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Investigating thermal comfort indices in relation to clothing insulation value: a survey of an outdoor space in Tehran, Iran
No full textWith the increasing impacts of climate change, there is a need for more accurate assessments of thermal comfort. This study addresses the limitations of current thermal indices in accommodating variations in clothing insulation, which is a critical behavioral adaptation influencing human thermal comfort. Many existing indices, such as Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (PET) and Standard Effective Temperature (SET*), rely on fixed clothing insulation values that may not accurately represent real-world conditions due to environmental, cultural, and behavioral variability. In contrast, some indices like the modified Physiologically Equivalent Temperature (mPET) and the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) allow for adjustable clothing insulation; however, UTCI's fixed values can be insufficient in regions with distinctive clothing practices, impacting its accuracy. This study evaluates the effectiveness of thermal comfort indices by conducting a field survey and questionnaire, collecting a total of 838 data sets. The analysis employs various methods, including sensitivity and specificity analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), alluvial diagrams, and polynomial charts. Findings highlight the limitations of fixed insulation values in indices such as PET and SET*, while emphasizing mPET's superior accuracy in predicting outdoor thermal comfort. PCA identified clothing insulation (Icl) as a significant personal factor affecting thermal comfort across diverse environments. This research reveals differing correlation coefficients at higher insulation levels (1.11-1.26 clo and 1.26-1.56 clo), with SET* exhibiting substantial variability (0.33) compared to mPET, which demonstrated the least variability (0.46). These results underscore the need to revise existing thermal comfort indices to incorporate more dynamic and context-sensitive insulation values for improved thermal predictions
Proteomic analysis of non‐muscle invasive and muscle invasive bladder cancer highlights distinct subgroups with metabolic, matrisomal, and immune hallmarks and emphasizes importance of the stromal compartment
No full textWe present the proteomic profiling of 79 bladder cancers, including treatment-naïve non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC, n = 17), muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC, n = 51), and neoadjuvant-treated MIBC (n = 11). Proteins were extracted from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples and analyzed using data-independent acquisition, yielding >8,000 quantified proteins. MIBC, compared to NMIBC, shows an extracellular matrix (ECM) and immune response signature as well as alteration of the metabolic proteome together with concomitant depletion of proteins involved in cell–cell adhesion and lipid metabolism. Neoadjuvant treatment did not consistently impact the proteome of the residual tumor mass. NMIBC presents two proteomic subgroups that correlate with histological grade and feature signatures of cell adhesion or lipid/DNA metabolism. Treatment-naïve MIBC presents three proteomic subgroups with resemblance to the basal-squamous, stroma-rich, or luminal subtypes and signatures of metabolism, immune functionality, or ECM. The metabolic subgroup presents an immune-depleted microenvironment, whereas the ECM and immune subgroups are enriched for markers of M2-like tumor-associated macrophages and dendritic cells. Markers for natural killer cells are exclusive for the ECM subgroup, and markers for cytotoxic T cells are a hallmark of the immune subgroup. Endogenous proteolysis is increased in MIBC alongside upregulation of matrix metalloproteases, including MMP-14. Genomic panel sequencing yielded the prototypical profile of prevalent FGRF3 alterations in NMIBC and TP53 alterations in MIBC. Tumor–stroma interactions of MIBC were investigated by proteomic analysis of patient-derived xenografts, highlighting specific tumor and stroma contributions to the matrisome and tumor-induced stromal proteome phenotypes. © 2024 The Author(s). The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland
Cost-effectiveness of ultrahigh-resolution photon-counting detector coronary CT angiography for the evaluation of stable chest pain
No full textIn embedded 3D printing, the supporting gel must provide the right rheological properties to keep the ink in place. It has previously been shown that a strong and stable 3D network can be formed by particle–particle interactions of hydrophobic fumed silicas suspended in a polar solvent. Here, the rheological properties of fumed silica gels in polyethylene glycol (PEG) are investigated. The recovery properties like storage modulus, yield stress, and recovery time of the gels made of fumed silica with alkyl-chains of different lengths are studied. A very fast recovery time (0.2 s) is achieved by increasing the length of the alkyl chains on the silica surface, leading to embedded printing results with high shape accuracy. However, with the engineered supporting gel, the formation of crevasses affects the shape of the filament. Previous approaches to reduce crevasse formation include the introduction of liquid fillers to avoid such distortions, which, however, prevents the reuse of the gels and leads to increasing waste production in embedded printing. Here, it is shown that by adjusting the rheology of the inks to fit the rheology of the supporting gel, high-shape accuracy prints with ideally round-shaped filaments can be achieved without the need for liquid fillers
Associations between neighborhood resources and youths’ response to reward omission in a task modeling negatively biased environments
