Search Results (7)

Objectives: Neurotoxic effects causing peripheral nerve damage have been reported for several chemotherapy agents. There is no established and standardized method to assess the presence of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). We compared patient-reported CIPN symptoms to neurophysiological findings and neurological assessments in patients receiving taxane-based chemotherapy. Methods: Patients scheduled to receive taxane-based chemotherapy for the treatment of gynecologic cancer were included and prospectively followed for up to 9 months after chemotherapy discontinuation, between May 2020 and January 2023. Patient-reported symptoms, using the EORTC-QLQ-CIPN20 questionnaire, and nerve conduction studies (NCSs) were performed at baseline, halfway through the treatment cycle, at the end of the treatment, 3 months after treatment, and 6–9 months after treatment. Results: A total of 149 patients were included. Overall, 47.0% of patients reported symptoms compatible with CIPN at any of the follow-ups. Subjective symptoms did not correlate with nerve conduction studies. SNAP amplitudes at baseline were lower in patients who developed CIPN compared to the group without CIPN. Conclusions: The overall diagnostic accuracy of electrophysiological parameters as a marker for CIPN was low. Full article

Selenium (Se) plays several significant roles in regulating growth, development and plant responses to various abiotic stresses. However, its influence on sulfate transporters (SULTR_S) and achieving the harmony with other salt-tolerance features is still limited in the previous literatures. This study elucidated the effect of Se supplementation (5, 10 and 20 µM) on salt-stressed (50 mM NaCl) snap bean seedlings. Generally, the results indicated that Se had dual effects on the salt stressed seedlings according to its concentration. At a low level (5 µM), plants demonstrated a significant improvement in shoot (13.8%) and root (22.8%) fresh weight, chlorophyll a (7.4%), chlorophyll b (14.7%), carotenoids (23.2%), leaf relative water content (RWC; 8.5%), proline (17.2%), total soluble sugars (34.3%), free amino acids (FAA; 18.4%), K (36.7%), Ca (33.4%), K/Na ratio (77.9%), superoxide dismutase (SOD; 18%), ascorbate peroxidase (APX;12.8%) and guaiacol peroxidase (G-POX; 27.1%) compared to the untreated plants. Meanwhile, most of these responses as well as sulfur (S), Se and catalase (CAT) were obviously decreased in parallel with increasing the applied Se up to 20 µM. The molecular study revealed that three membrane sulfate transporters (SULTR1, SULTR2 and SULTR 3) in the root and leaves and salinity responsive genes (SOS1, NHX1 and Osmotin) in leaves displayed different expression patterns under various Se treatments. Conclusively, Se at low doses can be beneficial in mitigating salinity-mediated damage and achieving the functioning homeostasis to tolerance features. Full article

Following the recent surge in harnessing clean energy sources to fast-track carbon neutrality, renewable and nuclear energies have been the best-rated sources of clean energy. Even though renewable energy presents an almost insignificant risk to public health and the environment, they are insufficient to support the growing demand for the high energy required for industrialization. Despite the competitive potential of nuclear energy to meet these demands, public concerns about its safety have significantly hindered its mass deployment in developing countries. Therefore, one of the primary considerations in commissioning a nuclear power plant is the establishment of emergency planning zones based on the reactor type and other siting criteria. Based on Ghana’s reactor type assessment (RTA), four reactor designs were considered in this study which are APR1400, HPR1000, VVER1200, and Nuscale Power Module. Using the NRC’s SNAP/RADTRAD and RASCAL codes, this research sought to investigate radionuclide doses released at the Exclusion Area Boundary (EAB), Low Population Zone (LPZ), Control room (CR), and the 16 km recommended public safe zone during Fuel handling Accidents (FHA), Rod Ejection Accident (REA), and Long-Term Station Blackout (LTSBO). The results revealed that reactors’ power contributed to the source term activities and offsite consequences during REA and LTSBO, while FHA was predominantly affected by the number of fuel assemblies and a fraction of damaged fuel. Additionally, the accidents considered in this study followed a similar trend of impact in decreasing order of reactor power and the number of fuel assemblies; APR1400 < VVER1200 < HPR1000 < Nuscale. Nevertheless, all the doses were within regulatory limits. Full article

