Electrografting of isophthalic acid monolayer and covalent attachment of antibody onto carbon surfaces

In this study, a 5-diazonium isophthalic acid was synthesized and electrografted onto glassy carbon (GCE) and screen-printed carbon (SPCE) electrodes. SPCE was used to demonstrate fabrication of a miniature device and to compare with conventional glassy carbon electrodes. The isophthalic acid (IPA) electrografted thin film was used for the immobilization of anti-methotrexate antibody (Ab) using carbodiimide activation chemistry to form antibody modified surfaces, GCE-IPA-Ab and SPCE-IPA-Ab. The GCE -IPA-Ab and SPCE-IPA-Ab surfaces were used as capacitive biosensors for the detection of methotrexate (MTX) in phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) using capacitive electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The EIS data was analyzed using singular value decomposition (SVD). Principal component regression analysis gave R2 values of 0.99 for both the GCE-IPA-Ab and SPCE-IPA-Ab surfaces. The detection limit from the calibration curve of the GCE-IPA-Ab and SPCE-IPA-Ab was calculated to be 7.0 pmol.L−1 and 5.5 pmol.L−1, respectively

Core–Shell Carbon Nanofibers-NiFe Structure on 3D Porous Carbon Foam: Facilitating a Promising Trajectory toward Decarbonizing Energy Production

In this work, a low-cost, light-weight, highly efficient, and durable electrode in which NiFe-layered double hydroxide is electrodeposited on a carbon nanofiber (CNF) core supported on a carbon foam (CF) is introduced. The resulting 3D NiFe-CNFs-CF electrode shows excellent oxygen evolution reaction and hydrogen evolution reaction performance in alkaline media. When used as an anode and a cathode in the same cell, a current density of 10 mA cm−2 is achieved, at a cell voltage of 1.65 V. Moreover, good stability over a long testing time (50 h) is demonstrated. The ternary hybrid electrode gives rise to an excellent performance-to-weight ratio owing to its very low bulk density (≈34 mg cm−3) inherited from super lightweight components composed of CF and CNFs. The developed electrode can potentially be used in large-scale alkaline water electrolysis, in facilities such as offshore hydrogen production platforms, which can complement the variable renewable energy production of wind farms through hydrogen storage and fuel cells.</p

Burden of cancer in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, 2005-2015: findings from the Global Burden of Disease 2015 Study

Fitzmaurice C, Alsharif U, El Bcheraoui C, et al. Burden of cancer in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, 2005-2015: findings from the Global Burden of Disease 2015 Study. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH. 2018;63(Suppl. 1):151-164.To estimate incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) caused by cancer in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) between 2005 and 2015. Vital registration system and cancer registry data from the EMR region were analyzed for 29 cancer groups in 22 EMR countries using the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015 methodology. In 2015, cancer was responsible for 9.4% of all deaths and 5.1% of all DALYs. It accounted for 722,646 new cases, 379,093 deaths, and 11.7 million DALYs. Between 2005 and 2015, incident cases increased by 46%, deaths by 33%, and DALYs by 31%. The increase in cancer incidence was largely driven by population growth and population aging. Breast cancer, lung cancer, and leukemia were the most common cancers, while lung, breast, and stomach cancers caused most cancer deaths. Cancer is responsible for a substantial disease burden in the EMR, which is increasing. There is an urgent need to expand cancer prevention, screening, and awareness programs in EMR countries as well as to improve diagnosis, treatment, and palliative care services

Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 328 diseases and injuries for 195 countries, 1990–2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

As mortality rates decline, life expectancy increases, and populations age, non-fatal outcomes of diseases and injuries are becoming a larger component of the global burden of disease. The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016 (GBD 2016) provides a comprehensive assessment of prevalence, incidence, and years lived with disability (YLDs) for 328 causes in 195 countries and territories from 1990 to 2016

Global, regional, and national under-5 mortality, adult mortality, age-specific mortality, and life expectancy, 1970–2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

BACKGROUND: Detailed assessments of mortality patterns, particularly age-specific mortality, represent a crucial input that enables health systems to target interventions to specific populations. Understanding how all-cause mortality has changed with respect to development status can identify exemplars for best practice. To accomplish this, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016 (GBD 2016) estimated age-specific and sex-specific all-cause mortality between 1970 and 2016 for 195 countries and territories and at the subnational level for the five countries with a population greater than 200 million in 2016. METHODS: We have evaluated how well civil registration systems captured deaths using a set of demographic methods called death distribution methods for adults and from consideration of survey and census data for children younger than 5 years. We generated an overall assessment of completeness of registration of deaths by dividing registered deaths in each location-year by our estimate of all-age deaths generated from our overall estimation process. For 163 locations, including subnational units in countries with a population greater than 200 million with complete vital registration (VR) systems, our estimates were largely driven by the observed data, with corrections for small fluctuations in numbers and estimation for recent years where there were lags in data reporting (lags were variable by location, generally between 1 year and 6 years). For other locations, we took advantage of different data sources available to measure under-5 mortality rates (U5MR) using complete birth histories, summary birth histories, and incomplete VR with adjustments; we measured adult mortality rate (the probability of death in individuals aged 15-60 years) using adjusted incomplete VR, sibling histories, and household death recall. We used the U5MR and adult mortality rate, together with crude death rate due to HIV in the GBD model life table system, to estimate age-specific and sex-specific death rates for each location-year. Using various international databases, we identified fatal discontinuities, which we defined as increases in the death rate of more than one death per million, resulting from conflict and terrorism, natural disasters, major transport or technological accidents, and a subset of epidemic infectious diseases; these were added to estimates in the relevant years. In 47 countries with an identified peak adult prevalence for HIV/AIDS of more than 0·5% and where VR systems were less than 65% complete, we informed our estimates of age-sex-specific mortality using the Estimation and Projection Package (EPP)-Spectrum model fitted to national HIV/AIDS prevalence surveys and antenatal clinic serosurveillance systems. We estimated stillbirths, early neonatal, late neonatal, and childhood mortality using both survey and VR data in spatiotemporal Gaussian process regression models. We estimated abridged life tables for all location-years using age-specific death rates. We grouped locations into development quintiles based on the Socio-demographic Index (SDI) and analysed mortality trends by quintile. Using spline regression, we estimated the expected mortality rate for each age-sex group as a function of SDI. We identified countries with higher life expectancy than expected by comparing observed life expectancy to anticipated life expectancy on the basis of development status alone. FINDINGS: Completeness in the registration of deaths increased from 28% in 1970 to a peak of 45% in 2013; completeness was lower after 2013 because of lags in reporting. Total deaths in children younger than 5 years decreased from 1970 to 2016, and slower decreases occurred at ages 5-24 years. By contrast, numbers of adult deaths increased in each 5-year age bracket above the age of 25 years. The distribution of annualised rates of change in age-specific mortality rate differed over the period 2000 to 2016 compared with earlier decades: increasing annualised rates of change were less frequent, although rising annualised rates of change still occurred in some locations, particularly for adolescent and younger adult age groups. Rates of stillbirths and under-5 mortality both decreased globally from 1970. Evidence for global convergence of death rates was mixed; although the absolute difference between age-standardised death rates narrowed between countries at the lowest and highest levels of SDI, the ratio of these death rates-a measure of relative inequality-increased slightly. There was a strong shift between 1970 and 2016 toward higher life expectancy, most noticeably at higher levels of SDI. Among countries with populations greater than 1 million in 2016, life expectancy at birth was highest for women in Japan, at 86·9 years (95% UI 86·7-87·2), and for men in Singapore, at 81·3 years (78·8-83·7) in 2016. Male life expectancy was generally lower than female life expectancy between 1970 and 2016, an

Global, regional, and national disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) for 333 diseases and injuries and healthy life expectancy (HALE) for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016

