Maternal Exposure to Aeroallergens and the Risk of Early Delivery.

BACKGROUND: Daily changes in aeroallergens during pregnancy could trigger early labor, but few investigations have evaluated this issue. This study aimed to investigate the association between exposure to aeroallergens during the week preceding birth and the risk of early delivery among preterm and term pregnancies. METHODS: We identified data on 225,234 singleton births that occurred in six large cities in the province of Ontario, Canada, from 2004 to 2011 (April to October) from a birth registry. We obtained daily counts of pollen grains and fungal spores from fixed-site monitoring stations in each city and assigned them to pregnancy period of each birth. Associations between exposure to aeroallergens in the preceding week and risk of delivery among preterm (<37 gestational weeks), early-term (37-38 weeks), and full-term (≥39 weeks) pregnancies were evaluated with Cox regression models, adjusting for maternal characteristics, meteorologic parameters, and air pollution concentrations, and pooled across the six cities. RESULTS: The risk of delivery increased by 3% per interquartile range width (IQRw = 22.1 grains/m) increase in weed pollen the day before birth among early-term (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.03; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01, 1.05) and full-term pregnancies (HR = 1.03; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.04). Exposure to fungal spores cumulated over 0 to 2 lagged days was associated with increased risk of delivery among full-term pregnancies only (HR = 1.07; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.12). We observed no associations among preterm deliveries. CONCLUSIONS: Increasing concentrations of ambient weed pollen and fungal spores may be associated with earlier delivery among term births

Syntrophomonas zehnderi sp. nov., an anaerobe that degrades long-chain fatty acids in co-culture with Methanobacterium formicicum

An anaerobic, mesophilic, syntrophic fatty-acid-oxidizing bacterium, designated strain OL-4T, was isolated as a co-culture with Methanobacterium formicicum DSM 1535NT from an anaerobic expanded granular sludge bed reactor used to treat an oleate-based effluent. Strain OL-4T degraded oleate, a mono-unsaturated fatty acid, and straight-chain fatty acids C4 : 0–C18 : 0 in syntrophic association with Methanobacterium formicicum DSM 1535NT. Even-numbered fatty acids were degraded to acetate and methane whereas odd-numbered fatty acids were degraded to acetate, propionate and methane. Branched-chain fatty acids were not degraded. The bacterium could not grow axenically with any other substrate tested and therefore is considered to be obligately syntrophic. Fumarate, sulfate, thiosulfate, sulfur and nitrate could not serve as electron acceptors for strain OL-4T to degrade oleate or butyrate. Cells of strain OL-4T were curved rods, formed spores and showed a variable response to Gram staining. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain OL-4T was most closely related to the fatty-acid-oxidizing, syntrophic bacterium Syntrophomonas sp. TB-6 (95% similarity), Syntrophomonas wolfei subsp. wolfei DSM 2245T (94% similarity) and Syntrophomonas erecta DSM 16215T (93% similarity). In addition to this moderate similarity, phenotypic and physiological characteristics, such as obligate syntrophy, spore formation and utilization of a broader substrate range, differentiated strain OL-4T from these Syntrophomonas species. Therefore strain OL-4T represents a novel species, for which the name yntrophomonas zehnderi sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is OL-4T (=DSM 17840T=JCM 13948T).Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)( Fundo Social Europeu (FSE); Wageningen Institute for Environmental and Climate Research (WIMEK)

Novel autosegmentation spatial similarity metrics capture the time required to correct segmentations better than traditional metrics in a thoracic cavity segmentation workflow

Automated segmentation templates can save clinicians time compared to de novo segmentation but may still take substantial time to review and correct. It has not been thoroughly investigated which automated segmentation-corrected segmentation similarity metrics best predict clinician correction time. Bilateral thoracic cavity volumes in 329 CT scans were segmented by a UNet-inspired deep learning segmentation tool and subsequently corrected by a fourth-year medical student. Eight spatial similarity metrics were calculated between the automated and corrected segmentations and associated with correction times using Spearman\u27s rank correlation coefficients. Nine clinical variables were also associated with metrics and correction times using Spearman\u27s rank correlation coefficients or Mann-Whitney U tests. The added path length, false negative path length, and surface Dice similarity coefficient correlated better with correction time than traditional metrics, including the popular volumetric Dice similarity coefficient (respectively ρ = 0.69, ρ = 0.65, ρ =  - 0.48 versus ρ =  - 0.25; correlation p values \u3c 0.001). Clinical variables poorly represented in the autosegmentation tool\u27s training data were often associated with decreased accuracy but not necessarily with prolonged correction time. Metrics used to develop and evaluate autosegmentation tools should correlate with clinical time saved. To our knowledge, this is only the second investigation of which metrics correlate with time saved. Validation of our findings is indicated in other anatomic sites and clinical workflows. Novel spatial similarity metrics may be preferable to traditional metrics for developing and evaluating autosegmentation tools that are intended to save clinicians time