No full textObjectiveNeighborhoods provide essential resources (eg, education, safe housing, green space) that influence neurodevelopment and mental health. However, we need a clearer understanding of the mechanisms mediating these relationships. Limited access to neighborhood resources may hinder youths from achieving their goals and, over time, shape their behavioral and neurobiological response to negatively biased environments blocking goals and rewards.MethodTo test this hypothesis, 211 youths (aged ∼13.0 years, 48% boys, 62% identifying as White, 75% with a psychiatric disorder diagnosis) performed a task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Initially, rewards depended on performance (unbiased condition); but later, rewards were randomly withheld under the pretense that youths did not perform adequately (negatively biased condition), a manipulation that elicits frustration, sadness, and a broad response in neural networks. We investigated associations between the Childhood Opportunity Index (COI), which quantifies access to youth-relevant neighborhood features in 1 metric, and the multimodal response to the negatively biased condition, controlling for age, sex, medication, and psychopathology.ResultsYouths from less-resourced neighborhoods responded with less anger (p ConclusionThe present study adds to a growing literature documenting how inequity may affect the brain and emotions in youths. Future work should test whether findings generalize to more diverse samples and should explore effects on neurodevelopmental trajectories and emerging mood disorders during adolescence
On the stability and convergence of discontinuous Galerkin schemes for incompressible flows
No full textTowards ultrasound wearable technology for cardiovascular monitoring: from device development to clinical validation
No full textEquivariant deep learning of mixed-integer optimal control solutions for vehicle decision making and motion planning
No full textMyocardial inflammation is associated with impaired mitochondrial oxidative capacity in ischaemic cardiomyopathy
No full textAimsMyocardial inflammation and impaired mitochondrial oxidative capacity are hallmarks of heart failure (HF) pathophysiology. The extent of myocardial inflammation in patients suffering from ischaemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) or dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and its association with mitochondrial energy metabolism are unknown. We aimed at establishing a relevant role of cardiac inflammation in the impairment of mitochondrial energy production in advanced ischaemic and non-ischaemic HF.MethodsWe included 81 patients with stage D HF (ICM, n = 44; DCM, n = 37) undergoing left ventricular assist device implantation (n = 59) or heart transplantation (n = 22) and obtained left ventricular tissue samples during open heart surgery. We quantified mitochondrial oxidative capacity, citrate synthase activity (CSA) and fibrosis and lymphocytic infiltration. We considered infiltration of >14 CD3+ cells/mm2 relevant inflammation.ResultsPatients with ICM or DCM did not differ regarding age (61.5 ± 5.7 vs. 56.5 ± 12.7 years, P = 0.164), sex (86% vs. 84% male, P = 0.725), type 2 diabetes mellitus (34% vs. 18%, P = 0.126) or chronic kidney disease (8% vs. 11%, P = 0.994). ICM exhibited oxidative capacity reduced by 23% compared to DCM (108.6 ± 41.4 vs. 141.9 ± 59.9 pmol/(s*mg), P = 0.006). Maximum production of reactive oxygen species was not significantly different between ICM and DCM (0.59 ± 0.28 vs. 0.69 ± 0.36 pmol/(s*ml), P = 0.196). Mitochondrial content, detected by CSA, was lower in ICM (359.6 ± 164.1 vs. 503.0 ± 198.5 nmol/min/mg protein, P = 0.002). Notably, relevant inflammation was more common in ICM (27% vs. 6%, P = 0.024), and the absolute number of infiltrating leucocytes correlated with lower oxidative capacity (r = −0.296, P = 0.019). Fibrosis was more prevalent in ICM (20.9 ± 21.2 vs. 7.2 ± 5.6% of area, P = 0.002), but not associated with oxidative capacity (r = −0.13, P = 0.327).ConclusionsMore than every fourth ICM patient with advanced HF displays myocardial inflammation in the range of inflammatory cardiomyopathy associated with reduced mitochondrial oxidative capacity. Future studies may evaluate inflammation in ICM at earlier stages in standardised fashion to explore the therapeutic potential of immunosuppression to influence trajectories of HF in ICM
Neuronal plasma biomarkers in acute ischemic stroke
No full textEarly imaging-based detection of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) has improved in the era of reperfusion therapy. Despite of this, prognosis of outcome after AIS remains a challenge. Therefore, parameters that support clinical decision making are sought. Blood-based biomarkers have the potential to provide valuable information in addition to the established prognostic factors. Neuronal biomarkers of acute or degenerative neuronal injury have shown to be reliably detected in plasma. These biomarkers are well-established in neurodegenerative pathology, such as Alzheimer’s disease. In this study, we explored the association between stroke diameter and plasma biomarkers for neuronal injury and tau pathophysiology (brain-derived tau [BD-tau], phosphorylated-tau-217 [p-tau21] and neurofilament light [NfL]) in patients (n = 193) admitted to the acute ward, Akershus University Hospital. All patients received a final diagnosis of AIS, transient ischemic attack or stroke mimics. Blood samples were obtained the day after admission. We find that levels of BD-tau (p = .004) and NfL (p = .011) were higher after AIS than in patients with stroke mimics. The cortical stroke diameter correlated with BD-tau (tau-b = 0.64, p < .001) and p-tau217 (tau-b = 0.36, p = .003). Linear regression confirmed BD-tau to be the strongest variable associated with stroke diameter, pointing to the potential clinical value of plasma BD-tau in outcome prediction after AIS