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Penile squamous cell carcinoma (PSC) is traditionally treated with surgical resection with significant morbidity. Penile sparing approaches, such as brachytherapy, require expertise, prolonged inpatient stays, poor patient convenience, and heterogenous plans with variable long-term toxicity. In this study, we describe the protocol for novel portable apparatus created for PSC, allowing outpatient hybrid interstitial/surface brachytherapy, improving homogeneity and patient convenience.A portable brachytherapy apparatus was developed utilizing a foley catheter, prostate template, 6F interstitial catheters, 5 mm bolus, and a jock strap. The apparatus allowed for internal and external catheter placement housed in a jock strap to allow mobility and defecation without affecting the implant. High-dose-rate brachytherapy was performed as an outpatient.The apparatus was then used on a 62-year-old male with cT2pN0M0 (stage IIA) PSC with bilateral glans and urethral meatus involvement, who elected for definitive brachytherapy (4000cGy in 10 fractions over 5-days). Given external dwell positions, heterogeneity correction of the template was calculated (AAPM TG186) with2% variation. Patient had minimal impact on his active lifestyle during treatment and had complete clinical response at 3-months. Grade 2 skin desquamation resolved at 2-months, with no necrosis. At 6-months, he was able to resume sexual intercourse, and at 12-months, he remained disease-free with sexual and urinary function intact.Novel portable implant allows for improved patient convenience, reduced inpatient stay, capable of optimizing dosimetry with hybrid brachytherapy. This outpatient treatment allows the opportunity to increase fractionation, offering high local-control and lower toxicity. Future studies utilizing this apparatus for more fractionated regimens with further lower dose-per-fraction (∼3 Gy/fraction) is recommended.

Background Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who have underlying malignancy have a higher mortality rate compared with those without cancer, although the magnitude of such excess risk is not clearly defined. We performed a systematic review and pooled analysis to provide precise estimates of the mortality rate among patients with both cancer and COVID-19. Methods A systematic literature search involving peer-reviewed publications, preprints and conference proceedings up to July 16, 2020, was performed. The primary end-point was the case fatality rate (CFR), defined as the rate of death among patients with cancer and COVID-19. The CFR was assessed with a random effects model, which was used to derive a pooled CFR and its 95% confidence interval (CI). Results Fifty-two studies, involving a total of 18,650 patients with both COVID-19 and cancer, were selected for the pooled analysis. A total of 4243 deaths were recorded in this population. The probability of death was 25.6% (95% CI: 22.0%–29.5%; I2 = 48.9%) in this patient population. Conclusions Patients with cancer who develop COVID-19 have high probability of mortality. Appropriate and aggressive preventive measures must be taken to reduce the risk of COVID-19 in patients with cancer and to optimally manage those who do contract the infection., Highlights • Patients with both cancer and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have a higher mortality than reported in the overall COVID-19-positive population. • We aim to provide precise mortality estimates among patients with cancer and COVID-19. • Pooled case mortality rate was 25.6% (95% CI: 22.0%–29.5%; I2 = 48.9%). • Aggressive measures must be taken to reduce risk of infection in patients with cancer.

Objective To review the published literature on current and new treatments for chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) and to provide guidance on the potential use of these therapeutics. Data Sources A PubMed search was performed to include English-language articles with the keywords chronic spontaneous urticaria, pathophysiology, quality of life, and treatments, with a preference to those articles written in the last 5 years. ClinicalTrials.gov was reviewed for recent relevant clinical trials related to potential CSU therapeutics. Study Selections Literature was included if it provided information related to the current understanding of the pathophysiology and management of CSU as well as potential novel therapeutics currently in development. Results CSU has a significant effect on patients' quality of life. Current therapies include antihistamines, leukotriene receptor antagonists, omalizumab, and immunosuppressants; however, additional treatments are needed. New therapeutics under investigation include IgG1 anti-IgE monoclonal antibodies (ligelizumab), chemoattractant rector–homologous molecule expressed on TH2 cells antagonists (AZD1981), Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors (fenebrutinib), anti–siglec-8 monoclonal antibody (AK002), and topical spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitors (GSK2646264). We review the mechanisms of action as well as recently published data from clinical trials regarding the efficacy and safety of these treatments. Conclusion The development of new treatments for CSU will lead to improved options for patients and may assist with improving our understanding of disease pathophysiology.

