Analysis of multi-year near-surface ozone observations at the WMO/GAW "Concordia" station (75°06′S, 123°20′E, 3280 m a.s.l. – Antarctica)

Abstract This work focuses on the near-surface O3 variability over the eastern Antarctic Plateau. In particular, eight years (2006–2013) of continuous observations at the WMO/GAW contributing station "Concordia" (Dome C–DMC: 75°06′S, 123°20′E, 3280 m) are presented, in the framework of the Italian Antarctic Research Programme (PNRA). First, the characterization of seasonal and diurnal O3 variability at DMC is provided. Then, for the period of highest data coverage (2008–2013), we investigated the role of specific atmospheric processes in affecting near-surface summer O3 variability, when O3 enhancement events (OEEs) are systematically observed at DMC (average monthly frequency peaking up to 60% in December). As deduced by a statistical selection methodology, these OEEs are affected by a significant interannual variability, both in their average O3 values and in their frequency. To explain part of this variability, we analyzed OEEs as a function of specific atmospheric variables and processes: (i) total column of O3 (TCO) and UV-A irradiance, (ii) long-range transport of air masses over the Antarctic Plateau (by Lagrangian back-trajectory analysis – LAGRANTO), (iii) occurrence of "deep" stratospheric intrusion events (by using the Lagrangian tool STLEFLUX). The overall near-surface O3 variability at DMC is controlled by a day-to-day pattern, which strongly points towards a dominating influence of processes occurring at "synoptic" scales rather than "local" processes. Even if previous studies suggested an inverse relationship between OEEs and TCO, we found a slight tendency for the annual frequency of OEEs to be higher when TCO values are higher over DMC. The annual occurrence of OEEs at DMC seems related to the total time spent by air masses over the Antarctic plateau before their arrival to DMC, suggesting the accumulation of photochemically-produced O3 during the transport, rather than a more efficient local production. Moreover, the identification of recent (i.e., 4-day old) stratospheric intrusion events by STEFLUX suggested only a minor influence (up to 3% of the period, in November) of "deep" events on the variability of near-surface summer O3 at DMC

Characterization of snowfall estimated by in situ and ground-based remote-sensing observations at Terra Nova Bay, Victoria Land, Antarctica

AbstractKnowledge of the precipitation contribution to the Antarctic surface mass balance is essential for defining the ice-sheet contribution to sea-level rise. Observations of precipitation are sparse over Antarctica, due to harsh environmental conditions. Precipitation during the summer months (November–December–January) on four expeditions, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18 and 2018–19, in the Terra Nova Bay area, were monitored using a vertically pointing radar, disdrometer, snow gauge, radiosounding and an automatic weather station installed at the Italian Mario Zucchelli Station. The relationship between radar reflectivity and precipitation rate at the site can be estimated using these instruments jointly. The error in calculated precipitation is up to 40%, mostly dependent on reflectivity variability and disdrometer inability to define the real particle fall velocity. Mean derived summer precipitation is ~55 mm water equivalent but with a large variability. During collocated measurements in 2018–19, corrected snow gauge amounts agree with those derived from the relationship, within the estimated errors. European Centre for the Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and the Antarctic Mesoscale Prediction System (AMPS) analysis and operational outputs are able to forecast the precipitation timing but do not adequately reproduce quantities during the most intense events, with overestimation for ECMWF and underestimation for AMPS

Providing a nurse-led complex nursing INtervention FOcused on quality of life assessment on advanced cancer patients: The INFO-QoL pilot trial.

PURPOSE Unmet needs for advanced-disease cancer patients are fatigue, pain, and emotional support. Little information is available about the feasibility of interventions focused on patient-reported outcome measurement developed according to the Medical Research Council (MRC) Framework in advanced-disease cancer patients. We aimed to pilot a nurse-led complex intervention focused on QoL assessment in advanced-disease cancer patients. METHODS The INFO-QoL study was based on an exploratory, nonequivalent comparison group, pre-test-post-test design. Study sites received either the INFO-QoL intervention or usual care. Adult advanced-disease cancer patients admitted to hospice inpatient units that gave their informed consent were included in the study. Subjects were 187 patients and their families and 19 healthcare professionals. We evaluated feasibility, acceptability, and patients' outcomes using the Integrated Palliative Care Outcome Scale. RESULTS Nineteen healthcare professionals were included. The mean competence score increased significantly over time (p < 0.001) and the mean usefulness score was high 8.63 (±1.36). In the post-test phase, 54 patients were allocated to the experimental unit and 36 in the comparison unit. Compared to the comparison unit, in the experimental unit anxiety (R2 = 0.07; 95% CI = -0.06; 0.19), family anxiety (R2 = 0.22; 95% CI = -0.03; 0.41), depression (R2 = 0.31; 95% CI = -0.05; 0.56) and sharing feelings (R2 = 0.09; 95% CI = -0.05; 0.23), were improved between pre-test and post-test phase. CONCLUSIONS The INFO-QoL was feasible and potentially improved psychological outcomes. Despite the high attrition rate, the INFO-QoL improved the quality and safety culture for patients in palliative care settings

