Flexible Magnetocaloric Fiber Mats for Room-Temperature Energy Applications.

Currently, magnetocaloric refrigeration technologies are emerging as ecofriendly and more energy-efficient alternatives to conventional expansion-compression systems. However, major challenges remain. A particular concern is the mechanical properties of magnetocaloric materials, namely, their fatigue under cycling and difficulty in processing and shaping. Nevertheless, in the past few years, using multistimuli thermodynamic cycles with multicaloric refrigerants has led to higher heat-pumping efficiencies. To address simultaneously the challenges and develop a multicaloric material, in this work, we have prepared magnetocaloric-based flexible composite mats composed of micrometric electroactive (EA) polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) fibers with embedded magnetocaloric/strictive La(Fe,Si)13 particles by the simple and cost-effective electrospinning technique. The composite's structural characterization, using X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and measurements of the local-scale piezoresponse, revealed a cubic NaZn13-type structure of the La(Fe,Si)13 phase and the formation of the dominant polar ß-phase of the PVDF polymer. The PVDF-La(Fe,Si)13 composite showed an enhancement of the longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient (effective d33) (-11.01 pm/V) compared with the single PVDF fiber matrix (-9.36 pm/V). The main magnetic properties of La(Fe,Si)13 powder were retained in the PVDF-La(Fe,Si)13 composite, including its giant magnetocaloric effect. By retaining the unique magnetic properties of La(Fe,Si)13 embedded in the electroactive piezoelectric polymer fiber mats, we have designed a flexible, easily shapeable, and multifunctional composite enabling its potential application in multicaloric heat-pumping devices and other sensing and actuating devices.

Targeted design of synthetic enhancers for selected tissues in the Drosophila embryo.

Enhancers control gene expression and have crucial roles in development and homeostasis1-3. However, the targeted de novo design of enhancers with tissue-specific activities has remained challenging. Here we combine deep learning and transfer learning to design tissue-specific enhancers for five tissues in the Drosophila melanogaster embryo: the central nervous system, epidermis, gut, muscle and brain. We first train convolutional neural networks using genome-wide single-cell assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with sequencing (ATAC-seq) datasets and then fine-tune the convolutional neural networks with smaller-scale data from in vivo enhancer activity assays, yielding models with 13% to 76% positive predictive value according to cross-validation. We designed and experimentally assessed 40 synthetic enhancers (8 per tissue) in vivo, of which 31 (78%) were active and 27 (68%) functioned in the target tissue (100% for central nervous system and muscle). The strategy of combining genome-wide and small-scale functional datasets by transfer learning is generally applicable and should enable the design of tissue-, cell type- and cell state-specific enhancers in any system.

Improved protocol for Bst polymerase and reverse transcriptase production and application to a point-of-care diagnostics system.

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has raised awareness in the scientific community about the importance of being prepared for sanitary emergencies. Many measures implemented during the COVID pandemic are now being expanded to other applications. In the field of molecular and immunological diagnostics, the need to massively test the population worldwide resulted in the application of a variety of methods to detect viral infection. Besides gold standard reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), the use of reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) arose as an alternative and sensitive method to amplify and detect viral genetic material. We have used openly available protocols and have improved the protein production of RT-LAMP enzymes Bst polymerase and HIV-reverse transcriptase. To optimize enzyme production, we tested different protein tags, and we shortened the protein purification protocol, resulting in reduced processing time and handling of the enzymes and, thus, preserved the protein activity with high purity. The enzymes showed significant stability at 4 °C and 25 °C, over 60 days, and were highly reliable when used as a one-step RT-LAMP reaction in a portable point-of-care device with clinical samples. The enzymes and the reaction setup can be further expanded to detect other infectious diseases agents.

Data treatment methods for real-time colorimetric loop-mediated isothermal amplification reactions.

