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Aya M Khallaf,1 Riham M El-Moslemany,1 Mahmoud F Ahmed,2 Mahmoud H Morsi,3 Nawal M Khalafallah1 1Department of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt; 2Managing Director at Ultimate Pharma Company, Alexandria, Egypt; 3Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Alexandria, EgyptCorrespondence: Riham M El-MoslemanyDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, 1, Khartoum Square, Azarita, Alexandria, 21521, EgyptTel +20 1006020405Email riham.elmoslemany@alexu.edu.egPurpose: Fasudil hydrochloride (Fas), a rho-associated protein kinase inhibitor, proved to be promising for glaucoma management owing to its IOP lowering and antioxidant effects. However, its highly hydrophilic nature limits ocular permeation and bioavailability. Hence, the study objective was the development of Fas loaded vesicular system with high entrapment efficiency formulated as a thermosensitive gel for local administration aiming to enhance ocular retention and permeation and hence therapeutic efficacy.Methods: Fasudil complex with phospholipid (Fas/PL) was prepared by solvent evaporation technique and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Fas/PL was further formulated as liposomes by methanol injection method and characterized regarding colloidal properties, entrapment efficiency (EE%) and in vitro drug release. The prepared liposomes were incorporated into an optimized thermosensitive in situ gel (Fas/PL-LipoP407/HPMCgel) selected based on gelling time and temperature and rheological properties. The effect of incorporation into gel on the in vitro characteristics of liposomes was investigated. The in vitro mucoadhesive potential, ex vivo permeation, irritability and efficacy in a glaucoma rabbit model were also assessed.Results: FT-IR and XRD suggested interactions between Fas and PL, proposing complexation. Fas/PL liposomal dispersions showed good colloidal properties (particle size: 132.5 ± 1.6 nm, zeta potential: − 21.6 ± 0.9 and %EE 78.6 ± 0.3%) with sustained drug release. In situ thermosensitive gel (20% poloxamer 407 and 0.5% HPMC) showed optimum gelling properties. The selected gel formulation reduced burst release of the drug, enhanced mucoadhesive properties and prolonged corneal permeation ex vivo. HET-CAM test confirmed that the prepared formulations were non-irritant. In vivo pharmacodynamic study indicated improved bioavailability and significantly lower intraocular pressure (IOP) of Fas/PL-LipoP407/HPMC gel compared to drug solution and liposomal dispersion.Conclusion: The results present Fas/PL-LipoP407/HPMC gel as a potential platform for ophthalmic delivery of fasudil with improved pharmaceutical attributes and enhanced bioavailability and efficacy in glaucoma.Keywords: fasudil hydrochloride, glaucoma, phospholipid-complex, liposomes, thermosensitive gel

A new streaked soft x-ray imager has been designed for use on high energy-density (HED) physics experiments at the National Ignition Facility based at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. This streaked imager uses a slit aperture, single shallow angle reflection from a nickel mirror, and soft x-ray filtering to, when coupled to one of the NIF's x-ray streak cameras, record a 4× magnification, one-dimensional image of an x-ray source with a spatial resolution of less than 90 μm. The energy band pass produced depends upon the filter material used; for the first qualification shots, vanadium and silver-on-titanium filters were used to gate on photon energy ranges of approximately 300-510 eV and 200-400 eV, respectively. A two-channel version of the snout is available for x-ray sources up to 1 mm and a single-channel is available for larger sources up to 3 mm. Both the one and two-channel variants have been qualified on quartz wire and HED physics target shots.

Pain produces several physiological, and degenerative complications. This study aimed to formulate meloxicam (MLX) in liposomes to increase solubility and deliver MLX in a controlled manner to overcome its poor aqueous solubility and relatively short t 1/2 problems. Liposomes were prepared by thin film hydration followed by ultrasonication. Tests for characterizing formulations included particle size, span, entrapment efficiency, drug loading, stability, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transformation infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, morphology, in vitro release, release kinetics mathematical modeling, and an in vivo pain model in dogs undergoing orthopedic surgeries, followed by in vivo pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and pain assessment studies in comparison to the reference standard, Mobitil®. Liposomal MLX had a particle size of around 100 nm, 82 % entrapment efficiency, and 4.62 % drug loading. Stability studies, DSC, and FT-IR spectroscopy indicated that liposomes were highly stable. The formulation showed an improved in vitro controlled release pattern and an enhanced in vivo pharmacokinetic behavior as manifested by higher t 1/2 and AUC 0 - 24 and lower Cl/F in comparison to Mobitil®. The pharmacodynamics study and pain scales demonstrated liposomal MLX managed postoperative pain better than Mobitil®. In conclusion, the incorporation of MLX in liposomes increased its solubility and stability, as well as its pain management properties., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Nowadays, water pollution generated from textile effluents is one of the major problems for the human race and ecology. Hence, development of sustainable strategies to lower the water pollution level has become a burning need. In this regard, the present study focuses on the preparation of nano catalyst NiFe 2 O 4 to catalyze the chemical reactions on industrial organic dyes for their fast cleansing from water. By sol-gel auto-combustion technique, NiFe 2 O 4 nanoparticles were synthesized and exposed to thermal process at temperatures of 400, 600, and 800 °C. Highly crystalline phase with spinel cubic structured NiFe 2 O 4 was formed with a crystal size of 18.71 nm, which was confirmed by XRD analysis. The FTIR spectra showed two fundamental absorption bands in the range 597.80-412.59 cm -1 , which are the characteristics of tetrahedral M - O and octahedral M - O bond in NiFe 2 O 4 . The surface morphology of calcined NiFe 2 O 4 was investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The nanoparticle size analyzer exhibited that the synthesized NiFe 2 O 4 nanoparticles had an average particle size of ∼ 291.3 nm. Three stage decomposition patterns were observed for NiFe 2 O 4 , which was analyzed by a temperature programmed STA. Zeta potential analyzer showed that the synthesized sample S1 and S2 were stable in the dispersion medium. Also, NiFe 2 O 4 exhibited optical band gap energies for direct band transitions within the visible spectrum measured to be 1.43-1.45 eV, rendering them effective as photocatalysts under sunlight. The samples showed magnetic measurements by VSM with saturation magnetization, coercivity, remnant magnetization value of 66.81 emu/g, 4.13 Oe and 12.94 emu/g, respectively. The synthesized photocatalyst, NiFe 2 O 4 , at 400 °C, significantly degraded three toxic organic pollutants-Methylene blue, Rhodamine B, and Congo Red-under visible light through 'Photo-Fenton' reaction mechanisms. Among the three dyes, Methylene Blue exhibited the highest degradation percentage with a rate constant of 0.0149 min -1 and followed pseudo-first-order kinetic model., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