BACKGROUND: Measurement of changes in health across locations is useful to compare and contrast changing epidemiological patterns against health system performance and identify specific needs for resource allocation in research, policy development, and programme decision making. Using the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016, we drew from two widely used summary measures to monitor such changes in population health: disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) and healthy life expectancy (HALE). We used these measures to track trends and benchmark progress compared with expected trends on the basis of the Socio-demographic Index (SDI). METHODS: We used results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2016 for all-cause mortality, cause-specific mortality, and non-fatal disease burden to derive HALE and DALYs by sex for 195 countries and territories from 1990 to 2016. We calculated DALYs by summing years of life lost and years of life lived with disability for each location, age group, sex, and year. We estimated HALE using age-specific death rates and years of life lived with disability per capita. We explored how DALYs and HALE differed from expected trends when compared with the SDI: the geometric mean of income per person, educational attainment in the population older than age 15 years, and total fertility rate. FINDINGS: The highest globally observed HALE at birth for both women and men was in Singapore, at 75·2 years (95% uncertainty interval 71·9-78·6) for females and 72·0 years (68·8-75·1) for males. The lowest for females was in the Central African Republic (45·6 years [42·0-49·5]) and for males was in Lesotho (41·5 years [39·0-44·0]). From 1990 to 2016, global HALE increased by an average of 6·24 years (5·97-6·48) for both sexes combined. Global HALE increased by 6·04 years (5·74-6·27) for males and 6·49 years (6·08-6·77) for females, whereas HALE at age 65 years increased by 1·78 years (1·61-1·93) for males and 1·96 years (1·69-2·13) for females. Total global DALYs remained largely unchanged from 1990 to 2016 (-2·3% [-5·9 to 0·9]), with decreases in communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional (CMNN) disease DALYs offset by increased DALYs due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The exemplars, calculated as the five lowest ratios of observed to expected age-standardised DALY rates in 2016, were Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Maldives, Peru, and Israel. The leading three causes of DALYs globally were ischaemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and lower respiratory infections, comprising 16·1% of all DALYs. Total DALYs and age-standardised DALY rates due to most CMNN causes decreased from 1990 to 2016. Conversely, the total DALY burden rose for most NCDs; however, age-standardised DALY rates due to NCDs declined globally. INTERPRETATION: At a global level, DALYs and HALE continue to show improvements. At the same time, we observe that many populations are facing growing functional health loss. Rising SDI was associated with increases in cumulative years of life lived with disability and decreases in CMNN DALYs offset by increased NCD DALYs. Relative compression of morbidity highlights the importance of continued health interventions, which has changed in most locations in pace with the gross domestic product per person, education, and family planning. The analysis of DALYs and HALE and their relationship to SDI represents a robust framework with which to benchmark location-specific health performance. Country-specific drivers of disease burden, particularly for causes with higher-than-expected DALYs, should inform health policies, health system improvement initiatives, targeted prevention efforts, and development assistance for health, including financial and research investments for all countries, regardless of their level of sociodemographic development. The presence of countries that substantially outperform others suggests the need for increased scrutiny for proven examples of best practices, which can help to extend gains, whereas the presence of underperforming countries suggests the need for devotion of extra attention to health systems that need more robust support. FUNDING: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Screening of organotin compounds in the Swedish Environment

De ekotoxikologiska effekterna av organotennföreningar (OTC), i huvudsak tributyltenn (TBT) och trifenyltenn (TBT) men också deras mono- och di-substituerade dealkyleringsprodukter är väl dokumenterade. Idag är utsläpp av TBT från skeppsbåttenfärgerna känt för att vara en fara för marina miljöer och användandet har förbjudits i många länder, inklusive Sverige. En rad olika analysmetoder har använts för att utvärdera hur föreningarna är fördelade i miljön, samt för att kontrollera om utsläpp fortfarande förekommer efter införandet av restriktioner. Gaskromatografi kopplad till ”Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry” GC-ICP-MS är en av de kraftfullaste analysteknikerna som finns idag. Tidigare studier om miljöefekter av tennbaserade skeppsbotten-färger har visat att det finns ansenliga mängder av framförallt tributylten, i blåmussla och sediment, i svensk miljö. I den här studien har vi använt GC-ICP-MS för att undersöka förekomsten av både fenyltenn och butyltenn föreningar. En metod baserad på species-specifik isotoputspäddning (SSID-GC-ICP-MS) har utvecklats genom att använda isotop anrikade organoten föreningar som vi syntetiserade från anrikade 116Sn och 124Sn tenn metaller. Biologiska prover (blåmussla, strömming lax och snäckor), sediment, slam, vatten från reningsverk (både utgående och inkommande vatten) och småbåtshamnar, har tagits från olika delar i landet och analyserats. Koncentration av organotennföreningar i de prover som analyserades var generellt sett lägre än det som rapporterades 1987. Koncentrationen av, till exempel, TBT i vattenproverna från Fiskebäckskilsvik är mycket lägre nu (0.1-0.6 ng Sn/L) jämfört med det som rapporterades 1987 (260-410 ng Sn/L). Haltminskningen av organotennföreningar i mussel proverna, tagna från samma plats, var också avsevärt. TBT koncentrationen ligger mellan 17 och 364 ng Sn/g mot det som raporterades 1987 (1000-18000 ng Sn/g ). Högre halter av organotennföreningar har vi funnit i månadsslam från vattenreningsanläggningen i Loudden (Stockholm) där monobutyltenn (MBT), dibutyltenn (DBT) och TBT koncentrationerna bestämdes vara 39, 692, respektive 32 ng Sn/g. Halterna av organotennföreningarna i sediment varierade med sedimentdepositionsdjupet och de högsta halterna av till exempel TBT påträffades mellan sedimentsnittarna 1-3 cm och 39-50 cm. Literaturstudie över relevanta artiklar har genomförts. Mer än 140 referenser har samlats och förts in i ett referensprogram (Idealist) och de är presenterade i en separat data fil

