Risk Behavior Assessment Research Articles

Evaluation of Dissipation Behavior, Residues, and Dietary Risk Assessment of Fludioxonil in Cherry via QuEChERS Using HPLC-MS/MS Technique.

The chemical fungicide fludioxonil is widely used to control post-harvest fungal disease in cherries. This study was implemented to investigate the dissipation behaviours and residues of fludioxonil on cherries. A reliable and efficient analytical method was established. Cherry samples from four product areas were analyzed by QuEChERS and HPLC-MS/MS methods with acceptable linearity (R2 > 0.99), accuracy (recoveries of 81–94%), and precision (relative standard deviation of 2.5–11.9%). The limits of quantification (LOQs) and limits of detection (LODs) of cherries were 0.01 mg/kg and 0.005 mg/kg. The dissipation of fludioxonil on cherries followed first order kinetics with half-lives of 33.7–44.7 days. The terminal residues of fludioxonil were all lower than 5.00 mg/kg, which is the MRL recommended by the European Commission. According to Chinese dietary patterns and terminal residue distributions, the risk quotient (RQs) of fludioxonil was 0.61%, revealing that the evaluated cherries exhibited an acceptably low dietary risk to consumers.

The prospective impact of adverse childhood experiences on justice-involved youth's psychiatric symptoms and substance use.

Justice-involved youth report high rates of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs; abuse, neglect, household dysfunction) and are at high risk for elevated behavioral health needs (i.e., substance use, psychiatric symptoms). Research with broad samples of adolescents shows ACEs predict behavioral health outcomes, yet most research on the impact of ACEs among justice-involved youth focuses on recidivism. The present study addresses this gap by examining the prospective association between ACEs and psychiatric symptoms, substance use, and substance-related problems (i.e., consequences of use) among first-time justice-involved youth. First-time justice-involved youth (n = 271; 54.3% male; M age = 14.5 years; 43.5% Latinx; non-Latinx: 34.2% White, 8.6% Black, 7.1% Other, 6.7% Multiracial) and their caregivers were assessed at youth's first court contact and 4- and 12-month follow-ups. Youth and caregivers reported youth's exposure to ACEs through a series of instruments at baseline and 4-months (e.g., Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Short-Form; Traumatic Life Events Inventory). Primary outcomes included youth alcohol and cannabis use (Adolescent Risk Behavior Assessment), consequences of use (Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire; Brief Marijuana Consequences Scale), and psychiatric symptoms (Behavior Assessment System for Children; National Stressful Events Survey PTSD Short Scale). Youth were exposed to three ACEs, on average, prior to first justice contact (M = 3). Exposure to more ACEs, particularly abuse, predicted substance use and psychiatric outcomes. Gender differences emerged for cannabis use and internalizing symptoms. Implications for trauma-responsive juvenile justice reform are discussed, including screening for ACEs and their sequelae at first court contact and considering the role of masculine norms. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The Role of Behavioral Ecotoxicology in Environmental Protection.

For decades, we have known that chemicals affect human and wildlife behavior. Moreover, due to recent technological and computational advances, scientists are now increasingly aware that a wide variety of contaminants and other environmental stressors adversely affect organismal behavior and subsequent ecological outcomes in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. There is also a groundswell of concern that regulatory ecotoxicology does not adequately consider behavior, primarily due to a lack of standardized toxicity methods. This has, in turn, led to the exclusion of many behavioral ecotoxicology studies from chemical risk assessments. To improve understanding of the challenges and opportunities for behavioral ecotoxicology within regulatory toxicology/risk assessment, a unique workshop with international representatives from the fields of behavioral ecology, ecotoxicology, regulatory (eco)toxicology, neurotoxicology, test standardization, and risk assessment resulted in the formation of consensus perspectives and recommendations, which promise to serve as a roadmap to advance interfaces among the basic and translational sciences, and regulatory practices.

Residual behavior and dietary intake risk assessment of flonicamid, dinotefuran and its metabolites on peach trees.

