Update Of Progress Research Articles

Overview of the American Petroleum Institute (API) Joint Industry Task Force Subsea Dispersant Injection Project

ABSTRACT 2017-330 Oil spill response is a challenging task, especially for a deep water well release. The efficiency of mechanical recovery equipment deployed at the sea surface may be reduced due to challenges with detecting oil and then deploying equipment while slicks are continuing to move, weather, break apart, and spread. In-situ burning may have similar limitations. The ability to use dispersants could provide significant benefits when other response techniques have reduced efficiency. Subsea injection of dispersants offers some significant benefits for oil spill response including access to the freshest and non-emulsified oil in a high turbulence environment, ability to reduce the amount of dispersant by injecting it directly into the oil stream, ability to operate day and night under a wider range of weather conditions, and availability of a large water volume to rapidly decrease the concentration of a dispersed oil plume. The American Petroleum Institute has sponsored research on subsea dispersant injection for over 5 years. Project teams are looking into subsea dispersant injection effectiveness, fate and effects, subsea plume monitoring, and numerical modeling. The information from these projects along with information in the literature are being used to conduct a comparative risk assessment on a hypothetical blowout assuming different response strategies. This effort is ongoing. As a result of this research, the body of knowledge regarding subsea dispersant injection has grown. Laboratory studies have demonstrated the utility of directly injecting dispersants at the source of a blowout. Work has begun to understand the biodegradation potential and toxicity of a subsea plume to deep-water organisms. Additionally, progress has been made on enhancing numerical models to predict the fate of oil dispersed subsea. This paper provides an update of the recent progress made on this research.

Current advances in the utilization of nanotechnology for the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes

Diabetes is a prevalent disease throughout the world, and the incidence of diabetes is continuously rising. Researchers are constantly searching for advanced technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes. Nanotechnology is in the forefront of technologies that are being evaluated as an important tool that may serve as reliable methodology in the early diagnosis and treatment of diabetes. Experts in the nanotechnology researcher area are trying to develop novel glucose detection methods and newer delivery methods for insulin and other therapeutics. There has been progress in glucose sensing and insulin delivery; however, this is still at its early development stage. While nanotechnology has been employed in the diagnosis and treatment of a variety of diseases, the present review provides a brief update of the current progress in the utilization of nanotechnology for the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes.

Modeling Human Natural Killer Cell Development in the Era of Innate Lymphoid Cells

Decades after the discovery of natural killer (NK) cells, their developmental pathways in mice and humans have not yet been completely deciphered. Accumulating evidence indicates that NK cells can develop in multiple tissues throughout the body. Moreover, detailed and comprehensive models of NK cell development were proposed soon after the turn of the century. However, with the recent identification and characterization of other subtypes of innate lymphoid cells (ILCs), which show some overlapping functional and phenotypic features with NK cell developmental intermediates, the distinct stages through which human NK cells develop from early hematopoietic progenitor cells remain unclear. Thus, there is a need to reassess and refine older models of NK cell development in the context of new data and in the era of ILCs. Our group has focused on elucidating the developmental pathway of human NK cells in secondary lymphoid tissues (SLTs), including tonsils and lymph nodes. Here, we provide an update of recent progress that has been made with regard to human NK cell development in SLTs, and we discuss these new findings in the context of contemporary models of ILC development.

THE IMPACT PROJECT: IMPROVING THE IMPACT OF EXISTING MALARIA PRODUCTS – ACTS

BackgroundThe antimalarial dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (DHA-PPQ) is one of the recommended drugs to treat uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria. However, DHA-PPQ has a relatively narrow, poorly defined therapeutic dose range and it is...

Human parvovirus 4 'PARV4' remains elusive despite a decade of study.

Human parvovirus 4 (‘PARV4’) is a small DNA tetraparvovirus, first reported in 2005. In some populations, PARV4 infection is uncommon, and evidence of exposure is found only in individuals with risk factors for parenteral infection who are infected with other blood-borne viruses. In other settings, seroprevalence studies suggest an endemic, age-associated transmission pattern, independent of any specific risk factors. The clinical impact of PARV4 infection remains uncertain, but reported disease associations include an influenza-like syndrome, encephalitis, acceleration of HIV disease, and foetal hydrops. In this review, we set out to report progress updates from the recent literature, focusing on the investigation of cohorts in different geographical settings, now including insights from Asia, the Middle East, and South America, and discussing whether attributes of viral or host populations underpin the striking differences in epidemiology. We review progress in understanding viral phylogeny and biology, approaches to diagnostics, and insights that might be gained from studies of closely related animal pathogens. Crucial questions about pathogenicity remain unanswered, but we highlight new evidence supporting a possible link between PARV4 and an encephalitis syndrome. The unequivocal evidence that PARV4 is endemic in certain populations should drive ongoing research efforts to understand risk factors and routes of transmission and to gain new insights into the impact of this virus on human health.

