Closure Duration Research Articles

Swallow Safety and Laryngeal Kinematics: A Comparison of Dysphagia Between Parkinson's Disease and Cerebrovascular Accident.

Cerebrovascular accident (CVA) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are well established etiologies of dysphagia. However, differing physiological mechanisms underlying dysphagia may exist between these two causes. There have been limited investigations specifically comparing dysphagia between these two groups. Comparing dysphagia presentation in two different populations may improve clinical expectations, guide treatment approaches, and inform future research. This study examined the differences in presentation of dysphagia between PD and CVA. Dysphagia presentation, swallow safety, and laryngeal kinematics were compared between two clinical cohorts. What factors best predicted airway invasion in each group were explored. 110 swallow studies of individuals with PD and CVA who were referred for swallowing evaluation were obtained. Each video was analyzed for quantitative dysphagia presentation using the Videofluoroscopic Dysphagia Scale (VDS), swallow safety using the Penetration-Aspiration scale, and kinematic timings of the laryngeal vestibule (time-to-laryngeal vestibule closure [LVC] and closure duration [LVCd]). Frequencies of penetration or aspiration were similar between groups. The PD group displayed significantly greater pharyngeal stage swallow impairment than CVA, with more frequent reduced laryngeal elevation and increased vallecular residue. The CVA group displayed significantly greater oral stage impairment, with prolonged oral transit times. Time-to-LVC was significantly prolonged and was the strongest predictor of airway invasion in the PD group, but not for CVA. Similar airway invasion rates for PD and CVA indicate the importance of screening for dysphagia in PD. Laryngeal kinematics as significant contributors to airway invasion in PD but not for CVA highlight the need for further research into these mechanisms and for targeted treatment approaches to dysphagia.

Assessment of bonding, durability, and low-temperature performance of cement-based rapid patching materials for pavement repair

ABSTRACT A high-performance concrete rapid patching repair material needs to develop high early strength to satisfy traffic opening requirements, yet provides sufficient durability to sustain different environmental conditions and primary deterioration mechanisms for full-depth concrete repair. In this study, a set of experiments was conducted to evaluate the performance of developed pavement repair mixtures subjected to different environmental conditions, including low ambient temperature, highly reactive siliceous aggregate, wet/dry cycling, and moisture loss. Full-scale slab patching was also carried out to assess the rapid patching mixtures’ constructability, compatibility, and interface bonding with the concrete substrate. Patching materials with a reduced cement content and Type IP cement exhibited a lower drying shrinkage rate and less deterioration from wet/dry cycles compared with commonly used patching mixtures that typically use high cement content and Type I cement. The tendency of alkali-silica reaction deterioration was reduced significantly by replacing 50% Type III cement with Type IP cement. The rapid patching mixtures generally displayed a high degree of early-age shrinkage but with satisfactory compatibility and good bonding with the concrete substrate. Test results also indicate that Type III cement-based rapid patching mixtures can be a promising option to reduce traffic closure duration at lower ambient temperatures.

Swallow Safety and Laryngeal Kinematics: A Comparison of Dysphagia Between Parkinson's Disease and Cerebrovascular Accident.

Cerebrovascular accident (CVA) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are well established etiologies of dysphagia. However, differing physiological mechanisms underlying dysphagia may exist between these two causes. There have been limited investigations specifically comparing dysphagia between these two groups. Comparing dysphagia presentation in two different populations may improve clinical expectations, guide treatment approaches, and inform future research. This study examined the differences in presentation of dysphagia between PD and CVA. Dysphagia presentation, swallow safety, and laryngeal kinematics were compared between two clinical cohorts. What factors best predicted airway invasion in each group were explored. 110 swallow studies of individuals with PD and CVA who were referred for swallowing evaluation were obtained. Each video was analyzed for quantitative dysphagia presentation using the Videofluoroscopic Dysphagia Scale (VDS), swallow safety using the Penetration-Aspiration scale, and kinematic timings of the laryngeal vestibule (time-to-laryngeal vestibule closure [LVC] and closure duration [LVCd]). Frequencies of penetration or aspiration were similar between groups. The PD group displayed significantly greater pharyngeal stage swallow impairment than CVA, with more frequent reduced laryngeal elevation and increased vallecular residue. The CVA group displayed significantly greater oral stage impairment, with prolonged oral transit times. Time-to-LVC was significantly prolonged and was the strongest predictor of airway invasion in the PD group, but not for CVA. Similar airway invasion rates for PD and CVA indicate the importance of screening for dysphagia in PD. Laryngeal kinematics as significant contributors to airway invasion in PD but not for CVA highlight the need for further research into these mechanisms and for targeted treatment approaches to dysphagia.

