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Moatazbellah I Ali,1,2 Ahmad Alrayabi,2 Ahmed Sallam,2 Abdulsalam S Alshamarani,2 Mohammed S Almuqahwi,2 Shrief Y Afifi1,2 1Neuropsychiatry Department, Okasha Institute of Psychiatry, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt; 2Department of Addiction, Erada and Mental Health Complex, Eastern Health Cluster, Dammam, Saudi ArabiaCorrespondence: Shrief Y Afifi, Neuropsychiatry Department, Okasha Institute of Psychiatry, Ain Shams University, Cairo, 32424, Egypt, Tel +966590651908, Email sad19941989@gmail.comPurpose: There has been limited research on Saudi patients with substance use disorders (SUDs) that has examined and assessed the psychotherapy modalities utilized in rehabilitation. Therefore, there is a need to evaluate rehabilitation programs in the continuous care unit of the Erada Complex for Mental Health, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia.Patients and Methods: The purpose of this study was to compare patients who finished the program with those who did not in order to determine the rate of re-admission and recurrence. Male patients (1160) aged > 20 who had been diagnosed with SUDs were included in this retrospective cohort study. After ruling out mood, anxiety, psychosis, and other psychiatric disorders, they commenced a one-year rehabilitation program. Six months after leaving the facility, all participants who completed the program or not were re-admitted had relapses and underwent urine toxicological tests.Results: Data analysis showed that 34.97% of patients completed the program, while 65.03% of patients did not complete the program. Within 6 months of follow-up after discharge, re-admission occurred in only 13.1% of patients that completed the program, but patients who did not complete the program had a readmission rate that reached 26.9% with statistical significance. In comparison between the two groups regarding relapse without needing admission, there was a significant difference between patients who completed the program (reached 14%) and those who did not complete the program (reached 28.9%). With a logistic regression model, the only significant predictor was completion of the program (the odds ratio was 0.42).Conclusion: The present results in this study revealed that patients with substance use disorder who had finished the specific rehabilitation program in the continuous care unit had lower risk of relapse and re-admission. Further studies are needed to elucidate the importance of the rehabilitation programs in the management of substance use disorder.Keywords: psychotherapy, rehabilitation, re-admission, recurrence

Composite materials play a crucial role in various industries, with plastic composites being particularly significant. This research specifically focuses on producing cotton fabric layers to reinforce polymeric composites. The experiment is designed in two phases. In the first stage, woven fabric is produced using roving as weft insertion instead of the conventional threads or spun yarns. This modification enhances the absorbency of the resin matrix during composite production, leading to improved properties. The second stage of the experiment involves manufacturing composite materials using different fabric structures (plain, twill, and sateen) and varying numbers of fabric layers (1, 3, and 5). This is achieved through a novel process called Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM), which is used for fabric composites instead of the traditional laminated composites. VARTM offers advantages in terms of production efficiency and composite quality. To evaluate the physical and mechanical properties of the resulting composites, several tests are conducted. These include tensile properties testing, bending rigidity testing, measurement of composite thickness, and determination of density. The test results provide valuable insights into the performance of fabric composites under different conditions. Furthermore, the experimental results are compared with simulations conducted using the Finite Element Method (FEM) through COMSOL software. The agreement between the experimental and simulated results confirms the reliability of the proposed approach.

Abstract Many electrical devices can be powered and operated by harvesting the wasted energy of the surroundings. This research aims to overcome the challenges of output power with a sharp peak, small bandwidth, and the huge dimensions of the piezoelectric energy harvesters relative to the output power. The aforementioned challenges motivated us to investigate the effect of nonlinearity in the shape (tapered and straight cross-section area) as well as the fixation method (the number of fastened ends) to determine the optimal design with high output power and wide working frequency. This research proposes a novel piezoelectric energy harvester array, where each beam is made up of three fixed beams that are joined together by a center mass. The proposed design produces an output power of 35 mW between 25 and 40 Hz. The output power of the proposed design is 3.24 times more than the conventional designs. The recommended approach is simulated utilizing finite element analysis FEA. Analytical and experimental methods validate the proposed FEA, which exhibits excellent agreement.

Abdelrahman M Elhusseiny,1,2 Muhammad Z Chauhan,1 Ahmed B Sallam1,3 1Department of Ophthalmology, Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; 2Department of Ophthalmology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; 3Department of Ophthalmology, Ain Shams University, Cairo, EgyptCorrespondence: Ahmed B Sallam, Department of Ophthalmology, Jones Eye Institute, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 W Markham Street # 523, Little Rock, AR, 72205, USA, Email ahmedsallam11@yahoo.comPurpose: Many physicians charge more than the Medicare insurance program pays. Current charge-to-payment ratios in ophthalmology and trends over the years are unknown. In this work, we examined physician charge-to-payment ratios in ophthalmology across procedures and consultations.Methods: We utilized data from 100% final-action physician/supplier Part B Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) population from 2015 to 2020. We retrieved data on ophthalmic procedures and consultations, both facility-based and non-facility-based, conducted by ≥ 50 ophthalmologists. We analyzed median charge-to-payment ratios, which were calculated as submitted charges divided by the Medicare-allowed payments, between ophthalmic procedures and consultations to assess for trends over the study period.Results: We find that the median charge-to-payment ratio for all current procedural terminology (CPT) codes in 2020 was 2.23 (Interquartile range (IQR): 1.54– 3.27) as compared to 2.00 (IQR: 1.39– 2.92) in 2015, an overall 2.76% average annual growth rate from 2015– 2020. For ophthalmic procedures, the median charge-to-payment ratio in 2020 was 3.03 (IQR: 2.13– 4.41) compared to 2.79 (IQR: 1.96– 3.97) in 2015, corresponding to a 2.01% AAGR from 2015– 2020. For consultations, those rates were 2.06 (IQR: 1.48– 2.96), 1.85 (IQR: 1.33– 2.59), and 2.71%, respectively.Conclusion: We found that the submitted charge-to-Medicare payment ratios among ophthalmic procedures and consultations have steadily increased since 2015. However, there was a relatively low rate of excess charges for ophthalmology services compared to other surgical-based specialties with minimal variation among providers.Keywords: medicare excess charge, ophthalmology services, billing, trends, allowed medicare payments

This review article provides a detailed overview of the advanced applications of piezoelectric material in electrochemical processes. Energy harvesting, a potential topic, aims to transform ambient energy sources, including heat, light, and mechanical motion, into useful energy that would otherwise be wasted. This review focuses on an innovative and developing field that intends to connect-directly energy-harvesting devices and materials to the electrochemical systems. To regulate electrochemical processes in presence of piezoelectric materials, electrochemical reactions are dominantly influenced by produced electric charge under mechanical stress. In detail, the applications of piezoelectric material electrochemistry involved for dye degradation, hydrogen production, self-charging power cells, nanogenerator and water splitting is discussed under the umbrella of piezocatalysis. A very focused data is presented for piezo electrochemical hybrid systems from the future perspective and the potential applications for current enhancement induced by internal piezoelectric effect of the systems are also highlighted.

This paper introduces a model of sound energy harvesting that operates at a low frequency of less than 200 Hz. This investigation focuses on the produced outcomes when the vibrations of sound energy are converted into electricity. Sound vibrations are received from outside sources and pass through a piezoelectric barrier (wall) equipped with 4*3 array of energy harvesting elements of lead zirconate titanate (PZT-5H) cantilever plates which are constructed to harvest noise in the form of sound from passing trains and vehicles on roads. This paper covers how sound vibrations change into electrical energy at two sound pressure levels (85 dB and 100 dB for environmental noise of road vehicles and railways, respectively). Furthermore, the effects of changing the pressure level on the generated voltage for the intended model have been studied as well as the effects of increasing the piezoelectric plate number on the voltage generated for the 85 dB pressure level. The simulation is conducted numerically using the Finite Element Method FEM (COMSOL). An analytical model of a literature paper is used and simulated using MATLAB to be compared with the FEM results and found to be completely converged. Afterward, to figure out the relationship between voltage and sound pressure level, an equation is derived analytically. According to simulation results, 15 V and 18.2 V are produced for an incoming acoustic pressure level of 85 dB and 100 dB, respectively. Two models are compared, an array of beams with similar dimensions and a single beam with a volume that equals the dimensions of all array beams; it is observed that the array of beams produced 33.9 % more voltage than a single beam with the same volume. The comparison of the proposed model results with experimental literature results is conducted and exhibited an excellent convergence.

