An innovative process which prevents irreversible energy loss in batteries

100% initial efficiency achieved with a graphite-silicon oxide composite using a prelithiation solution; capable of increasing the ratio of silicon oxide content in anodes to over 50%

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

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IMAGE: A CHEMICAL PRELITHIATION METHOD TO MAXIMIZE THE ICE OF THE BLEND ANODES USING A REDUCTIVE LI-ARENE COMPLEX SOLUTION OF REGULATED SOLVATION POWER, WHICH ENABLES A FULL CELL TO EXHIBIT A NEAR-IDEAL ENERGY DENSITY view more 

CREDIT: KOREA INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (KIST)

When its batteries are fully charged, an electronic device will normally indicate that they are at 100% capacity. However, this value only represents 70-90% of the theoretical energy density that can be stored in the batteries, owing to the permanent loss of Li ions that occurs during the initial charge in the stabilization (formation) stage of battery production. By preventing this initial loss of Li ions, the mileage of electric vehicles (EVs) and usage time of smartphones can be drastically increased.

In an effort to overcome this issue, a joint research team at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), led by Dr. Minah Lee from the Center for Energy Storage Research, Dr. Jihyun Hong from the Center for Energy Materials Research, and Dr. Hyangsoo Jeong from the Center for Hydrogen-Fuel Cell Research, has developed an electrode pre-treatment solution capable of minimizing this initial Li ion loss in graphite-silicon oxide (SiOx, 0.5 ≤ x ≤ 1.5) composite anodes. After being dipped in the solution, the anode, which was composed of 50% SiOx, demonstrated negligible Li loss, enabling a full cell to exhibit near-ideal energy density.

While most commercial Li batteries utilize a graphite anode, SiOx has been garnering significant attention as a next-generation material for anodes due to its high capacity, which is 5-10 times greater than graphite. Yet, SiOx also irreversibly consumes three times as much active Li as graphite. As a result, a composite electrode, consisting of a mixture of graphite and SiOx, is now gaining recognition as an alternative for practical next-generation anodes. However, while there was a corresponding increase in the capacity of graphite-SiOx composite electrodes at higher ratios of SiOx, there was also an increase in loss of initial Li. Consequently, the ratio of SiOx content in a graphite-SiOx composite electrode was limited to 15%, as increasing the ratio to 50% would result in an initial Li loss of 40%.

To simultaneously achieve high capacity and high initial efficiency, scientists proposed various prelithiation methods involving the pre-doping of extra Li into the anode. Dr. Minah Lee’s research team at KIST developed a process wherein the electrode is dipped into a unique solution to mitigate Li consumption by the SiOx electrode. The team then applied this process to a graphite-SiOx composite material with significant commercialization potential.

The research team found that the pre-treatment solutions developed previously would cause the unintended insertion of solvent molecules with Li ions into the graphite, owing to the graphite’s versatile intercalation capability. This intercalation of large solvent molecules resulted in the structural breakdown of the graphite-SiOx composite electrode. To prevent electrode failure, the researchers developed a new solution using a weakly solvating solvent to reduce the interaction between the solvent and the Li ions. This solution enabled the selective insertion of Li ions into the active materials, ensuring a stable supply of additional Li to the graphite-SiOx composite electrode.

The initial Li consumption was completely prevented after the graphite-SiOx electrode was immersed in the solution developed by the research team for approximately 1 minute, even at a 50% SiOx ratio. Consequently, the electrode showed a high initial efficiency of nearly 100%, indicating negligible Li loss (≤ 1%) in the initial charge. Electrodes developed through this process had a capacity 2.6 times higher than conventional graphite anodes, while also maintaining 87.3% of the initial capacity after 250 charge-/discharge cycles.

Dr. Minah Lee from KIST gave the following statement: “As a result of this study, we should be able to increase the SiOx content in graphite-SiOx composite anodes to over 50%, as opposed to the 15% ratio allowed by conventional materials, making it possible to produce lithium ion batteries with a greater capacity and improve the mileage of future EVs.” Dr. Jihyun Hong, a co-researcher at KIST, also said, “The technology is safe and suitable for mass production, and therefore is likely to be commercialized.”

CAPTION

A KIST researcher conducts an experiment to evaluate high-capacity batteries following prelithiation

CREDIT

Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) 

This study was funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT through KIST’s institutional research program, and the National Research Foundation of Korea’s Basic Research Program (for young and mid-career researchers) and Climate Change Response Technology Development Project. The findings of this study were published in the latest edition of the Journal of the American Chemical Society (IF:15.419, top 6.621% in the JCR field, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.1c03648).

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JOURNAL

Journal of the American Chemical Society

DOI

10.1021/jacs.1c03648 

ARTICLE TITLE

Weakly Solvating Solution Enables Chemical Prelithiation of Graphite-SiOx Anodes for High-Energy Li-Ion Batteries

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

9-Jun-2021

CAPTION

From top left, Jinkwan Choi, Dr. Jihyun Hong, Dr. Hyangsoo Jeong, Dr. Minah Lee

CREDIT

Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST)

 

Moving emergency care patients to other hospital departments prone to high mishap rate

Incidents occurred in nearly 4 out of 10 patient transports

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BMJ

• Incidents occurred in nearly 4 out of 10 patient transports
• Improved transport training and adequate pre-transport preparation needed, say researchers

Moving emergency care patients to other hospital departments by wheelchair or trolley is prone to a high rate of mishaps, finds a study at one large Australian hospital, published online in the Emergency Medicine Journal.