Flonicamid and dinotefuran are widely applied to control pests and diseases in various economic crops arousing much public concerns about the potential risk to human health. In this study, the multi-determination and residual behavior of flonicamid-dinotefuran mixture on peach trees were investigated. The chronic risk of long-term dietary intake for Chinese consumers was evaluated. An optimized QuEChERS method combined with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) analysis for simultaneous determination of flonicamid, dinotefuran and its metabolites was established to analyze the residual dissipation and terminal residues in peach matrices. The results demonstrated that (i) a satisfactory linearity relationship with the detector response and the correlation coefficient R2 > 0.999, the average recoveries of these four analytes ranged from 94 to 108%, the relative standard deviation was between 1.0% and 8.8%, and the limit of the quantitation was 0.02 mg kg-1 ; (ii) the dissipation behaviors of flonicamid and dinotefuran followed with the first-order dynamic kinetics model, and the half-lives were 6.9-12.4 days and 8.1-15.1 days, respectively; (iii) the recommended preharvest interval (PHI) was 21 days, the risk quotient (RQ) values of flonicamid and dinotefuran were 16.6 and 20.7%, respectively, which were significantly less than 100%. The established analytical method met the detection requirement in terms of sensitivity, accuracy, and precision. Additionally, the results indicated that the potential dietary intake risk of the flonicamid-dinotefuran mixture on peach trees was negligible. This work can be utilized in the safe and responsible use of flonicamid-dinotefuran mixture and provide guidance for establishing its maximum residue limit (MRL) in China. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Dissipation behavior, residue distribution, and dietary risk assessment of fluopimomide and dimethomorph in taro using HPLC-MS/MS.

Dimethomorph is a morpholine broad-spectrum fungicide and effectively controls taro blight, cucumber downy mildew, rice blast disease, and others. Fluopimomide is a newly developed broad-spectrum fungicide to primarily control oomycetes and rhizoctonia diseases. Taro, one of the earliest cultivated crops, is a staple food in Africa, Oceania, and Asia. Recently, a commercial suspension concentrate formulation containing 15% fluopimomide and 25% dimethomorph has been registered in China, the second largest taro producer in the world. The objective of this study was to develop a high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method to detect the residues of fluopimomide and dimethomorph concurrently in taro samples. The results showed that the average recoveries of fluopimomide and dimethomorph ranged from 83 to 108%, and relative standard deviations (RSD) ranged from 1 to 11%. The limit of quantitation (LOQ) was 0.01 mg kg-1 for the two compounds. The dissipation results demonstrated that both fluopimomide and dimethomorph in taro degraded rapidly in taro fields, and the residues of the two fungicides were below the LOQ within 14 days post-application. The final residue levels of fluopimomide and dimethomorph in taro were lower than 0.066 mg kg-1 28 days post-application. For dietary risk assessments, the dietary structure of different genders and age of people in China exposure risk assessment and whole diet exposure risk assessment shows that the risk quotient (RQ) values were substantially lower than 100%, suggesting that the long-term risks of fluopimomide/dimethomorph mixed formulation in taro at the recommended dosage were negligible. In summary, our combined results from the dissipation behaviors, terminal residues, and dietary risk assessments provide the critical empirical data for the establishment of the maximum residue levels (MRLs) of the two broad-spectrum fungicides in taro, a traditional food for African, Oceanic, and South Asian cultures.

Application of the frailty framework among vulnerable populations to hospitalization outcomes of individuals experiencing homelessness in Long Beach, California

