Persistent Dry Spells (PDS) during winter in the eastern Mediterranean are crucial to understanding the regional challenges of water resources and mitigating agricultural and economic impacts. Winter dry spells significantly affect ecosystem stability, public health, and socioeconomic conditions in a region susceptible to climate variability. Therefore, extending the forecast horizon of these extreme weather events to sub-seasonal time scales is a key challenge. With this aim, we examine the covariability of the sea surface temperature of the Indian Ocean and Persistent Dry Spells during winter over the eastern Mediterranean. The positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) phase alters global circulation patterns, notably increasing the geopotential height at 500 hPa and the sea-level pressure over western Russia, eastern Europe, and the eastern Mediterranean during PDS events. Concurrently, the positive IOD phase enhances moisture fluxes and decreases sea level pressure and geopotential height at 500 hPa in the Western Mediterranean, suggesting increased cyclonic activity in that region. This type of activity probably influences the formation of PDS in the eastern Mediterranean through latent heating and the formation of ridges downstream of the cyclones. The baroclinic, subtropical, and polar regimes are large-scale synoptic regimes alternately prevailing during PDS events. Changes due to the DMI phase are not identical under these regimes and sometimes have opposite trends. The baroclinic regime is the most frequent regime during PDS events. Consequently, the average changes in pressure intensity during PDS events strongly resemble those during baroclinic days. Positive DMI case studies exemplify the effect of these large-scale regimes. We provide evidence for a link between the positive phase of IOD in December and the frequency of longer (> 15 days) PDS events. The normalized frequencies of persistent 15-20-day events under the positive dipole mode index (DMI) are 4-8% higher than the frequency of negative DMI. The frequencies of 6-7 day events are ~20% lower. Finally, we emphasize the sensitivity of persistent dry spells during winter to event definition, the chosen precipitation data source, and threshold definitions for climate indices. These considerations are essential for improving the accuracy of regional weather and climate predictions, further enhancing our understanding of the climatic impacts of IOD and other teleconnection patterns in the eastern Mediterranean and worldwide.

We present the investigation of a Burkholderia pseudomallei strain isolated from the urine of a 56-year-old male returning from a recreational trip to Thailand. The patient initially presented with fever and chills, and lobar as well as bladder and prostate involvement was demonstrated on imaging. Treatment first involved trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, the backbone of melioidosis therapy, but was discontinued upon the discovery of resistance to the drug through antimicrobial sensitivity testing via broth microdilution. Further analysis included genomic sequencing, immunotyping, and phenotypic assessment, including virulence testing in an animal model. Results indicated that this strain is a distinct, novel variant with antigenic similarity to other Thai strains displaying high virulence, with a significantly low murine intranasal lethal dose 50% inoculum. The emergence of such a strain, particularly if prevalent in tourist destinations in Thailand, could pose a substantial public health risk, highlighting the need for ongoing vigilance among infectious disease specialists and clinical microbiologists.

This research investigates the potential of vertical greenery systems (VGS) to modulate the outdoor microclimate in a real-scale Mediterranean climate street canyon with respect to a non-vegetated control during four heat waves and summer conditions. The cooling effect of VGS on air temperature was assessed using an identical set of sensors in both canyons. The effect on thermal comfort was evaluated using radiation fluxes, Mr.T tool, and the ENVI-met model that was validated against measured data. The VGS cooling effect during the heat waves was up to 0.36–2.04°C, and its duration was significantly extended. The correlation (R2 = 0.75) between the cooling effect, relative humidity, and wind direction, highlights that warmer and drier conditions increase the VGS cooling effect during heat waves. VGS improved the mean radiant temperature (Tmrt) above the canyon (3.9–4.1°C) and at the pedestrian level (2.21–2.8°C), while the physiological equivalent temperature (PET) and universal thermal climate index (UTCI) decreased by an average of 0.67–1.07 °C and 0.63–0.8 °C, respectively. Shaded walls improved the average Tmrt (11.7°C), PET (3.2°C), and UTCI (2.7°C), reflecting the importance of casting shadow in the urban environment.

