Search Results (199)

Electrocoagulation is rapidly gaining prominence in wastewater treatment due to its capabilities and less reliance on additional chemicals. While a lot of research efforts have been focused on the influence of the anode material, power supply, and reactor design, the contribution of the cathode to contaminant removal has been less explored. In this study, we investigated the performance of stainless steel (SS-304) and aluminium (Al-6061) electrodes in both similar and dissimilar configurations for a 120 min electrocoagulation treatment of spent machinery coolant. The anode–cathode configurations, including SS-SS, Al-Al, SS-Al and Al-SS, have been investigated. Additionally, we examined the effects of the initial pH and agitation methods on the process performance. Our findings indicated that the type of cathode could significantly affect the floc formation and contaminant removal. Notably, the combination of an Al anode and SS cathode (Al(A)-SS(C)) demonstrated a synergistic improvement in the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), with a removal of 84.3% within a short treatment time (<20 min). The final COD removal of 91.4% was achieved with a turbidity level close to 12 Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTU). The Al anode readily released the Al ions and formed light flocs at the early stage of electrocoagulation, while the SS cathode generated heavy Fe hydroxides that mitigated the flotation effect. These results demonstrated the cathode’s significant contribution in electrocoagulation, leading to potential savings in the treatment time required. Full article

Background: Many new mRNA-based vaccine candidates in liquid mRNA-LNP formulations are under development; however, their stability limitations necessitate frozen storage, posing a significant challenge for long-term storage and transportation. Methods: In this study, an mRNA-LNP rabies vaccine, ABO1005, was prepared, freeze-dried and stored at 2–8 °C for 12-month storage stability evaluation. The immunogenicity, vaccine potency (the NIH method), and protective efficacy of ABO1005 were assessed in mice or dogs and compared to a commercialized inactivated vaccine. Results: Research conducted in mice indicated that the lyophilized vaccine exhibited comparable immunogenicity to its liquid form counterpart. Furthermore, the vaccine candidate elicited a robust humoral response lasting at least 175 days, and the specific antibody titers were not affected by the pre-administration of hyperimmune serum. In comparison to the commercialized inactivated vaccine (HDCV or PVRV), ABO1005 elicited significantly higher levels of humoral and cellular immunity. Vaccine potency testing (NIH) revealed that the potency of ABO1005 at 15 μg/dose was 8.85 IU/dose, which is substantially higher than the standard required for the lot release of rabies vaccines for current human use. In a post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) study in Beagle dogs, the lyophilized vaccine provided 100% protection for dogs following a two-dose regimen (D0-D7), whereas commercially approved inactivated vaccine offered 83% protection. After storage at 2–8 °C for 12 months, no notable changes were observed in the particle size, encapsulation efficiency, and integrity of mRNA or in the immunogenicity of the lyophilized vaccine. Conclusions: This study successfully developed a formulation and process of freeze-drying for a rabies mRNA vaccine, paving the way for future lyophilized mRNA vaccine development. Full article

The main problem associated with mining is the release of heavy metals into the environment, impacting the soil and overall environment. Mercury is one of the most contaminating heavy metals. It is present in soils, sediments, surface water, and groundwater. The objective of this research was to evaluate the phytoremediation carried out by the native plant Piper marginatum, in soils contaminated by mercury in an experimental lot in the municipality of Ayapel, where artisanal and small-scale gold mining is carried out. A soil phytoremediation process was carried out at a field scale using the plant species Piper marginatum in a 2.4 ha plot historically contaminated by gold mining, located in Ayapel, Colombia. A completely randomized experimental design was used with nine experimental plots, which were planted with Piper marginatum, and three controls, without planting. Through an initial soil sampling, the physicochemical characteristics and total mercury content in this matrix were determined. Piper marginatum seedlings were planted in the experimental plots and remained in the field for a period of six months. The plant biomass was collected and a final soil sampling was performed for total mercury analysis to determine the total percentage of mercury removal. The results obtained indicated mercury concentrations in soils ranging from 40.80 to 52,044.4 µg kg⁻¹ in the experimental plots and ranged from 55.9 to 2587.4 µg kg⁻¹ in the controls. In the plots planted with Piper marginatum, a 37.3% decrease in total mercury was achieved, while in the plots without planting there was a 23.5% increase. In plants, the average T Hg concentrations in the roots, stems, and leaves were 109.2 µg kg⁻¹, 80.6 µg kg⁻¹, and 122.6 µg kg⁻¹, respectively. An average BCF < 1 and an average TF > 1 were obtained. Full article

Background/Objectives: Porcine circovirus type 2d (PCV2d) is the predominant genotype associated with porcine circovirus-associated disease (PCVAD), leading to significant economic losses. In South Korea, current vaccine lot-release testing relies on a T/C-ratio-based guinea pig assay, which lacks scientific justification and methodological robustness. This study aimed to develop and validate a statistically defined in-house ELISA using rabbit-derived polyclonal antibodies against PCV2d for the standardized evaluation of immunogenicity. Methods: Polyclonal IgG was generated by immunizing a rabbit with inactivated PCV2d, and it was purified through Protein A chromatography. Guinea pigs (n = 18) were immunized with IMMUNIS^® DMVac, an inactivated PCV2d vaccine candidate developed by WOOGENE B&G, at different doses. In-house ELISA parameters were optimized (antigen coating, blocking agent, and substrate incubation), and analytical performance was evaluated by ROC, linearity, reproducibility, and specificity. Sera from guinea pigs and pigs were analyzed under validated conditions. Results: The optimal performance was achieved using 10⁵ genomic copies/mL of the antigen coating and a 5% BSA blocking agent. The assay showed strong diagnostic accuracy (AUC = 0.97), reproducibility (CVs < 5%), and linearity (R² = 0.9890). Specificity tests with PCV2a, PCV2b, and PRRSV showed minimal cross-reactivity (<7%). The cross-species comparison revealed a positive correlation (R² = 0.1815) and acceptable agreement (bias = −0.21) between guinea pig and porcine sera. The validated cut-off (S/P = 0.4) enabled accurate classification across both species and aligned well with commercial kits. Conclusions: The in-house ELISA offers a robust, reproducible, and scientifically validated platform for immunogenicity verification, supporting its application in Korea’s national lot-release system. Homologous competition assays with PCV2d are planned to further confirm antigen specificity. Full article

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have emerged as promising agents in cancer diagnostics and/or therapy, demonstrating a lot of possible pharmacological actions. However, understanding the pharmacokinetics and safety profiles of nanoparticles, which is crucial for their clinical application, still raises many questions. Studies indicate that AgNPs can accumulate in tumour tissues, improving drug delivery and specificity. However, their interaction with biological systems necessitates thorough safety evaluations. Classical methods for assessing AgNPs’ safety include cytotoxicity assays, genotoxicity tests, and histopathological examinations. However, novel techniques are emerging, such as advanced imaging and biomarker analysis, offering more precise toxicity assessments. Prediction models, including computational simulations and in silico analyses, are being developed to forecast AgNPs’ toxicity profiles. These models aim to reduce reliance on animal testing and expedite the evaluation process. To mitigate potential risks associated with nanoparticle-based therapies, strategies such as surface modification, controlled release systems, and targeted delivery are being explored. These methods aim to enhance therapeutic efficacy while minimizing adverse effects. The main aim of this review article is to describe AgNPs from the point of view of their pharmacokinetic/toxicokinetic profile in the light of modern knowledge. Special attention will be given to novel methods for assessing the safety and toxicity profiles of AgNPs, providing insights into their interactions with cancer therapies and their potential clinical applications. Full article

Being an agricultural country, Pakistan requires lots of water for irrigation. A major portion of its water resources is located in the upper indus basin (UIB). The snowmelt runoff generated from high-altitude areas of the UIB provides inflow into the Indus river system that boosts the water supply. Snow accumulation during the winter period in the highlands in the watershed(s) becomes a source of water inflow during the snow-melting period, which is described according to characteristics like snow depth, snow density, and snow water equivalent. Snowmelt water release (SWE) and snowmelt water depth (SD) maps are generated by tracing snow occurrence from MODIS-based images of the snow-cover area, evaluating the heating degree days (HDDs) from MODIS-derived images of the land surface temperature, computing the solar radiation, and then assimilating all the previous data in the form of the snowmelt model and ground measurements of the snowmelt water release (SWE). The results show that the average snow-cover area in the Astore river basin, in the upper indus basin, ranges from 94% in winter to 20% in summer. The maps reveal that the annual average values of the SWE range from 150 mm to 535 mm, and the SD values range from 600 mm to 2135 mm, for the snowmelt period (April–September) over the years 2010–2020. The areas linked with vegetation experience low SWE accumulation because of the low slopes in the elevated regions. The meteorological parameters and basin characteristics affect the SWE and can determine the SD values. Full article

