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It is expected that 6G communication technology will achieve a peak data rate capability of 1 Tbit/s. One way of reaching this goal is to employ THz frequencies for carrying wireless signals. THz frequencies have large continuous bandwidths which allow for high data rate signals. In order to support the development of THz communications and accompanying technologies, a 6G THz Communications Testbed has been set-up at the National Physical Laboratory. In this paper, the best signal performance for a variety of different baud rates and modulation schemes is explored for both a direct connection between the waveform generator and measuring oscilloscope and for several different Over-The-Air (OTA) path lengths up to 4 m specular Non-Line-of-Sight. For the direct connection, signals of up to 210 Gbit/s were achieved and data rates of up to 150 Gbit/s were achieved for OTA transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a need to assess whether ecological resources are being protected on large, federal lands. The aim of this study was to present a methodology which consistently and transparently determines whether two large Department of Energy (U.S. DOE) facilities have protected valuable ecological lands on their sites compared to the surrounding region. The National Land Cover Database (2019) was used to examine the % shrub-scrub (shrub-steppe) and other habitats on the DOE’s Hanford Site (HS, Washington) and on the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), compared to a 10-km and 30-km diameter band of land surrounding each site. On both sites, over 95% is in shrub-scrub or grassland, compared to the surrounding region. Approximately 70% of 10 km and 30-km bands around INL, and less than 50% of land surrounding HS is located in these two habitat types. INL has preserved a significantly higher % shrub/scrub habitat than HS, but INL allows grazing on 60% of its land. HS has preserved a significantly higher % grassland than INL but no grazing on site is present. The methodology presented may be used to compare key ecological habitat types such as grasslands, forest, and desert among sites in different parts of the country. This methodology enables managers, resource trustees, and the public to (1) make remediation decisions that protect resources, (2) assess whether landowners and managers have adequately characterized and protected environmental resources on their sites, and (3) whether landowners and managers have protected the integrity of that land as well as its climax vegetation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European Union (EU) regulations on in vitro diagnostics (IVD) and on serious cross-border threats to health provide for the establishment of European Reference Laboratories (EURLs) and their harmonization and cooperation with National Reference Laboratories (NRLs). While the EURLs under the IVD Regulation will be operational by 1 October 2024, the EURLs under the Regulation on serious cross-border threats to health will be operational by January 2025. Although NRLs may have been operating for a long time on the basis of national legislation, they should now cooperate with each other and with EURLs in a network of centers of excellence for the authorization and post-market surveillance of IVDs and for the epidemiological surveillance and control of communicable diseases. The term “reference laboratory” has long been used colloquially to refer to many kinds of laboratories, regardless of their tasks, competencies, responsibilities and designation. A literature search and analysis confirmed this by showing that a considerable proportion of scientific publications in 2024 use the term “reference laboratory” inappropriately. In order to clarify the roles and functioning of EURLs and NRLs, we have evaluated the relevant current EU provisions and compared the findings with those of reference laboratories designated by other organizations, calibration (reference) laboratories and referral laboratories, which are simply referred to as “reference laboratories”. With the forthcoming implementation of the EU regulations, at least the goals of providing safe and high-quality IVDs and adequate public health surveillance for communicable diseases appear to be achievable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An overview of the 200 TW Frascati Laser for Acceleration and Multidisciplinary Experiments (FLAME) at the SPARC_LAB Test Facility at the National Laboratories of Frascati (LNF-INFN) is presented. The FLAME laser is employed to investigate different laser–matter interaction schemes, i.e., electron acceleration and secondary radiation sources through Laser Wakefield Acceleration (LWFA) or ion and proton generation through Target Normal Sheath Acceleration (TNSA), for a wide range of scientific areas including the biomedical applications. Finally, recently performed experimental campaigns within the EuAPS and EuPRAXIA frameworks are reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molten silicates at depth are crucial for planetary evolution, yet their local structure and physical properties under extreme conditions remain elusive due to experimental challenges. In this study, we utilize in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) at the Matter in Extreme Conditions (MEC) end-station of the Linear Coherent Linac Source (LCLS) at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory to investigate liquid silicates. Using an ultrabright X-ray source and a high-power optical laser, we probed the local atomic arrangement of shock-compressed liquid (Mg,Fe)SiO3 with varying Fe content, at pressures from 81(9) to 385(40) GPa. We compared these findings to ab initio molecular dynamics simulations under similar conditions. Results indicate continuous densification of the O-O and Mg-Si networks beyond Earth's interior pressure range, potentially altering melt properties at extreme conditions. This could have significant implications for early planetary evolution, leading to notable differences in differentiation processes between smaller rocky planets, such as Earth and Venus, and super-Earths, which are exoplanets with masses nearly three times that of Earth. Combining laser-driven shock compression and ultra-short X-ray pulses from LCLS, the local structure of liquid silicates was determined up to 385 GPa. Compared with molecular dynamics calculations, continuous densification of O-O and Mg-Si networks may alter melt properties and impact planetary differentiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Probabilistic evaluation of the internal pressure capacity before excessive leakage is essential for ensuring preemptive response in case of a severe accident in a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) subjected to internal pressure in a nuclear power plant. Therefore, in this study, we conducted a fragility analysis to evaluate the probabilistic internal pressure capacity for damage states before excessive leakage. Three damage states were classified, and a finite element (FE) model was developed based on the experimental test results of a 1 : 4 scale PCCV under the overpressurization condition at Sandia National Laboratory. The three damage states were determined as the onset of inelastic behavior (DS1), onset of leakage (DS2), and excessive leakage (DS3). Fragility analysis was performed using a validated FE model to consider uncertainties in material properties and prestressing force. The Latin hypercube sampling method was used to perform uncertainty quantification, and normality tests verified that the samples exhibited normal distributions. The internal pressure capacity variability in DS1 and DS2 was higher than that in DS3. DS1 is the point at which the compressive deformation caused by the prestressing force was converted into tensile deformation because of the increase in the internal pressure, which resulted in tensile concrete cracking. Furthermore, DS2 is the state in which localized damage of the liner occurred and cracks in the