With the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the need for affordable and rapid mass testing, colorimetric isothermal amplification reactions such as Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) are quickly rising in importance. The technique generates data that is similar to quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR), but instead of an endpoint color visualization, it is possible to construct a signal over a time curve. As the number of works using time-course analysis of isothermal reactions increases, there is a need to analyze data and standardize their related treatments quantitatively. Here, we take a step forward toward this goal by evaluating different available data treatments (curve models) for amplification curves, which allows for a cycle threshold-like parameter extraction. In this study, we uncover evidence of a double sigmoid equation as the most adequate model to describe amplification data from our remote diagnostics system and discuss possibilities for similar setups. We also demonstrate the use of multimodal Gompertz regression models. Thus, this work provides advances toward standardized and unbiased data reporting of Reverse Transcription (RT) LAMP reactions, which may facilitate and quicken assay interpretation, potentially enabling the application of machine learning techniques for further optimization and classification.

Nanostructured Electrospun Fibers with Self-Assembled Cyclo-L-Tryptophan-L-Tyrosine Dipeptide as Piezoelectric Materials and Optical Second Harmonic Generators.

The potential use of nanostructured dipeptide self-assemblies in materials science for energy harvesting devices is a highly sought-after area of research. Specifically, aromatic cyclo-dipeptides containing tryptophan have garnered attention due to their wide-bandgap semiconductor properties, high mechanical rigidity, photoluminescence, and nonlinear optical behavior. In this study, we present the development of a hybrid system comprising biopolymer electrospun fibers incorporated with the chiral cyclo-dipeptide L-Tryptophan-L-Tyrosine. The resulting nanofibers are wide-bandgap semiconductors (bandgap energy 4.0 eV) consisting of self-assembled nanotubes embedded within a polymer matrix, exhibiting intense blue photoluminescence. Moreover, the cyclo-dipeptide L-Tryptophan-L-Tyrosine incorporated into polycaprolactone nanofibers displays a strong effective second harmonic generation signal of 0.36 pm/V and shows notable piezoelectric properties with a high effective coefficient of 22 pCN-1, a piezoelectric voltage coefficient of geff=1.2 VmN-1 and a peak power density delivered by the nanofiber mat of 0.16µWcm-2. These hybrid systems hold great promise for applications in the field of nanoenergy harvesting and nanophotonics.

Hilab System Device in an Oncological Hospital: A New Clinical Approach for Point of Care CBC Test, Supported by the Internet of Things and Machine Learning.

The complete blood count (CBC) is a highly requested test that is generally restricted to centralized laboratories, which are limited by high cost, being maintenance-demanding, and requiring costly equipment. The Hilab System (HS) is a small, handheld hematological platform that uses microscopy and chromatography techniques, combined with machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI), to perform a CBC test. This platform uses ML and AI techniques to add higher accuracy and reliability to the results besides allowing for faster reporting. For clinical and flagging capability evaluation of the handheld device, the study analyzed 550 blood samples of patients from a reference institution for oncological diseases. The clinical analysis encompassed the data comparison between the Hilab System and a conventional hematological analyzer (Sysmex XE-2100) for all CBC analytes. The flagging capability study compared the microscopic findings from the Hilab System and the standard blood smear evaluation method. The study also assessed the sample collection source (venous or capillary) influences. The Pearson correlation, Student t-test, Bland-Altman, and Passing-Bablok plot of analytes were calculated and are shown. Data from both methodologies were similar (p > 0.05; r ≥ 0.9 for most parameters) for all CBC analytes and flagging parameters. Venous and capillary samples did not differ statistically (p > 0.05). The study indicates that the Hilab System provides humanized blood collection associated with fast and accurate data, essential features for patient wellbeing and quick physician decision making.

A Polymorph of Dipeptide Halide Glycyl-L-Alanine Hydroiodide Monohydrate: Crystal Structure, Optical Second Harmonic Generation, Piezoelectricity and Pyroelectricity.