This study evaluated the antinociceptive effect of dexmedetomidine-nalbuphine vs. dexmedetomidine alone in jacks undergoing field castration under total intravenous anesthesia. Jacks were premedicated with intravenous (IV) dexmedetomidine (5 µg/kg), either alone (Group D, n = 6) or in combination with 0.3 mg/kg nalbuphine (Group DN, n = 6). IV ketamine (1.5 mg/kg) and propofol (0.5 mg/kg) were used to induce general anesthesia, which was maintained by a continuous propofol (0.2 mg/kg/min) IV infusion. The quality of anesthesia, analgesia, and recovery were evaluated. A simple descriptive scale (SDS) was used to measure pain from the recovery time to 6 h later. The DN group exhibited improvements in analgesic and recovery quality and SDS of pain at 1-, 2-, and 3-h post-recovery. There was an apparent improvement in cardiac status, as evidenced by the enhanced heart rate and electrocardiogram findings compared to group D during surgery and recovery time. The DN group had a lower level of inflammatory cytokines, both during the surgery and shortly after recovery. Therefore, the dexmedetomidine-nalbuphine combination prior to IV anesthesia of ketamine and propofol in jacks undergoing field castration resulted in a stable surgical plane of anesthesia, improved antinociception, less pain postoperatively, and better cardiac stability.

In adults, Cushing's syndrome (CS) caused by tumours that produce adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) outside of the pituitary gland is quite prevalent. However, it is uncommon in children and teenagers. Ectopic ACTH syndrome (EAS) is a rare occurrence in young children, accounting for less than 1% of cases. Nevertheless, when it does occur, it tends to be a severe condition due to the profound hypercortisolism that can occur independently of the tumour. Consequently, EAS should be regarded as a critical endocrine emergency, necessitating prompt action in terms of diagnostic procedures and therapeutic interventions. A 14-year-old White female from the United Kingdom (UK) presented with a two-week history of hands and feet swelling, accompanied by a non-itchy rash on the face, back, and chest for one week. Initial investigations revealed hypokalemic alkalosis, hyperglycaemia, elevated serum and 24-hour urinary cortisol, and high ACTH level. Further investigations confirmed EAS, and to find out the primary tumour location, a contrast-enhanced thoracic CT scan was done and identified a 5x3 cm mass with enhanced thymic shadow. Increased radioactivity uptake in the left upper chest along with widespread GAD-avid metastatic disease unveiled by Gallium-DOTA-TATE PET scan. An abdominal MRI, detecting multiple liver deposits, prompted a liver biopsy, revealing a malignant tumour with neuroendocrine differentiation. The patient was diagnosed with EAS with a primary neuroendocrine tumour of the thymus and metastasis. This case underscores the significance of considering EAS in patients with a diagnosis of CS, especially in young individuals with no known risk factors., Competing Interests: Human subjects: Consent was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work., (Copyright © 2024, Ahmed et al.)