Organophosphates (OP), commonly used in agriculture and as chemical warfare agents, pose significant environmental risks, necessitating real-time, low-cost OP detection methods. In particular, liquid-phase OP sensing with minimal sample volumes is crucial. While several methods allow rapid detection of low concentrations of OP vapors, they are effective only in the short term, while vapors are still being produced. Many OP compounds are semi-volatile, leading to the contamination of water, soil, and surfaces, posing a risk of secondary, long-term exposure. Detecting this contamination requires methods that can be directly applied to droplets of the affected medium. Currently, no method provides the desired combination of ultra-sensitivity, quantitative detection, rapid response, and low-cost for detecting OPs in liquid samples. This study aims to demonstrate quantitative, low-cost, real-time, specific, and label-free OP sensing in ultra-small samples using a transistor-based approach. The current work employs the 2-(4-Aminophenyl)-1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (aminophenyl-HFIP) functionalized meta-nano-channel field-effect chemical sensor (MNChem sensor) to monitor the organophosphate, diethyl cyanophosphonate (DCNP), in liquid samples. The silicon component of the MNChem is fabricated using a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process, and the amine-based chemical functionalization of the sensing area is performed post-fabrication. The MNChem sensor provides electrostatic control over the source-drain current (IDS), allowing an optimized channel configuration that efficiently transduces localized OP recognition events into significant IDS variations. Sensing is performed using 0.5 μL buffer solution to simulate a miniature field-deployable sensor for on-site liquid analysis. We report the sensing of DCNP with a limit-of-detection of 100 fg/mL, a dynamic range of 9 orders of magnitude, and excellent linearity (≥0.97) and sensitivity. Control measurements confirm the specificity and reliability of the sensor's response, validating its applicability. This study introduces a novel method for OP detection in contaminated droplets using a low-cost disposable transistor technology.

Anthrax is a fatal zoonotic disease caused by exposure to Bacillus anthracis spores. The CDC in its guidelines divides anthrax treatment to three indications according to disease progression: PEP, systemic, systemic with suspicion of CNS infection. While prognosis of PEP or early treatment of systemic anthrax is very good, ingress of the bacteria into the CNS possesses a substantial clinical challenge. Here we use rabbits to test the efficacy of the combined treatment of Meropenem and Doxycycline which is the first choice in the CDC recommendations for treating systemic patients with indication of CNS infection. In addition, we test the efficacy of the first-generation cepha-losporin, cefazolin, in treating different stages of the disease. We found that the combination of Doxycycline and Meropenem is highly effective in treating rabbits in our inhalation model. Cefazoline was efficient only as PEP or systemic stage treatment but not CNS infected animals. Our findings support the CDC recommendation of using a combination of Doxycycline and Mero-penem for systemic patients with or without indications for CNS infection. We found that Cefazoline is a decent choice for PEP or early sage systemic disease but recommend considering using this antibiotic only if all other options are not available.

Mainstream virus detection relies on the specific amplification of nucleic acids via polymerase chain reaction, a process that is slow and requires extensive laboratory expertise and equipment. Other modalities, such as antigen-based tests, allow much faster virus detection but have reduced sensitivity. In this study, we introduce an approach for rapid and specific detection of single nanoparticles using a confocal-based flow virometer. The combination of laminar flow in a microfluidic channel and correlated fluorescence signals emerging from both free dyes and fluorescently-labeled primary antibodies provide insights into nanoparticle volumes and specificities. We evaluate and validate the assay using fluorescent beads and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2 with fluorescently-labeled primary antibodies. Additionally, we demonstrate how hydrodynamic focusing enhances the assay sensitivity for detecting viruses at relevant loads. Based on our results, we envision the future use of this technology for clinically relevant bio-nanoparticles, supported by the implementation of the assay in a portable and user-friendly setup.

