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For accurate bio-sample identification, we present a unique optimized surface plasmon resonance sensor based on an X-shaped exposed-core photonic crystal fiber. Applications are made easier by the placement of the target analyte and plasmonic material on the fiber's exterior surface. The sensor has four separate silica channels that reach from the core to the metallic outer surface creating X-shape. These channels were intentionally placed to provide the highest sensitivity while maintaining the sensor's ability to be manufactured. Within a refractive index range of 1.33 to 1.40, our optimized sensor demonstrates improved detecting abilities, including a wavelength sensitivity of 8000 nm/RIU and amplitude sensitivity of - 1175.12 R I U - 1 . The suggested sensor also exhibits exceptional performance parameters, such as a resolution of 1.25 × 10 - 5 , a maximum signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 2.041 dB, a figure of merit (FOM) of 160.0 R I U - 1 , a detection accuracy (DA) of 0.02 nm−1, and minimum full width half maxima (FWHM) of 50 nm. When examining variations in the optical properties of the PCF due to different RIs of normal and cancer cells using finite element analysis, we achieve amplitude sensitivities of - 844.91, - 418 and - 1221.8 R I U - 1 for HeLa, Basal and MDA-MB-231 cell lines, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to determine the causative agent of black spots which observed in the mesentery, adipose tissue and peritoneum of orange-spotted grouper, Epinephelus coioides. The parasitological examination using light and electron microscope confirmed infection with trichosomoidid parasite, genus Huffmanela, which identified as Huffmanela japonica (H. japonica). The examined eggs were present in two stages (stage 1, mature light brown eggs with larva; stage 2, advanced dark brown eggs with grown larva). The histopathological alteration of the infected tissues together with determination of immunological gene expression in different organs demonstrated prominent response of the host tissues against the studied parasite. Pathological examination of the infected fish revealed that the lesions were mainly in the mesenteric and diffuse pancreatic tissues which present in the abdominal fat. Granulomas containing eggs and mononuclear and eosinophilic granular cell infiltrations, together with fat necrosis of the pancreatic tissue, were the most common pathological findings. Migrating larvae and peritoneal adhesions with organised fibrosis were also observed. In the infected tissues as well as in the spleen, liver and kidney, interleukin 1β (IL-1β) and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 were upregulated than in control non-infected fish. Our results confirmed that H. japonica is infecting orange-spotted grouper caught from the Red Sea in Egypt with prominent tissue specificity in the mesentery, adipose tissue surrounding the intestine, and in the peritoneum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, iron sulphide thin films were prepared by simple and low-cost chemical spray-pyrolysis method using tilt deposition with a spraying angle of 45° and substrates temperature of 200°C. The precursors were iron chloride salt (FeCl3) and thiourea. After the preparation process, some of the samples are annealed at a temperature 400°C for 30 min. It was found that the as-deposited iron sulphide thin films (without annealing) had an amorphous structure, which gave higher absorption coefficient (2 × 105 cm−1) for thin film thickness 400 nm. This study also presents a novel method to obtain polycrystalline FeS2 thin films with pyrite phase and optimum energy bandgap and high absorption coefficient. A thin film of iron sulphide was also deposited on fluorine-doped tin oxide glass to work as a counter electrode for dye-sensitized solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the presence of Sarcotaces sp. in Epinephelus epilistictus (the dotted grouper) in Saudi Arabia. So, during our routine clinical examination of fish health conditions at Jubail province in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia (Arabian Gulf), nine grouper fish species were examined for Sarcotaces sp. (Copepoda: Phylichthyidae). Only the dotted grouper (Epinephelus epilistictus) harbored parasitic Sarcotaces spp. with an incidence of 9.06% of 1600 clinically examined fish samples. The collected Sarcotaces sp. was Sarcotaces arcticus (S. arcticus). The copepods were completely encapsulated cysts with a pyriform or pear-like shape, small to large, white-grayish, fluid-filled with thick black ink beneath the skin, or fully embedded in the muscular layer. The cysts present in the lateral aspect of trunk muscles, flank, caudal peduncle, near the anal opening, or pelvic and pectoral fin with an infestation rate (1–6 cysts) per fish. The cyst histopathology reveals the capsular layer of the cyst consisting of fibrous connective with pressure atrophy of the adjacent muscles associated with dilated blood vessels. The absence of infestation in other kinds of grouper fish species from the water of the Arabian Gulf in Jubail province may indicate parasitic host specificity and geographic locality distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a correction notice for an article titled "Heavy infection of the orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) with Hufmanela japonica: morphological, ultrastructural identification, tissue reactions and immunological analysis" published in Aquaculture International. The correction involves the replacement of Figure 5 in the original article with a new version that has higher resolution and a minor modification to the image. The corrected Figure 5 is included in the correction notice. The publisher, Springer Nature, maintains a neutral stance on jurisdictional claims and institutional affiliations. The authors of the original article are Marwa M. Attia, Mustafa M. Ibrahim, and Mahmoud A. Mahmoud. [Extracted from the article]

Studies have suggested imatinib mesylate (ImM) as a potential treatment for systemic lupus erythematosus nephritis (SLEN). However, ImM has limited renal excretion. The goal of the current research was to develop an ImM containing nanoformulation, conduct studies to evaluate pharmacokinetics, and determine whether kidney deposition can be enhanced in a mouse model of SLEN. A fish oil–based ImM oil-in-water nanoemulsion was developed and characterized for particle size, zeta potential, pH, and stability. MRL/MpJ-Faslrp (model of SLEN) and MRL/MpJ (control) mice (12–13 weeks) received one dose of ImM as either a nanoemulsion or naked drug. Pharmacokinetics and kidney deposition studies were performed. Statistics were conducted with a student's T-test. The nanoemulsion characteristics included particle size range of 60–80 nm, zeta potential of −6.6 to −7.8 mV, polydispersity index < 0.3, 3-day stability at 4 °C, and limited ImM leakage from the nanoemulsion in serum. Pharmacokinetics of the nanoformulation showed changes to pharmacokinetic parameters suggesting reduced systemic exposures (with reduced potential for toxicities) to ImM. Kidney deposition of ImM was threefold higher after 4 h in the MRL/MpJ-Faslrp mice that received the nanoformulation vs. naked drug. The current study showed encouraging results for development of a stable and well-characterized nanoemulsion for optimizing kidney deposition of ImM. Future strategies will define dose-efficacy and dose-toxicity relationships and evaluate approaches to further enhance kidney delivery and optimize deposition to the mesangial location of the kidney. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is conducted for identifying the parasite which collected during regular routine inspection for the hygienic condition and health status of fish in 2019 at the central fish market shops at Jubail city, Saudi Arabia. Samples from an orange spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) fish showed heavy black streaks between the muscle fibers that was considered unmarketable and rejected by the consumer after had been cut and prepared for sealing. The black discolorations were in the form of heavy diffused focal black spots or forming threads of variable sizes embedded in the entire whole-body musculature of the fish. These samples were subjected to parasitological and pathological evaluation. The parasitological examination of the affected muscular tissues revealed infection by Huffmanela spp. eggs. The parasitic infection was identified on the bases of the morphological and ultra-structural characters of the eggs. The examination of the affected fish showed multifocal black parasitic remnants between the muscle fibers. The parasitic fragments were distributed all over the fish flesh either superficially in subcutaneous area or deep inside the muscular tissue and they have been concentrated in the flesh around the vertebral column. In conclusion; this case report confirmed the occurrence of Huffmanela spp. infection in the muscles of Epinephelus coioides by using light and scanning electron microscopy. Further molecular assessment is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) containing antiretrovirals tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) or tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) can reduce the risk of acquiring HIV. Concentrations of intracellular tenofovir-diphosphate (TFV-DP) measured in dried blood spots (DBS) have been used to quantify PrEP adherence; although even under directly observed dosing, unexplained between-subject variation remains. Here, we wish to identify patient-specific factors associated with TFV-DP levels. Data from the iPrEX Open Label Extension (OLE) study were used to compare multiple covariate selection methods for determining demographic and clinical covariates most important for drug concentration estimation. To allow for the possibility of non-linear relationships between drug concentration and explanatory variables, the component selection and smoothing operator (COSSO) was implemented. We compared COSSO to LASSO, a commonly used machine learning approach, and traditional forward and backward selection. Training (N = 387) and test (N = 166) datasets were utilized to compare prediction accuracy across methods. LASSO and COSSO had the best predictive ability for the test data. Both predicted increased drug concentration with increases in age and self-reported adherence, the latter with a steeper trajectory among Asians. TFV-DP reductions were associated with increasing eGFR, hemoglobin and transgender status. COSSO also predicted lower TFV-DP with increasing weight and South American countries. COSSO identified non-linear relationships between log(TFV-DP) and adherence, weight and eGFR, with differing trajectories for some races. COSSO identified non-linear log(TFV-DP) trajectories with a subset of covariates, which may better explain variation and enhance prediction. Future research is needed to examine differences identified in trajectories by race and