Chemical Safety as a Major Challenge for Developing Countries: Role of the International Program on Chemical Safety^1

Developing countries face a number of unique problems related to the hazards of chemicals. The WHO International Program on Chemical Safety may play a useful role by working jointly with Member Nations and such international organizations as FAO, UNEP. and ILO. (c)1990 Academic Press. Inc.

Endogenous Endophthalmitis as a Triggering Factor for Fatal Bacterial Meningitis Caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae: A Case Report

Endogenous endophthalmitis is a rare condition with a poor long-term visual prognosis and significant mortality, often associated with the hematogenous spread of intravitreal infections and subsequent disruption of the blood-ocular barrier. Its anatomical proximity to the central nervous system (CNS) poses a high risk of infection dissemination, although cases documented in the literature are rare, and endogenous endophthalmitis is typically described as secondary to neuroinfections. We report the case of an 82-year-old female patient with a history of hypertension who presented with fever, decreased visual acuity, severe headache, chemosis, and conjunctival injection. Endogenous endophthalmitis was diagnosed, and antimicrobial treatment was initiated alongside surgical intervention by the ophthalmology service. However, the patient’s condition worsened neurologically, and Streptococcus pneumoniae was identified in cerebrospinal fluid cultures. Despite intensive medical treatment, the patient’s clinical course was poor, leading to death.

A novel model for extending international co-operation in science and education

In September 1994 the University of Twente, the Netherlands, and Zhejiang University, China, decided to cooperate in the field of science, education and management. After several visits of delegations from both sides it was considered worthwhile to explore further opportunities for mutual cooperation. The directors of international cooperation on each side jointly commissioned a project to investigate the potential in a systematic way and to establish further contacts where appropriate. This paper reports on the results of the research cum matching project. To reveal promising matches between multiple departments of both academic institutions a matching model for uni-versities was designed. The study was carried out along two parallel lines. In the research line the theoretical framework was developed into a model for international university co-operation. Moreover, an analysis was carried out on internal, external and cultural aspects resulting in a set of thirty four influencing factors. In the matching line a total of seventy interviews were held in order to identify promising matches between units at both universities. This line resulted in eleven promising matches for further co-operation. The novel model appeared useful in analyzing the variety of factors and in developing matches between both univer-sities. In the further implementation of the model the issues of 搇evel of co-operation?and 搕op-down versus bottom-up?need to be addressed in more detail.

Impact of MitraClip Program on the Volume and Outcomes of Mitral Valve Surgery:A Single-Center Retrospective Study

Surgical repair has been the standard therapy for severe mitral regurgitation causing symptoms or left ventricular dysfunction.Percutaneous mitral valve repair has become an appealing alternative approach for patients who are not suitable for surgery.However,clinical trial data are not available on the institutional impact of a percutaneous mitral valve repair program on mitral valve surgery.The current study retrospectively evaluated the impact of the MitraClip program on the mitral valve surgery volume and outcomes.Patient data were retrieved from the 2 years before and the 2 years after initiation of the MitraClip program.The volume of MitraClip procedures increased from eight cases in 2015 to 91 cases in 2017.Since the initiation of the MitraClip program in 2015,the volume of both mitral valve replacement and mitral valve repair also increased(43 vs.60 and 110 vs.154,respectively).Importantly,we observed improved surgical outcomes,including fewer perioperative complications and lower operative mortality and in-hospital mortality.Data from our single-institution experience indicate that the introduction of the MitraClip program is associated with increased mitral valve surgery volume and improved outcomes.The establishment of the MitraClip program enables the hospital to provide higher quality of care and potentially become a referring center for structural heart patients.

CAFIU Program Rekindled My Love for China

In December 2010, I visited China with 9 Korean delegates. The theme of the program, 'Green Growth in China', was timely because at the time, Korea's Lee Administration was promoting the green industry through various government support in order to make it a new engine for economic growth.

