Search results for: cell substrate

Authors: Zuzana Poborilova, Anna B. Ohlsson, Torkel Berglund, Anna Vildova, Petr Babula

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Lawsone is a pigment that occurs naturally in plants. It has been used as a skin and hair dye for a long time. Moreover, its different biological activities have been reported. The present study focused on the effect of lawsone on a plant cell model represented by tobacco BY-2 cell suspension culture, which is used as a model comparable with the HeLa cells. It has been shown that lawsone inhibits the cell growth in the concentration-dependent manner. In addition, changes in DNA methylation level have been determined. We observed decreasing level of DNA methylation in the presence of increasing concentrations of lawsone. These results were accompanied with overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Since epigenetic modifications can be caused by different stress factors, there could be a connection between the changes in the level of DNA methylation and ROS production caused by lawsone.

Keywords: DNA methylation, lawsone, naphthoquinone, reactive oxygen species

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Authors: M. Javadzadeh, H. Khoshsima

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In this article, we present a layout printing way for producing Fresnel zone on 1294-1b doped liquid crystal with Methyl-Red azo dye. We made a Fresnel zone mask with 25 zones and radius of 5 mm using lithography technique. With layout printing way, we recorded mask’s pattern on cell with λ=532 nm solid-state diode pump laser. By recording Fresnel zone pattern on cell and making Fresnel pattern on the surface of cell, odd and even zones, will form. The printed pattern, because of Azo dye’s photoisomerization, was permanent. Experimentally, we saw focal length tunability from 32 cm to 43 cm.

Keywords: liquid crystal, lens, Fresnel zone, diffraction, Fresnel lens

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Authors: Ngozi Nwogu, Mohammed Kajama, Emmanuel Anyanwu, Edward Gobina

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With the objective to create technologically advanced materials to be scientifically applicable, multi-layer silica alumina membranes were molecularly fabricated by continuous surface coating silica layers containing hybrid material onto a ceramic porous substrate for flue gas separation applications. The multi-layer silica alumina membrane was prepared by dip coating technique before further drying in an oven at elevated temperature. The effects of substrate physical appearance, coating quantity, the cross-linking agent, a number of coatings and testing conditions on the gas separation performance of the membrane have been investigated. Scanning electron microscope was used to investigate the development of coating thickness. The membrane shows impressive perm selectivity especially for CO2 and N2 binary mixture representing a stimulated flue gas stream

Keywords: gas separation, silica membrane, separation factor, membrane layer thickness

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Authors: Omar M. Al Aufi, Abdulwahab Noorwali, Ahmed Al Abd, Safia Alattas, Fathya Zahran, Fahd Almutairi

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Cisplatin (CDDP) is a potent anticancer agent used for several tumor types. Thymoquinone (TQ) is a naturally occurring compound drawing great attention as an anticancer and chemomodulator for chemotherapies. Herein, we studied the potential cytotoxicity of thymoquinone, CDDP and their combination against human oral squamous cell carcinoma cells in contrast to normal oral epithelial cells. CDDP similarly killed both head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells (UMSCC-14C) and normal oral epithelial cells (OEC). TQ alone exerted considerable cytotoxicity against UMSCC-14C cells, while it induced a weaker killing effect against normal oral epithelial cells (OEC). The equitoxic combination of TQ and CDDP showed additive to synergistic interaction against both UMSCC-14C and OEC cells. TQ alone increased apoptotic cell fraction in UMSCC-14C cells as early as after 6 hours. In addition, prolonged exposure of UMSCC-14C to TQ alone resulted in 96.7±1.6% total apoptosis, which was increased after combination with CDDP to 99.3±1.2% in UMSCC-14C cells. On the other hand, TQ induced a marginal increase in the apoptosis in OEC and even decreased the apoptosis induced by CDDP alone. Finally, apoptosis induction results were confirmed by the change in the expression levels of p53, Bcl-2 and Caspase-9 proteins in both UMSCC-14c and OEC cells.

Keywords: thymoquinone, cisplatin, apoptosis, oral squamous cell carcinoma, P53, Caspase-9, Bcl-2

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Authors: Alexander A. Tokmakov

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Cell-free protein synthesis is widely used to synthesize recombinant proteins. It allows genome-scale expression of various polypeptides under strictly controlled uniform conditions. However, only a minor fraction of all proteins can be successfully expressed in the systems of protein synthesis that are currently used. The factors determining expression success are poorly understood. At present, the vast volume of data is accumulated in cell-free expression databases. It makes possible comprehensive bioinformatics analysis and identification of multiple features associated with successful cell-free expression. Here, we describe an approach aimed at identification of multiple physicochemical and structural properties of amino acid sequences associated with protein solubility and aggregation and highlight major correlations obtained using this approach. The developed method includes: categorical assessment of the protein expression data, calculation and prediction of multiple properties of expressed amino acid sequences, correlation of the individual properties with the expression scores, and evaluation of statistical significance of the observed correlations. Using this approach, we revealed a number of statistically significant correlations between calculated and predicted features of protein sequences and their amenability to cell-free expression. It was found that some of the features, such as protein pI, hydrophobicity, presence of signal sequences, etc., are mostly related to protein solubility, whereas the others, such as protein length, number of disulfide bonds, content of secondary structure, etc., affect mainly the expression propensity. We also demonstrated that amenability of polypeptide sequences to cell-free expression correlates with the presence of multiple sites of post-translational modifications. The correlations revealed in this study provide a plethora of important insights into protein folding and rationalization of protein production. The developed bioinformatics approach can be of practical use for predicting expression success and optimizing cell-free protein synthesis.

Keywords: bioinformatics analysis, cell-free protein synthesis, expression success, optimization, recombinant proteins

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Authors: Marinela Miclau, Melinda Vajda, Nicolae Miclau, Daniel Ursu

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Characterized by a simple structure, easy and low cost fabrication, the dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) attracted the interest of the scientific community as an attractive alternative of conventional Si-based solar cells and thin-film solar cells. Over the past 20 years, the main efforts have attempted to enhance the efficiency of n-type DSSCs, the highest efficiency record of 14.30% was achieved using the co-sensitization of two metal-free organic dyes and Co (II/III) tris(phenanthroline)-based redox electrolyte. In the last years, the development of the efficient p-type DSSC has become a research focus owing to the fact that the concept of tandem solar cell was proposed as the solution to increase the power conversion efficiency. A promising alternative for the photocathodes of p-type DSSC, cuprous (Cu2O) and cupric (CuO) oxides have been investigated because of its nontoxic nature, low cost, high natural abundance, a good absorption coefficient for visible light and a higher dielectric constant than NiO. In case of p-type DSSC based on copper oxides with I3-/I- as redox mediator, the highest conversion efficiency of 0.42% (Cu2O) and 0.03% (CuO) has achieved. Towards the increase in the performance, we have fabricated and analyzed the performance of p-type DSSC prepared with the binder-free porous Cu2O photocathodes. Porous thin film could be an attractive alternative for DSSC because of their large surface areas which enable the efficient absorption of the dyes and light. We propose a simple and one-step hydrothermal method for the preparation of porous Cu2O thin film using copper substrate, cupric acetate and ethyl cellulose. The cubic structure of Cu2O has been determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and porous morphology of thin film was emphasized by Scanning Electron Microscope Inspect S (SEM). Optical and Mott-Schottky measurements attest of the high quality of the Cu2O thin film. The binder-free porous Cu2O photocathode has confirmed the excellent photovoltaic properties, the best value reported for p-type DSSC (1%) in similar conditions being reached.

Keywords: cuprous oxide, dye-sensitized solar cell, hydrothermal method, porous photocathode

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Authors: Javad Mohiti-Ardekani, Shabodin Asadii, Ali Moradi

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Introduction: Curcumin, the yellow pigment in turmeric, has been shown as an anti-diabetic agent for centuries but only in recent few years, its mechanism of action has been under investigation. Some studies showed that curcumin might exert its anti-diabetic effect via increasing glucose transporter isotype-4 (GLUT4) gene and glycoprotein contents in cells. To investigate this possibility, we investigate the effects of extract and commercial curcumin with and without insulin on GLUT4 translocation from intracellular compartments of nuclear or endoplasmic reticulum membranes (N/ER) into the cytoplasmic membrane (CM). Methods and Material: C2C12 myoblastic cell line were seeded in DMEM plus 20 % FBS and differentiated to myotubes using 2 % horse serum. After myotubes formation, 40 µmolar Extract and Commercial curcumin, with or without insulin as intervention, and as control 1 % DMSO were added for 3 h. Cells were washed and homogenized followed by ultracentrifuge fractionation, protein separation by SDS-PAGE and GLUT4 detection using semi-quantitative Western blotting. Data analysis was done by two independent samples t-test for comparison of mean ± SD of GLUT4 percent in categories. GLUT4 contents were higher in CM groups curcumin and curcumin with insulin in comparison to 1 % DMSO-treated myotubes control group. Results: As our results have shown extract and commercial curcumin induces GLUT4 translocation from intra-cell into cell surface. The results have also shown synergic effect of curcumin on translocation of GLUT4 from intra-cell into cell surface in the presence of 100 nm insulin. Discussion: We conclude that curcumin may be a choice of type-2 diabetes mellitus treatment because its extract and commercial enhances GLUT4 contents in CM where it facilitates glucose entrance into the cell. However, it is necessary to trace the signaling pathways which are activated by curcumin.

Keywords: Curcumin, insulin, Diabetes type-2, GLUT4

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Authors: Yiding Qu, Svetlana V. Komarova

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Chemokines acting through their cognate chemokine receptors guide the directional migration of the cell along the chemokine gradient. Several chemokine receptors were recently identified as non-signaling (decoy), based on their ability to bind the chemokine but produce no measurable signal in the cell. The function of these decoy receptors is not well understood. We examined the expression of a decoy receptor CCRL1 and a signaling receptor that binds to the same ligands, CCR7, in prostate cancer using publically available microarray data (www.oncomine.org). The expression of both CCRL1 and CCR7 increased in an approximately half of prostate carcinoma samples and the majority of metastatic cancer samples compared to normal prostate. Moreover, the expression of CCRL1 positively correlated with the expression of CCR7. These data suggest that CCR7 and CCRL1 can be used as clinical markers for the early detection of transformation from carcinoma to metastatic cancer. In addition, these data support our hypothesis that the non-signaling chemokine receptors actively stimulate cell migration.

Keywords: bioinformatics, cell migration, decoy receptor, meta-analysis, prostate cancer

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Authors: Nidhi Choudhary, Silke A. Peeters, Ciaran T. Lennon, Dmytro Besprozvannyy, Harm C. M. Knoops, Robert H. Hadfield

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Superconducting Nanowire Single Photon Detectors (SNSPDs) have become leading devices in quantum optics and photonics, known for their exceptional efficiency in detecting single photons from ultraviolet to mid-infrared wavelengths with minimal dark counts, low noise, and reduced timing jitter. Recent advancements in materials science focus attention on refractory metal thin films such as NbN and NbTiN to enhance the optical properties and superconducting performance of SNSPDs, opening the way for next-generation detectors. These films have been deposited by several different techniques, such as atomic layer deposition (ALD), plasma pro-advanced plasma processing (ASP) and magnetron sputtering. The fabrication flexibility of these films enables precise control over morphology, crystallinity, stoichiometry and optical properties, which is crucial for optimising the SNSPD performance. Hence, it is imperative to study the optical and superconducting properties of these materials across a wide range of wavelengths. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the optical and superconducting properties of some important materials in this category (NbN, NbTiN) by different deposition methods. Using Variable angle ellipsometry spectroscopy (VASE), we measured the refractive index, extinction, and absorption coefficient across a wide wavelength range (200-1700 nm) to enhance light confinement for optical communication devices. The critical temperature and sheet resistance were measured using a four-probe method in a custom-built, cryogen-free cooling system with a Sumitomo RDK-101D cold head and CNA-11C compressor. Our results indicate that ALD-deposited NbN shows a higher refractive index and extinction coefficient in the near-infrared region (~1500 nm) than sputtered NbN of the same thickness. Further, the analysis of the optical properties of plasma pro-ASP deposited NbTiN was performed at different substrate bias voltages and different thicknesses. The analysis of substrate bias voltage indicates that the maximum value of the refractive index and extinction coefficient observed for the substrate biasing of 50-80 V across a substrate bias range of (0 V - 150 V). The optical properties of sputtered NbN films are also investigated in terms of the different substrate temperatures during deposition (100 °C-500 °C). We find the higher the substrate temperature during deposition, the higher the value of the refractive index and extinction coefficient has been observed. In all our superconducting thin films ALD-deposited NbN films possess the highest critical temperature (~12 K) compared to sputtered (~8 K) and plasma pro-ASP (~5 K).

Keywords: optical communication, thin films, superconductivity, atomic layer deposition (ALD), niobium nitride (NbN), niobium titanium nitride (NbTiN), SNSPD, superconducting detector, photon-counting.

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Authors: Komal Vig

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Cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related deaths occur in 17.3 million people globally each year, accounting for 30% of all deaths worldwide, with a predicted annual incidence of deaths to reach 23.3 million globally by 2030. Autologous bypass grafts remain an important therapeutic option for the treatment of CVD, but the poor quality of the donor patient’s blood vessels, the invasiveness of the resection surgery, and postoperative movement restrictions create issues. The present study is aimed to improve the endothelialization of intimal surface of graft by using low temperature plasma (LTP) to increase the cell attachment and proliferation. Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) was treated with LTP. Air was used as the feed-gas, and the pressure in the plasma chamber was kept at 800 mTorr. Scaffolds were also modified with gelatin and collagen by dipping method. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) were plated on the developed scaffolds, and cell proliferation was determined by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and by microscopy. mRNA expressions levels of different cell markers were investigated using quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). XPS confirmed the introduction of oxygenated functionalities from LTP. HUVEC cells showed 80% seeding efficiency on the scaffold. Microscopic and MTT assays indicated increase in cell viability in LTP treated scaffolds, especially when treated with gelatin or collagen, compared to untreated scaffolds. Gene expression studies shows enhanced expression of cell adhesion marker Integrin- α 5 gene after LTP treatment. LTP treated scaffolds exhibited better cell proliferation and viability compared to untreated scaffolds. Protein treatment of scaffold increased cell proliferation. Based on our initial results, more scaffolds alternatives will be developed and investigated for cell growth and vascularization studies. Acknowledgments: This work is supported by the NSF EPSCoR RII-Track-1 Cooperative Agreement OIA-2148653.

Keywords: LTP, HUVEC cells, vascular graft, endothelialization

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Authors: Hussain Mustatab Wahedi, Sun You Kim

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Skin acts as a barrier against the harmful environmental factors. Integrity and timely recovery of the skin from injuries and harmful effects of radiations is thus very important. This study aimed to investigate the importance of Sirt1 in the recovery of skin from UVB-induced damage and cutaneous wounds by using natural and synthetic novel Sirt1 activators. Juglone, known as a natural Pin1 inhibitor, and NED416 a novel synthetic Sirt1 activator were checked for their ability to regulate the expression and activity of Sirt1 and hence photo-damage and wound healing in cultured skin cells (NHDF and HaCaT cells) and mouse model by using Sirt1 siRNA knockdown, cell migration assay, GST-Pulldown assay, western blot analysis, tube formation assay, and immunohistochemistry. Interestingly, Sirt1 knockdown inhibited skin cell migration in vitro. Juglone up regulated the expression of Sirt1 in both the cell lines under normal and UVB irradiated conditions, enhanced Sirt1 activity and increased the cell viability by reducing reactive oxygen species synthesis and apoptosis. Juglone promoted wound healing by increasing cell migration and angiogenesis through Cdc42/Rac1/PAK, MAPKs and Smad pathways in skin cells. NED416 upregulated Sirt1 expression in HaCaT and NHDF cells as well as increased Sirt1 activity. NED416 promoted the process of wound healing in early as well as later stages by increasing macrophage recruitment, skin cell migration, and angiogenesis through Cdc42/Rac1 and MAPKs pathways. So, both these compounds activated Sirt1 and promoted the process of wound healing thus pointing towards the possible role of Sirt1 in skin regeneration and wound healing.

Keywords: skin regeneration, wound healing, Sirt1, UVB light

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Authors: El H. Bouziani, H. A. Reguieg Yssaad

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The phytotoxicity of heavy metals can be expressed on roots and visible part of plants and is characterized by molecular and metabolic answers at various levels of organization of the whole plant. The present study was undertaken on two varieties of broad bean Vicia faba (Sidi Aïch and Super Aguadulce). The device was mounted on a substrate prepared by mixing sand, soil and compost, the substrate was artificially contaminated with three doses of lead nitrate [Pb(NO3)2] 0, 500 and 1000 ppm. Our objective is to follow the behavior of plant opposite the stress by evaluating the physiological parameters. The results reveal a reduction in the parameters of the productivity (chlorophyll and proteins production) with an increase in the osmoregulators (soluble sugars and proline).These results show that the production of broad bean is strongly modified by the disturbance of its internal physiology under lead exposure.

Keywords: broad bean, lead, stress, physiological parameters, phytotoxicity

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Authors: Beenish Saba, Ann D. Christy

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Modern day municipal solid waste landfills are operated and controlled to protect the environment from contaminants during the biological stabilization and degradation of the solid waste. They are equipped with liners, caps, gas and leachate collection systems. Landfill gas is passively or actively collected and can be used as bio fuel after necessary purification, but leachate treatment is the more difficult challenge. Leachate, if not recirculated in a bioreactor landfill system, is typically transported to a local wastewater treatment plant for treatment. These plants are designed for sewage treatment, and often charge additional fees for higher strength wastewaters such as leachate if they accept them at all. Different biological, chemical, physical and integrated techniques can be used to treat the leachate. Treating that leachate with simultaneous power production using microbial fuel cells (MFC) technology has been a recent innovation, reported its application in its earliest starting phase. High chemical oxygen demand (COD), ionic strength and salt concentration are some of the characteristics which make leachate an excellent substrate for power production in MFCs. Different materials of electrodes, microbial communities, carbon co-substrates and temperature conditions are some factors that can be optimized to achieve simultaneous power production and treatment. The advantage of the MFC is its dual functionality but lower power production and high costs are the hurdles in its commercialization and more widespread application. The studies so far suggest that landfill leachate MFCs can produce 1.8 mW/m2 with 79% COD removal, while amendment with food leachate or domestic wastewater can increase performance up to 18W/m3 with 90% COD removal. The columbic efficiency is reported to vary between 2-60%. However efforts towards biofilm optimization, efficient electron transport system studies and use of genetic tools can increase the efficiency of the MFC and can determine its future potential in treating landfill leachate.

Keywords: microbial fuel cell, landfill leachate, power generation, MFC

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Authors: M. Riazat, H. Abdolvand, M. Baniassadi

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In this present work, 3D reconstruction of cathode of SOFC is developed with various volume fractions and porosity. Three Phase Boundary (TPB) of construction of such derived micro structures is calculated. The neural network is used to optimize the porosity and volume fraction of each phase to reach a structure with maximum TPB.