Screening of organotin compounds in the Swedish environment : SNV contract: 219 0102 : March 2004

The ecotoxicological effects of organotin compounds (OTC), mainly tributyltin (TBT) and triphe-nyltin (TPhT) but also their di- and monosubstituted degradation products are well documented. Nowadays, the release of TBT from antifouling paints is recognized worldwide as being one of the main contamination problems for the marine environment, and the use of TBT-based antifouling paints is almost everywhere restricted by law. In order to evaluate the environmental distribution and fate of these compounds, and to control the effectiveness of these legal provisions, many analy-tical methods have been developed among which gas chromatography coupled to inductively coup-led plasma mass spectrometry (GC-ICP-MS) is the most powerful. Previous studies in the Swedishenvironment have shown the presence of considerable amounts of butyltins in mussel and sedimentsamples. In the present study, screening of both butyltins and phenyltins in the Swedish environment is per-formed using GC-ICP-MS. A method for species specific isotope dilution, (SSID-GC-ICP-MS) wasdeveloped using isotopicaly labelled butyl- and phenyltins, synthesized in our laboratory from iso-topically enriched metallic 116Sn and 124Sn respectively. Biological samples (clupea harengus, mytilus edulis, salmo salmar, and nassarius reticulatus), sediments, sewage sludge, water samplesfrom purification plants, and harbours were collected from different parts of Sweden and analysed. Generally, the concentrations of OTCs for most samples were found to be lower compared to theamounts reported in 1987. The concentration of TBT, for example, is now 0.1-0.6 ng Sn/L compared to the 260-410 ng Sn/L reported in 1987 for the water samples from Fiskebäckskilsvik. The decrease in OTC concentration was also noticeable for the mussel (mytilus edulis) samples taken from the same area. The concentration of TBT in the mussel samples was found to bebetween 17-364 ng Sn/g compared to the concentrations 1000-18000 ng Sn/g reported in 1987. Considerable amounts of OTCs were found in the monthly sludge from the water purification plant in Loudden (Stockholm) where monobutyltin (MBT), dibutyltin (DBT), and TBT concentrations were found to be 39, 692, and 32 ng/g respectively. The results from the determination of OTCs in the sediment samples from Gålö, Karlsudd revealed that the sediment layers between 1-3 cm and 39-50 cm had the highest concentrations. A literature study over relevant topics concerning OTC was performed. More than 140 references organized by the filing programme (Idealist) are presented in a separate file.De ekotoxikologiska effekterna av organotennföreningar (OTC), i huvudsak tributyltenn (TBT) och trifenyltenn (TBT) men också deras mono- och di-substituerade dealkyleringsprodukter är väl dokumenterade. Idag är utsläpp av TBT från skeppsbåttenfärgerna känt för att vara en fara för marina miljöer och användandet har förbjudits i många länder, inklusive Sverige. En rad olika analysmetoder har använts för att utvärdera hur föreningarna är fördelade i miljön, samt för att kontrollera om utsläpp fortfarande förekommer efter införandet av restriktioner. Gaskromatografi kopplad till "Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry" GC-ICP-MS är en av de kraftfullaste analysteknikerna som finns idag. Tidigare studier om miljöefekter av tennbaserade skeppsbottenfärger har visat att det finns ansenliga mängder av framförallt tributylten, i blåmussla och sediment, i svensk miljö. I den här studien har vi använt GC-ICP-MS för att undersöka förekomsten av både fenyltenn och butyltenn föreningar. En metod baserad på species-specifik isotoputspäddning (SSID-GC-ICP-MS) har utvecklats genom att använda isotop anrikade organoten föreningar som vi syntetiserade från anrikade 116Sn och 124Sn tenn metaller. Biologiska prover (blåmussla, strömming lax och snäckor), sediment, slam, vatten från reningsverk (både utgående och inkommande vatten) och småbåtshamnar, har tagits från olika delar i landet och analyserats. Koncentration av organotennföreningar i de prover som analyserades var generellt sett lägre än det som rapporterades 1987. Koncentrationen av, till exempel, TBT i vattenproverna från Fiskebäckskilsvik är mycket lägre nu (0.1-0.6 ng Sn/L) jämfört med det som rapporterades 1987 (260-410 ng Sn/L). Haltminskningen av organotennföreningar i mussel proverna, tagna från samma plats, var också avsevärt. TBT koncentrationen ligger mellan 17 och 364 ng Sn/g mot det som raporterades 1987 (1000-18000 ng Sn/g ). Högre halter av organotennföreningar har vi funnit i månadsslam från vattenreningsanläggningen i Loudden (Stockholm) där monobutyltenn (MBT), dibutyltenn (DBT) och TBT koncentrationerna bestämdes vara 39, 692, respektive 32 ng Sn/g. Halterna av organotennföreningarna i sediment varierade med sedimentdepositionsdjupet och de högsta halterna av till exempel TBT påträffades mellan sedimentsnittarna 1-3 cm och 39-50 cm. Literaturstudie över relevanta artiklar har genomförts. Mer än 140 referenser har samlats och förts in i ett referensprogram (Idealist) och de är presenterade i en separat datafil

