Simulation and experimental study on the influence of lamina on nanoneedle penetration into the cell nucleus.

We have developed a finite element model to simulate the penetration of nanoneedles into the cellular nucleus. It is found that the nuclear lamina, the primary supporting structure of the nuclear membrane, plays a crucial role in maintaining the integrity of the nuclear envelope and enhancing stress concentration in the nuclear membrane. Notably, nuclear lamina A exhibits a more pronounced effect compared to nuclear lamina B. Subsequently, we further conducted experiments by controlling the time of osteopontin (OPN) treatment to modify the nuclear lamina density, and the results showed that an increase in nuclear lamina density enhances the probability of nanoneedle penetration into the nuclear membrane. Through employing both simulation and experimental techniques, we have gathered compelling evidence indicating that an augmented density of nuclear lamina A can enhance the penetration of nanoneedles into the nuclear membrane.

Alteration of white matter microstructure in patients with sleep disorders after COVID-19 infection.

BACKGROUND: The pathophysiology of coronasomnia remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate changes in white matter (WM) microstructure and inflammatory factors in patients with sleep disorders (SD) characterized by poor sleep quantity, quality, or timing following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection in the acute phase (within one month) and whether these changes could be recovered at 3-month follow-up. METHODS: 29 acute COVID-19 patients with SD (COVID_SD) and 27 acute COVID-19 patients without SD (COVID_NonSD) underwent diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), tested peripheral blood inflammatory cytokines level, and measured Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and matched 30 uninfected healthy controls. Analyzed WM abnormalities between groups in acute phase and explored its changes in COVID_SD at 3-month follow-up by using tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS). Correlations between DTI and clinical data were examined using Spearman partial correlation analysis. RESULTS: Both COVID_SD and COVID_NonSD exhibited widespread WM microstructure abnormalities. The COVID_SD group showed specific WM microstructure changes in right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF) (lower fractional anisotropy [FA]/axial diffusivity [AD] and higher radial diffusivity [RD]) and left corticospinal tract (CST) (higher FA and lower RD) and higher interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) compared with COVID_NonSD group. These WM abnormalities and IL-1ß levels were correlated PSQI score. After 3 months, the IFOF integrity and IL-1ß levels tended to return to normal accompanied by symptom improvement in the COVID_SD relative to baseline. CONCLUSION: Abnormalities in right IFOF and left CST and elevated IL-1ß levels were important neurophenotypes correlated with COVID_SD, which might provide new insights into the pathogenesis of neuroinflammation in SD patients induced by COVID-19.

Fabricating SU-8 Photoresist Microstructures with Controlled Convexity-Concavity and Curvature through Thermally Manipulating Capillary Action in Poly(dimethylsiloxane) Microholes.

We present a simple, robust, and cheap microfabrication method, based on thermally manipulating capillary action in poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microholes, for preparing SU-8 curved microstructures. The microstructure morphology including convexity-concavity and curvature can be controlled via tuning the formation temperature. The convex SU-8 microspherical crowns with a height of 40 µm were formed at 10 °C, whereas the concave SU-8 microspherical crowns with a height of 90 µm were formed at 100 °C. The morphology of the microstructures is dictated by the thermally controlled combination of the pressure difference across the interface, contact angle, and surface tension. The fabricated microstructures with a spherical surface can be used as a microlens array or a mold for producing a microlens array. The clear and uniform images were observed using the generated microlens arrays. The equilibrium morphology of the microstructures can be predicted by numerical simulation, which can lessen the number of experiments and thus the design cost. The proposed method has the potential to find applications in industrial fields.

Generalized minimum error entropy Kalman filter for non-Gaussian noise.

Error entropy is a well-known learning criterion in information theoretic learning (ITL), and it has already been applied to a wide range of fields. However, the shape of error entropy cannot be changed freely since its kernel function is the Gaussian kernel function, which causes the error entropy-based algorithm to handle only some specific kinds of noises. Benefiting from the property that the generalized Gaussian kernel function is free to adjust its shape, a novel Kalman-type filter algorithm based on the generalized minimum error entropy (GMEEKF) criterion is derived. Moreover, the mean error behavior, mean square error behavior, and computational complexity of the GMEEKF algorithm are analyzed. Finally, several simulations and experiments are performed to demonstrate the performance of the GMEEKF algorithm in comparison with the existing Kalman-type filter algorithms.

