Characteristics Of Instrument Research Articles

NKX2-1-conditioned disorder — «brain–lung–thyroid» syndrome: results of a multicenter study

Introduction. Brain–lung–thyroid syndrome (BLTS, choreoathetosis and congenital hypothyroidism with or without pulmonary dysfunction) is an autosomal dominant disorder associated with mutations of the NKX2-1 gene. A triad of symptoms from three organs (brain, lungs, thyroid gland) is manifested in 50% of patients, in other cases there is an incomplete phenotype of the disease. The most common manifestations are neurological. The aim of the study was to provide genetic, clinical, laboratory, and instrumental characteristics in BLTS patients with a clinical and morphological assessment of the phenotype.
 Materials and methods. Ten children from 9 families with identified mutations in the NKX2-1 gene were observed. Methods used: genealogical, Sanger sequencing, clinical and morphological assessment of the phenotype, examination of thyroid hormone levels, CT, MRI of the brain, CT of the chest, lung biopsy.
 Results. The article presents the results of molecular genetic analysis, family history, age of manifestation and diagnosis. 9 out of 10 children had damage to the central nervous system, thyroid gland, lungs, and one child had a combination of neurological pathology and hypothyroidism. Neurological pathology was represented by benign hereditary chorea (2 children), delayed motor development (8), muscular hypotension (7), ataxia (5), choreoathetosis (1), clonuses (1), seizures (1), hyperkinesis (3); respiratory — respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) of newborns (6), chronic respiratory failure (5), interstitial lung disease (6), bronchial asthma (1), chronic pneumonitis of infants (1), bronchiectasis (1). There are presented changes in computed tomograms of the lungs and during preforming CT, MRI of the brain. Typical developmental microanomalia included a protruding forehead, a wide tip of the nose, elongated narrow palpebral fissure, deep-set eyes, hypertelorism of the eyes, large rotated low-lying auricles, conical fingers.
 Conclusion. A combination of congenital hypothyroidism, neonatal RDS, heart disease, neurological disorders (hypotension, ataxia, delayed motor development, chorea), craniofacial dysmorphia is the basis for a molecular genetic examination to exclude BLTS.

Complete characterization of ocean color radiometers

Verifying and validating waterleaving radiance measurements from space for an accurate derivation of Ocean/Water Colour biogeophysical products is based on concurrent high-quality fiducial reference measurements (FRM) carried out on the ground or water body. The FRM principles established by the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) recommend that in situ Ocean Colour radiometers (OCR) have a documented history of SI traceable calibrations including uncertainty budgets. Furthermore, there can be significant differences between calibration and use of the instruments in the field due to differences in operating temperature, angular variation of the light field (especially for irradiance sensors), the intensity of the measured radiation, and spectral variation of the target, among others. Each of these factors may interact with individual properties of the instrument when deployed in the field, and estimation of such uncertainties requires instrument characterization in addition to the absolute radiometric calibration if expanded uncertainties within ±10% (k = 2) are the aim. The FRM4SOC Phase 2 project - funded by the European Commission in the frame of the Copernicus Programme and implemented by EUMETSAT - contributes to these efforts, aiming at developing an operational and sustained network of radiometric measurements of FRM quality. Within FRM4SOC-2, scientists from the Tartu Observatory (TO) of the University of Tartu performed an unprecedented batch of calibrations and characterizations on a set of 37 hyperspectral field radiometers representative of the most used OCR classes within the OC community. The calibrations and characterizations performed include the determination of radiometric responsivity, long-term stability, the accuracy of the spectral scale, non-linearity and accuracy of integration times, spectral stray light, angular response of irradiance sensors in air, dark signal, thermal sensitivity, polarization sensitivity, and signal-to-noise ratio of individual OCRs. Consistent correction of biases and extended uncertainty analysis procedures of in situ data obtained from different instruments and measurement models need to be clearly defined, which is the objective of this paper.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on acute ischemic stroke medical care: a prospective study

