Coordination of Europe’s climate-related knowledge base: Networking and collaborating through interactive events, social media and focussed groups

Knowledge of the climate is essential to manage climate-related risks. Underpinning this knowledge is a huge range of climate research and climate service activities. There has been a marked expansion of such activities and while the numerous and diverse funding streams, activities and organizations involved means that climate service development is relatively well resourced in places, there is a risk that the landscape becomes fragmented, duplicative, confusing, and inefficient. To mitigate this, the European Commission established the Climateurope project to bring coordination to Europe’s climate-related knowledge base. Climateurope created a managed network to share knowledge, improve synergies and reduce fragmentation among the stakeholders. As the network evolved, we proactively strove for equality, diversity and inclusion, for example for gender, under-represented regions, and under-represented stakeholder groups. Climateurope explored and adopted innovative approaches to engaging the network members, including face-to-face networking events (Festivals), virtual networking events (Webstivals and webinars), use of arts, social media, expert groups, publications, and an active website. The mix and integration of the traditional communications, such as website, publications and expert groups, with more innovative and varied approaches, such as the Festivals, Webstivals, social media and arts, proved popular and successful in making the network active and attractive. We describe how the network and collaboration was established and managed, and we offer some recommendations for others based on our experiences, including consideration of equality, diversity and inclusion, consider strategies for growing, managing and sustaining the network, and consider a mix of virtual and physical networking events.This work was funded by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme of the European Union: Climateurope - Linking science and society, Project ref. 689029. The views expressed are purely those of the authors who were all involved in the project and may not under any circumstances be regarded as stating an official position of the European Commission. Thank you to Rob Groenland and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on the paperPeer Reviewed"Article signat per 18 autors/es: Chris Hewitt, Janette Bessembinder, Mauro Buonocore, Tyrone Dunbar, Natalie Garrett, Lola Kotova, Stacey New, Paula Newton, Rebecca Parfitt, Carlo Buontempo, Francisco Doblas-Reyes, Francesca Guglielmo, Daniela Jacob, Erik Kjellström, Aleksandra Krzic, Helena Martins, Alessia Pietrosanti, Marta Terrado"Postprint (published version

Need for a common typology of climate services

A comprehensive typology or characterization of the various types of climate services is needed to give an overview that makes (potential) users aware of which climate services are available and where to look for them. It helps identify existing gaps in terms of unserved needs of the users. Different ways of characterizing climate services are used in practice. The factors used for this characterization differ depending on the intended application of the service, the delivery mechanism and project- or user-specific needs. In this paper we discuss the advantages and challenges of using different characterization factors, such as sectors, themes, regions, purposes, time horizons, data sources, level of processing of climate data, background knowledge and type of climate services providers. Some recommendations are given on the factors to use for a common typology of climate services which are understood by a wide range of users. It may be difficult to create a single common typology that will also be understood by users with little background knowledge on climate data. Intermediaries, providing training resources and guidance at web portals on how to use and interpret climate information, can be essential to overcome this problem. Gap analysis is used to compare available and required climate services. Therefore, we advise to use the same typology for the analysis of gaps in available climate services

Efficacy Evaluation of Cu- and Ag-Based Antibacterial Treatments on Polypropylene Fabric and Comparison with Commercial Products

Filter masks are disposable devices intended to be worn in order to reduce exposure to potentially harmful foreign agents of 0.1–10.0 microns. However, to perform their function correctly, these devices should be replaced after a few hours of use. Because of this, billions of non-biodegradable face masks are globally discarded every month (3 million/minute). The frequent renewal of masks, together with the strong environmental impact of non-biodegradable plastic-based mask materials, highlights the need to find a solution to this emerging ecological problem. One way to reduce the environmental impact of masks, decrease their turnover, and, at the same time, increase their safety level is to make them able to inhibit pathogen proliferation and vitality by adding antibacterial materials such as silver, copper, zinc, and graphene. Among these, silver and copper are the most widely used. In this study, with the aim of improving commercial devices’ efficacy and eco-sustainability, Ag-based and Cu-based antibacterial treatments were performed and characterized from morphological, compositional, chemical–physical, and microbiological points of view over time and compared with the antibacterial treatments of selected commercial products. The results demonstrated the good distribution of silver and copper particles onto the surface of the masks, along with almost 100% antibacterial capabilities of the coatings against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, which were still confirmed even after several washing cycles, thus indicating the good potential of the developed prototypes for mask application

