Seismic monitoring of 2020 Baghjan oil-well blowout incident in Assam, India.

Characterization of a productive oil/gas well blowout through seismological methods is relatively uncommon. In this paper, we conduct an in-depth seismic evaluation of one of the world's most significant onshore oil well blowout incidents, which occurred in 2020 at the Baghjan oil field in Assam, northeast India. We show that the blowout and related on-site activities generated distinct signals that can be distinguished by their spectral characteristics, temporal variation in geometric spreading, and sharp attenuation of daytime noise in comparison to the nighttime.

S100A12 inhibits Streptococcus pneumoniae and aids in wound healing of corneal epithelial cells both in vitro and in vivo.

Streptococcus pneumoniae, a leading cause of corneal infections worldwide, are extremely aggressive despite antibiotic sensitivity and exhibit increased resistance towards antibiotics. Antimicrobial peptides are often considered as potent alternatives against antibiotic resistance and here we have investigated the possible roles of S100A12, a host defense peptide, in wound healing and S. pneumoniae infection.

Host antimicrobial peptide S100A12 disrupts the fungal membrane by direct binding and inhibits growth and biofilm formation of Fusarium species.

Fungal keratitis is the foremost cause of corneal infections worldwide, of which Fusariumspp. is the common etiological agent that causes loss of vision and warrants surgical intervention. An increase in resistance to the available drugs along with severe side effects of the existing antifungals demands for new effective antimycotics.

Tremor signals during fluid injection are generated by fault slip.

Seismic tremor signals, also known as long-period, long-duration signals, have been reported in several locations where fluid injection for enhanced oil and gas exploration is taking place. However, the origin of these signals remains poorly constrained. We studied seismic tremor signals in Wellington Field, Kansas, using a seismic array during a carbon dioxide injection program.

Understanding sanitation dynamics in Bihar, India: Evidence from the field survey.

Background: Although a good number of individual household latrines have been constructed in Bihar during the past few years, still, a huge task remains to be completed. The paper is based on the study of "concurrent monitoring of LSBA/SBM [G] in select districts of Bihar".

Objectives: The aim is to understand different dimensions of the sanitation situation in Bihar.

CKD subpopulations defined by risk-factors: A longitudinal analysis of electronic health records.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a progressive disease that evades early detection and is associated with various comorbidities. Although clinical comprehension and control of these comorbidities is crucial for CKD management, complex pathophysiological interactions and feedback loops make this a formidable task. We have developed a hybrid semimechanistic modeling methodology to investigate CKD progression.

Prevented the Cyclophosphamide Induced Somatic and Germinal Cell Damage in Male Rats by Ameliorating the Antioxidant Enzyme Levels.

Cytogenetic analysis is essential to determine the effect of mutagens and antimutagens on genetic material. This study was done to evaluate the protective effect of root bark extract of () against cyclophosphamide induced somatic and germinal cell damage in male rats. The ethanolic extract of (0.

Emergent Dynamics of Artificial Spin-Ice Lattice Based on an Ultrathin Ferromagnet.

We present high-frequency dynamics of magnetic nanostructure lattices, fabricated in the form of "artificial spin-ice", that possess magnetically frustrated states. Dynamics of such structures feature multiple resonance excitation that reveals rich and intriguing microwave characteristics, which are highly dependent on field-cycle history. Geometrical parameters such as dimensions and ferromagnetic layer thickness, which control the interplay of different demagnetizing factors, are found to play a pivotal role in governing the dynamics.

Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta (REBOA): Zone I Balloon Occlusion Time Affects Spinal Cord Injury in the Nonhuman Primate Model.

Objectives: Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta (REBOA) has been used clinically to limit torso bleeding and restore central perfusion. The objective of this study was to determine the sequelae of prolonged REBOA in a nonhuman primate animal model.

Summary Background Data: Prolonged duration of REBOA is associated with adverse clinical outcomes.