The objective of the study is to provide age-related normative values for dorsal sural nerve (DSN) and to analyse its application during follow-up of hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv) pre-symptomatic subjects. We consecutively recruited ATTRv pre-symptomatic carriers in which clinical examination, cardiological evaluation, and nerve conduction studies of the sural nerve and DSN were performed. To provide normative data of DSN, neurophysiologic parameters from healthy controls referred to our service were entered into linear regression analyses to check the relative influence of age and height. A correction grid was then derived. We collected 231 healthy subjects: the mean DSN sensory nerve action potential (SNAP) amplitude was 9.99 ± 5.48 μV; the mean conduction velocity was 49.01 ± 5.31 m/s. Significant correlations were found between age and height with DSN SNAP amplitude. Fifteen ATTRv pre-symptomatic carriers were examined. Sural nerve NCS were normal in 12/15 and revealed low/borderline values in three subjects. Considering our correction grid, we found an abnormal DNS amplitude in 9/15 subjects and low/borderline values in 2/15. In ATTRv, early detection of peripheral nerve damage is crucial to start a disease-modifying treatment. DSN may be easily and reliably included in the routine neurophysiological follow-up of ATTRv pre-symptomatic subjects. Full article

Reducing ear damage is the key to improving the quality of maize harvests. In order to reduce the impact and damage of the ear caused by the ear snapping mechanism, this paper proposes a method to convert ear deformation energy during collision into elastic potential energy in the ear snapping mechanism. According to the above method, a low-damage maize snapping mechanism was designed. In order to verify the feasibility of energy conversion in reducing damage, the dynamic model of the contact between the ear and the snapping plate was established, and a dynamic simulation analysis was carried out based on the finite element method (FEM). In order to obtain better parameters for the improved mechanism, a test rig was established, after which a performance test was carried out on the test rig. The results showed that the primary and secondary order that affected the ear damage rate was the rotational speed of the snapping roller, the spring stiffness and the forward speed. The data processing software Design Expert was used to optimize the parameters, it was concluded that when the rotational speed was 805 r·min⁻¹, the forward speed was 1.29 m·s⁻¹, the spring stiffness was 33.5 N·mm⁻¹, the model predicted that the ear damage rate was 0.023%. Therefore, this paper could provide further reference for research into maize low-damage ear snapping technology. Full article

Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates, a key composite material, are widely used in aircraft structures and are susceptible to low-velocity impact (LVI) damage from bird strikes, lightning strikes, hail impacts and other situations. Therefore, finding a method that repairs the damaged structure and detects the effect of these repairs under LVI is a very important goal. In this work, the repair effect of LVI damage in CFRP laminates repaired with patches of various sizes is investigated via experimental and numerical nonlinear Lamb wave analyses. An integrated numerical procedure that combines LVI with nonlinear Lamb wave detection is developed to predict the nonlinear Lamb wave behavior in LVI-damaged patch-repaired CFRP laminates. The CFRP laminate damage in the nonlinear Lamb wave simulation is evaluated based on relative acoustic nonlinearity parameters (RANPs). As a result, the integrated numerical procedure is validated with drop-weight impact tests and RAM-5000 SNAP nonlinear ultrasonic detection system. An optimal patch design is established via interpolation to optimize the absorbed energy, delamination surface area, second RANP and third RANP with different patch repair sizes. These parameters exhibit consistent curve fitting trends, indicating that they can be used as important indicators of impact damage. The optimal circular patch design with a radius of 2.5 r has better impact resistance behavior and repair performance. Full article

Bark stripping caused by cervids can have a long-lasting negative effect on tree vitality. Such trees of low vitality might be more susceptible to other disturbances. The amplifying effects of disturbance interactions can cause significantly more damage to forest ecosystems than the individual effects of each disturbance. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the impact of bark stripping (stem damage) on the probability of wind damage and snapping height for Norway spruces (Picea Abies (L.) H. Karst.). In this study, we used the Latvian National Forest Inventory data from the period 2004–2018. In the analysis, we used data based on 32,856 trees. To analyse the data, we implemented a Bayesian binary logistic generalised linear mixed-effects model and the linear mixed-effects model. Our results showed that stem damage significantly increased the probability of wind damage and affected the snapping height of Norway spruces. Similarly, root damage, the slenderness ratio, the stand age, the stand density, the soil type, and the dominant tree species had a significant influence on the probability of wind damage. In both periods, trees with stem damage had significantly (p < 0.05) higher probability (odd ratio 1.68) to be wind damaged than trees without stem damage. The stem damaged Norway spruce trees snapped in the first 25% of the tree height, while trees without stem damage snapped around half (50%) of the tree height. Our results show that stem damage significantly alters the effect of wind damage on Norway spruces, suggesting that such damage must be incorporated into wind-risk assessment models. Full article