Unifying Initial Geminates and Fortis Consonants via Laryngeal Specification: Three case studies from Dunan, Pattani Malay, and Salentino

Initial Geminates (IGs) are often assumed to differ from singletons mainly in duration, while fundamental frequency (f0) and intensity are described as secondary, variable cues. Accordingly, IGs are phonologically represented with a [+long] feature or by associating the consonant to two timing units. On the other hand, more recent work on IGs has suggested that the boundary between IGs and fortis stops is tenuous. To further support this claim, we present converging evidence from 3 understudied languages, Dunan (Japonic), Pattani Malay (PM, Austronesian), and Salentino (Indo-European), suggesting that IGs may also be reliably cued by intensity, possibly as a byproduct of longer closure duration, and f0 throughout the following vowel. Reliance on these acoustic cues is strongly reminiscent of fortis stops in, e.g., Korean. Accordingly, we propose that languages prototypically described as having IG contrasts should be phonologically represented with a distinct laryngeal specification that takes into account the constellation of acoustic cues at play.

Optogenetic stimulation of pre–Bötzinger complex reveals novel circuit interactions in swallowing–breathing coordination

The coordination of swallowing with breathing, in particular inspiration, is essential for homeostasis in most organisms. While much has been learned about the neuronal network critical for inspiration in mammals, the pre-Bötzinger complex (preBötC), little is known about how this network interacts with swallowing. Here we activate within the preBötC excitatory neurons (defined as Vglut2 and Sst neurons) and inhibitory neurons (defined as Vgat neurons) and inhibit and activate neurons defined by the transcription factor Dbx1 to gain an understanding of the coordination between the preBötC and swallow behavior. We found that stimulating inhibitory preBötC neurons did not mimic the premature shutdown of inspiratory activity caused by water swallows, suggesting that swallow-induced suppression of inspiratory activity is not directly mediated by the inhibitory neurons in the preBötC. By contrast, stimulation of preBötC Dbx1 neurons delayed laryngeal closure of the swallow sequence. Inhibition of Dbx1 neurons increased laryngeal closure duration and stimulation of Sst neurons pushed swallow occurrence to later in the respiratory cycle, suggesting that excitatory neurons from the preBötC connect to the laryngeal motoneurons and contribute to the timing of swallowing. Interestingly, the delayed swallow sequence was also caused by chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH), a model for sleep apnea, which is 1) known to destabilize inspiratory activity and 2) associated with dysphagia. This delay was not present when inhibiting Dbx1 neurons. We propose that a stable preBötC is essential for normal swallow pattern generation and disruption may contribute to the dysphagia seen in obstructive sleep apnea.

Dysphagia Presentation, Airway Invasion, and Gender Differences in a Clinically Based Sample of People with Parkinson's Disease.

