The association between first and second wave COVID-19 mortality in Italy

Background: The relation between the magnitude of successive waves of the COVID-19 outbreak within the same communities could be useful in predicting the scope of new outbreaks. Methods: We investigated the extent to which COVID-19 mortality in Italy during the second wave was related to first wave mortality within the same provinces. We compared data on province-specific COVID-19 2020 mortality in two time periods, corresponding to the first wave (February 24\u2013June 30, 2020) and to the second wave (September 1\u2013December 31, 2020), using cubic spline regression. Results: For provinces with the lowest crude mortality rate in the first wave (February\u2013June), i.e. < 22 cases/100,000/month, mortality in the second wave (September\u2013December) was positively associated with mortality during the first wave. In provinces with mortality greater than 22/100,000/month during the first wave, higher mortality in the first wave was associated with a lower second wave mortality. Results were similar when the analysis was censored at October 2020, before the implementation of region-specific measures against the outbreak. Neither vaccination nor variant spread had any role during the study period. Conclusions: These findings indicate that provinces with the most severe initial COVID-19 outbreaks, as assessed through mortality data, faced milder second waves

The SPOrt Project: Cosmological and Astrophysical Goals

We present the cosmological and astrophysical objectives of the SPOrt mission, which is scheduled for flying on the International Space Station (ISS) in the year 2002 with the purpose of measuring the diffuse sky polarized radiation in the microwave region. We discuss the problem of disentangling the cosmic background polarized signal from the Galactic foregrounds.Comment: 10 pages; 5 PS figures; requires aipproc2.cls, aipproc2.sty, epsfc.tex; to appear in Proc. of ``3K Cosmology'', Rome 5-10 Oct. 199

Satellite-detected tropospheric nitrogen dioxide and spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Northern Italy

Following the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome CoronaVirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) last December 2019 in China, Italy was the first European country to be severely affected, with the first local case diagnosed on 20 February 2020. The virus spread quickly, particularly in the North of Italy, with three regions (Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna) being the most severely affected. These three regions accounted for >80% of SARS-CoV-2 positive cases when the tight lockdown was established (March 8). These regions include one of Europe's areas of heaviest air pollution, the Po valley. Air pollution has been recently proposed as a possible risk factor of SARS-CoV-2 infection, due to its adverse effect on immunity and to the possibility that polluted air may even carry the virus. We investigated the association between air pollution and subsequent spread of the SARS-CoV-2 infection within these regions. We collected NO2 tropospheric levels using satellite data available at the European Space Agency before the lockdown. Using a multivariable restricted cubic spline regression model, we compared NO2 levels with SARS-CoV-2 infection prevalence rate at different time points after the lockdown, namely March 8, 22 and April 5, in the 28 provinces of Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna. We found little association of NO2 levels with SARS-CoV-2 prevalence up to about 130 μmol/m2, while a positive association was evident at higher levels at each time point. Notwithstanding the limitations of the use of aggregated data, these findings lend some support to the hypothesis that high levels of air pollution may favor the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 infection

Systematic review and meta-analysis of reduction in all-cause mortality from walking and cycling and shape of dose response relationship

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Walking and cycling have shown beneficial effects on population risk of all-cause mortality (ACM). This paper aims to review the evidence and quantify these effects, adjusted for other physical activity (PA). DATA SOURCES: We conducted a systematic review to identify relevant studies. Searches were conducted in November 2013 using the following health databases of publications: Embase (OvidSP); Medline (OvidSP); Web of Knowledge; CINAHL; SCOPUS; SPORTDiscus. We also searched reference lists of relevant texts and reviews. STUDY ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA AND PARTICIPANTS: Eligible studies were prospective cohort design and reporting walking or cycling exposure and mortality as an outcome. Only cohorts of individuals healthy at baseline were considered eligible. STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHODS: Extracted data included study population and location, sample size, population characteristics (age and sex), follow-up in years, walking or cycling exposure, mortality outcome, and adjustment for other co-variables. We used random-effects meta-analyses to investigate the beneficial effects of regular walking and cycling. RESULTS: Walking (18 results from 14 studies) and cycling (8 results from 7 studies) were shown to reduce the risk of all-cause mortality, adjusted for other PA. For a standardised dose of 11.25 MET.hours per week (or 675 MET.minutes per week), the reduction in risk for ACM was 11% (95% CI = 4 to 17%) for walking and 10% (95% CI = 6 to 13%) for cycling. The estimates for walking are based on 280,000 participants and 2.6 million person-years and for cycling they are based on 187,000 individuals and 2.1 million person-years. The shape of the dose-response relationship was modelled through meta-analysis of pooled relative risks within three exposure intervals. The dose-response analysis showed that walking or cycling had the greatest effect on risk for ACM in the first (lowest) exposure interval. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The analysis shows that walking and cycling have population-level health benefits even after adjustment for other PA. Public health approaches would have the biggest impact if they are able to increase walking and cycling levels in the groups that have the lowest levels of these activities. REVIEW REGISTRATION: The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (International database of prospectively registered systematic reviews in health and social care) PROSPERO 2013: CRD42013004266

The Green Bank Northern Celestial Cap Pulsar Survey II: The Discovery and Timing of Ten Pulsars

We present timing solutions for ten pulsars discovered in 350 MHz searches with the Green Bank Telescope. Nine of these were discovered in the Green Bank Northern Celestial Cap survey and one was discovered by students in the Pulsar Search Collaboratory program in analysis of drift-scan data. Following discovery and confirmation with the Green Bank Telescope, timing has yielded phase-connected solutions with high precision measurements of rotational and astrometric parameters. Eight of the pulsars are slow and isolated, including PSR J0930$-$2301, a pulsar with nulling fraction lower limit of $\sim$30\% and nulling timescale of seconds to minutes. This pulsar also shows evidence of mode changing. The remaining two pulsars have undergone recycling, accreting material from binary companions, resulting in higher spin frequencies. PSR J0557$-$2948 is an isolated, 44 \rm{ms} pulsar that has been partially recycled and is likely a former member of a binary system which was disrupted by a second supernova. The paucity of such so-called `disrupted binary pulsars' (DRPs) compared to double neutron star (DNS) binaries can be used to test current evolutionary scenarios, especially the kicks imparted on the neutron stars in the second supernova. There is some evidence that DRPs have larger space velocities, which could explain their small numbers. PSR J1806+2819 is a 15 \rm{ms} pulsar in a 44 day orbit with a low mass white dwarf companion. We did not detect the companion in archival optical data, indicating that it must be older than 1200 Myr.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure

Association between Outdoor Air Pollution and Childhood Leukemia: A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND: A causal link between outdoor air pollution and childhood leukemia has been proposed, but some older studies suffer from methodological drawbacks. To the best of our knowledge, no systematic reviews have summarized the most recently published evidence and no analyses have examined the dose-response relation. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the extent to which outdoor air pollution, especially as resulting from traffic-related contaminants, affects the risk of childhood leukemia. METHODS: We searched all case-control and cohort studies that have investigated the risk of childhood leukemia in relation to exposure either to motorized traffic and related contaminants, based on various traffic-related metrics (number of vehicles in the closest roads, road density, and distance from major roads), or to measured or modeled levels of air contaminants such as benzene, nitrogen dioxide, 1,3-butadiene, and particulate matter. We carried out a meta-analysis of all eligible studies, including nine studies published since the last systematic review and, when possible, we fit a dose-response curve using a restricted cubic spline regression model. RESULTS: We found 29 studies eligible to be included in our review. In the dose-response analysis, we found little association between disease risk and traffic indicators near the child's residence for most of the exposure range, with an indication of a possible excess risk only at the highest levels. In contrast, benzene exposure was positively and approximately linearly associated with risk of childhood leukemia, particularly for acute myeloid leukemia, among children under 6 y of age, and when exposure assessment at the time of diagnosis was used. Exposure to nitrogen dioxide showed little association with leukemia risk except at the highest levels. DISCUSSION: Overall, the epidemiologic literature appears to support an association between benzene and childhood leukemia risk, with no indication of any threshold effect. A role for other measured and unmeasured pollutants from motorized traffic is also possible. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP4381

The Italian National Registry for FSHD: an enhanced data integration and an analytics framework towards Smart Health Care and Precision Medicine for a rare disease

Background: The Italian Clinical network for FSHD (ICNF) has established the Italian National Registry for FSHD (INRF), collecting data from patients affected by Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy (FSHD) and their relatives. The INRF has gathered data from molecular analysis, clinical evaluation, anamnestic information, and family history from more than 3500 participants. Methods: A data management framework, called Mediator Environment for Multiple Information Sources (MOMIS) FSHD Web Platform, has been developed to provide charts, maps and search tools customized for specific needs. Patients’ samples and their clinical information derives from the Italian Clinical network for FSHD (ICNF), a consortium consisting of fourteen neuromuscular clinics distributed across Italy. The tools used to collect, integrate, and visualize clinical, molecular and natural history information about patients affected by FSHD and their relatives are described. Results: The INRF collected the molecular data regarding FSHD diagnosis conducted on 7197 subjects and identified 3362 individuals carrying a D4Z4 Reduced Allele (DRA): 1634 were unrelated index cases. In 1032 cases the molecular testing has been extended to 3747 relatives, 1728 carrying a DRA. Since 2009 molecular analysis has been accompanied by clinical evaluation based standardized evaluation protocols. In the period 2009–2020, 3577 clinical forms have been collected, 2059 follow the Comprehensive Clinical Evaluation form (CCEF). The integration of standardized clinical information and molecular data has made possible to demonstrate the wide phenotypic variability of FSHD. The MOMIS (Mediator Environment for Multiple Information Sources) data integration framework allowed performing genotype–phenotype correlation studies, and generated information of medical importance either for clinical practice or genetic counseling. Conclusion: The platform implemented for the FSHD Registry data collection based on OpenClinica meets the requirement to integrate patient/disease information, as well as the need to adapt dynamically to security and privacy concerns. Our results indicate that the quality of data collection in a multi-integrated approach is fundamental for clinical and epidemiological research in a rare disease and may have great value in allowing us to redefine diagnostic criteria and disease markers for FSHD. By extending the use of the MOMIS data integration framework to other countries and the longitudinal systematic collection of standardized clinical data will facilitate the understanding of disease natural history and offer valuable inputs towards trial readiness. This approach is of high significance to FSHD medical community and also to rare disease research in general