Stainless-Steel Column for Robust, High-Temperature Microchip Gas Chromatography.

This paper reports the first results of a robust, high-performance, stainless-steel microchip gas-chromatography (GC) column that is capable of analyzing complex real-world mixtures as well as operating at very high temperatures. Using a serpentine design, a 10 m column with an approximately semicircular cross-section with a 52 μm hydraulic diameter ( D) was produced in a 17 × 6.3 × 0.

Correlation between MMP and TIMP levels and elastic moduli of ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms.

Objective: The objective of this preliminary investigation is to determine if there is a relation between the biological levels of matrix metalloproteinases and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase (TIMP) and the elastic moduli of the ascending aortic wall in patients with ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms (ATAA).

Methods: Circumferential specimens from twelve patients with ATAA were obtained from the greater curvature and their tensile properties (maximum elastic modulus) were tested uniaxially. The levels of MMP1, 2, 3, 8, and 9 as well as TIMP1 and 2 were determined in these aortic wall specimens using MMP/TIMP antibodies array.

Microchip gas chromatography columns, interfacing and performance.

Almost four decades of investigations have opened up many avenues to explore the production and utilization of planar (i.e., microchip) gas chromatographic columns.

Extending the upper temperature range of gas chromatography with all-silicon microchip columns using a heater/clamp assembly.

Miniaturization of gas chromatography (GC) instrumentation is of interest because it addresses current and future issues relating to compactness, portability and field application. While incremental advancements continue to be reported in GC with columns fabricated in microchips (referred to in this paper as "microchip columns"), the current performance is far from acceptable. This lower performance compared to conventional GC is due to factors such as pooling of the stationary phase in corners of non-cylindrical channels, adsorption of sensitive compounds on incompletely deactivated surfaces, shorter column lengths and less than optimum interfacing to injector and detector.

Comparing the Effects of Electronic Cigarette Vapor and Cigarette Smoke in a Novel In Vivo Exposure System.

Electronic cigarettes (E-cigarettes) are being widely used, and growing in popularity. It is estimated that more than 9 million adults use them regularly. The potential adverse health effects of electronic cigarette vapor (E-vapor) exposure are poorly defined.

Tuning of azine derivatives for selective recognition of Ag with the in vitro tracking of endophytic bacteria in rice root tissue.

Several azine derivatives have been prepared and structurally characterized by spectroscopic and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Two of them, viz. naphthalene based (A10) and anthracene based (A11) show fluorescence enhancement in the presence of Ag in aqueous-methanol.

Faceted particles formed by the frustrated packing of anisotropic colloids on curved surfaces.

We use computer simulations and simple theoretical models to analyze the morphologies that result when rod-like particles end-attach onto a curved surface, creating a finite-thickness monolayer aligned with the surface normal. This geometry leads to two forms of frustration, one associated with the incompatibility of hexagonal order on surfaces with Gaussian curvature, and the second reflecting the deformation of a layer with finite thickness on a surface with non-zero mean curvature. We show that the latter effect leads to a faceting mechanism.

Allosteric Inhibitory Molecular Recognition of a Photochromic Dye by a Digestive Enzyme: Dihydroindolizine makes α-chymotrypsin Photo-responsive.

The structural-functional regulation of enzymes by the administration of an external stimulus such as light could create photo-switches that exhibit unique biotechnological applications. However, molecular recognition of small ligands is a central phenomenon involved in all biological processes. We demonstrate herein that the molecular recognition of a photochromic ligand, dihydroindolizine (DHI), by serine protease α-chymotrypsin (CHT) leads to the photo-control of enzymatic activity.

Dual mode ratiometric recognition of zinc acetate: nanomolar detection with in vitro tracking of endophytic bacteria in rice root tissue.