A polymorph of glycyl-L-alanine HI.H2O is synthesized from chiral cyclo-glycyl-L-alanine dipeptide. The dipeptide is known to show molecular flexibility in different environments, which leads to polymorphism. The crystal structure of the glycyl-L-alanine HI.H2O polymorph is determined at room temperature and indicates that the space group is polar (P21), with two molecules per unit cell and unit cell parameters a = 7.747 Å, b = 6.435 Å, c = 10.941 Å, α = 90°, ß = 107.53(3)°, γ = 90° and V = 520.1(7) Å3. Crystallization in the polar point group 2, with one polar axis parallel to the b axis, allows pyroelectricity and optical second harmonic generation. Thermal melting of the glycyl-L-alanine HI.H2O polymorph starts at 533 K, close to the melting temperature reported for cyclo-glycyl-L-alanine (531 K) and 32 K lower than that reported for linear glycyl-L-alanine dipeptide (563 K), suggesting that although the dipeptide, when crystallized in the polymorphic form, is not anymore in its cyclic form, it keeps a memory of its initial closed chain and therefore shows a thermal memory effect. Here, we report a pyroelectric coefficient as high as 45 µC/m2K occurring at 345 K, one order of magnitude smaller than that of semi-organic ferroelectric triglycine sulphate (TGS) crystal. Moreover, the glycyl-L-alanine HI.H2O polymorph displays a nonlinear optical effective coefficient of 0.14 pm/V, around 14 times smaller than the value from a phase-matched inorganic barium borate (BBO) single crystal. The new polymorph displays an effective piezoelectric coefficient equal to deff=280 pCN-1, when embedded into electrospun polymer fibers, indicating its suitability as an active system for energy harvesting.

Clinical Validation of a Colorimetric Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Using a Portable Device for the Rapid Detection of SARS-CoV-2.

Quick and reliable mass testing of infected people is an effective tool for the contingency of SARS-CoV-2. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Point-of-Care (POC) tests using Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) arose as a useful diagnostic tool. LAMP tests are a robust and fast alternative to Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), and their isothermal property allows easy incorporation into POC platforms. The main drawback of using colorimetric LAMP is the reported short-term stability of the pre-mixed reagents, as well as the relatively high rate of false-positive results. Also, low-magnitude amplification can produce a subtle color change, making it difficult to discern a positive reaction. This paper presents Hilab Molecular, a portable device that uses the Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence to pre-analyze colorimetric data. In addition, we established manufacturing procedures to increase the stability of colorimetric RT-LAMP tests. We show that ready-to-use reactions can be stored for up to 120 days at -20 °C. Furthermore, we validated both the Hilab Molecular device and the Hilab RT-LAMP test for SARS-CoV-2 using 581 patient samples without any purification steps. We achieved a sensitivity of 92.93% and specificity of 99.42% (samples with CT ≤ 30) when compared to RT-qPCR.

Enhancers display constrained sequence flexibility and context-specific modulation of motif function.

The information about when and where each gene is to be expressed is mainly encoded in the DNA sequence of enhancers, sequence elements that comprise binding sites (motifs) for different transcription factors (TFs). Most of the research on enhancer sequences has been focused on TF motif presence, whereas the enhancer syntax, that is, the flexibility of important motif positions and how the sequence context modulates the activity of TF motifs, remains poorly understood. Here, we explore the rules of enhancer syntax by a two-pronged approach in Drosophila melanogaster S2 cells: we (1) replace important TF motifs by all possible 65,536 eight-nucleotide-long sequences and (2) paste eight important TF motif types into 763 positions within 496 enhancers. These complementary strategies reveal that enhancers display constrained sequence flexibility and the context-specific modulation of motif function. Important motifs can be functionally replaced by hundreds of sequences constituting several distinct motif types, but these are only a fraction of all possible sequences and motif types. Moreover, TF motifs contribute with different intrinsic strengths that are strongly modulated by the enhancer sequence context (the flanking sequence, the presence and diversity of other motif types, and the distance between motifs), such that not all motif types can work in all positions. The context-specific modulation of motif function is also a hallmark of human enhancers, as we demonstrate experimentally. Overall, these two general principles of enhancer sequences are important to understand and predict enhancer function during development, evolution, and in disease.

Enhancing a SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid antigen test sensitivity with cost efficient strategy through a cotton intermembrane insertion.

Lateral flow antigen tests have been widely used in the Covid-19 pandemic, allowing faster diagnostic test results and preventing further viral spread through isolation of infected individuals. Accomplishment of this screening must be performed with tests that show satisfactory sensitivity in order to successfully detect the target protein and avoid false negatives. The aim of this study was to create a lateral flow test that could detect SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein in low concentrations that were comparable to the limits of detection claimed by existing tests from the market. To do so, several adjustments were necessary during research and development of the prototypes until they were consistent with these criteria. The proposed alternatives of increasing the test line antibody concentration and addition of an intermembrane between the conjugate pad and the nitrocellulose membrane were able to increase the sensitivity four-fold and generate a new rapid test prototype called "lateral flow intermembrane immunoassay test" (LFIIT). This prototype showed an adequate limit of detection (2.0 ng mL-1) while maintaining affordability and simplicity in manufacturing processes.

Bioinspired Cyclic Dipeptide Functionalized Nanofibers for Thermal Sensing and Energy Harvesting.

Nanostructured dipeptide self-assemblies exhibiting quantum confinement are of great interest due to their potential applications in the field of materials science as optoelectronic materials for energy harvesting devices. Cyclic dipeptides are an emerging outstanding group of ring-shaped dipeptides, which, because of multiple interactions, self-assemble in supramolecular structures with different morphologies showing quantum confinement and photoluminescence. Chiral cyclic dipeptides may also display piezoelectricity and pyroelectricity properties with potential applications in new sources of nano energy. Among those, aromatic cyclo-dipeptides containing the amino acid tryptophan are wide-band gap semiconductors displaying the high mechanical rigidity, photoluminescence and piezoelectric properties to be used in power generation. In this work, we report the fabrication of hybrid systems based on chiral cyclo-dipeptide L-Tryptophan-L-Tryptophan incorporated into biopolymer electrospun fibers. The micro/nanofibers contain self-assembled nano-spheres embedded into the polymer matrix, are wide-band gap semiconductors with 4.0 eV band gap energy, and display blue photoluminescence as well as relevant piezoelectric and pyroelectric properties with coefficients as high as 57 CN-1 and 35×10-6 Cm-2K-1, respectively. Therefore, the fabricated hybrid mats are promising systems for future thermal sensing and energy harvesting applications.

Systematic identification and characterization of repressive domains in Drosophila transcription factors.

All multicellular life relies on differential gene expression, determined by regulatory DNA elements and DNA-binding transcription factors that mediate activation and repression via cofactor recruitment. While activators have been extensively characterized, repressors are less well studied: the identities and properties of their repressive domains (RDs) are typically unknown and the specific co-repressors (CoRs) they recruit have not been determined. Here, we develop a high-throughput, next-generation sequencing-based screening method, repressive-domain (RD)-seq, to systematically identify RDs in complex DNA-fragment libraries. Screening more than 200,000 fragments covering the coding sequences of all transcription-related proteins in Drosophila melanogaster, we identify 195 RDs in known repressors and in proteins not previously associated with repression. Many RDs contain recurrent short peptide motifs, which are conserved between fly and human and are required for RD function, as demonstrated by motif mutagenesis. Moreover, we show that RDs that contain one of five distinct repressive motifs interact with and depend on different CoRs, such as Groucho, CtBP, Sin3A, or Smrter. These findings advance our understanding of repressors, their sequences, and the functional impact of sequence-altering mutations and should provide a valuable resource for further studies.

Lead-Free MDABCO-NH4I3 Perovskite Crystals Embedded in Electrospun Nanofibers.

