Distance dependence of force and dissipation in non-contact atomic force microscopy on Cu(100) and Al(111)

The dynamic characteristics of a tip oscillating in the nc-AFM mode in close vicinity to a Cu(100)-surface are investigated by means of phase variation experiments in the constant amplitude mode. The change of the quality factor upon approaching the surface deduced from both frequency shift and excitation versus phase curves yield to consistent values. The optimum phase is found to be independent of distance. The dependence of the quality factor on distance is related to 'true' damping, because artefacts related to phase misadjustment can be excluded. The experimental results, as well as on-resonance measurements at different bias voltages on an Al(111) surface, are compared to Joule dissipation and to a model of dissipation in which long-range forces lead to viscoelastic deformations

Sex disparities in efficacy in covid-19 vaccines: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Sex differences in adaptive and innate immune responses have been shown to occur and anecdotal reports suggest that vaccine efficacy and safety may be sex-dependent. We investigated the influence of sex on the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines through a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials on COVID-19 vaccines. The safety profile of COVID-19 vaccines was also investigated. A systematic review included eligible articles published in three databases and three websites. A meta-analysis of available data, stratified by sex, was conducted. Statistical analysis was performed using the Hartung\u2013Knapp\u2013Sidik\u2013Jonkman method, as well as influence and heterogeneity analysis. Pooled analysis showed significantly higher efficacy, measured as the rate of new COVID-19 cases, in men compared to women in the vaccine group (OR = 0.67, 95% CI 0.48\u20130.94). No sex differences were found in the rate of new cases in the control group (OR = 0.92, 95% CI 0.78\u20131.09). Safety profiles derived from pharmacovigilance reports appear to indicate increased toxicity in women. In conclusion, evidence of a potential role of sex in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy was described. It strengthens the need to include sex as a core variable in the clinical trial design of COVID-19 vaccines

A stochastic approach for assessing the chronic environmental risk generated by wet-weather events from integrated urban wastewater systems

Wet-weather discharges from urban areas with a combined wastewater system represent a threat for surface waters. In fact, when the system capacity is reached during medium/big rain events, a mixture of stormwater and untreated wastewater is discharged through combined sewer overflows (CSOs) or bypass (BP) of wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). The discharged pollutant loads are highly variable in time and space, making it difficult to correctly monitor and assess the environmental risks for a specific catchment. The present work proposes a methodology to assess the chronic impact of wet-weather discharges from integrated urban wastewater systems (IUWS) by using a stochastic approach. Monitoring data from the literature were used to characterize the discharges and to predict the risk posed by (micro-)pollutants on a yearly basis in an archetype IUWS. Calculated risks from wet-weather discharges are compared against those posed by WWTP effluent. The results show that CSOs pose a higher risk to surface waters compared to WWTP effluent and bypass, with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons being the category of micropollutants of major concern for CSOs. Conversely, WWTP effluent discharges are responsible for most of the risk associated with pharmaceuticals. A sensitivity and uncertainty analysis highlighted the importance of performing an accurate estimation of the recipient flow rate, which can provide a better risk estimation than focusing only on the characterization of the discharged concentrations. In climate change scenarios, where recipient flow rate reduction and overflow volume increment is expected, the risk caused by wet-weather discharges may increase for all micropollutant categories, including pharmaceuticals.Environmental chronic risk generated by wet-weather discharges compared to final effluent was stochastically assessed, also from a climate-change perspective, stressing their growing contribution for many (micro-)pollutants

Assessing the contribution of wet-weather discharges on micropollutants release by urban catchments

Wet-weather discharges from integrated urban wastewater systems (IUWS) represent a threat for surface waters. When the system capacity is reached during medium/large rain events, a mixture of stormwater and untreated wastewater is discharged to surface water through Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) or Bypass (BP) of Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTP). The loads of contaminants discharged by CSOs and BP are highly variable in time and space (Petrie, 2021), making it difficult to correctly monitor and assess the environmental risk for a specific catchment. The present work aims at assessing the impact of 12 micropollutants present in wet-weather discharges on receiving surface water, by using an archetype IUWS, defined through a stochastic approach. Monitoring data from literature were retrieved and elaborated to characterize the discharges and to predict the risk posed by micropollutants on a yearly horizon. The calculated risk from wet- weather discharges was compared against that posed by WWTP effluent (EFF)

BRAF and MEK Inhibitors and Their Toxicities: A Meta-Analysis

Purpose: This meta-analysis summarizes the incidence of treatment-related adverse events (AE) of BRAFi and MEKi. Methods: A systematic search of Medline/PubMed was conducted to identify suitable articles published in English up to 31 December 2021. The primary outcomes were profiles for all-grade and grade 3 or higher treatment-related AEs, and the analysis of single side effects belonging to both categories. Results: The overall incidence of treatment-related all-grade Aes was 99% for Encorafenib (95% CI: 0.97–1.00) and 97% for Trametinib (95% CI: 0.92–0.99; I2 = 66%) and Binimetinib (95% CI: 0.94–0.99; I2 = 0%). In combined therapies, the rate was 98% for both Vemurafenib + Cobimetinib (95% CI: 0.96–0.99; I2 = 77%) and Encorafenib + Binimetinib (95% CI: 0.96–1.00). Grade 3 or higher adverse events were reported in 69% of cases for Binimetinib (95% CI: 0.50–0.84; I2 = 71%), 68% for Encorafenib (95% CI: 0.61–0.74), and 72% for Vemurafenib + Cobimetinib (95% CI: 0.65–0.79; I2 = 84%). The most common grade 1–2 AEs were pyrexia (43%) and fatigue (28%) for Dabrafenib + Trametinib and diarrhea for both Vemurafenib + Cobimetinib (52%) and Encorafenib + Binimetinib (34%). The most common AEs of grade 3 or higher were pyrexia, rash, and hypertension for Dabrafenib + Trametinib (6%), rash and hypertension for Encorafenib + Binimetinib (6%), and increased AST and ALT for Vemurafenib + Cobimetinib (10%). Conclusions: Our study provides comprehensive data on treatment-related adverse events of BRAFi and MEKi combination therapies, showing related toxicity profiles to offer a helpful tool for clinicians in the choice of therapy

An integrated modelling framework to assess cascade water reuse in urban areas

In the recent years water scarcity has been an increasing problem for many countries worldwide. For this reason, there is currently a strong focus on increasing reclaimed wastewater reuse, especially for agriculture purposes (Fernandes and Cunha Marques, 2023). Besides, the cost of energy from conventional resources is increasing, thus the energy sector is moving towards more distributed and efficient use of heat sources across urban areas. Typical applications are heat pumps using local groundwater reservoirs and subsequently discharging in the nearby surface water bodies/artificial channels (recipients). Furthermore, for a better quality of these recipients and for a better performance of wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), stormwater can be collected in separated sewers discharging only the urban runoff to the recipient. In this context, water is subjected to multiple uses, with potential cross-contaminations across different compartments, posing a risk for the environment. Hence, there is a strong need for tools capable of supporting stakeholders towards a wiser and safer use of water resources, to ensure long-term resilience, stability, sustainability and security of the society with regard to water use. An integrated model was developed to simulate the fate and associated risk of hazardous contaminants in a cascade water reuse system

Temperature control in molecular dynamic simulations of non-equilibrium processes

Thermostats are often used in various condensed matter problems, e.g. when a biological molecule undergoes a transformation in a solution, a crystal surface is irradiated with energetic particles, a crack propagates in a solid upon applied stress, two surfaces slide with respect to each other, an excited local phonon dissipates its energy into a crystal bulk, and so on. In all of these problems, as well as in many others, there is an energy transfer between different local parts of the entire system kept at a constant temperature. Very often, when modelling such processes using molecular dynamics simulations, thermostatting is done using strictly equilibrium approaches serving to describe the NV T ensemble. In this paper we critically discuss the applicability of such approaches to non-equilibrium problems, including those mentioned above, and stress that the correct temperature control can only be achieved if the method is based on the generalized Langevin equation (GLE). Specifically, we emphasize that a meaningful compromise between computational efficiency and a physically appropriate implementation of the NV T thermostat can be achieved, at least for solid state and surface problems, if the so-called stochastic boundary conditions (SBC), recently derived from the GLE (Kantorovich and Rompotis 2008 Phys. Rev. B 78 094305), are used. For SBC, the Langevin thermostat is only applied to the outer part of the simulated fragment of the entire system which borders the surrounding environment (not considered explicitly) serving as a heat bath. This point is illustrated by comparing the performance of the SBC and some of the equilibrium thermostats in two problems: (i) irradiation of the Si(001) surface with an energetic CaF2 molecule using an ab initio density functional theory based method, and (ii) the tribology of two amorphous SiO2 surfaces coated with self-assembled monolayers of methyl-terminated hydrocarbon alkoxylsilane molecules using a classical atomistic force field. We discuss the differences in behaviour of these systems due to applied thermostatting, and show that in some cases a qualitatively different physical behaviour of the simulated system can be obtained if an equilibrium thermostat is used

Cruciferous vegetables and cancer risk in a network of case-control studies

Background Cruciferous vegetables have been suggested to protect against various cancers, though the issue is open to discussion. To further understand their role, we analyzed data from a network of case-control studies conducted in Italy and Switzerland. Patients and methods The studies included a total of 1468 cancers of the oral cavity/pharynx, 505 of the esophagus, 230 of the stomach, 2390 of the colorectum, 185 of the liver, 326 of the pancreas, 852 of the larynx, 3034 of the breast, 367 of the endometrium, 1031 of the ovary, 1294 of the prostate, 767 of the kidney, and 11492 controls. All cancers were incident, histologically confirmed; controls were subjects admitted to the same network of hospitals as cases for a wide spectrum of acute nonneoplastic conditions. Results The multivariate odds ratio (OR) for consumption of cruciferous vegetables at least once a week as compared with no/occasional consumption was significantly reduced for cancer of the oral cavity/pharynx (OR=0.83), esophagus (OR=0.72), colorectum (OR=0.83), breast (OR=0.83), and kidney (OR=0.68). The OR was below unity, but not significant, for stomach (OR=0.90), liver (OR=0.72), pancreatic (OR=0.90), laryngeal (OR=0.84), endometrial (OR=0.93), ovarian (OR=0.91), and prostate (OR=0.87) cancer. Conclusion This large series of studies provides additional evidence of a favorable effect of cruciferous vegetables on several common cancer