concrete spread. Thus, the internal pressure capacity for DS1 and DS2 exhibited high variability because of the uncertainty of the prestressing force and material properties. Moreover, the median capabilities of DS1, DS2, and DS3 were ~1.85, 2.61, and 3.45 times the design pressure, respectively. Therefore, material and structural uncertainties in nuclear power plants should be appropriately considered, and a conservative assessment of the damage state before excessive leakage should be performed for preemptive response in the case of severe accidents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compares the performance of old and new lung counters in the National Institutes for Quantum Sciences and Technology of Japan. The total sensitive area of the detector crystals for the new lung counter is ~15% smaller than that for the old lung counter. Minimum detectable activities (MDAs) for 241Am and 239Pu were evaluated through experiments using a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory torso phantom. Despite differences in detector configuration, the MDAs were found to be comparable between the two lung counters. For a chest wall thickness of 2.1 cm and a counting time of 30 min, the MDAs of 241Am and 239Pu were 5.7 and 2300 Bq for the old lung counter, and 5.5 and 2600 Bq for the new lung counter, respectively. Experimental results for the relative sensitivities between left-side and right-side detectors suggested that the new lung counter offered better measurement geometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combination monoclonal broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) are currently being developed for preventing HIV-1 acquisition. Recent work has focused on predicting in vitro neutralization potency of both individual bnAbs and combination regimens against HIV-1 pseudoviruses using Env sequence features. To predict in vitro combination regimen neutralization potency against a given HIV-1 pseudovirus, previous approaches have applied mathematical models to combine individual-bnAb neutralization and have predicted this combined neutralization value; we call this the combine-then-predict (CP) approach. However, prediction performance for some individual bnAbs has exceeded that for the combination, leading to another possibility: combining the individual-bnAb predicted values and using these to predict combination regimen neutralization; we call this the predict-then-combine (PC) approach. We explore both approaches in both simulated data and data from the Los Alamos National Laboratory's Compile, Neutralize, and Tally NAb Panels repository. The CP approach is superior to the PC approach when the neutralization outcome of interest is binary (e.g., neutralization susceptibility, defined as inhibitory 80% concentration < 1 μg/mL). For continuous outcomes, the CP approach performs nearly as well as the PC approach when the individual-bnAb prediction algorithms have strong performance, and is superior to the PC approach when the individual-bnAb prediction algorithms have poor performance. This knowledge may be used when building prediction models for novel antibody combinations in the absence of in vitro neutralization data for the antibody combination; this, in turn, will aid in the evaluation and down-selection of these antibody combinations into prevention efficacy trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opacity measurements are being carried out at the Z-facility at Sandia National Laboratories and at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The current soft x-ray Opacity Spectrometer (OpSpec) used on the NIF uses two elliptically bent crystals in time-integrated mode on either an image plate or a film. Plans are under way to expand these opacity measurements into a mode of time-resolved detection, called OpSpecTR. Previously, considerations for the available hCMOS detector size and photometrics led to a crystal geometry redesign and the use of a grazing angle x-ray mirror. The mirror acts as a low-pass x-ray energy filter, reducing the contribution of higher energy x rays. The first tests of the mirror and the crystal for OpSpecTR are presented here. The size of the mirror reflection and the reflectivity is tested using a Manson x-ray source. The mirror coupled with the new elliptical crystal shape demonstrates OpSpecTR's spectral coverage. The results from the x-ray optics performance testing are shown along with the intended design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Frustraums have a higher laser-to-capsule x-ray radiation coupling efficiency and can accommodate a large capsule, thus potentially generating a higher yield with less laser energy than cylindrical Hohlraums for a given Hohlraum volume [Amendt et al., Phys. Plasmas 26, 082707 (2019]. Frustraums are expected to have less m = 4 azimuthal asymmetries arising from the intrinsic inner-laser-beam geometry on the National Ignition Facility. An experimental campaign at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to demonstrate the high-coupling efficiency and radiation symmetry tuning of the Frustraum has been under way since 2021. Simulations benchmarked against experimental data show that implosions using Frustraums can achieve more yield with higher ignition margins than cylindrical Hohlraums using the same laser energy. Hydrodynamic jets in capsules along the Hohlraum axis, driven by radiation-flux asymmetries in a Hohlraum with a gold liner on a depleted uranium (DU) wall, are present around stagnation, and these "polar" jets can cause severe yield degradation. The early-time Legendre mode P4 < 0 radiation-flux asymmetry is a leading cause of these jets, which can be reduced by using an unlined DU Hohlraum because the shape of the shell is predicted to be more prolate. Magnetization can increase the implosion robustness and reduce the required hotspot ρ R for ignition; therefore, magnetizing the Frustraum can maintain the same yield while reducing the required laser energy or increase the yield using the same laser energy—all under the constraint that the ignition margin is preserved. Reducing polar jets is particularly important for magnetized implosions because of the intrinsic toroidal hotspot ion temperature topology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Clacc project has developed OpenACC compiler, runtime, and profiling interface support for C/C++ by extending Clang and LLVM. A key Clacc design feature is that it translates OpenACC to OpenMP to leverage the OpenMP offloading support that is actively being developed for Clang and LLVM. A benefit of this design is support for two compilation modes: traditional compilation mode produces a binary, and source-to-source mode produces OpenMP source. Clacc has been deployed on Oak Ridge National Laboratory's (ORNL's) Frontier, on which Clacc is the only OpenACC implementation for C/C++. Clacc supports x86_64, POWER9, AMD GPUs, and NVIDIA GPUs. Clacc's OpenACC profiling interface support has been integrated with TAU, which is also deployed on Frontier. While Clacc has always supported C as a base language, Clacc also has increasing C++ support, including support for Kokkos's OpenACC back end. Clacc itself is hosted publicly on GitHub. In this paper, we describe Clacc's design and mapping from OpenACC directives to OpenMP. We also present a performance evaluation on ORNL's Frontier (AMD MI250x GPU offload) and Argonne National Laboratory's (ANL's) Polaris (NVIDIA A100 GPU offload) for various SPEC ACCEL and Kokkos OpenACC back end benchmarks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Stereo-DIC is a widely used optical measurement technique that provides a dense full-field 3D measurement of the shape, displacement, and strain of a solid sample. When compared with 2D-DIC, Stereo-DIC provides greater flexibility and expands its use beyond flat, planar specimens. Furthermore, the widespread availability of commercial systems has led to the adoption of the technique throughout industry, academia, and government research labs. Objective: Even though