Морфологическая стратификация облаков электрическим полем атмосферы в периоды активного и спокойного солнца

Актуальность. В последнее десятилетие наблюдается стремительный рост регионального и глобального изменения климата в связи с хозяйственной деятельностью человека, которая в своих масштабах стала соизмерима с природными процессами. В качестве индикатора техногенной нагрузки может выступать электрическое поле атмосферы, так как техноэкономическая среда городов приводит к глобальным отклонениям и модификации естественных физических полей. Поэтому необходимость изучения влияния электрического поля атмосферы на распределение метеорологических параметров не вызывает сомнения, так как позволяет на качественном уровне проявить «тонкую» структуру стратификации атмосферы электрическим полем и ее изменение за счет антропогенного воздействия. Цель исследования: рассмотреть морфологическую стратификацию облачных образований электрическим полем атмосферы в период активного и спокойного солнца. Данный подход позволяет на качественном уровне прояснить механизм изменения процессов конденсации водяного пара (на примере облаков) сменой солнечной активности, как уменьшение количества возбужденных молекул за счет разной ионизации атмосферы, а также построить физическую теорию антропогенной нагрузки от промышленных предприятий на атмосферу и климат. Объект исследования: электрическое поле атмосферы, облака. Методика исследования построена на детальном статистическом анализе по данным самолетного зондирования в период международного геофизического года и международного геофизического сотрудничества 1958-1964 гг. Результаты исследования. Получены оценки радиационных сечений для молекул стандартной атмосферы и конденсированной фазы (облачные аэрозоли) в геометрическом приближении, которые показывают, что при характерном радиусе капель r-10[-3]см ионизация от конденсированной фазы соизмерима с фононовой ионизацией атмосферы. Приведена корреляционная зависимость средней водности облака и вертикального электрического поля. Анализ результатов показал, что среднегодовое распределение водности имеет высокую корреляцию со среднегодовым вертикальным распределением напряженности электрического поля для данного региона. Методами детального статистического анализа найдена взаимосвязь высоты образования облаков с электрическим полем атмосферы. Показано, что частота повторяемости нижней границы облаков совпадает с локальными точками равновесия плотности объемного заряда для этой же широты.Relevance of the research. In recent decade, regional and global climate has changed significantly due to human activities, which became comparable with natural processes. The electric field of atmosphere can serve as an indicator of anthropogenic impact, as the technical and economic environment of cities results in global deviations and modification of natural physical fields. Therefore, there is no doubt in the necessity to study the influence of the atmospheric electric field on distribution of meteorological parameters, since it allows us to reveal qualitatively the «thin» atmospheric stratification structure of the electric field and its change owing to anthropogenic impact. The aim of the research is to consider the morphological stratification of cloud formations by the atmospheric electric field in the period of the active and quiet sun. This approach allows us to clarify qualitatively the mechanism of change in water vapor condensation (on the example of clouds) by the solar activity change as the decrease in the number of excited molecules owing to different ionization of the atmosphere, as well as to build a physical theory of anthropogenic load from industrial plants on the atmosphere and climate. Research subject: the electric field of the atmosphere, clouds. Research technique: detailed statistical analysis of the data on an aircraft sounding during the International Geophysical Year and the International Geophysical Cooperation in 1958-1964. Results. The author has obtained the estimations of radiation cross-sections for the molecules of the standard atmosphere and the condensed phase (cloud aerosols) in geometric approximation. They show that when the characteristic radius is equal to r-10[-3] cm the ionization of the condensed phase is commensurate with the background ionization. The paper introduces the correlative relationship between average water content of clouds and vertical electric field. The analysis of the results demonstrates that the average annual distribution of water content is strongly correlated with the average vertical distribution of the electric field in this region. Using the methods of the detailed statistical analysis the author revealed the relationship between the height of cloud formation and the electric field of the atmosphere. It is shown that the repetition frequency of a cloud lower boundary demonstrates the high coincidence with local sites of neutrality of a bulk charge density for the same latitude

Оценка влияния положения интервала перфорации на показатели разработки нефтяных месторождений

Оценка влияния положения интервала перфорации на процесс разработки нефтяных месторождений. Выбор и обоснование мероприятий по интервальному повышению продуктивности пласта.Evaluation of the impact of the position of the perforation interval on the process of oil field development. Selection and justification of measures for interval increase of reservoir productivity

Neuronal complex I deficiency occurs throughout the Parkinson's disease brain, but is not associated with neurodegeneration or mitochondrial DNA damage.

