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An efficient, mild, and regioselective synthesis of substituted 1‐methyl‐1H‐tetrazole using methyl 2,2,2‐trichloroacetimidate is described. The substrate scope of the methodology has been established with wide variety of tetrazoles. N1‐Methylated tetrazoles were synthesized with high yields (85%–97%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing number of humans have suffered severe chronic illnesses, which has caused a boost in the requirement for diagnostic and medical treatment procedures that are both accurate and fast. Improved patient conditions and enhanced Decision-Making Systems (DMS) for healthcare professionals are the primary objectives of the Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) recommended in this research article. The main drawback of traditional Machine Learning (ML) techniques is their failure to predict reliably. To solve this problem, the proposed model creates an Ensemble Extreme Learning Machine (EN-ELM) algorithm that combines predictors trained on several different data sets. This lowers the chance of overfitting. The suggested CDSS uses many different data processing methods, including Adaptive Synthetic (ADASYN) and isolation Forest (iForest), which fix problems like outliers and class imbalance. This approach significantly enhances the framework's classification performance. Also, the CDSS is compatible with an EC model, which enables real-time computation while minimizing the requirement for integrated systems. The recommended CDSS applies iForest and ADASYN to execute large-scale trials validating high standards of accuracy across numerous datasets. Researchers concluded that a suitable ELM classification threshold of 85% is the most effective, which substantially boosts the accuracy of the predictive model. When applied to various medical datasets, such as Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC), Cervical Cancer, Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), Heart Disease, and Arrhythmia, the EN-ELM achieved accuracy rates of 99.36%, 98.15%, 97.85%, 97.06%, and 96.72%, respectively. By measuring this progress, the CDSS could dramatically improve the accuracy of chronic illness diagnosis and treatment, which similarly affects clinicians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ZnO thin films were deposited using RF sputtering by varying the argon:oxygen gas flow rates and substrate temperatures. Structural, optical and electrical characterization of ZnO thin films were systematically carried out using X-Ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV–visible spectroscopy, X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Hall measurements. Film deposited at room temperature and annealed at 300 °C exhibited low O2 incorporation with localized defects and a high percentage of Zn interstitials. A large crystalline size and fewer grain boundaries resulted in a high Hall mobility of 46.09 cm2/V-s Deposition at higher substrate temperatures resulted in improvement in O2 incorporation through the annihilation of localized defects and decrease in oxygen vacancies and Zn interstitials. Urbach tails within the bandgap were identified using the absorption spectrum and compared with the % defects from XPS. Bottom-gate thin-film transistors were subsequently fabricated on a SiO2/p-Si substrate using the combination of RF sputtering, wet etching and photolithography. Variation in the substrate temperature showed performance enhancement in terms of the leakage current, threshold voltage, sub-threshold swing and ION/IOFF ratio. Thin-film transistor (TFT) devices deposited at 300 °C resulted in an O2-rich surface through chemisorption, which led to a reduction in the leakage current of up to 10−12 A and a 10-fold reduction in the sub-threshold swing (SS) from 30 V to 2.8 V. Further TFT optimization was carried out by reducing the ZnO thickness to 50 nm, which resulted in a field-effect mobility of 1.1 cm2/V-s and ION/IOFF ratio of 105. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we apply NURBS-based isogeometric method to solve a nonlocal degenerate parabolic problem. The isogeometric method has advantages over classical finite element method in terms of exact geometry representation and higher order smooth basis functions. We consider the NURBS-based semi-discretization of the problem. The second-order Crank–Nicolson method is applied for the complete discretization of the problem. Error estimates of the semi-discrete and fully-discrete problems are derived. Few numerical examples are provided to verify the theoretical findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calcium carbide residue (CCR) has been identified as an effective replacement for traditional lime for the stabilization of expansive soils. The shrinkage of expansive clay severely threatens the foundation layers' long-term stability. The efficacy of CCR stabilization in reducing compressibility and enhancing the strength and stiffness of clay has been widely reported; however, the calcium-based additive stabilized soil tends to lose its engineered integrity under field-exposed seasonal moisture variation, specifically, shrinkage induced by prolonged drying. In this study, the shrinkage characteristic of CCR-treated clay (6%, 9%, and 12%) slurry was investigated by digital image analysis and mercury displacement method to quantify volumetric shrinkage strain. The results were compared with those of 4% and 6% lime-treated clay, which revealed the higher efficacy of CCR in reducing shrinkage strain by 47–57%. A characteristic shrinkage curve that depicted the significant variation of shrinkage phases in CCR-treated clay samples is developed. The dominance of the proportional shrinkage phase is observed in both untreated and treated clay samples. The shrinkage caused by evaporation, hydration, and decalcification is postulated in treated clays. This study is expected to contribute to the understanding of shrinkage mechanisms of CCR-treated clay and assist in the future design of stabilized embankment sections or subgrade for unpaved roads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In asthma, sex-steroids signaling is recognized as a critical regulator of disease pathophysiology. However, the paradoxical role of sex-steroids, especially estrogen, suggests that an upstream mechanism or even independent of estrogen plays an important role in regulating asthma pathophysiology. In this context, in our previous studies, we explored kisspeptin (Kp) and its receptor Kiss1R's signaling in regulating human airway smooth muscle cell remodeling in vitro and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) in vivo in a mouse (wild-type, WT) model of asthma. In this study, we evaluated the effect of endogenous Kp in regulating AHR and remodeling using Kiss1R knockout (Kiss1R−/−) mice. Methods: C57BL/6J WT (Kiss1R+/+) and Kiss1R−/− mice, both male and female, were intranasally challenged with mixed-allergen (MA) and/or phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). We used flexiVent analysis to assess airway resistance (Rrs), elastance (Ers), and compliance (Crs). Following this, broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL) was performed for differential leukocyte count (DLC) and cytokine analysis. Histology staining was performed using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) for morphological analysis and Masson's Trichrome (MT) for collagen deposition. Additionally, lung sections were processed for immunofluorescence (IF) of Ki-67, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and tenascin-c. Results: Interestingly, the loss of Kiss1R exacerbated lung function and airway contractility in mice challenged with MA, with more profound effects in Kiss1R−/− female mice. MA-challenged Kiss1R−/− mice showed a significant increase in immune cell infiltration and proinflammatory cytokine levels. Importantly, the loss of Kiss1R aggravated Th2/Th17 biased cytokines in MA-challenged mice. Furthermore, histology of lung sections from Kiss1R−/− mice showed increased collagen deposition on airway walls and mucin production in airway cells compared to Kiss1R+/+ mice. In addition, immunofluorescence analysis showed loss of Kiss1R significantly aggravated airway remodeling and subsequently AHR. Conclusions: These findings demonstrate the importance of inherent Kiss1R signaling in regulating airway inflammation, AHR, and remodeling in the pathophysiology of asthma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stream mining, especially with concept drift, presents significant challenges across various domains. As data streams evolve over time, initial models become less effective. We present a novel approach using fuzzy ARTMAP's adaptability and neural networks' robustness to address concept drift. Our method dynamically updates models based on changing data distributions, enabling real-time adap- tation. By integrating fuzzy ARTMAP with backpropagation, it facilitates agile learning and accurate predictions in evolving scenarios. Through rigorous exper- iments, we demonstrate the effectiveness of our method in managing concept drift and achieving substantial performance improvements. The achieved accu- racy of 85.07% and F1 score of 72.47 demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach in real-time classification tasks. This research extends beyond just performance metrics. By leveraging the interpretability of fuzzy ARTMAP, we gain valuable insights into the mechanisms that enable our model to adapt to concept drift. This deeper understanding paves the way for further advancements in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal halide perovskite nanocrystals are sought after for many optical and optoelectronic applications, such as light‐emitting diode and solar cells, due to their outstanding optical properties. However, their ionic nature makes them susceptible to ambient conditions. One rational solution to this challenge is the passivation or encapsulation of perovskite nanocrystals to isolate them from their environments. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop efficient methods for encapsulating emissive perovskite nanocrystals. A facile post‐synthesis method is proposed to treat CsxFA(1−x)PbBr3 nanocrystals, in the presence of Fe3+ cations, to create a robust and water‐stable nanocomposite structure, where 3D CsPbBr3 nanocrystals are embedded in and thus protected by the 2D CsPb2Br5 nanosheets (named as CsPbBr3/CsPb2Br5 hereafter). These Fe3+ cations facilitate the formation of the CsPbBr3/CsPb2Br5 composite and regulate the growth of 2D CsPb2Br5 sheets. By performing controlled experiments, the possible mechanism of 2D nanosheet growth is proposed and discussed in detail. More importantly, the composite can remain stable in water for three months and exhibits amplified spontaneous emission under femtosecond laser irradiation. This work presents a synthesis pathway for producing durable perovskite composites that are promising for future lasing applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our study introduces a streamlined oxidative method for synthesizing 1,3‐diarylphenanthro[9,10‐c]thiophenes, and their subsequent oxidative cleavage to yield 9,10‐diaroylphenanthrenes. Harnessing an optimized aerobic photochemical transformation, we showcase broad substrate scope and tolerance to various photosensitive functional groups. Our mechanistic investigations unveil the pivotal role of singlet oxygen, providing intriguing insights into the reaction pathway. The synthesized 9,10‐diaroylphenanthrenes serve as versatile building blocks for nitrogen‐containing heterocycles, dibenzoannulated phthalazines, that are promising compounds with diverse functionalities. Offering mild conditions, and broad applicability, our synthetic strategy is useful for organic synthesis and chemical biology exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Eusocial insects maintain hygiene in their nests with cleaning behaviours. One such behaviour is the disposal of refuse material, food waste, dead nestmate bodies, and other waste, outside the nest. This study on the waste disposal behaviour of Central Australian red honey-pot ants, Melophorus bagoti, provides valuable insights into the significance of learning in waste disposal. Naive ants improved over five consecutive runs in waste dumping, running straighter paths with less scanning. The observed differences between experienced and naive ants in waste dumping imply that learning contributes to more streamlined and less time-consuming waste management. In addition, dumping ants established sector fidelity in the consecutive runs, heading mostly in the same general direction on each dumping trip. This behaviour reduces the amount of navigational expertise that the dumper has to acquire. Learning in individuals thus helps an ant colony to cope with not only navigational challenges in foraging, which have been well studied in this and other desert ant species, but also with other demands of living in a harsh desert habitat. The Central Australian red honey-pot ant Melophorus bagoti maintains non-cryptic ground-nesting colonies in the semi-desert habitat, performing all the activities outside the nest during the hottest periods of summer days. These ants rely on path integration and view-based cues for navigation. They manage waste by taking out unwanted food, dead nestmates, and some other wastes, typically depositing such items at distances > 5 m from the nest entrance, a process called dumping. We found that over multiple runs, dumpers headed in the same general direction, showing sector fidelity. Experienced ants dumped waste more efficiently than naive ants. Naive individuals, lacking prior exposure to the outdoor environment around the nest, exhibited much scanning and meandering during waste disposal. In contrast, experienced ants dumped waste with straighter paths and a notable absence of scanning behaviour. Furthermore, experienced dumpers deposited waste at a greater distance from the nest compared to their naive counterparts. We also investigated the navigational knowledge of naive and experienced dumpers by displacing them 2 m away from the nest. Naive dumpers were not oriented towards the nest in their initial trajectory at any of the 2 m test locations, whereas experienced dumpers were oriented towards the nest at all test locations. Naive dumpers were nest-oriented as a group, however, at the test location nearest to where they dumped their waste. These differences suggest that in red honey ants, learning supports waste disposal, with dumping being refined through experience. Dumpers gain greater spatial knowledge through repeated runs outside the nest, contributing to successful homing behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is being recognized as an important public health problem worldwide. The timely diagnosis and treatment of OSA with underlying etiology leads to decreased symptoms and increases quality of life among OSA patients. Present study was aimed to study clinical profile of patients with obstructive sleep apnea attending tertiary care hospital. Material and Methods: Present study was single-center, prospective, observational study, conducted in patients more than 18 years of age, had symptoms suggestive of Sleep Disordered Breathing such as, excessive daytime somnolence, disruptive snoring, fragmented sleep, choking and gasping, un-refreshing sleep, morning headache, personality changes and Impaired concentration, insomnia, daytime headache. Sleep study parameters collected from polysomnography were Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI). Results: During study period, total 66 patients underwent evaluation. Mean age was 47.9 ± 14.2 years. Majority were male (62.12 %) as compared to female (37.88 %). Mean body measurements such as mean height was 1.59 ± 0.14 meters, mean weight 91.2 ± 23.3 kgs, mean Body Mass Index was 30.4 ± 6.1 kg/m2, mean neck circumference was 35.2 ± 4.2 cms & lowest saturation % in sleep study was 82.2 ± 9.6 %. Common co-morbidities noted were hypertension (57.58 %), overweight (48.48 %), smoking (31.82 %), obesity (30.3 %), diabetes mellites (25.76 %), asthma (13.64 %) & COPD (10.61 %) In present study, majority patients had Severe OSA (56.06 %) followed by moderate OSA (28.79 %), mild OSA (9.09 %) while 4 patients had no OSA (6.06 %). Conclusion: Obesity, Hypertension and diabetes were common associations in patients with significant obstructive sleep apnea. Polysomnography is a useful investigation which helps in diagnosis of OSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Stroke or cerebrovascular accident is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity throughout the world including both developed and developing countries. Identification of potential prognostic factors for ischaemic stroke may enable better prediction for outcome and conducting early interventions may improve the prognosis. Present study was aimed to study outcome of patients of acute ischemic stroke at tertiary care hospital. Material and Methods: Present study was prospective, observational study, conducted in patients with ischemic stroke, confirmed by CT scan of brain, presenting within 72 hours of onset of symptom, willing to participate in study. Results: In present study 126 patients with acute ischemic stroke were included. Most common age group was 61-70 years (34.13 %) followed by 51-60 years (24.6 %) age group. Male patients (65.38 %) were more than female patients (34.13%). Male to female ratio was 1.9:1. Common risk factors observed were stage 1 hypertension (19.84 %), stage 2 hypertension (SBP>160, DBP>100) (25.4 %), diabetic (36.51 %), smoker (29.37 %), alcoholic (22.22 %), dyslipidemia (20.63 %), history of cardiovascular disease (18.25 %), obesity (15.87 %), family history of stroke (14.29 %) & tobacco chewing (10.32 %). On admission, according to NIHSS scale severity majority had minor stroke (37.3 %) followed by moderate stroke (35.71 %), moderate to severe stroke (18.25 %) & severe stroke (8.73 %). Functional outcome was assessed using the modified ranking score (MRS) at 6 months. Majority had MRS score 3 (44.29 %) followed by MRS score 2 (38.06 %), MRS score 1 (7.96 %). Conclusion: Areas for improvement in management of stroke are public awareness, lifestyle modification (modifiable risk factors are hypertension, smoking, dyslipidemia, alcohol consumption, and diabetes mellitus), early diagnosis, treatment & availability of facilities and expertise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was undertaken for study of anatomical results and hearing improvement in various types of tympanoplasty using conchal cartilage. A total of 100 patients were taken for this study the patients belongs to varying age groups from 1st to 6th decade of life.Maximum patients were in between age group 21 to 30 years, 37 (37%) patients and minimum 02(2%) between age group 51 to 60 years. Out of these an overall average gain of 13.33dB in PTA(pure tone audiometry) as well as ABG(air bone gap) was seen however an overall average deficit of 32.15dB in PTA as well as 16.43dB in ABG was seen. The tympanoplasty performed were with or without any additional surgeries of mastoid like Cortical, Atticotomy, CWW, MRM.The pre and post ABG was mainstay for each of our case and final anatomical result of graft uptake. Key points: Type I Tympanoplasty had an average deficit of 15.26 in ABG. Type II Tympanoplasty had an average deficit of 12.75 dB in ABG. Type III Tympanoplasty had an average deficit of 19.42 dB in ABG. Type IV Tympanoplasty had an average deficit of 24 dB in ABG. An overall average gain of 13.33 dB in ABG was seen. An overall average deficit of 32.15 dB in PTA as well as 16.43 dB in ABG was seen. The main aim of our study is to counsel the patient that there will not be complete improvement of hearing if we have done type III and type IV tympanoplasty in advanced disease. This is also of importance for medicolegal purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was undertaken to assess the outcome of canal wall window tympanomastoidectomy in chronic suppurative otitis media in a tertiary care centre of central India. A total of 50 patients were taken for this study in which the youngest patient was 13-year-old male and oldest 55-year female. Maximum patients were in between age group 10 to 20 years, 20 (40%) patients and minimum 03 (6%) between age group 51 to 60 year. The study mainly emphasized on: To study the clinical profile of the cases of chronic suppurative otitis media, to study the hearing outcome after 3 months of Canal wall window tympanomastoidectomy technique, to study the post-operative condition of ear after 3 months whether dry or wet and to study the post-operative follow up of cases to assess the graft uptake. Average PTA & ABG improvement of different tympanoplasty was also calculated in our study in which Type I tympanoplasty had 12.20dB gain, Type II of 10.50 and Type III of 10.31dB.An overall average improvement in all patients with tympanoplasty was 11.00dB.At the end of the study 100% dry ears were achieved. The technique of canal wall window tympanomastoidectomy involves formation of a window in the outer attic wall to look at the disease extent which was then closed by a snuggly fitting cartilage.It is a novel technique & without compromising the structural integrity in case of a limited disease which is only extending till attic and aditus good anatomical and hearing results could be gained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biofuel made from Syzygium cumini, often known as Jamun, has the potential to be a low-cost, sustainable, and emission-free alternative. In this work, we experimentally explore the performance of a compression ignition (CI) engine that burns a blend of hydrogen and biodiesel. Hydrogen is pumped into the air intake manifold by means of a hydrogen gaseous supplement that, when exposed to atmospheric conditions, co-combusts with a pilot flame ignited by Jamun oil. To investigate the impact of hydrogen supplementation on performance and exhaust emission, a variety of hydrogen–Jamun fuel mixture proportions are provided to the engine. The research demonstrates that adding hydrogen improves the thermal efficiency (5%) of diesel engines whereas lowering specific energy fuel consumption (4%) at fixed Jamun flow rates. The gas emission data demonstrates that when hydrogen (HC) emission (12%) supplements decreases, NOx emission (10%) increases somewhat but opacity (8%) increases significantly. The experiment demonstrates that hydrogen and Jamun duel fuel in compression ignition engines burn smoothly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY: Among the three active aldehyde oxidases in Arabidopsis thaliana leaves (AAO1‐3), AAO3, which catalyzes the oxidation of abscisic‐aldehyde to abscisic‐acid, was shown recently to function as a reactive aldehyde detoxifier. Notably, aao2KO mutants exhibited less senescence symptoms and lower aldehyde accumulation, such as acrolein, benzaldehyde, and 4‐hydroxyl‐2‐nonenal (HNE) than in wild‐type leaves exposed to UV‐C or Rose‐Bengal. The effect of AAO2 expression absence on aldehyde detoxification by AAO3 and/or AAO1 was studied by comparing the response of wild‐type plants to the response of single‐functioning aao1 mutant (aao1S), aao2KO mutants, and single‐functioning aao3 mutants (aao3Ss). Notably, aao3Ss exhibited similar aldehyde accumulation and chlorophyll content to aao2KO treated with UV‐C or Rose‐Bengal. In contrast, wild‐type and aao1S exhibited higher aldehyde accumulation that resulted in lower remaining chlorophyll than in aao2KO leaves, indicating that the absence of active AAO2 enhanced AAO3 detoxification activity in aao2KO mutants. In support of this notion, employing abscisic‐aldehyde as a specific substrate marker for AAO3 activity revealed enhanced AAO3 activity in aao2KO and aao3Ss leaves compared to wild‐type treated with UV‐C or Rose‐Bengal. The similar abscisic‐acid level accumulated in leaves of unstressed or stressed genotypes indicates that aldehyde detoxification by AAO3 is the cause for better stress resistance in aao2KO mutants. Employing the sulfuration process (known to activate aldehyde oxidases) in wild‐type, aao2KO, and molybdenum‐cofactor sulfurase (aba3‐1) mutant plants revealed that the active AAO2 in WT employs sulfuration processes essential for AAO3 activity level, resulting in the lower AAO3 activity in WT than AAO3 activity in aao2KO. Significance Statement: The current study demonstrates that impairment of AAO2 causes enhancement of AAO3 activity and carbonyl aldehyde detoxification increase in Arabidopsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In light of the rapidly growing and advancing Internet of Things (IoT) technology, delay sensitive tasks, deadline aware tasks, and power intensive IoT applications are on the rise, the adoption of fog computing has emerged as a promising solution for problems in IoT technology. Task offloading in the Edge-Fog-Cloud environment is difficult due to the inherent limits of IoT devices in terms of computing and storage capacity, the diversity of fog servers, and the varying characteristics of IoT tasks, such as their sensitivity to delays. However, the most challenging issue is finding the best suitable device to compute the task within the deadlines, reduce the total power consumption and minimize the computation time. The proposed IOTD algorithm aims to meet the deadlines of all tasks while minimizing the total computation time and energy consumption. The results of simulation experiments confirmed that the proposed method improves the reliability of meeting deadlines, total execution time, utilization of fog devices and total energy, compared with the state-of-the-art algorithms: Artificial Bee Colony and Osmotic Approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with the rising popularity of pay-as-you-go cloud services, many businesses and communities are deploying their business or scientific workflow applications on cloud-based computing platforms. The primary responsibility of cloud service providers is to reduce the monetary cost and execution time of Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) cloud services. The majority of current solutions for cost and makespan reduction were developed for conventional cloud platforms and are incompatible with heterogeneous computing systems (HCS) having service-based resource management approaches and pricing models. Fog-cloud infrastructures (FCI) have emerged as desirable target areas for workflow automation across several fields of application. In heterogeneous FCI, the execution of workflows involving tasks having different properties might influence the performance in terms of resource usage. The primary goal of this research is to efficiently offload the computational task and optimally schedule the workflow in such diverse computing environment. In this article, we present a novel strategy for building an environment that includes techniques for offloading and scheduling while balancing competing demands from the user and the resource providers. In order to address the issue of uncertainty, our approach incorporates a fuzzy dominance-based task clustering and offloading technique. To construct a suitable execution sequence of tasks that helps to limit the precedence relationship, by preserving dependency constraints among the tasks, a novel algorithm for tasks segmentation is employed. To simplify the problem of the complexity, a hybrid-heuristics based on Harmony Search Algorithm (HSA) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) for resource scheduling algorithm is used. The multi-objective optimization using three competing objectives is taken into consideration for investigation in heterogeneous FCI. The fitness function derived includes minimization of makespan and cost along with maximization of resource utilization. We performed experimental research using five workflow datasets in order to investigate and verify the efficacy of our proposed technique. We contrasted our proposed strategy with the primary, closely comparable strategies. Extensive testing using scientific workflows confirms the effectiveness of our offloading approach. Our solution provided a substantially better cost-makespan tradeoffs, while achieving significantly less energy consumption and can execute marginally quicker than the existing algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflectivity inversion is an important deconvolution problem in reflection seismology that helps to describe the subsurface structure. Generally, deconvolution techniques iteratively work on the seismic data for estimating reflectivity. Therefore, these techniques are computationally expensive and may be slow to converge. In this paper, a novel method for estimating reflectivity signals in seismic data using an approximate finite rate of innovation (FRI) framework, is proposed. The seismic data is modeled as a convolution between the Ricker wavelet and the FRI signal, a Dirac impulse train. Relaxing the accurate exponential reproduction limitation given by generalised Strang-Fix (GSF) conditions, we develop a suitable sampling kernel utilizing Ricker wavelet which allows us to estimate the reflectivity signal. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed approximate FRI framework provides a better reflectivity estimation than the deconvolution technique for medium-to-high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) regimes with nearly 18% of seismic data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feature Selection (FS) is essential in the Internet of Things (IoT)-based Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS) to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the system. With the increasing number of sensors and devices used in healthcare, the volume of data generated is vast and complex. Relevant FS from this data is crucial in reducing computational overhead, improving the system’s interpretability, and enhancing the Decision-Making System (DMS) quality. FS also aids in addressing the problems of data redundancy and noise, which can negatively impact the system’s performance. FS is critical to developing practical and dependable CDSS in IoT-based healthcare sectors. This research proposes a two-phase FS model. Phase-I employs an ensemble of five Filter Methods (FM), followed by a Pearson Correlation Method (PCM). Phase-II uses the Binary Optimized Genetic Grey Wolf Optimization Algorithm (BOGGWOA) as a Wrapper Method (WM). This recommended model integrates the most valuable features of each filter. Then, it uses the Pearson Correlation Coefficient (PCC) to get rid of features that aren’t needed, a Support Vector Machine (SVM) to guess how accurate their classification will be, and BOGGWOA as the Wrapper Method (WM) to pick the most essential features with the best CA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The power factor correction converter is the function of the front-end converter, followed by the DC–DC converter of the electric vehicle charger. It improves the power factor and regulates the output voltage and current. This research article proposes the Golden Eagle optimization for fractional order PI (FOPI) controller for Single Ended Primary Inductor Converter (SEPIC) power factor correction. The Golden eagle optimization is based on its knowledge of hunting tactics at various degrees of spiral trajectories to catch the prey. The FOPI controller has a broad range of controller parameters that provide better control and performance of the converter. The tuning of the parameters of the FOPI controller is optimized in Golden Eagle Optimization, and the Integral Absolute error with Integral Square error is used for the objective function. The optimized parameters of FOPI compare with the conventional PI controller performance. The SEPIC converter is designed and derived from the state space model by state space averaging, and the reduced model is obtained through the moment matching method. This system is tested under MATLAB/SIMULINK, and simulation results show improved settling time, fast dynamic response, reduction of inrush current, less harmonic distortion, and stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The current study relates to the utility of the levels of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) as a biomarker in the management and diagnostic evaluation of heart failure in various patient populations. Methods: A comparison of BNP levels between patients with different types of heart diseases was conducted using ROC curve analysis to assess how well BNP could predict the degree of heart failure. Results: The results established an important correlation between increased BNP, with risk of elevated BNP levels, and increased severity of the heart failure, proposing effectiveness of the peptide in the risk stratification and clinical decision-making. Conclusion: Our findings confirm the necessity of BNP level testing implementation in practical clinical activity to provide enhanced options for shortening the diagnosis time and further treatment beginning among the heart failure patient population in order to improve their prognosis. The research in the future is assessing the potential of BNP in terms of this prediction in relation to different population demographics and, therefore, conducting a modification in terms of broader clinical applications. This study's findings add to strong and growing evidence-based support for BNP as a functional biomarker in cardiovascular health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV-2) causes the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which is characterised by severe respiratory syndrome and other complications. It is a serious threat to global public health if proper vaccination is not followed. The efficient COVID-19 management requires vaccination along with other precautionary measures. Public transmission of COVID-19 seems to have decreased and immune response to viral infections has improved by vaccination. The present review discusses in detail about the current situation of the COVID-19, based on the latest reports about approved vaccine types and their efficacy, vaccination status, and various SARS-CoV-2 variants. This review also includes insights into the post-COVID complications in recovered patients. Besides, some of the ill-effects of drugs in inducing other diseases in COVID-19 recovered patients, are also discussed in this review article. This study will help the researchers to prepare strategies for further research on vaccine production and prevent the occurrence of the disease in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The heating potential of microwave-heated bituminous mixtures depends on the heating characteristics of aggregates. This study focused on understanding the effect of mineral, chemical, and dielectric properties of aggregates on the rate of heating of aggregates, with special emphasis on the effect of the power level of microwave energy. Properties of the aggregates collected from 18 different sources were evaluated using X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, and a microwave vector network analyzer. Heating studies were conducted on the aggregates using a microwave oven at four different power levels (330, 525, 630, and 700 W). Thermal images, captured using a forward-looking infrared (FLIR) thermal camera, were used to obtain the heating characteristics, such as heating time, rate and nonuniformity of heating. The rate of heating of aggregates (0.212°C/s−1.007°C/s), nonuniformity of heating (0.059°C–0.218°C), and time of heating to 100°C (40–520 s) varied widely with the source of aggregate. In general, the heating rate and the degree of nonuniformity of the aggregates increased with increase in microwave power. Bulk mineralogy and chemical composition of aggregates significantly influenced the dielectric response of aggregates (adjusted R-squared values of 0.75 and 0.70, respectively) and the sensitivity of heating parameters to microwave power (adjusted R-squared values of 0.83 and 0.92, respectively). Two different predictive models were developed for estimation of heating rate of aggregates with (1) power, density, and dielectric loss factor, and (2) power, density, and aggregate chemical indices as independent variables. The adjusted R-squared values of these two predictive models were 0.84 and 0.92, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid advancements in battery technologies led to dramatic growth in adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) all over the world. On the other hand, ever-increasing renewable energy sources (RES) in microgrids (MGs) posing numerous challenges ahead. In this context, EVs can be used as virtual storage units to confront the intermittency aspect of RES in MG scenarios. This work proposes an EV fleet control strategy to implement a three-layer energy management system: Optimal storage distribution (OSD), optimal power exchange (OPE) and smart EV ranking (SER). The key objectives are minimizing grid dependency, energy cost, EV battery degradation and to maximize EV storage usage. Water filling algorithm is used to obtain OSD and multi-objective optimization problem is formulated and solved by e-constraint method to obtain OPE. SER is implemented using a fuzzy logic controller where a number of decision variables are involved. EV battery degradation has been considered through SER by including a key decision variable, EV usage probability (EUP). EUP has been obtained using a probabilistic approach that accounts all possible state transitions of each EV in the given time interval. An on-grid MG scenario with EV fleets and RES is considered to implement the proposed EMS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biobased biodegradable materials are gaining popularity with increasing public awareness on the negative impacts of conventional plastics on the environment. There is, however, a lack of promising biobased materials suitable for various end‐use applications that are also environmentally safe. Recently, banana sap and banana fibres have been explored as a potential source of organic material as they are abundant, cost‐efficient, and environmentally friendly. In this study, two hybrid bioresins (1) banana sap maleate (BSM) and (2) banana sap maleate + banana fibre (BSMF) were developed, and their material properties and environmental suitability were examined by analysing their physicochemical characterisation and biodegradation testing. We used thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy for the physicochemical characterisation of BSMF before and after composting and measured carbon dioxide evolved during the biodegradation to calculate biodegradability. SEM analysis also showed a significant disintegration and surface degradation in BSMF compared to BSM and other control materials such as control resin and cellulose. CO2 mineralization results indicated a potential microbial bioassimilation of the materials under composting conditions. Biodegradability of the BSMF composite, as indicated by CO2 emission, was 17.6% higher than BSM and other control materials used in this study. The present study provides crucial evidence that the reinforcement of banana fibre into banana sap bioresin composite can significantly improve material properties and enhance biodegradability in the composting conditions. These results are quite promising as they show that, with some tweaking; natural materials can reduce environmental impact of composites and improve material properties for different end‐use applications and involves less exploitation of nonrenewable resources for polymer production. This study also provides an avenue to consider BSMF for carrying out our future life cycle assessment (LCA) and to compare with commercial product's LCA. In a circular economy approach, characteristics such as durability, environmental toxicity, and recyclability of such materials should be studied and optimised to reduce energy consumption and environmental impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In conclusion, effective mentoring is a key strategy to support the growth and development of future healthcare professionals. Mentors have a key role to play and we must prepare them for this role so that they prioritize mentorship in their work schedule, and accordingly help students to become competent healthcare professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pentasa (mesalamine/MSLM) is a widely prescribed delayed‐release capsule formulation for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. During dissolution study of Pentasa through ultraviolet (UV) spectroscopy, an unusual end‐release of about 110% has been observed. Initial liquid chromatography‐UV (LC‐UV) analyses of these dissolution samples confirmed three prominent peaks other than MSLM with a significant area percentage. Further systematic investigation was carried out by incubating active pharmaceutical ingredient in dissolution media for a longer duration and at elevated temperature followed by analysis through an inverse gradient LC‐charged aerosol detector (CAD). LC–high‐resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) and online hydrogen‐deuterium exchange (HDX) mass spectrometry were also employed to identify and characterize these artifact products. The area % of prominent artifacts in LC‐UV was found to be way significant when compared to the area % obtained through inverse LC‐CAD, as CAD quantifies the peaks independent of the UV wavelength of absorbance. Inverse LC‐CAD was suitable to determine the relative response factor, whereas LC‐HRMS/MS and online HDX‐MS supported the characterization of these artifacts. These artifacts were found to be trimers, tetramers of MSLM formed due to polymerization, imparting additional pi‐bonds resulting in high UV absorptivity. These techniques when used in combinations serve complimentary to each other during such investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lymphomas are a diverse group of neoplastic disorders arising primarily in lymph nodes. They have been majorly classified into Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin lymphomas(NHL). NHL can be of B, T and Null cell categories having further subtypes based on their histological characteristics. Lymphomas can be nodal and extra nodal. The head and neck area are the second most common site of extra nodal lymphoma, with tonsils being the most common site of involvement; other sites include the nasopharynx and tongue base. B- Cell type being the most common type. Predominantly occurs in elderly. Presentations depends on the site involved. Various modalities like surgical treatment, chemotherapy (or) radiotherapy is available. Each stage has varied survival rates and prognosis and responses to the treat depending on the patient factors. In this paper, we report two cases of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma of tonsil, where the preoperative clinical diagnosis and radiological diagnosis was inconclusive and final diagnosis was established based on histopathological examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inherited glycosylphosphatidylinositol deficiency disorders (IGDs) are a group of rare multisystem disorders arising from pathogenic variants in glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor pathway (GPI-AP) genes. Despite associating 24 of at least 31 GPI-AP genes with human neurogenetic disease, prior reports are limited to single genes without consideration of the GPI-AP as a whole and with limited natural history data. In this multinational retrospective observational study, we systematically analyse the molecular spectrum, phenotypic characteristics and natural history of 83 individuals from 75 unique families with IGDs, including 70 newly reported individuals; the largest single cohort to date. Core clinical features were developmental delay or intellectual disability (DD/ID, 90%), seizures (83%), hypotonia (72%) and motor symptoms (64%). Prognostic and biologically significant neuroimaging features included cerebral atrophy (75%), cerebellar atrophy (60%), callosal anomalies (57%) and symmetric restricted diffusion of the central tegmental tracts (60%). Sixty-one individuals had multisystem involvement including gastrointestinal (66%), cardiac (19%) and renal (14%) anomalies. Though dysmorphic features were appreciated in 82%, no single dysmorphic feature had a prevalence >30%, indicating substantial phenotypic heterogeneity. Follow-up data were available for all individuals, 15 of whom were deceased at the time of writing. Median age at seizure onset was 6 months. Individuals with variants in synthesis stage genes of the GPI-AP exhibited a significantly shorter time to seizure onset than individuals with variants in transamidase and remodelling stage genes of the GPI-AP (P = 0.046). Forty individuals had intractable epilepsy. The majority of individuals experienced delayed or absent speech (95%), motor delay with non-ambulance (64%), and severe-to-profound DD/ID (59%). Individuals with a developmental epileptic encephalopathy (51%) were at greater risk of intractable epilepsy (P = 0.003), non-ambulance (P = 0.035), ongoing enteral feeds (P < 0.001) and cortical visual impairment (P = 0.007). Serial neuroimaging showed progressive cerebral volume loss in 87.5% and progressive cerebellar atrophy in 70.8%, indicating a neurodegenerative process. Genetic analyses identified 93 unique variants (106 total), including 22 novel variants. Exploratory analyses of genotype-phenotype correlations using unsupervised hierarchical clustering identified novel genotypic