Search

Major trauma has seen a demographic shift in recent years and it is expected that the elderly population will comprise a greater burden on the major trauma service in the near future. However, whether a similar trend exists in those undergoing operative intervention for spinal trauma remains to be elucidated.To compare the presentation and outcomes of patients ≥65 years of age sustaining spine trauma to those65 years at a national tertiary referral spine centre.The local Trauma Audit Research Network (TARN) database was analysed to identify spinal patients referred to our institution, a national tertiary referral centre, between 01/2016 and 05/2019. Patients were divided into a young cohort (16-64 years old) and an elderly cohort (64 years old). No explicit distinction was made between major and minor spine trauma cases. Variables analysed included patient demographics, injury severity, mortality, interventions, mechanism of injury and length of hospital stay.A total of 669 patients were admitted of which 480 patients underwent operative intervention for spinal trauma. Within the elderly cohort, this represented 75.3% of cases. Among the younger population, road traffic collisions were the most common mechanism of injury (37.1%), while low falls (2 m) (57.4%) were the most common mechanism among the older population. Patients ≥65 years old had significantly longer length of stay (21 days [1-194] v 14 days [1-183]) and suffered higher 30-day mortality rates (4.6% [0-12] v 0.97% [0-4]).Orthopaedic spinal trauma in older people is associated with a significantly higher mortality rate as well as a longer duration of hospitalization. Even though severity of injury is similar for both young and old patients, the mechanism of injury for the older population is of typically much lower energy compared to the high energy trauma affecting younger patients.

Solar-to-hydrogen conversion through photocatalysis is a sustainable and promising strategy for storing solar energy. Recently, elemental red phosphorus (RP) with broad light absorption has been recognized as a potential candidate for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution, while challenges remain due to the rapid recombination of photogenerated carriers. In this work, RP modified TiO2 hollow spheres were designed and fabricated through the chemical vapor deposition method. The optimal hydrogen production rate reaching 215.5 μmol/(g h) over TiO2@RP heterostructure was obtained under simulated solar light irradiation. Experimental results evidenced that the hollow sphere structure and RP light absorber extended light absorption ability, and the heterostructure induced interfacial charge migration facilitated photoinduced charge separation, which benefited the photocatalytic hydrogen production performance.

BACKGROUND: Homologous recombination repair (HRR) enables fault-free repair of double-stranded DNA breaks. HRR deficiency is predicted to occur in around half of high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas. Ovarian cancers harbouring HRR deficiency typically exhibit sensitivity to poly-ADP ribose polymerase inhibitors (PARPi). Current guidelines recommend a range of approaches for genetic testing to identify predictors of sensitivity to PARPi in ovarian cancer and to identify genetic predisposition. DESIGN: To establish a European-wide consensus for genetic testing (including the genetic care pathway), decision making and clinical management of patients with recently diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer, and the validity of biomarkers to predict the effectiveness of PARPi in the first-line setting. The collaborative European experts' consensus group consisted of a steering committee (n = 14) and contributors (n = 84). A (modified) Delphi process was used to establish consensus statements based on a systematic literature search, conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines. RESULTS: A consensus was reached on 34 statements amongst 98 caregivers (including oncologists, pathologists, clinical geneticists, genetic researchers, and patient advocates). The statements concentrated on (i) the value of testing for BRCA1/2 mutations and HRR deficiency testing, including when and whom to test; (ii) the importance of developing new and better HRR deficiency tests; (iii) the importance of germline non-BRCA HRR and mismatch repair gene mutations for predicting familial risk, but not for predicting sensitivity to PARPi, in the first-line setting; (iv) who should be able to inform patients about genetic testing, and what training and education should these caregivers receive. CONCLUSION: These consensus recommendations, from a multidisciplinary panel of experts from across Europe, provide clear guidance on the use of BRCA and HRR deficiency testing for recently diagnosed patients with advanced ovarian cancer. ispartof: ANNALS OF ONCOLOGY vol:33 issue:3 pages:276-287 ispartof: location:England status: published

Mutation testing has been widely used to assess the fault-detection effectiveness of a test suite, as well as to guide test case generation or prioritization. Empirical studies have shown that, while mutants are generally representative of real faults, an effective application of mutation testing requires “traditional” operators designed for programming languages to be augmented with operators specific to an application domain and/or technology. The case for Android apps is not an exception. Therefore, in this paper we describe the process we followed to create (i) a taxonomy of mutation operations and, (ii) two tools, MDroid+ and MutAPK for mutant generation of Android apps. To this end, we systematically devise a taxonomy of 262 types of Android faults grouped in 14 categories by manually analyzing 2,023 software artifacts from different sources (e.g., bug reports, commits). Then, we identified a set of 38 mutation operators, and implemented them in two tools, the first enabling mutant generation at the source code level, and the second designed to perform mutations at APK level. The rationale for having a dual-approach is based on the fact that source code is not always available when conducting mutation testing. Thus, mutation testing for APKs enables new scenarios in which researchers/practitioners only have access to APK files. The taxonomy, proposed operators, and tools have been evaluated in terms of the number of non-compilable, trivial, equivalent, and duplicate mutants generated and their capacity to represent real faults in Android apps as compared to other well-known mutation tools.

Serous endometrial cancer represents a relative rare entity accounting for about 10% of all diagnosed endometrial cancer, but it is responsible for 40% of endometrial cancer-related deaths. Patients with serous endometrial cancer are often diagnosed at earlier disease stage, but remain at higher risk of recurrence and poorer prognosis when compared stage-for-stage with endometrioid subtype endometrial cancer. Serous endometrial cancers are characterized by marked nuclear atypia and abnormal p53 staining in immunohistochemistry. The mainstay of treatment for newly diagnosed serous endometrial cancer includes a multi-modal therapy with surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. Unfortunately, despite these efforts, survival outcomes still remain poor. Recently, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network classified all endometrial cancer types into four categories, of which, serous endometrial cancer mostly is found within the "copy number high" group. This group is characterized by the increased cell cycle deregulation (e.g., CCNE1, MYC, PPP2R1A, PIKCA, ERBB2 and CDKN2A) and TP53 mutations (90%). To date, the combination of pembrolizumab and lenvatinib is an effective treatment modality in second-line therapy, with a response rate of 50% in advanced/recurrent serous endometrial cancer. Owing to the unfavorable outcomes of serous endometrial cancer, clinical trials are a priority. At present, ongoing studies are testing novel combinations of various targeted and immunotherapeutic agents in newly diagnosed and advanced/recurrent endometrial cancer - an important strategy for serous endometrial cancer, whereby tumors are usually p53+ and pMMR, making response to PD-1 inhibitor monotherapy unlikely. Here, the rare tumor working group (including members from the European Society of Gynecologic Oncology (ESGO), Gynecologic Cancer Intergroup (GCIG), and Japanese Gynecologic Oncology Group (JGOG)), performed a narrative review reporting on the current landscape of serous endometrial cancer and focusing on standard and emerging therapeutic options for patients affected by this difficult disease.

This article is devoted to defining Ukraine’s position among 28 OECD countries relative to the averaged line of connection between resources of the social sphere and the society achievements in terms of human development index. Such positioning allows us to obtain a comparative assessment of the effectiveness of usage resource, directed to funding the education and healthcare by OECD countries and Ukraine. The model that expresses the HDI dependence on three main groups of factors was used. First – the amount of education and healthcare resources (evaluated by private and public spending on education and healthcare per capita). The second – is the way of rationing the population's access to these industries products (evaluated by coefficients of inequality of life expectancy and inequality in education). The third – is the indicators, displaying the efficiency of resources using within the industry (estimated as a result of modeling). Our results have confirmed that the resources, allocated to the public sector of education have the most significant impact on HDI size and this indicator is more dependent on the amount of social sphere resources in post-socialist countries than in "old" OECD members. The actual level of HDI in Ukraine is lower than estimated by model-averaged for countries, included in the sample. This means that Ukraine uses resources of its social sphere with lower efficiency than observed as average for countries, included in the sample. Such results allow us to obtain assessment which part of restrictions and problem experienced by national social spheres is caused by the scarcity of resources, divided to social sphere funding, and which – by imperfections, inherent to the regulative institutions of the social sphere. Such results may serve as a significant precondition of social policy development, especially for post-soviet countries.

