ITER collective Thomson scattering-Preparing to diagnose fusion-born alpha particles (invited)

The ITER Collective Thomson scattering (CTS) diagnostic will measure the dynamics of fusion-born alpha particles in the burning ITER plasma by scattering a 1 MW 60 GHz gyrotron beam off fast-ion induced fluctuations in the plasma. The diagnostic will have seven measurement volumes across the ITER cross section and will resolve the alpha particle energies in the range from 300 keV to 3.5 MeV; importantly, the CTS diagnostic is the only diagnostic capable of measuring confined alpha particles for energies below ∼1.7 MeV and will also be sensitive to the other fast-ion populations. The temporal resolution is 100 ms, allowing the capture of dynamics on that timescale, and the typical spatial resolution is 10-50 cm. The development and design of the in-vessel and primary parts of the CTS diagnostic has been completed. This marks the beginning of a new phase of preparation to maximize the scientific benefit of the diagnostic, e.g., by investigating the capability to contribute to the determination of the fuel-ion ratio and the bulk ion temperature as well as integrating data analysis with other fast-ion and bulk-ion diagnostics.

[Management of elective surgical activity in a tertiary hospital during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic]

Introducción

Durante la pandemia por SARS-CoV-2 la actividad quirúrgica electiva se redujo a su mínima expresión. A medida que disminuyeron tanto el número de casos, como las necesidades de hospitalización para esta patología creímos oportuno proceder a recuperar progresivamente la actividad quirúrgica programada. El presente trabajo describe como, aún con el estado de alarma vigente, pudimos prácticamente normalizar dicha actividad en pocas semanas.

Metodología

Dos semanas antes de la intervención quirúrgica, se contactó telefónicamente con los pacientes incluidos en las listas de espera. Tras comprobar su estado de salud y manifestar su deseo de ser intervenidos quirúrgicamente se les proporcionaron recomendaciones para disminuir el riesgo de infección por coronavirus. Asimismo, se estableció un circuito exclusivo para llevar a cabo, 48 horas antes de la intervención, la detección de SARS-CoV-2 mediante reacción en cadena de la polimerasa (PCR) de exudado nasofaríngeo. Los resultados fueron valorados por cada servicio quirúrgico y el de anestesiología. Además, los profesionales del Área Quirúrgica asintomáticos podían someterse a un cribado semanal para la detección de coronavirus, según las recomendaciones de Salud Laboral.

Resultados

En plena pandemia, la actividad quirúrgica electiva se redujo un 85%. A partir de la semana del 13 de abril, se fueron recuperando los quirófanos disponibles, lo que permitió recobrar la práctica total de la actividad quirúrgica la semana del 25 de mayo.

Conclusiones

La creación de circuitos y procedimientos para agilizar la actividad quirúrgica, aún en plena vigencia del estado de alarma, nos ha permitido, en pocas semanas, recuperar la práctica total de la misma.

Validation of BGaze method supporting ADHD diagnosis

Introduction

Eye movement recordings can provide information about higher-level processing of visual information. Recent evidence shows a novel role for eye vergence in orienting attention (Solé Puig et al., 2013). Based on such eye tracking data, the BGaze method (Braingaze; Spain) detects visual attention. The outcomes of the BGaze method have been applied to classify ADHD patients from healthy controls.

Aim

In this study, we validated the BGaze method.

Objective

We therefore recorded eye movements in children while performing a visual detection task.

Methods

We evaluated the BGaze method using 4 types of supervised machine learning algorithms. In total, 138 different trained models were tested. Nineteen ADHD diagnosed patients (children 7–14 years of age) and 19 healthy age matched controls were used to build the 138 models. We performed 30 times repeated random sub-sampling validation. In each repeated random split, training set consisted of 80% of the data and test set of the remaining 20%. Finally, all the 138 models were tested with a validation set consisting of 232 children, including 22 ADHD patients.

