In this work, silsesquioxane and spherosilicate compounds were assessed as novel organosilicon coupling agents for surface modification of TiO2 in a green process, and compared with their conventional silane counterparts. The surface-treated TiO2 particles were then applied in preparation of epoxy (EP) composites and the aspects of pigment dispersion, suspension stability, hiding power, as well as the composite mechanical and thermal properties were discussed. The studied compounds loading was between 0.005-0.015% (50-150 ppm) in respect to the bulk composite mass and resulted in increase of suspension stability and hiding power by over an order of magnitude. It was found that these compounds may be an effective alternative for silane coupling agents, yet due to their low cost and simplicity of production and manipulation, silanes and siloxanes are still the most straight-forward options available. Nonetheless, the obtained findings might encourage tuning of silsesquioxane compounds structure and probably process itself if implementation of these novel organosilicon compounds as surface treatment agents is sought for special applications, e.g., high performance coating systems.

The Pride marches may have been postponed due to Covid-19 but as a profession we can still celebrate Pride, raise awareness of LGBT+ issues and promote equality To mark London Pride weekend, BVLGBT+ organised a virtual Pride 2020 with talks, performances and activities BVA President Daniella Dos Santos Zoomed in to join them and give BVAs support

New SARS-CoV-2 variant VUI 202012/01 started in the UK and currently spreading in Europe and Australia during the last few days. The new variant bears about nine mutations in the spike protein (69-70, 145, N501Y, A570D, D614G, P681H, T716I, S982A, and D1118H). The N501Y lies in the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike and interacts with the host-cell receptor ACE2 responsible for viral recognition and entry. We tried to simulate the system of ACE2-SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD in the wildtype and mutated isoform of the RBD (N501Y). Additionally, the GRP78 association with the ACE2-SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD is modeled at the presence of this mutant variant of the viral spike.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 has spread rapidly around the globe. However, despite its high pathogenicity and transmissibility, the severity of the associated disease, COVID-19, varies widely. While the prognosis is favorable in most patients, critical illness, manifested by respiratory distress, thromboembolism, shock, and multi-organ failure, has been reported in about 5% of cases. Several studies have associated poor COVID-19 outcomes with the exhaustion of natural killer cells and cytotoxic T cells, lymphopenia, and elevated serum levels of D-dimer. In this article, we propose a common pathophysiological denominator for these negative prognostic markers, endogenous, angiotensin II toxicity. We hypothesize that, like in avian influenza, the outlook of COVID-19 is negatively correlated with the intracellular accumulation of angiotensin II promoted by the viral blockade of its degrading enzyme receptors. In this model, upregulated angiotensin II causes premature vascular senescence, leading to dysfunctional coagulation, and immunity. We further hypothesize that angiotensin II blockers and immune checkpoint inhibitors may be salutary for COVID-19 patients with critical illness by reversing both the clotting and immune defects (Graphical Abstract).

Small linear motifs targeting protein interacting domains called PSD\95/Dlg/ZO\1 (PDZ) have been identified at the C terminus of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS\CoV\2) proteins E, 3a, and N. Using a high\throughput approach of affinity\profiling against the full human PDZome, we identified sixteen human PDZ binders of SARS\CoV\2 proteins E, 3A, and N showing significant interactions with dissociation constants values ranging from 3 to 82 m. Six of them (TJP1, PTPN13, HTRA1, PARD3, MLLT4, LNX2) are also recognized by SARS\CoV while three (NHERF1, MAST2, RADIL) are specific to SARS\CoV\2 E protein. Most of these SARS\CoV\2 protein partners are involved in cellular junctions/polarity and could be also linked to evasion mechanisms of the immune responses during viral infection. Among the binders of the SARS\CoV\2 proteins E, 3a, or N, seven significantly affect viral replication under knock down gene expression in infected cells. This PDZ profiling identifying human proteins potentially targeted by SARS\CoV\2 can help to understand the multifactorial severity of COVID19 and to conceive effective anti\coronaviral agents for therapeutic purposes.

This paper aims to address the issue of creating a brand and the strategy for the implementation in the digital environment. This investigation aims to understand the evolution of design and its adaptation to the digital era, making it possible to substantiate the importance and the contribution of digital design in the graphic design field. As a case study, we present the development of the graphic brand and respective communication on digital social media, for the International Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility. The presented work is part of the study that is being developed to obtain the masters degree in digital design, within the scope of the curricular internship at designlab4u.

A technology-focused review of respiratory gas analysis, with an emphasis on carbon dioxide analysis, is presented. The measurement technologies deployed commercially are highlighted, and the basic principles and technical concerns of infrared spectroscopy and mainstream versus sidestream gas sampling are discussed. The specifications of particular interest to the clinician, accuracy and response time, and the related standard, with typical values for a capnometer, are presented. Representative time and volumetric capnograms are shown with the clinically relevant parameters described. Aspects of the terminology in present-day use and the need for clarity in defining what is a breath and an end-tidal value are reviewed. The applications of capnography of particular interest to the anesthesiologist are noted, and key references are provided. Ongoing developments with respect to respiratory gas analysis, and those that will impact it, are noted.

