Identifying Reactive Trends in Glycerol Electro-Oxidation Using an Automated Screening Approach: 28 Ways to Electrodeposit an Au Electrocatalyst.

Automated, rapid electrocatalyst discovery techniques that comprehensively address the exploration of chemical spaces, characterization of catalyst robustness, reproducibility, and translation of results to (flow) electrolysis operation are needed. Responding to the growing interest in biomass valorization, we studied the glycerol electro-oxidation reaction (GEOR) on gold in alkaline media as a model reaction to demonstrate the efficacy of such methodology introduced here. Our platform combines individually addressable electrode arrays with HardPotato, a Python application programming interface for potentiostat control, to automate electrochemical experiments and data analysis operations.

Values Underpinning Integrated, People-Centred Health Services: Similarities and Differences among Actor Groups Across Europe.

Introduction: In addition to the functional aspects of healthcare integration, an understanding of its normative aspects is needed. This study explores the importance of values underpinning integrated, people-centred health services, and examines similarities and differences among the values prioritised by actors across Europe.

Methods: Explorative cross-sectional design with quantitative analysis.

SEM-EDS and water chemistry characteristics at the early stages of glacier recession reveal biogeochemical coupling between proglacial sediments and meltwater.

Most glaciers worldwide are undergoing climate-forced recession, but the impact of glacier changes on biogeochemical cycles is unclear. This study examines the influence of proglacial sediment weathering on meltwater chemistry at the early stages of glacier recession in the High Arctic of Svalbard. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) in combination with a wide range of geochemical analyses were used in this study.

Accelerated screening of colloidal nanocrystals using artificial neural network-assisted autonomous flow reactor technology.

Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals with tunable optical and electronic properties are opening up exciting opportunities for high-performance optoelectronics, photovoltaics, and bioimaging applications. Identifying the optimal synthesis conditions and screening of synthesis recipes in search of efficient synthesis pathways to obtain nanocrystals with desired optoelectronic properties, however, remains one of the major bottlenecks for accelerated discovery of colloidal nanocrystals. Conventional strategies, often guided by limited understanding of the underlying mechanisms remain expensive in both time and resources, thus significantly impeding the overall discovery process.

Network governance theory as basic pattern for promoting financial support system of the poor in Iranian health system.

Background: The share of out-of-pocket payments in Iranian families has the greatest burden on the poor and lead to an impoverishment caused by catastrophic health expenditures. In order to improve access of the poor to public resources, it is necessary to create a better governance system and effective policy-making. The purpose of this study is to improve network effectiveness of the Iranian health system and to design a financial protection network for the poor, based on the network governance theory.

Investigation of Electrolyte-Dependent Carbonate Formation on Gas Diffusion Electrodes for CO Electrolysis.

The electrochemical reduction of CO (ECOR) is a promising method for reducing CO emissions and producing carbon-neutral fuels if long-term durability of electrodes can be achieved by identifying and addressing electrode degradation mechanisms. This work investigates the degradation of gas diffusion electrodes (GDEs) in a flowing, alkaline CO electrolyzer via the formation of carbonate deposits on the GDE surface. These carbonate deposits were found to impede electrode performance after only 6 h of operation at current densities ranging from -50 to -200 mA cm.

Network of Networks: Preliminary Lessons from the Antwerp Port Authority on Crisis Management and Network Governance to Deal with the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In this article, the authors describe and illustrate what they call a "network of networks" perspective and map the development of a lead network for the Antwerp Port Authority that governed organizations and networks in the port community before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. They find that setting a collective focus and selective integration are crucial in the creation and reproduction of an effective system to adequately deal with a wicked problem like the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings on crisis management and network governance are used to engage practitioners and public policy planners to revisit the current design and governance of organizational networks within organizational fields that have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gold nanoparticles disrupt actin organization and pulmonary endothelial barriers.

This study explored the impact of gold nanoparticles on the metabolic activity and morphology of human pulmonary endothelial cell monolayers. We developed a gold nanoparticle library of three different sizes and two surface chemistries that include anionic citrate and the cationic polyelectrolyte poly(allylamine hydrochloride). The nanoparticles were characterized in cell culture medium to assess how their physical properties are altered after exposure to biological fluids.

Quantitative Measures of Crystalline Fenofibrate in Amorphous Solid Dispersion Formulations by X-Ray Microscopy.

In the pharmaceutical industry, amorphous solid dispersion can be utilized to enhance the solubility, hence bioavailability, of poorly solubility active pharmaceutical ingredients owing to the higher free energy of the amorphous state. Measuring the concentration, size and spatial distribution of crystalline API particles that may be present in amorphous solid dispersions (ASD) is critical to understanding product performance and developing improved formulations. In this study X-Ray Microscopy (XRM) was used to nondestructively measure these attributes in ASDs.

Durable Cathodes and Electrolyzers for the Efficient Aqueous Electrochemical Reduction of CO.

The world emits over 14 gigatons of CO in excess of what can be remediated by natural processes annually, contributing to rising atmospheric CO levels and increasing global temperatures. The electrochemical reduction of CO (CO RR) to value-added chemicals and fuels has been proposed as a method for reusing these excess anthropogenic emissions. While state-of-the-art CO RR systems exhibit high current densities and faradaic efficiencies, research on long-term electrode durability, necessary for this technology to be implemented commercially, is lacking.

Polymeric microfluidic continuous flow mixer combined with hyperspectral FT-IR imaging for studying rapid biomolecular events.

Early reaction intermediates in protein folding, such as those resulting in β-amyloid formation due to transient misfolding, emerge within a few hundred microseconds. Here, we report a method to obtain sub-millisecond temporal resolution and molecular structural information of protein (mis-)folding events by using a microfluidic continuous-flow mixer (MCFM) in combination with Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) imaging. The MCFMs are made out of cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) films, because this approach allows for rapid prototyping of different mixer designs.

Collaborative emergency preparedness and response to cross-institutional outbreaks of multidrug-resistant organisms: a scenario-based approach in two regions of the Netherlands.

Background: The likelihood of large-scale outbreaks of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) is growing. MDRO outbreaks can affect a wide range of healthcare institutions. Control of such outbreaks requires structured collaboration between professionals from all involved healthcare institutions, but guidelines for cross-institutional procedures are, however, often missing.

Health in All Policies (HiAP) governance: lessons from network governance.

The Health in All Policies (HiAP) approach requires formal and sustained governance structures and mechanisms to ensure that the policies of various non-health sectors maximize positive and minimize negative impacts on population health. In this paper, we demonstrate the usefulness of a network perspective in understanding and contributing to the effectiveness of HiAP. We undertook an exploratory, qualitative case study of a HiAP structure in Iran, the Kerman province Council of Health and Food Security (CHFS) with diverse members from health and non-health sectors.

Nanoporous Copper-Silver Alloys by Additive-Controlled Electrodeposition for the Selective Electroreduction of CO to Ethylene and Ethanol.

Electrodeposition of CuAg alloy films from plating baths containing 3,5-diamino-1,2,4-triazole (DAT) as an inhibitor yields high surface area catalysts for the active and selective electroreduction of CO to multicarbon hydrocarbons and oxygenates. EXAFS shows the co-deposited alloy film to be homogeneously mixed. The alloy film containing 6% Ag exhibits the best CO electroreduction performance, with the Faradaic efficiency for CH and CHOH production reaching nearly 60 and 25%, respectively, at a cathode potential of just -0.

Solution Coating of Pharmaceutical Nanothin Films and Multilayer Nanocomposites with Controlled Morphology and Polymorphism.

Nanosizing is rapidly emerging as an alternative approach to enhance solubility and thus the bioavailability of poorly aqueous soluble active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Although numerous techniques have been developed to perform nanosizing of API crystals, precise control and modulation of their size in an energy and material efficient manner remains challenging. In this study, we present meniscus-guided solution coating as a new technique to produce pharmaceutical thin films of nanoscale thickness with controlled morphology.

X-ray transparent microfluidic platforms for membrane protein crystallization with microseeds.

Crystallization of membrane proteins is a critical step for uncovering atomic resolution 3-D structures and elucidating structure-function relationships. Microseeding, the process of transferring sub-microscopic crystal nuclei from initial screens into new crystallization experiments, is an effective, yet underutilized approach to grow crystals suitable for X-ray crystallography. Here, we report simplified methods for crystallization of membrane proteins that utilize microseeding in X-ray transparent microfluidic chips.

Design considerations for open-well microfluidic platforms for hypoxic cell studies.

Regions of hypoxia are common in solid tumors and are associated with enhanced malignancy, metastasis, and chemo/radio resistance. Real-time hypoxic cellular experimentation is challenging due to the constant need for oxygen control. Most microfluidic platforms developed thus far for hypoxic cell studies are burdened by complex design parameters and are difficult to use for uninitiated investigators.

Gold Nanoparticles on Polymer-Wrapped Carbon Nanotubes: An Efficient and Selective Catalyst for the Electroreduction of CO.

Multiple approaches will be needed to reduce the atmospheric CO levels, which have been linked to the undesirable effects of global climate change. The electroreduction of CO driven by renewable energy is one approach to reduce CO emissions while producing chemical building blocks, but current electrocatalysts exhibit low activity and selectivity. Here, we report the structural and electrochemical characterization of a promising catalyst for the electroreduction of CO to CO: Au nanoparticles supported on polymer-wrapped multiwall carbon nanotubes.

Non-Aqueous Primary Li-Air Flow Battery and Optimization of its Cathode through Experiment and Modeling.

A primary Li-air battery has been developed with a flowing Li-ion free ionic liquid as the recyclable electrolyte, boosting power capability by promoting superoxide diffusion and enhancing discharge capacity through separately stored discharge products. Experimental and computational tools are used to analyze the cathode properties, leading to a set of parameters that improve the discharge current density of the non-aqueous Li-air flow battery. The structure and configuration of the cathode gas diffusion layers (GDLs) are systematically modified by using different levels of hot pressing and the presence or absence of a microporous layer (MPL).

X-ray transparent microfluidic chips for high-throughput screening and optimization of membrane protein crystallization.

Elucidating and clarifying the function of membrane proteins ultimately requires atomic resolution structures as determined most commonly by X-ray crystallography. Many high impact membrane protein structures have resulted from advanced techniques such as crystallization that present technical difficulties for the set-up and scale-out of high-throughput crystallization experiments. In prior work, we designed a novel, low-throughput X-ray transparent microfluidic device that automated the mixing of protein and lipid by diffusion for crystallization trials.

Chemical and mechanical modulation of polymeric micelle assembly.

Recently, polymeric micelles self-assembled from amphiphilic polymers have been studied for various industrial and biomedical applications. This nanoparticle self-assembly typically occurs in a solvent-exchange process. In this process, the quality of the resulting particles is uncontrollably mediated by polymeric solubility and mixing conditions.

The Q-Cycle Mechanism of the bc Complex: A Biologist's Perspective on Atomistic Studies.

The Q-cycle mechanism of the bc complex is now well enough understood to allow application of advanced computational approaches to the study of atomistic processes. In addition to the main features of the mechanism, these include control and gating of the bifurcated reaction at the Q-site, through which generation of damaging reactive oxygen species is minimized. We report a new molecular dynamics model of the Rhodobacter sphaeroides bc complex implemented in a native membrane, and constructed so as to eliminate blemishes apparent in earlier Rhodobacter models.

"Click Chip" Conjugation of Bifunctional Chelators to Biomolecules.

There is a growing demand for diagnostic procedures including in vivo tumor imaging. Radiometal-based imaging agents are advantageous for tumor imaging because radiometals (i) have a wide range of half-lives and (ii) are easily incorporated into imaging probes via a mild, rapid chelation event with a bifunctional chelator (BFC). Microfluidic platforms hold promise for synthesis of radiotracers because they can easily handle minute volumes, reduce consumption of expensive reagents, and minimize personnel exposure to radioactive compounds.