Several naphthalene-based aldazine derivatives were developed as efficient colorimetric and fluorescence probes for selective ratiometric recognition of traces of zinc acetate. The derivative structures were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The probes were used for in vitro tracking of zinc acetate in endophytic bacteria within rice root tissue and to image zinc acetate in human breast cancer cells (MCF7) by normal and fluorescence microscopy.

Cross-talk between macrophages, smooth muscle cells, and endothelial cells in response to cigarette smoke: the effects on MMP2 and 9.

We hypothesized that matrix metalloproteinase secretion in response to cigarette smoke is modulated by cross-talk between resident cells within the aorta, namely, aortic smooth muscles, endothelial cells, and infiltrating macrophages, and this may be crucial for in vivo formation/progression of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). Cigarette smoke extract (CSE) was applied to rat aortic smooth muscle (RASMC), endothelial (RAEC) or RAW cells, and conditioned media (CSE-CM) collected. Fresh cells were treated with CSE-CM for 24 h and then maintained in serum-free medium (SFM) for 72 h to analyze MMP2 and MMP9 in media by zymography and the ratio (pS/pJ) of phospho-Stat3 (pStat3) and phospho-Jak2 (pJak2) inside the cells by Western blot.

Ant groups optimally amplify the effect of transiently informed individuals.

To cooperatively transport a large load, it is important that carriers conform in their efforts and align their forces. A downside of behavioural conformism is that it may decrease the group's responsiveness to external information. Combining experiment and theory, we show how ants optimize collective transport.

Lysine triggered ratiometric conversion of dynamic to static excimer of a pyrene derivative: aggregation-induced emission, nanomolar detection and human breast cancer cell (MCF7) imaging.

A simple pyrene based probe (A3) derived from pyrene-1-carboxaldehyde and 2-amino-1-phenylpropan-1-ol shows unique optical response triggered by the concentration of lysine (Lys). This allows selective nanomolar detection of Lys via a cascade of processes, dynamic to static-excimer conversion in a ratiometric manner followed by aggregation-induced emission (AIE). Imaging of Lys in the human breast cancer cell (MCF7) has been achieved.

X-ray structurally characterized sensors for ratiometric detection of Zn(2+) and Al(3+) in human breast cancer cells (MCF7): development of a binary logic gate as a molecular switch.

A very simple molecule derived from salicylaldehyde and N-phenyl ethylenediamine (L1) functions as dual-mode ratiometric fluorescence "turn on" sensors for Zn(2+) and Al(3+) at two different wavelengths. The sensing is based on the combined effect of inhibition of excited-state intra-molecular proton transfer (ESIPT), CH=N isomerization and chelation-enhanced fluorescence (CHEF). Moreover, the [L1-Zn(2+)] system functions as a better Al(3+) sensor where Al(3+) ratiometrically displaces Zn(2+) from the [L1-Zn(2+)] complex.

Cigarette smoke-induced MMP2 and MMP9 secretion from aortic vascular smooth cells is mediated via the Jak/Stat pathway.

It is hypothesized that cigarette smoke may increase MMP2 and MMP9 secretion through Jak/Stat pathway in the aorta, thereby facilitating abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) formation/progression in smokers. We observed through zymograms that treatment of male rat aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (RASMC) with an aqueous extract of cigarette smoke (CSE) for 24 hours resulted in a significant increase in pro-MMP9 (P = .005) and a modest increase in pro-MMP2 (P = .

Analysis of siloxanes in hydrocarbon mixtures using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography.

A comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) method for separating siloxanes from hydrocarbons has been developed using a systematic process. First, the retention indices of a set of siloxanes and a set of hydrocarbons were determined on 6 different stationary phases. The retention indices were then used to model GC×GC separation on 15 different stationary phase pairs.

Iterative trapping of gaseous volatile organic compounds in a capillary column.

The iterative trapping method has been developed for concentrating gaseous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) prior to gas chromatographic analysis. VOCs are trapped in a 50 cm × 0.53 mm metal capillary column coated with a 7 μm thick film of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS).