Molecular engineering of boryl oxasmaragdyrins through peripheral modification: structure-efficiency relationship.

Expanded porphyrins with the absorption profile down to the infrared region through increased π-conjugation are suitable candidates for a low energy sensitizer. Oxasmaragdyrin boron complexes, a class of aromatic-core-modified expanded porphyrin with 22 π-electrons, have been recently utilized as an efficient low energy sensitizer in dye-sensitized solar cells. In this paper, we have prepared a series of eight novel boryl oxasmaragdyrins through molecular engineering on the periphery and their overall photovoltaic performances in dye-sensitized solar cells are evaluated. With the help of photophysical, electrochemical, and photovoltaic studies, it is revealed that molecular structure, especially the number and position of the donor-acceptor groups play a pivotal role in their photovoltaic performance. Presence of the two well-separated split Soret bands in the 400-500 nm region of UV/Vis spectrum ensures broader coverage of absorption wavelengths. Even though the two-anchoring-group dyes (SM5-SM8) bind strongly to TiO2 compared to one-anchoring-group dyes (SM1-SM4), the latter have superior photovoltaic performance than the former. Dye SM1, with two hexyloxyphenyl donors and one carboxylic acid anchor showed the best overall conversion efficiency of 4.36% (JSC = 10.91 mA cm(-2); VOC = 0.59 V; FF = 0.68). This effective modulation of photovoltaic performance through structural engineering of the dyes will serve as a guideline for the future design of efficient low energy light-harvesting sensitizers.

Differing Identities but Comparably High HIV and Bacterial Sexually Transmitted Disease Burdens Among Married and Unmarried Men Who Have Sex With Men in Mumbai, India.

BACKGROUND: Although HIV incidence has declined in India, men and transgender women who have sex with men (MSM) continue to have high rates of HIV and sexually transmitted disease (STD). Indian MSM face substantial pressures to marry and have families, but the HIV/STD burden among married Indian MSM is not well characterized. METHODS: A diverse sample of Indian MSM were recruited through respondent-driven sampling. Independent variables that produced a P value of 0.10 or less were then added to a multivariable logistic regression model. RESULTS: Most of the 307 MSM (95 married and 212 unmarried) recruited into the study were younger than 30 years, and less than one-third had more than a high school education. Almost two-thirds of the married men had children, compared with 1.4% of the unmarried men (P < 0.001). The numbers of condomless anal sex acts did not differ by marriage status. Although unmarried MSM more often identified themselves as "kothi" (receptive role), their rates of HIV or bacterial STD were similar to married MSM, with 14.3% being HIV infected. The respondent-driven sampling-adjusted prevalence of any bacterial STD was 18.3% for married MSM and 20% for unmarried MSM (not significant). Participants reported high levels of psychological distress, with 27.4% of married and 20.1% of unmarried MSM reporting depressive symptoms (not significant). CONCLUSIONS: Men who have sex with men in Mumbai had high rates of HIV, STD, and behavioral health concerns. Clinicians need to become more comfortable in eliciting sexual histories so that they can identify MSM who need HIV/STD treatment and/or prevention services.

The cis-isomer performs better than the trans-isomer in porphyrin-sensitized solar cells: interfacial electron transport and charge recombination investigations.

We report characterizations and device performance for dye-sensitized solar cells using cis- and trans-isomers of 2D-π-2A zinc porphyrins with carboxyphenyl and thienyl groups in their meso-positions. Under identical experimental conditions with similar dye loadings, we observed overall power conversion efficiencies of 2.44% and 0.88% for devices made of cis-2S2A and trans-2S2A, respectively. This uneven performance among cis and trans isomers under the same experimental conditions can be rationalized with detailed investigations via spectroscopic, quantum chemical, and femtosecond fluorescence up-conversion investigations. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations show that a small amount of electron density is localized over carboxyphenyl groups in the LUMO of cis-2S2A, but there is no electron density populated on the carboxyphenyl groups in the LUMO of trans-2S2A. The femtosecond fluorescence decay measurements revealed that the excited-state lifetime of trans-2S2A on Al2O3 is half of that of cis-2S2A on Al2O3. Moreover, the dye-to-TiO2 electron injection time of trans-2S2A is 2.54 ps, which is shorter than that of cis-2S2A/TiO2 (2.95 ps). Electrochemical impedance spectra measured under one sun illumination also revealed that the charge recombination time of cis-2S2A is longer than that of trans-2S2A. This thorough understanding of isomeric effects on the performance of porphyrins will serve as a guideline for the design of future sensitizing dyes for solar cells.

