Character-Oriented Design for Visual Data Storytelling.

When telling a data story, an author has an intention they seek to convey to an audience. This intention can be of many forms such as to persuade, to educate, to inform, or even to entertain. In addition to expressing their intention, the story plot must balance being consumable and enjoyable while preserving scientific integrity.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances fate and transport at a wastewater treatment plant with a collocated sewage sludge incinerator.

This study aims to understand the fate and transport of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and inorganic fluoride (IF) at an undisclosed municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) operating a sewage sludge incinerator (SSI). A robust statistical analysis characterized concentrations and mass flows at all WWTP and SSI primary influents/effluents, including thermal-treatment derived airborne emissions. WWTP-level net mass flows (NMFs) of total PFAS were not statistically different from zero.

Sampling of freely dissolved per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in surface water and groundwater using a newly developed passive sampler.

Passive sampling methods offer several advantages over traditional grab water sampling techniques, including time-integrative results which better represent long-term concentrations at the site and separation of the freely dissolved fraction of the contaminant which offers insight into the associated risk. This paper describes the performance of a newly developed equilibrium regimen passive sampler designed specifically for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), called PFAS INSIGHT®. The sampler is effective in sampling ionic (sulfonates and carboxylates) and non-ionic (PFAS precursors) PFAS from aqueous solutions with detection limits similar or lower (depending on the analyte) to those achievable with conventional water sample analysis.

Sodium Polystyrene Sulfonate-Induced Gastric Pneumatosis: A Rare Side Effect.

Kayexalate has been used in the USA since 1975 for the treatment of hyperkalemia. Prior case reports have shown that sorbitol added to kayexalate has been known to cause rare side effects of colonic necrosis. We present a unique case report of gastric pneumatosis as a complication of kayexalate.

Concentration profiles of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in major sources to the environment.

A review of published literature was conducted to present the concentrations and composition profiles of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from significant sources to the environment. The major sources of PFAS to the environment are categorized under direct and indirect sources. The characteristic compounds and concentrations are summarized as found from direct sources such as manufacturing facilities, aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) applications, metal coating operations, and textile and paper coating operations; and from indirect sources such as landfills and wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs).

An Unusual Case of an Acquired Aortopulmonary Fistula after Surgical Replacement of a Bicuspid Aortic Valve.

Aortopulmonary fistulas are extremely rare and often occur as a result of long-standing aortic aneurysms. They are most frequently due to the erosion of a false aneurysm of the ascending or descending thoracic aorta into the pulmonary artery. Patients generally present with symptoms of acute decompensated heart failure due to a sudden formation of a left-to-right shunt.

Environmental Sources, Chemistry, Fate, and Transport of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances: State of the Science, Key Knowledge Gaps, and Recommendations Presented at the August 2019 SETAC Focus Topic Meeting.

A Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) Focused Topic Meeting (FTM) on the environmental management of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) convened during August 2019 in Durham, North Carolina (USA). Experts from around the globe were brought together to critically evaluate new and emerging information on PFAS including chemistry, fate, transport, exposure, and toxicity. After plenary presentations, breakout groups were established and tasked to identify and adjudicate via panel discussions overarching conclusions and relevant data gaps.

Investigation of an immobilization process for PFAS contaminated soils.

A two-phased bench-scale study was conducted to evaluate various sorbents for possible use as chemical stabilizing agents, along with cement solidification, for possible use in an in-situ solidification/stabilization (immobilization) treatment process for per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) contaminated soils. The first phase involved sorption experiments for six selected PFAS compounds diluted in a water solution, using five selected sorbents: granular activated carbon (GAC), activated carbon-clay blend, modified clay, biochar, iron (Fe)-amended biochar, and Ottawa sand as a control media. The second phase involved chemical stabilization treatment (via sorption), using the most effective sorbent identified in the first phase, followed by solidification of two soils from PFAS-contaminated sites.

