Do We Need Public Green Spaces Accessibility Standards for the Sustainable Development of Urban Settlements? The Evidence from Wroclaw, Poland.

Public green spaces (PGSs) have a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of urban residents. However, their accessibility can be limited due to high urbanisation pressures and inadequate or insufficient regulatory provisions. This problem has been recognised for Central European cities, of which Wroclaw is an example, where the provision of PGS accessibility has not received major attention in recent decades, and the planning system has been in constant transformation since the transition from a centrally planned to a free-market economy. This study therefore aimed to examine the distribution and accessibility of PGSs in the expanding area of Wroclaw today and upon implementation of the plans under the proposed standards. These analyses were performed using the QGIS application, network analysis, and the ISO-Area as polygon algorithm. The findings revealed a conspicuous lack of available PGSs, which includes areas above 2 ha, such as district and neighbourhood parks. New PGSs are now being planned, but even so, part of the residential areas will remain outside their catchment zone. The results obtained provide strong evidence that it is essential that standards should be a tool implemented in urban planning, and that the adopted procedure can be transferred to other cities.

Functional monosomy of 6q27-qter and functional disomy of Xpter-p22.11 due to X;6 translocation with an atypical X-inactivation pattern.

Pattern of X chromosome inactivation (XCI) is typically random in females. However, chromosomal rearrangements affecting the X chromosome can result in XCI skewing due to cell growth disadvantage. In case of an X;autosome translocation, this usually leads to an XCI pattern of 100:0 with the derivative X being the active one in the majority of females. A de novo balanced X;6 translocation [46,X,t(X;6)(p22.1;q27)] and a completely skewed XCI pattern (100:0) were detected in a female patient with microcephaly, cerebellar vermis hypoplasia, heart defect, and severe developmental delay. We mapped the breakpoint regions using fluorescence in situ hybridization and found the X-linked gene POLA1 to be disrupted. POLA1 codes for the catalytic subunit of the polymerase α-primase complex which is responsible for initiation of the DNA replication process; absence of POLA1 is probably incompatible with life. Consequently, by RBA banding we determined which of the X chromosomes was the active one in the patient. In all examined lymphocytes the wild-type X chromosome was active. We propose that completely skewed XCI favoring the normal X chromosome resulted from death of cells with an active derivative X that was caused by a non-functional POLA1 gene. In summary, we conclude that functional monosomy of 6q27-qter and functional disomy of Xpter-p22.11 are responsible for the clinical phenotype of the patient. This case demonstrates the importance of determining which one of the X chromosomes underwent inactivation to correlate clinical features of a female with an X;autosome translocation with the nature of the genetic alteration.

Pore size dynamics in interpenetrated metal organic frameworks for selective sensing of aromatic compounds.

The two-fold interpenetrated metal-organic framework, [Zn2(bdc)2(dpNDI)]n (bdc=1,4-benzenedicarboxylate, dpNDI=N'N'-di(4-pyridyl)-1,4,5,8-naphthalenediimide) can undergo structural re-arrangement upon adsorption of chemical species changing its pore structure. For a competitive binding process with multiple analytes of different sizes and geometries, the interpenetrated framework will adopt a conformation to maximize the overall binding interactions. In this study, we show for binary mixtures that there is a high selectivity for the larger methylated aromatic compounds, toluene and p-xylene, over the small non-methylated benzene. The dpNDI moiety within [Zn2(bdc)2(dpNDI)]n forms an exciplex with these aromatic compounds. The emission wavelength is dependent on the strength of the host-guest CT interaction allowing these compounds to be distinguished. We show that the sorption selectivity characteristics can have a significant impact on the fluorescence sensor response of [Zn2(bdc)2(dpNDI)]n towards environmentally important hydrocarbons based contaminants (i.e., BTEX, PAH).

Quality of life and stress level in adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis subjected to conservative treatment.

Quality of life (QoL) and stress level of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis is under growing consideration by physicians, physiotherapists and other specialists (psychologist, nurses). The aim of the study was to evaluate the quality of life and stress level in adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis who are under brace treatment. It involved 45 adolescents, ages ranging between 10.0 and 15.0 years, all with Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) with Cobb angle between 20-45 degrees. The adolescents were wearing the same kind of brace (Chêneau orthosis) for more than 3 months for at least 12h per day. Two questionnaires were used: the Brace Questionnaire (BrQ) and Bad Sobernheim Stress Questionnaire (BSSQ). The analysis considered the type of treatment, curve location, correlation of the total score with age, Cobb angle and Bunnell rotation angle. The age was 13.6 ± 1.3 years. Cobb angle was 31.7 ± 7.6 degrees. The mean score for BrQ was 78.1 ± 11.3 points. Adolescents revealed higher score with BSSQ Deformity (median = 15) comparing to BSSQ Brace (median = 12). Conservative treatment does not severely impact on the quality of life of scoliotic adolescents. The adolescents who were under brace treatment suffered moderate level of stress from the deformity.

Polish validation of Brace Questionnaire.

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to undertake the process of cultural adaptation of the Brace Questionnaire (BrQ) into Polish. METHODS: The BrQ is an instrument for measuring the quality of life of scoliotic adolescents who are being treated conservatively with wearing a corrective brace. The BrQ consists of 34 Likert-scale items related to eight domains. The translation from the original Greek into Polish was performed. The process of cultural adaptation of the questionnaire was in accordance with the guidelines of the International Quality of Life Assessment Project. It involved 35 adolescents, aged between 10.0 and 16.0 years, all with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis with mean Cobb angle of 35.1 ± 10.6 degrees, and all wearing the same kind of brace (Chêneau orthosis) for more than 3 months. Statistical analysis calculated the reliability (internal consistency), floor and ceiling effects of the BrQ. RESULTS: The internal consistency was satisfactory; Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.94. There was no floor or ceiling effects. CONCLUSIONS: Polish version of the BrQ is reliable and can be used in adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis wearing the brace to assess their quality of life.