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church was officially liquidated by the Soviet authorities at the L’viv Pseudo-Council of 1946. However, the clergy and faithful who remained loyal to their Church formed an underground church structure. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the underground Greek Catholics had special hopes for the revival of the UGCC. This was due to the easing of repression in the USSR after Stalin’s death and the preparation and convening of the Second Vatican Council. It was at this time that Pope John XXIII managed to secure the release of the head of the UGCC, Metropolitan Josyf Slipyj, who had spent 18 years in the Soviet labor camps and exile. At that time, many suspicions and accusations arose among the clergy and faithful of the underground UGCC due to insufficient information about the actions and decisions of the Council. In those years, a movement emerged that later grew into an apocalyptic sect (“Pokutnyky”). Ecumenical talks between the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church, the issue of patriarchal status for the UGCC, ritual disputes, and so on also caused a lot of discussion among the Greek Catholics in Ukraine. This paper is an attempt to provide a better understanding of the perception of the Vatican II decisions by underground Greek Catholics within their struggle for the existence and revival of their Church. Full article

The pathophysiology of a stroke is a complex process involving oxidative stress and inflammation. As a result of the actions of reactive oxygen species (ROS), not only does vascular damage occur, but the brain tissue is also damaged. It is a dynamic process, induced by a cellular–molecular immune response, focused on the development of an immediate reaction. During ischemia, inflammatory mediators are released, among which IL-6 plays a particularly important role in the acute phase of a stroke. Recently, a lot of attention has been devoted to this pleiotropic pro-inflammatory cytokine, which enhances the migration of leukocytes and is controlled by chemokines and the expression of adhesion handlers. The impact of IL-6 on the severity of neurological treatment and on patient prognosis in AIS is of interest to many researchers. More and more data indicate that it may be a reliable prognostic factor in strokes. Full article

The Chinese government releases a large number of enterprise-friendly policy documents every year, but due to the dispersed policy release channels and complex document parsing, enterprises need to invest a lot of human and material resources to analyze them, which results in many enterprises missing the opportunity to file. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a two-step cue learning-based event extraction framework (TPEE), which learns to recognize the role start and stop markers in the text by two prompts, and introduces a dynamic weighting mechanism to enhance the information interaction between roles. In the experiments, TPEE shows strong generalization ability on the publicly available financial dataset DuEE-Fin, and improves the F1-scores in argument recognition and classification tasks by 0.84% and 0.74%, respectively. In addition, based on the policy dataset DEE-Policy constructed by the authors, TPEE achieves F1-scores of 73.92% and 72.81% in the argument recognition and classification tasks, respectively, which are improved by 2.14% and 2.26% compared to the baseline model. The results show that the TPEE framework performs well in event extraction in the policy domain and provides technical support for enterprises to obtain policy information efficiently. Full article

Background/Objectives: Potency is a critical quality attribute for vaccine development as well as clinical drug product (DP) lot release and stability testing. Animal studies have the potential to offer conclusive insights about the potency of vaccines by demonstrating technical relevance with respect to the hypothesized vaccine mode of action. However, animal studies are expensive, time-consuming, labor intensive, and, most importantly, involve the use of animals. Therefore, alternative in vitro potency assays should be explored. Methods: In this study, female BALB/c mice were immunized intramuscularly with various doses of a respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) mRNA vaccine V171 lots at day 0 and day 21. Vaccine-elicited immune responses were determined by ELISA (post-dose 1) and neutralizing assay (post-dose 2). These vaccine lots were also tested in a cell-based relative potency assay in which the ability of each lot to express the RSV F protein in Hep G2 cells was measured against a reference standard. Results: Effective Dose 50s (ED50s) of the vaccine lots were determined with probit models based on dichotomized ELISA or neutralizing titers. Statistical analysis demonstrated that the post-dose 2 neutralizing ED50 correlates with cell-based relative potency (Pearson’s correlation test ln (RP) and ln (ED₅₀): correlation coefficient = −0.82; p-value = 0.047). Conclusions: These data merit the use of a cell-based potency assay to replace the animal study to support V171 vaccine development and to use for DP lot release and stability testing. This study also establishes proof-of-concept of using cell-based potency assays as an alternative to animal immunogenicity studies for mRNA-based vaccines. Full article