Dysphagia in People with Parkinson's Disease (PWPD) is expected to occur in most individuals. The manifestation of dysphagia and its salient swallow dysfunction characteristics leading to decreased airway safety are not well understood. The aim of this study was to quantify dysphagia presentation and severity, examine contributors to airway invasion, and explore gender differences in dysphagia manifestation in PWPD. 60 PWPD in clinical, healthcare settings underwent a Videofluoroscopic Swallow Study (VFSS) after referral for complaints of dysphagia. VFSS records and videos were analyzed to obtain dysphagia diagnosis, Videofluoroscopic Dysphagia Scale (VDS) scores, laryngeal vestibule kinematic timings, and Penetration-Aspiration Scale scores. Frequencies of VDS component and PAS scores were examined. MANOVA and logistic regression analyses were used to identify predictors of penetration and aspiration. Pharyngeal stage dysphagia was prevalent throughout PWPD and presented more frequently than oral stage dysphagia. Pharyngeal residue was a significant predictor for aspiration events. Laryngeal vestibule closure reaction time (LVCrt) and duration time (LVCd) were significant predictors of airway invasion, as were bolus consistency and volume. LVCrt, LVCd, and pharyngeal stage VDS scores were significantly altered in men compared to women in PWPD. A broad clinical sample of PWPD displayed atypical frequencies of airway invasion and frequent atypical scores of oral and pharyngeal stage physiologies. Thicker and smaller bolus consistencies significantly reduced the odds of airway invasion. Men and women presented with significantly different swallow physiology including prolonged LVCrt, LVCd, and more frequent atypical scores of pharyngeal residue and laryngeal elevation.Journal instruction requires a country for affiliations; however, these are missing in affiliation [1, 2]. Please verify if the provided country are correct and amend if necessary.Yes, USA is correct as the provided country.

Spatio-temporal Characteristics of Successive Plosive Consonants in the Same Place of Articulation: An Electropalatographic Study

Objectives: This paper used electropalatography (EPG) to investigate the actual pronunciation when two plosives with the same articulation position appear successively. We aimed to determine the presence of the preceding consonant (C₁) in two successive consonants (VC₁C₂V) with the same articulation place.Methods: Tongue-to-palate contacts were recorded during the pronunciation of 8 words and 4 sentences containing those words by 5 normal adults and the closure duration and the maximum contact frame for utterance units (word, sentence), meanings (real word, nonword), and syllable structures (VC₁C₂V, VCV) were analyzed.Results: The closure duration in the syllable structures and the maximum contact frame in the meanings showed significant differences. The closure duration of the VC₁C₂V structure was significantly longer than that of the VCV structure in case of words; however, the difference reduced in the case of sentences. The maximum contact frame of the real words was significantly higher than that of non-words.Conclusion: Since the temporal characteristics between VCV and VC₁C₂V structure was distinguished and the tensification of C₂ indirectly showed the existence of C₁. These result support the fact that the preceding consonant is not deleted in two successive consonants with the same articulation place.

Evolution of Transaction Pattern in Ethereum: A Temporal Graph Perspective

Ethereum is one of the most popular blockchain systems that support more than half a million transactions every day and foster miscellaneous decentralized applications with its Turing-complete smart contract machine. Whereas it remains mysterious what the transaction pattern of Ethereum is and how it evolves over time. In this article, we study the evolutionary behavior of Ethereum transactions from a temporal graph point of view. We first develop a data analytic platform to collect external transactions associated with users as well as internal transactions initiated by smart contracts. Three types of temporal graphs, user-to-user, contract-to-contract, and user-contract graphs, are constructed according to trading relationships and are segmented with an appropriate time window. We observe a strong correlation between the size of the user-to-user transaction graph and the average Ether price in a time window, while no evidence of such linkage is shown at the average degree, average edge weights, and average triplet closure duration. The macroscopic and microscopic burstiness of Ethereum transactions are validated. We analyze the Gini indexes of the transaction graphs and the user wealth in which Ethereum is found to be very unfair since the very beginning, in a sense, “the rich is already very rich.”

Advanced Driver Assistance System for Drivers using Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Techniques