Non-equilibrium plasma processing for the preparation of antibacterial surfaces

Non-equilibrium plasmas offer several strategies for developing antibacterial surfaces that are able to repel and/or to kill bacteria. Due to the variety of devices, implants, and materials in general, as well as of bacteria and applications, plasma assisted antibacterial strategies need to be tailored to each specific surface. Nano-composite coatings containing inorganic (metals and metal oxides) or organic (drugs and biomolecules) compounds can be deposited in one step, and used as drug delivery systems. On the other hand, functional coatings can be plasma-deposited and used to bind antibacterial molecules, for synthesizing surfaces with long lasting antibacterial activity. In addition, non-fouling coatings can be produced to inhibit the adhesion of bacteria and reduce the formation of biofilm. This paper reviews plasma-based strategies aimed to reduce bacterial attachment and proliferation on biomedical materials and devices, but also onto materials used in other fields. Most of the activities described have been developed in the lab of the authors

A Systematic Mapping Study on Research in Anemia Assessment with Non-Invasive Devices

Contribution: This paper examines the literature dealing with the non-invasive estimate of anemia (NEA), and analyzes if the research is developing scientifically with adequate empirical validation. This paper reveals a trend in NEA studies towards an increasing interest in estimating anemia using conjunctiva pallor. Background: Supporting clinical developments and processes to reduce personal discomfort and allow extensive screening needs substantial efforts in researching non-invasive techniques to evaluate anemia. Research Questions: The main aims of this study are the analysis of the area of interest explored in the NEA literature, the evaluation of the peculiarities of papers, giving special consideration to empirical ones, examining them from the point of view of the daily improvement of doctors and healthcare personnel activities and the daily life of patients; and the identification of any considerable research gap to encourage further investigations on new topics. Methodology: The systematic mapping study has been elected as the optimal approach to probe the NEA literature since it defines a rigorous process for data retrieving and interpretation. Findings: Research in this sector is very active, especially in the most populated countries in the world and focuses on improving the technologies currently on the market and on proposing new solutions, especially portable and usable by everyone. A new trend in camera and smartphone-based devices is identified

DeepCilia: Automated, deep-learning based engine for precise ciliary beat frequency estimation

Technology advancements over recent decades have greatly impacted medical treatments and diagnostic methods. These advancements could be useful in nasal cytology, which is becoming increasingly critical in diagnosing nasal conditions. In this study we propose DeepCilia, a Ciliary beating frequency (CBF) decay estimation engine that autonomously detects ciliated strias using YOLOv8 to perform the detection task and is able to produce accurate estimations even for low FPS videos, by using the Short-Time Fourier Transform (STFT). DeepCilia achieves very good results with an average computation time below 2 s for each video in the dataset, and an RMSE of less than 1.5 Hz. These achievements make DeepCilia an ideal tool in the field of ciliary motility analysis to estimate the time of death in the context of forensics medicine

Deposition of Hydroxyl Functionalized Films by Means of Water Aerosol Assisted Atmospheric Pressure Plasma,

The atmospheric pressure plasma deposition of hydroxyl functionalized hydrocarbon films is reported in this work, with a reactor fed with water aerosol and ethylene. The effects of power and feed flow rates onto film chemistry have been investigated. Coatings produced with this approach can find application in the biomedical field, among others, as platforms for cell adhesion and proliferation. Results show that operating at 4 kHz provides a much higher amount of hydroxyl group in the coating compared with samples obtained at 11 kHz. After water immersion, the stability of the films and their amount of hydroxyl groups remain high. A simplified deposition mechanism is proposed

Performance characterization of a Wells turbine under unsteady flow conditions

A small prototype of a Wells turbine has been built by means of 3D printing technology and tested in the test rig facility of the Polytechnic University of Bari under steady-state and pulsating flow conditions. The Wells turbine is crossed by an unidirectional air flow rate that is varied from zero to the maximum by precisely controlling the rotational speed of the suction fan. The Wells turbine is a scaled prototype designed to operate in a 1:10 scaled model of a REWEC3 breakwater for ocean application. The Wells turbine characteristics are evaluated in terms of torque coefficient and pressure drop coefficient vs. flow coefficient. A delayed onset of stall can be observed, with a clockwise hysteretic loop, when the turbine experiences large sinusoidal variation of the flow coefficient at high mass flow rates. The variation of the turbine performance under dynamic flow conditions is crucial for a correct design of the Wells turbine