Toward the creation of an ontology for the coupling of atmospheric electricity with biological systems.

Atmospheric electric fields (AEFs) are produced by both natural processes and electrical infrastructure and are increasingly recognized to influence and interfere with various organisms and biological processes, including human well-being. Atmospheric electric fields, in particular electromagnetic fields (EMFs), currently attract a lot of scientific attention due to emerging technologies such as 5G and satellite internet. However, a broader retrospective analysis of available data for both natural and artificial AEFs and EMFs is hampered due to a lack of a semantic approach, preventing data sharing and advancing our understanding of its intrinsic links. Therefore, here we create an ontology (ENET_Ont) for existing (big) data on AEFs within the context of biological systems that is derived from different disciplines that are distributed over many databases. Establishing an environment for data sharing provided by the proposed ontology approach will increase the value of existing data and facilitate reusability for other communities, especially those focusing on public health, ecology, environmental health, biology, climatology as well as bioinformatics.

Malignant transformation of tailgut cysts is significantly higher than previously reported: systematic review of cases in the literature.

AIM: The best treatment for tailgut cysts has not been firmly established. We report a systematic review of the cases in the available literature in order to provide an evidence base for treatment. METHOD: A systematic search of articles wholly or partly in English was made of PubMed, Embase and Google Scholar; additional studies were discovered by searching reference lists and contacting authors directly. Search terms 'tailgut cyst', 'tail gut cyst', 'retrorectal hamartoma' and 'retrorectal tumour' were used for case reports or case series; no publication date restrictions were imposed. Only studies with histological confirmation of diagnosis and reporting the age and gender of patients were included. Papers were excluded by consensus between the first two authors. RESULTS: A total of 196 individual cases were analysed in detail including 51 cases of neoplasia. The overall rate of neoplastic transformation was 26.6%. Although the male:female cyst incidence ratio was 1:4, men over 18 had a significantly greater relative risk of neoplasm at 1.94 (P = 0.0055). Radiological evidence of nodular thickening of the cyst wall significantly increased the relative risk of the presence of cancer (P = 0.0023). CONCLUSIONS: Current orthodoxy that these are not dangerous embryological remnants is unfounded and may be false. The available data suggest the risk of malignant transformation is high and will apply to any residual tissue after excision. The same rationale behind total mesorectal excision in rectal cancer applies to tailgut cysts. Consequently they should be resected with similar oncological margins.

Detection of lower tropospheric responses to solar energetic particles at midlatitudes.

Solar energetic particles (SEPs) occasionally contribute additional atmospheric ionization beyond that arising from the usual galactic cosmic ray background. During an SEP event associated with a solar flare on April 11, 2013, the vertical ionization rate profile obtained using a balloon-borne detector showed enhanced ionization with a 26% increase at 20 km, over Reading, United Kingdom. Fluctuations in atmospheric electrical parameters were also detected at the surface, beneath the balloon's trajectory. As no coincident changes in geomagnetism occurred, the electrical fluctuations are very likely to be associated with increased ionization, as observed by the balloon measurements. The lack of response of surface neutron monitors during this event indicates that energetic particles that are not detected at the surface by neutron monitors can nevertheless enter and influence the atmosphere's weather-generating regions.

Follow-up after emergency laparotomy suggests high one- and five-year mortality with risk stratified by ASA.

INTRODUCTION: We investigated all-cause mortality following emergency laparotomy at 1 and 5 years. We aimed to establish a basis from which to advise patients and relatives on long-term mortality. METHODS: Local data from a historical audit of emergency laparotomies from 2010 to 2012 were combined with National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) data from 2017 to 2020. Covariates collected included deprivation status, preoperative blood work, baseline renal function, age, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade, operative time, anaesthetic time and gender. Associations between covariates and survival were determined using multivariate logistic regression and Kaplan-Meier analysis. We used patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy between 2015 and 2020 as controls. RESULTS: ASA grade was the best discriminator of long-term outcome following laparotomy (n=894) but was not a predictor of survival following cholecystectomy (n=1,834), with mortality being significantly greater in the laparotomy group. Following cholecystectomy, 95% confidence intervals for survival at 5 years were 98-99%. Following laparotomy these intervals were: ASA grade 1, 79-96%; ASA grade 2, 69-82%; ASA grade 3, 44-58%; ASA grade 4, 33-48%; and ASA grade 5, 4-51%. The majority of deaths occurred after 30 days. CONCLUSIONS: Emergency laparotomy is associated with a significantly increased risk of death in the following 5 years. The risk is strongly correlated to ASA grade. Thirty-day mortality estimation is not a good basis on which to advise patients and carers on long-term outcomes. ASA grade can be used to predict long-term outcomes and to guide patient counsel.

Note: A miniature oscillating microbalance for sampling ice and volcanic ash from a small airborne platform.

