The effect of emission inventory on modelling of seasonal exposure metrics of particulate matter and ozone with the WRF-Chem model for Poland

In Poland, high concentrations of particulate matter (with a diameter smaller than 2.5 or 10 μm) exceeding the WHO threshold values are often measured in winter, while ozone (O"sub"3"/sub") concentrations are high in spring. In winter high PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations are linked to high residential combustion and road transport. The main objective of this study was to assess performance of the Weather Research and Forecasting model with Chemistry (WRF-Chem) model in reproducing observations for a period of 2017–2018 covering various meteorological conditions. We compare modelled and observed exposure metrics for PM2.5, PM10 and O"sub"3"/sub" for two sets of the WRF-Chem model runs: with coarse and fine resolution emission inventory (European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme (EMEP) and Chief Inspectorate of Environmental Protection (CIEP), respectively). CIEP run reduces the negative bias of PM2.5 and PM10 and improves the model performance for number of days with exceedance of WHO (World Health Organization) threshold for PM2.5 and PM10 24-h mean concentration. High resolution emission inventory for primary aerosols helps to better distinguish polluted urban areas from non-urban ones. There are no large differences for the model performance for O"sub"3"/sub" and secondary inorganic aerosols, and high-resolution emission inventory does not improve the results in terms of 8-h rolling mean concentrations of ozone. Document type: Articl

Classification supporting COVID-19 diagnostics based on patient survey data

Distinguishing COVID-19 from other flu-like illnesses can be difficult due to ambiguous symptoms and still an initial experience of doctors. Whereas, it is crucial to filter out those sick patients who do not need to be tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection, especially in the event of the overwhelming increase in disease. As a part of the presented research, logistic regression and XGBoost classifiers, that allow for effective screening of patients for COVID-19, were generated. Each of the methods was tuned to achieve an assumed acceptable threshold of negative predictive values during classification. Additionally, an explanation of the obtained classification models was presented. The explanation enables the users to understand what was the basis of the decision made by the model. The obtained classification models provided the basis for the DECODE service (decode.polsl.pl), which can serve as support in screening patients with COVID-19 disease. Moreover, the data set constituting the basis for the analyses performed is made available to the research community. This data set consisting of more than 3,000 examples is based on questionnaires collected at a hospital in Poland.Comment: 39 pages, 5 figure

Presence of PCR artifacts in Sanger sequencing in Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue – experience in a collective of 990 advanced NSCLC

Background: Despite the rapid development of new molecular techniques such as Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), Sanger sequencing has been thus far the gold standard for mutation analysis. It is constantly used for daily routine diagnostics because it represents a quick and comprehensive available method for mutation analyses. Although Sanger sequencing is a good validated method, PCR artifacts may occur in formalin fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) material. This constitutes a serious source of error. Aims: To assess the prevalence of typical and atypical EGFR mutations in exon 19 and 21 in a collective of 990 advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, focusing especially on methodological issues and challenges concerning mutation analysis, particularly PCR artifacts. Material and Methods: We examined 990 NSCLC (FFPE material) by Sanger sequencing for exon 19 and 21 of the EGFR gene. Four cases dropped out because of insufficient DNA quality (n =986). Results: Beside 101 typical exon 19 and 21 mutations (99 cases, two double mutations) we found 45 additional cases with distinct peaks at atypical positions in exon 19 and 21 in our first analysis. This would have implied a mutation rate of 14.6 %. Only six of these putative atypical mutations (all exon 21 and none of the exon 19 mutations) could be validated by repeated mutation analysis. All other peaks were not reproducible, therefore considered as PCR artifacts and consequently as wild type. Altogether we found 105 cases (107 mutations, 10.6 % of cases) with typical/atypical mutations in exon 19 and 21 of the EGFR gene. Conclusion: In our opinion it is in general important to detect and report all mutations even at atypical sites to discover their possible clinical relevance. However, one must always be aware of the possibility, reasons and prevention of PCR artifacts in FFPE tissue. Therefore, prior to reporting mutations at uncommon sites these must be validated by repeated analyses

User Perceptions of Avatar-Based Patient Monitoring for Intensive Care Units: An International Exploratory Sequential Mixed-Methods Study