Regeneration of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance-laden granular activated carbon using a solvent based technology.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large class of chemicals widely used for many commercial and industrial applications and have resulted in contamination at sites across globally. Pump-and-treat systems, groundwater extraction, and ex situ treatment using granular activated carbon (GAC) are being implemented, either in full or pilot scale, to treat PFAS-impacted groundwater and drinking water. The only current method of regenerating spent GAC is to reactivate it at temperatures greater than 1000 °C, which requires large amounts of energy and is quite expensive.

An Extremely Rare Presentation of an Alpha-Fetoprotein-Producing Esophageal Adenocarcinoma.

Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)-producing esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) is an extremely rare occurrence with very few cases reported in the literature. We report the case of a 76-year-old female who presented with progressive weakness, fatigue, and a decrease in appetite for weeks and who was found to have an AFP-producing EAC with an extraordinarily high AFP level of 46,135 ng/mL. CT angiography revealed abnormal thickening of the esophagus and multiple metastatic masses throughout the liver.

Sea of Genes: A Reflection on Visualising Metagenomic Data for Museums.

We examine the process of designing an exhibit to communicate scientific findings from a complex dataset and unfamiliar domain to the public in a science museum. Our exhibit sought to communicate new lessons based on scientific findings from the domain of metagenomics. This multi-user exhibit had three goals: (1) to inform the public about microbial communities and their daily cycles; (2) to link microbes' activity to the concept of gene expression; (3) and to highlight scientists' use of gene expression data to understand the role of microbes.

Incidence of congestive heart failure in rheumatoid arthritis: a review of literature and meta-regression analysis.

Aims: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory autoimmune disorder that not only affects peripheral joints but also increases the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality. Heart failure (HF) appears to be one of the most important contributors to the excess mortality risk among patients with RA. We assessed the incidence of HF in patients with RA compared with age-matched and sex-matched non-RA subjects, after accounting for traditional cardiovascular risk factors and clinical ischemic heart disease.

Increased cardiovascular events and mortality in females with NAFLD: a meta-analysis.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) share similar risk factors. Recent studies have focused on obesity and insulin resistance, but the link between NAFLD and CVD persists regardless of traditional risk factors. Despite the increased incidence and prevalence of NAFLD worldwide, there has been no thorough investigation of gender disparities nor a closer look taken into investigating the role gender may play in increased cardiovascular (CV) mortality in people with NAFLD.

Gender disparity in cardiovascular mortality following radiation therapy for Hodgkin's lymphoma: a systematic review.

Background: Radiation-induced coronary artery disease (R-CAD) has become an increasingly recognized phenomenon. Although the clinical relationship between radiation therapy and CAD risk is well known, there is minimal investigation of the gender relationship to radiation-induced CAD events and the resulting cardiovascular (CV) events/mortality. We study the gender variation in the incidence of CV events/mortality related to R-CAD in Hodgkin's Lymphoma (HL) patients.

In-Hospital Outcomes of Patients With Pulmonary Hypertension and Cirrhosis: A 6-Year Population Cohort Study of Over One Million Patients.

Introduction: There is a paucity of data on the influence of sex, race, insurance, pulmonary hypertension-related complications, and cirrhosis-related complications on mortality, hospital length of stay (LOS), and total hospital charges. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors in a national population cohort (in the USA) admitted to hospital between 2012 and 2017.

Methods: All patients aged > 18 years with pulmonary hypertension and cirrhosis, who had been admitted to hospital between 2012 and 2017, were identified from the US Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), a large publicly available all-payer inpatient care database in the USA.

The First Case of Impella RP Use in Acute Right Ventricular Failure From Air Embolism.

Background: Air embolism can cause the following catastrophic complications that must be avoided: cardiogenic shock (from right heart failure), obstructive shock, myocardial infarction, stroke, RVOT obstructions, and pulmonary embolism. Currently there is a paucity of data on Impella RP use in rare causes of acute right ventricle (RV) failure, especially if caused by air embolism.

Case Report: We report a case of a patient with acute RV failure due to air embolism who recovered from temporary use of Impella RP.

In-Hospital Outcomes of Patients with Acute Decompensated Heart Failure and Cirrhosis: An Analysis of the National Inpatient Sample.

Introduction: Heart failure increases morbidity and mortality in patients admitted for cirrhosis. Our objective was to determine if patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) and cirrhosis would have increased mortality, hospital length of stay (LOS), and total hospital charges compared to patients with only ADHF. There is also a paucity of data regarding the influence of gender, race, ethnicity, insurance, and cirrhosis-related complications on mortality, hospital length of stay, and total hospitalization charges.

An ultra-sensitive method for the analysis of perfluorinated alkyl acids in drinking water using a column switching high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

In epidemiological research, it has become increasingly important to assess subjects' exposure to different classes of chemicals in multiple environmental media. It is a common practice to aliquot limited volumes of samples into smaller quantities for specific trace level chemical analyses. A novel method was developed for the determination of 14 perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAAs) in small volumes (10mL) of drinking water using off-line solid phase extraction (SPE) pre-treatment followed by on-line pre-concentration on a WAX column before analysis on column-switching high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS).

Aerobic biodegradation of toluene-2,4-di(8:2 fluorotelomer urethane) and hexamethylene-1,6-di(8:2 fluorotelomer urethane) monomers in soils.

Aerobic soil biodegradation of toluene-2,4-di(8:2 fluorotelomer urethane) (FTU) and hexamethylene-1,6-di(8:2 fluorotelomer urethane) (HMU) in a forest soil and FTU in an agricultural silty clay loam soil was monitored for up to 6 months. Fluorotelomer alcohols were measured in headspace and parent monomers and all metabolites in soil extracts. Negligible degradation of FTU biodegradation occurred in the agricultural soil with 94 ± 15% recovered at day 180.

Vitamin d deficiency and insulin resistance in normal and type 2 diabetes subjects.

Vitamin D is recognized to serve a wide range of biological functions. The presence of vitamin D receptors on different tissues explains it's diversity of actions. Reduced levels of vitamin D is associated with insulin resistance and increased diabetes risk.

Aerobic biodegradation of 8:2 fluorotelomer stearate monoester and 8:2 fluorotelomer citrate triester in forest soil.

Aerobic biodegradation of 8:2 fluorotelomer stearate (FTS) and 8:2 fluorotelomer citrate triester (TBC) was evaluated in a forest soil in closed bottle microcosms. Loss of parent, production of 8:2 fluorotelomer alcohol (8:2 FTOH), which is released along with stearic acid (SA) by microbial ester linkage, and subsequent metabolites from FTOH degradation were monitored for up to 7months. Soil microcosms were extracted with ethyl acetate followed by two heated 90/10 v/v acetonitrile/200mM NaOH extractions.

Aerobic soil biodegradation of 8:2 fluorotelomer stearate monoester.

A laboratory investigation on the biotransformation of 8:2 fluorotelomer stearate monoester (8:2 FTS) in aerobic soils was conducted by monitoring the loss of 8:2 FTS, production of 8:2 fluorotelomer alcohol (8:2 FTOH) and stearic acid, which would be released by cleavage of the ester linkage, and subsequent degradation products from FTOH for 80 d. Soil microcosms were extracted with ethyl acetate followed by two heated 90/10 v/v acetonitrile/200 mM NaOH extractions. 8:2 FTS was degraded with an observed half-life (t(1/2)) of 10.

Hydrolysis of fluorotelomer compounds leading to fluorotelomer alcohol production during solvent extractions of soils.

The experimental approaches used in assessing the biodegradability of fluorotelomer-based surfactants and polymers have been under increasing scrutiny. These substances consist of an aliphatic or aromatic backbone linked to perfluoroethyl moieties by ester, ether or urethane linkages. These linkages when broken yield fluorotelomer alcohols (FTOHs), which are known to biotransform to a suite of polyfluorinated metabolites including perfluorinated carboxylic acids.

Synthesis and cytotoxic activity of novel quinazolino-beta-carboline-5-one derivatives.

A novel series of quinazolino-beta-carbolinone derivatives was synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro and in vivo anticancer activity. Many compounds have shown good in vitro activity in the range 1-8 microM concentration. Three of the compounds were further tested in nude mice bearing HT-29 colon cancer xenografts.