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Objectives: Until now, many researchers have conducted evaluations on hippocampi for analyses of cognitive dysfunction models using scopolamine. However, depending on the purposes of these analyses, there are differences in the experimental results for the hippocampi and cortexes. Therefore, this study intends to compare various analyses of cognitive dysfunction after scopolamine administration with each other in hippocampi and cortexes. Methods: Scopolamine was administered at three dosages in mice: 0.5, 1, and 3 mg/kg. And this study evaluates the differences in cognitive function and the expression of malondialdehyde (MDA), acetylcholinesterase (AChE), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in mice's hippocampi and cortexes based on scopolamine dosages. Results: The Morris water maze test was conducted between 1 and 3 h after scopolamine injection to assess its duration. A significant decrease in behavioral ability was evaluated at 1 h, and we observed a similar recovery to the normal group at 3 h. And the Morris water maze escape latency showed differences depending on scopolamine concentration. While the escape waiting time in the control group and scop 0.5 administration group remained similar to that seen before administration, the administration of scop 1 and 3 increased it. In the experimental group administered scop 1 and 3, cerebral MDA levels in the cerebral cortex significantly increased. In the hippocampus, the MDA level in the scopolamine-administered groups slightly increased compared to the cortex. A Western blotting assay shows that Bax and Bcl-xl showed a tendency to increase or decrease depending on the concentration, but BDNF increased in scop 0.5, and scop 1 and 3 did not show a significant decrease compared to the control at the cerebral cortex. In the hippocampus, BDNF showed a concentration-dependent decrease in expression. Conclusions: This study's findings indicate that chemical analyses for MDA and AChE can be performed in the cerebral cortex, while the hippocampus is better suited for protein analysis of apoptosis and BDNF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study addresses the challenges that conventional network models face in detecting small foreign objects on industrial production lines, exemplified by scenarios where a single piece of iron filing occupies approximately 0.002% of the image area. To tackle this, we introduce an enhanced YOLOv8-MeY model for detecting foreign objects on the surface of sugar bags. Firstly, the introduction of a 160 × 160-scale small object detection layer and integration of the Global Attention Mechanism (GAM) attention module into the feature fusion network (Neck) increased the network's focus on small objects. This enhancement improved the network's feature extraction and fusion capabilities, which ultimately increased the accuracy of small object detection. Secondly, the model employs the lightweight network GhostNet, replacing YOLOv8's principal feature extraction network, DarkNet53. This adaptation not only diminishes the quantity of network parameters but also augments feature extraction capabilities. Furthermore, we substituted the Bottleneck in the C2f of the YOLOv8 model with the Spatial and Channel Reconstruction Convolution (SCConv) module, which, by mitigating the spatial and channel redundancy inherent in standard convolutions, reduced computational demands while elevating the performance of the convolutional network model. The model has been effectively applied to the automated sugar dispensing process in food factories, exhibiting exemplary performance. In detecting diverse foreign objects like 2 mm iron filings, 7 mm wires, staples, and cockroaches, the YOLOv8-MeY model surpasses the Faster R-CNN model and the contemporaneous YoloV8n model of equivalent parameter scale across six metrics: precision, recall, mAP@0.5, parameters, GFLOPs, and model size. Through 400 manual placement tests involving four types of foreign objects, our statistical results reveal that the model achieves a recognition rate of up to 92.25%. Ultimately, we have successfully deployed this model in automated sugar bag dispensing scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface defect detection in industrial environments is crucial for quality management and has significant research value. General detection networks, such as the YOLO series, have proven effective in various dataset detections. However, due to the complex and varied surface defects of industrial products, many defects occupy a small proportion of the surface and fall into the category of typical small target detection problems. Moreover, the complexity of general detection network architectures relies on high-tech hardware, making it difficult to deploy on devices without GPUs or on edge computing and mobile devices. To meet the practical needs of industrial product defect inspection applications, this paper proposes a lightweight network specifically designed for defect detection in industrial fields. This network is composed of four parts: a backbone network, a multiscale feature aggregation network, a residual enhancement network, and an attention enhancement network. The network includes a backbone network that integrates attention layers for feature extraction, a multiscale feature aggregation network for semantic information, a residual enhancement network for spatial focus, and an attention enhancement network for global–local feature interaction. These components enhance detection performance for diverse defects while maintaining low hardware requirements. Experimental results show that this network outperforms the latest and most popular YOLOv5n and YOLOv8n models in the five indicators P, R, F1, mAP@.5, and GFLOPS when used on four public datasets. It even approaches or surpasses the YOLOv8s and YOLOv5s models with several times the GFLOPS computation. It balances the requirements of lightweight real-time and accuracy in the scenario of industrial product surface defect detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) have the potential to treat ischemic diseases. In general, ADSCs facilitate angiogenesis by secreting various pro-angiogenic growth factors. However, transplanted ADSCs have a low therapeutic efficacy in ischemic tissues due to their poor engraftment and low viability. Stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1 ) improves the survival rate of stem cells transplanted into ischemic regions. In this study, we developed acid-degradable poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(amino ketal) (PEG-PAK)-based micelles for efficient intracellular delivery of SDF-1α plasmid DNA. The SDF-1α gene was successfully delivered into human ADSCs (hADSCs) using PEG-PAK micelles. Transfection of SDF-1α increased SDF-1α, vascular endothelial growth factor, and basic fibroblast growth factor gene expression and decreased apoptotic activity in hADSCs cultured under hypoxic conditions in comparison with conventional gene transfection using polyethylenimine. SDF-1α-transfected hADSCs also showed significantly increased SDF-1α and VEGF expression together with reduced apoptotic activity at 4 weeks after transplantation into mouse ischemic hindlimbs. Consequently, these cells improved angiogenesis in ischemic hindlimb regions. These PEG-PAK micelles may lead to the development of a novel therapeutic modality for ischemic diseases based on an acid-degradable polymer specialized for gene delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chondrocyte hypertrophy is one of the key indicators in the progression of osteoarthritis (OA). However, compared with other OA indications, such as cartilage collapse, sclerosis, inflammation, and protease activation, the mechanisms by which chondrocyte hypertrophy contributes to OA remain elusive. As the pathological processes in the OA cartilage microenvironment, such as the alterations in the extracellular matrix, are initiated and dictated by the physiological state of the chondrocytes, in-depth knowledge of chondrocyte hypertrophy is necessary to enhance our understanding of the disease pathology and develop therapeutic agents. Chondrocyte hypertrophy is a factor that induces OA progression; it is also a crucial factor in the endochondral ossification. This review elaborates on this dual functionality of chondrocyte hypertrophy in OA progression and endochondral ossification through a description of the characteristics of various genes and signaling, their mechanism, and their distinguishable physiological effects. Chondrocyte hypertrophy in OA progression leads to a decrease in chondrogenic genes and destruction of cartilage tissue. However, in endochondral ossification, it represents an intermediate stage at the process of differentiation of chondrocytes into osteogenic cells. In addition, this review describes the current therapeutic strategies and their mechanisms, involving genes, proteins, cytokines, small molecules, three-dimensional environments, or exosomes, against the OA induced by chondrocyte hypertrophy. Finally, this review proposes that the contrasting roles of chondrocyte hypertrophy are essential for both OA progression and endochondral ossification, and that this cellular process may be targeted to develop OA therapeutics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metallic nanostructures (MNs) and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) play a pivotal role by articulating their significance in high-performance supercapacitors along with conducting polymers (CPs). The interaction and synergistic pseudocapacitive effect of MNs with CPs have contributed to enhance the specific capacitance and cyclic stability. Among various conjugated heterocyclic CPs, polypyrrole (PPy) (prevalently knows as "synthetic metal") is exclusively studied because of its excellent physicochemical properties, ease of preparation, flexibility in surface modifications, and unique molecular structure–property relationships. Numerous researchers attempted to improve the low electronic conductivity of MNs and MOFs, by incorporating conducting PPy and/or used decoration strategy. This was succeeded by fine-tuning this objective, which managed to get outstanding supercapacitive performances. This brief technical note epitomizes various PPy-based metallic hybrid materials with different nano-architectures, emphasizing its technical implications in fabricating high-performance electrode material for supercapacitor applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Updated and revised versions of COVID-19 vaccines are vital due to genetic variations of the SARS-CoV-2 spike antigen. Furthermore, vaccines that are safe, cost-effective, and logistic-friendly are critically needed for global equity, especially for middle- to low-income countries. Recombinant protein-based subunit vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 have been reported using the receptor-binding domain (RBD) and the prefusion spike trimers (S-2P). Recently, a new version of prefusion spike trimers, named HexaPro, has been shown to possess two RBD in the "up" conformation, due to its physical property, as opposed to just one exposed RBD found in S-2P. Importantly, this HexaPro spike antigen is more stable than S-2P, raising its feasibility for global logistics and supply chain. Here, we report that the spike protein HexaPro offers a promising candidate for the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Mice immunized by the recombinant HexaPro adjuvanted with aluminum hydroxide using a prime-boost regimen produced high-titer neutralizing antibodies for up to 56 days after initial immunization against live SARS-CoV-2 infection. Also, the level of neutralization activity is comparable to that of convalescence sera. Our results indicate that the HexaPro subunit vaccine confers neutralization activity in sera collected from mice receiving the prime-boost regimen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study systematically reviewed, summarized and meta-analyzed the clinical features of the vaccines in clinical trials to provide a better estimate of their efficacy, side effects and immunogenicity. All relevant publications were systematically searched and collected from major databases up to 12 March 2021. A total of 25 RCTs (123 datasets), 58,889 cases that received the COVID-19 vaccine and 46,638 controls who received placebo were included in the meta-analysis. In total, mRNA-based and adenovirus-vectored COVID-19 vaccines had 94.6% (95% CI 0.936–0.954) and 80.2% (95% CI 0.56–0.93) efficacy in phase II/III RCTs, respectively. Efficacy of the adenovirus-vectored vaccine after the first (97.6%; 95% CI 0.939–0.997) and second (98.2%; 95% CI 0.980–0.984) doses was the highest against receptor-binding domain (RBD) antigen after 3 weeks of injections. The mRNA-based vaccines had the highest level of side effects reported except for diarrhea and arthralgia. Aluminum-adjuvanted vaccines had the lowest systemic and local side effects between vaccines' adjuvant or without adjuvant, except for injection site redness. The adenovirus-vectored and mRNA-based vaccines for COVID-19 showed the highest efficacy after first and second doses, respectively. The mRNA-based vaccines had higher side effects. Remarkably few experienced extreme adverse effects and all stimulated robust immune responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A lower-limb exoskeleton robot identifies the wearer′s walking intention and assists the walking movement through mechanical force; thus, it is important to be able to identify the wearer′s movement in real-time. Measurement of the angle of the knee and ankle can be difficult in the case of patients who cannot move the lower-limb joint properly. Therefore, in this study, the knee angle as well as the angles of the talocrural and subtalar joints of the ankle were estimated during walking by applying the neural network to two inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors attached to the thigh and shank. First, for angle estimation, the gyroscope and accelerometer data of the IMU sensor were obtained while walking at a treadmill speed of 1 to 2.5 km/h while wearing an exoskeleton robot. The weights according to each walking speed were calculated using a neural network algorithm programmed in MATLAB software. Second, an appropriate weight was selected according to the walking speed through the IMU data, and the knee angle and the angles of the talocrural and subtalar joints of the ankle were estimated in real-time during walking through a feedforward neural network using the IMU data received in real-time. We confirmed that the angle estimation error was accurately estimated as 1.69° ± 1.43 (mean absolute error (MAE) ± standard deviation (SD)) for the knee joint, 1.29° ± 1.01 for the talocrural joint, and 0.82° ± 0.69 for the subtalar joint. Therefore, the proposed algorithm has potential for gait rehabilitation as it addresses the difficulty of estimating angles of lower extremity patients using torque and EMG sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BNT162b2 is a highly efficacious mRNA vaccine approved to prevent COVID-19. This brief report describes the immunogenicity and anti-viral protective effect of BNT162b2 in hACE2 transgenic mice. Prime-boost immunization with BNT162b2 elicited high titers in neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, which