Understanding magnetic hyperthermia performance within the "Brezovich criterion": beyond the uniaxial anisotropy description.

Careful determination of the heating performance of magnetic nanoparticles under AC fields is critical for magnetic hyperthermia applications. However, most interpretations of experimental data are based on the uniaxial anisotropy approximation, which in the first instance can be correlated with the particle aspect ratio. This is to say, the intrinsic magnetocrystalline anisotropy is discarded, under the assumption that the shape contribution dominates.

Dependence of Exchange Bias on Interparticle Interactions in Co/CoO Core/Shell Nanostructures.

This article reports the dependence of exchange bias (EB) effect on interparticle interactions in nanocrystalline Co/CoO core/shell structures, synthesized using the conventional sol-gel technique. Analysis via powder X-Ray diffraction (PXRD) studies and transmission electron microscope (TEM) images confirm the presence of crystalline phases of core/shell Co/CoO with average particle size ≈ 18 nm. Volume fraction (φ) is varied (from 20% to 1%) by the introduction of a stoichiometric amount of non-magnetic amorphous silica matrix (SiO2) which leads to a change in interparticle interaction (separation).

Asthma, much more than a respiratory disease: influence of depression and anxiety.

Objective: The goals of this study are to compare self-reported depression and anxiety in subjects diagnosed of asthma and healthy controls.

Methods: We designed a case-control study. Subjects were recruited using a consecutive sampling method from a single institution.

The role of cortical perforations in allogeneic block grafting for lateral augmentation in maxilla: A randomized clinical trial.

Background: The need of decortication on the recipient site remains unclear for bone regeneration. To our knowledge, there are no human clinical trials that studied the influence of decortication on cancellous allogeneic block grafting.

Purpose: The aim of the present study is to evaluate the influence of perforating the cortex of the recipient site on cancellous allogeneic block graft integration and revascularization in the maxilla.

Self-Perceived Handicap Associated With Dysphonia and Health-Related Quality of Life of Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients: A Case-Control Study.

Purpose The association between voice alterations, health-related quality of life (HRQL), and chronic respiratory diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), has previously been reported. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that HRQL and dysphonia-associated handicap of patients diagnosed with asthma or COPD are worse than healthy controls. Method A case-control study in which participants were recruited by a consecutive sampling method from a single institution was conducted.

Change in the magnetic configurations of tubular nanostructures by tuning dipolar interactions.

We have investigated the equilibrium states of ferromagnetic single wall nanotubes by means of atomistic Monte Carlo simulations of a zig-zag lattice of Heisenberg spins on the surface of a cylinder. The main focus of our study is to determine how the competition between short-range exchange (J) and long-range dipolar (D) interactions influences the low temperature magnetic order of the nanotubes as well as the thermal-driven transitions involved. Apart from the uniform and vortex states occurring for dominant J or D, we find that helical states become stable for a range of intermediate values of γ = D/J that depends on the radius and length of the nanotube.

Synergistic Increase of Serum BDNF in Alzheimer Patients Treated with Cerebrolysin and Donepezil: Association with Cognitive Improvement in ApoE4 Cases.

Background: Low circulating brain derived neurotrophic factor may promote cognitive deterioration, but the effects of neurotrophic and combination drug therapies on serum brain derived neurotrophic factor were not previously investigated in Alzheimer's disease.

Methods: We evaluated the effects of Cerebrolysin, donepezil, and the combined therapy on brain derived neurotrophic factor serum levels at week 16 (end of Cerebrolysin treatment) and week 28 (endpoint) in mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease patients.

Results: Cerebrolysin, but not donepezil, increased serum brain derived neurotrophic factor at week 16, while the combination therapy enhanced it at both week 16 and study endpoint.

Performance of electrochemical oxidation and photocatalysis in terms of kinetics and energy consumption. New insights into the p-cresol degradation.

This work reports the comparative performance of two Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs), electrochemical oxidation and photocatalysis, as individual technological alternatives for the treatment of effluents containing p-cresol. First, the influence of operating parameters in the oxidation and mineralization yield was carried out together with kinetic analysis. Boron Doped Diamond (BDD), RuO and Pt as anodic materials, NaSO and NaCl as supporting electrolytes and different current densities were evaluated in electrochemical oxidation whereas the effect of TiO concentration and radiation was studied in the photocatalytic degradation.

