MHD blood flow effects of Casson fluid with Caputo-Fabrizio fractional derivatives through an inclined blood vessels with thermal radiation.

This study investigates a fractional-order time derivative model of non-Newtonian magnetic blood flow in the presence of thermal radiation and body acceleration through an inclined artery. The blood flow is formulated using the Casson fluid model under the control of a uniformly distributed magnetic field and an oscillating pressure gradient. Caputo-Fabrizio's fractional derivative mathematical model was used, along with Laplace transform and the finite Hankel transform technique. Analytical expressions were obtained for the velocity of blood flow, magnetic particle distribution, and temperature profile. These distributions are presented graphically using Mathcad software. The results show that the velocity increases with the time, Reynolds number and Casson fluid parameters, and diminishes when Hartmann number increases. Moreover, fractional parameters, radiation values, and metabolic heat source play an essential role in controlling the blood temperature. More precisely, these results are beneficial for the diagnosis and treatment of certain medical issues.

Regulation of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant responses by methanol extract of Mikania cordata (Burm. f.) B. L. Rob. leaves via the inactivation of NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways and activation of Nrf2 in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages.

Mikania cordata (Burm. f.) B.L. Rob. has been traditionally used in tropical countries throughout Asia and Africa to treat gastric ulcers, dyspepsia, and dysentery. However, the mechanisms responsible for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities are not fully understood. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of methanol extracts of M. cordata (MMC) on inflammation and oxidative stress in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated murine RAW 264.7 macrophages and elucidate its underlying regulatory mechanism. MMC significantly suppressed the production of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages by downregulating the expression of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) at both the mRNA and protein levels. Moreover, MMC effectively reduced the mRNA expression levels and production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-1ß, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). These suppressive effects of MMC on pro-inflammatory mediators and cytokines were mediated through the inhibition of transforming growth factor beta-activated kinase 1 (TAK1), which subsequently blocked the activation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). MMC also upregulated the nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) by inducing the degradation of Kelch-like ECH-related protein 1 (Keap1), an Nrf2-specific E3 ligase. Accordingly, MMC enhanced Nrf2 target gene expression of anti-oxidative regulators such as heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1). However, it had minimal effect on the DPPH radical scavenging capacity in vitro. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that MMC holds promise as a potential therapeutic agent for alleviating inflammation-related diseases and oxidative stress.

The In Vivo and In Vitro Effects of Terminalia bellirica (Gaertn.) Roxb. Fruit Extract on Testosterone-Induced Hair Loss.

Due to the continuous increase in patients with androgenetic alopecia (AGA) and psychological disorders such as depression and anxiety, the demand for hair loss treatment and effective hair growth materials has increased. Terminalia bellirica (Gaertn.) Roxb. (TBE) reportedly exerts anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and antidiabetic effects, among others, but its effects on testosterone (TS)-inhibited hair growth remains unclear. In this study, we evaluated the effects of TBE on TS-induced hair growth regression in human follicle dermal papilla cells (HFDPCs) and C57BL/6 mice. Oral administration of TBE increased TS-induced hair growth retardation. Interestingly, effects were greater when compared with finasteride, a commercial hair loss treatment product. Histological analyses revealed that oral TBE administration increased hair follicles in the dorsal skin of C57BL/6 mice. Additionally, western blotting and immunofluorescence showed that oral TBE administration recovered the TS-induced inhibition of cyclin D1, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and Ki67 expression in vivo. Using in vitro proliferation assays, TBE promoted HFDPC growth, which was suppressed by TS treatment. Thus, TBE may be a promising nutraceutical for hair health as it promoted hair growth in AGA-like in vitro and in vivo models.

Effect of natural heat convection on fractional MHD second-grade fluid in an infinite vertically oscillating cylinder with Hankel transform.

In this paper, we studied the effect of a magnetic field on the non-isothermal second-grade fluid confined in a vertically oscillating cylinder. The flow solution is magnetized using the perpendicular magnetic field. The resultant fluid flow is due to the oscillating boundary motion and buoyancy force. Here, the MHD flow is modeled using the Caputo-Fabrizio non-integer derivative approach. The exact solution of the governing continuity, momentum and energy equations is obtained by means of Laplace and finite Hankel transforms. The commercial simulation software, Mathematica is used for calculating the roots of the Bessel function. The effects of dimensionless parameters such as Grashof and Prandtl numbers, magnetic field and fractional parameters on the second-grade fluid flow are analyzed. Heat transfer is high at a small Prandtl number. Velocity correlates positively with Grashof number and magnetic field, and negatively with Prandtl number. The heat and mass transfer results obtained from both conventional and fractional models are compared as well.

Estimation of nitrous oxide emissions from rice paddy fields using the DNDC model: a case study of South Korea.

The Denitrification-Decomposition (DNDC)-Rice is a mechanistic model which is widely used for the simulation and estimation of greenhouse gas emissions [nitrous oxide (N2O)] from soils under rice cultivation. N2O emissions from paddy fields in South Korea are of high importance for their cumulative effect on climate. The objective of this study was to estimate the N2O emissions and biogeochemical factors involved in N2O emissions such as ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3-) using the DNDC model in the rice-growing regions of South Korea. N2O emission was observed at every application of fertilizer and during end-season drainage at different rice-growing regions in South Korea. Maximum NH4+ and NO3- were observed at 0-10 cm depth of soil. NH4+ increased at each fertilizer application and no change in NO3- was observed during flooding. NH4+ decreased and NO3- increased simultaneously at end-season drainage. Minimum and maximum cumulative N2O emissions were observed at Chungcheongbuk-do and Jeju-do regions of South Korea, respectively. The simulated average cumulative N2O emission in rice paddies of South Korea was 1.37 kg N2O-N ha-1 season-1. This study will help in calculating the total nitrogen emissions from agriculture land of South Korea and the World.

phytochemdb: a platform for virtual screening and computer-aided drug designing.

The phytochemicals of medicinal plants are regarded as a rich source of diverse chemical spaces that have been used as supplements and alternative medicines in the millennium. Even in this era of combinatorial chemical drugs, phytomedicines account for a large share of the statistics of newly approved drugs. In the field of computational aided and rational drug design, there is an urgent need to develop and build a useful phytochemical database management system with a user-friendly interface that allows proper data storage, retrieval and management. We showed 'phytochemdb', a manually managed database that compiles 525 plants and their corresponding 8093 phytochemicals, aiming to incorporate the activities of phytochemicals from medicinal plants. The database collects molecular formula, three-dimensional/two-dimensional structure, canonical SMILES, molecular weight, no. of heavy atoms, no. of aromatic heavy atoms, fraction Csp3, no. of rotatable bonds, no. of H-bond acceptors, no. of H-bond donors, molar refractivity, topological polar surface area, gastrointestinal absorption, Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) permeant, P-gp substrate, CYP1A2 inhibitor, CYP2C19 inhibitor, CYP2C9 inhibitor, CYP2D6 inhibitor, CYP3A4 inhibitor, Log Kp, Ghose, Veber, Egan, Muegge, bioavailability scores, pan-assay interference compounds, Brenk, Leadlikeness, synthetic accessibility, iLOGP and Lipinski rule of five with the number of violations for each compound. It provides open contribution functions for the researchers who screen phytochemicals in the laboratory and have released their data. 'phytochemdb' is a comprehensive database that gathers most of the information about medicinal plants in one platform, which is considered to be very beneficial to the work of researchers on medicinal plants. 'phytochemdb' is available for free at https://phytochemdb.com/.

A hybrid approach to enhance the lifespan of WSNs in nuclear power plant monitoring system.

In recent years, the nuclear power plant has received huge attention as it generates vast amounts of power at a lower cost. However, its creation of radioactive wastes is a major environmental concern. Therefore, the nuclear power plant requires a reliable and uninterrupted monitoring system as an essential part of it. Monitoring a nuclear power plant using wireless sensor networks is a convenient and popular practice now. This paper proposes a hybrid approach for monitoring wireless sensor networks in the context of a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh. Our hybrid approach enhances the lifespan of wireless sensor networks reducing power consumption and offering better connectivity of sensors. To do so, it uses both the topology maintenance and topology construction algorithms. We found that the HGETRecRot topology maintenance algorithm enhances the network lifetime compared to other algorithms. This algorithm increases the communication and sensing coverage area but decreases the network performance. We also propose a prediction model, based on linear regression algorithm, that predicts the best combination of topology maintenance and topology construction algorithms.

Concentric ballooned catheterization to the fractional non-newtonian hybrid nano blood flow through a stenosed aneurysmal artery with heat transfer.

The current work analyzes the effects of concentric ballooned catheterization and heat transfer on the hybrid nano blood flow through diseased arterial segment having both stenosis and aneurysm along its boundary. A fractional second-grade fluid model is considered which describes the non-Newtonian characteristics of the blood. Governing equations are linearized under mild stenosis and mild aneurysm assumptions. Precise articulations for various important flow characteristics such as heat transfer, hemodynamic velocity, wall shear stress, and resistance impedance are attained. Graphical portrayals for the impact of the significant parameters on the flow attributes have been devised. The streamlines of blood flow have been examined as well. The present finding is useful for drug conveyance system and biomedicines.

Molecular docking and dynamics study to explore phytochemical ligand molecules against the main protease of SARS-CoV-2 from extensive phytochemical datasets.

BACKGROUND: The high transmission and pathogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 has led to a pandemic that has halted the world's economy and health. The newly evolved strains and scarcity of vaccines has worsened the situation. The main protease (Mpro) of SARS-CoV-2 can act as a potential target due to its role in viral replication and conservation level. METHODS: In this study, we have enlisted more than 1100 phytochemicals from Asian plants based on deep literature mining. The compounds library was screened against the Mpro of SARS-CoV-2. RESULTS: The selected three ligands, Flemichin, Delta-Oleanolic acid, and Emodin 1-O-beta-D-glucoside had a binding energy of -8.9, -8.9, -8.7 KJ/mol respectively. The compounds bind to the active groove of the main protease at; Cys145, Glu166, His41, Met49, Pro168, Met165, Gln189. The multiple descriptors from the simulation study; root mean square deviation, root mean square fluctuation, radius of gyration, hydrogen bond, solvent accessible surface area confirms the stable nature of the protein-ligand complexes. Furthermore, post-md analysis confirms the rigidness in the docked poses over the simulation trajectories. CONCLUSIONS: Our combinatorial drug design approaches may help researchers to identify suitable drug candidates against SARS-CoV-2.

Chitosan-capped ternary metal selenide nanocatalysts for efficient degradation of Congo red dye in sunlight irradiation.

Wastewater emerging from the industries containing organic pollutants is a severe threat to humans' health and aquatic life. Therefore, the degradation of highly poisonous organic dye pollutants is necessary to ensure public health and environmental protection. To tackle this problem, visible-light-driven ternary metal selenide nanocomposites were synthesized successfully by the solvothermal method and supported by chitosan microspheres (FeNiSe-CHM). The prepared nanoparticles were capped in chitosan microspheres to avoid leaching and facilitate easy recovery of the catalyst. FTIR spectrum confirmed the synthesis of nanocomposite and nanocomposite-chitosan microspheres (FeNiSe-CHM). Based on the SEM images, the nanomaterial and FeNiSe-CHM has an average particle size of 64 nm and 874 µm, respectively. The presence of iron, nickel and selenium elements in the EDX spectrum revealed the synthesis of FeNiSe-NPs. XRD analysis determined the crystallite structure of nanocomposites as 14.2 nm. The photocatalyst has a crystalline structure and narrow bandgap of 2.09 eV. Moreover, the as-synthesized FeNiSe-CHM were employed for the photodegradation of carcinogenic and mutagenic Congo red dye. The catalyst microspheres showed efficient photocatalytic degradation efficiency of up to 99% for Congo red dye under the optimized conditions of 140 min, pH 6.0, dye concentration 60 ppm and catalyst dose of 0.2 g in the presence of sunlight irradiation following the second-order kinetics. After five consecutive cycles, it showed a slight loss in the degradation efficiency. In conclusion, the results demonstrate a high potential of chitosan-based ternary metal selenide nanocomposites for abatement of dye pollutants from the industrial wastewater.

Photocatalytic degradation of crystal violet dye under sunlight by chitosan-encapsulated ternary metal selenide microspheres.