some research has been done to understand the effects of different experimental and stereo-DIC parameters, no reference is available to benchmark and compare the performance of current stereo-DIC algorithms to each other. Methods: This paper provides the description and analysis of a carefully controlled 3D experiment and associated images used to compare the results from five subset based DIC software packages. Both the images and analysis codes used in this paper to compare the results are described here and are available for download and use for continued research. Results: We show that over a very large range of motion, the 3D errors are very small, less than 80 μ m over a travel of ±20 mm out-of-plane and ±20 mm in-plane. While all codes performed similarly, there are important differences noted in the paper. Conclusion: The image sets and results comparison software are hosted by the International DIC Society (www.iDICs.org) and are freely available for download and analysis for comparison with results in this paper. Furthermore, it is hoped that this set of images can be used for future research in improving stereo-DIC by future authors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article from Health Security discusses the private sector's role in US human pathogen research and the lack of federal oversight in this area. It highlights the risks posed by private laboratories operating without proper regulation, using the example of an unlicensed lab in Reedley, California. The article calls for more systematic regulation and oversight of private human pathogen research in the United States, emphasizing the need for a unified policy covering all work involving relevant human pathogen research, regardless of funding source. The authors recommend expanding frameworks with laboratory biosafety and biosecurity requirements to ensure safety and prevent potential risks associated with private sector research. [Extracted from the article]

This paper presents a data-driven approach to learn latent dynamics in superconducting quantum computing hardware. To this end, we augment the dynamical equation of quantum systems described by the Lindblad master equation with a parameterized source term that is trained from experimental data to capture unknown system dynamics, such as environmental interactions and system noise. We consider a structure preserving augmentation that learns and distinguishes unitary from dissipative latent dynamics parameterized by a basis of linear operators, as well as an augmentation given by a nonlinear feed-forward neural network. Numerical results are presented using data from two different quantum processing units (QPUs) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's Quantum Device and Integration Testbed. We demonstrate that our interpretable, structure preserving, and nonlinear models are able to improve the prediction accuracy of the Lindblad master equation and accurately model the latent dynamics of the QPUs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A molten salt reactor is one of the fourth-generation reactors and is considered to be a feasible replacement for current reactors due to their many advantages. However, there are a number of issues that remain; one of which is the corrosion of the materials. Corrosion problems in molten salt reactors have been reported since The Molten Salt Reactor Experiment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the 1960s. There have been many attempts to mitigate the corrosion problem, but a fundamental solution has not yet been achived. In this study, surface reaction-diffusion-coupled simulations were performed to simulate the corrosion of a Ni–Cr–Fe material, a prototype of Hastelloy N, which is being promoted as a structural material for molten salt reactors in F–Li–Na–K eutectic salts. This surface reaction-diffusion-coupled simulation framework was developed to study which corrosion reactions are dominant in molten salt environment corrosion where a large number of oxidation–reduction reactions exist, the correlation between composition of alloy and corrosion rate, and the effect of Cr depletion on corrosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The molten salt reactor (MSR) flowing-fuel simulation capability of the Griffin-Pronghorn-coupled multiphysics code system developed by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) was verified against the Center National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) MSR benchmark problem. Griffin and Pronghorn, which are INL's neutronics and thermal-hydraulics codes built upon the Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment (MOOSE) framework, have been recently extended to handle the flowing fuel of MSRs causing the drift of delayed neutron precursors (DNP). In the Griffin-Pronghorn code system, Griffin provides the fission rate density to Pronghorn, which simulates the generation, decay, and transport of DNPs along with the fluid, and the redistributed DNP densities are fed back to Griffin. The coupling and transfers are largely automatically managed at the framework level by the powerful MultiApp system of MOOSE. The verification results against the CNRS benchmark problem demonstrate that the Griffin-Pronghorn code system can accurately simulate the unique physics phenomena of MSRs in both steady-state and transient conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital engineering and digital twins are increasingly being used in nuclear energy projects with important impacts. At Idaho National Laboratory, these approaches have been applied in a variety of nuclear energy research, development, and demonstration projects, with key lessons and evolutions occurring for each. In this paper, we describe the use of digital engineering and digital twins in the Versatile Test Reactor design, National Reactor Innovation Center test beds, and nonproliferation analysis of the AGN-201 reactor design. We share key lessons learned for these projects related to tool selection, adoption and training, and working with existing assets versus beginning at the design phase. We also share highlights of future potential uses of digital twins and digital engineering, including using artificial intelligence to perform repetitive design tasks and digital twins to move towards semiautonomous nuclear power plant operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractBackgroundMethodsResultsConclusionsIndia relies primarily on direct smear microscopy for tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis. However, the low sensitivity of smear microscopy emphasizes the need to improve its performance. We recently described the development of ‘TBDetect’ kit which showed improved performance over direct smear microscopy at National Reference Laboratories (NRLs) in India.The present study was aimed to assess the operational feasibility of ‘TBDetect’ microscopy in field settings. This was evaluated by (i) assessing the performance of ‘TBDetect’ microscopy vs. LED-fluorescence microscopy (LED-FM) on consecutive presumptive pulmonary TB patients (n = 5300) who attended Designated Microscopy Centres (DMCs, n = 13) under 4 NRLs at Bhubaneswar, Bhopal, Chennai, and New Delhi, and (ii) obtaining feedback from Scientists (n = 10) and laboratory technicians (n = 42) using semi-structured questionnaires under the following parameters: feasibility of initiation of ‘TBDetect’ microscopy in DMCs, sample preparation and testing, training, time-to-result, logistics, and troubleshooting. A scoring questionnaire was also used to assess ‘TBDetect’ microscopy vs. LED-FM and statistical significance of the scores was calculated using paired t-test.The overall positivity of ‘TBDetect’ microscopy was 10.32% (547/5300) vs. 8.96% (475/5300) of LED-FM at all sites and the increment in positivity was significant (p = 0.019). In addition, ‘TBDetect’ microscopy yielded an increment in smear grade status over LED-FM (p = 0.043). The feedback from the study-in-charge and kit users indicated that ‘TBDetect’ microscopy was easily adapted