This study carried out a bibliometric analysis to critically review the evolution of the agri-food supply chain (AFSC) research field over the period of 2008C2019 A set of 1236 articles was analyzed from the Web of Science database Besides using different analytical scientometric tools (topic mapping, co-citation, co-authorship and overlay visualization networks), this study identified frequently-used keywords, new and hot research topics and frequently-studied supply chain management (SCM) practices Frequently used keywords are food supply chain, food waste, sustainability, food safety, SCM, food industry, and food security New research themes include contract, blockchain, internet of things, resilience, and short food supply chain, a topic that demands further research especially due to the international COVID-19 pandemic and the need of farmers to be closer to the consumers Hot research topics, that is, subjects that have been studied in highly cited papers were also identified include life cycle assessment, environmental impact, packaging, water use, food waste prevention, food waste generation, blockchain and carbon footprint Among SCM practices, this study observed that risk and sustainable SCM are frequently used keywords Procurement and reverse logistics were observed in fewer studies SCM, food waste, food quality, GHG emissions and risk management are sustainable SCM practices frequently observed

In the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic, households throughout the world have to cope with negative shocks. Previous research has shown that negative shocks impair cognitive function and change risk, time and social preferences. In this study, we analyze the results of a longitudinal multi-country survey conducted in Italy (N = 1652), Spain (N = 1660) and the United Kingdom (N = 1578). We measure cognitive function using the Cognitive Reflection Test and preferences traits (risk, time and social preferences) using an experimentally validated set of questions to assess the differences between people exposed to a shock compared to the rest of the sample. We measure four possible types of shocks: labor market shock, health shock, occurrence of stressful events, and mental health shock. Additionally, we randomly assign participants to groups with either a recall of negative events (more specifically, a mild reinforcement of stress or of fear/anxiety), or to a control group (to recall neutral or joyful memories), in order to assess whether or not stress and negative emotions drive a change in preferences. Results show that people affected by shocks performed worse in terms of cognitive functioning, are more risk loving, and are more prone to punish others (negative reciprocity). Data do not support the hypotheses that the result is driven by stress or by negative emotions.

When the population risk factors and reporting systems are similar, the assessment of the case-fatality (or lethality) rate (ratio of cases to deaths) represents a perfect tool for analyzing, understanding and improving the overall efficiency of the health system. The objective of this article is to estimate the influence of the hospital care system on lethality in metropolitan France during the inception of the COVID-19 epidemic, by analyzing the spatial variability of the hospital case-fatality rate between French districts. The results show that the higher case-fatality rates observed in certain districts are mostly related to the level of morbidity in the district, therefore to the overwhelming of the healthcare systems during the acute phases of the epidemic. However, the magnitude of this increase of case-fatality rate represents less than 10 per cent of the average case-fatality rate and cannot explain the magnitude of the variations in case-fatality rate reported by country by international organizations or information sites. These differences can only be explained by the systems for reporting cases and deaths, which, indeed, vary greatly from country to country, and not attributed to the care or treatment of patients, even during hospital stress due to epidemic peaks.