This paper reviews self-powered medical devices integrated with advanced energy harvesting technologies. This article aims to explain the advantages of integrating self-powered medical devices with advanced energy harvesting technologies, outlining the transformation in healthcare system and patient experience. In today's world, we focus more on consuming energy harnessed from the environment and human body. This approach lowers down our emphasis on conventional power sources like batteries, power packs etc. As a result, the devices used in the medical sector have a longer lifespan, maintain continuous functioning, and improve patient comfort and mobility. Integrating advanced energy harvesting technologies (i.e., piezoelectric, thermal, solar, and electromagnetic) with medical devices plays a pivotal role in revolutionizing the healthcare sector. But there is still some research and development needed to enhance these technologies. This paper will set out by introducing some self-powered medical devices commonly used in healthcare, followed by their advantages, benefits, and challenges that the healthcare practitioners face. This review also discusses their biocompatibility factor which is crucial to use. Then there are examples of a few advanced energy harvesting methods that are being used which include: piezoelectric, solar, thermal, triboelectric and electromagnetic. As we go further, we will come across a table consisting of a comparison between these advanced energy harvesting technologies and their examples in the healthcare sector. The last section is future perspective and the conclusion highlights the transformative potential of this integration, followed by a future recommendation for advancing this field.

This paper highlights the advancement in wind energy harvesting using piezoelectric materials to produce sustainable power generation. It is a highly encouraging, fascinating, and challenging method to capture energy from piezoelectric materials. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the principal characteristic groups that affect energy harvesting performance and to provide recommendations for further improvement. Piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEH) can provide electricity for low-power electronic devices, which additionally possess the potential to boost self-powered, autonomous devices. The objective of this article is to provide recommendations for wind energy harvester modeling techniques. After establishing the fundamental idea of Piezoelectric Wind Energy Harvesters (PWEHs), it is next examined how well these devices function structurally and where their research stands in relation to various phenomena, including vortex-induced vibration, flutter, and galloping. A cantilever beam connected with a tip body is the typical component of a galloping piezoelectric harvester for wind energy collection. Wind energy has been turned into mechanical vibrations and ultimately into electrical power via the flutter phenomena. Fluttering-based wind energy harvesters are a new technology that provides an effective replacement for conventional wind turbines. The future development trend for PWEHs has been anticipated. The most current developments in strategies and approaches for wind energy harvesting using piezoelectric materials are also discussed in this paper. First, this paper highlights various piezoelectric energy harvesting materials, then it shows various wind energy harvesters’ design. After that this paper displays various types of wind energy harvesters and their applications. Finally, it highlights some challenges, future development, and recommendations.