In this work, we introduce lead-free organic ferroelectric perovskite N-methyl-N'-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octonium)-ammonium triiodide (MDABCO-NH4I3) nanocrystals embedded in three different polymer fibers fabricated by the electrospinning technique, as mechanical energy harvesters. Molecular ferroelectrics offer the advantage of structural diversity and tunability, easy fabrication, and mechanical flexibility. Organic-inorganic hybrid materials are new low-symmetry emerging materials that may be used as energy harvesters because of their piezoelectric or ferroelectric properties. Among these, ferroelectric metal-free perovskites are a class of recently discovered multifunctional materials. The doped nanofibers, which are very flexible and have a high Young modulus, behave as active piezoelectric energy harvesting sources that produce a piezoelectric voltage coefficient up to geff = 3.6 VmN-1 and show a blue intense luminescence band at 325 nm. In this work, the pyroelectric coefficient is reported for the MDABCO-NH4I3 perovskite inserted in electrospun fibers. At the ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition, the embedded nanocrystals display a pyroelectric coefficient as high as 194 × 10-6 Cm-2k-1, within the same order of magnitude as that reported for the state-of-the-art bulk ferroelectric triglycine sulfate (TGS). The perovskite nanocrystals embedded into the polymer fibers remain stable in their piezoelectric output response, and no degradation is caused by oxidation, making the piezoelectric perovskite nanofibers suitable to be used as flexible energy harvesters.

Development of an optimized colorimetric RT-LAMP for SARS-CoV-2 assay with enhanced procedure controls for remote diagnostics.

The coronavirus pandemic accentuated the need for molecular diagnostic tests. A technique highly used to this end is the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-a sensitive and specific technique commonly used as the gold standard for molecular diagnostics. However, it demands highly trained personnel and high-maintenance equipment and is relatively time-consuming. An alternative is the Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) technique, which doesn't need sample purification or expensive equipment, and is similar to PCR when compared in sensitivity and specificity. In this paper, we developed an optimized colorimetric Reverse Transcriptase Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (RT-LAMP) Point-of-Care test using a portable device to diagnose COVID-19. Variables such as concentration of primers, magnesium sulfate, betaine, hydrochloride guanidine, Bst, and temperature of the reactions were tested. We also created a pipetting quality control system-using a combination of dyes-to avoid false negatives due to a lack of samples added to the reaction test tube. Mineral oil was incorporated in the composition of the RT-LAMP reactions to avoid evaporation when a heating lid isn't available. The final RT-LAMP test is tenfold more sensitive when compared to the WarmStart Colorimetric Master mix from New England Biolabs with a sensitivity of 5 copies per µL.

Comparison of Physical/Chemical Properties of Prussian Blue Thin Films Prepared by Different Pulse and DC Electrodeposition Methods.

Prussian Blue (PB) thin films were prepared by DC chronoamperometry (CHA), symmetric pulse, and non-symmetric pulse electrodeposition techniques. The formation of PB was confirmed by infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and UV-Vis transmission measurements. X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows the stabilization of the insoluble form of PB. From scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies, an increase in porosity is obtained for the shorter pulse widths, which tends to improve the total charge exchange and electrochemical stability of the films. While the film prepared by CHA suffered a degradation of 82% after 260 cycles, the degradation reduced to 24% and 34% for the samples prepared by the symmetric and non-symmetric pulse methods, respectively. Additionally, in the non-symmetric pulse film, the improvement in the charge exchange reached ~522% after 260 cycles. According to this study, the deposition time distribution affects the physical/chemical properties of PB films. These results then render pulse electrodeposition methods especially suitable to produce high-quality thin films for electrochemical devices, based on PB.

High Piezoelectric Output Voltage from Blue Fluorescent N,N-Dimethyl-4-nitroaniline Nano Crystals in Poly-L-Lactic Acid Electrospun Fibers.

N,N-dimethyl-4-nitroaniline is a piezoelectric organic superplastic and superelastic charge transfer molecular crystal that crystallizes in an acentric structure. Organic mechanical flexible crystals are of great importance as they stand between soft matter and inorganic crystals. Highly aligned poly-l-lactic acid polymer microfibers with embedded N,N-dimethyl-4-nitroaniline nanocrystals are fabricated using the electrospinning technique, and their piezoelectric and optical properties are explored as hybrid systems. The composite fibers display an extraordinarily high piezoelectric output response, where for a small stress of 5.0 × 103 Nm-2, an effective piezoelectric voltage coefficient of geff = 4.1 VmN-1 is obtained, which is one of the highest among piezoelectric polymers and organic lead perovskites. Mechanically, they exhibit an average increase of 67% in the Young modulus compared to polymer microfibers alone, reaching 55 MPa, while the tensile strength reaches 2.8 MPa. Furthermore, the fibers show solid-state blue fluorescence, important for emission applications, with a long lifetime decay (147 ns) lifetime decay. The present results show that nanocrystals from small organic molecules with luminescent, elastic and piezoelectric properties form a mechanically strong hybrid functional 2-dimensional array, promising for applications in energy harvesting through the piezoelectric effect and as solid-state blue emitters.