Among other things, limb entrapment, collisions, and intravenous line or catheter issues occurred in nearly 4 out of 10 patient transports in less than 2 months, prompting the study authors to call for improvements to transport training and pre-transport preparation.

While it’s known that mishaps during patient transport from one hospital department to another have the potential to cause harm, it’s not clear how common they are, and what the predisposing factors might be.

In a bid to find out, the authors observed the transport of adult patients by trolley or wheelchair from emergency care to other departments at one large Australian hospital between 30 January and 20 March 2020, on weekdays only.

The number and nature of the incidents were logged, as were any predisposing factors and resulting patient harm. 

During the monitoring period, 738 patient transports were observed. The average age of the patients was 69; half were men. 

Incidents were observed in 289 (39%) manoeuvres: a single mishap occurred in 169 (23%) transports while several incidents, ranging from 2 to 9, occurred in 120 (16%), bringing the total to 521.

Around 1 in 4 (125; 24%) of the incidents originated with the patient, the most common being acute agitation, coughing, and limb displacement. 

Over half (279; 54%) involved equipment, the most common being collisions, and issues with infusion pumps and monitoring. Endotracheal tubes (used to assist breathing), ventilator hoses, and arterial lines were also associated with high mishap rates. 

Some 117 (23%) of all incidents were associated with intravenous lines or catheters, the most common being catching or tangling of lines.

Predisposing factors included the number of pieces of equipment in any one manoeuvre, transport to a general ward, and patients with high blood pressure, abnormally high or low temperature, or low Glasgow Coma Score--used to measure the level of consciousness in a person after a traumatic brain injury.

Thirty four (6.5%) incidents adversely affected the patient, resulting in distress (13 patients); pain (9); needlessly wasted materials/resources (3); staff assault (2); and single cases of exposure to blood; near miss fall; treatment delay; sedation wearing off; cannula dislodging; patient gown falling off, so exposing their body; and laboured breathing (dyspnoea).

This is an observational study, and involved just one hospital. And the findings may not be comparable with experience in other institutions because of variable layout, transport protocols, and the distance/duration of transports, note the authors. 

But they conclude: “This high incidence of [incidents] indicates a need for improved transport training and adequate pre-transport preparation.”

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JOURNAL

Emergency Medicine Journal

DOI

10.1136/emermed-2021-211409 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Risk events during intrahospital transport of patients from the emergency department: a prospective observational study

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

22-Aug-2021

 

Sports-related traumatic spine injuries

Peer-Reviewed Publication

JOURNAL OF NEUROSURGERY PUBLISHING GROUP

 

IMAGE: UPPER: MECHANISMS OF INJURY. THE MAJORITY OF ADULT SPORTS-RELATED TRAUMATIC SPINE INJURIES (TSIS) WERE ATTRIBUTED TO CYCLING-RELATED INJURIES, WITH SKIING/SNOWBOARDING, WATER SPORTS/SWIMMING, CONTACT SPORTS, SKATEBOARDING/ROLLERBLADING, AND OTHER MECHANISMS OF INJURY ALSO REFLECTED IN THIS COHORT. LOWER: SPINAL CORD INJURY (SCI) PREVALENCE BY MECHANISM OF INJURY. PREVALENCE OF TRAUMATIC SCI AMONG PATIENTS WITH SPORTS-RELATED TSI VARIED BASED ON MECHANISM OF INJURY. TRAUMATIC SCIS WERE MOST PREVALENT IN PATIENTS WITH WATER SPORTS/SWIMMING– AND CONTACT SPORTS–RELATED INJURIES. view more 

CREDIT: © AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NEUROSURGEONS.

Sports-Related Traumatic Spine Injuries

Charlottesville, VA (August 24, 2021).  Harvard researchers examined data on sports-related traumatic spine injuries (TSIs) to see if different sports activities tend to result in particular injuries. They found that accidents involving cycling are by far the most frequent cause of TSIs, followed by accidents due to skiing and snowboarding. Detailed findings of this study can be found in a new article, “Adult sports-related traumatic spinal injuries: do different activities predispose to certain injuries?” by Blake M. Hauser and colleagues, published today in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine (https://thejns.org/doi/abs/10.3171/2021.1.SPINE201860).

The authors examined data on 80,040 adult cases of sports-related traumatic injuries, focusing specifically on 12,031 cases of sports-related TSIs, which consisted of vertebral bone fractures and/or spinal cord injuries. Data on all these patients were collected retrospectively from entries made to the National Trauma Data Bank between 2011 and 2014. Multiple imputation was used when record data were missing.

Eighty-two percent of patients with TSIs were male, and 78% were White. Patients with TSIs tended to be slightly older than all patients with sports-related injuries (median ages 48 and 43 years, respectively).