Screening of periodontitis-related diagnostic biomarkers based on weighted gene correlation network analysis and machine algorithms.

BACKGROUND: Periodontitis is a common oral immune inflammatory disease and early detection plays an important role in its prevention and progression. However, there are no accurate biomarkers for early diagnosis. OBJECTIVE: This study screened periodontitis-related diagnostic biomarkers based on weighted gene correlation network analysis and machine algorithms. METHODS: Transcriptome data and sample information of periodontitis and normal samples were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, and key genes of disease-related modules were obtained by bioinformatics. The key genes were subjected to Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis and 5 machine algorithms: Logistic Regression (LR), Random Forest (RF), Gradient Boosting Decisio Tree (GBDT), Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), and Support Vector Machine (SVM). Expression and correlation analysis were performed after screening the optimal model and diagnostic biomarkers. RESULTS: A total of 47 candidate genes were obtained, and the LR model had the best diagnostic efficiency. The COL15A1, ICAM2, SLC15A2, and PIP5K1B were diagnostic biomarkers for periodontitis, and all of which were upregulated in periodontitis samples. In addition, the high expression of periodontitis biomarkers promotes positive function with immune cells. CONCLUSION: COL15A1, ICAM2, SLC15A2 and PIP5K1B are potential diagnostic biomarkers of periodontitis.

Roles of plasma leptin and resistin in novel subgroups of type 2 diabetes driven by cluster analysis.

BACKGROUND: A novel classification has been introduced to promote precision medicine in diabetes. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between leptin and resistin levels with novel refined subgroups in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: The k-means analysis was conducted to cluster 541 T2DM patients into the following four subgroups: mild obesity-related diabetes (MOD), severe insulin-deficient diabetes (SIDD), severe insulin-resistant diabetes (SIRD) and mild age-related diabetes (MARD). Individuals meeting the exclusion criteria were eliminated, the data for 285 patients were analyzed. Characteristics were determined using various clinical parameters. Both the leptin and resistin levels were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: The highest levels of plasma leptin were in the MOD group with relatively lower levels in the SIDD and SIRD groups (P < 0.001). The SIRD group had a higher resistin concentration than the MARD group (P = 0.024) while no statistical significance in resistin levels was found between the SIDD and MOD groups. Logistic regression demonstrated that plasma resistin was associated with a higher risk of diabetic nephropathy (odds ratios (OR) = 2.255, P = 0.001). According to receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, the area under the curve (AUC) of resistin (0.748, 95% CI 0.610-0.887) was significantly greater than that of HOMA2-IR (0.447, 95% CI 0.280-0.614) (P < 0.05) for diabetic nephropathy in the SIRD group. CONCLUSIONS: Leptin levels were different in four subgroups of T2DM and were highest in the MOD group. Resistin was elevated in the SIRD group and was closely related to diabetic nephropathy.

The influence of dexmedetomidine on the emergence agitation of pediatric patients after the operations of sense organs under general anesthesia using sevoflurane.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the influence of dexmedetomidine on the emergence agitation of pediatric patients after ophthalmologic operation under general anesthesia using sevoflurane. METHODS: We selected 90 patients that were administered pediatric ophthalmologic operation for the study. The patients were randomly divided into 3 groups according to the administration way of drugs, i.e. the normal saline group (group S, N.=30), the midazolam group (group M, N.=30) and the dexmedetomidine group (group D, N.=30). For all patients, anesthesia induction was performed using sevoflurane before anesthesia, and the anesthesia was maintained in the operation with a combination of sevoflurane and remifentanil; laryngeal mask airway (LMA) was used for assisted ventilation. Ten minutes before the end of operation, 15 mL of 0.9% normal saline, 0.05 mg/kg of midazolam and 0.5 µg/kg of dexmedetomidine were administered to group S, group M and group D, respectively. After the operation, we observed the awakening time, time of the LMA removal as well as the recovery time in the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) of patients in all three groups. We evaluated the postoperative condition of sedation and agitation of the patients using Ramsay Sedation Scale, 5-point scale and Pediatric Anesthesia Emergence Deliriums Scale (PAED) and performed statistical analysis. RESULTS: In the comparisons of awakening time, time of the LMA removal as well as the recovery time, we found that group M was the longest sequentially followed by group D and group S with statistically significant differences (P<0.05). While the comparison of the scores of Ramsay Sedation Scale revealed that group D scored highest followed by group M and group S with statistically significant differences (P<0.05), both of the comparisons of the scores of 5-point scale and PAED Scale showed that group D scored the lowest, followed by group M and group S in sequence with statistically significant differences (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Dexmedetomidine can significantly lower the incidence of emergence agitation of pediatric patients after the ophthalmologic operation under sevoflurane anesthesia.