INTRODUCTION: Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is not uncommon in patients with novel coronavirus infection. During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase of the frequency of adverse clinical and functional outcomes of AIS was noted.OBJECTIVE: The recent study was to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the clinical and diagnostic characteristics of patients with AIS, as well as on the results of various types of treatment.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The prospective study included 460 patients with AIS after systemic or selective thrombolysis, thromboextraction and combination of thromboextraction with thrombolysis and stenting, hospitalized in 2019–2022: 55 patients in 2019, and in 2020–2022 — 405 patients. All patients were clinically evaluated using NIHSS and Rankin scales. Instrumental data included: assessment of computed tomography (CT) lesion size, extracranial and transcranial Duplex ultrasound (DUS) and computed angiography. Patients who received invasive treatment (thromboextraction, including in combination with thrombolysis or stenting) underwent cerebral angiography (CA). The characteristics of cerebral hemodynamics before and after the use of various types of treatment, clinical and functional outcomes were subject for comparison.Statistics: The statistical software Statistica 12.0, SPSS Statistics 17.0 were used. Normality of distribution was assessed using the Shapiro–Wilks test. Comparison of groups based on quantitative parameters was carried out using the Mann–Whitney U test. When testing statistical hypotheses, the acceptable level of error of the first type was considered to be a value not exceeding 0.05. To assess the correlation between parameters, the Spearman method was used.RESULTS: During the pandemic of COVID-19, patients with AIS were younger, had lower percentage of comorbidities and a higher NIHSS score. A significantly lower rate of favorable clinical and functional outcomes was obtained during the pandemic compared to the period before the pandemic, including after the use of invasive treatment methods: only 47% of patients had clinical improvement during the pandemic, while in 2019 the proportion of favorable outcomes was 64% (p=0.003). There was an increase in the share of pulmonary embolism and pneumonia in the structure of mortality from AIS during the pandemic (25% in the period before the pandemic vs 38% during the pandemic). Duplex ultrasound of cerebral arteries demonstrated high comparability with angiography data (correlation coefficient with invasive methods 0.84).DISCUSSION: According to the literature data, strokes are not uncommon in patients with COVID-19, especially in those with severe disease and risk factors. The authors consider thrombosis and/or thromboembolism of cerebral arteries to be possible ways of cerebral ischemia. According to Russian scientists, from the beginning of the pandemic, a significant increase in the incidence of ischemic stroke of varying severity was noted. The statistical pattern we identified confirms the data from literature sources that when infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the brain and cerebral arteries are target organs. It is significant for clinical practice that we have evaluated the clinical and instrumental characteristics of these lesions in relatively homogeneous gender, age and clinical groups.CONCLUSION: The incidence of favorable clinical and functional outcomes during the pandemic was significantly lower compared to the pre-pandemic period. Complete and partial restoration of blood flow, as well as a decrease in the ischemic focus, were significantly more common before the pandemic. The effectiveness of invasive methods of cerebral revascularization during the pandemic were also lower. Duplex ultrasound serves as a reliable method not only for primary diagnosis, but also for dynamic monitoring. Initial changes in hemodynamics in patients with AIS before and during the pandemic did not differ significantly and were represented by hypoperfusion with a decrease in peripheral resistance. In 2020–2022 after treatment, hypoperfusion was observed significantly more often, which can be considered as one of the reasons for the less favorable clinical and functional outcomes obtained during the pandemic.

Characteristics of self-medication assessment instruments in Brazil: an integrative review

Objective: To describe the characteristics of self-medication assessment instruments with evidence of validity in Brazil. Methods: An integrative review, without temporal delimitation, with collection in the LILACS, Scopus, PubMed, MEDLINE and Web of Science databases. Ten studies related to five instruments were included. Results: The most convergent domains were sociodemographic aspects, self-medication practice, reasons, medications used and recommendation/sources. Self-medication was assessed by only one instrument with evidence of validity, but it was multidimensional, making its application difficult. The instruments showed good reliability indices, however, of the five, one did not measure reliability. The good psychometric properties of the self-medication and temporomandibular pain instrument stand out (Kappa: 0.810, Cronbach’s alpha: 0.844). Conclusion: The different instruments analyzed present limitations in evidence of validity, showing the need to develop an instrument focused on self-medication that is reliable and valid.

An improved OMI ozone profile research product version 2.0 with collection 4 L1b data and algorithm updates

Abstract. We describe the new and improved version 2 of the ozone profile research product from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on the Aura satellite. One of the major changes is to switch the OMI L1b data from collection 3 to the recent collection 4 as well as the accompanying auxiliary datasets. The algorithm details are updated on radiative transfer model calculation and measurement calibrations, along with the input changes in meteorological data, and with the use of a tropopause-based ozone profile climatology, an improved high-resolution solar reference spectrum, and a recent ozone absorption cross-section dataset. A super Gaussian is applied to better represent OMI slit functions instead of a normal Gaussian. The effect of slit function errors on the spectral residuals is further accounted for as pseudo-absorbers in the iterative fit process. The OMI irradiances are averaged into monthly composites to reduce noise uncertainties in OMI daily measurements and to cancel out the temporal variations of instrument characteristics that are common in both radiance and irradiance measurements, which was previously neglected due to use of climatological composites. The empirical soft calibration spectra are re-derived to be consistent with the updated implementations and derived annually to remove the time-varying systematic biases between measured and simulated radiances. The “common mode” correction spectra are derived from remaining residual spectra after soft calibration as a function of solar zenith angle. The common mode is included as a pseudo-absorber in the iterative fit process, which helps to reduce the discrepancies of ozone retrieval accuracy between lower and higher solar zenith angles and between nadir and off-nadir pixels. Validation with ozonesonde measurements demonstrates the improvements of ozone profile retrievals in the troposphere, especially around the tropopause. The retrieval quality of tropospheric column ozone is improved with respect to the seasonal consistency between winter and summer as well as the long-term consistency before and after the row-anomaly occurrence.

A comprehensive approach to characterize navigation instruments for magnetic guidance in biological systems

Achieving non-invasive spatiotemporal control over cellular functions, tissue organization, and behavior is a desirable aim for advanced therapies. Magnetic fields, due to their negligible interaction with biological matter, are promising for in vitro and in vivo applications, even in deep tissues. Particularly, the remote manipulation of paramagnetic (including superparamagnetic and ferromagnetic, all with a positive magnetic susceptibility) entities through magnetic instruments has emerged as a promising approach across various biological contexts. However, variations in the properties and descriptions of these instruments have led to a lack of reproducibility and comparability among studies. This article addresses the need for standardizing the characterization of magnetic instruments, with a specific focus on their ability to control the movement of paramagnetic objects within organisms. While it is well known that the force exerted on magnetic particles depends on the spatial variation (gradient) of the magnetic field, the magnitude of the field is often overlooked in the literature. Therefore, we comprehensively analyze and discuss both actors and propose a novel descriptor, termed ‘effective gradient’, which combines both dependencies. To illustrate the importance of both factors, we characterize different magnet systems and relate them to experiments involving superparamagnetic nanoparticles. This standardization effort aims to enhance the reproducibility and comparability of studies utilizing magnetic instruments for biological applications.

Tailoring Localized Electrolyte via a Dual-Functional Protein Membrane toward Stable Zn Anodes.

Considerable attention has been by far paid to stabilizing metallic Zn anodes, where side reactions and dendrite formation still remain detrimental to their practical advancement. Electrolyte modification or protected layer design is widely reported; nonetheless, an effective maneuver to synergize both tactics has been rarely explored. Herein, we propose a localized electrolyte optimization via the introduction of a dual-functional biomass modificator over the Zn anode. Instrumental characterization in conjunction with molecular dynamics simulation indicates local solvation structure transformation owing to the limitation of bound water with intermolecular hydrogen bonds, effectively suppressing hydrogen evolutions. Meanwhile, the optimized nucleation throughout the protein membrane allows uniform Zn deposition. Accordingly, the symmetric cell exhibits an elongated lifespan of 3280 h at 1.0 mA cm-2/1.0 mAh cm-2, while the capacity retention of the full cell sustains 91.1% after 2000 cycles at 5.0 A g-1. The localized electrolyte tailoring via protein membrane introduction might offer insights into operational metal anode protection.

Analysis of sterilization efficiency and application cost of three low temperature sterilization methods.

This paper discusses the sterilization efficiency of three low temperature sterilization methods used in thermosensitive medical devices and makes a preliminary analysis of sterilization costs so as to provide the basis for reasonable selection of low temperature sterilizer in Central Sterile Supply Department. Medical devices compatible with the three sterilization methods were selected for sterilization, and two packaging materials were selected for the three low-temperature sterilization equipment according to the compatibility of the packaging materials. The equipment packed with the same packaging materials were sterilized for five times, and each low-temperature sterilizer was sterilized for a total of ten times. The sterilization effect, sterilization cycle time, energy consumption, and cost of the three sterilizers were compared. The cycle time of ethylene oxide sterilizer was 393.6min, and the cycle time of hydrogen peroxide low temperature plasma sterilizer was 56.1min. The cycle time of low temperature steam and formaldehyde sterilizer was 105.7min. The hydrogen peroxide low temperature plasma sterilizes single cycle power consumption at a maximum of 5 kWh. The single cycle energy consumption of compressed air ethylene oxide sterilizer is up to 12 l. In terms of sterilization application cost, hydrogen peroxide low temperature plasma sterilization has the highest cost, followed by ethylene oxide sterilization, and low temperature steam and formaldehyde sterilization is the lowest. The sterilization efficiency of hydrogen peroxide low temperature plasma sterilization is the highest, followed by low temperature steam and formaldehyde sterilization, and the lowest is ethylene oxide sterilization. The three low temperature sterilization methods can achieve effective sterilization of devices. Each hospital can choose an appropriate low temperature sterilization method according to the characteristics of thermosensitive instruments, turnover efficiency requirements, and financial status.

Рrediction of Clinical Manifestations of Irritable Bowel Syndrome when Combined with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

The comorbidity of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) remain insufficiently studied. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical, laboratory and instrumental characteristics of patients with combination of IBS and type 2 DM with the clinical data of IBS and to develop criteria for predicting clinical manifestations of IBS in combination with type 2 DM on this basis. 107 patients with type 2 DM which have clinical manifestations of IBS were under observation. All patients were assessed for medical history and underwent a standard examinations. In addition, the levels of glycated hemoglobin, fructosamine, C-peptide, insulin, glucagon-like peptide-1 were assessed, the HOMA-IR and HOMA-B indices were calculated. As a result of the study, a number of statistically significant relationships between some clinical, laboratory and instrumental characteristics of patients and features of the clinical picture of IBS were identified. Based on the analysis of the data obtained, criteria for predicting the development of severe constipation syndrome, severe diarrhea syndrome and severe abdominal pain in patients with IBS and DM type 2 have been developed.

Associations of hypertension with clinical and instrumental characteristics in the ukrainian cohort of patients hospitalized for COVID-19

long COVID-19 syndrome causes sustained limitations in activity and work capacity in a significant proportion of convalescents, the risk of which is higher among patients who required hospitalization. Phenotyping of COVID-19 survivors based on the most common comorbidities’ role in shaping the risks of the acute phase endpoints and development of post-covid syndrome can be used to improve the efficacy of predicting the course of the disease. To study the associations of hypertension (HT) with the clinical features of acute COVID-19 in hospitalized patients, severity of residual functional disorders and pulmonary affection by the time of discharge. Material and methods. 221 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 (age 53,4 ± 13,6 years, 53% female) were examined 1-2 days before discharge. The study protocol included interview and analysis of medical documentation to retrospectively extract the anamnestic data and clinical features of the acute phase; lung ultrasound, reactive hyperemia test of the brachial artery, and a 6-minute walk test. Results. The most frequently identified comorbidities in the study cohort were HT, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, which were present in 40%, 38%, and 10% of participants, respectively. Hypertensive patients were older (57,8 ± 11,8 vs 50,7 ± 13,9 years, р < 0,001), had higher BMI (31,7 ± 5,3 vs 31,7 ± 5,3 кг/м2, р < 0,001), higher prevalence of obesity (59% vs 25%, p < 0,001) and type 2 diabetes (21% vs 2%, p < 0,001) compared to normotensive participants, but were characterized by comparable laboratory indices, parameters of pulmonary parenchyma affection (by CT scan and lung ultrasound), endothelial function, SpO2 levels during the acute phase of the disease and by the time of discharge, as well as age- and anthropometric parameters-adjusted 6-minute walk distance (67,4 ± 10,5 % vs 69,5 ± 13,6 %, p > 0,05). Hypertensive patients hospitalized for COVID-19 were characterized by older age, higher prevalence of obesity and type 2 diabetes compared to normotensive participants but did not differ in their laboratory profile (including markers of systemic inflammation, prothrombotic activation, renal function, and liver damage), levels of pulmonary affection by CT and lung ultrasound, and endothelium-dependent vasodilatation in a reactive hyperemia test of the brachial artery. The observed decrease in the 6-minute walk distance in patients with HT was explained by differences in age and anthropometric parameters.

Properties, Structure, and Acceptability of Innovative Legume-Based Biscuits with Alternative Sweeteners.

The effects of legume incorporation and sweetener substitution on the quality characteristics of innovative biscuits were investigated. The wheat flour was substituted with chickpea and lentil flour at ratios ranging from 0 to 30% legume to whole-meal dicoccum wheat flour. The sugar was substituted by oligofructose at 50 and 100% levels. The quality characteristics, including physicochemical properties (moisture content, water activity, and color), sorption characteristics, structural and textural properties, and sensory properties, were significantly affected by the substitutions. Sorption phenomena were excellently described by the Guggenheim, Anderson, and de Boer (GAB) model, while its parameters were affected by substitutions. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a porous structure with starch granules embedded within the protein matrix, showing restricted gelatinization and keeping largely their form. The incorporation of legume flour increased the biscuit density, hardness, and spread ratio and decreased the color of the products. Furthermore, principal component analysis (PCA) analysis of instrumental and sensory characteristics showed that texture and sweetness were the key quality characteristics for product acceptance. It was found that highly acceptable legume-based biscuits with alternative sweeteners can be produced, with 50% oligofructose substitution and legume flour incorporation (chickpea or lentil) up to 30%.

On the Need for Accurate Brushstroke Segmentation of Tablet-Acquired Kinematic and Pressure Data: The Case of Unconstrained Tracing

Brushstroke segmentation algorithms are critical in computer-based analysis of fine motor control via handwriting, drawing, or tracing tasks. Current segmentation approaches typically rely only on one type of feature, either spatial, temporal, kinematic, or pressure. We introduce a segmentation algorithm that leverages both spatiotemporal and pressure features to accurately identify brushstrokes during a tracing task. The algorithm was tested on both a clinical and validation dataset. Using validation trials with incorrectly identified brushstrokes, we evaluated the impact of segmentation errors on commonly derived biomechanical features used in the literature to detect graphomotor pathologies. The algorithm exhibited robust performance on validation and clinical datasets, effectively identifying brushstrokes while simultaneously eliminating spurious, noisy data. Spatial and temporal features were most affected by incorrect segmentation, particularly those related to the distance between brushstrokes and in-air time, which experienced propagated errors of 99% and 95%, respectively. In contrast, kinematic features, such as velocity and acceleration, were minimally affected, with propagated errors between 0 to 12%. The proposed algorithm may help improve brushstroke segmentation in future studies of handwriting, drawing, or tracing tasks. Spatial and temporal features derived from tablet-acquired data should be considered with caution, given their sensitivity to segmentation errors and instrumentation characteristics.

Measuring Quality-weighted Hospital-Free Days in Acute Respiratory Failure: A Modified Delphi Study.

Rationale: Hospital-free days (HFDs), a measure of the number of days alive spent outside the hospital, is increasingly used as an endpoint in studies of patients with acute respiratory failure (ARF) or other critical and serious illnesses. Current approaches to measuring HFDs do not account for decrements in functional status or quality of life that ARF survivors and family members value. Objectives: To develop an acceptable approach to measure quality-weighted HFDs using patient-reported outcomes. Methods: We conducted a four-round modified Delphi process among ARF experts: those with lived or professional experience. Experts rated survivorship domains, instrument and data collection characteristics, and methods to translate responses into quality-weighted HFDs. The consensus threshold was that ⩾70% of respondents rated an item "totally acceptable" or "acceptable" and ⩽15% of respondents rated the item "totally unacceptable," "unacceptable," or "slightly unacceptable." Results: Fifty-seven experts participated in round 1. Response rates were 82-93% for subsequent rounds. Priority survivorship domains were physical function and health-related quality of life. Participants reached a consensus that data collection during ARF recovery should take less than 15 minutes per assessment, allow surrogate completion when patients are unable, and continue for at least 24 months of follow-up. Using the EuroQol-5 Dimensions (EQ-5D) questionnaire to quality weight HFDs met consensus criteria for acceptability. A majority of panelists preferred quality-weighted HFDs to unweighted HFDs or survival for use in future ARF studies. Conclusions: Quality-weighting HFDs using patient and/or surrogate responses to the EQ-5D captured stakeholder priorities and was acceptable to this Delphi panel.

