DG Values Research Articles

Gibbs Free Energy and Enthalpy–Entropy Compensation in Protein Folding

The thermodynamic study of protein folding shows the generation of a narrow range of DG° values, as a net result of large changes in the DH° and TDS° values of the folding process. The obvious consequence of this narrow range of values is that a linear enthalpy–entropy relationship, showing apparent enthalpy–entropy compensation (EEC), is clearly observed to be associated with the study of protein folding. Herein, we show the DH°, TDS°, and DG° values for a set of 583 data from protein folding processes, at various temperatures, as calculated by using the Gibbs–Helmholtz equations. This set of thermodynamic data was calculated from the melting temperature (Tm), the melting enthalpy (DHm), and the change in heat capacity (DCp°) values, all of them associated with the heat-induced protein unfolding processes and included in the ProTherm Data Base. The average values of enthalpy (DH°av), entropy (TDS°av), and free energy (DG°av) for the folding process were calculated within the range of temperature from 0 °C to the average value of Tm. The values and temperature dependency of TDS°av within this temperature range are practically equal to those corresponding to DH°av, while DG°av remains small and displaying a curve with a minimum at about 10 °C and a value of DG° = −30.9 kJ/mol at the particular temperature of 25 °C. The large negative value of TDS°av, together with the also large and negative value of DCp°av, suggests large conformational changes and important EEC, thus causing the small average value of DG° for protein folding, which is enough to guarantee both protein stability and molecular flexibility to allow for adaptation to the chemical potentials of the environment. Our analysis suggests that EEC may be the quantum-mechanical evolutive mechanism to make functional proteins adaptative to environmental temperature and metabolite concentrations. The analysis of protein folding data, compared with those of protein–ligand interaction, allows us to suggest strategies to overcome EEC in the design of new drugs.

Preparation of high internal phase emulsions based on high-temperature glycation-modified egg white protein: Structural characteristics, stability, and β-carotene bioavailability under multi-parameter regulation

In recent years, freeze-thaw stability of high internal phase emulsions (HIPEs) has gained increasing attention. High-temperature glycosylation-modified proteins have shown to produce stable HIPEs. This study examines the effects of high-temperature glycosylation on egg white protein (EWP) and fructo-oligosaccharides (FO), focusing on how pH and EWP/FO ratios affect the structure of glycosylated EWPs (GEWPs) and HIPEs stability. Specifically, strong alkaline conditions promoted the glycosylation reaction, with the highest DG value at pH 11.0. At pH 5.0, close to the isoelectric point of EWP, GEWPs could not successfully stabilize HIPEs. However, they stabilized HIPEs under other pH conditions, with the best freeze-thaw stability and flocculation resistance when EWP ≥ FO. At pH 3.0, HIPEs had high viscosity and storage modulus, but phase transitions occurred after freeze-thaw when EWP ≤ FO. GEWPs-stabilized HIPEs formed gel structures with elastic properties upon thermal induction. Encapsulation experiments with β-carotene demonstrated that HIPEs prepared from GEWPs showed potential in DPPH and ABTS+ radical scavenging, improving β-carotene stability and bioavailability. Our findings show that GEWPs-stabilized HIPEs offer excellent stability, rheological properties, and carrier performance, with enhanced applications through optimized emulsifiers and preparation processes.

Effects of glycation modifications of different glycosylating agents on the molecular structure and gel properties of sheep's hoof gelatin

In this study, we utilized sheep's hoof gelatin as a raw material to modify gelatin by non-enzymatic glycation reactions using five different monosaccharides (D-glucose, D-sorbose, D-fructose, D-ribose, and D-erythrose) and five different polysaccharides (pectin, inulin, carrageenan, xanthan gum, and konjac glucomannan) and comparatively analyzed the properties (rheological properties, textural properties, and thermal stability) of differently glycosylated sheep's hoof gelatin to determine the mechanism of different glycosylating agents on the molecular properties and gel performance of sheep's hoof gelatin. The results showed that the reactivity (DG value) and phase transition temperature (Td value) of gelatin modified with monosaccharide glycosylates were notably higher (p < 0.05) compared to those modified with polysaccharides, resulting in a micro-network structure with finer pore size. Conversely, polysaccharide glycosylation significantly enhanced the mechanical properties and rheological characteristics of gelatin (p < 0.05). The formation of a mosaic network structure in the polysaccharide-glycosylated gelatin group played a pivotal role in enhancing gel properties. Notably, the gel strength (584.62 ± 6.34 g), viscosity (η-value), and gel melting temperature (37.85 ± 0.20 °C) of the polysaccharide S-PEC were significantly higher than the other treatment groups (p < 0.05). This research not only provides a new perspective for modifying gelatin derived from sheep's hooves but also offers an important theoretical basis for the exploration and application of gelatin materials in the food industry.