Curved Film Microstructure Arrays Fabricated via Mechanical Stretching.

We report on curved film microstructure arrays fabricated through polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) film buckling induced by mechanical stretching. In the process of the microstructure preparation, a PDMA film is glued on a bidirectionally prestretched PDMS sheet that has a square distributed hole array on its surface. After releasing the prestrain, the film microstructure array is created spontaneously. The fabricated microstructures possess a spherical surface and demonstrate very good uniformity. The film microstructure arrays can serve as microlens arrays with a focal length of 1010 µm. The microstructure formation mechanism is investigated via theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. The simulation results agree well with the experimental results. The prestrain applied by mechanical stretching during the fabrication has an important effect on the shape of the resulting film microstructures. The microstructure geometry can be easily tuned through controlling the applied prestrain.

Pressure-Driven and Creep-Enabled Interface Evolution in Sodium Metal Batteries.

All-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) using an alkali metal anode and a solid-state electrolyte (SE) face several problems due to poor physical and electrical contact. Recent experiments have shown that applying a stack pressure can improve the interface contact and suppress void formation. The mechanical properties of Na metal are different from those of Li metal, leading to differences in the mechanisms of the pressure-dependent interface evolution. Herein, we report a three-dimensional time-dependent model for tracking the evolution of interfaces formed between Na metal and Na-ß″-alumina SE. Our results show that Na metal contacts more conformally with the SE, providing a lower interfacial resistance, compared with Li metal, assuming equal resistance due to contamination. The differences due to contact elastoplasticity are larger than the differences in metal creep effects. In fact, we show that increased stack pressure can lead to lower creep because the contact is more conformal at high pressures. Our excellent agreement with recent experiments determines an effective hardness of Na in the Na-SE batteries to be 15 MPa. The results further reveal that the pressure dependence of void suppression is dominated by contact elastoplasticity.

Use of Rituximab After Orbital Decompression Surgery in Two Grave's Ophthalmopathy Patients Progressing to Optic Neuropathy.

Background: While orbital decompression can alleviate optic nerve compression and prevent further vision loss in dysthyroid optic neuropathy (DON), it cannot relieve inflammatory symptoms. Very high doses of intravenous glucocorticoids (GCs) are the first-line therapy for DON; however, the effective rate is only 40% and might be much lower in patients who fail high-dose GC pulse therapy and progressed to DON. The results of two case series studies indicated that rituximab treatment had a much better curative effect compared to very high doses of intravenous GCs, but some patients required urgent orbital decompression after rituximab injection because rituximab might lead to the release of cytokines, aggravated intraorbital edema, and further vision loss. Methods: We retrospectively studied the therapeutic process of two Grave's ophthalmopathy (GO) patients complicated with DON who failed high-dose GC pulse therapy and underwent orbital decompression. Both patients received single-dose (500 mg) rituximab treatment. Results: During more than 2 years of follow-up, rituximab treatment exhibited significant improvement in inflammatory symptoms, as manifested by a substantial decrease in Clinical Activity Score (CAS); meanwhile, the vision of both patients improved significantly and their diplopia was relieved. Conclusions: The results of this study were consistent with those of two previous case series studies indicating the significant and lasting effect of rituximab treatment on DON, especially for patients with GC resistance or recurrence after GC therapy. Orbital decompression before rituximab treatment might reduce the incidence of rapid vision loss and urgent orbital decompression surgery caused by aggravated orbital edema after rituximab injection; however, the necessity for preventive decompression surgery requires further study.