ABSTRACT Background: Individuals experiencing homelessness have a high prevalence of infectious diseases that may result in hospitalization. Objectives: This study uses risk factors at baseline to predict hospitalization at follow-up. This paper also presents the associations between reporting homelessness and selected infectious diseases. Research design: Longitudinal study of baseline and follow-up conducted August 2000 through July 2014. Subjects: 4916 Not experiencing homelessness mean age 37.9 years, 29% female, and 2692 experiencing homelessness age 42.1 years, 29% female received services from a research/service center in a low-income, high-crime area of Long Beach, CA. Measures: Risk Behavior Assessment, Risk Behavior Follow-up Assessment, laboratory testing for hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, syphilis, chlamydia, and gonorrhea. Results: Predictors of hospitalization at follow-up were ever use of crack cocaine, income from Social Security or disability, reporting homelessness, female, and those who identify as Black race/ethnicity. Conclusions: Income from the safety net of Social Security or disability provides participants with experience that transfers to being able to obtain healthcare. A higher proportion of those experiencing homelessness, compared to those not experiencing homelessness, appear to be hospitalized at follow-up. Our findings support use of the Frailty Framework when working with individuals experiencing both homelessness and hospitalization.

Persistence, dissipation behavior and dietary risk assessment of a combi-product of chlorantraniliprole and λ-cyhalothrin in/on pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.)

Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.) is an annually cultivated food and forage crop, attacked by a large number of pests mainly pod borer (Helicoverpa armigera). For the control of this insect pest, a combination of broad-spectrum insecticides viz., chlorantraniliprole and λ-cyhalothrin have been in use to reduce the pod damage and increase crop production worldwide. Therefore, a field trial was conducted to study dissipation and persistence behavior of insecticides combination (Chlorantraniliprole 9.26 % + λ-cyhalothrin 4.63 % ZC) in/on pigeonpea at the recommended dose (RD) 30 g a.i./ha and double recommended dose 60 g a.i./ha (2RD). The quantitative analysis was performed using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) for chlorantraniliprole and Gas chromatography with electron captured detector (GC-ECD) for λ-cyhalothrin. The Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe (QuEChERS) method was validated for its accuracy, precision and sensitivity. The chlorantraniliprole persisted upto 30 days and λ-cyhalothrin persisted upto 10 days at RD and 20 days at 2RD. The half-lives (DT50) of chlorantraniliprole and λ-cyhalothrin were from 4.95 to 5.78 days and 2.48–4.33 days at recommended and double recommended dose in pigeonpea, respectively. However, residues of both insecticides measured from soil at 30th day and harvest time were below the limit of quantification (LOQ). The waiting period deciphered for chlorantraniliprole and λ-cyhalothrin applied as combi-product was 9 days at recommended dose. Dietary risk assessment (Risk quotient<1) was performed on the basis of field trial suggested the application of chlorantraniliprole and λ-cyhalothrin as combi-product at recommended dose is safe for the consumers.

Agression and violent behaviour risk assessment

IntroductionAfter discharge from forensic psychiatric hospital, rates of violent reoffending are reported to range from 2% to 8% per year in high income countries. Risk assessment informs decisions around admission to and discharge from secure psychiatric hospital and contributes to treatment and supervision Current approaches to assess violence risk in secure hospitals are resource intensive, limited by accuracy and authorship bias. Forensic Violence Oxford (FoVOx) was developed using all forensic psychiatric patients in Sweden, based on the largest forensic psychiatric sample to date, and has the advantage of using routinely available data, which are less liable to bias than interview-based measures.ObjectivesLiterature review on the Forensic Psychiatry and Violence Oxford (FoVOx) tool.MethodsPubmed and Google Scholar searchResultsThe 12 items within the FoVOx tool are sex, age, previous violent crime, previous serious violent crime, primary discharge diagnosis, drug use disorder at point of hospitalization or discharge, any lifetime drug use disorder, alcohol use disorder at point of hospitalization or discharge, personality disorder at discharge, employment at admission, five or more prior inpatient episodes, and whether current length of stay has exceeded one year.ConclusionsThe FoVOx tool is scalable, quick, free to use and available online. Its use could enable clinicians to provide a reasonably accurate risk assessment in a brief and cost-effective way, and free up time to focus on clinical care and risk management rather than risk assessment.

Heavy metal pollution and ecological risk assessment of tailings in the Qinglong Dachang antimony mine, China.

