BAT According to Climatic Neutrality of Production of Steel Products

The purpose of this article is to estimate the best available technologies for values of the following technological numbers: fuel, ecological, depreciation, greenhouse and their sums. All these numbers have power dimension: t of conditional fuel/unit of production that allows to put them. The fuel technological number characterizes power consumption of production. The technological ecological number transfers a payment of the enterprise for environmental pollution to power units. The technological depreciation number transfers depreciation charges from rubles to power units. The technological greenhouse number translates a payment of the enterprise for emissions of greenhouse gases in power units. Technological numbers have through character – from extraction of raw materials before receiving finished goods. The best available technologies are characterized by the smallest sum of all technological numbers. Keywords: through power-ecological analysis, power ecological capacity of production of steel products, technological fuel ecological greenhouse number, best available technologies, climatic neutralit

A nonlinear population Monte Carlo scheme for the Bayesian estimation of parameters of alpha-stable distributions

The class of alpha-stable distributions enjoys multiple practical applications in signal processing, finance, biology and other areas because it allows to describe interesting and complex data patterns, such as asymmetry or heavy tails, in contrast with the simpler and widely used Gaussian distribution. The density associated with a general alpha-stable distribution cannot be obtained in closed form, which hinders the process of estimating its parameters. A nonlinear population Monte Carlo (NPMC) scheme is applied in order to approximate the posterior probability distribution of the parameters of an alpha-stable random variable given a set of random realizations of the latter. The approximate posterior distribution is computed by way of an iterative algorithm and it consists of a collection of samples in the parameter space with associated nonlinearly-transformed importance weights. A numerical comparison of the main existing methods to estimate the alpha-stable parameters is provided, including the traditional frequentist techniques as well as a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) and a likelihood-free Bayesian approach. It is shown by means of computer simulations that the NPMC method outperforms the existing techniques in terms of parameter estimation error and failure rate for the whole range of values of a, including the smaller values for which most existing methods fail to work properly. Furthermore, it is shown that accurate parameter estimates can often be computed based on a low number of observations. Additionally, numerical results based on a set of real fish displacement data are providedE.K. acknowledges the support of Ministerio de Educación of Spain (Programa de Formación de Profesorado Universitario, Ref. AP2008-00469). J.M. acknowledges the partial support of Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad of Spain (program Consolider-Ingenio 2010 CSD2008-00010 COMONSENS and project COMPREHENSION TEC2012-38883-C02-01) and the Office of Naval Research Global (award no. N62909-15-1-2011). At the time of the original submission of this paper, J.M. was with the Department of Signal Theory and Communications, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Spain). M.A acknowledges the financial support of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (Discovery Grant 138680), the Coordenação de Apoioao Pessoal do Ensino Superior (grant No.1351/11-7) and the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisado Estado do Rio de Janeiro (grant No.E-26/110.864/2012), and thanks J. Nolan for providing a free copy of the STABLE software. A.M.S. acknowledges the financial support from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico(grant No. 308016/2014-9) and Coordenação de Apoio ao Pessoal do Ensino Superior, DGU Program (grant No. 257/12)

Pharmacists' mental health during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Italy

OBJECTIVE: The year 2020 was characterized by the outbreak of a new pandemic caused by a novel coronavirus named SARSCoV- 2. To face the pandemic, many countries worldwide imposed general lockdowns, closing all non-essential businesses. As primary care services, pharmacies had to remain open, thus putting pharmacy staff at significant risk of viral infection and overwork. This study aimed to assess the mental health of Italian Pharmacists, considering demographic and occupational characteristics, lifestyle, and habits, during the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak and the subsequent lockdown period (March-May 2020). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A web-based survey was created using Google® Forms to collect data from March 30, 2020, to June 1, 2020. The questionnaire consisted of three sections investigating: (1) demographic and occupational variables, (2) lifestyle and habits variables, (3) psychological distress and perceived well-being. RESULTS: A total of 401 participants completed the questionnaire. Older workers and those with more work experience reported more psychological stress. Older and female workers, who felt lonely at home and reported psychological stress, perceived poor well-being. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that the Sars-CoV-2 outbreak and subsequent lockdown rules affected pharmacists' mental health and that it is important to put in place preventive measures against the occurrence of mental disorders among them

Effects of pot fishing on the physical condition of snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio) and southern Tanner crab (Chionoecetes bairdi)