Background: Pediatric surgeons have faced esophageal reconstruction challenges for decades owing to a variety of congenital and acquired conditions. This work aimed to introduce a reproducible and efficient approach for creating tissue-engineered esophageal tissue using bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) cultured in preconditioned mediums seeded on a sheep decellularized tunica vaginalis (DTV) scaffold for partial reconstruction of a rabbit's esophagus., Methods: DTV was performed using SDS and Triton X-100 solutions. The decellularized grafts were employed alone (DTV group) or after recellularization with BMSCs cultured for 10 days in preconditioned mediums (RTV group) for reconstructing a 3 cm segmental defect in the cervical esophagus of rabbits (n = 20) after the decellularization process was confirmed. Rabbits were observed for one month, after which they were euthanized, and the reconstructed esophagi were harvested for histological analysis., Results: Six rabbits in the DTV group and eight rabbits in the RTV group survived until the end of the one-month study period. Despite histological examination demonstrating that both grafts completely repaired the esophageal defect, the RTV graft demonstrated a histological structure similar to that of the normal esophagus. The reconstructed esophagi in the RTV group revealed the arrangement of the different layers of the esophageal wall with the formation of newly formed blood vessels and Schwann-like cells., Conclusion: DTV xenograft is a novel scaffold that promotes cell adhesion and differentiation and might be effectively utilized for regenerating esophageal tissue, paving the way for future clinical trials in pediatric patients., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest Authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The escalating incidence of foodborne salmonellosis poses a significant global threat to food safety and public health. As antibiotic resistance in Salmonella continues to rise, there is growing interest in bacteriophages as potential alternatives. In this study, we isolated, characterized, and evaluated the biocontrol efficacy of lytic phage L223 in chicken meat. Phage L223 demonstrated robust stability across a broad range of temperatures (20-70 °C) and pH levels (2-11) and exhibited a restricted host range targeting Salmonella spp., notably Salmonella Typhimurium and Salmonella Enteritidis. Characterization of L223 revealed a short latent period of 30 min and a substantial burst size of 515 PFU/cell. Genomic analysis classified L223 within the Caudoviricetes class, Guernseyvirinae subfamily and Jerseyvirus genus, with a dsDNA genome size of 44,321 bp and 47.9% GC content, featuring 72 coding sequences devoid of antimicrobial resistance, virulence factors, toxins, and tRNA genes. Application of L223 significantly (p < 0.005) reduced Salmonella Typhimurium ATCC 14,028 counts by 1.24, 2.17, and 1.55 log CFU/piece after 2, 4, and 6 h of incubation, respectively, in experimentally contaminated chicken breast samples. These findings highlight the potential of Salmonella phage L223 as a promising biocontrol agent for mitigating Salmonella contamination in food products, emphasizing its relevance for enhancing food safety protocols., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Copper doped magnesium ferrite, Mg 1 - x Cu x Fe 2 O 4 (x = 0.0-1.0) nanomaterials were synthesized via. sol-gel method sintered at 600 °C for 2 h. The synthesized materials were characterized using modern sophisticated techniques viz. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Transmission electron microscopy, Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Vibrating sample magnetometer, UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectra and Impedance analyzer. XRD analysis revealed that all the samples were single phase cubic spinel structure with Fd3m space group and investigated the change in structural parameters with copper concentration. The average crystallite size in the range of 11-23 nm and lattice parameters decrease with increasing Cu doping, due to the cationic distribution and ionic radius. The SEM images show the agglomeration of the particles with spherical like shape and elemental percentage were obtained from EDX. The saturation magnetization showed an increasing trend with increasing Cu concentration at a certain level and then decreases due to the rearrangement of cations at tetrahedral and octahedral sites. The Coercivity, Retentivity and magnetic crystalline anisotropy increase with changing dopant concentration. The magnetic measurements showed enhanced saturation magnetization at certain level (28.96emu/gm) and increase in coercivity up to 1102 Oe with changing dopant concentration. The estimated band gap energy is found to increase with Cu content. The dielectric constant, dielectric loss and impedance show normal behavior of ferrite. The frequency dependent dielectric constant decrease and tan delta shows a relaxation behavior at low frequencies. The synthesized nano Mg-Cu nanoparticles will be applied as humidity sensor, gas sensor, microwave devices and photocatalyst., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

The coordination polymers (CPs) of Cu and Zr were synthesized by the hydrothermal method. The orotic acid potassium salt (H 3 KL) was used as a linker, which coordinates via O-O. Whereas, 4,4'-trimethylenedipyridine (4,4'-TMDP) was used as a bifunctional monomer, which coordinates via N-N. The synthesized CPs were characterized by FTIR, P-XRD, TGA, DSC and SEM. The photocatalytic activity was investigated against methylene blue (MB) under sunlight irradiation. Both Cu-CP and Zr-CP exhibited potential activity for the degradation of MB, which was 72 % for Cu-CP and 93 % for Zr-CP. The band gap of the CPs was also investigated, and the observed value was 2.2 eV. The band gap indicates that these compounds could bring breakthroughs as photocatalysts instead of semiconductors. These kinds of CPs could be used for multiple purposes in industry and in a green environment., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest to declare., (© 2024 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

There is an increasing focus on genetically altering Paulownia trees to enhance their resistance against fungal infections, given their rapid growth and quality wood production. The aim of this research was to establish a technique for incorporating two antimicrobial thionin genes, namely thionin-60 (thio-60) and thionin-63 (thio-63), into Paulownia tomentosa and Paulownia hybrid 9501 through the utilization of chitosan nanoparticles. The outcomes revealed the successful gene transfer into Paulownia trees utilizing chitosan nanoparticles. The effectiveness of thionin proteins against plant pathogens Fusarium and Aspergillus was examined, with a specific focus on Fusarium equiseti due to limited available data. In non-transgenic Paulownia species, the leaf weight inhibition percentage varied from 25 to 36 %, whereas in transgenic species, it ranged from 22 to 7 %. In general, Paulownia species expressing thio-60 displayed increased resistance to F. equiseti, while those expressing thio-63 exhibited heightened resistance to A. niger infection. The thionin proteins displayed a strong affinity for the phospholipid bilayer of the fungal cell membrane, demonstrating their capability to disrupt its structure. The transgenic plants created through this technique showed increased resistance to fungal infections. Thionin-60 demonstrated superior antifungal properties in comparison to thio-63, being more effective at disturbing the fungal cell membrane. These findings indicate that thio-60 holds potential as a novel antifungal agent and presents a promising approach for enhancing the antimicrobial traits of genetically modified Paulownia trees., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Nahla Alsayd Bouqellah reports administrative support was provided by Taibah University, Science College, Biology Department, 42317-8599, Al Madinah Al Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia. Nahla Alsayd Bouqellah reports a relationship with Taibah University, Science College, Biology Department, 42317-8599, Al Madinah Al Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia that includes: employment. No conflict of interest exists. The content and composition of this work are my responsibility., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