Information and decision support systems are essential to conducting scientific field campaigns in the atmospheric sciences. However, their development is costly and time-consuming since each field campaign has its own research goals, which result in using a unique set of sensors and various analysis procedures. To reduce development costs, we present a software framework that is based on the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and an implementation using well-established and newly developed open-source components. This framework architecture and these components allow developers to customize the software to a campaign’s specific needs while keeping the coding to a minimum. The framework’s applicability was tested in two scientific field campaigns that dealt with questions regarding air quality by developing specialized IIoT applications for each one. Each application provided the online monitoring of the acquired data and an intuitive interface for the scientific team to perform the analysis. The framework presented in this study is sufficiently robust and adaptable to meet the diverse requirements of field campaigns.

Rationale

Tramadol (T) is a strong painkiller drug that belongs to the opioid analgesic group. Several accidental intoxication cases after oral administration of T have been reported in the past decade. Tramadol, its derivatives, and metabolites present information-limited mass spectra with one prominent peak representing the amine-containing residue; therefore, their structural determination based on both electron impact mass spectrometry (EI-MS) and ESI-MS/MS spectra could be misleading.

Methods

A novel analytical method for the structural elucidation of tramadol, its four homologs, and its two main phase I metabolites (N-desmethyltramadol and O-desmethyltramadol) was developed using chemical modification and liquid chromatography–high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (LC-HR-MS/MS) with Orbitrap technology.

Results

After chemical derivatization, each of the investigated T series exhibited informative mass spectra that enabled better exposition of their structures. The developed method was successfully implemented to explicitly identify the structures of tramadol and its N-desmethyltramadol metabolite in urine samples at low ng/mL levels.

Conclusions

An efficient derivatization-aided strategy was developed for rapidly elucidating the structure of tramadol-like compounds. The method is intended to assist forensic chemists in better diagnosing T and its analogs and metabolites in clinical or forensic toxicology laboratories.

Rationale Benzodiazepines (BZDs) construct a large group of psychoactive drugs acting as depressants of the central nervous system (CNS) and used in medicine as sedatives and anxiolytic and antiepileptic agents. The illicit use of these materials is a worldwide problem, and for many years, part of the benzodiazepines have been abused as rape drugs. For example, flunitrazepam (Rohypnol) is most commonly linked by media reports to drug-facilitated sexual assaults, more commonly referred to as “date rape.” Furthermore, there are growing concerns for other misuses of these drugs. Over the last few years, there was an increase in the number, type, and availability of new psychoactive substances (NPS) belonging to the benzodiazepine group, challenging standard forensic labs to fully identify the chemical structure of new, unknown benzodiazepines. Methods This work demonstrates a new application of the automated tool for the detection and identification of benzodiazepine analogues using high-resolution-accurate-mass LC-MS analysis, followed by “Compound Discoverer” (CD) software data processing, to automatically detect various benzodiazepine analogues by picking peaks and compare them to in silico calculated modifications made on a predefined basic backbone. Subsequently, a complete structural elucidation for the proposed molecular formula is obtained by MS/MS data analysis of the suspected component. Results This method was found to be useful for the automated detection and putative identification of a series of nine “unknown” benzodiazepine analogues, at concentrations in the low ng/mL range. Conclusions We hereby present a general demonstration of this powerful tool for the forensic community in the detection and identification of hazardous unknown compounds.

A systematic study of trends in the lipophilicity of prominent representatives of the opioid family, including natural, semisynthetic, synthetic, and endogenous neuropeptide opioids, is described. This was enabled by a straightforward ¹H NMR-based logP/D determination method developed for compounds holding at least one aromatic hydrogen atom. Moreover, the new method enables a direct simultaneous logD determination of opioid mixtures, overcoming the high sensitivity of this family to the measurement conditions, which is critical when a determination of the exact ΔlogD values of matched pairs is required. Interpretation of the experimental ΔlogD_7.4 values of selected matched pairs, focusing inter alia on the 3-OMe and 14-OMe motifs in morphinan opioids, is suggested with the aid of DFT calculations and may be useful for the discovery of new opioid therapeutics.