Chronic urticaria (CU) and angioedema can occur at any age. Although most CU with or without angioedema occurs in adults, it can also present in children or the elderly and can complicate pregnancy and breast-feeding. The presentations of CU and angioedema are different in children, middle-aged adults, and older patients as are the differential diagnoses. Therefore, the management of CU and angioedema in these different age groups and special populations needs to take into account the age-specific features of urticaria and angioedema. Here, we describe the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of CU and angioedema in children, middle-aged adults, and older patients. This review focuses on CU with or without angioedema and does not discuss acute urticaria or bradykinin-mediated angioedema.

Antibody-drug conjugates, Immune-checkpoint inhibitors; Non-small cell lung cancer Conjugats de fàrmac-anticòs; Inhibidors de punts de control immunitaris; Càncer de pulmó de cèl·lules no petites Conjugados de fármaco-anticuerpo; Inhibidores de puntos de control inmunitarios; Cáncer de pulmón de células no pequeñas Introduction Advanced non-small cell lung cancer (aNSCLC) is an incurable disease. The effort to develop treatments with more effective systemic agents continues. This has led to the FDA approval of one antibody–drug conjugate (ADC) and eight immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) for patients with aNSCLC. Areas covered Due to the demonstrated efficacy of ADCs and ICIs in aNSCLC, treatment combining both agents merits attention. This article, therefore, explores the use of ADCs and ICIs in patients with NSCLC, assesses the scientific rationale for combination treatment, and provides an overview of ongoing trials. It also presents some early efficacy and safety results of such combination use. Expert opinion It is not clear whether ADC-immunotherapy has a significant impact on those with a targetable oncogenic driver alteration since targeted therapies are effective. However, in aNSCLC without a targetable oncogenic driver alteration, the combination of ADCs and ICIs has potential and remains an area of active clinical research.

Eye movements during electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings are the major sources of artifacts. These artifacts tend to mask the EEG signals. So, to obtain good quality EEG signals, these artifacts must be removed without deteriorating the underlying EEG activity. In this paper, a new algorithm is proposed that combines canonical correlation analysis (CCA) and noise adjusted principal component transform (NAPCT) to efficiently remove the electrooculogram (EOG) and blink artifacts in a considerably fast manner. CCA-NAPCT is implemented after the preliminary outlier thresholding of EEG data. CCA is used to estimate the noise covariance matrix while NAPCT is implemented for noise removal. The results of this algorithm on EOG affected BCI competition III dataset IVb and blink contaminated EEG data of four subjects showed the efficacy of the proposed algorithm in effective removal of noise. The algorithm provides an average signal to noise ratio and root mean square error values of 3.616 & 42.456 with artifactual EEG data respectively. Moreover, the average correlation coefficients (0.8839) and mutual information (1.1546) values also verify the efficacy of algorithm more firmly as supported by comparison with the state-of-the-art technique. The proposed algorithm successfully removed the artifactual components with no manual intervention.

The electronic and thermoelectric properties of YSb have been investigated using Full Potential Linearized Augmented Plane wave method (FP-LAPW) based on density functional theory (DFT) in combination with semi-classical Boltzmann transport equation. The exchange and correlation effects have been taken into account by generalized gradient approximation (GGA) within Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) parameterization. The calculated elastic constants such as Bulk modulus, Young modulus, Poisson’s ratio and shear anisotropy factor confirm the mechanical stability of this compound. Boltzmann transport equations were used for the calculation of electronic part of thermoelectric transport parameters such as Seebeck coefficient, Power factor, electrical conductivity and electronic part of thermal conductivity as a function of chemical potential. The temperature dependence of thermoelectric properties of this material at pressure ∼12 GPa is studied over wide range of temperature (200–1200 K). The calculated value of power factor, electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity at T = 1200 K are found to be 65.92 × 1010 W K−2 cm−1 sec−1, 2.90 × 1020 S cm−1sec−1 and 0.97 × 1016 W m−1K−1 sec−1, respectively. The large value of power factor which is due to its non-trivial topological nature strongly suggests that this material can act as a good thermoelectric material in high temperature region.

Effect of pyridine on cobalt phthalocyanine (CoPc) has been studied by the density functional theory and Raman spectroscopy. Thermal evaporation method has been used for the preparation of a thin film of CoPc and then Raman spectra of CoPc film have been recorded with and without exposure of pyridine. The molecular structure of CoPc and its coordinated complexes with pyridine have been computed using B3LYP/6-31(d,p) level of density functional theory calculations by employing Gaussian program package. Calculations show some in-plane and out-of-plane distortions in the structure of CoPc. Some noticeable changes have been observed in the Raman spectrum of CoPc thin film after its exposure with pyridine. Changes in wavenumbers and relative intensities of some of the bands have been observed. Most of the observed bands show downward shifts in the wavenumbers. These changes, are attributed to the weakening of some bonds and change of symmetry of CoPc, and confirm the coordination of pyridine molecule(s) with CoPc molecule

Etoricoxib is one of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug used primarily in the treatment of various types of arthritis. In this work, the vibrational analysis of etoricoxib molecule has been presented using density functional theory calculations. Fourier transform Infra-red and Raman spectra of the inspected molecule have been reported in the regions 4000-400 cm-1 and 1800-100 cm-1, respectively. The observed bands have been compared with the calculated wavenumbers, yielding good agreement. To have a better understanding of the vibrational spectra of etoricoxib and to identify the key vibrational bands, the complete assignments of fundamental vibrations have also been performed on the basis of calculated vibrational wavenumbers and potential energy distribution analysis of the vibrational modes.

The sensing of composite of two p-type materials; Single Walled Carbon nanotube (SWCNT) and Copper Phthalocyanine (CuPc) towards ammonia gas is studied. Maximum increase in response of SWCNT after CuPc functionalization has been found to be ≈ 56% with 83% increase in saturation responses. The average crystallite size corresponding to characteristic CuPc has been decreased with SWCNT doping by 44% with negligible shift in its characteristic peak corresponding to β phase. The successive intercalation of CuPc and strong π-π stacking interaction with SWCNT has been confirmed in structural, surface and spectroscopic results of SWCNT doped CuPc.

In the quest for more efficient thermoelectric material, the electrical contributions, namely the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductance and electronic thermal conductance of Ta-doped ZrNiSn have been studied in the framework of Density functional theory (DFT). GGA formalism was used for exchange-correlation (XC) potentials within Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) parameterization. Boltzmann semi-classical transport equation (BTE) was used to study the thermoelectric properties like Power factor, electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity with respect to temperature and chemical potential. These properties were studied in temperature range from 300 K to 900 K. The value of electrical conductivity increases with doping. The value of electrical conductivity ( σ / τ ) for ZrNiSn at T = 300 K is 0.4 × 1018 S/cm.s and increases sharply to a value 73.9 × 1018 S/cm.s for Zr0.88Ta0.12NiSn. The electrical part of thermal conductivity ( K e / τ ) increases with Ta-substitution. The increase in the value of electrical conductivity and Power factor on doping strongly suggest that Ta-doped ZrNiSn act as a potential material for thermoelectric applications.

Fundamental aspects of poly- l -lysine (PLL) coated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are presented for their possible use in colorimetric sensing of heavy metal ions. For this purpose, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) is used, which acts as a stabilizing agent. At the molecular level, the adsorption behavior of PLL and CTAB is evaluated from first principles calculations. These studies demonstrate that PLL and CTAB interact with Ag cluster through NH2 group and positively charged trimethylammonium group, respectively. Surface adsorption of PLL and CTAB on AgNPs is studied under the effect of temperature and reaction time. Multidisciplinary approaches including UV–Visible absorption spectroscopy, Fourier-Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) are conducted to systematically investigate PLL coated AgNPs stabilized by CTAB (PL-CT-AgNPs). Thus, a combination of experimental and theoretical analysis helped us to identify specific sites, which promoted such interactions for surface adsorption on AgNPs. As synthesized PL-CT-AgNPs, are found to be highly sensitive and selective towards Hg2+ detection. The mechanism of detection of Hg2+ is studied on PL-CT-AgNPs surface using Density Functional Theory (DFT).

As part of the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) activities, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) collected cecal samples from food animal slaughter facilities throughout the country between 2014 and 2018. Of the 26,780 cecal samples from cattle, swine, chicken and turkey , 6,350 (23.71%) tested positive for Salmonella . NARMS tested Salmonella for susceptibility to aminoglycosides, folate pathway inhibitors, macrolides, phenicols, quinolones, beta lactams, and tetracyclines. Using the regional subdivisions defined in the USDA Office of Investigation, we used chi-square test to assess potential association between the region from which the samples were collected and both Salmonella prevalence and susceptibility. The results show a significant association between region and Salmonella prevalence, when accounting for source and establishment size, with the southeast region having the highest probability of finding Salmonella . However, the western region had the highest resistance probability across all antimicrobial classes except for macrolides, which showed no regional association. This association between region and resistance was strongest among isolates from cattle. Analysis of whole-genome sequencing data indicated that a significantly higher prevalence of Salmonella Newport in cattle in the western region (accounting for 9.52% of cattle isolates, compared to 3.44% in other regions) may account for the greater resistance to multiple drug classes. Approximately 90% of Salmonella Newport in the west exhibited the MDR-AmpC phenotype encoded by aph(3'')-Ib/aph(6)-Id , bla CMY-2 , floR , sul2 , and tetA. . Thus, differences in resistance across regions may be due to geographical differences in the prevalence of specific Salmonella serotypes and their accompanying resistance genes.

The optimized geometry and vibrational frequencies of an organic compound copper phthalocyanine tetrasulfonic acid tetra sodium salt (CuPcTS) have been investigated using density functional theory. We have also optimized the structures of copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) and its substituted complex and simulated their vibrational spectra to study the substitution effects of sulfonic acid group at the peripheral sites of copper phthalocyanine. Experimentally, vibrational frequencies of these molecules have been studied using infrared absorption, Raman spectroscopic techniques. It has been found that the vibrational frequencies obtained from the theoretical studies generally agree with the experiment. Most of the bands show red shift in CuPcTS due to decrease of stretching force constant of C C and reduction in the contribution from in-plane C H bending vibrations. New bands have been observed due to S O vibrations. Degeneracy of IR bands is removed because of change of symmetry from D4h in CuPc to C1 in substituted CuPc. Effect of substitution on the structural parameters and mode compositions of the vibrational bands have also been studied. The electronic absorption spectra of the substituted copper phthalocyanine in different solvents have been studied using UV–Vis spectroscopy. It has been found that the substituted copper phthalocyanine shows aggregation effect in water because of greater extent of hydrogen bonding. The direct optical band gap energy and refractive index of CuPcTS have also been calculated in the different solvents. We have also plotted the I V characteristic for both the molecules and it has been found that electrical and photoconductivity of CuPcTS is more as compared to CuPc. The intermolecular charge transfer interactions have been studied by HOMO-LUMO and natural bonding orbital (NBO) analysis. The values of first order hyperpolaizability for both the molecules indicate that substituted copper phthalocyanine acquires excellent non-linear optical (NLO) properties. The interaction sites of the both the molecules have been studied by the molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) and solvent accessible surface area (SASA) analysis.

The Indus River flows through Ladakh, one of the driest and coldest places on earth, in a tectonically active domain. Fluvial, glaciofluvial, lacustrine and debris dominated sequences represent the Late Quaternary sedimentary record along the river course. Karakoram Fault, a major crustal scaled feature reported to be active during the Quaternary, is associated with the Indus River drainage. Linkages between a major, active fault and deposits formed during the activity period of the fault are explored using heavy mineral deduced provenance and Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) chronology.Five deposits in a ∼200 km long stretch of the Indus River have been examined for a ∼80 ka period to decipher the climate linked aggradation history. Damming of the Indus River at ∼79 ka and existence of the Spituk Lake for >30 ka is demonstrated. Using geology of the provenance in relation to the mineralogical attributes of the Quaternary deposits, the major drainage reorganization when the connection of the Tangtse Valley to the Indus was blocked, is inferred at ∼73 ka. It is supported by the geological-geomorphological evidence. The study demonstrates the application of provenance linked mineralogy in terrestrial aggradation in a tectonically active region. Keywords: Karakoram Fault, Indus, Drainage reorganization, Heavy minerals, Aggradation

Chronic urticaria is defined as the presence of urticaria for a period exceeding 6 weeks, assuming symptoms for most days of the week. It is divided into chronic inducible urticarias (CIndU) and chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), previously termed chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU). The latter designation emphasizes that patients can experience urticaria independent of any exogenous stimulus even if one can define circumstances that may worsen symptoms. A search for such an external “cause” is fruitless, since the underlying abnormality is “intrinsic”, whether it is autoimmune, or some unknown process. Approximately 40% of patients with CSU report accompanying episodes of angioedema, whereas 10% have angioedema as their primary manifestation. In most cases, it is a self-limiting disorder, persisting for 2–5 years in the majority of cases, although 20% of patients suffer for more than 5 years. The treatment that has evolved is largely empiric, based on double-blind, placebo-controlled studies whenever possible, but is not yet targeted to any particular pathogenic mechanism. In this article, we review the current status regarding pathogenesis, discuss the diagnostic workup, and update the approach to treatment including consideration of published guidelines, our own experience, and guideline updates that are being prepared.

Acne is a multifactorial skin disease, underpinned by colonization of Propionibacterium acnes and inflammation. The emergence of resistant P. acnes strains has affected the current acne treatment algorithm. This setback served as an impetus for rationally designing a library of next-generation antibiotics that exhibit a bactericidal effect on resistant P. acnes and exert an immunomodulatory function to reduce inflammation. In silico screening showed that one of the molecules, VCD-004, exhibits improved mode of binding to bacterial DNA gyrase. VCD-004 shows high potency against clinical isolates of resistant P. acnes and excellent efficacy in vivo. Furthermore, VCD-004 exhibits a superior mutant prevention index, suggesting that it impedes the development of resistance better than clindamycin. Additionally, it shows optimal skin penetration and has a potent anti-inflammatory effect via reduction of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-6) independent of its antibacterial action. VCD-004 affects P. acnes-induced nuclear accumulation of NF-κB in THP-1 cells. The in vitro viability of human keratinocytes in the presence of VCD-004 indicates a desirable therapeutic window for topical use. Such rationally designed bactericidal and immunomodulatory dual pharmacophore-based lipophilic molecule(s) can emerge as the next-generation topical therapy for acne with underlying resistant P. acnes etiology.

The PKC isozymes represent the most prominent family of signaling proteins mediating response to the ubiquitous second messenger diacylglycerol. Among them, PKCθ is critically involved in T-cell activation. Whereas all the other conventional and novel PKC isoforms have twin C1 domains with potent binding activity for phorbol esters, in PKCθ only the C1b domain possesses potent binding activity, with little or no activity reported for the C1a domain. In order to better understand the structural basis accounting for the very weak ligand binding of the PKCθ C1a domain, we assessed the effect on ligand binding of twelve amino acid residues which differed between the C1a and C1b domains of PKCθ. Mutation of Pro(9) of the C1a domain of PKCθ to the corresponding Lys(9) found in C1b restored in vitro binding activity for [(3)H]phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate to 3.6 nM, whereas none of the other residues had substantial effect. Interestingly, the converse mutation in the C1b domain of Lys(9) to Pro(9) only diminished binding affinity to 11.7nM, compared to 254 nM in the unmutated C1a. In confocal experiments, deletion of the C1b domain from full length PKCθ diminished, whereas deletion of the C1a domain enhanced 5-fold (at 100 nM PMA) the translocation to the plasma membrane. We conclude that the Pro(168) residue in the C1a domain of full length PKCθ plays a critical role in the ligand and membrane binding, while exchanging the residue (Lys(240)) at the same position in C1b domain of full length PKCθ only modestly reduced the membrane interaction.

Optimized structure of coumarin 500 has been obtained in gas phase and in solvents like methanol, ethanol, dimethyl sulfoxide and CCl4 using density functional theory calculations with B3LYP/6–311 + G(d, p) functionals. The calculated frequencies of certain vibrational bands of coumarin 500 are observed to shift in solvents. To understand the origin of these shifts, HOMO-LUMO analysis of ultra-violet visible spectra of coumarin 500 has been carried out in different solvents. The detailed study of charge transfer interactions in coumarin 500 is done using natural bonding orbital and molecular electrostatic potential analysis. Assignments of various vibrational bands have been obtained and effect of charge transfer interactions in solvents on these bands has been studied.

Thermally evaporated Silver Selenide thin films were time annealed at 210 °C for different soaking periods in vacuum. Annealed films were found to be (013) oriented while as-deposited film was oriented along (121) direction. An appreciable value of Seebeck coefficient (-123 μV/K) was obtained at room temperature for 1.5 hour duration of time annealing. A high power factor of 1.1 mW/mK2 was achieved due to the combined effect of (013) orientation, enhanced mobility and carrier filtering. Such high power factor was achieved with relatively lower contribution of electronic thermal conductivity. Stability of best sample was tested by acquiring measurements again after 3 months. Thus, stable Ag2Se films with promising power factor at room temperature were produced by optimizing the time annealing process.

The structural, electronic and transport properties of the Half-Heusler TaIrGe compound have been reported at different values of tensile and compressive strain using density functional theory (DFT) in conjunction with Boltzmann transport theory. The mechanical and thermodynamical stability of TaIrGe at different values of isotropic strain is confirmed by the calculated value of elastic constants and the phonon dispersion curve, respectively. The electronic structure calculations reveals that the energy bandgap changes significantly on applying tensile and compressive strain. The calculated low value of lattice thermal conductivity (kl) and high value of power factor are key factors in enhancing the performance of resultant thermoelectric material. The calculated value of figure of merit (ZT) for pristine TaIrGe compound is 0.69 and it attains a maximum value (0.82) for 4% tensile strain at T ​= ​1200 ​K, which shows that it can be used as an efficient thermoelectric material under the effect of isotropic strain for high temperature applications.

Nowadays, In the present study, inverse Heusler alloy based spin-gapless semiconductor (SGS), Ti2MnAl is investigated using full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FPLAPW) method implemented in WIEN2k crystal programme. Our investigation reveals that this alloy behaves as SGS, with zero total magnetic moment, for equilibrium lattice constant (6.23 A). Further, it keeps its spin gapless state within -15% to 10% uniform strain. On the other hand, for -5% of tetragonal strain, the system behaves as SGS whereas the positive 5% tetragonal strain completely destroys the spin-gapless character of Ti2MnAl Heusler alloy. The up-spin band gap for Ti2MnAl is 0.55 eV and 0 eV for spin down channel for equilibrium lattice constant. It varies up to a maximum value of 0.31 eV and 0.36 eV for positive and negative uniform strain, respectively. The value of this gap for -5% and 5% of tetragonal strain is 0.51 eV and 0.46 eV, respectively. Our calculations provide an exhaustive data to be compared with future experiments and advocate the future applications of this alloy in spintronic applications.

By using vertical vibration of high frequency, the stability of dilute suspension containing gyrotactic microorganisms in a horizontal layer of finite depth heated from below is investigated. A time-averaged method and linear stability analysis are used to obtain the governing equations describing the mean flow of the suspension. Under time-averaged method, it is possible to divide the solutions of conservation equations into two distinct segments, the first one runs gradually with time while the second one runs rapidly with time. A simple Galerkin method is utilized to find the traditional Rayleigh number and thermal stability curve for the initiation of bioconvection. The influence of vertical vibration of high frequency on the suspension is always increasing on the thermal stability threshold. It is also observed that bioconvection Peclet number and gyrotactic number have stabilizing effect. However, cell eccentricity and bioconvection Rayleigh number have destabilizing effect on the suspension.

Blending of theoretical and experimental approach, provide an important strategy in designing the nanostructure at a microscopic level and helps in predicting the response of synthesized material towards inhibition of the growth of breast cancer cell. In this work, ab initio calculations using super cell approach are performed for three different amino acids (AAs)-Histidine (His), Arginine (Arg) and Aspartic acid (Asp) coated Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures to explain the growth mechanism of nanoparticles (NPs) of different shapes. Based on the first principles calculations, we reveal that ZnO-AA (Arg and Asp) NPs results in rod like and ZnO-His NPs lead to tablet like configuration. Similar morphologies are fabricated using AAs through synthetic route. The effect of concentration ratio of reactants and pH has been studied. As synthesized samples, are characterized by using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and UV–Vis spectroscopy techniques. Based on the results, a plausible mechanism of formation of nanostructures has been proposed. The nanostructures with rod like morphology are found to be biocompatible with normal red blood cells and show cytotoxic effect as evaluated from hemolysis and cytotoxicity assays on breast (MCF-7, T47D, MDA-MB-231) & prostate cancer (PC-3) cell lines. Keywords: Zinc oxide nanoparticles, Binding energy, Cytotoxicity, Hemolysis, Partial density of states

We report here the vibrational and structural analysis of alpha-tocopherol. The vibrational analysis has been accomplished experimentally by infrared and Raman spectroscopic techniques and theoretically by density functional theory. Two conformers of alpha-tocopherol have been optimized with the help of density functional theory. Energy minimized structures have been further used for vibrational frequencies calculations. Calculated values of molecular parameters of both the conformers have been comparable with the available experimental values in literature. All the observed vibrational bands have been assigned with the help of potential energy distribution calculations and intensity patterns of the simulated spectra. The ultraviolet–visible spectrum has been reported in wavelength range of 200 nm–500 nm. Observed ultraviolet–visible bands have been assigned to various electronic transitions, which have also been calculated using time dependent density functional theory.

Summary Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common cause of central visual loss in the elderly. Retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cell loss occurs early in the course of AMD and RPE cell transplantation holds promise to slow disease progression. We report that subretinal transplantation of RPE stem cell (RPESC)-derived RPE cells (RPESC-RPE) preserved vision in a rat model of RPE cell dysfunction. Importantly, the stage of differentiation that RPESC-RPE acquired prior to transplantation influenced the efficacy of vision rescue. Whereas cells at all stages of differentiation tested rescued photoreceptor layer morphology, an intermediate stage of RPESC-RPE differentiation obtained after 4 weeks of culture was more consistent at vision rescue than progeny that were differentiated for 2 weeks or 8 weeks of culture. Our results indicate that the developmental stage of RPESC-RPE significantly influences the efficacy of RPE cell replacement, which affects the therapeutic application of these cells for AMD., Highlights • Adult RPESC-derived RPE cell transplantation rescues vision in an animal model • Vision rescue depends on differentiation stage of RPESC-derived RPE transplant, Stern and colleagues report that the differentiation state of stem cell-derived retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells influences their ability to rescue vison. They transplanted RPE cells differentiated for 2 weeks (immature), 4 weeks (intermediate progenitor stage), or 8 weeks (mature RPE) and found that the intermediate RPE progenitor stage was more effective than immature or mature RPE at vison rescue.

Biogeography Based Optimization (BBO) algorithm is one of the nature-inspired optimization methods, based on the study of geographical distribution of species on earth. The present research work is based upon decomposition of human electroencephalograms (EEG) signal by Wavelet Packet Transform, computation of a complete feature set using statistical and non-statistical properties followed by optimal selection of features by BBO; the optimality criterion being classification rate. The stopping criterion for BBO is set to 100% correct classification rate. The proposed algorithm is novel in terms of TWSVM computing the Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) values for BBO, perfect classification rate, low computation time, and feature selection mechanism. The proposed scheme outperforms several previous results reported in literature in that it gives a feature subset which gives 100% classification accuracy for different classification instances.

Existence of band gap in one spin channel and metallic character in other leads to interesting magnetic and optical properties of any material. These materials are capable to generate fully spin polarized current and are responsible for maximizing the efficiency of spintronic devices. The present work explores the electronic and magnetic properties of Ti-doped GaP compound with dopant concentrations; x = 0.02, 0.03 and 0.06 in order to search new Diluted Magnetic Semiconductor (DMS) compounds as spintronic materials using full potential linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbitals (FPLAPW + lo) method. The generalized gradient approximation (GGA) is used to decide exact exchange-correlation (XC) potentials. The calculated results showed that the total magnetic moment of ∼1.00 μ B gets induced after Ti-doping in GaP at all dopant concentrations, irrespective of any magnetic element present. Further, this doping also generates half-metallicity in GaP with a half-metallic (HM) gap at Fermi level (E F ) in minority spin channel. The half metallicity is originated by the hybridization of Ti-d states with P–p states. This induced magnetism appeared in the systems is the result of exchange interactions between host (GaP) and Ti-atom.

Transmit sequence design plays a significant role in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) radar to suppress correlation function side-lobe levels. This paper investigates two practical constraints, namely, constant envelope constraint to reduce the effect of nonlinear amplifiers, and low side-lobe levels to reduce the effect of interference among various transmitting sequences. To facilitate this, new Legendre sequences (L-seq) are designed that uses Legendre orthogonal polynomial (LOP). Superiority of the proposed L-seq is proven for peak side-lobe level (PSL) and cross-correlation level (CCL) performance parameters. Further, the signal cross-interference in MIMO radar is minimized by generating orthogonal L-seq. The impact of designed L-seq on the delay-Doppler plane is observed using the ambiguity function (AF). Simulation results show that the proposed L-seq has a constant envelope and suppressed side-lobe levels compared to the existing popular methods.

An Infrared Free Electron Laser (IR-FEL) has been designed and developed at RRCAT for potential use in the IR/THz spectroscopy of materials in low temperature and high magnetic field environment. The first commissioning experiments on the IR-FEL setup were performed in 2016, but the out-coupled power achieved in these experiments was two to three orders of magnitude lower than the saturated out-coupled power predicted by the FEL design simulations, mainly due to certain limitations in its injector system. The setup has recently undergone a major upgrade with the installation and commissioning of a new injector system, and lasing at a wavelength of 28 μ m has recently been observed in the setup. This is the first saturation of lasing of an FEL in India, with a measured Continuous Wave (CW) out-coupled IR power of 5 - 7.3 mW. This paper discusses the present status of the IR-FEL project at RRCAT, and the results from recent commissioning experiments leading to lasing in the setup.

The present study deals with analysing the effect of central metal atom on interaction behaviour of a composite constituted of two materials, Single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and metal phthalocyanines (MPcs) (SWCNT-MPc) with ammonia gas. For this purpose, three metal phthalocyanines namely; Magnesium phthalocyanine (MgPc), Aluminum phthalocyanine hydroxide (AlPcOH) and Titanyl phthalocyanine (TiOPc) were taken and their variation in resistances with exposure of ammonia gas is taken as detection parameter. The central metal ions of MPcs were chosen so that valence electrons are in s, p and d orbitals respectively. The surface-interface interaction of pristine SWCNT towards ammonia gas was found to increase with better repeatability and stability after addition of MPcs. SWCNT-TiOPc composite exhibited maximum interaction with ammonia vapors (≈ 3 times pristine SWCNT) followed by SWCNT- MgPc (≈ 2 times pristine SWCNT), while AlPcOH had shown faster desorption (≈ 0.5 times faster) as compared to pristine SWCNT during recovery stage. The concept of charge transfer mechanism between SWCNT-MPcs and ammonia gas and varied orbital state accommodating ammonia lone pairs were used to explain interaction studies. Consistencies observed in physics and chemistry analysis highlighted the significance of both these fields to have complete understanding of the interaction phenomena between SWCNT-MPcs and ammonia gas.

Background The mechanisms underlying disease pathogenesis in chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) and improvement with omalizumab are incompletely understood. Objectives This study sought to examine whether the rate of clinical remission is concordant with baseline basophil features or the rate of change of IgE-dependent functions of basophils and/or plasmacytoid dendritic cells during omalizumab therapy. Methods Adults (n = 18) with refractory CSU were treated with omalizumab 300 mg monthly for 90 days. Subjects recorded daily urticaria activity scores, and clinical assessments with blood sampling occurred at baseline and on days 1, 3, 6, 10, 20, 30, 60, and 90 following omalizumab. At baseline, subjects were categorized by basophil functional phenotypes, determined by in vitro histamine release (HR) responses to anti-IgE antibody, as CSU-responder (CSU-R) or CSU-non-responder (CSU-NR), as well as basopenic (B) or nonbasopenic (NB). Results CSU-R/NB subjects demonstrated the most rapid and complete symptom improvement. By day 6, CSU-R/NB and CSU-NR/NB had increased anti-IgE–mediated basophil HR relative to baseline, and these shifts did not correlate with symptom improvement. In contrast, CSU-NR/B basophil HR did not change during therapy. The kinetics of the decrease in surface IgE/FceRI was similar in all 3 phenotypic groups and independent of the timing of the clinical response. Likewise, plasmacytoid dendritic cells' surface IgE/FceRI decline and TLR9-induced IFN-α responses did not reflect clinical change. Conclusions Changes in basophil IgE-based HR, surface IgE, or FceRI bear no relationship to the kinetics in the change in clinical symptoms. Baseline basophil count and basophil functional phenotype, as determined by HR, may be predictive of responsiveness to omalizumab.

Following the plenty of research work on solving the issue of the popular and promising perovskite solar cells, this article is focused on methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) and the alternative element which can perform as efficiently as lead does. Here, not only the different concentrations of the substitute element are investigated, but also higher stable perovskite is introduced as well. Several characterization techniques are used to assure the validity of the results. The large alkali metal potassium (K) and the transition metal zinc (Zn) are studied side by side. The results are interesting when the 5% concentration of the KI alloyed MAPbI3 shows considerable transport properties like 54 nm diffusion length, 245 × 10−9 Sm−1 photoconductivity, and significant majority and minority carrier mobility–lifetime product as compared to MAPbI3 but it becomes more interesting when after 60 days the 5% concentration of the aged ZnCl2 alloyed MAPbI3 turns into a leading element of this research by showing high stability among of all. The morphology investigations show both perovskite materials achieve large islands which are desired morphology in perovskite materials as well.

Objective To investigate preoperative cerebral hemodynamics in newborns with congenital heart disease. We hypothesized that cerebral blood flow and oxygen delivery would be decreased in newborns with congenital heart disease compared with controls. Methods Using a "feed-and-sleep" approach to performing neonatal magnetic resonance imaging, we measured cerebral blood flow by using a slice prescription perpendicular to the right and left internal carotid arteries and basilar artery at the level of the clivus. We calculated brain volume by segmenting a 3-dimensional steady-state free procession acquisition of the whole brain, allowing quantification of cerebral blood flow indexed to brain volume. Cerebral oxygen delivery was calculated as the product of cerebral blood flow and preductal systemic arterial oxygen content obtained via a combination of conventional pulse oximetry and laboratory analysis of venous blood samples for hemoglobin concentration. Results A complete set of measurements were obtained in 32 newborns with heart disease and 31 controls. There was no difference in gestational age between the heart disease and control groups. There was no difference in cerebral blood flow compared with controls (103.5 ± 34.0 vs 119.7 ± 40.4 mL/min), whereas cerebral oxygen delivery was significantly lower in the congenital heart disease subjects (1881 ± 625.7 vs 2712 ± 915.7 mL O2 /min). Ten newborns with congenital heart disease had diffuse excessive high signal intensity in their white matter and 2 had white matter injury whereas another 5 had both. Conclusions Newborns with unrepaired cyanotic congenital heart disease have decreased cerebral oxygen delivery due to arterial desaturation. If brain growth and development are adversely affected through oxygen conformance, our findings could have clinical implications in terms of timing of surgical repair.