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a pivotal target in cancer therapy due to its significance within the tyrosine kinase family. EGFR inhibitors like AG-1478 and PD153035, featuring a 4-anilinoquinazoline moiety, have garnered global attention for their potent therapeutic activities. While pre-clinical studies have highlighted the significant impact of halogen substitution at the C3’-anilino position on drug potency, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study investigates the influence of halogen substitution (X = H, F, Cl, Br, I) on the structure, properties, and spectroscopy of halogen-substituted 4-anilinoquinazoline tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) using time-dependent density functional methods (TD-DFT) with the B3LYP functional. Our calculations revealed that halogen substitution did not induce significant changes in the three-dimensional conformation of the TKIs but led to noticeable alterations in electronic properties, such as dipole moment and spatial extent, impacting interactions at the EGFR binding site. The UV–visible spectra show that more potent TKI-X compounds typically have shorter wavelengths, with bromine’s peak wavelength at 326.71 nm and hydrogen, with the lowest IC50 nM, shifting its lambda max to 333.17 nm, indicating a correlation between potency and spectral characteristics. Further analysis of the four lowest-lying conformers of each TKI-X, along with their crystal structures from the EGFR database, confirms that the most potent conformer is often not the global minimum structure but one of the low-lying conformers. The more potent TKI-Cl and TKI-Br exhibit larger deviations (RMSD > 0.65 Å) from their global minimum structures compared to other TKI-X (RMSD < 0.15 Å), indicating that potency is associated with greater flexibility. Dipole moments of TKI-X correlate with drug potency (ln(IC50 nM)), with TKI-Cl and TKI-Br showing significantly higher dipole moments (>8.0 Debye) in both their global minimum and crystal structures. Additionally, optical spectral shifts correlate with potency, as TKI-Cl and TKI-Br exhibit blue shifts from their global minimum structures, in contrast to other TKI-X. This suggests that optical reporting can effectively probe drug potency and conformation changes.

The quadrotor represents a class of highly nonlinear dynamic systems and its controllability features are challenging. Hence, it serves as an ideal unmanned aerial vehicle platform to validate many artificial intelligence-based research investigations. Nonetheless, most of the offline tuning approaches devote efforts to find near optimal control gains to regulate individually the decoupled motion directions. This work adopts a multi-objective self-adjusting search mechanism to actuate the motions of a quadrotor via deciding the control gains of the interacting loops simultaneously. This algorithm employs a first order low pass filter transfer function as an accepting approach for the tunning mechanism. The proposed approach is compared with a Genetic Algorithm and another nonlinear Proportional-Integral-Derivative approach to highlight the usefulness of the proposed mechanism. It was founded that quadrotor follows the desired trajectory with a small tracking error of less than 2% in the X-Y plane and less than 1 % error tracking error in the altitude Z. Also, it is recorded that MONLTA can overcome the simulated wind disturbances of 0.1 N.m as a disturbance torque.

Acute upper limb ischemia (ALI) due to brachial artery occlusion is a rare but catastrophic condition that poses a significant threat to limb viability and can result in limb amputation or death. Accurate diagnosis and timely intervention are crucial to avoid catastrophic consequences. Literature on ALI due to brachial artery occlusion is scant and usually related to atrial fibrillation. We report a 40-year-old female presented with sudden onset left upper limb pain, change in color, and neurological deficits in the last three days. A color Doppler ultrasound revealed a complete occlusion of the left brachial artery with echogenic thrombosis suggestive of ALI. The patient urgently underwent a thrombectomy with an uneventful outcome. In conclusion, even though ALI due to brachial artery occlusion is rare, a heightened level of suspicion, precise diagnosis, and timely management are essential to prevent any fatal consequences.

This work studies a new framework for damage detection in composite plate systems made of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) through analysis of electrical capacitance sensors (ECS) measurements. First, the plate damage finite element model is established, where one side of the plate is subjected to the fatigue effect of applied pressure, then the electrical potential difference between the electrode pairs (EPD) is measured before and after damage. The distributed ECS measuring electrodes are installed around the Plate and loaded the transient external excitations between each other. The transfer function (TF) of the “open loop” plate system is suggested and applied to reflect damage evolution. The accuracy and reliability of the proposed technique are validated with available experimental results in the literature. Results show that the signal magnitude will suddenly and sensitively change when the damage starts to grow under electrode pairs, which shows the effectiveness of the proposed approach and promising potential for engineering applications.