Results

Across all the 138 models, BGaze method showed an average accuracy of 90.84% (minimum 86.21%; maximum, 95.26%) and an average AUC of 0.95 (minimum 0.90; maximum, 0.97). Best models gave accuracies of 92%, AUCs of 0.96 and FN and FP rates of 4.3% and 7.5%, respectively. Mean scores during the training-testing phase averaged 99.63%.

Conclusion

The BGaze method is robust, accurate, and can provide an objective tool supporting the clinical diagnosis of ADHD.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Testing of the ITER plasma position reflectometry high-field side in-vessel antenna assembly prototype

The ITER plasma position reflectometry diagnostic aims to provide measurements of the edge plasma to correct or supplement the magnetics for plasma position control. It consists of five reflectometers, two of which have components installed inside the vessel. One of these systems probes the plasma from the high-field side using a bistatic array of small pyramidal horns located in the gap between two blankets. Electromagnetic simulations have shown that the blankets shape the radiation pattern and need to be considered as part of the antenna. Full-wave plasma simulations have confirmed these results and have also shown that the first-wall geometry may induce measurement errors above the required margin. To further address these issues, we manufactured a prototype of the high-field side antenna, which includes a mock-up of the blanket modules. Here, we present the results of the prototype tests, with and without the blankets, using a metallic mirror as a target. The signals reflected from the mirror are used to derive the mirror distance and assess the precision of the measurements under different arrangements. The sensitivity to the blankets' installation tolerances is also assessed by changing the antennas' position with respect to the blankets' surfaces and cut-outs.

Thermal analysis of the in-vessel components of the ITER plasma-position reflectometry

The ITER plasma position reflectometry system measures the edge electron density profile of the plasma, providing real-time supplementary contribution to the magnetic measurements of the plasma-wall distance. Some of the system components will be in direct sight of the plasma and therefore subject to plasma and stray radiation, which may cause excessive temperatures and stresses. In this work, thermal finite element analysis of the antenna and adjacent waveguides is conducted with ANSYS V17 (ANSYS® Academic Research, Release 17.0, 2016). Results allow the identification of critical temperature points, and solutions are proposed to improve the thermal behavior of the system.

Performance assessment of the antenna setup for the ITER plasma position reflectometry in-vessel systems

The design of the in-vessel antennas for the ITER plasma position reflectometry diagnostic is very challenging due to the need to cope both with the space restrictions inside the vacuum vessel and with the high mechanical and thermal loads during ITER operation. Here, we present the work carried out to assess and optimise the design of the antenna. We show that the blanket modules surrounding the antenna strongly modify its characteristics and need to be considered from the early phases of the design. We also show that it is possible to optimise the antenna performance, within the design restrictions.

Relating the effects of protein type and content in increased-protein cheese pies to consumers’ perception of satiating capacity

Increasing the protein content proved to be a good strategy for raising expectations on the satiating capacity of a cheese pie model.

Novel mono-static arrangement of the ASDEX Upgrade high field side reflectometers compatible with electron cyclotron resonance heating stray radiation

The ASDEX Upgrade frequency modulated continuous wave broadband reflectometer system uses a mono-static antenna configuration with in-vessel hog-horns and 3 dB directional couplers. The operation of the new electron cyclotron resonance heating (ECRH) launcher and the start of collective Thomson scattering experiments caused several events where the fragile dummy loads inside the high field side directional couplers were damaged, due to excessive power resulting from the ECRH stray fields. In this paper, we present a non-conventional application of the existing three-port directional coupler that hardens the system to the ECRH stray fields and at the same time generates the necessary reference signal. Electromagnetic simulations and laboratory tests were performed to validate the proposed solution and are compared with the in-vessel calibration tests.