Cycling incidents accounted for 81% of sports-related TSIs, skiing and snowboarding accidents for 12%, aquatic sport and contact sport mishaps for 3% each, and skateboarding and rollerblading accidents for 1%. Fifteen percent of patients with TSI presented with traumatic injuries to the spinal cord. These cord injuries were most prevalent in patients with aquatic sports–related injuries (49%) and those with contact sports–related injuries (41%).

Among all patients with sports-related TSIs, most injuries were caused by motor vehicle accidents (81%) and by falls (14%); it is important to note that the patients involved in motor vehicle accidents were not inside the vehicle. This distribution was not dissimilar to that for all sports-related injuries, in which the authors found 76% due to motor vehicle accidents and 19% due to falls.

Nine percent of patients with sports-related TSIs required surgery during their initial stay in the hospital. Patients with sports-related TSIs were likely to remain in the hospital on average 2 days longer and those with sports-related traumatic spinal cord injuries 7 days longer than patients with non-TSI sports-related injuries.

The severity of injuries and adverse outcomes were determined based on stays in the intensive care unit (ICU) and post-hospital discharge disposition. Patients with sports-related TSI were significantly more likely to spend time in the ICU than patients with other sports-related injuries. Furthermore, patients with sports-related TSI were more likely to be discharged to another hospital, a rehabilitation facility, or home requiring rehabilitative services (adverse outcomes) than all patients with sports-related injuries (32% vs. 17% of patients, respectively). Finally, although the percentage of patients who died in the hospital was low, patients with TSI were more likely to die in the hospital than patients with other sports-related injuries. Patients with traumatic spinal cord injuries were more likely than other patients with TSIs to be transferred to the ICU or die.

Traumatic spine injuries are serious injuries that can lead to significant disability or even death. Given that the majority of TSIs reviewed in this study were related to cycling accidents, the authors suggest that policies designed to make cycling safer should be implemented.

When asked about the findings of this study, Blake Hauser responded, “Using a national, multicenter database, our team was able to identify associations between sports-related traumatic spine injuries and clinical outcomes. These findings can be used to inform future research directions, including research regarding policy recommendations to prevent these injuries.

 

Article: Hauser BM, Gupta S, Hoffman SE, Zaki MM, Roffler AA, Cote DJ,  Lu Y, Chi JH, Groff MW, Khawaja AM, Smith TR, Zaidi HA. Adult sports-related traumatic spinal injuries: do different activities predispose to certain injuries? J Neurosurg Spine, published ahead of print August 24, 2021. DOI: 10.3171/2021.1.SPINE201860.

Grant funding: National Institute of General Medical Sciences T32 GM007753, National Institutes of Health T32 CA009001.

Disclosures: Dr. Chi is a consultant for K2M and received clinical or research support from Spineology for the study described. Dr. Groff is a consultant for DePuy Spine, NuVasive Spine, and SpineArt.

 

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For additional information, contact: Ms. Jo Ann M. Eliason, Communications Manager, JNS Publishing Group, One Morton Drive, Suite 200, Charlottesville, VA 22903; Email joanneliason@thejns.org; Phone 434-982-1209.

The Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine is a monthly peer-reviewed journal focused on neurosurgical approaches to treatment of diseases and disorders of the spine. It contains a variety of articles, including descriptions of preclinical and clinical research as well as case reports and technical notes. The Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine is one of six journals published by the JNS Publishing Group, the scholarly journal division of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. Other peer-reviewed journals published by the JNS Publishing Group each month include Journal of Neurosurgery, Journal of Neurosurgery: Pediatrics, Journal of Neurosurgery: Case Lessons, Neurosurgical Focus, and Neurosurgical Focus: Video. All six journals can be accessed at www.thejns.org.

Founded in 1931 as the Harvey Cushing Society, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) is a scientific and educational association with more than 10,000 members worldwide. The AANS is dedicated to advancing the specialty of neurological surgery in order to provide the highest quality of neurosurgical care to the public. All active members of the AANS are certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (Neurosurgery) of Canada, or the Mexican Council of Neurological Surgery, AC. Neurological surgery is the medical specialty concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of disorders that affect the entire nervous system including the brain, spinal column, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. For more information, visit www.AANS.org.

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JOURNAL

Journal of Neurosurgery Spine

DOI

10.3171/2021.1.SPINE201860 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Adult sports-related traumatic spinal injuries: do different activities predispose to certain injuries?

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

24-Aug-2021

COI STATEMENT

Dr. Chi is a consultant for K2M and received clinical or research support from Spineology for the study described. Dr. Groff is a consultant for DePuy Spine, NuVasive Spine, and SpineArt.

 

‘Safe and well tolerated’ - the prototype breathing device for covid patients

*Designed specifically for poorer-resourced healthcare settings *Costs around £150 ($207 US) to manufacture *Patient trial due to start in Uganda

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS

 

IMAGE: THE LEEDS CPAP DEVICE - THE FAN IS CONNECTED TO A BREATHING CIRCUIT view more 

CREDIT: PLEASE CREDIT: UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS

• Designed specifically for poorer-resourced healthcare settings 

• Costs around £150 ($207 US) to manufacture 

• Patient trial due to start in Uganda 

A simple electrical fan is the key component of a low-cost, easy-to-use breathing-support device designed to cope with the surge in covid cases in low to middle income countries. 