In this work, the transformation of waste iron cans to gamma iron oxide (γ-Fe 2 O 3 ) nanoparticles following acid leaching precipitation method along with their structural, surface chemistry, and magnetic properties was studied. Highly magnetic iron-based nanomaterials, maghemite with high saturation magnetization have been synthesized through an acid leaching technique by carefully tuning of pH and calcination temperature. The phase composition and crystal structure, surface morphology, surface chemistry, and surface composition of the synthesized γ-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles were explored by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The XRD results confirm the cubic spinel structure having crystallite size 26.90-52.15 nm. The XPS study reveals the presence of Fe, O element and the binding energy of Fe (710.31 and 724.48 eV) confirms the formation of γ-Fe 2 O 3 as well. By dynamic light scattering (DLS) method and zeta potential analyzer, the particle size distribution and stability of the systems were investigated. The magnetic behavior of the synthesized γ-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles were studied using a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) which confirmed the ferrimagnetic particles with saturation magnetization of 54.94 emu/g. The resultant maghemite nanoparticles will be used in photocatalysts and humidity sensing. The net impact of the work stated here is based on the principle of converting waste into useful nanomaterials. Finally, it was concluded that our results can give insights into the design of the synthesis procedure from the precursor to the high-quality gamma iron oxide nanoparticles with high saturation magnetization for different potential applications which are inexpensive and very simple., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

COVID-19 vaccination strategies, including heterologous prime-boost regimens and additional booster doses, aim to optimize immune responses. However, seroepidemiological studies on immune responses to different COVID-19 vaccine types and schedules remain limited. This study investigated antibody levels following homologous and heterologous prime-and-boost COVID-19 vaccination in Bangladesh. In a cohort of 606 participants who received first/second/booster doses of vaccines (AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Sinopharm), anti-spike IgG and anti-nucleocapsid IgG levels were measured. Antibody titer variations with respect to age, gender, intervals between doses, and prior infection status were analyzed. mRNA vaccines elicited the highest antibody levels after homologous and heterologous boosting. The AstraZeneca booster resulted in a sharp titer decline rate of ~0.04 units per day. Second or booster vaccine doses significantly increased antibody levels, especially in males ( p < 0.05). Older age correlated with higher titers, likely reflecting previous infection, which was further confirmed by the elevation of anti-nucleocapsid IgG levels. About 95.5% of non-Sinopharm recipients were anti-nucleocapsid IgG positive, suggesting prior exposure exceeding self-reported infections (12.5%). mRNA and heterologous COVID-19 boosting enhances humoral immunity over homologous prime-boost vector/inactivated vaccination. However, waning immunity merits further investigation across vaccine platforms.