in point-of-care settings. An analysis of scoring feedback suggested that it was easy to perform and observe in comparison to LED-FM (p < 0.005).This study established the feasibility of ‘TBDetect’ microscopy in field settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Los Alamos National Laboratory has deployed (over the last year and a half) a pair of Cray Shasta machines—a development testbed named Guaje and and production machine named Chicoma, which will soon comprise the bulk of LANL's open science research computing portfolio. In the process, we have encountered a number of problems and challenges in several realms—authentication and authorization, cluster health management, image management, and configuration management. Both independently and in collaboration with Cray/HPE, we have found solutions and brought the system into stable production. The presentation will discuss the solutions and how they came about, and issues we are working to resolve in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background : Errors in pre analytical phase have a profound effect on test results.This study was taken up to recognize various preanalytical errors in Clinical Biochemistry Lab of a tertiary hospital, Anantapur. Methods : This was a retrospective study conducted in Clinical Biochemistry Lab of Government General Hospital, Anantapur. Data from the sample rejection register & requisition forms sent by the clinicians was evaluated for a period of 6 months from January 2024 to June 2024. Various errors in pre analytical phase were noted & the percentage of occurrence of each error was calculated. Results : The data obtained showed the following errors as percentage of total pre analytical errors. Improper labeling of the samples : 69%, insufficient quantity of sample 22%, hemolysis : 3%, delayed transport : 2.5%,wrong container 0.7%, clotted sample 1.5%, lipemic sample : 0.7% Conclusion : The study revealed burden of preanalytical errors and the necessity to focus on reducing the same as they have significant impact on test reports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union (EU) regulation for fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) was modified in 2022, and the broad 'non‐European Tephritidae' group was replaced by a list of 75 regulated taxa (66 species and nine genera). The National Reference Laboratories in the EU must now be able to identify all of them, whatever the development stage, in order to carry out official surveillance. To help laboratories, the European Union Reference Laboratory for Insects and Mites developed an interactive and multi‐entry online key called Q‐Tephrikey. The key is now freely available on the XPer3 website. It covers a total of 113 tephritid taxa, encompassing the regulated ones, 12 species listed as non‐regulated exceptions and the species that have been intercepted in Europe. The taxa are encoded in two morphological matrices for adults and for larvae. This latter one is less extensive because only 38 species among the 113 taxa are described at the larval stage. To help the diagnosticians, the morphological matrices are accompanied by a pathway matrix encoded for the distributions and host ranges of each taxon. We present here the detailed content and functioning of Q‐Tephrikey, and discuss its strengths and weaknesses in terms of its objectives. The key is available at https://q‐tephrikey.identificationkey.org/mkey.html. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence and re-emergence of arthropod-borne viruses is a public health threat. For routine surveillance in public health laboratories, cost-effective and reproducible methods are essential. In this review, we address the technical considerations of high-throughput sequencing methods (HTS) for arbovirus surveillance in national health laboratories, focusing on pre-sequencing, sequencing, and post-sequencing approaches, underlining the importance of robust wet and dry laboratory workflows for reproducible analysis. We aim to provide insights for researchers and clinicians interested in arbovirus, diagnosis, and surveillance by discussing current advances in sequencing methods and bioinformatics pipelines applied to arboviruses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adoption of high-performance triple-pane windows that significantly reduce heat transfer has been slow, in part because they are thicker, heavier, and more costly than double-pane windows. One path to increase adoption of triple-pane windows is to replace the conventional double-glazing insulated glass unit (IGU) with a modified triple-glazing design that uses a very thin central pane of glass. This thinner triple-pane IGU can then be "dropped in" to the double-pane IGU pocket without requiring major modifications to frame design. The Department of Energy sponsored laboratory and field testing of thin triple-pane windows by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. This article presents findings from both the Lab Homes study and subsequent field demonstrations carried out over a 3-year period (2020–2023). The laboratory and field studies demonstrated the manufacturing and distribution feasibility of thin triple-pane windows, successfully installed at multiple sites, using double-pane frames from four different manufacturers and thin triple-pane IGUs from two different manufacturers. Compared to a home with double-pane, clear-glass windows, testing demonstrated average whole-home heating energy savings of 12% and cooling energy savings of 27% for thin triple-pane windows. Improvements in comfort, sound insulation, and condensation potential were noted in both laboratory and field studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With 762 laboratories, the Global Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network (GMRLN) is the largest laboratory network coordinated by the World Health Organization (WHO). Like the Global Polio Laboratory Network, the GMRLN has multiple tiers, including global specialized laboratories, regional reference laboratories, national laboratories, and, in some countries, subnational laboratories. Regional networks are supervised by regional laboratory coordinators reporting to a global coordinator at WHO headquarters. Laboratories in the GMRLN have strong links to national disease control and vaccination programs. The GMRLN's goal is to support member states in obtaining timely, complete, and reliable laboratory-based surveillance data for measles and rubella as part of the strategy for achieving measles and rubella elimination. Surveillance data are reported to the national program and are included in annual reports on the status of measles and rubella elimination to national verification committees for review by regional verification commissions. Quality within the GMRLN is ensured by monitoring performance through external quality assurance programs, confirmatory and quality control testing, accreditation, and coordination of corrective action and training where needed. The overall performance of the laboratories has remained high over the years despite many challenges, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic. The GMRLN is well-positioned to support high-quality laboratory-based surveillance for measles and rubella and to transition to supporting laboratory testing for other pathogens, including vaccine-preventable diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: The seroprevalence of antibodies against measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) was evaluated 17 years following a mass vaccination campaign in individuals aged 2 to 22 years who had received routine immunization but were not eligible for an extended immunization program. Methods: Samples were acquired from Iran's National Measles Laboratory (NML), with individuals showing positive IgM results excluded. Out of the samples collected in 2020, a random selection of 290 serum samples was chosen, representing individuals between the ages of 2 and 22 years from diverse regions in the country. These samples were subjected to analysis using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to quantify specific IgG antibodies against MMR. Results: The seroprevalence rates of antibodies for measles, mumps, and rubella were determined to be 76.2%, 89.3%, and 76.9%, respectively. Younger age groups exhibited higher seropositivity rates for measles and mumps, whereas the 7- to 11-year-old group demonstrated the highest seropositivity rate for rubella. A reduction in antibody status was observed from younger to older age groups, particularly those aged 17–22. Conclusion: The study unveiled suboptimal antibody levels for measles and rubella, highlighting the necessity for further investigation and potential adjustments to future vaccination strategies. Moreover, the decline in antibody status post-vaccination can accumulate in seronegative individuals over time, elevating the risk of outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the application of 15 Quality Indicators (QIs) in clinical laboratories in Fujian Province, China, from 2018 to 2023. It identifies the main causes of laboratory errors and explores issues in the application of QIs, providing a reference for establishing provincial state-of-the-art and operational quality specifications (QSs).All clinical laboratories in Fujian Province were organized to submit general information and original QIs data through the online External Quality Assessment (EQA) system of the National Clinical Laboratory Center (NCCL) for a survey of 15 QIs. Data from 2018 to 2023 were downloaded for statistical analysis, and the current QSs for the 15 QIs in Fujian Province were compared and analyzed with those published by the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (IFCC) Working Group on Laboratory Errors and Patient Safety (WG-LEPS).QIs data from 542 clinical laboratories were collected. The survey on data sources showed that the number of laboratories recording QIs data using Laboratory Information Systems (LIS) increased annually, but the growth was modest and the proportion was less than 50 %. Among the laboratories using LIS to record QIs data, 133 continuously participated in this survey for six years, reporting different QIs. Over the six years, all reported QIs showed significant improvement or at least remained stable. The best median Sigma (σ) metrics were for the percentage of critical values notification and timely critical values notification, reaching 6σ, followed by the percentage of incorrect laboratory reports, with σ metrics ranging from 4.9σ to 5.1σ. In contrast, the percentage of tests covered by internal quality control (IQC) (1.5σ–1.7σ) and inter-laboratory comparison (0.1σ) remained consistently low. Compared to the QSs published by IFCC WG-LEPS, the QSs for the 15 QIs in Fujian Province in 2023 were stricter or roughly equivalent, except for the percentage of incorrect laboratory reports (Fujian Province: 0–0.221, IFCC WG-LEPS: 0–0.03).1. The application of QIs has significantly improved the quality of testing in clinical laboratories in Fujian Province, but the percentage of tests covered by IQC and inter-laboratory comparison remain low; 2. Effective application of QIs requires the establishment of comprehensive LIS, unified calculation standards, and other supporting measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Complex interactions between flowing water and bedforms in rivers with sand beds during changing flow rates may result in bedforms, flow resistance, and sediment transport rates that differ on the rising and falling limbs of flow hydrographs. To study this phenomenon, laboratory experiments based on six realistically shaped hydrographs with durations of 1–6 h in 1-h increments were performed in a recirculating flume at the United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) National Sedimentation Laboratory. Bed topography, water-surface slope, flow rate, and sediment transport rate were continuously monitored. Counterclockwise hysteresis between discharge and sediment transport rate as well as bedform dimensions were observed for all hydrograph lengths, and the magnitude of hysteresis was quantified. The amount of hysteresis in transport rate, bedform amplitude, and bedform length varied according to the length of the hydrograph, although the relationship was not monotonic. The Engelund–Hansen method was able to approximately predict sediment transport rates based on measured hydraulic parameters. Maximum bedform amplitudes increased with hydrograph length, while bedform lengths increased only minimally beyond the 4-h hydrograph period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All-Photonics Network (APN) IOWN1.0 was launched in March 2023, marking the first commercial service of the Innovative Optical and Wireless Network (IOWN). In accordance with the IOWN roadmap, optical interconnections between racks, between boards, inside a board, inside a package, and inside a chip will be sequentially achieved, and optical devices and photonics-electronics convergence devices play key roles in these interconnections. To implement these devices in commercial networks, it is necessary to achieve Moore's law--an empirical rule that the number of devices (such as transistors) in an integrated circuit doubles about every 18 months--in optical devices. We asked Shinji Matsuo, an NTT Fellow at NTT Device Technology Laboratories and NTT Basic Research Laboratories, about the development of membrane optical devices, which integrate compound semiconductors on a silicon-photonics circuit through heterogeneous integration, and his thoughts on fostering young and mid-career researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complex scientific and engineering work performed at Sandia National Laboratories is supported by a comprehensive system of reviews that include design, gate, and peer reviews. A recent exercise revealed a need to change how technical peer reviews are conducted. Building on industry standards, best practices, current standard internal practices and other previous work, Sandia has developed a continuous improvement process to institutionalize technical peer review in the design lifecycle of products. The approach focuses on translating customer and leadership expectations, utilizing current established practices, simplifying planning and execution, and providing resources to project teams to guide them and ensure that rigorous and consistent technical peer reviews are performed. This paper presents the process used by Sandia to improve the technical peer review process, the factors that affect implementation of a peer review process, the simplified three‐step process implemented, the tools and resources generated, and the sustainment plan adopted to increase the institution‐wide use of peer review as a tool to improve product delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Detecting a group of esophageal cancer (EC) cases in endemic regions is essential in identifying high‐risk populations and executing appropriate interventions. The main aim of this study was to determine the epidemiology of EC in Eritrea. Methods. A retrospective (period: 2011 – 2021) study was carried out by abstracting data on EC patients from the logbook kept at the National Health Laboratory (ENHL). Information on socio‐demographic, clinical history, and biopsy analysis findings was collected. For the statistical assessment of data, the End Results (SEER) Joinpoint Regression Program (V.4.5.0.1) was used to calculate crude incidence rate (CIR), age‐adjusted incidence rate (ASR), and estimated annual percentage change (EAPC) by sex, age, and histotype. Results. A total of 189 patient's samples (134 (70.9%) females vs. 55 (29.1%) males, ratio 2.43 : 1) were evaluated. Of the 155 patients with EC, 44 (28.4%) and 111 (71.6%) were diagnosed with esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), respectively (AC/ESCC ratio, 0.4). The median age (IQR) of patients with EC was 60 years (46.0 – 70 years) – (males 62 (IQR: 49.0 – 77 years) vs. females 60 (IQR: 46 ‐67 years), p‐value =0.43. Within age bands, the F: M ratios in patients with ESCC were as follows: >20 ‐29 years =2: 1; 30‐39 years =8 : 1; 40 – 49 years =10.5 : 1; 50‐59 years =6.67 : 1; 60‐69 years =3.25.1; 70‐79 years =1.5 : 1 and>80 years =2 : 1. The all‐age CIR and ASR for EC were 0.468 per 100 000 and 2.281 per 100 000 persons, respectively. Similarly, the all‐age ASR for both males and females was 2.88 per 100 000 and 1.61 per 100 000. Over the study period, the EAPC for all cases was ‐3.0% (95% CI, −11.3 to 6.1, p‐value =0.455). Conclusion. In large part, EC is a women's disease in Eritrea. The unusually high incidence of ESCC and the high female‐to‐male ratio point at sex‐dependent exposures as a major driver of the EAC epidemic in the country. Therefore, research on the risk factors of EC in Eritrea is urgently needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of different upper subcritical limit (USL) calculational methods for loosely coupled and novel neutronic systems. This study varied the separation distance over five center-to-center separation distance intervals for four loosely coupled models and explored seven single-system neutronic models. Each of these 27 systems was simulated using MCNP6.2 with 200 randomly perturbed, continuous-energy ENDF/B-VII.1 cross-section files that are in the TENDL 2019 library. The distribution of the $${k_{eff}}$$ k eff values from these perturbed runs was used to calculate stochastic 99/99 USL values for each model iteration. USLs were also estimated for these 20 systems using the Whisper 1.1 code, and the Whisper-identified relevant benchmarks were used to further analyze the relationship between the region-wise USL calculation and the overall system USL calculations. Sensitivity data files were produced using MCNP6.2 and then used with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory TSURFER and USLSTATS methods to estimate USLs for a cross-method USL comparison. A $${c_k}$$ c k windowing study was performed when using the USLSTATS method to determine the efficacy of the method using datasets with differing degrees of similarity to the given application case. The results show that USLs for each of the loosely coupled system models were higher USLs than the calculated stochastic USLs. The single-system uranium models also displayed a consistently lower stochastic USL as compared to the USL calculational methods, while the single-system plutonium models showed close agreement between the stochastic USLs and the other USL calculational methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature on innovative responses to periods of economic change has focused on private sector firm behavior. This paper expands the literature by focusing on aspects of the public sector's response to the Great Recession. The data used relate to patent applications by U.S. federal laboratories. Contrary to previous findings about the private sector's waning innovation response to the Great Recession, the findings presented show that the U.S. public sector's post-Great Recession response was positive. Arguments to explain this finding are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U.S. DRIVE Integrated SystemsAnaIysis Technical Team members contributed to this report in a variety ofways, ranging from fulltime work in multiple study areas to involvement on a specific topic, or to drafting and reviewing proposed materials. Involvement in these activities should not be construed as endorsement or agreement with all of the assumptions, analysis, statements, and findings in the report. Any views and opinions expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those OfArgonne National Laboratory, other participating National Laboratories, the U.S. Department of Energy, or the U.S. DRIVE partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The workshop titled 'X‐ray‐based technologies in emerging fuel cell research', organized by Vivian Stojanoff from Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and Narayanasami Sukumar from Cornell University/Advanced Photon Source‐Northeastern Collaborative Access Team, was a notable segment of the National Synchrotron Light Source II and Center for Functional Nanomaterials Users' Meeting held 13–17 May 2024. This one‐day event, on 13 May 2024, at BNL in New York, aimed to bring together researchers, beamline scientists, management and developers to propel fuel cell technology forward using model systems inspired by natural photosynthesis and redox enzymes. This summary encapsulates the key discussions, advancements and future implications of the workshop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: After a machine failure, batch schedulers typically re‐schedule the job that failed with a high priority. This is fair for the failed job but still requires that job to re‐enter the submission queue and to wait for enough resources to become available. The waiting time can be very long when the job is large and the platform highly loaded, as is the case with typical HPC platforms. We propose another strategy: when a job J$$ J $$ fails, if no platform node is available, we steal one node from another job J′$$ {J}^{\prime } $$, and use it to continue the execution of J$$ J $$ despite the failure. In this work, we give a detailed assessment of this node stealing strategy using traces from the Mira supercomputer at Argonne National Laboratory. The main conclusion is that node stealing improves the utilization of the platform and dramatically reduces the flow of large jobs, at the price of slightly increasing the flow of small jobs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open data that can be easily incorporated into analyses are essential for developing ecosystem approaches to marine ecological management: a common goal in fisheries policy in many countries. Although it is not always clear what constitutes an ecosystem approach, it always involves scientists working with a large variety of data and information, including data from physical and oceanographic sampling, multispecies surveys, and other sources describing human pressures. This can be problematic for analysts because these data, even when available, are often held in disparate datasets that do not necessarily correspond at appropriate temporal and spatial scales. Data can often only be obtained by specific requests to individuals in governmental agencies who are delivering on an increasing number of data requests as interest grows in practical ecosystem approach implementation. This data access model is not sustainable and hinders the momentum for ecosystem approach development. We describe a data bundling R package that makes data and climate projections available at appropriate scales to facilitate development of an ecosystem approach for the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. This approach integrates closely with the present workflow of most government analysts, academics in fisheries, and scientists in private industry. The approach conforms with open data initiatives and makes data easily available globally while relieving some of the burden of data provision that can fall to some individuals in government laboratories. The structure and approach are generic, adaptable, and transferable to other regions and jurisdictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The neutron sources at Oak Ridge National Laboratory use a wide suite of sample environment equipment to deliver extreme conditions for a number of experiments. Much of this instrumentation focuses on extremes of temperature, such as cryostats, closed-cycle refrigerators in both low and high temperature configurations, and radiant heating furnaces. When the temperature is controlled across a large range, thermal deflection effects can notably move the sample and affect its alignment in the beam. Here, we combine these sample environments with neutron imaging and machine vision to determine the motion of a representative sample with respect to the neutron beam. We find vertical sample displacement on the order of 1–2 mm and horizontal displacement that varies from near-negligible to 1.2 mm. While these deflections are not relevant for some of the beamlines at the first target station at the spallation neutron source and the high flux isotope reactor, they will become critical for upcoming instrumentation at the second target station, as well as any instruments targeting sub-mm samples, as neutron sources and optics evolve to smaller and more focused beams. We discuss mitigation protocols and potential modifications to the environment to minimize the effect of misalignment due to thermal deflection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Globally, Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic era is on the decline, and now, after three years, much lower rates of mortality and morbidity are witnessed. The emergence of new variants and subvariants like Omicron is leading into a transition phase where one would only see sporadic surges. After the 3rd wave, Punjab also experienced such surges, prompting this retrospective study to observe the trend of COVID-19 and emerging variants in the Northwest region of Punjab, India. Aim: To assess the prevalence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection during the past year and to analyse demographic variables like age and gender distribution of positive cases of SARS-CoV-2. Materials and Methods: The present study was a retrospective study, with study period of one year from 1st July 2022 to 30th June 2023, all samples (n=3,04,273) from suspected SARS-CoV-2 patients received at the Virology Research and Diagnostic Laboratory at Government Medical College, Amritsar, Punjab, India, were included in the study. The results of Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) were analysed to determine the prevalence in that region, and basic demographic variables of SARS-CoV-2 cases were compared. Additionally, 100 random positive samples were sent for whole-genome sequencing to study the prevalent variants and subvariants in this region. The results were analysed to study the prevalence of COVID-19 cases in the region. Demographic parameters like age group distribution and sex distribution were calculated. To study the dynamics of transmission during the one-year study period, an epidemiological curve was plotted over the period of 12 months. Results: Out of the total 3,04,273 samples, 2,102 samples (0.69%) tested positive for the COVID-19 virus by RT-PCR. The study showed more prevalence of infection among young adults, with 853 (40.6%) cases in the age group of 21-40 years, followed by 614 (29.2%) cases in the 41-60 years age group. Of the total positive cases, 1153 (54.85%) were males, compared to 949 (45.15%) were females. The maximum number of positive cases was reported during the months of July 2022 to September 2022, totaling 1,273 cases. Whole-genome sequencing results showed predominance of the Omicron variant, with 44 (49.44%) strains belonging to the XBB lineage of Omicron. Conclusion: There was a definite reduction in the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 cases during the study period and that Omicron and its subvariants, like XBB lineages, are prevalent in this part of India as well. Despite the decrease in the number and severity of COVID-19 cases, maintaining vigilance and monitoring sporadic cases using tools like Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) can help in tracking major pandemics in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical test results in clinical laboratories are crucial for timely patient care, serving as indicators of potentially life-threatening conditions. Despite their importance, a notable heterogeneity in management practices exists globally. This study investigates the current practices of managing critical results at Danish clinical biochemistry laboratories and identifies areas prone for improvement. A comprehensive online survey was distributed to all 21 Danish clinical biochemistry laboratories regarding their critical result management, including documentation practices, critical limit selection, and quality assurance measures. A total of 17 laboratories (81%) responded. The answers revealed a generally uniform approach to managing critical results, with all laboratories having 24-h reporting, local instructions and using the telephone as communication channel. However, variations were noted in documentation practices and critical limit selection. Notably, 23.5% of the laboratories reported that one out of every ten critical results was not reported, indicating a significant risk of delayed critical results. This is further complicated by the limited use of predefined timeframes for reporting and also, only few laboratories actively monitored response times. The findings emphasize the need for more standardized documentation and evaluation practices to align with international standards and to enhance patient safety. While the laboratories showed a commitment to standardized procedures, the study emphasizes the necessity of a National or Nordic guideline to supplement the ISO 15189:2022. This study is a step towards optimizing critical result management, not only in Danish clinical biochemistry laboratories but also across various laboratory specialties, thereby improving overall laboratory quality, efficiency, and patient safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have documented the significant impact of methodological choices in microbiome analyses. The myriad of methodological options available complicate the replication of results and generally limit the comparability of findings between independent studies that use differing techniques and measurement pipelines. Here we describe the Mosaic Standards Challenge (MSC), an international interlaboratory study designed to assess the impact of methodological variables on the results. The MSC did not prescribe methods but rather asked participating labs to analyze 7 shared reference samples (5 × human stool samples and 2 × mock communities) using their standard laboratory methods. To capture the array of methodological variables, each participating lab completed a metadata reporting sheet that included 100 different questions regarding the details of their protocol. The goal of this study was to survey the methodological landscape for microbiome metagenomic sequencing (MGS) analyses and the impact of methodological decisions on metagenomic sequencing results. A total of 44 labs participated in the MSC by submitting results (16S or WGS) along with accompanying metadata; thirty 16S rRNA gene amplicon datasets and 14 WGS datasets were collected. The inclusion of two types of reference materials (human stool and mock communities) enabled analysis of both MGS measurement variability between different protocols using the biologically-relevant stool samples, and MGS bias with respect to ground truth values using the DNA mixtures. Owing to the compositional nature of MGS measurements, analyses were conducted on the ratio of Firmicutes: Bacteroidetes allowing us to directly apply common statistical methods. The resulting analysis demonstrated that protocol choices have significant effects, including both bias of the MGS measurement associated with a particular methodological choices, as well as effects on measurement robustness as observed through the spread of results between labs making similar methodological choices. In the analysis of the DNA mock communities, MGS measurement bias was observed even when there was general consensus among the participating laboratories. This study was the result of a collaborative effort that included academic, commercial, and government labs. In addition to highlighting the impact of different methodological decisions on MGS result comparability, this work also provides insights for consideration in future microbiome measurement study design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & Objective: Providing equitable access to good quality, timely, and affordable laboratory testing has always been a top priority for the Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MoH-ME) and