Search

Abstract In this work, we have focused on the preparation of copper hexacyanoferrate/boron doped rGO composites (abbreviated as CuHCF/B-rGO) by employing simple co-precipitation technique subsequently processed with ultrasonication method. The XRD spectra confirmed the existence of the cubic structure of copper hexacyanoferrate with high crystalline peaks. The prepared nanocomposite morphology was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and confirmed CuHCF nanoparticles formation with flake-like and wrinkled sheets. Pure CuHCF nanostructures revealed good OER action at 430 mV to obtain 10 mA/cm2. The obtained CuHCF product OER activity can be further upgraded by incorporating the electrically conductive boron doped reduced graphene oxide matrix into CuHCF nanostructures, for the reason that the overpotential of the CuHCF/B-rGO was reduced to 380 mV to attain 10 mA/cm2 with 88 mV/dec Tafel slope value. The doping of heteroatom considerably improves charge-transfer resistance of metal hexacyanoferrate, giving a small resistance value of 2.97 Ω, which was lower than that of CuHCF (5.57 Ω) and CuHCF/rGO (4.31 Ω). Furthermore, the catalytic activity of the CuHCF/B-rGO was stable at prolonged hours with a small decay of 12.5%. Therefore, this work offers new approach to stimulate the catalytic performance of metal hexcyanoferrate by highly conductive carbon-based materials for water splitting performance.

Oxy Fluoro Borate (OFB) Glasses mixed with Sesquioxide ions (Al3+/Y3+/Sb3+) were synthesized using the traditional melt quenching technique. The properties of the structure of the glasses prepared are investigated by SEM, EDS and XRD methods. Variations in properties like density in glasses allow Nickel/Aluminium/Antimony/Yttrium ions to go through the borate glass matrix with an increase in respective dopant mole fraction. The decrease in the values of different elastic constants with B-O-Ni/Al/Sb/Y bonds and alsoby the function of NiO/Al2O3/Sb2O3/Y2O3 as a modifier and converting a portion of BO3 tetrahedral units into BO4octahedral units indicates the depolymerization in the glass matrix. The I.R. spectra and FTIR spectra show an increment in the occupation of cations Ni2+, Y3+, Sb3+ and Al3+ ions in the octahedral positions of the glass matrix with an enhancement in their molefraction. Creation of NBOs owing to the transformation of BO3 to BO4 units is greater in Al3+ and the smallest in Y3+ with an increment in the sesquioxide concentration at a 1.00 mol% NiO concentration. The dominance of the nickel ions octahedral occupancy in the glasses prepared is revealed by the optical absorption spectra, which may be because of the ligand fields produced by various ions of sesquioxides present within the glass matrix creating NBO and many trapped electrons at the donor centers. Photoluminescence spectra of the prepared glasses show the octahedral occupation of the Ni2+ ions that is indicated by the transitions 3A2g(F) ↔ 3T1g(P) and 3T1g(P) → 3T2g(F). The synthesized glasses exhibit effective luminescence by Nickel ions, and the AlNi and NiAl glass series exhibit superior luminescence properties owing to their highest emission cross-sections compared with the other series of prepared glasses.

The study on heat and mass transportation play a noteworthy role in the liquid atmosphere wherever nearby is considerable temperature and deposition of diffusion transport in a stirring wedge. Heat and mass transport on fluids discoveries prominence in development of manufacturing and industrial processes such as petroleum reservoirs, nuclear waste disposal, heat exchanger devices, etc. By taking this into, the present study exhibited here to consider the impact of variable fluid properties on nanofluid flow over a wedge. The analysis of the flow has been analyzed consisting with the influences of heat generation/absorption and chemical reaction. It is accepted to have fluid viscosity and thermal conductivity as an opposite capability and conventional capacity of temperature, separately. The succeeding nonlinear ordinary differential circumstances are measured numerically utilizing the fourth order of the Runge-Kutta technique jointly with the shooting method. The consequence of the suitable parameters concerning the flow has been explained through graphs and tables, together with the necessary contentions/conversation. The accompanying investigation exhibits that the fluid temperature is higher within the view of a variable viscosity and heat generation parameters. It is additionally seen that the wall stress diminishes with expanding velocity slip.