This paper provides a comprehensive review of the recent progress made in energy harvesting systems for wearable technology. An energy-harvesting system would be a useful strategy to address the issue of powering wearable electronic devices. This review presents different wearable energy harvesting methods based on the human body's heat and mechanical energy. To achieve continuous operation and high performance, reduce the requirement for external sources of energy, and enhance the lifespan of wearable devices, the invention of a sustainable and compatible power supply is required. In the human body, heat and mechanical motions are the two reliable and readily available energy sources. This study highlights the most recent research and advancements in energy harvesting from the human's mechanical motion and heat source. This article provides a detailed overview of the different wearable energy harvesters, their fabrication, working, and output results, which include piezoelectric, electrostatic, triboelectric, electromagnetic, thermoelectric, solar and hybrid wearable energy harvesters. The second part defines wearable energy harvesting using smart systems and artificial intelligence technology. Then the comparison of these energy harvesters is analyzed. Hybrid wearable energy harvesters provide the maximum power densities because they use two combined energy conversions. The advantages, limitations, and future perspectives of wearable energy harvesting technology are also discussed. Lastly, the wearable energy harvesters' market, and general developing and manufacturing cost of each wearable device is also presented functioning as a point of reference to comprehend the cost factors that are taken into account during the development and manufacturing processes.

This paper introduces a multi-objective design mechanism to minimize both the initial and running costs of industrial robot arms. The goal of the design problem is to decide the type of material and physical dimensions of the robot arm to withstand high loads at vulnerable locations using stress analysis. Additionally, it selects the material architecture for the robot links based on a vibration analysis to avoid robot failure at or close to the resonance frequency. Hence, a set of design equations based on stress analysis are developed using analytical approaches while the findings are supported by finite element simulations in ANSYS. These decide the type of material, cross-section area, factor of safety (FoS), and maximum deflection of the robot links in terms of the mass-loads. Moreover, the vibration analysis is conducted to enhance the dynamic characteristics of the robot arm. Therefore, the excitation frequency is modified by changing the mass and the robot segment-material to evade working at the natural frequency. Modal analysis is conducted using ANSYS to identify the fundamental frequencies and their modal shapes. Then, a material selection mechanism based on finite element analysis is considered to allow a safe frequency operation range for the robot arm. A customized robot arm structure that combines Magnesium and Aluminum alloy with highly improved FoS and minimizes the initial and operating costs is proposed. In addition to the body structure of the robot arm, the influence of the reducers and motors on the stiffness and vibration of the robot arm is presented. Finally, the motion of the robot arm is optimized using a Genetic Algorithm subject to a set of boundary conditions imposed by the desired mission. The effect of rotation angle value in the power consumption is presented. The coefficients of a developed angular displacement function are optimized to ensure minimum power consumption during the robot missions.

This paper provides a short review of sustainable hybrid energy harvesting and its applications. The potential usage of self-powered wireless sensor (WSN) systems has recently drawn a lot of attention to sustainable energy harvesting. The objective of this research is to determine the potential of hybrid energy harvesters to help single energy harvesters overcome their energy deficiency problems. The major findings of the study demonstrate how hybrid energy harvesting, which integrates various energy conversion technologies, may increase power outputs, and improve space utilization efficiency. Hybrid energy harvesting involves collecting energy from multiple sources and converting it into electrical energy using various transduction mechanisms. By properly integrating different energy conversion technologies, hybridization can significantly increase power outputs and improve space utilization efficiency. Here, we present a review of recent progress in hybrid energy-harvesting systems for sustainable green energy harvesting and their applications in different fields. This paper starts with an introduction to hybrid energy harvesting, showing different hybrid energy harvester configurations, i.e., the integration of piezoelectric and electromagnetic energy harvesters; the integration of piezoelectric and triboelectric energy harvesters; the integration of piezoelectric, triboelectric, and electromagnetic energy harvesters; and others. The output performance of common hybrid systems that are reported in the literature is also outlined in this review. Afterwards, various potential applications of hybrid energy harvesting are discussed, showing the practical attainability of the technology. Finally, this paper concludes by making recommendations for future research to overcome the difficulties in developing hybrid energy harvesters. The recommendations revolve around improving energy conversion efficiency, developing advanced integration techniques, and investigating new hybrid configurations. Overall, this study offers insightful information on sustainable hybrid energy harvesting together with quantitative information, numerical findings, and useful research recommendations that progress and promote the use of this technology.