Background: Given the sparse data on the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) and its biological effector molecules ACE1 and ACE2 in pediatric COVID-19 cases, we investigated whether the ACE1 insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism could be a genetic marker for susceptibility to COVID-19 in Egyptian children and adolescents., Methods: This was a case-control study included four hundred sixty patients diagnosed with COVID-19, and 460 well-matched healthy control children and adolescents. The I/D polymorphism (rs1799752) in the ACE1 gene was genotyped by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), meanwhile the ACE serum concentrations were assessed by ELISA., Results: The ACE1 D/D genotype and Deletion allele were significantly more represented in patients with COVID-19 compared to the control group (55% vs. 28%; OR = 2.4; [95% CI: 1.46-3.95]; for the DD genotype; P = 0.002) and (68% vs. 52.5%; OR: 1.93; [95% CI: 1.49-2.5] for the D allele; P = 0.032). The presence of ACE1 D/D genotype was an independent risk factor for severe COVID-19 among studied patients (adjusted OR: 2.6; [95% CI: 1.6-9.7]; P < 0.001., Conclusions: The ACE1 insertion/deletion polymorphism may confer susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection in Egyptian children and adolescents., Impact: Recent studies suggested a crucial role of renin-angiotensin system and its biological effector molecules ACE1 and ACE2 in the pathogenesis and progression of COVID-19. To our knowledge, ours is the first study to investigate the association of ACE1 I/D polymorphism and susceptibility to COVID-19 in Caucasian children and adolescents. The presence of the ACE1 D/D genotype or ACE1 Deletion allele may confer susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and being associated with higher ACE serum levels; may constitute independent risk factors for severe COVID-19. The ACE1 I/D genotyping help design further clinical trials reconsidering RAS-pathway antagonists to achieve more efficient targeted therapies., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Importance: The BoB, the world's largest bay, is of significant economic importance to surrounding countries, particularly Bangladesh, which heavily relies on its coastal resources. Concurrently, the BoB holds substantial ecological relevance due to the region's high vulnerability to climate change-induced impacts. Yet, our understanding of the BoB's microbiome in relation to marine food web and biogeochemical cycling remains limited. Particularly, there are little or no data on the viral diversity and host association in the BoB. We examined the viral community in two distinct BoB coastal regions to reveal a multitude of viral species interacting with a wide range of microbial hosts, some of which play key roles in coastal biogeochemical cycling or potential pathogens. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the BoB coast harbors a diverse community of large and giant viruses, underscoring the importance of investigating understudied environments to discover novel viral lineages with complex metabolic capacities., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Background:  Brain abscesses are a major health problem with significant morbidity and mortality rates. The objective of this study was to compare the surgical efficacy of endoscope-assisted evacuation of a brain abscess with that of single burr hole aspiration in a tertiary health care center., Methods:  This single-center nonrandomized clinical study was conducted during the period from July 2020 to December 2021. Male and female patients younger than 30 years who presented with brain abscess were enrolled in this study. They were divided into two groups and treated with two different techniques: conventional burr hole aspiration group and endoscope-assisted evacuation group., Results:  Thirty patients were enrolled in this study. The mean age was 13.0 ± 6.3 years in the burr hole group and 13.1 ± 6.4 years in the endoscope-assisted group. There was ≥75.0% evacuation of brain abscess on postoperative day 1 in 13 (92.9%) patients in the endoscope-assisted group and in 5 (33.3%) patients in the burr hole group. The mortality rate was 6.7% in both groups. The mean residual volume on postoperative day 30 was 0.75 mL in the endoscope-assisted group and 1.75 mL in the burr hole aspiration group. No patients treated with endoscope-assisted evacuation required a repeat surgery, whereas five patients (33.3%) treated with the conventional burr hole method required a repeat surgery., Conclusions:  This study showed that the endoscope-assisted procedure has a better rate of abscess evacuation, lower residual risk, and less chance of repeat surgeries than the conventional burr hole procedure., Competing Interests: None declared., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of erythropoietin (EPO) as a novel treatment for peripheral nerve injury after surgical repair of an induced tibial nerve injury in dogs., Methods: Mongrel dogs (n = 27) were randomly divided into three equal groups. A complete tibial nerve injury was induced and repaired directly by stay sutures and the local application of 1 mL fibrin glue (control group). In the "systemic" group, 20,000 IU of EPO were given subcutaneously immediately after surgery and on the first and second days after surgery. In the "local" group, EPO was mixed with fibrin glue at 1,000 IU/mL. Lameness score, compound muscle action potential of the tibial nerve, and serum biochemical and histopathological examinations were performed to evaluate the treated dogs over the study period (12 weeks)., Results: EPO significantly improved the lameness score and compound muscle action potential in both the systemic and local groups. After 12 weeks, systemic and local groups showed earlier improvement in lameness, reaching scores of -1 and 0, respectively, in comparison with the control group, which did not reach a score of -1. The histological study revealed a normal architecture of the nerve bundles within connective tissue. The axons were aligned in a regular pattern, whereas the control group had disrupted and degenerated nerve axons with large gaps in between., Conclusions: EPO has an accelerating healing effect after tibial nerve surgical repair. Local EPO mimics systemic EPO treatment without systemic adverse effects. These findings indicated that EPO has a potential role in tibial nerve recovery and nerve regeneration., Clinical Relevance: The findings of the present experimental study supported the beneficial effects of systemic and local EPO when combined with peripheral nerve surgical repair, potentially improving functional outcomes and enhancing faster recovery., (Copyright © 2023 American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Significant advancements have been made in the domain of targeted anticancer therapy for the management of malignancies in recent times. VEGFR-2 is characterised by its pivotal involvement in angiogenesis and subsequent mechanisms that promote tumour cells survival. Herein, novel N -arylmethyl-aniline/chalcone hybrids 5a-5n were designed and synthesised as potential anticancer and VEGFR-2 inhibitors. The anticancer activity was evaluated at the NCI-USA, resulting in the identification of 10 remarkably potent molecules 5a-5j that were further subjected to the five-dose assays. Thereafter, they were explored for their VEGFR-2 inhibitory activity where 5e and 5h emerged as the most potent inhibitors. 5e and 5h induced apoptosis with cell cycle arrest at the SubG 0 -G 1 phase within HCT-116 cells. Moreover, their impact on some key apoptotic genes was assessed, suggesting caspase-dependent apoptosis. Furthermore, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations were conducted to explore the binding modes and stability of the protein-ligand complexes.

Purpose: To characterize delivery features and explore effectiveness of telehealth-based cancer rehabilitation interventions that address disability in adult cancer survivors., Methods: A systematic review of electronic databases (CINAHL Plus, Cochrane Library: Database of Systematic Reviews, Embase, National Health Service's Health Technology Assessment, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science) was conducted in December 2019 and updated in April 2021., Results: Searches identified 3,499 unique studies. Sixty-eight studies met inclusion criteria. There were 81 unique interventions across included studies. Interventions were primarily delivered post-treatment and lasted an average of 16.5 weeks (SD = 13.1). They were most frequently delivered using telephone calls (59%), administered delivered by nursing professionals (35%), and delivered in a one-on-one format (88%). Risk of bias of included studies was primarily moderate to high. Included studies captured 55 measures of disability. Only 54% of reported outcomes had data that allowed calculation of effect sizes ranging -3.58 to 15.66., Conclusions: The analyses suggest small effects of telehealth-based cancer interventions on disability, though the heterogeneity seen in the measurement of disability makes it hard to draw firm conclusions. Further research using more diverse samples, common measures of disability, and pragmatic study designs is needed to advance telehealth in cancer rehabilitation., Implications for Cancer Survivors: Telehealth-based cancer rehabilitation interventions have the potential to increase access to care designed to reduce disability across the cancer care continuum., (© 2022. This is a U.S. government work and not under copyright protection in the U.S.; foreign copyright protection may apply.)