Density profile measurements with X-mode lower cut-off reflectometry in ASDEX Upgrade

Despite the fact that density profile measurements using X-mode lower cut-off reflectometry are foreseen to be used on ITER, little or no experience is available within the reflectometry community and to our knowledge no results on this subject have been published so far. In ASDEX Upgrade the multichannel broadband reflectometer is equipped with both O- and X-mode channels. While X-mode operation was designed for upper cut-off reflection, it is observed that for both high magnetic field and high density discharges the lower cut-off becomes accessible. Here we present reflectometry measurements obtained in ASDEX Upgrade using X-mode lower cut-off and compare both the resulting group delay and density profile with O-mode measurements performed simultaneously over the same plasma region. The possible use of this comparison to provide estimates of the magnetic field is briefly discussed.

Complement C3 Genotyping of Slow and Fast Variants by Real Time PCR-High Resolution Melting

“Slow” and “Fast” C3 complement variants (C3S and C3F) result from a g.304C>G polymorphism that changes arginine to glycine at position 102. C3 variants are associated with complement-mediated diseases and outcome in transplantation. In this work C3 genotyping is achieved by a Real Time PCR - High Resolution Melting (RT-PCR-HRM) optimized method. In an analysis of 49 subjects, 10.2% were C3FF, 36.7% were C3SF and 53.1% were C3SS. Allelic frequencies (70% for C3S and 30% for C3F) were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and similar to those published previously. When comparing RT-PCR-HRM with the currently used Tetraprimer-Amplification Refractory Mutation System PCR (T-ARMS-PCR), coincidence was 93.8%. The procedure shown here includes a single primer pair and low DNA amount per reaction. Detection of C3 variants by RT-PCR-HRM is accurate, easy, fast and low cost, and it may be the method of choice for C3 genotyping.

Position paper on tuberculosis screening in patients with immune mediated inflammatory diseases candidates for biological therapy

Chronic immunosuppression is a known risk factor for tuberculosis. Our aim was to reach a consensus on screening and prevention of tuberculosis in patients with immune mediated inflammatory diseases candidates to biologic therapy.

METHODS

Critical appraisal of the literature and expert opinion on immunosuppressive therapies and risk of tuberculosis.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

The currently recommended method for screening is the tuberculin skin test and the interferon gamma assay, after exclusion of active tuberculosis. Positively screened patients should be treated for latent tuberculosis infection. Patients may start biological therapy after 1 to 2 months, as long as they are strictly adhering to and tolerating their preventive regimen.

Influence of nutritional knowledge on the use and interpretation of Spanish nutritional food labels

The present study analyzed the nutritional knowledge of Spanish consumers and its relationship with the correct use of food labels. Consumers were asked about their nutritional knowledge and some functional foods and about their understanding of food labeling and their use of it to select healthy food. A 2-part questionnaire was employed. The 1st part concerned their knowledge of nutritional facts, including their knowledge about macronutrients and perception of certain functional foods, while the 2nd part addressed some questions regarding food labels. The results revealed no statistically significant differences in nutritional knowledge by either age or gender, but a direct relationship with educational level. The association between nutritional knowledge and the perception and understanding of food labeling showed that the nutritional label rarely influenced the food purchases of the group with low nutritional knowledge, who considered that this information was too technical. More than half of the consumers did not consider the calorie or sugar content important for selecting food. In addition, the group with low nutritional knowledge stated that they never or rarely looked at the food labels to check whether it was low-fat food that they were buying.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Knowing the status of the consumer's nutritional knowledge allows health campaigns to be designed; considering the influence of cultural factors and the perception of food labeling is very useful for promoting better nutritional information.

Improved time-frequency analysis of ASDEX Upgrade reflectometry data using the reassigned spectrogram technique

The spectrogram is one of the best-known time-frequency distributions suitable to analyze signals whose energy varies both in time and frequency. In reflectometry, it has been used to obtain the frequency content of FM-CW signals for density profile inversion and also to study plasma density fluctuations from swept and fixed frequency data. Being implemented via the short-time Fourier transform, the spectrogram is limited in resolution, and for that reason several methods have been developed to overcome this problem. Among those, we focus on the reassigned spectrogram technique that is both easily automated and computationally efficient requiring only the calculation of two additional spectrograms. In each time-frequency window, the technique reallocates the spectrogram coordinates to the region that most contributes to the signal energy. The application to ASDEX Upgrade reflectometry data results in better energy concentration and improved localization of the spectral content of the reflected signals. When combined with the automatic (data driven) window length spectrogram, this technique provides improved profile accuracy, in particular, in regions where frequency content varies most rapidly such as the edge pedestal shoulder.

