms in northern Sweden; Part II. Effect of monthly variation.

This study investigated the influence of monthly variation on the composition and properties of raw farm milk collected as part of a full-scale cheese-making trial in a region in northern Sweden. In our companion paper, the contribution of on-farm factors to the variation in milk quality attributes is described. In total, 42 dairy farms were recruited for the study, and farm milk samples were collected monthly over 1 yr and characterized for quality attributes of importance for cheese making. Principal component analysis suggested that milk samples collected during the outdoor period (June-September) were different from milk samples collected during the indoor period. Despite the interaction with the milking system, the results showed that fat and protein concentrations were lower in milk collected during May through August, and lactose concentration was higher in milk collected during April through July than for the other months. Concentrations of free fatty acids were generally low, with the highest value (0.86 mmol/100 g of fat) observed in February and the lowest (0.70 mmol/100 g of fat) observed in June. Plasmin and plasminogen-derived activities varied with sampling month without a clear seasonal pattern. The pH of farm tank milk ranged from 6.60 to 6.82, with the lowest and highest values in September and February, respectively. The highest somatic cell count was observed in August (201 × 103 cells/mL) and the lowest in April (143 × 103 cells/mL). The highest value of gel strength, was recorded in December (88 Pa) and the lowest in July (64 Pa). Rennet coagulation time and gel strength were inversely correlated, with the lowest rennet coagulation time value observed in December. Orthogonal projections to latent structures (OPLS) and discriminant analysis adaptation of OPLS identified casein micelle size and total proteolysis as the milk quality attributes with major responses to sampling month, with smaller casein micelle size and higher total proteolysis associated with the outdoor months. Using discriminant analysis adaptation of OPLS to further investigate causes behind the variation in milk traits revealed that there were factors in addition to feeding on pasture that differed between outdoor and indoor months. Because fresh grass was seldom the primary feed in the region during the outdoor period, grazing was not considered the sole reason for the observed difference between outdoor and indoor periods in raw milk quality attributes.

Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in Communities Through Wastewater Surveillance-a Potential Approach for Estimation of Disease Burden.

The episodic outbreak of COVID-19 due to SARS-CoV-2 is severely affecting the economy, and the global count of infected patients is increasing. The actual number of patients had been underestimated due to limited facilities for testing as well as asymptomatic nature of the expression of COVID-19 on individual basis. Tragically, for emerging economies with high population density, the situation has been more complex due to insufficient testing facilities for diagnosis of the disease. However, the recent reports about persistent shedding of viral RNA of SARS-CoV-2 in the human feces have created a possibility to track the prevalence and trends of the disease in communities, known as wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). In this article, we highlight the current limitations and future prospects for WBE to manage pandemics.

Textile-Friendly Interconnection between Wearable Measurement Instrumentation and Sensorized Garments-Initial Performance Evaluation for Electrocardiogram Recordings.

The interconnection between hard electronics and soft textiles remains a noteworthy challenge in regard to the mass production of textile-electronic integrated products such as sensorized garments. The current solutions for this challenge usually have problems with size, flexibility, cost, or complexity of assembly. In this paper, we present a solution with a stretchable and conductive carbon nanotube (CNT)-based paste for screen printing on a textile substrate to produce interconnectors between electronic instrumentation and a sensorized garment. The prototype connectors were evaluated via electrocardiogram (ECG) recordings using a sensorized textile with integrated textile electrodes. The ECG recordings obtained using the connectors were evaluated for signal quality and heart rate detection performance in comparison to ECG recordings obtained with standard pre-gelled Ag/AgCl electrodes and direct cable connection to the ECG amplifier. The results suggest that the ECG recordings obtained with the CNT paste connector are of equivalent quality to those recorded using a silver paste connector or a direct cable and are suitable for the purpose of heart rate detection.

Ultrasound imaging of dorsal neck muscles with speckle tracking analyses - the relationship between muscle deformation and force.

