Study on the efficiency of ethylene scavengers on the maintenance of postharvest quality of tomato fruit

The objectives of this study were to achieve the best level of each ethylene scavenger and evaluate the effect of selected levels of treatments on some quality traits of tomato during storage. Tomato fruits were subjected to four levels of treatments: palladium-promoted nano zeolite, KMnO₄-promoted nano zeolite, 1-MCP, CaCl₂, salicylic acid (SA) and UV-C. The sampling was done at 0, 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th and 35th days of cold storage. The results showed that palladium-promoted nano zeolite 5%, KMnO₄-promoted nano zeolite 20%, 1-MCP 30 ppm, CaCl₂ 2%, SA 1% and UV-C 15 min levels had the most ethylene scavenging function. Effectiveness of the treatments in ethylene scavenging was in the order: palladium?>?KMnO₄?>?1-MCP?>?SA?=?CaCl₂?>?UV-C. The palladium-promoted nano zeolite 5% had more positive effects on phenol content, polygalacturonase activity, lycopene content, fruit firmness and weight loss, and UV-C 15 min had effect on decay severity as compared to the other treatments. Overall, palladium-promoted nano zeolite 5% could be considered not only as favorable tool in tomato shelf life extension but also in preservation of quality characteristics of tomato fruits during storage. Moreover, the UV-C 15 min treatment could be an effective method for reducing decay severity and maintaining postharvest quality of tomato fruits.     

Multi-pinhole SPECT Imaging with Silicon Strip Detectors

Silicon double-sided strip detectors offer outstanding instrinsic spatial resolution with reasonable detection efficiency for iodine-125 emissions. This spatial resolution allows for multiple-pinhole imaging at low magnification, minimizing the problem of multiplexing. We have conducted imaging studies using a prototype system that utilizes a detector of 300-micrometer thickness and 50-micrometer strip pitch together with a 23-pinhole collimator. These studies include an investigation of the synthetic-collimator imaging approach, which combines multiple-pinhole projections acquired at multiple magnifications to obtain tomographic reconstructions from limited-angle data using the ML-EM algorithm. Sub-millimeter spatial resolution was obtained, demonstrating the basic validity of this approach.     

An analytical model with flexible accuracy for deep submicron DCVSL cells

Differential cascoded voltage switch logic (DCVSL) cells are among the best candidates of circuit designers for a wide range of applications due to advantages such as low input capacitance, high switching speed, small area and noise-immunity; nevertheless, a proper model has not yet been developed to analyse them. This paper analyses deep submicron DCVSL cells based on a flexible accuracy-simplicity trade-off including the following key features: (1) the model is capable of producing closed-form expressions with an acceptable accuracy; (2) model equations can be solved numerically to offer higher accuracy; (3) the short-circuit currents occurring in high-low/low-high transitions are accounted in analysis and (4) the changes in the operating modes of transistors during transitions together with an efficient submicron I-V model, which incorporates the most important non-ideal short-channel effects, are considered. The accuracy of the proposed model is validated in IBM 0.13 µm CMOS technology through comparisons with the accurate physically based BSIM3 model. The maximum error caused by analytical solutions is below 10%, while this amount is below 7% for numerical solutions.     

Magnetic doping effects on the superconductivity of Y1-xMxBa2Cu3O7-δ (M = Fe,Co, Ni)

The discovery of superconductivity in copper oxide compounds has attracted considerable attention over the past three decades. The high transition temperature (T_c) in these compounds, exhibiting proximity to an antiferromagnetic order in their phase diagrams, remains one of the main areas of research. It is believed that magnetic fluctuations provide substance for the exotic superconductivity observed in these compounds. The present study attempts to introduce Fe, Co and Ni magnetic impurities into the superconducting cuprate YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ with the aim of exploring the T_c behavior. The solid-state synthesis method is exploited to prepare fully oxygenated Y_1-xM_xBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (Y_1-xM_x-123) (M = Co, Fe, Ni) samples with low levels of doping (0.00000 ≤ x ≤ 0.03000). Systematic measurements are then employed to assess the synthesized samples using AC magnetic susceptibility, electrical resistivity and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The measurements revealed an increase in T_c as a result of magnetic substitution for Y. However, the study of non-magnetic dopings on the fully oxygenated Y_1-xM'_xBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ (Y_1-xM'_x-123) (M' = Ca, Sr) samples showed a decrease in T_c. Quantitative XRD analysis further suggested that the internal pressure could have minor effects on the increase in T_c. The normal state resistivity vs temperature showed a linear profile, confirming that the samples are at an optimal doping of the carrier concentration.     

Dual-functioning core@shell nanofiber strip for enhancing drinking water quality: Polysulfone/graphene oxide adsorbent core layer and polyvinylpyrrolidone/mint sacrificial shell layer

Drinking water quality is considered a continuing concern of human health. Herein, for the improvement of water quality, dual functioning core-shell (CS) nanofibers were developed by use of polysulfone (PSU)/graphene oxide (GO) as the adsorbent core layer for removing heavy metal ions and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)/mint extract as the shell layer for inducing antioxidant activity to the water. Various analyses on the strip samples before and after the water treatment experiment were performed. ATR-FTIR by appearing or disappearing chemical bonds, TEM micrographs based on the formation of shell layer around the nanofibers, FESEM according to the uniformity and diameter of nanofibers, and EDX analysis based on the elemental and mapping results, verified the core-shell structure of nanofibers. The results of the antioxidant activity demonstrated that after the dissolution shell layer, radical scavenging capability of water was improved effectively. Thereafter, the remained core layer had a high capacity and efficiency for the adsorption of metal ions especially for CS3 with 70.9% and 58.7% efficiency for Fe(III) and Ni(II). By achieving 0.975 and 0.568 L/g partition coefficient (PC), the desired performance of CS3 (core layer: 15 wt% PSU, 0.5% GO and shell layer: 5 wt% PVP, and 2.5 wt% mint) was confirmed.     

Exosomal Vimentin from Adipocyte Progenitors Protects Fibroblasts against Osmotic Stress and Inhibits Apoptosis to Enhance Wound Healing

Mechanical stress following injury regulates the quality and speed of wound healing. Improper mechanotransduction can lead to impaired wound healing and scar formation. Vimentin intermediate filaments control fibroblasts’ response to mechanical stress and lack of vimentin makes cells significantly vulnerable to environmental stress. We previously reported the involvement of exosomal vimentin in mediating wound healing. Here we performed in vitro and in vivo experiments to explore the effect of wide-type and vimentin knockout exosomes in accelerating wound healing under osmotic stress condition. Our results showed that osmotic stress increases the size and enhances the release of exosomes. Furthermore, our findings revealed that exosomal vimentin enhances wound healing by protecting fibroblasts against osmotic stress and inhibiting stress-induced apoptosis. These data suggest that exosomes could be considered either as a stress modifier to restore the osmotic balance or as a conveyer of stress to induce osmotic stress-driven conditions.     

Therapeutic Advances in Oncology

Around 77 new oncology drugs were approved by the FDA in the past five years; however, most cancers remain untreated. Small molecules and antibodies are dominant therapeutic modalities in oncology. Antibody-drug conjugates, bispecific antibodies, peptides, cell, and gene-therapies are emerging to address the unmet patient need. Advancement in the discovery and development platforms, identification of novel targets, and emergence of new technologies have greatly expanded the treatment options for patients. Here, we provide an overview of various therapeutic modalities and the current treatment options in oncology, and an in-depth discussion of the therapeutics in the preclinical stage for the treatment of breast cancer, lung cancer, and multiple myeloma.