Mitochondrial complex I deficiency occurs in the substantia nigra of individuals with Parkinson's disease. It is generally believed that this phenomenon is caused by accumulating mitochondrial DNA damage in neurons and that it contributes to the process of neurodegeneration. We hypothesized that if these theories are correct, complex I deficiency should extend beyond the substantia nigra to other affected brain regions in Parkinson's disease and correlate tightly with neuronal mitochondrial DNA damage. To test our hypothesis, we employed a combination of semiquantitative immunohistochemical analyses, Western blot and activity measurements, to assess complex I quantity and function in multiple brain regions from an extensively characterized population-based cohort of idiopathic Parkinson's disease (n = 18) and gender and age matched healthy controls (n = 11). Mitochondrial DNA was assessed in single neurons from the same areas by real-time PCR. Immunohistochemistry showed that neuronal complex I deficiency occurs throughout the Parkinson's disease brain, including areas spared by the neurodegenerative process such as the cerebellum. Activity measurements in brain homogenate confirmed a moderate decrease of complex I function, whereas Western blot was less sensitive, detecting only a mild reduction, which did not reach statistical significance at the group level. With the exception of the substantia nigra, neuronal complex I loss showed no correlation with the load of somatic mitochondrial DNA damage. Interestingly, α-synuclein aggregation was less common in complex I deficient neurons in the substantia nigra. We show that neuronal complex I deficiency is a widespread phenomenon in the Parkinson's disease brain which, contrary to mainstream theory, does not follow the anatomical distribution of neurodegeneration and is not associated with the neuronal load of mitochondrial DNA mutation. Our findings suggest that complex I deficiency in Parkinson's disease can occur independently of mitochondrial DNA damage and may not have a pathogenic role in the neurodegenerative process

The challenge of comprehensively mapping children's health in a nation-wide health survey: Design of the German KiGGS-Study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>From May 2003 to May 2006, the Robert Koch Institute conducted the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS). Aim of this first nationwide interview and examination survey was to collect comprehensive data on the health status of children and adolescents aged 0 to 17 years.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>Participants were enrolled in two steps: first, 167 study locations (sample points) were chosen; second, subjects were randomly selected from the official registers of local residents. The survey involved questionnaires filled in by parents and parallel questionnaires for children aged 11 years and older, physical examinations and tests, and a computer assisted personal interview performed by study physicians. A wide range of blood and urine testing was carried out at central laboratories. A total of 17 641 children and adolescents were surveyed – 8985 boys and 8656 girls. The proportion of sample neutral drop-outs was 5.3%. The response rate was 66.6%.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The response rate showed little variation between age groups and sexes, but marked variation between resident aliens and Germans, between inhabitants of cities with a population of 100 000 or more and sample points with fewer inhabitants, as well as between the old West German states and the former East German states. By analysing the short non-responder questionnaires it was proven that the collected data give comprehensive and nationally representative evidence on the health status of children and adolescents aged 0 to 17 years.</p

Effectiveness and safety of opicapone in Parkinson's disease patients with motor fluctuations: The OPTIPARK open-label study