New Insights into the Epigenetics of Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most predominant malignancies with high fatality rate. This deadly cancer is rising at an alarming rate because it is quite resistant to radio- and chemotherapy. Different epigenetic mechanisms such as histone modifications, DNA methylation, chromatin remodeling, and expression of noncoding RNAs drive the cell proliferation, invasion, metastasis, initiation, progression, and development of HCC. These epigenetic alterations because of potential reversibility open way towards the development of biomarkers and therapeutics. The contribution of these epigenetic changes to HCC development has not been thoroughly explored yet. Further research on HCC epigenetics is necessary to better understand novel molecular-targeted HCC treatment and prevention. This review highlights latest research progress and current updates regarding epigenetics of HCC, biomarker discovery, and future preventive and therapeutic strategies to combat the increasing risk of HCC.

50: Reduction of severe maternal morbidity from hemorrhage (SMM-HEM) using a state-wide perinatal collaborative

To test a method for state-wide implementation of the national Obstetric Hemorrhage Safety Bundle* with a focus on reducing (SMM-HEM). California hospitals were invited to participate in a staggered 18-month learning/implementation collaborative (Jan-2015-Jun-2016). 20 trained nurse/physician mentor pairs were matched with groups of 6-8 hospital teams. The mentors and CMQCC staff held monthly conference calls with their teams providing education, implementation support and progress updates. The safety bundle was used as the template for QI action. In 99 hospitals, the project was supported by a rapid-cycle data system combining ICD codes with clinical data including timing of implementation of 17 bundle elements. The primary outcome measure was SMM (using CDC specifications) among women who had pregnancy bleeding complications. A 4-year baseline period was compared to the last 6 months of the collaborative. 126 hospitals with 288,210 annual births participated in the CMQCC collaborative. 54% of hospitals completed 14 of 17 bundle elements; 76% reported regular unit based drills; 65% reported post hemorrhage event debriefs. SMM-HEM results for the 99 hospitals using the data system are shown in the Table. A comparison group included 48 hospitals using the data system but without current or prior participation in CMQCC hemorrhage collaboratives. While the rate of hemorrhage remained the same over time, severe complications related to hemorrhage (SMM-HEM) fell significantly only in the collaborative groups (p<.0001). We used an innovative collaborative QI approach (Mentor model) to scale up implementation of the national hemorrhage bundle focused on early treatment to prevent SMM-HEM. Participation in the collaborative was strongly associated with reductions in SMM-HEM. Hospitals now in their second collaborative had a greater reduction in SMM-HEM (28.6%) than those who were approaching the bundle for the first time (15.4%), This reinforces the need for longer time engagements to fully implement a complex change bundle.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SOLAR RADIATION AVAILABILITY IN DRY CLIMATE URBAN ENVIRONMENT FORESTED AREAS, IN MENDOZA, ARGENTINA

The study proposes determining the potential of the solar collection in urban environments, considering urban building different morphological variables corresponding to representative urban settings in the Mendoza Metropolitan Area (AMM), Argentina. The methodology involves monitoring the global solar irradiance on the vertical plane in North facades, completely sunny and partly sunny, affected by solid masking and masking woodland. Results obtained so far indicate that solar masking is critical for vertical surfaces, with a reduction of the available solar energy between 2% and 66% in the winter season, depending on the type of trees and the building morphology. In the summer season, the measured solar masking values range from a maximum of 83% and a minimum of 10% influence of surface shaded by the neighboring buildings and trees. The results demonstrate the impact of the main variables that determine access to the sun in an urban environment (Urban Tree Canopy, Building Morphology, Building Height, Urban Street Width). The study will allow for future reform and progressive updating of urban and building codes to implement higher levels of energy efficiency for and minimum environmental impact by urban buildings, considering the principal urban building variables.

Comparative Study of Solar Radiation Availability in Dry Climate Urban Environment Forested Areas, in Mendoza, Argentina

The study proposes determining the potential of solar collection in urban environments, considering urban building different morphological variables corresponding to representative urban settings in the Mendoza Metropolitan Area (AMM), Argentina. The methodology involves monitoring the global solar irradiance on the vertical plane in North facades, completely sunny and partly sunny, affected by solid masking and masking woodland.Results obtained so far indicate that solar masking is critical for vertical surfaces, with a reduction of the available solar energy between 2% and 66% in the winter season, depending on the type of trees and the building morphology. In the summer season, the measured solar masking values range from a maximum of 83% and a minimum of 10% influence of surface shaded by the neighboring buildings and trees. The results demonstrate the impact of the main variables that determine access to the sun in an urban environment (Urban Tree Canopy, Building Morphology, Building Height, Urban Street Width)The study will allow for future reform and progressive updating of urban and building codes to implement higher levels of energy efficiency for and minimum environmental impact by urban buildings, considering the principal urban building variables.

Vaccine strategies for the treatment of lymphoma: preclinical progress and clinical trial update.

The clonal B-cell immunoglobulin idiotype found on the surface of lymphomas was the first targeted tumor-specific antigen, and combinations of idiotype with classical and novel adjuvants were shown to stimulate robust humoral and cellular responses, though clinical efficacy was more variable. Cellular and in situ vaccination to help target a wider array of tumor-specific antigens have also been able to stimulate tumor-specific cellular responses, though their clinical success has also been limited. Our growing understanding of the role of regulatory cells and the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, along with a wide variety of immunomodulatory agents developed as of late, offer promising adjuvants to potentiate the immune responses elicited by these vaccine protocols and to achieve durable remissions.

IMPROVED NEAR DUPLICATE MATCHING SCHEME FOR E-MAIL SPAM DETECTION

Today the major problem that the people are facing is spam mails or e-mail spam. In recent years there are so many schemes are developed to detect the spam emails. Here the primary idea of the similarity matching scheme for spam detection is to maintain a known spam database, formed by user’s feedback, to block the subsequent near-duplicate spam’s. We propose a novel e-mail abstraction scheme, which considers e-mail layout structure to represent e-mails. We present a procedure to generate the e-mail abstraction using HTML content in e-mail, and this newly devised abstraction can more effectively capture the near-duplicate phenomenon of spams. Moreover, we design a complete spam detection system Cosdes (standing for Collaborative Spam Detection System), which possesses an efficient near-duplicate matching scheme and a progressive update scheme. To detect fastly near duplicates and duplicate spam mails in Cosdes, we propose a new approach SimHash.

Knot Optimization for Biharmonic B-splines on Manifold Triangle Meshes.

Biharmonic B-splines, proposed by Feng and Warren, are an elegant generalization of univariate B-splines to planar and curved domains with fully irregular knot configuration. Despite the theoretic breakthrough, certain technical difficulties are imperative, including the necessity of Voronoi tessellation, the lack of analytical formulation of bases on general manifolds, expensive basis re-computation during knot refinement/removal, being applicable for simple domains only (e.g., such as euclidean planes, spherical and cylindrical domains, and tori). To ameliorate, this paper articulates a new biharmonic B-spline computing paradigm with a simple formulation. We prove that biharmonic B-splines have an equivalent representation, which is solely based on a linear combination of Green's functions of the bi-Laplacian operator. Consequently, without explicitly computing their bases, biharmonic B-splines can bypass the Voronoi partitioning and the discretization of bi-Laplacian, enable the computational utilities on any compact 2-manifold. The new representation also facilitates optimization-driven knot selection for constructing biharmonic B-splines on manifold triangle meshes. We develop algorithms for spline evaluation, data interpolation and hierarchical data decomposition. Our results demonstrate that biharmonic B-splines, as a new type of spline functions with theoretic and application appeal, afford progressive update of fully irregular knots, free of singularity, without the need of explicit parameterization, making it ideal for a host of graphics tasks on manifolds.

Multisource inverse-geometry CT. Part I. System concept and development

This paper presents an overview of multisource inverse-geometry computed tomography (IGCT) as well as the development of a gantry-based research prototype system. The development of the distributed x-ray source is covered in a companion paper [V. B. Neculaes et al., "Multisource inverse-geometry CT. Part II. X-ray source design and prototype," Med. Phys. 43, 4617-4627 (2016)]. While progress updates of this development have been presented at conferences and in journal papers, this paper is the first comprehensive overview of the multisource inverse-geometry CT concept and prototype. The authors also provide a review of all previous IGCT related publications. The authors designed and implemented a gantry-based 32-source IGCT scanner with 22 cm field-of-view, 16 cm z-coverage, 1 s rotation time, 1.09 × 1.024 mm detector cell size, as low as 0.4 × 0.8 mm focal spot size and 80-140 kVp x-ray source voltage. The system is built using commercially available CT components and a custom made distributed x-ray source. The authors developed dedicated controls, calibrations, and reconstruction algorithms and evaluated the system performance using phantoms and small animals. The authors performed IGCT system experiments and demonstrated tube current up to 125 mA with up to 32 focal spots. The authors measured a spatial resolution of 13 lp/cm at 5% cutoff. The scatter-to-primary ratio is estimated 62% for a 32 cm water phantom at 140 kVp. The authors scanned several phantoms and small animals. The initial images have relatively high noise due to the low x-ray flux levels but minimal artifacts. IGCT has unique benefits in terms of dose-efficiency and cone-beam artifacts, but comes with challenges in terms of scattered radiation and x-ray flux limits. To the authors' knowledge, their prototype is the first gantry-based IGCT scanner. The authors summarized the design and implementation of the scanner and the authors presented results with phantoms and small animals.

The UN Commission on Life Saving Commodities 3 years on: global progress update and results of a multicountry assessment

In September, 2012, the UN Commission on Life Saving Commodities (UNCoLSC) outlined a plan to expand availability and access to 13 life saving commodities. We profile global and country progress against these recommendations between 2012 and 2015. For 12 countries in sub-Saharan Africa that were off-track to achieve the Millennium Development Goals for maternal and child survival, we reviewed key documents and reference data, and conducted interviews with ministry staff and partners to assess the status of the UNCoLSC recommendations. The RMNCH fund provided short-term catalytic financing to support country plans to advance the commodity agenda, with activities coded by UNCoLSC recommendation. Our network of technical resource teams identified, addressed, and monitored progress against cross-cutting commodity-related challenges that needed coordinated global action. In 2014 and 2015, child and maternal health commodities had fewer bottlenecks than reproductive and neonatal commodities. Common bottlenecks included regulatory challenges (ten of 12 countries); poor quality assurance (11 of 12 countries); insufficient staff training (more than half of facilities on average); and weak supply chains systems (11 of 12 countries), with stock-outs of priority commodities in about 40% of facilities on average. The RMNCH fund committed US$175·7 million to 19 countries to support strategies addressing crucial gaps. $68·2 million (39·0%) of the funds supported systems-strengthening interventions with the remainder split across reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health. Health worker training ($88·6 million, 50·4%), supply chain ($53·3 million, 30·0%), and demand generation ($21·1 million, 12·0%) were the major topics of focus. All priority commodities are now listed in the WHO Essential Medicines List; appropriate price reductions were secured; quality manufacturing was improved; a fast-track registration mechanism for prequalified products was established; and methods were developed for advocacy, quantification, demand generation, supply chain, and provider training. Slower progress was evident around regulatory harmonisation and quality assurance. Much work is needed to achieve full implementation of the UNCoLSC recommendations. Coordinated efforts to secure price reductions beyond the 13 commodities and improve regulatory efficiency, quality, and supply chains are still needed alongside broader dissemination of work products. Governments of Norway (NORAD) and the UK (DFID).

Tap-hole monitoring technologies

This paper provides a progress update on three tapblock monitoring technologies that Hatch has been developing with our clients for non-ferrous smelting furnaces. The Tapblock Diagnostic System (TDS) is an advanced on-line monitoring system that uses temperature data along with embedded thermal model results to evaluate the condition of a tapblock over its campaign life. Hatch recently installed a second Tapblock Diagnostic System, some details of which are provided in this paper. The Tap-hole Acoustic Monitoring (TAM) system is installed on water-cooled copper tapblocks and uses the noise from the tapping channel to provide a qualitative indication of wear and deterioration of the tapping channel refractory. In addition, TAM can be used to monitor drilling and lancing performance, and potentially could also be used in the future as a guide for automatic drilling and lancing systems (Sadri et al., 2008). The third technology is the use of fibre optic sensors to measure temperature on the hot face and in the tapping channel of a tapblock. Fibre optic technology allows installation of numerous sensors in key locations where they are very sensitive to tapblock condition and also provide more extensive spatial coverage than is possible with traditional instruments. This paper provides an update on our efforts to address issues with premature failure of the sensor cables due to corrosion, and also converting the vast amount of data from the sensor cable into information that can be used by furnace operators.

