Performance of low-cost monitors to assess household air pollution.

Exposure to household air pollution is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. However, due to the lack of validated low-cost monitors with long-lasting batteries in indoor environments, most epidemiologic studies use self-reported data or short-term household air pollution assessments as proxies of long-term exposure. We evaluated the performance of three low-cost monitors measuring fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and carbon monoxide (CO) in a wood-combustion experiment conducted in one household of Spain for 5 days (including the co-location of 2 units of HAPEX and 3 units of TZOA-R for PM2.5 and 3 units of EL-USB-CO for CO; a total of 40 unit-days). We used Spearman correlation (ρ) and Concordance Correlation Coefficient (CCC) to assess accuracy of low-cost monitors versus equivalent research-grade devices. We also conducted a field study in India for 1 week (including HAPEX in 3 households and EL-USB-CO in 4 households; a total of 49 unit-days). Correlation and agreement at 5-min were moderate-high for one unit of HAPEX (ρ = 0.73 / CCC = 0.59), for one unit of TZOA-R (ρ = 0.89 / CCC = 0.62) and for three units of EL-USB-CO (ρ = 0.82-0.89 / CCC = 0.66-0.91) in Spain, although the failure or malfunction rate among low-cost units was high in both settings (60% of unit-days in Spain and 43% in India). Low-cost monitors tested here are not yet ready to replace more established exposure assessment methods in long-term household air pollution epidemiologic studies. More field validation is needed to assess evolving sensors and monitors with application to health studies.

Private and public modes of bicycle commuting: a perspective on attitude and perception.

BACKGROUND: Public bicycle-sharing initiatives can act as health enhancement strategies among urban populations. The aim of the study was to determine which attitudes and perceptions of behavioural control toward cycling and a bicycle-sharing system distinguish commuters with a different adherence to bicycle commuting. METHODS: The recruitment process was conducted in 40 random points in Barcelona from 2011 to 2012. Subjects completed a telephone-based questionnaire including 27 attitude and perception statements. Based on their most common one-way commute trip and willingness to commute by bicycle, subjects were classified into Private Bicycle (PB), public bicycle or Bicing Bicycle (BB), Willing Non-bicycle (WN) and Non-willing Non-bicycle (NN) commuters. After reducing the survey statements through principal component analysis, a multinomial logistic regression model was obtained to evaluate associations between attitudinal and commuter sub-groups. RESULTS: We included 814 adults in the analysis [51.6% female, mean (SD): age 36.6 (10.3) years]. BB commuters were 2.0 times [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.1-3.7] less likely to perceive bicycle as a quick, flexible and enjoyable mode compared to PB. BB, WN and NN were 2.5 (95% CI = 1.46-4.24), 2.6 (95% CI = 1.53-4.41) and 2.3 times (95% CI = 1.30-4.10) more likely to perceive benefits of using public bicycles (bicycle maintenance and parking avoidance, low cost and no worries about theft and vandalism) than did PB. CONCLUSION: Willing non-bicycle and public-bicycle commuters had more favourable perception toward public-shared bicycles compared to private cyclists. Hence, public bicycles may be the impetus for those willing to start bicycle commuting, thereby increasing physical activity levels.

Joint analysis of BICEP2/keck array and Planck Data.

We report the results of a joint analysis of data from BICEP2/Keck Array and Planck. BICEP2 and Keck Array have observed the same approximately 400 deg^{2} patch of sky centered on RA 0 h, Dec. -57.5°. The combined maps reach a depth of 57 nK deg in Stokes Q and U in a band centered at 150 GHz. Planck has observed the full sky in polarization at seven frequencies from 30 to 353 GHz, but much less deeply in any given region (1.2 µK deg in Q and U at 143 GHz). We detect 150×353 cross-correlation in B modes at high significance. We fit the single- and cross-frequency power spectra at frequencies ≥150 GHz to a lensed-ΛCDM model that includes dust and a possible contribution from inflationary gravitational waves (as parametrized by the tensor-to-scalar ratio r), using a prior on the frequency spectral behavior of polarized dust emission from previous Planck analysis of other regions of the sky. We find strong evidence for dust and no statistically significant evidence for tensor modes. We probe various model variations and extensions, including adding a synchrotron component in combination with lower frequency data, and find that these make little difference to the r constraint. Finally, we present an alternative analysis which is similar to a map-based cleaning of the dust contribution, and show that this gives similar constraints. The final result is expressed as a likelihood curve for r, and yields an upper limit r_{0.05}<0.12 at 95% confidence. Marginalizing over dust and r, lensing B modes are detected at 7.0σ significance.

Resource utilization and direct costs of pediatric HIV in Italy.

This multicenter, prospective, observational study assessed the global economic impact of HIV care in a large cohort of HIV-infected children and adolescents in Italy. Three pediatric departments of reference participated on a voluntary basis. Centers were asked to enroll all their children during the period April 2010-March 2011. At enrollment, a pediatrician completed a questionnaire for each patient, including the type of service at access (outpatient consultation or day hospital), laboratory tests, instrumental examinations, specialists' consultations, antiretroviral therapy and opportunistic illness prophylaxis. Eligible patients had a confirmed diagnosis of HIV infection caused by direct vertical maternal-fetal transmission, their age ranging from 0 to 24 years. Since patients routinely have quarterly check-ups in all three centers, we adopted a three-month time horizon. Health-care services were priced using outpatient and inpatient tariffs. Drug costs were calculated by multiplying the daily dose by the public price for each active ingredient. A total of 142 patients were enrolled. More than half the patients were female and the mean age was 14 years, with no significant differences by center. There were substantial differences in health-care management among the three centers, particularly as regards the type of access. One center enrolled the majority of its patients in day-hospital and prescribed a large number of clinical tests, while children accessed another center almost exclusively through outpatient consultation. Drug therapy was the main cost component and was very similar in all three centers. The day-hospital was the second highest cost component, much higher than outpatient consultation (including examinations), leading to significant differences between total costs per center. These findings suggest that a recommendation to the Italian National Health Service would be to use more outpatient consultation for patients' access in order to increase their efficiency in treating pediatric HIV infection.