CREATING THE EUROPEAN LANDSCAPE FOR TEACHER EDUCATION: EVOLVING DYNAMICS

The study is devoted to the analysis of Europeanization policy in the area of teacher education in the 21st century and the characterization of mechanisms and instruments for the formation of the European Teacher Education Area. The authosr emphasize the effective roles and influences on the integration processes of European professional organizations: European Association for Teacher Education, European Association of Educational Researchers. The contribution of thematic networks to the Europeanization of teacher education, in particular, the European Policy on Teacher Education, the Thematic Network for Teacher Education in Europe, and others, is highlighted. Attention is drawn to the potential of European research projects under the auspices of the European Commission, and the experience of developing and implementing the European Doctorate in Teaching is analyzed. The political dimension of the processes of Europeanisation of teacher education is analysed through the analysis of the EC’s landmark documents on rethinking education; European principles on teacher competencies and qualifications; improving the quality of teacher education with a forecast of the development of the European teaching profession as 1) highly qualified; 2) requiring lifelong learning; 3) mobile); 4) based on partnership. A number of documents developed by the thematic working group, which directly deals with the development of national policies on education and training of teachers/lecturers throughout their professional careers and the analysis of strategies to support teacher development at the European and national levels, have been introduced into the national scientific circulation. At the level of theoretical positions, it is proved that the focus of modern European research in the field of teacher education is on the narratives of professional identity, professional learning and professional development of teachers in the context of new professionalism with a European perspective.

Sound synthesis applications using a physical model of a single-reed woodwind instrument

Physical modeling can be used to analyze and predict the vibrations of a musical instrument. This also enables to numerically synthesize sounds as if they were produced by a real instrument. Focusing on single-reed woodwind instruments, a physical model should incorporate the actions of the player in order to synthesize realistic sounds. This interaction mostly takes place at the instrument mouthpiece—toneholes opened by the player's fingers may be approximated by changing the instrument geometry. A physical model is presented that is able to take embouchure effects into account, in order to reliably simulate note transitions. Regarding physical modeling synthesis, the numerical efficiency of the underlying algorithms should also be considered. Capturing as many physical phenomena as possible may lead to models that require longer running times. Omitting less significant phenomena may lead to models suitable for real-time performance, while retaining most of the sound characteristics of the real instrument. In either case, it is of utmost importance to prove that the simulation algorithms are numerically stable. Sound examples are presented in an attempt to imitate real recordings, as well as in a live performance setting (examples available at https://iwk.mdw.ac.at/sound-synthesis/)

Sensitivity of lateral flow technique for diagnosis of canine parvovirus

In this study, we devised a nanogold lateral flow immunoassay (LFA-CPV antigen test) for detecting canine parvovirus (CPV) in living attenuated CPV vaccines. We conducted instrumental characterization of the prepared nanogold particles and the developed LFA-CPV antigen test was rigorously evaluated for its performance verification including limit of detection, sensitivity, specificity, selectivity and accuracy. The LFA-CPV antigen test demonstrated strong performance when assessed against qPCR using different batches of live attenuated CPV vaccines, indicated a sensitivity of 96.4%, specificity of 88.2%, and an overall accuracy of 95%. These results suggest that the developed LFA-CPV antigen test could serve as a viable alternative for evaluation live attenuated CPV vaccines, and provide it as a point of care test for CPV diagnosis, offering a potential substitute for traditional laboratory methods, particularly qPCR.

Legal and regulatory instruments for NCD prevention: a scoping review and descriptive analysis of evaluations in OECD countries