MicroRNAs as Regulators of Neo-Angiogenesis in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly vascularized neoplasm. In the tumor niche, abundant angiogenesis is fundamental in providing nutrients for tumor growth and represents the first escape route for metastatic cells. Active angiogenesis, together with metastasis, are responsible for the reduction of recurrence-free survival of HCC. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that have recently drawn attention in molecular targeted therapy or as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. MiRNA expression in HCC has been widely studied in the last decade. Some miRNAs have been found to be up- or down-regulated, besides association with apoptosis, metastasis progression and drug resistance have been found. This review article aims to summarize the angiogenetic process in tumor diseases and to update on what has been found in the vast world of HCC-related-miRNAs and, eventually, to report the latest finding on several miRNAs involved in HCC angiogenesis. We searched the state of the arts for the 12 miRNAs found to be involved with angiogenesis in HCC (miR-29b, miR-126-3p, miR-144-3p, miR-146a, miR-195, miR-199a-3p, miR-210-3p, miR-338- 3p, mir-491, mir-497, mir-638, mir-1301) and reported their main molecular targets and their overall effect in the sprouting of new vessels

Mediterranean monitoring and forecasting operational system for Copernicus Marine Service

The MEDiterranean Monitoring and Forecasting Center (Med-MFC) is part of the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS, http://marine.copernicus.eu/), provided on an operational mode by Mercator Ocean in agreement with the European Commission. Specifically, Med MFC system provides regular and systematic information about the physical state of the ocean and marine ecosystems for the Mediterranean Sea. The Med-MFC service started in May 2015 from the pre-operational system developed during the MyOcean projects, consolidating the understanding of regional Mediterranean Sea dynamics, from currents to biogeochemistry to waves, interfacing with local data collection networks and guaranteeing an efficient link with other Centers in Copernicus network. The Med-MFC products include analyses, 10 days forecasts and reanalysis, describing currents, temperature, salinity, sea level and pelagic biogeochemistry. Waves products will be available in MED-MFC version in 2017. The consortium, composed of INGV (Italy), HCMR (Greece) and OGS (Italy) and coordinated by the Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change (CMCC, Italy), performs advanced R&D activities and manages the service delivery. The Med-MFC infrastructure consists of 3 Production Units (PU), for Physics, Biogechemistry and Waves, a unique Dissemination Unit (DU) and Archiving Unit (AU) and Backup Units (BU) for all principal components, guaranteeing a resilient configuration of the service and providing and efficient and robust solution for the maintenance of the service and delivery. The Med-MFC includes also an evolution plan, both in terms of research and operational activities, oriented to increase the spatial resolution of products, to start wave products dissemination, to increase temporal extent of the reanalysis products and improving ocean physical modeling for delivering new products. The scientific activities carried out in 2015 concerned some improvements in the physical, biogeochemical and wave components of the system. Regarding the currents, new grid-point EOFs have been implemented in the Med-MFC assimilation system; the climatological CMAP precipitation was replaced by the ECMWF daily precipitation; reanalysis time-series have been increased by one year. Regarding the biogeochemistry, the main scientific achievement is related to the implementation of the carbon system in the Med-MFC biogeochemistry model system already available. The new model is able to reproduce the principal spatial patterns of the carbonate system variables in the Mediterranean Sea. Further, a key result consists of the calibration of the new variables (DIC and alkalinity), which serves to the estimation of the accuracy of the new products to be released in the next version of the system (i.e. pH and pCO2 at surface). Regarding the waves, the system has been validated against in-situ and satellite observations. For example, a very good agreement between model output and in-situ observations has been obtained at offshore and/or well-exposed wave buoys in the Mediterranean Sea.PublishedVienna3SR. AMBIENTE - Servizi e ricerca per la Societ

Ideal cardiovascular health and inflammation in European adolescents: The HELENA study

