A Comparative Evaluation of Leaching Reagents of Platinum Group Metals from Spent Catalytic Converters Using Microwave Heating.

Platinum group metals (PGMs) are increasingly recycled from spent automotive catalysts due to their scarcity in nature. Many studies were developed using different leaching reagents in order to achieve greener benefits and reduce environmental pollution. This article reports for the first time direct comparison of leaching reagents on the efficiency of PGMs using microwave (MW) assisted heating.

Submerged single-photon LiDAR imaging sensor used for real-time 3D scene reconstruction in scattering underwater environments.

We demonstrate a fully submerged underwater LiDAR transceiver system based on single-photon detection technologies. The LiDAR imaging system used a silicon single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) detector array fabricated in complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology to measure photon time-of-flight using picosecond resolution time-correlated single-photon counting. The SPAD detector array was directly interfaced to a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) for real-time image reconstruction capability.

Towards a comprehensive understanding of malathion degradation: comparison of degradation reactions under alkaline and radical conditions.

Malathion is a commercially available insecticide that functions by acting as an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Of significant concern, if left in the environment, some of the products observed from the degradation of malathion can function as more potent toxins than the parent compound. Accordingly, there are numerous studies revolving around possible degradation strategies to remove malathion from various environmental media.

Picosecond laser microwelding of AlSi-YAG for laser system assembly.

We report the successful picosecond laser welding of AlSi and YAG. This material combination is of significant interest to the field of laser design and construction. Parameter maps are presented that demonstrate the impact of pulse energy and focal position on the resultant weld.

Light-responsive and Protic Ruthenium Compounds Bearing Bathophenanthroline and Dihydroxybipyridine Ligands Achieve Nanomolar Toxicity towards Breast Cancer Cells.

We report new ruthenium complexes bearing the lipophilic bathophenanthroline (BPhen) ligand and dihydroxybipyridine (dhbp) ligands which differ in the placement of the OH groups ([(BPhen) Ru(n,n'-dhbp)]Cl with n = 6 and 4 in 1 and 2 , respectively). Full characterization data are reported for 1 and 2 and single crystal X-ray diffraction for 1 . Both 1 and 2 are diprotic acids.

Financial investment of United States pharmacy schools on international activities.

Introduction: The primary objective of this study was to determine the financial resources that United States (US) pharmacy schools spend and receive for international activities, as well as the future direction of expenditures and revenue.

Methods: An online survey was sent in April 2019 to the chief financial or administrative officer at each accredited pharmacy school (N = 141) to ask about average annual budget for international activities and areas of expenditure (student travel, partnership development, faculty salary, staff salary, training programs) and revenue (dean's office, university, student tuition and fees, alumni, grants and contracts, other) associated with their budget. Participants were asked whether they anticipated spending or receiving more, the same, or less on the aforementioned expenditure and revenue areas.

Towards a comprehensive understanding of malathion degradation: theoretical investigation of degradation pathways and related kinetics under alkaline conditions.

Malathion is a commercially available insecticide that functions by acting as an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. Of more significant concern, if left in the environment, some of the products observed from the degradation of malathion can function as more potent toxins than the parent compound. These compounds may threaten human life if they are present in high quantities during operation in contaminated or industrial areas.

Resveratrol Inhibits Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Infection by Interfering with the AKT/GSK Pathway.

The host proteins Protein Kinase B (AKT) and glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) are associated with multiple neurodegenerative disorders. They are also important for the replication of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV), thereby making the AKT/GSK-3 pathway an attractive target for developing anti-VEEV therapeutics. Resveratrol, a natural phytochemical, has been shown to substantially inhibit the AKT pathway.

Singlet Oxygen Formation vs Photodissociation for Light-Responsive Protic Ruthenium Anticancer Compounds: The Oxygenated Substituent Determines Which Pathway Dominates.

Ruthenium complexes bearing protic diimine ligands are cytotoxic to certain cancer cells upon irradiation with blue light. Previously reported complexes of the type [(,)Ru(6,6'-dhbp)]Cl with 6,6'-dhbp = 6,6'-dihydroxybipyridine and , = 2,2'-bipyridine (bipy) (), 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) (), and 2,3-dihydro-[1,4]dioxino[2,3-][1,10]phenanthroline (dop) () show EC values as low as 4 μM (for ) vs breast cancer cells upon blue light irradiation ( 2017, 56, 7519). Herein, subscript denotes the acidic form of the complex bearing OH groups, and denotes the basic form bearing O groups.

Population Dynamics of Chewing Lice (Phthiraptera) Infesting Birds (Aves).

In the past 25 years, studies on interactions between chewing lice and their bird hosts have increased notably. This body of work reveals that sampling of live avian hosts, collection of the lice, and the aggregated distributions of louse infestations pose challenges for assessing louse populations. The number of lice on a bird varies among host taxa, often with host size and social system.

Predicting Absorption and Emission Maxima of Polycyclic Aromatic Azaborines: Reliable Transition Energies and Character.

Polycyclic aromatic azaborines have potential applications as luminophores, novel fluorescent materials, organic light-emitting diodes, and fluorescent sensors. Additionally, their relative structural simplicity should allow the use of computational techniques to design and screen novel compounds in a rapid manner. Herein, the absorption and emission maxima of twelve polycyclic aromatic BN-1,2-azaborine analogues containing the N-BOH moiety were examined to determine a methodology for reliably predicting both the energy and character (local excitation [LE] vs charge transfer [CT]) of the absorption and emission maxima for these compounds.

