Electrical and thermal performance of bifacial photovoltaics under varying albedo conditions at temperate climate (UK).

Bifacial photovoltaics (bPV) provide an advantage over their traditional monofacial counterparts as they can utilise solar radiation incident on both the front and rear side of the module, allowing for increased energy production. While this is an advantage on the side of bPV, the amount of energy produced by the rear side of the bPV panel can vary greatly depending on the inclination and azimuth of the panel as well as external climatic and ground albedo conditions. This paper aims to analyse the electrical and thermal performance of bPV under varying albedo conditions, using two different materials: grass, and a reflective material.

Transcatheter Occlusion of Left-To-Right Shunts in Premature Infants with Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia.

Introduction: Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) and atrial septal defects (ASDs) cause pulmonary overcirculation, potentially worsening bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in premature infants. Transcatheter device occlusion of these defects is feasible and safe, though no case-controlled studies have assessed respiratory outcomes in infants with BPD. We hypothesized infants with BPD and ASDs or PDAs would experience improved respiratory outcomes following device occlusion of these lesions as compared to those who did not.

Video and acceleration records of streaked shearwaters allows detection of two foraging behaviours associated with large marine predators.

The study of seabird behaviour has largely relied on animal-borne tags to gather information, requiring interpretation to estimate at-sea behaviours. Details of shallow-diving birds' foraging are less known than deep-diving species due to difficulty in identifying shallow dives from biologging devices. Development of smaller video loggers allow a direct view of these birds' behaviours, at the cost of short battery capacity.

Novel Treatment-Refractory Preschool Wheeze Phenotypes Identified by Cluster Analysis of Lung Lavage Constituents.

Background: Preschool children with treatment-refractory wheeze often require unscheduled acute care. Current guidelines advise treatment of persistent wheeze with inhaled corticosteroids. Alternative treatments targeting structural abnormalities and specific inflammatory patterns could be more effective.

Effects of intense storm events on dolphin occurrence and foraging behavior.

As storms become increasingly intense and frequent due to climate change, we must better understand how they alter environmental conditions and impact species. However, storms are ephemeral and provide logistical challenges that prevent visual surveys commonly used to understand marine mammal ecology. Thus, relatively little is known about top predators' responses to such environmental disturbances.

Empirical evidence that large marine predator foraging behavior is consistent with area-restricted search theory.

When prey is patchily distributed, predators are expected to spend more time searching for food in proximity of recent prey captures before searching in other areas. This behavior, known as area-restricted search, results in predators remaining localized in areas where prey had been detected previously because of the higher probability of encountering additional prey. However, few studies have tested these predictions on marine species because of the difficulties of observing feeding behavior.

Lung Lavage Granulocyte Patterns and Clinical Phenotypes in Children with Severe, Therapy-Resistant Asthma.

Background: Children with severe asthma have frequent exacerbations despite guidelines-based treatment with high-dose corticosteroids. The importance of refractory lung inflammation and infectious species as factors contributing to poorly controlled asthma in children is poorly understood.

Objective: To identify prevalent granulocyte patterns and potential pathogens as targets for revised treatment, 126 children with severe asthma underwent clinically indicated bronchoscopy.

Dolphins simplify their vocal calls in response to increased ambient noise.

Ocean noise varies spatially and temporally and is driven by natural and anthropogenic processes. Increased ambient noise levels can cause signal masking and communication impairment, affecting fitness and recruitment success. However, the effects of increasing ambient noise levels on marine species, such as marine mammals that primarily rely on sound for communication, are not well understood.

Validating automated click detector dolphin detection rates and investigating factors affecting performance.

Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is a widely used technique for studying the distribution and habitat use of cetaceans. The C-POD, an acoustic sensor with an onboard automated click detector, has been deployed in diverse acoustic environments, but studies verifying its offshore detection rates and factors affecting detection probability are scarce. To empirically evaluate the performance of C-PODs in detecting bottlenose dolphins (), C-PODs were deployed alongside archival acoustic recorders 12-30 km offshore in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean.

Quantitative assessment of placental morphology may identify specific causes of stillbirth.

Background: Stillbirth is frequently the result of pathological processes involving the placenta. Understanding the significance of specific lesions is hindered by qualitative subjective evaluation. We hypothesised that quantitative assessment of placental morphology would identify alterations between different causes of stillbirth and that placental phenotype would be independent of post-mortem effects and differ between live births and stillbirths with the same condition.

Respiratory motile cilia dysfunction in a patient with cranioectodermal dysplasia.

Ciliopathies such as cranioectodermal dysplasia, Sensenbrenner syndrome, short-rib polydactyly, and Jeune syndrome are associated with respiratory complications arising from rib cage dysplasia. While such ciliopathies have been demonstrated to involve primary cilia defects, we show motile cilia dysfunction in the airway of a patient diagnosed with cranioectodermal dysplasia. While this patient had mild thoracic dystrophy not requiring surgical treatment, there was nevertheless newborn respiratory distress, restrictive airway disease with possible obstructive airway involvement, repeated respiratory infections, and atelectasis.

Sirolimus-induced interstitial lung disease following pediatric stem cell transplantation.

Sirolimus-induced ILD is a known but rare complication in adults who have undergone SOT. However, little is known about this adverse effect in children. Diagnosis of sirolimus-induced ILD can be challenging, especially in patients who have difficulty participating in lung function testing.

Airway ciliary dysfunction and sinopulmonary symptoms in patients with congenital heart disease.

Rationale: Patients with congenital heart disease with heterotaxy exhibit a high prevalence of abnormal airway ciliary motion and low nasal nitric oxide, characteristics associated with primary ciliary dyskinesia, a reflection of the role of motile cilia in airway clearance and left-right patterning.

Objectives: To assess the potential broader clinical significance of airway ciliary dysfunction in congenital heart disease, we assessed the prevalence of ciliary dysfunction versus respiratory symptoms in patients with congenital heart disease with or without heterotaxy.

Methods: Patients with a broad spectrum of congenital heart disease were recruited (n = 218), 39 with heterotaxy.

Duration and method of tissue storage alters placental morphology - implications for clinical and research practice.

We assessed whether placental morphology is affected by placental storage before fixation. Fresh tissue from uncomplicated pregnancies (n = 10) was fixed immediately and further samples were stored dry, in PBS or culture medium for 24, 48 or 72 h at 4 °C. Placental morphology quantified using image analysis software found no difference in syncytial nuclear aggregates, cytokeratin 7, CD45 or Ki67 immunostaining irrespective of duration or mode of storage.

A randomised controlled trial comparing standard or intensive management of reduced fetal movements after 36 weeks gestation--a feasibility study.

Background: Women presenting with reduced fetal movements (RFM) in the third trimester are at increased risk of stillbirth or fetal growth restriction. These outcomes after RFM are related to smaller fetal size on ultrasound scan, oligohydramnios and lower human placental lactogen (hPL) in maternal serum. We performed this study to address whether a randomised controlled trial (RCT) of the management of RFM was feasible with regard to: i) maternal recruitment and retention ii) patient acceptability, iii) adherence to protocol.

Identification of autophagic vacuoles and regulators of autophagy in villous trophoblast from normal term pregnancies and in fetal growth restriction.

Fetal growth restriction (FGR) is a serious pregnancy complication associated with increased perinatal mortality and morbidity. Although the majority of cases with FGR result from placental dysfunction, the pathophysiology is incompletely understood. Autophagy is a physiological form of cell degradation exacerbated by nutrient and oxygen restriction, which are both thought to play a role in the aetiology of FGR.

Placental expression of anti-angiogenic proteins in mirror syndrome: a case report.

Mirror syndrome is a rare disorder in which fetal hydrops is associated with maternal oedema, proteinuria and hypertension. The aetiology of the maternal condition is unknown, but it is thought to be related to preeclampsia. Few descriptions exist of placental morphology in mirror syndrome, but placentomegaly is consistently observed.

Macrophages infiltrate the human and rat decidua during term and preterm labor: evidence that decidual inflammation precedes labor.

Preterm delivery is the leading cause of perinatal mortality and morbidity. Current tocolytics target myometrial contractions, a late step in the labor cascade. Identifying earlier events in parturition may lead to more effective therapeutic strategies.

Review of qualitative approaches for the construction industry: designing a risk management toolbox.

Objectives: This paper presents the framework and protocol design for a construction industry risk management toolbox. The construction industry needs a comprehensive, systematic approach to assess and control occupational risks. These risks span several professional health and safety disciplines, emphasized by multiple international occupational research agenda projects including: falls, electrocution, noise, silica, welding fumes, and musculoskeletal disorders.

Kinetochore-generated pushing forces separate centrosomes during bipolar spindle assembly.

In animal somatic cells, bipolar spindle formation requires separation of the centrosome-based spindle poles. Centrosome separation relies on multiple pathways, including cortical forces and antiparallel microtubule (MT) sliding, which are two activities controlled by the protein kinase aurora A. We previously found that depletion of the human kinetochore protein Mcm21R(CENP-O) results in monopolar spindles, raising the question as to whether kinetochores contribute to centrosome separation.

Sensitization to wheat flour and enzymes and associated respiratory symptoms in British bakers.

Rationale: Current literature suggests that flour exposed workers continue to be at risk of allergic sensitization to flour dust and respiratory ill health.

Objectives: A cross-sectional study of 225 workers currently potentially exposed to flour dust in British bakeries was performed to identify predictors of sensitization to wheat flour and enzymes.

Results: Work-related nasal irritation was the most commonly reported symptom (28.

Risk management measures for chemicals: the "COSHH essentials" approach.

"COSHH essentials" was developed in Great Britain to help duty holders comply with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations. It uses a similar approach to that described in the new European "REACH" Regulation (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals; EC No. 1907/2006 of the European Parliament), insofar as it identifies measures for managing the risk for specified exposure scenarios.

Biomonitoring for chromium and arsenic in timber treatment plant workers exposed to CCA wood Preservatives.

This study reports a survey of occupational exposure to copper chrome arsenic (CCA) based wood preservatives during vacuum pressure timber impregnation. The survey involved biological monitoring based on analysis of chromium and arsenic in urine samples collected from UK workers. The aim of the study was to determine the extent of occupational exposure to arsenic and chromium in the UK timber treatment industry.