Exchange Bias Effects in Iron Oxide-Based Nanoparticle Systems.

The exploration of exchange bias (EB) on the nanoscale provides a novel approach to improving the anisotropic properties of magnetic nanoparticles for prospective applications in nanospintronics and nanomedicine. However, the physical origin of EB is not fully understood. Recent advances in chemical synthesis provide a unique opportunity to explore EB in a variety of iron oxide-based nanostructures ranging from core/shell to hollow and hybrid composite nanoparticles.

Spin-glass-like freezing of inner and outer surface layers in hollow γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles.

Disorder among surface spins is a dominant factor in the magnetic response of magnetic nanoparticle systems. In this work, we examine time-dependent magnetization in high-quality, monodisperse hollow maghemite nanoparticles (NPs) with a 14.8 ± 0.

Application of electro-Fenton technology to remediation of polluted effluents by self-sustaining process.

The applicability of electro-Fenton technology to remediation of wastewater contaminated by several organic pollutants such as dyes and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons has been evaluated using iron-enriched zeolite as heterogeneous catalyst. The electro-Fenton technology is an advanced oxidation process that is efficient for the degradation of organic pollutants, but it suffers from the high operating costs due to the need for power investment. For this reason, in this study microbial fuel cells (MFCs) were designed in order to supply electricity to electro-Fenton processes and to achieve high treatment efficiency at low cost.

Exchange bias effect in Au-Fe3O4 nanocomposites.

We report exchange bias (EB) effect in the Au-Fe3O4 composite nanoparticle system, where one or more Fe3O4 nanoparticles are attached to an Au seed particle forming 'dimer' and 'cluster' morphologies, with the clusters showing much stronger EB in comparison with the dimers. The EB effect develops due to the presence of stress at the Au-Fe3O4 interface which leads to the generation of highly disordered, anisotropic surface spins in the Fe3O4 particle. The EB effect is lost with the removal of the interfacial stress.

Learning from nature to improve the heat generation of iron-oxide nanoparticles for magnetic hyperthermia applications.

The performance of magnetic nanoparticles is intimately entwined with their structure, mean size and magnetic anisotropy. Besides, ensembles offer a unique way of engineering the magnetic response by modifying the strength of the dipolar interactions between particles. Here we report on an experimental and theoretical analysis of magnetic hyperthermia, a rapidly developing technique in medical research and oncology.

Using iron-loaded sepiolite obtained by adsorption as a catalyst in the electro-Fenton oxidation of Reactive Black 5.

This study explores the possibility of using iron-loaded sepiolite, obtained by recovering iron from polluted water, as a catalyst in the electro-Fenton oxidation of organic pollutants in textile effluents. The removal of iron ions from aqueous solution by adsorption on sepiolite was studied in batch tests at iron concentrations between 100 and 1,000 ppm. Electro-Fenton experiments were carried out in an electrochemical cell with a working volume of 0.

Electro-Fenton decolourisation of dyes in an airlift continuous reactor using iron alginate beads.

In this study, electro-Fenton dye degradation was performed in an airlift continuous reactor configuration by harnessing the catalytic activity of Fe alginate gel beads. Electro-Fenton experiments were carried out in an airlift reactor with a working volume of 1.5 L, air flow of 1.

Optimisation of decolourisation and degradation of Reactive Black 5 dye under electro-Fenton process using Fe alginate gel beads.

The aim of this work was to improve the ability of the electro-Fenton process using Fe alginate gel beads for the remediation of wastewater contaminated with synthetic dyes and using a model diazo dye such as Reactive Black 5 (RB5). Batch experiments were conducted to study the effects of main parameters, such as voltage, pH and iron concentration. Dye decolourisation, reduction of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and energy consumption were studied.

Decolourisation of dyes under electro-Fenton process using Fe alginate gel beads.

This study focuses on the application of electro-Fenton technique by use of catalytic activity of Fe alginate gel beads for the remediation of wastewater contaminated with synthetic dyes. The Fe alginate gel beads were evaluated for decolourisation of two typical dyes, Lissamine Green B and Azure B under electro-Fenton process. After characterization of Fe alginate gel beads, the pH effect on the process with Fe alginate beads and a comparative study of the electro-Fenton process with free Fe and Fe alginate bead was done.