The device provides a form of oxygen therapy called CPAP or continuous positive airway pressure, which has proved effective in helping patients struggling to breathe because of moderate to severe covid. 

In a paper published today (Tuesday, 24 Aug) in the journal Frontiers in Medical Technology, the team developing the device say a pilot evaluation involving ten healthy volunteers has shown that it “...can be used safely without inducing hypoxia (low levels of oxygen in tissues) or hypercapnia (build-up of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream) and that its use was well tolerated by users, with no adverse events reported”. 

The researchers used the principals of “frugal innovation” to design and develop the breathing aid, to ensure the device remains simple while being both robust and able to meet clinical demands in poorer-resourced health settings. 

A key innovation was to generate the required air flow using a simple electric fan, akin to the fans used to cool electronic devices, to overcome the lack of access to high-pressure air and oxygen supplies.  

The device was developed by a team of engineers, scientists and doctors from the University of Leeds, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Medical Aid International and the Mengo Hospital in Uganda. 

‘Greater access to critical care technology’ 

Nikil Kapur, Professor of Applied Fluid Dynamics at the University of Leeds and the supervising academic on the project, said: “By adopting the approach of frugal innovation, we have been able to redesign an important piece of medical equipment so it can function effectively in poorer resourced healthcare settings.  

“We have stripped away unnecessary complexity and ensured the device will work in settings where oxygen supplies are scarce and need to be conserved. The prototype is an important step in developing a device that will create greater access to critical-care technology and help save lives.” 

Components for the protype device cost around £150 ($207 US). Conventional CPAP machines can cost from around £600 - and a ventilator used in an intensive care unit can cost more than £30,000. 

Dr Tom Lawton, Consultant in Critical Care and Anaesthesia at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and a member of the research team, said: “In the UK, CPAP has been effective as the mainstay of respiratory treatment for severe covid-19 and helps to keep patients from needing advanced ICU care such as ventilators.  

“In many countries, resource limitations mean that even CPAP is difficult to come by and more severe disease frequently leads to death. Simple CPAP devices, designed to operate in a resource-limited setting, can help reduce global healthcare inequality and save lives both now with covid-19 and potentially with other diseases in the future.” 

CPAP - an effective therapy for covid patients 

A recent UK study known as the Recovery-RS Trial has highlighted how CPAP can provide a valuable intervention for covid-19 and the World Health Organisation is encouraging the rapid development of low-cost breathing aids that could be deployed in poorer-resourced healthcare systems.  

For that to be possible, the devices must operate with low pressure oxygen systems. Unlike in richer countries, clinics and hospitals in poorer settings may not have access to centralised oxygen supplies, where oxygen is piped under pressure to wards, or a steady supply of oxygen cylinders. 

Instead, they rely on what are known as oxygen concentrators, machines the size of a suitcase that take in ambient air, strip out the nitrogen and provide a supply of oxygen at low pressure. 

Prototype CPAP machine works with oxygen concentrators 

Dr Pete Culmer, Associate Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Leeds and the study’s lead author, said: “The Leeds prototype has been specifically made to work with oxygen concentrators, which have a low flow of oxygen and at low pressure.  

“The fan or CPAP blower is connected to what is known as a breathing circuit. That circuit is made up of a filter to catch viruses and bacteria in the air flow, tubing, face mask, a valve which controls the flow of oxygen from the oxygen concentrator, and an expiration outlet.” 

The cleverly designed fan system provides a safe air flow supply without needing more complex - and costly - control systems or a high-pressure air source. This provides a simple and robust means to generate an airflow sufficient to open the patient’s airways, so oxygen can get into the tiny air sacs in the lungs, without risk of adverse effects. The oxygen concentrator is used to enrich this airflow with oxygen, conserving valuable supplies. 

The device can generate four different levels of air pressure dependent on clinical need. 

The paper says desirable oxygen saturation levels in the blood – between 96 percent and 100 percent – were maintained in the healthy volunteers taking part in the trial. The CO2 range at the end of exhalation was between 3.6 and 4.9 pKA, again within accepted healthy limits. 

Professor David Brettle, Chief Scientific Officer at the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and a member of the team that developed the device, said: “The innovation at the heart of this device is the simplicity of its design, the low production cost and how it efficiently makes use of scarce oxygen supplies. 

“In the UK access to the necessary health technology can be taken for granted, but even relatively simple technology is sometimes not available in low-and middle-income countries. This innovative device aims to level the playing field.” 

Patient trial due to start in a matter of weeks 

A trial involving sick patients is planned to begin at the Mengo Hospital in Kampala, Uganda, next month (September). 

Dr Edith Namulema, an epidemiologist in Uganda involved in the research project, said there is a desperate need for CPAP machines in low to middle income countries. 

Uganda has a decentralised healthcare system, with patients being referred from community and district health centres and clinics to regional and national hospitals if they are very sick.   

