Blue Phase III from Bent-Core Liquid Crystals: Unveiling Thermal Stability & Unique Traits - A Comprehensive Review.

This review article mainly delves into the comprehensive development, thermal stabilization, characteristics, and applications of Blue Phase III (BPIII) derived from non-calamitic, mainly T-shaped and bent-core liquid crystals (BCLC). The discussion begins with discovering and characterizing various liquid crystal (LC) phases of BCLCs, emphasizing the significance of the nematic (N) phase in three and four-ring BCLCs. Following this, the focus shifts to the stabilization, properties, and potential applications of BPIII, particularly those derived from non-conventional liquid crystals. The review highlights the exceptional electro-optical (E-O) properties of BPIII, including high Kerr constants and distinct phase transitions. Studies reveal the impact of chirality on thermal behavior, microscopic observations, and the influence of molecular structures on mesophase formation. Investigations into asymmetrical chiral liquid crystal diads and hydrogen-bonded complexes underscore the importance of molecular design in expanding BPIII ranges. Furthermore, achiral unsymmetrical BCLC designs reveal significant insights into the interplay between molecular structure, phase transitions, and E-O behavior. Additionally, the structural transformation and E-O properties of highly polar BCLCs are examined to stabilize BPIII at room temperature, achieving notable Kerr constants and low voltage requirements. These collective studies provide a thorough understanding of BPIII and its promising applications in materials science and technology.

Ballota hirsuta essential oil as a potential multitarget agent against Leishmania parasite: in vitro and in silico studies.

In the present study, we assessed the antioxidant and antileishmanial potential from fresh leaves of Ballota (B.) hirsuta essential oil (EO). The GC-MS analysis of B. hirsuta EO revealed that spathulenol and germacrene D were the main components accounting for 26.03% and 19.64% of the total EO, respectively. B. hirsuta EO possesses moderate antioxidant activity, both in neutralizing DPPH radicals and in inhibiting ß-carotene bleaching. In addition, it exhibits both high antileishmanial activity and selectivity towards the promastigote and amastigote forms. Specifically, B. hirsuta EO showed an IC50 value of 20.78 µg/mL and 23.62 µg/mL, against the promastigote and amastigote forms of L. infantum, respectively. It also demonstrated an IC50 value of 22.39 and 25.76 µg/mL, against the promastigote and amastigote forms of L. major, respectively. However, it exhibited moderate cytotoxicity, with a selectivity index below 10. The investigation of the molecular mechanism of action revealed that B. hirsuta EO inhibited only the sterol pathway, including CYP51 gene expression. Additionally, in silico analysis indicated that the main compounds of B. hirsuta EO, germacrene and spathulenol, exhibited excellent affinity energy against Leishmania enzymes trypanothione reductase (TryR) and trypanothione synthase (TryS). This denotes the potential of these compounds as promising agents to control leishmaniasis.

Network Security Prediction of Industrial Control Based on Projection Equalization Optimization Algorithm.

This paper predicts the network security posture of an ICS, focusing on the reliability of Industrial Control Systems (ICSs). Evidence reasoning (ER) and belief rule base (BRB) techniques are employed to establish an ICS network security posture prediction model, ensuring the secure operation and prediction of the ICS. This model first integrates various information from the ICS to determine its network security posture value. Subsequently, through ER iteration, information fusion occurs and serves as an input for the BRB prediction model, which necessitates initial parameter setting by relevant experts. External factors may influence the experts' predictions; therefore, this paper proposes the Projection Equalization Optimization (P-EO) algorithm. This optimization algorithm updates the initial parameters to enhance the prediction of the ICS network security posture through the model. Finally, industrial datasets are used as experimental data to improve the credibility of the prediction experiments and validate the model's predictive performance in the ICS. Compared with other methods, this paper's prediction model demonstrates a superior prediction accuracy. By further comparing with other algorithms, this paper has a certain advantage when using less historical data to make predictions.

Promising Antileishmanial Activity of Micromeria nervosa Essential Oil: In Vitro and In Silico Studies.

