Oxides having a perovskite structure are known to exhibit good proton conductivity in a high‐temperature region, which makes them potential candidates in the tritium recovery and purification system ...of the electrochemical devices of fusion reactors such as hydrogen pumps, hydrogen sensors, and tritium monitoring systems. But the dissolution of hydrogen into the proton conductor and its release behavior is not well known yet. In this study, the dissolution and release behavior of hydrogen was investigated in BaCe0.9Y0.1O3−α proton conductor by exposing deuterium gas (D2) and heavy water vapor (D2O) at 600 or 700°C for 5 h. The dissolved deuterium amount in the sample was measured using a temperature‐programmed desorption analysis (TDS) method. The relationship between the amount of deuterium dissolved in the sample with the exposure pressure was also investigated. At room temperature (RT), the diffusivity of hydrogen (e.g., deuterium) was calculated from the change of the amount of residual hydrogen in the exposed sample due to the change of storage time. The Tritium Migration Analysis Program, Version 4 (TMAP4) simulation code was used to simulate and compare the experimental value of the obtained diffusivity. Although diffusivity at RT has not been reported in the past, the diffusivity is close to the extrapolation value of the literature data. From the comparison of this research results with literature, it may consider that the dominant diffusion mechanism does not change regardless of the temperature range.
In the present work, an aptasensing method based on integration of RNA on Cu-MOF was developed for detection of C-Reactive Protein (CRP). Cu-MOF showed stimulated fluorescence and mimetic peroxidase ...enzymatic activity at the time and can be used as dual-signal transduction. CRP binding RNA was used as a highly selective recognition element and immobilized on the Cu-MOF. The immobilized RNA can block the peroxidase activity and fluorescence of the signal traducer probe. Adding CRP to the RNA/Cu-MOF will release RNA from the surface of Cu-MOF and recover both the stimulated fluorescence and peroxidase activity. A biosensor was built for detection of CRP using the two modes of transduction, either colorimetry or fluorometry. A dynamic linear range was obtained from 0.1 to 50 ng mL −1with a limit of detection (LOD) as small as 40 pg mL −1was calculated in fluorescence mode and 240 pg mL −1 as LOD in colorimetry mode. The LODs are lower than the LOD of nephelometric techniques used in clinical practice and is comparable to the normal clinical cutoff value in high-sensitivity CRP assays (1 μg/mL). The aptasensor was successfully applied for detection of CRP in Covid-19 patients with spike recoveries between 84 and 102% and RSD from 0.94% to 2.05%.
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•Functionalization of Cu-MOF with aptamer to design label-free nanoprobe for detection of CRP using optical method.•Cu-MOF have intrinsic fluorescence emission and peroxides memetic activity.•Dual mode colorimetry and fluorimetry aptasensor was successfully designed with LOD as small as 40 pg mL−1 was measured in fluorescence-based mode and 240 pg.mL-1 in Colorimetry mode.•The biosensor was successfully applied to detect CRP in serum of patients with COVID-19.
•New fractional-order Legendre-Fourier orthogonal polynomials are derived.•New fractional-order Legendre-Fourier moments are defined.•Direct rotation, scaling and translation invariants are ...derived.•The proposed moments archive high recognition rates in presence of geometric and noise attacks.•The proposed outperformed the classical integer-order Legendre-Fourier moments.•The proposed moments outperformed all existing orthogonal image moments.
Orthogonal moments enable computer-based systems to discriminate between similar objects. Mathematicians proved that the orthogonal polynomials of fractional-orders outperformed their corresponding counterparts in representing the fine details of a given function. In this work, novel orthogonal fractional-order Legendre-Fourier moments are proposed for pattern recognition applications. The basis functions of these moments are defined and the essential mathematical equations for the recurrence relations, orthogonality and the similarity transformations (rotation and scaling) are derived. The proposed new fractional-order moments are tested where their performance is compared with the existing orthogonal quaternion, multi-channel and fractional moments. New descriptors were found to be superior to the existing ones in terms of accuracy, stability, noise resistance, invariance to similarity transformations, recognition rates and computational times.
Efforts to prevent human-to-human transmission of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) by contaminated blood would be aided by the development of a sensitive diagnostic test that could be ...routinely used to screen blood donations. As blood samples from vCJD patients are extremely rare, here we describe the optimisation of real-time quaking-induced conversion (RT-QuIC) for detection of PrPSc (misfolded prion protein, a marker of prion infection) in blood samples from an established large animal model of vCJD, sheep experimentally infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Comparative endpoint titration experiments with RT-QuIC, miniaturized bead protein misfolding cyclic amplification (mb-PMCA) and intracerebral inoculation of a transgenic mouse line expressing sheep PrP (tgOvARQ), demonstrated highly sensitive detection of PrPSc by RT-QuIC in a reference sheep brain homogenate. Upon addition of a capture step with iron oxide beads, the RT-QuIC assay was able to detect PrPSc in whole blood samples from BSE-infected sheep up to two years before disease onset. Both RT-QuIC and mb-PMCA also demonstrated sensitive detection of PrPSc in a reference vCJD-infected human brain homogenate, suggesting that either assay may be suitable for application to human blood samples. Our results support the further development and evaluation of RT-QuIC as a diagnostic or screening test for vCJD.
Efforts to determine why new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants demonstrate improved fitness have been limited to analyzing mutations in the spike (S) protein with ...the use of S-pseudotyped particles. In this study, we show that SARS-CoV-2 virus-like particles (SC2-VLPs) can package and deliver exogenous transcripts, enabling analysis of mutations within all structural proteins and at multiple steps in the viral life cycle. In SC2-VLPs, four nucleocapsid (N) mutations found universally in more-transmissible variants independently increased messenger RNA delivery and expression ~10-fold, and in a reverse genetics model, the serine-202→arginine (S202R) and arginine-203→methionine (R203M) mutations each produced >50 times as much virus. SC2-VLPs provide a platform for rapid testing of viral variants outside of a biosafety level 3 setting and demonstrate N mutations and particle assembly to be mechanisms that could explain the increased spread of variants, including B.1.617.2 (Delta, which contains the R203M mutation).
Using video tutorials to deliver instructional content has become common practices nowadays. However, it is required to investigate how to implement new methods to deliver instructional content to ...deaf students to ensure success of their learning and reduce their reliance on personnel support or consultation from hearing peers. Therefore, and in light of cognitive theory of multimedia learning, this study experimented three different video tutorial methods to deliver instructional content that are tailored to deaf students' learning needs. The three methods included: (a) sign language only, (b) captioned text only, and (c) sign language and captioned text combined.
The study applied a mixed methods research design using pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design (tests scores) and qualitative research design (interviews). Fifty-four undergraduate deaf students from a large university in Saudi Arabia participated in this study, and of those participants, fifteen deaf students participated in semistructured interviews.
One-way analysis of variance results showed that using video tutorial that presents declarative content with captions only was significantly effective in comparison with the other methods. While the video tutorial that presents procedural content with sign language only was significantly effective in comparison with the other methods. Interview results confirmed the quantitative results. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.
Inflammation is a natural defense process of the innate immune system, associated with the release of proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, interleukin-12 and TNFα; and ...enzymes including iNOS through the activation and nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65 due to the phosphorylation of IκBα. Regulation of intracellular Ca
is considered a promising strategy for the prevention of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and accumulation of DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) that occurs in inflammatory-associated-diseases. Among the metabolites of ellagitannins that are produced in the gut microbiome, urolithin A (UA) has received an increasing attention as a novel candidate with anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects. Here, we investigated the effect of UA on the suppression of pro-inflammatory molecules and NF-κB activation by targeting TLR4 signalling pathway. We also identified the influence of UA on Ca
entry, ROS production and DSBs availability in murine bone-marrow-derived macrophages challenged with lipopolysaccharides (LPS). We found that UA inhibits IκBα phosphorylation and supresses MAPK and PI3K activation. In addition, UA was able to reduce calcium entry, ROS production and DSBs availability. In conclusion, we suggest that urolithin A is a promising therapeutic agent for treating inflammatory diseases through suppression of NF-κB and preserving DNA through maintaining intracellular calcium and ROS homeostasis.
A trace element is a chemical element with a concentration (or other measures of an amount) that is very low. The essential TEs, such as copper (Cu), selenium (Se), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe) and the ...electrolyte magnesium (Mg) are among the most commonly studied micronutrients. Each element has been shown to play a distinctive role in human health, and TEs, such as iron (Fe), zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu), are among the essential elements required for the organisms’ well-being as they play crucial roles in several metabolic pathways where they act as enzyme co-factors, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agents. Epidemics of infectious diseases are becoming more frequent and spread at a faster pace around the world, which has resulted in major impacts on the economy and health systems. Different trace elements have been reported to have substantial roles in the pathogenesis of viral infections. Micronutrients have been proposed in various studies as determinants of liver disorders, COVID-19 and T2DM risks. This review article sheds light on the roles and mechanisms of micronutrients in the pathogenesis and prevention of chronic hepatitis B, C and E, as well as Coronavirus-19 infection and type-2 diabetes mellitus. An update on the status of the aforementioned micronutrients in pre-clinical and clinical settings is also briefly summarized.
In the present study, starch based ZnO nancomposite (CSt-ZnO) was synthesized for the efficient removal of Pb(II) ions from aqueous medium. The structure and morphology of CSt-ZnO nancomposite was ...characterized using SEM, FTIR, TGA, BET, XPS and zeta potential measurements. The effect of contact time, pH, temperature and initial concentration of Pb(II) on the adsorption was studied. The optimum parameters for maximum Pb(II) removal were time-120 min; pH-6; temperature-318 K and Co–20 ppm. The maximum Langmuir adsorption capacity of CSt-ZnO nancomposite was 256.4 mg/g at 298 K. With increasing the temperature from 298 K to 318 K, the maximum adsorption quantity (qm) was improved from 256.4 to 476 mg/g which showed the endothermic nature of Pb(II) adsorption on CSt-ZnO nanocomposite. The sorption isotherm and kinetics model fitting studies, confirmed that data fit well to Freundlich isotherm and pseudo-first-order kinetics models, respectively. Thermodynamic studies inferred a spontaneous and endothermic nature of adsorption. Moreover, the adsorption capacity was 68% even after four adsorption-desorption cycles which revealed the reusable performance of CSt-ZnO was well. The antimicrobial activity of CSt-ZnO nanocomposite was also examined against S. aureus and E. coli.
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•CSt-ZnO nanocomposite was prepared by mixing the suspension slurry of cross-linked starch and the gel of ZnO.•CSt-ZnO nanocomposite had high adsorption capacity for Pb(II) removal and good reusability.•Pb(II) was efficiently eluted using 0.1 M HCl and CSt-ZnO was effectively recycled.•The antibacterial activity of CSt-ZnO nanocomposite was studied against S. aureus and E. coli.
Managed care professionals play a significant role in the management of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and diabetic macular edema (DME) through formulary management and drug ...utilization strategies. These strategies are designed to improve access to affordable care and minimize medical costs to both patients and payers. Preserving vision in patients with nAMD and DME is key to improving clinical outcomes and reducing the risk of comorbid conditions, such as depression. With the approval of new intravitreal treatment options, managed care professionals must stay up to date with evidence-based guidelines as well as the addition of cost-effective treatments to drug formularies to better manage health care resources and improve patient outcomes.
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