Cerebral edema (CE) and resultant intracranial hypertension are associated with unfavorable prognosis in traumatic brain injury (TBI). CE is a leading cause of in-hospital mortality, occurring in ...>60% of patients with mass lesions, and ∼15% of those with normal initial computed tomography scans. After treatment of mass lesions in severe TBI, an important focus of acute neurocritical care is evaluating and managing the secondary injury process of CE and resultant intracranial hypertension. This review focuses on a contemporary understanding of various pathophysiologic pathways contributing to CE, with a subsequent description of potential targeted therapies. There is a discussion of identified cellular/cytotoxic contributors to CE, as well as mechanisms that influence blood-brain-barrier (BBB) disruption/vasogenic edema, with the caveat that this distinction may be somewhat artificial since molecular processes contributing to these pathways are interrelated. While an exhaustive discussion of all pathways with putative contributions to CE is beyond the scope of this review, the roles of some key contributors are highlighted, and references are provided for further details. Potential future molecular targets for treating CE are presented based on pathophysiologic mechanisms. We thus aim to provide a translational synopsis of present and future strategies targeting CE after TBI in the context of a paradigm shift towards precision medicine.
This article is part of the Special Issue entitled “Novel Treatments for Traumatic Brain Injury”.
•Brain swelling is a major contributor to adverse outcome in TBI.•It is due to combined mass effects of extravasated blood, cytotoxic & vasogenic edema and osmolyte-driven swelling.•Our understanding of molecular mechanisms of edema formation is in its infancy.•Here, we review 12 pathways implicated in edema formation and 11 drugs with potential benefit for targeting edema in TBI.
This book discusses the active and passive radar cross section (RCS) estimation and techniques to examine the low observable aerospace platforms. It begins with the fundamentals of RCS, followed by ...the dielectric, magnetic and metamaterials parameters of the constituent materials and then explains various methods and the emerging trends followed in this area of study. The RCS estimation of phased array including the mutual coupling effect is also presented in detail in the book. The active RCS reduction is carefully touched upon through the performance of phased arrays, sidelobe cancellers and mitigation of multipath effect. Providing information on various adaptive algorithms like least mean square (LMS), recursive least square (RLS) and weighted least square algorithms, the authors also mention the recent developments in the area of embedded antennas, conformal load bearing antenna, metamaterials and frequency selective surface (FSS) based RCS reduction.
A deadly cascade
A catastrophic landslide in Uttarakhand state in India on February 2021 damaged two hydropower plants, and more than 200 people were killed or are missing. Shugar
et al.
describe the ...cascade of events that led to this disaster. A massive rock and ice avalanche roared down a Himalayan valley, turning into a deadly debris flow upstream from the first of the two hydropower plants. The sequence of events highlights the increasing risk in the Himalayas caused by increased warming and development.
Science
, abh4455, this issue p.
300
A cascade of events starting with a massive avalanche eventually triggered a deadly debris flow in the Indian Himalaya.
On 7 February 2021, a catastrophic mass flow descended the Ronti Gad, Rishiganga, and Dhauliganga valleys in Chamoli, Uttarakhand, India, causing widespread devastation and severely damaging two hydropower projects. More than 200 people were killed or are missing. Our analysis of satellite imagery, seismic records, numerical model results, and eyewitness videos reveals that ~27 × 10
6
cubic meters of rock and glacier ice collapsed from the steep north face of Ronti Peak. The rock and ice avalanche rapidly transformed into an extraordinarily large and mobile debris flow that transported boulders greater than 20 meters in diameter and scoured the valley walls up to 220 meters above the valley floor. The intersection of the hazard cascade with downvalley infrastructure resulted in a disaster, which highlights key questions about adequate monitoring and sustainable development in the Himalaya as well as other remote, high-mountain environments.
A systematic planning of groundwater exploitation using modern techniques is essential for the proper utilization and management of this precious but shrinking natural resource. With the advent of ...powerful and high-speed personal computers, efficient techniques for water management have evolved, of which RS (remote sensing), GIS (geographic information system) and GPS (Global Positioning System) are of great significance. In the present study, an attempt has been made to delineate and classify possible groundwater potential zones in the West Medinipur district of West Bengal, India using integrated remote sensing and GIS techniques. The thematic layers considered in this study are lithology, landform, drainage density, recharge, soil, land slope and surface water body, which were prepared using the IRS-1D imagery and conventional data. All these themes and their individual features were then assigned weights according to their relative importance in groundwater occurrence and the corresponding normalized weights were obtained based on the Saaty's analytical hierarchy process. The thematic layers were finally integrated using ArcInfo GIS software to yield a groundwater potential zone map of the study area. Thus, three different groundwater potential zones were identified, namely 'good', 'moderate' and 'poor'. The area having good groundwater potential is about 1400 km
2
, which is about 15% of the total study area. The eastern portion and some small patches in the central and northern portions of the study area fall under moderate groundwater potential zone, which encompasses an area of 5400 km
2
(55%). However, the groundwater potential in the western, south-western and parts of north-eastern portions of the study area is poor, encompassing an area of about 3000 km
2
. Moreover, the average annually exploitable groundwater reserve in the good zone was estimated to be 0.29 MCM/km
2
, whereas it is 0.25 MCM/km
2
for the moderate zone and 0.13 MCM/km
2
for the poor zone. Finally, it is concluded that the RS and GIS techniques are very efficient and useful for the identification of groundwater potential zones.
Drug repurposing has the potential to bring existing de-risked drugs for effective intervention in an ongoing pandemic—COVID-19 that has infected over 131 million, with 2.8 million people succumbing ...to the illness globally (as of April 04, 2021). We have used a novel `gene signature’-based drug repositioning strategy by applying widely accepted gene ranking algorithms to prioritize the FDA approved or under trial drugs. We mined publically available RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) data using CLC Genomics Workbench 20 (QIAGEN) and identified 283 differentially expressed genes (FDR<0.05, log2FC>1) after a meta-analysis of three independent studies which were based on severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in primary human airway epithelial cells. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) revealed that SARS-CoV-2 activated key canonical pathways and gene networks that intricately regulate general anti-viral as well as specific inflammatory pathways. Drug database, extracted from the Metacore and IPA, identified 15 drug targets (with information on COVID-19 pathogenesis) with 46 existing drugs as potential-novel candidates for repurposing for COVID-19 treatment. We found 35 novel drugs that inhibit targets (ALPL, CXCL8, and IL6) already in clinical trials for COVID-19. Also, we found 6 existing drugs against 4 potential anti-COVID-19 targets (CCL20, CSF3, CXCL1, CXCL10) that might have novel anti-COVID-19 indications. Finally, these drug targets were computationally prioritized based on gene ranking algorithms, which revealed CXCL10 as the common and strongest candidate with 2 existing drugs. Furthermore, the list of 283 SARS-CoV-2-associated proteins could be valuable not only as anti-COVID-19 targets but also useful for COVID-19 biomarker development.
► Use of weakly anionic divinylbenzene copolymer resin for Cr (VI) removal. ► Response surface methodology approach was used to optimize the process variables. ► A quadratic model was developed and ...validated experimentally. ► Resin dose was found to be most significant individual variable. ► Functional groups involved during reaction were studied using FTIR/EDX.