Abstract: Machine learning techniques have been used in order to predict the condition and emotion of a driver to provide information that will improve safety on the road. It is an application of artificial intelligence. The face, an important part of the body, conveys a lot of information. When a driver is in a state of fatigue, the facial expressions, e.g., the frequency of blinking and yawning, are different from those in the normal state. In this paper, we propose a system called “Advanced Driver Assistant System”, which detects the drivers fatigue status, such as yawning, blinking, and duration of eye closure, using video images, without equipping their bodies with devices. Artificial Intelligence is a method by which systems can automatically learn as well as improve without being explicitly programmed. A driver’s condition can be estimated by bio-indicators, behavior while driving as well as the expressions on the face of a driver. In this paper we present an all-inclusive survey of recent works related to driver drowsiness detection and alert system. We also present the various machine learning techniques such as CNN algorithm, HAAR based cascade classifier, OpenCV which are used in order to determine the driver’s condition. Finally, we identify the challenges faced by the current systems and present the corresponding research opportunities. Keywords: Convolutional neural network, fatigue detection, feature location, face tracking, Artificial Intelligence, Autonomous Vehicle Technology, Drowsiness Detection, Machine Learning.

Comparison of wound closure techniques after thyroid and parathyroid surgery: an updated systematic review and network meta-analysis.

We designed and conducted the present study to evaluate the optimal wound closure technique after thyroid and parathyroid surgery in terms of perioperative safety, efficacy, and cosmetic outcomes. A systematic literature review and network meta-analysis (NMA) was performed according to the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions and the PRISMA guidelines. Literature screening was completed at 10/12/2021. A random effects multivariate network meta-analysis under a frequentist framework was implemented. Statistical significance was considered at the level of p < 0.05. Overall, 18 studies and 1314 patients were included. Conventional sutures (CS) received the best ranking (SUCRA: 90.1%) in wound-related morbidity. Metal clips (MC) was the best option for reducing the overall operation (SUCRA: 99%) and wound closure (SUCRA: 72.3%) duration. Moreover, adhesive strips (AS) had the higher probability of minimizing postoperative pain during the 2nd and 3rd postoperative days. Subcuticular suture (SS) was the most probable method for achieving optimal, long-term, patient-assessed, and surgeon-assessed cosmesis. However, MC had the highest mid and long term, independent-assessed, scar ranking (SUCRA 80.5% and 62.9%). Based on the inconclusive results and the several study limitations, further large-scale RCTs are required.

The rarity of intervocalic voicing of stops in Danish spontaneous speech

Previous studies of the phonetics of Danish stops have neglected closure voicing. Danish is an aspiration language, but the aspirated stops /p t k/ are produced with shorter closure duration and less articulatory effort than the unaspirated stops /b d ɡ/. Furthermore, all Danish stops are characterized by some degree of glottal spreading during the closure. In this study, we use a corpus of Danish spontaneous speech (DanPASS) to investigate the intervocalic voicing—its distribution across the two laryngeal categories, whether it patterns as a lenition phenomenon, and whether the aerodynamic environment predicts its distribution. We find that intervocalic voicing is not the norm for either set of stops and is particularly rare in /p t k/. Voiced tokens are mostly found in environments associated with lenition. We suggest that the glottal spreading gesture found in all Danish stops is a phonological mechanism blocking voicing, which is probabilistically lost in spontaneous speech. This predicts our results better than relying on laryngeal features like [voice] or [spread glottis]. The study fills a gap in our knowledge of Danish phonetics and phonology, and is also one of the most extensive corpus studies of intervocalic stop voicing in an ‘aspiration language.’

Variations in uterine closure technique: an institutional survey of obstetricians and implications for patient counseling and prevention of adverse sequelae.

To assess the diversity of uterine closure techniques (UCTs) among providers in one institution and evaluate concurrent consideration of adverse outcomes for patient counseling, provisional care, and prevention. Forty-four obstetricians at NYU Langone Health were emailed a survey of their uterine closure technique, patient counseling, and practice experience. Results were stratified by years of practice:≤5, 5-20, and 20-40 years. Thirty-nine obstetricians (88.6%) completed the survey. Among those, a blunt uterine opening was preferred by 29 (74.4%), and a mid-lower segment location was favored by 34 (87.2%). At uterine closure, the endometrium was included by 20 (51.3%), with half a centimeter or more incorporated in the myometrial closure, whereas 15 (38.5%) did not factor in the endometrium's presence. Closure duration varied from 1 to 20min, with 21 (53.9%) lasting 1-5min and 12 (30.8%) lasting 5-10min. All physicians were familiar with the potential post-cesarean complications and counseled their patients accordingly; 25 (64.1%) at the first post-op visit while 14 (35.9%) did so before the next conception. Practitioners with fewer years in practice endorsed the safety of up to five consecutive cesarean births, while those with more experience approved up to ten. Thirty-two obstetricians (82.1%) stated that the risk of abnormal placentation is exclusively associated with the number of cesarean sections, whereas five (12.8%) senior obstetricians asserted that individual surgical techniques are most impactful. The survey illustrates that various UCTs are performed irrespective of potential adverse sequelae and without consideration for subsequent patient counseling and care. Ongoing research must study the impact of UCT on scar healing to formulate preventive strategies for post-cesarean complications.

