In recent years, the awareness of the seriousness of the damage caused by fugitive dust and the need to manage it have increased. In particular, construction sites comprise 84% of business places ...that have reported fugitive dust generation, and they are required to have inspection and management to prevent the occurrence of fugitive dust at construction sites. However, the number of complaints in the construction industry due to fugitive dust has increased. The reason for this increase is the fact that existing control measures are defined based on emission processes rather than construction work types, which makes it difficult to apply fugitive dust control measures to construction sites. Therefore, this research evaluated the effectiveness of fugitive dust control measures for construction sites in Korea through a Delphi study. This Delphi study was conducted in two rounds with 12 experts in an on-site panel, and the factors that were determined to be effective control measures were convergence, the content validity ratio (CVR), and stability. This study’s results will be utilized to direct the establishment of future guidelines for fugitive dust control measures based on types of construction work.
Background
Obesity increases the risk of colorectal adenoma and colorectal cancer. However, the obesity-related parameters that are best for assessing the risk of colorectal adenoma development ...remain unclear. We analyzed the parameters that may best describe the association between obesity and colorectal adenoma development.
Methods
In this retrospective cohort study, 3405 individuals underwent screening colonoscopy during routine health examinations. We measured body mass index; waist circumference; and metabolic parameters such as high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, glucose, triglyceride, and systolic blood pressure. We analyzed the risk of developing colorectal adenoma, relative to obesity-related parameters, over a mean interval of 5.8 years from baseline colonoscopy.
Results
In a multivariate analysis, waist circumference was the only obesity-related marker associated with an increased risk of metachronous colorectal adenoma. Men with waist circumferences ≥85 cm and women with waist circumference ≥82 cm had a 31% increased risk of metachronous colorectal adenoma compared to those with smaller waist circumferences odds ratio (OR) 1.31; 95% confidence interval (CI, 1.09–1.57). Other factors associated with metachronous colorectal adenoma were age (OR, 1.03; 95% CI 1.02–1.04), male sex (OR 1.49; 95% CI 1.17–1.88), alcohol consumption ≥3/week (OR 1.33; 95% CI 1.10–1.62), the number of adenoma at baseline (OR 1.21; 95% CI 1.10–1.33), and the presence of advanced adenoma at baseline (OR 1.60; 95% CI 1.24–2.06).
Conclusions
Our findings suggest that central obesity, represented by waist circumference, is a significant predictor of metachronous colorectal adenoma, independent of body mass index and other metabolic variables.
Topotactic phase transformation enables structural transition without losing the crystalline symmetry of the parental phase and provides an effective platform for elucidating the redox reaction and ...oxygen diffusion within transition metal oxides. In addition, it enables tuning of the emergent physical properties of complex oxides, through strong interaction between the lattice and electronic degrees of freedom. In this communication, the electronic structure evolution of SrFeOx epitaxial thin films is identified in real‐time, during the progress of reversible topotactic phase transformation. Using real‐time optical spectroscopy, the phase transition between the two structurally distinct phases (i.e., brownmillerite and perovskite) is quantitatively monitored, and a pressure–temperature phase diagram of the topotactic transformation is constructed for the first time. The transformation at relatively low temperatures is attributed to a markedly small difference in Gibbs free energy compared to the known similar class of materials to date. This study highlights the phase stability and reversibility of SrFeOx thin films, which is highly relevant for energy and environmental applications exploiting the redox reactions.
Topotactic phase transformation coupled with the metal–insulator transition in SrFeOx epitaxial thin films is studied using real‐time optical spectroscopy. The oxygen‐content‐dependent phase transition leads to a pressure–temperature phase diagram of the topotactic transformation. The transformation at relatively low temperatures is ascribed to a markedly small Gibbs' free energy difference between the two structurally distinctive phases.
An electronic medical record (EMR) database of a large unselected population who received screening colonoscopies may minimize sampling error and represent real-world estimates of risk for screening ...target lesions of advanced colorectal neoplasia (CRN). Our aim was to develop and validate a prediction model for assessing the probability of advanced CRN using a clinical data warehouse.
A total of 49,450 screenees underwent their first colonoscopy as part of a health check-up from 2002 to 2012 at Samsung Medical Center, and the dataset was constructed by means of natural language processing from the computerized EMR system. The screenees were randomized into training and validation sets. The prediction model was developed using logistic regression. The model performance was validated and compared with existing models using area under receiver operating curve (AUC) analysis.