Origin of Magnetically Induced Optical Transmission of Magnetic Nanocomposite Films.

Herein, we present an investigation on the origin of the magnetically induced optical transmission of composite films comprised of polydimethylsiloxane and magnetic nanofillers via experiment and simulation. Structured and unstructured films were used in the study, which were fabricated with and without magnetic fields, respectively. Altered optical transmittance was observed from both types of films when they were subjected to an external magnetic field. Numerical analyses were performed to investigate the effect of the particle movement under magnetic field and the film magnetostriction on the film optical transmittance. The simulation results show that the changed light transmission under magnetic field is mainly due to a variation in the film thickness resulting from the film magnetostriction. The ellipsometric analysis results confirm the altered film thickness in response to the external magnetic field, and the measurements of the film magnetostrictive stresses validate that there is magnetostriction in the magnetic composite films. Additionally, it is indicated that there might be some relationship between the magnetically induced optical transmission and the film magnetostrictive stress under certain conditions.

Curcumin improves necrotising microscopic colitis and cell pyroptosis by activating SIRT1/NRF2 and inhibiting the TLR4 signalling pathway in newborn rats.

This study aimed to explore comprehensively the biological function of curcumin, and its underlying mechanism, in protecting from necrotising microscopic colitis in newborn rats. A total of 20 normal healthy rats were selected, and a necrotising enterocolitis (NEC) model was established. After hypoxia and hypothermia stimulation, these rats were treated with different doses of curcumin (control group, NEC model group, NEC+20 mg/kg curcumin and NEC+50 mg/kg curcumin). Inflammation was identified using hematoxylin and eosin staining, and inflammatory factors were detected via ELISA. The mRNA and protein levels of SIRT1, NRF2, TLR4, NLRP3 and caspase-1 were determined by quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively. Curcumin improved the inflammatory condition of NEC and inhibited the expression of inflammatory factors in NEC newborn rat intestinal tissue. Furthermore, the SIRT1/NRF2 pathway was inhibited in the intestinal tissue of NEC newborn rats, whereas curcumin treatment induced the activation of the SIRT1/NRF2 pathway and inhibited TLR4 expression in these animals. In addition, curcumin could also inhibit the expression of inflammatory factors and alleviate the LPS/ATP-induced focal death pathway in intestinal epithelial cells through the SIRT1 pathway. Curcumin can improve necrotising microscopic colitis and cell pyroptosis by attenuating NEC-induced inhibition of SIRT1/NRF2 and inhibiting the TLR4 signalling pathway in newborn rats.

Impacts of Residual Stress on Micro Vibratory Platform Used for Inertial Sensor Calibration.

A micro vibratory platform driven by converse piezoelectric effects is a promising in-situ recalibration platform to eliminate the influence of bias and scale factor drift caused by long-term storage of micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) inertial sensors. The calibration accuracy is critically determined by the stable and repeatable vibration of platform, and it is unavoidably impacted by the residual stress of micro structures and lead zirconate titanate (PZT) hysteresis. The abnormal phenomenon of the observed displacement response in experiments was investigated analytically using the stiffness model of beams and hysteresis model of piezoelectric material. Rather than the hysteresis, the initial deflection formed by the residual stress of the beam was identified as the main cause of the response error around the zero position. This conclusion provides guidelines to improve the performance and control of micro vibratory platforms.

Design of a Silicon Photocatalyst for High-Efficiency Photocatalytic Water Splitting.

Metallurgical silicon was studied for photocatalytic H2 evolution activity. It has been found that metallurgical silicon with large particle size (above 800 nm) possesses poor photocatalytic activity because of the deteriorating photoelectric performance of the low-purity silicon. After size reduction (around 400 nm) and metal nanoparticle decoration, the photocatalytic performance was significantly enhanced to 1003.3 µmol·g-1·h-1. However, the photocatalytic performance of the Cu-, Ag-, and Pt-decorated silicon is degraded with the increase of time. Moreover, the degradation is independent of the metal. Electrochemical test and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy suggested that the Mott-Schottky effect in the metal-silicon contact should be responsible for the degradation. After forming a heterojunction by vulcanizing the Ag-decorated silicon, the degradation was suppressed. Upgradation of the metal-silicon contact to form a heterojunction was a promising way to suppress the degradation and retain the high photocatalytic performance.