River networks evolution under multiple stresses: A geometric and structural fractal perspective

Accurately quantifying changes in river networks is essential for studying and assessing the environmental effects of such changes. The fractal method has become a popular and effective tool for describing and capturing river network changes. However, it is usually limited to the geometric fractal dimension (Dg), whereas the structural fractal dimension (Ds) is rarely used. Despite this, the Ds could capture crucial structural information, which the Dg does not, such as interconnections among rivers and the overall basin connectivity. In this study, we examined the evolution of Dg and Ds in the Qinhuai River Basin from the 1960s to 2016, revealing the changes in river networks under natural and anthropogenic stresses from both the traditional geometric and novel structural fractal analysis perspective. We also determined the key factors causing fractal variation and their contributions. The results showed that river networks possess both structural and geometric fractality, with values ranging from 1.484 to 1.287 and 1.615–1.514, respectively. The values of Dg and Ds both declined, with Ds declining at a higher rate, suggesting that the river network weakened and deteriorated. The variances of Dg and Ds attributed to urbanization were 0.3139 and 0.3103, respectively, more than thirty times and almost twice as much as the variance attributed to precipitation features. Urbanization was identified as the most significant factor influencing fractal dynamics. These findings advance the understanding of river network evolution from a novel fractal perspective and provide support for integrating river restoration with urban planning practices.

Oncopig bladder cancer cells recapitulate human bladder cancer treatment responses in vitro.

Bladder cancer is a common neoplasia of the urinary tract that holds the highest cost of lifelong treatment per patient, highlighting the need for a continuous search for new therapies for the disease. Current bladder cancer models are either imperfect in their ability to translate results to clinical practice (mouse models), or rare and not inducible (canine models). Swine models are an attractive alternative to model the disease due to their similarities with humans on several levels. The Oncopig Cancer Model has been shown to develop tumors that closely resemble human tumors. However, urothelial carcinoma has not yet been studied in this platform. We aimed to develop novel Oncopig bladder cancer cell line (BCCL) and investigate whether these urothelial swine cells mimic human bladder cancer cell line (5637 and T24) treatment-responses to cisplatin, doxorubicin, and gemcitabine in vitro. Results demonstrated consistent treatment responses between Oncopig and human cells in most concentrations tested (p>0.05). Overall, Oncopig cells were more predictive of T24 than 5637 cell therapeutic responses. Microarray analysis also demonstrated similar alterations in expression of apoptotic (GADD45B and TP53INP1) and cytoskeleton-related genes (ZMYM6 and RND1) following gemcitabine exposure between 5637 (human) and Oncopig BCCL cells, indicating apoptosis may be triggered through similar signaling pathways. Molecular docking results indicated that swine and humans had similar Dg values between the chemotherapeutics and their target proteins. Taken together, these results suggest the Oncopig could be an attractive animal to model urothelial carcinoma due to similarities in in vitro therapeutic responses compared to human cells.

Thermal Degradation Analysis of Mamoncillo (&lt;i&gt;Melicoccus bijugatus&lt;/i&gt;) Waste: Thermal Behaviors, Kinetics, and Thermodynamics

