Analog and RF Performance Evaluation of Junctionless Accumulation Mode (JAM) Gate Stack Gate All Around (GS-GAA) FinFET

Silicon - This work presents the analog and RF performance evaluation of Junctionless Accumulation Mode (JAM) Gate Stack Gate All Around (GS-GAA) FinFET, and the results acquired have been compared...     

Discovery of Inhibitors of Trypanosoma brucei by Phenotypic Screening of a Focused Protein Kinase Library

A screen of a focused kinase inhibitor library against Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense led to the identification of seven series, totaling 121 compounds, which showed >50 % inhibition at 5 μm . Screening of these hits in a T. b. brucei proliferation assay highlighted three compounds with a 1H‐imidazo[4,5‐b]pyrazin‐2(3H)‐one scaffold that showed sub‐micromolar activity and excellent selectivity against the MRC5 cell line. Subsequent rounds of optimisation led to the identification of compounds that exhibited good in vitro drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics (DMPK) properties, although in general this series suffered from poor solubility. A scaffold‐hopping exercise led to the identification of a 1H‐pyrazolo[3,4‐b]pyridine scaffold, which retained potency. A number of examples were assessed in a T. b. brucei growth assay, which could differentiate static and cidal action. Compounds from the 1H‐imidazo[4,5‐b]pyrazin‐2(3H)‐one series were found to be either static or growth‐slowing and not cidal. Compounds with the 1H‐pyrazolo[3,4‐b]pyridine scaffold were found to be cidal and showed an unusual biphasic nature in this assay, suggesting they act by at least two mechanisms.     

Intelligent Cloud IoMT Health Monitoring-Based System for COVID-19

The most common alarming and dangerous disease in the world today is the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The coronavirus is perceived as a group of coronaviruses which causes mild to severe respiratory diseases among human beings. The infection is spread by aerosols emitted from infected individuals during talking, sneezing, and coughing. Furthermore, infection can occur by touching a contaminated surface followed by transfer of the viral load to the face. Transmission may occur through aerosols that stay suspended in the air for extended periods of time in enclosed spaces. To stop the spread of the pandemic, it is crucial to isolate infected patients in quarantine houses. Government health organizations faced a lack of quarantine houses and medical test facilities at the first level of testing by the proposed model. If any serious condition is observed at the first level testing, then patients should be recommended to be hospitalized. In this study, an IoT-enabled smart monitoring system is proposed to detect COVID-19 positive patients and monitor them during their home quarantine. The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), known as healthcare IoT, is employed as the foundation of the proposed model. The least-squares (LS) method was applied to estimate the linear model parameters for a sequential pilot survey. A statistical sequential analysis is performed as a pilot survey to efficiently collect preliminary data for an extensive survey of COVID-19 positive cases. The Bayesian approach is used, based on the assumption of the random variable for the priori distribution of the data sample. Fuzzy inference is used to construct different rules based on the basic symptoms of COVID-19 patients to make an expert decision to detect COVID-19 positive cases. Finally, the performance of the proposed model was determined by applying a four-fold cross-validation technique.     

Investigation of an in-line prototype fluorescence and infrared backscatter sensor to monitor rennet-induced coagulation of skim milk at different protein concentrations

Coagulation of milk is one of the most important steps in cheese manufacture. Cutting the coagulum at optimum firmness is important to optimise the yield and quality of the cheese produced. The aim of this study was to investigate a prototype sensor to monitor rennet-induced coagulation of skim milk at different protein concentrations (3.3%, 4.0% and 4.7%) and to develop a model to predict the coagulum cutting time at a desired storage modulus (G′). Fluorescence and infrared backscatter profiles were recorded at wavelengths of 350 and 880 nm, respectively. Rheological measurements were used as a reference method to determine the times required for the coagulum to reach G′ values of 0.5, 5 and 20 Pa. Time parameters extracted from the optical profiles generated during the coagulation process were used to develop a model to predict the cutting time at which the coagulum reaches selected G′ values. This study demonstrated that the investigated prototype sensor, combined with the developed prediction model, can be used as an in-line PAT tool for real-time monitoring of milk coagulation and prediction of cutting time in cheese manufacturing.     

Development of Small‐Molecule Trypanosoma brucei N‐Myristoyltransferase Inhibitors: Discovery and Optimisation of a Novel Binding Mode

The enzyme N‐myristoyltransferase (NMT) from Trypanosoma brucei has been validated both chemically and biologically as a potential drug target for human African trypanosomiasis. We previously reported the development of some very potent compounds based around a pyrazole sulfonamide series, derived from a high‐throughput screen. Herein we describe work around thiazolidinone and benzomorpholine scaffolds that were also identified in the screen. An X‐ray crystal structure of the thiazolidinone hit in Leishmania major NMT showed the compound bound in the previously reported active site, utilising a novel binding mode. This provides potential for further optimisation. The benzomorpholinone was also found to bind in a similar region. Using an X‐ray crystallography/structure‐based design approach, the benzomorpholinone series was further optimised, increasing activity against T. brucei NMT by >1000‐fold. A series of trypanocidal compounds were identified with suitable in vitro DMPK properties, including CNS exposure for further development. Further work is required to increase selectivity over the human NMT isoform and activity against T. brucei.