Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is a heterogeneous condition that can severely impact quality of life. Consequently, rapid disease control is essential. First-line treatment of the symptoms of ...CSU is the licensed dose of second-generation H1 antihistamines. For second-line treatment, this dose may be increased by up to 4 times. In patients who fail to respond to higher doses of H1 antihistamines, omalizumab for up to 24 weeks is recommended to achieve disease control. After this 24-week period, the patient's response to omalizumab should be assessed in order to identify refractory patients. Optimal management of refractory patients has not been established. Therefore, the aim of the present consensus document, which was drafted by allergists and dermatologists with specific expertise in treating urticaria, was to define specific patient profiles based on differences in their response to omalizumab. We also developed a treatment algorithm based on the specific response profile. After a comprehensive literature review, a group meeting was held to discuss issues related to the therapeutic management of patients with CSU that had not been addressed in previous studies. The experts considered both the available evidence and their own clinical experience with omalizumab. We believe that implementation of the proposed algorithm will optimize management of CSU patients who are refractory to antihistamines, reduce disease-related costs, and improve quality of life.
Evidence for a new geomagnetic jerk in 2014 Torta, J. Miquel; Pavón-Carrasco, F. Javier; Marsal, Santiago ...
Geophysical research letters,
16 October 2015, Volume:
42, Issue:
19
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
The production of quasi‐definitive data at Ebre observatory has enabled us to detect a new geomagnetic jerk in early 2014. This has been confirmed by analyzing data at several observatories in the ...European‐African and Western Pacific‐Australian sectors in the classical fashion of looking for the characteristic V shape of the geomagnetic secular variation trend. A global model produced with the latest available satellite and observatory data supports these findings, giving a global perspective on both the jerk and a related secular acceleration pulse at the core‐mantle boundary. We conclude that the jerk was most visible in the Atlantic and European sectors.
Key Points
Direct observations indicate a new geomagnetic jerk at 2014
A global perspective is given by a new model which confirms the jerk
IGRF‐12 secular variation predictions might be poorer than expected
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The laser Megajoule (LMJ), developed by the French Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (CEA), will be a cornerstone of the French Simulation Program, which combines ...improvement of physics models, high performance numerical simulation, and experimental validation. The LMJ facility is under construction at CEA CESTA near Bordeaux and will provide the experimental capabilities to study High-Energy Density Physics (HEDP). One of its goals is to obtain ignition and burn of DT-filled capsules imploded, through indirect drive scheme, inside rugby-shape hohlraum. The PETAL project consists in the addition of one short-pulse (ps) ultra-high-power, high-energy beam (kJ) to the LMJ facility. PETAL will offer a combination of a very high intensity multi-petawatt beam, synchronized with the nanosecond beams of the LMJ. This combination will expand the LMJ experimental field on HEDP. This paper presents an update of LMJ & PETAL status, together with the development of the overall program including targets, plasma diagnostics and simulation tools.
The terms control and remission and other key terms used in chronic urticaria (CU) such as flare-up, relapse, exacerbation, and recurrence have not been fully defined in the literature. Disease ...monitoring and treatment goals in clinical practice are not well established. After a qualitative appraisal of available evidence, we aimed to find a consensus definition of control and remission, clarify key terminology, provide guidance on how to monitor the disease, and establish treatment goals in clinical practice. A modified Delphi consensus approach was used. Based on a literature review, a scientific committee provided 137 statements addressing controversial definitions and terms, available patient-reported outcomes (PROs), and recommendations on how to measure therapeutic objectives in CU. The questionnaire was evaluated by 138 expert allergists and dermatologists. A consensus was reached on 105 out of the 137 proposed items (76.6%). The experts agreed that complete control and remission of CU could be defined as the absence of signs or symptoms while on treatment and in the absence of treatment, respectively. Consensus was not reached on the definition of other key terms such as flare-up, exacerbation, and recurrence. The panel agreed that the objective of therapy in CU should be to achieve complete control. PROs that define the degree of control (complete, good, partial, or absence) were established. An algorithm for disease assessment is provided. In conclusion, this work offers consensus definitions and tools that may be useful in the management of patients with CU.
This study analyzes the influence of consumer‐perceived dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) from a sustainable development approach (i.e. economic, social, and environmental) on the ...dimensions of perceived value (i.e. utilitarian, emotional, and social value). The study also analyzes the moderating effect of perceived consumer effectiveness (PCE) in the value generation process around CSR. A theoretical model is estimated with data from 661 consumers of Inditex or Danone products, leading firms in the textile and dairy sectors, respectively. Results indicate that functional value is determined by economic and social dimensions of CSR. Emotional value can be enhanced through the three CSR dimensions but social dimension has the greatest influence. Finally, firms can only influence social value through social CSR initiatives because it is unaffected by environmental and economic dimensions. The moderating effect of PCE is confirmed by the influence of the social dimension of CSR on the three types of value and the influence of the economic dimension of CSR on consumer functional value.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
6.
