Mirror image artifact mimicking heterotopic pregnancy on transvaginal ultrasound: case series

Vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy is a common emergency department complaint. Point-of-care ultrasound is a useful tool to evaluate for intrauterine ectopic pregnancy. Emergency physicians performing these studies need to be cognizant of artifacts produced by ultrasound technology, as they can lead to misdiagnosis. We present two cases where mirror-image artifacts initially led to a concern for heterotopic pregnancies but were excluded on further imaging

An unexpected groin mass: Infant ovarian herniation

Point-of-care ultrasound provides a safe, rapid, effective, and accurate tool for  evaluating congenital groin masses in infants. We present a 4-week-old infant who presented to the emergency department with bilateral inguinal masses. Point-of-care ultrasonography discovered bilateral hernias with an ovary herniated through a patent processus vaginalis into the labium majora on the right side. The ovarian herniation reduced in the emergency department and the patient was discharged from the  emergency department after arranging close follow-up with a pediatric surgeon for a prompt repair. Its use should be employed early, as delayed discovery of ovarian herniation can lead to subsequent infertility.Keywords: hernia, ovary, pediatric, ultrasoun

Molecular Coancestry and Classical Genetic Distances Depict Different Patterns of Relationship Among Sheep Breeds from Southern Italy

Several molecular-based parameters, such as similarity indexes, can be adopted to optimize the management of genetic diversity in conservation programmes. From simulated data, Oliehoek et al. (2006) showed that molecular coancestry (Toro et al., 2002) is, among the possible relatedness estimators, the one that performs better in structured populations, such as populations in need of conservation usually are. Several studies have, therefore, proposed the use of molecular coancestry coefficients as a measure of genetic variability and as a useful tool for conservation of endangered breeds (Ciampolini et al., 2007; Glowatzki-Mullis et al., 2009). Here we report the results obtained evaluating within- and between-breed molecular coancestry (Toro et al., 2002), together with other classical genetic parameters, for two insular sheep breeds (Sarda from Sardinia and Comisana from Sicily), recently spread almost all over Italy, and for five local rare sheep breeds from Southern Italy

Sea-level rise will drive divergent sediment transport patterns on fore reefs and reef flats, potentially causing erosion on Atoll Islands

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2020. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface 125 (2020): e2019JF005446, doi: 10.1029/2019JF005446.Atoll reef islands primarily consist of unconsolidated sediment, and their ocean‐facing shorelines are maintained by sediment produced and transported across their reefs. Changes in incident waves can alter cross‐shore sediment exchange and, thus, affect the sediment budget and morphology of atoll reef islands. Here we investigate the influence of sea level rise and projected wave climate change on wave characteristics and cross‐shore sediment transport across an atoll reef at Kwajalein Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Using a phase‐resolving model, we quantify the influence on sediment transport of quantities not well captured by wave‐averaged models, namely, wave asymmetry and skewness and flow acceleration. Model results suggest that for current reef geometry, sea level, and wave climate, potential bedload transport is directed onshore, decreases from the fore reef to the beach, and is sensitive to the influence of flow acceleration. We find that a projected 12% decrease in annual wave energy by 2100 CE has negligible influence on reef flat hydrodynamics. However, 0.5–2.0 m of sea level rise increases wave heights, skewness, and shear stress on the reef flat and decreases wave skewness and shear stress on the fore reef. These hydrodynamic changes decrease potential sediment inputs onshore from the fore reef where coral production is greatest but increase potential cross‐reef sediment transport from the outer reef flat to the beach. Assuming sediment production on the fore reef remains constant or decreases due to increasing ocean temperatures and acidification, these processes have the potential to decrease net sediment delivery to atoll islands, causing erosion.This study was supported by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program through awards SERDP: RC‐2334, and RC‐2336. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.2021-03-2

Polysorbate 80 Inhibition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm Formation and Its Cleavage by the Secreted Lipase LipA

Surface-associated bacterial communities known as biofilms are an important source of nosocomial infections. Microorganisms such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa can colonize the abiotic surfaces of medical implants, leading to chronic infections that are difficult to eradicate. Our study demonstrates that polysorbate 80 (PS80), a surfactant commonly added to food and medicines, is able to inhibit biofilm formation by P. aeruginosa on a variety of surfaces, including contact lenses