Background: Despite advances in surgery and pharmacotherapy, there remains significant residual ischemic risk after coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. Methods: In REDUCE-IT (Reduction of Cardiovascular Events With Icosapent Ethyl–Intervention Trial), a multicenter, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial, statin-treated patients with controlled low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and mild to moderate hypertriglyceridemia were randomized to 4 g daily of icosapent ethyl or placebo. They experienced a 25% reduction in risk of a primary efficacy end point (composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, coronary revascularization, or hospitalization for unstable angina) and a 26% reduction in risk of a key secondary efficacy end point (composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke) when compared with placebo. The current analysis reports on the subgroup of patients from the trial with a history of coronary artery bypass grafting. Results: Of the 8179 patients randomized in REDUCE-IT, a total of 1837 (22.5%) had a history of coronary artery bypass grafting, with 897 patients randomized to icosapent ethyl and 940 to placebo. Baseline characteristics were similar between treatment groups. Randomization to icosapent ethyl was associated with a significant reduction in the primary end point (hazard ratio [HR], 0.76 [95% CI, 0.63–0.92]; P =0.004), in the key secondary end point (HR, 0.69 [95% CI, 0.56–0.87]; P =0.001), and in total (first plus subsequent or recurrent) ischemic events (rate ratio, 0.64 [95% CI, 0.50–0.81]; P =0.0002) compared with placebo. This yielded an absolute risk reduction of 6.2% (95% CI, 2.3%–10.2%) in first events, with a number needed to treat of 16 (95% CI, 10–44) during a median follow-up time of 4.8 years. Safety findings were similar to the overall study: beyond an increased rate of atrial fibrillation/flutter requiring hospitalization for at least 24 hours (5.0% vs 3.1%; P =0.03) and a nonsignificant increase in bleeding, occurrences of adverse events were comparable between groups. Conclusions: In REDUCE-IT patients with a history of coronary artery bypass grafting, treatment with icosapent ethyl was associated with significant reductions in first and recurrent ischemic events. Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT01492361.

International audience; There is currently no consensus regarding preferred clinical outcome measures following image-guided tumor ablation or clear definitions of oncologic end points. This consensus document proposes standardized definitions for a broad range of oncologic outcome measures with recommendations on how to uniformly document, analyze, and report outcomes. The initiative was coordinated by the Society of Interventional Oncology in collaboration with the Definition for the Assessment of Time-to-Event End Points in Cancer Trials, or DATECAN, group. According to predefined criteria, based on experience with clinical trials, an international panel of 62 experts convened. Recommendations were developed using the validated three-step modified Delphi consensus method. Consensus was reached on when to assess outcomes per patient, per session, or per tumor; on starting and ending time and survival time definitions; and on time-to-event end points. Although no consensus was reached on the preferred classification system to report complications, quality of life, and health economics issues, the panel did agree on using the most recent version of a validated patient-reported outcome questionnaire. This article provides a framework of key opinion leader recommendations with the intent to facilitate a clear interpretation of results and standardize worldwide communication. Widespread adoption will improve reproducibility, allow for accurate comparisons, and avoid misinterpretations in the field of interventional oncology research. Published under a CC BY 4.0 license. Online supplemental material is available for this article. See also the editorial by Liddell in this issue.

The article investigates the global approach to comprehending the concept of performance-based funding (PBF) of higher education. The authors briefly describe the history and the variety of existing PBF models across the globe and determine core differences between them. The article also characterizes the modern Ukrainian public policy of implementing the performance-based funding of higher education and highlights both the relevant merits and of the national PBF model and priority issues of its further development.

Background: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an effective intervention for patients with severe treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Our aim was to examine long-term effectiveness and tolerability of DBS and its impact on functioning and well-being. Methods: Fifty patients with severe treatment-refractory OCD received DBS of the ventral part of the anterior limb of the internal capsule and were followed for at least 3 years following implantation (mean 6.8 ± 3 years). Primary effectiveness was assessed by change in Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale scores. Secondary effectiveness measures included Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale–Brief Version, Global Assessment of Functioning, and a scale assessing functioning in work, family, and social life. Adverse effects of DBS were examined with a structured interview (n = 38). Results: At long-term follow-up, OCD symptoms decreased by 39% (p < .001), and half of the patients were responders (≥35% decrease of Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale score). Anxiety and depressive symptoms decreased significantly, with reductions of 48% and 50%, respectively. The World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale–Brief Version general score improved significantly, as did 3 of 4 subdomains. Both clinician- and patient-rated functioning improved substantially (p < .001). The unemployment rate decreased from 78% at baseline to 58% at last follow-up (z = −1.90, p = .058), and 21 patients stopped or decreased psychotropic medication (z = −2.887, p = .004). Long-term adverse effects included cognitive complaints and fatigue. Serious adverse events included 1 suicide attempt, related to comorbid depression. Conclusions: Our results provide evidence that DBS of the ventral part of the anterior limb of the internal capsule is effective and tolerable for treatment-refractory OCD in the long term and improves functioning and overall well-being.

ImportanceIndividuals with schizophrenia have a reduced life-expectancy compared to the general population, largely due to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Clinical and epidemiological studies have been unable to fully unravel the nature of this relationship.ObjectiveInvestigate genetic correlations and potential bi-directional effects between liability to schizophrenia and CVD.Design, setting, and participantsWe obtained summary-data of genome-wide-association studies of schizophrenia (N=130,644), heart failure (N=977,323), coronary artery disease (N=332,477), systolic and diastolic blood pressure (N=757,601), heart rate variability (N=46,952), QT interval (N=103,331), early repolarization and dilated cardiomyopathy ECG patterns (N=63,700). We computed genetic correlations with linkage disequilibrium score regression and conducted bi-directional Mendelian randomization (MR). With multivariable MR, we investigated whether associations were mediated by smoking, body mass index, physical activity, lipid levels, or type 2 diabetes. To ensure robustness, we applied a range of sensitivity methods.Main outcomes and measuresSchizophrenia, heart failure, coronary artery disease, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate variability, QT interval, early repolarization, dilated cardiomyopathy.ResultsGenetic correlations between liability to schizophrenia and CVD were close to zero (−0.02 to 0.04). With MR, we found robust evidence that liability to schizophrenia increases heart failure risk. This effect remained consistent with multivariable MR. There was also evidence that liability to schizophrenia increases early repolarization risk, largely mediated by BMI and lipid levels. Finally, there was evidence that liability to schizophrenia increases heart rate variability, a direction of effect contrasting previous studies. In the other direction, there was weak evidence that higher systolic, but not diastolic, blood pressure increases schizophrenia risk.Conclusions and relevanceOur findings indicate that liability to schizophrenia increases the risk of heart failure, and that this is not mediated by key health behaviours. This is consistent with the notion that schizophrenia is characterised by a systemic dysregulation of the body (including inflammation and oxidative stress) with detrimental effects on the heart. To decrease cardiovascular mortality among schizophrenia patients, priority should lie with optimal treatment and interventions in early stages of psychoses. We also identified early repolarization, currently understudied, as a potential CVD marker among patients with schizophrenia.

