Parents' perspectives and societal acceptance of implementation of newborn screening for SCID in the Netherlands

Purpose While neonatal bloodspot screening (NBS) for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) has been introduced more than a decade ago, implementation in NBS programs remains challenging in many countries. Even if high-quality test methods and follow-up care are available, public uptake and parental acceptance are not guaranteed. The aim of this study was to describe the parental perspective on NBS for SCID in the context of an implementation pilot. Psychosocial aspects have never been studied before for NBS for SCID and are important for societal acceptance, a major criterion when introducing new disorders in NBS programs. Methods To evaluate the perspective of parents, interviews were conducted with parents of newborns with abnormal SCID screening results (N = 17). In addition, questionnaires about NBS for SCID were sent to 2000 parents of healthy newborns who either participated or declined participation in the SONNET-study that screened 140,593 newborns for SCID. Results Support for NBS for SCID was expressed by the majority of parents in questionnaires from both a public health perspective and a personal perspective. Parents emphasized the emotional impact of an abnormal screening result in interviews. (Long-term) stress and anxiety can be experienced during and after referral indicating the importance of uniform follow-up protocols and adequate information provision. Conclusion The perspective of parents has led to several recommendations for NBS programs that are considering screening for SCID or other disorders. A close partnership of NBS programs' stakeholders, immunologists, geneticists, and pediatricians-immunologists in different countries is required for moving towards universal SCID screening for all infants.Transplantation and immunomodulatio

Determining The Presence of Photocatalytic Titanium White Pigments via Embedded Paint Sample Staining: A Proof of Principle

Twentieth century paints often contain titanium dioxide and zinc oxide based white pigments that can range from photostable to highly photocatalytic. Photocatalytic pigments can cause the degradation of paint upon UV exposure, whereas photostable pigments may be benign or can protect paintings from degradation. Hence, knowing whether or not a pigment is photocatalytic is of high importance for risk assessment and the subsequent decision making process concerning storage and exposure conditions of objects. Here we present a proof of principle, focused on titanium white paints, for an easy-to-use and low-tech application of a commercial photocatalytic activity indicator ink (PAII) on embedded paint samples or cross sections. This test determines, qualitatively, if a photocatalytic pigment is present in a white paint sample. The PAII paint sample staining application shows an obvious color change, within five minutes of UV irradiation, for paint samples containing photocatalytic pigments. A microscope with a camera and a UV source are the only necessary equipment for the application of this method. A quantitative image processing protocol is also proposed as an extension of the staining method by applying open source software analysis to measure the color change using photographs. The test was evaluated on reference paints with well-characterized pigments and applied on samples from modern paintings by Piet Mondriaan, Robert Ryman, and Lucebert, indicating the presence of harmful photocatalytic pigments in these cases. The novel application of a commercial ink on paint samples offers a simple test, not just for assessment of photocatalytic activity of titanium white pigments, but which may in future be applied for the detection of photoactive forms of zinc white and other potentially harmful semiconductor pigments in art objects

A quick assessment of the photocatalytic activity of TiO₂ pigments - From lab to conservation studio!

Titanium dioxide is the most abundantly used white pigment of the 20th century. The pigment is still in use, both in the production of contemporary art and for the conservation of older artwork as a retouching pigment. Unfortunately, next to its positive characteristics, the pigment has one major potential drawback: its photocatalytic activity that can cause degradation of artworks in which it is used. In this paper, we report on a new method to test the photocatalytic activity of different quality grades of titanium dioxide white pigments. This can be done quantitatively in a chemical lab or qualitatively in a quick and easy way, in a museum or artists' studio, with limited use of lab equipment. The photocatalytic degradation of an organic dye, acid blue 9, in an aqueous solution containing titanium dioxide, is followed over time by means of UV-Vis spectrophotometry. Dye solutions containing pigments with high photocatalytic activity lose their color within several hours of UVA exposure. On the other hand, dye solutions containing UV-stable titanium dioxide do not degrade within 24 h of UVA exposure. Insight in the photocatalytic activity of titanium white pigments, which can be obtained with this novel test, is of great importance for preventive conservation of modern art

Determining the presence of photocatalytic titanium white pigments via embedded paint sample staining: A proof of principle

Twentieth century paints often contain titanium dioxide and zinc oxide based white pigments that can range from photostable to highly photocatalytic. Photocatalytic pigments can cause the degradation of paint upon UV exposure, whereas photostable pigments may be benign or can protect paintings from degradation. Hence, knowing whether or not a pigment is photocatalytic is of high importance for risk assessment and the subsequent decision making process concerning storage and exposure conditions of objects. Here we present a proof of principle, focused on titanium white paints, for an easy-to-use and low-tech application of a commercial photocatalytic activity indicator ink (PAII) on embedded paint samples or cross sections. This test determines, qualitatively, if a photocatalytic pigment is present in a white paint sample. The PAII paint sample staining application shows an obvious color change, within five minutes of UV irradiation, for paint samples containing photocatalytic pigments. A microscope with a camera and a UV source are the only necessary equipment for the application of this method. A quantitative image processing protocol is also proposed as an extension of the staining method by applying open source software analysis to measure the color change using photographs. The test was evaluated on reference paints with well-characterized pigments and applied on samples from modern paintings by Piet Mondriaan, Robert Ryman, and Lucebert, indicating the presence of harmful photocatalytic pigments in these cases. The novel application of a commercial ink on paint samples offers a simple test, not just for assessment of photocatalytic activity of titanium white pigments, but which may in future be applied for the detection of photoactive forms of zinc white and other potentially harmful semiconductor pigments in art objects.</p

The white of the 20th century: an explorative survey into Dutch modern art collections

White pigments were abundantly used in 20th century paintings, and relate to several degradation risks such as titanium white mediated photocatalytic binder degradation or zinc soap formation. Knowledge about the white pigments that were used is essential for risk assessments of 20th century collections. In this study, a representative set of 179 paintings in Dutch modern art collections were analyzed by portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Subsequent explorative data analysis was performed, supported by qualitative findings from 140 home-made reference samples. Micro-samples were further investigated by X-ray diffraction and scanning transmission electron microscopy to gain information about crystal structure and surface coating. This study reveals that Dutch 20th century artists were hesitant to use titanium white. In the Netherlands, the use of this pigment is observed convincingly from the 1970s onward and initially mostly in non-oil binders. Additionally, lead white was used until late in the 20th century for paints and grounds but rarely mixed with titanium white in paints. The study also indicated that many CoBrA artists used zinc white, underlining the risk of degradation due to soap formation. Furthermore, this study highlights the different production processes of titanium white. Through the association of titanium with niobium, an impurity only present for sulfate processed pigments, the production process can be identified. The absence of niobium indicates the presence of rutile and is thus a sign of paint stability, as well as a ‘post 1959’ dating. This explorative study illustrates the value of a combination of data analysis approaches, which includes assessment of spectra as well as descriptive, bivariate and multivariate analysis, for medium-sized datasets gathered at similar conditions.(OLD) MSE-