Introduction: Regenerative solutions of the skin represent a hope for burn victims with extensive skin loss and chronic wound patients. The development of xeno-free workflow is crucial for clinical application in compliance with the directives of the European Medicines Agency. This study aimed at evaluating the outcome of the xeno-free isolation workflow of keratinocytes from human skin biopsy. Methods: Skin biopsies were obtained from volunteers. The epidermis was digested with TrypLE™ Select, which was deactivated by dilution or with trypsin, deactivated by media with fetal bovine serum. Freshly isolated cells were compared for total cell number, viability, activity of caspase 3, gene expression and the presence of the keratinocyte surface markers cytokeratin 14. The cells were cultured in xeno-free conditions for one week and characterized regarding the number and viability as well as the metalloproteinase secretion. Results: The number of obtained cells was similar in both workflows. The cell viability was less in the TrypLE group, with slight reduction of the cell surface marker cytokeratin 14. Caspase 3 activity was comparable as well as the gene expression of the apoptotic markers BAX, BCL2 and SLUG, as well as the keratinocyte markers cytokeratin 14, stratifin and filaggrin. Upon culture, the number of keratinocytes, their viability and secretion of matrix metalloproteinases 1 and 10 were equal in both groups. Conclusion: This study reports the possibility of isolating functioning and viable keratinocytes through a xeno-free workflow for clinical application.

A rapidly expanding global population and a sizeable portion of it that is aging are the main causes of the significant increase in healthcare costs. Healthcare in terms of monitoring systems is undergoing radical changes, making it possible to gauge or monitor the health conditions of people constantly, while also removing some minor possibilities of going to the hospital. The development of automated devices that are either attached to organs or the skin, continually monitoring human activity, has been made feasible by advancements in sensor technologies, embedded systems, wireless communication technologies, nanotechnologies, and miniaturization being ultra-thin, lightweight, highly flexible, and stretchable. Wearable sensors track physiological signs together with other symptoms such as respiration, pulse, and gait pattern, etc., to spot unusual or unexpected events. Help may therefore be provided when it is required. In this study, wearable sensor-based activity-monitoring systems for people are reviewed, along with the problems that need to be overcome. In this review, we have shown smart detecting and versatile wearable electrical sensing mediums in healthcare. We have compiled piezoelectric-, electrostatic-, and thermoelectric-based wearable sensors and their working mechanisms, along with their principles, while keeping in view the different medical and healthcare conditions and a discussion on the application of these biosensors in human health. A comparison is also made between the three types of wearable energy-harvesting sensors: piezoelectric-, electrostatic-, and thermoelectric-based on their output performance. Finally, we provide a future outlook on the current challenges and opportunities.

Comprising a total of seven articles divided into five research articles, one review article, and one editorial article, this Special Issue is dedicated to new techniques for piezoelectric energy harvesting and its design, optimization, applications, and analysis [...]

The piezoelectric energy harvester efficiency depends on optimizing the cantilever geometry and tuning its natural frequency with vibration source frequency. Moreover, the effect of harvester parameters on natural frequency is vital in tuning the resonance frequency. So, a COMSOL Multi-physics finite element analysis, Eigen frequency study and analytical analysis using MATLAB were constructed to calculate the resonance frequencies and to analyze the harvester parameters effect. Five harvester different shapes, namely, the T-shaped, rectangular, L-shaped, variable width, and triangular cantilevers were optimized using the genetic algorithm. The simulation of the five shapes was implemented using COMSOL. The results indicated that the T- shaped cantilever produced the largest power. Due to its high power and inclusive shape, the T-shaped cantilever with variable width was optimized using the COMSOL optimization module (BOBYQA). Linking genetic algorithm and COMSOL optimization module has highly improved the output power. The COMSOL results were validated using an experimental setup of piezoelectric cantilevers. The experimental setup was employed to calculate the voltage of the base excited harvester with very low excitation frequencies from 0.5 to 10 Hz. Also, the experimental setup investigated the effect of the tip mass, length of the cantilever, and piezoelectric material volume on the output voltage.