Driver Drowsiness Detection Using Gray Wolf Optimizer Based on Face and Eye Tracking

It is critical today to provide safe and collision-free transport. As a result, identifying the driver’s drowsiness before their capacity to drive is jeopardized. An automated hybrid drowsiness classification method that incorporates the artificial neural network (ANN) and the gray wolf optimizer (GWO) is presented to discriminate human drowsiness and fatigue for this aim. The proposed method is evaluated in alert and sleep-deprived settings on the driver drowsiness detection of video dataset from the National Tsing Hua University Computer Vision Lab. The video was subjected to various video and image processing techniques to detect the drivers’ eye condition. Four features of the eye were extracted to determine the condition of drowsiness, the percentage of eyelid closure (PERCLOS), blink frequency, maximum closure duration of the eyes, and eye aspect ratio (ARE). These parameters were then integrated into an ANN and combined with the proposed method (gray wolf optimizer with ANN [GWOANN]) for drowsiness classification. The accuracy of these models was calculated, and the results demonstrate that the proposed method is the best. An Adadelta optimizer with 3 and 4 hidden layer networks of (13, 9, 7, and 5) and (200, 150, 100, 50, and 25) neurons was utilized. The GWOANN technique had 91.18% and 97.06% accuracy, whereas the ANN model had 82.35% and 86.76%.

DRIVER ALERT AND MONITORING SYSTEM

Here ,we have proposed a system which detects the driver’s fatigue status by analysing the blinking and duration of eye closure and position of eye retina using video data without equipping their bodies with devices. When a driver is in a very state of ,the action of eye like frequency of blinking is different from those in normal condition. The aim of this proposed idea is to cut back the possibilities of accidents that will occur thanks to driver’s fatigue condition . To spot lethargy various factors are utilized like eye retina identification and facial element acknowledgement has been utilized. Here right away, propose a method for identifying driver sluggishness utilizing eye retina location of the driving force. This framework is used for ongoing issue which catches picture consistently and measures the condition of the attention as indicated by the predetermined calculation and provides cautioning whenever required. For tiredness discovery of the drivers the per conclusion estimation of eye is believed of. So when the conclusion of eye surpasses a particular sum then we effectively distinguish driver to be tired. For actualizing this framework we utilize a pair of libraries of OpenCv . The framework can reach 40 edges for every second for eye following, and so the traditional right rate for eye area and following can accomplish 99.4% on five test recordings. the correct rate for weariness identification is 100%, yet the traditional exactness rate for weakness recognition is 90%. Keywords- Driver fatigue,OpenCV,eye tracking,E.A.R,frames,lethargy,Threshold.

