Beyond Income and Inequlity: The Role of Socio-Political Factors for Alleviating Energy Poverty in Europe

In each country, the occurrence of energy poverty among resident households is usually related to low income and its unequal distribution. Like other manifestations of material deprivation, however, such a phenomenon is likely to be also correlated with some internal socio-political factors that allow its persistence by preventing effective solutions. In this paper, we build and analyse a dataset for European countries by assessing the role of the perceived quality of internal public governance on different measures of energy deprivation. Specifically, we rely on the Worldwide Governance Indicators provided by the World Bank and estimate an array of panel models. After controlling for income, income inequality, energy prices, and weather conditions, we find that high government effectiveness, good regulatory quality, widespread property rights, contract enforcement, and corruption control are significantly associated with lower energy poverty. In addition, we consider the policy implications of this broader perspective on energy deprivation

Cardiovascular Responses to Simultaneous Diving and Muscle Metaboreflex Activation

Background: The aim of study was to assess hemodynamic changes during the simultaneous activation of muscle metaboreflex (MM) and diving reflex (DR) in a laboratory setting. We hypothesized that as long as the exercise intensity is mild DR can overwhelm the MM. Methods: Ten trained divers underwent all four phases (randomly assigned) of the following protocol. (A) Postexercise muscle ischemia session (PEMI): 3 min of resting followed by 3 min of handgrip at 30% of maximum force, followed immediately by 3 min of PEMI on the same arm induced by inflating a sphygmomanometer. Three minutes of recovery was further allowed after the cuff was deflated for a total of 6 min of recovery. (B) Control exercise recovery session: the same rest-exercise protocol used for A followed by 6 min of recovery without inflation. (C) DR session: the same rest-exercise protocol used for A followed by 1 min of breath-hold (BH) with face immersion in cold water. (D) PEMI-DR session: the same protocol used for A with 60 s of BH with face immersion in cold water during the first minute of PEMI. Stroke volume (SV), heart rate (HR), and cardiac output (CO) were collected by means of an impedance method. Results: At the end of apnea, HR was decreased in condition C and D with respect to A (−40.8 and −40.3%, respectively vs. −9.1%; p < 0.05). Since SV increase was less pronounced at the same time point (C = +32.4 and D = +21.7% vs. A = +6.0; p < 0.05), CO significantly decreased during C and D with respect to A (−23 and −29.0 vs. −1.4%, respectively; p < 0.05). Conclusion: Results addressed the hypothesis that DR overcame the MM in our setting

Environmental Genomics: A Tale of Two Fishes

The influence of the environment on two congeneric fishes, Gillichthys mirabilis and Gillichthys seta, that live in the Gulf of California at temperatures of 10-25 degrees C, and up to 42-44 degrees C, respectively, was addressed by analyzing their genomes. Compared with G. mirabilis, G. seta showed some striking features. Substitution rates in the mitochondrial genes were found to be extremely fast, in fact faster than in noncoding control regions (D-loops), from which a divergence time of less than 0.66-0.75 Mya could be estimated. In the nuclear genome, 1) both AT --> GC/GC --> AT and transversion: transition ratios in coding sequences (CDSs) were relatively high; moreover, the ratios of nonsynonymous/synonymous changes (Ka/Ks) suggested that some genes were under positive selection; 2) DNA methylation showed a very significant decrease; and 3) a GC-rich minisatellite underwent a 4-fold amplification in the gene-rich regions. All these observations clearly indicate that the environment (temperature and the accompanying hypoxia) can rapidly mold the nuclear as well as the mitochondrial genome. The stabilization of gene-rich regions by the amplification of the GC-rich minisatellite and by the GC increase in nuclear CDSs is of special interest because it provides a model for the formation of the GC-rich and gene-rich isochores of the genomes of mammals and birds

Geology and mineralogy of the Auki Crater, Tyrrhena Terra, Mars: A possible post impact-induced hydrothermal system

A variety of hydrothermal environments have been documented in terrestrial impact structures. Due to both past water interactions and meteoritic bombardment on the surface of Mars, several authors have predicted various scenarios that include the formation of hydrothermal systems. Geological and mineralogical evidence of past hydrothermal activity have only recently been found on Mars. Here, we present a geological and mineralogical study of the Auki Crater using the spectral and visible imagery data acquired by the CRISM (Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars), CTX (Context Camera) and HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) instruments on board the NASA MRO mission. The Auki Crater is a complex crater that is ∼38 km in diameter located in Tyrrhena Terra (96.8°E and 15.7°S) and shows a correlation between its mineralogy and morphology. The presence of minerals, such as smectite, silica, zeolite, serpentine, carbonate and chlorite, associated with morphological structures, such as mounds, polygonal terrains, fractures and veins, suggests that the Auki Crater may have hosted a post impact-induced hydrothermal system. Although the distribution of hydrated minerals in and around the central uplift and the stratigraphic relationships of some morphological units could also be explained by the excavation and exhumation of carbonate-rich bedrock units as a consequence of crater formation, we favor the hypothesis of impact-induced hydrothermal circulation within fractures and subsequent mineral deposition. The hydrothermal system could have been active for a relatively long period of time after the impact, thus producing a potential transient habitable environment. It must be a spectrally neutral component to emphasize the spectral features; It is an average of spectra taken in the same column of the numerator spectra to correct the residual instrument artifacts and reduce detector noise that changes from column to column; It must be taken in the neighborhood of the area of interest to reduce most of the common mineral component. It is not always possible to satisfy all of the criteria listed above and this must be taken into account in the interpretation of the ratioed spectra. Moreover, this procedure works well if the denominator spectra have a phase similar to that of numerator spectra, but, as we will see, that is not always the case. The ratioed spectra may continue to have multiple phases that contribute to the spectrum with its spectral features (Wiseman et al., 2013). For this reason, when we compare a ratioed spectrum with those from the laboratory, it must be taken into account that more phases may continue to affect the band positions.For the geological and morphometric analyses, we used high-resolution imagery and topography from ESA Mars Express and NASA MRO (Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) missions. In particular, HRSC (High Resolution Stereo Camera, Neukum et al., 2004) data (visible nadir image at 12.5 m/pixel and stereo-derived topography at 100 m/pixel) were used for the overall crater context, while CTX (ConTeXt, Malin et al., 2007) and HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment, McEwen et al., 2007) images supported the detailed analysis of the floor and central part of the crater. The latter two datasets were also used to derive high-resolution topography (down to 7 m/pixel from CTX and 1 m/pixel from HiRISE) through the NASA Stereo Pipeline software (Moratto et al., 2010). All of the data were georeferenced and co-registered using the equirectangular projection and the Mars IAU2000 reference ellipsoid. Finally, the imagery, spectral data and topography were imported into the GIS (Geographic Information System, ArcGIS v.10.2.2) environment to obtain a multitemporal/multisensor/multiscale view of the studied crater. We delineated the map units, taking into account their morphology/morphometry, surface properties, texture at different scales (e.g., relative tonal differences from visible imagery, thermal inertia, rough or smooth texture), and their internal sedimentary structure when possible (from erosional windows, crater walls or scarps). The latter approach allowed us to i) identify the main geological/geomorphological units and to ii) correlate the defined units with the mineralogical observations from CRISM (Figs. 1 and 4).</ce:section

Graphene-based Schottky Device Detecting NH3 at ppm level in Environmental Conditions

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Comparison of myocardial reperfusion between intracoronary versus intravenous cangrelor administration in patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Background: Myocardial reperfusion is the main target of treatment in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). The intracoronary administration of cangrelor bolus could favor a higher local drug concentration, favoring an earlier thrombotic resolution and a reduced distal micro-embolization. Methods: Seventy-one patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for STEMI: 37 treated with intracoronary and 34 with intravenous bolus administration of cangrelor. The primary endpoint was ST-elevation reduction (STR) ≥ 50% after 30 min from the end of the PCI. Other explorative reperfusion indices investigated were: STR ≥ 50% at 24 hours, STR ≥ 70% at 30 min, Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction frame count and the QT dispersion (QTd). Moreover, acute and subacute stent thrombosis, bleeding events and 30-day mortality have been evaluated. Results: More frequent STR ≥ 50% was observed in the intravenous cangrelor bolus group as compared to the intracoronary administration at 30 min (71.9% vs. 45.5%; p = 0.033), the difference was maintained 24 hours after PCI (87.1% vs. 63.6%; p = 0.030). STR ≥ 70% at 30 min was statistically more frequent in the intravenous bolus administration cohort (66.7% vs. 28.6% p = 0.02). At multivariable analysis, intravenous cangrelor administration was significantly related to STR ≥ 50% (odds ratio: 3.586; 95% confidence interval: 1.134–11.335; p = 0.030). The incidence of Bleeding Academic Research Consortium 3–5 bleedings was 15.5% and mortality was 4.2% without any significant difference between the two groups. Conclusions: In conclusion the results of the study do not show any advantages in the administration of intracoronary bolus of cangrelor in patients affected by STEMI and treated with primary PCI

NEDA-3 achievement in early highly active relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis patients treated with Ocrelizumab or Natalizumab

background: in the early stages of multiple sclerosis (MS), initiating high-efficacy disease-modifying therapy (HE DMTs) may represent an optimal strategy for delaying neurological damage and long-term disease progression, especially in highly active MS patients (HAMS). natalizumab (NAT) and Ocrelizumab (OCR) are recognized as HE DMTs with significant anti-inflammatory effects. this study investigates NEDA-3 achievement in treatment-naïve HAMS patients receiving NAT or OCR over three years. methods: we retrospectively enrolled treatment-naïve HAMS patients undergoing NAT or OCR, collecting demographic, clinical, and instrumental data before and after treatment initiation to compare with propensity score analysis disease activity, time to disability worsening, and NEDA-3 achievement. results: we recruited 281 HAMS patients with a mean age of 32.7 years (SD 10.33), treated with NAT (157) or OCR (124). after three years, the kaplan-meier probability of achieving NEDA-3 was 66.0 % (95 % CI: 57.3 % - 76.0 %) with OCR and 68.2 % (95 % CI: 59.9 % - 77.7 %) with NAT without significant differences between the two groups (p = 0.27) DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: starting HE DMT with monoclonal antibodies for HAMS could achieve NEDA-3 in a high percentage of patients without differences between NAT or OCR

Physiological effects of lung protective ventilation in patients with lung fibrosis and usual interstitial pneumonia pattern versus primary ARDS: a matched-control study.

Background- Although patients with interstitial pneumonia pattern (ILD-UIP) and acute exacerbation (AE) leading to severe acute respiratory failure may require invasive mechanical ventilation (MV), physiological data on lung mechanics during MV are lacking. We aimed at describing the physiological effect of lung protective ventilation in patients with AE-ILD-UIP compared with primary ARDS. Methods- Partitioned lung and chest wall mechanics were assessed in a series of AE-ILD-UIP patients matched 1:1 with primary ARDS as controls (based on BMI and PaO2/FiO2 ratio). Three PEEP levels (zero=ZEEP, 4-8 cmH2O=PEEPLOW, and titrated to achieve positive end-expiratory transpulmonary pressure-PL,EE=PEEPTITRATED) were used for measurements. Results- Ten AE-ILD-UIP patients and 10 matched ARDS were included. In AE-ILD-UIP median PL,EE at ZEEP was - 4.3 [-7.6 – -2.3] cmH2O and lung elastance (EL) 44 [40 – 51] cmH2O/L. At PEEPLOW, PL,EE remained negative and EL did not change (p=0.995) versus ZEEP. At PEEPTITRATED, PL,EE increased to 0.8 [0.3 – 1.5] cmH2O and EL to 49 [43 – 59] (p=0.004 and p&lt;0.001 compared to ZEEP and PEEPLOW, respectively). PL decreased at PEEPLOW (p=0.018) and increased at PEEPTITRATED (p=0.003). In matched ARDS control PEEP titration to obtain a positive PL,EE did not result in significant changes in EL and PL. Conclusions- In mechanically ventilated AE-ILD-UIP patients, differently than in patients with primary ARDS, PEEP titrated to obtain a positive PL,EE significantly worsened lung mechanics