Chitosan (CS) occurs naturally as an alkaline polysaccharide and has been demonstrated to have several activities of a biological nature. Additionally, as CS chains have functional hydroxyl and amino groups that are active, their applications can be expanded by chemically or molecularly altering the molecules to incorporate new functional groups. Due to its outstanding qualities, including biodegradability, biocompatibility, non-toxicity, and accessibility, it has received significant interest in all areas of biomedicine and nanomaterials being extremely promising as drug nanocarrier. The last decades have produced a lot of interest in CS-based nanoparticles (CSNPs), with an increasing number of research papers from around 1500 in 2015 to almost 5000 in 2024. The degree of crosslinking, the particulate system’s shape, size, and density, in addition to the drug’s physical and chemical properties, all have a role in how the drug is transported and released from CSNPs. When creating potential drug delivery systems based on CSNPs, all these factors must be considered. In earlier, CSNPs were employed to enhance the pharmacotherapeutics, pharmacokinetics, and solubility properties of drugs. By investigating its positively charged characteristics and changeable functional groups, CS has evolved into a versatile drug delivery system. The drug release from CSNPs will definitely be influenced by various changes to the functional groups, charges, and polymer backbone. This review mainly discusses the most important results published in the last decade. Despite the promising advantages of CSNPs, challenges related to the translation into clinical stages remain and further in vitro and in vivo studies are mandatory. Full article

Pancreatitis is a prominent and severe type of inflammatory disorder that has grabbed a lot of scientific and clinical interest to prevent its onset. It should be detected early to avoid the development of serious complications, which occur due to long-term damage to the pancreas. The accurate measurement of biomarkers that are released from the pancreas during inflammation is essential for the detection and early treatment of patients with severe acute and chronic pancreatitis, but this is sub-optimally performed in clinically relevant practices, mainly due to the complexity of the procedure and the cost of the treatment. Clinically available tests for the early detection of pancreatitis are often time-consuming. The early detection of pancreatitis also relates to disorders of the exocrine pancreas, such as cystic fibrosis in the hereditary form and cystic fibrosis-like syndrome in the acquired form of pancreatitis, which are genetic disorders with symptoms that can be correlated with the overexpression of specific markers such as creatinine in biological fluids like urine. In this review, we studied how to develop a minimally invasive system using hydrogel-based biosensors, which are highly absorbent and biocompatible polymers that can respond to specific stimuli such as enzymes, pH, temperature, or the presence of biomarkers. These biosensors are helpful for real-time health monitoring and medical diagnostics since they translate biological reactions into quantifiable data. This paper also sheds light on the possible use of Ayurvedic formulations along with hydrogels as a treatment strategy. These analytical devices can be used to enhance the early detection of severe pancreatitis in real time. Full article

Soil calcium is a vital component in plant growth and soil health. Earthworm activities impact metal distribution and speciation a lot by changing soil pH. Nevertheless, little is known about how ecological earthworm species, particularly in Terra Rossa soil, affect soil Ca speciation distribution. This research examined the effects of the activities of four different earthworm species (epigeic species Eisenia fetida (noted as EF), endogeic species Amynthas robustus (noted as AR) and Pontoscolex corethrurus (noted as PC), anecic species Amynthas aspergillum (noted as AA)) on Ca speciations (water-soluble (Ca_Ws), exchangeable (Ca_Ex), acid-soluble bound (Ca_Ac), organic-bound (Ca_Or), and residual (Ca_Re)), soil pH, the release contents of exchangeable cations (Ca, Mg, K, and Na), total calcium (Ca_Total) contents, total nitrogen (TN) contents, soil organic carbon (SOC) concentrations, cation-exchange capacity (CEC), and NIRS spectral characteristics in Terra Rossa soil for 40 days under lab conditions. In contrast to control soil, 108.3%, 158.3%, 91.7%, and 125.0% of Ca_Ws contents in casts and 116.6%, 108.3%, 58.3% and 91.6% of Ca_Ws in uningested soil increased significantly with the inoculation of EF, PC, AR, and AA, respectively. In addition, compared with control, for casts, the contents of exchangeable Ca, Mg, K, CEC, and available-K were significantly increased in the presence of EF, PC, AR, and AA, respectively. In the casts of EF, PC, AR, and AA, soil pH values declined by 0.72, 0.80, 0.45, and 0.60 units relative to control soil, while they decreased by 0.65, 0.84, 0.34, and 0.59 units in uningested soil. The soil inoculated with PC had higher soil pH values and Ca_Ws contents than those with the other three earthworm species. Principal component analysis revealed significant differences in soil pH, Ca speciation, NIR spectra, and exchangeable base cation release between casts and uningested soil in treatments with EF, PC, AR, and AA inoculation. These findings expand, for the first time, to the ecological functions of earthworm species, especially for PC, demonstrating a capacity to alter soil Ca speciation, decrease soil pH, affect the exchangeable base cations’ release, and participate in and regulate the geochemical circulation processes in limestone regions. Full article