The development of methods of non-invasive measurement of neck muscle function remains a priority in the clinical sciences. In this study, dorsal neck muscle deformation vs time curves (deformation area) were evaluated against incremental force, recorded from non-invasive real-time ultrasound measurement. The results revealed subject-specific moderate to strong linear or non-linear relationships between deformation and force. Test-retest variability showed strong reliability for all five neck muscles summed together and fair to good reliability for the five muscles evaluated separately. Multivariate statistics were used to analyse the interactions between the dorsal neck muscles during different percentages of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). Low force (10-20% MVC) was related to muscle shortening; higher force (40-80% MVC) showed combination of shortening and elongation deformation in the muscle interactions. The muscle interactions during isometric MVC test were subject-specific, with different combinations and deformations of the five neck muscles. Force ≥40% MVC were associated with a forward movement of the cervical spine that affected the ultrasound measurement of the dorsal neck muscles. Ultrasound with speckle-tracking analyses may be best used to detect low levels (<40% MVC) of neck muscle activity.

Joint and Unique Multiblock Analysis for Integration and Calibration Transfer of NIR Instruments.

In the present paper, we introduce an end-to-end workflow called joint and unique multiblock analysis (JUMBA), which allows multiple sources of data to be analyzed simultaneously to better understand how they complement each other. In near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy, calibration models between NIR spectra and responses are used to replace wet-chemistry methods, and the models tend to be instrument-specific. Calibration-transfer techniques are used for standardization of NIR-instrumentation, enabling the use of one model on several instruments. The current paper investigates both the similarities and differences among a variety of NIR instruments using JUMBA. We demonstrate JUMBA on both a previously unpublished data set in which five NIR instruments measured mushroom substrate and a publicly available data set measured on corn samples. We found that NIR spectra from different instrumentation largely shared the same underlying structures, an insight we took advantage of to perform calibration transfer. The proposed JUMBA transfer displayed excellent calibration-transfer performance across the two analyzed data sets and outperformed existing methods in terms of both prediction accuracy and stability. When applied to a multi-instrument environment, JUMBA transfer can integrate all instruments in the same model and will ensure higher consistency among them compared with existing calibration-transfer methods.

Neck-specific exercise improves impaired interactions between ventral neck muscles in chronic whiplash: A randomized controlled ultrasound study.

Chronic pain and disability is common in whiplash-associated disorders (WAD), leading to personal suffering, sick leave, and social cost. The cervical spine is heavily dependent on muscular support and whiplash injury can cause damage to the neck muscles, but diagnostic tools to measure neck muscle impairment and evaluate exercise interventions are lacking. Therefore, the present study investigated ventral neck muscle interactions in 26 individuals with chronic WAD randomized to neck-specific exercise (NSE) or remaining on a waiting list (WL) in 3 months. We performed real-time, non-invasive ultrasound measurements with speckle tracking analysis and calculated the deformation area and deformation rate in three ventral neck muscles. Multivariate statistics were used to analyse interactions between the muscles. After 3 months of NSE, significant improvements were observed in neck muscle interactions and pain intensity in the NSE group compared to the WL group. Thus, this study demonstrates that non-invasive ultrasound can be a diagnostic tool for muscle impairment and used to evaluate exercise interventions in WAD and stands to make a breakthrough for better management in chronic WAD.

Experiences of older people dying in nursing homes: a narrative systematic review of qualitative studies.

OBJECTIVES: To identify and synthesise qualitative research from 2001 investigating older people's (65+ years) experiences of dying in nursing and care homes. METHODS AND OUTCOMES: Eight electronic databases (AMED, ASSIA, CINAHL Plus, Embase, HMIC, Medline, PsychINFO and Scopus) from 2001 to July 2017 were searched. Studies were included if they were qualitative, primary research and described the experiences of dying in nursing or care homes from the perspectives of the older people themselves, their families or staff. Study quality assessment was undertaken to systematically assess methodological quality, but no studies were excluded as a result. RESULTS: 1305 articles were identified. Nine met the inclusion criteria. North American studies dominated. Most used a mixture of observations and interviews. All the included studies highlighted the physical discomfort of dying, with many older people experiencing potentially avoidable symptoms if care were to be improved. Negative psychosocial experiences such as loneliness and depression were also often described in addition to limited support with spiritual needs. CONCLUSIONS: More qualitative research giving a holistic understanding of older people's experiences of dying in residential care homes is needed. Undertaking research on this topic is challenging and requires great sensitivity, but the dearth of qualitative research from the perspectives of those most closely involved in older people's deaths hampers service improvement.

Association between pathology and texture features of multi parametric MRI of the prostate.