Development algorithm operation of multicomponent system system to support decision-making in assessing the reliability of air separation plants

Summary. In that case when knowledge in relation to a problem of development of the knowledge base (KB) of system of an assessment of reliability is understood as the regularities of subject domain received in practice and as a result of vocational training of experts there are opportunities the problems allowing to put and solve in the field of management of reliability. Leaning against our researches it is possible to conclude that the key moment developed the multicomponent systems of support of decision-making (MASPPR) is KB, main principles of construction and which functioning are: the principle of a precedential when obtaining diagnostic information; the principle of fitness during the receiving, the analysis and structurization of diagnostic information; the principle of openness of system having a possibility of progressive updating, being guided by the available information, knowledge bases; the principle of a modularity at construction; the principle of knowledge when obtaining new information assuming existence of procedures of loyal and effective interaction. In turn, the model of representation of knowledge in MASPPR is under construction on a basis production systems (PS) which is model of representation of knowledge well-known and widely used in SEE. According to multicomponentsystem of support of decision-making it is offered to use the simplest method of submission of rules, namely, list (or tabular) a form which shows the list of rules in memory of the interpreter. Development of algorithm of functioning of the car of a logical conclusion. At reduction of time and simplicity of search of a route of a logical conclusion from a significant amount of the rules developed for "agent-performer" and "agent-coordinator" we will apply a method of a linear matrix conclusion. The essence of a method consists that for set of the rules located in the form of the list the matrix is under construction, then, on the basis of the analysis of this matrix the route of a logical conclusion then additional routes of a logical conclusion are defined is defined.

Stem Cells in Neurotoxicology/Developmental Neurotoxicology: Current Scenario and Future Prospects.

Stem cell biology has played a pivotal role in the field of disease modeling, regenerative medicine, and tissue engineering. The scope of stem cell research has been further extended to address the issues associated with toxicity and biosafety. However, its role in the field of neurotoxicity (NT) and the emerging field of developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) is somewhat underrepresented and needs thorough investigation. Several challenges have hindered the progress of NT and DNT studies, and there is a dire need for human-specific high-throughput in vitro system(s) as a tool with better predictivity, reliability, and reproducibility. The unique proliferation and pluripotency of stem cells makes them a tremendous resource for human material, allowing the prediction of drug toxicity and metabolic effects of chemicals. Recognizing the growing importance of NT and DNT and the application of stem cell biology, in this review article, we provide the diversified approaches of stem cell research which can be effectively applied to the NT and DNT studies and provide an update of the recent progress made so far. We further provide a futuristic approach towards novel stem cell-based strategies for NT and DNT testing. We have further discussed the current technologies, role of induced pluripotent stem cells, the application of three-dimensional (3D) cultures and role of stem cell-derived organs in the NT and DNT studies.

The COMET initiative database: progress and activities update (2014)

The COMET Initiative database is a repository of studies relevant to the development of core outcome sets (COS). Use of the website continues to increase, with more than 16,500 visits in 2014 (36 % increase over 2013), 12,257 unique visitors (47 % increase), 9780 new visitors (43 % increase) and a rise in the proportion of visits from outside the UK (8565 visits; 51 % of all visits). By December 2014, a total of 6588 searches had been completed, with 2383 in 2014 alone (11 % increase). The growing awareness of the need for COS is reflected in the website and database usage figures.

Head and neck cancer: metronomic chemotherapy.

In the era of personalized medicine, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) represents a critical oncologic topic. Conventional chemotherapy regimens consist of drugs administration in cycles near or at the maximum tolerated dose (MDT), followed by a long drug-free period to permit the patient to recover from acute toxicities. Despite this strategy is successful in controlling the cancer process at the beginning, a significant number of HNSCC patients tend to recurred or progress, especially those patients with locally advanced or metastatic disease. The repertoire of drugs directed against tumor cells has greatly increased and metronomic chemotherapy (MC) could be an effective treatment option.It is the purpose of this article to review the concept of MC and describe its potential use in HNSCC. We provide an update of ongoing progress and current challenges related to this issue.

Mining from the Middle: Making the Most of Resources

Mining from the Middle: Making the Most of Resources