BACKGROUND: The efficacy and safety of opicapone, a once-daily catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibitor, have been established in two large randomized, placebo-controlled, multinational pivotal trials. Still, clinical evidence from routine practice is needed to complement the data from the pivotal trials. METHODS: OPTIPARK (NCT02847442) was a prospective, open-label, single-arm trial conducted in Germany and the UK under clinical practice conditions. Patients with Parkinson’s disease and motor fluctuations were treated with opicapone 50 mg for 3 (Germany) or 6 (UK) months in addition to their current levodopa and other antiparkinsonian treatments. The primary endpoint was the Clinician’s Global Impression of Change (CGI-C) after 3 months. Secondary assessments included Patient Global Impressions of Change (PGI-C), the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-8), and the Non-Motor Symptoms Scale (NMSS). Safety assessments included evaluation of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs). RESULTS: Of the 506 patients enrolled, 495 (97.8%) took at least one dose of opicapone. Of these, 393 (79.4%) patients completed 3 months of treatment. Overall, 71.3 and 76.9% of patients experienced any improvement on CGI-C and PGI-C after 3 months, respectively (full analysis set). At 6 months, for UK subgroup only (n = 95), 85.3% of patients were judged by investigators as improved since commencing treatment. UPDRS scores at 3 months showed statistically significant improvements in activities of daily living during OFF (mean ± SD change from baseline: − 3.0 ± 4.6, p < 0.0001) and motor scores during ON (− 4.6 ± 8.1, p < 0.0001). The mean ± SD improvements of − 3.4 ± 12.8 points for PDQ-8 and -6.8 ± 19.7 points for NMSS were statistically significant versus baseline (both p < 0.0001). Most of TEAEs (94.8% of events) were of mild or moderate intensity. TEAEs considered to be at least possibly related to opicapone were reported for 45.1% of patients, with dyskinesia (11.5%) and dry mouth (6.5%) being the most frequently reported. Serious TEAEs considered at least possibly related to opicapone were reported for 1.4% of patients. CONCLUSIONS: Opicapone 50 mg was effective and generally well-tolerated in PD patients with motor fluctuations treated in clinical practice. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered in July 2016 at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02847442)

Measuring local autonomy: A decision-making approach

In studies on central-local relations it is common to assess local autonomy in a deductive way. The extent of local autonomy is determined by measuring the central legal and financial competence, after which the remaining room for local decision-making is determined. The outcome of this indirect method is that the autonomy of local government tends to be systematically underestimated. As an alternative this paper introduces a decision-making approach in which local decisions are systematically weighed on three dimensions: Agenda setting, freedom in choices, and dependency. Using Dutch data, the authors come to the conclusion that a locally oriented perspective leads to a more accurate and positive judgement of the autonomy of local government. © 2006 Taylor & Francis

Peanut‐induced anaphylaxis in children and adolescents: Data from the European Anaphylaxis Registry

Background Peanut allergy has a rising prevalence in high-income countries, affecting 0.5%-1.4% of children. This study aimed to better understand peanut anaphylaxis in comparison to anaphylaxis to other food triggers in European children and adolescents. Methods Data was sourced from the European Anaphylaxis Registry via an online questionnaire, after in-depth review of food-induced anaphylaxis cases in a tertiary paediatric allergy centre. Results 3514 cases of food anaphylaxis were reported between July 2007 - March 2018, 56% in patients younger than 18 years. Peanut anaphylaxis was recorded in 459 children and adolescents (85% of all peanut anaphylaxis cases). Previous reactions (42% vs. 38%; p = .001), asthma comorbidity (47% vs. 35%; p < .001), relevant cofactors (29% vs. 22%; p = .004) and biphasic reactions (10% vs. 4%; p = .001) were more commonly reported in peanut anaphylaxis. Most cases were labelled as severe anaphylaxis (Ring&Messmer grade III 65% vs. 56% and grade IV 1.1% vs. 0.9%; p = .001). Self-administration of intramuscular adrenaline was low (17% vs. 15%), professional adrenaline administration was higher in non-peanut food anaphylaxis (34% vs. 26%; p = .003). Hospitalization was higher for peanut anaphylaxis (67% vs. 54%; p = .004). Conclusions The European Anaphylaxis Registry data confirmed peanut as one of the major causes of severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reactions in European children, with some characteristic features e.g., presence of asthma comorbidity and increased rate of biphasic reactions. Usage of intramuscular adrenaline as first-line treatment is low and needs to be improved. The Registry, designed as the largest database on anaphylaxis, allows continuous assessment of this condition