A lightweight and low power oscillating microbalance for in situ sampling of atmospheric ice and volcanic ash is described for airborne platforms. Using a freely exposed collecting wire fixed at only one end to a piezo transducer, the instrument collects airborne materials. Accumulated mass is determined from the change in natural frequency of the wire. The piezo transducer is used in a dual mode to both drive and detect the oscillation. Three independent frequency measurement techniques are implemented with an on-board microcontroller: a frequency sweep, a Fourier spectral method, and a phase-locked loop. These showed agreement to ±0.3 Hz for a 0.5 mm diameter collecting wire of 120 mm long, flown to 19 km altitude on a weather balloon. The instrument is well suited to disposable use with meteorological radiosondes, to provide high resolution vertical profiles of mass concentration.

On the detection and attribution of gravity waves generated by the 20 March 2015 solar eclipse.

Internal gravity waves are generated as adjustment radiation whenever a sudden change in forcing causes the atmosphere to depart from its large-scale balanced state. Such a forcing anomaly occurs during a solar eclipse, when the Moon's shadow cools part of the Earth's surface. The resulting atmospheric gravity waves are associated with pressure and temperature perturbations, which in principle are detectable both at the surface and aloft. In this study, surface pressure and temperature data from two UK sites at Reading and Lerwick are examined for eclipse-driven gravity wave perturbations during the 20 March 2015 solar eclipse over northwest Europe. Radiosonde wind data from the same two sites are also analysed using a moving parcel analysis method, to determine the periodicities of the waves aloft. On this occasion, the perturbations both at the surface and aloft are found not to be confidently attributable to eclipse-driven gravity waves. We conclude that the complex synoptic weather conditions over the UK at the time of this particular eclipse helped to mask any eclipse-driven gravity waves.This article is part of the themed issue 'Atmospheric effects of solar eclipses stimulated by the 2015 UK eclipse'.

Coordinated weather balloon solar radiation measurements during a solar eclipse.

Solar eclipses provide a rapidly changing solar radiation environment. These changes can be studied using simple photodiode sensors, if the radiation reaching the sensors is unaffected by cloud. Transporting the sensors aloft using standard meteorological instrument packages modified to carry extra sensors, provides one promising but hitherto unexploited possibility for making solar eclipse radiation measurements. For the 20 March 2015 solar eclipse, a coordinated campaign of balloon-carried solar radiation measurements was undertaken from Reading (51.44°N, 0.94°W), Lerwick (60.15°N, 1.13°W) and Reykjavik (64.13°N, 21.90°W), straddling the path of the eclipse. The balloons reached sufficient altitude at the eclipse time for eclipse-induced variations in solar radiation and solar limb darkening to be measured above cloud. Because the sensor platforms were free to swing, techniques have been evaluated to correct the measurements for their changing orientation. In the swing-averaged technique, the mean value across a set of swings was used to approximate the radiation falling on a horizontal surface; in the swing-maximum technique, the direct beam was estimated by assuming that the maximum solar radiation during a swing occurs when the photodiode sensing surface becomes normal to the direction of the solar beam. Both approaches, essentially independent, give values that agree with theoretical expectations for the eclipse-induced radiation changes.This article is part of the themed issue 'Atmospheric effects of solar eclipses stimulated by the 2015 UK eclipse'.

Thigh burns from exploding e-cigarette lithium ion batteries: First case series.

E-cigarette (EC) use has risen meteorically over the last decade. The majority of these devices are powered by re-chargeable lithium ion batteries, which can represent a fire hazard if damaged, over-heated, over-charged or stored inappropriately. There are currently no reports in the medical literature of lithium ion battery burns related to EC use and no guidance on the appropriate management of lithium ion battery associated injuries. We report two individual cases of burn resulting from explosion of EC re-chargeable lithium ion batteries. Both patients required in-patient surgical management. We provide evidence that lithium ion battery explosions can be associated with mixed thermal and alkali chemical burns, resulting from the significant discharge of thermal energy and the dispersal of corrosive lithium ion compounds. We would recommend, as with other elemental metal exposures, caution in exposing lithium ion battery burns to water irrigation. Early and thorough cleaning and debridement of such burns, to remove residual lithium contamination, may limit the risk of burn wound extension and potentially improve outcomes.

Alterations in polyamine catabolic enzymes in human breast cancer tissue.

High concentrations of acetyl polyamines have been observed in human breast cancer compared with the equivalent normal tissue, however, no explanation as to the reason for the increases has been proposed. In this study, we show that changes in the enzymes responsible for the breakdown of acetyl polyamines occur in breast cancer tissue. Spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase, the first and rate-limiting enzyme in polyamine catabolism, is increased in the tumor tissue whereas polyamine oxidase (PAO) is decreased. The changes in PAO correlate with prognostic factors, and activity decreases as the size and histological grade of tumors increase. The metabolism of polyamines by PAO generates locally high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide, a known inducer of apoptosis; thus, low PAO activity may contribute to the low level of apoptosis seen in tumor cells. Therefore, drugs that induce PAO activity may be a novel means of attacking tumor cells.