Interactions between exotic and native lady beetle species stabilize community abundance.

A 23-year time-series of abundance for 13 lady beetle species (Coccinellidae) was used to investigate community stability. The community exhibited persistence in ten habitats, no overall trend in abundance, and low temporal variability quantified as Population variability (PV) = 0.33 on a scale from 0 to 1 that declined to 0.

Structure of a paramyxovirus polymerase complex reveals a unique methyltransferase-CTD conformation.

Paramyxoviruses are enveloped, nonsegmented, negative-strand RNA viruses that cause a wide spectrum of human and animal diseases. The viral genome, packaged by the nucleoprotein (N), serves as a template for the polymerase complex, composed of the large protein (L) and the homo-tetrameric phosphoprotein (P). The ∼250-kDa L possesses all enzymatic activities necessary for its function but requires P in vivo.

The Structure, Function, and Pathobiology of the Influenza A and B Virus Ion Channels.

Influenza A virus AM2 protein is an integral membrane protein that is an ion channel (also known as a viroporin). The channel has 24 extracellular residues, 19 residues that span the membrane once and acts as both the channel pore and also the membrane anchoring domain, and a 54-residue cytoplasmic tail. The M2 protein has four identical chains linked via two disulfide bonds that form a four-helix bundle that is 10-10 more permeable to protons than Na ions.

Repurposing Papaverine as an Antiviral Agent against Influenza Viruses and Paramyxoviruses.

Influenza viruses are highly infectious and are the leading cause of human respiratory diseases and may trigger severe epidemics and occasional pandemics. Although antiviral drugs against influenza viruses have been developed, there is an urgent need to design new strategies to develop influenza virus inhibitors due to the increasing resistance of viruses toward currently available drugs. In this study, we examined the antiviral activity of natural compounds against the following influenza virus strains: A/WSN/33 (H1N1), A/Udorn/72 (H3N2), and B/Lee/40.

ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile: .

The family consists of large enveloped RNA viruses infecting mammals, birds, reptiles and fish. Many paramyxoviruses are host-specific and several, such as measles virus, mumps virus, Nipah virus, Hendra virus and several parainfluenza viruses, are pathogenic for humans. The transmission of paramyxoviruses is horizontal, mainly through airborne routes; no vectors are known.

Consumer mobility predicts impacts of herbivory across an environmental stress gradient.

Environmental stress impedes predation and herbivory by limiting the ability of animals to search for and consume prey. We tested the contingency of this relationship on consumer traits and specifically hypothesized that herbivore mobility relative to the return time of limiting environmental stress would predict consumer effects. We examined how wave-induced water motion affects marine communities via herbivory by highly mobile (fish) vs.

Continuous Flow Copper Laser Ablation Synthesis of Copper(I and II) Oxide Nanoparticles in Water.

Copper(I) oxide (CuO) nanoparticles (NPs) are selectively prepared in high yields under continuous flow in a vortex fluidic device (VFD), involving irradiation of a copper rod using a pulsed laser operating at 1064 nm and 600 mJ. The plasma plume generated inside a glass tube (20 mm O.D.

Highly Active Ruthenium CNC Pincer Photocatalysts for Visible-Light-Driven Carbon Dioxide Reduction.

Five ruthenium catalysts described herein facilitate self-sensitized carbon dioxide reduction to form carbon monoxide with a ruthenium catalytic center. These catalysts include four new and one previously reported CNC pincer complexes featuring a pyridinol derived N-donor and N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) C-donors derived from imidazole or benzimidazole. The complexes have been characterized fully by spectroscopic and analytic methods, including X-ray crystallography.

Vortex fluidic mediated transformation of graphite into highly conducting graphene scrolls.

Two-dimensional graphene has remarkable properties that are revolutionary in many applications. Scrolling monolayer graphene with precise tunability would create further potential for niche applications but this has proved challenging. We have now established the ability to fabricate monolayer graphene scrolls in high yield directly from graphite flakes under non-equilibrium conditions at room temperature in dynamic thin films of liquid.

Taxonomy of the order Mononegavirales: update 2019.

In February 2019, following the annual taxon ratification vote, the order Mononegavirales was amended by the addition of four new subfamilies and 12 new genera and the creation of 28 novel species. This article presents the updated taxonomy of the order Mononegavirales as now accepted by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV).

Chemoselective and Continuous Flow Hydrogenations in Thin Films Using a Palladium Nanoparticle Catalyst Embedded in Cellulose Paper.

Cellulose immobilized palladium (0) nanoparticles (PdNPs) were prepared for the use in scalable catalytic reactions in flow. Preparation of the catalyst is remarkably simple and fast, where a palladium acetate solution is drop-casted onto cellulose paper and then exposed to 1 atm of hydrogen for a mere 90 s to produce embedded Pd(0) nanoparticles. This catalyst system is efficient in the hydrogenation of alkenes, nitroarenes, ketones, and enamides, with products formed in high yields, under ambient pressure and temperature.

Taxonomy of the order Mononegavirales: second update 2018.

In October 2018, the order Mononegavirales was amended by the establishment of three new families and three new genera, abolishment of two genera, and creation of 28 novel species. This article presents the updated taxonomy of the order Mononegavirales as now accepted by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV).