Reduction In Size Research Articles

Implementation of machine learning for the design of spiral shaped multiband monopole antenna for MICS/IEEE802.11a/IEEE802.11b applications

This paper presents a method to reduce the size of a compact antenna for MICS and IEEE 802.11a/b applications. Initially a monopole antenna (45 × 40 × 1.6 mm³) is designed for the ISM band (2.4–2.5 GHz). A spiral meandered single patch is incorporated to lower the operational frequency to 600 MHz assuring significant antenna size reduction. Further enhancements include a two-sided spiral extension and a T-shaped arm around the microstrip feed, enabling operation across three frequency bands achieving an overall 84% size reduction with improved gain. The prototype meets FCC standards for Specific Absorption Rate (SAR). To optimize gain, machine learning models along-with LASSO, Ridge, and Random Forest regression algorithm are used. The LASSO model proves most effective, achieving gains of 6.6629 dBi at 400 MHz, 7.6225 dBi at 2.45 GHz, and 8.7569 dBi at 5.5 GHz, with fractional bandwidths of 22%, 27%, and 8% respectively.

GRAIN SIZE-MOLAR RATIO EFFECTS ON MAGNETO-ELECTRIC PROPERTIES IN PB(ZR0.52TI0.48)O3/COFE2O4 PARTICULATE MULTIFERROIC COMPOSITES BY MICROWAVE OVEN SINTERING

This study aims to investigate the electric, magnetic, and magnetoelectric properties for the lead zirconate titanate-cobalt ferrite particulate multiferroic composite, Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3/CoFe2O4.The composites were synthesized utilizing the Pechini method and thermally sintered employing a microwave oven and a conventional method. Two molar ratios, 80/20 and 50/50, of the constituents' phases were utilized to analyze the effect of grain size on properties. The results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns indicated no formation of secondary phases for powder phases and ceramic composites. The micrographs exhibited the distribution of magnetic grains in the ferroelectric matrix and displayed 0-3 connectivity. The dielectric constants, electric resistivity, and ferroelectric properties demonstrated a decrease in their values between approximately 10% and 20% for composites sintered by the microwave-oven method, which was attributed to the decrease in the grain size of the ferroelectric phase and the molar increase of the magnetic phase, resulting in electrical losses due to the presence of a non-ferroelectric phase. The magnetic hysteresis and magnetostriction coefficients exhibited higher values for the microwave-oven method than the conventional method as the magnetic anisotropy effect is more pronounced for smaller ferrite grain sizes. The induced voltage via magnetoelectric coupling was observed for all composites. The composites produced by microwave sintering (MS) exhibited higher voltage values than those produced by conventional sintering (CS). However, the magnetoelectric coefficients for composites with a 50/50 molar ratio were lower than those with an 80/20 molar ratio, which was potentially attributed to the reduction in ferroelectric grain size and increased electrical losses. Consequently, these results demonstrate a novel approach to improve performance and potential applications for functional devices.

Carbonic anhydrase IV deficiency causes intrauterine embryonic loss in mice.

Members of the carbonic anhydrase gene family, responsible for the reversible hydration of carbon dioxide, participate in several important biological processes including processes involved in fertilization. CAIV has been shown to play a role in sperm cell capacitation and regulation of sperm motility and is present in mature murine placentae. The present study specifically analyses the distribution of CAIV in female reproductive organs and during early placenta development. Immunostaining for CAIV was performed on female reproductive organs (ovary, fallopian tube, uterus, vagina) of non-pregnant mice and on implantation sites of early pregnancy between 4.5 and 9.5 days post coitum (dpc). Sex typing of embryos was performed by PCR using three separated gene combinations for X- and Y-chromosomes, respectively. Additionally, reproductive outcome of CAIV-deficient mice was determined. CAIV is largely absent in the female reproductive organs of non-pregnant mice. Immunostaining for CAIV was present in the blastocyst and in consecutive stages of the developing embryo. In the endometrial epithelium distant from the implantation chamber, CAIV is induced from 8.5 dpc onwards. Moreover, the yolk sac epithelium, the trophoblast giant cells and the labyrinthine compartment of the developing hemochorial placenta shows a strong immunostaining for CAIV. In heterozygous mating, the number of CAIV knockout pups is significantly reduced than was to be expected according to the mendelian rules, while homozygous mating of CAIV knockout mice results in a significant reduction of litter size which is mainly due to a reduced number of female mice born. Since at 9.5 dpc the number of female embryos is rather higher than that of males, the observed reduction of female offspring appears to be due to a defect in placentation after 9.5 dpc. Thus, CAIV seems to be involved in the signaling network of embryo development, implantation, and placentation.