Kupffer-cell activity is essential for thyroid hormone rat liver preconditioning

We studied the role of Kupffer cell functioning in T3 liver preconditioning against ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury using the macrophage inactivator gadolinium chloride (GdCl3) previous to T3 treatment. Male Sprague-Dawley rats given a single i.p. dose of 0.1 mg T3/kg were subjected to 1 h ischemia followed by 20 h reperfusion, in groups of animals pretreated with 10 mg GdCl3/kg i.v. 72 h before T(3) or with the respective vehicles. IR resulted in significant enhancement of serum aspartate aminotransferase (3.3-fold increase) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (93% increase) levels, development of liver damage, and diminished nuclear factor-kappaB DNA binding over control values. These changes, which were suppressed by the T3 administration prior to IR, persisted in animals given GdCl3 before T3 treatment, under conditions of complete elimination of ED2+ Kupffer cells achieved in a time window of 72 h. It is concluded that Kupffer cell functioning is essential for T3 liver preconditioning, assessed in a warm IR injury model by hepatic macrophage inactivation.

Absorbable stabilisation of the bar in minimally invasive repair of pectus excavatum

INTRODUCTION

The minimally invasive repair of pectus excavatum has become the preferred technique in most centres. One of the most important technical points for the final result is stabilisation of the bar, usually obtained by one or two metal stabilisers. Recently, long-term absorbable stabilisers have become available (LactoSorb, Biomet, Jacksonville, FL, USA). Made of poly-L-lactic and polyglycolic acid, they have been introduced with the aim of reducing local discomfort and making removal of the bar easier. Their efficacy for the stabilisation of the bar has not been proved yet. In this paper we compare the surgical outcome in two groups of patients, one treated with metallic and the other with absorbable stabilisers.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A total of 280 patients underwent pectus excavatum repair using a Nuss technique in two centres. In 194 patients (group 1), operated on since 2001, the metallic stabiliser was used. In 86 patients (group 2), operated on since February 2007, the LactoSorb stabiliser was preferred. We compared both groups in terms of surgical details, local symptoms or complications, and bar instability rate.

RESULTS

The surgical technique for the stabilisation of the bar was identical in both groups, but in group 1 the stabiliser was fastened to the bar with a steel wire, while in group 2 polyglycolic sutures were used. No differences in local discomfort or postoperative pain were observed between the groups. The LactoSorb stabiliser was palpable for at least 6-9 months, and progressively disappeared at 9-12 months. In group 1 we observed 6 local complications. In particular, two patients presented with infection, one of them associated with a skin lesion and opening over the metallic stabiliser (revision of the wound was performed). Another patient developed a thoracic wall haematoma after suffering a trauma over the metallic stabiliser, 13 months after operation. Three patients developed a seroma. In group 2 we observed 3 subcutaneous swellings at the site of the LactoSorb stabiliser at 6, 8 and 9 months after the operation. We did not observe either skin lesions or infections. In the group with metallic stabiliser, 3 patients (1.5 %) had bar dislocation, while we did not observe bar instability in the group with LactoSorb stabiliser.

CONCLUSIONS

LactoSorb stabiliser is safe and effective for stabilising the bar in pectus surgery. We suggest its routine use as it appears to be less traumatic and could make bar removal easier.

Evolution of serum biochemical indicators in anorexia nervosa patients: a 1-year follow-up study

BACKGROUND

Long-term studies on the evolution of serum biochemical indicators in anorexia nervosa (AN) patients during treatment are lacking in the literature. Thus, a 1-year follow-up of serum biochemical parameters in a homogeneous group of AN patients was performed.