Assessing Water Resources Access of Nouhao Sub-Basin, Burkina Faso

Water resource access in the Nouhao sub-basin, assessed based on the availability of drinking water mobilization facilities, the availability of water for uses and the quality of drinking water, revealed that in 2017 the basin was covered by 1249 modern water point, main drinking water sources. On average, the sub-basin shows a ratio of 271 users per drinking water point. Communal level shows some disparity with Bittou recording the highest number of people per drinking water point, i.e., around 537. Water that can be captured in the entire sub-basin meets only 42% of the total water needs from the three mains uses: irrigation, domestic consumption and livestock. The highest demander among these uses is Irrigation with 75% of the need, i.e., approximately 12,859,995 m3. Water in 33% drinking sources of this sub basin is of poor quality. Arsenic, one of the quality parameters studied, is found in some communes of the sub-basin. 11% of the water points in Bissiga are arsenic polluted making this commune the most arsenic contaminated location. The vulnerability maps deducted from lack of water for uses;lack of drinking water works and poor water quality shows so, the exposure level of the sub-basin’ communes to some potential risks related to low water resources access.

Spatiotemporal Analysis of Meteorological Drought Using Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) in Gabiley Region, Somaliland

Drought is a common natural disaster worldwide, with varying durations, severity levels, and spatial extents. This study aimed to model the spatiotemporal variation of meteorological drought events in the Gabiley region of Somaliland. The study utilized primary data collected from the meteorological station in Gabiley and CHIRPS (Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station) data to develop the standardized precipitation index (SPI) at a 3-month timescale. The results of the study revealed that the study area was characterized by drought and received inadequate precipitation, resulting in catastrophic droughts that negatively impacted the socioeconomic situation of the community. Mild-to-severe meteorological drought events occurred every two to three years, with the most severe droughts occurring in 1998, 2002, 2009, 2015, and 2017. Specifically, the year 2015 experienced the most severe meteorological drought in the region during the studied period. The predominant type of drought was a mild year in the study area. The SPI was found to potentially identify meteorological drought, making it a useful tool for policymakers as they develop drought adaptation and mitigation policies. This study provides valuable information that can benefit local authorities and policymakers in creating drought mitigation and adaptation strategies in the Gabiley region.

A win-win technique of stabilizing sand dune and purifying paper mill black-liquor

The principle and technique were reported here to produce lignin-based sand stabilizing material （LSSM） using extracted lignin from black liquor of straw paper mills. Field tests using LSSM to stabilize and green sand dunes were started in 2002. The field experiment was carded out in August 2005 when the newly formed plant community was 3 years old. The results from the comprehensive field experiment demonstrated that unlike polyvinyl acetate or foamed asphalt commonly used for dune stabilization, LSSM was plant- friendly material and could be used in combination with seeding and planting of desert species. With the help of LSSM, the desert species （i.e., Agriophyllum squarrosum （L.） Moq. and Artemisia desertorum Spreng. etc.） could be used to form community in 2-3 yeas and to stabilize sand dune effectively. The newly formed community was sustainable under an extremely dry climate condition. The organic matter and total nitrogen in the soil increased significantly as the community were formed, while the change in P and K contents in the soil was negligible.

Target genes discovery through copy number alteration analysis in human hepatocellular carcinoma

High-throughput short-read sequencing of exomes and whole cancer genomes in multiple human hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)cohorts confirmed previously identified frequently mutated somatic genes,such as TP53,CTNNB1 and AXIN1,and identified several novel genes with moderate mutation frequencies,including ARID1A,ARID2,MLL,MLL2,MLL3,MLL4,IRF2,ATM,CDKN2A,FGF19,PIK3CA,RPS6KA3,JAK1,KEAP1,NFE2L2,C16orf62,LEPR,RAC2,and IL6ST.Functional classification of these mutated genes suggested that alterations in pathways participating in chromatin remodeling,Wnt/β-catenin signaling,JAK/STAT signaling,and oxidative stress play critical roles in HCC tumorigenesis.Nevertheless,because there are few druggable genes used in HCC therapy,the identification of new therapeutic targets through integrated genomic approaches remains an important task.Because a large amount of HCC genomic data genotyped by high density single nucleotide polymorphism arrays is deposited in the public domain,copy number alteration(CNA)analyses of these arrays is a cost-effective way to reveal target genes through profiling of recurrent and overlapping amplicons,homozygous deletions and potentially unbalanced chromosomal translocations accumulated during HCC progression.Moreover,integration of CNAs with other high-throughput genomic data,such as aberrantly coding transcriptomes and non-coding gene expression in human HCC tissues and rodent HCC models,provides lines of evidence that can be used to facilitate the identification of novel HCC target genes with the potential of improving the survival of HCC patients.

