Psychological impact of amniocentesis on low-risk women

The study comprised 85 young (25–34 years old) women who underwent genetic amniocentesis, 80 comparable young women who had an ultrasoundscan at the same gestational age and 74 women (35–40 years old) who had amniocentesis. The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and Visual Analogue Scales concerning anxiety and worry were used on four occasions to evaluate psychological changes during pregnancy. The anxiety level in the younger women decreased after amniocentesis and a further decrease was observed after the results were communicated to them. However, similar changes were seen in the group of younger women after ultrasonography, and there was no difference in anxiety level between the two groups of younger women in the 16th or in the 35th week of pregnancy. Thus, in younger women at low genetic risk amniocentesis was neither anxiety-relieving, nor anxiety-creating. The level of anxiety before amniocentesis was not higher in the older than in the younger women having amniocentesis. However, in the younger women a significant decrease in anxiety was seen as soon as amniocentesis had been performed, while in the older women this decrease was delayed until after the results were known.     

Distribution and coassociations of selected metals in seals of the Antarctic

Zinc, Cu, Cd, Pb, Ag, Ni, Co, Cr, Fe and Mn concentrations in some tissues of crabeater seal (Lobodon carcinophagus), leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) and Weddell seal (Leptonychotes weddelli) from the Antarctic were determined. Distinct inter-tissue differences in metal concentrations in seals were observed; liver contained maximum levels of Zn, Cu, Ag and Mn, whilst kidney showed the highest levels of Cd, Ni and Co. Muscle was characterized by low concentrations of all the elements analyzed. The metal concentrations in the vertebrates analyzed were compared with those for organisms originating from various aquatic areas. Significant correlations were found between the levels of several of the metals analyzed, e.g. between renal and hepatic concentrations of Zn and Cd. Strong relationships between the hepatic concentrations of some metals were found, e.g. Cd-Zn. These two metals also showed a significant coassociation in their renal concentrations. The slope of the regression line for renal Cd/Zn was about three times higher than the hepatic one and this may reflect a relatively high Cd exposure, probably from specific food (squid and krill) provenance, of the seals analyzed.     

软移动性：使欧洲旅游业更可持续

旅游者们越来越意识到交通的负面影响（包括噪音和其他类型的污染）.繁重的交通会影响旅游目的地的娱乐或其他价值.对于旅游胜地以赢利为目的的管理者来说，交通方式和参观者的满意程度及再访愿望之间的关系正越来越重要.     

Atmospheric background of chlorinated hydrocarbons studied in Swedish lichens

Lichens $\text{Cladonia}$$\text{alpestris}$ collected in the northern part of Sweden were analyzed over a 10-year period for chlorinated hydrocarbons. Results show a delay of 2–3 years between the production of PCBs and the deposition of these compounds in the lichen. They confirm the low solubility of PCBs in water and the predominance of atmospheric transport of these chlorinated compounds far away from industrialized areas.     

Parallel and Serial Methods of Calculating Thermal Insulation in European Manikin Standards

Abstract

Standard No. EN 15831:2004 provides 2 methods of calculating insulation: parallel and serial. The parallel method is similar to the global one defined in Standard No. ISO 9920:2007. Standards No. EN 342:2004, EN 14058:2004 and EN 13537:2002 refer to the methods defined in Standard No. EN ISO 15831:2004 for testing cold protective clothing or equipment. However, it is necessary to consider several issues, e.g., referring to measuring human subjects, when using the serial method. With one zone, there is no serial-parallel issue as the results are the same, while more zones increase the difference in insulation value between the methods. If insulation is evenly distributed, differences between the serial and parallel method are relatively small and proportional. However, with more insulation layers overlapping in heavy cold protective ensembles, the serial method produces higher insulation values than the parallel one and human studies. Therefore, the parallel method is recommended for standard testing.     

Ranking Genetically Modified Plants According to Familiarity

In public debate GMPs are oftenreferred to as being unnatural or a violationof nature. Some people have serious moralconcerns about departures from what is natural.Others are concerned about potential risks tothe environment arising from the combination ofhereditary material moving across naturalboundaries and the limits of scientificforesight of long-term consequences. To addresssome of these concerns we propose that anadditional element in risk assessment based onthe concept of familiarity should beintroduced. The objective is to facilitatetransparency about uncertainties inherent inthe risk assessment of the GMP. Familiarityconventionally involves data and experiencerelating to the plant species and the ecosystemin question. We would like to extend thisconcept to the molecular level of plantbreeding and suggest that GMP characteristicsshould be compared to a reference baselinedetermined by conventional breeding techniques.Three GMPs are ranked according to familiarityat the plant and ecosystem level and themolecular level. The approach may help tointegrate discussion of the scientificarguments and moral questions raised in thedebate about GMOs by providing an operationalscheme within which moral concerns are broughtwithin the framework of science-based riskassessment.     

Comprehensive prenatal diagnostics: Exome versus genome sequencing

Objective

This study aimed to assess the diagnostic yield of prenatal genetic testing using trio whole exome sequencing (WES) and trio whole genome sequencing (WGS) in pregnancies with fetal anomalies by comparing the results with conventional chromosomal microarray (CMA) analysis.

Methods

A total of 40 pregnancies with fetal anomalies or increased nuchal translucency (NT ≥ 5 mm) were included between the 12th and 21st week of gestation. Trio WES/WGS and CMA were performed in all cases.

Results

The trio WES/WGS analysis increased the diagnostic yield by 25% in cases with negative CMA results. Furthermore, all six chromosomal aberrations identified by CMA were independently detected by WES/WGS analysis. In total, 16 out of 40 cases obtained a genetic sequence variant, copy number variant, or aneuploidy explaining the phenotype, resulting in an overall WES/WGS diagnostic yield of 40%. WES analysis provided a more reliable identification of mosaic sequence variants than WGS because of its higher sequencing depth.

Conclusions

Prenatal WES/WGS proved to be powerful diagnostic tools for fetal anomalies, surpassing the diagnostic yield of CMA. They have the potential to serve as standalone methods for prenatal diagnosis. The study highlighted the limitations of WGS in accurately detecting mosaic variants, which is particularly relevant when analyzing chorionic villus samples.     

Removal of radionuclides at a waterworks

A waterworks with an average production rate of 1.3 m3 s(-1), providing several large cities in the province of Scania with drinking water has been studied regarding its capacity to remove several natural and anthropogenic radionuclides. The raw water is surface water from lake Bolmen which is transported through an 80 km long tunnel in the bedrock before it enters the waterworks. The method used for purification is a combination of coagulation-flocculation and filtration in sand filters. Two different purification lines are currently in use, one using Al2(SO4)3 as a coagulant and one using FeCl3. After coagulation and flocculation the precipitate is removed and the water is passed through two different sand filters (rapid filtration and slow filtration). Water samples were collected at the lake, the inlet to the waterworks, after each of the flocculation basins (Al2(SO4)3 and FeCl3), after rapid filtration and from the municipal distribution network. The samples were analysed with respect to their content of uranium, thorium, polonium, radium, plutonium and caesium. The results show a high removal capacity for uranium (about 85%), thorium (>90%), plutonium (>95%) and polonium (>90% in the coagulation-flocculation process) while caesium, strontium and radium pass through the purification process with almost unchanged activity concentrations. During transportation of the water in the tunnel it was also observed that infiltration of groundwater leads to a change in isotopic ratios and/or activity concentrations for the naturally occurring radionuclides and plutonium.     

129I/127I, 129I/137Cs and 129I/99Tc in the Norwegian coastal current from 1980 to 1998

Discharges of the nuclides 129I, 137Cs and 99Tc from the nuclear reprocessing facilities at Sellafield (UK) and La Hague (France) are very useful as oceanic tracers. On the basis of 129I/127I, 137Cs and 99Tc measurements in archived seaweeds, the ratios of 129I/127I, 129I/137Cs and 129I/99Tc have been estimated in seawater at two locations (Utsira and Kiberg) in the Norwegian Coastal Current from 1980 to 1998. These ratios, which vary up to two orders of magnitude over this period, are potentially very interesting for determining "transit times" in the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans. While the long-term trends in these ratios are quite clear, measurements in monthly and bimonthly samples show considerable structure. Further studies are required to determine the exact origin of this structure, which may be a limiting factor in the time resolution that can be obtained with these parameters.