Barrier coverage is a fundamental application in wireless sensor networks, which is widely used to protect a region through intruder detection for smart city. In this paper, we study a new branch of barrier coverage, named warning barrier coverage (WBC). Different from the classic barrier coverage, WBC has the inverse protect direction, which protects unexpected visitors by warning them away from the region enclosed by sensor barriers. The WBC holds a promising prospect in many danger keep out applications for smart city. For example, a WBC can enclose the debris area in the sea and alarm any approaching ships in order to avoid their damaging propellers. One special feature of WBC is that the target region is usually dangerous and its boundary is previously unknown. Hence, the scattered mobile nodes need to detect the boundary and form the barrier coverage themselves. It is challenging to form these distributed sensor nodes into a barrier because a node can sense only the local information and there is no global information of the unknown region or other nodes. To this end, we propose a novel solution AutoBar for mobile sensor nodes to automatically form a WBC for smart city. To pursue the high coverage quality, we theoretically derive the optimal distribution pattern of sensor nodes using convex theory. Based on the analysis, we design a fully distributed algorithm that enables nodes to collaboratively move towards the optimal distribution pattern. In addition, AutoBar is able to reorganize the barrier even any node is broken. To validate the feasibility of AutoBar, we develop the prototype of the specialized mobile node, which consists of two kinds of sensors: one for boundary detection and another for visitor detection. Based on the prototype, we conduct extensive real trace driven simulations in various smart city scenarios. Performance results demonstrate that AutoBar outperforms the existing barrier coverage strategies in terms of coverage quality, formation duration, and communication overhead.

A facilitative transport system exists on the blood brain barrier (BBB) that has been tacitly assumed to be a path for glutamate entry to brain. But glutamate is a non-essential amino acid whose brain content is much greater than plasma, and studies in vivo show that glutamate does not enter brain in material quantities except in those small regions with fenestrated capillaries (circumventricular organs). The situation became understandable when luminal (blood facing) and abluminal (brain facing) membranes were isolated and studied separately. Facilitative transport of glutamate and glutamine exist only on the luminal membranes whereas Na+-dependent transport systems for glutamate, glutamine and some other amino acids are present only on the abluminal membrane. The Na+-dependent cotransporters of the abluminal membrane are in a position to actively transport amino acids from the extracellular fluid (ECF) into the endothelial cells of the BBB. These powerful secondary active transporters couple the energy of the Na+-gradient to move glutamate and glutamine into the ECF whereupon glutamate can exit to blood on the luminal facilitative glutamate transporter. Glutamine may also exit brain on a separate facilitative transport system that exists on the luminal membranes or glutamine can be hydrolyzed to glutamate within the BBB thereby releasing ammonia that is freely diffusible. The γ-glutamyl participate cycle participates indirectly by producing oxoproline (pyroglutamate) that stimulates almost all secondary active transporters yet discovered in the abluminal membranes of the BBB.

Diarrhoea is a serious cause of mortality worldwide that can lead to dehydration, gut barrier function impairment, nutrient malabsorption, and alterations of the gut microbiota (dysbiosis). Current solutions for its management, such as oral rehydration salts (ORS), inhibitors of the gut motility, antibiotics, and living probiotics only partially counteract the mechanisms of the disease and do not provide a full coverage of the problem. Potential risks of the use of living probiotic strains, particularly in immunocompromised patients, can be eliminated with the use of tyndallized (heat-killed) postbiotic bacteria and yeast. ABB C22® is a postbiotic combination of three tyndallized yeasts, namely Saccharomyces boulardii, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Kluyveromyces marxianus. To assess the action of the postbiotic combination on diarrhoea, immune and gut epithelial cell signaling assays, gut barrier formation assay and rotavirus gene expression assay were performed. ABB C22® showed a strong anti-inflammatory effect, an induction of the build-up of the gut epithelium, and a degree of protection against rotavirus infection. These experimental studies support the use of the postbiotic ABB C22® as a solution for the management of diarrhoea and gastrointestinal conditions, alone or in combination with existing but incomplete treatments.

Diarrhoea is a serious cause of mortality worldwide that can lead to dehydration, gut barrier function impairment, nutrient malabsorption, and alterations of the gut microbiota (dysbiosis). Current solutions for its management, such as oral rehydration salts (ORS), inhibitors of the gut motility, antibiotics, and living probiotics only partially counteract the mechanisms of the disease and do not provide a full coverage of the problem. Potential risks of the use of living probiotic strains, particularly in immunocompromised patients, can be eliminated with the use of tyndallized (heat-killed) postbiotic bacteria and yeast. ABB C22® is a postbiotic combination of three tyndallized yeasts, namely Saccharomyces boulardii, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Kluyveromyces marxianus. To assess the action of the postbiotic combination on diarrhoea, immune and gut epithelial cell signaling assays, gut barrier formation assay and rotavirus gene expression assay were performed. ABB C22® showed a strong anti-inflammatory effect, an induction of the build-up of the gut epithelium, and a degree of protection against rotavirus infection. These experimental studies support the use of the postbiotic ABB C22® as a solution for the management of diarrhoea and gastrointestinal conditions, alone or in combination with existing but incomplete treatments.

Coronaviruses (CoVs) are enveloped positive-sense single-stranded RNA viruses with a genome 27-31kbases in length. Critical genes include the spike (S), envelope (E), membrane (M), nucleocapsid (N) and 9 accessory open reading frames encoding for non-structural proteins (NSPs) that have multiple roles in the replication cycle and immune evasion (1). There are 7 known human CoVs that most likely appeared after zoonotic transfer, the most recent being SARS-CoV-2 responsible for the Covid-19 pandemic. Antivirals that have been approved by the FDA for use against Covid-19 such as Paxlovid can potentially target and successfully inhibit the main protease (MPro) activity of multiple human CoVs, however alternative proteomes encoded by CoV genomes have a closer genetic similarity to each other, suggesting that antivirals could be developed now that target future CoVs. New zoonotic introductions of CoVs to humans are inevitable and unpredictable. Therefore, new antivirals are required to control not only the next human CoV outbreak, but also the 4 common human CoVs (229E, OC43, NL63, HKU1) that circulate frequently and to contain sporadic outbreaks of the severe human CoVs (SARS-CoV, MERS and SARS-CoV-2). The current study found that emerging antiviral drugs, such as Paxlovid, have only been proven to target SARS-CoV-2. Other drugs which have the potential to target other human CoVs, are still within clinical trial and are not yet available for public use. Monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatment and vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 can reduce mortality and hospitalisation rates, however they target the Spike protein whose sequence mutates frequently and drifts. Spike also is not applicable for targeting other HCoVs as these are not well conserved sequences among human CoVs. Thus, there is a need for readily available treatments globally that target all 7 human CoVs and improve the preparedness for inevitable future outbreaks. Here we discuss antiviral research contributing to the control of common and severe CoV replication and transmission, including the current SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. The aim was to identify common features of CoVs for antivirals, biologics and vaccines that could reduce the scientific, political, economic and public health strain caused by CoV outbreaks now and in the future.

The proliferation of the Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionized traditional services, giving rise to emerging smart infrastructures by connecting the physical and digital worlds. Sensory data is essential in IoT-based systems for providing context-aware and location-based services. Hence, the accurate localization of IoT devices is paramount. Anchor misplacement can significantly affect location information and coverage services in IoT. We study the effect of anchor misplacement in typical IoT settings where sensors are randomly deployed, can be mobile and may belong to multiple providers. We identify sensing coverage holes formed by anchor misplacement and analyze their presence and impact. To mitigate the impact of anchor misplacement on network reliability, we propose a framework to identify the affected sensor nodes and then identify and remove misplaced anchor nodes. The validity of our approach is verified, and its effectiveness is demonstrated by several experiments with different network topologies and parameters. Our results are promising and can be utilized in multiple coverage applications, such as smart agriculture systems and habitat monitoring, regardless of the sensors or deployment types. It also sheds light on best practices and methods for a reliable design of IoT-based systems.

In this study, we evaluated the antibacterial effect against Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella Typhimurium in fried fish paste using floating electrode-dielectric barrier discharge (FE-DBD) plasma (1.1 kV, 43 kHz, N2 1.5 m/s, 1-60 min). In addition, quality evaluation (pH, VBN) of fried fish paste was conducted after FE-DBD plasma treatment. When FE-DBD plasma was treated for 1, 5, 10, 20, 30 and 60 min, S. aureus decreased by 0.16-1.13 log10 CFU/g, and S. Typhimurium decreased 0.25-1.13 log10 CFU/g. Both decreased > log10 CFU/g at 60 min. The D-value was 58.92 and R2 was 0.97 for S. aureus using first-order kinetics, and the D-value was 43.60 and R2 was 0.97 for S. Typhimurium using the Weibull model. There was no significant difference in pH after FE-DBD plasma treatment (p > 0.05). However, volatile basic nitrogen (VBN) significantly decreased as the treatment time increased (p < 0.05), and it was the lowest at 60 min to 3.46. Therefore, FE-DBD plasma treatment could be considered as a technology for preserving the quality of processed foods.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is at the crossroads. It is important to evaluate the effectiveness of the ACA in order to make rational decisions about the ongoing healthcare reform, but existing research into its effect on health insurance status in the United States is insufficient and descriptive. Using data from the National Health Interview Surveys from 2009 to 2015, this study examines changes in health insurance status and its determinants before the ACA in 2009, during its partial implementation in 2010–2013, and after its full implementation in 2014 and 2015. The results of trend analysis indicate a significant increase in national health insurance rate from 82.2% in 2009 to 89.4% in 2015. Logistic regression analyses confirm the similar impact of age, gender, race, marital status, nativity, citizenship, education, and poverty on health insurance status before and after the ACA. Despite similar effects across years, controlling for other variables, youth aged 26 or below, the foreign-born, Asians, and other races had a greater probability of gaining health insurance after the ACA than before the ACA; however, the odds of obtaining health insurance for Hispanics and the impoverished rose slightly during the partial implementation of the ACA but somewhat declined after the full implementation of the ACA starting in 2014. These findings should be taken into account by the U.S. government in deciding the fate of the ACA.

In this study, a commercial sodium butyrate protected by a new buffer salt solution (NSB) was tested to determine whether it can be used as an antibiotic alternative in broiler production. 192 1-day-old broilers were randomly allocated to three dietary treatments: soybean meal diet (CON), antibiotic diet (ANT, basal diet + 100 mg/kg aureomycin), and NSB (basal diet + 800 mg/kg NSB). The growth performance, serum anti-inflammatory cytokines, intestinal morphology, gut barrier function, antioxidative parameters, SCFAs content, and cecal microbiota were analyzed. The result showed that NSB significantly improved ADFI, ADG (p < 0.01), and decreased FCR (p < 0.01). Serum anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 was up-regulated (p < 0.01), and pro-inflammatory TNF-α was down-regulated (p < 0.05) by NSB supplementation. H&E results showed that VH and VH: CD ratio significantly increased (p < 0.05) in the jejunum and ileum in the NSB group. Furthermore, ZO-1 (p < 0.01), claudin-1 (p < 0.01), and occludin (p < 0.05) in the jejunum and claudin-1 (p < 0.01) and mucin-2 (p < 0.05) in the ileum significantly up-regulated in the NSB group, respectively. Additionally, SOD (p < 0.05) and T-AOC/MDA ratio (p < 0.01) in the jejunum and SOD in the ileum were significantly increased (p < 0.05) in the NSB group. The MDA level also significantly increased (p < 0.01) in the ANT group in the jejunum. Propionic acid (p < 0.05) and butyric acid (p < 0.01) content significantly increased in the NSB group in the jejunum and ileum segments. The 16S rRNA sequencing results showed no significant difference (p > 0.05) in alpha and beta diversity among the groups. LEFSe analysis also indicated that Peptostreptococcaceae, Colidextribacter, Firmicutes, Oscillospira, and Erysipelatoclostridiaceae, which promote SCFA production (p < 0.05), were identified as dominant taxon-enriched bacterial genera in the NSB group. The Spearman correlation analysis revealed that Colidextribacter with ADFI, ADG, VH, claudin-1 (p < 0.05), and unclassified_f__Peptostreptococcaceae with ADFI, IL-10, and ZO-1 were positively correlated (p < 0.05). Furthermore, ADFI and ADG with IL-10, claudin-1, SOD, T-AOC, and butyric acid (p < 0.05), and similarly, ADG with VH (p < 0.05) showed a positive correlation. In conclusion, NSB enhanced the growth performance by improving jejunum and ileum morphology, serum anti-inflammatory cytokines, regulating intestinal barrier function and antioxidant capacity, SCFAs content, and cecum microbiota, showing its potential use as an alternative to antibiotics in poultry nutrition.

In this study, the problem of overcoming the infinite energy barrier separating the bradyonic and tachyonic realms is investigated. Making use of the Majorana equation for particles with arbitrary spin and the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, it is proved that, under certain conditions of spatial confinement, quantum fluctuations allow particles with very small mass and velocity close to the speed of light to pass in the tachyonic realm, avoiding the problem of the infinite barrier (bradyon–tachyon tunnelling). This theoretical approach allows an avoidance of the difficulties encountered in quantum field theory when it is extended to particles with imaginary rest mass.

The emission of [O I] lines in the coma of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko during the Rosetta mission have been explained by electron impact dissociation of water rather than the process of photodissociation. This is the direct evidence for the role of electron induced processing has been seen on such a body. Analysis of other emission features is handicapped by a lack of detailed knowledge of electron impact cross sections which highlights the need for a broad range of electron scattering data from the molecular systems detected on the comet. In this paper we present an overview of the needs for electron scattering data relevant for the understanding of observations in coma, the tenuous atmosphere and on the surface of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko during the Rosetta mission. The relevant observations for elucidating the role of electrons come from optical spectra, particle analysis using the ion and electron sensors and mass spectrometry measurements. To model these processes electron impact data should be collated and reviewed in an electron scattering database and an example is given in the BEAMD, which is a part of a larger consortium of Virtual Atomic and Molecular Data Centre – VAMDC.

This paper shows that the empirical distribution of cross-sectional analyst coverage in China's stock markets follows an exponential law in a given month from 2011 to 2020. The findings hold in both the emerging (Shanghai) and the developed market (Hong Kong). Moreover, the unique distribution parameter (i.e., mean) is directly related to the amount of market-wide information. Average analyst coverage exhibits a significant negative predictive power for stock-market uncertainty, highlighting the role of security analysts in diminishing the total uncertainty. The exponential law can be derived from the maximum entropy principle (MEP). When analysts, who are constrained by average ability in generating information (i.e., the first-order moment), strive to maximize the amount of market-wide information, this objective yields the exponential distribution. Contrary to the conventional wisdom that security analysts specialize in the generation of firm-specific information, empirical findings suggest that analysts primarily produce market-wide information for 25 countries. Nevertheless, it remains unclear why cross-sectional analyst coverage reflects market-wide information, this paper provides an entropy-based explanation.

Aneuploidy describes the gain or loss of entire chromosomes or chromosome arms. Already more than 100 years ago, aneuploidy was described to be featured in cancer and it is known today to be present in 68-90 % of cancers, depending on tumour entity. Aneuploidy is implicated to affect cancer growth, therapy response and frequently affects prognosis. Chromosomal instability (CIN) is recognized as the main cause of aneuploidy and is characterised as the fluent process of gaining or losing chromosomes. Chromosomally instable cells need to be kept in check, or cleared, to prohibit the sampling of aneuploid karyotypes able to drive tumorigenesis. Of note, even aneuploid cancer cells often show CIN, a feature that promotes therapy related drug-resistance. Here, we review how CIN can be prevented or limited to spread by the induction of cell death and the relevance of different p53 responses triggered in response to mitotic perturbations to prohibit the formation of cancer driving aneuploidies.

In the power plant industry, the turbine inlet temperature (TIT) plays a key role in the efficiency of the gas turbine and, therefore, the overall—in most cases combined—thermal power cycle efficiency. Gas turbine efficiency increases by increasing TIT. However, an increase of TIT would increase the turbine component temperature which can be critical (e.g., hot gas attack). Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs)—porous media coatings—can avoid this case and protect the surface of the turbine blade. This combination of TBC and film cooling produces a better cooling performance than conventional cooling processes. The effective thermal conductivity of this composite is highly important in design and other thermal/structural assessments. In this article, the effective thermal conductivity of a simplified model of TBC is evaluated. This work details a numerical study on the steady-state thermal response of two-phase porous media in two dimensions using personal finite element analysis (FEA) code. Specifically, the system response quantity (SRQ) under investigation is the dimensionless effective thermal conductivity of the domain. A thermally conductive matrix domain is modeled with a thermally conductive circular pore arranged in a uniform packing configuration. Both the pore size and the pore thermal conductivity are varied over a range of values to investigate the relative effects on the SRQ. In this investigation, an emphasis is placed on using code and solution verification techniques to evaluate the obtained results. The method of manufactured solutions (MMS) was used to perform code verification for the study, showing the FEA code to be second-order accurate. Solution verification was performed using the grid convergence index (GCI) approach with the global deviation uncertainty estimator on a series of five systematically refined meshes for each porosity and thermal conductivity model configuration. A comparison of the SRQs across all domain configurations is made, including uncertainty derived through the GCI analysis.

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) has the characteristics of large-scale deployment, flexible networking, and wide application. It is an important part of the wireless communication networks. However, due to limited energy supply, the development of WSN is greatly restricted. Wireless Rechargeable Sensor Networks (WRSNs) transform the distributed energy around the environment into usable electricity through energy collection technology. In this work, a joint optimization strategy is proposed to improve the energy management efficiency for WRSNs. The joint optimization strategy is divided into two phases. In the first phase, we design an Annulus Virtual Force based Particle Swarm Optimization (AVFPSO) algorithm for area coverage planing. It adopts the multi-parameter joint optimization method to improve the efficiency of the algorithm. In the second phase, a Queuing Game-based Energy Supply (QGES) algorithm is designed for energy scheduling. It converts energy supply and consumption into network service. By solving the game equilibrium of the model, the optimal energy distribution strategy can be obtained. The simulation results show that our scheme improves the efficiency of coverage and energy, and extends the lifetime of WSN.

As time continues to advance, the need for robust security threat mitigation has become increasingly vital in software. However, ensuring early effective security threat mitigation requires optimal test data and consistent test case design. It is a constant struggle to maximize test coverage through test data optimization. We conducted explanatory research to maximize test coverage of security requirements as modeled in Structured Misuse Case Description (SMCD) i.e., structured specification of misuse case, so as to improve consistency in optimal test data generation. We specified constraints upon Mal activity in Object Constraint Language (OCL) in order to minimize human dependency and improve consistency in optimal test data generation. It was evident through results that MC/DC generated optimal test data of security threats through SMCD in comparison to the Decision Coverage method thus resulting in designing a significantly lower number of test cases and yet maximizing test coverage of security threats. MC/DC generated test data with n+1, while Decision Coverage generated test data with〖 2〗^n, we, therefore, conclude that MC/DC maximizes test coverage through optimal test data from SMCD in comparison to Decision Coverage.

Deficit schizophrenia is characterized by leaky tight and adherens junctions and bacterial translocation. Here we examine whether (deficit) schizophrenia is accompanied by leaky paracellular, transcellular and vascular barriers in the gut and blood brain barriers. We measured IgA responses to occludin, claudin-5, E-cadherin and β-catenin (paracellular pathway, PARA), talin, actin, vinculin and epithelial intermediate filament (transcellular pathway, TRANS) and plasmalemma vesicle-associated protein (PLVAP, vascular pathway) in 78 schizophrenia patients and 40 controls. IgA responses to claudin-5, E-cadherin and β-catenin, the sum of the four PARA proteins and the ratio PARA/TRANS were significantly higher in deficit schizophrenia than in non-deficit schizophrenia and controls. A large part of the variance in PHEMN (psychosis, hostility, excitation, mannerism and negative) symptoms, psychomotor retardation, formal thought disorders, verbal fluency, word list memory, word list recall and executive functions was explained by the PARA/TRANS ratio coupled with plasma IgA responses to Gram-negative bacteria, IgM to malondialdehyde, CCL-11 (eotaxin), IgA levels of the ratio of noxious to more protective tryptophan catabolites (NOX/PRO TRYCATs) and a plasma immune activation index. Moreover, IgA levels to Gram-negative bacteria were significantly associated with IgA to E-cadherin, β-catenin and PLVAP, while IgA levels to claudin-5 were significantly predicted by IgA to E-cadherin, NOX/PRO TRYCAT ratio, Gram-negative bacteria and CCL11. The phenomenology of the deficit syndrome is to a large extent explained by the cumulative effects of lowered natural IgM, breakdown of the paracellular and vascular pathways, increased bacterial translocation, peripheral immune-inflammatory responses and indices of BBB breakdown.

Pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing to inform antidepressant medication selection and dosing is gaining attention from healthcare professionals, patients, and payors in Australia. However, there is often uncertainty regarding which test is most suitable for a particular patient. Here, we identified and evaluated the coverage of CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 variants in commercial antide-pressant PGx testing panels in Victoria, a large and ethnically diverse state of Australia. Test characteristics and star alleles tested for both genes were obtained directly from pathology la-boratories offering PGx testing and compared against the Association of Molecular Pathology’s recommended minimum (Tier 1) and extended (Tier 2) allele sets. Although all tests covered the minimum recommended alleles for CYP2C19, this was not the case for CYP2D6. This study em-phasizes that PGx tests might not be suitable for all individuals in Australia due to the limited range of star alleles assessed. Inadequate haplotype coverage may risk misclassification of an individual’s predicted metabolizer phenotype which has ramifications for depression medica-tion selection and dosage. The study underscores the urgent need for greater standardization in PGx testing and emphasizes the importance of considering genetic ancestry when choosing a PGx testing panel to ensure optimal clinical applicability.

This study focuses on the recently emerged Internet of Vehicles (IoV) concept to provide an integrated agricultural vehicle/machinery tracking system through two leading low power wide area network (LPWAN) technologies, namely LoRa and NB-IoT. The main aim is to investigate the theoretical coverage limits by considering the urban, suburban, and rural environments. Two vehicle tracking units (VTUs) have been designed for LoRa and NB-IoT connectivity technologies that can be used as reference hardware in coverage analysis. On this basis, the closed-form explicit analytical expressions of the maximum transmission range have been derived using the Hata path loss model. Besides, the computer simulation results have been validated via the maps from XIRIO online radio planning tool. In light of the obtained findings, several evaluations have been made to enhance the LPWAN-based agricultural vehicle tracking feasibility in smart farms.

In 2015, the World Health Organization substantially revised its guidance for vaccination coverage cluster surveys (revisions were finalized in 2018) and has since developed a set of accompanying resources, including definitions for standardized coverage indicators and software (named the Vaccination Coverage Quality Indicators - VCQI) to calculate them. The current WHO vaccination coverage survey manual was used to design and conduct two nationally representative vaccination coverage surveys in Nigeria – one to assess routine immunization and one to measure post-measles campaign coverage. The primary analysis for both surveys was conducted using VCQI. In this paper, we describe those surveys and highlight some of the analyses that are facilitated by the new resources. In addition to calculating coverage of each vaccine-dose by age group, VCQI analyses provide insight into several indicators of program quality such as crude coverage versus valid doses, vaccination timeliness, missed opportunities for simultaneous vaccination, and, where relevant, vaccination campaign coverage stratified by several parameters, including the number of previous doses received. The VCQI software furnishes several helpful ways to visualize survey results. We show that routine coverage of all vaccines is far below targets in Nigeria and especially low in northeast and northwest zones, which also have highest rates of dropout and missed opportunities for vaccination. Coverage in the 2017 measles campaign was higher and showed less geospatial variation than routine coverage. Nonetheless, substantial improvement in both routine program performance and campaign implementation will be needed to achieve disease control goals.

As common industrial by-products, airborne engineered nanomaterials are considered important environmental toxicants to monitor due to their potential health risks to humans and animals. The main uptake routes of airborne nanoparticles are nasal and/or oral inhalation, which are known to enable the transfer of nanomaterials into the blood stream resulting in rapid distribution in the body. Consequently, mucosal barriers present in nose, buccal and lung have been identified and intensively studied as the key tissue barrier to nanoparticle translocation. Despite decades of research, surprisingly little is known about the differences among various mucosa tissue types to tolerate nanoparticle exposures. One limitation in comparing nanotoxicological data sets can be linked to a lack of harmonization and standardization of cell-based assays, where a) different cultivation conditions such as air-liquid interface or submerged cultures, b) varying barrier maturity and c) diverse media substitutes have been used. The current comparative nanotoxicological study therefore aims at analyzing the toxic effects of nanomaterials on four human mucosa barrier models including nasal (RPMI2650), buccal (TR146), alveolar (A549), and bronchial (Calu-3) mucosal cell lines to better understand the modulating effects of tissue maturity, cultivation conditions and tissue type using standard Transwell cultivations at liquid-liquid and air-liquid interfaces. Overall, cell size, confluency, tight junction localization, and cell viability as well as barrier formation using 50% and 100% confluency was monitored using trans-epithelial-electrical resistance (TEER) measurements and Presto Blue assays of immature (e.g. 5 days) and mature (e.g. 22 days) cultures in the presence and absence of corticosteroids such as hydrocortisone. Results of our study show that cellular responses to increasing nanoparticle exposures are highly cell type specific, where bronchial mucosal cell barriers models cultivated under ALI conditions showed less tolerance to acute ZnO nanoparticle exposures. Additionally, stronger toxicities are found using early mucosa barriers compared to later barrier models being maturated under air-liquid cultivation conditions.

The preparation of new materials based on starch for the development of biodegradable packaging is increasing, however, the poor properties of this biopolymer for this application causes an area of opportunities for the improvement of water vapour permeability (WVP), mechanical properties, thermal properties, hydrophilicity, water absorption, among others. Hence, starch has been combined with other polymers such as polyvinyl alcohol, which has shown an improvement in the mechanical properties of starch, also, the use of clays suggests that the properties of response to water can be improved. Therefore, in this work, the preparation and characterization of starch-PVA-nanoclay films prepared by solvent casting is reported. The results obtained suggest that the sonication of nanoclay is necessary to reach a good dispersion, which promotes a strong interaction among starch-PVA-nanoclay. In addition, the properties of WVP and mechanical properties of films improved with incorporation of nanoclay, the concentration of 0.5% w/v of nanoclay showed to be the best concentration due to concentrations of 1.0 and 1.5% w/v were poorer than 0.5% w/v. Accordingly, the successful incorporation of nanoclays into the matrix starch-PVA suggests that this material is a good candidate for use as packaging.

Achieving universal access to water and sanitation services in developing countries requires a coherent legal, political, and institutional environment, along with a clear financial strategy. Regionalizing utilities may be crucial for addressing disparities, economic inequalities, and governance challenges. Regionalization offers economies of scale, resource efficiency, knowledge sharing, and collaboration. The cornerstone will be ensuring the financial-economic viability of regional utilities, considering their social impacts in terms of affordability. The State of Santa Catarina case study is assessed. In the case of Santa Catarina, only four regional utilities currently generate sufficient revenue, without factoring in necessary investments, indicating the need to review design parameters to improve operational efficiency and increase revenues. Additional financial support may be required to ensure universal access. Tariff adjustments must strike a balance between cost-effectiveness and affordability for families.

Surface water availability is a fundamental environmental variable to implement effective climate adaptation and mitigation plans, as expressed by scientific, financial and political stakeholders. Recently published requirements urge the need for homogenised access to long historical records at a global scale, together with the standardised characterisation of the accuracy of observations. While satellite altimeters offer world coverage measurements, existing initiatives and online platforms provide derived water level data. However, these are sparse, particularly in complex topographies. This study introduces a new methodology in two steps 1) teroVIR, a virtual station extractor for a more comprehensive global and automatic monitoring of water bodies, and 2) teroWAT, a multi-mission, interoperable water level processor, for handling all terrain types. L2 and L1 altimetry products are used, with state-of-the-art retracker algorithms in the methodology. The work presents a benchmark between teroVIR and current platforms in West Africa, Kazakhastan and the Arctic: teroVIR shows an unprecedented increase from 55% to 99% in spatial coverage.A large-scale validation of teroWAT results in an average of unbiased root mean square error ubRMSE of 0.638 m on average for 36 locations in West Africa. Traditional metrics (ubRMSE, median, absolute deviation, Pearson coefficient) disclose significantly better values for teroWAT when compared with existing platforms, of the order of 8 cm and 5% improved respectively in error and correlation. teroWAT shows unprecedented excellent results in the Arctic, using a L1 products based algorithm instead of L2 one, reducing the error of almost 4 m on average. To further compare teroWAT with existing methods, a new scoring option, teroSCO, is presented, measuring the quality of the validation of time series transversally and objectively across different strategies. Finally, teroVIR and teroWAT are implemented as platform-agnostic modules and used by flood forecasting and river discharge methods as relevant examples. A review of various applications for miscellaneous end-users is given, tackling the educational challenge raised by the community.

Abstract: Background: Viral hepatitis B and C (HBV and HCV) pose significant public health challenges globally, particularly in Nigeria, where access to healthcare and treatment affordability are major concerns. This study aims to identify sociodemographic and clinical predictors of health insurance coverage among patients with HBV and HCV in Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional facility-based study was conducted at two secondary hospitals in Nasarawa State, Nigeria. Par-ticipants included patients diagnosed with HBV, HCV, or both and are > 18 years old. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire covering sociodemographic and clinical information, health insurance details, and economic impact. Logistic multivariate regression analysis was used to analyze the relationship between sociodemographic/clinical variables and health insurance status. Results: Out of 295 participants included in the final analysis, 67.1% had health insur-ance, primarily covering hepatitis screening and vaccination. Being aged 31-45 years (adjusted Odds Ratio [aOR]: 5.72, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.4 - 23.28, p = 0.02), having post-secondary education (aOR: 11.73, CI: 4.09 - 33.66, p < 0.001), and being HIV-positive (aOR: 2.86, CI: 1.02 - 8.02, p = 0.046) were significant predictors of health insurance coverage. Being unemployed significantly reduced the likelihood of having health insurance (aOR: 0.04, CI: 0.01 - 0.11, p < 0.001).Conclusions: This study reveals high insurance coverage among patients seeking viral hepatitis services in Nasarawa state, Nigeria and provides critical insights into the sociodemo-graphic predictors of health insurance coverage. It also highlights the need for the expansion health insurance benefit package that covers for viral hepatitis diagnosis and treatment, espe-cially for the younger adults, unemployed and less educated populations. This should be followed with adequate budgeting and policy implementation monitoring efforts, which are crucial for Nigeria's journey towards universal health coverage and elimination of viral hepatitis.

The Complete Coverage Path Planning (CCPP) is a key technology in the field of agricultural robot, and has great significance for improving the efficiency and quality of tillage, fertilization, harvesting and other agricultural robot operations, as well as reducing the operation energy consumption. The traditional boustrophedon or heuristic search algorithm based CCPP methods, when coping with the field with irregular boundaries, obstacles and other complex environments, still face many problems and challenges, such as large repeated work areas, multiple turns or U-turns, low operation efficiency and prone to local optimum. In order to solve the above problems, an improved-genetic-algorithm-based CCPP method was proposed in this paper, which introduces the idea of chromosome pairs and multi-points mutation to improve its global optimization ability in complex environments, reduce the repeated work areas and the number of turns and U-turns, and thereby improve the operation efficiency. The simulation and experimental results on simple regular fields showed that the proposed improved genetic algorithm-based CCPP method achieved the comparable performance with the traditional boustrophedon-based CCPP method. However, on the complex irregular fields, although the proposed CCPP method increased the number of turns by 13.76%, the area of repeated operation and the number of U-turns were decreased by 38.54% and 35.00% respectively, and saves the battery voltage by 7.82% on average compared to the boustrophedon-based CCPP method. This proved that the proposed CCPP method has strong adaptive capacity to the environment, and has practical application value in improving the efficiency and quality of agricultural machinery operations, and reducing the energy consumption.

To address the problem that it is easy to form coverage blind areas when wireless sensor networks are randomly deployed, an improved coverage optimization algorithm based on improved Salpa swarm Intelligent algorithm (ATSSA) is proposed for wireless sensor networks. Firstly, the pop-ulation is initialized using tent chaotic sequence to enhance the optimization ability of the algo-rithm. Secondly, the T-distribution mutation is added to the update formula of the leaders for improving the ability to jump out of the local optimal value. Finally, an adaptive formula for updating the position of the follower is proposed, which not only guarantees the local searching ability of the algorithm in the late iteration period, but also improves the global searching ability of the algorithm in the early iteration period. The experimental results show that ATSSA algorithm can improve the coverage of the wireless sensor networks and reduce deployment costs com-pared with other algorithms, when it is used in the wireless sensor networks.

The pandemic associated with SARS-CoV-2 is a worldwide public health challenge. The WHO has proposed to achieve 70% COVID-19 vaccination coverage in all countries by mid-2022. Nevertheless, the prevention strategy based on COVID-19 vaccination and other applied prevention measures have not been sufficient to prevent SARS-CoV-2 epidemic waves. The study assessed the vaccination coverage that would be required to establish herd immunity against SARS-CoV-2 by taking into account virus transmissibility (Ro values from 1.1 to 10) and Covid-19 vaccination effectiveness. The study found that Covid-19 vaccination programs could establish herd immunity against SARS-CoV-2 with Ro &lt; 3 with levels of Covid-19 vaccination effectiveness of 10−100% and against viruses with Ro values ranging from 3 to 10 with levels of Covid-19 vaccination effectiveness of 70−100%. Factors reducing Covid-19 vaccination effectiveness (emergent variants, reinfections, high risk individuals) and factors increasing SARS-CoV-2 transmissibility (close settings) increased percentages of vaccination coverage that would be required to establish herd immunity. The vaccination coverage objective of 70% could be adequate against SARS-CoV-2 with Ro values of 1.1−2.5, while percentages of vaccination coverage of 80% and 90% could be more adequate against viruses with Ro values of 2.5−3.5 and &gt;3.5, respectively. On February 2022, the vaccination coverage for complete vaccination was lower than 70% in 73.2% of the countries of the world. Percentages of Covid-19 vaccination coverage must be increased in most countries of the world to increase individual and herd immunity levels in the population.

We consider open non-twist Hamiltonian systems represented by an area-preserving two-dimensional map describing incompressible planar flows in the reference frame of a propagating wave, and possessing exits through which map orbits can escape. The corresponding escape basins have a fractal nature that can be revealed by the so-called basin entropy, a novel concept developed to quantify final-state uncertainty in dynamical systems. Since the map considered violates locally the twist condition, there is a shearless barrier that prevents global chaotic transport. In this paper we show that it is possible to determine the shearless barrier breakup by considering the variation of the escape basin entropy with a tunable parameter.

Blood-brain-barrier is a major obstacle in treating brain-related disorders as it does not allow to deliver drugs in the brain. In order to facilitate delivery of drugs in brain, we developed a method for predicting blood-brain-barrier penetrating peptides. These blood-brain barriers penetrating peptides (B3PPs) can act as therapeutic as well as drug delivery agents. We trained, tested, and evaluated our models on blood-brain-barrier peptides obtained from the B3Pdb database. First, we compute a wide range of peptide features then we select relevant peptide features. Finally, we developed numerous machine learning-based models for predicting blood-brain-barrier peptides using selected features. Our model based on random forest performed best on the top 80 selected features and achieved a maximum 85.08% accuracy with 0.93 AUROC. We also developed a web server, B3pred that implements our best models. It has three major modules that allow users to; i) predict B3PPs, ii) scanning B3PPs in a protein sequence, and iii) designing B3PPs using analogs. Our web server and standalone software is freely available at https://webs.iiitd.edu.in/raghava/b3pred/.

The blood-brain barrier (BBB), built by brain endothelial cells (BECs), is impermeable to biologics. Liposomes and other nanoparticles are good candidates for delivery of biologics across the BECs, as they can encapsulate numerous molecules of interest in an omnipotent manner. The liposomes need attachment of a targeting molecule, as BECs unfortunately are virtually incapable of uptake of non-targeted liposomes from the circulation. Experiments of independent research groups have qualified antibodies targeting the transferrin receptor as superior for targeted delivery of nanoparticles to BECs. Functionalization of nanoparticles via conjugation with anti-transferrin receptor antibodies leads to nanoparticle uptake by endothelial cells of both brain capillaries and post-capillary venules. Reducing the density of transferrin receptor-targeted antibodies conjugated to liposomes limits uptake in BECs. Opposing the transport of nanoparticles conjugated to high-affine anti-transferrin receptor antibodies, lowering the affinity of the targeting antibodies or implementing monovalent antibodies increase uptake by BECs and allows for further transport across the BBB. The novel demonstration of transport of targeted liposomes in post-capillary venules from blood to the brain is interesting and clearly warrants further mechanistic pursuit. The recent evidence for passing targeted nanoparticles through the BBB shows great promise for future drug delivery of biologics to the brain.

The neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimers, Parkinsons, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntingdons) and the prion disorders, have in common a dysregulation of metalloprotein chemistry involving redox metals (Cu,Fe,Mn). The consequent oxidative stress gives rise to protein plaques and neuronal cell death. An equilibrium exists between the functional requirement of the brain for Cu and Fe and their destructive potential with the production of reactive oxygen species. The importance of the brain barrier is highlighted in regulating the import of these metals. Upregulation of key transporters occurs in foetal and neonatal life when brain metal requirement is high and is down-regulated in adult life when need is minimal. By contrast a neonatal mode of CTR1 upregulation persists in feral N.Ronaldsay sheep. This has led to the premise that metal regulation may return to the default setting in ageing with implications for neurodegenerative disease.

In this paper, a new relay system that uses the UAV as a relay station between the tethered UAV and ground user (TU2U2G) is proposed. The TU2U2G system replaces the base station (BS) in the cellular system with a tethered UAV (TUAV). The TUAV is a UAV that receives power over a cable from a ground control station. It has advantages of high and variable altitude up to (100m) compared to BS. In addition, it overcomes the UAV drawback of the batteries' limited capacity. After that, a 3D placement Algorithm of the UAV as a relay station in the TU2U2G system is proposed. It is presented to maximize the coverage by jointly optimizing the transmitting power and relaying distance. The TU2U2G system shows better results than the traditional cellular system in terms of optimum UAV height, maximum coverage radius, and maximum distance between BS and UAV.

Robotic path planning is a field of research which is gaining traction given the broad domains of interest to which path planning is an important systemic requirement; the aim being to optimise the efficacy of robotic movements in a defined operational environment. For example, robots have been employed in many domains including: cleaning robots (such as vacuum cleaners), automated paint spraying robots, window cleaning robots, forest monitoring robots, agricultural robots (often driven using satellite and geostationary positional satellite data). Additionally, mobile robotic systems have been utilised in disaster areas and locations hazardous to humans (such as war zones in mine clearance). The coverage path planning problem describes an approach which is designed to determine the path that traverses all points in a defined operational environment while avoiding static and dynamic (moving) obstacles. In this paper we present our proposed Smooth-STC model, the aim of the model being to identify an optimal path, avoid all obstacles, prevent (or at least minimise) backtracking, and maximise the coverage in any defined operational environment. The experimental results in a simulation show that, in uncertain environments, our proposed smooth STC method achieves an almost absolute coverage rate and demonstrates improvement when measured against alternative conventional algorithms.

: Polymer single screw extrusion is a major industrial processing technique used to obtain plastics products. To assure high outputs, tight dimensional tolerances, and excellent product performance, extruder screws may show different design characteristics. Barrier screws, which contain a second flight in the compression zone, have become quite popular as they promote and stabilize polymer melting. Therefore, it is important to design efficiently extruder screws and decide whether a conventional screw will do the job efficiently, or a barrier-screw should be considered instead. This work uses multi-objective evolutionary algorithms to design conventional and barrier screws (Maillefer screws will be studied) with optimized geometry. Processing of two polymers, Low Density Polyethylene and Polypropylene, is analyzed. A methodology based on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques, namely data mining, decision making and evolutionary algorithms, is presented and utilized to obtain results with practical significance, based on relevant performance measures (objectives) used in the optimization. For the various case studies selected, Maillefer screws were generally advantageous for processing LDPE, while for PP the use of both types of screws would be feasible.

The peripheral lymphatic system plays a crucial role in the recovery mechanisms after many pathological changes, such as infection, trauma, vascular, or metabolic diseases. The lymphatic clearance of different tissues from waste products, viruses, bacteria and toxic proteins significantly contributes to the correspondent recovery processes. However, understanding of the meningeal lymphatics functions is a challenging problem. The exploration of mechanisms of lymphatic communication with brain fluids as well as the role of the lymphatic system in the brain drainage, clearance and recovery are still in its infancy. Here we review novel concepts on the anatomy and physiology of the lymphatics in the brain, which warrant a substantial revision of our knowledge about the role of lymphatics in the rehabilitation of the brain functions after neural pathologies. We discuss a new vision on how to recruit the meningeal lymphatics by the opening of blood-brain barrier as a trigger mechanism of activation of the meningeal lymphatic drainage. This leads to innovative strategies in neurorehabilitation therapy.

P-glycoprotein (Pgp) determines resistance to a broad spectrum of drugs in glioblastoma multiforme (GB) because it is highly expressed in GB stem cells and in brain-blood barrier (BBB), the peculiar endothelium surrounding brain. Inhibiting Pgp activity in BBB and GB is still an open challenge. Here, we tested the efficacy of a small library of tetrahydroisoquinoline derivatives with an EC₅₀ for Pgp < 50 nM, in primary human BBB cells and in patients-derived GB, from which we isolated differentiated/adherent cells (AC, i.e. Pgp-negative/doxorubicin-sensitive cells) and stem cells (neurospheres, NS, i.e. Pgp-positive/doxorubicin-resistant cells). At 1 nM, 3 compounds increased the delivery of doxorubicin, a typical substrate of Pgp, across BBB monolayer, without altering expression and activity of other transporters. The compounds increased the drug accumulation within NS, restoring necrosis, apoptosis and reduction in cell viability induced by doxorubicin. In co-culture systems, the compounds added to the luminal face of BBB increased the delivery of doxorubicin to NS growing under BBB and rescued the drug’s cytotoxicity. Our work identified new ligands of Pgp active at low nanomolar concentrations, that effectively reduce Pgp activity in BBB and GB, and can improve chemotherapy efficacy in this tumor.

(1) Background: Mpox was declared an international public health emergency by WHO. Initially, Smallpox vaccine in Italy was offered only to laboratory personnel at direct risk of infection. Currently, Healthcare workers (HCWs) are all considered by European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) to be at low or moderate risk. (2) Methods: To assess smallpox vaccination coverage among HCWs in an Italian hospital with different levels of risk of exposure to Mpox infection and to assess their attitudes toward vaccination, a self-report was administered to HCWs stratified at high and low/moderate risk. (3) Results: Of the 338 HCWs evaluated, 60.36% provided the requested data; among them the percentage of previously vaccinated staff was 38.7%, which corresponds to 23.4% of the total HCWs in the departments considered. Considering those born before 1979 as vaccinated, vaccination coverage increases from 23.4% to 41.4%. The department with the highest percentage of vaccinated is infectious diseases (60.5%); The percentage of HCWs who adhered to vaccination is 23%; only 8.8% of laboratory staff want to vaccinate, compared with 100% of midwives. The department with the highest percentage of vaccination adherence is proctology (85.7%). (4) Conclusions: Given the vaccination adherence rate and the vaccination coverage of the departments analyzed, it would be useful to extend vaccination against Smallpox to frontline HCWs involved in patient care in Italy too.

(1) Background: Applied health services research (AHSR) relies upon coordination across multiple organizational boundaries. Our aim was to understand how competing organizational and professional goals enhance or impede the conduct of high quality AHSR. (2) Methods: A qualitative study was conducted in two local health care systems in the UK, linked to a feasibility trial of a clinic-based intervention in secondary care. Data collection involved 24 semi-structured interviews with research managers, clinical research staff, health professionals, and patients. (3) Results: This study required a dynamic network of interactions between heterogeneous health and social care stakeholders, each characterized by differing ways of organizing activities which constitute their core functions; cultures of collaboration and interaction and understanding of what research involves and how it contributes to patient care. These interrelated factors compounded the occupational and organizational boundaries that hindered communication and coordination. (4) Conclusions: Despite the strategic development of multiple organizations to foster inter-professional collaboration, the competing goals of research and clinical practice can impede the conduct of high quality AHSR. To remedy this requires the alignment and streamlining of organizational goals, so that all agencies involved in AHSR develop a shared understanding and mutual respect for the progress of evidence-based medicine and the complex and often nuanced environments in which it is created and practiced.

The tumor microenvironment plays a pivotal role in the behavior and development of solid tumors as well as shaping the immune response against them. As the tumor cells proliferate, the space they occupy and their physical interactions with the surrounding tissue increases. The growing tumor tissue becomes a complex dynamic structure, containing connective tissue, vascular structures, and extracellular matrix that facilitates stimulation, oxygenation, and nutrition, necessary for its fast growth. Mechanical cues such as stiffness, solid stress, interstitial fluid pressure, matrix density, and microarchitecture influence cellular functions and ultimately tumor progression and metastasis. In this fight, our body is equipped with T cells as its spearhead against tumors. However, the altered biochemical and mechanical environment of the tumor niche affects T cell efficacy and leads to their exhaustion. Understanding the mechanobiological properties of the tumor microenvironment and their effects on T cells is key for developing novel adoptive tumor immunotherapies.

In this review paper, an overview of the application of n-type 4H-SiC Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) as radiation detectors is given. We have chosen 4H-SiC SBDs among other semiconductor devices such as PiN diodes or metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) structures, as significant progress has been achieved in radiation detection applications of SBDs in the last decade. Here, we present the recent advances at all key stages in the application of 4H-SiC SBDs as radiation detectors, namely: SBDs fabrication, electrical characterization of SBDs, and their radiation response. Main achievements are highlighted, and main challenges are discussed.

Mandibular critical size defect (CSD) due to pathological conditions, trauma, and congenital disease can not heal spontaneously and predominantly filled with fibrous tissue. Therefore, a Guided Bone Regeneration (GBR) combined with bone grafting can be performed. The researchers considered using Demineralized Dentin Material Membrane (DDMM) from bovine dentine as an alternative GBR. This study aimed to determine the amount of fibroblast and collagen density after DDMM and bone graft implantation on CSD. Thirty-six Rattus norvegicus rats were used as samples. Mandibular bone defect 5x5 mm was made, then filled with bone graft and covered with Bovine Pericardium Collagen Membrane (BPCM) in the control group and DDMM in the treatment group. Six samples were sacrificed on 7, 14, and 21 days post-surgical for histology examination. There were no significant differences in the amount of fibroblast and collagen density (p-value > 0,05). The amount of fibroblast is lower and the collagen density is higher in treatment group. DDMM has microporosity to prevent connective tissue ingrowth and dentine tubules to allow growth factors release. DDMM and bone graft implantation can reduce the amount of fibroblasts and increase collagen density of CSD which potentially being used as a CSD alternative treatment for bone regeneration.

The new barrier mode in Apache Spark allows embedding distributed deep learning training as a Spark stage to simplify the distributed training workflow. In Spark, a task in a stage doesn’t depend on any other tasks in the same stage, and hence it can be scheduled independently. However, several algorithms require more sophisticated inter-task communications, similar to the MPI paradigm. By combining distributed message passing (using asynchronous network IO), OpenJDK’s new auto-vectorization and Spark’s barrier execution mode, we can add non-map/reduce based algorithms, such as Cannon’s distributed matrix multiplication to Spark. We document an efficient distributed matrix multiplication using Cannon’s algorithm, which improves significantly on the performance of the existing MLlib implementation. Used within a barrier task, the algorithm described herein results in an up to 24% performance increase on a 10,000x10,000 square matrix with a significantly lower memory footprint. Applications of efficient matrix multiplication include, among others, accelerating the training and implementation of deep convolutional neural network based workloads, and thus such efficient algorithms can play a ground-breaking role in faster, more efficient execution of even the most complicated machine learning tasks

Aberrant neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation and the loss of barrier integrity in inflamed intestinal tissues have long been associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, whether NETs alter intestinal epithelium permeability during colitis remains elusive. Here, we demonstrated that NETs promote the breakdown in intestinal barrier function for the pathogenesis of intestinal inflammation in mouse models of colitis. NETs were abundant in the colon of mice with colitis experimentally induced by dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) or 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS). Analysis of the intestinal barrier integrity revealed that NETs impaired gut permeability, enabling the initiation of luminal bacterial translocation and inflammation. Furthermore, NETs induced the apoptosis of epithelial cells and disrupted the integrity of tight junctions and adherens junctions. Intravenous administration of DNase I, an enzyme that dissolves the web-like DNA filaments of NETs, during colitis restored the mucosal barrier integrity which reduced the dissemination of luminal bacteria, and attenuated intestinal inflammation in both DSS and TNBS models. We conclude that NETs serve a detrimental factor in the gut epithelial barrier function leading to the pathogenesis of mucosal inflammation during acute colitis.

This study presents a new bionanocomposite coating on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) made of pullulan and synthetic mica. Mica nanolayers have a very high aspect ratio (α) at levels much greater than that of conventional exfoliated clay layers (e.g., montmorillonite). A very small amount of mica (0.02 wt%, which is ϕ ≈ 0.00008) in pullulan coatings dramatically improved the oxygen barrier performance of the nanocomposite films under dry conditions, whereas this performance was partly lost as the environmental relative humidity (RH) increased. This outcome was explained in terms of the perturbation of the spatial ordering of mica sheets within the main pullulan phase because of RH fluctuations, as confirmed by modelling of the experimental OTR data according to Cussler’s model. The presence of the synthetic nanobuilding block (NBB) led to a decrease in both static and kinetic coefficients of friction compared with neat PET (≈12% and 23%, respectively) and PET coated with unloaded pullulan (≈ 26% reduction in both coefficients). In spite of the presence of the filler, all of the coating formulations did not significantly impair the overall optical properties of the final material, which exhibited haze values below 3% and transmittance above 85%, with the only exception represented by the formulation with the highest loading of mica (1.5 wt%, which is ϕ ≈ 0.01). These findings revealed, for the first time, the potential of the NBB mica to produce nanocomposite coatings in combination with biopolymers for the generation of new functional features, such as transparent high oxygen barrier materials.

Access to broadband communications in different parts of the world has become a priority for some governments and regulatory authorities around the world in recent years. Building new digital roads and pursuing a connected society includes looking for easier access to the Internet. In general, not all the areas where people congregate are fully covered, especially in rural zones, thus restricting access to data communications and bringing inequality. In the present review article, we have comprehensively surveyed the use of three platforms to deliver broadband services to such remote and low-income areas are proposed: Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), Altitude Platforms (APS), and Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites. These novel strategies support the connected and accessible world hypothesis. Hence UAVs are considered a noteworthy solution since their efficient maneuverability can aboard the rural coverage issues or not-spots.

COVID-19 pandemic that started in China has spread within 3 months to the entire globe. We tested the hypothesis that the vaccination against tuberculosis by BCG correlates with a better outcome for COVID-19 patients. Our analysis covers 55 countries complying with predetermined thresholds on the population size and number of deaths per million (DPM). We found a strong negative correlation between the years of BCG administration and the DPM along with the progress of the pandemic, corroborated by permutation tests. The results from multivariable regression tests with 23 economic, demographic, health-related, and pandemic restriction quantitative properties, substantiate the dominant contribution of BCG years to the COVID-19 outcomes. The analysis of countries according to an age-group partition reveals that the strongest correlation is attributed to the coverage in BCG vaccination of the young population (0-24 years). Furthermore, a strong correlation and statistical significance are associated with the degree of BCG coverage for the most recent 15 years, but no association was observed in these years for other broadly used vaccination protocols for measles and rubella. We propose that BCG immunization coverage, especially among the most recently vaccinated contributes to attenuation of the spread and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Motivated by the theoretical model of health insurance choice with Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) presented in Cardon 2012, this study investigates the determinants of optional coverage (SSP) and flexible spending accounts (FSA) enrollment, among the privately insured in post-affordable-care-act (ACA) USA. To this end, we rely on semi-parametric bi-variate probit methods, along with a pooled cross-section of the 2015-2016 National Health Interview Surveys. As predicted by the theoretical model, we find that SSP and FSA are complement health solutions with a positive correlation. Our results emphasize that the most important trigger factors influencing the joint probability of SSP and FSA adoption include not only insurance premium cost, but also age, education, marital status, number of work hours, region of residency, citizenship status, and annual health expenditure level. We find that controlling for these latter factors, health status is not significant especially for FSA adoption. In addition, despite the fact that the relative frequency of individuals with FSA rises with increasing levels of medical expenditure, ACA restrictions on FSA tax exclusion to an annual adjusted maximum of $2600 (in 2017 $s) seems to adversely burden individuals with greater medical expenditure, thereby reducing their likelihood of FSA enrollment in post-ACA USA. Understanding these factors is very crucial to US health care market's stakeholders, including insurance companies, firms looking to design their health insurance offerings, but also policy-makers interested in providing new tailored health solutions for reducing health risks.

One of the hallmarks of microgravity-induced effects in several cellular models is represented by the alteration of oxidative balance with the consequent accumulation of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS). It is well known that male germ cells are sensitive to oxidative stress and to changes of gravitational force even if published data on germ cell models are scarce. To gain more insights into the mechanisms of male germ cell response to altered gravity, a 3D cell culture model has been established from TCam-2 cells, a seminoma-derived cell line considered the only human cell line available to study in vitro mitotically active human male germ cells. TCam-2 cell spheroids were cultured for 24 hours under unitary gravity (Ctr) or simulated microgravity (s-microgravity) conditions, these last ones were obtained using the Random Positioning Machine (RPM). A significant increase in intracellular ROS and mitochondria superoxide anion levels has been observed after RPM exposure. In line with these results a trend of protein and lipid oxidation increase, and increased pCAMKII expression levels were observed after RPM exposure. The ultrastructural analysis by Transmission Electron Microscopy revealed that RPM-exposed mitochondria appeared enlarged and, even if seldom, disrupted. Notably, even the expression of the main enzymes involved in the redox homeostasis appears modulated by RPM exposure in a compensatory way, being GPX1, NCF1, and CYBB downregulated, whereas NOX4 and HMOX1 upregulated. Interestingly, HMOX1 is involved in the heme catabolism of mitochondria cytochromes, and therefore the positive modulation of this marker can be associated to the observed mitochondria alteration. All together, these data demonstrate TCam-2 spheroid sensitivity to acute SM exposure and indicate the capability of these cells to trigger compensatory mechanisms that allow to overcome the exposure to altered gravitational force.

In order to investigate the vertical distribution pattern of soil fauna community in low-altitude mountain areas. On July 8th, 2022, a low hill was selected as the study area to collect soil arthropods were collected through trap. Leaf litter, vegetation type and distribution quantity were investigated at each sampling site while soil fauna were collected. Also, the soil physical and chemical parameters were measured simultaneously. The results of one-way ANOVA showed that there were significant differences (P

Abstract: (1) Background and rationale: To validate the reported therapeutic coverage, a lymphatic filariasis post-mass drug administration (MDA) campaign survey was conducted in the Lukonga health zone from 10 June to 15 July 2023. (2) Materials and methods: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted at the community level in 30 villages in the Lukonga health zone from 10 June to 15 July 2023. The study population included all individuals from the visited com-munities. The study variables included age, sex, drug use (ivermectin + albendazole), adverse events, and adherence to MDA guidelines for supervised drug use. Questionnaires were administered on Android phones using the SurveyCTO platform. Stata version 17 was used for data analysis. (3) Results: Of the 1092 respondents, 54.8% were female and one-third were between the ages of 5 and 14. Two-thirds of the households surveyed, or 64%, had more than six people living in them, and 1031 individuals, or 94%, reported being present during the community mass drug distribution. Notably, 678 individuals, or 66%, reported taking the drugs offered, and 66.4% of those who took the drugs reported doing so in the presence of drug distributors. Thus, the survey coverage was 65.7% [95% CI: 62.9–68.7]. The results of this study show that the survey coverage was above the 65% threshold recommended by the WHO but below the 82.3% reported by the Lukonga health zone. The main reason for non-compliance was a fear of ivermectin-related side effects (47%). Supervised or directly observed treatment was not adhered to (66.4%). (4) Discussion and conclusions: Key challenges to further increase treatment coverage include assessing data quality, building capacity, motivating drug distributors, improving data reporting tools, proper recording by drug distributors, and ac-curate reporting on non-residents who take the drugs during the MDA. In addition, harmonization of the numerator for calculating drug coverage in the health zone is critical.

Molluscs are significant species in aquatic ecology. Molluscs are crucial for maintaining ecological balance as secondary consumers and serving as bioindicator species in biomonitoring systems. Molluscs are threatened by pesticides such as commonly used pyrethroid insecticides. Pyrethroids are typical insecticides used to control insects in agriculture and gardening. Pyrethroids are increasingly being utilized in both agricultural and human activities. Pyrethroids enter aquatic bodies through rainfall and drainage systems. The use of pyrethroids is becoming a significant concern for aquatic creatures, particularly molluscs. The discussion will focus on the increasing issue of pyrethroids becoming a nightmare for molluscs. Pyrethroids, due to their lipophilic nature, pose a significant risk to molluscs by affecting their metabolites, producing reactive oxygen species, and influencing neurotransmitter actions. Molluscs are crucial organisms in aquatic ecosystems, and their threats warrant significant discussion and attention. This review will delve into the behaviour of pyrethroids on molluscs.

We report a novel dual-band barrier infrared detector (DBIRD) design using type-II superlattices (T2SLs). The DBIRD structure consists of back-to-back barrier diodes: a "blue channel" (BC) diode which has an nBp architecture, an n-type layer of larger bandgap for absorbing blue band infrared/barrier/p-type layer, and a "red channel" (RC) diode which has an pBn architecture, a p-type layer of smaller bandgap for absorbing red band infrared/barrier/n-type layer. Each has a unipolar barrier using a T2SL lattice matched to a GaSb substrate to impede the flow of majority carriers from the absorbing layer. Each channel in the DBIRD can be independently accessed with a low bias voltage, as is preferable for high-speed thermal imaging. Device modeling of DBIRDs and simulation results of the current-voltage characteristics under dark and illuminated conditions are also presented. They predict that dual-band operation of the DBIRD will produce low dark currents and 27-33% quantum efficiencies for the in-band photons in the BC with λc=5.58 μm, and a nearly-constant 33% in the RC with λc=8.05 μm. The spectral quantum efficiency of the BC for 500 K blackbody radiation is approximately 20% over the range of λ=3 − 4.2 μm, while that of the RC has a peak of 42% at 5.7 μm. The DBIRD may provide improved high-speed dual-band imaging in comparison with NBn dual-band detectors.

Recent studies have confirmed that lung microvascular endothelial injury plays a critical role in the pathophysiology of COVID-19. Our group and others have demonstrated the beneficial effects of H2S in several pathological processes and provided a rationale for considering the therapeutic implications of H2S in COVID-19 therapy. Here, we evaluated the effect of the slow-releasing H2S donor, GYY4137, on the barrier function of a lung endothelial cell monolayer in vitro, after challenging the cells with plasma samples from COVID-19 patients or inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus. We also assessed how the cytokine/chemokine profile of patients’ plasma, endothelial barrier permeability, and disease severity correlated with each other. Alterations of barrier permeability after treatments with patient plasma, inactivated virus, and GYY4137 were monitored and assessed by electrical impedance measurements in real-time. We present evidence that GYY4137 treatment reduced endothelial barrier permeability after plasma challenge and completely reversed the endothelial barrier disruption caused by inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus. We also showed that disease severity correlated with the cytokine/chemokine profile of the plasma but not with barrier permeability changes in our assay. Overall, these data demonstrate that treatment with H2S-releasing compounds has the potential to ameliorate SARS-CoV-2–associated lung endothelial barrier disruption.

One of the notable temporal properties of dynamical systems is that a set of initial states leads the solutions to reach desired states avoiding a predetermined unsafe set.This property, that we call safe reachability has been studied in literature for autonomous systems using Barrier functionand Barrier densities [1]. In this paper, we generalize a sufficient condition for safe reachability of autonomous systemto switched systems under arbitrary switching signals. The condition relies upon the existence of a common Barrier density function for each subsystem. We apply the condition using the sum of squares method together with Putinar Positivstellensatz.

Vinyltriethoxysilane (VTES) was covalently bonded onto graphene oxide. Several methods, including X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction, were used to demonstrate the presence of VTES on the surface of graphene oxide and the creation of this covalent link. Following that, different quantities of the resultant vinyltriethoxysilane functionalized graphene oxide (VTESFGO) were mixed with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to form VTESFGO/PVA nanocomposite films (NCFs) with a 3-dimensional network structure. The creation of these NCFs and the presence of a three-dimensional network were confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The three-dimensional network structure provided these NCFs extraordinary characteristics. The mechanical and thermal stability, oxygen transfer rate (OTR), and water resistance pressure (WRP) of the NCFs were investigated. The nanocomposite film (NCF) with the highest weight percentage of VTESFGO (3.0 wt.%) was 47.5% more thermally stable than pure PVA, with an oxygen transmission rate of 0.3 cm3/m2 per day and a water resistance pressure of 780 mm/cm2. However, as the weight percentage of VTESFGO increased, the mechanical strength of the NCFs decreased as a result of silanol self-condensation, resulting in particulate formation, as confirmed by scanning electron microscopy.

During the pandemic, home-cooked meals have received more attention as people get more time for themselves and their families. It cannot deny that people have more time to prepare meals, and it is safer to cook at home since they can avoid direct contact with people who can potentially F0 or F1. For that particular reason, the number of home cooking has increased rapidly. In the article, the author pointed out that in comparison to the previous time, 42.0 percent of respondents said they cooked more frequently during the lockdown, while just 7.0 percent said they cooked less frequently. The increase in cooking frequency had a more significant impact on women than on men (p<0.05). Those who said they cooked more regularly spent more time preparing meals (78\%) and trying new recipes (73.6\%), as well as spending more time baking (67.1 percent ). In particular, the consumption of “comfort” foods (salty snacks, sweets) showed a significant rise, ranging from (23\%) to (60\%) of respondents who declared snacking more studied.Moreover, articles pointed out that in conjunction with the dramatic reduction in energy expenditure due to the impossibility of going out, this situation could have led to energy imbalance and, thus, weight gain. Noticing the massive rise in home cooking, the search for new recipes, and the need for balance meals, the idea for a cooking app called "Cooking Papa" has been proposed. As far as the research goes, the concept of "cooking" seems close but yet not easy to define. The Oxford English Dictionary defines cooking as “to prepare food by the action of heat. However, limited evidence suggests that people interpret the meaning of cooking quite differently. Moreover, the terms ‘homemade’, ‘convenience,’ ‘proper cooking,’ ‘cook,’ ‘basic ingredients,’ and ‘ready prepared’ are not uniformly understood.

The blood brain barrier (BBB) is an essential component in regulating and maintaining the homeostatic microenvironment of the central nervous system (CNS). During the occurrence and development of glioblastoma (GBM), BBB is pathologically disrupted with markedly increased permeability. Due to the obstruction imposed by the BBB, strategies currently employed for GBM therapeutics still obtain a very low success rate and lead to systemic toxicity. Moreover, chemotherapy could promote pathological BBB functional restoration, accompanied with a prominent decrease of intracerebral therapeutics transportion during GBM multiple administration, resulting in chemotherapy failure for GBM treatment. The effective delivery of therapeutics into the brain still faces with severe challenges. Regulation of pathological BBB for enhanced transporting of therapeutics across the barrier may provide new opportunities for effective and safe treatment of GBM. This article reviews the structure and function of BBB in physiological state, the mechanisms underlying BBB pathological fenestration during the development of GBM, and the therapeutic strategies of GBM based on BBB intervention and therapeutic drugs transporting across the BBB.

Pericytes are increasingly recognized as being important in the control of blood-brain barrier permeability and vascular flow. Research on this important cell type has been hindered by widespread confusion regarding the phenotypic identity and nomenclature of pericytes and other perivascular cell types. In addition, pericyte heterogeneity and mouse-human species differences have contributed to confusion. Herein we summarize our present knowledge on the identification of pericytes and pericyte subsets in humans, primarily focusing on recent findings in humans and nonhuman primates. Precise identification and definition of pericytes and pericyte subsets in humans may help us to better understand pericyte biology and develop new therapeutic approaches specifically targeting disease-associated pericyte subsets.

Maintenance of intestinal barrier integrity is crucial for preventing inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) onset and exacerbations. In this work we study the effect of a fixed combination of Lactobacillus reuteri and Lactobacillus acidophilus and herbal extracts in an in vitro inflammation experimental model. Caco-2 cell monolayer was exposed to INF-γ+TNF-α or to LPS; Trans Epithelial Electrical Resistance (TEER) and paracellular permeability were investigated. ZO-1 and occludin tight junctions (TJs) were also investigated by mean of immunofluorescence. The pre-treatment with the fixed combination of probiotics and herbal extracts prevented the inflammation-induced TEER decrease, paracellular permeability increase and TJs translocation. In summary the fixed combination of probiotics and herbal extracts investigated in this research was found to be an interesting candidate for targeting the re-establishment of intestinal barrier function in IBDs conditions.

Abstract: Background: Bangladesh has achieved remarkable progress in reducing maternal mortality, yet postpartum deaths remain a significant issue. Emphasis on quality postnatal care (qPNC) is crucial, as increased coverage alone has not sufficiently reduced maternal morbidity and mortality. Methods: This study included data from the Bangladesh Maternal Mortality Survey of 32,106 mothers who delivered within three years prior to the survey. Descriptive statistics were used to report coverage and components of postnatal care stratified by covariates. Log-linear regression models were used to assess the determinants of quality postnatal care among facility and home births. Results: From 2010 to 2016, postnatal care coverage within 48 hours of delivery by a qualified provider rose from 23% to 47%. 94% of facility births received timely PNC, contrasted with only 6% for home births. Despite the increased coverage, quality of care remained as low as 1% for home births and 13% for facility births. Key factors affecting qPNC utilization included socio-demographic factors, pregnancy complications, delivery method, financial readiness, and mobile ownership. Conclusion: Importantly, deliveries assisted by skilled birth attendants correlated with higher quality postnatal care. The study reveals a significant gap between the coverage and quality of postnatal care in rural Bangladesh, especially for home births. It underscores the need for targeted interventions to enhance qPNC.

The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is currently experiencing widespread crown of thorns starfish (CoTS) outbreaks as part of the fourth wave of outbreaks since 1962. It is believed that outbreaks have become more frequent on the GBR and elsewhere in the Indo-Pacific associated with anthropogenic causes. The two widely accepted potential causes are (1) anthropogenic nutrient enrichment leading to increased biomass of phytoplankton, the food of the planktonic stage of larval CoTS; and (2) overfishing of predators on the juvenile to adult stages of CoTS, for example, commercial fished species such as coral trout. In this study, we show the evidence for the nutrient enrichment causation hypothesis is strong based on a large number of recent studies in the GBR. We also hypothesise that secondary outbreaks in the region between Cairns and Townsville can also be enhanced by nutrient enriched conditions associated with the annual nutrient discharge from Wet Tropics rivers.

(1) Background: Childhood immunization is vital for preventing morbidities and mortalities globally. However, rural Pakistan is facing persistent challenges, particularly after recent global health crises in gauging accurate vaccination coverage estimates. This study aimed to apply a novel Lot Quality Assurance Sampling (LQAS) methodology due to its rapid and reliable estimates of the routine immunization rates among children aged 12-23 months old in Shikarpur, Sindh, and to identify priority areas for future interventions. (2) Methods: A cross-sectional household survey design was adopted for an in-depth assessment of vaccination coverage in a previously under-studied rural context. (3) Results: Data were collected from 1,402 children aged 12-23 months across 47/49 Union Councils in Shikarpur within 141 randomly identified clusters. LQAS was innovatively employed along with GIS Mapping which provided a spatial analysis of the distribution of immunization coverage and the spot map of clusters. The weighted average for fully immunized children was 42.4% after applying Direct Adjustment Method. A steep decline in coverage for each successive vaccine dose was observed, and 39 key priority areas were identified on GIS-based plotting for intensive health interventions. Multivariate Logistic Regression Model further revealed informational gaps and fear of side effects as major barriers to achieving complete immunization. (4) Conclusions: The innovative application of LQAS and GIS Mapping in this study has provided a comprehensive glimpse of its utility in future follow-ups and similar assessments. The findings stress the critical need to tackle the foundational reasons behind the vaccination gaps, with a special focus on enhancing awareness and information dissemination in the key priority areas.

Achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is a strategic objective of the Jordanian Government and has been prioritized in its strategies and plans. However, there are several challenges affecting primary health care in Jordan and the health system in general that prevent Jordan from achieving UHC. This paper highlights the importance of team-based care in the form of Family Health Teams (FHTs) to realize Jordan’s goal of achieving UHC. FHTs are a team-based approach that brings together diverse professionals to provide a comprehensive, efficient, patient-centered primary care system that meets the changing needs of Jordan's population and refugees. However, the implementation of FHT may encounter obstacles, including individual, organizational and institutional, and external barriers. To overcome such obstacles, several actions and processes need to be taken, including political commitment and leadership, implementing good governance and policy frameworks, allocating resources and funding, multisectoral collaboration, and engagement of communities and stakeholders. The successful implementation of FHTs requires participation from government officials, parliamentarians, civil society, and influential community, religious, and business leaders. A strategic policy framework, effective oversight, coalition building, regulation, attention to system design, and accountability are also essential. In conclusion, adopting the FHT approach in Jordan's Primary Health Care system offers a promising path towards achieving UHC, improving healthcare access, quality, and efficiency while addressing the unique challenges faced by the country's healthcare system.

Working memory refers to the capability of the nervous system to selectively retain short-term memories in an active state. The long-standing viewpoint is that neurons play an indispensable role and working memory is encoded by synaptic plasticity. Furthermore, some recent studies have shown that calcium signaling assists the memory processes and the working memory might be affected by the astrocyte density. Over the last few decades, growing evidence has also revealed that astrocytes exhibit diverse coverage of synapses which are considered to participate in neuronal activities. However, very little effort has yet been made to attempt to shed light on the potential correlations between these observations. Hence, in this article we will leverage a computational neuron-astrocyte model to study the short-term memory performance subject to various astrocytic coverage and we will demonstrate that the short-term memory is susceptible to this factor. Our model may also provide plausible hypotheses for the various sizes of calcium events as they are reckoned to be correlated with the astrocytic coverage.

Over the past few decades, the growth of the urban population has been remarkable. Nowadays, 50% of the population lives in urban areas, and forecasts point that by 2050 this number will reach 70%. Today, 64% of all travel made is within urban environments and the total amount of urban kilometers traveled is expected to triple by 2050. Thus, seeking novel solutions for urban mobility becomes paramount for 21st century society. In this work, we discuss the performance of vehicular networks. We consider the metric Delta Network. The Delta Network characterizes the connectivity of the vehicular network through the percentage of travel time in which vehicles are connected to roadside units. This article reviews the concept of Delta Network and extends its study through the presentation of a general heuristic based on the definition of scores to identify the areas of the road network that should receive coverage. After defining the general heuristic, we show how small changes in the score computation can generate very distinct (and interesting) patterns of coverage, each one suited to a given scenario. In order to exemplify such behavior, we propose three deployment strategies based on simply changing the computation of scores. The results show that the strategies derived from the general heuristic are very interesting, all of them deploying roadside units in a circle pattern around the traffic epicenter.

Device-mediated, non-invasive drug delivery across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) represents a significant advancement in treating neurological diseases. The BBB is a tightly packed layer of endothelial cells that shields the brain from harmful substances in the blood, allowing necessary nutrients to pass through. It is a highly selective barrier, which poses a challenge to delivering therapeutic agents into the brain. Several non-invasive techniques and devices have been proposed or investigated to enhance drug delivery across the BBB. This paper presents the current state of the art and case studies that address the pharmacology, technology, delivery systems, regulatory approval, ethical concerns, and future possibilities.

Background: In order to achieve the best possible hearing and understanding with a cochlear implant (CI), regular hearing speech therapy treatment is necessary after implantation. This treatment should also be accessible to the growing proportion of hearing-impaired people with a migration background. This requires an alternative to therapy in the therapist's native language. The aim of this study was to evaluate six multilingual conversation applications with regard to their usefulness for therapy. Material and Methods: The six most commonly used applications were reviewed in terms of accuracy of content and grammatical translation, as well as pronunciation for English, Spanish, Arabic, Turkish, and Russian by native speakers. The number of available languages, availability, cost, and additional features were also analyzed. The accuracy of the content and grammatical translation as well as the pronunciation were statistically evaluated, and the differences were highlighted. The results of the different applications were compared with the performance of a native speaker. Results: All applications tested differed significantly from the native speaker level, with Google Translator showing the closest approximation to the native speaker level. All apps offer translations for multiple languages and, with exceptions, are available in both app stores. Furthermore, all apps have additional therapist-facilitating features. Conclusion: Multilingual conversation apps can make speech therapy in a foreign language much easier when used with patients. An adaptation of the software to the specific requirements of a hearing speech therapy is necessary to achieve a linguistic level that corresponds to the native language of the therapist and to enable an easy use in the therapy.

With the proportional reduction of MOSFET size, the leakage-to-barrier reduction (DIBL) effect leads to a more significant increase in the tunneling current on the gate, and the appearance of the gate tunneling current also seriously affects the static characteristics of the device. In this paper, a new theoretical model of the relationship between the direct tunneling current and the thickness of the oxide layer under the DIBL effect is proposed for the MOSFET device with ultra-thin oxide layer. On this basis, the characteristics of the MOSFET device are studied in detail by using HSPICE, and their working conditions are quantitatively analyzed. The characteristic variation trend of small-size devices under the influence of gate tunneling current is predicted. The simulation results using BSIM4 model are consistent with the theoretical model. The theory and data in this paper will provide useful reference for large scale integrated circuit design.

The effect of Alzheimer's disease (AD) medications on CD4+ T cells homing has not been thoroughly investigated. Alzheimer's disturbs the life of at least five million persons in the USA. CD4+ T cells could both exacerbate and reduce AD symptoms. Regulating CD4+ T cells homing to the leaky blood-brain barrier (BBB) constitutes a new hope for enhancing AD prognosis. Alzheimer's drugs such as Donepezil (Aricept), Rivastigmine (Exelon), Galantamine (Razadyne) and memantine are known to play an important part in regulating the neurotransmitters mechanisms. However, little is known about the effect of these drugs on CD4+ T cells homing. In this review, we focus on current and new drugs that could modulate CD4+ T cells interactions with the BBB in AD.

We report on the fabrication and electrical characteristics of zinc-oxide (ZnO) based metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) type Schottky barrier diodes (SBHs). ZnO thin layer on the p-type silicon substrate was fabricated by atomic layer deposition (ALD). The structure and surface properties of the thin film were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscope (AFM) and secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS). The current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of Al/ALD-grown ZnO/p-Si diodes were measured under dark at room temperature. The electrical parameters such as ideality factor (n), series resistance (R_s) and barrier height (ϕ_b) of the diodes were analyzed using standard thermionic emission (TE) theory, Norde and Cheung method. The barrier height value obtained from I-V and Cheung method was found to be 0.73 eV and 0.76 eV, respectively. The interface state density (Dit) of the diodes was determined from the I-V characteristics. The nonideal behavior of measured parameters suggested the presence of interface states. The obtained results showed that the prepared diode can be used for NIR Schottky photodetector applications.

Although the universal health coverage (UHC) is pursued by many countries, not all countries with UHC include dental care as their benefits. Japan, with its long-held tradition of UHC, has covered dental care as essential benefit and majority of dental care services are provided to all patients with minimal copayment. Being under the UHC, the scope of services as well as prices are regulated by the uniform fee schedule and dentists submit claims according to the uniform format and fee schedule. The author analyzes the publicly available dental health insurance claims data as well as a sampling survey on dental hygiene and illustrates how Japan’s dental care is responding to the challenges of the population ageing.

Several coastal barriers experienced significant erosion and change in shape throughout the Mediterranean coasts over the past decades, and the issue has become of increasing concern for scientists and policymakers. With reference to a case study and by meteorological and geomorphological investigations, this note aims to infer recent shoreline dynamics and define coastal phenomena shaping the beach-dune barrier of Cesine Lagoon (South Italy), to finally point out the weather-driven processes. A challenge for this research was to obtain significant results from publicly available sources and simple and inexpensive methods. The retreat of the dune toe, the accretion of washover fans, and the formation of gravel beaches have been related to the analyzed wind-wave conditions. Net longshore transport was found in accordance with the direction of the more intense winds. The role of extreme events in the shaping of coastal landforms is yet to be established even if they greatly increase the vulnerability to flooding of the study area. The results achieved so far are starting points for further data collection and analysis in the perspective of assessing the impact of climate changes on the lagoon barrier.

In the present study, a multilayer high barrier thin blown film based on a polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT) blend with polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), and composed of four layers, including a cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) barrier layer and an electrospun poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) hot-tack layer, was characterized in terms of surface roughness, surface tension, migration, mechanical and peel performance, barrier properties and disintegration rate. The results showed a material with a smooth surface. The overall migration test showed that the material was suitable for its use as a food contact layer. The addition of the CNC interlayer had a significant effect on the mechanical properties of the system, drastically reducing the elongation at break and, thus, the flexibility of the material. However, the material retained its elastic modulus and tensile strength. The CNC coating had a negative impact on the peeling strength, weakening the inherently strong interlayer adhesivity of the electrospun PHBV fibers. The multilayer had a good barrier to water vapor, and especially to oxygen, with its permeance reduced by up to a 90 % when the CNC layer was present. Finally, the monolayer blend film disintegrated in a period of less than 55 days in a laboratory-scale composting experiment, while the multilayer system disintegrated in 60 days. Overall, the multilayer system formed a fully compostable structure with great potential for use in food packaging applications.

Large-area nanostructuring of glasses using intense laser beam remains a difficult task due to the extreme non-linear absorption of the laser energy by the material. Precise optimization of the process parameters is essential for fabricating nanostructures with large area coverage. In this study, we report the findings on creating high spatial frequency LIPSS (HSFL) on borosilicate glass through direct laser writing, using a femtosecond laser with a wavelength λ = 800 nm, pulse duration τ = 35 fs, and repetition frequency frep = 1 kHz. The orientation of the HSFL was found to be parallel to the electric field vector. We measured the single pulse ablation threshold (Fth=3.87±0.26 J/cm2) and incubation factor (S=0.68±0.03) of Borosilicate glasses for precise control for large area surface structuring. Single-spot experiments indicate that uniform LIPSS formation is limited by melt formation inside the irradiated area for higher fluence and a larger number of irradiated laser pulses. The orientation of the scan axis with the laser beam polarization is found to be significantly influencing the uniformity of the large area processing. We found that the orientation of the scan axis with the laser beam polarization significantly affects the uniformity of large-area processing, with redeposition and melt formation being higher when the scan axis is perpendicular to the laser beam polarization. Large-area processing of the borosilicate glass surface is done by line-by-line scanning over the surface with a scan orientation parallel to the laser beam polarization. The optical characterization reveals that the transmittance and reflectance of the borosilicate glass decreased significantly after processing. Also, the wettability of the surface has been changed from hydrophilic to super hydrophilic after processing. These chemical contamination-free and uniformly distributed structures have potential applications in optics, microfluidics, photovoltaics, and biomaterials.

Robotic decision-support systems must facilitate a robots interactions with their environment, this demands adaptability. Adaptability relates to awareness of the environment and `self-awareness', human behaviour exemplifies the concept of awareness to arrive at an optimal choice of action or decision based on reasoning and inference with learned preferences. A similar conceptual approach is required to implement awareness in autonomous robotic systems which must adapt to the current dynamic environment (the context of use). By incorporating `self-awareness' with knowledge of a Robot's preferences (in decision making) the decision maker interface should adapt to the current context of use. This paper proposes a novel approach to enable an autonomous robotics which implements path planning combining adaptation with knowledge reasoning techniques and hedge algebra to enable an autonomous robot to realise optimal coverage path planning under dynamic uncertainty. The results for a cleaning robot show that using our proposed approach demonstrated the capability to avoid both static and dynamic obstacles while achieving optimal path planning with increased efficiency. The proposed approach achieves the multiple decision-making objectives (path planning) with a high-coverage and low repetition rates. Compared to other current approaches, the proposed approach has demonstrated improved performance over the conventional robot control algorithms.

South Africa possesses the largest anti-retroviral therapy (ART) program in the world but the path to this record was dramatic. There is scarce literature employing a comprehensive framework to explain this ART policy change and inform current policy making processes. This paper applies the Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) to analyse the interactions among diverse actors, institutions and networks that were associated with the ART policy change in South Africa. Post-apartheid, HIV/AIDS and AIDS-related mortality were serious public health problems. At the time, the discernible coalitions in the AIDS policy subsystem were the prescience coalition and AIDS dissidents. In view of the availability of compelling scientific evidence on the pathogenesis of HIV/AIDS, the clinical usefulness of ART, the availability of funding for national ART roll-out, strong global advocacy to reduce the cost of ART, all of these in an era when access to adequate HIV care was increasingly considered a human right, the environment to establish an appropriate ART policy for the country was conducive. However, AIDS dissidents dominated the policy agenda via their control over key institutions, the use of various dimensions of power, biasing evidence to inform policy, and promoting the activities of strong interest groups that were not in support of ART. National ART roll-out ultimately emerged as a political priority as a result of external shocks (on the ART policy subsystem) which disfavoured the dominant coalition. Failure to supplement this application of the ACF with key pubic policy concepts such as power dimensions, evidence use in policy, governance and emergence of global health networks would have led to suboptimal appraisal of the ART policy change and misinformation of current policy making processes.

The effects of the coolant pulsation and the film cooling with the plasma aerodynamic actuation (PAA) could be herein explored via large eddy simulations. The electrohydrodynamic force derived from the PAA was solved through the phenomenological plasma model. The Strouhal number of the sinusoidal coolant pulsation and the averaged pulsation blowing ratio were 0.25 and 1.0, respectively. Comprehensive analyses were carried out on the time-averaged flow fields, and the results revealed that the pulsed cooling jet might cause a deeper penetration into the crossflow, and this phenomenon could be remarkably mitigated by the downward force of the PAA. Furthermore, because of the coolant pulsation, the counter rotating vortex pair (CRVP) expanded to lifted off the wall less well, and the PAA lessened the negative lift-off impact and entrapment from the CRVP. Then, the spatial-temporal development of the coherent structures was figured out by the alterations of the centerline temperature, reflecting formation of the intermittent coherent structures rather than hairpin vortices due to the coolant pulsation, and their size and upcast behaviors were reduced by the PAA. Consequently, there was a basic suppression of the turbulent mixing of the cooling fluid with the crossflow. Finally, the three-dimensional streamlines confirmed that the coherent structure dynamic behaviors were significantly regulated by the PAA for alleviating the adverse influences of the coolant pulsation. In summary, through controlling how the dominating coherent structures evolve throughout time and space, the PAA can effectively increase the pulsed film cooling efficiency.

Methylmercury is a neurotoxin present in fish tissues that permeates the blood-brain barrier after consumption. Previous research has shown that methylmercury is harmful to neurons, causing pH alterations, oxidative stress, excitotoxicity, and parenchymal damage. Methylmercury is a known factor of neurological disorders including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. The method by which methylmercury passes through the blood-brain barrier is largely unknown. According to preliminary studies, one way methylmercury crosses the blood-brain barrier is by creating a complex with L-Cysteine, which facilitates its passage by the LATs system through mimicking another amino acid existing in the body. The human blood-brain barrier was studied using C. elegans as a model organism. It was hypothesized that if methylmercury passes through the blood-brain barrier of C. elegans faster with L-Cysteine present than without L-Cysteine present, the methylmercury's adverse effects (death and locomotive difficulty) will occur sooner. Each of the four experimental groups contained one C. elegans: the control, the L-Cysteine group, the methylmercury group, and the methylmercury and L-Cysteine combination group. The effects of L-Cysteine and methylmercury on C. elegans were studied using three metrics: viability, locomotive disability, and time for locomotive effects to occur. The group that received both methylmercury and L-Cysteine had reduced viability rates and a decreased time for locomotive difficulty to develop, supporting the hypothesis. These findings suggest that L-Cysteine aids methylmercury permeation through the blood-brain barrier. Because the experiment indicates how methylmercury penetrates the blood-brain barrier, these results aid in finding a therapeutic solution to reverse methylmercury neurotoxicity in the brain. Additionally, this study further opens channels into potential therapeutic and preventative measures for dementia, improving morbidity and mortality in neurodegenerative diseases.

Life-threatening inflammatory conditions such as acute respiratory distress syndrome or sepsis often go hand in hand with severe vascular leakage. During inflammation, endothelial cell integrity and intact barrier function are crucial to limit leukocyte and plasma extravasation. Prostaglandin D₂ (PGD₂) is a potent inflammatory lipid mediator with vasoactive properties. It has been suggested that PGD^­₂ is involved in the regulation of endothelial barrier function; however, it is unclear whether this is also true for primary human pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells. Furthermore, as PGD₂ is a highly promiscuous ligand, we set out to determine which receptors are important in human pulmonary endothelial cells. In the current study, we found that PGD₂ and the DP1 agonist BW245c potently strengthened pulmonary and dermal microvascular endothelial cell barrier function and protected against thrombin-induced barrier disruption. Yet surprisingly, these effects were mediated only to a negligible extent via DP1 receptor activation. In contrast, we observed that the EP4 receptor was most important and mediated the barrier enhancement by PGD₂ and BW245c. These data demonstrate a novel mechanism by which PGD₂ may modulate inflammation and emphasizes the role of EP4 receptors in human endothelial cell function.

This paper investigates the problem of a relativistic Dirac half-integer spin free particle tunneling through a rectangular quantum-mechanical barrier. If the energy difference between the barrier and the particle is positive, and the barrier width is large enough, there is proof that the tunneling may be superluminal. For first spinor components of particle and antiparticle states, the tunneling is always superluminal regardless the barrier width. Conversely, the second spinor components of particle and antiparticle states may be either subluminal or superluminal depending on the barrier width. These results derive from studying the tunneling time in terms of phase time. For the first spinor components of particle and antiparticle states, it is always negative while for the second spinor components of particle and antiparticle states, it is always positive, whatever the height and width of the barrier. In total, the tunneling time always remains positive for particle states while it becomes negative for antiparticle ones. Furthermore, the phase time tends to zero, increasing the potential barrier both for particle and antiparticle states. This agrees with the interpretation of quantum tunneling that the Heisenberg uncertainty principle provides. This study’s results are innovative with respect to those available in the literature. Moreover, they show that the superluminal behaviour of particles occurs in those processes with high-energy confinement.

In this study the formation of thin-film barrier coatings based on a highly-conducting Bi1.60Er0.4O3 (EDB) solid electrolyte on supporting Ce0.8Sm0.2O1.9 (SDC) electrolyte substrates is implemented for the first time using electrophoretic deposition (EPD). Electrokinetic properties of EDB-based suspensions in a non-aqueous dispersion medium of isopropanol modified with small additions of polyethyleneimine (PEI, 0.26 g/L) and acetylacetone (0.15 g/L), as well as in a mixed isopropanol/acetylacetone (70/30 vol.%) medium are studied. The dependences of the thickness of EDB coatings on voltage and deposition time are obtained using deposition on a model Ni-foil electrode. Preliminary synthesis of a conductive polypyrrole (PPy) polymer film is used to create surface conductivity of non-conductive SDC substrates. The efficiency of using a modified dispersion medium based on isopropanol to obtain a continuous EDB coating 12 μm thick, sintered at a temperature of 850 °C for 5 h, is shown. The microstructure and morphology of the surface of the EDB coating are studied. Pt/SDC/EDB/Pt cell is used to characterize the coating conductivity. The EPD method is shown to be promising for the formation of barrier coatings based on doped bismuth oxide. The developed method can be used for creating cathode barrier layers in SOFC technology.

Controlling CD4+ immune cells infiltration of the brain is a leading aim in designing therapeutic strategies for a range of neuropathological disorders such as; multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer and depression. CD4+ T cells are a highly heterogeneous and reprogrammable family, that includes various distinctive cell types such as Th17, Th1, and Tregs. Interestingly Th17 and Tregs share a related transcriptomic profile, where the TGFβ-SMADS pathway plays a fundamental role in regulating the differentiation of both of these cell types. However, Th17 could be highly pathogenic and was shown to promote inflammation in various neuropathological disorders. Conversely, Treg is anti-inflammatory and is known to inhibit Th17. It could be noticed that Th17 frequencies of infiltration of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in various neurological disorders are significantly upregulated. However, Treg infiltration numbers are significantly low. The reasons behind these contradicting observations are still unknown. In this perspective, we propose that the difference in the TCR repertoire diversity, diapedesis pathways, chemokine expression and mechanical properties of these two cell types could be contributing to answering this intriguing question.

Eruca sativa is a commonly used edible plant in Italian cuisine. E. sativa 70% ethanol extract (ES) was fractionated with five organic solvents. Ethyl acetate fraction(EEA) had the highest antioxidant activity, which was correlated with the total polyphenol and flavonoid content. ES and EEA acted as PPAR-α ligands by PPAR-α competitive binding assay. EEA significantly increased cornified envelope formation as a keratinocyte terminal differentiation marker in HaCaT cells. Further, it significantly reduced nitric oxide and pro-inflammatory cytokines in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. The main flavonol forms detected in high amounts from EEA are mono-, and di-glycoside of each aglycone. Flavonol mono-glycosides were shown to be a potent PPAR-α ligand using molecular docking simulation and showed the inhibition of nitric oxide. These results suggest that E. sativa is suitable for use in improving skin barrier function and inflammation in skin disorders, such as atopic dermatitis.

: Background: Vaccination against COVID-19 has been the main strategy used by most countries to limit the spread of the virus. However, vaccine uptake has been low in Africa, leading to the implementation of several interventions in order to improve vaccine coverage. This study was conducted due to the lack of information about COVID-19 vaccine coverage and the factors associated with vaccine hesitancy. Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in Kinshasa city using multi-stage random sampling. A total of 2160 households were included in the study. The data were analyzed using Stata 15 software. The means and standard deviations were calculated for normally distributed continuous variables, while proportions with their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated for categorical variables. Pearson’s chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test was used to test the associations between dependent variables and each independent variable. Logistic regression was used to identify the factors associated with hesitancy receiving the COVID-19 vaccination. Results: The majority of respondents were aged between 25 and 34 and 35 and 49 (28.9%). During this study, 15% (95% CI [13.25–17.9]) of respondents had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Among the reasons given for refusing to be vaccinated, most respondents cited concerns about the vaccine being unsafe or causing adverse reactions (45%). Among the reasons given for accepting the vaccine, 26% thought that the vaccine prevented superinfection. The factors associated with hesitancy toward the COVID-19 vaccine were female gender, an age of less than 35 years, and living in non-slum households. Conclusions: Despite the interventions implemented across the country, the reluctance to be vaccinated remains a problem; this could lead to poor health outcomes, especially among the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions. It is important to step up awareness-raising campaigns in the community in order to increase the uptake of vaccination.

Data from the WHO and UNICEF Estimates of National Immunization Coverage (WUENIC) 2022 revision were analyzed to assess the status of routine immunization in the WHO African Region, disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, the coverage with the first and third dose of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis containing vaccine (DTP1 and DTP3 respectively) and with the first dose of measles-containing vaccine (MCV1), in the region, was estimated at 80%, 72% and 69%, respectively (all below the 2019 level). Only 13 of the 47 countries (28%) achieved the global target coverage of 90% or above with DTP3 in 2022. From 2019 to 2022, 28.7 million zero-dose were recorded (19.0% of target population). Ten countries of the region accounted for 80.3% of all zero-dose children including the four most populous countries (Nigeria, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, United Republic of Tanzania). Reported administrative coverage greater than WUENIC was found in 19 countries, highlighting routine immunization data quality issues. The WHO African region has not yet recovered from COVID-19 disruptions to routine immunization. It is critical for Governments to ensure that processes are in place to prioritize investments for restoring immunization services, catching-up on vaccination of zero-dose and un-der-vaccinated children and improving data quality.

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common metabolic diseases worldwide, and its long-term complications include neuropathy, referring both to the peripheral and to the central nervous system. Detrimental effects of dysglycemia, especially hyperglycemia, on the structure and function of blood-brain barrier (BBB) seem to be a significant backgrounds of diabetic neuropathy pertaining to the central nervous system (CNS). Effects of hyperglycemia, including excessive glucose influx to insulin independent cells, may induce oxidative stress and secondary innate immunity dependent inflammatory response which can damage cells within the CNS, thus promoting neurodegeneration and dementia. Advanced glycation end products (AGE) may exert similar, pro-inflammatory effects through activating receptors for advanced glycation end products (RAGE), as well as some pattern-recognition receptors (PRR). Moreover, long-term hyperglycemia can promote brain insulin resistance, which may in turn promote Aβ aggregate accumulation and tau hyperphosphorylation. This review is focused on a detailed analysis of the effects mentioned above towards the CNS, with special regard to mechanisms taking part in the pathogenesis of central long-term complications of diabetes mellitus initiated by the loss of BBB integrity.

This study evaluated the anti-inflammatory effects, protection of gut barrier integrity, and stimulation of phagocytosis in peripheral cells of a nutritional supplement based on a synergistic combination of yeast-based ingredients with a unique 1,3/1,6-glucan complex and a consortium of postbiotic Saccharomyces cerevisiae rich in selenium and zinc. The anti-inflammatory effect in Caco-2 cells in the presence and absence of a pro-inflammatory challenge (tumour necrosis factor alpha [TNF-α]/interferon gamma [IFN-ɣ]) showed statistically significant reductions of IFN-ɣ induced protein-10 (IP-10), and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) levels vs. controls (p &lt; 0.001). Disruption of the gut integrity in the presence or absence of Escherichia coli (ETEC H10407) showed transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) values higher in the ABB C1® group after 6 hours of testing. Spontaneous build-up of the gut epithelium monolayer over 22 days was also greater in the ABB C1® condition vs. a negative control. ABB C1® showed a significantly higher capacity to stimulate phagocytosis as compared with controls of algae β-1,3-glucan and yeast β-1,3/1,6 glucan (p &lt; 0.001). This study supports the mechanism of action by which ABB C1® may improve the immune response and be useful to prevent infection and allergy in clinical practice.

The neurovascular niche is crucial for constant blood supply and blood-brain barrier (BBB) function and is altered in a number of different neurological conditions, making this an intensely active field of research. Brain vasculature is unique for its tight association of endothelial cells with astrocytic endfeet processes. Separation of the vascular compartment by centrifugation-based methods confirmed enrichment of astrocytic endfeet processes, making it possible to study the entire vascular niche with such methods. Several centrifugation-based separation protocols are found in the literature; however, with some constraints which limit their applicability and the scope of the studies. Here, we describe and validate a protocol for physically separating the neurovascular niche from the parenchyma, which is optimized for smaller tissue quantities. Using endothelial, neuronal and astrocyte markers, we show that quantitative Western blot-based target detection can be performed of both the vascular and parenchymal fractions using as little as a single mouse brain hemisphere. Validation of our protocol in rodent stroke models by detecting changes in serum albumin signals and astrocyte activation, i.e. increased glial fibrillary acidic protein expression, between the ipsilateral and the lesion-free contralateral hemisphere demonstrates this protocol as a new way of detecting BBB breakdown and astrogliosis, respectively.

One of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the accumulation of beta-amyloid peptide (Aβ) leading to formation of soluble neurotoxic Aβ oligomers and insoluble amyloid plaques in various parts of the brain. Aβ undergoes post-translational modifications that alter its pathogenic properties. Aβ is produced not only in brain, but also in the peripheral tissues. Such Aβ, including its post-translationally modified forms, can enter the brain from circulation by binding to RAGE and contribute to the pathology of AD. However, the transport of modified forms of Aβ across the blood–brain barrier (BBB) has not been investigated. Here, we used a transwell BBB model as a controlled environment for permeability studies. We found that Aβ42 containing isomerized Asp7 residue (iso-Aβ42) and Aβ42 containing phosphorylated Ser8 residue crossed the BBB better than unmodified Aβ42, which correlated with different contribution of endocytosis mechanisms to the transport of these isoforms. Using microscale thermophoresis, we observed that RAGE binds to iso-Aβ42 an order of magnitude weaker than to Aβ42. Thus, post-translational modifications of Aβ increase the rate of its transport across the BBB and modify the mechanisms of the transport, which may be important for AD pathology and treatment.

Background: SARS-CoV-2 continues to impact human health globally, with airborne transmission being a significant mode for transmission. In addition to tools like vaccination and testing, counter-measures that reduce viral spread in indoor settings are critical. This study aims to assess the efficacy of UV-C light, utilizing the Violett sterilization device, as a countermeasure against airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in the highly susceptible Golden Syrian hamster model. Methods: Two cohorts of naïve hamsters were subjected to airborne transmission from experimentally infected hamsters; one cohort was exposed to air treated with UV-C sterilization, while the other cohort was exposed to un-treated air. Results: Treatment of air with UV-C light prevented the airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from experimentally exposed hamster to naïve hamsters. Notably, this protection was sustained over a muti-day exposure period during peak viral shedding from hamsters. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate the efficacy of the UV-C light to mitigate airborne SARS-CoV-2 transmission. As variants continue to emerge, UV-C light holds promise as a tool to reduce infections in diverse indoor settings, ranging from healthcare facilities to households. This study reinforces the urgency of implementing innovative methods to reduce airborne disease transmission and safeguard public health against emerging biological threats.

This paper introduces a novel approach to addressing the challenge of accurately timing short distance runs, a critical aspect in the assessment of athletic performance. Electronic photoelectric barriers, although recognized for their dependability and accuracy, have remained largely inaccessible to non-professional athletes and smaller sport clubs due to their high costs. A comprehensive review of existing timing systems reveals that claimed accuracies beyond 30 milliseconds lack experimental validation across most available systems.To bridge this gap, a mobile, camera-based timing system is proposed, capitalizing on consumer-grade electronics and smartphones to provide an affordable and easily accessible alternative. By leveraging readily available hardware components, the construction of the proposed system is detailed, ensuring its cost-effectiveness and simplicity. Experiments involving track and field athletes demonstrate the proficiency of the proposed system in accurately timing short distance sprints. Comparative assessments against a professional photoelectric cells timing system reveal a remarkable accuracy of 62 milliseconds, firmly establishing the reliability and effectiveness of the proposed system. This finding places the camera-based approach on par with existing commercial systems, thereby offering non-professional athletes and smaller sport clubs an affordable means to achieve accurate timing.In an effort to foster further research and development, open access to the device's schematics and software is provided. This accessibility encourages collaboration and innovation in the pursuit of enhanced performance assessment tools for athletes.

Over past decades, a frequent co-morbidity of cerebrovascular pathology and Alzheimer's disease pathology has been observed. Numerous published studies indicate that preservation of healthy cerebrovascular endothelium can be an important therapeutic target. By incorporating appropriate drug(s) into biomimetic (lipid cubic-phase) nanocarriers, one obtains a multitasking combination therapeutic which targets certain cell-surface scavenger receptors, mainly class B type 1 (i.e., SR-BI), and crosses the blood-brain barrier. This targeting allows for various Alzheimer’s-related cell types to be simultaneously searched out for localized drug treatment in vivo.

Rural women in developing nations are especially vulnerable to higher health risks due to environmental pollution exposure and are more likely to experience poorer health outcomes. Using data from the 2013 China General Social Survey CGSS2013, this study empirically examined the relationship among environmental knowledge (EK), pollution, health investment, and health status of women residing in rural regions in China. We employed a nationally representative sample of 1,930 female individuals for our analysis. Our results showed that the level of EK for women in rural China significantly impacted their self-reported physical and mental health. In order to account for potential endogeneity due to mutual causality, this study employed television usage and network usage as two instrument variables (IVs) of EK. We performed an IV-probit method to correct the estimated errors due to endogeneity. Additionally, to assess the reliability and robustness of our results, we re-estimated our model by replacing health status with the variable Body Mass Index (BMI). The results were consistent, providing evidence of robustness. Additionally, we examined the relationship between health investment (holding and purchasing a public health insurance policy, engaging in frequent physical activity, and acquiring commercial insurance) and health status. Our results indicate that the level of EK had no significant impact on participating in the new rural cooperative medical system. However, the preference of purchasing commercial insurance was positively impacted by EK, though it does not have a direct impact on the health condition. Conversely, an increase in EK and pollution is associated with a greater likelihood of engaging in physical exercise, which could, in turn, improve overall mental health.

Objective. The primary aim of this 6-month randomized, controlled, blinded clinical pilot study was to compare the percent root coverage obtained using an acellular dermal matrix allograft (ADM) and a coronally positioned tunnel (CPT) technique with two different suturing techniques. Materials and Methods. Sixteen patients with at least one Miller Class I or II recession defect ≥ 3 mm were randomly selected to receive a CPT with ADM using either two independent continuous sling sutures to secure the graft and the soft tissue separately (SEP) or a single continuous sling suture to secure both the graft and the soft tissue together (TOG) in the test group. Percent defect coverage, predictability of achieving 100% root coverage, keratinized tissue width, and attachment levels were assessed. Results. Both TOG and SEP suturing techniques achieved a significant amount of defect coverage, 83 vs. 85%, respectively, with no significant differences between groups. The predictability of achieving complete defect coverage was 63% for both groups. All maxillary sites had 100% coverage. There was a statistically significant gain of keratinized tissue for the TOG (1.1 ± 0.9 mm), while the SEP group gained only minimal amount (0.2 ± 0.8 mm). Conclusions. The single sling, for simultaneous suturing of the soft tissue and acellular dermal matrix, worked as well as two sling sutures used separately for the soft tissue and ADM. Suturing time was reduced by about 50% for the single sling group indicating a significant clinical advantage for the patient and surgeon.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, is a complex gastrointestinal disorder with a multifactorial etiology, including environmental triggers, autoimmune mechanisms, and genetic predisposition. Despite advancements in therapeutic strategies for IBD, its associated mortality rate continues to rise, which is often attributed to unforeseen side effects of conventional treatments. In this context, we explored the potential of Ecklonia cava extract (ECE) derived from an edible marine alga known for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in mitigating IBD. This study investigated the effectiveness of ECE as a preventive agent in a murine model of dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis. Our findings revealed that pretreatment with ECE significantly ameliorated colitis severity as evidenced by increased colon length, reduced spleen weight, and histological improvements demonstrated by immunohistochemical analysis. Furthermore, ECE significantly attenuated the upregulation of inflammatory cytokines and mediators and the infiltration of immune cells known to be prominent features of colitis in mice. Notably, ECE restored dysbiosis of intestinal microflora and aided in the recovery of damaged intestinal mucosa. Mechanistically, ECE exhibited protective effects against pathogenic colitis by inhibiting the NLRP3/NF-κB pathway known to be pivotal regulators in the inflammatory signaling cascade. These compelling results suggest that ECE holds promise as a potential candidate for IBD prevention. It might be developed into a functional food for promoting gastrointestinal health. This research sheds light on the preventive potential of natural compounds like ECE in the management of IBD, offering a safer and more effective approach to combating this challenging disease.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic condition characterized by intermittent hypoxia (IH) and sleep fragmentation (SF). In murine models, chronic SF can impair endothelial function and induce cognitive declines. These deficits are likely mediated, at least in part, by alterations in Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) integrity. Male C57Bl/6J mice were randomly assigned to SF or sleep control (SC) conditions for 4 or 9 weeks, and in a subset 2 or 6 weeks of normal sleep recovery. Presence of inflammation and microglia activation were evaluated. Explicit memory function was assessed with the novel object recognition (NOR) test, while BBB permeability was determined by systemic dextran-4kDA-FITC injection and Claudin 5 expression. SF exposures resulted in decreased NOR performance and in increased inflammatory markers and microglial activation as well as enhanced BBB permeability. Explicit memory and BBB permeability were significantly associated. BBB permeability remained elevated after 2 weeks of sleep recovery (p<0.01) and returned to baseline values only after 6 weeks. Chronic SF exposures mimicking the fragmentation of sleep that characterizes patient with OSA elicits evidence of inflammation in brain regions and explicit memory impairments in mice. Similarly, SF is also associated with increased BBB permeability, the magnitude of which is closely associated with cognitive functional losses. Despite normalization of sleep patterns, BBB functional recovery is a protracted process that merits further investigation.

The synergistic efficacy of combined treatment mild heat (MH) and dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma in Bacillus cereus-contaminated red pepper powder was tested. A cocktail of three strains of B. cereus (NCCP 10623, NCCP 14579, ATCC 11778) was inoculated onto red pepper powder and then treated with MH (60 ℃ for 5-20 min) and DBD plasma (5-20 min). Treatment with MH and DBD plasma alone for 5~20 min resulted in reductions of 0.23~1.43 and 0.12~0.96 log CFU/g, respectively. Combined treatment with MH and DBD plasma was the most effective at reducing B. cereus counts on red pepper powder and resulted in log-reductions of ≥ 6.0 log CFU/g. The largest synergistic values (4.24-4.42 log) against B. cereus in red pepper powder were obtained by the combination of 20 min MH and 5~15 min DBD plasma. Hunter color ‘‘L’’, ‘‘a’’, and ‘‘b’’ values of the combination-treated samples were not significantly different from those of non-treated samples. Also, no significant (p > 0.05) differences in pH values between samples were observed. Therefore, these results suggest that the combination of MH treatment and DBD plasma can be potentially utilized in the food industry to effectively inactivate B. cereus without incurring quality deterioration of red pepper powder.

Little is known about how individual virus lineages replicating during acute Human Immunodeficiency Virus or Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV/SIV) infection persist into chronic infection. In this study, we use molecularly barcoded SIV (SIVmac239M) to track distinct viral lineages for 12 weeks after intravenous and intrarectal challenge in macaques. Two Mafa-A1*063+ cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis) were challenged intravenously (IV), and two Mamu-A1*001+ rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) were challenged intrarectally (IR) with 200,000 Infectious Units (IU) of SIVmac239M. We deep sequenced the molecular barcode from all animals over 12 weeks to characterize the diversity and persistence of virus lineages, as well as the sequences of T cell epitopes during acute SIV infection. During the first three weeks post-infection, we found ~175-950 times more unique virus lineages circulating in the animals challenged intravenously than those challenged intrarectally, suggesting that challenge route is the primary driver restricting the transmission of individual viral lineages. Additionally, the emergence of escape variants can occur on multiple virus templates simultaneously, but elimination of some templates is likely a consequence of additional host factors. These data imply that virus lineages present during acute infection can be eliminated from the virus population even after initial T cell selection.

Patterns of age and growth of a sedentary damsel fish Acanthochromis polyacanthus were tested over a latitudinal range of approximately 10 degrees (1,200 km) on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Within latitudes these patterns were also compared on reefs across a continental shelf that ranged in width from 52 to 128 km. Although variation in length-max, growth, age-max and the von-Bertalanffy metrics of L, and K were found within and among latitudes, greatest variation in some demographic characteristics were found across the shelf regardless of latitude. Fish were always smaller at inner shelf reefs and grew more slowly when compared to mid and outer shelf reefs. The oldest fish collected was 11 years old and, there were no consistent variation in age-max among distances from shore. On outer reefs, there was a linear relationship with age-max and latitude. This ‘tropical gradient’ of age only explained 34% of the variation, further this was not found when the oldest 10% of fish were considered. Fish only reached an age-max of 6 years on the southern-most reefs. There was a trend for a smaller L with latitude but, it was not significant and L did not vary predictably with water temperature. The sampling of MPAs did not confound the resultant patterns. Instantaneous mortality rates were 0.245-0.685, highest at inner reefs and showed no consistent MPA-related patterns. Our study suggested that the mid and outer shelf waters of the GBR appeared best suited for growth of A. polyacanthus. In conclusion, position on continental shelves and related local environmental conditions needs to be considered in spatial models of growth.