Portion Estimation, Satiety Perception and Energy Intake Following Different Breakfast Portion Sizes in Healthy Adults.

Expected satiety is a key element in predicting meal portion size and food consumption; however, how this can be affected by different breakfast portion sizes is unknown. The study examined the impact of different breakfast portions on satiety, portion size, and energy intake and comprised an online survey and an experimental intervention. Sixteen adults (9 women, BMI: 24.9 ± 4.3 kg/m2) rated images of three portion sizes (small, standard, large) of the same breakfast using an ordinal scale. Subsequently, they were asked to self-prepare and consume adlibitum the three breakfast portions in a randomised order on different days and to complete a food diary. Satiety and portion size perception were re-measured upon consumption of each breakfast. For both the visual image and breakfast consumption, the small breakfast portion was rated as the smallest and least filling, while the large portion was rated as the largest and most filling (p < 0.05). When consuming the small breakfast, participants reported being hungrier and less full between breakfast and lunch (p < 0.05) and had a higher energy intake from lunch onward, due to more snacking (p < 0.05). However, the total daily energy intake was not different among the three breakfast portion sizes. Individuals seemed accustomed to predicting satiety and portion size from images. The consumption of the small breakfast was judged as not filling enough and was accompanied by a higher energy intake via energy-dense snacks. Based on these preliminary findings, breakfast size reduction may lead to unhealthy compensatory energy intake by snacking on energy-dense foods.

Break-Up of Plant Cell Structures in High Pressure Homogenizers – Prospects and Challenges for Processing of Plant-Based Beverages

Abstract For more than a century, the dairy industry has used high-pressure homogenization for size reduction of fat globules. The prevailing break-up mechanism, turbulence, has been thoroughly investigated and the equipment continuously optimized thereafter. However, the high-pressure homogenizer is also used in size reduction of plant cell structures, for example in production lines of plant-based beverages, fruit and vegetable juices and ketchup. This review will provide a scientific basis for homogenization of plant-based materials with focus on break-up mechanisms. A cross-study comparison shows that different raw materials break in different ways, e.g. individual cells breaking into cell wall fragments and cell clusters breaking into smaller cell clusters. In general, raw materials which after intense premixing exist as cell clusters are more difficult to break than raw materials existing as individual cells. The resistance to break-up also appears to follow ‘raw material hardness’, where harder raw materials, e.g., parsnip and almond, are more difficult to break than softer raw materials, e.g., strawberry and orange. It can also be concluded that the initial particle size is of large importance for the size after high pressure homogenization. It is concluded that little is known about the break-up mechanism(s). Much does, however, point towards the mechanism being different from that of emulsion drop break-up. Suggestions for future studies, both regarding fundamental understanding (e.g., cell strength and breakup, HPH mechanistic studies and break up visualisations) and industrial applications (e.g., energy optimal operation, device design and wear) are provided.

The inner workings of a miniature eye.

The first complete 3D reconstruction of the compound eye of a minute wasp species sheds light on the nuts and bolts of size reduction.

The Effect of High-Pressure Hydrostatic Extrusion on Mechanical Properties of Printed with Fused Deposition Modeling PLA and PLA-Diatomaceous Earth Composites

Three-dimensional printing enables rapid prototyping, customization, and on-demand production. Polylactide is a popular biopolymer filament used in 3D printing. However, due to its brittleness and low mechanical strength, it often needs to be reinforced with filler particles. Diatomaceous earth shows great potential as a filler material due to its abundant and natural occurrence, biocompatibility, and environmental friendliness, as well as its excellent mechanical properties. Cold hydrostatic extrusion was used to improve the compressive strength of 3D-printed parts. Both neat and reinforced with 10% diatomaceous earth filaments were used to 3D print cylindrical billets, followed by post-processing using hydrostatic extrusion. X-ray microtomography showed a significant reduction in total and open porosity and average pore size, from ~20 µm to less than 10 µm in the Polylactide (PLA) and Diatomaceous (DE) composite. Compression tests showed a significant improvement in the compressive strength of PLA from ~60 MPa to ~100 MPa, while PLA with DE achieved an impressive almost twofold increase to 80–120 MPa. This was attributed to a reduction in pore size, as well as pore closure, which mitigates crack initiation in semi-brittle PLA. In addition, it has been proposed that hydro extrusion-induced structural rearrangement is an important strengthening factor.