Keywords: fuel cell, solid oxide, TPB, 3D reconstruction

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Authors: Debasish Pradhan, Shaktiprasad Pradhan, Rakesh Kumar Pradhan, Gitanjali Tripathy

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Suppressors of cytokine signalling (SOCS1), a newly indentified antiapoptotic molecule is a downstream effector of the receptor tyrosine kinase-Ras signalling pathway. The current study has uncovered that SOCS1 may have wide and imperative capacities, particularly because of its close correlation with malignant tumors. To investigate the impact of SOCS1 on MDR, we analyzed the expression of P-gp and SOCS1 by immunohistochemistry and found there was a positive correlation between them. At that point, we effectively interfered with RNA translation by the contamination of siRNA of SOCS1 into MCF7/ADM breast cancer cell lines through a lentivirus, and the expression of the target gene was significantly inhibited. After RNAi, the drug resistance was reduced altogether and the expression of MDR1 mRNA and P-gp in MCF7/ADM cell lines demonstrated a significant decrease. Likewise, the expression of P53 protein increased in a statistically significant manner (p ≤ 0.01) after RNAi exposure. Moreover, flow cytometry analysis uncovers that cell cycle and anti-apoptotic enhancing capacity of cells changed after RNAi treatment. These outcomes proposed SOCS1 may take part in breast cancer MDR by managing MDR1 and P53 expression, changing cell cycle and enhancing the anti-apoptotic ability.

Keywords: breast cancer, multidrug resistance, SOCS1 gene, MDR1 gene, RNA interference

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Authors: Mashayekh Amir Shahriar, Akhlaghi Morteza, Rajaee Hajar, Khani Mohammad Reza, Shokri Babak

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A new and novel approach in medicine is the use of cold plasma for various applications such as sterilization blood coagulation and cancer cell treatment. In this paper a pin-to-hole plasma jet suitable for biological applications is investigated, characterized and the possibility and feasibility of cancer cell treatment is evaluated. The characterization includes power consumption via Lissajous method, thermal behavior of plasma using Infra-red camera as a novel method, Optical Emission Spectroscopy (OES) to determine the species that are generated. Treatment of leukemia cancer cells is also implemented and MTT assay is used to evaluate viability.

Keywords: Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet (APPJ), Plasma Medicine, Cancer cell treatment, leukemia, Optical Emission

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Authors: Soheil Zorofchian Moghadamtousi, Habsah Abdul Kadir, Mohammadjavad Paydar, Elham Rouhollahi, Hamed Karimian

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The present study was designed to evaluate the molecular mechanisms of Annona muricata leaves ethyl acetate extract (AMEAE) against lung cancer A549 cells. Cell viability analysis revealed the selective cytotoxic effect of AMEAE towards A549 cells. Treatment of A549 cells with AMEAE significantly elevated the reactive oxygen species formation, followed by attenuation of mitochondrial membrane potential via upregulation of Bax and downregulation of Bcl-2, accompanied by cytochrome c release to the cytosol. The released cytochrome c triggered the activation of caspase-9 followed by caspase-3. In addition, AMEAE-induced apoptosis was accompanied by cell cycle arrest at G1 phase. Our data showed for the first time that AMEAE inhibited the proliferation of A549 cells, leading to cell cycle arrest and programmed cell death through activation of the mitochondrial-mediated signaling pathway.

Keywords: Annona muricata, lung cancer, apoptosis, mitochondria

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Authors: Jeonghun Nam, Seonggil Kim, Hyunjoo Choi, Chae Seung Lim

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Quantification and analysis of rare cells are challenging in clinical applications and cell biology due to its extremely small number in blood. In this work, we propose a viscoelastic microfluidic device for continuous cell concentration without sheath flows. Due to the viscoelastic effect on suspending cells, cells with the blockage ratio higher than 0.1 could be tightly focused at the center of the microchannel. The blockage ratio was defined as the particle diameter divided by the channel width. Finally, cells were concentrated through the center outlet and the additional suspending medium was removed to the side outlets. Since viscoelastic focusing is insensitive to the flow rate higher than 10 μl/min, the non-powered hand pump sprayer could be used with no accurate control of the flow rate, which is suitable for clinical settings in resource-limited developing countries. Using multiple concentration processes, high-throughput concentration of white blood cells in lysed blood sample was achieved by ~ 300-fold.

Keywords: cell concentration, high-throughput, non-powered, viscoelastic fluid

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Authors: Ismail Aksoy, Haci Bodur, Nihan Altintaş

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This paper introduces a boost converter with a new active snubber cell. In this circuit, all of the semiconductor components in the converter softly turns on and turns off with the help of the active snubber cell. Compared to the other converters, the proposed converter has advantages of size, number of components and cost. The main feature of proposed converter is that the extra voltage stresses do not occur on the main switches and main diodes. Also, the current stress on the main switch is acceptable level. Moreover, the proposed converter can operates under light load conditions and wide input line voltage. In this study, the operating principle of the proposed converter is presented and its operation is verified with the Proteus simulation software for a 1 kW and 100 kHz model.