In the training set, age, gender, smoking duration, drinking frequency, and aspirin use were identified as independent predictors for advanced CRN (adjusted P < .01). The developed model had good discrimination (AUC = 0.726) and was internally validated (AUC = 0.713). The high-risk group had a 3.7-fold increased risk of advanced CRN compared to the low-risk group (1.1% vs. 4.0%, P < .001). The discrimination performance of the present model for high-risk patients with advanced CRN was better than that of the Asia-Pacific Colorectal Screening score (AUC = 0.678, P < .001) and Schroy's CAN index (AUC = 0.672, P < .001).
The present 5-item risk model can be calculated readily using a simple questionnaire and can identify the low- and high-risk groups of advanced CRN at the first screening colonoscopy. This model may increase colorectal cancer risk awareness and assist healthcare providers in encouraging the high-risk group to undergo a colonoscopy.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Hypoxic‐ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a type of brain injury affecting approximately 1 million newborn babies per year worldwide, the only treatment for which is therapeutic hypothermia. ...Thrombin‐preconditioned mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) exert neuroprotective effects by enriching cargo contents and boosting exosome biogenesis, thus showing promise as a new therapeutic strategy for HIE. This study was conducted to evaluate the tissue distribution and potential toxicity of thrombin‐preconditioned human Wharton's jelly‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (th‐hWJMSCs) in animal models before the initiation of clinical trials. We investigated the biodistribution, tumorigenicity and general toxicity of th‐hWJMSCs. MSCs were administered the maximum feasible dose (1 × 105 cells/10 µL/head) once, or at lower doses into the cerebral ventricle. To support the clinical use of th‐hWJMSCs for treating brain injury, preclinical safety studies were conducted in newborn Sprague‐Dawley rats and BALB/c nude mice. In addition, growth parameters were evaluated to assess the impact of th‐hWJMSCs on the growth of newborn babies. Our results suggest that th‐hWJMSCs are non‐toxic and non‐tumorigenic in rodent models, survive for up to 7 days in the brain and hold potential for HIE therapy.
The small commercial stores opening in housing structures in Seoul have been soaring since the beginning of this century. While commercialization generally increases urban vitality and achieves land ...use mix, cafés and restaurants in low-rise residential areas may attract numerous passenger populations, with increased noise and crimes, in the residential area. The urban commercialization is so fast and prevalent that neither urban researchers nor policymakers can respond to it timely without a practical prediction tool. Focusing on cafés and restaurants, we propose an XGBoost machine learning model that can predict commercial store openings in urban residential areas and further play the role of an early warning system. Our findings highlight a large degree of difference in the predictor importance between the variables used in our machine learning model. The most important predictor relates to land price, indicating that economic motivation leads to the conversion of urban housing to small cafés and restaurants. The Mapo neighborhood is predicted to be the most prone to the commercialization of urban housing, therefore, its urgency to be prepared against expected commercialization deserves underscoring. Overall, our results show that the machine learning approach can be applied to predict changes in land uses and contribute to timely policy designs in rapidly changing urban context.
This paper was to address the shortcomings of current design practice to evaluate the stability of the shaft alignment for a 300,000 DWT Very Large Crude Oil Carrier. An enhanced approach using FE ...was applied to identify the influence of hull deformation on the alignment of the shafting system. The effectiveness of this method was demonstrated in comparison with Jack up technique. Analysis results showed that the hull deformation could be a key factor affecting the offset distortion of each bearing supporting the shaft line. Moreover, it was confirmed that the deformation pattern of cargo hold was opposite to the deformation of engine room structure when hull deformation occurred due to draught change of the case ship. As new research findings, they are believed to contribute significantly to the prevention of shaft damage associated with hull deformations, thereby improving the reliability of shaft alignment for similar types of vessels.
•Overviewing hull deformation and its trends of Very Large Crude Oil Carriers.•Identifying the opposite deformation pattern between the hull and the engine room.•Discussing the shortcomings of current practices of the propeller shaft alignment.•Providing an analytical solution to prevent shaft damages associated with the effect of hull deformation.•Providing practical insights for ship designers to improve the reliability of the shaft alignment.
Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are used in various fields but raise concerns regarding human health and environmental consequences. Among PFASs, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) ...and short-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (SC PFCAs) are detectable in skin-contact consumer products and have dermal absorption potential. Here, we investigated the effects of dermal exposure to PFOA and SC PFCAs using in vitro and in vivo models. Human skin equivalents were topically treated with 0.25 mM and 2.5 mM PFOA and SC PFCAs (perfluoropentanoic acid, PFPeA; perfluorohexanoic acid, PFHxA; and perfluoroheptanoic acid, PFHpA) for 6 days, and cell viability, interleukin (IL)-1α, oxidative stress markers (malondialdehyde, MDA; and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine, 8-OHdG), and histopathology were examined. MDA levels were significantly higher in the PFASs groups than in controls. Compared with SC PFCAs, 2.5 mM PFOA caused more IL-1α (
p
< 0.001) release, decreased skin thickness and microscopic abnormalities. To evaluate systemic effects, Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were dermally treated with 250 and 1000 mg/kg PFHpA for 2 weeks and clinical and anatomic pathology were assessed. At 1000 mg/kg, 83% of the rats died, with severe ulcerative dermatitis at the application site. Adverse PFHpA-treated systemic changes were observed in the kidney, liver and testes, and histopathologic lesions such as renal tubular necrosis, hepatocellular necrosis, and germ cell degeneration were seen at 250 and 1000 mg/kg. Our study suggests that SC PFCAs have fewer effects on the skin than PFOA, but SC PFCAs can have adverse effects on major organs with systemic exposure at high concentrations.
Tegoprazan, a new, fast, and strong potassium-competitive acid blocker, has been approved for the treatment of gastric acid-related diseases in Korea. However, real-world clinical data regarding this ...drug are scarce. We aimed to compare the
eradication rates of tegoprazan- and rabeprazole-based triple therapy.
We retrospectively reviewed data from patients who received first-line treatment for
infection using tegoprazan- or rabeprazole-based triple therapy for 2 weeks (50 mg tegoprazan or 20 mg rabeprazole+1,000 mg amoxicillin+500 mg clarithromycin twice daily). The primary endpoint was the eradication rate as determined by intention-to-treat analysis.
Of the 677 patients included in our study, 344 and 333 received tegoprazan-based and rabeprazole-based triple therapy, respectively. The eradication rate from intention-to-treat analysis was 76.7% (95% confidence interval CI, 72.1% to 81.0%) for tegoprazan-based triple therapy and 75.4% (95% CI, 70.5% to 79.8%) for rabeprazole-based triple therapy. There was no significant difference in the eradication rates between the two groups (p>0.999). Per-protocol analysis also revealed no significant difference between the eradication rates of the two groups (tegoprazan 83.4% 95% CI, 79.0% to 87.2% vs rabeprazole 83.5% 79.0% to 87.4%, p>0.999). Furthermore, there was no significant difference in adverse event rates between the two groups (tegoprazan, 27.6%; rabeprazole, 25.8%; p=0.604).
The eradication rate of tegoprazan-based triple therapy was similar to that of rabeprazole-based triple therapy. Further studies on the dose-escalation effect of tegoprazan for
eradication and the efficacy of tegoprazan in regimens other than conventional triple therapy are needed.
Abstract
Regulatory T cells (T
reg
) are CD4
+
T cells with immune-suppressive function, which is defined by Foxp3 expression. However, the molecular determinants defining the suppressive population ...of T cells have yet to be discovered. Here we report that the cell surface protein Lrig1 is enriched in suppressive T cells and controls their suppressive behaviors. Within CD4
+
T cells, T
reg
cells express the highest levels of Lrig1, and the expression level is further increasing with activation. The Lrig1
+
subpopulation from T helper (Th) 17 cells showed higher suppressive activity than the Lrig1
-
subpopulation. Lrig1-deficiency impairs the suppressive function of T
reg
cells, while Lrig1-deficient naïve T cells normally differentiate into other T cell subsets. Adoptive transfer of CD4
+
Lrig1
+
T cells alleviates autoimmune symptoms in colitis and lupus nephritis mouse models. A monoclonal anti-Lrig1 antibody significantly improves the symptoms of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. In conclusion, Lrig1 is an important regulator of suppressive T cell function and an exploitable target for treating autoimmune conditions.
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