A hillock-like phenomenon with low friction and adhesion on a graphene surface induced by relative sliding at the interface of graphene and the SiO2 substrate using an AFM tip.

Graphene demonstrates high potential as an atomically thin solid lubricant for sliding interfaces in industry. However, graphene as a coating material does not always exhibit strong adhesion to any substrates. When the adhesion of graphene to its substrate weakens, it remains unknown whether relative sliding at the interface exists and how the tribological properties of the graphene coating changes. In this work, we first designed a method to weaken the adhesion between graphene and its SiO2 substrate. Then the graphene with weakened adhesion to its substrate was rubbed using an AFM tip, where we found a novel phenomenon: the monolayer graphene not only no longer protected the SiO2 substrate from deformation and damage, but also prompted the formation of hillock-like structures with heights of approximately tens of nanometers. Moreover, the surface of the hillock-like structure exhibited very low adhesion and a continuously decreasing friction force versus sliding time. Comparing the hillock-like structure on the bare SiO2 surface and the proposed force model, we demonstrated that the emergence of the hillock-like structure (with very low adhesion and continuously decreasing friction) was ascribed to the relative sliding at the graphene/substrate interface caused by the mechanical shear of the AFM tip. Our findings reveal a potential failure of the graphene coating when the adhesion strength between graphene and its substrate is damaged or weakened and provide a possibility for in situ fabrication of a low friction and adhesion micro/nanostructure on a SiO2/graphene surface.

An Overview of Molecular Mechanism, Clinicopathological Factors, and Treatment in NUT Carcinoma.

NUT carcinoma (NC) is a rare and poorly differentiated tumor, with highly aggressive and fatal neoplasm. NC is characterized by chromosomal rearrangement involving NUTM1 gene, but lack of specific clinical and histomorphological features. It is more common in midline anatomic sites, such as head and neck, mediastinum, and other midline organs. NC may occur at any age, but mainly in children and young adults. In addition, male and female are equally affected. Most clinicians lack a clear understanding of the disease, and NC diagnostic reagents are still not widely used; therefore, misdiagnosis often occurs in clinic. Due to the highly aggressive nature of the disease and the insensitivity to nonspecific chemotherapy or radiotherapy, many patients have died before the confirmation of NC. In fact, the true incidence of NC is much higher than the current statistics. In recent years, targeted therapy for NC has also made some progress. This article aims to summarize the molecular mechanisms, clinicopathological characteristics, and treatment of NC.

Improvement on Selective Laser Sintering and Post-Processing of Polystyrene.

Amorphous polymers are heavily utilized materials in selective laser sintering (SLS) due to their good dimensional accuracy. However, sintered parts of amorphous polymers cannot be used as functional parts owing to their poor forming performance, including their low relative densities and tensile strength. Therefore, post-processing methods are employed to enhance the mechanical properties of amorphous polymers SLS parts without damaging their relatively high dimensional accuracy. In this study, the forming process of selective laser sintering (SLS) and post-processing on polystyrene (PS) was investigated. The orthogonal experiment was designed to obtain the optimal combination of process parameters. The effect of a single process parameter and the laser volumetric energy density (LVED) on dimension accuracy and warpage of the sintered parts were also discussed. In addition, a three-dimensional (3D) thermal model was developed to analyze the temperature fields of single-layer SLS parts and PS powder sintering mechanism. Then, infiltrating with epoxy resin was employed to enhance the mechanical properties of the PS parts. Good resin-infiltrated formulation was obtained based on the mechanical property tests and fractured surface analysis. This research provides guidance for SLS process and post-processing technology in polymers.

Comparison of desflurane and sevoflurane on postoperative recovery quality after tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy in children.

