Electrochemical glucose biosensing by pyranose oxidase immobilized in gold nanoparticle-polyaniline/AgCl/gelatin nanocomposite matrix

A novel pyranose oxidase (PyOx) biosensor based on gold nanoparticles (AuNPs)–polyaniline(PANI)/AgCl/gelatin nanocomposite has been developed for the glucose detection. PyOx was immobilized on the surface of glassy carbon electrode (GCE) via the nanocomposite matrix. The electrode surface was imaged by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Amperometric detection of the consumed oxygen during the enzymatic reaction was monitored at −0.7 V. After optimization studies, analytical characterization of the biosensor was carried out. The linear response of the AuNPs–AgCl/PANI/gelatin modified PyOx biosensor is found to be from 0.05 to 0.75 mM glucose with the equation of y = 2.043x + 0.253; R² = 0.993. Finally, proposed biosensor was used to analyze glucose content in real samples. Obtained data from the biosensing system was compared with a commercial enzyme assay kit based on spectrophotometric Trinder reaction as a reference method.     

Electrochemical boriding of titanium for improved mechanical properties

In this study, we introduce a rapid boriding technique that can produce very thick titanium diboride (TiB₂) layers on titanium substrates. We also discuss the effects of process duration on boride layer thickness, chemistry and, morphology. In our experiments, the boriding of commercial purity titanium (CP-Ti) substrates was carried out in an electrochemical cell in which we used a mixture of sodium tetraborate and sodium carbonate as the base ingredients of molten electrolyte at 950 °C and at current density of 300 mA/cm². The titanium test pieces were attached to the cathode holder of the electrochemical cell while a graphite crucible served as the anode. Both TiB and TiB₂ phases were detected by X-ray diffraction method even after 5 min of treatment. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images verified that the production of 4.5 µm thick TiB₂ layers was feasible after boriding for an hour. The boride layers consisted of a homogeneous TiB₂ phase on the top and TiB whiskers toward the substrate. The micro-indentation studies indicated that the layer on top has hardness values as high as 40 GPa. The main advantages of this technique are its ability to produce very thick and hard TiB₂ quickly and to create no gaseous emissions or solid wastes during or after the treatment.     

Comparing Nontriviality for E and EXP

A set A is nontrivial for the linear-exponential-time class E=DTIME(2 ^lin ) if for any k≥1 there is a set B _k ∈E such that B _k is (p-m-)reducible to A and B_k ? DTIME(2^k·n)B_{k} \not\in \mathrm{DTIME}(2^{k\cdot n}). I.e., intuitively, A is nontrivial for E if there are arbitrarily complex sets in E which can be reduced to A. Similarly, a set A is nontrivial for the polynomial-exponential-time class EXP=DTIME(2 ^poly ) if for any k≥1 there is a set [^(B)]_k ? EXP\hat{B}_{k} \in \mathrm {EXP} such that [^(B)]_k\hat{B}_{k} is reducible to A and [^(B)]_k ? DTIME(2^nk)\hat{B}_{k} \not\in \mathrm{DTIME}(2^{n^{k}}). We show that these notions are independent, namely, there are sets A ₁ and A ₂ in E such that A ₁ is nontrivial for E but trivial for EXP and A ₂ is nontrivial for EXP but trivial for E. In fact, the latter can be strengthened to show that there is a set A∈E which is weakly EXP-hard in the sense of Lutz (SIAM J. Comput. 24:1170–1189, 11) but E-trivial.     

A GRAIN MODEL FOR CATALYST TORTUOSITY

A simple model was proposed for the prediction of tortuosity factor of porous solids with mono or bidispersed pore size distributions. Model predictions were presented in graphical form for quick estimation of tortuosity. The experimental tortuosity factors reported in the literature for porous solids of different pore structures and the corresponding predicted values showed good agreement.     

Breakthrough analysis for CO2 removal by activated hydrotalcite and soda ash

Carbon dioxide sorption rate parameters and sorption capacities on two different regenerable sorbents, namely hydrotalcite and activated trona, were investigated in a fixed bed flow adsorber, in the temperature range of 400–527 °C and 80–152 °C, respectively. Hydrotalcite, which was activated at 550 °C, was shown to give total and breakthrough CO₂ sorption capacities as high as 1.16 and 0.70 mmol/g, respectively, at 452 °C, in the absence of water vapor. In the presence of excess water vapor, the total CO₂ sorption capacity was not affected much, however a decrease in the breakthrough capacity and on the sorption rate constant was observed, especially at lower temperatures. In the presence of water vapor, activated trona was shown to give comparable total and breakthrough CO₂ sorption capacities, at much lower temperatures (T < 100 °C). The deactivation model gave good predictions of the CO₂ breakthrough curves and it was successfully used for the evaluation of the adsorption and the deactivation rate constants.     

Scrubbing of SO2 with trona solution in a spray drier

Effect of operating variables on the scrubbing efficiency of SO₂ in a spray drier was investigated using trona (Na₂ CO₃ · NaHCO₃ · 2H₂ O) solutions of different compositions. Results indicated that for a Na/S mole ratio of two (stoichiometric ratio) about 80% of the SO₂ was removed. For higher Na/S ratios, SO₂ removal efficiency increased by up to 100%. Increased SO₂ concentration in the feed gas and decreased outlet temperature caused an increase in the overall conversion. At low temperatures and low SO₂ concentration, the reaction takes place mainly between SO₂ and Na₂ CO₃ As the temperature is increased, decomposition of NaHCO₃ to Na₂ CO₃ and sorption reactions take place simultaneously.     

Evaluating the performance of BSBL methodology for EEG source localization on a realistic head model

In this paper, we evaluate the performance of block sparse Bayesian learning (BSBL) method for EEG source localization. By exploiting the internal block structure, the BSBL method solves the ill‐posed inverse problem more efficiently than other methods that do not consider block structure. Simulation experiments were conducted on a realistic head model obtained by segmentation of MRI images of the head. Two definitions of blocks were considered: Brodmann areas and automated anatomical labeling (AAL). The experiments were performed both with and without the presence of noise. Six different noise levels were considered having SNR values from 5 dB to 30 dB with 5dB increment. The evaluation reveals several potential findings—first, BSBL is more likely to produce better source localization than sparse Bayesian learning (SBL), however, this is true up until a limited number of simultaneously active areas only. Experimental results show that for 71‐channel electrodes setup BSBL outperforms SBL for up to three simultaneously active blocks. From four simultaneously active blocks SBL turns out to be marginally better and the difference between them is statistically insignificant. Second, different anatomical block structures such as Brodmann areas or AAL does not seem to produce any significant difference in EEG source localization relying on BSBL. Third, even when the block partitions are not known exactly BSBL ensures better localization than SBL as soon as block structure persists in the signal. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 27, 46–56, 2017     

Use of a thiophene-based conducting polymer in microbial biosensing

Immobilization of whole viable Pseudomonas fluorescens cells was achieved on a graphite electrode modified with a thiophene-based conducting polymer. Microbial electrodes were constructed by the entrapment of bacterial cells on conducting copolymer matrix using a dialysis membrane. The biosensor was characterized using glucose as the substrate. As well as analytical characterization, effects of electropolymerization time, pH and temperature on the sensor response were examined. Finally, operational stability was also tested.     

Brain Metabolic Profile after Intranasal vs. Intraperitoneal Clomipramine Treatment in Rats with Ultrasound Model of Depression

Background: Molecular mechanisms of depression remain unclear. The brain metabolome after antidepressant therapy is poorly understood and had not been performed for different routes of drug administration before the present study. Rats were exposed to chronic ultrasound stress and treated with intranasal and intraperitoneal clomipramine. We then analyzed 28 metabolites in the frontal cortex and hippocampus. Methods: Rats’ behavior was identified in such tests: social interaction, sucrose preference, forced swim, and Morris water maze. Metabolic analysis was performed with liquid chromatography. Results: After ultrasound stress pronounced depressive-like behavior, clomipramine had an equally antidepressant effect after intranasal and intraperitoneal administration on behavior. Ultrasound stress contributed to changes of the metabolomic pathways associated with pathophysiology of depression. Clomipramine affected global metabolome in frontal cortex and hippocampus in a different way that depended on the route of administration. Intranasal route was associated with more significant changes of metabolites composition in the frontal cortex compared to the control and ultrasound groups while the intraperitoneal route corresponded with more profound changes in hippocampal metabolome compared to other groups. Since far metabolic processes in the brain can change in many ways depending on different routes of administration, the antidepressant therapy should also be evaluated from this point of view.