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Exposure to high and low ambient temperatures increases the risk of neonatal mortality, but the contribution of climate change to temperature-related neonatal deaths is unknown. We use Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data (n = 40,073) from 29 low- and middle-income countries to estimate the temperature-related burden of neonatal deaths between 2001 and 2019 that is attributable to climate change. We find that across all countries, 4.3% of neonatal deaths were associated with non-optimal temperatures. Climate change was responsible for 32% (range: 19-79%) of heat-related neonatal deaths, while reducing the respective cold-related burden by 30% (range: 10-63%). Climate change has impacted temperature-related neonatal deaths in all study countries, with most pronounced climate-induced losses from increased heat and gains from decreased cold observed in countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Future increases in global mean temperatures are expected to exacerbate the heat-related burden, which calls for ambitious mitigation and adaptation measures to safeguard the health of newborns.

Color terms divide the color spectrum differently across languages. Previous studies have reported that speakers of languages that have different words for light and dark blue (e.g., Russian "siniy" and "goluboy") discriminate color chips sampled from these two linguistic categories faster than speakers of languages that use one basic color term for blue (e.g., English "blue"). This effect has been reported to be disrupted when participants engaged in a verbal interference task, suggesting that active language use can modulate the linguistic category effect. The current study provided a stringent test of this hypothesis by examining color discrimination under verbal interference in bilinguals speaking Lithuanian (two blue categories) and Norwegian (one blue category). The results revealed that the language activated during verbal interference had a significant impact on bilinguals' color discrimination. Specifically, Lithuanian-Norwegian bilinguals exhibited a color category effect only when performing the task under verbal interference in Lithuanian but not in Norwegian. This demonstrated, within the same individuals, the momentary effect of active language processing on color perception.

Present and future climatic trends are expected to markedly alter water fluxes and stores in the hydrologic cycle. In addition, water demand continues to grow due to increased human use and a growing population. Sustainably managing water resources requires a thorough understanding of water storage and flow in natural, agricultural, and urban ecosystems. Measurements of stable isotopes of water (hydrogen and oxygen) in the water cycle (atmosphere, soils, plants, surface water, and groundwater) can provide information on the transport pathways, sourcing, dynamics, ages, and storage pools of water that is difficult to obtain with other techniques. However, the potential of these techniques for practical questions has not been fully exploited yet. Here, we outline the benefits and limitations of potential applications of stable isotope methods useful to water managers, farmers, and other stakeholders. We also describe several case studies demonstrating how stable isotopes of water can support water management decision-making. Finally, we propose a workflow that guides users through a sequence of decisions required to apply stable isotope methods to examples of water management issues. We call for ongoing dialogue and a stronger connection between water management stakeholders and water stable isotope practitioners to identify the most pressing issues and develop best-practice guidelines to apply these techniques.

This study assessed whether self-perceived grit is malleable and, if so, how it evolved during the educational journey of students at a four-year military college. By design, the military learning environment tests students' perseverance and determination while teaching lessons in goal commitment and development of purpose, both empirically documented predictors of grit (Hwang and Nam in Multidisciplinary perspectives on grit, Springer, pp 77-92, 2021). Utilizing longitudinal survey data collected over four years, we examined how self-perceived grit changed over time. Results indicate that perceptions of grit dropped during the first year, which is designed to be grueling and challenging and to deconstruct students' perceptions of perseverance and then build them up in the context of the collective. However, as students go through their four-year training, their self-perceptions of grit strengthen and become more robust. These empirical results provide support for the hypothesis that well-designed educational interventions and learning environments may help to foster grit.

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) can be complicated by life-threatening organ toxicity and infection necessitating intensive care. Epidemiologic data have been limited by single-center studies, poor database granularity, and a lack of long-term survivors. To identify contemporary trends in intensive care unit (ICU) use and long-term outcomes, we merged data from the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research and the Virtual Pediatric Systems databases. We identified 6995 pediatric patients with HCT aged ≤21 years who underwent first allogeneic HCT between 2008 and 2014 across 69 centers in the United States or Canada and followed patients until the year 2020. ICU admission was required for 1067 patients (8.3% by day +100, 12.8% by 1 year, and 15.3% by 5 years after HCT), and was linked to demographic background, pretransplant organ toxicity, allograft type and HLA-match, and the development of graft-versus-host disease or malignancy relapse. Survival to ICU discharge was 85.7%, but more than half of ICU survivors required ICU readmission, leading to 52.5% and 42.6% survival at 1- and 5-years post-ICU transfer, respectively. ICU survival was worse among patients with malignant disease, poor pretransplant organ function, and alloreactivity risk factors. Among 1-year HCT survivors, those who required ICU in the first year had 10% lower survival at 5 years and developed new dialysis-dependent renal failure at a greater rate (P

The relational discovery was investigated with classical Bongard problems. The arrangement of the instances was varied to facilitate the discovery of the correct or wrong relation in the first comparison. Irrelevant to-the-task arousal between the two comparisons of the categories enables the discovery of the relation when the first comparison generates the correct relation. When the wrong relation is highlighted first, arousal slows the overall encoding time. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that attention enhances dominant representation, and highlight the need to reconsider the facilitative role of attention in relational discovery as it is based on multiple comparisons.

Gangliosides are acidic glycosphingolipids localized mainly on the outer membrane layer of the membranous cell structures. These molecules participate in important mechanisms at molecular, cellular, tissue, organ, and organism levels. It has been proven that gangliosides play a role as regulators of various biological processes but also as markers in a number of multifactor pathologies. In this regard, the present study determined the titers of the GM3, GM1, and GD1a gangliosides, as well as the titers of IgG-class antibodies against each of them by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), in several different anatomic organs: brain, pancreas, myocardium, liver, and small intestine from rodents. A total extract (control sample) containing the complete set of molecules is prepared from each isolated anatomic organ. An equivalent amount of the extract is passed through a GSH-agarose column in order to select the molecules from each organ possessing affinity to the reduced form of glutathione tripeptide (GSH). GSH is known as an antioxidant, immunomodulator, cardioprotector, neuroprotector, hepatoprotector, anticancer, and antiaging agent. As a whole, significantly lower titers of the three gangliosides and the antibodies to them are reported in the myocardium and liver samples compared to the brain and pancreas samples. Taking into account that the myocardium and liver are the organs known with the highest content of GSH, the obtained results can be explained by the possibly high content of free and/or newly synthesized GSH in them, which does not participate in intermolecular interactions compared to the other investigated organs. Complete absence of each of the three tested gangliosides or of antibodies against them at certain dilutions of the small intestine samples, as well as the highest titers of the same parameters compared to the corresponding samples from the other organs of each of the gangliosides or of the specific antibodies at other dilutions, is observed. One of the explanations for those peculiarities is associated with the presence of the intestinal microflora, including the influence of intestinal bacteria neuraminidases (sialidases). The presented data also show a possibility of antibodies/immunoglobulins production by non-lymphoid cells, tissues, and organs in suitable conditions. Since the immunoglobulins thus produced reside outside the germinal centers of the specialized lymphoid tissues and organs, regulation of their production and functions by interactions with small ions and/or molecules is also important. Gangliosides are namely such small molecules. Special attention is paid to intermolecular interactions involving the listed gangliosides and GSH. The main objective is related to understanding the mechanisms underlying the interaction between the individual organs and systems in the body.

Mammalian cells from lines derived from bovine embryonic trachea (EBTr) were used in the present study. After the formation of semi-confluent monolayers, one subpopulation of cells was inoculated with the vaccine avian poxvirus strain FK (fowl) and the other with the vaccine avian poxvirus strain Dessau (pigeon) (Poxviridae family). Twenty-four hours after viral inoculation, individual subsets of infected cells were treated with the purine derivative aminophylline and the remaining subsets with the indole derivative ergotamine tartrate, respectively. The effects of the analogues thus administered on the cells were recorded at the 24th hour and 48th hour after treatment with each substance, respectively. In cells inoculated with the FK viral strain and treated with both aminophylline and ergotamine tartrate, decreased cell viability was observed at all dilutions at the 48th hour post-treatment compared to the 24th hour. In aminophylline-treated cells, these differences were not statistically significant, unlike in ergotamine tartrate-treated cells, where they were statistically significant. In the same cells infected with the Dessau strain and treated with aminophylline, although decreased cell viability was found at the 48th hour of treatment compared to the 24th hour, in most cases no statistically significant differences were found. In cells infected with the same strain but treated with ergotamine tartrate, despite the lack of statistically significant differences, increased cell viability was seen at the 48th hour post-treatment compared to the 24th hour, specifically at the higher concentrations of 10-3 and 10-4 M/mL. These results suggest a lower cytotoxicity of aminophylline compared to ergotamine tartrate, but on the other hand, a higher anti-viral activity of ergotamine tartrate against the Dessau virus strain compared to aminophylline in in vitro conditions. Further studies need to be conducted in this regard.

A glass-ceramic in the CaO–P2O5–SiO2 system, which contains two polymorphic modifications of tricalcium phosphate – whitlockite, β-Ca3(PO4)2 and α-Ca3(PO4)2, has been synthesized by the sol–gel method and thermal treatment up to 1200 °C. The phase composition and microstructure of the glass-ceramic were investigated with X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). An in vitro bioactivity test of the glass-ceramic in a simulated body fluid (SBF) was conducted for up to 21 days. α-Ca3(PO4) dissolved almost completely in SBF after 7 days. The experimental results of XRD, FTIR, SEM and EDS clearly validated the ability of the glass-ceramic samples to form a layer of hydroxyapatite on their surface in an SBF environment. We also studied the cytotoxic effect of the glass-ceramic on murine bone marrow (BM) cells and pre-osteoclasts in vitro. The glass-ceramic reduced the viability of BM cells in a dose-dependent manner being less toxic at concentrations below 0.1 mg/ml. It modestly affected the viability of pre-osteoclasts cultured in osteoclast differentiation media. The obtained sample increased the percentage of pre-osteoclasts expressing the receptors involved in osteoclastogenesis (RANK) and apoptosis (TRAIL). In conclusion, the glass-ceramic showed the potential to affect the survival/differentiation of pre-osteoclasts at early stage of osteoclastogenesis. It might be suitable for tissue engineering including implants coating or scaffold as it can interfere with early stage of osteoclastogenesis which is required for proper bone remodelling and repair upon a long-term application of biomaterials. Resumen: Una vitrocerámica en el sistema CaO-P2O5-SiO2, que contiene dos modificaciones polimórficas de fosfato tricálcico: whitlockita, β-Ca3(PO4)2 y α-Ca3(PO4)2, ha sido sintetizada por el método sol-gel y tratamiento térmico hasta 1.200 °C. La composición de fase y la microestructura de la vitrocerámica se investigaron por análisis de difracción de rayos X (XRD), espectroscopia infrarroja por transformada de Fourier (FTIR), microscopia electrónica de barrido y espectroscopia por dispersión de energía de rayos X (SEM-EDS). Se realizó una prueba de la bioactividad in vitro de la vitrocerámica por inmersión en un fluido corporal simulado (SBF) durante 21 días. α-Ca3(PO4) se disolvió casi completamente en SBF después de 7 días. Los resultados experimentales de XRD, FTIR, SEM y EDS validaron claramente la capacidad de las muestras de vitrocerámica para formar una capa de hidroxiapatita en su superficie en un entorno SBF. También estudiamos el efecto citotóxico de la vitrocerámica en células de médula ósea murina (MO) y preosteoclastos in vitro. La vitrocerámica redujo la viabilidad de las células de MO de forma dosis-dependiente, siendo menos tóxica a concentraciones inferiores a 0,1 mg/ml. Afectó modestamente a la viabilidad de los preosteoclastos cultivados en medios de diferenciación de osteoclastos. La vitrocerámica aumentó el porcentaje de preosteoclastos que expresan los receptores implicados en la osteoclastogénesis (RANK) y la apoptosis (TRAIL). En conclusión, la vitrocerámica mostró el potencial de afectar la supervivencia/diferenciación de los preosteoclastos en la etapa temprana de la osteoclastogénesis. Podría ser adecuada para la ingeniería de tejidos, incluidos los recubrimientos de implantes o andamios, ya que puede interferir con la etapa temprana de la osteoclastogénesis que se requiere para la remodelación y la reparación ósea adecuada tras la aplicación a largo plazo de biomateriales.

Recycling olive waste, a major by-product of the olive oil industry, presents significant environmental and economic benefits. This study explores the potential of olive waste (OW) by-products, specifically their individual components such as olive stones (OS), olive oily pomace (OS) and olive oil-free pomace (OF), as sustainable alternatives to wood in eco-friendly composite materials, alongside other residues such as miscanthus, spent mushroom substrate and recycled textile waste. Composite panels were produced with densities ranging from 685 to 907 kg/m3 through thermocompression. The manuscript details the production methodology and assesses the panel’s thermal performance, water absorption, and mechanical strength. The aim is to assess the viability of these alternative materials in producing composites that could serve as environmentally friendly substitutes for traditional wood-based products. Oil-free pomace is a promising and effective alternative to wood, suitable for dry environments. Composite panels composed of miscanthus or spent mushroom substrate and oil-free pomace met the EN 312 standards for general-purpose products in dry conditions, highlighting their potential for use in sustainable applications.

Abstract Exposure to high and low ambient temperatures increases the risk of neonatal mortality, but the contribution of climate change to temperature-related neonatal deaths is unknown. We use Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data (n = 40,073) from 29 low- and middle-income countries to estimate the temperature-related burden of neonatal deaths between 2001 and 2019 that is attributable to climate change. We find that across all countries, 4.3% of neonatal deaths were associated with non-optimal temperatures. Climate change was responsible for 32% (range: 19-79%) of heat-related neonatal deaths, while reducing the respective cold-related burden by 30% (range: 10-63%). Climate change has impacted temperature-related neonatal deaths in all study countries, with most pronounced climate-induced losses from increased heat and gains from decreased cold observed in countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Future increases in global mean temperatures are expected to exacerbate the heat-related burden, which calls for ambitious mitigation and adaptation measures to safeguard the health of newborns.