Histological And Morphological Characterization Of Rat Skin After Cw Co2 Laser Irradiation

The laser-skin interaction was studied by using the Sprague Dawley rats as experimental samples and continuous wave carbon dioxide laser (CW CO2) as a source of irradiation. Light microscope and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) were used to evaluate the skin surface and underlying structures for both exposed and control samples. Briefly, the rats were divided into two groups with different setting exposures. In the first group, the rat skin was exposed to CW CO2 laser at different power densities (15.63 W/cm2, 17.19 W/cm2, 18.75 W/cm2 and 20.31 W/cm2). Each power density was exposed in four different exposure durations (15 s, 30 s, 45 s and 60 s). The results showed an increase on thermal damage depth and a decrease on epidermal thickness with the increase in both exposure duration and power density. However, the sample exposed at 20.31 W/cm2 showed different features. The damage depth was increased at 15 s and 30 s and then the thermal damage depths were decreased at 45 s and 60 s due to the laser ablation. These observations showed that the ablation effect strongly depended on the exposure duration which then decreased the depth of thermal damage. In the FESEM images, the disruption of corneocytes and the formation of the intervening spaces between corneocytes correlated well with the increase in exposure duration and power density. In fact, dramatic changes were noted in the skin surface, which was treated by the laser at 20.31 W/cm2 with several deep holes that could be seen in the FESEM image. As for the second group, the power density of 20.31 W/cm2 was irradiated at different areas of the skin (side, chest, stomach and leg)

Thermodynamic and Kinetic Investigation of Desalination by Refrigerant Clathrate Hydrate Formation

Gas hydrate is a crystalline solid compound form of water with hydrophobic gas at certain conditions (pressure and temperature). The hydrogen bond in water molecules constructs a framework as a host that entraps gas molecules (gust). Gas hydrate can be applied to many industries such as gas separation, cool storage, food concentration and desalination. Hydrate route looks a promising alternative technology compared to the conventional process, by utilizing a proper gas host, which can be held within water cavities composed by hydrogen-bonded water molecules. In this study the selected host gas was Refrigerant R134a, the work consists of an experimental and theoretical investigation dealing with hydrate formation for the ternary system (water, refrigerant gas, salt) at different initial pressures, the salts were NaCl, KBr and NaF. Method of isochoric pressure search method was used to measure the pressure and temperature for hydrate formation and conduction the three phases of (hydrate-liquid-vapour). The measurements were performed with pressure range (0.1 - 0.4) MPa and the temperatures about (275.2 – 283)K at the concentrations of (0.09,0.17 and 0.26)mol/kg for each salt. The kinetics of R134a clathrate formation for ternary systems (R134a, water and salt) at various types and concentrations of salts. Many objective functions were obtained from the kinetic model for hydrate formation, such as the amount of gas consumed, the growth rate, and the conversion of the water to hydrate. The results showed the effect of the initial pressure on the gas consumed, the rate of growth and water to hydrate conversion, that when the initial pressure increase the moles of R134a gas consumed was increased due to the increased driving force of hydrate formation, also other functions were increased. While the increasing in the concentration of salt for all types will be decreased gas consumed, whereas water to hydrate conversion, the growth rate is slightly decreased. And from the results noticed the presence of different salts in the ternary systems have an effect on the thermodynamics inhibition of refrigerant hydrates and the inhibition increases with the presence of NaCl salt in the ternary system more than other types of salt and also increases with increase the concentration of salt

Predicting the composition of red wine blends using an array of Multicomponent peptide-based sensors

Differential sensing using synthetic receptors as mimics of the mammalian senses of taste and smell is a powerful approach for the analysis of complex mixtures. Herein, we report on the effectiveness of a cross-reactive, supramolecular, peptide-based sensing array in differentiating and predicting the composition of red wine blends. Fifteen blends of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, in addition to the mono varietals, were used in this investigation. Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) showed a clear differentiation of blends based on tannin concentration and composition where certain mono varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon seemed to contribute less to the overall characteristics of the blend. Partial Least Squares (PLS) Regression and cross validation were used to build a predictive model for the responses of the receptors to eleven binary blends and the three mono varietals. The optimized model was later used to predict the percentage of each mono varietal in an independent test set composted of four tri-blends with a 15% average error. A partial least square regression model using the mouth-feel and taste descriptive sensory attributes of the wine blends revealed a strong correlation of the receptors to perceived astringency, which is indicative of selective binding to polyphenols in wine

Ocular manifestations of children with atopic dermatitis in Saudi Arabia

AIM: To examine the incidence of ocular abnormalities in children with atopic dermatitis (AD) in Saudi Arabia and its association with the severity of AD. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study on 50 children with AD who were between 5 and 16 years of age. The severity of AD was evaluated using the SCORing Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) index. All the children underwent slit lamp exams, visual acuity assessment, intraocular pressure measurement, and corneal topography. The children were considered to have an ophthalmic abnormality if one or more of the following signs were present: glaucoma, keratoconus suspicion, in addition to lid, conjunctival, corneal, lenticular, or retinal abnormalities. RESULTS: Based on the SCORAD severity index, 14% of children had mild AD (7/50), 38% had moderate AD (19/50), and nearly half had severe AD. More than half the children exhibited facial involvement, and half had peri-orbital signs. The mean SCORAD index was 35.75. The mean age was 10.48±3.6y, and the cohort showed a slight male predominance (54% males). Both eyes of the 50 children in the cohort were studied. Based on the ocular examinations, 92% of the patients showed ocular abnormalities: lid abnormalities (27/50) followed by keratitis (22/50). Four patients had moderate risk for keratoconus in one eye and eight patients were suspected to have keratoconus. However, SCORAD severity index was not associated with age, sex, or the number or presence of ophthalmic abnormalities. CONCLUSION: This is the first study in Saudi Arabia to evaluate the prevalence of ocular manifestations in children with AD. The results indicate that the majority of children with AD have ocular abnormalities that mainly include lid abnormalities. Based on these findings, larger scale studies are needed to affirm whether regular screening for ophthalmic abnormalities would be beneficial for children with AD in terms of early intervention and prevention of sight-threatening complications