predictors of clinical phenotype and long-term outcome with meaningful implications for management. In summary, we expand both the mild and severe phenotypic extremities of the IGDs, provide insights into their neurological basis, and vitally, enable meaningful genetic counselling for affected individuals and their families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To study the outcomes of phacoemulsification in small pupils (≤4 mm) using pupil expansion devices at a tertiary eye care center in South India. Methods: The study design is prospective, randomized, comparative, and interventional. Mechanical pupil dilatation with iris retractors (group I), B-HEX ring (group II), and Gupta ring (group III) was compared with respect to pupil size achieved (intraoperative), total surgical time, device addition time, complications, endothelial cell loss, and postoperative best corrected visual acuity. Results: Among 36 participants (12 in each group), the mean pupil size, total surgical time, and device addition time were maximum with iris retractors. Intraoperatively, sphincter tear was seen in two eyes in the iris retractors group and one eye in the Gupta ring group. In the B-HEX ring group, only two flanges of the ring could be engaged in two participants, one patient had iris bleeding (during stretching of the iris), and one patient had anterior lens capsular tear. Among all three groups, there was no statistically significant difference in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), endothelial cell count, and coefficient of variation obtained in the preoperative period, postoperative Day 7 and Day 30, respectively. Conclusion: In our study, in more than 50% of cases, the cause of small pupil was idiopathic/ senile. Among nonidiopathic causes, PXF was the most common association. Although iris retractors are cost-effective and give maximum intraoperative dilatation, there is a need of four additional side ports to be made, thus increasing the total surgical time and device addition time. On the other hand, B-HEX and Gupta ring provide comparable intraoperative dilation and device addition time and also have comparable postoperative outcomes in terms of postoperative pupil size and complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The early diagnosis of tumour is significant in biomedical research field to lower the severity level and restrict the process extension from cancer. Moreover, the detection of early sign of cancer is undertaken with extensive research efforts that dedicated to the disclosure and recognition of tumours. However, the limited data size as well as diverse appearance of images lowered the detection performance and failed to detect complex stage of tumour. So to solve these issues, a Weighted Adaptive Random Ensemble Support Vector-based Partial Reinforcement Search (WARES-PRS) algorithm is proposed that detected bone lesions accurately and also predicted the severity level stage efficiently. Further, the detection is performed with varied stages to diminish the presence of noise and undertaken effective classification. The performance is validated with CNUH dataset that enhanced image pre-processing tasks. Despite the proposed method uncover the mutual relationships between each pixel’s local texture and the overall image’s global context. The detection and classification efficiency is validated with various measures and the experimental results revealed that the detection accuracy is enhanced for the proposed approach by 98.5%. The outcomes of our study have exhibited a substantial contribution to assisting physicians in the detection of knee bone tumours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, several forecasting models were released to predict the spread of the virus along variables vital for public health policymaking. Of these, the susceptible--infected--recovered (SIR) compartmental model was the most common. In this paper, we investigated the forecasting performance of The University of Texas COVID-19 Modeling Consortium SIR model. We considered the following daily outcomes: hospitalizations, ICU patients, and deaths. We evaluated the overall forecasting performance, highlighted some stark forecast biases, and considered forecast errors conditional on different pandemic regimes. We found that this model tends to overforecast over the longer horizons and when there is a surge in viral spread. We bolstered these findings by linking them to faults with the SIR framework itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An attempt has been made to fabricate electroless duplex (Ni-P-ZnO/Ni-P-SiC) coatings on the mild steel materials. Present investigation focused on ZnO and SiC nanoparticles concentration on the corrosion resistance and microhardness of duplex coating. Coated substrates are characterised by using the X-ray diffraction analyses to know the structure of deposit. Surface morphology and element composition was evaluated by means of scanning electron microscope (SEM) attached with the energy dispersive spectrometer (EDX). Coating was heat treated for 1 hour at 400°C temperature. Microhardness of the coatings was examined by using Vickers microhardness tester. Corrosion parameters of the duplex coating were evaluated by performing the potentiodynamic polarisation studies in 3.5% NaCl solution. Experimental observations confirm that Ni-P-SiC outer layered coating offers maximum microhardness and duplex coating with Ni-P-ZnO as external layer provides maximum corrosion protection. Maximum load bearing ability of SiC nanoparticles offers superior microhardness to the Ni-P-SiC external layer coatings. Higher electrochemical resistive ZnO nanoparticles provide good corrosion protection to the Ni-P-ZnO external layer coatings. Formation of intermetallic compounds after heat treatment process enhances the both the coatings microhardness and resistance to corrosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optical fiber interconnects are playing a vital role in satisfying the demand for high-speed data transmission for long-range applications. The primary goal of the work presented here is to design an optical fiber communications system suitable for use at distances of up to 100 km. In this work, an intensity-modulated scheme at the transmitter and direct reception at the detector are employed to lower the overall system cost. Single-mode fiber (SMF) with nonlinearities is used as a transmission medium, connecting both transmitting and receiving sections. In order to get rid of the distortion brought on by the fiber, Bragg grating is used at the SMF's output. A Gaussian LPF is included in the receiver to eliminate the APD noise induced in the process of optical-to-electrical signal conversion. The performance of the system at 10 Gbps is assessed by examining the BER, Q-factor, and eye diagrams. The theoretical description of a Bragg grating is provided, and this work employs Optisystem softwarebased simulation. The results obtained reveal a BER value below 10-13 in the entire range of 100 km, in addition to the eye-opening factor of 0.85. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

