Unlocking Germanium Potential: Stabilization Strategies Through Wet Chemical Functionalization.

Germanium (Ge) has long been recognized for its superior carrier mobility and narrower band gap compared to silicon, making it a promising candidate in microelectronics and optoelectronics. The recent demonstration of good biocompatibility, combined with the ability to selectively functionalize its surface, establishes the way for its use in biosensing and bioimaging. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the most recent advancements in the wet chemical functionalization of germanium surfaces.

A Predictive Model Based on Quantitative Fecal Immunochemical Test Can Stratify the Risk of Colorectal Cancer in an Organized Screening Program.

Background & Aims: A significant number of post fecal immunochemical test (FIT) colonoscopies in European-organized colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programs are performed beyond the recommended 31-day threshold due to overburdened colonoscopy services. We aimed to develop a simple predictive model to stratify CRC risk of FIT+ patients.

Methods: In a cohort of screenees undergoing colonoscopy following a positive (≥20 μg hemoglobin/g feces) OC-sensor FIT result between 2004 and 2019, we derived and validated logistic regression-based models including variables independently associated with CRC and advanced neoplasms.

Exploring the role of therapeutic alliance and biobehavioural synchrony in musculoskeletal care: Insights from a qualitative study.

Background: Person-centred care underscores the therapeutic alliance (TA) as fundamental, fostering positive treatment outcomes through collaborative patient-clinician interactions. Biobehavioural synchrony within the TA, essential for effective care, reflects an adaptive process where organisms align responses during interactions. Enactivism and active inference provide profound insights into human perception, reshaping musculoskeletal care understanding.

MRI evidence of gray matter loss in COVID-19 patients with cognitive and olfactory disorders.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess COVID-19-related gray matter (GM) structural alterations in two distinct groups of patients presenting with the prevailing and distinctive COVID-19-related neurological symptoms - isolated olfactory disorders as sole neurological manifestation (COVID-OD) and cognitive disorders (COVID-CD) - as compared to a control group of unaffected individuals.

Methods: The study included 61 COVID-CD patients (57 [60-63] years, 62% females), 84 COVID-OD patients (49 [35-57] years, 60% females), and 17 controls (51 [41-52] years, 41% females). Region-based morphometry (RBM) and voxel-based morphometry (VBM) were performed on T1-weighted MRI scans to assess GM regional volume and voxel-wise density differences between COVID-19 patients and controls.

Conducting Electrospun Poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) Nanofibers: New Strategies for Effective Chemical Doping and its Assessment Using Infrared Spectroscopy.

Vibrational spectroscopy allows the investigation of structural properties of pristine and doped poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) in highly anisotropic materials, such as electrospun micro- and nanofibers. Here, we compare several approaches for doping P3HT fibers. We have selected two different electron acceptor molecules as dopants, namely iodine and 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane (F4TCNQ).