Search

Waves and oscillations play a key role in the flow and processing of information in the brain. Recent work has demonstrated that in addition to electrical activity, biomechanical signaling can also be excitable and thus capable of self-sustaining oscillations and waves. Here we measured the biomechanical dynamics of actin polymerization in neural precursor cells throughout their differentiation into populations of neurons and astrocytes. Fluorescence-based live-cell imaging allowed us to analyze the dynamics of actin in conjunction with the dynamics of calcium signals. Actin dynamics throughout differentiation showed a rhythmic character, localized mostly in processes, with changes in scale associated with differentiation. Furthermore, actin dynamics impact ionic dynamics, with an increase in the frequency of calcium bursts accompanied by a decrease in cell-cell correlations when actin dynamics is inhibited. This impact of cytoskeletal dynamics on cellcell coupling and ionic neural cell signaling suggests that information flow in the brain may be able to harness both biomechanical and electrical/ionic excitability.

Despite dramatic advances in genomics, connecting genotypes to phenotypes is still challenging. Sexual genetics combined with linkage analysis is a powerful solution to this problem but generally unavailable in bacteria. We build upon a strong negative selection system to invent mass allelic exchange (MAE), which enables hybridization of arbitrary (including pathogenic) strains of

Breast cancer is responsible for one of the top leading causes of cancer deaths among women. Radiotherapy (RT) uses high energy radiation to kill cancer cells, but this method has been reportedly linked to risks of toxicity. Post-therapeutic relapse from RT believed to be caused by its toxicity is one of the challenges encountered during tumour therapy. Therefore, further attention should be devoted to developing novel anti-tumour therapeutic approaches. The role of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in breast cancer management is to alleviate the side effects arising from RT, instead of acting against the tumour cells directly. This study investigated the effects of low-level laser (532 nm), as well as single and fractionated irradiation, on breast cancer MCF 7 cell line. Additionally, this study assessed the most effective laser parameter for fractionated irradiation. The MCF 7 cells were irradiated with green laser power at 1.5, 45.0, and 100.0 mW with a spot size diameter of 0.7 mm for 1, 5, 10, and 15 min. The irradiation was carried out in single, double, and triple fractionation separated by 5- and 10-min intervals in between the fractional regimes. The laser output of 100 mW showed a promising potential in killing cells with single fractionation. However, as the irradiation was fractionated into two, power of 1.5 mW appeared to be more effective in cell death, which contributed to the lowest percentage cells viable of 31.4% recorded in the study. It was proven that fractionated regime was more successful in tumour cell death.

Human blood exposed to irradiation absorbs electromagnetic energy which consequently effect temperature variation. The evaluation of Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) of human blood helps to ascertain the values for optimum laser power, time, and temperature variation for fair therapy to avoid blood-irradiation pollution but to enhance its rheological properties when using lasers. Prior knowledge of blood SAR evaluating its dielectric properties is significant, but this is under investigation. We investigate the appropriate SAR threshold value as affected by temperature variation using fundamental blood dielectric parameters to optimize the effect of low-level laser therapy based on physiological and morphological changes of the stimulated diabetic blood. Studies were carried out with Agilent 4294A impedance analyser at frequencies (40Hz – 30 MHz) and designed cells (cuvettes) comprises of electrodes were used in the pre- and post-irradiations measurements. At different laser power outputs, blood samples were subjected to various irradiation durations using portable laser diode-pumped solid state of wavelength 532 nm. Results showed laser at low energy is capable of moderating morphologically the proportion of abnormal diabetic red blood cells. Hence, there is a significant effect using a laser at low energy, as non-medicinal therapy in controlling diabetic health conditions. The positive biostimulation effects on the irradiated diabetic blood occurred within absorbance threshold SAR values range of 0.140?0.695 W/kg and average temperatures range of 24.2?28.0 0C before blood saturation absorbance peak. There is morphological stimulation at a laser power of 50 mW for an exposure time of 10–15 minutes and 60 mW for 5–10 minutes of laser therapy that demonstrates better blood rejuvenated conditions. This occurred within the threshold SAR of 0.140?0.695 W/kg and average temperatures range of 24.2?28.0 0C. Therefore, the diabetic blood irradiated using laser output powers of 70 and 80 mW during exposure durations of 5,10, 15 and 20 minutes rather bio-inhibits positive blood stimulation which has resulted to crenation due to excessive irradiation.

Prior information of blood dielectric properties is important and a valuable tool to examine cell morphological structures, functions and mechanisms of their metabolic systems; however, this is under investigated. The study explores the technique of electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements to reveal the proper biostimulation conditions for diabetic blood-low level laser therapy. Dielectric spectroscopy of the diabetic patient’s blood was studied using Impedance analyser (Agilent 4294A) within the range of frequency 40 Hz-30 MHz. Blood biostimulations were done using a 532 nm wavelength portable solid-state laser (diode-pumped). The accurate characterization of irradiated diabetic blood impedance and proper observations at power output of 50 mw within exposure duration of 10-15 minutes yield an efficient biostimulation and positively enable rejuvenation and proliferation of the deformed erythrocytes and stimulate healthy blood condition. The irradiated diabetic blood got rejuvenated and had their electrode polarization (α-dispersion region) stretched from frequency of 40 Hz until within a range of 11.7- 11.9 kHz similar to the healthy human blood. This formed appreciable positive effect of the properly stimulated diabetic blood with significant impedance within the cell structures, cytoplasm and plasma of the blood.

