Identification of genes whose regulation of expression is functionally similar in both brain tissue and blood cells could in principle enable monitoring of significant neurological traits and ...disorders by analysis of blood samples. We thus employed transcriptional analysis of pathologically affected tissues, using agnostic approaches to identify overlapping gene functions and integrating this transcriptomic information with expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) data. Here, we estimate the correlation of gene expression in the top-associated cis-eQTLs of brain tissue and blood cells in Parkinson's Disease (PD).
We introduced quantitative frameworks to reveal the complex relationship of various biasing genetic factors in PD, a neurodegenerative disease. We examined gene expression microarray and RNA-Seq datasets from human brain and blood tissues from PD-affected and control individuals. Differentially expressed genes (DEG) were identified for both brain and blood cells to determine common DEG overlaps. Based on neighborhood-based benchmarking and multilayer network topology approaches we then developed genetic associations of factors with PD.
Overlapping DEG sets underwent gene enrichment using pathway analysis and gene ontology methods, which identified candidate common genes and pathways. We identified 12 significantly dysregulated genes shared by brain and blood cells, which were validated using dbGaP (gene SNP-disease linkage) database for gold-standard benchmarking of their significance in disease processes. Ontological and pathway analyses identified significant gene ontology and molecular pathways that indicate PD progression.
In sum, we found possible novel links between pathological processes in brain tissue and blood cells by examining cell pathway commonalities, corroborating these associations using well validated datasets. This demonstrates that for brain-related pathologies combining gene expression analysis and blood cell cis-eQTL is a potentially powerful analytical approach. Thus, our methodologies facilitate data-driven approaches that can advance knowledge of disease mechanisms and may, with clinical validation, enable prediction of neurological dysfunction using blood cell transcript profiling.
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•A blood based test would be ideal to assess Parkinson's Disease (PD) progression.•We identified transcriptional changes evident in PD brain tissues.•Some transcripts altered in PD are under similar control in blood cells and brain.•We identified blood cell transcripts altered in PD that may reflect brain changes.•This may allow blood tests for PD progression.
Tetracycline (TC) contamination is prevalent in aquatic systems due to its uncontrolled and excessive use for medical, livestock, and veterinary purposes. Herein, we produced low-temperature ...carbonized mesoporous activated carbon (AC) from rubber fig leaves for TC removal. AC surface was coarse, patchy, and covered with flakes possessing uneven pores. Statistical physics model was employed to explore the TC adsorption mechanism wherein the double-layer model with two energies outperformed the others. The adsorption energies were <40.0 kJ/mol which suggested physisorption, and the results were consistent with thermodynamic studies as well. The number of molecules attached per site (n) was 2.11 which attested multi-molecular adsorption. The adsorption capacity at saturation (Qm) was estimated as 149.31 mg/g significantly higher than a few of the reported values. Later, the adsorption dataset was successfully modeled by adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system modeling (ANFIS) – an artificial intelligent tool to predict the adsorption process.
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•AC was synthesized using Rubber fig leaves by low temperature carbonization.•A double-layered statistical physics model with two energies fitted the isotherms.•The saturation adsorption capacity was 149.31 mg/g.•Adsorption data was modeled using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS).
Tetracycline (TC) is one of the antibiotics, which is detected at high titre in aquatic systems, inducing microbial resistance. This study highlights the adsorptive removal of TC by activated carbon ...(AC) using low temperature carbonization obtained from Ulva prolifera macroalgal biomass – an abundantly available algae in southern Indian beaches. The AC had rough, irregular, and porous structure with large specific surface area of 197.53 m2/g. The adsorption data was modelled using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system that fitted the data satisfactorily. Pseudo-second-order kinetics well-suited TC adsorption confirming to chemisorption. Both Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms suited-well to the data with monolayer adsorption capacity of 54.04 mg/g, which emphasized the suitability of using the algal biomass-derived AC for TC removal over other adsorbents. Therefore, the present investigation highlights the use of a new low-cost nanoadsorbent developed from algal biomass along with the tremendous potential of ANFIS in predicting the adsorption process.
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•Activated carbon was synthesized using Ulva prolifera macroalgal biomass by low temperature carbonization.•Tetracycline adsorption followed both Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms.•The adsorption data was modelled using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS).•The monolayer adsorption capacity was 54.04 mg/g.
The global occurrence and adverse environmental impacts of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) have attracted wide attention. This study focused on the PFOA photodegradation by using photocatalyst TiO
with ...peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation. Aqueous PFOA (50 mg L
) at the pH 3 was treated by TiO2/PMS under 300 W visible light (400-770 nm) or 32 W UV light (254 nm and 185 nm). The addition of PMS induced a significant degradation of PFOA under powerful visible light compared with sole TiO
. Under visible light, 0.25 g L
TiO
and 0.75 g L
PMS in the solution with the initial pH 3 provided optimum condition which achieved 100% PFOA removal within 8 h. Under UV light irradiation at 254 nm and 185 nm wavelength, TiO
/PMS presented excellent performance of almost 100% removal of PFOA within 1.5 h, attributed to the high UV absorbance by the photocatalyst. The intermediates analysis showed that PFOA was degraded from a long carbon chain PFOA to shorter chain intermediates in a stepwise manner. Furthermore, scavenger experiments indicated that SO
radicals from PMS and photogenerated holes from TiO
played an essential role in degrading PFOA. The presence of organic compounds in real wastewater reduced the degradation efficacy of PFOA by 18-35% in visible/TiO
/PMS system. In general, TiO
/PMS could be an ideal and effective photocatalysis system for the degradation of PFOA from wastewater using either visible or UV light source.
The welding process releases potentially hazardous gases and fumes, mainly composed of metallic oxides, fluorides and silicates. Long term welding fume (WF) inhalation is a recognized health issue ...that carries a risk of developing chronic health problems, particularly respiratory system diseases (RSDs). Aside from general airway irritation, WF exposure may drive direct cellular responses in the respiratory system which increase risk of RSD, but these are not well understood.
We developed a quantitative framework to identify gene expression effects of WF exposure that may affect RSD development. We analyzed gene expression microarray data from WF-exposed tissues and RSD-affected tissues, including chronic bronchitis (CB), asthma (AS), pulmonary edema (PE), lung cancer (LC) datasets. We built disease-gene (diseasome) association networks and identified dysregulated signaling and ontological pathways, and protein-protein interaction sub-network using neighborhood-based benchmarking and multilayer network topology.
We observed many genes with altered expression in WF-exposed tissues were also among differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in RSD tissues; for CB, AS, PE and LC there were 34, 27, 50 and 26 genes respectively. DEG analysis, using disease association networks, pathways, ontological analysis and protein-protein interaction sub-network suggest significant links between WF exposure and the development of CB, AS, PE and LC.
Our network-based analysis and investigation of the genetic links of WFs and RSDs confirm a number of genes and gene products are plausible participants in RSD development. Our results are a significant resource to identify causal influences on the development of RSDs, particularly in the context of WF exposure.
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•Optical fibre was modified to enable side emission of light.•Immersible LED is suitable as light sources for underwater photocatalysis.•Au-TiO2 catalyst degraded EE2 and E3 under UVA ...and visible light.•EE2 t1/2 was 1.26 h and 0.78 h for P25 and 4 wt.% Au-TiO2 under UVA.•Optical fibre reactor showed good reusability with 94 % efficiency after 3 cycles.
This research aims to promote photocatalysis of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in water. Two reactor setups with (i) modified air-clad optical fibres and (ii) waterproof LED strips were utilised to transmit light to photocatalysts P25 TiO2 and gold-modified TiO2 (Au-TiO2). The performances to photodegrade 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) and estriol (E3) under Cool White and UVA high efficacy LEDs were examined. Au-TiO2 showed superior photocatalytic activity for EE2 removal over P25 TiO2. The pseudo first-order rate constants for EE2 photocatalysis under UVA were 0.55 h−1 and 0.89 h−1 for TiO2 and Au-TiO2, respectively. E3 was effectively degraded by Au-TiO2 in the immersible LED strip reactor (0.13 h−1).
Carbon dioxide (CO2), a major greenhouse gas, capture has recently become a crucial technological solution to reduce atmospheric emissions from fossil fuel burning. Thereafter, many efforts have been ...put forwarded to reduce the burden on climate change by capturing and separating CO2, especially from larger power plants and from the air through the utilization of different technologies (e.g., membrane, absorption, microbial, cryogenic, chemical looping, and so on). Those technologies have often suffered from high operating costs and huge energy consumption. On the right side, physical process, such as adsorption, is a cost-effective process, which has been widely used to adsorb different contaminants, including CO2. Henceforth, this review covered the overall efficacies of CO2 adsorption from air at 196 K to 343 K and different pressures by the carbon-based materials (CBMs). Subsequently, we also addressed the associated challenges and future opportunities for CBMs. According to this review, the efficacies of various CBMs for CO2 adsorption have followed the order of carbon nanomaterials (i.e., graphene, graphene oxides, carbon nanotubes, and their composites) < mesoporous -microporous or hierarchical porous carbons < biochar and activated biochar < activated carbons.
Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have captured the attention of the global energy research community in recent years by showing an exponential augmentation in their performance and stability. The ...supremacy of the light-harvesting efficiency and wider band gap of perovskite sensitizers have led to these devices being compared with the most outstanding rival silicon-based solar cells. Nevertheless, there are some issues such as their poor lifetime stability, considerable J–V hysteresis, and the toxicity of the conventional constituent materials which restrict their prevalence in the marketplace. The poor stability of PSCs with regard to humidity, UV radiation, oxygen and heat especially limits their industrial application. This review focuses on the in-depth studies of different direct and indirect parameters of PSC device instability. The mechanism for device degradation for several parameters and the complementary materials showing promising results are systematically analyzed. The main objective of this work is to review the effectual strategies of enhancing the stability of PSCs. Several important factors such as material engineering, novel device structure design, hole-transporting materials (HTMs), electron-transporting materials (ETMs), electrode materials preparation, and encapsulation methods that need to be taken care of in order to improve the stability of PSCs are discussed extensively. Conclusively, this review discusses some opportunities for the commercialization of PSCs with high efficiency and stability.
UV filters as emerging contaminants are of great concern and their wide detection in aquatic environments indicates their chemical stability and persistence. This review summarized the photolytic and ...photocatalytic degradation of UV filters in contaminated water. The findings indicated that limited research has been conducted on the photolysis and photocatalysis of UV filters. Photolysis of UV filters through UV irradiation in natural water was a slow process, which was accelerated by the presence of photosensitisers e.g. triplet state of chromaphoric dissolved organic matter (3CDOM*) and nutrients but reduced by salinity, dissolved organic matter (DOM) and divalent cations. UV Photocatalysis of 4-methylbenzylidene camphor and 2-phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulfonic acid was very effective with 100% removal within 30 min and 90 min using medicated TiO2/H2O2 and TiO2, respectively. The radiation source, type of catalyst and oxygen content were key factors. Future research should focus on improved understanding of photodegradation pathways and by-products of UV filters.
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•Photolysis of UV filters was a slow process.•Presence of photosensitisers (e.g. 3CDOM*) increased photolysis.•Salinity and DOM decreased the photolysis of UV filters.•Photocatalysis was very effective for UV filters removal.•Radiation source, catalyst and O2 content were key factors for photocatalysis.
Lignocellulosic biomass is widely grown in many agricultural-based countries. These are typically incinerated or discarded in open spaces, which further may cause severe health and environmental ...problems. Hence, the proper utilization and conversion of different parts of lignocellulosic biomasses (e.g., corn wastes derived leave, cob, stalk, and husk) into value-added materials could be a promising way of protecting both health and environments. In addition, they have high-potential for myriads applications (e.g., pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, textiles, and so on). In this context, herein, we isolated holocellulose (a mixture of alpha α, beta β, and gamma γ cellulose) from corn waste, and then it was converted into carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). Subsequently, the prepared CMC was evaluated successfully to be used as a pharmaceutical excipient. Different characterization tools were employed for structural, morphological, and thermal properties of the extracted holocellulose and synthesized CMC. Results showed that the highest yield of CMC was obtained 187.5% along with the highest degree of substitution (DS i.e., 1.83) in a single stage (i.e., size reduction technique) with the lowest particle size of holocellulose (100 µm). This happened due to the use of a single stage instead of multiple stages. Finally, extracted CMC was successfully used as a pharmaceutical excipient with promising results compared to commercially available pharmaceutical-grade CMC.
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