TransformerPayne: Enhancing Spectral Emulation Accuracy and Data Efficiency by Capturing Long-range Correlations

Abstract Stellar spectra emulators often rely on large grids and tend to reach a plateau in emulation accuracy, leading to significant systematic errors when inferring stellar properties. Our study explores the use of Transformer models to capture long-range information in spectra, comparing their performance to the Payne emulator (a fully connected multilayer perceptron), an expanded version of The Payne, and a convolutional-based emulator. We tested these models on synthetic spectral grids, evaluating their performance by analyzing emulation residuals and assessing the quality of spectral parameter inference. The newly introduced TransformerPayne emulator outperformed all other tested models, achieving a mean absolute error (MAE) of approximately 0.15% when trained on the full grid. The most significant improvements were observed in grids containing between 1000 and 10,000 spectra, with TransformerPayne showing 2–5 times better performance than the scaled-up version of The Payne. Additionally, TransformerPayne demonstrated superior fine-tuning capabilities, allowing for pretraining on one spectral model grid before transferring to another. This fine-tuning approach enabled up to a 10-fold reduction in training grid size compared to models trained from scratch. Analysis of TransformerPayne's attention maps revealed that they encode interpretable features common across many spectral lines of chosen elements. While scaling up The Payne to a larger network reduced its MAE from 1.2% to 0.3% when trained on the full data set, TransformerPayne consistently achieved the lowest MAE across all tests. The inductive biases of the TransformerPayne emulator enhance accuracy, data efficiency, and interpretability for spectral emulation compared to existing methods.

Myxoid liposarcoma: treatment outcomes, metastatic pattern and volumetric analysis.

Myxoid liposarcoma (MLPS) is arare subtype of soft tissue sarcoma. This entity has aspecific clinical behavior, characterized with adistinct pattern of hematogenous spread, as well as with aunique radiosensitivity and chemosensitivity. Oncologic results, metastatic patterns and treatment response after multimodal therapy were evaluated in aunicentric patient cohort. Patients with myxoid liposarcoma were retrospectively analyzed in asingle institution analysis (n = 31). Oncologic outcomes were evaluated in 28patients with localized MLPS treated with multimodal therapy in curative intent. Metastatic pattern was analyzed in additional 3patients with initially metastatic disease. In patients treated with concomitant MR-guided hyperthermia in the preoperative setting (n = 7), tumor size response was evaluated longitudinally during radio(-chemo)therapy in thermometry MRIs and before surgery (based on preoperative imaging). The median follow-up was 4.1 ± 1.0years. The most common anatomic localization was the lower extremity (78.6%). The 5‑year rates for oncologic outcomes in 28patients treated in curative intent were 91.7% (± 8.0%) for overall survival (OS), 77.4% (± 11.0%) for local control (LC), 60.1% (± 10.6%) for distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) and 55.4% (± 11.1%) for disease free survival (DFS). Excellent 5‑year LC (94.7 ± 5.1%) was demonstrated for the cohort excluding 5patients treated for local recurrences. Most patients had good pathologic response (< 10% vital tumor tissue) following neoadjuvant treatment (82.4%, 14/17). However, this did not correlate with oncologic outcomes. Aspecific pattern of distant metastases has been observed, with predilection for soft tissues as the most common metastatic site. Furthermore, no isolated pulmonary metastases were observed. The MR analysis demonstrated asignificant tumor size reduction (≥ 25%) of the initial tumor volume in 85.7% (n = 6/7) patients. No local recurrences and no distant metastases were observed in patients with significant MR size reduction. Sequential MRIs during preoperative radiotherapy of myxoid liposarcoma show distinct patterns of the known size reduction of this specific subentity. Our analysis of metastatic patterns demonstrate mostly soft tissue metastases, no patient experienced isolated pulmonary metastases.

Engineering mechanical resonances of magnetoelectric transducers

Magnetoelectric transducers are being investigated as a promising alternative for wireless power transfer in cases where small device size and/or low operation frequency are desired. To maximize the output power of such transducers, operation at their mechanical resonance frequency is imperative. However, a reduction in size along the direction of oscillation is intrinsically accompanied by an increase in resonance frequency. Here, we report on a computational shape optimization strategy to minimize the resonance frequency in magnetoelectric transducers by ≈38% within a set of given optimization constraints. We show that our algorithm can be used to guide the design of magnetoelectric transducers optimized to operate at different resonance frequencies and allows for consistent frequency spacing between transducers, thus enabling separately addressable devices and clustered operation. Finally, we propose four needle-shaped devices that could be used as bioimplants that impose minimal tissue damage upon direct insertion into tissue. The increase in resonance frequency associated with the needle shape is overcompensated by a frequency minimization step. Our work paves the way for computationally guided resonance frequency tuning in the field of magnetoelectric transducers.

Corrosion and degradation behavior of MCSTE-Processed AZ31 magnesium alloy

This study aims to investigate the impact of multi-channel spiral twist extrusion (MCSTE) on the corrosion and degradation properties of biodegradable AZ31 (Mg-3Al-1Zn, wt.%) magnesium alloy. Square AZ31 billets were processed using route C-MCSTE (with a 180° rotation between passes) at 250°C and with a ram speed of 10 mm/min for up to 8 passes. The extrusion process was conducted via dies with twist angles of 30° and 40°. The microstructural changes and grain size distribution in the alloy were determined with a Scanning Electron Microscopy equipped with Electron Backscatter Diffraction. Electrochemical tests were conducted in a simulated body fluid to model the environment in which medical implants operate. The mechanical properties of the alloy were tested before and after processing using compression tests. The billets processed with a 30° twist angle demonstrated superior mechanical and corrosion resistance compared to those processed with a 40° die. A 66% reduction in grain size was found in billets processed for 4 passes using the 30°-die as compared to the as-annealed condition. Billets processed for 4 and 8 passes showed ultimate compressive strength improvements of 23% and 31%, respectively compared to the as-annealed condition. The 8-pass processed sample using the 30° twist ring die showed 76% improvement in the corrosion rate compared to the as-annealed state. Furthermore, billets processed for 4 passes showed corrosion resistance and ultimate compressive strength improvements of 108% and 23%; respectively compared to the as-annealed condition. These findings imply that the developed MCSTE process can be adopted for industrial use, especially in the manufacturing of biodegradable magnesium alloys for medical implants.

Influence of physical electrodeposition attributes on mechano-tribo and wettability characteristics of Ni-Co enhanced nanocoating

Abstract The current work presents a systematic exploration of the pulse electrodeposition process for Ni-Co nanocoating, with a focus on the impact of varying duty cycles (20% to 100%) and current density (3 A/dm2 to 9 A/dm2). The work is marked by incremental changes in duty cycle and current density and employs state-of-the-art characterisation techniques to analyse surface properties, mechanical strength, tribological behaviour and wettability. Ni-Co pulse electrodeposition at 20% duty cycle and 3 A/dm2 current density dominates with desired attributes for the electronics and aerospace sectors with improved mechano-tribo and contact angle properties. These coatings exhibited superior performance across all aspects that have been studied. The nanotribological experiments were conducted using a novel approach to look into the nanoscale tribological behaviours, thus setting a pioneering effort in this field. Reduction in grain size (∼57-83%) and enhancement in surface roughness (∼64-65%) were the crucial factors contributing to improved mechanical and tribological properties. The nanohardness of the coating increased to 4.36 GPa for the optimum coating, compared to other coatings with varying properties. Similar improvements were recorded in nanotribological properties, with an improvement of ~30%-70% for coatings at 20% duty cycle and 3 A/dm2. The synergetic effect of lower grain size, nano-hardness and surface roughness properties leads to an improved mechano-tribo coating. This advancement holds good potential for industrial applications where wear resistance and surface durability are critical. The optimal coating was analysed by employing X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for chemical compositions of coatings, which confirms the formation of nickel oxide and cobalt oxide. This chemical insight adds a valuable layer of understanding, reinforcing the coatings' potential for corrosion resistance and other chemical interactions in a wide range of operation environments.

Effect of particle size on the oxygen reduction reaction activity of carbon‐supported niobium-oxide‐based nanoparticle catalysts

Abstract In this study, niobium oxynitride nanoparticles were examined to determine the effect of particle size on oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity. To this end, catalyst precursors with niobium oxides dispersed on carbon supports were prepared using the irradiation or impregnation method. Polyacrylonitrile was added to each precursor, followed by heat treatment under an ammonia‐containing atmosphere to synthesize niobium oxynitride nanoparticles. The structures of the prepared catalysts were analyzed using transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The results indicated that two catalysts with the same crystal phase but different particle sizes were obtained. Comparing their ORR activities revealed that the effect of particle size on ORR activity was limited. Thus, it was inferred that controlling the microelectron conduction paths can help maximize the benefits of particle size reduction. In addition, niobium oxynitride nanoparticles with different structures were obtained by varying the heat-treatment temperatures, and the ORR activity of each prepared catalyst was evaluated. These findings suggest that forming graphitized carbon residues with high electrical conductivity and controlling nitrogen-doping in the oxide nanoparticles are crucial steps for enhancing the ORR activity of oxide-based catalysts. These findings offer valuable insights for developing material design strategies to improve oxide-based catalyst performance. Graphical abstract

Q_YOLOv5m: A Quantization-based Approach for Accelerating Object Detection on Embedded Platforms

The deployment of deep learning models on resource-constrained embedded platforms presents significant challenges due to limited computational power, memory, and energy efficiency. To address this issue, this study proposes a novel quantization method tailored to accelerate object detection using a quantized version of the YOLOv5m model, called Q_YOLOv5m. This method reduces the model's computational complexity and memory footprint, allowing for faster inference and lower power consumption, making it ideal for real-time applications on embedded systems. This approach incorporates advanced weight and activation quantization techniques to balance performance with accuracy, dynamically adjusting precision based on hardware capabilities. The efficacy of Q_YOLOv5m was confirmed, exhibiting substantial enhancements in inference speed and a reduction in model size with negligible loss in object detection accuracy. The findings underscore the capability of Q_YOLOv5m for edge applications, including autonomous vehicles, intelligent surveillance, and IoT-based monitoring systems.

An efficient Radix-4 butterfly structure based on the complex binary number system and distributed arithmetic

Complex number arithmetic is pivotal in various applications, requiring the selection of an efficient multiplier for high-performance computations. Fast Fourier transform (FFT)-based multipliers are widely employed for computing complex number products, but their reliance on using dedicated multipliers and treating the real and imaginary parts as two entities significantly add to the cost and complexity of the system. Distributed arithmetic (DA) is a technique that replaces complex multiplications with a bit-level shift and addition mechanism. The complex binary number system (CBNS) utilizes binary arithmetic, which treats the real and imaginary parts as a single entity, which can simplify complex number arithmetic and computations. This paper introduces an approach integrating the CBNS with DA in a Radix-4 decimation in time FFT 8-bit and 16-bit butterfly structure. The proposed design significantly reduces arithmetic computations and eliminates dedicated multipliers, demonstrating a reduction in power consumption, area size, and lookup tables, as well as increasing overall clock performance compared to the conventional FFT architecture on Artix-7, Kintex-7, and Virtex-7 field-programmable gate array chips.

Pro-healing impact of liraglutide on skin wounds in normoglycemic mice.

Recent studies demonstrated that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA) have promising prospects in promoting wound healing. In this study, we intend to investigate the pro-healing effect and potential molecular mechanism of topical administration of GLP-1RA liraglutide on wounds in normoglycemic mice. Two full-thickness wounds were created on the back of the C57BL/6 mice. The "lower" wounds were topically infiltrated with liraglutide every day after injury; while the "upper" wounds were infiltrated with saline solution. Wound area was measured daily during the 10-day study period. The wound tissue was stained with H&E and immunofluorescence. Western blotting was performed to detect the markers in macrophages. The results showed that topical administration of liraglutide resulted in a rapid reduction of wound size. The capillary density and the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A were significantly increased in liraglutide-treated wounds. Findings from immunofluorescence and Western blotting revealed that liraglutide promoted phenotypic polarization of macrophages from M1 to M2. We further identified that M2a macrophages predominantly presented in the early and middle stages of inflammation phase and M2d macrophages presented in the middle and late stages. Our study suggested that GLP-1RA liraglutide could promote wound healing in normoglycemic mice, which is partly attributed to the modulation of the macrophage polarization from M1 subtype to M2 subtype.