The role of multi-parametric (mp)MRI in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer has increased considerably. An alternative to visual inspection of mpMRI is the evaluation using histogram-based (first order statistics) parameters and textural features (second order statistics). The aims of the present work were to investigate the relationship between benign and malignant sub-volumes of the prostate and textures obtained from mpMR images. The performance of tumor prediction was investigated based on the combination of histogram-based and textural parameters. Subsequently, the relative importance of mpMR images was assessed and the benefit of additional imaging analyzed. Finally, sub-structures based on the PI-RADS classification were investigated as potential regions to automatically detect maligned lesions. Twenty-five patients who received mpMRI prior to radical prostatectomy were included in the study. The imaging protocol included T2, DWI, and DCE. Delineation of tumor regions was performed based on pathological information. First and second order statistics were derived from each structure and for all image modalities. The resulting data were processed with multivariate analysis, using PCA (principal component analysis) and OPLS-DA (orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis) for separation of malignant and healthy tissue. PCA showed a clear difference between tumor and healthy regions in the peripheral zone for all investigated images. The predictive ability of the OPLS-DA models increased for all image modalities when first and second order statistics were combined. The predictive value reached a plateau after adding ADC and T2, and did not increase further with the addition of other image information. The present study indicates a distinct difference in the signatures between malign and benign prostate tissue. This is an absolute prerequisite for automatic tumor segmentation, but only the first step in that direction. For the specific identified signature, DCE did not add complementary information to T2 and ADC maps.

Syndromes of orthostatic intolerance and syncope in young adults.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical and neuroendocrine characteristics of syndromes of orthostatic intolerance and syncope in young adults. METHODS: Two hundred and thirty-six patients aged 18-40 years with orthostatic intolerance and/or syncope were examined by head-up tilt test (HUT). Plasma levels of epinephrine, norepinephrine, renin, C-terminal-pro-arginine-vasopressin (CT-proAVP), C-terminal-endothelin-1 and mid-regional-fragment of pro-atrial-natriuretic-peptide (MR-proANP) were analysed. Patients' history, haemodynamic parameters and plasma biomarkers were related to main diagnoses such as vasovagal syncope (VVS), postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS), orthostatic hypotension (OH) and negative HUT. RESULTS: No self-reported symptom of orthostatic intolerance was highly specific for any diagnosis. Patients with VVS (n=103) were more likely to be men (p=0.011) and had lower resting heart rate (HR; 66±11) compared with POTS (73±11; n=72; p=0.001) and negative HUT (74±11; n=39; p=0.001). Patients with POTS demonstrated greater rise in norepinephrine (p=0.008) and CT-proAVP (p=0.033) on standing compared with negative HUT, and lower resting MR-proANP compared with VVS (p=0.04) and OH (p=0.03). Patients with OH had lower resting renin (p=0.03). Subjects with a resting HR <70 and MR-proANP >45 pm/L had an OR of 3.99 (95 % CI 1.68 to 9.52; p=0.002) for VVS compared with subjects without any of these criteria; if male sex was added the OR was 21.8 (95% CI 3.99 to 119; p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Syndromes of orthostatic intolerance and syncope share many characteristics in younger persons. However, patients with VVS are more likely to be men, have lower HR and higher MR-proANP at rest compared with POTS, which might be taken into account at an early stage of evaluation.

Haralick texture features from apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) MRI images depend on imaging and pre-processing parameters.

In recent years, texture analysis of medical images has become increasingly popular in studies investigating diagnosis, classification and treatment response assessment of cancerous disease. Despite numerous applications in oncology and medical imaging in general, there is no consensus regarding texture analysis workflow, or reporting of parameter settings crucial for replication of results. The aim of this study was to assess how sensitive Haralick texture features of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) MR images are to changes in five parameters related to image acquisition and pre-processing: noise, resolution, how the ADC map is constructed, the choice of quantization method, and the number of gray levels in the quantized image. We found that noise, resolution, choice of quantization method and the number of gray levels in the quantized images had a significant influence on most texture features, and that the effect size varied between different features. Different methods for constructing the ADC maps did not have an impact on any texture feature. Based on our results, we recommend using images with similar resolutions and noise levels, using one quantization method, and the same number of gray levels in all quantized images, to make meaningful comparisons of texture feature results between different subjects.