The article analyzes the fiscal significance of customs payments, namely: VAT, duties and excise tax, which are payed with customs clearance goods. It is defined that the role of budget revenues by these payments is extremely important. It is emphasized that the relevance of full and timely receipt of payments, which are accumulated by the State Customs Service of Ukraine, is especially increased during periods of economic downturn in the country, when the business activity of certain economic entities and sectors of the economy is significantly reduced. It is determined that the number and volume of offenses that are detected at the customs and can lead to significant budget losses are quite high and in recent periods tend to increase, which indicates the need to ensure effective customs control by the State and increase of the customs security. The publication specifies that the current global trend of customs control development, which is also typical for Ukraine, is the refusal of continuous control in favor of a selective one, with additional application of risk-oriented approach. The advantages of this approach to customs control are provided. The domestic experience of risk management in customs on the part of relevant authorities by using the Automated Risk Management System (ARMS) is analyzed. The need to constantly update and improve the algorithms of the ARMS and the system itself, as well as continuous updating of databases by adjusting, deleting and creating new risk profiles, is underlined. This is connected with the instability of the sphere of customs risks.

The results of experimental studies have shown a strong effect of diffusion hydrogen on the static and cyclic parameters of crack resistance of reinforcing steel. It was found that with increasing flooding, especially when the hydrogen content exceeds 5 cm3/100g, both static strength and long-term strength (fatigue) decrease sharply. Moreover, these areas of hydrogen solution in reinforcing steel are characterized by a viscous nature of fracture, while for heavily flooded reinforcement (from 5 to 12 cm3/100g) is characterized by brittle fracture by the mechanism of microcracking in the hardened (martensite or troostite structure). The analysis of the obtained experimental results allowed to determine the optimal hydrogen content in the reinforcing steel (3…5 cm3/100g), the excess of which can cause a decrease in the crack resistance of the reinforcement during long-term operation, especially in corrosive environments. The mechanism of hydrogen influence on crack resistance of metal at static and alternating loading which consists in diffusion and dislocation movement of hydrogen in structure of a reinforcing core that as a result that causes strong flooding of steel and its embrittlement is offered. It is established that carbon and low-alloy sieves, which are characterized by ferritic-pearlitic and sorbitol structure provide high resistance, especially to long-term fatigue, and the transition to steels with a structure of martensite or tempered (transient structure of bainite) structure of bainite sharply reduces reinforcing steel, which makes it impossible to use in the manufacture of reinforcement involved in reinforced concrete structures designed for long-term operation (more than 50…60 years). Thus, the obtained diagram can be recommended to designers of reinforced concrete structures for hydraulic purposes, as it greatly facilitates the reasonable choice of reinforcement in the development of reinforced concrete structures for responsible and long-term use.

The use of adhesively bonded structures has increased over the years, together with the development of composite materials. This work investigates a procedure for fatigue life prediction of an aeronautical bonded joint under random loads, in particular, the cohesive failure of the adhesive layer in a skin-to-stiffener bonded joint. The use of two different adhesives is investigated, and Dirlik’s method is employed to predict the stress response in the adhesive layer, from which the fatigue life is obtained. The effect of damping is also investigated, and it is shown that increases in damping result in higher fatigue life estimations.

A theoretical-applied model has been built for analyzing industrial-technological development directly within the system of economic security. A system of indicators has been constructed that are mutually agreed in the context of the analysis of the state of economic security and components of industrial-technological development (investment, international, environmental, educational, scientific, industrial, innovative, technological). Based on the system of indicators, analysis of variance in the industrial-technological development and level of economic security was carried out. The levels of correlation of indicators (high, medium, low) have been determined, based on which the interrelations of industrial-technological development and economic security were systematized. A graphic-analytical and regression procedure was used to define the correlation dependence of industrial-technological development on economic security. The industrial-technological development has been forecasted in terms of the indicators with high correlation (the level of investment, openness of the economy, export of high-tech products, industrial products index) and medium correlation (the share of renewable energy consumption, the level of expenditures on education to GDP, the share of specialists performing scientific and technical work). The system of indicators of economic security assessment has been expanded in terms of its individual components (investment-innovative, foreign economic, energy, social, macroeconomic security), taking into consideration aspects in the industrial-technological development. Using the reported analytical and predictive results makes it possible to establish groups of factors that influence the industrial-technological development and economic security. In this way, it becomes possible to identify those tools and means whose application could ensure an increase in the level of industrial-technological development and economic security

Strategic management of development is crucial to the organization’s existence in a competitive environment in the long run. Continuous development enables organizations to adapt to the changes that are taking place in society, as well as to identify and develop their own strengths. Among organizations, there are those that do not operate in a competitive environment, but those are relied upon in view of important social tasks. In particular, such organizations include pre-trial investigation bodies, which are designed to ensure security along with law-and-order in society. The lack of a competitive environment for such bodies leads to the weakening of external factors – determinants of institutional development, but in terms of tasks and the role of law enforcement bodies in society, the constant development of law enforcement bodies is no less important than for business organizations. In modern management, sufficient attention is paid to the strategic administration of the development of enterprises, but the issues of strategic management of the development of pre-trial investigation bodies, taking into account the specifics of the tasks of such organizations, as well as their internal and external environment, are not paid any attention in the domestic literature, and it is paid fragmentary attention in the literature abroad. The article provides a theoretical study of epistemology of the concepts of «strategy», «strategic management» and «organizational development» in order to identify the specifics of strategic management of the development of organizations. By analyzing the normative legal acts that determine the main tasks of pre-trial investigation bodies, the strategic goals of such bodies are identified, which should be taken into account during the elaboration of their development strategy. On the basis of the presented material, the authors’ own definition of «strategic management of the development of pre-trial investigation bodies» is proposed.

Introduction. Optimization can be applied in developing profitability management tools for a cloud service broker working according to a certain business model. On behalf of the managing telecommunications holding company (telecommunications operator), this broker integrates, aggregates and configures software and data storage services of third-party Internet software vendors. Such a broker receives only fixed commissions from this company, based on the subscription fee, but does not pay royalties to an Internet software vendor and does not receive payments from the sale of service packages. The purpose. The cloud broker faces the problem of limited human resources required to carry out the relevant legal, technical and economic activities. In addition, the broker faces the problem of uncertainty in sales, service prices, the share of resource use, or the risk of losing operational and financial goals. Results. To run a broker?s business efficiently, one needs to find services and their bundles that increase profitability and reduce financial risk by solving certain optimization problems. Information on such services is needed to support negotiations on fixed and variable commissions, as well as to prioritize services and their packages to be provided. Thus, for the cloud services broker, both profitability management tools and services portfolio development tools are useful. In general, a cloud service broker is an organization that negotiates the relationships between cloud service clients and Internet software vendors. Cloud broker can be created on the basis of different business models regarding the type of service (platform, infrastructure, software), type of clients (enterprise, household), functions performed (identity management, accounting, billing, location, etc.), the degree of rebranding, measures of aggregation of services and other criteria. Conclusions. Different cloud brokers have different attitudes to choice of important solutions for their businesses. Solutions can relate to pricing, capacity planning and utilization in combination with service quality, security, scalability and other issues. Keywords: optimization, portfolio, uncertainty, Boolean variables, revenue generation.