Using simulated patients in education about alcohol misuse.

It is important to educate medical students about alcohol misuse, but this process is hampered by negative attitudes and the unavailability of typical patients. However, simulated patients can describe full longitudinal histories in a characteristically defensive style and can provide direct feedback to student interviewers.

Death by suicide in Grampian 1991-1999: comparison with a previous study.

OBJECTIVES: To review the changes in suicide and undetermined death rates in Grampian between 1991-1999 and to make comparisons with a previous study on the same population. DESIGN: All suicide and undetermined deaths in Grampian recorded by the General Register Office for Scotland were included and linked with the psychiatric case records from Grampian Health Board. RESULTS: The high suicide and undetermined death rates in Grampian are accounted for by the excess of deaths in males. In males there has been a change in the method used to commit suicide with hanging now being the commonest method used. Firearm deaths have reduced dramatically since legislation was introduced in 1997 (RR = 021,95% CI [0.05,0.91). For those with previous psychiatric contact, a greater proportion were drug users than in 1974-1990 (OR = 3.75,95%CI [2.7, 5.2]). A higher percentage of suicides have a history of more than one previous attempt at suicide than in 1974-990. In Grampian there is a lower percentage of inpatient suicide than the rest of Scotland. CONCLUSION: There have been changes in suicide trends in Grampian and these are similar to elsewhere in Scotland Strategies to address this are discussed.

Note: Active optical detection of cloud from a balloon platform.

A disposable backscatter instrument is described for optical detection of cloud in the atmosphere from a balloon-carried platform. It uses an ultra-bright light emitting diode (LED) illumination source with a photodiode detector. Scattering of the LED light by cloud droplets generates a small optical signal which is separated from background light fluctuations using a lock-in technique. The signal to noise obtained permits cloud detection using the scattered LED light, even in daytime. The response is interpreted in terms of the equivalent visual range within the cloud. The device is lightweight (150 g) and low power (~30 mA), for use alongside a conventional meteorological radiosonde.

Note: A self-calibrating electrometer for atmospheric charge measurements from a balloon platform.

Charged aerosol particles and water droplets are abundant throughout the lower atmosphere, and may influence interactions between small cloud droplets. This note describes a small, disposable sensor for the measurement of charge in non-thunderstorm cloud, which is an improvement of an earlier sensor [K. A. Nicoll and R. G. Harrison, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 80, 014501 (2009)]. The sensor utilizes a self-calibrating current measurement method. It is designed for use on a free balloon platform alongside a standard meteorological radiosonde, measuring currents from 2 fA to 15 pA and is stable to within 5 fA over a temperature range of 5 °C to -60 °C. During a balloon flight with the charge sensor through a stratocumulus cloud, charge layers up to 40 pC m(-3) were detected on the cloud edges.

Note: atmospheric point discharge current measurements using a temperature-compensated logarithmic current amplifier.

Measurements of atmospheric corona currents have been made for over 100 years to indicate the atmospheric electric field. Corona currents vary substantially, in polarity and in magnitude. The instrument described here uses a sharp point sensor connected to a temperature compensated bi-polar logarithmic current amplifier. Calibrations over a range of currents from ±10 fA to ±3 µA and across ±20 °C show it has an excellent logarithmic response over six orders of magnitude from 1 pA to 1 µA in both polarities for the range of atmospheric temperatures likely to be encountered in the southern UK. Comparison with atmospheric electric field measurements during disturbed weather confirms that bipolar electric fields induce corona currents of corresponding sign, with magnitudes ~0.5 µA.

Note: Geiger tube coincidence counter for lower atmosphere radiosonde measurements.

Atmospheric profiles of cosmic rays and radioactivity can be obtained using adapted meteorological radiosondes, for which Geiger tubes remain widely used detectors. Simultaneous triggering of two tubes provides an indication of energetic events. As, however, only small volume detectors can be carried, the event rate is small, which, due to the rapid balloon ascent, cannot be circumvented using long averaging periods. To derive count rates at low altitudes, a microcontroller is used to determine the inter-event time. This yields estimates of the coincidence rate below 5 km, where the coincidence rate is too small to determine solely by event counting.

The frequency and distance of movements of pigs and semen between commercial and non-commercial piggeries in New Zealand.