Leishmanicidal activity of Echinaster (Othilia) echinophorus crude extract.

In this study, a methanolic extract from Echinaster (Othilia) echinophorus was evaluated for activity against Leishmania amazonensis. The extract showed activity against the promastigote and amastigote forms with IC50 values of 62.9 and 37.

Controlling exchange bias in Co-CoOx nanoparticles by oxygen content.

We report on the occurrence of exchange bias on laser-ablated granular thin films composed of Co nanoparticles embedded in an amorphous zirconia matrix. The deposition method allows one to control the degree of oxidation of the Co particles by tuning the oxygen pressure at the vacuum chamber (from 2 x 10(-5) to 10(-1) mbar). The nature of the nanoparticles embedded in the nonmagnetic matrix is monitored from metallic, ferromagnetic (FM) Co to antiferromagnetic (AFM) CoO(x), with a FM/AFM intermediate regime for which the percentage of the AFM phase can be increased at the expense of the FM phase, leading to the occurrence of exchange bias in particles of about 2 nm in size.

Surface anisotropy broadening of the energy barrier distribution in magnetic nanoparticles.

The effect of surface anisotropy on the distribution of energy barriers in magnetic fine particles of nanometer size is discussed within the framework of the Tln(t/τ(0)) scaling approach. The comparison between the distributions of the anisotropy energy of the particle cores, calculated by multiplying the volume distribution by the core anisotropy, and of the total anisotropy energy, deduced by deriving the master curve of the magnetic relaxation with respect to the scaling variable Tln(t/τ(0)), enables the determination of the surface anisotropy as a function of the particle size. We show that the contribution of the particle surface to the total anisotropy energy can be well described by a size-independent value of the surface energy per unit area which permits the superimposition of the distributions corresponding to the particle core and effective anisotropy energies.

Exchange bias phenomenology and models of core/shell nanoparticles.

Some of the main experimental observations related to the occurrence of exchange bias in magnetic systems are reviewed, focusing the attention on the peculiar phenomenology associated to nanoparticles with core/shell structure as compared to thin film bilayers. The main open questions posed by the experimental observations are presented and contrasted to existing theories and models for exchange bias formulated up to date. We also present results of simulations based on a simple model of a core/shell nanoparticle in which the values of microscopic parameters such as anisotropy and exchange constants can be tuned in the core, shell and at the interfacial regions, offering new insight on the microscopic origin of the experimental phenomenology.

Genetic characterization of fast-growing rhizobia able to nodulate Prosopis alba in North Spain.

Prosopis is a Mimosaceae legume tree indigenous to South America and not naturalized in Europe. In this work 18 rhizobial strains nodulating Prosopis alba roots were isolated from a soil in North Spain that belong to eight different randomly amplified polymorphic DNA groups phylogenetically related to Sinorhizobium medicae, Sinorhizobium meliloti and Rhizobium giardinii according to their intergenic spacer and 16S rRNA gene sequences. The nodC genes of isolates close to S.

Modelling exchange bias in core/shell nanoparticles.

We present an atomistic model of a single nanoparticle with core/shell structure that takes into account its lattice structure and spherical geometry, and in which the values of microscopic parameters such as anisotropy and exchange constants can be tuned in the core, shell and interfacial regions. By means of Monte Carlo simulations of the hysteresis loops based on this model, we have determined the range of microscopic parameters for which loop shifts after field cooling can be observed. The study of the magnetic order of the interfacial spins for different particle sizes and values of the interfacial exchange coupling have allowed us to correlate the appearance of loop asymmetries and vertical displacements to the existence of a fraction of uncompensated spins at the shell interface that remain pinned during field cycling, offering new insight on the microscopic origin of the experimental phenomenology.

Rheological behavior and organoleptic effects of ovalbumin addition in yogurt mousse production.

Yogurt mousse is a novel, high added-value dairy product that has been well received by the market. This paper presents a study of the effect of the addition of ovalbumin to the product on its rheological and organoleptic qualities. The ovalbumin was previously separated from egg white with a high grade of purity using an ion exchange resin synthesized by the authors.