Introduction The overlap in clinical presentation between COVID-19 and dengue poses challenges for diagnosis in co-endemic regions. Furthermore, there have been reports of antibody cross-reactivity between SARS-CoV-2 and dengue. Our research aims to evaluate SARS-CoV-2 antigens for serological testing while reducing the possibility of cross-reactivity with anti-dengue antibodies. Method Two hundred and ten serum samples were collected from 179 patients and divided into four panels. Panels 1 and 2 consisted of COVID-19-negative healthy donors (n=81) and pre-pandemic dengue patients (n=50), respectively. Alternatively, Panel 3 (n=19) was composed of reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR)-positive samples collected within two weeks of COVID-19 symptom onset, while Panel 4 (n=60) was composed of positive samples collected after two weeks of symptom onset. Previously developed and characterized in-house SARS-CoV-2 spike-1 (S1), receptor binding domain (RBD), and nucleocapsid (N) immunoglobin G (IgG)-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assays were used for the study. Results Six dengue-positive sera cross-reacted with the RBD of SARS-CoV-2. However, only one dengue-positive sera cross-reacted with the S1 and N proteins of SARS-CoV-2. Co-immobilization of S1 and RBD in different ratios revealed an 80:20 (S1:RBD) ratio as optimal for achieving an overall 96.2% sensitivity with the least cross-reaction to anti-dengue antibodies. Conclusion Our findings indicated that SARS-CoV-2 RBD-based immunoassays present more cross-reactivity with anti-dengue antibodies than S1 and N proteins. Furthermore, co-immobilization of S1 and RBD reduces the cross-reactivity with anti-dengue antibodies compared to RBD, thereby increasing the immunoassay specificity without affecting overall sensitivity for the dengue-endemic areas., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2023, Adnan et al.)

Introduction: The immune response to different Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines is under-investigated in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients, especially in the Middle East and North Africa. We carried out this research to estimate the effectiveness of COVID-19 immunization in ESKD patients on regular hemodialysis (HD)., Methods: In this prospective observational study, we enrolled 60 ESKD patients on regular HD who had completed COVID-19 vaccination and 30 vaccinated healthy participants. Serum levels of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 immunoglobulin G (SARS-COV2 IgG) were quantified 1 month after completing the vaccination schedule, and all participants were followed up from October 2021 to March 2022. The vaccines used in the study were from Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca, and Sinopharm., Results: The median level of SARS-COV2 IgG was lower in HD patients than in healthy participants (p < 0.001). Regarding the type of COVID-19 vaccination, there was no statistical difference in SARS-COV2 IgG levels among HD patients. During the observation period, none of the HD patients had COVID-19., Conclusion: COVID-19 vaccination appeared to be protective in HD patients for 6 months and the side effects of vaccines were tolerable.

Systematic assessments of species extinction risk at regular intervals are necessary for informing conservation action 1,2 . Ongoing developments in taxonomy, threatening processes and research further underscore the need for reassessment 3,4 . Here we report the findings of the second Global Amphibian Assessment, evaluating 8,011 species for the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. We find that amphibians are the most threatened vertebrate class (40.7% of species are globally threatened). The updated Red List Index shows that the status of amphibians is deteriorating globally, particularly for salamanders and in the Neotropics. Disease and habitat loss drove 91% of status deteriorations between 1980 and 2004. Ongoing and projected climate change effects are now of increasing concern, driving 39% of status deteriorations since 2004, followed by habitat loss (37%). Although signs of species recoveries incentivize immediate conservation action, scaled-up investment is urgently needed to reverse the current trends., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

This article presents a comprehensive review of the Active Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (A-SLAM) research conducted over the past decade. It explores the formulation, applications, and methodologies employed in A-SLAM, particularly in trajectory generation and control-action selection, drawing on concepts from Information Theory (IT) and the Theory of Optimal Experimental Design (TOED). This review includes both qualitative and quantitative analyses of various approaches, deployment scenarios, configurations, path-planning methods, and utility functions within A-SLAM research. Furthermore, this article introduces a novel analysis of Active Collaborative SLAM (AC-SLAM), focusing on collaborative aspects within SLAM systems. It includes a thorough examination of collaborative parameters and approaches, supported by both qualitative and statistical assessments. This study also identifies limitations in the existing literature and suggests potential avenues for future research. This survey serves as a valuable resource for researchers seeking insights into A-SLAM methods and techniques, offering a current overview of A-SLAM formulation.

The Bay of Bengal, the world's largest bay, is bordered by populous countries and rich in resources like fisheries, oil, gas, and minerals, while also hosting diverse marine ecosystems such as coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds; regrettably, its microbial diversity and ecological significance have received limited research attention. Here, we present amplicon (16S and 18S) profiling and shotgun metagenomics data regarding microbial communities from BoB's eastern coast, viz., Saint Martin and Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. From the 16S barcoding data, Proteobacteria appeared to be the dominant phylum in both locations, with Alteromonas, Methylophaga, Anaerospora, Marivita, and Vibrio dominating in Cox's Bazar and Pseudoalteromonas, Nautella, Marinomonas, Vibrio, and Alteromonas dominating the Saint Martin site. From the 18S barcoding data, Ochrophyta, Chlorophyta, and Protalveolata appeared among the most abundant eukaryotic divisions in both locations, with significantly higher abundance of Choanoflagellida, Florideophycidae, and Dinoflagellata in Cox's Bazar. The shotgun sequencing data reveals that in both locations, Alteromonas is the most prevalent bacterial genus, closely paralleling the dominance observed in the metabarcoding data, with Methylophaga in Cox's Bazar and Vibrio in Saint Martin. Functional annotations revealed that the microbial communities in these samples harbor genes for biofilm formation, quorum sensing, xenobiotics degradation, antimicrobial resistance, and a variety of other processes. Together, these results provide the first molecular insight into the functional and phylogenetic diversity of microbes along the BoB coast of Bangladesh. This baseline understanding of microbial community structure and functional potential will be critical for assessing impacts of climate change, pollution, and other anthropogenic disturbances on this ecologically and economically vital bay., (© 2023. Springer Nature Limited.)