country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novelty of this work is to fabricate the double-walled (DW) TiO2 nanotube arrays (TNAs) by an anode oxidation method with NH4F-based electrolyte and Zinc counter electrode (CE, c-Zn) and to investigate the photodegradation performance of these TNAs. The structural, optical, and photodegradation performance of TNAs with c-Zn material have been compared to the properties of TNAs with the other two CEs like c-Pt (Platinum) and c-Ti (Titanium). The counter electrode has a tremendous influence on the structural properties and geometrical features of TNAs. The TNAs fabricated with c-Zn have the red-shifted absorption edge with two bandgaps such as 3.15 and 1.78 eV. Interestingly, the TNAs with c-Zn are found as the DW TNAs with outer diameter of 130 ± 3 nm, thinner outer wall thickness of 12 ± 2 nm, and thicker inner wall thickness of 30 ± 2 nm. The photodegradation performance varies with different counter electrodes during the deposition of TNAs by the anode oxidation method. The TNAs sample prepared with c-Zn has shown the highest roughness value of 305.0 nm, photodegradation efficiency of 97.0%, and the rate constant value of 0.00985 min−1 than the other TNAs with c-Pt, c-Ti, and other researcher's data. Moreover, the optical, structural, and surface morphological properties of TNAs have correlated with the photodegradation performance of TNAs prepared with various counter electrodes during deposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To investigate the periarticular degenerative changes of the knee joint in association with osteoarthritis (OA). More tendinosis was expected to be found in the semitendinosus tendon in patients with knee OA than in patients without knee OA. Methods: Samples from 41 patients were included between January 2016 and October 2017. Twenty-one patients median age 53 (33–63) years with mild to moderate OA underwent high tibial osteotomy (HTO) and 20 patients median age 38 (31–57) years without OA underwent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Biopsies from the semitendinosus tendon were obtained at the time of surgery and examined histologically, morphologically and ultrastructurally using light and electron microscope. Results: The histological evaluation of the semitendinosus tendon revealed the presence of more hemosiderin in the ACLR group. No significant morphological or ultrastructural differences were shown between patients in the HTO and ACLR group. Conclusion: Patients with mild and moderate medial compartment knee OA displayed no more degenerative changes in their semitendinosus tendon than patients without OA, as seen in both the light and the electron microscope. Level of evidence: III. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An analytical model has been developed to investigate the activation energy profile in Mg-doped p-AlxGa1−xN alloy for the entire range of Al composition. For any Al content, the calculated activation energy quantitatively shows a good agreement with experimental result which has also been confirmed by both Hydrogen atom model and effective Bohr radius model. Through this empirical analysis, a breakthrough is apparent for the hole concentration and sheet resistivity with particular Al concentration. It is found that the hole concentration is < 1017 cm−3 while the Al content, x > 30% in p-AlxGa1-xN. Moreover, the sheet resistivity is found to be < 1 Ω-cm up to the Al content of 30%. Finally, the temperature-induced changing behavior of hole concentration and sheet resistivity have been explored here. These results could be a good insight for fabricating the AlGaN-based real-world devices for future optoelectronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Tendon disorders are a major problem in the general population. It is known that rotator cuff tendinopathy contributes to osteoarthritis (OA) of the shoulder. The aim of the study was to analyse the presence of tendinopathy in patients with shoulder OA and an intact rotator cuff, using a multimodal approach.Methods: Thirteen consecutive patients median age 67 (52-84) years, with OA of the shoulder, and 13 consecutive control patients, with a fracture of the proximal humerus, median age 70 (51-84) years, underwent an open biopsy procedure from the biceps and subscapularis tendon in conjunction with shoulder arthroplasty. In addition to a macroscopic evaluation, the samples underwent histologic, morphologic and ultrastructural analyses in light and transmission electron microscopy.Results: Macroscopic degeneration was found in 15 of 26 specimen in the OA group but in seven of 25 in the control group (p = 0.048). The histologic analysis revealed a non-significant difference for the total degeneration score (TDS) between the study groups. The morphologic evaluation of the samples revealed that the OA group had significantly more samples with non-homogeneous extracellular matrix (ECM), (p = 0.048). Ultrastructurally, the OA group revealed a significantly larger fibril diameter in the biceps tendon (p < 0.0001) but not in the subscapularis tendon compared with the control group.Conclusion: A significantly worse macroscopic appearance and significantly more morphologically inhomogeneous ECM, indicating more tendon degeneration, were found in the OA group compared with the control group. This indicates that it could be beneficial to treat the tendinosis in an early stage to decrease symptoms from the OA.Study Design: Level of evidence, III. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The ability to predict and detect clinical and subclinical nephrotoxicity early in the course of therapy has the potential to improve long-term outcomes in cancer patients receiving cisplatin chemotherapy. Pharmacokinetic parameters could serve as predictors of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity.Methods: Participants [n = 13] were treated with a 1-h cisplatin infusion [30-75 mg/m2]. Blood was collected pre-dose and up to 6 h post-dose. Urinary biomarkers [KIM-1, calbindin, clusterin, GST-pi, β2M, albumin, NGAL, osteopontin, clusterin, MCP-1, cystatin C, and TFF3] were measured at baseline, days 3 and 10. Total and unbound platinum concentrations were measured using ICP/MS. Noncompartmental analysis was performed, and correlation and regression analyses evaluated the relationships between platinum pharmacokinetics and nephrotoxicity.Results: Peak platinum urinary concentrations correlated with urinary levels of KIM-1, calbindin, clusterin, GST-pi, β2M, albumin, NGAL, osteopontin, clusterin, cystatin C, and TFF3 at day 10. Unbound platinum plasma concentrations at 2 h also correlated with urinary clusterin, β2M, cystatin C, NGAL, osteopontin, and TFF3 at day 3. Regression analyses suggested 2-h total plasma platinum concentrations greater than 2000 ng/ml, and peak urinary platinum concentrations above 24,000 ng/ml may serve as potential approximations for elevated risk of nephrotoxicity. Platinum area under the plasma concentration time curve was associated with serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate.Conclusions: Peak plasma and urinary platinum concentrations and pharmacokinetic parameters were associated with risk of subclinical cisplatin-induced kidney injury as assessed using novel urinary biomarkers. Future studies will examine these relationships in larger clinical populations of cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Porous Ti-Nb-xSn shape memory alloys (SMAs) are fabricated by microwave sintering technology. The microstructures exhibit needle-like morphologies, β(N) (normal straight and crossed needles along with needle-like morphology that resembles spaghetti or irregular lines with α-phases in between) as well as plate-like morphologies [normal straight plate-like morphology, α′′ and dendritic plate-like morphology, β(D)]. Increases in Sn addition significantly induce an increase in the density of the α-phase. XRD patterns exhibited three phases, namely the β-main phase with smaller intensities of α′′ and α. Further, the addition of 0.25% Sn led to more effective improvement in the intensity of the α′′-phase compared with 0.5% and 1.5% Sn addition. Additions of Sn also enhanced the fracture strength and its corresponding strain along with the shape memory effect (SME), where the best enhancement was achieved at 0.25% Sn. The corrosion rate (Ri) was reduced by rising Sn content, while both corrosion resistance and antibacterial zones were increased. The lower elastic modulus, as well as the robust mechanical properties and bioactivity, made these SMAs rather suitable for biomedical application purposes, where the low elastic modulus had value in terms of avoiding the problem of "stress shielding." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Double-gate (DG) metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) with GaN channel material are very promising for use in future high-performance low-power nanoscale device applications. In this work, GaN-based sub-10-nm DG-MOSFETs with different gate work function, Φ, were designed and their performance evaluated. Short-channel effects (SCEs) were significantly reduced by introduction of gates made of dual metals. Use of gold at the source side, having higher Φ (ΦAu=5.11eV) compared with aluminum (ΦAl=4.53eV), at the drain side enhanced the gate control over the channel and screened the effect of the drain on the channel. Dual-metal (DM) DG-MOSFETs showed better results in the nanoscale regime and were more robust to SCEs. Therefore, GaN-based sub-10-nm DM DG-MOSFETs are suitable candidates for use in future complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper elucidates the details of exciton localization dynamics in InGaN/GaN and GaN/AlInN quantum wells (QWs) using Monte Carlo simulation for a wide range of temperatures (10–300 K). We find that the phonon-induced variation of exciton lifetimes has remarkable effects on the photoluminescence (PL) peak position and the line-width. The red-shift of PL peak position at high temperature is clarified. The combined effects of phonon-induced radiative lifetime of excitons and the band-gap shrinkage at high temperature show the most reasonable agreement with the experimentally observed red-shift of the PL peak position. We have also quantitatively explained the temperature dependence of the W-shaped line-width in both InGaN/GaN and GaN/AlInN QWs. These results are highly significant to understand the emission properties of III-nitride QWs optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ti–Ta and Ti–Ta–xSn shape memory alloys (SMAs) were produced successfully by microwave sintering. Tin element was added to Ti–Ta SMA with three different atomic percentages (0.37, 0.745 and 2.26 at.