Background and aims Inflammation plays a key role in atherosclerosis and this process seems to appear in childhood. The ideal cardiovascular health index (ICHI) has been inversely related to atherosclerotic plaque in adults. However, evidence regarding inflammation and ICHI in adolescents is scarce. The aim is to assess the association between ICHI and inflammation in European adolescents. Methods and results As many as 543 adolescents (251 boys and 292 girls) from the Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence (HELENA) study, a cross-sectional multi-center study including 9 European countries, were measured. C-reactive protein (CRP), complement factors C3 and C4, leptin and white blood cell counts were used to compute an inflammatory score. Multilevel linear models and multilevel logistic regression were used to assess the association between ICHI and inflammation controlling by covariates. Higher ICHI was associated with a lower inflammatory score, as well as with several individual components, both in boys and girls (p < 0.01). In addition, adolescents with at least 4 ideal components of the ICHI had significantly lower inflammatory score and lower levels of the study biomarkers, except CRP. Finally, the multilevel logistic regression showed that for every unit increase in the ICHI, the probability of having an inflammatory profile decreased by 28.1% in girls. Conclusion Results from this study suggest that a better ICHI is associated with a lower inflammatory profile already in adolescence. Improving these health behaviors, and health factors included in the ICHI, could play an important role in CVD prevention

Evaluation of iron status in European adolescents through biochemical iron indicators: the HELENA Study

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: To assess the iron status among European adolescents through selected biochemical parameters in a cross-sectional study performed in 10 European cities. SUBJECTS/METHODS: Iron status was defined utilising biochemical indicators. Iron depletion was defined as low serum ferritin (SF8.5 mg/l) plus iron depletion. Iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) was defined as ID with haemoglobin (Hb) below the WHO cutoff for age and sex: 12.0 g/dl for girls and for boys aged 12.5-14.99 years and 13.0 g/dl for boys aged ≥15 years. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay was used as analytical method for SF, sTfR and C-reactive protein (CRP). Subjects with indication of inflammation (CRP >5 mg/l) were excluded from the analyses. A total of 940 adolescents aged 12.5-17.49 years (438 boys and 502 girls) were involved. RESULTS: The percentage of iron depletion was 17.6%, significantly higher in girls (21.0%) compared with boys (13.8%). The overall percentage of ID and IDA was 4.7 and 1.3%, respectively, with no significant differences between boys and girls. A correlation was observed between log (SF) and Hb (r = 0.36, P < 0.01), and between log (sTfR) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin (r = -0.30, P < 0.01). Iron body stores were estimated on the basis of log (sTfR/SF). A higher percentage of negative values of body iron was recorded in girls (16.5%) with respect to boys (8.3%), and body iron values tended to increase with age in boys, whereas the values remained stable in girls. CONCLUSIONS: To ensure adequate iron stores, specific attention should be given to girls at European level to ensure that their dietary intake of iron is adequate.status: publishe

Dietary animal and plant protein intakes and their associations with obesity and cardio-metabolic indicators in European adolescents: The HELENA cross-sectional study

Background: Previous studies suggest that dietary protein might play a beneficial role in combating obesity and its related chronic diseases. Total, animal and plant protein intakes and their associations with anthropometry and serum biomarkers in European adolescents using one standardised methodology across European countries are not well documented. Objectives: To evaluate total, animal and plant protein intakes in European adolescents stratified by gender and age, and to investigate their associations with cardio-metabolic indicators (anthropometry and biomarkers). Methods: The current analysis included 1804 randomly selected adolescents participating in the HELENA study (conducted in 2006-2007) aged 12.5-17.5 y (47% males) who completed two non-consecutive computerised 24-h dietary recalls. Associations between animal and plant protein intakes, and anthropometry and serum biomarkers were examined with General linear Model multivariate analysis. Results: Average total protein intake exceeded the recommendations of World Health Organization and European Food Safety Authority. Mean total protein intake was 96 g/d (59% derived from animal protein). Total, animal and plant protein intakes (g/d) were significantly lower in females than in males and total and plant protein intakes were lower in younger participants (12.5-14.9 y). Protein intake was significantly lower in underweight subjects and higher in obese ones; the direction of the relationship was reversed after adjustments for body weight (g/(kg.d)). The inverse association of plant protein intakes was stronger with BMI z-score and body fat percentage (BF%) compared to animal protein intakes. Additionally, BMI and BF% were positively associated with energy percentage of animal protein. Conclusions: This sample of European adolescents appeared to have adequate total protein intake. Our findings suggest that plant protein intakes may play a role in preventing obesity among European adolescents. Further longitudinal studies are needed to investigate the potential beneficial effects observed in this study in the prevention of obesity and related chronic diseases

Understanding Public Management between Discontinuity and Continuity

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