Acceptability, usability, and willingness to pay for HIV self-test kits distributed through community-based, PLHIV network-led and private practitioners models in India: Results from the STAR III Initiative.

INTRODUCTION: HIV self-testing (HIVST) has been shown to increase the uptake of HIV testing and help achieve the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets. This study assessed the acceptability, usability (ease of use and result interpretation) and the willingness to pay for HIVST kits distributed through three distribution models, namely the community-based, PLHIV network-led and private practitioners models, in India. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was implemented across 14 states in India between September 2021 and June 2022. All participants could choose between blood-based or oral-fluid-based test kits. Participants were shown a test-kit usage demonstration video, and pre- and post-test counselling was provided for all. Participants were followed-up after testing, and if reported reactive, were further supported for linkage to confirmatory testing and antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation. RESULTS: Among the 90,605 participants found eligible, 88,080 (97%) accepted an HIVST kit. Among the 87,976 who reported using an HIVST kit, 45,207 (51%) preferred a blood-based kit, and 42,120 (48%) reported testing for the first time. For future testing, 77,064 (88%) reported preferring HIVST over other HIV testing methods. Among those who used the kit, 83,308 (95%) found the kit easy to use, and 83,237 (95%) reported that the test results were easy to interpret. Among those who preferred HIVST for future use, 52,136 (69%) were willing to pay for the kit, with 35,854 (69%) of those willing to pay less than US$ 1.20. Only one instance of social harm was reported, with a participant reporting suicidal tendencies due to discord with their partner. Out of 328 participants (0.4%) who tested reactive with HIVST, 291 (89%) were linked to confirmatory testing; of these, 254 were confirmed HIV positive, and 216 (85%) successfully initiated ART. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, we report that nearly all participants were willing to accept HIVST, found the test kits easy to use and interpret, and about two-thirds were willing to pay for HIVST. Given the high levels of acceptance and the ability to reach a large proportion of first-time testers, HIVST in India could contribute to achieving the UNAIDS first 95 and ending the HIV epidemic.

Adult male chimpanzees inherit maternal ranging patterns.

Space use often correlates with reproductive success [1, 2]. Individual site fidelity is ubiquitous across a variety of taxa, including birds, mammals, insects, and reptiles [3-9]. Individuals can benefit from using the same area because doing so affords access to known resources, including food and/or breeding sites. The majority of studies on site fidelity have focused upon strictly territorial species in which individuals range in well-defined, exclusive areas (e.g., [4, 9]). By comparison, the transient groups that define fission-fusion species allow for considerable flexibility in individual space use. Although there is evidence that individual space use can influence reproductive success [2], relatively little is known about individual ranging patterns in fission-fusion species. Here, we investigate three potential correlates of male site fidelity (age, habitat quality, and maternal space use) in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). We found that when alone, each male preferentially concentrated his space use near the area where his mother ranged when he was dependent. We suggest that solitary ranging allows males to avoid direct competition with conspecifics and that foraging in familiar areas maximizes foraging efficiency. These results highlight the importance of male foraging strategies in a species in which male ranging is typically explained in terms of mating access to females.

Getting to the First 90: Incentivized Peer Mobilizers Promote HIV Testing Services to Men Who Have Sex With Men Using Social Media in Mumbai, India.

Recent studies of Indian men who have sex with men (MSM) have shown widespread use of social media for seeking sex partners. We piloted a peer mobilization approach to explore the feasibility of engaging previously unreached MSM online to link them to HIV testing services (HTS). MSM were encouraged to seek HTS through messages posted on a popular dating website. Those who visited the designated HTS site and tested for HIV were recruited as peer mobilizers and given coupons with unique identifying codes to distribute to other men in their virtual networks. If a network member presented at the site with a coupon and tested for HIV, the peer mobilizer was given a small monetary incentive. Network members presenting at the testing site were also recruited as peer mobilizers and given coupons. In a 6-month period, 247 MSM were recruited and tested for HIV and syphilis, of whom 244 (99%) were first-time testers. Two-thirds were less than 25 years old and about half reported inconsistent or no condom use during the last 10 anal sex acts. Eight individuals (3.2%) tested positive for HIV, and 22 (8.9%) had a high titer for syphilis; all were referred to tertiary hospitals for treatment. Our approach was modestly successful in reaching and providing HTS to previously unreached MSM, but challenges included lower-than-expected recruitment, individuals not returning for posttest counseling, and loss to follow-up of individuals with HIV. The next phase of peer mobilization will aim to scale up these services through government-supported targeted interventions for this subpopulation of primarily young, unreached MSM at high risk. The challenges will be addressed by targeting more dating sites, increasing access to testing using rapid HIV tests at several community-based facilities, and offering peer navigation support for people living with HIV.

Oxasmaragdyrins as New and Efficient Hole-Transporting Materials for High-Performance Perovskite Solar Cells.

The high performance of the perovskite solar cells (PSCs) cannot be achieved without a layer of efficient hole-transporting materials (HTMs) to retard the charge recombination and transport the photogenerated hole to the counterelectrode. Herein, we report the use of boryl oxasmaragdyrins (SM01, SM09, and SM13), a family of aromatic core-modified expanded porphyrins, as efficient hole-transporting materials (HTMs) for perovskite solar cells (PSCs). These oxasmaragdyrins demonstrated complementary absorption spectra in the low-energy region, good redox reversibility, good thermal stability, suitable energy levels with CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite, and high hole mobility. A remarkable power conversion efficiency of 16.5% (Voc = 1.09 V, Jsc = 20.9 mA cm-2, fill factor (FF) = 72%) is achieved using SM09 on the optimized PSCs device employing a planar structure, which is close to that of the state-of-the-art hole-transporting materials (HTMs), spiro-OMeTAD of 18.2% (Voc = 1.07 V, Jsc = 22.9 mA cm-2, FF = 74%). In contrast, a poor photovoltaic performance of PSCs using SM01 is observed due to the interactions of terminal carboxylic acid functional group with CH3NH3PbI3.

Review On Potential Antidiabetic Drugs In Ayurveda

Ayurvedic texts are mentioned this Vedic sastra as a science of life. Ayurveda mainly targeted lifestyle of human being as well as mentioned number of drugs on various disorders. Among these disorders, diabetes is a major disorder. Due to which people are suffering lot. Diabetes is a major metabolic as well as lifestyle related disease. Anti-diabetic drugs from modern science can treat this disorder but at the cost of heavy side effects. Diabetic patients are using the modern drugs at higher doses plus these drugs are much costlier. Need of today’s era is to use alternate therapies for diabetes. Among all alternative therapies Ayurveda gives ray of hope by using the Anti-diabetic drugs as mentioned in ancient texts. Ayurveda uses many drugs for diabetes especially herbal and herbomineral preparations. The review paper focuses on various Ayurvedic drugs herbal, herbomineral either in single or compound preparations studied at several research organizations. The paper focuses on antidiabetic properties of Ayurvedic drugs mentioned in Ayurvedic texts as well as their pharmacological, phytochemical properties and their scientific studies.

Highly efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution from neutral aqueous solution by a water-soluble anionic cobalt(II) porphyrin.

We report the use of a water-soluble anionic cobalt(ii) tetrakis(p-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin (CoTPPS) as a stable, active, and efficient catalyst for electrocatalytic H2 generation from neutral H2O without any organic additives. The molecule features nearly quantitative Faradaic efficiency with a turnover frequency of ∼1.83 s(-1) measured over 1 h and a turnover number of 1.9 × 10(4) moles of H2 per mole of catalyst with no loss of activity over 73 h at an applied potential of -1.29 V (vs. SHE) in neutral phosphate buffer solution.

Effects of number and position of meta and para carboxyphenyl groups of zinc porphyrins in dye-sensitized solar cells: structure-performance relationship.

Porphyrin sensitizers containing meta- and para-carboxyphenyl groups in their meso positions have been synthesized and investigated for their performance in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The superior performance of para-derivative compared to meta-derivative porphyrins was revealed by optical spectroscopy, electrochemical property measurements, density functional theory (DFT) calculations, attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and stability performance. Absorption spectra of para-carboxyphenyl-substituted porphyrins on TiO2 show a broader Soret band compared to meta-carboxyphenyl-substituted porphyrins. ATR-FTIR spectra of the studied porphyrins on TiO2 were applied to investigate the number and mode of carboxyl groups attached to TiO2. The VOC, JSC, and IPCE values of para-series porphyrins were distinctly superior to those of meta-series porphyrins. The Nyquist plots of the studied porphyrins show that charge injection in para-series porphyrins is superior to that in meta-series porphyrins. The orthogonally positioned para derivatives have more efficient charge injection and charge transfer over charge recombination, whereas the efficiencies of flat-oriented meta derivatives are retarded by rapid charge recombination. Photovoltaic measurements of the studied meta- and para-carboxyphenyl-functionalized porphyrins show that the number and position of carboxyphenyl groups play a crucial role in the performance of the DSSC. Our results indicate that para-carboxyphenyl derivatives outperform meta-carboxyphenyl derivatives to give better device performance. This study will serve as a guideline for the design and development of organic, porphyrin, and ruthenium dyes in DSSCs.

