Autonomous self-burying seed carriers for aerial seeding.

Aerial seeding can quickly cover large and physically inaccessible areas1 to improve soil quality and scavenge residual nitrogen in agriculture2, and for postfire reforestation3-5 and wildland restoration6,7. However, it suffers from low germination rates, due to the direct exposure of unburied seeds to harsh sunlight, wind and granivorous birds, as well as undesirable air humidity and temperature1,8,9. Here, inspired by Erodium seeds10-14, we design and fabricate self-drilling seed carriers, turning wood veneer into highly stiff (about 4.9 GPa when dry, and about 1.3 GPa when wet) and hygromorphic bending or coiling actuators with an extremely large bending curvature (1,854 m-1), 45 times larger than the values in the literature15-18. Our three-tailed carrier has an 80% drilling success rate on flat land after two triggering cycles, due to the beneficial resting angle (25°-30°) of its tail anchoring, whereas the natural Erodium seed's success rate is 0%. Our carriers can carry payloads of various sizes and contents including biofertilizers and plant seeds as large as those of whitebark pine, which are about 11 mm in length and about 72 mg. We compare data from experiments and numerical simulation to elucidate the curvature transformation and actuation mechanisms to guide the design and optimization of the seed carriers. Our system will improve the effectiveness of aerial seeding to relieve agricultural and environmental stresses, and has potential applications in energy harvesting, soft robotics and sustainable buildings.

Insights into the mechanisms of diabetic wounds: pathophysiology, molecular targets, and treatment strategies through conventional and alternative therapies.

Diabetes mellitus is a prevalent cause of mortality worldwide and can lead to several secondary issues, including DWs, which are caused by hyperglycemia, diabetic neuropathy, anemia, and ischemia. Roughly 15% of diabetic patient's experience complications related to DWs, with 25% at risk of lower limb amputations. A conventional management protocol is currently used for treating diabetic foot syndrome, which involves therapy using various substances, such as bFGF, pDGF, VEGF, EGF, IGF-I, TGF-ß, skin substitutes, cytokine stimulators, cytokine inhibitors, MMPs inhibitors, gene and stem cell therapies, ECM, and angiogenesis stimulators. The protocol also includes wound cleaning, laser therapy, antibiotics, skin substitutes, HOTC therapy, and removing dead tissue. It has been observed that treatment with numerous plants and their active constituents, including Globularia Arabica, Rhus coriaria L., Neolamarckia cadamba, Olea europaea, Salvia kronenburgii, Moringa oleifera, Syzygium aromaticum, Combretum molle, and Myrtus communis, has been found to promote wound healing, reduce inflammation, stimulate angiogenesis, and cytokines production, increase growth factors production, promote keratinocyte production, and encourage fibroblast proliferation. These therapies may also reduce the need for amputations. However, there is still limited information on how to prevent and manage DWs, and further research is needed to fully understand the role of alternative treatments in managing complications of DWs. The conventional management protocol for treating diabetic foot syndrome can be expensive and may cause adverse side effects. Alternative therapies, such as medicinal plants and green synthesis of nano-formulations, may provide efficient and affordable treatments for DWs.

2D QSAR, Design, and in Silico Analysis of Thiophene-Tethered Lactam Derivatives as Antimicrobial Agents.

BACKGROUND: A very high rate of resistance causes health-care-associated and community-acquired infections. E. coli is one of the nine pathogens of highest concern to most of the antibiotics and other class of antimicrobials. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present study is to develop novel thiophene derivatives using 2D QSAR and in silico approach for E. coli resistance. METHODS: Substituted thiophene series reported by Nishu Singla et al., were taken for QSAR analysis. From the results, a set of 15 new compounds were designed. A complete in silico analysis has been done using PADEL, Autodock vina, Swiss ADME, Protox II software. RESULTS: The designed compounds obey the Lipinski's rule of five and were known to have excellent inhibitory action (pIC50 values -0.87 to -1.46) which is similar to the most active compound of the data set (pIC50 -0.69) taken for the study. The bioavailability score (0.65) with no toxicity representing that the designed compounds are suitable for oral administration. CONCLUSION: The designed compounds are inactive for mutagenicity and cytotoxicity and ADMET studies states that these molecules are likely to be orally bioavailable and could be easily transported, diffused, and absorbed. So, the designed compounds will definitely serve as a lead antibacterial agent for E. coli resistance.