Impact of formulation parameters on physical characteristics of spray dried nanoemulsions and their reconstitutions

Nanoemulsion as small droplet dispersion allows them to uniformly deposit on substrates,increases the rate of bioavailability,absorption and has a better uptake.Although it is generally accepted that nanoemulsions are stable for years,Oswald ripening which can damage nanoemulsion has been reported[1].In this study,converting nanoemulsion as liquid formulation into solid powders was attempted by using spray drying method.The obtained powders were then characterized,reconstituted and compared to the initial nanoemulsion.

Unexpected delayed reversal of rocuronium-induced neuromuscular blockade by sugammadex:A case report and review of literature

BACKGROUND Rocuronium,a nondepolarizing muscle relaxant,is usually administered during general anesthesia to facilitate endotracheal intubation and keep patients immobile during the surgery.Sugammadex,the selective reversal agent of rocuronium,fully reverses the neuromuscular blockade(NMB)at the end of surgery.Most reports show that sugammadex rapidly achieves a ratio of train-offour(TOF),a quantitative method of neuromuscular monitoring,of 0.9 which ensures adequate recovery for safe extubation.However,very rare patients with neuromuscular diseases may respond poorly to sugammadex.CASE SUMMARY A 69-year-old female presented with abdominal fullness and nausea,and was diagnosed with gastroparesis.She underwent gastric peroral endoscopic myotomy under general anesthesia with rocuronium(0.7 mg/kg).At the end of surgery,sugammadex 3.6 mg/kg was administered when TOF showed 2 counts.Afterward,the TOF ratio recovered to 0.65 in 30 min.She was awake but could not fully open her eyelids.The tidal volume during spontaneous breathing was low.After additional doses of sugammadex(up to 7.3 mg/kg)in the following 3 h,the TOF ratio was 0.9,and the endotracheal tube was smoothly removed.After excluding possible mechanisms underlying the prolonged recovery course,we speculated our patient may have had an undiagnosed neuromuscular disease,hinted by her involuntary movement of the tongue and mouth.Furthermore,her poor renal function and history of delayed recovery from general anesthesia may be related to the long duration of rocuronium.CONCLUSION In our case,both prolonged rocuronium-induced NMB and poor response to sugammadex were noted.To optimize the dose of rocuronium,perioperative TOF combined with other neuromuscular monitoring is suggested.

A correlation analysis of BroselowTM Pediatric Emergency Tape-determined pediatric weight with actual pediatric weight in India

BACKGROUND:The Broselow?Pediatric Emergency Tape indicates standardized,precalculated medication doses,dose delivery volumes,and equipment sizes using color-coded zones based on height-weight correlations.The present study attempted to provide more evidence on the effectiveness of the Broselow?Pediatric Emergency Tape by comparing the tape-estimated weights with actual weights.We hypothesized that the Broselow?Pediatric Emergency Tape would overestimate weights in Indian children aged<10 years,leading to inaccurate dosing and equipment sizing in the emergency setting.METHODS:This prospective study of pediatric patients aged<10 years who were divided into three groups based on actual body weight:<10 kg,10–18 kg,and>18 kg.We calculated the percentage difference between the Broselow-predicted weight and the measured weight as a measure of tape bias.Concordant results were those with a mean percent difference within 3%.Standard deviation was measured to determine precision.Accuracy was determined as color-coded zone prediction and measured weight concordance,including the percentage overestimation by 1–2 zones.RESULTS:The male-to-female ratio of the patients was 1.3:1.Total agreement between colorcoding was 63.18%(κ=0.582).The Broselow?color-coded zone agreement was 74.8%in the<10kg group,61.24%in the 10–18 kg group,and 53.42%in the>18 kg group.CONCLUSIONS:The Broselow?Pediatric Emergency Tape showed good evidence for being more reliable in children of the<10 kg and 10–18 kg groups.However,as pediatric weight increased,predictive reliability decreased.This raises concerns over the use of the Broselow?Pediatric Emergency Tape in Indian children because body weight was overestimated in those weighing>18 kg.