%). The influences of Sn addition on microstructure, transformation temperatures, mechanical properties, shape memory behaviours, corrosion resistance and bioactivity were investigated. It was found that the morphologies of the modified and unmodified Ti–Ta alloys contain a plate-like and needle-like structure, where the former structure is related to the β phase and the latter related to the α phase. The transformation temperatures of Ms to Mf with and without Sn additions were observed to be in the range of 389.65 to 355 K, while the transformation temperatures of As to Af were found to be in the range of 250.42 to 365.8 K. By increasing the proportion of Sn, the compressive fracture strength and shape memory behaviour were enhanced; however, the corrosion resistance tended to be decreased. Based on the bioactivity results, antibacterial activity was improved with the addition of Sn. In conclusion, the existent results indicate that Ti–30 at.% Ta SMAs may be a convenient alternative to Ni–Ti for certain biomedical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ti−51at%Ni shape memory alloys (SMAs) were successfully produced via a powder metallurgy and microwave sintering technique. The influence of sintering parameters on porosity reduction, microstructure, phase transformation temperatures, and mechanical properties were investigated by optical microscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), compression tests, and microhardness tests. Varying the microwave temperature and holding time was found to strongly affect the density of porosity, presence of precipitates, transformation temperatures, and mechanical properties. The lowest density and smallest pore size were observed in the Ti−51at%Ni samples sintered at 900°C for 5 min or at 900°C for 30 min. The predominant martensite phases of β2 and β19′ were observed in the microstructure of Ti−51at%Ni, and their existence varied in accordance with the sintering temperature and the holding time. In the DSC thermograms, multi-transformation peaks were observed during heating, whereas a single peak was observed during cooling; these peaks correspond to the presence of the β2, R, and β19′ phases. The maximum strength and strain among the Ti−51at%Ni SMAs were 1376 MPa and 29%, respectively, for the sample sintered at 900°C for 30 min because of this sample's minimal porosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current study, a new type of Cu-based shape memory alloys with the function of shape memory effect was successfully produced with the introduction of high-purity Co precipitates between the phases of Cu-Al-Ni shape memory alloy. The microstructure, transformation characteristics, and mechanical properties were systematically investigated by means of differential scanning calorimetry, field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), a tensile test, a hardness test, and a shape memory effect test. The typical microstructures show that a new phase was formed, known as the γ phase, and the volume friction and the size of this phase were gradually increased with the increasing Co content. According to the results of the XRD and EDS, it was confirmed that the γ phase represents a compound of AlCoNi. However, the presence of γ phase in the modified alloys was found to result in an increase of the transformation temperatures in comparison with the unmodified alloy. Nevertheless, it was found that with 1 wt pct of Co addition, a maximum ductility of 7 pct was achieved, corresponding to an increase in the strain recovery by the shape memory effect to 95 pct with respect to the unmodified alloy of 50 pct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present investigation aims to enhance the mechanical properties and shape memory characteristics of Cu–Ni–Al shape memory alloys (SMAs) by alloying additional elements. These additions were found to control the phase morphology and grain size, along with the formation of different volume fractions, sizes, and distributions of precipitates. The features of the precipitates were mainly dependent on the type of alloying element. It was found that a Co (1.14 wt%) alloy gave the best overall improvement in terms of the transformation temperatures, ductility, and shape memory recovery. These improvements were mainly due to the exceptionally high presence of the γ2 phase in the microstructures of the modified alloy. The results of the current investigation were analyzed and compared to those of previous studies related to Cu–Al–Ni SMAs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this article, a Quasi D-Shape dual core Photonic Crystal Fiber Surface Plasmon Resonance sensor is offered and numerically analyzed. The offered model is established comprising of circular air holes having an external sensing polishing layer coated with gold (Au) in order to ensure simple and straightforward design. The performance parameters are examined by means of modal analysis incorporated finite element method utilizing COMSOL multiphysics software. The sensor performance is analyzed with modifying the geometrical parameters like metal (Au) layer and pitch. It is observed; this model shows maximum amplitude sensitivity of 230 RIU−1 and wavelength sensitivity of 15,000 nm-RIU−1 incorporating amplitude interrogation method and wavelength interrogation method, respectively. The Figure of Merit is similarly considered and measured to 45 per RIU inbetween the refractive index ranging 1.42 RIU to 1.46 RIU. As a final point, a comparison has been given among the work explained in this paper with existing works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unfortunately, the given name and the family name of the authors were incorrectly identified in the original article. The author names are corrected here by this correction paper. The original article has been corrected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]