correlated with viral clearance and alleviated lung lesions in these mice after viral challenge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an effort to produce non-toxic and economically viable "green" protocols for waste water treatment, researchers are actively involved to develop versatile and effective silver nanoparticles (SNPs) as nano-catalyst from bio-based techniques. Since, p-nitrophenol (PNP) is one of the anthropogenic contaminants, considerable attention has been focused in catalytic degradability of PNP in wastewater treatment by curtailing serious effect on aquatic fauna. Ingestion of contaminants by aquatic organisms will not only affect the aquatic species but is also a potential threat to human health, especially if the toxic contaminants are involved in food chain. In this short report, we provided a comprehensive insight on few remarkable nanocatalysts especially based on SNPs and its biopolymer composites synthesized via ecofriendly "green" route. The beneficiality and catalytic performance of these silver nanocatalysts are concisely documented on standard model degradation reduction of PNP to p-aminophenol (PAP) in the presence of aqueous sodium borohydride. The catalytic degradation of PNP to PAP using SNPs follows pseudo first order kinetics involving six-electrons with lower activation energy. Furthermore, we provided a list of highly effective, recoverable, and economically viable SNPs, which demonstrated its potential as nanocatalysts by focusing its technical impact in the area of water remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) is a US FDA-approved hydrophilic bile acid for the treatment of chronic cholestatic liver disease. In the present study, we investigate the effects of TUDCA on the proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts and its therapeutic effect on a mice model of osteoporosis. Following treatment with different concentrations of TUDCA, cell viability, differentiation, and mineralization were measured. Three-month-old female C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into three groups (n = 8 mice per group): (i) normal mice as the control group, (ii) ovariectomy (OVX) group (receiving phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) treatment every other day for 4 weeks), and (iii) OVX group with TUDCA (receiving TUDCA treatment every other day for 4 weeks starting 6 weeks after OVX). At 11 weeks post-surgery, serum levels of procollagen type I N-terminal propeptides (PINP) and type I collagen crosslinked C-telopeptides (CTX) were measured, and all mice were sacrificed to examine the distal femur by micro-computed tomography (CT) scans and histology. TUDCA (100 nM, 1 µM) significantly increased the proliferation and viability of osteoblasts and osteoblast differentiation and mineralization when used in vitro. Furthermore, TUDCA neutralized the detrimental effects of methylprednisolone (methylprednisolone-induced osteoblast apoptosis). In the TUDCA treatment group the PINP level was higher and the CTX level was lower, but these levels were not significantly different compared to the PBS treatment group. Micro-CT and histology showed that the TUDCA treatment group preserved more trabecular structures in the distal femur compared to the PBS treatment group. In addition, the TUDCA treatment group increased the percentage bone volume with respect to the total bone volume, bone mineral density, and mice distal femur trabeculae compared with the PBS treatment group. Taken together, our findings suggest that TUDCA may provide a favorable effect on bones and could be used for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to the importance of stem cell culture systems in clinical applications, researchers have extensively studied them to optimize the culture conditions and increase efficiency of cell culture. A spheroid culture system provides a similar physicochemical environment in vivo by facilitating cell–cell and cell–matrix interaction to overcome the limitations of traditional monolayer cell culture. In suspension culture, aggregates of adjacent cells form a spheroid shape having wide utility in tumor and cancer research, therapeutic transplantation, drug screening, and clinical study, as well as organic culture. There are various spheroid culture methods such as hanging drop, gel embedding, magnetic levitation, and spinner culture. Lately, efforts are being made to apply the spheroid culture system to the study of drug delivery platforms and co-cultures, and to regulate differentiation and pluripotency. To study spheroid cell culture, various kinds of biomaterials are used as building forms of hydrogel, film, particle, and bead, depending upon the requirement. However, spheroid cell culture system has limitations such as hypoxia and necrosis in the spheroid core. In addition, studies should focus on methods to dissociate cells from spheroid into single cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction to a series of articles is presented with topics including the advances in nano/micro-assisted technology use, the mesenchymal stem cell labeling, and the native tissue topographies.

Adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (Ad-MSCs) are a promising tool for articular cartilage repair and regeneration. However, the terminal hypertrophic differentiation of Ad-MSC-derived cartilage is a critical barrier during hyaline cartilage regeneration. In this study, we investigated the role of matrilin-3 in preventing Ad-MSC-derived chondrocyte hypertrophy in vitro and in an osteoarthritis (OA) destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) model. Methacrylated hyaluron (MAHA) (1%) was used to encapsulate and make scaffolds containing Ad-MSCs and matrilin-3. Subsequently, the encapsulated cells in the scaffolds were differentiated in chondrogenic medium (TGF-β, 1-14 days) and thyroid hormone hypertrophic medium (T3, 15-28 days). The presence of matrilin-3 with Ad-MSCs in the MAHA scaffold significantly increased the chondrogenic marker and decreased the hypertrophy marker mRNA and protein expression. Furthermore, matrilin-3 significantly modified the expression of TGF-β2, BMP-2, and BMP-4. Next, we prepared the OA model and transplanted Ad-MSCs primed with matrilin-3, either as a single-cell suspension or in spheroid form. Safranin-O staining and the OA score suggested that the regenerated cartilage morphology in the matrilin-3-primed Ad-MSC spheroids was similar to the positive control. Furthermore, matrilin-3-primed Ad-MSC spheroids prevented subchondral bone sclerosis in the mouse model. Here, we show that matrilin-3 plays a major role in modulating Ad-MSCs' therapeutic effect on cartilage regeneration and hypertrophy suppression.

Capsular contracture, which is the pathologic development of fibrous capsules around implants, is a major complication of reconstructive and aesthetic breast surgeries. Capsular contracture can cause implant failure with breast hardening, deformity, and severe pain. The exact mechanisms underlying this complication remain unclear. In addition, anaplastic large cell lymphoma is now widely recognized as a very rare disease associated with breast implants. Foreign body reactions are an inevitable common denominator of capsular contracture. A number of studies have focused on the associated immune responses and their regulation. The present article provides an overview of the currently available techniques, including novel nano/microtechniques, to reduce silicone implant-induced contracture and associated foreign body responses., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Expansion of chondrocytes for repair of articular cartilage can lead to dedifferentiation, making it difficult to obtain a sufficient quantity of chondrocytes. Although previous studies have suggested that culture in a three-dimensional environment induces redifferentiation of dedifferentiated chondrocytes, its underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood in terms of metabolism compared with a two-dimensional environment. In this study, we demonstrate that attenuation of transglutaminase 2 (TG2), a multifunctional enzyme, stimulates redifferentiation of dedifferentiated chondrocytes. Fibroblast-like morphological changes increased as TG2 expression increased in passage-dependent manner. When dedifferentiated chondrocytes were cultured in a pellet culture system, TG2 expression was reduced and glycolytic enzyme expression up-regulated. Previous studies demonstrated that TG2 influences energy metabolism, and impaired glycolytic metabolism causes chondrocyte dedifferentiation. Interestingly, TG2 knockdown improved chondrogenic gene expression, glycolytic enzyme expression, and lactate production in a monolayer culture system. Taken together, down-regulation of TG2 is involved in redifferentiaton of dedifferentiated chondrocytes through enhancing glucose metabolism., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Advances in mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and cell replacement therapies are promising approaches to treat cartilage and bone defects since substantial differentiation capacities of MSCs match the demands of tissue regeneration. Our understanding of the dynamic process requiring indispensable differentiation of MSCs remains limited. Herein, we describe the role of RHEB (Ras homolog enriched in brain) regulating gene signature for differentiation of human adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) into chondrogenic, osteogenic, and adipogenic lineages. RHEB-overexpression increases the proliferation of the ASCs. RHEB enhances the chondrogenic differentiation of ASCs in 3D culture via upregulation of SOX9 with concomitant increase in glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), and type II collagen (COL2). RHEB increases the osteogenesis via upregulation of runt related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2) with an increase in the calcium and phosphate contents. RHEB also increases the expression of osteogenic markers, osteonectin and osteopontin. RHEB knockdown ASCs were incapable of expressing sufficient SRY (Sex determining region Y)-box 9 (SOX9) and RUNX2, and therefore had decreased chondrogenic and osteogenic differentiation. RHEB-overexpression impaired ASCs differentiation into adipogenic lineage, through downregulation of CCAAT/enhancer binding protein beta (C/EBPβ). Conversely, RHEB knockdown abolished the negative regulation of adipogenesis. We demonstrate that RHEB is a novel regulator, with a critical role in ASCs lineage determination, and RHEB-modulated ASCs may be useful as a cell therapy for cartilage and bone defect treatments.