Plant-Actuated Micro-Nanorobotics Platforms: Structural Designs, Functional Prospects, and Biomedical Applications.

Plants are anatomically and physiologically different from humans and animals; however, there are several possibilities to utilize the unique structures and physiological systems of plants and adapt them to new emerging technologies through a strategic biomimetic approach. Moreover, plants provide safe and sustainable results that can potentially solve the problem of mass-producing practical materials with hazardous and toxic side effects, particularly in the biomedical field, which requires high biocompatibility. In this review, it is investigated how micro-nanostructures available in plants (e.g., nanoparticles, nanofibers and their composites, nanoporous materials, and natural micromotors) are adapted and utilized in the design of suitable materials for a micro-nanorobot platform. How plants' work on micro- and nanoscale systems (e.g., surface roughness, osmotically induced movements such as nastic and tropic, and energy conversion and harvesting) that are unique to plants, can provide functionality on the platform and become further prospective resources are examined. Furthermore, implementation across organisms and fields, which is promising for future practical applications of the plant-actuated micro-nanorobot platform, especially on biomedical applications, is discussed. Finally, the challenges following its implementation in the micro-nanorobot platform are also presented to provide advanced adaptation in the future.

Magnetotransport in hybrid InSe/monolayer graphene on SiC.

The magnetotransport properties of a hybrid InSe/monolayer graphene in a SiC system are systematically studied. Compared to those of its bare graphene counterpart, in InSe/graphene, we can effectively modify the carrier density, mobility, effective mass, and electron-electron (e-e) interactions enhanced by weak disorder. We show that in bare graphene and hybrid InSe/graphene systems, the logarithmic temperature (lnT) dependence of the Hall slope R H = Î´R xy /δB = Î´ρ xy /δB can be used to probe e-e interaction effects at various temperatures even when the measured resistivity does not show a lnT dependence due to strong electron-phonon scattering. Nevertheless, one needs to be certain that the change of R H is not caused by an increase of the carrier density by checking the magnetic field position of the longitudinal resistivity minimum at different temperatures. Given the current challenges in gating graphene on SiC with a suitable dielectric layer, our results suggest that capping a van der Waals material on graphene is an effective way to modify the electronic properties of monolayer graphene on SiC.

Highly sensitive broadband binary photoresponse in gateless epitaxial graphene on 4H-SiC.

Due to weak light-matter interaction, standard chemical vapor deposition (CVD)/exfoliated single-layer graphene-based photodetectors show low photoresponsivity (on the order of mA/W). However, epitaxial graphene (EG) offers a more viable approach for obtaining devices with good photoresponsivity. EG on 4H-SiC also hosts an interfacial buffer layer (IBL), which is the source of electron carriers applicable to quantum optoelectronic devices. We utilize these properties to demonstrate a gate-free, planar EG/4H-SiC-based device that enables us to observe the positive photoresponse for (405-532) nm and negative photoresponse for (632-980) nm laser excitation. The broadband binary photoresponse mainly originates from the energy band alignment of the IBL/EG interface and the highly sensitive work function of the EG. We find that the photoresponsivity of the device is > 10 A/W under 405 nm of power density 7.96 mW/cm2 at 1 V applied bias, which is three orders of magnitude greater than the obtained values of CVD/exfoliated graphene and higher than the required value for practical applications. These results path the way for selective light-triggered logic devices based on EG and can open a new window for broadband photodetection.

Graphene Quantum Hall Effect Devices for AC and DC Electrical Metrology.

