Flexible Paper-Based Room-Temperature Acetone Sensors with Ultrafast Regeneration.

Paper-based lightweight, degradable, low-cost, and eco-friendly substrates are extensively used in wearable biosensor applications, albeit to a lesser extent in sensing acetone and other gas-phase analytes. Generally, rigid substrates with heaters have been employed to develop acetone sensors due to the high operating/recovery temperature (typically above 200 °C), limiting the use of papers as substrates in such sensing applications. In this work, we proposed fabricating the paper-based, room-temperature-operatable acetone sensor using ZnO-polyaniline-based acetone-sensing inks by a facile fabrication method. The fabricated paper-based electrodes showed good electrical conductivity (80 S/m) and mechanical stability (∼1000 bending cycles). The acetone sensors showed a sensitivity of 0.02/100 ppm and 0.6/10 µL with an ultrafast response (4 s) and recovery time (15 s) at room temperature. The sensors delivered a broad sensitivity over a physiological range of 260 to >1000 ppm with R2 > 0.98 under atmospheric conditions. Further, the role of the surface, interfacial, microstructure, electrical, and electromechanical properties of the paper-based sensor devices has been correlated with the sensitivity and room-temperature recovery observed in our system. These versatile, green, flexible electronic devices would be ideal for low-cost, highly regenerative, room-/low-temperature-operable wearable sensor applications.

A novel ensemble based recommendation approach using network based analysis for identification of effective drugs for Tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a fatal infectious disease which affected millions of people worldwide for many decades and now with mutating drug resistant strains, it poses bigger challenges in treatment of the patients. Computational techniques might play a crucial role in rapidly developing new or modified anti-tuberculosis drugs which can tackle these mutating strains of TB. This research work applied a computational approach to generate a unique recommendation list of possible TB drugs as an alternate to a popular drug, EMB, by first securing an initial list of drugs from a popular online database, PubChem, and thereafter applying an ensemble of ranking mechanisms. As a novelty, both the pharmacokinetic properties and some network based attributes of the chemical structure of the drugs are considered for generating separate recommendation lists. The work also provides customized modifications on a popular and traditional ensemble ranking technique to cater to the specific dataset and requirements. The final recommendation list provides established chemical structures along with their ranks, which could be used as alternatives to EMB. It is believed that the incorporation of both pharmacokinetic and network based properties in the ensemble ranking process added to the effectiveness and relevance of the final recommendation.

Multicystic dysplastic kidney - treat each case on its merits.

OBJECTIVES: To assess outcomes of unilateral multicystic dysplastic kidney (MCDK) managed at an Australasian centre over a 15 year period. To assess if MCDK involution could be predicted based on change noted between first two postnatal ultrasound scans 6 months apart. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was performed. RESULTS: One-hundred-and-six cases of unilateral MCDK were studied. Eighty-four of these presented antenatally. Twenty-two MCDK cases presented postnatally. Urological anomalies associated with MCDK included vesicoureteric reflux (VUR), ureterocele and contralateral pelviureteric junction obstruction (PUJO). Children undergoing surgical intervention for these anomalies were offered concurrent MCDK nephrectomy. Morbidity associated with MCDK under surveillance included febrile culture-positive urinary tract infection in 20 cases (20.7%), hypertension in four (3.7%) and Wilms' tumor in one (0.9%). Thirty-six cases (34%) underwent complete involution, 32 (30.2%) were in the process of involuting and 38 cases (35.8%) underwent nephrectomy because of failure of involution or associated morbidity. If the MCDK reduced in cranio-caudal interpolar length by 20% or more between the first postnatal USS and the next one 6 months later, then it was very likely to involute spontaneously. If the MCDK did not reduce in cranio-caudal interpolar length by 20% between the first postnatal scan and the next one 6 months later, then it was highly likely to fail to involute, and in our study, correlated with the outcome of nephrectomy. CONCLUSION: Although MCDK is a benign condition, it should be carefully investigated and followed-up, as involution may not occur in over a third. In some cases, morbidity may occur. Each case of MCDK should be managed on its own merits. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level II - Prognosis study, Retrospective.

A Hybrid Risk Assessment Model for Cardiovascular Disease Using Cox Regression Analysis and a 2-means clustering algorithm.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) refers to a state that indicates narrowed or blocked blood vessels, and it can lead to cardiac arrest, chest pain (angina) or stroke. CVD is a leading cause of silent massive heart attacks and is a major threat to life. The mere prediction of the presence or absence of CVD alone is inefficient in current scenarios. Rather, a major need has arisen for the prediction of CVD, the acquisition of knowledge about CVD and the assessment of the likelihood that an individual will experience cardiac arrest. The objective of establishing an individual CVD risk assessment has been attained in this paper using a hybrid model. The CVD of an individual is due to various controllable and uncontrollable factors. The computation and analysis of all these factors are difficult and time consuming. Only a few attributes are identified to be the most critical. This optimization of the critical features is performed using a modified Differential Evolution (DE) algorithm. The identified critical factors are sufficient to predict the presence/absence of CVD. In this paper, these identified critical features of individuals are considered using Cox regression analysis that evaluates the prevalence rates of the critical attributes. These individual prevalence rates together predict the cumulative prevalence ratios of the respective individuals. This cumulative prevalence ratio of an individual, along with the class attribute, is processed using the 2-means clustering technique to determine the risk of a particular individual developing CVD. The evaluation of the risk assessment model is carried out in this paper by calculating the prediction accuracy of the Cox regression analysis and the Davies-Bouldin (DB) index for 2-means clustering. The Cox regression analysis results in a 91% CVD prediction accuracy using the critical attributes and is comparatively higher than that of other models. The DB index of 2-means clustering with specific initial means for clusters of individuals with CVD is 0.282 and that for clusters of individuals without CVD is 0.2836, which are comparatively lower than those of the traditional k-means clustering algorithm.

Correction: Photochemical degradation of the UV filter octyl methoxycinnamate in solution and in aggregates.

Correction for 'Photochemical degradation of the UV filter octyl methoxycinnamate in solution and in aggregates' by Kerry M. Hanson et al., Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2015, 14, 1607-1616.

Photochemical degradation of the UV filter octyl methoxycinnamate in solution and in aggregates.

The photodegradation of the ultraviolet (UV) filter octyl methoxycinnamate (OMC) is investigated in both dilute solution and in aggregated form. In dilute solution, the ratio of trans and cis isomers achieved at the photostationary state is solvent-dependent because of variations in the isomerization quantum yield. The two isomeric forms at the photostationary state are highly resistant to further photodegradation and no other UVA-absorbing species are formed. Aggregation of OMC, either in a neat film or in aqueous colloidal suspensions, leads to irreversible photodegradation of the molecule and the formation of multiple photoproducts. In addition to previously identified photoproducts like the UVB-absorbing cis and trans isomers and photodimers, we find photoproduct species whose absorption extends into the UVA. Characterization of the photophysical properties of these species indicates that they have long-lived excited-states (τf > 1 ns, 400 nm), unlike the isomeric forms of OMC (τf < 30 ps, 266 nm), and that excitation at 405 nm can sensitize the formation of singlet oxygen. These results show that the environment of OMC affects the photochemistry of the molecule and that the environmental conditions must be taken into account when considering the molecule's stability. In particular, aggregation of OMC molecules results in complex photochemistry that can produce species whose absorption extends into UVA and are capable of generating reactive oxygen species.