Neurodegenerative disorders represent a major and growing healthcare challenge globally. Among the numerous molecular pathways implicated in their pathogenesis, calpain signaling has emerged as a crucial player in neuronal dysfunction and cell death. Calpain is a family of calcium-dependent cysteine proteases that is involved in many biological processes, such as signal transduction, cytoskeleton remodeling, and protein turnover. Dysregulation of calpain activation and activity has been associated with several neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases. Understanding the intricate structure of calpains is crucial for unraveling their roles in cellular physiology and their implications in pathology. In addition, the identification of diverse abnormalities in both humans and other animal models with deficiencies in calpain highlights the significant progress made in understanding calpain biology. In this comprehensive review, we delve into the recent roles attributed to calpains and provide an overview of the mechanisms that govern their activity during the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. The possibility of utilizing calpain inhibition as a potential therapeutic approach for treating neuronal dysfunctions in neurodegenerative disorders would be an area of interest in future calpain research., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Metwally, Al-Abbadi, Hussain, Murtaza, Abdellatif and Ahmed.)

Merging isatin and arylhydrazone moieties constitutes an efficient strategy to access new potential anticancer derivatives. Consequently, 14 hydrazone-isatin derivatives were synthesized and evaluated for their antiproliferative activity against the NCI-60 cancer cell line panel. A kinase assay demonstrated that compound VIIIb inhibited the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), which was confirmed by docking studies, molecular dynamics, and binding free energy calculations. Further characterizations showed that this compound possesses drug-likeness properties, showed a significant decrease of the cell population in the G2/M phase and led to a significant increase in early and late apoptosis, comparable to erlotinib. Also, VIIIb increased the expression of caspase-3 and Bax and decreased the expression of Bcl-2, confirming its potential as a new proapoptotic compound., (© 2023 The Authors. Archiv der Pharmazie published by Wiley-VCH GmbH on behalf of Deutsche Pharmazeutische Gesellschaft.)

This research focuses on the predictive modeling between rocks' dynamic properties and the optimization of neural network models. For this purpose, the rocks' dynamic properties were measured in terms of quality factor (Q), resonance frequency (FR), acoustic impedance (Z), oscillation decay factor (α), and dynamic Poisson's ratio (v). Rock samples were tested in both longitudinal and torsion modes. Their ratios were taken to reduce data variability and make them dimensionless for analysis. Results showed that with the increase in excitation frequencies, the stiffness of the rocks got increased because of the plastic deformation of pre-existing cracks and then started to decrease due to the development of new microcracks. After the evaluation of the rocks' dynamic behavior, the v was estimated by the prediction modeling. Overall, 15 models were developed by using the backpropagation neural network algorithms including feed-forward, cascade-forward, and Elman. Among all models, the feed-forward model with 40 neurons was considered as best one due to its comparatively good performance in the learning and validation phases. The value of the coefficient of determination (R 2  = 0.797) for the feed-forward model was found higher than the rest of the models. To further improve its quality, the model was optimized using the meta-heuristic algorithm (i.e. particle swarm optimizer). The optimizer ameliorated its R 2 values from 0.797 to 0.954. The outcomes of this study exhibit the effective utilization of a meta-heuristic algorithm to improve model quality that can be used as a reference to solve several problems regarding data modeling, pattern recognition, data classification, etc., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Land use land cover (LULC) dynamics is an important aspect of environmental studies. Lahore is one of the wide-ranging urban cities in the world experiencing rapid development in the form of unplanned urban growth and industrialization, which leads to many adverse consequences. This research focuses on the study of spatio-temporal variability of urbanization and its impact on the water quality index (WQI) in Lahore city using remote sensing (RS) and geographical information systems (GIS). Landsat images (Landsat 7 ETM + , Landsat 8 OLI) between 2005 to 2021 were used to observe the changes in urban growth over seventeen years. GIS is used to create the LULC, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and normalized difference built-up index (NDBI) maps, to study the urbanization impact on the WQI. The results of this study indicate that the groundwater quality of metropolitan Lahore city has significantly dropped within 17 years. The extent of the built-up area has been expanded from 22.4% to 953.04% with an increase in the poor WQI area from 1.95% to 37.89%, reveals a general decline in groundwater quality with urbanization. Indeed, the trends observed by the linear regression modelling showed a positive and negative correlation (R 2  = 0.67 and -0.74) of WQI with % of urban and vegetation areas respectively. GIS and RS tools have been found effective in assessing spatio-temporal phenomena of urbanization and its impact on groundwater quality. Furthermore, this research would be very helpful in making decisions for managing groundwater resources and illegal urban expansion in Lahore city., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The present study evaluates the in vitro culture growth rate of Populus alba upon using nano metal-based-oxides such as hematite (Fe 2 O 3 NPs), zinc oxide (ZnO NPs), and manganese oxide (Mn 2 O 3 NPs) nanoparticles as analogues of three primary micronutrients such as iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), and manganese (Mn), which exist in soil as micronutrients. Herein, the in vitro culture growth rate was investigated using three different concentrations ( i.e. , 20, 40, and 60 mg L -1 ) of as-prepared metal oxide nanoparticles compared to the control. In addition, the as-prepared nanoparticles have been prepared via the co-precipitation method. Furthermore, the physicochemical properties were investigated using transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and dynamic light scattering techniques. Overall, a significant difference in the biomass production-related parameters such as fresh weight, shoot length, and root length was observed compared to the control upon the treatment with micronutrient-based nano-metal-oxides ( i.e. , Mn 2 O 3 > Fe 2 O 3 > ZnO NPs, respectively). In addition, a significant increase in the root number of Populus alba plants upon their treatment with ZnO NPs was observed compared to other prepared nano-metal-oxides and the control. Also, a remarkable increase in the chlorophyll index was monitored upon the treatment with Fe 2 O 3 NPs rather than the other commonly used Mn 2 O 3 and ZnO NPs, respectively. Moreover, RAPD-PCR bioassays were applied, and the actual six primers showed a genetic variation percentage of 34.17%, indicating that Populus alba is highly genetically stable even in highly contaminated soil. As a result, our findings suggest an idea that indicates the ability to enhance the in vitro culture growth rate of Populus alba plants using metal oxide nanoparticles as analogous to essential micronutrients., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Background: Given the sparse data on vitamin D status in pediatric COVID-19, we investigated whether vitamin D deficiency could be a risk factor for susceptibility to COVID-19 in Egyptian children and adolescents. We also investigated whether vitamin D receptor (VDR) FokI polymorphism could be a genetic marker for COVID-19 susceptibility., Methods: One hundred and eighty patients diagnosed to have COVID-19 and 200 matched control children and adolescents were recruited. Patients were laboratory confirmed as SARS-CoV-2 positive by real-time RT-PCR. All participants were genotyped for VDR Fok1 polymorphism by RT-PCR. Vitamin D status was defined as sufficient for serum 25(OH) D at least 30 ng/mL, insufficient at 21-29 ng/mL, deficient at <20 ng/mL., Results: Ninety-four patients (52%) had low vitamin D levels with 74 (41%) being deficient and 20 (11%) had vitamin D insufficiency. Vitamin D deficiency was associated with 2.6-fold increased risk for COVID-19 (OR = 2.6; [95% CI 1.96-4.9]; P = 0.002. The FokI FF genotype was significantly more represented in patients compared to control group (OR = 4.05; [95% CI: 1.95-8.55]; P < 0.001)., Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency and VDR Fok I polymorphism may constitute independent risk factors for susceptibility to COVID-19 in Egyptian children and adolescents., Impact: Vitamin D deficiency could be a modifiable risk factor for COVID-19 in children and adolescents because of its immune-modulatory action. To our knowledge, ours is the first such study to investigate the VDR Fok I polymorphism in Caucasian children and adolescents with COVID-19. Vitamin D deficiency and the VDR Fok I polymorphism may constitute independent risk factors for susceptibility to COVID-19 in Egyptian children and adolescents. Clinical trials should be urgently conducted to test for causality and to evaluate the efficacy of vitamin D supplementation for prophylaxis and treatment of COVID-19 taking into account the VDR polymorphisms., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