Visual Patient Avatar ICU is an innovative approach to patient monitoring, enhancing the user’s situation awareness in intensive care settings. It dynamically displays the patient’s current vital signs using changes in color, shape, and animation. The technology can also indicate patient-inserted devices, such as arterial lines, central lines, and urinary catheters, along with their insertion locations. We conducted an international, multi-center study using a sequential qualitative-quantitative design to evaluate users’ perception of Visual Patient Avatar ICU among physicians and nurses. Twenty-five nurses and twenty-five physicians from the ICU participated in the structured interviews. Forty of them completed the online survey. Overall, ICU professionals expressed a positive outlook on Visual Patient Avatar ICU. They described Visual Patient Avatar ICU as a simple and intuitive tool that improved information retention and facilitated problem identification. However, a subset of participants expressed concerns about potential information overload and a sense of incompleteness due to missing exact numerical values. These findings provide valuable insights into user perceptions of Visual Patient Avatar ICU and encourage further technology development before clinical implementation

Hemodynamic and clinical onset in patients with hereditary pulmonary arterial hypertension and BMPR2 mutations

Background: Mutations in the bone morphogenetic protein receptor 2 (BMPR2) gene can lead to idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH). This study prospectively screened for BMPR2 mutations in a large cohort of PAH-patients and compared clinical features between BMPR2 mutation carriers and non-carriers. Methods: Patients have been assessed by right heart catheterization and genetic testing. In all patients a detailed family history and pedigree analysis have been obtained. We compared age at diagnosis and hemodynamic parameters between carriers and non-carriers of BMPR2 mutations. In non-carriers with familial aggregation of PAH further genes/gene regions as the BMPR2 promoter region, the ACVRL1, Endoglin, and SMAD8 genes have been analysed. Results: Of the 231 index patients 22 revealed a confirmed familial aggregation of the disease (HPAH), 209 patients had sporadic IPAH. In 49 patients (86.3% of patients with familial aggregation and 14.3% of sporadic IPAH) mutations of the BMPR2 gene have been identified. Twelve BMPR2 mutations and 3 unclassified sequence variants have not yet been described before. Mutation carriers were significantly younger at diagnosis than non-carriers (38.53 ± 12.38 vs. 45.78 ± 11.32 years, p < 0.001) and had a more severe hemodynamic compromise. No gene defects have been detected in 3 patients with HPAH. Conclusion: This study identified in a large prospectively assessed cohort of PAH- patients new BMPR2 mutations, which have not been described before and confirmed previous findings that mutation carriers are younger at diagnosis with a more severe hemodynamic compromise. Thus, screening for BMPR2 mutations may be clinically useful

Contemporary research in minoritized and diaspora languages of Europe

This volume provides a collection of research reports on multilingualism and language contact ranging from Romance, to Germanic, Greco and Slavic languages in situations of contact and diaspora. Most of the contributions are empirically-oriented studies presenting first-hand data based on original fieldwork, and a few focus directly on the methodological issues in such research. Owing to the multifaceted nature of contact and diaspora phenomena (e.g. the intrinsic transnational essence of contact and diaspora, and the associated interplay between majority and minoritized languages and multilingual practices in different contact settings, contact-induced language change, and issues relating to convergence) the disciplinary scope is broad, and includes ethnography, qualitative and quantitative sociolinguistics, formal linguistics, descriptive linguistics, contact linguistics, historical linguistics, and language acquisition. Case studies are drawn from Italo-Romance varieties in the Americas, Spanish-Nahuatl contact, Castellano Andino, Greko/Griko in Southern Italy, Yiddish in Anglophone communities, Frisian in the Netherlands, Wymysiöryś in Poland, Sorbian in Germany, and Pomeranian and Zeelandic Flemish in Brazil

Contemporary research in minoritized and diaspora languages of Europe

This volume provides a collection of research reports on multilingualism and language contact ranging from Romance, to Germanic, Greco and Slavic languages in situations of contact and diaspora. Most of the contributions are empirically-oriented studies presenting first-hand data based on original fieldwork, and a few focus directly on the methodological issues in such research. Owing to the multifaceted nature of contact and diaspora phenomena (e.g. the intrinsic transnational essence of contact and diaspora, and the associated interplay between majority and minoritized languages and multilingual practices in different contact settings, contact-induced language change, and issues relating to convergence) the disciplinary scope is broad, and includes ethnography, qualitative and quantitative sociolinguistics, formal linguistics, descriptive linguistics, contact linguistics, historical linguistics, and language acquisition. Case studies are drawn from Italo-Romance varieties in the Americas, Spanish-Nahuatl contact, Castellano Andino, Greko/Griko in Southern Italy, Yiddish in Anglophone communities, Frisian in the Netherlands, Wymysiöryś in Poland, Sorbian in Germany, and Pomeranian and Zeelandic Flemish in Brazil