Effect of Vacuum Environment on Micro Morphology and Porosity of Lunar Soil Concrete

Lunar soil concrete with sulfur system was prepared. The XRD, XRF and SEM datas of lunar soil concrete under atmospheric pressure and vacuum environment after 28 days of curing were compared. The changes of composition and microstructure during solidification of sulfur lunar soil under vacuum and atmospheric pressure were studied. The changes of porosity under atmospheric pressure and vacuum environment were analyzed and compared. Semi quantitative analysis and evaluation are carried out to compare different experimental phenomena.The results show that the vacuum environment has little effect on the element composition of lunar soil concrete. Sulfur exists in the form of single substance in lunar soil concrete, which has the effect of cementation and bonding. The porosity of lunar soil concrete becomes larger under vacuum environment. It can provide technical reserves for the follow-up utilization of in-situ lunar resources and the construction of lunar scientific research stations.

Bayesian Recognition Procedures with Independent Signs of Inflammatory Processes in Gliomas, Metastases and Meningiomas by Indicators of Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate

Introduction. The article discusses the application of Bayesian recognition procedures with independent signs in relation to the data of the modified erythrocyte sedimentation rate, which were taken from patients with gliomas, metastases, meningiomas, craniocerebral concussion and from a group of healthy people. Purpose of the article. Improving the efficiency of recognition of inflammatory processes in gliomas, metastases and meningiomas by indicators of erythrocyte sedimentation rate using optimal recognition procedures with independent signs. Results. In previous articles by the authors, an attempt was made to recognize inflammatory processes by indicators of the modified erythrocyte sedimentation rate caused by brain cancer using Bayesian recognition procedures based on a single substance. In this work, a new model was built using several independent signs (different substances) at once. The results obtained on the basis of the new model significantly increased their efficiency in relation to the models that were used earlier. Such an increase in all comparisons ranged from 3 to 12 %, and up to almost 94 %. If earlier it was possible to recognize only combinations of diagnoses in which there were no more than two diagnoses, then in this work for the first time it was possible to recognize three diagnoses at once. At the same time, the recognition efficiency became slightly more than 70 %. An attempt was also made to recognize more than three diagnoses, but the new model did not give significant results, slightly exceeding 50 % when recognizing four diagnoses at once. Conclusions. Thanks to the use of Bayesian recognition procedures with independent signs, it was possible to significantly increase the recognition of inflammatory processes caused by brain cancer. The modified erythrocyte sedimentation rate, which is an auxiliary tool in the diagnosis of gliomas, allows one or another pathology to be determined in the preoperative period, since the pathology is finally determined only when studying a surgically removed tumor. In the postoperative period, such a modification is an indicator of repeated recurrence of gliomas. It was also possible to significantly increase the recognition of inflammatory processes caused by non-oncological disease (traumatic brain injury) in relation to oncological processes in gliomas, metastases and meningiomas. Keywords: Bayesian recognition procedure, independent signs, gliomas, metastases, meningiomas, modified erythrocyte sedimentation rate, complex parameter.

Characteristics of Presentations to the Emergency Department following Attempted Suicide with Drugs

A relatively high proportion of attempted suicides employ self-poisoning with medication. Data from emergency department presentations can help to identify possible risk drug classes and provide a basis for preventive measures. This retrospective analysis included cases presenting at the emergency department of the University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland, from May 2012 to August 2016, after attempted suicide with drugs. We excluded attempted suicides with only alcohol or other non-medical substances. During the study period, there were 488 cases (466 patients) of attempted suicide with medical substances. The median patient age was 33 years (range 16–93) and 354 (73%) cases were female. The most commonly involved substances/drug classes were benzo-diazepines (n = 167, 34%), neuroleptics (n = 114, 23%) and paracetamol (n = 111, 23%). A total of 231 (47%) cases employed only a single substance. Common symptoms included somnolence (n = 245, 50%), tachycardia (n = 119, 24%) and nausea/vomiting (n = 76, 16%). In most cases, the poisoning was of minor severity (n = 231, 47%) and the patients were admitted to a psychiatric hospital (n = 264, 54%). Important preventive measures may include careful monitoring for suicidal behaviour when prescribing psychotropic drugs, in addition to restrictions in pack size. Efforts should also be made to enhance the awareness of health professionals qualified to prescribe or supply paracetamol.