The pollution of heavy metals and their harm to human health and the ecological environment have caused widespread concern. In this research, we collected Qinglong antimony mine tailings (8-meter deep) and then analyzed the content changes, geochemical behavior, and ecological risk assessment of 7 heavy metals (Sb, As, Cr, Cd, Cu, Zn, Pb) in the tailing profile, providing a theoretical basis for strengthening the source control and risk control of heavy metals. In addition, the chemical forms of Sb and As were analyzed, and the relationship between their forms and their physical and chemical properties was analyzed by redundancy analysis (RDA). The results showed that the concentrations of Sb (671.97-13896.62 mg/kg), As (287.38-657.36 mg/kg), Cu (27.61-74.48 mg/kg), and Cd (0.49-1.76 mg/kg) in the tailings greatly exceeded their background values, those of Pb (15.67-125.74 mg/kg) and Cr (22.69-185.88 mg/kg) moderately exceed their background values, while that of Zn (41.66-94.48 mg/kg) was slightly below its background value. Among the chemical forms of Sb and As, the residual fraction (F4) had the highest concentration. RDA showed that the pH and tailing particle size were significantly correlated with the chemical species content of Sb and As (p < 0.05). The improved Igeo analysis showed that the tailings were extremely polluted with Sb; highly polluted with As; uncontaminated to moderately polluted with Cd, Cu, and Pb; and uncontaminated with Zn and Cr, and the average Igeo values were in the following order: Sb >As > Pb > Cd > Cu > Zn > Cr. The potential environmental risk index showed that Sb and As imposed a serious risk and Cr, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn imposed a low risk, which was basically consistent with the results of the improved Igeo values. This research provides comprehensive theoretical approaches to better understand the source control and risk control of heavy metals in tailing ponds.

Effect of an mHealth Intervention on Hepatitis C Testing Uptake Among People With Opioid Use Disorder: Randomized Controlled Trial.

BackgroundThe growing epidemic of opioid use disorder (OUD) and associated injection drug use has resulted in a surge of new hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. Approximately half of the people with HCV infection are unaware of their HCV status. Improving HCV awareness and increasing screening among people with OUD are critical. Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS) is an evidence-based, smartphone-delivered relapse prevention system that has been implemented among people with OUD who are receiving medications for addiction treatment (MAT) to improve long-term recovery.ObjectiveWe incorporated HCV-related content and functionality into A-CHESS to characterize the HCV care continuum among people in early remission and receiving MAT for OUD and to determine whether incorporating such content and functionality into A-CHESS increases HCV testing.MethodsHCV intervention content, including dissemination of educational information, private messages tailored to individuals’ stage of HCV care, and a public discussion forum, was implemented into the A-CHESS platform. Between April 2016 and April 2020, 416 participants with OUD were enrolled in this study. Participants were randomly assigned to receive MAT alone (control arm) or MAT+A-CHESS (experimental arm). Quarterly telephone interviews were conducted from baseline to month 24 to assess risk behaviors and HCV testing history. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to assess whether participants who used A-CHESS were tested for HCV (either antibody [Ab] or RNA testing) at a higher rate than those in the control arm. To assess the effect of A-CHESS on subsets of participants at the highest risk for HCV, additional analyses were performed to examine the effect of the intervention among participants who injected drugs and shared injection equipment.ResultsOverall, 44.2% (184/416) of the study participants were HCV Ab positive, 30.3% (126/416) were HCV Ab negative, and 25.5% (106/416) were considered untested at baseline. At month 24, there was no overall difference in HCV testing uptake between the intervention and control participants. However, among the subset of 109 participants who engaged in injection drug use, there was a slight trend toward increased HCV testing uptake among those who used A-CHESS (89% vs 85%; hazard ratio: 1.34; 95% CI 0.87-2.05; P=.18), and a stronger trend was observed when focusing on the subset of 32 participants who reported sharing injection equipment (87% vs 56%; hazard ratio: 2.92; 95% CI 0.959-8.86; P=.06).ConclusionsIncorporating HCV prevention and care information into A-CHESS may increase the uptake of HCV testing while preventing opioid relapse when implemented among populations who engage in high-risk behaviors such as sharing contaminated injection equipment. However, more studies that are powered to detect differences in HCV testing among high-risk groups are needed.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02712034; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02712034International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-10.2196/12620

