Crossing the blood-brain barrier: emerging therapeutic strategies for neurological disease.

The blood-brain barrier is a physiological barrier that can prevent both small and complex drugs from reaching the brain to exert a pharmacological effect. For treatment of neurological diseases, drug concentrations at the target site are a fundamental parameter for therapeutic effect; thus, the blood-brain barrier is a major obstacle to overcome. Novel strategies have been developed to circumvent the blood-brain barrier, including CSF delivery, intracranial delivery, ultrasound-based methods, membrane transporters, receptor-mediated transcytosis, and nanotherapeutics.

Plasmon-enhanced visible photodetectors based on hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) with gold (Au), silver (Ag), and non-alloyed bimetallic (Au/Ag) nanoparticles.

Two-dimensional (2D) hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) has garnered significant attention due to its exceptional thermal and chemical stability, excellent dielectric properties, and unique optical characteristics, making it widely used in deep ultraviolet (DUV) applications. However, the integration of hBN with plasmonic materials in the visible region (532 nm) has not been fully explored, particularly in terms of morphology regulation and size control of mono- and bimetallic nanoparticles (BMNPs) namely gold (Au), silver (Ag) and Au-Ag. A Schottky junction-based metal-semiconductor contact configuration is employed to achieve hot-carrier reflections on the metal side, enhancing the quantum efficiency of the photodetector.

Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) Substrates Based on Photonic Crystal Embedded Bi-Metallic Nanoparticles for Leptospiral DNA Detection.

Leptospirosis is an acute bacterial febrile disease affecting humans and animals in many tropical and subtropical countries. This work presents an optimization of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates to probe vibrational spectroscopic detail from deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). The pathogenic gene of LipL32 was used as a biomarker.

Laser hemorrhoidoplasty versus hemorrhoidectomy in the treatment of surgically indicated hemorrhoids in inflammatory bowel patients: a randomized comparative clinical study.

Background: This study aims to assess and compare the outcomes of traditional surgery and laser surgery for anal hemorrhoids in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Methods: This is a single-center prospective randomized comparative clinical trial performed at Zagazig University Hospitals from September 2023 to September 2024. The study comprised 48 patients who were admitted during this period and had inflammatory bowel disease along with hemorrhoids.