The present study aimed to evaluate the leishmanicidal potential of the essential oil (EO) of Micromeria (M.) nervosa and to investigate its molecular mechanism of action by qPCR. Furthermore, in silicointeraction study of the major M. nervosa EO compounds with the enzyme cytochrome P450 sterol 14α-demethylase (CYP51) was also performed. M. nervosa EO was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Results showed that α-pinene (26.44%), t-cadinol (26.27%), caryophyllene Oxide (7.73 ± 1.04%), and α-Cadinene (3.79 ± 0.12%) are the major compounds of M. nervosa EO. However, limited antioxidant activity was observed, as this EO was ineffective in neutralizing DPPH free radicals and in inhibiting ß-carotene bleaching. Interestingly, it displayed effective leishmanicidal potential against promastigote (IC50 of 6.79 and 5.25 µg/mL) and amastigote (IC50 of 8.04 and 7.32 µg/mL) forms of leishmania (L.) infantum and L. major, respectively. Molecular mechanism investigation showed that M. nervosa EO displayed potent inhibition on the thiol regulatory pathway. Furthermore, a docking study of the main components of the EO with cytochrome P450 sterol 14α-demethylase (CYP51) enzyme revealed that t-cadinol exhibited the best binding energy values (-7.5 kcal/mol), followed by α-cadinene (-7.3 kcal/mol) and caryophyllene oxide (-7 kcal/mol). These values were notably higher than that of the conventional drug fluconazole showing weaker binding energy (-6.9 kcal/mol). These results suggest that M. nervosa EO could serve as a potent and promising candidate for the development of alternative antileishmanial agent in the treatment of leishmaniasis.

Influence of diluent on antimicrobial activity of cinnamon bark essential oil vapor against Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella enterica on a laboratory medium and beef jerky.

The influence of chemical diluents on the antimicrobial activity of plant essential oil (EO) vapors was evaluated. We first determined if vapors generated from 22 chemical diluents not containing EO had antimicrobial activities. Ethyl ether vapor retarded the growth of S. aureus. The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and the minimal lethal concentrations (MLCs) of cinnamon bark EO vapor, which was diluted in and generated from 21 diluents, against S. aureus and S. enterica were determined. Cinnamon bark EO vapor showed significantly (P ≤ 0.05) lower MICs against S. aureus when diluted in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), ethanol, ethyl acetate, or jojoba oil, and against S. enterica when diluted in DMSO, ethanol, or jojoba oil, compared to those in other diluents. We compared antimicrobial activities of cinnamon bark EO vapor diluted in DMSO, ethanol, ethyl acetate, or jojoba oil against S. aureus and S. enterica on beef jerky as a food model. Antimicrobial activity was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher when vaporized from DMSO. These results indicate that antimicrobial activity of cinnamon bark EO vapor may vary significantly (P ≤ 0.05) depending on the type of diluent from which it is vaporized. These observations provide basic information when developing food and food-contact surface decontamination strategies using EO vapors.

Variations in Essential Oils from the Leaves of Cinnamomum bodinieri in China.

Cinnamomum plants are rich in natural essential oils, which are widely used as materials in the fragrance, insecticidal, antibacterial agent, pharmaceutical, and food industries; however, few studies have investigated the essential oil components of Cinnamomum bodinieri. Therefore, this study investigated the diversity of essential oils from the leaves of 885 individual C. bodinieri plants across 32 populations in five provinces. Essential oils were extracted by hydrodistillation, and then qualitative and quantitative analyses of the compounds were performed by GC-MS and GC-FID. A total of 87 chemical constituents were identified in the essential oils, including 33 monoterpenes, 48 sesquiterpenes, and six other compounds. The average oil yield was 0.75%, and individual oil yields ranged from 0.01% to 4.28%. A total of 16 chemotypes were classified according to variations in the essential oil chemical constituents of C. bodinieri, among which the camphor-type, citral-type, and eucalyptol-type were dominant. Moreover, the borneol-type, cymol-type, elemol-type, methylisoeugenol-type, and selina-6-en-4-ol-type were reported in C. bodinieri for the first time. The yield and principal components of the essential oils were mainly affected by altitude, temperature, and sunshine duration, among which altitude had the most significant effect; thus, low-altitude areas are more suitable for the synthesis and accumulation of essential oils. Based on the different characteristics of the essential oils in the leaves of C. bodinieri, several excellent populations and individuals were identified in this study. Moreover, the findings provide a foundation for breeding superior varieties and studying essential oil biosynthesis mechanisms in the future.