This research studied the thermal conversion characteristics, kinetics, and thermodynamics of mamoncillo peels and seeds using non-isothermal thermogravimetric analysis. Kinetic analysis was performed using the Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose, Flynn-Wall-Ozawa, Starink, and Friedman methods. The reaction kinetic models were obtained by means of the master-plots method for 18 different empirical reaction models, calculating the enthalpy, Gibbs free energy, and entropy as thermodynamics parameters. It was found that the average activation energy for mamoncillo peels and seeds was 238,71 and 197,60 kJ/mol, respectively. The frequency factor was found to be between 109 and 1031 s-1 for mamoncillo peels and between 109 and 1034 s-1 for mamoncillo seeds. The average values of DH and DG were also found to be 233,83 and 192,81 kJ/mol and 164,84 and 162,10 kJ/mol for mamoncillo peels and seeds, respectively. The reaction kinetic models regarding the thermal decomposition of mamoncillo peels were found to be described by the contracting cylinder (R2) and third-order (F3) models, while those for mamoncillo seeds can be described by the second-order (F2) and contracting sphere (R3) models. It was concluded that the pyrolysis process of mamoncillo waste can be described by a complex reaction mechanism, and that these wastes have thermal properties with the potential to produce bioenergy.

A New Method for Defining the Optimal Separation Gap Distance and the Acceptable Structural Pounding Risk on Multistory RC Structures

A proposal to control the structural pounding hazard imposed on multistory reinforced concrete (RC) structures is presented. The main goal is to guarantee the seismic performance of a structure with an acceptable (predefined) risk-targeted parameter without the need to eliminate structural pounding collisions. The key target parameters of this study are the annual probability of exceeding an engineering demand parameter (EDP) capacity level and the separation distance dg between adjacent structures. In this direction, a method that ensures the performance level of critical EDPs due to structural pounding conditions is proposed. The new method involves two decision frameworks that define (a) the optimal separation gap distance dg,minPt at a targeted value of pounding risk (probability per year) Pt (Decision A) and (b) the minimum acceptable structural pounding risk Pmindg,t at a targeted value of separation gap distance dg,t (Decision B). The demand parameters that are incorporated in the proposed method are the peak relative displacement δmax at the top level of colliding without considering pounding conditions and any other critical EDP due to the structural pounding effect. The overall method is based on two distinct acceptable performance objectives, the POs-δmax and the POs-EDP, defined as a function of P vs. dg. For this purpose, a seismic hazard curve compatible with Eurocode’s 8 hazard zone is adopted, and the corresponding demand hazard curves of δmax and EDP are developed. The proposed method is implemented to study the floor-to-floor structural pounding hazard of an eight-story RC frame taking into account different risk-targeted scenarios. The results show that the seismic risk (probability per year) of exceeding the EDP’s capacity level is significantly increased due to structural pounding in comparison to the case of no pounding. Calibration of the structural pounding risk can be obtained by adjusting the separation gap distance dg between the adjacent structures based on the acceptable POs. The POs-δmax is not always an accurate criterion for verifying the capacity level of the critical EDP. Finally, with the proposed method, a variety of POs-EDPs can be used to control the structural pounding risk in terms of dg,minPt and/or Pmindg,t.

DOCKING AND MD OF GOTU KOLA (Centella asiatica L.) COMPOUNDS TO AT1 RECEPTORS AS ANTIHYPERTENSIVES

Non-communicable diseases, including hypertension, are a significant source of health issues in developed nations[MOU1] . Angiotensin II Receptor Blocker (ARB) is frequently used as the first-line treatment for hypertension. ARB works by inhibiting Angiotensin II which can cause vasoconstriction of entire blood vessels[l2] . This study aimed to find lead compound of 54 compounds obtained from gotu kola (Centella asiatica L.) in order to determine the antihypertensive activity. The target of drug action chosen in this study was the type 1 angiotensin II receptors (AT1). Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation were chosen as the methods in this study to predict the interaction and the affinity and stability of the interaction. Based on the results of molecular docking, it was found that the compound of campesterol, centellasaponin B, and corosolic acid gave good affinity to the targets. The test ligand that the Ki and DG values were close to the natural ligand (Olmesartan) campesterol with a value of -10.79 kcal/mol and 12.28 nM. Meanwhile, in the molecular dynamics simulation test, it was found that corosolic acid has good interaction stability with the targets and was constant from the beginning of the simulation to 100 ns, while for MMGBSA centellasaponin B the lowest total energy value was -71.4347 kcal/mol. It was concluded that the gotu kola (Centella asiatica L.), compound corosolic acid, and centellasaponin B had the potential as a lead compound that had affinity and stability for the interaction with the AT1 receptor as antihypertensives.

Analysis of solid­phase reactions in the subsolidus of the CoO—Fe2O3—Al2O3 system

The article is devoted to studying the ternary system CoO—Fe2O3—Al2O3 structure with the determination of the thermodynamic equilibrium compositions of phases in its subsolidus. For theoretical studies in the CoO—Fe2O3—Al2O3 system, initial thermodynamic constants were calculated for CoAl2O4 and Fe2Al2O6. Subsequently, the entire possible array of exchange­type solid­phase reactions was simulated with the participation of stoichiometric compounds of the system. The possibility of destabilization of combinations of CoAl2O4 and CoFe2O4 phases in comparison with three­phase combinations was verified, namely, the article considered reactions not of the “2 = 2” type, but of the “2 = 3” type (two starting compounds and three compounds in the interaction products, or vice versa). It is noted that all possible variants of reactions of the “2 = 3” type in the CoO—Fe2O3—Al2O3 system can be modeled as linear combinations of exchange­type reactions with the participation of stoichiometric compounds of the system. The calculation of DG = f(T) values for them is reduced to a simple algebraic summation of the corresponding values of DG for the reactions that make up the combination of system phases. The calculations analysis of the change in Gibbs free energy with temperature in the range from 800 to 2000 K for the analyzed solid­phase reactions made it possible to carry out a complete triangulation of the CoO—Fe2O3—Al2O3 system with its division into elementary triangles. The geometrical and topological characteristics of the CoO—Fe2O3—Al2O3 system and its phases are determined. Information about phase relationships and thermodynamic stability of phase combinations can be useful in developing special­purpose refractory non­metallic materials. The use of compounds included in the elementary triangle CoO—CoFe2O4—CoAl2O4, which according to its geometric and topological characteristics has the maximum area, in the production of special materials with specified properties is proposed.

A miniaturized uniplanar MIMO antenna for n79/n46/millimeter‐wave applications

SummaryThis research suggests a compact uniplanar multiple‐input multiple‐output (MIMO) with four ports for n79/n46/millimeter‐wave (mm‐wave) applications. The size of the quad MIMO is only 30 × 30 × 0.8 mm3. MIMO system consists of four identical Z‐shaped radiators and common ground on the same plane and no decoupling structures are used for isolation. The system covers the bandwidth of 1.9 GHz (4.4–6.3 GHz) with a mid‐frequency of 5.6 GHz and also covers the high‐band frequencies ranging from 18 to 30 GHz with a bandwidth of 12 GHz. The suggested quad MIMO is fabricated on an FR‐4 board, and the measured outcomes are well in line with the simulated results. An isolation value of −11 dB has been achieved for mid‐band frequency and −24 dB has been attained for mm‐wave bands. Through the value of DG = 10 dB, ECC &lt; 0.07, TARC &lt; −3 dB, MEG &lt; −5 dB, and the ratio of MEG = 1 dB, uniplanar quad MIMO shows acceptable MIMO diversity performance. The entire system was evaluated for the users' hand specific absorption rate (SAR) impacts and is within the limits. After the complete analysis of the miniature quad MIMO antenna, an 8‐port, and a 16‐port uniplanar MIMO are simulated for smartphone‐sized dielectric substrates and the performances were examined. The suggested MIMO system provides an efficient single‐layer MIMO antenna to 5G smartphones with high bandwidth and low SAR. The proposed quad MIMO systems are suitable for both the sub‐6 GHz band and the mm‐wave band.

Design of Wideband Fractal MIMO Antenna using Minkowski and Koch Hybrid Curves on Half Octagonal Radiating Patch with High Isolation and Gain for 5G Applications

This article represents a Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) hybrid fractal antenna with wider bandwidth. The hybrid fractal MIMO antenna is created by integrating Minkowski and Koch curves on a half octagonal radiating patch. A wider impedance bandwidth 20.4GHz (1.0 to 21.4GHz) and 6.10GHz (23.9 to 30GHz) along with fractional bandwidth of 182.14% and 22.63% has been achieved by using an amalgamated fractal configuration and a tapered microstrip line feed. The proposed antenna retains high isolation between -20 to -50dB in the entire frequency range along with the DG value greater than 9.99 dB and the ECC less than 0.02. The operating frequency increases from 1.5GHz to 8.5GHz with gain of 8dBi .The gain is almost flat and varies between 4dBi to 7dBi in the frequency range from 8.5GHz to 21.1GHz. Further, in the frequency range from 23.9 to 25.9GHz, the gain rises exponentially to 14dBi Hence, the proposed hybrid fractal MIMO antenna is a proficient candidate for 5G, 3.5GHz band (3.4 – 3.6GHz), 5G NR (New Radio) frequency bands (3.3 – 5.0GHz), LTE band 46 (5.15 – 5.925GHz), EU (European Union) 5G frequency band (5.9 – 6.4GHz), UWB applications (3.1 – 10.6GHz) and 5G 26GHz frequency band.