Residue behavior and dietary risk assessment of six pesticides in pak choi using QuEChERS method coupled with UPLC-MS/MS

A reliable and simple modified QuEChERS method with UPLC-MS/MS was developed for the simultaneous determination of six pesticides (dimethomorph, imidaclothiz, lufenuron, methoxyfenozide, pyridaben, spinetoram) and their metabolites in pak choi. Method validation indicated good linearity (R2 ≥ 0.99), accuracy (recoveries of 75%−112%), sensitivity (limits of quantification, 0.002–0.01 mg kg−1), and precision (relative standard deviations ≤ 21%), and matrix effects were −36–28%. The half-lives of the six pesticides in pak choi were 2.2–12 d under open field and greenhouse conditions. Considering the short growth cycle of pak choi, the terminal residue levels (0.046–7.8 mg kg−1) and the relevant maximum residue limits (MRLs) of some countries, 5 d was recommended as the pre-harvest interval for the six pesticides on pak choi. Dietary risk assessment revealed that the risk quotients were 3.1%−58% for different gender and age groups in China, indicating none unacceptable public health risk for general population. The results showed that all the six pesticides degraded faster and the terminal residues were much lower under open field conditions than those under greenhouse conditions, which was mainly due to the influence of rainfall, sunlight and other environmental factors. This work was thus significant in assessing the dissipation fate and food safety risks of the six pesticides on pak choi and facilitated the establishment of maximum residue limits.

Occurrence, behaviour and environmental risk assessment of trace metals in stream sediments from southwestern Burkina Faso, West Africa.

In this study, the influence of source area weathering and provenance on the stream sediment geochemistry as well as the environmental impacts of selected potentially toxic trace elements (PTE) were evaluated. Four components derived from the R-mode factor analysis of additive logratio-transformed data pointed to the combined influence of weathering of granitoids, sedimentary rocks and greenstone belts and gold mineralisation on the stream geochemistry. Although 13 PTE were enriched in the majority of the samples, only five elements (As, Cr, Cu, Pb and Ni) were likely to have adverse biological effects. Based on the geochemical maps, the areas susceptible to produce adverse biological effects due to As enrichments are solely drained by the greenstone belts, whereas enrichment of Pb was pronounced in areas of high population densities. The linear regression between enrichment factor (EF) and adverse effect indices (AEI) indicated that in order for Pb to pose threats to the benthic organisms, EF should be 4.5, whereas EF for sediment toxicity are 1 for Cu, Cr and Ni and 2 for As. Consequently, Cu, Cr, Ni, As and, to a lesser degree, Pb pose serious environmental threats to benthic organisms in southwestern Burkina Faso. The stream sediment geochemical data of this study constitute a baseline for assessing future environmental risks.

Examination of risk assessment tools developed to evaluate risks in mental health areas: A systematic review.

The purpose of this research was to identify and examine risk assessment tools evaluating at least two risk dimensions to evaluate the risk assessments of patients in mental health areas in a more comprehensive and standard manner. This systematic review was prepared according to the PRISMA guidelines. The databases to be scanned and the keywords to be entered were identified before scanning the literature. The keywords risk assessment, risk management, mental health, psychiatry, risk assessment scales, and risk assessment tools were scanned. The CINAHL, EMBASE, PsycInfo, Medline, APA PsycNET, Science Direct, Pubmed, ProQuest, and Google Scholar databases were searched. All full-text articles published between December 30th, 1970, and January 1st, 2020, were examined. A total of 7385 papers were investigated using the keywords listed above, and 18 studies meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. The tools involved were SPC, FACE, Clinical Risk Management, Threshold Assessment Grid, Risk Assessment for People with Mental Health Problems, Psychogeriatric and Risk Behavior Assessment Scale, Sainsbury Risk Assessment Tool, Risk Assessment Management and Audit Systems, Generic Integrated Risk Assessment for Forensic Environments, FRAME, Brief Risk Assessment, Clinical Assessment of Risks to Self & Others, RIO, The Risk Assessment and Management, Risk Assessment and Management Self-Efficacy Study, Galatean Risk and Safety Tool, Short-Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability, and Psychiatric Risk Assessment Scale.

Modeling of unsafe behavior risk assessment: A case study of Chinese furniture manufacturers

It has long been believed that workers’ unsafe behavior could directly cause accidents. Risk assessment of unsafe behavior is a significant approach to identify risk source and reduce occupational injuries and even accidents in the workplace. The aim of this study was to propose a universal model for behavioral risk assessment. To this end, data collection was completed based on field observation and behavior sampling method, accident probability analysis was conducted by the Monte Carlo method, and key input parameters were selected by sensitivity analysis. To examine the effectiveness of the proposed model, it was applied to a wood furniture manufacturer in China. The risk of unsafe behavior by workers at the manufacturer locations was found to be affected by factors such as Use of Unsafe Equipment, Tools Operation Replaced by Manual, and Wrong Operation. Additionally, seven operating spots with the highest probability of unsafe behavior were clarified. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis demonstrated that improving management system and psychology state were the most effective ways to reduce the risk of unsafe behaviors. Last but not the least, decision-making basis for behavioral risk management were proposed regarding organization management and individual characteristics.

Dissipation behavior, residue dynamics, and dietary risk assessment of forchlorfenuron in postharvest kiwifruits during simulated cold chain logistics and store shelf life.

Forchlorfenuron (CPPU) is often applied during the cultivation of kiwifruit to produce larger fruit. To address degradation patterns of CPPU during simulated cold chain logistics and simulated shelf life of the fruit after harvest, appropriate storage methods and safe consumption behavior can be investigated. In this study, an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was adopted to detect CPPU residues under different conditions. CPPU in kiwifruit stored at 6°C had a half-life of 40.8-77.0days. However, when kiwifruit was stored at 0°C under simulated cold chain storage conditions, the half-life of CPPU was 63.0-115.5days, implying that lower storage temperatures can reduce the degradation rate of CPPU. The residues of CPPU in kiwifruit pulp declined with time, and the reduction followed the first-order kinetics equation. More CPPU residues were present in the pulp of postharvest kiwifruit treated with exogenous ethylene than in the pulp of untreated kiwifruit. Thus, using exogenous ethylene for artificial ripening after harvest is not recommended. We determined that the appropriate cold chain storage temperature is 6°C. It is recommended that the public select kiwifruit stored for at least 2weeks. The estimated chronic and acute dietary risk quotients of CPPU are ≤ 0.79% and ≤ 0.11%, respectively. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that consumers will be poisoned by CPPU due to kiwifruit consumption. Our results provide scientific evidence regarding the adoption of appropriate kiwifruit storage methods and consumption behavior to enhance consumption safety.

Cholinergic modulation of disorder-relevant human defensive behaviour in generalised anxiety disorder

Drugs that are clinically effective against anxiety disorders modulate the innate defensive behaviour of rodents, suggesting these illnesses reflect altered functioning in brain systems that process threat. This hypothesis is supported in humans by the discovery that the intensity of threat-avoidance behaviour is altered by the benzodiazepine anxiolytic lorazepam. However, these studies used healthy human participants, raising questions as to their validity in anxiety disorder patients, as well as their generalisability beyond GABAergic benzodiazepine drugs. BNC210 is a novel negative allosteric modulator of the alpha 7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and we recently used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging to show it reduced amygdala responses to fearful faces in generalised anxiety disorder patients. Here we report the effect of BNC210 on the intensity of threat-avoidance behaviour in 21 female GAD patients from the same cohort. We used the Joystick Operated Runway Task as our behavioural measure, which is a computerised human translation of the Mouse Defense Test Battery, and the Spielberger state anxiety inventory as our measure of state affect. Using a repeated-measures, within-subjects design we assessed the effect of BNC210 at two dose levels versus placebo (300 mg and 2000 mg) upon two types of threat-avoidance behaviour (Flight Intensity and Risk Assessment Intensity). We also tested the effects of 1.5 mg of the benzodiazepine lorazepam as an active control. BNC210 significantly reduced Flight Intensity relative to placebo and the low dose of BNC210 also significantly reduced self-reported state anxiety. Risk Assessment Intensity was not significantly affected. Results show both human defensive behaviour and state anxiety are influenced by cholinergic neurotransmission and there provide converging evidence that this system has potential as a novel target for anxiolytic pharmacotherapy.