Der Einfluss der Kapazitätsgröße und -auslastung auf den Kostenverlauf ausgewählter Hilfskostenstellen von Molkereien - Abteilung Dampfversorgung

Die Kostenanalyse zur Bestimmung des Einflusses der Kapazitätsgröße und -auslastung auf den Kostenverlauf von Hilfskostenstellen (Hilfsabteilungen) erfolgt mit Hilfe von Modellkalkulationen. Eine spezielle Form der Teilkostenrechnung ermöglicht die Zurechnung der Kosten nach Kostenkategorien (jahresfix, tagesfix, ggf. chargenfix und mengenproportional) auf die entsprechenden Kostenträger (z. B. Kälte, Dampf) der jeweiligen Hilfskostenstelle. Durch computergestützte Simulationen können die Auswirkungen der verschiedenen Kosteneinflußfaktoren im einzelnen quantifiziert werden

Estimates and 25-year trends of the global burden of disease attributable to ambient air pollution: an analysis of data from the Global Burden of Diseases Study 2015

Background Exposure to ambient air pollution increases morbidity and mortality, and is a leading contributor to global disease burden. We explored spatial and temporal trends in mortality and burden of disease attributable to ambient air pollution from 1990 to 2015 at global, regional, and country levels. Methods We estimated global population-weighted mean concentrations of particle mass with aerodynamic diameter less than 2·5 μm (PM2·5) and ozone at an approximate 11 km × 11 km resolution with satellite-based estimates, chemical transport models, and ground-level measurements. Using integrated exposure–response functions for each cause of death, we estimated the relative risk of mortality from ischaemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and lower respiratory infections from epidemiological studies using non-linear exposure–response functions spanning the global range of exposure. Findings Ambient PM2·5 was the fifth-ranking mortality risk factor in 2015. Exposure to PM2·5 caused 4·2 million (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 3·7 million to 4·8 million) deaths and 103·1 million (90·8 million 115·1 million) disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2015, representing 7·6% of total global deaths and 4·2% of global DALYs, 59% of these in east and south Asia. Deaths attributable to ambient PM2·5 increased from 3·5 million (95% UI 3·0 million to 4·0 million) in 1990 to 4·2 million (3·7 million to 4·8 million) in 2015. Exposure to ozone caused an additional 254 000 (95% UI 97 000–422 000) deaths and a loss of 4·1 million (1·6 million to 6·8 million) DALYs from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in 2015. Interpretation Ambient air pollution contributed substantially to the global burden of disease in 2015, which increased over the past 25 years, due to population ageing, changes in non-communicable disease rates, and increasing air pollution in low-income and middle-income countries. Modest reductions in burden will occur in the most polluted countries unless PM2·5 values are decreased substantially, but there is potential for substantial health benefits from exposure reduction

Towards a Model of Corporate and Social Stakeholder Engagement: Analyzing the Relations Between a French Mutual Bank and Its Members

International audienceThe aim of this article is to develop a new classification of stakeholders based on the concept of corporate and social engagement. Engagement is analyzed as an organizational learning process between the managers of an organization and its stakeholders. It is a necessary condition to improve the organization's impact on its economic, social, and natural environment. Applied to the membership of a French mutual bank in order to identify the members' varying levels of engagement, this new mapping technique may help managers to adapt their practices to the degree of engagement of each identified group of members, and to modify their financial products and communications to foster engagement among as many of these groups as possible

Do Questions Reflecting Indoor Air Pollutant Exposure from a Questionnaire Predict Direct Measure of Exposure in Owner-Occupied Houses?

