Loss of dysbindin-1 in excitatory neurons in mice impacts NMDAR-dependent behaviors, neuronal morphology and synaptic transmission in the ventral hippocampus.

Dysbindin-1, a protein encoded by the schizophrenia susceptibility gene DTNBP1, is reduced in the hippocampus of schizophrenia patients. It is expressed in various cellular populations of the brain and implicated in dopaminergic and glutamatergic transmission. To investigate the impact of reduced dysbindin-1 in excitatory cells on hippocampal-associated behaviors and synaptic transmission, we developed a conditional knockout mouse model with deletion of dysbindin-1 gene in CaMKIIα expressing cells.

Temperature projections and heatwave attribution scenarios over India: A systematic review.

The average global temperature is rising due to anthropogenic emissions. Hence, a systematic approach was used to examine the projected impacts of rising global temperatures on heatwaves in India and provide insights into mitigation and adaptation strategies. With over 24,000 deaths attributed to heatwaves from 1992 to 2015, there is an urgent need to understand India's vulnerabilities and prepare adaptive strategies under various emission scenarios.

Recent advancements in nanomaterial based optical detection of food additives: a review.

Food additives have become a critical component in the food industry. They are employed as preservatives to decelerate the negative effects of environmental and microbial factors on food quality. Currently, food additives are used for a variety of purposes, including colorants, flavor enhancers, nutritional supplements, .

Very high particulate pollution over northwest India captured by a high-density in situ sensor network.

Exposure to particulate matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM) is a cause of concern in cities and major emission regions of northern India. An intensive field campaign involving the states of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi national capital region (NCR) was conducted in 2022 using 29 Compact and Useful PM Instrument with Gas sensors (CUPI-Gs).

Nanomaterial-based fluorescent biosensors for the detection of antibiotics in foodstuffs: A review.

Antibiotics are widely used as bacteriostatic or bactericidal agents against various microbial infections in humans and animals. The excessive use of antibiotics has led to an accumulation of their residues in food products, which ultimately poses a threat to human health. In light of the shortcomings of conventional methods for antibiotic detection (primarily cost, proficiency, and time-consuming procedures), the development of robust, accurate, on-site, and sensitive technologies for antibiotic detection in foodstuffs is important.

Application of machine learning approaches to predict the impact of ambient air pollution on outpatient visits for acute respiratory infections.

With a remarkable increase in industrialization among fast-developing countries, air pollution is rising at an alarming rate and has become a public health concern. The study aims to examine the effect of air pollution on patient's hospital visits for respiratory diseases, particularly Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI). Outpatient hospital visits, air pollution and meteorological parameters were collected from March 2018 to October 2021.

Development of carbon quantum dot-based lateral flow immunoassay for sensitive detection of aflatoxin M1 in milk.

Currently, there is a great demand for simple, sensitive, and accurate sensors for aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) in dairy products. In the present research, a novel fluorescent immunosensor based on nitrogen-doped carbon quantum dots (CQDs) has been developed for AFM1 analysis. The N-doped CQDs were synthesized through the hydrothermal approach using citric acid and polyethyleneimine as precursors.

Altered excitatory and decreased inhibitory transmission in the prefrontal cortex of male mice with early developmental disruption to the ventral hippocampus.

Ventral hippocampal (vHPC)-prefrontal cortical (PFC) pathway dysfunction is a core neuroimaging feature of schizophrenia. However, mechanisms underlying impaired connectivity within this pathway remain poorly understood. The vHPC has direct projections to the PFC that help shape its maturation.

Advances in MXenes-based optical biosensors: A review.

Over the last decade MXenes have become a hotspot of materials science as one of the newest 2-dimensional (2D) materials. Upon the recognition of their distinctive features (e.g.

UVC-based photoinactivation as an efficient tool to control the transmission of coronaviruses.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic made us re-realize the importance of environmental disinfection and sanitation in indoor areas, hospitals, and clinical rooms. UVC irradiation of high energy and short wavelengths, especially in the 200-290-nm range possesses the great potential for germicidal disinfection. These properties of UVC allow to damage or destruct the nucleic acids (DNA/RNA) in diverse microbes (e.

Recent advances in the applications of nano-agrochemicals for sustainable agricultural development.

Modern agricultural practices have triggered the process of agricultural pollution. This process can cause the degradation of eco-systems, land, and environment owing to the modern-day by-products of agriculture. The substantial use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and, contaminated water for irrigation cause further damage to agriculture.

Mice with dopaminergic neuron-specific deletion of DTNBP-1 gene show blunted nucleus accumbens dopamine release and associated behaviors.

Reduced expression of a schizophrenia-associated gene Dystrobrevin Binding Protein 1 (DTNBP1) and its protein product dysbindin-1, has been reported in the brains of schizophrenia patients. DTNBP1-null mutant Sdy (Sandy) mice exhibit several behavioral features relevant to schizophrenia. Changes in dopaminergic as well as glutamatergic and GABAergic neurotransmission in cortico-limbic regions have been reported in Sdy mice.

Nanomaterial-based fluorescent sensors for the detection of lead ions.