Analysis of Different Binding Modes for Tiagabine within the GAT-1 Transporter.

The recently obtained cryo-electron microscopy structure (PDB code: 7SK2) of the human γ-aminobutyric acid transporter type 1 (hGAT-1) in complex with the antiepileptic drug, tiagabine, revealed a rather unexpected binding mode for this inhibitor in an inward-open state of the transporter. The simultaneously released crystal structures of the modified dopamine transporter with mutations mimicking hGAT-1 indicated an alternative binding mode for the tiagabine analogues that were found to block the transporter in an outward-open state, which is more consistent with the results of previous biological and molecular modeling studies. In view of the above discrepancies, our study compares different hypothetical tiagabine binding modes using classical and accelerated molecular dynamics simulations, as well as MM-GBSA free binding energy (dG) calculations. The results indicate that the most stable and energetically favorable binding mode of tiagabine is the one where the nipecotic acid fragment is located in the main binding site (S1) and the aromatic rings are arranged within the S2 site of the hGAT-1 transporter in an outward-open state, confirming the previous molecular modelling findings. The position of tiagabine bound to hGAT-1 in an inward-open state, partially within the intracellular release pathway, was significantly less stable and the dG values calculated for this complex were higher. Furthermore, analysis of the cryo-electron map for the 7SK2 structure shows that the model does not appear to fit into the map optimally at the ligand binding site. These findings suggest that the position of tiagabine found in the 7SK2 structure is rather ambiguous and requires further experimental verification. The identification of the main, high-affinity binding site for tiagabine and its analogues is crucial for the future rational design of the GABA transporter inhibitors.

Analysis and Evaluation of Variation Characteristics in Groundwater Resources Carrying Capacity in Beijing between 2010 and 2020

The problems of water shortages and groundwater overexploitation are serious in Beijing. Resources are over-exploited to meet the industrial needs of various sectors, and the capacity of groundwater resources to support economic development is also reduced. Therefore, it is of great significance to study the evaluation of regional groundwater resources carrying capacity from the perspective of time and space. This study evaluates the groundwater resource carrying capacity of Beijing from time and space by using the function between water use efficiency and groundwater availability constructed by regional water supply, consumption data and GDP data. The results show that: The proportion of groundwater in water supply in Beijing has decreased and it was still one of the main sources of water supply from 2010 to 2020. From the perspective of time, when the degree of groundwater exploitation (De) was greater than 1, the contribution rate of exploitation degree of economic development (Dg) reached 60% from 2010 to 2015, indicating that the economic development of Beijing is highly dependent on groundwater resources. From 2015 to 2020, the De was less than 1, but the Dg value kept increasing and approaching 90% and the total overload rate was 81.8%. The supporting capacity of groundwater resources will become more fragile. At the spatial scale, only the Dongcheng and the Xicheng regions were overloaded whose rates were 58.48% and 69.92%. The research shows that the degree of groundwater exploitation has approached the saturation state, the economic development is highly dependent on groundwater resources and there is a large space for water saving. Improving the utilization efficiency of water resources cannot improve the carrying capacity of groundwater resources, so it is still necessary to increase the amount of groundwater resources by recharging the groundwater through a series of comprehensive over-exploitation control measures, which is of great significance to the management and sustainable development of regional groundwater.