Doubly end-on azido bridged mixed-valence cobalt trinuclear complex: Spectral study, VTM, inhibitory effect and antimycobacterial activity on human carcinoma and tuberculosis cells.

Doubly end-on azido-bridged mixed-valence trinuclear cobalt complex, [Co3(L)2(N3)6(CH3OH)2] (1) is afforded by employing a potential monoanionic tetradentate-N2O2 Schiff base precursor (2-[{[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl]imino}methyl]-6-methoxyphenol; HL). Single crystal X-ray structure reveals that in 1, the adjacent Co(II) and Co(III) ions are linked by double end-on azido bridges and thus the full molecule is generated by the site symmetry of a crystallographic twofold rotation axis. Complex 1 is subjected on different spectral analysis such as IR, UV-vis, emission and EPR spectroscopy. On variable temperature magnetic study, we observe that during cooling, the χMT values decrease smoothly until 15K and then reaches to the value 1.56 cm(3) K mol(-1) at 2 K. Complex 1 inhibits the cell growth on human lung carcinoma (A549 cells), human colorectal (COLO 205 and HT-29 cells), and human heptacellular (PLC5 cells) carcinoma cells. Complex 1 exhibits anti-mycobacterial activity and considerable efficacy on Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv ATCC 27294 and H37Ra ATCC 25177 strains.

An Overview Of Shatavari (asparagus Racemosus) An Ayurvedic Drug

Shatavari, Asparagus racemosus is one of the most important herbal drugs used by Ayurvedic Vaidyas since ancient days. The drug is having wide range of therapeutic activity and mentioned as a Rasayan by ancient Ayurvedic texts. The main part used by Ayurvedic doctors is a root. It is mentioned as a tonic and having lactogenic function. Shatavari has also been successfully used by several Ayurvedic practitioners for Nervine disorders, Acid peptic diseases, certain infectious diseases and as a immunomodulant. Main use of this drug is in female disorders specially as a galactagogue and several menstrual disorders. Scientific fraternity is working on this drug at multidimensional level to prove this drug as a potent medicinal drug in multiple disorders. Various scientific studies are proved that this drug worked as a potent antitussive, antineoplastic, galactologue, antidiarroheal, and as immunomodulant. The main focus of this article is to review the scientific studies done on A.racemsosus mainly on its phytochemistry, pharmacology, therapeutic uses mentioned in both modern sciences as well as in ancient Ayurvedic texts. Additional attempt is made to find the clinical studies done on A.racemosus. The present review article includes the detailed scientific exploration of root extract of A.racemsosus in systematic way so that it can highlight future research prospects of this famous and commercially useful drug.

Abhraka Bhasma A Boon Of Ayurveda To Mankind: A Review

Abhraka bhasma is a popular Rasashastra medicine in Ayurveda stream. It is basically herbomineral preparation used by all Ayurvedic Vaidyas since long time. Abhraka is basically Mica (Biotite). Bhasma is nothing but incinerated ash. Rasashastra is an Indian metallurgy which deals with several minerals and herbomineral preparations specially Bhasmas. There are several popular bhasmas in Ayurveda but there is great demand of this Bhasma in Ayurvedic vaidyas. Use of this bhasma is in multiple disorders, so could be consider as a major Ayurvedic drug. Published details scientific literature on Abhraka bhasma by various research scholars, internet & pharmacopeias were reviewed. The review was done to find physicochemical characteristics as well as standardization studies done on Abhraka bhasma. Also attempt is to made to find scientific studies done on Abhraka bhasma. Need of hour to evaluate its efficacy value as potential Ayurvedic drug in various disorders. As well as importance of Abhraka bhasma as an evidence-based drug. Review of literatures and scientific studies of Abhraka bhasma clearly indicate that there are lot of studies is done on Abhraka bhasma’s specially it’s physicochemical characteristics, standardization as well as it’s therapeutic uses. Abhraka bhasma is indicated in several ailments like Diabetes, Asthma, Paralysis, Neurological condition, Tuberculosis and Acid peptic diseases.

Novel expanded porphyrin sensitized solar cells using boryl oxasmaragdyrin as the sensitizer.

Oxasmaragdyrin boron complexes were prepared and applied in DSSCs. The HOMO-LUMO energy gap analyses and theoretical calculations revealed that these expanded porphyrins are ideal sensitizers for DSSCs. A device containing oxasmaragdyrin-BF2 as the sensitizer achieves an energy conversion efficiency of 5.7%.