Essential Oil from Coriandrum sativum: A review on Its Phytochemistry and Biological Activity.

Essential oils are hydrophobic liquids produced as secondary metabolites by specialized secretory tissues in the leaves, seeds, flowers, bark and wood of the plant, and they play an important ecological role in plants. Essential oils have been used in various traditional healing systems due to their pharmaceutical properties, and are reported to be a suitable replacement for chemical and synthetic drugs that come with adverse side effects. Thus, currently, various plant sources for essential oil production have been explored. Coriander essential oil, obtained from the leaf and seed oil of Coriandrum sativum, has been reported to have various biological activities. Apart from its application in food preservation, the oil has many pharmacological properties, including allelopathic properties. The present review discusses the phytochemical composition of the seed and leaf oil of coriander and the variation of the essential oil across various germplasms, accessions, at different growth stages and across various regions. Furthermore, the study explores various extraction and quantification methods for coriander essential oils. The study also provides detailed information on various pharmacological properties of essential oils, such as antimicrobial, anthelmintic, insecticidal, allelopathic, antioxidant, antidiabetic, anticonvulsive, antidepressant, and hepatoprotective properties, as well as playing a major role in maintaining good digestive health. Coriander essential oil is one of the most promising alternatives in the food and pharmaceutical industries.

Transcriptome analysis revealed detoxification gene expression changes in Tetranychus cinnabarinus challenged with ethyl oleate.

Natural acaricides are potential biorational mite control alternatives to conventional chemical acaricides. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of defense response to natural acaricides in mites. We previously reported significant acaricidal properties of ethyl oleate (EO) against Tetranychus cinnabarinus (here referred to as a sibling species of two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae), a highly polyphagous pest devastating crops in fields and greenhouses worldwide. In this study, we explored the molecular responses of T. cinnabarinus exposed to EO using RNA-Seq and differentially expressed gene (DEG) analysis. A total of 131, 185, and 154 DEGs were identified in T. cinnabarinus after 1, 6, and 24 h of EO treatment. In addition, 36 putative detoxification-related DEGs, including 10 cytochrome P450s (P450s), three glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), nine UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs), eight esterases (ESTs), and six ATP-binding cassette transporters (ABC transporters), were identified. Interestingly, the upregulation of these detoxification-related genes might be the main defense response of T. cinnabarinus exposed to EO. A quantitative real-time PCR analysis indicated that the expression profiles of 19 random DEGs were consistent with the RNA-Seq results. These findings serve as valuable information for a better understanding of the acaricide-mite interaction and molecular mechanisms involved in the defense response of T. cinnabarinus against EO.

Contact and Gastric Effect of Peppermint Oil on Selected Pests and Aphid Predator Harmonia axyridis Pallas.

Peppermint essential oil (EO) has been extensively tested to date in reducing stored-product insects and insects of public health concern with very promising results, while only a few studies target important crop pests. There is also very little information on the effects of peppermint EO on non-target organisms, especially concerning contact and gastric effects at the same time. The goal of the investigation was the determination of the effect of peppermint EO on the mortality of Aphis fabae Scop.; the feeding intensity and weight gain of Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say. larvae; and the mortality and voracity of non-target organism Harmonia axyridis Pallas larvae. Our research indicates promising use for the M. piperita EO against aphids and young larvae (second instars) of the Colorado potato beetle. M. piperita EO showed good insecticidal efficacy against A. fabae with LC50 = 0.5442% for nymphs and 0.3768% for wingless females after 6 h. Over time, the LC50 value decreased. For the second instar larvae of L. decemlineata, the LC50 values were 0.6278%, 0.3449%, and 0.2020% after 1, 2, and 3 days of the experiment, respectively. On the other hand, older larvae (fourth instar) were characterized by significant resistance to the tested oil concentrations with LC50 value = 0.7289% after 96 h. M. piperita oil (contact and gastric effects) at a concentration of 0.5% was found to be toxic to young larvae (2 and 5 days old) of H. axyridis, while EO at a concentration of 1% was toxic to 8-day-old larvae. Thus, for the sake of ladybug safety, it would be advisable to use EO from M. piperita against aphids at concentrations lower than 0.5%.