BACKGROUND Medication persistence contributes real-world evidence about treatment effectiveness, tolerability and prescriber and patient acceptability. AIMS To evaluate persistence of biological agents in Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) and the effects of immunomodulator use and treatment lines. METHODS Retrospective national population-based data on treatment persistence for adalimumab, infliximab vedolizumab and ustekinumab for CD and UC were analysed from the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme using Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS There were 2499 patients included with 8219 person-years of follow-up. In CD patients ustekinumab had increased persistence compared to anti-TNF agents (HR: 1.79, 95%CI: 1.32-2.38, P < 0.01). Twelve-month CD persistence rates were ustekinumab 80.0%, vedolizumab 73.5%, infliximab 68.1% and adalimumab 64.2% (P = 0.01). In moderate-severe UC vedolizumab had increased persistence compared to anti-TNF agents (HR: 1.67, 95% CI: 1.27-2.18 P < 0.001). Twelve-month UC persistence rates were vedolizumab 73.4%, infliximab 61.1% and adalimumab 45.5% (P < 0.001). Immunomodulator co-therapy did not significantly increase persistence in non-anti-TNF therapy (P > 0.05). Thiopurines increased persistence of anti-TNF agents in CD (P < 0.001) and UC (P = 0.03). Methotrexate co-therapy increased persistence of anti-TNF agents in CD (P = 0.001) only. First-line therapy was superior to non-first line in persistence (P < 0.001). In fistulising CD, the persistence of infliximab and adalimumab was not significantly different (P = 0.11). CONCLUSION Persistence was highest in ustekinumab in CD and vedolizumab in UC. Factors which increased the persistence of biological agents are first-line therapy, and immunomodulator co-therapy in anti-TNF agent use.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Spain has been one of the countries more heavily stricken by SARS-CoV-2, which has had huge implications for stroke care. The aim was to analyse the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic outbreak on reperfusion therapies for acute ischaemic stroke in the northwest of Spain. METHODS: This was a Spanish multicentre retrospective observational study based on data from tertiary hospitals of the NORDICTUS network. All patients receiving reperfusion therapy for ischaemic stroke between 30 December 2019 and 3 May 2020 were recorded, and their baseline, clinical and radiological characteristics, extra- and intra-hospital times of action, Code Stroke activation pathway, COVID-19 status, reperfusion rate, and short-term outcome before and after the setting of the emergency state were analysed. RESULTS: A total of 796 patients received reperfusion therapies for ischaemic stroke. There was a decrease in the number of patients treated per week (46.5 patients per week vs. 39.0 patients per week, P = 0.043) and a delay in out-of-hospital (95.0 vs. 110.0 min, P = 0.001) and door-to-needle times (51.0 vs. 55.0, P = 0.038). Patients receiving endovascular therapy obtained less successful reperfusion rates (92.9% vs. 86.6%, P = 0.016). COVID-19 patients had more in-hospital mortality. CONCLUSION: A decrease in the number of patients benefiting from reperfusion therapies was found, with a delay in out-of-hospital and door-to-needle times and worse reperfusion rates in northwest Spain. COVID-19 patients had more in-hospital mortality.

Emerging adults, including post-secondary education students, are disproportionately affected by the social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The speed with which society moved in attempt to minimize the spread of the virus left many students with uncertainty and concern about their health, mental health, and academic futures. Considering that post-secondary students are a population at risk, it is important to determine how students respond in the face of the pandemic, and what coping mechanisms or supports will result in improved mental health outcomes. This knowledge will be helpful for post-secondary institutions to understand how COVID-19 has influenced the health and well-being of their students, and may facilitate the implementation of strategies to support their students. This narrative review explores evidence on how COVID-19 has impacted students with the overall goal to provide a set of recommendations to post-secondary institutions to help meet the evolving needs of this population.

This study set out to answer the question Which kinds of agency do refugees perform when dealing with mental health problems of themselves and their children?. Aiming to gain more insight in why it seems harder for refugee parents and minors than for the native population to talk to health professionals about their mental health and wellbeing, we combined two theoretical notions of agency to investigate a broad spectrum of informants behaviour. We conducted 25 interviews with 30 refugees from 8 countries (Syria, Yemen, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Eritrea, Turkish Kurdistan, Vietnam), whose Dutch residence permit varied from 26 years to less than one year. Data were analysed through open and axial coding, followed by pattern analyses. Although sometimes refugees seek (mental) healthcare, at other times they show agency by doing nothing or by deliberately using distracting activities to deal with severe stress. Making use of resources available to them, oftentimes refugees show agency in ways that are less visible to healthcare professionals, by surviving, showing resilience, and suffering. In these cases, we think healthcare for refugees should intervene in a non-medical way, e.g., by supporting them to obtain resources that help refugees to (re)gain agency.

The World Health Organization (WHO) classified the latest coronavirus (COVID-19) as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. As a result, the pandemic has spread to practically every country on the planet. WHOs major goals for 2021 are to fight COVID-19, strengthen current health systems, increase access to COVID-19 treatment, and provide equitable and safe vaccines for all. As the number of scientific publications continues to expand, there is an increasing need to analyze factors and characteristics that contribute to highly published documents and highly cited articles. This study evaluates and identifies trends and studies in COVID-19 vaccines using the SCOPUS database and VOSviewer. The top five active countries on COVID-19 vaccines publication are the United States with 4168 documents, China with 2245 documents, Italy with 1512 documents, the United Kingdom with 1370 documents, and Spain with 663 documents. Results of network visualizations indicate that understanding the state-of-the-art COVID-19 pandemic is essential in planning future measures to fight COVID-19 and improve vaccination uptake. ? 2022, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

What is the tenet upon which the public policy of lockdown by fiat experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic is based on? The work approaches this question about the rationale of the mandatory shelter-in-place policy as an interpersonal exchange of rights, but where the exchange occurs coercively instead of voluntarily. It compares, in positive political economy terms, the normative principles of utilitarianism and Rawlsianism, and shows that lockdown by fiat is a policy that is closer to a maximin equity criterion rather than to a utilitarian one. The work moreover shows, also with the aid of a thought experiment and with factual applications, that the fiat redistribution of rights to liberty in favor of rights to healthfrom those least affected to those most affected by COVID-19is, in the main, a policy choice that is to be expected under certain constraints.