Dr Namulema added: “It is only the regional referral and the national referral hospitals that have access to CPAP. Yet patients first present to the lower-level facilities when they have breathing difficulties and by the time they arrive to the regional referral centres, in some cases, it is too late. The ability to hook a patient onto ventilation when they need it potentially saves many lives and reduces the hospital stay.   

“Also, as a country we have about 500 ICU beds for 42 million Ugandans which is very few.”  

The paper - The LeVe CPAP System for oxygen-efficient CPAP respiratory support: Development and pilot evaluation – is published in Frontiers in Medical Technology. Once the embargo lifts, the paper can be accessed at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmedt.2021.715969/full 

End 

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JOURNAL

Frontiers in Medical Technology

DOI

10.3389/fmedt.2021.715969 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

The LeVe CPAP System for oxygen-efficient CPAP respiratory support: Development and pilot evaluation

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

23-Aug-2021

 

Hospital-acquired COVID-19 tends to be picked up from other patients, not from healthcare workers

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

The majority of patients who contracted COVID-19 while in hospital did so from other patients rather than from healthcare workers, concludes a new study from researchers at the University of Cambridge and Addenbrooke’s Hospital.

The study provides previously unprecedented detail on how infections might spread in a hospital context, showing that a minority of individuals can cause most of the transmission.

The researchers analysed data from the first wave of the pandemic, between March and June 2020.  While a great deal of effort is made to prevent the spread of viruses within hospital by keeping infected and non-infected individuals apart, this task is made more difficult during times when the number of infections is high. The high level of transmissibility of the virus and the potential for infected individuals to be asymptomatic both make this task particularly challenging.

Looking back at data from the first wave, researchers identified five wards at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, part of Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) NHS Foundation Trust, where multiple individuals, including patients and healthcare workers, tested positive for COVID-19 within a short space of time, suggesting that a local outbreak might have occurred.

Using new statistical methods that combine viral genome sequence data with clinical information about the locations of individuals, the researchers identified cases where the data were consistent with transmission occurring between individuals in the hospital. Looking in detail at these transmission events highlighted patterns in the data.

The results of the study, published today in eLife, showed that patients who were infected in the hospital were mostly infected by other patients, rather than by hospital staff. Out of 22 cases where patients were infected in hospital, 20 of these were the result of the virus spreading from patients to other patients

Dr Chris Illingworth, a lead author on the study, who carried out his research while at Cambridge’s MRC Biostatistics Unit, said: “The fact that the vast majority of infections were between patients suggests that measures taken by hospital staff to prevent staff transmitting the virus to patients, such as the wearing of masks, were likely to have been effective.

“But it also highlights why it is important that patients themselves are screened for COVID-19 regularly, even if asymptomatic, and wear face masks where possible.”

The study found contrasting results among healthcare workers, who were almost as likely to be infected by patients as they were by other healthcare workers. This was one piece of evidence that motivated the decision to upgrade the respiratory protection worn by healthcare workers in COVID-19 wards at CUH. A recent Cambridge study indicated that this resulted in staff being better protected against catching COVID-19.

The researchers also found a trend towards individuals either infecting no one else, or infecting multiple other people – just over a fifth of patients (21%) caused 80% of the infections. This phenomenon is sometimes called ‘superspreading’ and can make infection control very challenging. Whether or not an individual can be identified in advance as being more or less likely to pass on the virus is an ongoing topic of research.

Dr William Hamilton, an infectious diseases clinician at CUH and co-lead author on the study said: “Preventing new cases of hospital-based infection is a critical part of our work.  Here we have shown that analysing clinical and viral genome sequence data can produce insights that inform infection control measures, which are so important for protecting patients and healthcare workers alike.”

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The research was funded by COG-UK, Wellcome, the Academy of Medical Sciences, the Health Foundation and the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre.

Reference
Illingworth, CJR & Hamilton, WL et al. Superspreaders drive the largest outbreaks of hospital onset COVID-19 infections. eLife; 24 Aug 2021; DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/wmkn3

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DOI

10.7554/eLife.67308 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Superspreaders drive the largest outbreaks of hospital onset COVID-19 infections

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

23-Aug-2021

 

WATER IS LIFE

Drinking sufficient water could prevent heart failure

Peer-Reviewed Publication

EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF CARDIOLOGY

Sophia Antipolis, France – 24 Aug 2021:  Staying well hydrated throughout life could reduce the risk of developing heart failure, according to research presented at ESC Congress 2021.1

“Our study suggests that maintaining good hydration can prevent or at least slow down the changes within the heart that lead to heart failure,” said study author Dr. Natalia Dmitrieva of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, US. “The findings indicate that we need to pay attention to the amount of fluid we consume every day and take action if we find that we drink too little.”

Recommendations on daily fluid intake vary from 1.6 to 2.1 litres for women and 2 to 3 litres for men. However, worldwide surveys have shown that many people do not meet even the lower ends of these ranges.2 Serum sodium is a precise measure of hydration status: when people drink less fluid, the concentration of serum sodium increases. The body then attempts to conserve water, activating processes known to contribute to the development of heart failure.

Dr. Dmitrieva said: “It is natural to think that hydration and serum sodium should change day to day depending on how much we drink on each day. However, serum sodium concentration remains within a narrow range over long periods,3 which is likely related to habitual fluid consumption.”

