ABSTRACT
Objective The objective of this study was to compare K1, K2, Kmax, and pachymetry values from Pentacam and Galilei scans of corneal topography in order to assess their correlation and interchangeability in clinical practice. Methodology A total of 34 patients (68 eyes) were enrolled in the study. Corneal topography was performed using Pentacam and Galilei devices on the same day. K1, K2, Kmax, and pachymetry readings were obtained from the scans and analyzed using paired t-tests and Bland-Altman plots. Results There were minimal differences in clinical settings between Pentacam and Galilei for K1, K2, Kmax (>0.75 D), and pachymetry values (>15 um). However, there was a statistically significant difference found between Kmax and pachymetry, making their interchangeability questionable. Conclusion Pentacam and Galilei demonstrate a good correlation between corneal keratometric values (K1, K2, and Kmax) and pachymetry values in clinical settings, and they should be used interchangeably with caution.
ABSTRACT
Cancer remains one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Scientists from different fields are working to devise an efficient treatment strategy in order to reduce the global burden of cancer. Commonly used treatment approaches for cancer treatment include chemotherapy, immunotherapy, photodynamic therapy, radiation, surgery, etc. These treatment procedures have several pitfalls, such as toxicity, limited bioavailability, rapid elimination, poor specificity, and high cost. On the other side, plant-derived anticancer compounds exhibit several advantages and can overcome these shortcomings. Plant-based anticancer compounds are safer, potent, easily available, and comparatively cost-effective. The current review discusses pure plant- based compounds that are used as a therapeutic remedy for anticancer application. The proposed mechanisms of action, through which these compounds inhibit cancer cell growth, tumor growth, angiogenesis, instigate apoptosis, cytotoxicity, mitochondrial membrane degradation, and reduce cell viability as well as cell cycle progression, are also reviewed. These naturally occurring compounds exhibit great therapeutic potential and could be used as candidate drugs in clinical applications.
ABSTRACT
This paper proposes a circularly polarized ultra-thin flexible antenna with a flexible rectifier and power management unit (PMU) for smartwatch/wristband applications. The flexible antenna is compact (0.17λ0 × 0.20λ0 × 0.0004λ0) and has a stepped ground plane. A parasitic element is used at the substrate bottom to reduce the specific absorption rate (SAR) and enhance the gain up to 3.2 dBi, at the resonating frequency of WLAN/Wi-Fi (2.45 GHz). The SAR of the proposed design is also analysed at the resonating frequency, and it satisfies the guidelines of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) and IEEE C95.1-2019 human safety standards. An impedance matching circuit is used between the antenna and the RF energy harvester to improve conversion efficiency. Polarization mismatch is avoided with the help of circular polarization, achieved by tuning stubs of size 0.02λ0 × 0.044λ0. The integration of the antenna and rectenna results in a good conversion efficiency of 78.2% at - 5 dBm of input power with a load resistance of 2 KΩ. The availability of RF signals allows the user to charge the smartwatch/wristband by connecting the PMU circuit with the RF energy harvester.
ABSTRACT
Hantaviruses are single-stranded RNA viruses belonging to the family Bunyaviridae that causes hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) worldwide. Currently, there is no effective vaccination or therapy available for the treatment of hantavirus, hence there is a dire need for research to formulate therapeutics for the disease. Computational vaccine designing is currently a highly accurate, time and cost-effective approach for designing effective vaccines against different diseases. In the current study, we shortlisted highly antigenic proteins i.e., envelope, and nucleoprotein from the proteome of hantavirus and subjected to the selection of highly antigenic epitopes to design of next-generation multi-epitope vaccine constructs. A highly antigenic and stable adjuvant was attached to the immune epitopes (T-cell, B-cell, and HTL) to design Env-Vac, NP-Vac, and Com-Vac constructs, which exhibit stronger antigenic, non-allergenic, and favorable physiochemical properties. Moreover, the 3D structures were predicted and docking analysis revealed robust interactions with the human Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) to initiate the immune cascade. The total free energy calculated for Env-Vac, NP-Vac, and Com-Vac was -50.02 kcal/mol, -24.13 kcal/mol, and -62.30 kcal/mol, respectively. In silico cloning, results demonstrated a CAI value for the Env-Vac, NP-Vac, and Com-Vac of 0.957, 0.954, and 0.956, respectively, while their corresponding GC contents were 65.1%, 64.0%, and 63.6%. In addition, the immune simulation results from three doses of shots released significant levels of IgG, IgM, interleukins, and cytokines, as well as antigen clearance over time, after receiving the vaccine and two booster doses. Our vaccines against Hantavirus were found to be highly immunogenic, inducing a robust immune response that demands experimental validation for clinical usage.