Quantitative evidence of suppressed TMEM119 microglial immunohistochemistry in fatal morphine intoxications

The aim of this pilot study was to investigate the diagnostic potential of TMEM119 as a useful microglia-specific marker in combination with immunostainings for phagocytic function and infiltrating capacity of monocytes in cases of lethal monosubstance intoxications by morphine (MOR), methamphetamine (METH), and of ethanol-associated death (ETH) respectively. Human brain tissue samples were obtained from forensic autopsies of cases with single substance abuse (MOR, n = 8; ETH, n = 10; METH, n = 9) and then compared to a cohort of cardiovascular fatalities as controls (n = 9). Brain tissue samples of cortex, white matter, and hippocampus were collected and stained immunohistochemically with antibodies against TMEM119, CD68KiM1P, and CCR2. We could document the lowest density of TMEM119-positive cells in MOR deaths with highly significant differences to the control densities in all three regions investigated. In ETH and METH deaths, the expression of TMEM119 was comparable to cell densities in controls. The results indicate that the immunoreaction in brain tissue is different in these groups depending on the drug type used for abuse.

New process to obtain unslaked lime through microwave hybrid heating and its fluid dynamics computational modeling

This study aimed to analyze the advantages of limestone calcination through a conventional microwave heating technique. For such a purpose, the microwave was merged by hybrid heating and a refractory ceramic internally coated with copper oxide was used with a conventional muffle furnace. It has also been analyzed the behavior of calcining limestone with different masses and variations in retention time using a muffle furnace and microwaves, both with and without using the refractory ceramic. Afterwards, the process has been modeled so as to analyze temperature versus retention time. As a result, calcination using a microwave susceptor with the refractory ceramic substance proved to be a process that takes 35% less time than conventional methods. Furthermore, there has been a reduction in 66.1% of energy expenditure. It was also observed that the new procedure offers advantages in reduced greenhouse gases emissions on account of the release of only a single substance, ease of air treatment in industrial environments and being a more economically viable process for limestone calcination, which can be further utilized by companies belonging to such a sector. Its patent deposit number BR 202018073002-4 U2 in INPI.

Prevalence and Sociodemographic Determinants of Substance Use in Turkey

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Substance use disorder is a serious public health problem. It is essential to know who is prone to substance use in order to adopt appropriate measures. <b><i>Objectives:</i></b> This study aims to determine the use prevalence ratios of substance use (tobacco, alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, synthetic cannabinoids, ecstasy, and others) in a large-scale sample of a general population. It also intends to examine related sociodemographic factors. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> This study is based on a cross-sectional survey conducted with a nationally representative sample of 24,494 individuals in face-to-face interviews conducted by a trained team of 125 clinical psychologists. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Lifetime prevalence of single substance use and polysubstance use are 4.5 and 2.6%, respectively (nicotine and alcohol excluded). Age, gender, education level, and marital status are important sociodemographic determinants for other substance use. Similarly, smoking and alcohol consumption are important determinants for other substance use. The multinomial regression analysis results showed that compared with adults aged 39 years and older, early-emerging adults (aged 18–23 years), late-emerging adults (aged 24–29 years), and young adults (aged 30–39 years) are more likely to turn to single substance use and polysubstance use. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Tobacco, alcohol, and other substance use are serious health concerns in Turkey. Sociodemographic status is an important determinant of several aspects of tobacco, alcohol, and other substance use and, therefore, should be examined thoroughly to be able to develop effective protective and preventive strategies.

Environmental Risk of Pesticides for Fish in Small- and Medium-Sized Streams of Switzerland

This study assessed the acute and chronic risk of pesticides, singly and as mixtures, for fish using comprehensive chemical data of four monitoring studies conducted in small- and medium-sized streams of Switzerland between 2012 and 2018. Pesticides were ranked based on single substance risk quotients and relative contribution to mixture risk. Concentrations of the pyrethroid insecticides, λ-cyhalothrin, cypermethrin and deltamethrin, and the fungicides, carbendazim and fenpropimorph, posed acute or chronic single substance risks. Risk quotients of eighteen additional pesticides were equal or greater than 0.1, and thirteen of those contributed ≥30% to mixture risk. Relatively few substances dominated the mixture risk in most water samples, with chronic and acute maximum cumulative ratios never exceeding 5 and 7, respectively. A literature review of toxicity data showed that concentrations of several pesticides detected in Swiss streams were sufficient to cause direct sublethal effects on fish in laboratory studies. Based on the results of our study, we conclude that pesticides detected in Swiss streams, especially pyrethroid insecticides, fungicides and pesticide mixtures, pose a risk to fish health and can cause direct sublethal effects at environmental concentrations. Sensitive life stages of species with highly specialized life history traits may be particularly vulnerable; however, the lack of toxicity data for non-model species currently prevents a conclusive assessment across species.