The rapid development of modern science and technology has had an unprecedented impact on professional sports, resulting in the need to update the methodology of teaching physical education. The purpose of the study is to analyse the correlations between education and professional sports in the context of the active introduction of information technology. The methodology of theoretical research was used in conducting study. It is determined that the new mode of education does not depend entirely on the advantages of media education, but on the reform of physical education regime. It was discovered that the use of media education technology created conditions for the reform of teaching physical education and sports and led to its recessive function due to the new teaching regime. The necessity of comprehensive analysis in evaluating the model of sports education is substantiated. The study established that the informatisation of sports in educational institutions plays an important role in promoting physical education among students. The semantic importance of school sports modernisation is considered, which includes revising views and ideas on physical education, improving the content and methods of teaching, changing the team composition and management of school sports, and updating school sports and sports evaluation system. The study includes statistical data on the student’s attitude to physical activity and their participation in the physical education. The features of the use of media technologies for the purpose of introducing sports among young people have been established, which consist in positive and negative effects on the personality. The practical value of the study lies in the theoretical substantiation of the correlation features of the educational process and professional sports for their further application in practice

International audience; Purpose: Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is responsible for substantial mortality and morbidity worldwide. We aimed to identify host and bacterial factors associated with 30-day mortality in 18-year-old patients hospitalized with IPD in France from 2013 to 2015.Methods: This study analyzed data collected from consecutives IPD cases included in two parallel multi-center cohort studies: COMBAT study (280 patients with pneumococcal community-acquired bacterial meningitis) and SIIP study (491 patients with non-meningitis IPD). Factors associated with 30-day mortality were identified using logistic regression.Results: Among the 771 enrolled patients (median age 66 years, IQR [52.0-79.7]), 592/767 (77.2%) had at least one chronic disease. Patients with meningitis were younger (60.2 vs 70.9 years; p < 0.001) and had fewer chronic diseases than those with non-meningitis IPD (73.3% vs 79.4%; p = 0.05). Non-vaccine serotypes were more frequent in meningitis patients than in those with other IPD (36.1% vs 23.1%; p < 0.001). The overall 30-day mortality was 16.7% and patients with concurrent meningitis and extra-cerebral IPD had the highest 30-day mortality rate (26.5%). On multivariate analyses, older age, history of malignant solid tumor, meningeal IPD and serotypes previously identified with high mortality potential were independently associated with 30-day mortality. Of the serotypes with high mortality potential, 80% were included in licensed (PCV13 or PPV23) vaccines.Conclusion: We observed an effect of both host factors and pneumococcal serotypes on 30-day mortality in IPD. This highlights the need for a focused strategy to vaccinate at-risk patients.Clinical trial: ClinicalTrial. Gov identification number: NCT01730690.

Chimerism analysis is widely used to aid in the clinical management of patients after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Many laboratories currently use assays based on PCR followed by capillary electrophoresis, with a limit of quantification of 1% to 5%. Assays with a lower limit of quantification could allow for earlier relapse detection, resulting in improved patient care. This study investigated the analytical, clinical, technical, and practical performance of the Devyser next-generation sequencing chimerism assay, a commercial high-throughput sequencing-based assay for chimerism analysis. Performance of this assay was compared with that of the Promega PowerPlex 16 HS assay, a commercial capillary electrophoresis-based assay. A limit of quantification of 0.1% was achievable with the Devyser assay. The repeatability, reproducibility, trueness, and linearity of the Devyser assay were acceptable. The Devyser assay showed potential for earlier relapse detection compared with the Promega assay. Conclusive analysis was not possible for 3% of donor-recipient pairs with the Devyser assay due to an insufficient number of informative markers; this factor was not an issue for the Promega assay. Further improvements in assay design or data analysis may allow the assay's applicability to be extended to all donor-recipient pairs studied. Technical performance criteria for chimerism analysis by high-throughput sequencing were suggested and evaluated. Both assays were found to be practical for use in a clinical diagnostics laboratory.

Objectives The aim of this study was to describe the profile of patients who sought a second medical opinion (SMO) on their therapeutic or diagnostic strategy using nationwide data from a French physician network dedicated to SMOs. Methods An observational cohort study was conducted and the study population consisted of patients residing in France or in the French overseas territories who submitted a request for an SMO through a dedicated platform between January 2016 and October 2020. Patient characteristics were compared between convergent and divergent SMOs. The divergent rate for all patients excluding those with mental diseases were described. Logistic regression was used to estimate the probability of a divergent SMO according to patient characteristics. Results and discussion In total, 1,552 adult patients over several French regions were included. The divergence rate was 32.3 % (n = 502 patients). Gynecological [Odds Ratio (OR) and 95 % CI: 5.176 (3.154 to 8.494)], urological [OR 4.246 (2.053 to 8.782)] and respiratory diseases [OR 3.639 (1.357 to 9.758)] had the highest probability of a divergent SMO. Complex cases were also associated with a significantly higher risk of a divergent opinion [OR 2.78 (2.16 to 3.59)]. Age, sex, region and profession were not found to be predictive of a divergent second opinion. Conclusions Policymakers should encourage new research on patient outcomes such as mortality and hospitalization rates after a SMO. When proven effective, SMO networks will have the potential to benefit from specific public funding or even play a key role in national healthcare quality improvement programs.

We investigated changes of impulsivity after deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, distinguishing functional from dysfunctional impulsivity and their contributing factors.Data of 33 PD patients treated by STN-DBS were studied before and 6 months after surgery: motor impairment, medication (dose and dopaminergic agonists), cognition, mood and occurrence of impulse control disorders. Impulsivity was assessed by the Dickman Impulsivity Inventory, which distinguishes functional impulsivity (FI), reflecting the potential for reasoning and rapid action when the situation requires it, and dysfunctional impulsivity (DI), reflecting the lack of prior reasoning, even when the situation demands it. The location of DBS leads was studied on postoperative MRI using a deformable histological atlas and by compartmentalization of the STN.After STN-DBS, DI was significantly increased (mean pre- and postoperative DI scores 1.9±1.6 and 3.5±2.4, P0.001) although FI was not modified (mean pre- and postoperative FI scores 6.2±2.7 and 5.8±2.6). Factors associated with a DI score's increase≥2 (multivariable logistic regression model) were: low preoperative Frontal Assessment Battery score and location of the left active contact in the ventral part of the STN.Our study suggests that STN-DBS may have a different impact on both dimensions of impulsivity, worsening pathological impulsivity without altering physiological impulsivity. The increase in dysfunctional impulsivity may be favoured by the location of the electrode in the ventral part of the STN.

Larger thalamic volume has been found in children with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and children with clinical-level symptoms within the general population. Particular thalamic subregions may drive these differences. The ENIGMA-OCD working group conducted mega- and meta-analyses to study thalamic subregional volume in OCD across the lifespan. Structural T1-weighted brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans from 2649 OCD patients and 2774 healthy controls across 29 sites (50 datasets) were processed using the FreeSurfer built-in ThalamicNuclei pipeline to extract five thalamic subregions. Volume measures were harmonized for site effects using ComBat before running separate multiple linear regression models for children, adolescents, and adults to estimate volumetric group differences. All analyses were pre-registered ( https://osf.io/73dvy ) and adjusted for age, sex and intracranial volume. Unmedicated pediatric OCD patients (, Translational Psychiatry, 12 (1), ISSN:2158-3188

International audience; Introduction: Occipital nerve stimulation (ONS) is proposed to treat refractory chronic cluster headache (rCCH), but its cost-effectiveness has not been evaluated, limiting its diffusion and reimbursement. Materials and Methods: We performed a before-and-after economic study, from data collected prospectively in a nation-wide registry. We compared the cost-effectiveness of ONS associated with conventional treatment (intervention and postintervention period) to conventional treatment alone (preintervention period) in the same patients. The analysis was conducted on 76 rCCH patients from the French healthcare perspective at three months, then one year by extrapolation. Because of the impact of the disease on patient activity, indirect cost, such as sick leave and disability leave, was assessed second. Results: The average total cost for three months was €7602 higher for the ONS strategy compared to conventional strategy with a gain of 0.07 quality-adjusted life-years (QALY), the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was then €109,676/QALY gained. The average extrapolated total cost for one year was €1344 lower for the ONS strategy (p = 0.5444) with a gain of 0.28 QALY (p < 0.0001), the ICER was then €-4846/QALY gained. The scatter plot of the probabilistic bootstrapping had 80% of the replications in the bottom right-hand quadrant, indicating that the ONS strategy is dominant. The average indirect cost for three months was €377 lower for the ONS strategy (p = 0.1261). Discussion: This ONS cost-effectiveness study highlighted the limitations of a short-time horizon in an economic study that may lead the healthcare authorities to reject an innovative strategy, which is actually cost-effective. One-year extrapolation was the proposed solution to obtain results on which healthcare authorities can base their decisions. Conclusion: Considering the burden of rCCH and the efficacy and safety of ONS, the demonstration that ONS is dominant should help its diffusion, validation, and reimbursement by health authorities in this severely disabled population.

Introduction: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), characterized by repetitive anxiety-inducing intrusive thoughts and compulsive behaviors, is associated with higher suicide ideation and suicide attempts than the general population. This study investigates the prevalence and the correlates of current suicide risk in adult outpatients in an international multisite cross-sectional sample of OCD outpatients. Methods: Data were derived from the International College of Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS) network's cross-sectional data set (N = 409). Current suicide risk (assessed by Item C of the MINI) and diagnoses of psychiatric disorders were based on DSM-IV. Chi-squared test for categorical variables and t-test for continuous variables were used to make statistical inferences about main features associated with current suicide risk. P < .05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: The prevalence of current suicidal risk was 15.9%, with equal likelihood in sociodemographic variables, including age and gender. Increased rates of major depression and generalized anxiety disorder were associated to higher current suicide risk. Current suicide risk was also associated with higher severity of OCD, depressive comorbidity, and higher levels of disability. There were no significant differences in treatment correlates—including type of treatment and psychiatric hospitalizations—between the groups of individuals with and without current suicide risk. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that current suicide risk is common in patients with OCD and associated with various forms of pathology. Our work also provides further empirical data to support what is already known clinically: a worse clinical picture characterized by a high severity of OCD, high distress related to obsessions and compulsions, and the presence of comorbidities such as major depression and generalized anxiety disorder should be considered as relevant risk factors for suicide risk.

The object of research. Long-span glulam arches are widely used as coatings for public and sports buildings. The studies carried out concern double-hinged segmental arches with spans of 60 m and more. Description of the problem. The study of the peculiarities of the work of arches as a system "soil base - foundation - above-ground structure" is associated with the significant influence of uneven deformations of supports on the stress-strain state of the above-ground structure. A change in the stress-strain state in the structure itself, associated with uneven deformations of the foundations, can lead to a significant decrease up to the complete exhaustion of the bearing capacity Main scientific results. This article provides an analysis of the change in the stress-strain state of glulam arches when calculating the system "soil base-foundation-above-ground structure". It is noted that non-uniform deformations of supports have the greatest influence on the stress in the support zones of the structure. The range of critical non-uniform subsidence has been determined, which should be limited when calculating and designing the foundations of large-span arches. It has been confirmed that double-hinged glulam arches work well in conditions of uneven subsidence due to the peculiarities of the design scheme. The results of the studies carried out and the recommendations provided will significantly improve the reliability of large-span structures and require mandatory inclusion in the current practice of calculation and design. In addition, additional requirements for the distance between mine workings for large-span structures should be introduced when performing engineering and geological surveys. This distance should be reduced for a clearer account of the deformability of the foundations for columnar foundations, and the number of workings should be increased. The area of practical use of the research results. The cross-section of the glulam arches is selected taking into account additional deformations of the supports, making it possible to avoid unpredictable damage to the structure during operation. Innovative technological product. Glulam arches, the cross-section of which is determined taking into account additional deformations from uneven subsidence of the supports Scope of application. Glulam arches calculated in this way can be used as covering for public and sports buildings for various purposes.

The results of in vitro hematopoiesis studies have provided most of the knowledge about the organization, regulation, and development of the human hematopoietic system over the past three to four decades. However, due to the impossibility of an appropriate assessment of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) in humans and because of the shortcomings of methodological approaches to determining the role of hematopoietic progenitor cells in the pathogenesis of MDS and to predicting the course of the pathological process, semiliquid agar cultures of bone marrow from patients with myelodysplastic syndrome were used. Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) refers to a clinically, morphologically, and genetically heterogeneous group of diseases characterized by clonalism and arising from mutations at the level of hematopoietic progenitor cells. Proliferation of such a mutated stem cell progenitors leads to ineffective maturation of myeloid lineage cells and dysplastic changes in the bone marrow (BM). The aim of the study was to establish the relationship between the functional activity of hematopoietic progenitor cells in the ex vivo culture and the activity of the pathological process in the myelodysplastic syndrome. We studied bone marrow samples from patients with the myelodysplastic syndrome, namely refractory anemia with excess blasts I (MDS RAEB I) and refractory anemia with excess blasts II (MDS RAEB II) and AML under conditions in vitro, as well as their clinical laboratory data. It was found that the percentage of blasts and myeloblasts in the samples of patients with AML and MDS RAEB II increased, compared to the samples of patients with MDS RAEB I (63.5±3.9 %, 18.05±1.01 % and 9.49±1.53 % respectively). An increase in the number of erythrocytes and hemoglobin content was noted in the group of patients with MDS RAEB I compared with MDS RAEB II (2.9±1.4×1012 / l and 105.04±3.6 g / l versus 9±0.8×1012 / l and 84.5±4.8 g / l, respectively). The analysis of the results of BM studies of patients with MDS in in vitro culture indicated a significant lag in the formation of cell aggregates during cultivation and a pronounced inhibition of the colony-forming ability of progenitor cells, compared to the control. A noticeable decrease in the colony-forming ability was observed in patients with MDS RAEB I, MDS RAEB II and AML in this sequence – 4.1±1.2 per 1×105 explanted cells, 3.2±0.9 per 1×105 explanted cells and 2.0±0.6 per 1×105 explanted cells, respectively. The analysis of hematological parameters and the results of BM cells cultivation at different stages of MDS indicates that the colony-forming ability of progenitor cells correlates with the depth of the pathological process.

The object of research is the technology of metal processing by high-speed and high-energy methods, plastic deformation of layered metal compositions. Theoretical studies are based on the main provisions of the theory of joining metals in the solid phase, the theory of plasticity, explosion welding technology, plastic deformation of layered metal compositions, and their heat treatment. The main problem of creating layered metal compositions using explosion energy, including wear and corrosion resistant, electrical, materials with high ballistic resistance, etc., is that they have not yet taken their rightful place in the range of modern structural and functional materials. This can be explained by the limited application of this process, as well as the lagging behind the theory and experimental base in the field of joining various metals in the solid phase and providing the necessary performance properties according to the needs of modern industry. The process of deformation of the cladding blank during the explosion welding is considered. The process of the workpiece collision is considered in three stages: the movement of the element of the cladding workpiece before the collision, its inertial movement and deformation. The equations of motion and equilibrium of the elements of the workpiece are described. A joint solution of the equations of plasticity and equilibrium of the blank element in the double inflection zone is presented. The work is devoted to solving the problem of increasing the level of production and economic indicators of the manufacture of layered metal compositions through the development of methods for calculating and optimizing the technological parameters. Explosion welding, as the most versatile, promising, and economical method, which still has many possibilities for the application of mathematical modeling and process optimization, has been investigated for the production and subsequent processing of the main groups of industrial metal compositions. This makes it possible to solve the problem of replacing traditional materials with layered metal compositions. The results obtained are important from the point of view of the application of cost-effective materials with high mechanical, operational, and technological properties.