Resumen Antecedentes y objetivo: El pasado 7 de enero de 2020 se identific un nuevo coronavirus, el SARS-CoV-2, responsable de una nueva enfermedad en el humano: la COVID-19. Dada su reciente aparicin, nuestro conocimiento actual sobre la posible influencia que esta enfermedad puede ejercer en el embarazo es muy limitado. Una de las incgnitas que hay que despejar es si existe transmisin vertical de la infeccin durante la gestacin. Pacientes y mtodos: Mediante tcnicas de reaccin en cadena de la polimerasa en tiempo real para cidos nucleicos del SARS-CoV-2 se investig la posible presencia de dicho germen en el flujo vaginal y el lquido amnitico de cuatro pacientes embarazadas de raza caucsica afectadas por cuadros agudos leves de COVID-19 durante el segundo trimestre de la gestacin. Resultados: No existen evidencias de laboratorio que sugieran un posible paso del SARS-CoV-2 desde la madre infectada al lquido amnitico. Conclusiones. Es preciso ampliar la investigacin de casos de COVID-19 diagnosticados durante la gestacin para poder aclarar la influencia real que el SARS-CoV-2 ejerce sobre las embarazadas y su descendencia, as como aquellos factores que modulan la enfermedad. Abstract Background and objective: On January 7th, 2020, a new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, was identified, as responsible for a new human disease: COVID-19. Given its recent appearance, our current knowledge about the possible influence that this disease can exert on pregnancy is very limited. One of the unknowns to be solved is whether there is a vertical transmission of the infection during pregnancy. Patients and methods: Using the Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction techniques for SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acids, the possible presence of this germ in vaginal discharge and amniotic fluid was investigated in four pregnant Caucasian patients affected by mild acute symptoms of COVID-19 during the second trimester of pregnancy. Results. There is no laboratory evidence to suggest a possible passage of SARS-CoV-2 from the infected mother to the amniotic fluid. Conclusions: It is necessary to expand the investigation of COVID-19 cases diagnosed during pregnancy to clarify the real influence that SARS-CoV-2 has on pregnant women and their offspring, as well as those factors that modulate the disease.

Post-translational protein modification is an important strategy for the regulation of the cell proteome independent of the need for new gene expression. Ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like modifiers mediate the regulation of protein levels, signaling pathways, vesicular trafficking, and many other cellular processes through their covalent conjugation to proteins. Interferon stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) is a type I interferon induced ubiquitin-like modifier. In addition to conjugating to potentially hundreds of target proteins, ISG15 can be found in an unconjugated form both inside of the cell and released from interferon stimulated cells into the extracellular environment. Due to its robust expression after type I interferon stimulation and the broad panel of proteins that it targets, ISG15 has drawn much attention as a potential regulator of the immune response and has been shown to mediate protection in a number of different viral infection models. Here we will review the current state of the field of ISG15, the viruses against which ISG15 mediates protection, and the mechanisms by which ISG15 exerts antiviral activity.

We describe 4 children (11C17 years in age) at our institution with acute appendicitis in the setting of SARS-CoV-2 infection, suggesting a possible association Providers should consider testing for this infection in patients with severe gastrointestinal symptoms, in order to take appropriate transmission based precautions, until more is understood

Air pollution has happened to be one of the mounting alarms to be concerned with in many Indian cities. COVID-19 epidemic endow with a unique opportunity to report the degree of air quality improvement due to the nationwide lockdown in 10 most polluted cities across the country. National Air Quality Index (NAQI) based on continuous monitoring records of seven criteria pollutants (i.e. common air pollutants with known health impacts e.g. PM10, PM2.5, CO, NO2, SO2, NH3 and O3) for a total of 59 stations across the cities, satellite image derived Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and few statistical tools are employed to derive the outcomes. NAQI results convey that 8 cities out of the 10 air quality restored to good to satisfactory category during the lockdown period. Within week+1 of the lockdown period, PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations have suppressed below the permissible limit in all cities. CO and NO2 have reduced to about -30% and -57% respectively during the lockdown period. Diurnal concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5 have dropped drastically on the very 4th day of lockdown and become consistent with minor hourly vacillation. In April 2020 the AOD amount was reduced to about 36% and 18% in contrast to April 2018 and April 2019 respectively. This add-on reporting of the possible recovery extent in air quality may help to guide alternative policy intervention in form of short term lockdown so as to testify whether this type of unconventional policy decisions may be put forward to attain a green environment. Because, despite numerous restoration plans, air pollution levels have risen unabated in these cities. However, detailed inventory needs to be focused on identifying the localized pollution hotspots (i.e. source contribution).