STUDY QUESTION What is the functional significance of Tex13b in male germ cell development and differentiation? SUMMARY ANSWER Tex13b regulates male germ cell differentiation by metabolic reprogramming during spermatogenesis. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Studies in mice and humans suggest that TEX13B is a transcription factor and is exclusively expressed in germ cells. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION We sequenced the coding regions of TEX13B in 628 infertile men and 427 ethnically matched fertile control men. Further, to identify the molecular function of Tex13b, we created a Tex13b knockout and conditional overexpression system in GC-1spg (hereafter, GC-1) cells. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS Our recent exome sequencing study identified novel candidate genes for male infertility. TEX13B was found to be one of the potential candidates, hence we explored the role of TEX13B in male infertility within a large infertile case–control cohort. We performed functional analyses of Tex13b in a GC-1 cell line using CRISPR-Cas9. We differentially labelled the cell proteins by stable isotope labelling of amino acids in cell culture (SILAC) and performed mass spectrometry-based whole-cell proteomics to identify the differential protein regulation in knockout cells compared to wild-type cells. We found that Tex13b knockout leads to downregulation of the OXPHOS complexes and upregulation of glycolysis genes, which was further validated by western blotting. These results were further confirmed by respirometry analysis in Tex13b knockout cells. Further, we also performed a conditional overexpression of TEX13B in GC-1 cells and studied the expression of OXPHOS complex proteins by western blotting. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE We identified a rare variant, rs775429506 (p.Gly237Glu), exclusively in two non-obstructive-azoospermia (NOA) men, that may genetically predispose these men for infertility. Further, we demonstrated that Tex13b functions in the transcription regulation of OXPHOS complexes. LARGE SCALE DATA N/A. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION We examined the function of Tex13b in GC-1 in vitro by knocking out and conditional overexpression, for understanding the function of Tex13b in germ cells. Unfortunately, this could not be replicated in either an animal model or in patient-derived tissue due to the non-availability of an animal model or patient's testis biopsies. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS This study identified that Tex13b plays an important role in male germ cell development and differentiation. The findings of this study would be useful for screening infertile males with spermatogenic failure and counselling them before the implementation of assisted reproduction technique(s). STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) Funding was provided by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) under the network project (BSC0101 and MLP0113) and SERB, the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India (J C Bose Fellowship: JCB/2019/000027). The authors do not have any competing interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aigialomycin D, a 14-membered benzannulated macrolactone, was synthesized in a simple, efficient and stereoselective approach using inexpensive and commonly accessible starting materials. The main steps in this convergent synthesis are Corey-Fuchs reaction, Yamaguchi esterification and ring closing metathesis (RCM). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although the association between mental disorder and metabolic syndrome as a bidirectional relationship has been demonstrated, there is little knowledge of the cumulative and individual effect of these conditions on peripartum mental health. This study aims to investigate the association between metabolic syndrome conditions (MetS-C) and maternal mental illness in the perinatal period, while exploring time to incident mental disorder diagnosis in postpartum women. Methods: This observational study identified perinatal women continuously enrolled 1 year prior to and 1 year post-delivery using Optum's de-identified Clinformatics® Data Mart Database (CDM) from 2014 to 2019 with MetS-C i.e. obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, or low HDL (1-year prior to delivery); perinatal comorbidities (9-months prior to and 4-month postpartum); and mental disorder (1-year prior to and 1-year post-delivery). Additionally, demographics and the number of days until mental disorder diagnosis were evaluated in this cohort. The analysis included descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression. MetS-C, perinatal comorbidities, and mental disorder were assessed using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth, and Tenth Revision diagnosis codes. Results: 372,895 deliveries met inclusion/exclusion criteria. The prevalence of MetS-C was 13.43%. Multivariable logistic regression revealed prenatal prevalence (1.64, CI = 1.59–1.70) and postpartum incident (1.30, CI = 1.25–1.34) diagnosis of mental health disorder were significantly higher in those with at least one MetS-C. Further, the adjusted odds of having postpartum incident mental illness were 1.51 times higher (CI = 1.39–1.66) in those with 2 MetS-C and 2.12 times higher (CI = 1.21–4.01) in those with 3 or more MetS-C. Young women (under the age of 18 years) were more likely to have an incident mental health diagnosis as opposed to other age groups. Lastly, time from hospital discharge to incident mental disorder diagnosis revealed an average of 157 days (SD = 103 days). Conclusion: The risk of mental disorder (both prenatal and incident) has a significant association with MetS-C. An incremental relationship between incident mental illness diagnosis and the number of MetS-C, a significant association with younger mothers along with a relatively long period of diagnosis mental illness highlights the need for more screening and treatment during pregnancy and postpartum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rise in infections caused by methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is an increasing global health concern that causes boosting illness and death. The growing problem of drug resistance has emphasized the need to discover and develop new antibacterial agents that work through different mechanisms. To address this issue and create prospective antibacterial drugs, numerous chalcone derivatives of thiazolidine-2,4-dione have been designed, synthesized, and evaluated against three bacterial strains and one fungal strain. Compounds 7a, 7h, and 7k were found to selectively inhibit S. aureus at a concentration of 25 μg/mL but were inactive toward gram-negative bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current paper experimentally studied the performance of solar-driven internally cooled liquid desiccant system for hot and humid climates using CaCl2 as a liquid desiccant. The system is designed to investigate the input conditions of the room by adjusting various air and solution variables. This internally cooled liquid desiccant system consists of the dehumidifier and regenerator in a single module and the regeneration of the solution is done by solar energy. The present study analyzes the effect of solution concentration, air mass flow rate and solution volume flow rate using different performance indices such as humidity reduction, moisture effectiveness, enthalpy effectiveness, and COP. The results demonstrate that the maximum moisture reduction of 4.2 g/kg d.a. is found at an airflow rate of 0.03195 kg/s, a solution volume flow rate of 12.5 LPM, and a solution concentration of 37%, while the maximum COP of 0.274 is obtained at an airflow rate of 0.0715 kg/s, a solution volume flow rate of 12.5 LPM, and a solution concentration of 37%. The maximum moisture and enthalpy effectiveness are obtained as 24.1% and 26.2%, respectively. The paper also presents the correlations for moisture and enthalpy effectiveness based on findings from experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]