In this paper, response surface methodology (RSM) approach using Central Composite Design (CCD) is applied to develop mathematical model and optimize process parameters for Cr (VI) removal from aqueous streams using weakly anionic resin Amberlite IRA 96. The individual and combined effect of four process parameters, i.e. contact time, initial solution pH, initial Cr (VI) concentration and resin dose on Cr adsorption were studied. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed the relative significance of process parameters in removal process. Initial solution pH and resin dose were found to be more significant than contact time and initial Cr (VI) concentration. The second-order regression model was developed to predict the removal efficiency using Design Expert software. The optimal conditions to remove Cr from aqueous solution at constant temperature of 30°C and stirring speed of 250rpm were found to be contact time 62.5min, pH 1.96, initial Cr (VI) concentration 145.4mg/L, and resin dose 8.51g/L. At these conditions, high removal efficiency (93.26%) was achieved. FTIR and EDX analysis were conducted to interpret the functional groups involved during the Cr–resin interaction.
► Nutrient removal coupled with algal biomass production. ► Cr biosorption using wastewater grown immobilized C. minutissima. ► Recovery of Cr from metal from loaded immobilized C. minutissima.
The ...potential of an integrated system for sewage wastewater treatment and biosorption of chromium(VI) was evaluated using immobilized Chlorella minutissima cells. Immobilized algal cells were grown in sewage wastewater in designed photobioreactor for 48h and then subjected to removal of Cr(VI) from synthetic wastewater. The effect of pH, Cr(VI) concentration, biosorbent dose on Cr(VI) removal was investigated. C. minutissima showed a higher NH4+-N and PO43--P removal efficiency (above 99% removal) than the NO32--N (58% removal) in 48h. Biosorption of Cr(VI) was found to be highly dependent on solution pH, biosorbent dose and initial Cr(VI) concentration. Maximum Cr(VI) uptake 57.33mgCr(VI)/g dry biosorbent/L of solution was observed at pH2 with 20% (w/v) biosorbent. Further more than 90% of total Cr adsorbed could be recovered using 0.5M NaOH as desorption medium.
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus attacks multiple organs of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, including the brain. There are worldwide descriptions ...of neurological deficits in COVID-19 patients. Central nervous system (CNS) symptoms can be present early in the course of the disease. As many as 55% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients have been reported to have neurological disturbances three months after infection by SARS-CoV-2. The mutability of the SARS-COV-2 virus and its potential to directly affect the CNS highlight the urgency of developing technology to diagnose, manage, and treat brain injury in COVID-19 patients. The pathobiology of CNS infection by SARS-CoV-2 and the associated neurological sequelae of this infection remain poorly understood. In this review, we outline the rationale for the use of blood biomarkers (BBs) for diagnosis of brain injury in COVID-19 patients, the research needed to incorporate their use into clinical practice, and the improvements in patient management and outcomes that can result. BBs of brain injury could potentially provide tools for detection of brain injury in COVID-19 patients. Elevations of BBs have been reported in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood of COVID-19 patients. BB proteins have been analyzed in CSF to detect CNS involvement in patients with infectious diseases, including human immunodeficiency virus and tuberculous meningitis. BBs are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for diagnosis of mild versus moderate traumatic brain injury and have identified brain injury after stroke, cardiac arrest, hypoxia, and epilepsy. BBs, integrated with other diagnostic tools, could enhance understanding of viral mechanisms of brain injury, predict severity of neurological deficits, guide triage of patients and assignment to appropriate medical pathways, and assess efficacy of therapeutic interventions in COVID-19 patients.
Zinc containing wastes/secondaries viz. zinc ash, dross, flue dusts, sludge, residue etc. are generated in various chemical and metallurgical industries. The materials contain different level of ...impurities depending on the source. The hydrometallurgical processing is effective and flexible for treating such materials as it can control the different level of impurities. Depending on the nature and composition of the secondaries, a suitable lixiviant could be selected to dissolve the desired metals leaving gangue in the residue. In the present paper, the hydrometallurgical processes have been described for the recovery of zinc from the secondaries using sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, ammoniacal solution and sodium hydroxide etc. as lixiviants. The leach solution thus obtained has been purified with respect to dissolved impurities using precipitation, ion exchange or solvent extraction method. The metal or salt is produced from the purified solution by electrolysis or crystallization.
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