The traffic demand and prediction for the next decade would be mostly affiliated with the Internet of Things (IoT). Various challenges with mobile communication industry will be faced as the demand in high capacity, multi mobile devices (users) connected to the network, uplink power consumption on User Equipment (UE), and its effect on the life span of mobile phone. The major features of 5G as per user experience on the network are Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC), Internet of Things (IoT), sustaining high rate Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), and connection density Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC). This research work focuses on Non-Standalone (NSA) 5G New Radio (NR) early deployment on eMBB for achieving the required throughput. The 5G performance requirement is higher than 4G, which includes the capacity to support user experience downlink throughput with target value of 1 Gbps, millisecond-level of end-to-end latency, and high connection density of 1 million per square kilometer. Optimization is a vast topic, and this paper discusses the problems faced by users latching on 5G NSA network on the downlink and 4G Network on the uplink and suggests its solution.

The US Social Security pension system is not adequately financed to fully meet benefit obligations specified in current law beyond the early 2030s. This potential financing shortfall has been recognized for at least the past quarter century, but policymakers have done nothing to address it. The system is largely financed on a pay-as-you-go basis, so restoring financing balance requires that the taxes supporting the system be increased, the benefits provided under current law be reduced, or some combination of the two. The delay in addressing the system’s financing imbalances has resulted in shifting of costs associated with the pensions from older to younger generations. The analysis here explains how this works and provides estimates of the cost shifting that has occurred due to the delays in financing reform. It assesses how recent proposals to address Social Security financing shortfalls shift costs to future generations and depart fundamentally from basic principles on which the system was originally based. TOPICS:Retirement, social security, pension funds, wealth management Key Findings • Policy makers have known for more than a quarter century that Social Security is under financed and the delay in rebalancing its financing will dramatically increase costs for those now entering the workforce, those now entering kindergarten, and those not yet born. • From 1990 to 2012, median real incomes of the elderly grew 29 percent, while that of families of full-time, full year working families grew 2.3 percent raising questions about the equity of increasing taxes on workers to finance across-the-board Social Security benefit increases. • Public sentiment toward maintaining or expanding Social Security benefits at the cost of higher future taxes ignores the implications for and potential sentiments of the young and unborn people who will be paying the higher taxes.

In this paper, we explore the underlying explanations for the under financing of the U.S. Social Security pension system that has persisted since the late 1980s despite repeated calls for reform by the program’s trustees and various advisory groups. Both micro and macro estimates of the cost shifting from older to younger generations because of the delay in financing reform are provided. The analysis shows that recent proposals that call for balancing financing reform adjustments between benefits and revenues would result in most of the cost being shifted to future generations of participants. Because reforms have been delayed and many current proposals call for greater welfare transfers in the program from high to low career earners, the case is made that the costs of reform should be imposed on the basis of participants’ ability to pay rather than on the basis of the year in which they were born.

Photon absorption parameters such as mass attenuation coefficients ( $${\mu }_{\mathrm{m}}$$ ), molar extinction coefficients ( $$\varepsilon$$ ), total molecular ( $${\sigma }_{\mathrm{t},\mathrm{m}}$$ ), atomic ( $${\sigma }_{\mathrm{t},\mathrm{a}}$$ ) and electronic ( $${\sigma }_{\mathrm{t},\mathrm{el}}$$ ) cross sections, half-value layers $$({X}_{1/2})$$ , tenth-value layers ( $${X}_{1/10}$$ ), mean free paths $$(\lambda )$$ , effective atomic numbers ( $${Z}_{\mathrm{eff}}$$ ), and effective electron densities ( $${N}_{\mathrm{el}}$$ ) were estimated for defatted soy flour (DSF), soy protein concentrate (SPC), and soy protein isolate (SPI)-based Rhizophora spp. particleboard composites substituted with 10 wt% sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and 0, 5, 10, and 15 wt% itaconic acid polyamidoamine-epichlorohydrin (IA-PAE) adhesives. Elemental composition was assessed using ultrahigh-resolution field emission scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (UHR-FESEM-EDX). The interaction parameters were evaluated for $${\mathrm{K}}_{\mathrm{\alpha }1}$$ photons at 16.59, 17.46, 21.21, and 25.26 keV, employing a low-energy germanium (LEGe) detector system and an 241Am $$\gamma$$ -ray source. X-ray diffraction characterization revealed an amorphous phase in the developed particleboard composites. Samples DSF15′, SPC15′, and SPI15′ exhibited the highest values of $${\mu }_{\mathrm{m}}$$ , $$\varepsilon$$ , $${\sigma }_{\mathrm{t},\mathrm{m}}$$ , $${Z}_{\mathrm{eff}}$$ , and $${N}_{\mathrm{el}}$$ among all of the studied particleboard samples, within the range of measured photon energies. In addition, all of the modified samples exhibited lower $${X}_{1/2}$$ , $${X}_{1/10}$$ , $$\lambda$$ , $${\sigma }_{\mathrm{t},\mathrm{a}}$$ , and $${\sigma }_{\mathrm{t},\mathrm{el}}$$ than the unmodified samples, with DSF-, SPC-, and SPI/NaOH/Rhizophora spp./IA-PAE (15 wt%), indicating insignificant changes. The current results of the particleboard samples’ analysis can be useful for medical radiation applications and shielding research.