In this work, nitrogen-doped ZnO material was synthesized by the sol-gel method using zinc acetate as the precursor and urea as the nitrogen source (15, 20, 25 and 30% wt.). For comparative purposes, ...bare ZnO was also prepared. The influence of N doping on structural, morphological, optical and photocatalytic properties was investigated. The synthesized catalysts were characterized by XRD, SEM-EDS, diffuse reflectance UV-Vis spectroscopy, BET and XPS analysis. The photocatalytic activity of N-doped ZnO catalysts was evaluated during the degradation of a mixture of herbicides (2,4-D and picloram) under visible radiation ≥400 nm. The photo-absorption wavelength range of the N-doped ZnO samples was shifted to longer wavelength compared to those of the unmodified ZnO. Among different amounts of dopant agent, the 30% N-doped ZnO material showed higher visible-light activity compared with pure ZnO. Several degradation by-products were identified by using HPLC and ESI-MS/MS. The enhancement of visible photocatalytic activity of the N-doped ZnO semiconductor could be mainly due to their capability in reducing the electron-hole pair recombination.
Heart failure is a growing cause of morbidity and mortality. Cardiac phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase signaling promotes cardiomyocyte survival and function, but it is paradoxically activated in heart ...failure, suggesting that chronic activation of this pathway may become maladaptive. Here, we investigated the downstream phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase effector, serum- and glucocorticoid-regulated kinase-1 (SGK1), in heart failure and its complications.
We found that cardiac SGK1 is activated in human and murine heart failure. We investigated the role of SGK1 in the heart by using cardiac-specific expression of constitutively active or dominant-negative SGK1. Cardiac-specific activation of SGK1 in mice increased mortality, cardiac dysfunction, and ventricular arrhythmias. The proarrhythmic effects of SGK1 were linked to biochemical and functional changes in the cardiac sodium channel and could be reversed by treatment with ranolazine, a blocker of the late sodium current. Conversely, cardiac-specific inhibition of SGK1 protected mice after hemodynamic stress from fibrosis, heart failure, and sodium channel alterations.
SGK1 appears both necessary and sufficient for key features of adverse ventricular remodeling and may provide a novel therapeutic target in cardiac disease.
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In this work, a novel P-doped Fe2O3-TiO2 mixed oxide was successfully prepared by a microwave assisted sol-gel method. The synthesized catalyst was characterized by N2 physisorption, ...SEM, XRD, XPS, and FTIR, UV–vis DRS, and PL spectroscopies. The iron and phosphorus content in the catalyst samples were quantified by AAS and ICP-OES, respectively. The photocatalytic activity of P-doped Fe2O3-TiO2 powders were evaluated in the photocatalytic degradation of sulfamethazine (SMTZ). The Box Behnken design (BBD) and response surface methodology (RSM) were applied for modeling the effect and optimizing of the operational parameters levels on the degradation percentage of SMTZ. The complete degradation and mineralization percentage of 30% of SMTZ solution at pH 9 was achieved within 300 min of reaction, with the optimum P doping amount of 1.2 wt % and 1.25 g/L of catalyst loading. The 1.2 wt % P-doped Fe2O3-TiO2 mixed oxide showed considerably higher photocatalytic activity than Fe2O3-TiO2 or TiO2. This enhanced performance could be attributed to the small crystallite size, narrow band gap, high specific surface area and increased number of surface hydroxyls on TiO2 nanoparticles. Additionally, the stability and reusability of this catalyst was demonstrated during three cycles of SMTZ degradation.
Much of boundary formation during development remains to be understood, despite being a defining feature of many animal taxa. Axial patterning of Hydra, a member of the ancient phylum Cnidaria which ...diverged prior to the bilaterian radiation, involves a steady-state of production and loss of tissue, and is dependent on an organizer located in the upper part of the head. We show that the sharp boundary separating tissue in the body column from head and foot tissue depends on histone acetylation. Histone deacetylation disrupts the boundary by affecting numerous developmental genes including Wnt components and prevents stem cells from entering the position dependent differentiation program. Overall, our results suggest that reversible histone acetylation is an ancient regulatory mechanism for partitioning the body axis into domains with specific identity, which was present in the common ancestor of cnidarians and bilaterians, at least 600 million years ago.
•In Hydra, the sharp boundary separating the body column from head and foot tissue depends on histone acetylation.•Histone deacetylation prevents stem cells from entering the position dependent differentiation program.•Histone deacetylation disrupts the boundary by affecting developmental genes including Wnt components.•Reversible histone acetylation is an ancient regulatory mechanism for partitioning the body axis into domains with specific identity.
There is a need to better understand the etiotypes of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) beyond the tobacco-smoke (TS-COPD). Wood smoke COPD (WS-COPD) is characterized by greater airway ...compromise, milder emphysema, and slower rate of lung function decline than TS-COPD. However, it is unclear if these two etiotypes of COPD have differences in sputum biomarker concentrations. Objective was to compare sputum levels of selected sputum biomarkers between WS-COPD and TS-COPD, and healthy controls.
Eighty-eight women (69±12 years) were recruited and classified into: WS-COPD (n=31), TS-COPD (n=29) and controls (n=28). Using ELISA, we determined induced sputum levels of metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), chemokine ligand 5 (CCL5), interleukin-8 (IL-8), chemokine ligand 16 (CCL16/HCC-4) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-1). Differences were analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney-
tests and correlation between airflow limitation and biomarkers by Spearman's test.
At similar degree of airflow obstruction, anthropometrics and medications use, the level of sputum CCL5 was higher in TS-COPD than WS-COPD (p=0.03) without differences in MMP-9, IL-8, CCL16/HCC-4, and VEGF-1. Women with WS-COPD and TS-COPD showed significantly higher sputum levels of MMP-9, IL-8 and CCL5 compared with controls (p<0.001). FEV
% predicted correlated negatively with levels of MMP-9 (rho:-0.26; P=0.016), CCL5 (rho:-0.37; P=0.001), IL-8 (rho:-0.42; P<0.001) and VEGF (rho:-0.22; P=0.04).
While sputum concentrations of MMP-9, IL-8, and CCL5 were higher in COPD women compared with controls, women with TS-COPD had higher levels of CCL5 compared with those with WS-COPD. Whether this finding relates to differences in pathobiological pathways remains to be determined.
Abstract
STUDY QUESTION
Circulating miRNAs previously associated with androgen excess in women might be used as diagnostic biomarkers for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
SUMMARY ANSWER
Models based ...on circulating miR-142-3p and miR-598-3p expression show good discrimination among women with and without PCOS, particularly when coupled with easily available measurements such as waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and circulating LH-to-FSH (LH/FSH) ratios.
WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY
The lack of standardization of the signs, methods, and threshold values used to establish the presence of the diagnostic criteria (hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction, and polycystic ovarian morphology) complicates the diagnosis of PCOS. Certain biomarkers may help with such a diagnosis. We conducted a validation study to check the diagnostic accuracy for PCOS of several miRNAs that were associated with the syndrome in a small pilot study that had been previously carried out by our research group.
STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION
This was a diagnostic test study involving 140 premenopausal women.
PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS
We included 71 women with PCOS and 69 healthy control women in the study. Both groups were selected as to be similar in terms of body mass index. We used miRCURY LNA™ Universal RT microRNA PCR to analyse the five miRNAs that had shown the strongest associations with PCOS in a much smaller pilot study previously conducted by our group. We studied diagnostic accuracy using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis.
MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE
Only the expression of two miRNAs, miR-142-3p and miR-598-3p, of the five studied, was different between the women with PCOS and the non-hyperandrogenic controls. The diagnostic accuracy of the combination of these circulating miRNAs was good (area under the ROC curve (AUC) 0.801; 95% CI: 0.72–0.88) and was further improved when adding WHR (AUC 0.834, 95% CI: 0.756–0.912), LH/FSH ratio (AUC = 0.869, 95% CI: 0.804–0.934) or both (AUC = 0.895, 95% CI: 0.835–0.954). We developed several models by selecting different threshold values for these variables favouring either sensitivity or specificity, with positive and negative predictive values as high as 88% or 85%, respectively.
LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION
Patients included here had the classic PCOS phenotype, consisting of hyperandrogenism and ovulatory dysfunction; hence, the present results might not apply to milder phenotypes lacking androgen excess.
WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS
If confirmed in larger studies addressing different populations and PCOS phenotypes, these biomarkers may be useful to simplify the clinical diagnosis of this prevalent syndrome.
STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S)
This research was funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (grants PI15/01686, PIE16/00050, PI18/01122 & PI21/00116) and co-funded by European Regional Development Fund ‘A way to make Europe’. Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas Asociadas (CIBERDEM) and Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (IRYCIS) are also initiatives of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. The authors have no competing interests to disclose.
TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER
N/A.
AgBiS2 is a promising and environmentally friendly absorber material for use in hybrid solar cells (HSC). Here, we report a study on the evolution of interfacial phenomena observed during deposition ...of AgBiS2 onto mesoporous TiO2 by the two-stage successive ionic layer adsorption-reaction method. With this approach, inorganic-organic HSC were assembled using Co2+ doped P3HT as hole transport layer. Surface photovoltage spectroscopy and contact potential difference measurements corroborated a low density of trap states in the ternary chalcogenide and lack of majority carrier barriers, compared to the binary absorbers used as reference. The best HSC exhibits a power conversion efficiency of 2.87% under irradiation of 100 mW cm−2, which is attractive for an easily scalable, no capping, no passivating synthesis of AgBiS2.
Introduction
Maintaining trust in the patient-doctor relationship requires transparency in the details of the financial relationships between physicians and drug and medical device corporations. ...These details are publicly available through the Open Payments database, and patients are encouraged to ask surgeons to interpret their implications. The purpose of this study was to better equip surgeons in responding to these inquiries and to compare the distribution of these payments by gender and specialty.
Methods
The 2021 Open Payments dataset was searched for all payments to surgeons from the 14 different specialties recognized by the American College of Surgeons. The total payments per surgeon were compared by calculating the mean and median payments. The Gini index, a measure of income inequality, was also calculated for each specialty.
Results
There were 96 724 surgeons who received over $755 million in payments from drug and medical device companies. There were 72 245 (74.7%) men and 24 479 (25.3%) women. The total amount of payments to men was $712 million (94.2%) and for women it was $44 million (5.8%). The overall Gini index was .9508. The specialty with the highest Gini index was pediatric surgery (.9844) and the lowest was cardiothoracic surgery (.8656).
Discussion
Male surgeons received disproportionately higher payments from drug and device corporations than female surgeons. Surgeons should be aware of their own standing within the Open Payments database in order to respond appropriately to patient inquiries.
According to WHO, medication error (ME) is a subject that requires attention at all levels of care to reduce severe and preventable damage related to medication use. Clinical pharmacy practice ...standards have been proposed around the world so that the pharmacist, as part of a multidisciplinary health team, can help improve patient safety; however, further evidence derived from adequate studies is needed to demonstrate this. This study aims to assess the effect of a clinical pharmacy practice model (CPPM) in preventing MEs associated with the medication use process.
A prospective, stepped-wedge, cluster-randomized, controlled trial with a duration of 14 months will be performed to compare the effect of a CPPM along with the usual care process of patients in the Pablo Tobón Uribe Hospital (Medellin, Colombia). The study is designed as a cluster-randomized controlled trial, involving five hospital wards (clusters) and 720 patients. Medical wards are allocated to interventions using a stepped-wedge design. Clusters are initially assigned to the control group. After a 2-month observation period, hospital clusters were randomly allocated to the intervention group. Study outcomes will be assessed at baseline and at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 months after randomization. The primary outcome will be to assess the effect of a CPPM on the incidence of medication errors associated with the medication use process. Drug-related problems and factors that contribute to the occurrence of MEs will be assessed as secondary outcomes. Statistical analyses will be performed using a mixed model, with the treatment group and time as fixed effects and the clustering structure as a random effect. Statistical analysis will be performed using Pearson chi-square tests and Student's t-tests, and a P value < 0.05 will be considered statistically significant.
As far as we know, this is the first stepped-wedge, cluster-randomized, controlled trial designed to assess the change of a CPPM on the incidence of medication errors in a hospital in Colombia, and it could generate valuable information about a standardized and patient-centered clinical pharmacy model to improve the safety of inpatient care.
ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03338725. Registered on 9 November 2017. The first patient was randomized on 2 February 2018.
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