X-Ray Image-Based Real-Time COVID-19 Diagnosis Using Deep Neural Networks (CXR-DNNs).

On 11 February 2020, the prevalent outbreak of COVID-19, a coronavirus illness, was declared a global pandemic. Since then, nearly seven million people have died and over 765 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported. The goal of this study is to develop a diagnostic tool for detecting COVID-19 infections more efficiently.

Frequency of Acute Kidney Injury in Patients Admitted With Acute Stroke at Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar.

Background Patients hospitalized with acute stroke are at risk of developing acute kidney injury (AKI), and when both conditions occur together, patient outcomes are often worse. The relationship between stroke type, patient characteristics, and the development of AKI is not fully understood, particularly in tertiary care settings in Pakistan, where healthcare resources and patient characteristics may differ from Western populations. Objective To determine the frequency of AKI and identify associated risk factors, including stroke type, severity, and comorbidities, in patients presenting with acute stroke at a tertiary care center in Pakistan, the Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar.

Efficacy and Safety of Zolbetuximab in Gastric Cancer.

Gastric cancer remains a major global health concern with high incidence and mortality rates, particularly in East Asia. Patients often have poor outcomes due to limited treatment efficacy. Zolbetuximab, a monoclonal antibody targeting claudin 18.

Biophysical Characterization of a Novel Phosphopentomutase from the Hyperthermophilic Archaeon .

Phosphopentomutases catalyze the isomerization of ribose 1-phosphate and ribose 5-phosphate. , a hyperthermophilic archaeon, harbors a novel enzyme (PPM) that exhibits high homology with phosphohexomutases but has no significant phosphohexomutase activity. Instead, PPM catalyzes the interconversion of ribose 1-phosphate and ribose 5-phosphate.

Additive manufacturing of 3D flow-focusing millifluidics for the production of curable microdroplets.

Microfluidics plays a crucial role in the generation of mono-sized microdroplet emulsions. Traditional glass microfluidic chips typically lack versatility in generating curable droplets of arbitrary liquids due to the inherent hydrophilic nature of glass and to fabrication constraints. To overcome this, we designed a microdroplet generator with 3D flow-focusing capabilities that can be 3D-printed.

Mental illness detection through harvesting social media: a comprehensive literature review.

Mental illness is a common disease that at its extremes leads to personal and societal suffering. A complicated multi-factorial disease, mental illness is influenced by a number of socioeconomic and clinical factors, including individual risk factors. Traditionally, approaches relying on personal interviews and filling out questionnaires have been employed to diagnose mental illness; however, these manual procedures have been found to be frequently prone to errors and unable to reliably identify individuals with mental illness.

The Petri dish under the ice: permafrost pathogens and their impact on global healthcare and antibiotic resistance.

Background: A shallow active layer of soil above the permafrost thaws during the summer months which promotes microbial growth and releases previously confined pathogens which result in bacterial epidemics in circumpolar regions. Furthermore, these permafrost sources harbor several antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) which may disseminate and pose a challenge for pharmacologists worldwide.

Aims: The authors examined the potential association between climate change-induced permafrost thawing, and the resulting release of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, as well as the potential impact this can have on global healthcare systems in the long run.

A high sensitivity, low cost and fully decoupled multi-axis capacitive tactile force sensor for robotic surgical systems.

This paper presents the design of a multi-axis capacitive tactile force sensor with a fully decoupled output response for input normal and shear forces. A patterned elastomer is used as a dielectric layer between capacitive electrodes of the sensor that allows to achieve relatively higher sensitivity. The sensor is fabricated utilizing a low-cost rapid prototyping technique and is characterized for normal and shear forces in the range of 0 ~ 10 N and 0 ~ 3.

Cutting-Edge Developments in Metal Halide Perovskites Core/Shell Heterocrystals: from Photodetectors to Biomedical Applications.

In recent years, the performance of metal halide perovskite (MHP)-based detectors (photon, biomedical, and X-ray detection) has significantly improved, resulting in higher carrier mobilities, longer carrier diffusion lengths, and excellent absorption coefficients. However, the widespread adoption of halide perovskites has been hindered by issues related to their stability and toxicity. Various strategies have been adopted to address these challenges, focusing on enhancing ambient stability and reducing toxicity by encapsulating MHPs within stable and robust host materials, such as silicon compounds, metal oxides, chalcogenides, and lead-free perovskites.

Formulation development, characterization, and mechanistic PBPK modeling of metoclopramide loaded halloysite nanotube (HNT) based drug-in-adhesive type transdermal drug delivery system.

Metoclopramide is an antiemetic agent prescribed for motion sickness, cancer chemotherapy, and pregnancy. The present work aimed to design a metoclopramide-loaded halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) drug-in-adhesive transdermal drug delivery system. Four formulations F1, F2, and F3 with different ratios of HNTs to metoclopramide and a F4 without HNTs were developed using acrylic adhesive DURO-TAK 387-2510 by the solvent casting method.

Do the theories of planned behaviour and protection motivation provide probabilistic sufficient and necessary conditions for residential water conservation? Combined use of PLS-SEM and NCA.

Understanding the key determinants of residential water conservation is crucial for designing effective water demand management policies in arid and semiarid regions. While extant literature has frequently identified such determinants using statistical significance and correlations, there is a growing emphasis on understanding these determinants using probabilistic sufficiency and deterministic necessity logics. Integrating these two logics to test an integrated model of the Theories of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and Protection Motivation (PMT), this study identifies and differentiates the probabilistic sufficient and necessary conditions or "must have" factors that need to exist for residential water conservation intentions and behaviours to occur.

Association Between Body Mass Index (BMI), Vitamin D, and Testosterone Levels.

Introduction Obesity is measured scientifically by calculating body mass index (BMI). Body mass index in men is linked to various hormonal imbalances. This study aims to observe the relationships between BMI, vitamin D, and testosterone levels in patients attending the outpatient clinic at Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar, Pakistan.

A Comprehensive Analysis of Clinical Presentations, Laboratory Findings, and Etiologies of Pancytopenia: A Tertiary Care Experience.

Background Pancytopenia, while a common manifestation of a multitude of diseases, remains a relatively lesser-researched topic, especially in developing countries. Its management depends largely on identifying the etiology, which can range from simple infections to more sinister causes like leukemia. This study aims to investigate the clinical presentations, hematological findings, and etiologies of pancytopenia in a developing country.

Engineering of self-assembled silver-peptide colloidal nanohybrids with enhanced biocompatibility and antibacterial activity.

Several bacterial strains have developed resistance against commercial antibiotics, and interestingly, supramolecular nanomaterials have shown considerable advantages for antibacterial applications. However, the main challenges in adopting nanotechnology for antibacterial studies are random aggregation, compromised toxicity, multi-step preparation approaches, and unclear structure-function properties. Herein, we designed the amphiphilic tripeptide that acts as a reducing and capping agent for silver metal to form silver-peptide colloidal nanohybrids with the mild assistance of UV light (254 nm) through the photochemical reduction method.

Formulation of Microemulsion-Based Gels for Enhanced Topical Administration of Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs.

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are commonly administered orally to manage pain and inflammation, but they can have negative gastrointestinal side effects. Topical delivery is an alternative, and microemulsions (μEs) have been shown to be effective in facilitating, but they suffer from a liquid nature and low long-term retention on the skin. Hence, microemulsified gels (μEGs) have been developed, and in this study, we explored certain μEGs with diclofenac sodium (DF-Na) and naproxen sodium (NP-Na) with the hypothesis to ensure a slower and more sustained delivery of NSAIDs through the skin.

V-Shaped Heterostructure Nanocavities Array with CM and EM Coupled Enhancement for Ultra-Sensitive SERS Substrate.

The field of semiconductor surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrates has experienced significant advancements, leading to a wide range of applications in several fields. However, the quest for new ultra-sensitive semiconductor SERS materials is still of utmost importance. In this regard, an efficient and novel substrate, FTCNQ/MoS heterostructure is introduced, assisted by V-shaped aluminum anodic oxide (AAO) nanocavities with different depths.

Smart Vision Transparency: Efficient Ocular Disease Prediction Model Using Explainable Artificial Intelligence.

The early prediction of ocular disease is certainly an obligatory concern in the domain of ophthalmic medicine. Although modern scientific discoveries have shown the potential to treat eye diseases by using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, explainable AI remains a crucial challenge confronting this area of research. Although some traditional methods put in significant effort, they cannot accurately predict the proper ocular diseases.

Synthesis, Urease Inhibition, Molecular Docking, and Optical Analysis of a Symmetrical Schiff Base and Its Selected Metal Complexes.

Designing and developing small organic molecules for use as urease inhibitors is challenging due to the need for ecosystem sustainability and the requirement to prevent health risks related to the human stomach and urinary tract. Moreover, imaging analysis is widely utilized for tracking infections in intracellular and in vivo systems, which requires drug molecules with emissive potential, specifically in the low-energy region. This study comprises the synthesis of a Schiff base ligand and its selected transition metals to evaluate their UV/fluorescence properties, inhibitory activity against urease, and molecular docking.

2D-based electrode materials for supercapacitors - status, challenges, and prospects.

The pursuit of efficient and sustainable energy storage solutions has fueled significant interest in the development of advanced materials for supercapacitors. Among these, two-dimensional (2D) materials undoubtingly have emerged as promising candidates due to their unique structural and electrochemical properties. To address the inherent challenges such as restacking, limited ion-accessibility, limited scalability, stability under operational conditions, and the intricate balance between surface area and conductivity that hinder the practical application of 2D materials, this article delves into innovative approaches and emerging strategies and prospects that aim to enhance their performance and durability.