Vulnerability of Kenya’s Water Towers to Future Climate Change: An Assessment to Inform Decision Making in Watershed Management

Recent trends show that in the coming decades, Kenya’s natural resources will continue to face significant pressure due to both anthropogenic and natural stressors, and this will have greater negative impacts on socio-economic development including food security and livelihoods. Understanding the impacts of these stressors is an important step to developing coping and adaptation strategies at every level. The Water Towers of Kenya play a critical role in supplying ecosystems services such as water supply, timber and non-timber forest products and regulating services such as climate and water quantity and quality. To assess the vulnerability of the Water Towers to climate change, the study adopted the IPCC AR4 framework that defines vulnerability as a function of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. The historical trends in rainfall indicate that the three Water Towers show a declining rainfall trend during the March-April-May (MAM) main rainy season, while the October-November-December (OND) short rainy season shows an increase. The temperature patterns are consistent with the domain having a common rising trend with a rate in the range of 0.3°C to 0.5°C per decade. Projection analysis considered three emissions scenarios: low-emission (mitigation) scenario (RCP2.6), a medium-level emission scenario (RCP4.5), and a high-emission (business as usual) scenario (RCP8.5). The results of the high-emission scenario show that the annual temperature over the Water Towers could rise by 3.0°C to 3.5°C by the 2050s (2036-2065) and 3.6°C to 4.8°C by the 2070s (2055-2085 results not presented), relative to the baseline period 1970-2000. The findings indicate that exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity vary in magnitude, as well as spatially across the Water Towers. This is reflected in the spatially variable vulnerability index across the Water Towers. Overall vulnerability will increase in the water towers leading to erosion of the resilience of the exposed ecosystems and the communities that rely on ecosystem services these landscapes provide.

Reversible adsorption of metalworking fluids (MWFs) on Cu-BTC metal organic framework

Metalworking fluids(MWFs) are classified as hazardous substances. Due to the characteristics of the stable oil–water emulsions, it requires more costly and complicate treatment techniques to remove oil from spent MWFs. Metal organic frameworks(MOFs) are a porous network material used to remove contaminants from environment. One of the most prominent of MOFs is HKUST-1 or Cu-BTC. In this study, the Cu-BTCs were prepared by solvothermal method in various conditions and used as absorbent for removing oil micelles in MWF emulsion. The particle size of all synthesized Cu-BTCs ranged from ≈80 to 400 nm. The ability of all synthesized Cu-BTCs to remove oil micelle was greater than 95% in 60 min, while the capacity of GAC was obtained the result for only 6.8%. The maximum adsorption capacity(q _(max)) of oil micelles on Cu-BTCs was 1666.7 mg·g^(-1). The highest removal capacity of oil micelles in MWF emulsion is greater than 99% in 24 h by using Cu-BTCs washed with either butanol or ethanol.

Analysis of Rainfall Variability on the Groundwater Levels of Wells in the Nouaho Basin in East-Central Burkina Faso

Sahelian countries are confronted with a lack of reliable data on water and climate allowing them to understand the effects of climate variability. To address this situation, with the support of Water Aid, we have collected rainfall data and groundwater level in wells from 2012 to 2018 with help of local populations. Their contribution made it possible to cover a wider geographical area and to obtain the data necessary to analyze the climate variability on a small and large scale in the sub-basin of the Nouhao. The data collected are well correlated with those collected from the rain gauges of the national meteorological agency in the region of Fada N’Gourma. From 2012 to 2018, August appears to be the rainiest month. It recorded, alone, 1/3 of the average annual rainfall. The depletion of surface water tables is faster after the rainy season. The static level of the water table in the crystalline subsoil also depletes and replenishes at night after the peak water collection time, which is between noon and 8 p.m. These few years of measuring rainfall and groundwater fluctuations have shown that the correlation between rainfall and groundwater level is clearly established. Nevertheless this needs to be more investigated during a longer period to confirm the robustness of the method. On the other hand, the approach to securing water resources based on community monitoring of water resources gives good results in accordance with the National Meteorological Agency and the Directorate of water resources, however, caution recommends continuing measurements over a few decades to confirm its robustness for this aspect too.