Lead (Pb) poisoning has been a scourge to the human to pose sighnificant health risks (e.g., organ disorders, carcinogenicity, and genotoxicity) as observed from many different parts of the world, especially in developing countries.

Advances in nanomaterial-based electrochemical biosensors for the detection of microbial toxins, pathogenic bacteria in food matrices.

There is a growing demand to protect food products against the hazard of microbes and their toxins. To satisfy such goals, it is important to develop highly sensitive, reliable, sophisticated, rapid, and cost-effective sensing techniques such as electrochemical sensors/biosensors. Although diverse forms of nanomaterials (NMs)-based electrochemical sensing methods have been introduced in markets, the reliability of commercial products is yet insufficient to meet the practical goal.

Recent progress in nanomaterial-based sensing of airborne viral and bacterial pathogens.

Airborne pathogens are small microbes that can cause a multitude of diseases (e.g., the common cold, flu, asthma, anthrax, tuberculosis, botulism, and pneumonia).

A review on mobile phones as bacterial reservoirs in healthcare environments and potential device decontamination approaches.

Mobile communication devices (MCDs), including cell phones and smart phones, have become an essential part of everyday life. Despite their frequent usage, most people, even healthcare personnel, often ignore the possibility that these devices might accumulate to carry a variety of microbial flora during and after the inspection of patients. The handling of MCDs with unwashed hands and/or their seldom cleaning can aggravate potential health risks.

Recent Advances in Monitoring, Sampling, and Sensing Techniques for Bioaerosols in the Atmosphere.

Bioaerosols in the form of microscopic airborne particles pose pervasive risks to humans and livestock. As either fully active components (e.g.

A graphene electrode functionalized with aminoterephthalic acid for impedimetric immunosensing of Escherichia coli.

A screen-printed electrode prepared from graphene oxide (GO) has been functionalized with 2-aminoterephthalic acid, followed by the exploitation of this functional material in an electrochemical immunoassay for Escherichia coli (E. coli) by immobilizing the antibody on its surface. The functionalization steps followed a straightforward approach and were proven by various instrumental techniques.

Nanomaterials as efficient platforms for sensing DNA.

The advent of modern biomedical science has led to various accomplishments such as the early detection of genetic disorders. To pursue further advancement in this field, the development of highly specific, sensitive, and economical probes for DNA may be an emerging imperative. Due to the diverse merits of nanomaterials (e.

Development of an advanced electrochemical biosensing platform for E. coli using hybrid metal-organic framework/polyaniline composite.

Because of numerous merits (e.g., the possibility of their synthesis in 1-D, 2-D, and 3-D forms, large surface-to-volume ratio, and flexible framework functionality), metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are envisaged as excellent media for the development of biosensors for diverse analytes present in environmental media.

Microglia in the developing prefrontal cortex of rats show dynamic changes following neonatal disconnection of the ventral hippocampus.

Impaired ventral hippocampal (VH)-prefrontal cortex (PFC) connectivity is implicated in many cognitive and behavioral disorders. Excitotoxic neonatal VH (nVH) lesion in rat pups has been shown to induce synaptic pruning in the PFC as well as behavioral changes of relevance to developmental neuropsychiatric disorders. In the current study, we hypothesized that microglia, immune cells required for proper brain development and plasticity, may play a role in the development of abnormal behaviors in the nVH-lesioned animals.

Role of Prefrontal Cortex Anti- and Pro-inflammatory Cytokines in the Development of Abnormal Behaviors Induced by Disconnection of the Ventral Hippocampus in Neonate Rats.

Neonatal disconnection of ventral hippocampus (VH) outputs in rats has been reported to lead to post-pubertal behavioral and synaptic changes of relevance to schizophrenia. Increased oxidative and inflammatory load in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) has been suggested to mediate some of the effects of neonatal VH lesion (NVHL). In this study, we hypothesized that developmental imbalance of anti- and pro-inflammatory factors within the PFC might affect synaptic development thus contributing to the adult NVHL-induced behavioral deficits.

A three-phase copper MOF-graphene-polyaniline composite for effective sensing of ammonia.

In this work, a three-phase composite material consisting of SiO-coated Cu-MOF, single layer graphene, and aniline was synthesized. In the presence of ammonium persulfate as an oxidant, the aniline component of this mixture was polymerized to polyaniline to bridge Cu-MOF and graphene in the composite. Hence, a new sensory material with a highly porous nature (MOF) and superior conduction properties (graphene/polyaniline) was constructed.

Bioactive nano-metal-organic frameworks as antimicrobials against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.

More effective antibiotics are needed to overcome the problem of multidrug resistance. The antibacterial efficacies of three Zn-based nano metal-organic frameworks (nMOFs) - IRMOF-3, MOF-5, and Zn-BTC - were explored, both alone and as mixtures with ampicillin and kanamycin. When tested against , , , and , the nMOF/drug mixtures demonstrated synergistic (IRMOF-3/kanamycin) or additive (other nMOF/drug combinations) effects compared with the nMOFs or antibiotics alone.