METHODS

Fourteen restricting-type AN patients were studied on admission to hospital, after 1 month of inpatient treatment and after 6 and 12 months after admission.

RESULTS

Red blood cell count (RBC) and haemoglobin, serum glucose, total protein and the enzyme activities aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (AlP), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and creatine kinase (CK) were significantly lower in patients on admission than in the control group. Total protein, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), AST, AlP and CK showed significant changes among time points (anova, P < 0.05). Significant correlations were found between the change in RBC, haemoglobin, haematocrit, and the change in weight and body mass index (r = 0.74-0.86; P < 0.01). High cholesterol and amylase activity were found at all time points. While AST, LDH and CK reached control values within 6 months of treatment, AlP was always lower.

CONCLUSION

Serum AlP, hypercholesterolaemia and RBC seem to need longer periods of treatment with further weight gain to fully normalize. Therefore, these parameters should be monitored in AN patients long-term follow-up.

Factors influencing the fracture of nickel-titanium rotary instruments

AIM

To evaluate the effect of rotational speed and the angle and radius of curvature of root canals on the fracture of two types of nickel-titanium rotary instruments: K3 and ProTaper.

METHODOLOGY

A total of 240 root canals of extracted human maxillary and mandibular molars were divided into two groups of 120, according to the angle of the canal curvature (group A: <30 degrees, group B: >30 degrees). Each group was then divided into two subgroups of 60 canals in order to perform instrumentation using K3 and ProTaper rotary instruments at three different rotational speeds: 150, 250 and 350 r.p.m. (20 canals at each rotational speed). Each instrument was used a maximum of 20 times and at one rotational speed only. The angle and radius of canal curvature were measured in the only group in which fractures actually took place (group B).

RESULTS

There were a total of 22 instrument fractures; all of these occurred in canals with curves >30 degree. In a multivariate analysis, it was demonstrated that the files used at a rotational speed of 350 r.p.m. were more likely to fracture than those used at 250 r.p.m. (OR: 1113.88; 95% CI: 2.36-526420.05) and than those used at 150 r.p.m. (OR: 13531.33; 95% CI: 5.37-34120254.00). A decrease in the angle of curvature of the canal also significantly reduced the likelihood of fracture (OR: 0.2083; 95% CI: 0.068-0.6502). These relationships remained significant after being adjusted for the potential interactions between the remaining variables. No significant differences were found between the files or the radii of the canals.

CONCLUSIONS

Instrument fracture was associated with rotational speed and the angle of curvature of the canal.

The evolution of the MHC-G gene does not support a functional role for the complete protein

The study of the MHC-G gene evolution during nearly 40 million years does not support a role for the full molecule. The MHC-G-like proteins of New World monkeys are probably classical presenting molecules. Old World Cercopithecinae monkeys do not have a full MHC-G molecule and human individuals homozygous for the HLA-G null allele are healthy and do not show birth pathologies.

The origin of Palestinians and their genetic relatedness with other Mediterranean populations

The genetic profile of Palestinians has, for the first time, been studied by using human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene variability and haplotypes. The comparison with other Mediterranean populations by using neighbor-joining dendrograms and correspondence analyses reveal that Palestinians are genetically very close to Jews and other Middle East populations, including Turks (Anatolians), Lebanese, Egyptians, Armenians, and Iranians. Archaeologic and genetic data support that both Jews and Palestinians came from the ancient Canaanites, who extensively mixed with Egyptians, Mesopotamian, and Anatolian peoples in ancient times. Thus, Palestinian-Jewish rivalry is based in cultural and religious, but not in genetic, differences. The relatively close relatedness of both Jews and Palestinians to western Mediterranean populations reflects the continuous circum-Mediterranean cultural and gene flow that have occurred in prehistoric and historic times. This flow overtly contradicts the demic diffusion model of western Mediterranean populations substitution by agriculturalists coming from the Middle East in the Mesolithic-Neolithic transition.