China Studies on U.S. Strategy and Sino-U.S. Relations

China's policy towards the United States is characterized by "multiple systems and multiple voices," but we currently lack a coherent,clear and accurate strategy.As such,Beijing's strategy towards Washington is beset with new problems and challenges.The author raises five questions for discussion.

Enhancing Cloud-Based IoT/M2M System Scalability by Dynamic Network Slicing

With ever-increasing applications of IoT, and due to the heterogeneous and bursty nature of these applications, scalability has become an important research issue in building cloud-based IoT/M2M systems. This research proposes a dynamic SDN-based network slicing mechanism to tackle the scalability problems caused by such heterogeneity and fluctuation of IoT application requirements. The proposed method can automatically create a network slice on-the-fly for each new type of IoT application and adjust the QoS characteristics of the slice dynamically according to the changing requirements of an IoT application. Validated with extensive experiments, the proposed mechanism demonstrates better platform scalability when compared to a static slicing system.

Macropolitics and Microperceptions: Is There a Possible Market Answer to Water Woes in Ambovombe-Androy, Madagascar?

In Ambovombe-Androy water is scarce, time-consuming to obtain, and expense. Nonetheless, there is little study into the complexity of popular perception of costs for services in Madagascar. This paper addresses this gap. It is based on a district-wide household survey, focus groups, and interviews. It looks at the wide variation in pricing expectations across a number of intra-community demographic groups and economic classes before considering the user perceptions of water markets themselves as determinants of their willingness to pay. It concludes by isolating the determinants under which and places in which the new macro-level strategies are likely to be accepted, and work, at the community level in Ambovombe-Androy.

Tissue Expression Profiles of 5 Putative Imprinted Genes in Bovine Chromosome 29

Genomic imprinting is an epigenetic process that regulates gene expression in the mammalian genome. Although there are specific imprinting differences between the mammalian species, cattle present unique opportunity for characterizing imprinted genes because of its sub-species classification. Five putative imprinted genes (TSSC4, CDKN1C, KCNQ1, PHLDA2 and NAP1L4) on bovine chromosome 29 (Bta 29) which had been characterized to have promoter CGI were quantitatively assayed for their relative expression across eight tissues (muscle, brain, liver, kidney, spinal cord, heart, lymph and skin) sampled in Angus cattle. The differential abundance of these genes in muscle and skin tissues of Angus, White Fulani and N’Dama cattle breeds was comparatively analyzed. These three breeds are representative of the Bos taurus and Bos indicus cattle sub-species while the two tissues are selected based on their strategic economic importance in cattle production. All the genes, except TSSC4, were relatively expressed across all the tissues. It was observed that Angus had the highest differential abundance in muscle tissues for TSSC4, PHLDA2 and NAP1L4 while N’Dama and White Fulani were the most abundant for KCNQ1 and NAP1L4 in skin tissues. The study identified marked differences in the expression profiles of the genes in both muscle and skin tissues of the three breeds that were characteristics of their genetics, environment and nutrition.

Rheumatoid Nodule Causing Perforation of Anterior Mitral Leaflet and Severe Mitral Regurgitation: A Rare Case Report

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic disorder that is chronic in nature and difficult to treat. RA presents in many variants. Here we present an interesting case only seldom described before. Our patient presented to emergency room with acute shortness of breath and was seen to have acute pulmonary edema. Patient later had urgent echocardiography which revealed severe mitral regurgitation from ruptured anterior leaflet. Patient was taken for heart valve replacement and was found to have RA nodule on ruptured leaflet. There are cases involving aortic valve but to our knowledge there are no reports of RA nodule on mitral leaflet.