the Reference Health Laboratory (RHL). Considering the significant role of medical laboratories in disease surveillance, RHL developed a strategic plan to manage laboratory services during the COVID-19 pandemic based on the "Strategic Framework for strengthening health laboratory services, 2016-2020" proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO). This article describes the steps taken to establish the strategic framework in Iran. Methods: Firstly, a National Laboratory Committee was formed in MoH-ME and a situation analysis was conducted to explore the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in different components of our laboratory system. Gaps and resources needed to address those gaps were determined; then, RHL outlined operational processes and mechanisms for monitoring the activities. Results: The WHO strategic roadmap and its six strategic goals concerning leadership, quality, human resources, safety and security, laboratory networking, and rational use of laboratory testing, helped us to promote national laboratory services in accordance with health system requirements in the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: The establishment of a national molecular laboratory network with more than 500 laboratories from different sectors may result in timely access to countrywide laboratory services and would be beneficial for future COVID-19 and/or other viral outbreaks. Continual evaluation of the COVID-19 laboratories' performance, production of PCR test kits by the local manufacturers, and development of a platform for virtual training would be other accomplishments that Iran achieved in coping with the recent pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additive manufacturing (AM) maintains a wide process window that enables complex designs otherwise unattainable via conventional production technologies. However, the lack of confidence in qualifying AM parts that leverage AM process–structure–property–performance (PSPP) relationships stymies design optimization and adoption of AM. While continuing efforts to map fundamental PSPP relationships that cover the potential design space, we first need pragmatic and then long-term solutions that overcome challenges associated with qualifying AM-designed parts. Two pragmatic solutions include: (1) AM material specifications to substantiate process reproducibility, and (2) component risk categorization to associate system risk relative to part performance and required part quality. A novel qualification paradigm under development involves efficient prediction of part performance over wide-ranging PSPP relationships through targeted testing and computational simulation. This paper describes projects at Sandia National Laboratories on PSPP relationship discovery, these pragmatic approaches, and the novel qualification approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The Gran Sasso National Laboratory (LNGS) is, at present, the largest deep underground laboratory in operation for astroparticle physics and rare event research. The LNGS was created to carry out this research exploiting an overburden of 1,400 m of rock to reduce the flux of muons from cosmic rays. Operating an underground laboratory and its facilities implies a high level of risk. To mitigate risks at the LNGS, a crucial aspect is represented by the evacuation of people from an underground environment during emergencies. The connection between the underground facilities and the outside infrastructure is limited, and the intervention by rescue teams is complicated. This paper reports the study of an adaptive evacuation system to improve the evacuation performance in underground laboratories. The system proposed is composed of a combination of passive, dynamic, and adaptive signage that is able to adapt itself to lead the laboratory occupants to the safe location for evacuation (assembly point). The system collects information from all safety plants, and the data are processed using a customized path-finding algorithm. In the computational algorithm, the underground laboratory is represented as a grid, and the customized path-finding algorithm discovers all available paths to reach the identified evacuation assembly point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Following WHO guidelines, microscopy is the gold standard for malaria diagnosis in endemic countries. The Parasitology-Mycology laboratory (LPM) is the National Reference Laboratory and is currently undergoing ISO 15189 accreditation. In this context, we assessed the performance of the laboratory by confirming the reliability and the accuracy of results obtained in accordance with the requirements of the ISO 15189 standards. This study aimed to verify the method of microscopic diagnosis of malaria at the LPM, in the Aristide Le Dantec hospital (HALD) in Dakar, Senegal. Methods: This is a validation/verification study conducted from June to August 2020. Twenty (20) microscopic slides of thick/thin blood smear with known parasite densities (PD) selected from the Cheick Anta Diop University malaria slide bank in Dakar were used for this assessment. Six (6) were used to assess microscopists' ability to determine PD and fourteen (14) slides were used for detection (positive vs negative) and identification of parasites. Four (4) LPM-HALD microscopists read and recorded their results on prepared sheets. Data analysis was done with Microsoft Excel 2010 software. Results: A minimum threshold of 50% concordance was used for comparison. Of the twenty (20) slides read, 100% concordance was obtained on eight (8) detection (positive vs negative) slides. Four (4) out of the six (6) parasite density evaluation slides obtained a concordance of less than 50%. Thirteen (13) out of the fourteen (14) identification slides obtained a concordance greater than 50%. Only one (1) identification slide obtained zero agreement from the microscopists. For species identification a concordance greater than 80% was noted and the microscopists obtained scores between 0.20 and 0.4 on a scale of 0 to 1 for parasite density reading. The microscopists obtained 100% precision, sensitivity, specificity and both negative and positive predictive values. Conclusion: This work demonstrated that the microscopic method of malaria diagnosis used in the LPM/HALD is in accordance with the requirements of WHO and ISO 15189. Further training of microscopists may be needed to maintain competency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims Our study evaluates the capacity of direct real-time PCR for detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), with a focus on diagnostic performances and the feasibility of implementing this protocol in an eradication campaign. Specifically, we compare the effectiveness of the direct PCR method to various culture systems used by the Italian National Reference Laboratory over the last decade to detect MTBC. Methods and results Bovine tissue samples were routinely tested and analyzed for bovine tuberculosis (bTB) confirmation using microbiological culture (solid and liquid media), histopathological analysis, and a direct PCR assay targeting IS6110, an insertion sequence specific to the MTBC that is widely used for tuberculosis diagnosis. The direct real-time PCR demonstrated a high concordance (K = 0.871) with microbiological culture, as well as good sensitivity (91.84%) and specificity (95.24%). In contrast, histopathology demonstrated lower concordance (K = 0.746) and performance levels (sensitivity 91.41%, specificity 82.88%). Liquid media promoted faster and more efficient growth of MTBC than solid media. M. bovis and M. caprae had the comparable ability to respond to the direct real-time PCR test and grow on the microbiological medium. Conclusions This study confirms that direct real-time PCR can detect MTBC with high diagnostic accuracy within a few days. This study found no significant differences in performance between culture media and direct PCR for M. bovis and M. caprae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]