This study examined whether serum sodium concentration in middle age, as a measure of hydration habits, predicts the development of heart failure 25 years later. The researchers also examined the connection between hydration and thickening of the walls of the heart's main pumping chamber (left ventricle) – called left ventricular hypertrophy – which is a precursor to heart failure diagnosis.

The analysis was performed in 15,792 adults in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study. Participants were 44 to 66 years old at recruitment and were evaluated over five visits until age 70 to 90.

Participants were divided into four groups based on their average serum sodium concentration at study visits one and two (conducted in the first three years): 135–139.5, 140–141.5, 142–143.5, and 144–146 mmol/l. For each sodium group, the researchers then analysed the proportion of people who developed heart failure and left ventricular hypertrophy at visit five (25 years later).

Higher serum sodium concentration in midlife was associated with both heart failure and left ventricular hypertrophy 25 years later. Serum sodium remained significantly associated with heart failure and left ventricular hypertrophy after adjusting for other factors related to the development of heart failure: age, blood pressure, kidney function, blood cholesterol, blood glucose, body mass index, sex and smoking status. Every 1 mmol/l increase in serum sodium concentration in midlife was associated with 1.20 and 1.11 increased odds of developing left ventricular hypertrophy and heart failure, respectively, 25 years later.

The risks of both left ventricular hypertrophy and heart failure at age 70 to 90 began to increase when serum sodium exceeded 142 mmol/l in midlife.

Dr. Dmitrieva said: “The results suggest that good hydration throughout life may decrease the risk of developing left ventricular hypertrophy and heart failure. In addition, our finding that serum sodium exceeding 142mmol/l increases the risk of adverse effects in the heart may help to identify people who could benefit from an evaluation of their hydration level. This sodium level is within the normal range and would not be labelled as abnormal in lab test results but could be used by physicians during regular physical exams to identify people whose usual fluid intake should be assessed.”

 

ENDS

 

Notes to editors

Authors: ESC Press Office

Mobile: +33 (0)7 85 31 20 36
Email: press@escardio.org

The hashtag for ESC Congress 2021 is #ESCCongress.

Follow us on Twitter @ESCardioNews 

Funding: The study was funded by the Intramural Program of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NIH grant ZIA-HL006077-10).

Disclosures: None.

References and notes

1Abstract title: Increased risk of heart failure is associated with chronic habitual hypohydration that elevates serum sodium above 142 mmol/l suggesting lifelong optimal hydration as preventive measure.

2Ferreira-Pêgo C, Guelinckx I, Moreno LA, et al. Total fluid intake and its determinants: cross-sectional surveys among adults in 13 countries worldwide. Eur J Nutr. 2015;54 Suppl 2:S35–S43.

3Zhang Z, Duckart J, Slatore CG, et al. Individuality of the plasma sodium concentration. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol. 2014;306:F1534–F1543.

About the European Society of Cardiology

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Compounds that give coffee its distinctive ‘mouthfeel’

Reports and Proceedings

AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY

ATLANTA, Aug. 24, 2021 — Coffee drinkers intuitively recognize the pleasure of swallowing a smooth, rich brew versus a watery one. Aside from added cream or sugar, the coffee itself contributes to this sensation — referred to as body or mouthfeel — but the specific compounds are not well defined. Now, researchers report several coffee compounds that contribute to the feeling of the beverage coating the inside of the mouth, as well as astringency and chalkiness sensations. The results could be used to tune processing and roasting conditions for specialty coffees.

The researchers will present their results today at the fall meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS Fall 2021 is a hybrid meeting being held virtually and in-person Aug. 22-26, and on-demand content will be available Aug. 30-Sept. 30. The meeting features more than 7,000 presentations on a wide range of science topics.

“We’ve known that coffee itself can impact textural sensations, and it was traditionally thought to be because of sugars and lipids,” says Christopher Simons, Ph.D., one of the project’s co-principal investigators. “But our team finds that this feeling may actually be driven by small molecules, which is kind of unique.” He says that this knowledge could help producers and growers make the best coffee. It also could help aficionados attribute certain features of a cup of java to specific compounds, just as wine enthusiasts do.

Brianne Linne, a graduate student who is presenting the work at the meeting, had previously studied tactile perception on the tongue when the opportunity to study coffee body arose. “From our background reading, we found definitions of coffee body to be very vague, and at times, contradictory, so we thought that this would be an intriguing topic for us to study,” she says. Linne is working with Simons and co-principal investigator Devin Peterson, Ph.D., on the project at The Ohio State University (OSU).

The team set out to isolate the compounds responsible for coffee’s mouthfeel by first establishing a descriptive analysis panel. They started with four different coffees that evaluators licensed by the Specialty Coffee Association had given varying ratings in terms of body. A separate panel of eight experienced tasters, skilled in tactile awareness, then agreed on a set of references that illustrated the sensations differentiating each cup.