Global collision-risk hotspots of marine traffic and the world’s largest fish, the whale shark

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Womersley, F. C., Humphries, N. E., Queiroz, N., Vedor, M., da Costa, I., Furtado, M., Tyminski, J. P., Abrantes, K., Araujo, G., Bach, S. S., Barnett, A., Berumen, M. L., Bessudo Lion, S., Braun, C. D., Clingham, E., Cochran, J. E. M., de la Parra, R., Diamant, S., Dove, A. D. M., Dudgeon, C. L., Erdmann, M. V., Espinoza, E., Fitzpatrick, R., González Cano, J., Green, J. R., Guzman, H. M., Hardenstine, R., Hasan, A., Hazin, F. H. V., Hearn, A. R., Hueter, R. E., Jaidah, M. Y., Labaja, J., Ladinol, F., Macena, B. C. L., Morris Jr., J. J., Norman, B. M., Peñaherrera-Palmav, C., Pierce, S. J., Quintero, L. M., Ramırez-Macías, D., Reynolds, S. D., Richardson, A. J., Robinson, D. P., Rohner, C. A., Rowat, D. R. L., Sheaves, M., Shivji, M. S., Sianipar, A. B., Skomal, G. B., Soler, G., Syakurachman, I., Thorrold, S. R., Webb, D. H., Wetherbee, B. M., White, T. D., Clavelle, T., Kroodsma, D. A., Thums, M., Ferreira, L. C., Meekan, M. G., Arrowsmith, L. M., Lester, E. K., Meyers, M. M., Peel, L. R., Sequeira, A. M. M., Eguıluz, V. M., Duarte, C. M., & Sims, D. W. Global collision-risk hotspots of marine traffic and the world’s largest fish, the whale shark. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 119(20), (2022): e2117440119, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2117440119.Marine traffic is increasing globally yet collisions with endangered megafauna such as whales, sea turtles, and planktivorous sharks go largely undetected or unreported. Collisions leading to mortality can have population-level consequences for endangered species. Hence, identifying simultaneous space use of megafauna and shipping throughout ranges may reveal as-yet-unknown spatial targets requiring conservation. However, global studies tracking megafauna and shipping occurrences are lacking. Here we combine satellite-tracked movements of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus, and vessel activity to show that 92% of sharks’ horizontal space use and nearly 50% of vertical space use overlap with persistent large vessel (>300 gross tons) traffic. Collision-risk estimates correlated with reported whale shark mortality from ship strikes, indicating higher mortality in areas with greatest overlap. Hotspots of potential collision risk were evident in all major oceans, predominantly from overlap with cargo and tanker vessels, and were concentrated in gulf regions, where dense traffic co-occurred with seasonal shark movements. Nearly a third of whale shark hotspots overlapped with the highest collision-risk areas, with the last known locations of tracked sharks coinciding with busier shipping routes more often than expected. Depth-recording tags provided evidence for sinking, likely dead, whale sharks, suggesting substantial “cryptic” lethal ship strikes are possible, which could explain why whale shark population declines continue despite international protection and low fishing-induced mortality. Mitigation measures to reduce ship-strike risk should be considered to conserve this species and other ocean giants that are likely experiencing similar impacts from growing global vessel traffic.Funding for data analysis was provided by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) through a University of Southampton INSPIRE DTP PhD Studentship to F.C.W. Additional funding for data analysis was provided by NERC Discovery Science (NE/R00997/X/1) and the European Research Council (ERC-AdG-2019 883583 OCEAN DEOXYFISH) to D.W.S., Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) under PTDC/BIA/28855/2017 and COMPETE POCI-01–0145-FEDER-028855, and MARINFO–NORTE-01–0145-FEDER-000031 (funded by Norte Portugal Regional Operational Program [NORTE2020] under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund–ERDF) to N.Q. FCT also supported N.Q. (CEECIND/02857/2018) and M.V. (PTDC/BIA-COM/28855/2017). D.W.S. was supported by a Marine Biological Association Senior Research Fellowship. All tagging procedures were approved by institutional ethical review bodies and complied with all relevant ethical regulations in the jurisdictions in which they were performed. Details for individual research teams are given in SI Appendix, section 8. Full acknowledgments for tagging and field research are given in SI Appendix, section 7. This research is part of the Global Shark Movement Project (https://www.globalsharkmovement.org)

Global Spatial Risk Assessment of Sharks Under the Footprint of Fisheries

Effective ocean management and conservation of highly migratory species depends on resolving overlap between animal movements and distributions and fishing effort. Yet, this information is lacking at a global scale. Here we show, using a big-data approach combining satellite-tracked movements of pelagic sharks and global fishing fleets, that 24% of the mean monthly space used by sharks falls under the footprint of pelagic longline fisheries. Space use hotspots of commercially valuable sharks and of internationally protected species had the highest overlap with longlines (up to 76% and 64%, respectively) and were also associated with significant increases in fishing effort. We conclude that pelagic sharks have limited spatial refuge from current levels of high-seas fishing effort. Results demonstrate an urgent need for conservation and management measures at high-seas shark hotspots and highlight the potential of simultaneous satellite surveillance of megafauna and fishers as a tool for near-real time, dynamic management

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat