Emerging pollutants (EPs) encompass natural or synthetic substances in the environment that pose potential risks but have only recently been recognized or monitored. EPs consist of various categories including pesticides, pharmaceuticals, hormones, mycotoxins, and endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Through several pathways, EPs can access food, potentially leading to health impacts when their safe concentrations are exceeded. Milk, being a highly nutritious and a heavily consumed food product by many consumers of different ages, is a crucial food matrix where EPs should be regularly monitored. In literature, large number of studies was dedicated for the determination of different EPs in dairy milk, employing different analytical techniques. Chromatographic based techniques were the most prevalent means for analysis of EPs in milk, which demonstrated significant efficiency, sensitivity and accuracy for this specific purpose. Prior to chromatographic analysis, extraction of EPs from a complex matrix like milk, is essential. This review comprehensively covers relevant research papers on extraction and subsequent detection and determination of EPs in milk by chromatographic methods from 2018 and until 2023.

Sunscreens are topical preparations containing one or more compounds that protect humans from ultraviolet (UV) light. This review focuses on analytical methods, particularly liquid chromatography, aimed at identifying and determining UV filters (UVFs) in environmental and marine biota matrices. A literature review was done using NIH (PubMed and Medline), FDA and EPA databases, Google Scholar, and Federal Regulations. This retrospective literature review is focused on the last five years. UVFs quantification in environmental and biological matrices showed a wide array of methods where liquid chromatography is predominant. The scientific literature identified a large variety of analytical methodologies that are compared in this review, to evaluate the better results in terms of limits of quantification and the possibility to identify as many analytes as possible simultaneously.

We report a simple and high-performance flexible strain sensor based on liquid metal nanoparticles (LMNPs) on polyimide substrate by laser induced deposition. The LMNPs were prepared by ultrasonic method, and then the femtosecond laser direct writing technology was used to induce the assembly and deposition of the LMNPs to form liquid metal microwires. Laser local sintering enhances the connection between particles, and a wearable strain sensor was fabricated with the high sensitivity as high as 76.18, the good linearity (a correlation coefficient of 0.999) in a wide sensing rage, the fast response/recovery time of 159 ms/120 ms. Attributed to these extraordinary strain sensing performances, the sensor can sense various dynamic strains in real time, monitor both subtle physiological activities and large human motions. It can be adhered to human skin, and well reflect the change of facial expression and realize real-time monitoring of facial expression. And the vocal cord vibration can be detected for speech recognition while the sensor attached to the outside of the throat.

Clinical management in neuro-oncology has changed to an integrative approach that incorporates molecular profile alongside histopathology and imaging findings. While the WHO guideline recommends genotyping of informative alterations as a routine clinical practice for central nervous system (CNS) tumors, acquisition of tumor tissue in the CNS is invasive and not always possible. Liquid biopsy is a non-invasive approach that provides the opportunity to capture the complex molecular heterogeneity of the whole tumor through detection of circulating tumor biomarkers in body fluids, such as blood or cerebrospinal fluid. Despite all the advantages, the low abundance of tumor-derived biomarkers, particularly in CNS tumors, as well as their short half-life has limited the application of liquid biopsy in clinical practice. Thus, it is crucial to identify factors that are associated with the presence of these biomarkers and explore possible strategies that can increase the shedding of these tumoral components into biological fluids. In this review, we first describe the clinical applications of liquid biopsy in CNS tumors including its roles in early detection of recurrence and monitoring of treatment response. We then discuss the utilization of imaging in identifying factors that affect the detection of circulating biomarkers as well as how image-guided interventions such as focused ultrasound can help enhance the presence of tumor biomarkers through blood-brain barrier disruption.

An investigation of pair partial radial distribution functions and molecular pair potentials within a system has established that the existing potential functions are rooted in the assumption of a static arrangement of atoms, overlooking their distribution and vibration. In this study, Hill’s proposed radial distribution function polynomials are applied for the pure gaseous state to a binary liquid alloy system to derive the pair potential energy. The partial radial distribution functions of 36 binary liquid alloy systems reported in literature were examined and then validated using four thermodynamic models. Results show that the molecular interaction volume model (MIVM) and regular solution model (RSM) outperform other models when an asymmetric method is used to calculate the partial radial distribution function. The MIVM exhibits a mean standard deviation (SD) of 0.095 and a mean absolute relative difference (ARD) of 32.2%. Similarly, the RSM demonstrates a mean SD of 0.078 and an ARD of 32.2%. The Wilson model yields a mean SD of 0.124 and a mean ARD of 226%. The nonrandom two-liquid (NRTL) model exhibits a mean SD of 0.225 and a mean ARD of 911%. On applying the partial radial distribution function symmetry method, the MIVM and RSM outperform the other approaches, with a mean SD of 0.143 and a mean ARD of 165.9% for the MIVM. The RSM yields a mean SD of 0.117 and an ARD of 208.3%. The Wilson model exhibits the mean values of 0.133 and 305.6% for SD and ARD, respectively. The NRTL model shows an average SD of 0.200 and an average ARD of 771.8%. Based on this result, the influence of the symmetry degree on the thermodynamic model is explored by examining the symmetry degree as defined by the experimental activity curves of the two components.

Ammonia-nitrogen (NH3 -N) loss from agriculture decreases crop yield potential and environ-mental quality. Incorporating animal manures by chisel plowing (CP) can reduce NH3 loss but may increase erosion and compaction potential compared to lower disturbance methods. Vertical tillage (VT) is designed to reduce disturbance and conserve more crop residue than CP, however its effect on NH3 loss from manure application is largely unknown. Six trials in corn production systems were conducted to evaluate the impacts of manure incorporation method (CP, VT, or broadcast) and weather conditions on NH3-N concentrations during 2013 to 2016 at a research farm in central Wisconsin, USA. Passive samplers were used to measure NH3-N concentrations at 30-cm above the ground during the first 0 to 24 and 24 to 48 hr post-application/incorporation. Average NH3 -N concentrations for CP and VT were 44 to 86% of surface broadcast and similar for most trials, while crop residue coverage was greater for VT than CP (39 and 22% of control plots, respectively). Concentrations of NH3 -N were correlated with the amount of plot area covered by manure for the first (r = 0.56, P<0.0001) and second measurement periods (r = 0.85, P<0.0001). Results show that VT had comparable NH3-N concentration reductions to CP while conserving more crop residue.

Dicarbonyls are electrophiles able to generate the so-called advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). Human exposure occurs via ingestion (e.g., food), inhalation (e.g., electronic cigarettes) and dysregulation of endogenous metabolic pathways (e.g., glycolysis). Biological systems can prevent AGEs formation via enzymatic and nonenzymatic reactions. However, the continuous exposure to dicarbonyls may cause the depletion of endogenous substrates and the beginning of AGEs accumulation (i.e., carbonylation). Since this process has been associated with multiple disorders, several studies advocated the use of dicarbonyl binders as food preservatives or as drugs aimed at mitigating carbonylation damages. As reported for other toxicants (e.g., HNE, acrolein), the screening of selective and potent binders can be performed by measuring the residual amount of a selected dicarbonyl substrate, upon its incubation with candidate binders. Unfortunately, naturally occurring dicarbonyls are poorly responsive to many detectors (e.g., UV or MS). For this reason, most of the screening methods that have been reported to date relies on indirect quantification upon derivatization. However, this strategy can potentially lead to inaccurate results since the tested compounds can affect the derivatization yield. Therefore, we herein reported the use of benzylglyoxal (BGO) as a convenient, UV responsive, dicarboyl surrogate. By using BGO as a substrate, we setup an easy and cheap chromatographic assay for the direct measurement of the binding activity towards dicarbonyls, without derivatization. The method was qualified by assessing the binding ability of some known dicarbonyl binders, obtaining results consistent with literature.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) develop from the mucosa of the oral cavity, pharynx, and larynx. The methylation levels of Septin 9 (SEPT9) and short stature homeobox 2 (SHOX2) genes in ccfDNA are considered pan-cancer biomarkers and have shown prognostic value in preliminary reports in HNSCC. Liquid biopsy is a non-invasive procedure that collects tumor-derived molecules including circulating cell-free DNA (ccfDNA). Here, we developed a ddPCR-based assay to detect the DNA methylation levels of plasma circulating SEPT9 and SHOX2 in patients with HNSCC. We first set up the assay on commercial methylated and un-methylated DNA. Then, the dynamic changes of the methylation levels of SEPT9 and SHOX2 were quantified in 20 patients during the follow-up. The results highlighted: i) the capability of the ddPCR-based assay in detecting very low copies of methylated molecules; ii) the significant decrease in methylation levels of SEPT9 and SHOX2 in plasma of HNSCC patients at the first time points of follow-up respect to T0; iii) a different trend of longitudinally DNA methylation variations associable to the clinicopathological features of the patients. The absolute quantification of the methylation levels of SEPT9 and SHOX2 in HNSCC may be used for risk stratification and disease monitoring.

In recent years, various optical measurement technologies such as far-infrared spectroscopy, low-frequency Raman spectroscopy, optical Kerr effect spectroscopy, and two-dimensional Raman-terahertz spectroscopy have developed vigorously. By comparing the complementary aspects detected by various linear and nonlinear spectroscopic techniques, a coherent picture emerges from studies of dynamics in water. Numerous molecular dynamics experiments and theoretical investigations have demonstrated low-frequency molecular motions in liquid water. For example, intermolecular hydrogen bond vibration, molecular reorientation motion, and the interaction between molecule/ionic solute and hydrogen bond all occur in the THz region, which are closely related to their physical/chemical properties and structural dynamics. However, precise probing of various modes of motion is difficult due to the complexity of the collective and cooperative motion of molecules and the spectral overlap of related modes. With the development of THz optical technology, current state-of-the-art THz sources can generate pulsed electric fields with peak intensities on the order of ~MV/cm. Such strong fields make it possible to use THz waves as the driving light source for nonlinear polarization of the medium, which in turn leads to the development of the emerging terahertz Kerr effect (TKE) spectroscopy technique. Many low-frequency molecular motion modes, such as the collective directional motion of molecules and the cooperative motion under the constraint of weak intermolecular interactions, are resonantly excited to unprecedentedly strong amplitudes driven by the THz electric field. Thereby the collected responses are increased. The TKE technique thus creates an interesting prospect for investigating low-frequency dynamics in these media. In view of this, this paper firstly summarizes the research work on the measurement mechanism of TKE spectroscopy by taking the solid material without low-frequency molecular dynamics process as an example. Starting from the principle of TKE technology and the exploration of the properties of solid matter using this technology, its application in the exploration of low-frequency molecular dynamics of liquid water and aqueous solutions is introduced. Liquid water is considered the building block of life and possesses many extraordinary physical and biochemical properties. Its hydrogen bonding network plays a crucial role in these properties. It is generally believed that the ability of water to form complex hydrogen-bonding networks is the main reason for its various kinetic and thermodynamic properties that are different from other liquids. However, the exact structure of the hydrogen-bonding network, the spatial extent of its existence, and the associated timescale are not known. And the relevant spectral information of the basic properties of the reaction water is still not known. Therefore, it is of great significance to evaluate the hydrogen bond-related kinetic properties of liquid water by optical means.

Capacitance measurements have been extensively used to measure the anchoring extrapolation length L at a nematic-substrate interface. These measurements are extremely delicate because the value found for L often critically depends on the sample thickness and the voltage range chosen to perform the measurements. Several reasons have been proposed to explain this observation, such as the presence of inhomogeneities in the director distribution on the bounding plates or the variation with the electric field of the dielectric constants. In this paper I propose a new method to measure Lp that takes into account this second effect. This method is more general than that proposed in Murauski et al. Phys. Rev. E 71, 061707 (2005) because it does not assume that the anchoring angle is small and that the anchoring energy is of the Rapini-Papoular form. This method is applied to a cell of 8CB treated for planar unidirectional anchoring by photoalignment with the azobenzene dye Brilliant Yellow. The role of flexoelectric effects and the shape of the anchoring potential are discussed.

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer diagnosed in women worldwide. Approximately 70% of BC patients have the luminal subtype, which expresses hormone receptors (HR+). Adjuvant endocrine treatments are the standard of care for HR+/HER2- BC patients. Over time, approximately 30% of those patients develop endocrine resistance and metastatic disease. Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CDKi) in combination with an aromatase inhibitor or fulvestrant have demonstrated superior efficacies in increasing progression-free survival, with a safe toxicity profile, in HR+/HER2- metastatic BC patients. CDKi blocks kinases 4/6, preventing G1/S cell cycle transition. However, not all patients respond to CDKi, and those who do respond ultimately develop resistance to the combined therapy. Studies in tumour tissues and cell lines have tried to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this progression, but there are still no conclusive data. Over the last few years, liquid biopsy has contributed relevant information. Circulating tumour materials are potential prognostic markers for determining patient prognosis in metastatic luminal BC, for monitoring disease and for treatment selection. This review outlines the different studies performed using liquid biopsy in patients with HR+ metastatic BC treated with CDKi plus endocrine therapy. We focus mainly on those studies that describe possible resistance mechanisms in circulating tumour-derived material.

The dynamical processes of living systems are characterized by the cooperative interaction of many units. This claim enables us to portray the embryo-fetal development of the central and peripheral nervous systems in terms of assemblies of building blocks. We describe how the structure and arrangement of nervous fibers is - at least partially - dictated by biophysical and topological constraints. The far-flung field of soft-matter polymers/nematic colloids sheds new light on the neurulation in mammalian embryos, suggesting an intriguing testable hypothesis: the development of the central and peripheral nervous systems might be correlated with the occurrence of local thermal changes in embryo-fetal tissues. Further, we show a correlation between the fullerene-like arrangement of the cortical microcolumns and the Frank-Kasper phases of artificial quasicrystals assemblies. The last, but not the least, we explain how and why the multisynaptic ascending nervous fibers connecting the peripheral receptors to the neocortical areas can be viewed as the real counterpart of mathematical tools such as knot theory and braid groups. Their group structure and generator operations point towards a novel approach to long-standing questions concerning human sensation and perception, leading to the suggestion that the very arrangement and intermingling of the peripheral nervous fibers contributes to the cortical brain activity. In touch with the old claims of D’Arcy Thompson, we conclude that the arrangement and the pattern make the function in a variety of biological instances, leading to countless testable hypotheses.

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women worldwide. Approximately, 70 % of breast cancer patients express hormone receptors (HR) (Luminal subtype). Adjuvant endocrine treatments are the standard of care in HR+/HER2- breast cancer. Over time, about 50% of those patients develop endocrine resistance and metastatic breast cancer. Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CDKi) in combination with an aromatase inhibitor or fulvestrant have demonstrated superior efficacy increasing progression-free survival, with a safe toxicity profile, in HR+/HER2- metastatic breast cancer patients. CDKi blocks kinases 4/6 ATP-binding domain preventing G1/S cell cycle transition. Despite this, not all patients respond to CDKi and those who respond, finally develop resistance to combination therapy. Different studies, in tumour tissue or cell lines, have tried to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this progression, but there are still no conclusive data. In the last few years, liquid biopsy has contributed relevant information to this knowledge. Liquid biopsy can be performed in real-time, non-invasively and be repeated whenever needed. Circulating tumour material are potential prognostic markers in metastatic luminal breast cancer to determine patient prognosis, monitor disease and treatment selection. The objective of this review is to outline the different studies carried out in HR+ metastatic breast cancer patients treated with CDKi plus endocrine therapy using liquid biopsy approaches looking for possible resistance mechanisms.

Plasma medicine is a new field focusing on biomedical and clinical applications of cold physical plasmas, including their anticancer effects. Cold plasmas can be applied directly or indirectly as plasma activated liquids (PAL). The effect of plasma activated cell growth medium (PAM) and plasma activated phosphate buffered saline (PAPBS) were tested using a plasma pen generating streamer corona discharge in ambient air, on different cancer cell lines (melanoma A375, glioblastoma LN229 and pancreatic cancer MiaPaCa-2) and normal cells (human dermal fibroblasts HDFa). The viability reduction and apoptosis induction were detected in all cancer cells after incubation in PAL. In melanoma cells we focused on detailed insights to the apoptotic pathways. The anticancer effects depend on the plasma treatment time or PAL concentration. The first 30 minutes of incubation in PAL were enough to start processes leading to the cell death. In fibroblasts, no apoptosis induction was observed, only PAPBS, activated for longer time, slightly decreased their viability. Anticancer effects of PAM and PAPBS on cancer cells showed selectivity compared to normal fibroblasts, depended on correctly chosen activation time and PAL concentration. This selectivity, supported by optimum ratio of hydrogen peroxide and nitrites in PAL, is very promising for potential clinical applications.

Low-loss photonic waveguides in lithium niobate offer versatile functionality as nonlinear frequency converters, switches, and modulators for integrated optics. Combining the flexibility of laser processing with liquid phase epitaxy we have fabricated and characterized lithium niobate channel waveguides on lithium niobate and lithium tantalate. We used liquid phase epitaxy with K2O flux on laser-machined lithium niobate and lithium tantalate substrates. The laser-driven rapid-prototyping technique can be programmed to give machined features of various sizes, and liquid phase epitaxy produces high quality single-crystal, lithium niobate channels. The surface roughness of the lithium niobate channels on a lithium tantalate substrate was measured to be 90 nm. The lithium niobate channel waveguides exhibit propagation losses of 0.26 ± 0.04 dB/mm at a wavelength of 633 nm. Second harmonic generation at 980 nm was demonstrated using the channel waveguides, indicating that these waveguides retain their nonlinear optical properties.

In-plane electro-optical switching (IPS) is a natural feature of a conventional planar aligned display cell based on deformed helix ferroelectric liquid crystal effect (DHFLC-effect) with sub-wavelength helix pitch if the tilt angle close to 40 degrees.

Flexible and stretchable conductive materials have received significant attention in several applications such as flexible displays and sensors. In this paper, we report a highly dispersed porous Ag nanoflakes with clean surfaces were fabricated through an explosive growth process. The evolution process from silver nanoflakes to nanomeshes occurred by the novel “dissolution–recrystallization” solvothermal process. The as-obtained Ag meshes have the dual nature of nanoflakes and nanoparticles, which could create an intercross and interpenetration conductive network structures between silver and polymer in the printed elastic conductor, therefore, the silver meshes as conductive fillers used in elastic conductor simultaneously exhibit high conductivity and mechanical durability.

Ionic liquids have been recognised as interesting solvents applicable in the efficient lignocellulosic biomass valorisation, especially in the biomass fractionation into individual polymeric components or direct hydrolysis some of biomass fractions. Considering the chemical character of ionic liquids, two different approaches, paved the way for a fractionation of biomass. The first strategy integrated a pre-treatment, hydrolysis and conversion of biomass through the employment of hydrogen-bond acidic 1-ethyl-3-methyimidazolim hydrogen sulfate ionic liquid. The second one relied on the use of a three-step fractionation process with hydrogen-bond basic 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate to produce high purity cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin fractions. The proposed approaches were scrutinised for wheat straw and eucalyptus residues. Those different biomasses allowed understanding that enzymatic hydrolysis yields are dependent on the crystallinity of pre-treated biomass. The use of acetate based ionic liquid allowed to change crystalline cellulose I to cellulose II and consequently enhanced glucan to glucose yield to 93.14.1 mol% and 82.91.2 mol% for wheat straw and eucalyptus, respectively. Whereas for hydrogen sulfate ionic liquid, the same enzymatic hydrolysis yields were 61.6  0.2 mol% for wheat straw and only 7.90.3 mol% for eucalyptus residues. These results demonstrate the importance of either ionic liquid character or biomass type on the efficient biomass processing.

The thermal lubrication of an entangled polymeric liquid in wall-driven shear flows between parallel plates is investigated by using a multiscale hybrid method coupling molecular dynamics and the hydrodynamics (i.e., the synchronized molecular dynamics method). The temperature of the polymeric liquid rapidly increases due to viscous heating once the drive force exceeds a certain threshold value. The rheological properties of the polymeric liquid drastically change at around the critical drive force. In the weak viscous-heating regime, the conformation of polymer chains is dominated by the local shear flow so that the anisotropy of the bond orientation tensor grows as the drive force increases. However, in the large viscous-heating regime, the conformation dynamics is dominated by the thermal agitation of polymer chains so that the bond orientation tensor recovers more uniform and random structures as the drive force increases, even though the local shear flows are further enhanced. Remarkably, these counter-intuitive transitional behaviors give an interesting re-entrant transition in the stress--optical relation, where a linear formalism in the stress--optical relation approximately holds even though each of the macroscopic quantities behaves nonlinearly. The robustness of the linear stress--optical relation is also confirmed in the spatiotemporal evolution at the hydrodynamic level.

Vitamin A and E are important during pregnancy, the neonatal period, and childhood. The objective of this study was to assess whether maternal RRR-a-tocopherol supplementation affects serum and breast milk retinol. Serum was collected at baseline and twenty days later, and breast milk, at baseline, and on days 1, 7, and 20 after delivery. After the baseline serum collection, the supplemented group (n=16) received a single 400 IU of RRR-α-tocopherol. The control group (n=18) was only performed collections. Retinol and alpha tocopherol levels were determined by liquid chromatography. Serum retinol and alpha tocopherol at baseline and 20 days after delivery indicated proper vitamin A (> 20 µg/dL) and E (> 516 μg/dL) statuses in the control and supplemented groups (p > 0.05). Colostrum retinol levels on days 1 and 7 after delivery were significantly higher in the supplemented group (p = 0.018 and p = 0.012, respectively). Maternal vitamin E supplementation increased colostrum retinol by 52.23% and 111.2%, 24 hours and 7 days, respectively. However, retinol in mature milk did not differ between the groups (p > 0.05). In conclusion, the supplementation with 400 IU of RRR-α-tocopherol improved vitamin A bioavailability in breast milk.

In this work, we proposed a novel design of microfluidic mixer utilizing the amplified Marangoni chaotic advection induced by AC continuous electrowetting of a metal droplet situated in electrolyte solution, due to the linear and quadratic voltage-dependence of flow velocity at small or large voltages, respectively. Unlike previous researchers exploiting the unidirectional surface stress with DC bias at droplet/medium interface for pumping of electrolyte where the resulting flow rate is linearly proportional to the field intensity, dominance of another kind of dipolar flow pattern caused by local Marangoni stress at the drop surface in sufficiently intense AC electric field is demonstrated by both theoretical analysis and experimental observation, which exhibits a quadratic growth trend as a function of the applied voltage. The dipolar shear stress merely appears at larger voltages and greatly enhances the mixing performance by inducing chaotic advection between the neighboring laminar flow. The mixer design developed herein, on the basis of amplified Marangoni chaotic advection around a liquid metal droplet at larger AC voltages, has great potential for chemical reaction and MEMS actuator applications, because of generating high-throughput and excellent mixing performance at the same time.

The chiral optical Tamm state (COTS) is a special localized state at the interface of a handedness-preserving mirror and a structurally chiral medium such as a cholesteric liquid crystal or a chiral sculptured thin film. The spectral behavior of COTS, observed as reflection resonances, is described by the temporal coupled-mode theory. Mode coupling is different for two circular light polarizations because COTS has a helix structure replicating that of the cholesteric. The mode coupling for co-handed circularly polarized light exponentially attenuates with the cholesteric layer thickness since the COTS frequency falls into the stop band. Cross-handed circularly polarized light freely goes through the cholesteric layer and can excite COTS when reflected from the handedness-preserving mirror. The coupling in this case is proportional to anisotropy of the cholesteric and theoretically it is only anisotropy of magnetic permittivity that can ultimately cancel this coupling. These two couplings being equal results in a polarization crossover (the Kopp--Genack effect) for which a linear polarization is optimal to excite COTS. The corresponding cholesteric thickness and scattering matrix for COTS are generally described by simple expressions.

Many theoretical models of iron-based superconductors have been proposed but Tc calculations based on the models are usually missing. We have chosen two models of iron-based superconductors in the literature and then compute the Tc values accordingly: Recently two models have been announced which suggest that superconducting electron concentration involved in the pairing mechanism of iron-based superconductors may have been underestimated, and that the antiferromagnetism and the induced xy potential may even have a dramatic amplification effect on electron-phonon coupling. We use bulk FeSe, LiFeAs and NaFeAs data to calculate the Tc based on these models and test if the combined model can predict the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) of the nanostructured FeSe monolayer well. To substantiate the recently announced xy potential in the literature, we create a two-channel model to separately superimpose the dynamics of the electron in the upper and lower tetrahedral plane. The results of our two-channel model support the literature data. While scientists are still searching for a universal DFT functional that can describe the pairing mechanism of all iron-based superconductors, we base on the ARPES data to propose an empirical combination of DFT functional for revising the electron-phonon scattering matrix in the superconducting state, which ensures that all electrons involved in iron-based superconductivity are included in the computation. Our computational model takes into account this amplifying effect of antiferromagnetism and the correction of the electron-phonon scattering matrix together with the abnormal soft out-of-plane lattice vibration of the layered structure, which allows us to calculate theoretical Tc values of LiFeAs, NaFeAs and FeSe as a function of pressure that correspond reasonably well to the experimental values. More importantly, by taking into account the interfacial effect between an FeSe monolayer and its SrTiO3 substrate as an additional gain factor, our calculated Tc value is up to 91 K high, and provides evidence that the strong Tc enhancement recently observed in such monolayers with Tc reaching 100 K may be contributed from the electrons within the ARPES range.

Materials based on platinum metals with very good catalytic activity were tested in the reduction of p–nitrophenol (pNP) to p–aminophenol (pAP). The majority of presented catalytic materials are based on the adsorption of p–nitrophenol on the surface of the catalyst simultaneously with molecular hydrogen, coming from sodium borohydride in an aqueous medium, which reduces it. In the present paper, a catalytic material based on osmium dispersed in n–decanol or n–dodecanol is presented, which also works as an emulsion membrane, for the absorption of p–nitrophenol and molecular hydrogen at the n–alcohol aqueous solution interface. The hydrogenation of p–nitrophenol is carried out in a reaction and separation column in which the acid receiving phase emulsion is dispersed in the osmium nanodispersion, in n–alcohols. This emulsion circulates from the base of the column to its upper part in co-current or counter-current with the source phase consisting of p–nitrophenol and sodium borohydride. Experiments show that the circulation of counter-current phases is superior to that in co-current, and the emulsion based on n–decanol is more efficient than the one based on n–dodecanol. The increase in the pH difference between the source and receiving phases leads to the increase in the conversion of p–nitrophenol to p–aminophenol. The efficiency of separation of the reaction product in the receiving phase is lower than the conversion at the same operating time. The apparent catalytic rate constant (kapp) of the new catalytic material based on the emulsion membrane with nanodispersion of osmium nanoparticles (0.1×10−3 for n–dodecanol and 0.9×10−3 for n-decanol) is lower by an order of magnitude compared to those based on adsorption on catalysts from platinum metal group. The advantage of the tested membrane catalytic material is that it extracts p–aminophenol in the acid receiving phase. The paper proposes a mechanism of the studied reduction system.

Frequency combs (FCs)—spectra containing equidistant coherent peaks—have enabled researchers and engineers to measure the frequencies of complex signals with high precision thereby revolutionising the areas of sensing, metrology and communications and also benefiting the fundamental science. Although mostly optical FCs have found widespread applications thus far, in general FCs can be generated using waves other than light. Here, we review and summarise recent achievements in the emergent field of acoustic frequency combs (AFCs) including phononic FCs and relevant acousto-optical, Brillouin light scattering and Faraday wave-based techniques that have enabled the development of phonon lasers, quantum computers and advanced vibration sensors. In particular, our discussion is centred around potential applications of AFCs in precision measurements in various physical, chemical and biological systems in conditions, where using light, and hence optical FCs, faces technical and fundamental limitations, which is, for example, the case in underwater distance measurements and biomedical imaging applications. This review article will also be of interest to readers seeking a discussion of specific theoretical aspects of different classes of AFCs. To that end, we support the mainstream discussion by the results of our original analysis and numerical simulations that can be used to design the spectra of AFCs generated using oscillations of gas bubbles in liquids, vibrations of liquid drops and plasmonic enhancement of Brillouin light scattering in metal nanostructures. We also discuss the application of non-toxic room-temperature liquid-metal alloys in the field of AFC generation.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is the etiological agent of tuberculosis (TB), a disease that alt-hough preventable and curable, remains a global epidemic due to the emergence of resistance and a latent form responsible for a long period of treatment. Drug discovery in TB is a challenging task due to the heterogeneity of the disease, the emergence of resistance and an uncomplete knowledge of the pathophysiology of the disease. The limited permeability of the cell wall and the presence of multiple efflux pumps remain a major barrier to achieve effective intracellular drug accumulation. While the complete genome sequence of Mtb has been determined and several potential protein targets have been validated, the lack of adequate models for in vitro and in vivo studies is a limit-ing factor in TB drug discovery programs. In current therapeutic regimens, less than 0.5% of bac-terial proteins are targeted being the biosynthesis of the cell wall and the energetic metabolism two of the most important processes exploited for TB chemotherapeutics. This review provides an overview on the current challenges in TB drug discovery and emerging Mtb druggable proteins, and how chemical probes for protein profiling enabled the identification of new targets and bi-omarkers, paving the way to disruptive therapeutic regimens and diagnostic tools.

Lake Rawapening, Semarang Regency, Indonesia, has incorporated a holistic plan in its management practices. However, despite successful target achievements, some limitations remain that a review of its management plan is needed. This paper identifies and analyzes existing lake management strategies as a standard specifically in Lake Rawapening by exploring various literature, both legal frameworks and scholarly articles indexed in Google Scholar and published in Water by MDPI about lake management in many countries. There are two major types of lake management, namely pillar-based and object-based. While the former is the foundation of a conceptual paradigm that does not comprehensively consider the roles of finance and technology in the lake management, the latter indicates the objects to manage so as to create standards or benchmarks for the implementation of various programs. Overall, Lake Rawapening management should include more programs on erosion-sedimentation control and monitoring of operational performance using information systems.

Nature-based solutions (NbS) are increasingly recognised for their potential to address both the climate and biodiversity crises. These outcomes are interdependent, and both rely on the capacity of NbS to support and enhance the health of an ecosystem: its biodiversity, the condition of its abiotic and biotic elements, and its capacity to function normally despite environmental change. However, while understanding of ecosystem health outcomes of nature-based interventions for climate change mitigation is growing, the outcomes of those implemented for adaptation remain poorly understood with evidence scattered across multiple disciplines. To address this, we conducted a systematic review of the outcomes of 109 nature-based interventions for climate change adaptation using 33 indicators of ecosystem health across eight broad categories (e.g. diversity, biomass, ecosystem functioning and population dynamics). We showed that 88% of interventions with positive outcomes for climate change adaptation also reported measurable benefits for ecosystem health. We also showed that interventions were associated with a 67% average increase in local species richness. All eight studies that reported benefits in terms of both climate change mitigation and adaptation also supported ecosystem health, leading to a triple win. However, there were also trade-offs, mainly for forest management and creation of novel ecosystems such as monoculture plantations of non-native species. Our review highlights two major limitations of research to date. First, only a limited selection of metrics are used to assess ecosystem health and these rarely include key aspects such as functional diversity and habitat connectivity. Second, taxonomic coverage is poor: 67% of outcomes assessed only plants and 57% did not distinguish between native and non-native species. Future research addressing these issues will allow the design and adaptive management of NbS to support healthy and resilient ecosystems, and thereby enhance their effectiveness for meeting both climate and biodiversity targets.

Integrating sustainable processes and innovative waste utilization not only addresses environ-mental challenges but also aligns with evaluating energy sustainability and creating the circular waste management. This study presents a comparative analysis of liquid fuel production from waste tires and water hyacinth using two thermochemical methods: co-pyrolysis (direct method) and co-gasification integrated with the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process (indirect method). The As-pen Plus simulation software version 9 is employed to develop models, determining optimal operating conditions for maximum liquid fuel, and assessing economic viability. Co-pyrolysis simulations reveal an increase in oil products and a decrease in gas products with higher blending weight ratios of waste tires/water hyacinth (W/B) and lower pyrolyser temperatures. Operating at 400°C with a blending weight ratio of 75:25 provided the maximum liquid fuel rate of 6649.22 gal/day. For co-gasification, optimal conditions (W/B = 50:50, T = 800°C, steam to feed ratio (S/F) = 1) result in the highest syngas yield of 115.92 kmol/h. Fischer-Tropsch simulations demonstrate an increase in gasoline and a decrease in diesel with rising reactor temperatures. At 230°C, the maximum liquid fuel rate reaches 8817.15 gal/day. The economic and production yield analysis indicates that the indirect method better than the direct method, providing higher liquid fuel yields and investment worthiness.

We discuss how the interaction of electrons with an overdamped optical phonon can give rise to a strange-metal behavior over extended temperature and frequency ranges. Although the mode has a finite frequency, an increasing damping shifts spectral weight to progressively lower energies so that, despite the ultimate Fermi liquid character of the system at the lowest temperatures and frequencies, the transport and optical properties of the electron system mimic a marginal Fermi liquid behavior. Within this shrinking Fermi liquid scenario, we extensively investigate the electron self-energy in all frequency and temperature ranges, emphasizing similarities and differences with respect to the marginal Fermi liquid scenario.

To meet the International Maritime Organization’s requirements for carbon dioxide emissions from ships, a cost-effective and practical ship decarbonization tower was autonomously designed based on the marine diesel engine model 6135G128ZCa. The tower is internally filled with structured packing, and a slot-type liquid distributor at the top of the packing evenly distributes the NaOH solution to absorb carbon dioxide from the ship’s exhaust gas. Experimental research was conducted to investigate the influence of factors such as liquid-to-gas ratio and NaOH concentration on the performance of the decarbonization tower. The results confirmed that the use of NaOH solution can effectively absorb CO2 from ship exhaust gas, reducing CO2 emissions by more than 81.59% and meeting the EEDI (Energy Efficiency Design Index) requirements specified by the IMO.

Beef potentiator is an important flavor enhancer in food industry, while it is prone to generating insufficient taste compounds and off-odor compounds during enzymatic hydrolysis of beef, resulting in poor flavor of beef potentiator. It has been extensively reported that sonication is capable of improving food flavor. However, the effect of sonication on the flavor of enzymatically hydrolyzed beef liquid (EHBL) was scarcely reported. Herein, we investigated the effect of sonication on the flavor of EHBL using quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA), physicochemical analysis and SPME-GC-olfactometry/MS. QDA showed that sonication had a significant effect on taste improvement and off-odor removal of EHBL. Compared with the control, sonication (40 kHz, 80 W/L) increased the contents of total nitrogen, formaldehyde nitrogen, total sugar, reducing sugar, free amino acids (FAAs) and hydrolysis degree of EHBL by 19.25%, 19.80%, 11.83%, 9.52%, 14.37% and 20.45%. Notably, sonication markedly enhanced the contents of sweet FAAs, umami FAAs and bitter FAAs of EHBL by 19.66%, 14.04% and 9.18%, respectively, which contributed to the taste improvement of EHBL. SPME-GC-olfactometry/MS analysis showed that aldehydes and alcohols were the main contributors to aroma compounds of EHBL, sonication significantly increased the contents of key aroma compounds and 115.88% of alcohols content in EHBL. Notably, sonication decreased contents of the fishy odorants, hexanoic acid and nonanal, markedly by 35.29% and 26.03%, which was responsible for the aroma improvement of EHBL. Therefore, sonication could become a new potential tool to improve the flavor of EHBL.

This study involved the fabrication of a set of Aluminum ion-grafted SBA-15 utilizing ethylene-diamine and trimethylamine ionic liquids. The primary objective was to examine the impact of the fabrication environment on the physicochemical characteristics of the catalysts. Comprehensive characterization of the Al-SBA-15 catalysts was conducted using various techniques, including XRD, FTIR, surface area, pyridine FTIR, 27Al-NMR, TGA, HRTEM, and FESEM, to analyze their physicochemical characteristics. Furthermore, the acidic characteristics were examined by con-ducting potentiometric titration in a nonaqueous solvent and employing FTIR spectroscopy to an-alyze the chemisorbed pyridine. The effectiveness of the fabricated acid materials was evaluated by testing their performance in the acetic acid esterification with butanol. The findings obtained reveal that the mesostructured of SBA-15 remains intact following the successful inclusion of Al3+ ions into the silica frameworks. Additionally, a remarkable enhancement in the existence of both Bronsted and Lewis acid centers is noted due to the grafting process of Al3+ ions. At temperatures of 80°C and 100°C, the reaction in Al-SBA-15(T-120) proceeds swiftly, reaching approximately 32% and 38% conversion, respectively, within a span of 110 minutes. The excellent catalytic performance observed in the esterification reaction can be attributed to two factors: the homogeneous distribution of Al3+ ions within the SBA-15 frameworks and the acidic character of Al-SBA-15. The findings further indicate that the grafting process for incorporating Al3+ ions into the silica matrix is more efficient.

Previous research via cell experiments has shown that ultrafine particles (UFPs, particles less than 100 nm) emitted from Three-Dimensional desktop printers (3D printers) had cytotoxicity. However, a few particles from different filaments and their cytotoxicity combinations have been tested. Here we quantify emissions of UFPs and use Air-Liquid Interface (ALI) from one commercially available filament extrusion desktop 3D printer utilizing three different filaments by controlled experiments. A549 cells were exposed at the ALI to UFPs generated by a working 3D printer for an average of 45 minutes and 90 minutes. Twenty-four hours after exposure, cells were analyzed for percent cytotoxicity grown on the 24-well ALI insert (LDH assay). UFP exposure resulted in decreased cell viability (significantly increased LDH levels). The result shows that Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) has the most significant particle emission. ALI exposures enable in vitro testing of mixtures of particles such as UFP from a 3D printer. ABS is the only filament with a significant difference compared with the HEPA control in 90 minutes of exposure (p-value &lt;0.05). ABS and PETG we used during the experiment presented a significant difference compared with the HEPA control in 45 minutes of exposure.A screening analysis of potential exposure to these products in a typical environment suggests caution should be used when operating many printer and filament combinations in poorly ventilated spaces or without the aid of combined gas and particle filtration systems.

Organic wastes and by-products from several activities, including food industries, farming, and animal husbandry, are a hygiene threat when aerobically decomposed. Therefore, their manage-ment is crucial for public health. In this direction, anaerobic digestion (AD) systems may be the solution by transforming waste into energy, which may decrease the environmental impact. However, their efficacy should be carefully examined. In this innovative study, we evaluated the physicochemical and microbial characteristics of liquid digestate (LD) retrieved from organic animal wastes in northern Greece using nanofiltration. Using treatment technologies including physical (solid-liquid separation, microfiltration and nanofiltration) and biological (anaerobic digestion), heavy metals and microbial (i.e., Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis) concentrations reduced and nutrients were recovered. This work sets the basis for the efficient management of liquid digestate. Our method may enable the use of treated liquid digestate for unlimited irrigation water and other industrial applications of water. Apart from the sanitation process, the recovery of nutrients for soil fertilization seems to be a more sustainable way for fu-ture agricultural practices.

With the development of health service, animal husbandry, aquaculture and chemical industry, more and more pollutants are discharged into the water environment, including antibiotics and heavy metal ions. These hazard substances pose a great threat to environment safety and human health. As two kinds of new green solvents, ionic liquids (ILs) and deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are widely used in various fields including separation and environmental engineering, which are attracting huge attention from academia and industry. In this study, the optimal ionic liquid and deep eutectic solvent were selected and their complex with β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) were firstly prepared by simple and effective inclusion way. After necessary characterization and analysis, two kinds of complex were applied to prepare a special sorbent disc with two different sides by adding diluent (excipient) and pressing under 5~15 MPa. As the result, the IL and DES could be stably immobilized on the disc and play the key role in selective adsorption for targets. Besides that, the experiments of different hazardous substances achieved the expected results. Based on this study, the complex disc showed a lot of merits in the separation performance, easy preparation and use, simple operation, and good stability. It was believed to be a useful tool for water purification and detection.

Background: Liquid biopsy is widely recognised as an efficient diagnostic method in oncology for disease detection and monitoring. Though examination of circulating tumor cell (CTC) is mostly implemented for assessment of genomic aberrations, need of complex methodologies for their detection has impeded its acceptance in low resource settings. We evaluated the cell free DNA (cfDNA) as a liquid biopsy tool and investigated its utility in breast cancer patients. Methods: Total cell free DNA was extracted from plasma of breast cancer patients (n=167) with median follow up of more than 5 years, at various stages of the disease. Quantitative PCR was performed to estimate the copy numbers of two fractions of ALU repetitive elements (ALU 115 and ALU 247) and DNA Integrity (DI) was calculated as the ratio of ALU 247/115. Mutations in TP53 and PIK3CA in the cfDNA was estimated by next-gen sequencing (NGS) in a subset of samples. Association of the levels of both the ALU fragments with various clinico-pathological factors and disease-free survival at various stages were examined. Nomogram models were constructed with clinical variables and ALU 247 levels to predict disease-free survival and best performing model was evaluated by decision curve analysis. Results: DI and ALU 247 levels were significantly lower (p<0.0001) in the post-operative plasma when compared to their pre-surgery levels. DI and ALU 247 were found to be significantly higher in patients with metastasis (p<0.05). Patients with higher levels of ALU 247 in their post-operative plasma had significantly poor disease-free survival (p=0.005). Higher level of ALU 247 in circulation also correlated with low tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) within their primary tumors in the ER-negative breast cancer subtype (p=0.01). Cox proportional hazard analysis confirmed ALU 247 as an independent variable of disease-free survival both in univariate and multivariate analysis [HR 1.3 (95% CI 1.047 to 1.613, p= 0.017)]. Nomogram model showed addition of ALU 247 with other variables significantly improved (C-index-0.823) the predictive ability of the model. Conclusion: Our results confirm the utility of cfDNA as an evolving liquid biopsy tool for molecular analysis. Evaluation of larger fragment of cfDNA estimated through ALU 247 can provide vital information concurrent with the pathological process of disease evolution in breast cancer and warrants expansion to other cancer types.

In recent years, solid state terahertz (THz) modulators have obtained rapid progress with the widespread use of two-dimensional (2D) materials in the field of THz; however, challenges remain in preparing flexible THz modulators. In this study, flexible ferromagnetic nematic materials were prepared by doping thermotropic nematic liquid crystals 5CB into magnetic fluids, and the influence of hydrogen bonding in water was reduced by a self-made cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) microfluidic chip. THz modulation characteristics of magnetic fluid and ferromagnetic nematic liquid crystal (FNLC) under the induction of external magnetic field were compared using a THz time domain spectroscopy system. Under the action of a 91 mT magnetic field, the magnetic fluid has a maximum modulation depth (MD) of 54%. Under the same magnetic field, the maximum MD of the ferromagnetic nematic liquid crystal materials increase to 78% because of the rearrangement of Fe3O4 nanoparticles induced by the topological defect of the liquid crystal. We demonstrate that the magneto-optical effect is significantly enhanced in the ferromagnetic nematic liquid crystal hybrid system. This strategy of doping thermotropic nematic liquid crystals to enhance the magneto-optical effect has great potential for THz filtering, modulation, and sensing applications.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common neurodegenerative disease and affects persons of all races, ethnic groups, and sexes. The disease is characterized by neuronal loss leading to cognitive decline and memory loss. There is no cure and the effectiveness of existing treatments is limited and depends on the time of diagnosis. The long prodromal period, during which patients’ ability to live a normal life is not affected despite neuronal loss, often leads to a delayed diagnosis because it can be mistaken for normal aging of the brain. In order to make a substantial impact on AD patients, early diagnosis may provide a greater therapeutic window for future therapies to slow AD-associated neurodegeneration. Current gold standards for disease detection include magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography scans, which visualize amyloid β and phosphorylated tau depositions and aggregates. Liquid biopsies, already an active field of research in precision oncology, are hypothesized to provide early disease detection through minimally or non-invasive sample collection techniques. Liquid biopsies in Alzheimer’s disease have been studied in cerebrospinal fluid, blood, ocular, oral, and olfactory fluids. However, most of the focus has been on blood and cerebrospinal fluid due to biomarker specificity and sensitivity attributed to the effects of the blood-brain barrier and inter-laboratory variation during sample collection. Many studies have identified amyloid β and phosphorylated tau levels as putative biomarkers, however, advances in next-generation sequencing-based liquid biopsy methods have led to significant interest in identifying nucleic acids species associated with Alzheimer’s disease from liquid tissues. Differences in cell-free RNAs and DNAs have been described as potential biomarkers for AD and hold the potential to affect disease diagnosis, treatment, and future research avenues.

To overcome the two-phase flow instability of traditional boiling heat dissipation technologies, a porous wick was used for liquid-vapor isolation, thus realizing efficient and stable boiling heat dissipation. A pump-assisted capillary phase-change loop with methanol as working medium was established to study the effect of liquid-vapor pressure difference and heating power on its start-up and steady-state characteristics. The results indicated that the evaporator undergoes four heat transfer modes including flooded, partial flooded, thin film evaporation and overheating. The thin film evaporation mode was the most efficient one with the shortest start-up period. Besides, the heat transfer modes were determined by liquid-vapor pressure difference and power. The heat transfer coefficient could be significantly improved and the thermal resistance could be reduced by increasing liquid-vapor pressure difference as long as it did not exceed 8 kPa. However, when the liquid-vapor pressure difference exceeded 8kPa, its influence on the heat transfer coefficient weakened. In addition, a two-dimensional heat transfer mode distribution diagram considering both liquid-vapor pressure difference and power was drawn through a great number of experiments. During engineering application, the liquid-vapor pressure difference can be controlled to maintain efficient thin film evaporation in order to achieve the optimum heat dissipation effect.

The evidence is presented for the long-range previtreous changes of two static properties: dielectric constant ( ) and its strong electric field related counterpart - the nonlinear dielectric effect (NDE). Notable is the evidence for the functional characterizations of (T) temperature changes by the ‘Mossotti Catastrophe’ formula, and NDE vs. T evolution by the relations resembling one developed for critical liquids. The analysis of dynamic properties based on the activation energy index excluded the Vogel-Fulcher-Tammann (VFT) relation as a validated tool for portraying the evolution of the primary relaxation time. Such a result questions the commonly applied ‘Stickel operator’ routine as the reliable tool for determining the dynamic crossover temperature. It is worth stressing that the strong electric field radically affects the distribution of relaxation times, the form of the evolution of the primary relaxation time as well as the fragility. Obtained results support the concept of a possible semi-continuous phase transition hidden below Tg. Studies were carried out in supercooled squalene, the material with extremely low electric conductivity, strongly elongated molecule, and vitally important for biology and medicine related issues.

This work investigated the effects of manufacturing variations including coil resistance, initial pod mass, and e-liquid color on coil lifetime and aerosol generation of Vuse ALTO pods. Random samples of pods were used until failure (where e-liquid was consumed, and coil resistance increased to high value indicating a coil break). Initial coil resistance, initial pod mass, and e-liquid net mass ranged between 0.89 to 1.14 [], 6.48 to 6.61 [g], and 1.88 to 2.00 [g] respectively. Coil lifetime with light color e-liquid was (mean) = 149, (standard deviation) = 10.7 puffs while pods with dark color e-liquid was = 185, = 22.7 puffs with a difference of ~36 puffs (p &lt;0.001). Total mass of e-liquid consumed until coil failure was = 1.93, = 0.035 [g]. TPM yield per puff of all test pods for the first session (brand new pods) was = 0.0123, = 0.0003 [g]. During usage, TPM yield per puff of pods with light color e-liquid was relatively steady while it was continuously decreasing for pods with dark e-liquid. Coil lifetime and TPM yield per puff were not correlated with either variation in initial coil resistance or variation in initial pod mass. The absence of e-liquid in the pod is an important factor in causing coil failure. Small bits of the degraded coil could be potentially introduced to the aerosol. There is a potential correlation of e-liquid color with both coil lifetime and TPM yield per puff. Change of e-liquid color might have been a result of oxidation which changed some nicotine into nicotyrine.

The research aims to discover the natural occurrence of patulin (PAT) in selected citrus fruits from the central cities of Punjab and Pakistan's Northern cities. Total 2970 samples of twelve citrus fruits; kinnow, orange, grapefruits, bitter orange, mausami, red blood, pineapple, sweet orange, rough lime, sweet lime, kagzi lime and lemon were examined using liquid chromatography fitted with UV detector. The limit of detection (LOD) and quantification limit was 0.04 and 0.12 µg/kg, respectively. The results have shown that 56% of samples of citrus fruits from Punjab's central cities, Pakistan, were discovered to be infected from PAT. The elevated amounts of PAT ranging from 0.04 to 1150 µg/kg were found in citrus fruit samples from Multan cities. Furthermore, 31.7% of samples of citrus fruits from Northern cities of Pakistan were discovered to be infected with PAT, and the elevated amounts were found ranging from 0.04-320 µg/kg from Swat city. About 22.1% of samples of citrus fruits have levels of PAT greater than the suggested limits established by the European Union (EU). PAT's dietary intake levels ranged from 0.10-1.11 µg/kg bw/day from the central cities of Punjab, Pakistan, and 0.13-1.93 µg/kg bw/day were documented from Northern cities of Pakistan.

The research aims to discover the natural occurrence of patulin (PAT) in selected citrus fruits from the central cities of Punjab and Pakistan's Northern cities. Total 2970 samples of twelve citrus fruits; kinnow, orange, grapefruits, bitter orange, mausami, red blood, pineapple, sweet orange, rough lime, sweet lime, kagzi lime and lemon were examined using liquid chromatography fitted with UV detector. The limit of detection (LOD) and quantification limit was 0.04 and 0.12 µg/kg, respectively. The results have shown that 56% of samples of citrus fruits from Punjab's central cities, Pakistan, were discovered to be infected from PAT. The elevated amounts of PAT ranging from 0.04 to 1150 µg/kg were found in citrus fruit samples from Multan cities. Furthermore, 31.7% of samples of citrus fruits from Northern cities of Pakistan were discovered to be infected with PAT, and the elevated amounts were found ranging from 0.04-320 µg/kg from Swat city. About 22.1% of samples of citrus fruits have levels of PAT greater than the suggested limits established by the European Union (EU). PAT's dietary intake levels ranged from 0.10-1.11 µg/kg bw/day from the central cities of Punjab, Pakistan, and 0.13-1.93 µg/kg bw/day were documented from Northern cities of Pakistan

By the use of the tertiary amine A327 and 1 M HCl solution as precursors, the ionic liquid A327H+Cl- was generated and used to investigate its performance in the transport of Au(III) form hydrochloric acid medium. The influence of the stirring speed (600-1800 min-1), ionic liquid concentration (1.25-50% v/v) in the membrane phase and gold concentration (0.01-0.15 g/L) in the feed phase on metal transport have been investigated. An equation which included both equilibrium and kinetics parameters was derived, and the membrane diffusional resistance (Δm) and feed phase diffusional resistance (Δf) was estimated as 9.5x106 s/cm and 307 s/cm, respectively. At carrier concentrations in the 5-50% v/v range and gold concentrations in the 0.01-0.15 g/L range, metal transport is controlled by diffusion of metal species through the feed boundary layer, whereas at the lowest carrier concentrations, membrane diffusion is predominant. From the receiving solutions, gold can be recovered as gold nanoparticles.

Exosomes are nano-sized extracellular vesicles excreted by mammalian cells that circulate freely in the bloodstream of living organisms. Exosomes have a lipid bilayer that encloses genetic material used in intracellular communication (e.g., double-stranded DNA, micro-RNAs, and messenger RNA). Recent evidence suggests that dysregulation of this genetic content within exosomes has a major role in tumor progression and in the surrounding microenvironment. Motivated by this discovery, we focused here on using exosomal biomarkers as a diagnostic and prognostic tool for cancer. In this review, we discuss recently discovered exosome-derived proteomic and genetic biomarkers used in cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Although several genetic biomarkers have been validated for their diagnostic values, proteomic biomarkers are still being actively pursued. We discuss both commercial technologies and emerging technologies for exosome isolation and analysis.

The focus of the presented work was to isolate and characterize circulating endometrial cells (CECs) enriched from peripheral blood (PB) of patients with diagnosed endometriosis to support endometriosis diagnosis and treatment. Material and Methods Blood samples (n=423) were tested for CECs presence. Subsequently, gene expression analysis (GEA) was carried out for CECs. In parallel, the presence and character of CECs was tested during phases of menstrual cycle (MC) (n= 11). CECs were isolated by size-based separation from 2x 8ml PB. Results CECs were detected in 78.4% of blood samples. In line with the revised American Fertility Society (rAFS) classification CECs presence was confirmed in all the acknowledged endometriosis stages: minimal, mild, moderate and severe. Surprisingly, the highest CEC negativity rate was reported for severe disease (21.1%). The highest CEC numbers were detected in the mid-secretory periods of MC, which corresponds with uterine lining decidualization. The cytomorphology of CECs captured during MC is changing between the epithelial, stromal and stem cell-like. CECs captured in mid-secretory period expressed KRT18, NANOG and VIM in higher amounts when compared to the genes in the proliferative phase of MC when KRT19 and ESR1 were mostly observed. GEA of the super-positive CECs samples (1000 CECs/8mL PB) revealed high expression of KRT18, VIM, NANOG and FLT1. The expression of these genes was elevated in the endometriosis tissue samples and endometrioma, too. Conclusion The panel of the identified CECs - genes could be tested in a prospective manner to confirm the predictive value of CECs in endometriosis diagnostics.

In a depolarizing instrument, such as a broadband imaging spectrometer, the depolarizers are placed on the system for stabilization the optical signal. They are also used to reduce measurements offsets due to strong polarization dependence, which produce drastic deterioration of the signal to noise ratio. Dynamic depolarizer with a controllable degree of polarization is also required to study the effect of noise on quantum information. The article described a new instrument for characterization the variable depolarizer with features which make it different from a polarimetric system. The analysing system based on the simple structural design and has good stability for real-time measurement. A practical application of the described interferometer system for variable depolarizer characterization is also presented.

The circulating transcriptome is a valuable source of cancer biomarkers, which with the exception of miRNAs, remains relatively unexplored. To elucidate which RNAs are present in plasma from melanoma patients and which could be used to distinguish cancer patients of healthy individuals, we used next generation sequencing (NGS) and validation was carried out by qPCR and/or ddPCR. We identified 442 different microRNAs in samples, eleven of which were differentially expressed (P < 0.05). Levels of miR-134-5p and miR-320a-3p were significantly down-regulated (P<0.001) in melanoma samples (n = 96) compared to healthy controls (n = 28). Differentially expressed protein-encoding mRNA, 5´-fragments, were enriched for the angiopoietin, PAK and EIF2 pathways. Levels of ATM1, AMFR, SOS1 and CD109 gene fragments were up-regulated (P < 0.001) in melanoma samples (n=144) compared to healthy controls (n = 41) (AUC = 0.825). Over 40% of mapped reads were YRNAs, a class of non-coding RNAs that to date has been little explored. Expression levels of RNY3P1, RNY4P1 and RNY4P25 were significantly higher in patients with stage 0 disease, than either healthy controls or more advanced stage disease (P < 0.001). In conclusion, we have identified a number of novel RNA biomarkers, which most importantly we validated in multi-centre retrospective and prospective cohorts suggesting potential diagnostic use of these RNA species.

A nanostructured electrochemical bi-sensor system for analysis of milks has been developed using the Layer by Layer technique. The non-enzymatic sensor [CHI+IL/CuPcS]2, is a layered material containing a negative film of the anionic sulfonated copper phthalocyanine (CuPcS) acting as electrocatalytic material, and a cationic layer containing a mixture of an ionic liquid (IL) (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate) that enhances the conductivity and chitosan (CHI) that facilitates the enzyme immobilization. The biosensor ([CHI+IL/CuPcS]2-GAO) results from the immobilization of galactose oxidase on the top of the LbL layers. FTIR, UV-vis and AFM have confirmed the proposed structure and cyclic voltammetry has demonstrated the amplification caused by the combination of materials in the film. Sensors have been combined to form an electronic tongue for milk analysis. Principal Component Analysis has revealed the ability of the sensor system to discriminate between milk samples with different lactose content. Using PLS-1 calibration models, correlations have been found between the voltammetric signals and chemical parameters measured by classical methods. PLS-1 models provide excellent correlations with lactose content. Additional information about other components such as fats, proteins and acidity can also be obtained. The method developed is simple and the short response time permits its use in assaying milk samples on-line.

Pneumatic nebulizers (as variations based on the Collison nebulizer) have been widely used for producing fine aerosol droplets from a liquid material. The basic working principle of those nebulizers has been qualitatively described as utilization of the negative pressure associated with an expanding gas jet to syphon liquid into the jet stream, then to blow and shear into liquid sheets, filaments, and eventually droplets. Detailed quantitative analysis based on fluid mechanics theory is desirable, to gain in-depth understanding of the liquid aspiration mechanism among other aspects of the Collison nebulizer behaviour. The purpose of present work is to investigate the nature of negative pressure distribution associated with compressible gas jet flow in the Collison nebulizer by a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis, using an OpenFOAM® compressible flow solver. The value of the negative pressure associated with a gas jet flow is examined by varying geometric parameters of the jet expansion channel adjacent to the outlet of jet orifice. Such an analysis can provide valuable insights into fundamental mechanisms for liquid aspiration, helpful for designing improved pneumatic atomizer in the Aerosol Jet® direct-write system for micro-feature, high-aspect-ratio material deposition

The application of a commonly used computer algorithm based on the group-additivity method for the calculation of the liquid viscosity coefficient at 292.15K and the activity coefficient at infinite dilution in water at 298.15K of organic molecules is presented. The method is based on the complete breakdown of the molecules into their constituting atoms, further subdividing them by their immediate neighbourhood. A fast Gauss-Seidel fitting method using experimental data from literature is applied for the calculation of the atom groups’ contributions. Plausibility tests have been carried out on each of the calculations using a 10-fold cross-validation procedure which confirms the excellent predictive quality of the method. The goodness of fit (Q²) and the standard deviation (σ) of the cross-validation calculations for the viscosity coefficient, expressed as log(η), was 0.9728 and 0.11, respectively, for 413 test molecules, and for the activity coefficient log(γ)^∞ the corresponding values were 0.9736 and 0.31, respectively, for 621 test compounds. The present approach has proven its versatility in that it enabled at once the evaluation of the liquid viscosity of normal organic compounds as well as of ionic liquids.

Hybrid reverse osmosis electrodialysis systems make it possible to obtain solutions with a higher concentration of components compared to single electrodialysis treatment, i.e. more efficient separation of brine and pure water. The article proposes experimental and pilot-industrial studies of a hybrid membrane system operation using industrial wastewater for the disposal of liquid waste from an ion-exchange chemical-desalting water treatment plant of a thermal power plant, followed by a calculation of economic efficiency and an analysis of the environmental feasibility of their use. The developed technological scheme offers separate processing of acidic and alkaline waste regeneration solutions using calcium carbonate reagent and desalination on baromembrane and electromembrane units to obtain clean water and dry residue. The hybrid system includes a booster filter press and an evaporator. The hybrid system makes it possible to provide a thermal power plant with a "zero discharge" with a minimum consumption of reagents and electricity, as well as return all water from wastewater to the power plant cycle.

Due to their increased surface area, extent of swelling and active substance loading capacity and flexibility, nanogels made from natural and synthetic polymers have gained significant interest in the scientific and industrial areas. Especially, customized design and implementation of non-toxic, biocompatible, and biodegradable micro/nano carriers makes their usage very feasible for a range of biomedical applications, including drug delivery, tissue engineering, and bioimaging. The design and application methodologies of nanogels have been outlined in this review. Additionally, the most recent advancements in nanogel biomedical applications have been discussed, with a particular emphasis on applications for the delivery of drugs and biomolecules.

Vision-based tactile sensors (VBTS) have become the de facto method of giving robots the ability to obtain tactile feedback from their environment. Unlike other solutions to tactile sensing, VBTS offers high spatial resolution feedback without compromising on instrumentation costs or incurring additional maintenance expenses. However, conventional cameras used in VBTS have a fixed update rate and output redundant data, leading to computational overhead downstream. In this work, we present a neuromorphic vision-based tactile sensor (N-VBTS) that employs observations from an event-based camera for contact angle prediction. Particularly, we design and develop a novel graph neural network, dubbed TactiGraph, that asynchronously operates on graphs constructed from raw N-VBTS streams exploiting their spatiotemporal correlations to perform predictions. Although conventional VBTS uses an internal illumination source, TactiGraph is reported to perform efficiently in both scenarios, with and without an internal illumination source. Rigorous experimental results revealed that TactiGraph achieved a mean absolute error of 0.62∘ in predicting the contact angle and was faster and more efficient than both conventional VBTS and other N-VBTS, with lower instrumentation costs. Specifically, N-VBTS requires only 5.5% of the compute-time needed by VBTS when both are tested on the same scenario.

For disciplines like biological science, security, and the medical field, link prediction is a popular research area. To demonstrate the link prediction many methods have been proposed. Some of them that have been demonstrated through this review paper are TransE, Complex, DistMult, and DensE models. Each model defines link prediction with different perceptions. We argue that the practical performance potential of these methods, having similar parameter values, using the fine-tuning technique to evaluate their reliability and reproducibility of results. We describe those methods and experiments; provide theoretical proofs and experimental examples, demonstrating how current link prediction methods work in such settings. We use the standard evaluation metrics for testing the model's ability.

Zoos are increasingly putting in place formalized animal welfare assessment programs to allow monitoring of welfare over time, as well as to aid in resource prioritization. These programs tend to rely on assessment tools that incorporate resource-based and observational animal- focused measures since it is rarely feasible to obtain measures of physiology in zoo-housed animals. A range of assessment tools are available which commonly have a basis in the Five Domains framework. A comprehensive review of the literature was conducted to bring together recent studies examining welfare assessment methods in zoo animals. A summary of these methods is provided with advantages and limitations of the approach es presented. We then highlight practical considerations with respect to implementation of these tools into practice, for example scoring schemes, weighting of criteria, and innate animal factors for consideration. It is concluded that would be value in standardizing guidelines for development of welfare assessment tools since zoo accreditation bodies rarely prescribe these. There is also a need to develop taxon or species- specific assessment tools to inform welfare management.

Although there are a large number of databases available for regulatory elements, bottleneck has been created by the lack of bioinformatics tools for predicting types of mechanisms underlying actions of regulatory elements. To reduce the gap, we developed ARabidopsis Transcription regulatory Factor Domain-domain interaction Analysis Tool- Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), Oligomerization, GO analysis (ART FounDATion-LOG), a useful toolkit for protein-nucleic acid interactions (PNI) and protein-protein interactions (PPI) analysis based on domain-domain interaction (DDI). LLPS, protein oligomerization, structural properties of protein domains, and protein modifications are major components in orchestrating spatio-temporal dynamics of PPI and PNI. Our goal is to integrate PPI/PNI information into development of prediction model for identifying important genetic variants in peach. The program unified inter-database relational keys by protein domains for facilitating inference from the model species. Key advantage of the program lies in the integrated information of related features: LOG, structural characterization of domain (e.g. domain linker, intrinsically disordered regions, DDI, domain-motif (peptide) interaction, beta-sheet and transmembrane helices), and post-translational modification. We provided simple tests to demonstrate how to use the program. The program may be applied to other eukaryotic organisms. The program codes and data are freely available for download at and https://sourceforge.net/projects/artfoundation-log/.

Herein we report the expansion of the chemical space available from the chitin, accessible via the biogenic N-platforms 3A5AF, M4A2C and di-HAF. The biologically active heteroaromatics furo[3,2-d]pyrimidin-4-one and furo[3,2-d]pyrimidin-4-amine can be selectively accessed from 3A5AF and M4A2C, respectively. The chiral pool synthon di-HAF is a viable substrate for the Achmatowicz rearrangement, providing streamlined access to 2-aminosugars possessing a versatile hydroxymethyl group at C5.

The evolution of photovoltaic cells is intrinsically linked to advancements in the materials from which they are fabricated. This review paper provides an in-depth analysis of the latest developments in silicon-based, organic, and perovskite solar cells, which are at the forefront of photovoltaic research. We scrutinize the unique characteristics, advantages, and limitations of each material class, emphasizing their contributions to efficiency, stability, and commercial viability. Silicon-based cells are explored for their enduring relevance and recent innovations in crystalline structures. Organic photovoltaic cells are examined for their flexibility and potential for low-cost production, while perovskites are highlighted for their remarkable efficiency gains and ease of fabrication. The paper also addresses the challenges of material stability, scalability, and environmental impact, offering a balanced perspective on the current state and future potential of these material technologies.

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL)-based instruction versus lecture-based instruction on Grade 12 students’ performance in circular motion unit. A quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest design, the impact of POGIL-based instruction versus lecture-based instruction on students’ performance as measured by three types of cognitive outcomes: Knowing, Applying and Reasoning (KAR). The total number of participants was approximately 110 students (N=110); 54 were assigned to treatment groups (25 girls and 29 boys) and 56 were assigned to control groups (27 girls and 29 boys). The treatment group was taught a unit of circular motion in physics using POGIL-based instruction while the control group was taught the unit using lecture-based instruction. The findings of the study showed statistically significant differences between students of the control group and the treatment group in favor of the later regarding their circular motion performance, suggesting the superiority of the POGIL in enhancing student understanding of the circular motion.

This article investigates the prospect of implementing multidisciplinary and multicultural student teamwork (MMT) involving Case-based Learning (CBL) and Problem-based Learning (PBL) as a sustainable teaching practice. Based on a mixed methods approach, which includes direct observation (both physical and virtual), questionnaire distribution and focus-group interviews the study reveals that MMT through CBL and PBL can both facilitate and hinder sustainable learning. Our findings show that while MMT enhances knowledge sharing, it also poses a wide range of challenges, raising questions about its social significance as a sustainable teaching practice. The study suggests the implementation of certain mechanisms, such as ‘Teamwork Training’ and ‘Pedagogical Mentors’, aiming to strengthen the sustainable orientation of MMT through CBL and PBL.

In MBSE there is yet no converged terminology. The term ’system model’ is used in different contexts in literature. In this study we elaborated the definitions and usages of the term ’system model’, to find a common definition. 104 publications have been analyzed in depth for their usage and definition as well as their meta-data e.g., the publication year and publication background to find some common patterns. While the term is gaining more interest in recent years it is used in a broad range of contexts for both analytical and synthetic use cases. Based on this three categories of system models have been defined and integrated into a more precise definition.

This article discusses the use of game design as a method for interdisciplinary project-based teaching in secondary school education to convey informatics and society topics. There is a lot of knowledge about learning games but little background on project-based teaching using game design as a method. We present the results of an analysis of student-created games and an evaluation of a student-authored database on learning contents found in commercial off-the-shelf games. We further contextualise these findings using a group discussion with teachers. Results underline the effectiveness of project-based teaching to raise awareness for informatics and society topics. We further outline informatics and society topics that are particularly interesting to students, genre preferences and potentially engaging game mechanics stemming from our analyses.

The ubiquity of mobile sensors (such as GPS, accelerometer and gyroscope) together with increasing computational power have enabled an easier access to contextual information, which proved its value in next generation of the recommender applications. The importance of contextual information has been recognized by researchers in many disciplines, such as ubiquitous and mobile computing, to filter the query results and provide recommendations based on different user status. A context-aware recommendation system (CoARS) provides a personalized service to each individual user, driven by his or her particular needs and interests at any location and anytime. Therefore, a contextual recommendation system changes in real time as a user’s circumstances changes. CoARS is one of the major applications that has been refined over the years due to the evolving geospatial techniques and big data management practices. In this paper, a CoARS is designed and implemented to combine the context information from smartphones’ sensors and user preferences to improve efficiency and usability of the recommendation. The proposed approach combines user’s context information (such as location, time, and transportation mode), personalized preferences (using individuals past behavior), and item-based recommendations (such as item’s ranking and type) to personally filter the item list. The context-aware methodology is based on preprocessing and filtering of raw data, context extraction and context reasoning. This study examined the application of such a system in recommending a suitable restaurant using both web-based and android platforms. The implemented system uses CoARS techniques to provide beneficial and accurate recommendations to the users. The capabilities of the system is evaluated successfully with recommendation experiment and usability test.

Early detection of neurological conditions is critical for timely diagnosis and treatment. Identifying cellular-level changes is essential for implementing therapeutic interventions prior to symptomatic disease onset. However, monitoring brain tissue directly through biopsies is invasive and high-risk. Bodily fluids such as blood or cerebrospinal fluid contain information in many forms, including proteins and nucleic acids. Particularly, cell-free DNA (cfDNA) has potential as a versatile neurological biomarker. Yet, our knowledge of cfDNA released by brain tissue and how cfDNA changes in response to deleterious events within the brain is incomplete. Mapping changes in cfDNA to specific cellular events is difficult in vivo, where many tissues contribute to circulating cfDNA. Organoids are tractable systems for examining specific changes consistently in a human background. However, few studies have investigated cfDNA released from organoids. Here, we examined cfDNA isolated from cerebral organoids. We found that cerebral organoids release quantities of cfDNA sufficient for downstream analysis with droplet-digital PCR and whole-genome sequencing. Further, gene ontology analysis of genes aligning with sequenced cfDNA fragments revealed association with terms related to neurodevelopment and autism spectrum disorder. We conclude that cerebral organoids hold promise as tools for the discovery of cfDNA biomarkers related to neurodevelopmental and neurological disorders.

Density is a crucial parameter for quantitatively describing the physical properties of liquids. It serves as an important indicator for scientific research, production process control, pipeline transportation, and other aspects. In oil pipeline transportation and raw material processing, real-time online measurement of liquid density is of great significance. This paper analyzes the working principle of an on-line vibrating tube densitometer and derives the fitting equation for temperature, pressure, and density；it also conducts experiments with an on-line vibrating tube liquid densitometer and establishes a traceability chain for the experimental device. The experimental setup includes a desktop densitometer system, a multi-temperature field constant temperature stirring system, a walk-in constant temperature box, an automatic blowing system, and a frequency acquisition and calculation system. The uncertainty of the device's evaluation is U= 0.08kg/m3, k=2.The experimental research on the on-line vibrating tube liquid densitometer can be carried out within the range of (650~1400) kg/m3, (10~70)℃, (0~50)bar the metrological performance of the vibrating tube densitometer can be researched by utilizing the straight tube type and the elbow type on-line vibrating tube densitometer. A preliminary study was conducted on the effects of different densities, temperatures, and pressures on the vibrating tube system's vibration cycle. The fit coefficient and error were calculated, and the experimental results were compared to the theoretical analysis to confirm the device's conformity. The study verified the device's scientific and reasonable design, and demonstrated that it is feasible to use the device for follow-up research.

Recent experiments devoted to characterizing the behavior of sessile ferroelectric liquid droplets on ferroelectric solid substrates, showed the existence of a droplet electromechanical Rayleigh-like instability. The instability is induced by the bulk polarization of the ferroelectric fluid which couples to the polarization of the underlying substrate through its fringing field and solid-fluid interface coupling. With the aim of characterizing this phenomenon, namely the coupling between the polarizations of a fluid and a solid material, we studied the behavior of ferroelectric liquid droplets confined between two solid substrates, arranged in different configurations realized so to generate fringing fields with different profiles. Results show that the features of the droplets instability are indeed affected by the specific fringing field shape in a way dominated by the minimization of the electrostatic energy associated to the bulk polarization of the ferroelectric fluid.

Fingerprints are essential for human identification and are valuable tools in criminal investigations. The pursuit of new materials for digital printing is expanding, with increasing interest in natural compounds such as bixin, sourced from annatto seeds. Despite its traditional use as a natural dye with medicinal properties, the potential of bixin in papilloscopy remains largely untapped. In this study, we meticulously extracted bixin from annatto seeds and meticulously developed composites incorporating zinc carbonate (bixin/ZnCO3) and kaolinite (bixin/kaolinite). UV-visible spectroscopy was used for characterization, and the extracted bixin showed absorption peaks at 429, 453, and 481 nm, which were very similar to standard peaks at 429, 457, and 487 nm. The two samples also had the same retention times (7.07 min) according to further liquid chromatography analysis. Sweat pores were easier to detect thanks to the effectiveness of the bixin/ZnCO3 and bixin/kaolinite composites in creating high contrast sebaceous and natural latent fingerprints. These results highlight the composites’ potential as novel and fascinating instruments for papilloscopy applications, which might also improve forensic investigations.

Explosive boiling is a fast phase transition from an ultra-thin liquid film to vapor under an extremely high heat flux, which typically has been studied using molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) method. The present MDS study investigated the explosive boiling of a liquid argon nanofilm over different solid copper surfaces with different nanowall patterns including parallel and cross nanowalls. For each surface, atomic motion trajectories, number of liquid and vapor argon atoms, heat flux, and, mainly, onset time of explosive boiling were investigated. The simulation results indicated that explosive boiling occurs earlier on parallel and cross nanowall surfaces than on an ideally smooth surface, regardless of the topology and configuration of nanowalls. Moreover, the results revealed that by using the cross nanowall surfaces, the onset time of explosive boiling decreased by 0.7–4% compared to the parallel nanowall surfaces. In addition, it was found that the onset time of explosive boiling strongly depends on the potential energy barrier and the movement space between nanowalls for both parallel and cross nanowall surfaces. Furthermore, simulation findings showed that even though increasing the height of cross nanowalls increases heat flux and temperature of the fluid argon domain, it does not necessarily result in a shorter onset time of explosive boiling. These findings demonstrate the capability of cross nanowall surfaces for explosive boiling, thereby could be utilized in future surface design for thermal management applications.

Liquid argon technology is widely used by many previous and current neutrino experiments, and it is also promising for future large-scale neutrino experiments. When detecting neutrinos using liquid argon, many hadrons are involved, which can also interact with argon nuclei. In order to gain a better understanding of detection processes, and to simulate neutrino events, knowledge of hadron-argon cross sections is needed. This paper describes a new procedure, which improves upon the previous work with a multi-dimensional unfolding, to measure hadron-argon cross sections in a liquid argon time projection chamber. Through a simplified version of simulation, we demonstrate the validity of this procedure.

Microbial competition within plant tissues affects invading pathogens' fitness. Metabolomics is a great tool for studying their biochemical interactions by identifying accumulated metabolites. Xylella fastidiosa, a Gram-negative bacterium causing Pierce's disease (PD) in grapevines, secretes various virulence factors including cell wall degrading enzymes, adhesion proteins, and quorum sensing molecules. These factors, along with outer membrane vesicles, contribute to its pathogenicity. Previous studies demonstrated that co-inoculating X. fastidiosa with Paraburkholderia phytofirmans strain PsJN suppressed PD symptoms. Here, we further investigated the interaction between the phytopathogen and the endophyte by analyzing the exometabolome of wild-type X. fastidiosa and a diffusible signaling factor (DSF) mutant lacking quorum sensing, cultivated with 20% P. phytofirmans spent media. LC-MS and MAGI were used to detect and map metabolites to genomes revealing a total of 121 metabolites, of which 25 were further investigated. These metabolites potentially relate to host adaptation, virulence, and pathogenicity. Notably, this study presents the first comprehensive profile of X. fastidiosa in the presence of P. phytofirmans spent media. The results highlight that P. phytofirmans and the absence of a functional quorum sensing affect the ratios of glutamine to glutamate (Gln:Glu) in X. fastidiosa. Additionally, two compounds with plant metabolism and growth properties, 2-Aminoisobutyric acid and Gibberellic Acid, were downregulated when X. fastidiosa interacted with P. phytofirmans. These findings suggest that P. phytofirmans-mediated disease suppression involves modulation of the exometabolome of X. fastidiosa, impacting plant immunity.

Spray technology is widely used in various industries, including medicine, food production, mechanical engineering, and nanopowder manufacturing. Achieving high dispersion and a narrow particle size distribution is crucial for many applications. Ultrasonic spraying is commonly used to achieve this. On other hand, hydraulic nozzles provide high atomization performance. Combining these two technologies promises to offer significant benefits, but the complex processes that occur simultaneously in such a device require careful study. This work proposes a fundamental design for an acoustic-hydraulic nozzle and investigates the physical processes when a liquid is sprayed using this nozzle, both theoretically and experimentally. The study identifies the critical modes of spraying and confirms that the simultaneous use of ultrasound and hydraulic pressure can produce a fine spray (droplet size less than 50 μm) with high productivity (5-10 ml/s). This approach has significant potential for modern industries and technologies.

Rollover prevention of partially-filled tank trucks is an industry teaser, with the core challenge being real-time perception and observation of the liquid state inside the tank. In order realize re-liable observation of sloshing liquid, this article firstly proposes a sloshing modeling method based on multi-degree-of-freedom pendulum model, and derives the double mass trammel pendulum model (DMTP, 2DOF) accordingly, which accurately reflects the sloshing dynamics under more pervasive working conditions. Secondly, a free surface fluctuation sensor is designed based on magnetostriction, capable of measuring the inclination and height of the liquid level inside tanks filled with hazardous chemical. Finally, the unscented Kalman filter (UKF) is utilized to synthesize the information of the two, establishing a credible real-time observation of the sloshing liquid. Verified through vehicle-fluid coupled co-simulation, under condition of con-secutive double lane change, observation error of the proposed method is only 25.9% that of the open-loop calculation, providing a secure guarantee for the observation of the state variables of the single pendulum model (SP) used for most kinds of anti-rollover controller.

Screening and early diagnosis of diseases are crucial for a patient's treatment to be successful and to improve their survival rate, especially in cancer. The development of non-invasive analytical methods able to detect biomarkers of pathologies is a critical point to define a successful treat-ment and a good outcome. This study extensively reviews electrochemical methods used for the development of biosensors in liquid biopsy, owing to their ability to provide rapid response, pre-cise detection, and low detection limits. We also discuss new developments in electrochemical biosensors, which can improve the specificity and sensitivity of standard analytical procedures. Electrochemical biosensors demonstrate remarkable sensitivity in detecting minute quantities of analytes, encompassing proteins, nucleic acids, and circulating tumor cells, even within challeng-ing matrices such as urine, serum, blood, and various other body fluids. Among the various de-tection techniques used for the detection of cancer biomarkers, even in the picogram range, volt-ammetric sensors are deeply discussed in this review because of their advantages and technical characteristics. This widespread utilization stems from their ability to facilitate quantitative de-tection of ions and molecules with exceptional precision. The comparison of each electrochemical technique is discussed to provide the selection of appropriate analytical methods.

Keywords: Kenaf; liquid cultivation; solid cultivation; in vitro propagation, life on land

We present a theoretical modeling of a cylindrical tunable liquid crystal lens based on the modulation of the anchoring energy. This latter can be easily obtained by means of photoaligning techniques. The liquid crystal cell we propose exhibits strong anchoring at the top substrate and an anchoring energy with parabolic profile at the bottom substrate. The model describes the dependence of the focal length on the applied voltage and presents a theoretical study of lens aberrations. The results obtained are of general relevance and can be used to optimize the performances of every kind of liquid crystal lens with parabolic profile.

A self-protective metal/ liquid microcapsule composite plating coating has been prepared in our previous research. The release speed of liquid core material from microcapsules is crucial for the coating surface properties. The aim of this paper is to study the permeability rule of liquid microcapsules within composite coatings. According to permeability experimental data’s linear characteristics, multiple linear regression is firstly used to set up permeability model of liquid microcapsules. The results show that a reliable mathematical model about membrane porosity, viscosity of core material and membrane thickness is established under ambient temperature and moisture. Meanwhile, the predictive capacity and reliability of this model are analyzed carefully.

Liquid biopsy is a rapidly emerging field which involves the minimal/non-invasive assessment of signature somatic mutations through analysis of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) shed by tumor cells in bodily fluids. The broad, unmet need for liquid biopsy lung cancer detection is the lack of multiplex platform that can detect a mutation panel of lung cancer genes using minimum amount of sample, especially for ultra-short ctDNA (usctDNA). Here we developed a non-PCR and non-NGS-based single droplet based multiplexing microsensor technology “Electric Field-Induced Released and Measurement (EFIRM) Liquid Biopsy” (m-eLB) for lung can-cer-associated usctDNA. The m-eLB provides multiplexable assessment of usctDNA within a single droplet of biofluid in only one well of micro-electrodes, as each electrode coated with dif-ferent probes for the ctDNA. In this m-eLB prototype, it demonstrates accuracy for 3 tyrosine ki-nase inhibitor related EGFR target sequences in synthetic nucleotides. The accuracy for the multi-plexing assay has an AUC of 0.98 for L858R, Ex19del, AUC of 0.94 for Ex19 deletion and AUC of 0.93 for T790M. By combining the 3 EGFR assay together, the AUC was 0.97 for the multiplexing assay.

We evaluated hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HTAB) for use in radio frequency (RF) applications in which liquid crystals (LCs) are used in layered structures that have various cell gap conditions. HTAB is a surfactant that can self-align vertically on the surface of indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates, and can induce homeotropic alignment of the LCs. For implementing RF devices with HTAB and LCs, we should consider limitations caused by the design conditions which are different from conventional liquid crystal displays such as cell gap. We quantified the concentration of HTAB ([HTAB]) that is necessary to form and maintain a sufficiently dense vertical alignment of 5CB (4-Cyano-4'-pentylbiphenyl). The required [HTAB] for full-homeotropic alignment was proportional to the cell gap until it was too large to support the transfer of the surface alignment to the LC, due to the weak anchoring nature of HTAB. We also showed the phase-change characteristic of the LC mixture depended on [HTAB] for the design of RF devices driven by light or heat. This work may help to guide the development of new approaches to designing efficient RF devices that use LCs.

Rice is considered as the most important crop for most of the world population. Utilization of seaweed as bio-stimulant can be an alternative way to enhance rice plant growth and productivity, as well as a strategic move to reduce the use of inorganic fertilizer that is harmful to the environment. Seaweed and its derivative products have been widely used as bio-stimulant in the agricultural industry because of their potential use in increasing plant growth and productivity. Auxins, gibberellins, and cytokinin are some of growth regulators found in seaweed extract, as well as macro and micronutrients required for plant growth and development. Several studies have found that seaweed extract has a variety of favorable effects as a plant growth promoter, including early seed germination and establishment, improved nutritional quality, increased yield and crop performance, and increased tolerance to environmental stress. The purpose of this paper is to give a comprehensive overview of the impacts of several seaweed species on seed germination, crop development and production, enhancement of rice plants (Oryza sativa) nutritional quality and the modes of action of seaweed extract includes the chemical components that might be causing plant physiological changes.

How to effectively suppress thermal cracks in the metal laser additive manufacturing process is still one of the key issues to be solved in the field of laser additive manufacturing. Metal tin, with wide liquid phase working temperature range, high boiling point, low viscosity, high thermal conductivity and excellent electrical conductivity. The use of tin as an auxiliary thermal management material in the metal additive manufacturing process is expected to achieve effective regulation of the temperature field and stress field of the formed part, thereby inhibiting the initiation of cracks and obtaining formed parts with the target grain structure and high reliability. This paper presented a novel liquid metal-assisted laser additive manufacturing method (LMAAM). A numerical model for the laser additive manufacturing of tin-assisted titanium alloys was established. The differences of the flow field, temperature field and stress field of the formed parts with tin and without tin were compared and analyzed. The influence of the interaction position between the tin liquid level and the forming part on the temperature field and stress field of the forming part was deeply studied. The laser additive manufacturing experiment of tin-assisted titanium alloy was carried out, and the experimental results were basically consistent with the simulation results, which verified the validity of the model. LMAAM technology has proven to be an effective method for additive manufacturing of highly reliable formed parts.

This study was focused on the development of oil-producing microorganisms to generate lipids. The yeast Rhodotorula mucilaginosa (R. mucilaginosa) was selected for liquid-state cultivation, and the conditions for growth of the yeast cells were assessed. Additionally, the relationships between different nutrient elements and the growth of R. mucilaginosa were explored. The lipid accumulation of R. mucilaginosa is increased under nitrogen-restricted conditions. As the concentration of the carbon source increases, the accumulation of lipids is increased. However, if the carbon source concentration is further increased, the growth of yeast is inhibited. From a large-scale liquid fermentation culture with a fixed inoculation amount of 5%, and from a batch of culture experiments, it was determined that a suitable oil-producing culture was obtained on the 6th day, and the optimum conditions involved a carbon source concentration of 60 g/L, a nitrogen source concentration of 0.5 g/L, and a KH2PO4 concentration of 7.0 g/L. After utilizing different carbon sources in this study, it was found that glucose was the carbon source most conducive to the accumulation of R. mucilaginosa lipids. In addition, the extraction method and solvent for the extraction of R. mucilaginosa lipids were chosen. The acid-heat method using the green organic solvent ethyl acetate exhibited the best performance for extraction of yeast lipids under environmentally friendly and safe conditions. The analysis of lipids showed that the fatty acids obtained primarily contained C16:0, C18:1 and C18:2, and especially C18:1 (41%) lipids, indicating that R. mucilaginosa lipids are a good bio-oil source for the production of biodiesel.

The liquid droplet cooling technique for fast scanning chip calorimetry (FSC) is introduced, increasing the cooling rate for large samples on a given sensor. Reaching higher cooling rates and using a gas as the cooling medium, the common standard for ultra-fast temperature control in cooling, requires reducing the lateral dimensions of the sample and sensor. The maximum cooling rate is limited by the heat capacity of the sample and the heat exchange between the gas and the sample. The enhanced cooling performance of the new liquid droplet cooling technique is demonstrated for both metals and polymers, on examples of solidification of large samples of indium, high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and poly (butylene 2,6-naphthalate) (PBN). It was found that the maximum cooling rate can be increased up to 5 MK/s in room temperature environment, that is, by 2 orders of magnitude, compared to standard gas cooling. Furthermore, modifying the droplet size and using coolants at different temperatures provide options to adjust the cooling rate in the temperature ranges of interest.

As non-operative management (NOM) of esophageal and rectal cancer is becoming more prevalent, blood-biomarkers such as circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) may provide clinical information in addition to endoscopy and imaging to aid in treatment decisions following chemotherapy and radiation therapy. In this feasibility study, we prospectively collected plasma samples from locally advanced esophageal (n=3) and rectal cancer (n=2) patients undergoing multimodal neoadjuvant therapy to assess the feasibility of serial ctDNA monitoring throughout neoadjuvant therapy. Using the DIDA-Seq error-correction method, we serially interrogated plasma cell-free DNA at 28-41 tumor-specific genomic loci throughout therapy and in surveillance with an average limit of detection of 0.016% mutant allele frequency. In both rectal cancer patients, ctDNA levels were persistently elevated following total neoadjuvant therapy with eventual detection of clinical recurrence prior to salvage surgery. Among the esophageal cancer patients, ctDNA levels closely correlated with tumor burden throughout and following neoadjuvant therapy, which was associated with a pathologic complete response in one patient. In this feasibility study, patient and tumor-specific ctDNA levels correlated with clinical outcomes throughout multi-modality therapy suggesting that serial monitoring of patient ctDNA has the potential to serve as a highly sensitive and specific biomarker to risk-stratify esophageal and rectal cancer patients eligible for NOM. Further prospective investigation is warranted.

Gravel packing completion method for horizontal wells has the advantages of maintaining high oil production for a long time, maintaining wellbore stability and preventing sand production, so it has become the preferred completion method for horizontal wells. At present, this technology still faces the problems of high sand bed height and poor gravel migration. In order to improve the efficiency of gravel packing in horizontal wells, pulsed gravel packing technology for horizontal wells is proposed for the first time. Based on the mechanism of hydraulic pulse, the Eularian model, RNG K-ε model and CFD model are used to simulate the solid-liquid two-phase flow. By optimizing the parameters such as frequency and amplitude of pulse waveform, the optimal pulse waveform of pulsed gravel packing in horizontal wells is determined. The effects of parameters such as sand-carrying fluid displacement, sand-carrying fluid viscosity, sand-carrying ratio, gravel particle size and string eccentricity on pulsed gravel packing in horizontal wells are studied, and the distribution law of gravel migration velocity and volume fraction in horizontal wells is obtained. According to the results, it can be seen that with the increase of displacement and viscosity of carrier fluid, the volume fraction of fixed bed and moving bed decreases gradually, while that of suspension bed increases gradually. With the increase of sand-carrying ratio, gravel particle size and string eccentricity, the volume fraction of fixed bed and moving bed increases gradually, while that of suspended bed decreases gradually. Comparing the effects of conventional gravel packing and pulsed gravel packing in horizontal wells, it can be concluded that the efficiency of pulsed gravel packing in horizontal wells is higher. The volume fraction of fixed bed and moving bed decreased by 30% and 40% respectively, while the volume fraction of suspended bed increased by 20%. The migration velocity of moving bed and suspended bed increased by 40% and 25% respectively. And the migration ability of gravel improved obviously.

