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• Information processing speed deficits have profound effects of people with MS' life. • Relationship between information processing speed and a neuroimaging marker. • Imaging marker to monitor the course of MS, before debilitating symptoms appear. • Thalamic atrophy is related with impaired information processing speed in early MS. Cognitive dysfunction, including reduced Information processing speed (IPS), is relatively common in multiple sclerosis(MS). IPS deficits have profound effects on several aspects of patients' life. Previous studies showed that deep gray matter atrophy is highly correlated with overall cognitive impairment in MS. However, the effect of deep gray matter atrophy on IPS deficits is not well understood. In this study, we evaluated the effects of deep gray matter volume changes on IPS in people with early relapse-remitting MS (RRMS) compared to healthy control. In this case-control study, we enrolled 63 case with RRMS and 36 healthy controls. All patients were diagnosed within 6 years. IPS was evaluated using the Integrated Cognitive Assessment (ICA) test. We also performed a 1.5T MRI to evaluate deep gray matter structures. People with RRMS had lower accuracy in the ICA test (p =.01). However, the reaction time did not significantly differ between RRMS and control groups (p =.6). Thalamus volume was significantly lower in the RRMS group with impaired IPS compared to the RRMS with normal IPS and control groups (p < 10−4). Other deep gray matter structures were not significantly different between the RRMS with impaired IPS group and the RRMS with normal IPS group. Some people with MS are impaired in IPS even in the early stages of the disease. Thalamic atrophy affected IPS in these patients, however atrophy in other deep gray matter structures, including caudate, putamen, globus pallidus, hippocampus, amygdala, accumbens, and cerebellum, were not significantly correlated with IPS impairment in early RRMS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments were performed to examine the efficiency of surfactants to remove multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) from silicon substrates with nano and microscaled features. In the first set of experiments, nanoscale features were induced on silicon wafers using SF6 and O2 plasma. In the second set, well-defined microscale topological features were induced on silicon wafers using photo lithography and plasma etching. The etching time was varied to create semi-ellipsoidal pits with average diameter and height of ∼7-9 µm, and ∼1-3 µm, respectively. For the cleaning process, the MWCNTs were wiped off using a simple wiping mechanism by two different surfactants and distilled water. The areal density of the MWCNTs was quantified prior to and after the removal using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and post-image processing. For a surface featured with nanoscale asperities, the removal efficiency was measured to be in the range 83-99% based on substrate type and surface roughness. No evident relationship was observed between the etching time and the removal efficiency. For surfaces with microscale features, increasing the etching time results in appearance of larger pits and significant decrease in the removal efficiency. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 35: 161-168, 2016 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Introducing a waste-driven, eco-friendly and cost-effective nanosorbent for nitrate removal from contaminated water. • Fabrication of alumina magnetic hybrid (AMH) nanosorbent derived from red mud. • Efficient removal of nitrate from contaminated water using AMH nanosorbent. • Achieving the proper sorption amount after four cycles of regeneration. The effectiveness of using red mud as the aluminum industry waste to fabricat a novel alumina magnetic hybrid (AMH) nanosorbent, which can remove nitrate from contaminated water was evaluated in current study. The characterization of the prepared nanosorbent were addresed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), surface area, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) analysis. The results indicated the crystallite size of the Fe 3 O 4 and γ -Al 2 O 3 of about 18.7 and 19.6 nm, respectively, amount of Fe 3 O 4 and γ -Al 2 O 3 about 48.1 % and 51.2 % in the structure of nanosorbent, the surface area aroun 125.9 m2/g, and nanoparticles with approximately uniform size less than 25 nm along with a slight agglomeration. Studies on adsorption were performed using various contact time and initial nitrate concentrations, different pH and sorbent dosages. Maximum adsorption capacity was obtained at about 69 mg/g using 1 g/L sorbent dispersed in 100 ppm nitrate solution with a pH of 6 after 80 min. The adsorption data was appropriately fitted with Freundlich isotherm model, indicating multilayer adsorption. Regeneration experiments demonstrated that the nanosorbent could perform effective nitrate adsorption even after four regeneration cycles. The significance of this work is in the development of waste-driven, eco-friendly, and cost-effective creation of an AMH nanoadsorbent that effectively removes nitrate from contaminated water, which also has the advantage of rapid separation due to its magnetic properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 1:1 imine intermediate generated by the addition of primary amine to chloroacetone derivatives is trapped byN-isocyaniminotriphenylphosphorane in the presence of phenylacetylenecarboxylic acid, leading to the formation of the corresponding iminophosphorane intermediate. Disubstituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives are formed via intramolecular aza-Wittig reaction of the iminophosphorane intermediate. The reactions were completed in neutral conditions at room temperature. The disubstituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives were prepared in excellent yields. Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition ofSynthetic Communications®to view the free supplemental file. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reduction of a variety of carbonyl compounds was efficiently carried out with NaBH4/DOWEX(R)50WX4 system. The reactions were performed to give the corresponding alcohols derivatives in perfect yields in THF at room temperature. Reduction of acyloins and a-diketones by this reducing system produced efficiently the corresponding vicinal diols. Also, the reduction of aldehydes over ketones has been accomplished successfully by this system. Regioselectivity of this system was also investigated with exclusive 1,2-reduction of conjugated carbonyl compounds to their corresponding allylic alcohols in high to excellent yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Generally similar adverse event profile with the general population. • No cases of anaphylaxis or life-threatening reactions after vaccination. • Adverse events more prevalent in those 55 years old and younger. • Adverse events less prevalent in mild EDSS scores. • No increase in relapse rate after vaccination was detected. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety of Sinofarm vaccine (BBIBP-CorV) in patients with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). This study was conducted on pwMS patients in Isfahan, Iran. All participants received two doses of BBIBP-CorV (Sinopharm vaccine). Demographic information and data on vaccine side effects were collected after each dose using questionnaires. All patients that recorded worsening of MS symptoms were evaluated and those with true relapse were treated with IV methyl prednisolone. Of the 1538 patients, 1151 (74.8%) were female and the mean age was 40.45 ± 9.74. The average disease duration was 10.38±6.81 years and 76.1% of participants had RRMS. 92.8% of the participants were using DMTs and mean EDSS was 2.06 ± 3.16. 54.2% (833 patient) reported at least one adverse event after the first dose of vaccine and 46.8% (720 patient) after the second dose; in both cases going away in a few days. Most prevalent adverse events after both doses were injection site pain, headache, myalgia, fever and fatigue. Adverse events were more prevalent in younger and less prevalent in mildly disabled patients. There were seven cases of Covid-19 infection between the first and second vaccination dose, and eight cases during one-month follow –up after the second dose, none of whom needed mechanical ventilation. Ten patients after first dose and thirteen patients after the second dose experienced acute relapse. A patient had two relapses, one after each vaccine dose that were clinically and radiologically confirmed. The first relapse occurred seven days after the first vaccination with hemiparesis and other relapse, 14 days after the second dose with diplopia, hemiparesis and ataxia. Adverse events in pwMS following vaccination with Sinopharm vaccine was similar to the general population, which were more common in younger patients and less common in those with mild disability. As no increase in relapse rate after vaccination was detected, Sinopharm vaccine was safe in MS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most developing countries try to "reduce production costs" to be able to increase their exports to the competitive international markets. The process of economic globalization has winners and losers. Surging international trade has lowered the share of Iran's labour-intensive exports, especially Persian Carpets, in international markets; as the production costs of its rival countries are lower. The findings of this research and the results of the survey which was conducted in Kashan show that rise in international trade has reduced Iran's competitiveness in labour intensive exports and the increased the share of resource based exports. As, harsh international competition in conquering hand-woven carpet markets has reduced real wages of carpet-weavers and has restructured the labour force of the carpet industry in Iran. The middle income families, who were involved in carpet-weaving for long time, have left the industry and Afghan immigrant workers increasingly substitute Iranian middle class weavers. The estimated econometric model also indicates that by increasing real income, many workers leave low-paid carpet weaving jobs. So, Iran's share in international hand-woven carpet markets would be lower, if low-paid women and Afghan workers were not concentrated in Iran's hand-woven carpet industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we have reached a new PS for PDT by using DFT and TD-DFT methods, at the B3LYP/6-31G(d)∼LANL2DZ level of theory. The scrutinized PS shows the type II PDT mechanism for producing singlet oxygen. By analysing the absorption spectrum, it can be inferred that 2I-BODIPY-C 60 shows an absorption peak at 661.71 nm located in therapeutic window. The 2I-BODIPY-C 60 shows a large energy gap (ΔE s-t > 0.98 eV) enabling to generate 1O 2. In conclusion, we believe that our designed 2I-BODIPY-C 60 can pave a way for the design of more promising PS candidates in PDT. [Display omitted] • Fullerene derivative as an efficient photosensitizer (PS) for photodynamic therapy. • PS (2I-BODIPY-C 60) with intense absorption in the therapeutic window. • Energy gap between the ground state (S 0) and the T 1 state of PS. • Radiationless intersystem crossing and generation of singlet molecular oxygen. We have designed a novel BF 2 -chelated azadipyrromethene-fullerene dyad as a highly efficient photosensitizer (PS) for photodynamic therapy (PDT) at the B3LYP/6-31G(d) ∼ LANL2DZ theoretical level. The 4,4-difluoro-2,6-diiodo-1,3,5,7-tetramethyl-8-phenyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza- s -indacene (2I-BODIPY) with an azido substituent and fullerene (C 60) were used to prepare this novel PS (2I-BODIPY-C 60). Furthermore, the scrutinized results suggest that PS exhibits intense absorption in the therapeutic window (600–800 nm). The energy of the first triplet excited state (T 1) of the photosensitizer lies above the excitation energy of the ground- state molecular oxygen (0.98 eV). On the other hand, the energy gap between the ground state (S 0) and the T 1 state of the present PS is 1.58 eV. In consideration of these results, 2I-BODIPY-C 60 displays an efficiently radiationless intersystem crossing (ISC) and has a sufficient energy for generating singlet molecular oxygen (1O 2). Accordingly, 2I-BODIPY-C 60 would be proposed as a potential PS for PDT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Honey is a valuable and nutritious food product, but it is at risk to fraudulent practices such as the addition of cheaper syrups including corn, rice, and sugar beet syrup. Honey authentication is of the utmost importance, but current methods are faced with challenges due to the large variations in natural honey composition (influenced by climate, seasons and bee foraging), or the incapability to detect certain types of plant syrups to confirm the adulterant used. Molecular methods such as DNA barcoding have shown great promise in identifying plant DNA sources in honey and could be applied to detect plant-based sugars used as adulterants. In this work DNA barcoding was successfully used to detect corn and rice syrup adulteration in spiked UK honey with novel DNA markers. Different levels of adulteration were simulated (1 – 30%) with a range of different syrup and honey types, where adulterated honey was clearly separated from natural honey even at 1% adulteration level. Moreover, the test was successful for multiple syrup types and effective on honeys with different compositions. These results demonstrated that DNA barcoding could be used as a sensitive and robust method to detect common sugar adulterants and confirm syrup species origin in honey, which can be applied alongside current screening methods to improve existing honey authentication tests. • DNA from rice and corn detected in honey spiked with 1% syrup. • Natural marker amplification in honey was used to develop an adulteration threshold. • Plastid markers were more efficient for adulteration detection in honey. • The method was successful with different syrups and various honey types. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We aimed to explore the association between peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (pRNFL), macular ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (mGCIPL), and cognitive impairment (CI) in patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD). Method: In this cross-sectional study, 38 (28 aquaporin-4 (AQP4) IgG-seropositive) NMOSD patients and 20 healthy controls (HC) underwent cognitive assessment using Minimal Assessment of Cognitive Function in Multiple Sclerosis (MACFIMS) battery. Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) was performed for both eyes of all NMOSD patients. First, we examined the association of pRNFL and mGCIPL with cognitive function in all patients, regardless of the history of previous optic neuritis (ON). We then included only eyes without a prior history of ON, incorporating non-ON eyes in patients with unilateral ON and the average of OCT measures for both non-ON eyes in patients without a history of ON. Results: Sixteen (42.1%) NMOSD patients exhibited global CI. There was a significant decrease in pRNFL (Δ: 24.33 μm, p = 0.002) and mGCIPL (Δ: 9.20 μm, p = 0.009) in NMOSD patients with CI compared to those without. The atrophy of pRNFL showed an inverse association with CI before (OR = 1.059, 95% CI: 1.015, 1.105) and after adjustment for age, sex, and disease duration (OR = 1.072, 95%CI: 1.009, 1.139). An inverse significant association was observed between mGCIPL atrophy and CI before adjustment (OR = 1.102, 95% CI: 1.017, 1.194), but not after adjustment (OR = 1.106, 95%CI: 0.999, 1.224). After narrowing our analysis to non-ON eyes, the same results for pRNFL and CI were observed (unadjusted: OR = 1.054, 95% CI: 1.004, 1.106; adjusted: OR = 1.081, 95%CI: 1.000, 1.168). There was no significant association found between mGCIPL thickness and CI in both unadjusted and adjusted models. In sensitivity analyses, we observed no significant association between pRNFL and mGCIPL with CI in AQP-IgG-seropositive NMOSD patients. Conclusion: This study, for the first time, provide a preliminary evidence for a possible relation between pRNFL atrophy and occurrence of cognitive impairment in NMOSD patients. Further studies are required to explore the possible association of OCT parameters with cognition function in NMOSD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]