ABSTRACT
Background: Leukemia encompasses various subtypes, each with unique characteristics and treatment approaches. The challenge lies in developing targeted therapies that can effectively address the specific genetic mutations or abnormalities associated with each subtype. Some leukemia cases may become resistant to existing treatments over time making them less susceptible to chemotherapy or other standard therapies. Objective: Developing new treatment strategies to overcome resistance is an ongoing challenge particularly in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs). Computational studies using COMSOL software could provide an economical, fast and resourceful approach to the treatment of complicated cancers like leukemia. Methods: Using COMSOL Multiphysics software, a continuous flow microfluidic device capable of delivering anti-leukemia drugs to early-stage leukemia cells has been computationally modeled using dielectrophoresis (DEP). Results: The cell size difference enabled the micro-particle drug attachment to the leukemia cells using hydrodynamic focusing from the dielectrophoretic force. This point of care application produced a low voltage from numerically calculated electrical field and flow speed simulations. Conclusion: Therefore, such a dielectrophoretic low voltage application model can be used as a computational treatment reference for early-stage leukemia cells with an approximate size of 5â µm.
ABSTRACT
With steadfast economic development, the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA) faces increasing pressures to raise low-carbon electricity in the energy consumption by fuel type, abate CO2 emissions, and also restructure transportation for sustainability. GKMA is Uganda's capital with rampant anthropogenic interference that causes climate change. A sustainable energy portfolio is a low-carbon scenario endowed with CO2 emissions abatement strategies for GKMA towards 2050. Using TIMES-VEDA to address the knowledge gap, the study develops and examines a sustainable energy portfolio for GKMA. TIMES-VEDA is an engineering model generator with a bottom-up approach, paying in-depth attention to low-carbon themes while optimizing energy management systems. The analysis shows that sustainability is plausible by optimizing the total primary energy supply, electrical power production from PV-solar & hydropower technologies, and switching 90% of passengers of the road category to the Kampala metro.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Green synthesized iron(III) oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles are gaining appeal in targeted drug delivery systems because of their low cost, fast processing and nontoxicity. However, there is no known research work undertaken in the production of green synthesized nano-particles from the Ugandan grown Moringa Oleifera (MO). This study aims at exploring and developing an optimized protocol aimed at producing such nanoparticles from the Ugandan grown Moringa. RESULTS: While reducing ferric chloride solution with Moringa oleifera leaves, Iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4-NPs) were synthesized through an economical and completely green biosynthetic method. The structural properties of these Fe3O4-NPs were investigated by Ultra Violet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). These nanoparticles exhibited UV-visible absorption peaks at 225 nm (nm) for the sixth dilution and 228 nm for the fifth dilution which indicated that the nanoparticles were photosensitive and the SEM study confirmed the spherical nature of these nanoparticles. The total synthesis time was approximately 5 h after drying the moringa leaves, and the average particle size was approximately 16 nm. Such synthesized nanoparticles can potentially be useful for drug delivery, especially in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs).
