Green-synthesized silver nanoparticle-enhanced nanofiltration mixed matrix membranes for high-performance water purification.

This study presents the fabrication and characterization of mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) incorporating green-synthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using Hibiscus Rosa sinensis extract within a polyethersulfone (PES) matrix for nanofiltration (NF) application. The membranes were evaluated for their pure water permeability, salt rejection, dye removal, and antifouling performance. Results showed that the membrane with 0.

Cardiovascular disease prediction model based on patient behavior patterns in the context of deep learning: a time-series data analysis perspective.

To address the limitations of traditional cardiovascular disease prediction models in capturing dynamic changes and personalized differences in patients, we propose a novel LGAP model based on time-series data analysis. This model integrates Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks, Graph Neural Networks (GNN), and Multi-Head Attention mechanisms. By combining patients' time-series data (such as medical records, physical parameters, and activity data) with relationship graph data, the model effectively identifies patient behavior patterns and their interrelationships, thereby improving the accuracy and generalization of cardiovascular disease risk prediction.

Assessment of drinking water quality using Water Quality Index and synthetic pollution index in urban areas of mega city Lahore: a GIS-based approach.

The aim of the present study was to assess the drinking water quality in the selected urban areas of Lahore and to comprehend the public health status by addressing the basic drinking water quality parameters. Total 50 tap water samples were collected from groundwater in the two selected areas of district Lahore i.e.

Prematurely delivering mothers show reductions of lachnospiraceae in their gut microbiomes.

Background: Preterm birth is the leading cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Despite evidence shows that imbalances in the maternal microbiome associates to the risk of preterm birth, the mechanisms underlying the association between a perturbed microbiota and preterm birth remain poorly understood.

Method: Applying shotgun metagenomic analysis on 80 gut microbiotas of 43 mothers, we analyzed the taxonomic composition and metabolic function in gut microbial communities between preterm and term mothers.

MSM-ViT: A multi-scale MobileViT for pulmonary nodule classification using CT images.

Background: Accurate classification of benign and malignant pulmonary nodules using chest computed tomography (CT) images is important for early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. In terms of natural image classification, the ViT-based model has greater advantages in extracting global features than the traditional CNN model. However, due to the small image dataset and low image resolution, it is difficult to directly apply the ViT-based model to pulmonary nodule classification.

Enhanced Tribocatalytic Degradation of Organic Pollutants by ZnO Nanoparticles of High Crystallinity.

More and more metal oxide nanomaterials are being synthesized and investigated for degradation of organic pollutants through harvesting friction energy, yet the strategy to optimize their performance for this application has not been carefully explored up to date. In this work, three commercially available ZnO powders are selected and compared for tribocatalytic degradation of organic dyes, among which ZnO-1 and ZnO-2 are agglomerates of spherical nanoparticles around 20 nm, and ZnO-3 are particles of high crystallinity with a regular prismatic shape and smooth surfaces, ranging from 50 to 150 nm. Compared with ZnO-1 and ZnO-2, ZnO-3 exhibits a much higher tribocatalytic degradation performance, and a high degradation rate constant of 6.

Spatiotemporal variation of cultivated land ecosystem stability in typical regions of Lower Liaohe Plain China based on stress - buffer - response.

The stability of cultivated land ecosystem is crucial to the green and high-quality development of agriculture. Revealing its spatio-temporal differentiation is an important scientific issue to improve the resilience of cultivated land and ensure food security. In this paper, Shenyang, a typical region of Lower Liaohe Plain, is the study area.

Computed Tomography-Based Radiomic Analysis for Preoperatively Predicting the Macrovesicular Steatosis Grade in Cadaveric Donor Liver Transplantation.

This study is aimed at determining the ability of computed tomography- (CT-) based radiomic analysis to distinguish between grade 0/1 and grade 2/3 macrovesicular steatosis (MaS) in cadaveric donor liver transplantation cases. Preoperative noncontrast-enhanced CT images of 150 patients with biopsy-confirmed MaS were analyzed retrospectively; these patients were classified into the low-grade MaS ( = 100, grade 0 or 1) and high-grade MaS ( = 50, grade 2 or 3) groups. Three-dimensional spherical regions of interest of 40 pixel (2.

Low Birthweight as a Risk Factor for Non-communicable Diseases in Adults.

According to studies undertaken over the past 40 years, low birthweight (LBW) is not only a significant predictor of perinatal death and morbidity, but also increases the risk of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in adulthood. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the research on LBW as a risk factor for NCDs in adults. The Barker hypothesis was based on the finding that adults with an LBW or an unhealthy intrauterine environment, as well as a rapid catch-up, die due to NCDs.

A novel screening strategy of anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs via blocking interaction between Spike RBD and ACE2.

Corona virus disease 2019 has spread worldwide, and appropriate drug design and screening activities are required to overcome the associated pandemic. Using computational simulation, blockade mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor binding domain (S RBD) and human angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (hACE2) was clarified based on interactions between RBD and hesperidin. Interactions between anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs and therapy were investigated based on the binding energy and druggability of the compounds, and they exhibited negative correlations; the compounds were classified into eight common types of structures with highest activity.

Insight into Steam Permeation through Perovskite Membrane via Transient Modeling.

A dynamic model based on BaCeYO (BCY10) perovskite membrane for steam permeation process is presented here to essentially investigate the internal mechanism. The transient concentration distribution and flux of the charged species and the electric potential distribution within the membrane on the steam permeation process are analyzed in detail via simulation based on this model. The results indicate that the flux of steam can be improved via elevating operating temperatures, enlarging the difference of the partial steam pressure between two sides of the membrane, increasing the membrane density, and reducing the membrane thickness.