The Immunohistochemical Expression of the Von Willebrand Factor: A Potential Tool to Predict Kidney Allograft Outcomes.

Few reports assessed endothelial activation biomarkers in kidney allograft biopsies using immunohistochemistry. This retrospective cohort study evaluated the association between posttransplant outcomes and the immunohistochemistry expression of Caveolin-1, Von Willebrand Factor (Vwf), and T-Cadherin in for-cause biopsies diagnosed as interstitial fibrosis and tubular atrophy of unknown etiology. Samples with antibody-mediated changes were excluded. The patients were followed for 3 years after the biopsy or until graft loss/death. Seventy-one (71) samples from 66 patients were included. Eighteen (25.4%) patients lost their grafts, mainly due to chronic rejection (33.3%). Caveolin-1 and T-Cadherin were not associated with graft loss. Vwf had good accuracy in predicting graft failure (AUC 0.637, 95% CI 0.486 to 0.788 P =0.101). The presence of more than 10% of Vwf positivity in the microvasculature (Vwf >10%) was associated with reduced death-censored graft survival (58.2% vs. 85.4% P =0.006), and this result was also observed in the subgroup presenting mild interstitial fibrosis (ci=1) (65.7% vs. 88.6% P =0.033). The multivariate analysis showed that Vwf >10% was an independent risk factor for graft loss (HR=2.88, 95% CI 1.03 to 8.02 P =0.043). In conclusion, Vwf might be an additional tool to predict allograft outcomes in kidney transplant recipients with interstitial fibrosis and tubular atrophy of unknown etiology, probably reflecting immune endothelial activation.

A critical assessment of the role of ionic surfactants in the exfoliation and stabilization of 2D nanosheets: The case of the transition metal dichalcogenides MoS2, WS2 and MoSe2.

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), like other two-dimensional layered materials beyond graphene, have gained enormous interest in recent years owing to their distinct electronic and optical properties, and potential applicability in areas such as sensing, nanoelectronics and catalysis. Surfactant-assisted exfoliation is commonly used to prepare aqueous dispersions of TMD nanosheets, but a clear picture of the TMD and surfactant features that influence the dispersion process is still lacking. In this work, we present a systematic study of the dispersibility of MoS2, WS2 and MoSe2 in aqueous medium using a cationic (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CTAB) and an anionic (sodium cholate, SC) dispersant, in a wide concentration range (seven orders of magnitude) and resorting to a carefully controlled sonication-centrifugation procedure. We present detailed, high precision dispersibility curves (concentration of dispersed TMD versus concentration of surfactant used), together with zeta potential and pH measurements, allowing insight into the influence of the type of metal and chalcogen, surfactant charge and surfactant concentration, on the effectiveness of the exfoliation and stabilization. The metal (Mo vs. W) influences the dispersibility at low surfactant concentrations, while the chalcogen (S vs. Se) plays a more significant role as the surfactant concentration is increased, alongside the surfactant charge. Structural characterization by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM) shows that the methodology applied yields well-exfoliated nanosheets with controlled mean lateral dimension (≈ 100 nm) and thickness (≤5 layers). Finally, the type of ionic surfactant (cationic vs. anionic) and its concentration play a pivotal role in the profile of the dispersibility curves, leading us to propose two types of master curves with distinct regions of phase behavior.

Magnetoliposomes Containing Multicore Nanoparticles and a New Antitumor Thienopyridine Compound with Potential Application in Chemo/Thermotherapy.