In the current research, optimal locations on aircraft panels are thickened to delay the flutter occurrence. A standard square isotropic Aluminum panel of 12 × 12 in. is considered. In formulating the model, the Kirchhoff-Love hypothesis and the Von-Karman nonlinear strain-displacement relations are applied. The quasi-steady first-order piston aerodynamic theory is used to calculate the applied load and the aerodynamic heating effects are not considered. In deriving the nonlinear equations of motion, the four-node Bogner Fox-Schmit (BFS) rectangular plate element is considered and the modal transformation is applied to decrease the calculation time. An ad hoc optimization method is implemented to achieve the objectives of the current research. The thickness, location, and the number of elements represent the parameters of the objective function. Many combinations between the number of elements, the arrangement of these elements, and the thickening values substantially delayed the flutter occurrence. In some cases, the corresponding critical aerodynamic values could be more than the double of the critical aerodynamic value of the pristine panel. Finally, to some extent, the current proposed technique can replace the dominant multifaceted active flutter damping techniques, which are more complex and more expensive.

Kinza T Ahmad,1 Ahmed B Sallam,1 Ahmed A Saad,2,3 Abdallah A Ellabban4,5 1Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye Institute, University of Arkansas for the Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; 2Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt; 3James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, UK; 4Hull University Teaching Hospitals, Hull, UK; 5Suez Canal University, Ismailia, EgyptCorrespondence: Abdallah A EllabbanHull University Teaching Hospitals, Anlaby Road, Hull HU3 2JZ, UKTel +44 7459328031Fax +44 1482604327Email ellabbanabdallah@gmail.comPurpose: To demonstrate a modified technique of fully automated direct perfluorocarbon liquid (PFCL)-silicone oil (SO) exchange.Materials and Methods: This technique is indicated for cases that require direct PFCL-SO exchange as in giant retinal tear or large retinectomies to avoid retinal slippage. Pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) is carried out in standard fashion; then the dual active injection/extrusion mode is activated in the vitrectomy machine. The machine parameters are set at approximately 30– 40 psi for SO injection and 150– 250 mmHg for active PFCL aspiration. In this method, both the SO injection and the PFCL extrusion are simultaneously controlled by the foot pedal.Results: We used this technique for a total of 24 cases: 6 cases of giant retinal tears and 18 retinectomies. We did not encounter any complications related to significant IOP spike during surgery or complete removal of the PFCL.Conclusion: This automated technique for direct PFCL-SO exchange maintains a controlled balance between SO injection and PFCL aspiration, that mitigates the risk of intraoperative IOP spikes. It is safe, quick, and can be performed without the need of an assistant or extra chandelier light or high-pressure viscous tubing.Keywords: giant retinal tear, retinectomy, perfluorocarbon liquid, PFCL, silicone oil, vitrectomy

Energy harvesting from piezoelectric materials is quite common and has been studied for the past few decades. But recently, there have been a lot of new advancements in harnessing energy via piezoelectric materials. In this regard, several studies were carried out in analytical chemistry. This paper provides a detailed review of different piezoelectric materials, their structures, their fabrication processes, and their applications in analytical chemistry. Detection of the various gases percentage in ambient air is a valuable analytical chemistry technique. Additionally, the benefits of using piezoelectric materials, i.e., crystal for gas and liquid chromatography, virus detection including COVID-19 virus detection, water determination, trace metal analysis and the ability to measure micro weights with quartz crystal with some other applications are also described in this review. Energy harvesting is incredibly important and must be implemented on a large scale. So, developing self-powering devices can resolve the problems, and piezoelectric materials are gaining interest day by day because these materials help in energy generation.

The main drawback of energy harvesting using the piezoelectric direct effect is that the maximum electric power is generated at the fundamental resonance frequency. This can clearly be observed in the size and dimensions of the components of any particular energy harvester. In this paper, we are investigating a new proposed energy harvesting device that employs the Automatic Resonance Tuning (ART) technique to enhance the energy harvesting mechanism. The proposed harvester is composed of a cantilever beam and sliding masse with varying locations. ART automatically adjusts the energy harvester’s natural frequency according to the ambient vibration natural frequency. The ART energy harvester modifies the natural frequency of the harvester using the motion of the mobile (sliding) mass. An analytical model of the proposed model is presented. The investigation is conducted using the Finite Element Method (FEM). THE FEM COMSOL model is successfully validated using previously published experimental results. The results of the FEM were compared with the experimental and analytical results. The validated model is then used to demonstrate the displacement profile, the output voltage response, and the natural frequency for the harvester at different mass positions. The bandwidth of the ART harvester (17 Hz) is found to be 1130% larger compared to the fixed resonance energy harvester. It is observed that the proposed broadband design provides a high-power density of 0.05 mW mm−3. The piezoelectric dimensions and load resistance are also optimized to maximize the output voltage output power.