Acetal-linked polymeric prodrug micelles based on aliphatic polycarbonates for paclitaxel delivery: preparation, characterization, release and anti-proliferation effects.

Acidic tumor microenvironment has been extensively explored to design pH-responsive paclitaxel prodrug micelles for cancer therapy. The object of this study is to investigate the pH-responsive drug release behavior and the anti-proliferation capacity of acetal-linked paclitaxel polymeric prodrug micelles. The prodrug was synthesized and evaluated for paclitaxel content.

A binder free hierarchical mixed capacitive deionization electrode based on a polyoxometalate and polypyrrole for brackish water desalination.

Capacitive deionization technology is an efficient method for brackish water desalination, in which the pseudocapacitive material plays a vital role in determining the desalination performance of the electrode directly. Compared with a traditional double-layer capacitance deionization electrode, a mixed capacitive deionization electrode possesses obvious advantages, because it integrates pseudocapacitance and double-layer capacitance together. A brand-new mixed capacitive deionization electrode is fabricated by co-deposition of P2Mo18O626- and polypyrrole on a 3D exfoliated graphite matrix using an electrochemical technique.

An adaptive pulmonary nodule detection algorithm.

Recently, lung cancer has been paid more and more attention. People have reached a consensus that early detection and early treatment can improve the survival rate of patients. Among them, pulmonary nodules are the important reference for doctors to determine the lung health.

A Co-MOF-derived oxygen-vacancy-rich CoO-based composite as a cathode material for hybrid Zn batteries.

Through the integration of Zn-Co3O4 and Zn-air batteries at the cell level, a hybrid battery was assembled, which possessed a higher voltage and power density than a common Zn-air battery. In this hybrid battery, the cathode material is composed of oxygen-vacancy-rich Co3O4-x and N, S-co-doped carbon derived from a metal-organic framework; a Zn plate acts as the anode. With a current of 1 A g-1, the specific capacity of the cathode material achieves 144 mA h g-1.

Design of a Compliant Mechanism Based Four-Stage Amplification Piezoelectric-Driven Asymmetric Microgripper.

The existing symmetrical microgrippers have larger output displacements compared with the asymmetrical counterparts. However, the two jaws of a symmetrical microgripper are less unlikely to offer the same forces on the two sides of a grasped micro-object due to the manufacture and assembly errors. Therefore, this paper proposes a new asymmetric microgripper to obtain stable output force of the gripper.

Damage Detection of Asphalt Concrete Using Piezo-Ultrasonic Wave Technology.

Asphalt concrete has been widely used in road engineering as a surface material. Meanwhile, ultrasonic testing technology has also been developed rapidly. Aiming to evaluate the feasibility of the ultrasonic wave method, the present work reports a laboratory investigation on damage detection of asphalt concrete using piezo-ultrasonic wave technology.

A coordination polymer-derived CoO/Co-N@NMC composite material as a Zn-air battery cathode electrocatalyst and microwave absorber.

Zn-air batteries, promising energy storage equipment with high energy density, light weight and a compact structure, are a perfect power source for electric vehicles. For a Zn-air battery, the activity of the air cathode electrocatalyst plays an important role in its performance. Here, employing a coordination polymer as a precursor, a composite material built from Co3O4 and Co-N active centres with nitrogen-doped mesoporous carbon as a matrix has been synthesized successfully.

Investigation of Ageing in Bitumen Using Fluorescence Spectrum.

Bitumen ageing is a very complex process and poses a threat to the performance of pavements. In the present work, a fluorescence spectrophotometer was employed to research the change rule of components and the structure of bitumen after the ageing process. The Thin Film Oven Test (TFOT) and Ultraviolet (UV) light treatment were carried out as ageing methods.

A sulfur vacancy rich CdS based composite photocatalyst with g-CN as a matrix derived from a Cd-S cluster assembled supramolecular network for H production and VOC removal.

By calcination, a sulfur vacancy rich CdS based composite photocatalyst with graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) as a matrix has been synthesized successfully from a tetranuclear Cd-S cluster assembled supramolecular network. In this photocatalyst (CdS@g-CN), CdS nanoparticles with a size of about 5 to 8 nm disperse homogenously in the g-CN matrix. During calcination, some coordinated nitrogen atoms dope in the lattice of CdS and replace sulfur atoms, which generates a large number of sulfur vacancies.

Oxygen vacancy rich CuO based composite material with nitrogen doped carbon as matrix for photocatalytic H production and organic pollutant removal.

A nitrogen doped carbon matrix supported CuO composite material (Cu/Cu2O@NC) was fabricated successfully with a coordination polymer as precursor through calcination. In this composite material, CuO particles with a size of about 6-10 nm were dispersed evenly in the nitrogen doped carbon matrix. After calcination, some coordinated nitrogen atoms were doped in the lattice of CuO and replace oxygen atoms, thus generating a large number of oxygen vacancies.

Content-based image retrieval for Lung Nodule Classification Using Texture Features and Learned Distance Metric.

Similarity measurement of lung nodules is a critical component in content-based image retrieval (CBIR), which can be useful in differentiating between benign and malignant lung nodules on computer tomography (CT). This paper proposes a new two-step CBIR scheme (TSCBIR) for computer-aided diagnosis of lung nodules. Two similarity metrics, semantic relevance and visual similarity, are introduced to measure the similarity of different nodules.

A hybrid CNN feature model for pulmonary nodule malignancy risk differentiation.

The malignancy risk differentiation of pulmonary nodule is one of the most challenge tasks of computer-aided diagnosis (CADx). Most recently reported CADx methods or schemes based on texture and shape estimation have shown relatively satisfactory on differentiating the risk level of malignancy among the nodules detected in lung cancer screening. However, the existing CADx schemes tend to detect and analyze characteristics of pulmonary nodules from a statistical perspective according to local features only.