A new type of graphene-based quantum Hall standards is tested for electrical quantum metrology applications at alternating current (ac) and direct current (dc). The devices are functionalized with Cr(CO)3 to control the charge carrier density and have branched Hall contacts based on NbTiN superconducting material. The work is an in-depth study about the characteristic capacitances and related losses in the ac regime of the devices and about their performance during precision resistance measurements at dc and ac.

Mushroom-Derived Bioactive Molecules as Immunotherapeutic Agents: A Review.

Mushrooms with enhanced medicinal properties focus on finding such compounds that could modulate the human body's immune systems. Mushrooms have antimicrobial, antidiabetic, antiviral, hepatoprotective, antitumor, and immunomodulatory properties due to the presence of various bioactive components. ß-glucans are the major constituent of the mushroom cell wall and play a significant role in their biological activity. This review described the techniques used in the extraction of the active ingredients from the mushroom. We highlighted the structure of the bioactive polysaccharides present in the mushrooms. Therapeutic applications of different mushrooms were also described. It is interesting to note that mushrooms have the potential sources of many bioactive products that can regulate immunity. Thus, the development of functional medicinal food based on the mushroom is vital for human welfare.

Graphene Oxide-Based Stimuli-Responsive Platforms for Biomedical Applications.

Graphene is a two-dimensional sp2 hybridized carbon material that has attracted tremendous attention for its stimuli-responsive applications, owing to its high surface area and excellent electrical, optical, thermal, and mechanical properties. The physicochemical properties of graphene can be tuned by surface functionalization. The biomedical field pays special attention to stimuli-responsive materials due to their responsive abilities under different conditions. Stimuli-responsive materials exhibit great potential in changing their behavior upon exposure to external or internal factors, such as pH, light, electric field, magnetic field, and temperature. Graphene-based materials, particularly graphene oxide (GO), have been widely used in stimuli-responsive applications due to their superior biocompatibility compared to other forms of graphene. GO has been commonly utilized in tissue engineering, bioimaging, biosensing, cancer therapy, and drug delivery. GO-based stimuli-responsive platforms for wound healing applications have not yet been fully explored. This review describes the effects of different stimuli-responsive factors, such as pH, light, temperature, and magnetic and electric fields on GO-based materials and their applications. The wound healing applications of GO-based materials is extensively discussed with cancer therapy and drug delivery.

Leprosy drug clofazimine activates peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ and synergizes with imatinib to inhibit chronic myeloid leukemia cells.

Leukemia stem cells contribute to drug-resistance and relapse in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and BCR-ABL1 inhibitor monotherapy fails to eliminate these cells, thereby necessitating alternate therapeutic strategies for patients CML. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) agonist pioglitazone downregulates signal transducer and activator of transcription 5 (STAT5) and in combination with imatinib induces complete molecular response in imatinib-refractory patients by eroding leukemia stem cells. Thiazolidinediones such as pioglitazone are, however, associated with severe side effects. To identify alternate therapeutic strategies for CML we screened Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs in K562 cells and identified the leprosy drug clofazimine as an inhibitor of viability of these cells. Here we show that clofazimine induced apoptosis of blood mononuclear cells derived from patients with CML, with a particularly robust effect in imatinib-resistant cells. Clofazimine also induced apoptosis of CD34+38- progenitors and quiescent CD34+ cells from CML patients but not of hematopoietic progenitor cells from healthy donors. Mechanistic evaluation revealed that clofazimine, via physical interaction with PPARγ, induced nuclear factor kB-p65 proteasomal degradation, which led to sequential myeloblastoma oncoprotein and peroxiredoxin 1 downregulation and concomitant induction of reactive oxygen species-mediated apoptosis. Clofazimine also suppressed STAT5 expression and consequently downregulated stem cell maintenance factors hypoxia-inducible factor-1α and -2α and Cbp/P300 interacting transactivator with Glu/Asp-rich carboxy-terminal domain 2 (CITED2). Combining imatinib with clofazimine caused a far superior synergy than that with pioglitazone, with clofazimine reducing the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of imatinib by >4 logs and remarkably eroding quiescent CD34+ cells. In a K562 xenograft study clofazimine and imatinib co-treatment showed more robust efficacy than the individual treatments. We propose clinical evaluation of clofazimine in imatinib-refractory CML.