ContextPublic health law is an important tool in non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention. There are different approaches available for achieving policy objectives, including government, co-, quasi- and self-regulation. However, it is often unclear what legal design features drive successes or failures in particular contexts. This scoping review undertakes a descriptive analysis, exploring the design characteristics of legal instruments that have been used for NCD prevention and implemented and evaluated in OECD countries.MethodsA scoping review was conducted across four health and legal databases (Scopus, EMBASE, MEDLINE, HeinOnline), identifying study characteristics, legal characteristics and regulatory approaches, and reported outcomes. Included studies focused on regulation of tobacco, alcohol, unhealthy foods and beverages, and environmental pollutants.FindingsWe identified 111 relevant studies evaluating 126 legal instruments. Evaluation measures most commonly assessed implementation, compliance and changes to the built and lived environment. Few studies evaluated health or economic outcomes. When examining the design and governance mechanisms of the included legal instruments, government regulation was most commonly evaluated (n = 90) and most likely to be reported effective (64%). Self-regulation (n = 27) and quasi-regulation (n = 5) were almost always reported to be ineffective (93% and 100% respectively). There were few co-regulated instruments evaluated (n = 4) with mixed effectiveness. When examining public health risks, food and beverages including alcohol were more likely to be self- or quasi-regulated and reported as ineffective more often. In comparison, tobacco and environmental pollutants were more likely to have government mandated regulation. Many evaluations lacked critical information on regulatory design. Monitoring and enforcement of regulations was inconsistently reported, making it difficult to draw linkages to outcomes and reported effectiveness.ConclusionsFood and alcohol regulation has tended to be less successful in part due to the strong reliance on self- and quasi-regulation. More work should be done in understanding how government regulation can be extended to these areas. Public health law evaluations are important for supporting government decision-making but must provide more detail of the design and implementation features of the instruments being evaluated – critical information for policy-makers.

Flocculation of kaolin and anion dye by cationic cellulose-based flocculant: RSM-optimized synthesis and experimental study

An efficient cellulose-based flocculant, CMA, was synthesized using a free radical initiation method in a NaOH/Urea aqueous solution. The optimal synthesis conditions were determined through single-factor and RSM experiments: a molar ratio of MCC to AA of 1:3.6, MCC to CTA of 1:8.2, and a reaction temperature of 45.8 °C. CMA was characterized using FTIR, SEM, XRD, DLS, XPS, and TG and applied successfully to the flocculation treatments of kaolin, simulated dyes, and actual dye wastewater. It exhibited low pH sensitivity, achieving over 90% removal efficiency at pH 3–12, with a maximum of 98.3%. In simulated dye wastewater, the removal efficiency of various dyes was greater than 95%, with a maximum of 97%. After CMA flocculation and ozone aeration, 86.5% of COD and 93.6% of turbidity were removed from the actual dye wastewater. CMA carried out the flocculated dye removal process via charge neutralization, double layer compression, and bridging adsorption, as revealed by various instrument characterization and analysis. A polysaccharide-based flocculant, CMA exhibits environmentally friendly properties, low pH sensitivity, and high efficiency in removing wastewater pollutants, making it a promising flocculant for highly turbid wastewater and anionic dye wastewater.

A comparative study on smart transportation policies of Beijing and Shanghai based on three-dimensional framework

ABSTRACT In recent years, smart transportation has been more and more deeply integrated into urban governance, economic development and people’s life now. Current research on smart transportation lacks an examination from the perspective of public policy. And the analysis and experience summary of smart transportation policies are not enough. Therefore, on the basis of literature review on smart transportation policies, this paper selects smart transportation policies issued by Beijing and Shanghai as the research object, constructs a three-dimensional analytical framework containing policy objective, policy instrument and policy thematic characteristics, and makes a comparative analysis on smart transportation policies of Beijing and Shanghai based on text mining and content analysis. And the models of smart transportation development of Beijing and Shanghai are extracted. Finally, this paper puts forward some suggestions to optimize smart transportation policies so as to provide useful reference for the formulation and implementation of smart transportation policies in the future.

Tribological characterization of SAE20W40 lubricant added with surface activated nanoparticles (Al2O3 and SiO2)

This research work focuses on the performance characteristics of the standard SAE20W40 lubricant with the addition of nanoparticles (aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and silicon dioxide (SiO2) in equal proportion). The nanoparticles were surface-activated using oleic acid to homogenize the lubricant dispersion. The lubricant was added with 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 wt% of nanoparticles and subjected to a mechano-thermal process to synthesize nanolubricant. The physio-chemical properties (flash point, fire point, thermal stability, kinematic viscosity, acid value, and iodine value) and tribological characteristics (specific wear rate, friction coefficient, and wear mechanism) of the nanolubricant were determined and correlated with dispersed nanoparticles. Instrumental characterization of SEM, EDS, TEM, FT-IR, and UV-Vis tests were performed to validate the surface-activated nanolubricant. The base lubricant demonstrated favorable tribological characteristics when enhanced with 0.1 wt% additives.