Development of SDS-Modified PbO2 Anode Material Based on Ti3+ Self-Doping Black TiO2NTs Substrate as a Conductive Interlayer for Enhanced Electrocatalytic Oxidation of Methylene Blue.

Efficient and stable electrode materials are urgently required for wastewater treatment in the electrocatalytic degradation of toxic and refractory organic pollutants. Ti3+ self-doping black TiO2 nanotube arrays (Ti/B-TiO2-NTs) as an interlayer were used for preparing a novel PbO2 electrode via an electrochemical reduction technology, and a sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-modified PbO2 catalytic layer was successfully achieved via an electrochemical deposition technology. The physicochemical characterization tests showed that the Ti/B-TiO2-NTs/PbO2-SDS electrodes have a denser surface and finer grain size with the introduction of Ti3+ in the interlayer of Ti/TiO2-NTs and the addition of SDS in the active layer of PbO2. The electrochemical characterization results showed that the Ti3+ self-doping black Ti/TiO2-NTs/PbO2-SDS electrode had higher oxygen evolution potential (2.11 V vs. SCE), higher electrode stability, smaller charge-transfer resistance (6.74 Ω cm-2), and higher hydroxyl radical production activity, leading to it possessing better electrocatalytic properties. The above results indicated that the physicochemical and electrochemical characterization of the PbO2 electrode were all enhanced significantly with the introduction of Ti3+ and SDS. Furthermore, the Ti/B-TiO2-NTs/PbO2-SDS electrodes displayed the best performance on the degradation of methylene blue (MB) in simulated wastewater via bulk electrolysis. The removal efficiency of MB and the chemical oxygen demand (COD) could reach about 99.7% and 80.6% under the optimal conditions after 120 min, respectively. The pseudo-first-order kinetic constant of the Ti/B-TiO2-NTs/PbO2-SDS electrode was 0.03956 min-1, which was approximately 3.18 times faster than that of the Ti/TiO2-NTs/PbO2 electrode (0.01254 min-1). In addition, the Ti/B-TiO2-NTs/PbO2-SDS electrodes showed excellent stability and reusability. The degradation mechanism of MB was explored via the experimental identification of intermediates. In summary, the Ti3+ self-doping black Ti/TiO2-NTs/PbO2-SDS electrode is a promising electrode in treating wastewater.

Sociobiology on Screen. The Controversy Through the Lens of Sociobiology: Doing What Comes Naturally.

When the sociobiology debate erupted in 1975, there were almost too many contributions to the heated exchanges between sociobiologists and their critics to count. In the fall of 1976, a Canadian educational film entitled Sociobiology: Doing What Comes Naturally sparked further controversy due to its graphic visuals and outrageous narration. While critics claimed the film was a promotional tool to further the sociobiological agenda in educational settings, sociobiologists quickly distanced themselves from the film and, in turn, accused the critics of consciously misrepresenting sociobiology by organizing showings of the film. Using audio, video, archival, and published sources, this paper explores the complicated history of Sociobiology: Doing What Comes Naturally and demonstrates how the public debate about the film reflects the positions, polemics, and polarization of the sociobiology debate as a whole.

In-vitro Antimicrobial Study of Non/irradiated Ylang-ylang Essential Oil Against Multi Drug Resistant Pathogens with Reference to Microscopic Morphological Alterations.

Essential oils have proven to possess great potential in the field of biomedicine due to their ability to effectively eradicate a diverse range of pathogenic microbes. In this study, the antimicrobial activity of ylang-ylang essential oil (YY-EO) was screened against twelve multidrug-resistant pathogens. The YY-EO was effective up to 536 µg/ml, with the highest inhibition zone in case of S. aureus MMCC21 and Escherichia coli MMCC24. The least effect on both Bacillus cereus MMCC11 and Klebsiella pneumonia MMCC16. The major components of the essential oil were identified using GC-MS analysis. Different gamma irradiation doses against the YY-EO were evaluated as a tool of natural decontamination. Moreover, the antimicrobial assay after irradiation proved no significant changes regarding the antimicrobial activity before and after irradiation of EO at the applied dose. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for the EO against the tested pathogens was detected. The possible morphological changes in some of the bacterial and yeast cells at the recognized MIC and 2MIC were detected using the scanning electron microscope (SEM). Results revealed a notable change in terms of both the microbial cell population and the morphology of the tested bacterial and yeast cells. The cytotoxicity of ylang-ylang EO was evaluated against normal skin tissue culture and showed a potential cytotoxic effect at concentrated doses. These results refer to the importance of YY-EO as a natural antimicrobial agent and the possible application of YY-EO as a surface decontaminant, but they also draw attention to the importance of the EO concentration used in different applications to avoid possible toxic effects. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12088-023-01122-4.