Dissipation behaviour and dietary risk assessment of tembotrione in corn from Henan and Jilin Provinces, China

ABSTRACT The new triketone herbicide, tembotrione, provides excellent weed control in corn fields. To evaluate its safety, we established a modified QuEChERSpretreatment and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method, using acetonitrile with 2% formic acid as the extractant and C18 as absorbent. The dissipation dynamics of tembotrionein corn straw and the terminal residual levels in all three corn matrices were studied in Henan and Jilin provinces. The linearity was excellent in the range of 0.01 to1 mg L−1, with the determination coefficient (R2) ≥0.9954. The average recovery was between 74% and 117%, with intra-day relative standard deviation less than 18.9 and the inter-day relative standard deviation less than 17.5. The degradation dynamic experiment showed that tembotrione decreased over time and followed the first-order kinetic equation. Our results showed that the regression coefficients of the dynamic equations were 0.9906 and 0.9897, with half-lives of 0.7 and 0.8 d, respectively. The final residue results showed that the maximum residues of tembotrione detected in corn in Jilin and Henan were 0.041 and 0.051 mg kg−1, respectively. The risk quotient (RQ) were calculated as 0.186 and 0.246, both of which were less than 1, which indicated an acceptable risk.

Creating Ethics Guidelines for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data Analytics Customers: The Case of the Consumer European Insurance Market

The European Union (EU) has a strong reputation and track record for being proactive in the development of guidelines and regulations for the ethical use of AI generally. In this paper, we discuss the development of an AI and ethical framework by the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), for the European insurance market. EIOPA’s earlier report on big data analytics (EIOPA 2019) provided an important foundation to analyse and evaluate the complex range of issues and ethical problems associated with the wave of new AI technologies being deployed in insurance such as behavioural insurance, parametric products, novel pricing and risk assessment algorithms, e-service and claims management, which exploit big data and machine learning. In this paper we present an overview of the use of AI in insurance based on the full range of insurance applications throughout the insurance value chain. A general discussion of ethics and AI is illustrated with the specific use-case of insurance, and a new hierarchical model is presented that describes insurance as a complex system that can be analysed by taking a layered, multi-level approach, on which ethical issues can be mapped directly to specific level(s).

Creating Ethics Guidelines for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data Analytics: The Case of the European Consumer Insurance Market

The European Union (EU) has a strong reputation and track record for being proactive in the development of guidelines and regulations for the ethical use of AI generally. In this paper, we discuss the development of an AI and ethical framework by the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), for the European insurance market. EIOPA’s earlier report on big data analytics (EIOPA 2019) provided an important foundation to analyse and evaluate the complex range of issues and ethical problems associated with the wave of new AI technologies being deployed in insurance such as behavioural insurance, parametric products, novel pricing and risk assessment algorithms, e-service and claims management, which exploit big data and machine learning. In this paper we present an overview of the use of AI in insurance based on the full range of insurance applications throughout the insurance value chain. A general discussion of ethics and AI is illustrated with the specific use-case of insurance, and a new hierarchical model is presented that describes insurance as a complex system that can be analysed by taking a layered, multi-level approach, on which ethical issues can be mapped directly to specific level(s).

Short- and Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Agricultural and Industrial Soils from Shanghai, China: Surface and Vertical Distribution, Penetration Behavior, and Health Risk Assessment

Short- and Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Agricultural and Industrial Soils from Shanghai, China: Surface and Vertical Distribution, Penetration Behavior, and Health Risk Assessment