We report interfacial crystallization in droplets of saline solutions placed on superhydrophobic surfaces and liquid marbles filled with the saline. Evaporation of saline droplets deposited on superhydrophobic surface resulted in the formation of cup-shaped millimeter-scaled residues. The formation of the cup-like deposit is reasonably explained within the framework of the theory of the coffee-stain effect, namely, the rate of heterogeneous crystallization along the contact line of the droplet is many times higher than in the droplet bulk. Crystallization within evaporated saline marbles, coated with lycopodium particles, depends strongly on the evaporation rate. Rapidly evaporated saline marbles yielded dented shells built of a mixture of colloidal particles and NaCl crystals. We relate the formation of these shells to the interfacial crystallization promoted by hydrophobic particles coating the marbles, accompanied with the upward convection flows supplying the saline to the particles, serving as the centers of interfacial crystallization. Convective flows prevail over the diffusion mass transport for the saline marbles heated from below.

The role of circulating plasma cells (CPCs) and circulating leukemic cells (CLCs) as biomarkers for several blood cancers, such as multiple myeloma and leukemia, respectively, have recently been reported. These markers can be attractive due to the minimally invasive nature of their acquisition through a blood draw (i.e., liquid biopsy) negating the need for painful bone marrow biopsies. CPCs or CLCs can be used for cellular/molecular analyses, such as immunophenotyping or fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). FISH, which is typically carried out on slides involving complex workflows, becomes problematic when operating on CLCs or CPCs due to their relatively modest numbers. Here, we present a microfluidic device for characterizing CPCs and CLCs enriched from peripheral blood using immunofluorescence or FISH. The microfluidic possessed an array of cross-channels (2-4 µm in depth and width) that interconnected a series of input and output fluidic channels. Placing a cover plate over the device formed microtraps, the size of which was defined by the width and depth of the cross-channels. This microfluidic chip allowed for automating immunofluorescence and FISH requiring the use of small volumes of reagents, such as antibodies and probes, as compared to slide-based immunophenotyping and FISH. In addition, the device could secure FISH results in <4 h compared to 2-3 d for conventional FISH.

The present work describes the optimization and validation of a highly selective and sensitive analytical method using solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (SPE LC-MS/MS) for the determination of some frequently prescribed pharmaceuticals in urban wastewater received and treated by Sharjah sewage treatment plant (STP). The extraction efficiency of different SPE cartridges was tested and the simultaneous extraction of pharmaceuticals was successfully accomplished using hydrophilic-lipophilic-balanced reversed phase Waters^® Oasis HLB cartridge (200 mg/ 6 mL) at pH 3. The analytes were separated on an Aquity BEH C₁₈ column (1.7 µm, 2.1 mm x 150 mm) using gradient elution and the mass spectrometric analysis were performed in multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) selecting two precursor ions to produce ion transition for each pharmaceutical using positive electrospray ionization (+ESI) mode. The correlation coefficient values in the linear calibration plot for each target compound exceeded 0.99 and the recovery percentages of the investigated pharmaceuticals were more than 84%. Limit of detection (LOD) varied between 0.1-1.5 ng/L and limit of quantification (LOQ) was 0.3-5 ng/L for all analytes. The precision of the method was calculated as the relative standard deviation (RSD%) of replicate measurements and was found to be in the ranges of 2.2% to 7.7% and 2.2% to 8.6% for inter and intra-day analysis, respectively. All of the obtained validation parameters satisfied the requirements and guidelines of analytical method validation.

To circumvent the thermodynamic limitation of the synthesis of oxazolidinones starting from 2-aminoethanols and CO2 and realize incorporation CO2 under atmospheric pressure, a protic ionic liquid-facilitated three-component reaction of propargyl alcohols, CO2 and 2-aminoethanols was developed to produce 2-oxazolidinones along with equal amount of α-hydroxyl ketones. The ionic liquid structure, reaction temperature and reaction time were in detail investigated. And 15 mol% [TBDH][TFE] (1,5,7-triazabicylo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene trifluoroethanol) was found to be able to synergistically activate the substrate and CO2, thus catalyzing this cascade reaction under atmospheric CO2 pressure. By employing this task-specific ionic liquid as sustainable catalyst, 2-aminoethanols with different substituents were successfully transformed to 2-oxazolidinones with moderate to excellent yield after 12 h at 80 oC. This three-component reaction running under atmospheric pressure proves to be a clever detour to avoid the thermodynamic issue in the synthesis of 2-oxazolidinones starting from 2-aminoethanols and CO2.

A simple model has been used to investigate the nature of chemical order in Na-Pb and Na-Hg liquid binary alloy at 700K and 673K respectively. The energy parameter obtained from the model was used to calculate the concentration dependent mixing properties such as Gibb’s free energy of mixing, Concentration fluctuations in the long wavelength limit and the Warren-Cowley chemical short range order parameter. Results obtained showed that both alloys are hetero-coordinated throughout the entire concentration and there is tendency for segregation and demixing to take place in the liquid alloys. We observed that Na-Hg liquid alloy is more strongly interacting binary alloy and chemically ordered than Na-Pb liquid alloy.

Soil-structure interaction (SSI) could affect the seismic response of structures. Since liquid storage tanks are vital structures and must continue their operation under severe earthquakes, their seismic behavior should be studied. Accordingly, the seismic response of liquid storage tanks founded on half space soil is scrutinized under different earthquake ground motions. To better comparison, the six considered ground motions are classified based on their pulse like characteristics, into two groups, named far and near fault ground motions. To model the liquid storage tanks, the simplified mass-spring model is used and the liquid is modeled as two lumped masses known as sloshing and impulsive, and the interaction of fluid and structure is considered using two coupled springs and dashpots. The SSI effect, also, is considered using a coupled spring and dashpot. Besides, four types of soils are used to consider wide variety of soil properties. To this end, after deriving the equations of motion, the MATLAB programming is employed to obtain the time history responses. Results show that although the SSI effect leads to decrease the impulsive displacement, overturning moment and normalized base shear, the sloshing (or convective) displacement is not affected by such effects due to its long period.

Hospital-based programs democratize mRNA therapeutics by facilitating the processes to translate a novel RNA idea from the bench to the clinic. Because mRNA is essentially biological software, therapeutic RNA constructs can be rapidly developed. The generation of small batches of clinical grade mRNA to support IND applications and first-in-man clinical trials, as well as personalized mRNA therapeutics delivered at the point-of-care, is feasible at a modest scale of cGMP manufacturing. Advances in mRNA manufacturing science and innovations in mRNA biology, are increasing the scope of mRNA clinical applications.

Drug discovery utilizes high-throughput screening (HTS) methods applying target and cell-based assays. This review discusses the challenges and benefits associated with these assays in HTS. Discussed the strategies that can be applied for the development of screening assays through primary and secondary screens for target identification. Further discussion on identify-ing the most efficacious drugs following these approaches in cancer. Even though various drugs have been identified to treat cancer, there is high demand of more relevant phenotypic assays to produce desired diseased phenotype to only highlighting the specific targets instead of off-targets. Hopefully, the new developing strategies could provide innovative drugs to treat cancer patients to reduce mortality rate.

The correlations of seismic noise, recorded during 1997-2022 at 229 stations around the world are investigated. The property of waveforms, known as the Donoho-Johnston threshold, is analyzed, which separates the absolute values of the orthogonal wavelet coefficients into "small" and "large". Network of 50 reference points is considered. For each reference point, a time series with a time step of 1 day is calculated as the median of the values of the DJ index from the 5 nearest stations. For each reference point, the correlations between the values of the DJ index at other reference points are calculated in a sliding time window of 365 days. Average values of the DJ index decrease, which is interpreted as indicators of global seismic hazard increasing. The maximum distances between reference points with strong correlations show an explosive increase after 2011. Bursts in the mean coherences between the length of day (LOD) and the values of the DJ index at the reference points precede the release of seismic energy with a delay of about 530 days. High amplitude of the DJ index response to LOD for the times 2020-2022 was identified, which may forecast a strong earthquake in the second half of 2023.

Noise in requirements has been known to be a defect in software requirements specifications (SRS). Detecting defects at an early stage is crucial in the process of software development. Noise can be in the form of irrelevant requirements that are included within a SRS. A previous study had attempted to detect noise in SRS, in which noise was considered as an outlier. However, the resulting method only demonstrated a moderate reliability due to the overshadowing of unique actor words by unique action words in the topic-word distribution. In this study, we propose a framework to identify irrelevant requirements based on the MultiPhiLDA method. The proposed framework distinguishes the topic-word distribution of actor words and action words as two separate topic-word distributions with two multinomial probability functions. Weights are used to maintain a proportional contribution of actor and action words. We also explore the use of two outlier detection methods, namely Percentile-based Outlier Detection (PBOD) and Angle-based Outlier Detection (ABOD), to distinguish irrelevant requirements from relevant requirements. The experimental results show that the proposed framework was able to exhibit better performance than previous methods. Furthermore, the use of the combination of ABOD as the outlier detection method and topic coherence as the estimation approach to determine the optimal number of topics and iterations in the proposed framework outperformed the other combinations and obtained sensitivity, specificity, F1-score, and G-mean values of 0.59, 0.65, 0.62, and 0.62, respectively.

Animal-based measures are the measure of choice in animal welfare assessment protocols as they can often be applied completely independently to the housing or production system employed. Although there has been a small body of work on potential animal-based measures for farmed crocodilians [1-3], they have not been studied in the context of an animal welfare assessment protocol. Potential animal-based measures, that could be used to reflect the welfare state of farmed crocodilians, were identified and aligned with the Welfare Quality® principles of good housing, good health, good feeding and appropriate behaviour. A consultation process with a panel of experts was used to evaluate and score the potential measures in terms of validity and feasibility. This resulted in a toolbox of measures being identified for further development and integration into animal welfare assessment on the farm. Animal-based measures related to ‘good feeding’ and ‘good health’ received the highest scores for validity and feasibility by the experts. There was less agreement on the animal-based measures that could be used to reflect ‘appropriate behaviour’. Where no animal-based measures were deemed to reliably reflect a welfare criterion nor be useful as a measure on the farm, additional measures of resources or management were suggested as alternatives. Future work in this area should focus on the reliability of the proposed measures and involve further evaluation of their validity and feasibility as they relate to different species of crocodilian and farming system.

The exploitation of lipid membranes in biosensors has provided the ability to reconstitute a considerable part of their functionality to detect trace of food toxicants and environmental pollutants. Nanotechnology enabled sensor miniaturization and extended the range of biological moieties that could be immobilized within a lipid bilayer device. This chapter reviews recent progress in biosensor technologies based on lipid membranes suitable for environmental applications and food quality monitoring. Numerous biosensing applications are presented, putting emphasis on novel systems, new sensing techniques and nanotechnology-based transduction schemes. The range of analytes that can be currently detected include, insecticides, pesticides, herbicides, metals, toxins, antibiotics, microorganisms, hormones, dioxins, etc. Technology limitations and future prospects are discussed, focused on the evaluation/ validation and eventually commercialization of the proposed sensors.

The exploitation of lipid membranes in biosensors has provided the ability to reconstitute a considerable part of their functionality to detect trace of food toxicants and environmental pollutants. Nanotechnology enabled sensor miniaturization and extended the range of biological moieties that could be immobilized within a lipid bilayer device. This chapter reviews recent progress in biosensor technologies based on lipid membranes suitable for environmental applications and food quality monitoring. Numerous biosensing applications are presented, putting emphasis on novel systems, new sensing techniques and nanotechnology-based transduction schemes. The range of analytes that can be currently detected include, insecticides, pesticides, herbicides, metals, toxins, antibiotics, microorganisms, hormones, dioxins, etc. Technology limitations and future prospects are discussed, focused on the evaluation/ validation and eventually commercialization of the proposed sensors.

Given the increase in consumers’ preferences for coffee, it is becoming important to understand their decision-making processes in the coffee chain context. To deepen the understanding of sustainable outcomes in this context, this study investigates the role of dedication- and constraint-based mechanisms in forming consumers’ repurchase and positive word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions, two critical sustainable outcomes. We examined the effects of coffee quality, the quality of the physical environment, and service quality in accelerating the formation of dedication-based factors. Moreover, this study offers an in-depth understanding of the enablers of perceived switching costs. Data collected from 238 university students that frequently visit coffee chains are empirically tested against the proposed theoretical framework by using structural equation modeling. The results confirm that both dedication- and constraint-based factors substantially predict consumers’ sustainable outcomes in the coffee chain context. Brand image and perceived switching costs play an important role in enhancing consumers’ repurchase and positive WOM intentions compared with customer satisfaction. Coffee quality is significantly associated with both customer satisfaction and brand image, whereas the quality of the physical environment and service quality are only significantly associated with brand image. Habit is found to be the key enabler of perceived switching costs, while loyalty programs have no significant impact on perceived switching costs.