Design of siRNA molecules for silencing of membrane glycoprotein, nucleocapsid phosphoprotein, and surface glycoprotein genes of SARS-CoV2

The global COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV2 infected millions of people and resulted in more than 4 million deaths worldwide. Apart from vaccines and drugs, RNA silencing is a novel approach for treating COVID-19. In the present study, siRNAs were designed for the conserved regions targeting three structural genes, M, N, and S, from forty whole-genome sequences of SARS-CoV2 using four different software, RNAxs, siDirect, i-Score Designer, and OligoWalk. Only siRNAs which were predicted in common by all the four servers were considered for further shortlisting. A multistep filtering approach has been adopted in the present study for the final selection of siRNAs by the usage of different online tools, viz., siRNA scales, MaxExpect, DuplexFold, and SMEpred. All these web-based tools consider several important parameters for designing functional siRNAs, e.g., target-site accessibility, duplex stability, position-specific nucleotide preference, inhibitory score, thermodynamic parameters, GC content, and efficacy in cleaving the target. In addition, a few parameters like GC content and dG value of the entire siRNA were also considered for shortlisting of the siRNAs. Antisense strands were subjected to check for any off-target similarities using BLAST. Molecular docking was carried out to study the interactions of guide strands with AGO2 protein. A total of six functional siRNAs (two for each gene) have been finally selected for targeting M, N, and S genes of SARS-CoV2. The siRNAs have not shown any off-target effects, interacted with the domain(s) of AGO2 protein, and were efficacious in cleaving the target mRNA. However, the siRNAs designed in the present study need to be tested in vitro and in vivo in the future.

Quad-Element MIMO Antenna with Enhanced Isolation for UWB Applications

This study proposes a quad-element MIMO antenna for ultra-wideband applications. Several design evolutions have been carried out in order to achieve a UWB impedance bandwidth and good positive gain across UWB frequency ranges. In MIMO antenna construction, the best-performing antenna design is used as a basic radiator element. S-parameters, gain, radiation pattern, and diversity performance findings are used to investigate dual and quad-element MIMO antenna designs with various layouts. As a result, the proposed quad-element MIMO antenna operates in the frequency range of 3.5-11.2 GHz with &gt;-20dB isolation in the majority of the operating band. The ECC and DG values are both less than 0.006 and greater than 9.9, respectively, while the MEG and CCL are within acceptable ranges. The simulated findings agree well with the measured results.

Atlas-based relaxometry and subsegment analysis of the substantia nigra pars compacta using quantitative MRI: a healthy volunteer study.

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by neuronal cell loss in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc). We aimed to perform atlas-based relaxometry using an anatomical SNpc atlas and obtain baseline values of SNpc regions in healthy volunteers. Neuromelanin (NM)-sensitive imaging of the midbrain and whole-brain 3D T1 weighted images of 27 healthy volunteers (20 males; aged 36.3 ± 11.5 years) were obtained. An anatomical SNpc atlas was created using NM-sensitive images in standard space, and divided into medial (MG), dorsal (DG), and ventrolateral (VG) groups. Proton density (PD), T1, and T2 values in these regions were obtained using quantitative MRI. The relationships between PD, T1, and T2 values in each SNpc region and age were evaluated. The VG PD value was significantly higher than the MG and DG values. MG, DG, and VG T1 values were significantly different, whereas the T2 value of the MG was significantly lower than the DG and VG values. Moreover, a significant negative correlation between PD and T1 values of the MG and age was observed. The PD, T1, and T2 values of the SNpc regions measured in standard space using an anatomical atlas can be used as baseline values. PD and T1 values of the SNpc regions may be associated with NM concentrations. An anatomical SNpc atlas was created using NM-sensitive MRI and can be used for the quantitative evaluation of subsegments of the SNpc in standard space.

Numerical Study on the Coagulation and Breakage of Nanoparticles in the Two-Phase Flow around Cylinders.

The Reynolds averaged N-S equation and dynamic equation for nanoparticles are numerically solved in the two-phase flow around cylinders, and the distributions of the concentration M0 and geometric mean diameter dg of particles are given. Some of the results are validated by comparing with previous results. The effects of particle coagulation and breakage and the initial particle concentration m00 and size d0 on the particle distribution are analyzed. The results show that for the flow around a single cylinder, M0 is reduced along the flow direction. Placing a cylinder in a uniform flow will promote particle breakage. For the flow around multiple cylinders, the values of M0 behind the cylinders oscillate along the spanwise direction, and the wake region in the flow direction is shorter than that for the flow around a single cylinder. For the initial monodisperse particles, the values of dg increase along the flow direction and the effect of particle coagulation is larger than that of particle breakage. The values of dg fluctuate along the spanwise direction; the closer to the cylinders, the more frequent the fluctuations of dg values. For the initial polydisperse particles with d0 = 98 nm and geometric standard deviation σ = 1.65, the variations of dg values along the flow and spanwise directions show the same trend as for the initial monodisperse particles, although the differences are that the values of dg are almost the same for the cases with and without considering particle breakage, while the distribution of dg along the spanwise direction is flatter in the case with initial polydisperse particles.

Use of real time multiplex PCR for the diagnosis of dermatophytes onychomycosis in patients with empirical antifungal treatments

BackgroundOnychomycosis is a nail fungal infection mainly caused by dermatophytes. Diagnostic confirmation is conventionally made by direct microscopy and culture, which suffer from low or moderate sensitivity. Several molecular methods have been used for dermatophytes detection and identification directly from nail samples. The aim of this study was the evaluation of the DermaGenius®(DG) multiplex kit in detecting and identifying dermatophytes from nail samples of untreated and treated patients with a clinical suspicion of onychomycosis. MethodsAll the patients underwent a nail scarification, performed with a sterile scalpel to collect small nail fragments from the suspected site of infection. All nail clippings were first analysed by microscopic and culture methods to define a diagnostic confirmation. DG PCR assays were retrospectively applied to the same samples. ResultsA total of 109 toenails were collected for the microscopic, culture and DG PCR assays. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of DG in the onychomycosis diagnosis in all 109 patients were respectively 78.5%, 100%, 100%, and 75.9%. Only for cultural exams the rate of positive results was significantly different in the two groups of patients with a percentage of 73.7% in untreated patients versus a 40.7% value in treated patients (P < 0.05). ConclusionsOur results suggest that the use of DG kit could be useful to confirm the diagnosis of onychomycosis, implementing sensitivity especially in patients who underwent antifungal treatments without any clinical improvement.

Development of antenna system for use in meteorological and climatic control complexes

The synthesis of a cylindrical antenna array for ground-based mobile weather monitoring complexes, based on quadrifilar radiators, is considered. The basic mathematical expressions for determining the electrodynamic characteristics of both the radiator from the antenna array and the AA itself are presented. Various phenomenological models of these radiators are considered. The approach to the synthesis of phenomenological models of the radiator and antenna array as a whole is described. The results of such synthesis are given, and the main characteristics and values of DG, CG, SWR, RP for the given type of radiator and AA in the corresponding frequency range are obtained. Techniques for using phenomenological models for operational synthesis of electrodynamic structures such as cylindrical AA and quadrifilar radiator are developed and described in detail. The possibility of applying this approach to the synthesis of this type of structures for radar weather monitoring systems is shown.

Seasonal structural characteristics of indoor airborne fungi in library rooms by culturing and high-throughput sequencing

In public buildings such as libraries, people are more prone to airborne microbial cross-infection. Therefore, the present study uses cultivation and high-throughput sequencing techniques to explore the seasonal structural characteristics of indoor airborne fungi within four library rooms, and determines the fungal composition on the surface of commonly used books. The results showed that the highest mean fungal propagule concentrations were 634 ± 210 CFU m−3, 534 ± 177 CFU m−3, 780 ± 294 CFU m−3, and 681 ± 227 CFU m−3, and these values were found in the autumn in each room. In all four rooms, the fungal propagule with the highest concentrations had sizes ranging from 1.1 to 3.3 μm in each season which can penetrate to the lower respiratory tract. The dg values (2.62–3.17 μm) of the airborne fungi for all four seasons in each room can reach the secondary bronchi. There was little overlap among the dominant fungal genera across the four seasons in each room, and most of the dominant genera were opportunistic pathogenic or allergenic fungi (Torula, Cladosporium, Candida, Malassezia, Aureobasidium, Gibberella, and Aspergillus). Students and staff members were exposed to the higher levels of airborne fungal propagules in autumn. Five abiotic parameters have seasonal effects on the airborne fungal propagule concentrations. Moreover, four fungal genera from the sampled books were determined to be potential biodegradation. Overall, the information provided by this study will help to strengthen our understanding of indoor airborne fungal pollution and spread in public buildings.