Home characteristic questions are used in epidemiological studies and clinical settings to assess potentially harmful exposures in the home. The objective of this study was to determine whether questionnaire-reported home characteristics can predict directly measured pollutants. Sixty home inspections were conducted on a subsample of the 2006 population-based Toronto Child Health Evaluation Questionnaire. Indoor/outdoor air and settled dust samples were analyzed. Mean Fel d 1 was higher (p < 0.0001) in homes with a cat (450.58 μg/g) versus without (22.28 μg/g). Mean indoor NO2 was higher (p = 0.003) in homes with gas stoves (14.98 ppb) versus without (8.31 ppb). Self-reported musty odours predicted higher glucan levels (10554.37 μg/g versus 6308.58 μg/g, p = 0.0077). Der f 1 was predicted by the home’s age, but not by reports of carpets, and was higher in homes with mean relative humidity > 50% (61.30 μg/g, versus 6.24 μg/g, p = 0.002). Self-reported presence of a cat, a gas stove, musty odours, mice, and the home’s age and indoor relative humidity over 50% predicted measured indoor levels of cat allergens, NO2, fungal glucan, mouse allergens and dust mite allergens, respectively. These results are helpful for understanding the significance of indoor exposures ascertained by self-reporting in large epidemiological studies and also in the clinical setting

Therapy-Associated Saliva and Taste change Evaluation (TASTE) in head & neck cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy: a study protocol.

BACKGROUND One of the main side effects of radiation therapy to the head and neck region is altered taste sensation. This causes significant morbidity and has profound effects on the quality of life (QoL) of patients. While radiation-associated toxicities like xerostomia and dysphagia are part of large investigations, data on taste impairment is sparse. Small cohort sizes in the majority of studies and a variety of analysis methods limit our current understanding of the underlying processes. None of the studies published to date used a taste-specific QoL questionnaire with differentiation of the different taste qualities (e.g. sour, bitter). Furthermore, data regarding the correlation of taste impairment with radiation-associated change in saliva composition is currently not available. The aim of the TASTE study is to fill this gap. Based on the acquired data, a normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) model for late radiation-associated taste impairment will be developed. METHODS In this prospective, observational multicenter study 150 head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy will be recruited and undergo repetitive (semi-) objective and subjective assessment of their taste, smell and salivary function (questionnaires, taste and smell assessment, saliva analysis). Primary endpoint will be patient-reported taste impairment 12 months post radiation therapy using a standardized questionnaire. Secondary endpoints will include taste impairment measured using taste strips at 12 months and 2 years post radiation therapy. Differences between subgroups (radiation side, chemotherapy, etc.) and changes over time will be assessed while adjusting for confounding factors (e.g. age, sex, smoking history). DISCUSSION This study sets out to further our understanding of taste impairment in patients undergoing radiation therapy to the head and neck region with the goal to prevent this common side effect in future patients. The results of the study may be used to evaluate taste-preserving radiotherapy for patients with head and neck cancer, which may significantly reduce the long-term burden in this patient cohort

Therapy-Associated Saliva and Taste change Evaluation (TASTE) in head & neck cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy: a study protocol

BACKGROUND One of the main side effects of radiation therapy to the head and neck region is altered taste sensation. This causes significant morbidity and has profound effects on the quality of life (QoL) of patients. While radiation-associated toxicities like xerostomia and dysphagia are part of large investigations, data on taste impairment is sparse. Small cohort sizes in the majority of studies and a variety of analysis methods limit our current understanding of the underlying processes. None of the studies published to date used a taste-specific QoL questionnaire with differentiation of the different taste qualities (e.g. sour, bitter). Furthermore, data regarding the correlation of taste impairment with radiation-associated change in saliva composition is currently not available. The aim of the TASTE study is to fill this gap. Based on the acquired data, a normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) model for late radiation-associated taste impairment will be developed. METHODS In this prospective, observational multicenter study 150 head and neck cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy will be recruited and undergo repetitive (semi-) objective and subjective assessment of their taste, smell and salivary function (questionnaires, taste and smell assessment, saliva analysis). Primary endpoint will be patient-reported taste impairment 12 months post radiation therapy using a standardized questionnaire. Secondary endpoints will include taste impairment measured using taste strips at 12 months and 2 years post radiation therapy. Differences between subgroups (radiation side, chemotherapy, etc.) and changes over time will be assessed while adjusting for confounding factors (e.g. age, sex, smoking history). DISCUSSION This study sets out to further our understanding of taste impairment in patients undergoing radiation therapy to the head and neck region with the goal to prevent this common side effect in future patients. The results of the study may be used to evaluate taste-preserving radiotherapy for patients with head and neck cancer, which may significantly reduce the long-term burden in this patient cohort