Atomically thin-layered WSbased resistive sensors for detection of CO and NOat room temperature.

The number of layers present in a two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterial plays a critical role in applications that involve surface interaction, for example, gas sensing. This paper reports the synthesis of 2D WSnanoflakes using the facile liquid exfoliation technique. The nanoflakes were exfoliated using bath sonication (BS-WS) and probe sonication (PS-WS).

Antarctic sea-ice low resonates in the ecophysiology of humpback whales.

The past six years have been marked by some of the most dramatic climatic events observed in the Antarctic region in recent history, commencing with the 2017 sea-ice extreme low. The Humpback Whale Sentinel Programme is a circum-polar biomonitoring program for long term surveillance of the Antarctic sea-ice ecosystem. It has previously signalled the extreme La Niña event of 2010/11, and it was therefore of interest to assess the capacity of existing biomonitoring measures under the program to detect the impacts of 2017 anomalous climatic events.

CuO-ZnO p-n junctions for accurate prediction of multiple volatile organic compounds aided by machine learning algorithms.

Detection and quantification of multiple volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are emerging as critical requirements for several niche applications including healthcare. It is desirable to get multiple gases identified rapidly and using minimum number of sensors. Heterojunctions of metal oxides are still among the top-picks for efficient VOC sensing because they unfold exciting sensing characteristics in addition to enhanced response.

Theranostic FRET Gate to Visualize and Quantify Bacterial Membrane Breaching.

Designing new antimicrobial-cum-probes to study real-time bacterial membrane breaching and concurrently developing inquisitorial image-based analytical tools is essential for the treatment of infectious diseases. An array of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) polymers (donor) consisting of neutral, anionic, and cationic charges were designed and employed as antimicrobial theranostic gatekeepers for the permeabilization of the peptidoglycan layer-adherable crystal violet (CV, acceptor). An AIE-active tetraphenylethylene (TPE)-tagged polycaprolactone biodegradable platform was chosen, and their self-assembled tiny amphiphilic nanoparticles were employed as a gatekeeper in the construction of bacterial membrane-reinforced fluorescent resonance energy transfer (FRET) probes.

Simple diagnosis of cancer by detecting CEA and CYFRA 21-1 in saliva using electronic sensors.

One way of early diagnosis of cancer is by detecting the biomarkers that get introduced into easily accessible body fluids. We report the development of portable and rapid electronic biosensors for quantitative detection of two secretive cancer biomarkers-Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and Cytokeratin fragment 19 (CYFRA 21-1). The reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/ melamine (MEL)/antibodies/ bovine serum albumin (BSA) based devices were tested for 1 pg/mL to 800 ng/mL of CEA and CYFRA 21-1.

An electronic biosensor based on semiconducting tetrazine polymer immobilizing matrix coated on rGO for carcinoembryonic antigen.

Point-of-care devices are expected to play very critical roles in early diagnosis and better treatment of cancer. Here, we report the end-to-end development of novel and portable biosensors for detecting carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), a cancer biomarker, almost instantly at room temperature. The device uses reduced graphene oxide (rGO) as the base conducting layer and a novel poly[(1,4-phenylene)-alt-(3,6-(1,2,4,5-tetrazine)/3,6-(1,2,4,5-dihydrotetrazine))] (PhPTz) as an immobilizing matrix for the CEA antibodies.

Functional Landscape of Dysregulated MicroRNAs in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Clinical Implications.

MicroRNA (miRNA) dysregulation is associated with the pathogenesis of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), and its elucidation could potentially provide information on patient outcome. A growing body of translational research on miRNA biology is focusing on precision oncology, aiming to decode the miRNA regulatory network in the development and progression of cancer. Tissue-specific expression and stable presence in all body fluids are unique features of miRNAs, which could be potentially exploited in the clinical setting.

Biodegradable Polymer Theranostic Fluorescent Nanoprobe for Direct Visualization and Quantitative Determination of Antimicrobial Activity.

We report a biodegradable fluorescent theranostic nanoprobe design strategy for simultaneous visualization and quantitative determination of antibacterial activity for the treatment of bacterial infections. Cationic-charged polycaprolactone (PCL) was tailor-made through ring-opening polymerization methodology, and it was self-assembled into well-defined tiny 5.0 ± 0.

Sex ratios of migrating southern hemisphere humpback whales: A new sentinel parameter of ecosystem health.

Southern hemisphere humpback whales have evolved energetically demanding capital breeding and migratory life-history behaviours. It has been hypothesised that not all individuals of a population participate in the seasonal migration each year, or only undertake partial migrations. Given the cost of migration and reproduction, we explored the possibility that specifically, not all mature females participate in the seasonal migration every year, or significantly delay or shorten their migration, in response to poor feeding conditions.

Role of vacancy sites and UV-ozone treatment on few layered MoS nanoflakes for toxic gas detection.

Various issues like global warming and environmental pollutions have led to the research of toxic gas detection worldwide. In this work, we have tried to develop a molybdenum disulfide (MoS) based gas sensor to detect toxic gases like ammonia and NO. MoS, an inorganic analog of graphene, has attracted lots of attention for many different applications recently.

MicroRNA profiling of cisplatin-resistant oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines enriched with cancer-stem-cell-like and epithelial-mesenchymal transition-type features.

Oral cancer is of major public health problem in India. Current investigation was aimed to identify the specific deregulated miRNAs which are responsible for development of resistance phenotype through regulating their resistance related target gene expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Cisplatin-resistant OSCC cell lines were developed from their parental human OSCC cell lines and subsequently characterised.

Hierarchical nanostructured WO3-SnO2 for selective sensing of volatile organic compounds.

It remains a challenge to find a suitable gas sensing material that shows a high response and shows selectivity towards various gases simultaneously. Here, we report a mixed metal oxide WO3-SnO2 nanostructured material synthesized in situ by a simple, single-step, one-pot hydrothermal method at 200 °C in 12 h, and demonstrate its superior sensing behavior towards volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as ammonia, ethanol and acetone. SnO2 nanoparticles with controlled size and density were uniformly grown on WO3 nanoplates by varying the tin precursor.

Chemically reduced graphene oxide for ammonia detection at room temperature.

Chemically reduced graphene oxide (RGO) has recently attracted growing interest in the area of chemical sensors because of its high electrical conductivity and chemically active defect sites. This paper reports the synthesis of chemically reduced GO using NaBH4 and its performance for ammonia detection at room temperature. The sensing layer was synthesized on a ceramic substrate containing platinum electrodes.

A novel manganese complex, Mn-(II) N-(2-hydroxy acetophenone) glycinate overcomes multidrug-resistance in cancer.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) remains a significant problem for effective cancer chemotherapy. In spite of considerable advances in drug discovery, most of the cancer cases still stay incurable because of resistance to chemotherapy. We synthesized a novel, Mn (II) complex (chelate), viz.

Changes in physiological responses of an Antarctic fish, the emerald rock cod (Trematomus bernacchii), following exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs).

Although polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have the ability to undergo long-range atmospheric transport to remote ecosystems like Antarctica, a recent study found evidence for a local source within the Antarctic. PBDEs from sewage treatment outfalls of McMurdo Station and Scott Base on Ross Island have been attributed to the high concentrations measured in emerald rock cod (Trematomus bernacchii). The potential impact of PBDEs on Antarctic fish physiology is unknown and therefore, the aim of this study was to obtain a greater understanding of physiological responses of emerald rock cod for assessing changes in ecosystem quality.

The molecular interaction of a copper chelate with human P-glycoprotein.

One of the major reasons for multidrug resistance (MDR) in cancer is the overexpression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp, ABCB1), a drug efflux pump. A novel copper complex, namely, copper (II) N-(2-hydroxyacetophenone) glycinate (CuNG) previously synthesized and characterized by the authors had been tested in this study. In a cell-based assay system with human MDR1 cDNA overexpressed mouse fibroblast NIH MDR1-G185 cell line, we demonstrated that this metal complex can directly interact with this transporter.

Selective pressurized liquid extraction of three classes of halogenated contaminants in fish.

Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) combined with in-cell clean-up of co-extracts, so-called selective-PLE (S-PLE), is a fast and accepted method for the analysis of halogenated organic contaminants in fish. However, many of the existing methods were optimized for use with single classes of contaminants. The main objective of this research was to develop an S-PLE method that elutes a minimal amount of fats while simultaneously extracting halogenated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) from fat-rich fish.

An in vitro and in vivo study of a novel zinc complex, zinc N-(2-hydroxyacetophenone)glycinate to overcome multidrug resistance in cancer.

Multiple drug resistance (MDR) remains a major clinical challenge for cancer treatment. P-glycoprotein is the major contributor and they exceed their role in the chemotherapy resistance of most of the malignancies. Attempts in several preclinical and clinical studies to reverse the MDR phenomenon by using MDR modulators have not yet generated promising results.

Role of manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieves in styrene epoxidation.

Manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieves having 2 x 2 tunnel structure (OMS-2) and synthesized by different methods were used for studying styrene oxidation with tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) as the oxidant. The catalytic activity of the as-synthesized OMS-2 materials was investigated. The physical and chemical properties of the OMS-2 materials are related to their activity in styrene oxidation.

Effect of a metal alloy fuel catalyst on bacterial growth.

Many microorganisms have been demonstrated to utilize petroleum fuel products to fulfill their nutritional requirement for carbon. As a result, the ability of these microbes to degrade fuel has both a deleterious affect as well as beneficial applications. This study focused on the undesired ability of bacteria to grow on fuel and the potential for some metal alloys to inhibit this biodegradation.

Structure and chromosomal localization of the murine coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor gene.

We analyzed BAC genomic clones encoding the murine coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (mCAR). The mCAR gene is situated on the distal portion of murine chromosome 16, and is composed of at least eight exons, with intron-exon boundaries similar to those reported for the human CAR gene. We previously described two cDNAs encoding mCAR isoforms: the extracellular and transmembrane portions of both are encoded by exons 1-6; the cytoplasmic domain of mCAR 1 is encoded by exon 7, whereas mCAR 2 results from an RNA splice linking the proximal portion of exon 7 to an alternative exon 8.