This study evaluated the effectiveness of different configurations for two building design elements, namely building permeability and setback, proposed for mitigating air pollutant exposure problems ...in isolated deep canyons by using an indirect exposure approach. The indirect approach predicted the exposures of three different population subgroups (i.e. pedestrians, shop vendors and residents) by multiplying the pollutant concentrations with the duration of exposure within a specific micro-environment. In this study, the pollutant concentrations for different configurations were predicted using a computational fluid dynamics model. The model was constructed based on the Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations with the standard k–ε turbulence model. Fifty-one canyon configurations with aspect ratios of 2, 4, 6 and different building permeability values (ratio of building spacing to the building façade length) or different types of building setback (recess of a high building from the road) were examined. The findings indicated that personal exposures of shop vendors were extremely high if they were present inside a canyon without any setback or separation between buildings and when the prevailing wind was perpendicular to the canyon axis. Building separation and building setbacks were effective in reducing personal air exposures in canyons with perpendicular wind, although their effectiveness varied with different configurations. Increasing the permeability value from 0 to 10% significantly lowered the personal exposures on the different population subgroups. Likewise, the personal exposures could also be reduced by the introduction of building setbacks despite their effects being strongly influenced by the aspect ratio of a canyon. Equivalent findings were observed if the reduction in the total development floor area (the total floor area permitted to be developed within a particular site area) was also considered. These findings were employed to formulate a hierarchy decision making model to guide the planning of deep canyons in high density urban cities.
•Indirect exposure approach was used to evaluate canyon air quality.•Certain building spacing and setback configurations could reduce personal exposures.•Building setbacks were the best option in lowering personal exposures.•Decision making hierarchy guides the canyon planning in high density urban cities.
Recent evidence suggests that endoscopic ultrasound-guided gallbladder drainage (EUS-GBD) is an effective and safe alternative to percutaneous drainage (PT-GBD). We conducted a systematic review and ...meta-analysis to compare these two procedures in high risk surgical patients with acute cholecystitis.
A comprehensive electronic literature search was conducted for all articles published up to October 2017 to identify comparative studies between EUS-GBD and PT-GBD. A meta-analysis was performed on outcomes including technical success, clinical success, post-procedure adverse events, length of hospital stay, unplanned hospital readmission, need for reintervention, recurrent cholecystitis, and disease- or treatment-related mortality for these two procedures.
Five comparative studies (206 patients in the EUS-GBD group vs. 289 patients in the PT-GBD group), were included in the final analysis. There were no statistically significant differences in technical success (odds ratio OR 0.43, 95 % confidence interval CI 0.12 to 1.58;
= 0.21;
= 0 %) and clinical success (OR 1.07, 95 %CI 0.36 to 3.16;
= 0.90;
= 44 %) between the two procedures. EUS-GBD had fewer adverse events than PT-GBD (OR 0.43, 95 %CI 0.18 to 1.00;
= 0.05;
= 66 %). Moreover, patients undergoing EUS-GBD had shorter hospital stays, with pooled standard mean difference of - 2.53 (95 %CI - 4.28 to - 0.78;
= 0.005;
= 98 %), and required significantly fewer reinterventions (OR 0.16, 95 %CI 0.04 to 0.042;
0.001;
= 32 %) resulting in significantly fewer unplanned readmissions (OR 0.16, 95 %CI 0.05 to 0.53;
= 0.003;
= 79 %).
EUS-GBD was associated with lower rates of post-procedure adverse events, shorter hospital stays, and fewer reinterventions and readmissions compared with PT-GBD in patients with acute cholecystitis who were unfit for surgery.
A dinuclear gold(I) pyrrolidinedithiocarbamato complex (1) with a bidentate carbene ligand has been constructed and shows potent in vitro cytotoxic activities towards cisplatin‐resistant ovarian ...cancer cells A2780cis. Its rigid scaffold enables a zinc(II)‐based metal–organic framework (Zn‐MOF) to be used as a carrier in facilitating the uptake and release of 1 in solutions. Instead of using a conventional dialysis approach for the drug‐release testing, in this study, a set of transwell assay‐based experiments have been designed and employed to examine the cytotoxic and antimigratory activities of 1@Zn‐MOF towards A2780cis.
Gold medicine: A dinuclear gold(I) pyrrolidinedithiocarbamato complex with a bidentate carbene ligand has been constructed and shows potent in vitro cytotoxic and antimigratory activities towards cisplatin‐resistant ovarian carcinoma A2780cis. Its rigid scaffold enables a zinc(II)‐based metal–organic framework (Zn‐MOF) to be used in facilitating its uptake and release in solutions.
We observed an unusual reversible aggregation process showing stimuli-responsive structural dynamics and optical changes attributed to the formation of a sandwich-like Au3–Ag–Au3 cluster, which can ...be synthesized through both solution and mechanochemical methods. Unlike many other heteronuclear gold–silver clusters, the affinity of two cyclic Au3 complexes and a AgI ion is solely bound by ligand unsupported Au–Ag bonding. The assembly/disassembly behavior, further forming nanoaggregates, is controllable by adjusting the concentration of the solution. In the solid state, the insertion of AgI ion can be implemented through a mechanochemical approach, accompanied by visual color changes and reversible luminochromism. Furthermore, an uncommon solid–liquid extraction is demonstrated, showing the uniqueness of this labile Au–Ag metallophilicity and hinting at the possibility of manipulating a bonding process through a heterogeneous route.
Background
Endoscopic submucosal tunneling has evolved to allow endoscopic resection of subepithelial tumors of gastrointestinal tract without full-thickness perforation. This study aimed to ...investigate safety and efficacy of submucosal tunnel resection for these tumors.
Method
Patients with subepithelial tumors (SET) located in esophagus, gastric cardia, lesser curvature, and antrum were recruited. The size of tumor was limited to < 40 mm. The procedures were performed under general anesthesia. A mucosal entrance was created 2 cm proximal to the SET after submucosal injection. Submucosal tunnel was then extended and the tumor was dissected and mobilized with intact overlying mucosa. After complete dissection, the tumors would be retrieved per orally and mucosal entrance closed by endoclips.
Results
From June 2012 to December 2016, 51 patients with subepithelial tumors received POET. 39 patients had SET in stomach, 11 located in esophagus, and 1 in duodenum. The mean operative time was 90.46 ± 46.49 min, while the mean size of the tumors was 20.71 ± 14.05 mm. The POET was converted to endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) in three patients with gastric subepithelial tumors located at greater curvature. The overall complication rate was 4.0%, and there was no bleeding, mucosal dehiscence, or leakage. The time to resume diet was 1.7 days, while the average hospital stay was 3.2 ± 1.0 days. The mean follow-up period was 19 ± 16 months, and only 1 patient developed recurrence of leiomyoma.
Conclusion
Per oral endoscopic tumor resection is safe and effective treatment for esophageal and gastric SET located at cardia, lesser curvature, and antrum. Currently, POET for treatment of upper GI SET is limited by the size and location of the tumor.
Objective
The incidence of childhood‐onset type 1 diabetes (T1D) has been reported to be rising but there is also evidence that it has been attenuated in recent years. We described the time trends ...and the incidence of T1D in children in Hong Kong from 2008 to 2017 and compared with the previous local registry in 1997 to 2007.
Methods
Data were extracted from the Hong Kong Childhood Diabetes Registry, which was established in 2016. It consists of a retrospective registry (including all childhood diabetes diagnosed in 2008 to 2015) and a prospective registry (including all T1D children diagnosed from 2016 onwards). All T1D children diagnosed at the age of less than 18 years from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2017 and managed in the public system were included in this study.
Results
For the incident years in the 2008 to 2017 period, a total of 498 children with T1D was identified. The crude incidence rate was 4.3 per 100 000 person/year (95% confidence interval 3.96‐4.72), which was much higher than the last registry of 2.2 per 100 000 persons/year. Using general linear model, the increment is statistically significant (P = .02). When compared to the last registry, the rate of increment had attenuated, with annual increment in crude incidence in the two periods for T1D <15 years changing from 4.3% to 3.5% (P = .02).
Conclusions
The incidence of T1D children increased significantly in the past two decades in Hong Kong, but the rate of increase had attenuated in recent years.
Artificial molecular architecture from a large number of subcomponents (>50) via self-assembly remains a formidable challenge for chemists. Reaction of 38 components 14 Ni2+ and 24 ...N-methyl-1-(4-imidazolyl)methanimine under solvothermal conditions reproducibly leads to the formation of a high-symmetry coordination cage. This polyhedral cage can also be obtained in high yield by self-assembly of 62 commercially available subcomponents (24 methylamine, 24 4-formylimidazole, and 14 Ni2+) under mild conditions involving synchronized formation of both dynamic covalent bonds and coordination bonds. Guest molecules (e.g., water, methylamine, and methanol) are randomly imprisoned in the cage.
Spermine, a member of polyamines, exists in all organisms and is essential for normal cell growth and function. It is highly expressed in the prostate compared with other organs and is detectable in ...urine, tissue, expressed prostatic secretions, and erythrocyte. A significant reduction of spermine level was observed in prostate cancer (PCa) tissue compared with benign prostate tissue, and the level of urinary spermine was also significantly lower in men with PCa. Decreased spermine level may be used as an indicator of malignant phenotype transformation from normal to malignant tissue in prostate. Studies targeting polyamines and key rate-limiting enzymes associated with spermine metabolism as a tool for PCa therapy and chemoprevention have been conducted with various polyamine biosynthesis inhibitors and polyamine analogues. The mechanism between spermine and PCa development are possibly related to the regulation of polyamine metabolism, cancer-driving pathways, oxidative stress, anticancer immunosurveillance, and apoptosis regulation. Although the specific mechanism of spermine in PCa development is still unclear, ongoing research in spermine metabolism and its association with PCa pathophysiology opens up new opportunities in the diagnostic and therapeutic roles of spermine in PCa management.
The paper discusses the implementation of Hong Kong's tailor-made sewage surveillance programme led by the Government, which has demonstrated how an efficient and well-organized sewage surveillance ...system can complement conventional epidemiological surveillance to facilitate the planning of intervention strategies and actions for combating COVID-19 pandemic in real-time. This included the setting up of a comprehensive sewerage network-based SARS-CoV-2 virus surveillance programme with 154 stationary sites covering 6 million people (or 80 % of the total population), and employing an intensive monitoring programme to take samples from each stationary site every 2 days. From 1 January to 22 May 2022, the daily confirmed case count started with 17 cases per day on 1 January to a maximum of 76,991 cases on 3 March and dropped to 237 cases on 22 May. During this period, a total of 270 “Restriction-Testing Declaration” (RTD) operations at high-risk residential areas were conducted based on the sewage virus testing results, where over 26,500 confirmed cases were detected with a majority being asymptomatic. In addition, Compulsory Testing Notices (CTN) were issued to residents, and the distribution of Rapid Antigen Test kits was adopted as alternatives to RTD operations in areas of moderate risk. These measures formulated a tiered and cost-effective approach to combat the disease in the local setting. Some ongoing and future enhancement efforts to improve efficacy are discussed from the perspective of wastewater-based epidemiology. Forecast models on case counts based on sewage virus testing results were also developed with R2 of 0.9669–0.9775, which estimated that up to 22 May 2022, around 2,000,000 people (~67 % higher than the total number of 1,200,000 reported to the health authority, due to various constraints or limitations) had potentially contracted the disease, which is believed to be reflecting the real situation occurring in a highly urbanized metropolis like Hong Kong.
Display omitted
•Hong Kong successfully applied Sewage Surveillance for real-time COVID-19 tracking.•The success came from the synergy among government, academic and private sectors.•Sewage data provided early warning with 2–4 days lead time to enhance preparedness.•Robust regression models were developed to estimate actual infection numbers.•City-scale sewage data informed planning of preventive measures to combat COVID-19.
PDF