Antibacterial activity of essential oils extracted from the unique Chinese spices cassia bark, bay fruits and cloves.

Spices are widely used in daily life such as diet and have certain activity. Especially in China, spices have been mainly used as condiments for thousands of years in order to improve the sensory quality of food; in addition, they and their derivatives can also be used as preservatives. In this study, three spices with unique Chinese characteristics widely used were selected: cassia bark (bark of Cinnamomum camphora Presl), bay fruits (Laurus nobilis), and cloves (Syzygiumaromaticum). The main components and antibacterial ability of these three spices were analyzed by simulated extraction method. Through headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis, it was determined that the main active compounds in the essential oils of cassia bark, bay fruits and cloves were cinnamaldehyde (78.11%), cinnamaldehyde (61.78%) and eugenol (75.23%), respectively. The agar plate diffusion test and the simulated food culture medium experiment confirmed that the essential oils extracted from the three flavors have antibacterial effects on Listeria monocytogenes, Listeria innocua, Listeria welshimeri, Listeria ivanovii, Listeria grayi and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. The antibacterial activity of different strains has different optimal extraction conditions. Generally speaking, cinnamon essential oil has the strongest antibacterial activity, while laurel fruit has the lowest antibacterial activity. The study proved the antibacterial activity of these three Chinese-specific spices and provided some new ideas and methods for the subsequent research and preparation of natural food additives and food antibacterial agents.

Stratum corneum ceramide profiles in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo: characterization of the α-hydroxy double esterified ceramides.

The presence of a new ceramide subclass, the 1-O-acyl omega-linoleoyloxy ceramides [1-O-E (EO) Cer], has been previously highlighted in reconstructed human epidermis (RHE). These ceramides are double esterified on two positions. The first is the 1-O position of the sphingoid base moiety with a long to very long chain of acyl residues (1-O-E), and the second is the position of the ω-hydroxyl group of the fatty acid moiety with linoleic acid (EO). Considering its chemical structure and hydrophobicity, this subclass can contribute to the skin barrier. Thus, it is important to determine whether this subclass is also present in native human stratum corneum (SC). This work compares ceramide structures of this novel subclass between RHE (in vitro) and two sources of human SC (in vivo and ex vivo) using normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (NP-HPLC/HR-MSn). The results confirm the presence of this double esterified ceramide subclass [1-O-E (EO) Cer] in human SC. The molecular profile obtained from the RHE was very close to that found in the human SC (in vivo and ex vivo). In addition, thanks to the targeted MS2/MS3 analysis, a new ceramide subclass was discovered and characterized in the three studied samples. We propose to name it [A-1-O-E (EO) Cer] because in these ceramides species, the fatty acid-esterified with the sphingoid base on the 1-O position-is hydroxylated on the α position. These results highlight the potential of both the analytical method and the characterization approach employed in this study.

The global, regional, and national early-onset colorectal cancer burden and trends from 1990 to 2019: results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

