Comment on: Effect of anti-inflammatory regimen on early postoperative inflammation after cataract surgery

[No abstract available]Medical Research Council, MRC, (MR/R000735/1); Medical Research Council, MR

Fatty fish and supplements are the greatest modifiable contributors to the serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration in a multiethnic population

Objective: Because vitamin D synthesis is lower in a heavily pigmented skin than in a lighter skin, the relative contribution of determinants to the vitamin D concentration might differ between ethnic groups. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and the relative contribution of vitamin D consumption and exposure to sunlight to the vitamin D concentration in a multiethnic population. Design: Cross-sectional study. Patients A total of 613 adults aged 18-65 years from a random sample from general practices in the Netherlands (52 degrees N, 2003-05), stratified according to gender and ethnic group. Measurements Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], PTH, ethnic group, sunlight exposure, consumption of foods and supplements rich in vitamin D. Results The prevalence (95% confidence interval) of vitamin D deficiency [serum 25(OH)D < 25 nmol/l] was higher in Turkish (41.3%; 32.5-50.1), Moroccan (36.5%; 26.9-46.1), Surinam South Asian (51.4%; 41.9-60.9), Surinam Creole (45.3%; 34.0-56.6), sub-Saharan African (19.3%; 9.1-29.5) and other adults (29.1%; 17.1-41.1) compared to the indigenous Dutch (5.9%; 1.3-10.5). Modifiable, significant determinants (standardized regression coefficients) for serum 25(OH)D concentration were: consumption of fatty fish (0.160), use of vitamin D supplements (0.142), area of uncovered skin (highest category 0.136; middle category 0.028), use of tanning bed (0.103), consumption of margarine (0.093) and preference for sun (0.089). We found no significant modification of ethnic group on the effect of sunlight determinants. Conclusion: Of the modifiable determinants, fatty fish and supplements are the greatest contributors to the serum 25(OH)D concentration in a multiethnic population.(aut. ref.

Conflict Prevention in the Pacific

AusAI

SMILE: A joint ESA/CAS mission to investigate the interaction between the solar wind and Earth's magnetosphere

The Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE) is a collaborative science mission between ESA and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). SMILE is a novel self-standing mission to observe the coupling of the solar wind and Earth's magnetosphere via X-Ray imaging of the solar wind -- magnetosphere interaction zones, UV imaging of global auroral distributions and simultaneous in-situ solar wind, magnetosheath plasma and magnetic field measurements. The SMILE mission proposal was submitted by a consortium of European, Chinese and Canadian scientists following a joint call for mission by ESA and CAS. It was formally selected by ESA's Science Programme Committee (SPC) as an element of the ESA Science Program in November 2015, with the goal of a launch at the end of 2021. In order to achieve its scientific objectives, the SMILE payload will comprise four instruments: the Soft X-ray Imager (SXI), which will spectrally map the Earth's magnetopause, magnetosheath and magnetospheric cusps; the UltraViolet Imager (UVI), dedicated to imaging the auroral regions; the Light Ion Analyser (LIA) and the MAGnetometer (MAG), which will establish the solar wind properties simultaneously with the imaging instruments. We report on the status of the mission and payload developments and the findings of a design study carried out in parallel at the concurrent design facilities (CDF) of ESA and CAS in October/November 2015. © (2016) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only

Prevention and treatment of cystoid macular edema after cataract surgery

Cataracts are one of the most common cause of blindness and visual impairment worldwide. However, very few people in Europe will go blind due to cataracts. In order to prevent blindness and visual impairment, more than 550 patients undergo cataract surgery every weekday in the Netherlands. Of these patients, 3.4% experience impaired recovery due to an accumulation of fluid in the retina, called pseudo-cystoid macular oedema. In a European multi-centre study among 1,100 patients, we researched the most effective treatment method for preventing macular oedema after cataract surgery. The most important results of this ESCRS PREMED study are described in this dissertation

Continuous registration of thrombin generation in plasma:Its use for the determination of the thrombin potential

A method is described by which the time-course of thrombin generation in plasma can be obtained from a continuous optical density recording of p-nitroaniline (pNA) production in a 2:3 diluted plasma. A chromogenic substrate, methylmalonyl-methylanalyl-arginyl-pNA (SQ 68), is used that is specifically split by thrombin but at a low rate. The thrombin that appears and disappears in the plasma does not split more than 5% of the substrate added, so the rate of substrate conversion is in good approximation proportional to the amidolytic activity in the plasma over the entire period of thrombin generation. The course of the enzyme concentration can be calculated from the amidolytic activity curve. It is shown that the thrombin generation curves obtained in this way are essentially identical to those obtained via the classical subsampling method.The presence of SO 68 influences the amount of free thrombin that appears in plasma because it competitively inhibits the inactivation of thrombin by AT III and alpha2 macroglobulin. The inhibition of the thrombin peak by heparin, relative to an uninhibited control, remains unaltered by the presence of the substrate.From the course of thrombin activity and the prevailing decay constants, the course of prothrombin conversion velocity can be calculated. Prothrombin conversion was seen to be inhibited at high (&gt;500 muM) substrate concentrations only, and experimental conditions are found under which the inhibition of the clotting process by the substrate is negligible.The amidolytic activity is the sum of the activities of free thrombin and of the alpha2 macroglobulin-thrombin complex formed. Via a mathematical procedure the amount of SQ 68 that has been split by thrombin alone and not by the alpha2 macroglobulin-thrombin complex, can be derived from the course of the optical density.The total amount of SQ 68 eventually split by thrombin alone is proportional to the surface under the thrombin generation curve, i. e. to the time-integral of free thrombin. This value, that we call the thrombin potential (TP), directly indicates how much of any physiological substrate can potentially be split by the thrombin being generated in the plasma

The willingness of social housing tenants to participate in natural gas-free heating systems project:Insights from a stated choice experiment in the Netherlands

One of the main tools to achieve the promise of carbon neutrality is the energy transition. Reducing dependence on traditional energy and promoting the use of renewable energy drives changes in the energy sector and contributes to the energy transition. The building sector is strongly linked to energy consumption and retrofitting the building sector with natural gas energy is a positive energy efficiency strategy. This research aimed to determine the factors influencing social housing tenants in the Netherlands to participate in retrofits and to identify the differences among participants in their preferences. Using a stated choice experiment and discrete choice model, 380 effective social housing tenants in the Netherlands participated. The estimated Mixed Logit Model (MLM) reveals the preferences of social housing residents, and the Latent Class Model (LCM) indicates differences between latent groups. The results show that social housing residents are attracted by saving total housing costs, enhancing living comfort, providing a new bathroom, kitchen and toilet of individual houses and improving the neighbourhood environment. Meanwhile, they are resistant to the interference generated during the renovation process. These findings can be used to guide government and housing organisations in developing retrofit programs that align with the needs and preferences of social housing tenants.</p