Background: Early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS) remains a significant cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality, particularly in resource-limited settings. EONS is defined as sepsis occurring within 72 hours of birth, often associated with maternal risk factors such as premature rupture of membranes and intrapartum infections. Identifying risk factors and improving early diagnosis are critical to reducing adverse outcomes in neonates. Objective: This study aimed to assess the incidence, microbial profile, cutaneous manifestations, risk factors, and diagnostic accuracy of early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS) in a large urban hospital. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of a large urban hospital in Khammam. The study included 100 neonates admitted within 72 hours of birth between January and December 2023. EONS was diagnosed based on clinical suspicion and confirmed by blood cultures and laboratory markers. Data collection included demographic, clinical, and maternal risk factors. Multivariable logistic regression identified significant risk factors for EONS, while receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis assessed diagnostic accuracy. Results: Eighteen neonates (18%) were diagnosed with EONS, with Escherichia coli being the most common pathogen (44%). Significant risk factors included premature rupture of membranes (OR = 4.3, p = 0.001), maternal intrapartum fever (OR = 2.8, p = 0.03), and low Apgar scores. The ROC curve for the diagnostic model showed strong accuracy (AUC = 0.85, 95% CI: 0.78-0.92). Conclusion: EONS remains a prevalent issue in urban NICUs, with identifiable risk factors and microbial profiles. Early identification through clinical and maternal markers can significantly improve outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The preparation of efficient thin film-based electrode materials is a vital prerequisite for practical energy storage devices. Herein, we have prepared unique vanadium carbon nitride (VCN) thin films on FTO substrates by pulsed DC magnetron sputtering technique for competent supercapacitor electrodes. XRD analysis confirmed the crystalline nature of VCN thin films. SEM and AFM revealed a smooth morphology with an average grain size of 30 nm. Raman spectra showed two broad peaks around 1346 and 1589 cm ^−1 , belonging to the D-band and G-band of VCN. The surface electronic states of VCN were investigated by XPS analysis, which confirmed the formation of pure VCN films without any impurities. The electrochemical performance of the thin film electrode was evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV), Galvanostatic charge–discharge (GCD), and Electrochemical impedance analysis (EIS). The electrochemical results showed the VCN thin films exhibited super capacitive behaviours. The maximum specific capacitance (Cs) value of 78.2 F g ^−1 was obtained from GCD studies. A variation in charge transfer resistance is detected from the EIS study, which arises due to the partial oxidation of the active nitride component. The VCN electrode showed good cycling stability, retaining 87% of its capacitance at a current density of 5 A g ^−1 even after 2000 cycles. The sputtered VCN films have been demonstrated as potential thin film electrodes for electrochemical supercapacitors for practical energy storage devices.

Wildlife intrusion detection and alert systems are designed to detect and alert wildlife intrusion events, such as animals crossing highways, entering farms or protected areas, and approaching human settlements. This system often uses advanced technologies, such as cameras, sensors, and machine learning algorithms, to detect and identify animal species and behaviors. Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are a type of deep learning algorithm commonly used for image and video analysis tasks, including object detection and classification. CNNs can learn to extract features from images and videos automatically and accurately, making them well-suited for detecting animals in wildlife intrusion detection systems.

Background: Diabetes, is known to have a bilateral relationship with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Precise mechanism of diabetes onset in COVID-19 patients remains unclear. Aim: To analyse the incidence of new onset diabetes (NODM) among COVID-19 patients, as well as the effect of body mass index (BMI), family history, and steroid use on the incidence of the disease. Methods: Adult, not known diabetic patients, tested positive with Rapid Antigen Test or RT-PCR admitted to a tertiary care hospital and research institute were included in the present prospective observational study. The patients who developed NODM and NOPD (New Onset Pre-diabetes) during the three months follow-up and the risk factors associated were assessed. Patients with HbA1c >6.4% were diagnosed with NODM. An HbA1c of 5.7% to 6.4% was used to characterize NOPD. Results: Out of 273 previously not known diabetic COVID-19 infected individuals, a total of 100 were studied for three months after consent. Mean age of the patients 48.31 ± 19.07 years with male predominance (67%). Among these, 58% were non-diabetics and 42% were pre-diabetics. 6 (10.3%) of the 58 non-diabetics developed NOPD, and 8 (13.8%) developed NODM. 6 (14.2%) of the 42 pre-diabetics became non-diabetic, and 16.6% (7) developed NODM. Family history of DM (P < 0.001), severity at admission (P < 0.006), diabetic ketoacidosis (P < 0.0275), and persistent symptoms were associated significantly with NODM. Those with NODM had significantly greater BMI, O2 duration, steroid duration, FBS, and PPBS (P < 0.001 for all). Nearly 67% of the patients who developed NOPD had shortness of breath as the common symptom at time of admission (P = 0.0165). Conclusion: The incidence of NODM was strongly influenced by positive family history of DM, higher BMI, steroid dosage, and its duration. Hence, patients with COVID-19 need to be under surveillance for blood glucose screening.