Near-field focusing with optical phase antennas.

We investigate the near-field focusing properties of three-dimensional phase antennas consisting of concentric rings designed to have source and image spots separated by several microns from the lens. Tight focal spots are obtained for silicon or gold rings patterned in a silica matrix. We analyze in detail the dependence of the performance of these lenses on geometrical parameters such as the number of rings, the ring thickness, and the focal distance. Subwavelength focal spots are found to form at distances of tens of wavelengths from the lens, thus suggesting applications to remote sensing and penlight microscopy and lithography.

[The morphine-scopolamine combination in chloroform anesthesia]. / Asociación de morfina-escopolamina a la anestesia clorofórmica.

After introduction of surgical anesthesia with general agents such as ether and chloroform, a large number of deaths due to anesthetic toxicity were reported. With the aim to reduce toxicity several types of mixtures were devised. One of the most important was the association of opioids and scopolamine. This technique was compiled in a thesis on the use of morphine and scopolamine during anesthesia with chloroform which was presented by Dr. José Blasco Reta at the University of Madrid the 27th of June of 1907. Claude Bernard was the first to use this technique. He was based on the assumption that a previous injection of 1 cg of morphine acetate will decrease both, the needs and the risk of chloroform since this procedure shortened the excitation period, decreased ether-induced bronchial congestion, and prolonged for several hours the analgesic effect in the postoperative phase. The first who applied this technique in Spain was Dr. Losada, and Dr. Emilio Ruiz observed the rapid action of the mixture. After 1900, Schneiderlein added scopolamine in order to decrease the excitation and to reduce vomiting secondary to the association morphine-chloroform. Scopolamine was administered in 2 or 3 injections. Jun our country Dr. Lozano Monzón and Dr. Recasens used this pharmacologic association and considered it of beneficial effects when applied during labour. In a total number of 4,240 anesthetic procedures using the same technique, Dr. Blasco Reta reported 24 deaths, among them the first that occurred to Mr. Víctor Escribano between 1902 and 1903. Mortality was considered to be 1/1,000 cases.

Does the light influence astaxanthin production in Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous?

Astaxanthin (C40H52O4) is an important natural pigment that has considerable promising applications in human health. Until now, many efforts were made aimed to develop economically sustainable bioprocesses alternative to the chemical synthesis, to satisfy the increasing demand of this ketocarotenoid from feed, food and cosmetic industries. The extraction of natural astaxanthin from the yeast Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous till now seems to be rather expensive if compared with chemically synthesized astaxanthin. In this article, astaxanthin production by Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous under two different conditions was studied: a first effort was made using a conventional reactor while a second using an enlightened one. This research was aimed also to optimise astaxanthin production by testing the influence of the light and of some nutrient sources. From fermentation tests, an astaxanthin yield ranging about 970 µg g(-1) was obtained after fed batch cultivation in the conventional reactor. In the enlightened reactor lower values, about 930 µg g(-1), were found.

Prevalencia de menores de 14 años expuestos al humo del tabaco en vehículos en la ciudad de Barcelona / Prevalence of children under the age of 14 years exposed to secondhand smoke in vehicles in the city of Barcelona

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Unilateral femoral deformity due to a focal fibrous tether.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the radiological features of the unilateral angular deformity of the distal end of the femur secondary to a focal fibrous tether. Only five cases of this entity have been reported in the literature. We report another two patients. Magnetic resonance study was performed on one of them, which has not been used in previous cases. Both cases are described with illustrations of the typical radiographic appearances supplemented by CT and MR imaging.

Altered expression of androgen-receptor isoforms in human colon-cancer tissues.

Many groups have examined of androgen the effects on normal and neoplastic colon tissues, but no clear picture has hitherto emerged. In particular, the presence and the function of the androgen receptor (AR) has only partially been investigated in the past. The present study reports analysis of expression of the AR gene as messenger RNA and as protein in surgical samples of neoplastic colon mucosa and of corresponding healthy surrounding tissue. Specific binding for DHT, demonstrating the presence of AR, was observed in almost all the samples (2 samples out of 12 were negative). No significant difference was observed between healthy and neoplastic mucosa, or between male and female patients. A further characterization of AR was performed with Western blot, using 2 different primary antibodies. Both AR isoforms, AR-B and AR-A, were detected in healthy mucosa, while only AR-A, resolving at 87 kDa, was observed in neoplastic mucosa. RT-PCR analysis revealed the transcript for AR in both healthy and neoplastic mucosa in 10 samples; no message was detectable in 2 samples (negative also for binding); 2 additional samples presented AR mRNA only in healthy colon mucosa, 2 others only in neoplastic mucosa. In addition, a variant AR messenger RNA, probabily derived from alternative splicing, was observed. We found that AR is expressed both in healthy and in neoplastic colon mucosa, either as mRNA or as protein. Neoplastic colon tissue shows a characteristic loss of expression of the AR-B isoform, while AR-A expression is maintained. These findings underscore the possible role of androgen and its receptor in colon carcinogenesis.