ARHGAP29 Regulates Keratinocyte Migration through the RhoA/ROCK Pathway

Genetic variants in Rho GTPase Activating Protein 29 (ARHGAP29) have been associated with non‐syndromic cleft lip and/or palate, one of the most common human birth defects. Orofacial clefting results from the failure of facial processes to fuse during development which can be caused by defects in proliferation, adhesion, and/or migration. ARHGAP29 is widely expressed and preferentially interacts with the small GTPase RhoA, a critical modulator of the actin cytoskeleton required for cell morphology and migration. Therefore, we hypothesized that ARHGAP29 would play a critical role in keratinocyte migration. To test this hypothesis, we knocked down ARHGAP29 in a human keratinocyte cell line using both shRNA and CRISPR technologies. To assess migration, we used an in vitro scratch assay on a confluent keratinocyte monolayer and followed scratch closure over 24 hours. ARHGAP29 knockdown keratinocytes displayed significantly increased cell area and significant delays in scratch closure. By tracing single cells throughout the duration of scratch closure, we found that ARHGAP29 knockdown cells were significantly slower and showed defects in directionality that were rescued with a ROCK inhibitor, Y‐27632, suggesting these migration defects are downstream of the RhoA pathway. Collectively, our results demonstrate that ARHGAP29 regulates keratinocyte morphology and promotes migration speed and directionality through the RhoA/ROCK pathway, providing potential insight into its importance in craniofacial development.

Differences of laryngeal closure during the swallow between stroke and head and neck cancer survivors

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the difference of two laryngeal closure transition measures: initiation of laryngeal closure (ILC) and laryngeal closure duration (LCD) among stroke survivors, head and neck cancer survivors, and healthy age-matched controls.Methods: ILC and LCD were determined by analyzing two 5ml thin liquid swallows exhibited by each of the 15 stroke survivors, 15 head and neck cancer survivors, and 15 healthy controls from the videofluoroscopic swallowing examinations (VFSEs). Statistical analyses were made using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the three groups as independent variables with the statistical level set at p&lt;0.05.Results: ILC was longer in stroke survivors compared to head and neck survivors and healthy controls; however, these results were only significant compared to controls. Head and neck cancer survivors exhibited significantly longer LCD when compared to healthy controls, but not to stroke survivors.Conclusions: Differential diagnosis based on swallowing pathophysiology is critical to manage and treat dysphagia in these populations.

Effects of head flexion posture in patients with dysphagia.

The chin-down posture is often used as a compensatory manoeuvre for patients with dysphagia. This posture presumably involves flexion of the head and/or neck, but this is not clearly defined. This study aimed to assess the effects of head flexion posture in a retrospective study of videofluoroscopic examination of swallowing (VF). A total of 73 patients who underwent VF both with and without head flexion posture in the lateral projection were included in the analysis. The head and neck angles at the initiation of the swallowing reflex, penetration-aspiration scale (PAS), nasopharyngeal closure time, stage transition duration, duration of laryngeal closure, time from swallowing reflex to laryngeal closure and to the opening of upper oesophageal sphincter (UES), duration of UES opening, location of the bolus leading edge at swallowing reflex, and bolus transition time were evaluated. The head flexion angle increased (p<0.001), but the neck flexion angle did not change in the head flexion posture. Moreover, PAS improved (p<0.001), aspiration was reduced (p<0.001), the time between the swallowing reflex and the onset of laryngeal closure was shortened (p=0.006), and the leading edge of the bolus at swallowing reflex became shallower (p=0.004) in the head flexion posture. Other parameters did not significantly change. The head flexion posture resulted in earlier laryngeal closure and a shallower position of the leading bolus edge at swallowing reflex, resulting in PAS improvement and decreased aspiration.

Outcome on Surgical Site Infections for the Closure of Abdominal Incisions in General Surgery

Objective: To determine the frequency of surgical site infections according to the closure of abdominal incisions (skin staplers versus suture stitches) in General Surgery at Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences (LUMHS). Material and Method: This cross-section comparative study was conducted at the Department of General Surgery at LUMHS. The study was conducted for one year from January 2021 to December 2021. All the patients aged more than 12 years, both genders and who had undergone abdominal surgeries were included. Patients were divided into two groups group A and group B as per closure of the abdominal incisions. Patients in group A underwent staplers wound closure and patients in group B underwent wound closure by suture stitches. Patients were assessed for postoperative surgical site infection during hospital stay. All the data were collected via self-made study proforma. SPSS version 26 was used for the purpose of data analysis. Stratification with respect to the effect modifiers was done and a p-value &lt; 0.05 was taken as significant. Results: In this study, a total of 41 cases were comparatively studied regarding surgical site infections as to the type of wound closure. The average age of the stapler’s patients’ group was 36.70+6.22 years and the average age of the suture patients’ group was 42.47+5.09 years. Males were most common in both groups without a significant difference (p-929), while average duration of closure was significantly lower in stapler group as compared to suture group (p-0.001). Of all, 12 cases had wound infection, particularly as 4 cases had infection grade I, 5 cases had grade II infection and 2 cases had grade III infection. Although frequency of surgical site infection was statistically insignificant (p-0.223). Conclusion: The wound closure skin stapler’s method was observed to be effective in terms of short duration, while the frequency of surgical site infection was higher in stapler closure but statistically insignificant as per both techniques. Keywords: Wound infection, stapler, suture, effectiveness

