Recent advances and future directions of 3D to 6D printing in brain cancer treatment and neural tissue engineering.

The field of neural tissue engineering has undergone a revolution due to advancements in three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. This technology now enables the creation of intricate neural tissue constructs with precise geometries, topologies, and mechanical properties. Currently, there are various 3D printing techniques available, such as stereolithography and digital light processing, and a wide range of materials can be utilized, including hydrogels, biopolymers, and synthetic materials. Furthermore, the development of four-dimensional (4D) printing has gained traction, allowing for the fabrication of structures that can change shape over time using techniques such as shape-memory polymers. These innovations have the potential to facilitate neural regeneration, drug screening, disease modeling, and hold tremendous promise for personalized diagnostics, precise therapeutic strategies against brain cancers. This review paper provides a comprehensive overview of the current state-of-the-art techniques and materials for 3D printing in neural tissue engineering and brain cancer. It focuses on the exciting possibilities that lie ahead, including the emerging field of 4D printing. Additionally, the paper discusses the potential applications of five-dimensional and six-dimensional printing, which integrate time and biological functions into the printing process, in the fields of neuroscience.

Antimicrobial activity, environmental sensitivity, mechanism of action, and food application of αs165-181 peptide.

αs165-181 is a peptide derived from αs2-casein of ovine milk. Herein, we report the antimicrobial activity and mechanism, and food application of the peptide. αs165-181 showed antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus cereus, and Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis in a dose-dependent manner. The minimum inhibitory concentration of the peptide was 3.9 mg/ml for E. coli and 7.8 mg/ml for the other bacteria. The peptide did not show antimicrobial activity against Lactobacillus plantarum up to 3.9 mg/ml concentration. The minimum bactericidal concentration of αs165-181 peptide was 7.8 mg/ml for E. coli, S. aureus, L. monocytogenes, and B. cereus. The peptide was sensitive to monovalent and divalent cations, pH, and high temperatures. Transmission electron microscopy, cytoplasmic ß-galactosidase leakage, and DNA electrophoresis analyses showed that αs165-181 peptide affects bacteria by damaging cell membrane and binding to the genomic DNA. When αs165-181 peptide was applied to minced beef or UHT cream, the antimicrobial activity (7.8 mg/g) was almost the same as or even better than nisin (0.5 mg/g). This study helps understand the antimicrobial mode of action of αs165-181 peptide and develop strategies for application in food products.

An investigation on the physicochemical characterization of interesterified blends of fully hydrogenated palm olein and soybean oil.

In this study, the effect of interesterification (using sodium methoxide) on physicochemical characteristics of fully hydrogenated palm olein (FHPO)/soybean oil blends (10 ratios) was investigated. Interesterification changed free fatty acid content, decreased oil stability index, solid fat content (SFC) and slip melting point (SMP), and does not affected the peroxide value. With the increase of FHPO ratio, oil stability index, SFC and SMP increased in both the interesterified and non-interesterified blends. Fats with higher FHPO ratio had narrower plastic range, as well. Compared to the initial blends, interesterified fats had wider plastic ranges at lower temperatures. Both the non-interesterified and interesterified blends showed monotectic behavior. The Gompertz function could describe SFC curve (as a function of temperature, saturated fatty acid (SFA) content or both) and SMP (as a function of SFA) of the interesterified fats with high R2 and low mean absolute error.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Post Procedural Creatine Kinase, MB Form can Predict Long-Term Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Selective Percutaneous Coronary Intervention?

BACKGROUND: Measuring cardiac markers in blood has been the main strategy for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction for nearly 50 years. Creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) has been demonstrated to be a highly specific marker. OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to assess the role of CK-MB changes following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to predict one year outcomes of this procedure. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This cohort study was conducted on 138 patients diagnosed with coronary artery disease who underwent PCI. Sixty-nine patients who had a CK-MB elevation ≥ 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN) post procedurally were considered as group I and 69 patients without cardiac enzyme rise after PCI were considered as the control group (group II). The composite end point of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) during one year was assessed by telephone follow-up or presentation at clinical visiting, and compared between the two groups. The MACE was defined as the appearance of at least one of the following events: mortality, repeated revascularization procedures, myocardial infarction, or cerebrovascular events. RESULTS: Although one year mortality in the group I was 4 (5.8%), about two times greater than the other group 2 (2.9%), the difference was not significantly discrepant (P = 0.57). Moreover, 8 (11.6%) of patients in group I experienced one year MACE, while this rate in the other group was 4 (5.8%), with insignificant difference (P = 0.22). In group I, one case experienced coronary artery bypass surgery, one, exhibited cerebrovascular disease and one reported ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), while two patients in the other group were suspicious of having non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and candidates for repeated PCI. Multivariate analysis revealed that increased post-procedural CK-MB ≥ 3 times UNL could not predict long-term MACE in patients who underwent selective PCI. Area under the curve (AUC) for predicting one year MACE was 0.593 (95% CI: 0.397 - 0.788), indicating inappropriate accuracy for this biomarker (P = 0.290). CONCLUSIONS: It seems that CK-MB ≥ 3 times ULN within 24 hours after PCI cannot independently predict one year MACE in patients undergoing PCI.