Human adipose-derived stem cells (hASCs) have a capacity to undergo adipogenic, chondrogenic, and osteogenic differentiation. Recently, hASCs were applied to various fields including cell therapy for tissue regeneration. However, it is hard to predict the direction of differentiation of hASCs in real-time. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are one family of proteolytic enzymes that plays a pivotal role in regulating the biology of stem cells. MMPs secreted by hASCs are expected to show different expression patterns depending on the differentiation state of hASCs because biological functions exhibit different patterns during the differentiation of stem cells. Here, we investigated proteolytic enzyme activity, especially MMP-2 activity, in hASCs during their differentiation. The activities of proteolytic enzymes and MMP-2 were higher during chondrogenic differentiation than during adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation. During chondrogenic differentiation, mRNA expression of MMP-2 and the level of the active form of MMP-2 were increased, which also correlated with Col II. It is concluded that proteolytic enzyme activity and the level of the active form of MMP-2 were increased during chondrogenic differentiation, which was accelerated in the presence of Col II protein. According to our findings, MMP-2 could be a candidate maker for real-time detection of chondrogenic differentiation of hASCs.

The extracellular matrix (ECM) of cartilage performs essential functions in differentiation and chondroprogenitor cell maintenance during development and regeneration. Here, we discuss the vital role of matrilin-3, an ECM protein involved in cartilage development and potential osteoarthritis pathomechanisms. As an adaptor protein, matrilin-3 binds to collagen IX to form a filamentous network around cells. Matrilin-3 is an essential component during cartilage development and ossification. In addition, it interacts directly or indirectly with transforming growth factor β (TGF-β), and bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) eventually regulates chondrocyte proliferation and hypertrophic differentiation. Interestingly, matrilin-3 increases interleukin receptor antagonists (IL-Ra) in chondrocytes, suggesting its role in the suppression of IL-1β-mediated inflammatory action. Matrilin-3 downregulates the expression of matrix-degrading enzymes, such as a disintegrin metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 4 (ADAMTS4) and ADAMTS5, matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13), and collagen X, a hypertrophy marker during development and inflammatory conditions. Matrilin-3 essentially enhances collagen II and aggrecan expression, which are required to maintain the tensile strength and elasticity of cartilage, respectively. Interestingly, despite these attributes, matrilin-3 induces osteoarthritis-associated markers in chondrocytes in a concentration-dependent manner. Existing data provide insights into the critical role of matrilin-3 in inflammation, matrix degradation, and matrix formation in cartilage development and osteoarthritis.

Developing a better method for the metallization of silicon solar cells is integral part of realizing superior efficiency. Currently, contact realization using screen printing is the leading technology in the silicon based photovoltaic industry, as it is simple and fast. However, the problem with metallization of this kind is that it has a lower aspect ratio and higher contact resistance, which limits solar cell efficiency. The mounting cost of silver pastes and decreasing silicon wafer thicknesses encourages silicon solar cell manufacturers to develop fresh metallization techniques involving a lower quantity of silver usage and not relying pressing process of screen printing. In recent times nickel/copper (Ni/Cu) based metal plating has emerged as a metallization method that may solve these issues. This paper offers a detailed review and understanding of a Ni/Cu based plating technique for silicon solar cells. The formation of a Ni seed layer by adopting various deposition techniques and a Cu conducting layer using a light induced plating (LIP) process are appraised. Unlike screen-printed metallization, a step involving patterning is crucial for opening the masking layer. Consequently, experimental procedures involving patterning methods are also explicated. Lastly, the issues of adhesion, back ground plating, process complexity and reliability for industrial applications are also addressed.