PURPOSE: The incidence of early-onset colorectal cancer (EO-CRC), which occurs in people under age 50, has been increasing annually. The aim of this study was to provide an up-to-date estimate of the global EO-CRC burden. METHODS: We used Global Burden of Disease Study data and methodologies to describe changes in the EO-CRC burden from 1990 to 2019, including incidence, prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). The driving factors for cancer burden variation were further analyzed using decomposition analysis. Frontier analysis was used to visually demonstrate the potential for burden reduction in each country or region based on their development levels. RESULTS: The global EO-CRC incidence more than doubled, increasing from 95,737 (95% uncertainty interval (UI): 90,838-101.042) /100,000 in 1990 to 226,782 (95% UI: 207,495-248,604) /100,000 in 2019. Additionally, related deaths increased from 50,997 (95% UI: 47,692-54,410) /100,000 to 87,014 (95% UI: 80,259-94,339) /100,000, and DALYs increased from 256,1842 (95% UI: 239,4962-2,735,823) /100,000 to 4,297,573 (95% UI: 3,965,485-4,650,790) /100,000. Regarding age-standardized rates, incidence and prevalence increased significantly, while mortality and DALYs rate were basically unchanged. Decomposition analysis showed a significant increase in DALYs in the middle sociodemographic index (SDI) quintile region, in which aging and population growth played a major driving role. Frontier analysis showed that countries or regions with a higher SDI quintile tend to have greater improvement potential. CONCLUSION: The current EO-CRC burden was found to be the greatest in the high-middle SDI quintile region and East Asia, which may need to adjust screening guidelines accordingly and introduce more effective interventions.

Thymbra capitata essential oil has a significant antimicrobial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus pre-formed biofilms.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a multidrug-resistant opportunistic pathogen with a great ability to form biofilms. Herein, the antimicrobial potential of Thymbra capitata essential oil (EO) against MRSA biofilms was investigated. The determination of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and the minimum lethal concentration (MLC) of the T. capitata EO was first investigated on a group of clinical isolates from septicaemias, diabetic foot ulcers and osteomyelitis. Biofilms were incubated with the EO at the MLC and its anti-biofilm potential was investigated. A strong antimicrobial activity was observed, with MIC and MLC values between 0·32 and 0·64 mg l-1 . However, the concentration of EO necessary for the eradication of planktonic cells was insufficient to significantly reduce the biofilm biomass of some isolates. Nevertheless, cell culturability and overall cellular metabolism was strongly reduced in all biofilms tested, only when the EO was tested. Contrary to the tested antibiotics, T. capitata EO showed a significant antimicrobial activity against MRSA biofilms, by reducing cellular metabolism and cellular culturability.

A Transmission Efficiency Evaluation Method of Adaptive Coding Modulation for Ka-Band Data-Transmission of LEO EO Satellites.

Nowadays low Earth orbit (LEO) Earth observation (EO) satellites commonly use constant coding modulation (CCM) or variable coding modulation (VCM) schemes for data transmission to ground stations (G/S). Compared with CCM and VCM, the adaptive coding modulation (ACM) could further improve the data throughput of the link by making full use of link resource and the time-varying characteristics of atmospheric attenuation. In order to comprehensively study the data transmission performance, one new index which could be utilized as a quantitative index for the satellite-to-ground data transmission scheme selection, the transmission efficiency factor (TEF) of LEO satellites is proposed and defined as "the product of the link availability and the average useful data rate". Then, the transmission efficiency of CCM, VCM and ACM at typical G/S with different weather characteristics at Ka-band is compared and analyzed. The results show that ACM is more suitable for the G/S with moderate and abundant rainfall. Compared with the CCM of MCS 28, for Beijing G/S and Sanya G/S, ACM not only improves the transmission efficiency with the TEF increased by 3.62% and 24.51%, respectively, but also improves the link availability with the outage period reduced by 82.47% and 75.18%, respectively.

Nano-Size Characterization and Antifungal Evaluation of Essential Oil Molecules-Loaded Nanoliposomes.

Nanoliposomes, bilayer vesicles at the nanoscale, are becoming popular because of their safety, patient compliance, high entrapment efficiency, and prompt action. Several notable biological activities of natural essential oils (EOs), including fungal inhibition, are of supreme interest. As developed, multi-compositional nanoliposomes loaded with various concentrations of clove essential oil (CEO) and tea tree oil (TTO) were thoroughly characterized to gain insight into their nano-size distribution. The present work also aimed to reconnoiter the sustainable synthesis conditions to estimate the efficacy of EOs in bulk and EO-loaded nanoliposomes with multi-functional entities. Following a detailed nano-size characterization of in-house fabricated EO-loaded nanoliposomes, the antifungal efficacy was tested by executing the mycelial growth inhibition (MGI) test using Trichophyton rubrum fungi as a test model. The dynamic light scattering (DLS) profile of as-fabricated EO-loaded nanoliposomes revealed the mean size, polydispersity index (PdI), and zeta potential values as 37.12 ± 1.23 nm, 0.377 ± 0.007, and -36.94 ± 0.36 mV, respectively. The sphere-shaped morphology of CEO and TTO-loaded nanoliposomes was confirmed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The existence of characteristic functional bands in all tested counterparts was demonstrated by attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy. Compared to TTO-loaded nanoliposomes, the CEO-loaded nanoliposomes exhibited a maximum entrapment efficacy of 91.57 ± 2.5%. The CEO-loaded nanoliposome fraction, prepared using 1.5 µL/mL concentration, showed the highest MGI of 98.4 ± 0.87% tested against T. rubrum strains compared to the rest of the formulations.

Evaluation of maternal serum progesterone-induced blocking factor levels in pregnancies complicated with early- and late-onset preeclampsia.

The aim of present study was to evaluate maternal serum progesterone-induced blocking factor (PIBF) levels in pregnancies complicated with early-onset (EO-PE) and late-onset (LO-PE) preeclampsia. Patients with preeclampsia were divided in two groups according to preeclampsia onset and compared to healthy control group: EO-PE and LO-PE defined as being diagnosed before 340/7 and ≥340/7 weeks, respectively. Maternal age, nulliparity, BMI at blood sampling, smoking, history of caesarean section and ethnicity were statistically similar among the groups. Statistically significant differences were found between the eo-PE and lo-PE preeclampsia groups in terms of gestational age at delivery, mean birth-weight percentile and foetal growth restriction rates. The mean serum PIBF level was 528.6 ± 220 ng/mL in the eo-PE and 615.3 ± 269.1 ng/mL in the lo-PE preeclampsia and 782.3 ± 292.4 ng/mL in the control groups; the difference among groups was statistically significant. Our results indicated that decreased PIBF levels play an important immunologic role in preeclampsia onset. IMPACT STATEMENTWhat is already known on this subject? Maternal lymphocytes secrete PIBF that provides the immunological effects of progesterone during pregnancy by activating T-helper type 2 (Th2) cells and inhibiting any activated uterine natural killer (uNK) cells. The recent studies results have shown that there is disproportion in the Th1/Th2 rate in women with preeclampsia. This purports that Th1-mediated immunity is promoted through Th2-mediated immunity, which can be involved in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia.What do the results of this study add? In this study we found that PIBF levels in maternal serum were significantly lower in the EO-PE group than in LO-PE and control group. Our results indicated that decreased PIBF levels play an important immunologic role in preeclampsia onset.What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? We can speculate that first trimester maternal serum PIBF levels may be a useful biomarker for prediction of EO-PE. Using serum PIBF levels within the first trimester combined with Doppler values for the uterine artery, and some biochemical markers to predict onset and severity of preeclampsia appear to be a new screening method.

Evaluating automated endmember extraction for classifying hyperspectral data and deriving spectral parameters for monitoring forest vegetation health.

The hyperspectral remote sensing datasets possess high capability in differentiating the spectrally similar features, and thus, they are immensely important in various forestry activities, especially vegetation classifications. But extracting endmembers for data training is a challenging task. The present study is focused on the use of automated endmember extraction technique for deriving endmembers during the unavailability of ground spectra. We used the Sequential Maximum Angle Convex Cone (SMACC) method on EO-1 Hyperion data for endmember extraction in the Barkot forest range of Dehradun district, Uttarakhand which were used for classification of the study area using support vector machine (SVM). Further, we estimated the vegetation health of the region by assigning the threshold weights for various derived environmental variables such as NDVI (Normalised Difference Vegetation Index), CRI (Carotenoid Reflectance Index), Anthocyanin Reflectance Index (ARI), Modified Simple Ratio (MSR), Modified Chlorophyll Absorption Ratio Index (MCARI) and WBI (Water Band Index). Then, to further validate the health of the forest types, we correlated it with the Land Surface Temperature (LST) from LANDSAT 5 ETM + data. The results showed a high classification accuracy of 89.13%. The healthy vegetation area coverage of the area was about 78.6% with most healthy class as Tectona grandis and Shorea robusta and its correlation with LST showed lower temperature range in healthy vegetation areas and vice versa. The study was useful in determining the superiority of SMACC automated endmember extraction and estimating the vegetation health.