BACKGROUND: Type-2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is the most challenging public health problem. Most of the people are unaware of the disease and its preventive measures and complications. It is important to acknowledge the gap in the knowledge and awareness of the disease to prevent the disease and effectively plan public health care. METHODOLOGY: This was a cross-sectional study with the objective to assess the level of knowledge and awareness regarding type-2 DM and its complications among urban and rural population and to compare them. The sample size was calculated as 404 among >30 years of age with Type-2 DM with >1 year of duration with or without complications. Data was collected on demographic details, knowledge, awareness, complications and lifestyle modifications by using the structured questionnaire. The collected data was compared among urban and rural patients and the association was seen between different factors by appropriate statistical test. RESULTS: The knowledge on normal blood sugar was (45.6% and 27.2%) in urban and rural, HbA1C (63.8% and 49.5%), family history of diabetes (59.4% and 43.1%), whether DM2 is a multi system disorder, monitoring of blood sugar levels and frequency of monitoring and checkups were found to be more in the urban compare to the rural with P < 0.05. The awareness on complications like the rate of complications with increase in time (66.3% and 57.0%), awareness of diabetic foot (52.9% and 37.1%), prone to infections (67.3% and 58.9%), prone to COVID 19 infection (74.7% and 64.9%), most common organ involved as the complication arise was kidney (39.6% and 33.7%) with P < 0.05. CONCLUSION: The study suggests that there is a need to improve knowledge about DM and its complications, and there is a need for diabetes-specific health awareness campaigns on behavior and lifestyle changes, adherence to treatment and self-care.

Introduction: Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is an important cause of maternal mortality and morbidity. But, there is a paucity of prospective data on outcomes and prognostic markers in patients receiving contemporary evidence-based therapy, particularly in developing countries. Methods: This was a single centre, prospective, cohort study on 43 PPCM patients who were followed for 6 months. The primary endpoint was a composite incidence of decompensation related re-hospitalization, all-cause death, and poor recovery (defined as left ventricular ejection fraction, LVEF: 29.6 ml/m2 with 72% accuracy) at presentation but not LVEF, predicts poor outcomes. Presence of both these risk factors at index hospitalization was associated with a significantly lower event free survival compared to patients without these predictors.

BackgroundDuring the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India, the Ministry of Ayush conducted a community study to provide therapeutic care to patients with asymptomatic, mild, and moderate COVID-19 in home isolation based on the empirical evidence generated on the efficacy of AYUSH-64 in COVID-19.ObjectiveTo document disease characteristics, care-seeking behavior, and outcomes in patients with asymptomatic, mild, or moderate COVID-19 in home isolation who used AYUSH-64 for COVID-19.MethodsCross-sectional analysis of the data generated through a community study conducted in India from 08 May to 31 August 2021 was performed to study the disease characteristics, care-seeking behavior during home isolation, clinical outcomes, adverse events, and the association between various risk factors and clinical recovery during the study period. The data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires, available in electronic data collection format at the baseline, 7, 14, and 21 days. A logistic regression was performed to explore the relationship between relevant variables and clinical recovery.ResultsData from 64,642 participants were analyzed for baseline assessment, and final analysis was done for 49,770 participants. The mean age of the enrolled participants was 38.8 ± 11.7 years, and 8.4% had co-morbidities. AYUSH-64 was utilized as an add-on to the standard care by 58.3% of participants. Comparable clinical outcomes were observed in participants utilizing AYUSH-64 either as a standalone or as an add-on to standard care, in terms of clinical recovery, disease progression, the requirement for oxygen supplementation, hospitalization, ICU admission, and need for ventilator support. Younger age, having no co-morbidities or substance abuse, and having been vaccinated were associated with early clinical recovery than those who were older and not vaccinated.ConclusionsThe study findings suggest that AYUSH-64 use, either standalone or as an adjunct to standard care, in asymptomatic, mild, or moderate COVID-19 is associated with good clinical outcomes. Ayush services and interventions can be effectively integrated into the mainstream public health architecture to serve public health goals.