Silver coated porous silicon microarray SERS platform for detecting aflatoxin B1 fumonisin B1 and ochratoxin A.

Toxigenic mold contamination in food and agricultural commodities affects a quarter of the world's crops with massive economic losses and consequential health risks. Herein, we present a newly developed nanostructured microarray based on silver-coated porous silicon (Ag-pSi) used as a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) transducer. The internal porous void and pore morphology were optimized to amplify the SERS effect while achieving an enhancement factor of 1.

The GTPase κB-Ras is an essential subunit of the RalGAP tumor suppressor complex.

κB-Ras1 and κB-Ras2 are small GTPases with noncanonical features that act as tumor suppressors downstream of Ras. Via interaction with the RalGAP (GTPase-activating protein) complex, they limit activity of Ral GTPases and restrict anchorage-independent proliferation. We here present the crystal structure of κB-Ras1 in complex with the N-terminal domain of RGα2.

Innovative Solutions in Orbital Fracture Management: The Role of Computer-aided Design and Computer-aided Manufacturing Technology.

Being the intricate architecture of the maxillofacial region, rehabilitation of maxillofacial abnormalities is relatively hard for most maxillofacial surgeons. Orbital roof fractures are among the most uncommon craniofacial abnormalities. The fact that these fractures "grow" makes treatment challenging.

Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using neem and turmeric extract and its antimicrobial activity of plant mediated silver nanoparticles.

Introduction: The green synthesis of silver nanoparticles has gained attention for being environmentally friendly and cost-effective. This study investigates the synthesis of silver nanoparticles using neem and turmeric extracts, which serve as natural reducing and capping agents, with a focus on characterizing these nanoparticles and assessing their antimicrobial properties against oral pathogens.

Materials And Methods: Neem and turmeric extracts were prepared by heating their powdered forms in distilled water, followed by filtration.

Sensitive ratiometric detection of Fumonisin B using a reusable Ag-pSi SERS platform.

Food and agricultural commodities endure consistent contamination by mycotoxins, low molecular weight fungal metabolites, which pose severe health implications to humans together with staggering economic losses. Herein, a ratiometric aptasensor was constructed using silver-coated porous silicon (Ag-pSi) used as an efficient surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate. The bioassay included direct detection of fumonisin B (FB), an abundant and widespread contaminant, by a specific aptamer sequence immobilized on the porous transducer.

Facile Approach to Develop Peptide-Stabilized CdS/CdSe Quantum Dots for Cellular Imaging.

This study presents a mild, one-pot synthetic approach for the synthesis of multicolor, water soluble, photo luminescent CdS and CdSe quantum dots (QDs). To achieve this goal, cyclic peptides containing cysteine residues are rationally designed and synthesized. Among the peptides tested, those containing two cysteine residues exhibit superior stabilizing properties, ensuring the solubility and long-term stability of the QDs in aqueous solutions for several months.

Investigations on the effect of kaolin catalyst on the yield of various products obtained from pyrolysis of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) wastes and reaction kinetics.

The pyrolysis characteristics of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) wastes were investigated in a batch pyrolyzer in the temperature range of 550-650 °C for a varying heating rate (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 °C/min) alone and using kaolin catalyst (10, 15, and 20% w/w). The yield distribution of various products under varying operating conditions was investigated, and the corresponding favourable conditions for maximum yield of pyrolytic oil (PO) were identified. The possible effect of the catalyst on pyrolysis kinetics was explored by extracting activation energies from the TGA experiments.

Longitudinal Study of Oral Precancerous Lesions: Transformation Rate and Predictive Markers for Malignancy.

Background: One of the main risk factors for the occurrence of oral cancer is oral precancerous lesions (OPLs). Early management and preventive efforts depend on knowing the transformation rate and detecting predictive signs of malignancy.

Methods: For 6 months, a group of 200 individuals with clinically diagnosed OPLs was followed up on in this longitudinal research.

Potential of Graphene-Functionalized Polymer Surfaces for Dental Applications: A Systematic review.

Graphene, a two-dimensional carbon nanomaterial, has garnered widespread attention across various fields due to its outstanding properties. In dental implantology, researchers are exploring the use of graphene-functionalized polymer surfaces to enhance both the osseointegration process and the long-term success of dental implants. This review consolidates evidence from in-vivo and in-vitro studies, highlighting graphene's capacity to improve bone-to-implant contact, exhibit antibacterial properties, and enhance mechanical strength.

Retrieval of high-resolution aerosol optical depth (AOD) using Landsat 8 imageries over different LULC classes over a city along Indo-Gangetic Plain, India.

Aerosol optical depth (AOD) serves as a crucial indicator for assessing regional air quality. To address regional and urban pollution issues, there is a requirement for high-resolution AOD products, as the existing data is of very coarse resolution. To address this issue, we retrieved high-resolution AOD over Kanpur (26.

Advancing Treatment Frontiers: Radiofrequency Ablation for Small Renal Mass-Intermediate-Term Results.

Our study aims to discern the immediate and intermediate-term oncological outcomes of the patients with small renal mass and who were surgically unfit or were having a bilateral tumor and underwent radiofrequency ablation (RFA) of the mass. We retrospectively and prospectively analyzed the status of the patients who were diagnosed to have small renal masses and were biopsy-proven renal cell carcinoma (RCC) cases, who underwent RFA at our institute from the year 2013 to 2022. Patients were followed-up for 3 years.

Efficacy of Lanthanum Carbonate and Sevelamer Carbonate as Phosphate Binders in Chronic Kidney Disease-A Comparative Clinical Study.

(1) Background: Hyperphosphatemia is correlated with an increased rate of mortality and morbidity due to cardiovascular diseases in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. It can be improved by restricting dietary intake of phosphate and oral phosphate binders, such as lanthanum carbonate and sevelamer carbonate. (2) Objective: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of sevelamer carbonate in comparison to lanthanum carbonate as phosphate binders for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in CKD patients.

Association between iron deficiency anemia and chronic daily headache: A case-control study.

Objective: We aimed to determine the association between iron deficiency anemia and chronic daily headache.

Methods: This case-control study was conducted in a tertiary care center in Dehradun, India. One hundred patients with chronic daily headache were randomly selected for the study with an equal number of controls.

Half-sandwich ruthenium(II), rhodium(III) and iridium(III) fluorescent metal complexes containing pyrazoline based ligands: DNA binding, cytotoxicity and antibacterial activities.

A series of nine new complexes of ruthenium(II), rhodium(III), and iridium(III) incorporated with pyrazoline-based ligands were synthesized and characterized by various spectroscopic techniques such as FTIR, H NMR, C NMR, UV-Vis spectroscopy, ESI-MS spectrometry and X-ray crystallographic studies. All the synthesized compounds were assessed for their antibacterial abilities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. The compounds showed better antibacterial activity against two Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus Thuringiensis), with activities superior to standard kanamycin.

Reflected near-infrared photography: Digging deeper into post-mortem examination.

Aim: This research aims to investigate the utility of the Near Infra-Red (NIR) photographic technique in visualizing forensic evidence in a post-mortem examination.

Material And Methods: A total of twenty-six deceased (male: n = 15; female: n = 11) were brought to the Mortuary of King George's Medical University, Chowk, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India (226003), and were used to investigate the applicability of the human visible spectrum (HVS) & near-infrared photography. In the investigation, a modified Nikon D5300 crop-framed digital single-lens reflex camera was used for NIR Photography in combination with a Micro-Nikkor 105 mm, f/2.

Cyclic peptides nanospheres: A '2-in-1' self-assembled delivery system for targeting nucleus and cytoplasm.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is considered as one of the vital growth factors for angiogenesis, which is primarily responsible for the progress and maintenance of new vascular network in tumor. Numerous studies report that inhibition of VEGF-induced angiogenesis is a potent technique for cancer suppression. Recently, RNA interference, especially small interfering RNA (siRNA) signified a promising approach to suppress the gene expression.

Structural analysis revealed a novel conformation of the NTRC reductase domain from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

In plant chloroplasts, thiol regulation is driven by two systems. One relies on the activity of thioredoxins through their light dependent reduction by ferredoxin via a ferredoxin-thioredoxin reductase (FTR). In the other system, a NADPH-dependent redox regulation is driven by a NADPH-thioredoxin reductase C (NTRC).

A Confirmation Bias View on Social Media Induced Polarisation During Covid-19.

Social media has played a pivotal role in polarising views on politics, climate change, and more recently, the Covid-19 pandemic. Social media induced polarisation (SMIP) poses serious challenges to society as it could enable 'digital wildfires' that can wreak havoc worldwide. While the effects of SMIP have been extensively studied, there is limited understanding of the interplay between two key components of this phenomenon: confirmation bias (reinforcing one's attitudes and beliefs) and echo chambers (i.

Phosphoserine Aminotransferase has Conserved Active Site from Microbes to Higher Eukaryotes with Minor Deviations.

Serine is ubiquitously synthesized in all living organisms from the glycolysis intermediate 3-phosphoglycerate (PGA) by phosphoserine biosynthetic pathway, consisting of three different enzymes, namely: 3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PGDH), phosphoserine aminotransferase (PSAT), and phosphoserine phosphatase (PSP). Any functional defect or mutation in these enzymes may cause deliberating conditions, such as colon cancer progression and chemoresistance in humans. Phosphoserine aminotransferase (PSAT) is the second enzyme in this pathway that converts phosphohydroxypyruvate (PHP) to O-phospho-L-serine (OPLS).

Conventional pyrolysis of Plastic waste for Product recovery and utilization of pyrolytic gases for carbon nanotubes production.

Inevitably increase in plastic demand has resulted in an overgrowing production on a global scale. The utilization of plastics has been applied to a number of industries as it is a durable, moldable, and inexpensive material. High exploitation of plastic had resulted in a hefty amount of waste production, which is not easy to recycle due to its non-degradable nature and results in landfills.

Quality management in humanitarian operations and disaster relief management: a review and future research directions.

Quality management has been widely discussed in the literature, and recent special issues on humanitarian supply chains and relief operations have emphasized the increasing importance of quality management in this key emerging area. In this paper, we provide an extensive literature review in the field of quality management in humanitarian operations and disaster relief management. Our comprehensive review, comprising 61 articles published from 2009 to 2018, leads to the identification of enablers (e.

Thermal degradation of waste plastics under non-sweeping atmosphere: Part 2: Effect of process temperature on product characteristics and their future applications.

The current energy demand and diminishing conventional fuels have forced researchers to find an alternative source of energy. Waste to energy is the current trend for converting waste materials (plastic waste) into valuable fuels. This article mainly discussed the detailed characterization of the pyrolytic products, their comparative analysis and the reaction mechanism at varying operating temperature.

Peptide generated anisotropic gold nanoparticles as efficient siRNA vectors.

Based on the cell penetrating ability of tryptophan-containing peptides, eight linear hexapeptides have been designed, synthesized and explored their efficiency toward the synthesis of gold nanoparticles under sunlight. The peptide generated gold nanoparticles (LP-GNPs) have been characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) techniques. The binding ability of LP-GNPs toward siRNA, evaluated by gel electrophoresis indicates that sequence-selective-GNPs without any surface modifications exhibit strong affinity toward negatively charged biomolecules.

Anesthesia in Patients With Multiple-System Atrophy: A Narrative Review and Practice Guidance.

Multiple-system atrophy, a rare adult-onset neurodegenerative disease, is associated with autonomic dysfunction, features of parkinsonism, and cerebellar ataxia. This article discusses multiple-system atrophy pathophysiology, clinical presentation, and perioperative issues pertinent to anesthesia.

Cyclic peptide-based nanostructures as efficient siRNA carriers.

RNA interference shows a great strategy for biological studies; however, delivering of small interfering RNA (siRNA) remains challenging. Although several delivery vehicles, including cell-penetrating peptides, have been developed, their implementation is often restricted because of their endosomal entrapment. Herein, we report the formation of self-assembled nanostructures from rationally designed cyclic peptides and explore them for efficient delivery of functional biomacromolecules such as siRNA into mammalian cells.