The effects of commercial fishing with crab pots on the physical condition of the snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio) and southern Tanner crab (C. bairdi) were investigated in the Bering Sea and in Russian waters of the Sea of Okhotsk. In crabs that were subjected to pot hauling, the presence of gas embolism and the deformation of gill lamellae were found in histopathological investigations. Crab vitality, which was characterized subjectively through observation of behavioral responses, depended on not only the number of pot hauls but also the time between hauls. Immediately after repeated pot hauls at short time intervals (≤3 days), we observed a rapid decline in vitality of crabs. When hauling intervals were increased to >3 days, the condition of crabs did not significantly change. After repeated pot hauls, concentration of the respiratory pigment hemocyanin ([Hc]) was often lower in the hemolymph of crabs than in the hemolymph of freshly caught animals. Our research indicated that changes in [Hc] in crabs after repeated pot hauls were caused by the effects of decompression and not by starvation of crabs in pots or exposure of crabs to air. We suggest that the decrease in [Hc] in hemolymph of snow and southern Tanner crabs was a response to the adverse effects of decompression and air-bubble disease. The decrease in [Hc] in affected crabs may be a result of mechanisms that regulate internal pressure in damaged gills to optimize respiratory circulation

Study of pregnant women’s emotional state

The article discusses how the emotional state of pregnant women is influenced by their previous experience of pregnancy. The study relies on the following methods: ‘Test of Pregnant Woman’s Relations’ by I.V Dobryakova; ‘Self. Assessment of Emotional States’ by A. Wessman and D. Ricks; “Self. Estimate” by T. Dembo and S. Ya. Rubinshtein (modified by P. V. Yanshin); “Test of Meaningful Life Orientations” by D. Krambo and L. Makholikh (adapted by D. A. Leontyev). The study has shown that in the presence of complications and pathologies — in the form of a history of miscarriage — the emotional sphere of a woman will be characterized by emotional instability, increased anxiety and low self.esteem. Emotional instability is typical of pregnancy in general and it often is accompanied by dependence on others, distrustfulness, fatigue, vulnerability, impressionability combined with excitement, anxiety, and some fear.This study was funded by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research Grant № 17‑36‑01100

Влияние легочной гипертензии на толерантность к физической нагрузке при выраженной хронической обструктивной болезни легких

Summary. The purpose of this study was to investigate effects of pulmonary hypertension on exercise capacity in patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Lung function, mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) and physical capacity were monitored in 30 patients with advanced COPD and pulmonary hypertension. mPAP was calculated from the acceleration time of pulmonary flow in Doppler echocardiographic examination. Exercise capacity was assessed by a distance walked in 6 min (6MWD) and by an incremental cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET). We used "Ergopneumotest" equipment (Erich Jaeger, Germany) for CPET. There was no statistically significant difference in any of CPET and 6MWD variables between the patients with mPAP < 25 mm Hg and those with mPAP > 25 mm Hg. There was no correlation between PAP and any of the exercise measurements. These results suggest that the exercise capacity in patients with advanced COPD and mild to moderate pulmonary hypertension is essentially limited by exhaustion of the ventilatory reserve.Резюме. Проведен мониторинг функции внешнего дыхания (ФВД), среднего давления в легочной артерии и физической работоспособности у 30 пациентов с выраженной хронической обструктивной болезнью легких (ХОБЛ) и легочной гипертензией. Целью исследования было определение влияния легочной гипертензии на физическую выносливость у пациентов с ХОБЛ. Среднее давление в легочной артерии было рассчитано с учетом времени ускорения легочного потока в выносящем тракте правого желудочка при допплер-эхокардиографии. Физическая выносливость оценивалась во время 6-минутного шагового теста (6-MШТ) и кардиореспираторного теста (КРT), для которого было использовано оборудование Ergopneumotest (Erich Jaeger, Германия). Разница между параметрами КРT и 6-MШТ у пациентов с легочной гипертензией и без нее не была статистически значимой. Корреляции между средним давлением в легочной артерии и параметрами нагрузочных тестов не отмечалось. Полученные результаты предполагают, что физическая толерантность у пациентов с выраженной ХОБЛ и умеренной легочной гипертензией существенным образом зависит от дыхательного резерва

Thermochemistry of heteroatomic compounds X. The thermochemistry of solution and solvation of substituted alkylphosphonic derivatives

The enthalpies of vaporization of different classes of phosphorylated alcohols and amines were determined from their enthalpies of solution in hexane and carbon tetrachloride. The enthalpies of specific (hydrogen-bond) interaction with the solvents (chloroform and pyridine) of derivatives containing X-H groups (X=O or N) in the α-position to the P=O group were detemined. The results were explained in terms of the spatial structure of such compounds

Identification of chemokine receptors as potential modulators of endocrine resistance in oestrogen receptor–positive breast cancers

Introduction Endocrine therapies target oestrogenic stimulation of breast cancer (BC) growth, but resistance remains problematic. Our aims in this study were (1) to identify genes most strongly associated with resistance to endocrine therapy by intersecting global gene transcription data from patients treated presurgically with the aromatase inhibitor anastrazole with those from MCF7 cells adapted to long-term oestrogen deprivation (LTED) (2) to assess the clinical value of selected genes in public clinical data sets and (3) to determine the impact of targeting these genes with novel agents. Methods Gene expression and Ki67 data were available from 69 postmenopausal women with oestrogen receptor–positive (ER+) early BC, at baseline and 2 weeks after anastrazole treatment, and from cell lines adapted to LTED. The functional consequences of target genes on proliferation, ER-mediated transcription and downstream cell signalling were assessed. Results By intersecting genes predictive of a poor change in Ki67 with those upregulated in LTED cells, we identified 32 genes strongly correlated with poor antiproliferative response that were associated with inflammation and/or immunity. In a panel of LTED cell lines, C-X-C chemokine receptor type 7 (CXCR7) and CXCR4 were upregulated compared to their wild types (wt), and CXCR7, but not CXCR4, was associated with reduced relapse-free survival in patients with ER+ BC. The CXCR4 small interfering RNA variant (siCXCR4) had no specific effect on the proliferation of wt-SUM44, wt-MCF7 and their LTED derivatives. In contrast, siCXCR7, as well as CCX733, a CXCR7 antagonist, specifically suppressed the proliferation of MCF7-LTED cells. siCXCR7 suppressed proteins associated with G1/S transition and inhibited ER transactivation in MCF7-LTED, but not wt-MCF7, by impeding association between ER and proline-, glutamic acid– and leucine-rich protein 1, an ER coactivator. Conclusions These data highlight CXCR7 as a potential therapeutic target warranting clinical investigation in endocrine-resistant BC

The diacylglycerol kinase α/Atypical PKC/β1 integrin pathway in SDF-1α mammary carcinoma invasiveness

Diacylglycerol kinase α (DGKα), by phosphorylating diacylglycerol into phosphatidic acid, provides a key signal driving cell migration and matrix invasion. We previously demonstrated that in epithelial cells activation of DGKα activity promotes cytoskeletal remodeling and matrix invasion by recruiting atypical PKC at ruffling sites and by promoting RCP-mediated recycling of α5β1 integrin to the tip of pseudopods. In here we investigate the signaling pathway by which DGKα mediates SDF-1α-induced matrix invasion of MDA-MB-231 invasive breast carcinoma cells. Indeed we showed that, following SDF-1α stimulation, DGKα is activated and localized at cell protrusion, thus promoting their elongation and mediating SDF-1α induced MMP-9 metalloproteinase secretion and matrix invasion. Phosphatidic acid generated by DGKα promotes localization at cell protrusions of atypical PKCs which play an essential role downstream of DGKα by promoting Rac-mediated protrusion elongation and localized recruitment of β1 integrin and MMP-9. We finally demonstrate that activation of DGKα, atypical PKCs signaling and β1 integrin are all essential for MDA-MB-231 invasiveness. These data indicates the existence of a SDF-1α induced DGKα - atypical PKC - β1 integrin signaling pathway, which is essential for matrix invasion of carcinoma cells

Optimization of intravascular volume determination in patients with acute decompensated heart failure

Acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) is based on multilevel pathological pathways, which include hemodynamic overload and venous stasis. Determination of the volemic status is one of the most important tasks in managing such patients. Despite the availability of modern diagnostic markers (physical examination, chest x-ray, and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) assessment), they do not accurately assess the degree of fluid overload, and therefore there remains a need to find a new, accurate and simple technology for assessing pulmonary congestion. The urgency of this problem has led to the development of a novel non-invasive remote dielectric sensing (ReDS) technology, which is a quantitative method for measuring the total volume of lung fluid by determining the tissue dielectric properties. The use of this technology makes it possible to quickly, non-invasively and quantitatively measure the fluid content in the lungs, makes it possible to optimize the treatment regimen and reduces the number of readmissions. This article presents the results of studies on the efficacy, safety and prospects for using a ReDS technology for the quantitative measurement of total lung fluid in patients with ADHF