Organic dyes that are extensively released in wastewater from various industries remain the priority concern in the modern world. Therefore, a novel catalyst, bismuth-iron selenide, was prepared through the solvothermal process for photocatalytic degradation of a carcinogenic crystal violet dye. The catalyst was supported with chitosan to form iron-bismuth selenide-chitosan microspheres (BISe-CM). The synthesized catalyst was composed of iron, bismuth, and selenium in a definite proportion based on EDX analysis. FTIR analysis confirmed the synthesis of BISe-CM from characteristic bands of metal selenium bond as well as the typical bands of chitosan. SEM analysis illustrated the average diameter of the barren catalyst to be 54.8 nm, while the average size of the microspheres was 982.5 um. The BISe-CM has the surface of a pore with an average size of 0.5 um. XRD analysis revealed that the synthesized catalyst was composed of Fe3Se4 and Bi2Se3. The prepared catalyst showed better degradation efficiency for crystal violet dye at optimized conditions under solar irradiation. Employing 0.2 g of BISe-CM resulted in complete degradation for 30 ppm of crystal violet dye in 150 min at pH 8.0. The reusability of the catalyst up to four consecutive times makes it a more attractive and practical candidate. Moreover, the catalyst followed pseudo-first-order kinetics in the decontamination of crystal violet. Conclusively, the novel photocatalyst showed the best decolorizing property of crystal violet under sunlight irradiation and could be a suitable alternative for dye decontamination from wastewater.

Regenerable chitosan-bismuth cobalt selenide hybrid microspheres for mitigation of organic pollutants in an aqueous environment.

Degradation of hazardous organic pollutants like dyes by semiconducting materials has been considered as one of the dynamic solutions for wastewater treatment. Herein, novel bismuth cobalt selenide (BCSN) tri-composite nanoparticles were prepared with a crystalline structure and narrow bandgap of (2.48 eV). The prepared nanoparticles were embedded in chitosan microspheres to avoid leaching and ensure the easy recovery of the composite. FTIR studies confirmed the synthesis of nanoparticles and chitosan­bismuth cobalt selenide hybrid microspheres (BCSN-CM). SEM images showed the smooth face morphology having an average nanoparticles size of 30 nm and an average microspheres size of 734 µm. The crystallite size of the nanoparticles was also verified using the XRD technique and found to be 21.3 nm by applying Scherer's equation. EDX result demonstrated the presence of bismuth, cobalt, and selenium in the prepared sample. Congo red dye (CR) was degraded using the prepared BCSN-CM in sunlight irradiation, and operational parameters were evaluated to optimize the conditions responsible for maximum dye degradation. It was found that degradation of dye depends on factors like catalyst amount, irradiation time, dye concentration, and pH of dye solution. The degradation efficiency of prepared microspheres was found to be 85% of the 90-ppm solution under optimized conditions in sunlight irradiation for 100 min. The first-order kinetics was well fitted to degradation of CR having a rate constant of 1.50 × 10-2 min-1. Moreover, the prepared sample gave an excellent result after regeneration and reused up to five cycles. The newly fabricated chitosan-bismuth cobalt selenide hybrid microspheres might display a high potential for the removal of organic pollutants from the dye and textile industries wastewater.

How Should Pancreas Transplant Rejection Be Treated?

BACKGROUND: Limited published data exist to guide the treatment of pancreas transplant rejection. METHODS: We reviewed the treatment and outcomes of 158 first episodes of biopsy-proven pancreas rejection between 1 January 1997 and 31 December 2016. Within each Banff grade of rejection, we compared response rates and long-term outcomes with steroids alone versus steroids plus antithymocyte globulin (ATG). RESULTS: Of 158 pancreas recipients with rejection, 65 were treated with steroids alone. Eighty-three percent of patients with grade I, 60% with grade II, and 33.33% with grade III rejection responded to treatment with steroids alone. Ninety-three patients were treated with steroids plus ATG. The response rates were 69% in grade I, 76% in grade II, and 73% in grade III. Response rates and graft survival were not different with grade I rejection treated with steroids alone versus steroids plus ATG. However, response rates and graft survival were significantly better with grade III rejection treated with the addition of ATG, and graft survival rates were significantly better with grade II rejection treated with the addition of ATG. CONCLUSIONS: Grade I pancreas rejection can usually be successfully treated with steroids alone, whereas grade II and III rejection should usually be treated with steroids plus ATG, as the addition of ATG improves both response rates and graft survival.

Penetration depth and nonlocal manipulation of quantum spin hall edge states in chiral honeycomb nanoribbons.

We have studied numerically the penetration depth of quantum spin hall edge states in chiral honeycomb nanoribbons based on the Green's function method. The changing of edge orientation from armchair to zigzag direction decreases the penetration depth drastically. The penetration depth is used to estimate the gap opened for the finite-size effect. Beside this, we also proposed a nonlocal transistor based on the zigzag-like chiral ribbons in which the current is carried at one edge and the manipulation is by the edge magnetization at the other edge. The difficulty that the edge magnetization is unstable in the presence of a ballistic current can be removed by this nonlocal manipulation.