Sustainability is becoming increasingly important in the world we live in, because of the rapid global population growth and climate change (drought, extreme temperature fluctuations). People in developing countries need more sustainable protein sources instead of the traditional, less sustainable meat, fish, egg, and dairy products. Alternative sources (plant-based, such as grains (wheat, rice sorghum), seeds (chia, hemp), nuts (almond, walnut), pulses (beans, lentil, pea, lupins), and leaves (duckweed), as well as mycoproteins, microalgae, and insects) can compensate for the increased demand for animal protein. In this context, our attention has been specifically focused on duckweed—which is the third most important aquatic plant after the microalgae Chlorella and Spirulina—to explore its potential for use in a variety of areas, particularly in the food industry. Duckweed has special properties: It is one of the fastest-growing plants in the world (in freshwater), multiplying its mass in two days, so it can cover a water surface quickly even in filtered sunlight (doubling its biomass in 96 hours). During this time, it converts a lot of carbon dioxide into oxygen. It is sustainable, environmentally friendly (without any pesticides), and fast growing; can be grown in indoor vertical farms and aquaculture, so it does not require land; is easy to harvest; and has a good specific protein yield. Duckweed belongs to the family Araceae, subfamily Lemnoideae, and has five genera (Lemna, Spirodela, Wolffia, Wolffiella, Landolita) containing a total of approximately 36–38 recognised species. Duckweed is gaining attention in nutrition and food sciences due to its potential as a sustainable source of protein, vitamins, minerals, and other bioactive compounds. However, there are several gaps in research specifically focused on nutrition and the bioaccessibility of its components. While some studies have analysed the variability in the nutritional composition of different duckweed species, there is a need for comprehensive research on the variability in nutrient contents across species, growth conditions, harvesting times, and geographic locations. There has been limited research on the digestibility, bioaccessibility (the proportion of nutrients that are released from the food matrix during digestion), and bioavailability (the proportion that is absorbed and utilised by the body) of nutrients in duckweed. Furthermore, more studies are needed to understand how food processing (milling, fermentation, cooking, etc.), preparation methods, and digestive physiology affect the nutritional value and bioavailability of the essential bioactive components in duckweed and in food matrices supplemented with duckweed. This could help to optimise the use of duckweed in human diets (e.g., hamburgers or pastas supplemented with duckweed) or animal feed. More research is needed on how to effectively incorporate duckweed into diverse cuisines and dietary patterns. Studies focusing on recipe development, consumer acceptance, palatability, and odour are critical. Addressing these gaps could provide valuable insights into the nutritional potential of duckweed and support its promotion as a sustainable food source, thereby contributing to food security and improved nutrition. In summary, this article covers the general knowledge of duckweed, its important nutritional values, factors that may affect their biological value, and risk factors for the human diet, while looking for technological solutions (covering traditional and novel technologies) that can be used to increase the release of the useful, health-promoting components of duckweed and, thus, their bioavailability. This article, identifying gaps in recent research, could serve as a helpful basis for related research in the future. Duckweed species with good properties could be selected by these research studies and then included in the human diet after they have been tested for food safety. Full article

Background/Objectives: Conventional live oral poliovirus vaccines (OPVs) effectively prevent poliomyelitis. These vaccines are derived from three attenuated Sabin strains of poliovirus, which can revert within the first week of replication to a neurovirulent phenotype, leading to sporadic cases of vaccine-associated paralytic poliomyelitis (VAPP) among vaccinees and their contacts. A novel OPV2 vaccine (nOPV2) with enhanced genetic stability was developed recently; type 1 and type 3 nOPV strains were engineered using the nOPV2 genome as a backbone by replacing the capsid precursor polyprotein (P1) with that of Sabin strains type 1 and type 3, respectively. The nOPV vaccines have a high degree of sequence homology with the parental Sabin 2 genome, and some manufacturing facilities produce and store both Sabin OPV and nOPV. Therefore, detecting Sabin virus contaminations in nOPV lots is crucial. Methods: This study describes the development of pan quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (panRT-PCR) and multiplex one-step RT-PCR (mosRT-PCR) assays for the straightforward detection and identification of contaminating Sabin viruses when present in significantly higher amounts of nOPV strains. Results: The two assays exhibit high specificity, reproducibility, and sensitivity to detect 0.0001% and 0.00001% of Sabin viruses in nOPV, respectively. Additionally, an analysis of 12 trivalent nOPV formulation lots using both methods confirmed that the nOPV lots were free from Sabin virus contamination. Conclusions: The results demonstrated that the RT-PCR assays are sensitive and specific. These assays are relevant for quality control and lot release of nOPV vaccines. Full article