M-type strontium hexaferrite (SrM) were successfully synthesized from Sr 2+ and Fe 3+ precursor salt through co-precipitation technique. Different higher sintering temperatures (800-1000 °C) were used to get the desired SrM with variation of Fe 3+ /Sr 2+ mole ratio as well. The characterization of SrM and its properties were investigated using modern instrumental techniques viz. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer, Scanning Electron Microscopy, Vibrating Sample Magnetometer, UV-Visible NIR Spectrometer, Impedance Analyzer and Thermal Conductivity Meter. The phase of the synthesized SrM were confirmed by comparing the XRD patterns with the standard ICDD data and Reitvelt Refinement for the SrM having Fe 3+ /Sr 2+ ratio 10 and SrM with distinct annealing temperature were performed. The structural parameters, particle size (75 nm-318 nm) and shape of the as prepared samples were changed with calcination temperature as well as mole ratio. The saturation magnetization (73.77-24.27 emu/g), coercivity (3732.28-642.10 Oe) and remanant magnetization (39.15-8.86 emu/g) were varied with calcination temperature and composition. The dielectric properties, optical properties and thermophysical properties were measured for the SrM keeping Fe 3+ /Sr 2+ ratio 10 calcined at 1000 °C. The synthesized SrM can be applied in magnetic recording media and as photocatalyst due to its low coercivity (2764.48 Oe), high saturation magnetization (73.77 emu/g) and low band gap energy (Eg-2.04 eV) respectively., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Authors.)

In veterinary clinics, esophageal reconstruction is essential in many clinical situations. In this study, two autografts, the tunica vaginalis (TV) and the buccal mucosa (BM), were proposed to reconstruct a semi-circumferential cervical esophageal defect in dogs. This study aimed to verify whether these two grafts could successfully patch esophageal defects. Twelve male mongrel dogs were divided into two groups. Following cervical esophagoplasty, the defective area was patched with either a TV or a BM graft. Comprehensive clinical, serum biochemical, and histological analyses were performed to evaluate the two grafts. Throughout the study (120 days), the dogs survived the procedure well with minor complications. The lumen of the patched areas was covered with mucosa, with slight scar retraction. Compared with that of the natural esophagus, the average relative luminal diameter was not significantly decreased. Importantly, the measured cortisol and inflammatory marker levels returned to the preoperative levels after 14 days. Although histological examination revealed that both grafts repaired the esophageal defect with complete re-epithelialization, the BM graft showed a histological structure similar to that of the natural esophagus. Both grafts effectively repaired the esophageal defect with minor complications; therefore, both are recommended as promising low-cost clinical alternatives for cervical esophagoplasty in dogs.