Multicore magnetic nanoparticles of manganese ferrite were prepared using carboxymethyl dextran as an agglutinating compound or by an innovative method using melamine as a cross-coupling agent. The nanoparticles prepared using melamine exhibited a flower-shape structure, a saturation magnetization of 6.16 emu/g and good capabilities for magnetic hyperthermia, with a specific absorption rate (SAR) of 0.14 W/g. Magnetoliposome-like structures containing the multicore nanoparticles were prepared, and their bilayer structure was confirmed by FRET (Förster Resonance Energy Transfer) assays. The nanosystems exhibited sizes in the range of 250-400 nm and a low polydispersity index. A new antitumor thienopyridine derivative, 7-[4-(pyridin-2-yl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-1-yl]thieno[3,2-b]pyridine, active against HeLa (cervical carcinoma), MCF-7 (breast adenocarcinoma), NCI-H460 (non-small-cell lung carcinoma) and HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma) cell lines, was loaded in these nanocarriers, obtaining a high encapsulation efficiency of 98 ± 2.6%. The results indicate that the new magnetoliposomes can be suitable for dual cancer therapy (combined magnetic hyperthermia and chemotherapy).

Efeito do cimento cirúrgico sobre o pós-operatório de gengivectomias e gengivoplastias: uma revisão crítica da literatura / Effect of surgical cement on the post-operative following gingivectomy and gingivoplasty: a critical review of the literature

Contexto:O cimento cirúrgico é um material alternativo no pós operatório de gengivoplastia e gengivectomia, que proporciona conforto ao paciente. Porém, existem controvérsias sobre sua utilização, sendo relatado por alguns especialistas o surgimento do processo inflamatório agudo, sendo classificado como desnecessário.Objetivo: Identificar evidências na literatura acerca do efeito do cimento cirúrgico no pós-operatório do tecido gengival após gengivectomia e gengivoplastia. Materiais e métodos: Foi realizada uma revisão crítica de literatura por meio de buscas nas bases de dadosPubmed, Scielo, Lilacs, Cochrane, Scopus e na literatura cinzenta (Periódicos Capes, Google Scholar). Foram incluídos ensaios clínicos randomizados que testaram o cimento cirúrgico em casos de gengivectomias. Os artigos foram selecionados inicialmente pelo título e resumo, seguido de análise do texto na íntegra. Os estudos incluídos tiveram o nível de evidência avaliado por parâmetros do CONSORT. Resultados:Foram levantados 1458 estudos, sendo 16 escolhidos para leitura na íntegra e, destes, 3 foram incluídos na revisão. A amostra teve idade variando de dezessete a setenta e um anos. Foi utilizado cimento cirúrgico sem eugenol comparado com o bochecho de clorexidina 0,2% e a escovação mecânica precoce no pós-cirúrgico. Um estudo relatou menor índice de dor com o uso de cimento cirúrgico. O tempo de acompanhamento dos estudos foi de 30 dias. Dois estudos tiveram nível de evidência III.Conclusão: Os artigos apresentaram baixa evidência científica e quenão há consenso na literatura quanto ao efeito de cimento cirúrgico após gengivectomias.

Aim:To identify evidence in the literature about the effect of periodontal dressing on the healing of gingival tissue after gingivectomy and gingivoplasty. Materials and methods: A critical literature review was carried out through electronic searches in thePubmed, Scielo, Lilacs, Cochrane, Scopus databases and in the gray literature (Periódicos Capes, Google Scholar). Randomized clinical trials evaluating periodontal dressing in gingivectomies were included. The articles were selected by title and abstract,followed by analysis of the full text. The included studies have the level of evidence determined by CONSORT parameters. Results: A total of 1458 studies were surveyed, 16 were selected for full reading and, of these, 3 were included in the review. The age sample ranged from seventeen to seventy-one years old. A periodontal dressing without eugenol was used compared to a 0.2% chlorhexidine mouthwash and an early mechanical brushing after surgery. One study reported less pain with the use of periodontal dressing. The follow-up of the studies was 30 days. Two studies had Level of Evidence III.Conclusion:It was concluded that the articles had low scientific evidence and that there is no consensus in the literature regarding the effect of periodontal dressing after gingivectomies.