The blocks with four irreducible characters Martínez, J. Miquel; Rizo, Noelia; Sanus, Lucia
Bulletin of the London Mathematical Society,
April 2023, 2023-04-00, Volume:
55, Issue:
2
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Suppose that B$B$ is a Brauer p$p$‐block of a finite group with defect group D$D$. If B$B$ exactly contains four ordinary irreducible characters, then we show that D$D$ has order four or five, ...assuming the Alperin–McKay conjecture holds for B$B$.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
As part of the international, multidisciplinary project Malina, downward particle fluxes were investigated by means of a drifting multi-sediment trap mooring deployed at three sites in the Canadian ...Beaufort Sea in late summer 2009. Mooring deployments lasted between 28 and 50 h and targeted the shelf-break and the slope along the Beaufort-Mackenzie continental margin, as well as the edge between the Mackenzie Shelf and the Amundsen Gulf. Besides analyses of C and N, the collected material was investigated for pigments, phyto- and microzooplankton, faecal pellets and swimmers. The measured fluxes were relatively low, in the range of 11–54 mg m−2 d−1 for the total mass, 1–15 mg C m−2 d−1 for organic carbon and 0.2–2.5 mg N m−2 d−1 for nitrogen. Comparison with a long-term trap data set from the same sampling area showed that the short-term measurements were at the lower end of the high variability characterizing a rather high flux regime during the study period. The sinking material consisted of aggregates and particles that were characterized by the presence of hetero- and autotrophic microzooplankters and diatoms and by the corresponding pigment signatures. Faecal pellets contribution to sinking carbon flux was important, especially at depths below 100 m, where they represented up to 25 % of the total carbon flux. The vertical distribution of different morphotypes of pellets showed a marked pattern with cylindrical faeces (produced by calanoid copepods) present mainly within the euphotic zone, whereas elliptical pellets (produced mainly by smaller copepods) were more abundant at mesopelagic depths. These features, together with the density of matter within the pellets, highlighted the role of the zooplankton community in the transformation of carbon issued from the primary production and the transition of that carbon from the productive surface zone to the Arctic Ocean's interior. Our data indicate that sinking carbon flux in this late summer period is primarily the result of a heterotrophic-driven ecosystem.
There is the need for robust alternatives to the widely used spherical harmonic analysis when measurements are restricted to a region, or when high spatial frequency fields with much less parameters ...are required. Spherical cap harmonic analysis (SCHA) is one of the preferred alternative regional modelling techniques over the last decades. This paper presents a comprehensive and systematic review of the SCHA literature, underlining the respective merits and weaknesses of the ways in which the technique has been used since it was proposed in the context of geomagnetic field modelling. It reflects the multidisciplinary use of this technique and examines the evidences presented mainly in Earth and planetary science journals. Some bibliometric parameters are provided to understand how the technique and the knowledge of its limitations have progressed and improved, and some avenues for future research are highlighted.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Simultaneous measurements of atmospheric deposition and of sinking particles at 200 and 1000 m depth, were performed in the Ligurian Sea (North-Western Mediterranean) between 2003 and 2007, along ...with phytoplanktonic activity derived from satellite images. Atmospheric deposition of Saharan dust particles was very irregular and confirmed the importance of sporadic high magnitude events over the annual average (11.4 g m−2 yr−1 for the 4 years). The average marine total mass flux was 31 g m−2 yr−1, the larger fraction being the lithogenic one (~37%). The marine total mass flux displayed a seasonal pattern with a maximum in winter, occurring before the onset of the spring bloom. The highest POC fluxes did not occur during the spring bloom nor could they be directly related to any noticeable increase in the surface phytoplanktonic biomass. Over the 4 years of the study, the strongest POC fluxes were concomitant with large increases of the lithogenic marine flux, which had originated from either recent Saharan fallout events (February 2004 and August 2005), from "old" Saharan dust "stored" in the upper water column layer (March 2003 and February 2005), or alternatively from lithogenic material originating from Ligurian riverine flooding (December 2003, Arno, Roya and Var rivers). Those associated export fluxes defined as "lithogenic events", are believed to result from a combination of forcing (winter mixing or Saharan events, in particular extreme ones), biological (zooplankton) activity, and also organic-mineral aggregation inducing a ballast effect. By fertilising the surface layer, mixed Saharan dust events were shown to be able to induce "lithogenic events" during the stratification period. These events would be more efficient in transferring POC to the deeper layers than the spring bloom itself. The extreme Saharan event of February 2004 exported ~45% of the total annual POC, compared to an average of ~25% for the bloom period. This emphasises the role played by these "lithogenic events", and in particular those that are induced by the more extreme Saharan events, in the carbon export efficiency in the North-western Mediterranean Sea.
Following the observed pattern of a new geomagnetic jerk every 3–4 years, certain predictions suggested that a new event should occur around 2020 after the one observed around 2017.5. In this work, ...we explore this scenario by analysing the secular variation of the East geomagnetic field component in both ground and satellite geomagnetic data. At ground, we use the available data from 2015 to 2021 in 10 observatories worldwide distributed. This analysis shows the occurrence of the mentioned jerk in mid-2017 at observatories located in the Pacific region, but also reveals a new jerk between mid-2019 and early 2020 with a clear global character.
Swarm
satellite data also corroborate these findings by means of the secular variation estimated using virtual observatories at 440 km altitude. In addition, a general view using the most recent CHAOS geomagnetic model confirms the global character of the 2020-jerk with V-shaped secular variation changes in meridional sectors covering the Eastern Pacific, America, Asia and the Indian Ocean; and Λ-shapes in Europe, Africa and Western Pacific. The radial geomagnetic field at the core–mantle boundary is investigated as the origin of the new jerk. Results show that the global-average secular acceleration of the radial field exhibits a new pulse at mid-2018, establishing the starting epoch of the 2020-jerk.
Highlights
Observatory and
Swarm
data reveal a new geomagnetic jerk around 2019–2020.
A very recent geomagnetic field model indicates the global character of the new jerk.
A new pulse at the CMB around mid-2018 seems to be the starting point of this jerk.
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