In vivo topical gene therapy for recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa: a phase 1 and 2 trial

Recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB) is a lifelong genodermatosis associated with blistering, wounding, and scarring caused by mutations in COL7A1, the gene encoding the anchoring fibril component, collagen VII (C7). Here, we evaluated beremagene geperpavec (B-VEC), an engineered, non-replicating COL7A1 containing herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) vector, to treat RDEB skin. B-VEC restored C7 expression in RDEB keratinocytes, fibroblasts, RDEB mice and human RDEB xenografts. Subsequently, a randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 1 and 2 clinical trial (NCT03536143) evaluated matched wounds from nine RDEB patients receiving topical B-VEC or placebo repeatedly over 12 weeks. No grade 2 or above B-VEC-related adverse events or vector shedding or tissue-bound skin immunoreactants were noted. HSV-1 and C7 antibodies sometimes presented at baseline or increased after B-VEC treatment without an apparent impact on safety or efficacy. Primary and secondary objectives of C7 expression, anchoring fibril assembly, wound surface area reduction, duration of wound closure, and time to wound closure following B-VEC treatment were met. A patient-reported pain–severity secondary outcome was not assessed given the small proportion of wounds treated. A global assessment secondary endpoint was not pursued due to redundancy with regard to other endpoints. These studies show that B-VEC is an easily administered, safely tolerated, topical molecular corrective therapy promoting wound healing in patients with RDEB.

Pond Energy Dynamics, Evaporation Rate and Ensemble Deep Learning Evaporation Prediction: Case Study of the Thomas Pond—Brenne Natural Regional Park (France)

The energy of water masses is a first-order factor that controls the essential physicochemical dynamics of a water body. Its study allows one to understand the roots of the processes that occur at the water-mass, water-atmosphere and water-sediment interfaces. The analysis of the Thomas Pond in the Brenne region gives a valuable overview of energy stock evolution on a yearly scale. It highlights the direct impact of this evolution on thermal stratification and the potential for evaporation and exchange with the atmosphere. The study of evaporation remains challenging due to the complexity of the energy processes and factors involved. Its estimation using formulas, which are mostly empirical, is one of the most used means for studying the process. The studied pond shows a natural stratification during the summer season, however often fragile and disturbed by other climatic factors such as wind and precipitation. This disruption leads to increased exchanges between the pond and the atmosphere. The methods used to estimate pond-atmosphere exchanges, namely evaporation, vary in values ranging between 1 mm/d to &gt; 15 mm/d. Among these methods, three stand out and seem to give reasonable values. This observation is based on the noticeable drop of the pond’s water level during the period of non-communication with the outside, which corresponds to 65 mm. The energy required for this evaporation varies between 600 W/m2 and 1500 W/m2, except for the Smith model, that slightly overestimates this parameter. The regulation of ponds’ water volumes by managers, the increased duration of bungs closure and the intermittence of precipitations in recent years exacerbate the reduction of direct inputs to ponds and the aggravates the impacts of a changing climate. Under the effect of increasing air temperatures, losses by evaporation will also increase significantly. If we generalise the results obtained to all of the Brenne Park water bodies (4500 ponds of the park), losses by evaporation will lead to a significant water deficit of the Loire basin. From this study, the use of deep learning ensemble models was found to provide better short-term predictions (RMSE between 0.003 and 0.006 for all methods), thus confirming the effectiveness of these methods for similar applications.