The object of research is the fatty acid composition of the milk-fat base for combined food products of a healthy diet. The biological effectiveness of fats is determined by the ratio of saturated (SFA), monounsaturated (MUFA) and polyunsaturated (PUFA) fatty acids, including the ratio of omega-3 PUFA: omega-6 PUFA. Not all foods have a balanced fatty acid composition, in particular, dairy products contain excessive amounts of SFAs, the excessive consumption of which leads to an increase in blood cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. The amount of mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, essential in nutrition, in milk fat (and, accordingly, in dairy products) is insufficient. Therefore, this study is aimed at developing the composition of the milk-fat base with a balanced fatty acid composition using natural vegetable oils. The work substantiates the expediency of using vegetable oils, namely pumpkin seed as a source of monounsaturated fatty acids, rice bran oil as a source of polyunsaturated fatty acids, to optimize the ratio of SFA: MUFA: PUFA when combined with milk fat in multicomponent food products. The fatty acid composition of the milk-fat base has been optimized using a three-component mixture of fats – milk fat, pumpkin seed oil and refined rice bran oil. The ratio of fatty acids in the milk-fat base for the production of food products with a balanced fatty acid composition (SFA: MUFA: PUFA–0.442: 0.403: 0.155) has been determined, which is achieved with the optimal ratio of milk fat: rice bran oil: pumpkin seed oil – 20.2: 70.5: 9.3. Recommendations are given on the use of the developed milk-fat base with a balanced fatty acid composition in the production of combined dairy-vegetable food products. Since today dairy products with a balanced fatty acid composition are presented in limited quantities in the global consumer market, the implementation of research will expand the niche of «healthy food». And correctly conducted marketing activities, which are proposed in this work, will allow to gain a foothold in the market of healthy food products with a balanced chemical composition and an affordable price.

This study intend to compare the long-term psychological impact (depression, post-traumatic stress disorder) on both partners between patients that underwent uterine artery embolization (UAE) for post-partum hemorrhage (PPH) and uneventful deliveries. Women who experienced severe PPH treated by UAE in our institution between 2003 and 2013 were identified in our obstetrical database. These cases were matched to controls with uneventful deliveries. Matching criteria were maternal age, parity, ethnicity, year of delivery, birthweight, gestational age and mode of delivery. Patients and their partners completed validated questionnaires measuring post-traumatic stress (TSQ), as well as depression symptoms (MINI). A total of 63 cases of PPH and 189 matched controls (1:3) participated in a study exploring gynecological and obstetrical outcomes. With a mean of 8 years post-index delivery, patients after PPH showed increased risk of depression (p = 0.015) and post-traumatic stress disorder (22.2% versus 4.8%, p

International audience; Inorganic crystal scintillators play a crucial role in particle detection for various applications in fundamental physics and applied science. The use of such materials as scintillating bolometers, which operate at temperatures as low as 10 mK and detect both heat (phonon) and scintillation signals, significantly extends detectors performance compared to the conventional scintillation counters. In particular, such low-temperature devices offer a high energy resolution in a wide energy interval thanks to a phonon signal detection, while a simultaneous registration of scintillation emitted provides an efficient particle identification tool. This feature is of great importance for a background identification and rejection. Combined with a large variety of elements of interest, which can be embedded in crystal scintillators, scintillating bolometers represent powerful particle detectors for rare-event searches (e.g., rare alpha and beta decays, double-beta decay, dark matter particles, neutrino detection). Here, we review the features and results of low-temperature scintillation detection achieved over a 30-year history of developments of scintillating bolometers and their use in rare-event search experiments.

The object of research is a sour cream product with the addition of phytosterols in terms of the finished product from 0.141 to 1.710g/100g of product. One of the most problematic places when using phytosterols is their extremely low solubility in water and fats. There are several ways to add phytosterols to foods. Direct application is represented by suspensions of phytosterol nanoparticles. To improve the solubility in water, phytosterols are converted into the form of glycosides. To improve the solubility in fats and oils, phytosterols are converted into fatty acid ethers. An important issue in the development of fermented milk products is the effect of phytosterols on the homogeneity of the system, the fermentation process, the final properties of the product. During the study, the introduction of pre-esterified phytosterols as a substitute for milk fat with a melting point of 32–34°C to milk-fat mixtures. Milk-fat mixtures of various compositions were fermented with the study of acidity during fermentation. To study the properties of the system, milk fat was replaced by vegetable fat by 25, 50, and 75%. The content of lactic acid bacteria was determined for the final product and the organoleptic parameters of the product were compared. The results show that when fermenting for 14hours, the required acidity parameters of pH 4.2 to 4.6, titratable acidity of 76 to 79°T were achieved at 12 hours. Phytosterols did not harm the fermentation rate, and after the process did not worsen the taste and appearance of the product. This provides the opportunity to obtain a high-quality sour cream product with additional properties. The process of fermentation of sour cream products with phytosterols corresponds to the parameters of the standard sour cream product and sour cream. This provides advantages such as the ability to integrate a new product into the sour cream and sour cream production system without significant changes in technology and equipment.

The application of deep learning convolutional neural networks for solving the problem of automated facial expression recognition and determination of emotions of a person is analyzed. It is proposed to use the advantages of the transfer approach to deep learning convolutional neural networks training to solve the problem of insufficient data volume in sets of images with different facial expressions. Most of these datasets are labeled in accordance with a facial coding system based on the units of human facial movement. The developed technology of transfer learning of the public deep learning convolutional neural networks families DenseNet and MobileNet, with the subsequent “fine tuning” of the network parameters, allowed to reduce the training time and computational resources when solving the problem of facial expression recognition without losing the reliability of recognition of motor units. During the development of deep learning technology for convolutional neural networks, the following tasks were solved. Firstly, the choice of publicly available convolutional neural networks of the DenseNet and MobileNet families pre-trained on the ImageNet dataset was substantiated, taking into account the peculiarities of transfer learning for the task of recognizing facial expressions and determining emotions. Secondary, a model of a deep convolutional neural network and a method for its training have been developed for solving problems of recognizing facial expressions and determining human emotions, taking into account the specifics of the selected pretrained convolutional neural networks. Thirdly, the developed deep learning technology was tested, and finally, the resource intensity and reliability of recognition of motor units on the DISFA set were assessed. The proposed technology of deep learning of convolutional neural networks can be used in the development of systems for automatic recognition of facial expressions and determination of human emotions for both stationary and mobile devices. Further modification of the systems for recognizing motor units of human facial activity in order to increase the reliability of recognition is possible using of the augmentation technique.

BackgroundStructural variation in subcortical brain regions has been linked to substance use, including the most commonly used substances nicotine and alcohol. Pre-existing differences in subcortical brain volume may affect smoking and alcohol use, but there is also evidence that smoking and alcohol use can lead to structural changes.AimsWe assess the causal nature of the complex relationship of subcortical brain volume with smoking and alcohol use, using bi-directional Mendelian randomisation.MethodMendelian randomisation uses genetic variants predictive of a certain ‘exposure’ as instrumental variables to test causal effects on an ‘outcome’. Because of random assortment at meiosis, genetic variants should not be associated with confounders, allowing less biased causal inference. We used summary-level data of genome-wide association studies of subcortical brain volumes (nucleus accumbens, amygdala, caudate, hippocampus, pallidum, putamen and thalamus; n = 50 290) and smoking and alcohol use (smoking initiation, n = 848 460; cigarettes per day, n = 216 590; smoking cessation, n = 378 249; alcoholic drinks per week, n = 630 154; alcohol dependence, n = 46 568). The main analysis, inverse-variance weighted regression, was verified by a wide range of sensitivity methods.ResultsThere was strong evidence that liability to alcohol dependence decreased amygdala and hippocampal volume, and smoking more cigarettes per day decreased hippocampal volume. From subcortical brain volumes to substance use, there was no or weak evidence for causal effects.ConclusionsOur findings suggest that heavy alcohol use and smoking can causally reduce subcortical brain volume. This adds to accumulating evidence that alcohol and smoking affect the brain, and likely mental health, warranting more recognition in public health efforts.

