Publications by authors named "S Iftimie"

Nowadays, the development of devices based on organic materials is an interesting research challenge. The performance of such devices is strongly influenced by material selection, material properties, design, and the manufacturing process. Usually, buckminsterfullerene (C60) is employed as electron transport material in organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices due to its high mobility.

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Background: We scrutinized variations in the proton nuclear magnetic resonance (H NMR) lipoprotein and glycoprotein profiles among hospitalized individuals with infectious diseases.

Methods: We obtained sera from 124 patients with COVID-19, 50 patients with catheter-related bacterial infections, and 50 healthy volunteers. Results were interpreted using machine learning.

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This prospective observational study compared the 1H NMR blood lipidomes and metabolomes of 71 patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), 75 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, and 75 healthy controls (matched by age and sex) to identify potential biomarkers and pathways associated with respiratory infections. Both pneumonia groups had comparable severity indices, including mortality, invasive mechanical ventilation, and intensive care unit admission rates. Patients with COVID-19 pneumonia exhibited more pronounced hypolipidemia, with significantly lower levels of total cholesterol and LDL-c compared to patients with CAP.

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Acute respiratory tract infections, including influenza A (FluA), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection, and COVID-19, can aggravate to levels requiring hospitalization, increasing morbidity and mortality. Identifying biomarkers for an accurate diagnosis and prognosis of these infections is a clinical need. We performed a cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the changes in circulating levels of arachidonic acid, interleukin 6 (IL-6), and C-reactive protein (CRP) in patients with FluA, RSV, or COVID-19, and to analyze the potential of these parameters as diagnosis or prognosis biomarkers.

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A trendsetting direct competitive-based biosensing tool has been developed and implemented for the determination of the polyunsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid (ARA), a highly significant biological regulator with decisive roles in viral infections. The designed methodology involves a competitive reaction between the target endogenous ARA and a biotin-ARA competitor for the recognition sites of anti-ARA antibodies covalently attached to the surface of carboxylic acid-coated magnetic microbeads (HOOC-MµBs), followed by the enzymatic label of the biotin-ARA residues with streptavidin-horseradish peroxidase (Strep-HRP) conjugate. The resulting bioconjugates were magnetically trapped onto the sensing surface of disposable screen-printed carbon transducers (SPCEs) to monitor the extent of the biorecognition reaction through amperometry.

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