Comparison of desflurane and sevoflurane on the postoperative recovery quality after tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy in children was carried out. A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical records of 165 children who underwent tonsil and adenoid radiofrequency ablation under low-temperature plasma and were admitted to the Xuzhou Children's Hospital, Xuzhou Medical University from February 2014 to May 2017. In total, 79 children with sevoflurane anesthesia were in the sevoflurane group, and 86 children with desflurane anesthesia in the desflurane group. The non-invasive blood pressure (NIBP), heart rate (HR) and oxygen saturation (SpO2) level, the postoperative sedation (Ramsay) scores, the modified objective pain score (MOPS) of children were recorded. The pediatric anesthesia emergence delirium (PAED) scores of children were recorded. Children in the sevoflurane group had longer operation time, anesthesia time, extubation time and coincidence time than those in the desflurane group (P<0.05). At the beginning of operation (t1), 10 min after operation (t2), at the time of entering anesthesia recovery room (t3), at the time of tracheal catheter extubated (t4), 10 min after extubation (t5), and at the time of leaving the anesthesia recovery room (t6), children in the sevoflurane had higher NISBP and NIDBP, lower HR than those in the desflurane group (P<0.05). At the time of the tracheal catheter extubation (c2), 10 min after extubation (c3), 30 min after extubation (c4), children in the sevoflurane group had lower Ramsay scores and higher PAED scores than those in the desflurane group (P<0.05). More suitable as an anesthetic maintenance drug for tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy in children, desflurane has a better anesthetic effect and is safer. In addition, children with desflurane anesthesia have high postoperative recovery quality and quick recovery in the short term, with better sedative and analgesic effects. Therefore, it is worthy of promotion in clinic practice.

Efficacy and safety of propofol in preventing emergence agitation after sevoflurane anesthesia for children.

Application of propofol in preventing emergence agitation after sevoflurane anesthesia in children was evaluated. Clinical data of 200 children who received sevoflurane anesthesia in Children's Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 120 patients who received inhaled sevoflurane for pediatric anesthesia and intravenous infusion of propofol (2 mg/kg) were included in observation group. The remaining 80 cases who were directly anesthetized by sevoflurane alone were the control group. T PAED scores, modified Aldrete scores, extubation time, PACU time and adverse reactions (gastrointestinal tract and respiratory response) were analyzed and compared between the control and observation group. PAED scores, extubation time, PACU time and incidence of adverse reactions were significantly lower in observation than in control group, and the modified Aldrete scores were higher in observation than in control group (P<0.05). Spearman's correlation analysis showed that the PAED scores were negatively correlated with modified Aldrete scores and positively correlated with extubation time. There was positive correlation between the PACU time and incidence of adverse reactions and between the PAED scores and extubation time. There was negative correlation between PACU time and incidence of adverse reactions and between Aldrete scores and extubation time (P<0.05). Therefore, we conclude that propofol can be used to prevent agitation after sevoflurane anesthesia in children.

Recent advances in thread-based microfluidics for diagnostic applications.

Over the past decades, researchers have been seeking attractive substrate materials to keep microfluidics improving to outbalance the drawbacks and issues. Cellulose substrates, including thread, paper and hydrogels are alternatives due to their distinct structural and mechanical properties for a number of applications. Thread have gained considerable attention and become promising powerful tool due to its advantages over paper-based systems thus finds numerous applications in the development of diagnostic systems, smart bandages and tissue engineering. To the best of our knowledge, no comprehensive review articles on the topic of thread-based microfluidics have been published and it is of significance for many scientific communities working on Microfluidics, Biosensors and Lab-on-Chip. This review gives an overview of the advances of thread-based microfluidic diagnostic devices in a variety of applications. It begins with an overall introduction of the fabrication followed by an in-depth review on the detection techniques in such devices and various applications with respect to effort and performance to date. A few perspective directions of thread-based microfluidics in its development are also discussed. Thread-based microfluidics are still at an early development stage and further improvements in terms of fabrication, analytical strategies, and function to become low-cost, low-volume and easy-to-use point-of-care (POC) diagnostic devices that can be adapted or commercialized for real world applications.