The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010-19 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Understanding the magnitude of cancer burden attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is crucial for development of effective prevention and mitigation strategies. We analysed results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 to inform cancer control planning efforts globally. Methods The GBD 2019 comparative risk assessment framework was used to estimate cancer burden attributable to behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risk factors. A total of 82 risk-outcome pairs were included on the basis of the World Cancer Research Fund criteria. Estimated cancer deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2019 and change in these measures between 2010 and 2019 are presented. Findings Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4.45 million (95% uncertainty interval 4.01-4.94) deaths and 105 million (95.0-116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44.4% (41.3-48.4) of all cancer deaths and 42.0% (39.1-45.6) of all DALYs. There were 2.88 million (2.60-3.18) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50.6% [47.8-54.1] of all male cancer deaths) and 1.58 million (1.36-1.84) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36.3% [32.5-41.3] of all female cancer deaths). The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20.4% (12.6-28.4) and DALYs by 16.8% (8.8-25.0), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34.7% [27.9-42.8] and 33.3% [25.8-42.0]). Interpretation The leading risk factors contributing to global cancer burden in 2019 were behavioural, whereas metabolic risk factors saw the largest increases between 2010 and 2019. Reducing exposure to these modifiable risk factors would decrease cancer mortality and DALY rates worldwide, and policies should be tailored appropriately to local cancer risk factor burden. Copyright (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.Peer reviewe

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Why is it not important to follow guidelines when conducting Daily Standup Meetings?

Background: Agile practices are widely used in the software development process to quickly adapt and respond to the challenges occurring during the whole software development lifecycle. Daily standup meetings are a common practice to share an update about the status and impediments with the team. However, how much value this practice adds to help the team members is uncertain. Objective: The purpose of this study is to find how daily standup meetings should be conducted with effectiveness. This study aims to identify that there are different needs for different teams depending upon the factors like team size, geographic location, and project progress and how these should be focused on when planning and conducting daily standup meetings. Method: This case study was conducted on two different projects of IT software development companies. A total of 10 people were interviewed who have expert knowledge of Agile ways of working and 34 digital DSMs attended to observe the meetings. Thematic analysis was performed on the collected data. In addition, feedback was collected from different people working in those teams and quantitative analysis is performed on data collected to perform a validation on the results of the thematic analysis. Results: The result indicates that DSM is an important meeting in Agile ways of working and this helps not only with status monitoring or planning work but also helps people to connect as a team. Impediments are fixed at a fast pace and deviations are tracked without delays. Further different factors like team size, duration, frequency, and participants are studied to find how these should be considered when planning and conducting DSMs. Each team has its own needs, so to make DSM more effective, team needs should be studied and understood well before conducting DSM. Conclusion: Daily standup meetings are one of the crucial meetings which help in the success of the project when conducted in an effective way. It is not just a status update meeting but also a place where the full team comes together to work towards a common goal and discuss and highlight important information. So, it is important to consider all factors for its effectiveness so that the project can benefit from this meeting for better progress

Biosurfactant Production and its Role in Candida albicans Biofilm Inhibition

Biosurfactants are surface active compounds, which may be of microbial, animal or plant origin. They are typically less toxic and less persistent than the synthetically derived surfactants. The current study intended to analyze the biosurfactants production and its antagonistic activity against Candida albicans biofilm formation. Isolation of biosurfactant producing organism was carried out using swab sample of human vagina and from oil contaminated soil samples. Isolates were screened for biosurfactant production by using oil spread assay and the organisms showing higher activity were selected. The Emulsification assay was done and the E24 was found to be 20.83% for cell free extract of growth medium of isolate B1.The selected isolates were further studied for yield of biosurfactant produced by cultivation in MRS broth and extraction by chloroform and methanol (3:1) extraction. The yield of biosurfactant for isolate B1was found to be4.55gl-1.Theextracted biosurfactant was separated by TLC and identified to be a lipopeptide by FTIR spectroscopy. The isolate with maximum yield of biosurfactant was identified as Lactobacillus fermentum using VITEK II Compact System for microbial identification system. The percentage biofilm inhibition activity of the biosurfactant was studied by CFU assay followed by adhesion assay and by pre-coating experiment. On the basis of above studies, it concludes that use of biosurfactant producing organism can be effective weapon against colonizing opportunistic C. albicans and can be applied in medical devices for inhibition of biofilms formation. Microbial adhesion also decreased from 85% to 11% with78.125 to 2500 µg/ml of biosurfactant. The lipopeptide extracted from isolated isolate B1 also showed powerful penetration capacity in the biofilm and killed 91% C. albicans as seen by CFU assay and a highest inhibition at 2500µg/ml and 1250µg/ml concentration as studied by pre-coating experiment

Is Economic Growth and Industrial Growth the reason for environmental degradation in SAARC countries

In the last four decades,  the developing countries have built a heavy industrial base which is seen as a threat to the environment. The trade liberalization policies of the SAARC counties led them to increase the production for domestic use and exports. This increase in industrial output is a real threat to environmental degradation as the industrial share is quite significant in the GDP of the SAARC countries. The present study is designed to check the existence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis and then use industry output as a regressor to see how it is affecting the environment. The panel regression models are used for estimation by taking data from 1980 to 2018. The results are obtained by using Newey-West standard robust errors. The results suggested that there exists a U-shape relationship between economic growth and Carbon Dioxide (CO2) while an inverted U-shape relationship is found between industrial growth and CO2. Furthermore, a unidirectional causality was observed between industrial growth, human capital, energy consumption, and CO2 while bidirectional causality was observed between urbanization and CO2. The present study suggests that there is a need to adopt environmental protection policies related to the industrial sector in the SAARC region.Keywords: Economic Growth, Idustrial Growth, Environmental DegradationJEL Classifications: Q43, Q54, R11DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.11769</p

Membrane Penetrating-Cationic Peptide BP100 Functionalized Silver Nanoparticles as Efficient Antibacterial Agents

In the present scenario, resistance to antibiotics has become a threatening situation for public health. To find a solution for this, conjugation of a cationic peptide with silver nanoparticles is emerging as a promising route to attain enhanced antibacterial activity. In this direction, this work reports the synthesis of lysine-based cationic peptide (BP100: NH2–KKLFKKILKYL–amide) functionalized silver nanoparticles (BP100@AgNPs). The cationic peptide interacts electrostatically with the silver nanoparticles in an aqueous medium. The developed nanosystem followed green chemistry principles, owing to the use of water and a one-step strategy for the synthesis of peptide functionalized nanoparticles. Moreover, the developed BP100@AgNPs were characterized by UV–vis spectroscopy, zeta potential analysis, FTIR, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). In addition to this, in order to have a deeper insight into the interaction between BP100 and silver nanoparticles, NMR analysis of the peptide (BP100) and the developed nanosystem (BP100@AgNPs) was carried out. This was further authenticated by 1D (1H,13C) NMR and 2D NMR (1H-COSY (correlation spectroscopy)), 13C-HSQC (heteronuclear single quantum coherence)). Moreover, the developed BP100@AgNPs were tested for antibacterial activity against Gram-negative (E. coli) and Gram-positive (S. aureus) bacterial strains. The nanosystem displayed good inhibition with MIC values of 3.60 and 13.20 μg/mL for E. coli and S. aureus, respectively. The destruction in the cellular membrane of the bacterial cells upon treatment with the nanosystem was observed via field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) which confirmed the efficient antibacterial activity of the developed nanosystem. Hence, the synthesized nanosystem displayed considerable potential to be used as an excellent candidate for antibacterial applications

Definitions of Drawing 2

Curated by Courtney Spencer, Definitions of Drawing II was the second incarnation of the exhibition bringing together the work of artists who interrogate the medium of drawing through their practices. My drawings presented in this exhibition continue my research into drawing practice and how the experience of landscape, might impact or inform the drawn mark. As a starting point, I took a road traffic website which observes the conditions of roads in Iceland. Images from this website were used to create drawings. The imagery from webcams for me evokes historical landscape painting tropes: this project enabled me to re-address these, through the means of drawing. The drawings bring together older processes and ideas of landscape, with contemporary technologies. Consequently, the finished works intersect fleeting images of roadsides in Iceland with historic art dialogues, connecting two different perceptions of time

Definitions of Drawing 2

Curated by Courtney Spencer, Definitions of Drawing II was the second incarnation of the exhibition bringing together the work of artists who interrogate the medium of drawing through their practices. My drawings presented in this exhibition continue my research into drawing practice and how the experience of landscape, might impact or inform the drawn mark. As a starting point, I took a road traffic website which observes the conditions of roads in Iceland. Images from this website were used to create drawings. The imagery from webcams for me evokes historical landscape painting tropes: this project enabled me to re-address these, through the means of drawing. The drawings bring together older processes and ideas of landscape, with contemporary technologies. Consequently, the finished works intersect fleeting images of roadsides in Iceland with historic art dialogues, connecting two different perceptions of time