Fabrication of Macro-Porous Silicon Nitride Ceramics by Bonded EPS Ball Template and Gel-Casting Method

Fabrication of Macro-Porous Silicon Nitride Ceramics by Bonded EPS Ball Template and Gel-Casting Method

Targeted delivery of DAPT using dual antibody functionalized solid lipid nanoparticles for enhanced anti-tumour activity against triple negative breast cancer.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a subtype known for its aggressive nature, high rates of recurrence, and treatment resistance, largely attributed to the presence of breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs). Traditional therapies often struggle to eliminate BCSCs, which contributes to tumor recurrence. One promising strategy for addressing this challenge is targeting the Notch signaling pathway, which plays a critical role in the self-renewal and maintenance of BCSCs. DAPT, a potent γ-secretase inhibitor that down-regulates Notch, has limited use due to poor bio-distribution and off-target effects. To achieve the targeted delivery of DAPT to TNBC cells, we encapsulated DAPT in solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), and the surface of SLNs was further decorated with DLL4 and DR5 antibodies to produce DLL4-DR5-DAPT@SLNs (∼256±3nm). The developed DLL4-DR5-DAPT@SLNs have been characterized using various spectroscopy and microscopy techniques. The in vitro studies demonstrated that, DLL4-DR5-DAPT@SLNs can effectively internalize, showing excellent cytotoxicity and efficiently suppress cell migration and invasion by reducing the expression of Notch-1, promote apoptosis by increasing the expression of Caspase-8 and eventually inhibit the process of EMT via up-regulating the E-cadherin and down-regulating the vimentin expression at protein level. Further, in vivo studies demonstrated that DLL4-DR5-DAPT@SLNs exhibit targeted accumulation within tumors, resulting in a notable reduction in tumor size from 2.3cm to 0.9cm and a decrease in tumor volume from 2506.2±104.6mm3 to 832.4±93.1mm3. The targeted treatment significantly reduced the overall tumor burden, contributing to the extension of long-term survival rates. The findings reveal that functionalization of DLL4 and DR5 significantly enhances the therapeutic delivery of DAPT to TNBC cells via simultaneously inhibiting the Notch signaling pathway and promoting apoptosis. The developed nanosystem addresses limitations associated with conventional therapies, such as insufficient targeting, systemic toxicity, and poor bioavailability. This study presents the innovative nanosystem as a potential treatment strategy for TNBC, aiming to enhance treatment efficacy and reduce off-target effects.

Isolation and ultrasonication of pearl millet protein: Effect on techno-functional, structural, molecular interaction, and rheological properties.

In the present study, the impact of ultrasonication treatment (US) at varying time duration (10 and 20min) on pearl millet protein (PMP) was evaluated. The native and ultrasonicated PMP were evaluated for techno-functional properties, zeta potential, particle size, SEM, FTIR, thermal properties and dynamic rheology. The significant (p<0.05) increase in WAC, OAC, surface hydrophobicity (H0), solubility, foaming and emulsification properties, in vitro protein digestibility, lightness (L*), and whiteness index (WI) was recorded for ultrasonicated PMP. However, with an increase in ultrasonication treatment time, enthalpies of denaturation (ΔH) from -0.12 to -7.18J/g and a change in denaturation temperatures (Td) i.e. 40.87 ℃ (10min) and 85.51℃ (20min) was increased. Also, reduction in particle size from 4.13μm to 2.32μm was recorded after ultrasonication of protein samples. The ultrasonication treatment had altered the conformation and structure of PMP, which were confirmed by the results observed for surface hydrophobicity, SEM, FTIR and dynamic rheology. The changes in PMP subsequently improved i.e. solubility, surface hydrophobicity, thermal properties, and techno-functional properties.

Antiviral and immunomodulatory effects of ouabain against congenital Zika syndrome model.

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an arbovirus associated with neurological disorders accompanying congenital infections. With no vaccine or antiviral approved, there is an urgent need for the development of effective antiviral agents against ZIKV infection. We evaluated the anti-ZIKV and immunomodulatory activity of ouabain, a Na+/K+-ATPase inhibitor known to have immunomodulatory and antiviral activities, using human neural stem and progenitor cells (hNS/PCs) and a murine model of congenital Zika syndrome (CZS). Our data demonstrated that ouabain reduces ZIKV infection in hNS/PCs, mouse placenta, yolk sac, and the fetal head. Ouabain mitigated neurogenesis impairment triggered by ZIKV in hNS/PCs and prevented ZIKV-mediated reduction of fetus and head sizes. In addition, ouabain decreased tumor necrosis factor and interleukin-1β levels in the placenta, highlighting its immunomodulatory activity in the murine model. Our findings indicate that ouabain possesses anti-ZIKV and immunomodulatory activities, suggesting that it should be investigated further as a promising treatment for CZS.