AIMS: The study was conducted to identify movement patterns of disease conveyors in the New Zealand pig industry. The principal objective of the study was to identify data relating to the frequency and distance of movements of pigs and semen amongst pig holdings. A secondary objective of the study was to generate criteria suitable for categorisation of different pig breeding or raising operations. METHODS: Prospective data were collected by a census of all known pig holdings in New Zealand using a mailed-out questionnaire. RESULTS: The survey yielded 1,477 responses (114 commercial and 1,363 non-commercial pig holdings) for descriptive analysis. Seven farm-types were created to describe typical pig holdings and were based on pig herd inventory, herd type, and participation in the movement of pigs or semen: Commercial genetic supplier, commercial feeder, commercial weaner producer, para-commercial genetic supplier, para-commercial feeder, para-commercial weaner producer, and non-commercial herd. The farm-type with the highest frequency of movements off the piggery was the para-commercial genetic suppliers with a median of 5.3 movements off per month. Commercial feeders had the second highest off farm movement with a median of 4.6 movements per month; these primarily represented movements to an abattoir. The highest frequencies of movements on to a piggery were experienced by commercial genetic suppliers (3.5 per month) and were due to the delivery of semen or replacement gilt/boars. Para-commercial and non-commercial farm-types reported less frequent movement activities both onto and off the piggery compared to their commercial counterparts. Most movements of pigs and semen occurred over distances of less than 100 km. CONCLUSIONS: The study showed that New Zealand has a relatively small but widely dispersed commercial pig industry with a large number of non-commercial pig holdings and there was a substantial geographic overlap between these industry sectors. Knowledge of the frequency of movements of pigs and semen among different pig farm-types and the distance over which these movements occur helps to assess the likely connectivity between piggeries, abattoirs, and sale yards. However, the study also highlighted the knowledge deficiencies that result in the absence of mandatory livestock identification and tracking schemes. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: In an industry with substantially more non-commercial pig holdings than commercial pig-holdings, key issues such as biosecurity education, ensuring sufficient veterinary involvement in non-commercial sectors, and building robust systems to ensure border security will remain critical in the effort to keep the pig industry at its current level of high health.

Evidence for absence of equine arteritis virus in the horse population of New Zealand.

AIM: To summarise investigation and laboratory data collected between 2001 and 2011 to provide evidence that equine arteritis virus is not present in the horse population of New Zealand. METHODS: Analysis was carried out on results from laboratory tests carried out at the Ministry for Primary Industries Animal Health Laboratory (AHL) for equine arteritis virus from horses tested prior to being imported or exported, testing of stallions as part of the New Zealand equine viral arteritis (EVA) control scheme and testing as part of transboundary animal disease (TAD) investigations for exclusion of EVA. Horse breeds were categorised as Thoroughbred, Standardbred or other. RESULTS: A total of 7,157 EVA serological test records (from import and export testing, EVA control scheme testing and TAD investigations) were available for analysis between 2005 and 2011. For the three breed categories a seroprevalence of ≤1.6% at the 95% confidence level was determined for each category. Between 2001 and 2011, as part of the EVA control scheme, the EVA status of 465 stallions was determined to be negative. During 2005-2011 EVA was excluded from 84 TAD investigations. CONCLUSIONS: There was no evidence of equine arteritis virus being present in the general horse population outside of carrier stallions managed under the EVA control scheme. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Equine arteritis virus is absent from the general horse population of New Zealand.

Balloon-borne disposable radiometer for cloud detection.

A low cost, disposable instrument for measuring solar radiation during meteorological balloon flights through cloud layers is described. Using a photodiode detector and low thermal drift signal conditioning circuitry, the device showed less than 1% drift for temperatures varied from +20 °C to -35 °C. The angular response to radiation, which declined less rapidly than the cosine of the angle between the incident radiation and normal incidence, is used for cloud detection exploiting the motion of the platform. Oriented upwards, the natural motion imposed by the balloon allows cloud and clear air to be distinguished by the absence of radiation variability within cloud, where the diffuse radiation present is isotropic. The optical method employed by the solar radiation instrument has also been demonstrated to provide higher resolution measurements of cloud boundaries than relative humidity measurements alone.

Note: Programmable data acquisition system for research measurements from meteorological radiosondes.

A programmable data acquisition system to allow novel use of meteorological radiosondes for atmospheric science measurements is described. In its basic form it supports four analogue inputs at 16 bit resolution, and up to two further inputs at lower resolution, configurable instead for digital instruments. It also provides multiple instrument power supplies (+8 V, +16 V, +5 V, and -8 V) from the 9 V radiosonde battery. During a balloon flight encountering air temperatures from +17 °C to -66 °C, the worst case voltage drift in the 5 V unipolar digitisation circuitry was 20 mV. The system liberates a new range of low cost atmospheric research measurements, by utilising radiosondes routinely launched internationally for weather forecasting purposes. No additional receiving equipment is required. Comparisons between the specially instrumented and standard meteorological radiosondes show negligible effect of the additional instrumentation on the standard meteorological data.