Screening of organotin compounds in the Swedish Environment

De ekotoxikologiska effekterna av organotennföreningar (OTC), i huvudsak tributyltenn (TBT) och trifenyltenn (TBT) men också deras mono- och di-substituerade dealkyleringsprodukter är väl dokumenterade. Idag är utsläpp av TBT från skeppsbåttenfärgerna känt för att vara en fara för marina miljöer och användandet har förbjudits i många länder, inklusive Sverige. En rad olika analysmetoder har använts för att utvärdera hur föreningarna är fördelade i miljön, samt för att kontrollera om utsläpp fortfarande förekommer efter införandet av restriktioner. Gaskromatografi kopplad till ”Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry” GC-ICP-MS är en av de kraftfullaste analysteknikerna som finns idag. Tidigare studier om miljöefekter av tennbaserade skeppsbotten-färger har visat att det finns ansenliga mängder av framförallt tributylten, i blåmussla och sediment, i svensk miljö. I den här studien har vi använt GC-ICP-MS för att undersöka förekomsten av både fenyltenn och butyltenn föreningar. En metod baserad på species-specifik isotoputspäddning (SSID-GC-ICP-MS) har utvecklats genom att använda isotop anrikade organoten föreningar som vi syntetiserade från anrikade 116Sn och 124Sn tenn metaller. Biologiska prover (blåmussla, strömming lax och snäckor), sediment, slam, vatten från reningsverk (både utgående och inkommande vatten) och småbåtshamnar, har tagits från olika delar i landet och analyserats. Koncentration av organotennföreningar i de prover som analyserades var generellt sett lägre än det som rapporterades 1987. Koncentrationen av, till exempel, TBT i vattenproverna från Fiskebäckskilsvik är mycket lägre nu (0.1-0.6 ng Sn/L) jämfört med det som rapporterades 1987 (260-410 ng Sn/L). Haltminskningen av organotennföreningar i mussel proverna, tagna från samma plats, var också avsevärt. TBT koncentrationen ligger mellan 17 och 364 ng Sn/g mot det som raporterades 1987 (1000-18000 ng Sn/g ). Högre halter av organotennföreningar har vi funnit i månadsslam från vattenreningsanläggningen i Loudden (Stockholm) där monobutyltenn (MBT), dibutyltenn (DBT) och TBT koncentrationerna bestämdes vara 39, 692, respektive 32 ng Sn/g. Halterna av organotennföreningarna i sediment varierade med sedimentdepositionsdjupet och de högsta halterna av till exempel TBT påträffades mellan sedimentsnittarna 1-3 cm och 39-50 cm. Literaturstudie över relevanta artiklar har genomförts. Mer än 140 referenser har samlats och förts in i ett referensprogram (Idealist) och de är presenterade i en separat data fil