Objects moving at high speed along complex trajectories often appear in videos, especially videos of sports. Such objects travel a considerable distance during exposure time of a single frame, and therefore, their position in the frame is not well defined. They appear as semi-transparent streaks due to the motion blur and cannot be reliably tracked by general trackers. We propose a novel approach called Tracking by Deblatting based on the observation that motion blur is directly related to the intra-frame trajectory of an object. Blur is estimated by solving two intertwined inverse problems, blind deblurring and image matting, which we call deblatting. By postprocessing, non-causal Tracking by Deblatting estimates continuous, complete, and accurate object trajectories for the whole sequence. Tracked objects are precisely localized with higher temporal resolution than by conventional trackers. Energy minimization by dynamic programming is used to detect abrupt changes of motion, called bounces. High-order polynomials are then fitted to smooth trajectory segments between bounces. The output is a continuous trajectory function that assigns location for every real-valued time stamp from zero to the number of frames. The proposed algorithm was evaluated on a newly created dataset of videos from a high-speed camera using a novel Trajectory-IoU metric that generalizes the traditional Intersection over Union and measures the accuracy of the intra-frame trajectory. The proposed method outperforms the baselines both in recall and trajectory accuracy. Additionally, we show that from the trajectory function precise physical calculations are possible, such as radius, gravity, and sub-frame object velocity. Velocity estimation is compared to the high-speed camera measurements and radars. Results show high performance of the proposed method in terms of Trajectory-IoU, recall, and velocity estimation.

In the context of hybrid warfare, an urgent question arises as to the adequacy of responding to its challenges. Ukraine, the EU countries and NATO are facing new threats, which require democracies to make changes in military and political activities, to find new forms and methods of ensuring national security. Hybrid warfare as a form of undeclared war is conducted with the integrated use of military and non-military instruments (economic, political, informational and psychological, etc.), which fundamentally changes the nature of military struggle. Thus, the change in the nature of the current armed conflict and the hybrid aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine have created an impetus to accelerate transformations and structural changes in the security and defence sector of Ukraine. One of the priority areas of defence reform is the modernization of the management system of the security and defence sector in order to bring it in line with modern military conflicts, achieve interoperability of Ukraine’s defence forces, systematic transition to NATO standards (STANAG) in the organization, armament and training of troops (forces), as well as in the system of operational decision-making. Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has launched a process of destroying the system of European and transatlantic security. The Kremlin’s hybrid actions against Ukraine and other regional states are undermining stability in the area from the Baltic to the Black Sea, creating a serious challenge to peace and security in the region. Ukraine can become a powerful ally with significant military capabilities and invaluable practical experience, including in the field of combating hybrid threats, with successful reforms for NATO membership and a relevant consensus in NATO.

Modern wide development of science and technology causes the growth of information needs in all branches of human development. At present, there are all opportunities to increase information security by combining sources of information into a single system. At the same time, when merging, specific difficulties and features emerge, which together make it difficult to implement the proposed solutions. The paper considers the peculiarity of combining different types of radar stations into a single information system. Errors of measurements of separate parameters and their influence on system characteristics are considered. Options for solving the problems that have arisen are proposed.

Aim. To conduct a virological, PCR, PCR-RFLP and sequencing study of infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) isolates obtained from sick and dead chickens at industrial and backyard poultry farms in the eastern region of Ukraine collected over the years 2010–2019 and to establish their pathotype and relationship with internationally occurring strains. Methods. Material for virological studies was collected in the framework of research program of the NSC IEСVM during 2010-2019 in the poultry farms in the North-Eastern region of Ukraine, where the birds with the respiratory clinical signs were found. In total, 28 poultry farms were observed. ILTV isolates were obtained with conventional methods, using 10–12-day-old chicken embryos. A 0,2 ml of 10–20 % suspension of pathological material in PBS was used for inoculation. For in-depth studies, we used 4 isolates of ILTV obtained from sick and dead chickens from industrial and backyard poultry farms in Kharkiv, Luhansk, Donetsk, and Sumy regions from 2010–2019. The identification of ILTV isolates was performed via conventional PCR. The pathotype of ILTV strains was determined using PCR-RFLP (polymerase chain reaction – restriction fragment length polymorphism) analysis. The PCR-RFLP was performed at Royal GD, the Netherlands. The (partial) sequencing of the US8 gene was performed using Sanger sequencing method. The phylogenetic analysis, using sequences of 2 Ukrainian strains (MZ323228, MZ333273) and 17 international gene sequences present in GenBank, was performed using the Maximum Likelihood method. For comparative analysis, sequences of vaccine ILT virus strains were used. Results. Over the years 2010-2019, 7 isolates of ILTV were obtained from sick and dead poultry with typical clinical signs and internal lesions at industrial and backyard farms of the Kharkiv, Donetsk, Luhansk and Sumy regions, and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Other avian respiratory viral and bacterial pathogens were not detected. Five isolates were obtained from poultry of industrial holdings where vaccination against ILT is carried out. Using PCR-RFLP analysis of 4 isolates, we found that three of them (Sumy 6-11/19, A 04-12, B 2-10) to belong to vaccine-type ILTV strains and only one, B 59-11strain, belongs to wild-type ILTV. Vaccine-type ILTV strains circulated and possibly still circulate in Ukraine in industrial and backyard poultry farms among both vaccinated and non- vaccinated poultry. An ILTV wild-type strain was obtained from non-vaccinated chickens from a backyard farm, which may indicate an important role of backyard farms in maintaining the circulation of the virus. After partial sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the ILTV US8 gene the two Ukrainian strains studied were placed into two different clusters: The vaccine-type B 2-10 strain, obtained from sick vaccinated chickens from an industrial farm, was close to vaccine-type strains circulating in, China, Italy and the USA. The wild-type B 59-11strain, obtained from sick non-vaccinated backyard chickens, was located in another cluster and closest to a the wild-type B 59-11 ILTV strain from Brazil. Conclusions. In this article we describe for the first time the characterization of vaccine-type and wild-type isolates of ILTV in industrial and backyard poultry farms, proving their relevance for the poultry production in Ukraine. The results obtained show the need and prospects for further monitoring of ILTV circulation in small backyard poultry farms and in industrial poultry farms, especially following the frequent use for vaccination of live attenuated wild-type ILTV strains in Ukraine. Further molecular, phylogenetic and epidemiological characterization of the strains obtained should be performed in the near future to further precise their attributes, epidemiology and origin.

Protecting wildlife corridors is a common management problem in regions of industrial forestry. In boreal Canada, human disturbances have negatively affected woodland caribou populations (Rangifer tarandus caribou), which prefer to function in large undisturbed areas. We present a linear programming model that allocates a fixed-width corridor between isolated caribou ranges and estimates its impact on harvest activities. Our corridor placement problem minimizes total resistance for caribou passing through the corridor, which is protected by a prohibition on all economic activities. We link this corridor placement problem with a harvest planning problem that maximizes the net revenues from harvest minus the cost of building and maintaining forest access roads. We depict gradual expansion of the forest road network over time as a multi-temporal network flow problem. We applied our approach to explore corridor options for connecting caribou populations in the Lake Superior Coast Range, with the Nipigon and Pagwachuan Ranges in the Kenogami-Pic Forest, in northern Ontario, Canada. Our results revealed two locations where corridor placement is cost-effective. Optimal corridor placement depends on the perception of the severity of the impact of roads on caribou populations and decision-making objectives. When the negative impact of roads is perceived to be high and/or maximizing harvest revenues is important, the optimal corridor location is in the eastern part of the study area. However, it is optimal to place the corridor in the western part of the area when the negative impact of roads is perceived to be small or the shortest corridor is desired.

The purpose of the paper is to improve scientific and applied aspects of analysis of integrated reporting of agricultural corporations on the example of human capital indicators. Methodology. Theoretical aspects of the study are based on the international standards of the Global Reporting Initiative and AccountAbility. Applied aspects are the generalization and critical evaluation of the form, content, quantitative and qualitative indicators of integrated reporting of agricultural corporations. The results of the paper are to define non-financial reporting as an integrated format of information on natural, industrial, financial, human, intellectual, social, institutional capital of enterprises. It is shown that the development of the system of formation and presentation of integrated reporting is influenced by two trends that are somewhat mutually exclusive: firstly, supranational regulation by GRI and AA1000 standards; secondly, the voluntary nature and predominance of content over form, which cause significant differences in formats and the difficulty of conducting a comparative analysis of reporting enterprises. It is proved that integrated reporting is a comprehensive set of quantitative and qualitative indicators, which are divided into general, common to all enterprises of the national economy, and specific, inherent in certain types of economic activity. For agricultural corporations, the latter are: protection of agricultural lands, animal well-being, state and directions of development of organic production, etc. The components of integrated reporting of four agricultural corporations of Ukraine are summarized. Their similarity is determined by the substantive characteristics associated with the disclosure of information about the impact of the enterprise on the environment, social and economic impact, corporate governance, animal well-being. The differences are related to the form of presentation of information, the number of sections of integrated reporting. The conceptual basis of human capital management and features of program in separate researched agrarian corporations are generalized. The analysis of human capital as an object of integrated reporting of agricultural corporations on the indicators of the total number of staff, its permanent and seasonal part, gender composition, categories of employees, age, and duration of training has been performed. Practical implications are the development of recommendations aimed at eliminating the shortcomings of the disclosure of information about human capital associated with the prevalence of quantitative indicators over qualitative ones. It is proposed to use indicators of labor productivity, average wages compared to the industry level, as well as motivational mechanisms for staff in the form of corporate health insurance. Value/originality. The necessity of data integration is substantiated not only at the level of the non-financial report, but also at the level of separate sections, which is advisable to be represented by separate types of capital. On the example of the section “Human capital” it is recommended to highlight the units related to its economic, social, cultural, intellectual development, etc. in its composition.

У статті запропоновано методику виявлення несанкціонованих обчислювальних процесів інформаційнотелекомунікаційних систем. Існуючі технології виявлення APT атак засновані на процедурах багаторівневого аналізу великого масиву даних про різноманітні поточні події в ІТС. Ці дані збираються в електронних журналах подій. Очевидно, що модель APT атаки повинна дозволяти пов’язувати події за часом і в просторі. Комплекси програм, які наповнюють інформацією журнали і реалізують автоматизовані технології їх аналізу, відомі як системи SIEM. У свою чергу, технології автоматизованого аналізу подій засновані на моделях атак. Шаблон APT атаки – це набір взаємопов’язаних подій. Порівняння такого шаблону і поточних подій становить суть процесу оцінки в рамках SIEM. Основним завданням методики є автоматизація процесу виявлення несанкціонованих дій, прийняття рішення про наявність APT атаки, та реалізацію методів захисту від неї. Основу APT атаки становить комплекс дій, що реалізуються в різних компонентах ІТС на тривалому відрізку часу. З позицій політики безпеки такі події окремо можуть нести легальний характер. Розглянуто програмні та апаратні засоби, призначені для прихованого спостереження за діяльністю користувачів інформаційно-телекомунікаційних систем. Санкціоновані моніторингові програмні продукти використовуються адміністраторами безпеки інформаційно-телекомунікаційних систем для забезпечення моніторингу. Детально розглянуто застосування для прихованого моніторингу активних процесів інформаційно-телекомунікаційних систем. Запропоновано використати в якості прикладу несанкціонованого обчислювального процесу програмні та апаратні кейлоггери. Детально описано методи захисту від них. Отримані результати доцільно направити на удосконалення методів виявлення несанкціонованих обчислювальних процесів інформаційно-телекомунікаційних систем.

The questions of measures calculation of events containing uncertain quantities of random, fuzzy and rough nature are considered. The algorithms of determination of measures of events, based on methods of statistical simulation, are proposed. The "chances" of realization an uncertain event - the simultaneous fulfillment of the conditions of the bearing capacity of a cylindrical orthotropic shell compressed by an axial force, which can be presented in a random, fuzzy or rough manner, are investigated. The stochastic uncertainty is given by the distribution density of the random variable. Fuzzy data are defined by the membership function, and rough data are defined by a deterministic upper and lower approximation. Each type of uncertainty is characterized by its own measures: the probability - for the description of the modality - "probably", the possibility - for the description of the modality is "fuzzy", trust - to describe the modality "rough". The paper proposes procedures for calculating the listed measures. Also numerical illustrations of the calculation of modalities as "probably", "fuzzy", "rough" for the analysis of the limit force of carrying capacity in the problem of optimal design of the compressed orthotropic cylindrical shell made of fiberglass in conditions of uncertainty of the problem of geometrical parameters, such as thickness and radius, and description of the corresponding degree of implementation of an uncertain event are shown. Uncertain event is to fulfill the limitations of general and local stability and durability. The results of the calculations are compared with the solution of the problem with deterministic data. The results show the "reaction" of the values of the critical force to the possible presence of uncertain factors in the problem and the degree of uncertainty. Thus, the bearing capacity of the shell decreases significantly more in the presence of factors of random and rough nature in comparison to the fuzzy data.

In this manuscript global research trends are analyzed in agent-based modeling (ABM), which is applied to face the inherent complexity of agricultural systems. The search was carried out in Scopus, during the period 2009-2019, and the VOSviewer© software was used as a bibliometric tool. The results show that ABM is used under two approaches: research and policy evaluation, and in three thematic areas: systems and computation sciences, geography and ecology and environmental science. The purpose of this study is to investigate three types of phenomena: land-use changes, water management and agricultural policy evaluation. ABM has been shown to be useful for exploring and understanding the society-nature relationship of agricultural systems under an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach, and for supporting decision-making processes via its application in a Latin American context, which for our purposes is still of utmost importance. Resumen En este manuscrito se analizan las tendencias globales en investigación de la modelación basada en agentes -MBA- aplicada para abordar la complejidad inherente a los sistemas agropecuarios. Se emplea la búsqueda en Scopus, durante el período 2009-2019, y el software VOSviewer© como herramientas bibliométricas. Los resultados obtenidos muestran que MBA se aplica bajo los enfoques de investigación y de evaluación de política en tres áreas temáticas principales: ciencias de la computación y sistemas, geografía, y ciencias ambientales y ecología; y para estudiar esencialmente fenómenos de cambios en el uso de la tierra, gestión del agua y evaluación de políticas agrícolas. Aunque MBA ha demostrado ser una herramienta teórica útil para explorar y comprender la interrelación sociedad-naturaleza de los sistemas agropecuarios desde enfoques inter y transdisciplinarios, así como para soportar los procesos de toma de decisiones, su aplicación en el contexto latinoamericano es aún incipiente.