Keywords: active snubber cell, boost converter, zero current switching, zero voltage switching

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Authors: Hassan Mahasneh, Abu Sesay

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We propose the use of relay terminals at the cell edge of an LTE-based cellar system. Each relay terminal is equipped with an omni-directional antenna. We refer to this scheme as the Omni-Relay (OR) scheme. The OR scheme coordinates the inter-cell interference (ICI) stemming from adjacent cells and increases the desired signal level at cell-edge regions. To validate the performance of the OR scheme, we derive the average signal-to-interference plus noise ratio (SINR) and the average capacity and compare it with the conventional universal frequency reuse factor (UFRF). The results show that the proposed OR scheme provides higher average SINR and average capacity compared to the UFRF due to the assistance of the distributed relay nodes.

Keywords: the UFRF scheme, the OR scheme, ICI, relay terminals, SINR, spectral efficiency

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Authors: Abderrahmane Hemmani, Hamid Khachab, Dennai Benmoussa, Hassane Benslimane, Abderrachid Helmaoui

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Back surface field GaAs with n -p-p+ structures are found to have better characteristics than the conventional solar cells. A theory, based on the transport of both minority carriers under the charge neutrality condition, has been developed in the present paper which explains behavior of the back surface field solar cells. That is reported with an efficiency of 25,05% (Jsc=33.5mA/cm2, Vco=0.87v and fill factor 86% under AM1.5 global conditions). We present the effect of technological parameters of the p+ layer on the conversion efficiency on the solar cell. Good agreement is achieved between our results and the simulation results given the variation of the equivalent recombination velocity to p+ layer as a function of BSF thickness and BSF doping.

Keywords: back surface field, GaAs, solar cell, technological parameters

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Authors: Fatima El Zahra Amin, Emine Efe

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This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of the education program for parents of children with Sickle Cell Anemia, on the knowledge level of parents and the reduction of pain relief by non-pharmacological methods used by parents at home. In Turkey, 54 parents and 109 from Chad agreed to participate in the survey. The data were collected by the researcher using a face-to-face interview method. Non-pharmacological treatment information form for parents, face expressions rating scale, and parent education program for non-pharmacological methods used in children with sickle cell anemia were used. It was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the educational status, occupation, disease status, place of residence, family structure and age of parents of Chad and Turkey. According to the ratings of facial expressions scale, it was concluded that there was no significant difference between the children’s average degree of pain before and after administration of non-pharmacological methods by the groups of Chad and Turkey. It was determined that the educational programs prepared for parents of children with sickle cell anemia in both Turkey and Chad were effective in increasing the knowledge level of parents and also in reducing pain crisis with non-pharmacological methods parents used at home.

Keywords: Chad, child, non-pharmacological treatment methods, nurse, sickle cell anemia, Turkey

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Authors: Noor Shafifiyaz Mohd Yazid, Najihah Mohd Hashim, Hapipah Mohd Ali, Syam Mohan, Rosea Go

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Artocarpus kemando is a plant species from Moraceae family. This plant is used as household utensil by the local and the fruits are edible. The plants’ bark was used for the extraction process and yielded the chloroform crude extract which was used to screen for anticancer potential. The cytotoxic effect of the extract on CAOV-3 and WRL 68 cell lines were determined using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide or MTT assays. Qualitative AO/PI assay was performed to confirm the apoptosis and necrosis process. Meanwhile, the measurement of cell loss, nuclear morphology, DNA content, cell membrane permeability, mitochondrial membrane potential changes and cytochrome c release from mitochondria were detected through cytotoxicity 3 assay. In MTT assay, A. kemando inhibited 50% growth of CAOV-3 cells at 27.9 ± 0:03, 20.1± 0:03, 18.21± 0:04 µg/mL after 24, 48 and 72 hour, respectively. The morphology changes can be seen on CAOV-3 with a production of cell membrane blebbing, cromatin condensation and apoptotic bodies. Evaluation of cytotoxicity 3 on CAOV-3 cells after treated with extract resulting loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and release of cytochrome c from mitochondria. The results demonstrated A. kemando has potentially anticancer agent, particularly on human ovarian cancer.

Keywords: anticancer, Artocarpus kemando, ovarian cancer, cytotoxicity

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Authors: Yunha Ryu, Kyoungsik Kim

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Raman spectroscopy is one of the most powerful techniques for chemical detection, but the low sensitivity originated from the extremely small cross-section of the Raman scattering limits the practical use of Raman spectroscopy. To overcome this problem, Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) has been intensively studied for several decades. Because the SERS effect is mainly induced from strong electromagnetic near-field enhancement as a result of localized surface plasmon resonance of metallic nanostructures, it is important to design the plasmonic structures with high density of electromagnetic hot spots for SERS substrate. One of the useful fabrication methods is using porous nanomaterial as a template for metallic structure. Internal pores on a scale of tens of nanometers can be strong EM hotspots by confining the incident light. Also, porous structures can capture more target molecules than non-porous structures in a same detection spot thanks to the large surface area. Herein we report the facile fabrication method of porous SERS substrate by integrating solvent-assisted nanoimprint lithography and selective etching of block copolymer. We obtained nanostructures with high porosity via simple selective etching of the one microdomain of the diblock copolymer. Furthermore, we imprinted of the nanocone patterns into the spin-coated flat block copolymer film to make three-dimensional SERS substrate for the high density of SERS hot spots as well as large surface area. We used solvent-assisted nanoimprint lithography (SAIL) to reduce the fabrication time and cost for patterning BCP film by taking advantage of a solvent which dissolves both polystyrenre and poly(methyl methacrylate) domain of the block copolymer, and thus block copolymer film was molded under the low temperature and atmospheric pressure in a short time. After Ag deposition, we measured Raman intensity of dye molecules adsorbed on the fabricated structure. Compared to the Raman signals of Ag coated solid nanocone, porous nanocone showed 10 times higher Raman intensity at 1510 cm(-1) band. In conclusion, we fabricated porous metallic nanocone arrays with high density electromagnetic hotspots by templating nanoimprinted diblock copolymer with selective etching and demonstrated its capability as an effective SERS substrate.

