New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Studying the impact characteristics of spray droplets on plant surfaces using a multiphase CFD model

peer reviewedThe impact characteristics of spray droplets on plant surfaces was investigated based on a multiphase computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model using the Volume Of Fluid (VOF) approach. The contact angle of the droplet on different surfaces was measured and included as a model parameter. The model was validated using experimental results that were conducted on different plant surfaces (apple, pear, cabbage and leek) and the model was applied to study the effect of droplet impact velocity, droplet diameter, formulation and surface topology on droplet impact characteristics. For each combination of model parameters, the model was capable of predicting the droplet impact outcome (adherence, rebound, splash and shattering). The results showed that multiphase CFD model has a capacity to predict the behavior of plant protection mixture droplets at impact on target surfaces

New Multiscale Heat Transfer Techniques

In this paper we present a new multiscale method for coupling molecular dynamics simulations (MD) with Monte Carlo (MC) simulations. The method is relevant for heat transfer phenomena at the molecular level with applicability in many domains such as polymer processing, crystallization process in moving polymer melt, complex flows near the interfaces, e.g. wetting, colloids near surfaces, drop formation, etc. First the theoretical background is described and after that simulation results between multiscale MD-MC and pure MD simulation are presented. At the end, comparisons between accuracy and computational costs of MD, MC and multiscale MD-MC simulations are outlined

Serological and Clinical one year follow-up of Patients with Erythema migrans treated in a Romanian Infectious Disease Hospital

Eritemul migrator ( EM ) este cea mai comună și recunoscută manifestare clinică precoce a Borreliozei Lyme ( LB ) în Europa. Scop: de a evalua clinic și serologic toți pacienții cu EM și de a corela serologia cu abordarea clinică. Material si metodă: Un studiu prospectiv incluzand toți pacienții care au venit cu EM la Spitalul Clinic de Boli Infecțioase din Cluj - Napoca România între 1 aprilie și 31 august 2011. Am înregistrat date referitoare la: vârstă, sex, intervalul între înțepătura de căpușă și apariția EM, intervalul între apariția EM și prezentarea la spital, serologia (IgM și IgG pentru Borrelia burgdorferi sl) la prezentare și după un an, tratamentul cu antibiotice, durata tratamentului cu antibiotice și evolutia clinică. Rezultate: 44 pacienți cu EM, 2 au avut EM multiplu, 23 bărbați (52 %), cu vârsta medie de 41.3 ani (min 3 ani, maxim 84 ani, in medie 43.5 ani). Serologia la prezentare a fost pozitivă la 15 pacienți pentru IgM și la 9 pacienți pentru IgG cu ELISA și la 13 pentru IgM și la 16 pentru IgG cu WB. După un an de urmărire rezultate pozitive pentru IgM au fost găsite la 14 pacienți cu ELISA și la 11 de pacienți cu WB. IgG a fost pozitivă la 7 pacienți cu ELISA și la 5 cu WB. Intervalul mediu de timp între mușcătura de căpușă și EM nu a fost semnificativ diferit pentru pacienții cu IgM sau IgG negativ sau pozitiv. Intervalul dintre apariția EM și inițierea tratamentului a avut semnificație statistica pentru IgG pozitiv. După un an nu a fost găsită nici o semnificație statistică pentru IgM pozitiv pentru niciunul dintre factorii analizați, în timp ce pentru IgG pozitivitate a fost semnificativ asociată cu vârsta și durata perioadei de incubație. Tratamentul antibiotic si durata acestuia nu au influențat serologia pacienților noastri. Concluzii: Datele noastre aduc dovezi suplimentare că profilul serologic este imprevizibil la pacienții cu Borrelioză Lyme

Predicting the dynamic impact behaviour of spray droplets on flat plant surfaces

The dynamic impact behaviour of water droplets on plant surfaces was investigated based on a multiphase computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. The study was conducted using the Volume Of Fluid (VOF) approach. The static contact angle of water droplets on leaf surfaces of different plants (apple, pear, leek and cabbage) was measured and found to vary between 54.9 and 138.2°. Impact experiments were conducted by monitoring the flow and impact characteristics of water droplets on leaves in still air with a high speed camera. Droplets were generated by an agricultural flat fan spray nozzle moving across the leaf at constant speed. The nozzle produced droplets with diameters ranging from 20.6 up to 550.8 μm, and droplet velocity values near the impact between 0.03 and 13.2 m s(-1). The CFD model was capable of predicting the observed dynamic impact behaviour of droplets on the plant surfaces. The fate of the droplets after the impact process for adhesion, bouncing or splashing was accurately predicted for Weber numbers (We) in the range of 0.007 to 1096 and droplet Reynolds numbers (Re) between 5 to 8000. The process was highly dependent on the surface and droplet flow characteristics during the impact. Combinations of We, Re and Ohnesorge (Oh) numbers defined the droplet maximum spread factor, the number of secondary droplets generated as a result of the splashing process and the transition between the different impact outcomes. These criteria can then be used in field scale spray deposition and drift models to better understand agricultural spray operations

ACTRIS IMP D2.2: Report on financial and capacity scenarios

The purpose of the document is to analyse a range of likely financial and capacity scenarios that mayarise for its operations during the ACTRIS Implementation phase. The scenario planning will beessential to map out the different probabilities and outcomes on the financial plan and operations ofACTRIS ERIC and to help making strategic decisions and identifying the main areas of risk for the long-term sustainability of ACTRIS

ACTRIS IMP D5.1: ACTRIS NF Labelling Plan

The present document is the first version of the ACTRIS Labelling Plan. It describes the labelling principles,contents of the ACTRIS label, steps of the labelling process and plans for its implementation. Furthermore,an overview on the National Facilities (NFs) proposed by the countries and the timeline for implementingand labelling them in the first phase after establishing the ACTRIS ERIC (2021-2025) is provided. Theprocedures of the labelling process shall be tested during a pilot labelling activity, which involvesexperienced National Facilities of different type. After the pilot phase, the Labelling Plan will be updatedby considering lessons learnt and respective improvements of the mechanisms and tools applied in thelabelling proces