A Suzuki Approach to Quinone-Based Diarylethene Photochromes.

Diarylethene photochromes show promise for use in advanced organic electronic and photonic materials with burgeoning considerations for biological applications; however, these compounds typically require UV light for photoswitching in at least one direction, thus limiting their appeal. We here introduce a naphthoquinone-based diarylethene that switches between open and closed forms with visible light. The synthesis of this quinone diarylethene relies on Suzuki methodology, allowing for the inclusion of functional groups not otherwise accessible with current synthetic routes.

Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition in an Al superconducting nanofilm grown on GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy.

We have performed extensive transport experiments on a 4 nm thick aluminum (Al) superconducting film grown on a GaAs substrate by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Nonlinear current-voltage (I-V) measurements on such a MBE-grown superconducting nanofilm show that V âˆ¼ I 3, which is evidence for the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition, both in the low-voltage (T BKT ≈ 1.97 K) and high-voltage regions (T BKT ≈ 2.17 K). In order to further study the two regions where the I-V curves are BKT-like, our experimental data are fitted to the temperature-induced vortices/antivortices unbinding model as well as the dynamical scaling theory. It is found that the transition temperature obtained in the high-voltage region is the correct T BKT as confirmed by fitting the data to the aforementioned models. Our experimental results unequivocally show that I-V measurements alone may not allow one to determine T BKT for superconducting transition. Therefore, one should try to fit one's results to the temperature-induced vortices/antivortices unbinding model and the dynamical scaling theory to accurately determine T BKT in a two-dimensional superconductor.

Development of gateless quantum Hall checkerboard p-n junction devices.

Measurements of fractional multiples of the ν = 2 plateau quantized Hall resistance (R H ≈ 12906 Ω) were enabled by the utilization of multiple current terminals on millimetre-scale graphene p-n junction devices fabricated with interfaces along both lateral directions. These quantum Hall resistance checkerboard devices have been demonstrated to match quantized resistance outputs numerically calculated with the LTspice circuit simulator. From the devices' functionality, more complex embodiments of the quantum Hall resistance checkerboard were simulated to highlight the parameter space within which these devices could operate. Moreover, these measurements suggest that the scalability of p-n junction fabrication on millimetre or centimetre scales is feasible with regards to graphene device manufacturing by using the far more efficient process of standard ultraviolet lithography.

Analysing quantized resistance behaviour in graphene Corbino p-n junction devices.

Just a few of the promising applications of graphene Corbino pnJ devices include two-dimensional Dirac fermion microscopes, custom programmable quantized resistors, and mesoscopic valley filters. In some cases, device scalability is crucial, as seen in fields like resistance metrology, where graphene devices are required to accommodate currents of the order 100 µA to be compatible with existing infrastructure. However, fabrication of these devices still poses many difficulties. In this work, unusual quantized resistances are observed in epitaxial graphene Corbino p-n junction devices held at the ν = 2 plateau (R H ≈ 12906 Ω) and agree with numerical simulations performed with the LTspice circuit simulator. The formulae describing experimental and simulated data are empirically derived for generalized placement of up to three current terminals and accurately reflects observed partial edge channel cancellation. These results support the use of ultraviolet lithography as a way to scale up graphene-based devices with suitably narrow junctions that could be applied in a variety of subfields.

Implementation of a graphene quantum Hall Kelvin bridge-on-a-chip for resistance calibrations.

The unique properties of the quantum Hall effect allow one to revisit traditional measurement circuits with a new flavour. In this paper we present the first realization of a quantum Hall Kelvin bridge for the calibration of standard resistors directly against the quantum Hall resistance. The bridge design is particularly simple and requires a minimal number of instruments. The implementation here proposed is based on the bridge-on-a-chip, an integrated circuit composed of three graphene quantum Hall elements and superconducting wiring. The accuracy achieved in the calibration of a 12 906Ω standard resistor is of a few parts in 108, at present mainly limited by the prototype device and the interferences in the current implementation, with the potential to achieve few parts in 109, which is the level of the systematic uncertainty of the quantum Hall Kelvin bridge itself.

Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis Derived Protein Isolate with Enhanced Osteomodulatory and Antioxidative Property.

The osteogenic differentiation of stem cells is profoundly affected by their microenvironmental conditions. The differentiation behavior of stem cells can be tuned by changing the niche environments. The proteins or peptides that are derived by living organisms facilitate the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells. Here, we have evaluated the osteoinductive and antioxidative potential of the Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis insect-derived protein for human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs). The amino acid contents in the isolated protein were determined by an amino acid analyzer. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to analyze the extract's functional groups and surface morphology. The extracted protein exhibited 51.08% ß-sheet conformation. No adverse effects were observed in extract-treated cells, indicating their biocompatibility. The protein isolate showed an excellent antioxidative property. Besides this, an enhancement in the hBMSCs' mineralization has been observed in the presence of treated protein isolates. Notably, osteogenic marker genes and proteins were effectively expressed in the treated cells. These results indicated that the P. brevitarsis-derived protein isolate can be used as a potential antioxidative biomaterial for bone tissue engineering applications.

Computational and Crystallographic Examination of Naphthoquinone Based Diarylethene Photochromes.

Photochromic compounds have a lengthy history of study and a profusion of applications that stand to gain from these studies. Among the classes of photochromic compounds, diarylethenes show desirable properties including high fatigue resistance and thermal stability, thus meeting some of the most important criteria necessary to enter the realm of practical applications. Recently, photochromic diarylethenes containing quinone functionalities have demonstrated interesting optical and solid-state properties. When properly interfaced with suitable electron withdrawing groups on the aryl component, both the ring-opening and ring-closing reactions can be achieved with visible light; this is in contrast to most other diarylethenes where UV light is required for ring closure. Unfortunately, quantitative conversion from open to closed forms is not possible. In this work, we examine the relative energies of conformations of solid-state structures observed by X-ray crystallography and evaluate their thermal stabilities based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT) is used to model the UV-vis absorption spectra of these quinone diarylethenes. We show that spectral overlap between open and closed forms is a major hindrance to full photoconversion.

Analytical determination of atypical quantized resistances in graphene p-n junctions.

A mathematical approach is introduced for predicting quantized resistances in graphene p-n junction devices that utilize more than a single entry and exit point for electron flow. Depending on the configuration of an arbitrary number of terminals, electrical measurements yield nonconventional, fractional multiples of the typical quantized Hall resistance at the v = 2 plateau (R H ≈ 12906 Ω) and take the form: a b R H . This theoretical formulation is independent of material, and applications to other material systems that exhibit quantum Hall behaviors are to be expected. Furthermore, this formulation is supported with experimental data from graphene devices with multiple source and drain terminals.

Superconducting Contact Geometries for Next-Generation Quantized Hall Resistance Standards.

Precision quantum Hall resistance measurements can be greatly improved when implementing new electrical contact geometries made from superconducting NbTiN. The sample designs described here minimize undesired resistances at contacts and interconnections, enabling further enhancement of device size and complexity when pursuing next-generation quantized Hall resistance devices.

Atypical Quantized Resistances in Millimeter-Scale Epitaxial Graphene p-n Junctions.

We have demonstrated the millimeter-scale fabrication of monolayer epitaxial graphene p-n junction devices using simple ultraviolet photolithography, thereby significantly reducing device processing time compared to that of electron beam lithography typically used for obtaining sharp junctions. This work presents measurements yielding nonconventional, fractional multiples of the typical quantized Hall resistance at ν = 2 (R H ≈ 12906 Ω) that take the form: a b R H . Here, a and b have been observed to take on values such 1, 2, 3, and 5 to form various coefficients of R H. Additionally, we provide a framework for exploring future device configurations using the LTspice circuit simulator as a guide to understand the abundance of available fractions one may be able to measure. These results support the potential for drastically simplifying device processing time and may be used for many other two-dimensional materials.