Keywords: block copolymer, porous nanostructure, solvent-assisted nanoimprint, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy

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Authors: Dina Fatmawati, Sofia Mubarika, Mae Sri Wahyuningsih

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Chemotherapy for breast cancer is largely ineffective, but innovative combinations of chemotherapeutic agents and natural compounds represent a promising strategy. In our previous study, the combination of Doxorubicin (Dox) and ethanolic extract of Dioscorea esculenta tuber ((EED) was found to have a synergistic effect on T47D human breast cancer cell line. In this study, we investigated the apoptotic effect of the combination on T47D human breast cancer cells and normal fibroblasts cell line and its effects on the expression of Caspase-3 and cleaved poly (ADP-Ribose) Polymerase-1 (cPARP-1) protein. T47D cell lines and fibroblasts cells were treated with the combination of Dox and EED. Apoptotic effect of the combination was determined using flow cytrometry assay. Protein expressions were determined by immunocytochemistry staining. The percentage of apoptotic cells were significantly higher in T47D cell lines (75%) than that of in fibroblast cells (23%). The expression of Caspase 3 (84.53%) and cPARP-1 (83.36%) were significantly higher in the cancer cell lines than those of normal cells. These results indicate that the combination of doxorubicin and Dioscorea esculenta is a promising candidate for the treatment of breast cancer cells.

Keywords: Dioscorea esculenta, Doxorubicin, apoptosis, immunocytochemistry, cancer cells

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Authors: Ramin Amirmardfar

Abstract:

Throughout Necessary oxygen should be supplied for all cells of a mammal at any moment through blood to make it possible remain alive all cells the mammal’s body. In case a mammal’s bulk is large, there is a farther distance between cells in different tissues and mammals’ heart. Therefore red blood cells in bulky mammal’s body should be capable of conveying oxygen to farther distances. To make it practical, oxygen should be glued red blood cells tenaciously. In other words, cohesion strength of oxygen to red blood cell of bulky mammal’s blood should be much more than the same of small mammal’s blood. In mammal’s bodies, the controlling factor of amount of cohesion of oxygen to red blood cell, are organic phosphates (like DPG). The less DPG in red blood cells of a mammal, the more cohesion of oxygen to red blood cell (at the same rate). As much as oxygen is glued more tenacious to red blood cells, oxygen could been carried to farther distance and as much as oxygen could be conveyed to farther points of heart, bulk of mammal could be larger at the same rate.

Keywords: mammals size, animals size, organic phosphates, DPG, red blood cell, metabolism

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Authors: Khaled Shaaban

Abstract:

Distracted driving, which includes anything that distracts a driver from the main task of driving, is one of the main causes of traffic accidents in modern societies. The objective of this research was to understand the type of activities that young drivers perform while driving in Qatar and to identify which activities cause the most distraction to the driver based on their experience. The data was collected through administered questionnaires in the city of Doha, Qatar. According to the participants, the majority reported that they use their cell phone all the time or occasionally while driving. Other significantly cited activities while driving included listening to music or radio, talking with passengers, and eating, drinking or smoking. When asked about the activities that distract the driver, using cell phone was listed as the most distracting activity followed by mental activities and adjusting GPS and audio device vehicle.

Keywords: driver distraction, young drivers, cell phone use, Qatar

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Authors: L. Mallesha, P. Mallu, B. Veeresh

Abstract:

In the present study, 2, 6-diflurobenzohydrazide and 4-fluorophenylisothiocyanate were used as the starting materials to synthesize 5-phenyl-N3-(4-fluorophenyl)-4H-1, 2, 4-triazole-3, 4-diamine. Further, compound 5-phenyl-N3-(4-fluorophenyl)-4H-1, 2, 4-triazole-3,4-diamine reacted with fluoro substituted benzaldehydes to yield a series of Schiff bases. All the final compounds were characterized using IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, MS and elemental analyses. New compounds were evaluated for their antiproliferative effect using the MTT assay method against four human cancer cell lines (K562, COLO-205, MDA-MB231, and IMR-32) for the time period of 24 h. Among the series, few compounds showed good activity on all cell lines, whereas the other compounds in the series exhibited moderate activity.

Keywords: Schiff bases, MTT assay, antiproliferative activity, human cancer cell lines, 1, 2, 4-triazoles

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Authors: Maddalena Arigoni, Maria Luisa Ratto, Raffaele A. Calogero, Luca Alessandri

Abstract:

The presence of tumor heterogeneity, where distinct cancer cells exhibit diverse morphological and phenotypic profiles, including gene expression, metabolism, and proliferation, poses challenges for molecular prognostic markers and patient classification for targeted therapies. Understanding the causes and progression of cancer requires research efforts aimed at characterizing heterogeneity, which can be facilitated by evolving single-cell sequencing technologies. However, analyzing single-cell data necessitates computational methods that often lack objective validation. Therefore, the establishment of benchmarking datasets is necessary to provide a controlled environment for validating bioinformatics tools in the field of single-cell oncology. Benchmarking bioinformatics tools for single-cell experiments can be costly due to the high expense involved. Therefore, datasets used for benchmarking are typically sourced from publicly available experiments, which often lack a comprehensive cell annotation. This limitation can affect the accuracy and effectiveness of such experiments as benchmarking tools. To address this issue, we introduce omics benchmark experiments designed to evaluate bioinformatics tools to depict the heterogeneity in single-cell tumor experiments. We conducted single-cell RNA sequencing on six lung cancer tumor cell lines that display resistant clones upon treatment of EGFR mutated tumors and are characterized by driver genes, namely ROS1, ALK, HER2, MET, KRAS, and BRAF. These driver genes are associated with downstream networks controlled by EGFR mutations, such as JAK-STAT, PI3K-AKT-mTOR, and MEK-ERK. The experiment also featured an EGFR-mutated cell line. Using 10XGenomics platform with cellplex technology, we analyzed the seven cell lines together with a pseudo-immunological microenvironment consisting of PBMC cells labeled with the Biolegend TotalSeq™-B Human Universal Cocktail (CITEseq). This technology allowed for independent labeling of each cell line and single-cell analysis of the pooled seven cell lines and the pseudo-microenvironment. The data generated from the aforementioned experiments are available as part of an online tool, which allows users to define cell heterogeneity and generates count tables as an output. The tool provides the cell line derivation for each cell and cell annotations for the pseudo-microenvironment based on CITEseq data by an experienced immunologist. Additionally, we created a range of pseudo-tumor tissues using different ratios of the aforementioned cells embedded in matrigel. These tissues were analyzed using 10XGenomics (FFPE samples) and Curio Bioscience (fresh frozen samples) platforms for spatial transcriptomics, further expanding the scope of our benchmark experiments. The benchmark experiments we conducted provide a unique opportunity to evaluate the performance of bioinformatics tools for detecting and characterizing tumor heterogeneity at the single-cell level. Overall, our experiments provide a controlled and standardized environment for assessing the accuracy and robustness of bioinformatics tools for studying tumor heterogeneity at the single-cell level, which can ultimately lead to more precise and effective cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Keywords: single cell omics, benchmark, spatial transcriptomics, CITEseq

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Authors: Naser Shagerdi Esmaeli, Mohsen Hamidpour, Parisa Hasankhani Tehrani

Abstract:

Background And Objective: Haematopoietic stem cell transplant is a potentially curative treatment option in various benign and malignant haematological diseases. Patients undergoing stem cell transplant procedure require blood transfusion on a daily basis. Currently, there is paucity of data from developing countries on transfusion practices. This audit was undertaken to determine the consumption of packed red blood cells (PRBCs) transfusion in the bone marrow transplant unit of the Shahid Ghazi Tabatabaei Hospital, Tabriz, Iran. Subjects And Methods: A retrospective audit was conducted for packed red cell transfusion ordering practice over a period from March 2017 to march 2018. All consecutive patients admitted for stem cell transplant procedure for various underlying diseases were included. Outcome measures used in this study were (i) cross match to transfusion (C: T) ratio and (ii) transfusion trigger. Results: During the study period, n=13 patients underwent a haematopoietic stem cell transplant. There were n=10 males and n=3 females. One patient was less than 15 years of age, while rests were adults. Median age±SD was 26.5±14.5 years (12∼54 years). The underlying diagnosis included Aplastic anemia (n=4), Thalassemia major (n=1), Multiple Myeloma (n=3), Acute leukemia (n=3), Hodgkin's lymphoma (n=1), PRCA (n=1). Grand total consumption of PRBCs during the study period was 204, while 258 products were crossmatch. The C:T ratio was 1.26. The transfusion trigger was Hb level of less than 8 gr/dl. Conclusion: The results of our BMT unit indicate that the C:T ratio and transfusion trigger is comparable to the international criteria and pioneer country in BMT transplantation. Also, we hope that our blood consumption become less than it is now.

Keywords: blood consumption, C: T ratio, PRBCs, stem cell transplant, tabriz, Iran

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