“To better define the term ‘body,’ we broke it down into components that would allow us to look for the compounds driving those particular sensations,” says Simons. Four tactile sub-attributes, namely chalkiness, mouthcoating, astringency and thickness were used to differentiate the coffees. They separated the fullest-body coffee into 12 fractions using liquid chromatography and a panel of five tasters screened each fraction. If a majority ranked a sub-attribute strongly in a fraction, it was further purified to pinpoint the exact compound responsible.

The researchers found that a cluster of small molecules contribute to coffee’s mouthfeel. Peterson says they isolated melanoidin compounds, formed by the Maillard reaction during roasting, and for the first time associated them with astringency. Two compounds, 3- and 4-caffeoylquinic acid, correspond with mouthcoating. Unexpectedly, the sensation subsided with increased concentrations. Peterson says that although biological responses are multifaceted, it is uncommon for an attribute to be perceived at low levels, but not at high levels. Finally, they isolated a novel compound related to chalkiness that contains an amino acid.

The team is now interested in whether there are mechanoreceptors in the mouth that detect these small molecules. According to Peterson, such receptors could be responsible for the decreased mouthcoating sensation that occurs with increasing caffeoylquinic acid. They also want to know more about how coffee bean growing conditions and roasting temperatures affect the compounds. With this knowledge, growers and producers could manipulate their processes to downplay or highlight the small molecules in a cup of coffee according to consumers’ preferences.

A recorded media briefing on this topic will be posted Tuesday, Aug. 24 at 9 a.m. Eastern time at www.acs.org/acsfall2021briefings.

The researchers acknowledge support and funding from the OSU Flavor Research and Education Center.

The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. ACS’ mission is to advance the broader chemistry enterprise and its practitioners for the benefit of Earth and all its people. The Society is a global leader in promoting excellence in science education and providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple research solutions, peer-reviewed journals, scientific conferences, eBooks and weekly news periodical Chemical & Engineering News. ACS journals are among the most cited, most trusted and most read within the scientific literature; however, ACS itself does not conduct chemical research. As a leader in scientific information solutions, its CAS division partners with global innovators to accelerate breakthroughs by curating, connecting and analyzing the world’s scientific knowledge. ACS’ main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

To automatically receive press releases from the American Chemical Society, contact newsroom@acs.org.

Note to journalists: Please report that this research was presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society.

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Title
Identification and characterization of chemical compounds contributing to coffee body

Abstract
Body is one of ten attributes defined by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) that contributes to the overall quality rating of coffee, and, consequently, to the value ascribed to coffee beans. The SCA describes coffee body as the “tactile feeling” of the liquid in the mouth. This study investigated compounds that impact tactile sensations of drip brewed coffee. A descriptive analysis (DA) panel was presented with a set of coffees receiving a range of body scores from certified Q-grade cuppers and, through multiple tastings, identified four tactile sub-attributes that allowed differentiation among presented coffees (“chalkiness”, “mouthcoating”, “astringency”, and “thickness”). A sensory-guided fractionation methodology was then employed with the highest body coffee undergoing multi-dimensional separation on a preparative-scale liquid chromatography system equipped with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (QqQ MS) detector. After each dimension of separation, sensory analysis was conducted by the trained DA panel to screen for activity using a combined paired-comparison and intensity rating sensory evaluation protocol. Phenolic quinic acids and melanoidins were implicated in mouthcoating and astringency perceptions, respectively. Compounds were identified using authentic standards and MS/MS fragmentation analysis. Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance coupled with MS (FT-ICR MS) was further utilized to character the melanoidin isolate. Compound concentration ranges were quantified in coffee using standard addition and sensory recombination testing further validated contribution to tactile attributes. Psychophysical testing will follow to elucidate mechanistic underpinnings. This research provides a molecular basis through which to understand how processing and roasting conditions may impact coffee body and mouthfeel and will also contribute to the dearth of knowledge on tactile perception in the oral cavity and its relation to the food and flavor experience.

 

Confirming the pedigree of uranium cubes from Nazi Germany’s failed nuclear program

Reports and Proceedings

AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY

 

IMAGE: ROBERTSON WITH PNNL’S CUBE, WHICH IS IN A PROTECTIVE CASE. view more 

CREDIT: ANDREA STARR/PNNL

ATLANTA, Aug. 24, 2021 — During World War II, Nazi Germany and the U.S. were racing to develop nuclear technology. Before Germany could succeed, Allied forces disrupted the program and confiscated some of the cubes of uranium at the heart of it. The ultimate fate of most of that uranium is unknown, but a few cubes thought to be associated with the program are in the U.S. and Europe. Today, scientists report initial results from new methods being developed to confirm their provenance. The techniques might also help with investigations into illicit trafficking of nuclear material.

The researchers will present their results at the fall meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS Fall 2021 is a hybrid meeting being held virtually and in-person Aug. 22-26, and on-demand content will be available Aug. 30-Sept. 30. The meeting features more than 7,000 presentations on a wide range of science topics.

One cube is at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), but no one is sure how it got there, says Jon Schwantes, Ph.D., the project’s principal investigator. Through collaborators, including Timothy Koeth, Ph.D., at the University of Maryland, the lab also has access to a few other cubes. “We don’t know for a fact that the cubes are from the German program, so first we want to establish that,” Schwantes says. “Then we want to compare the different cubes to see if we can classify them according to the particular research group that created them.”

In the early 1940s, several German scientists were competing to exploit nuclear fission to produce plutonium from uranium for the war. The teams included Werner Heisenberg’s group in Berlin (later moved to Haigerloch to try to avoid Allied troops) and Kurt Diebner’s team at Gottow. Uranium cubes were produced to fuel nuclear reactors at these sites. Measuring about 2 inches on each side, hundreds of the cubes were hung on cables submerged in “heavy” water, in which deuterium replaces lighter hydrogen. The scientists hoped radioactive decay of the uranium in the assemblies would unleash a self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction — but the design failed.

U.S. and British forces seized some of the Heisenberg uranium cubes at Haigerloch in 1945, and more than 600 of these cubes were shipped to the U.S. Some may have been used in the U.S. nuclear weapons effort — which was launched in part due to fears that Germany was developing nuclear weapons — and a few belong to collectors and sites including PNNL. The whereabouts of the others, including hundreds of Diebner cubes, are unknown.

PNNL uses its sample to help train international border guards and nuclear forensics researchers to detect nuclear material. It’s labeled as a Heisenberg cube, but support for that assertion is anecdotal, says Brittany Robertson, who is presenting the work at ACS Fall 2021. “We didn't have any actual measurements to back up that claim,” says Robertson, a doctoral student who works at the lab. To prove the cube’s origins, she began modifying some analytical techniques to combine with Schwantes’ established forensic methods. Robertson turned to radiochronometry, the nuclear field’s version of a technique that geologists use to determine the age of samples based on radioactive isotope content.

When the cubes were first cast, they contained fairly pure uranium metal. As time passed, radioactive decay transformed some of the uranium into thorium and protactinium. Robertson is adapting a radiochronometry procedure to better separate and quantify these elements in PNNL’s cube. Their relative concentrations will show how long ago the cube was made. She is also refining this method to analyze rare-earth element impurities in the object. They could reveal where the original uranium was mined, which might indicate whether it was produced for the Heisenberg or Diebner group.

Meanwhile, Robertson and Schwantes are collaborating with PNNL’s Carlos Fraga, Ph.D., to test the cubes’ coatings, which the Germans applied to limit oxidation. The PNNL team recently discovered that the cube at the University of Maryland is coated in styrene — an unexpected finding since Heisenberg’s group used a cyanide-based coating. However, the team has now learned that some of the cubes from Diebner’s group, which used a styrene-based coating, were sent to Heisenberg, who was trying to amass more fuel for his reactor. “We’re curious if this particular cube was one of the ones associated with both research programs,” Schwantes says. “Also, this is an opportunity for us to test our science before we apply it in an actual nuclear forensic investigation.”

While the scientists are intrigued about working with material from the dawn of the nuclear age, these objects are undeniably linked to a horrific time in history. “I’m glad the Nazi program wasn't as advanced as they wanted it to be by the end of the war,” Robertson says, “because otherwise, the world would be a very different place.”

A recorded media briefing on this topic will be posted Tuesday, Aug. 24 at 9 a.m. Eastern time at www.acs.org/acsfall2021briefings.

###

The researchers acknowledge support and funding from PNNL.

The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. ACS’ mission is to advance the broader chemistry enterprise and its practitioners for the benefit of Earth and all its people. The Society is a global leader in promoting excellence in science education and providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple research solutions, peer-reviewed journals, scientific conferences, eBooks and weekly news periodical Chemical & Engineering News. ACS journals are among the most cited, most trusted and most read within the scientific literature; however, ACS itself does not conduct chemical research. As a leader in scientific information solutions, its CAS division partners with global innovators to accelerate breakthroughs by curating, connecting and analyzing the world’s scientific knowledge. ACS’ main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

To automatically receive press releases from the American Chemical Society, contact newsroom@acs.org.

Note to journalists: Please report that this research was presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Follow us: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

Title
Nuclear forensic analysis to confirm the pedigree of U metal cubes allegedly recovered from Nazi Germany’s nuclear program

Abstract
Experimental methods for determining the last chemical process age and geological origin of uranium material is of value to the nuclear nonproliferation and safeguards community. Rare Earth Element (REE) patterns are often used to trace the geological origin of materials sourced from ore bodies. Radiochronometry, a common method used for determining process age of uranium bearing material, involves measuring the in grown 230Th produced from the decay of 234U. An additional uranium decay product pair radiochronometer that is less often employed involves measuring the in grown 231Pa produced from the decay of 235U. Applying more than one radiochronometer to unknown materials is good practice, since concordant results from these chronometers provide a level of confidence that the underlying assumptions of radiochronometry have been met. However, doing so adds to the level of effort required to perform the analysis. An experimental method has been developed that can simultaneously separate Th and Pa from a dissolved uranium metal sample efficiently to provide two independent measures of the uranium material age. This same method can also separate trace level REEs that are characteristic of the geological origin of the uranium. Here we test and demonstrate this experimental method to a set of historic samples allegedly recovered from Nazi Germany’s nuclear program during World War, commonly referred to as Heisenberg Cubes. Results to date are presented comparing the two chronometers and rare earth element analysis.