Energy harvesting from piezoelectric materials is quite common and has been studied for the past few decades, but, recently, there have been a lot of new advancements in harnessing electrical energy via piezoelectric materials. In this regard, several studies were carried out in electrochemistry and fluid flow. Furthermore, consideration of productive and valuable resources is important to meet the needs of power generation. For this purpose, energy harvesting from fluids such as wind and water is significant and must be implemented on a large scale. So, developing self-powering devices can resolve the problem like that, and piezoelectric materials are gaining interest day by day because these materials help in energy generation. This review paper discusses different techniques for harnessing energy from fluid flows using piezoelectric materials. In addition, various vibration-based energy-harvesting mechanisms for improving the efficiency of piezoelectric energy harvesters have also been investigated and their opportunities and challenges identified.

The importance of energy harvesting is considered when harvesting the neglected ambient energy that graduated from different systems and dissipates around us, such as electromagnetic waves, heat, vibration, etc [...]

The Genome Aggregation Database (gnomAD), widely recognized as the gold-standard reference map of human genetic variation, has largely overlooked tandem repeat (TR) expansions, despite the fact that TRs constitute ∼6% of our genome and are linked to over 50 human diseases. Here, we introduce the TR-gnomAD (https://wlcb.oit.uci.edu/TRgnomAD), a biobank-scale reference of 0.86 million TRs derived from 338,963 whole-genome sequencing (WGS) samples of diverse ancestries (39.5% non-European samples). TR-gnomAD offers critical insights into ancestry-specific disease prevalence using disparities in TR unit number frequencies among ancestries. Moreover, TR-gnomAD is able to differentiate between common, presumably benign TR expansions, which are prevalent in TR-gnomAD, from those potentially pathogenic TR expansions, which are found more frequently in disease groups than within TR-gnomAD. Together, TR-gnomAD is an invaluable resource for researchers and physicians to interpret TR expansions in individuals with genetic diseases.

Mitosis is a critical criterion for meningioma grading. However, pathologists assessment of mitoses is subject to significant inter-observer variation due to challenges in locating mitosis hotspots and accurately detecting mitotic figures. To address this issue, we leverage digital pathology and propose a computational strategy to enhance pathologists mitosis assessment. The strategy has two components: (1) A depth-first search algorithm that quantifies the mathematically maximum mitotic count in 10 consecutive high-power fields, which can enhance the preciseness, especially in cases with borderline mitotic count. (2) Implementing a collaborative sphere to group a set of pathologists to detect mitoses under each high-power field, which can mitigate subjective random errors in mitosis detection originating from individual detection errors. By depth-first search algorithm (1) , we analyzed 19 meningioma slides and discovered that the proposed algorithm upgraded two borderline cases verified at consensus conferences. This improvement is attributed to the algorithms ability to quantify the mitotic count more comprehensively compared to other conventional methods of counting mitoses. In implementing a collaborative sphere (2) , we evaluated the correctness of mitosis detection from grouped pathologists and/or pathology residents, where each member of the group annotated a set of 48 high-power field images for mitotic figures independently. We report that groups with sizes of three can achieve an average precision of 0.897 and sensitivity of 0.699 in mitosis detection, which is higher than an average pathologist in this study (precision: 0.750, sensitivity: 0.667). The proposed computational strategy can be integrated with artificial intelligence workflow, which envisions the future of achieving a rapid and robust mitosis assessment by interactive assisting algorithms that can ultimately benefit patient management.