Cyclic and Torsional Fatigue Resistance of Seven Rotary Systems

Introduction: This study aims to evaluate the cyclic and torsional fatigue resistance of seven rotary systems. Methods and Materials: A total of 140 instruments were tested, 20 of each system including Genius (GN) 25/0.04, TruShape (TS) 25/0.06, Logic (LOG) 25/0.06 taper, Vortex Blue (VB) 25/0.06, ProTaper Gold (PTG) 25/0.08, Hyflex CM (HCM) 25/0.06 and Hyflex EDM (EDM) 25/0.08 taper. Cyclic fatigue resistance testing was performed using an artificial stainless steel canal with a curvature (60° angle and 5-mm radius) located at 5 mm from the tip. The files (n=10) rotated until fracture, and time was recorded in seconds. The torsional test was evaluated according to ISO 3630-1. Data were analysed with one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s tests (α=5%). The fractured surface of the instruments were assessed using scanning electron microscopy to confirm the type of fracture. Results: The cyclic fatigue resistance value of EDM was significantly higher than those of all tested instruments (P<0.05). LOG showed a higher cyclic fatigue resistance than GN or TS (P<0.05). There was no difference among the other groups (P>0.05). The torsional test showed that PTG 25/0.08 had the highest torsional strength value of all instruments tested followed by VB and EDM (P<0.05). The LOG showed significant difference only with GN (P<0.05). No difference was found among the other groups (P>0.05). In relation to angular deflection, the GN; TS; HCM, and EDM showed significantly higher values until fracture than the other groups (P<0.05). No difference was found among PTG, LOG, and VB (P>0.05). Conclusion: Our in vitro study EDM group had the highest cyclic fatigue resistance among all the tested instruments. For the torsional test, the PTG showed highest torsional strength and lowest angular deflection values

Supporting researchers conducting qualitative research into sensitive, challenging, and difficult topics: Experiences and practical applications.

Qualitative researchers often engage in work addressing challenging, difficult, or sensitive topics and are consequently exposed to the participants’ narratives which may be emotionally charged, distressing, or compromising. These narratives occasionally rest heavy on a researcher’s conscience or may linger in the mind. Much literature has assessed how best to keep participants safe, but less attention has been given to how we keep researchers safe. We therefore document the following: (1) Our experiences of the issues presented by undertaking qualitative research involving challenging, difficult, or sensitive topics; and (2) Practical principles devised to overcome these issues, ensuring safety and wellbeing amongst researchers engaging in these types of qualitative research. We provide guidance for qualitative researchers of all levels of experience and expertise on how best to protect and support themselves, their colleagues, and other collaborating research staff, when undertaking qualitative research which might otherwise feel uncomfortable or overwhelming to tackle

Increased typhoon activity in the Pacific deep tropics driven by Little Ice Age circulation changes

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2020. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Nature Research for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Bramante, J. F., Ford, M. R., Kench, P. S., Ashton, A. D., Toomey, M. R., Sullivan, R. M., Karnauskas, K. B., Ummenhofer, C. C., & Donnelly, J. P. (2020). Increased typhoon activity in the Pacific deep tropics driven by Little Ice Age circulation changes. Nature Geoscience, 13, 806–811. doi:10.1038/s41561-020-00656-2.The instrumental record reveals that tropical cyclone activity is sensitive to oceanic and atmospheric variability on inter-annual and decadal scales. However, our understanding of the influence of climate on tropical cyclone behaviour is restricted by the short historical record and the sparseness of prehistorical reconstructions, particularly in the western North Pacific, where coastal communities suffer loss of life and livelihood from typhoons annually. Here, to explore past regional typhoon dynamics, we reconstruct three millennia of deep tropical North Pacific cyclogenesis. Combined with existing records, our reconstruction demonstrates that low-baseline typhoon activity prior to 1350 ce was followed by an interval of frequent storms during the Little Ice Age. This pattern, concurrent with hydroclimate proxy variability, suggests a centennial-scale link between Pacific hydroclimate and tropical cyclone climatology. An ensemble of global climate models demonstrates a migration of the Pacific Walker circulation and variability in two Pacific climate modes during the Little Ice Age, which probably contributed to enhanced tropical cyclone activity in the tropical western North Pacific. In the next century, projected changes to the Pacific Walker circulation and expansion of the tropics will invert these Little Ice Age hydroclimate trends, potentially reducing typhoon activity in the deep tropical Pacific.This work was supported by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP RC-2336). C.C.U. acknowledges support from NSF under AGS-1602455. We thank student intern D. Carter for extensive labwork on core LTD3. We acknowledge the WCRP’s Working Group on Coupled Modelling, which is responsible for CMIP, and we thank the climate modelling groups for producing and making available their model output. CMIP5 model output was provided by the WHOI CMIP5 Community Storage Server via their website: http://cmip5.whoi.edu/. Any use of trade, firm or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US Government.2021-05-1

Inhomogeneous non-Gaussianity

We propose a method to probe higher-order correlators of the primordial density field through the inhomogeneity of local non-Gaussian parameters, such as f_NL, measured within smaller patches of the sky. Correlators between n-point functions measured in one patch of the sky and k-point functions measured in another patch depend upon the (n+k)-point functions over the entire sky. The inhomogeneity of non-Gaussian parameters may be a feasible way to detect or constrain higher-order correlators in local models of non-Gaussianity, as well as to distinguish between single and multiple-source scenarios for generating the primordial density perturbation, and more generally to probe the details of inflationary physics.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figures; v2: Minor changes and references added. Matches the published versio

Physics at a 100 TeV pp collider: beyond the Standard Model phenomena

This report summarises the physics opportunities in the search and study of physics beyond the Standard Model at a 100 TeV pp collider.Comment: 196 pages, 114 figures. Chapter 3 of the "Physics at the FCC-hh" Repor