Mauricio Echiburu, Camilo Henriquez, Rodrigo Valdés
et al.
This study investigates the impact of educational comics as an active learning strategy in physics workshops for undergraduate students in Chemistry and Pharmacy and Biochemistry during the second semester of 2025. Conceptual understanding was assessed using the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), and student motivation and attitudes toward physics were evaluated through a Likert-type survey administered in pre- and post-test formats. The results show an average normalized gain of g = 0.21 on the FCI, corresponding to a low-to-medium range according to physics education research. A higher gain is observed in items directly related to the intervened content (g = 0.23) compared to non-intervened items (g = 0.19), suggesting that instructional design influences domain-specific conceptual development. At the motivational level, improvements are observed in student interest, self-efficacy, and perceived usefulness of physics, along with a reduction in negative emotional responses toward the subject. These findings indicate that educational comics can serve as an effective pedagogical scaffold, promoting positive learning dispositions and supporting targeted conceptual development in non-physics undergraduate contexts.
Objective: Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) can support effective asthma self-management interventions, improving patients’ quality of life while reducing costs for healthcare systems. This article aims to identify trends in app features relevant to the future development of reliable mHealth asthma support applications that can meet the challenges of the new century. Methods: The search of the PubMed database was performed during August–September 2025. The database was searched electronically using the following keywords: digital AND asthma AND apps. Thirty review articles and international studies were included. The studies encompassed the period from 2015 to September 2025. Only articles available in the English language were included. Results: All selected apps were compared across categories such as availability for unrestricted use, functionality and design, ease of use, and information management and medical accuracy. Features preferred by asthma and allergy patients were also reviewed, including guidance for emergency situations, asthma action plans, and notifications from clinics. Despite the wide variety of medical apps available, only a limited number have been tested in clinical environments, and few have been translated into languages other than English. Conclusion: mHealth apps have considerable potential for asthma self-management not only in adults but also in children, and they can improve quality of life and symptom control compared with conventional treatment methods. App design, maintenance, and update practices vary widely across apps and platforms. This article will assist in identifying apps that are most suitable for specific user groups and may help guide the future development of robust and easy-to-use mHealth apps for asthma management.
Sammar Fathy Elhabal, Mai S. Shoela, Fatma E. Hassan
et al.
<b>Background/Objectives</b>: Skin aging and wrinkle formation are primarily driven by ultraviolet (UV)-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. Resveratrol (RSV) and nicotinamide (NCT) possess potent anti-aging properties but suffer from poor skin penetration. This study aimed to develop an advanced transdermal delivery system incorporating RSV/NCT-loaded cerosomes within poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) microneedles to enhance skin permeation and anti-aging performance. <b>Methods</b>: RSV/NCT-loaded cerosomes were formulated using thin-film hydration of phosphatidylcholine, ceramides (III, IIIB, and VI), and poloxamer surfactants, subsequently optimized via a D-optimal mixture design. PLGA microneedles with optimized cerosomes were tested for their mechanical strength, penetration, drug loading, and release. Ex vivo permeation and in vivo evaluations were performed using a UVA-induced skin wrinkling model. <b>Results</b>: Optimized cerosomes exhibited high entrapment efficiency for RSV and NCT (91 ± 0.56% and 85 ± 0.56%, respectively), nanoscale size (195 ± 0.78 nm), low polydispersity (0.23 ± 0.01), and a negative zeta potential (−22 ± 0.45 mV). PLGA microneedles exhibited sufficient mechanical integrity and effective penetrability through Parafilm<sup>®</sup> layers. Microneedle-loaded cerosomes enabled sustained drug release (approximately 65–70% over 48 h) and enhanced ex vivo permeation, approximately for NCT and RSV (1450 μg/cm<sup>2</sup> and 1000 μg/cm<sup>2</sup>, respectively). In vivo investigations revealed improved skin appearance, restoration of epidermal thickness and collagen architecture, reduced levels of inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, NLRP3), reduced oxidative stress biomarkers (GSH, GPx, MDA, SOD), and genetic upregulation of VEGF, TGF-β1, and β-Catenin. <b>Conclusions</b>: The RSV/NCT cerosome-encapsulated PLGA microneedle system offers a promising, minimally invasive approach with superior transdermal delivery, sustained efficacy, and significant anti-aging benefits.
Accurate and reliable spatial and motion information plays a pivotal role in autonomous driving systems. However, object-level perception models struggle with handling open scenario categories and lack precise intrinsic geometry. On the other hand, occupancy-based class-agnostic methods excel in representing scenes but fail to ensure physics consistency and ignore the importance of interactions between traffic participants, hindering the model's ability to learn accurate and reliable motion. In this paper, we introduce a novel occupancy-instance modeling framework for class-agnostic motion prediction tasks, named LEGO-Motion, which incorporates instance features into Bird's Eye View (BEV) space. Our model comprises (1) a BEV encoder, (2) an Interaction-Augmented Instance Encoder, and (3) an Instance-Enhanced BEV Encoder, improving both interaction relationships and physics consistency within the model, thereby ensuring a more accurate and robust understanding of the environment. Extensive experiments on the nuScenes dataset demonstrate that our method achieves state-of-the-art performance, outperforming existing approaches. Furthermore, the effectiveness of our framework is validated on the advanced FMCW LiDAR benchmark, showcasing its practical applicability and generalization capabilities. The code will be made publicly available to facilitate further research.
Potential energy curves and matrix elements of radial non-adiabatic couplings of 2Σ+ and 2Π states of the NeH molecule are calculated using the electronic structure package MOLPRO, in view of the study of the reactive collisions between low-energy electrons and NeH+.
Christopher J. R. Clark, Julia. C. Roman-Duval, Suzanne C. Madden Marc Mertens
et al.
Carbon plays key roles in the InterStellar Medium (ISM) -- as a constituent of dust, as the carrier of the dominant far-infrared cooling line, and as a component of various important molecules. But despite this, there are very few measurements of the abundance and depletion of carbon in the diffuse ISM. As with other elements, these measurements are traditionally performed in the ultraviolet. But for carbon, such measurements are extremely difficult, and less than 20 have been reported in the literature to date. Here, we present a novel method of measuring the abundance and depletion of carbon in the diffuse ISM: by observing absorption of the 158 $μ$m [CII] line in the far-infrared. We present a catalog of 432 candidate sightlines that use bright nearby galaxies as background sources, and predict the [CII] absorption expected towards each. We conducted a pilot study using SOFIA, targeting sightlines towards the galaxies IC342 and Circinus. We report a potential detection of Galactic [CII] absorption along the IC342 sightline, although it requires disentangling [CII] emission from IC342 itself. The Circinus sightline had an insufficiently stable instrumental baseline to allow a detection. This SOFIA study informs the prospects for [CII] absorption measurements with future facilities. To that end, we explore the potential for four proposed future FIR telescopes -- PRIMA, FIRSST, SALTUS, and Origins -- to detect [CII] absorption. We find that all four facilities would be able to detect [CII] absorption along a significant number of sightlines.
Achal D. Warhade, Akash More, Namrata Anjankar
et al.
This case study reviews the use of Lymphocyte Immunotherapy (LIT) in a 28-year-old female patient who had a history of recurrent first-trimester miscarriages and failed intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. She had good ovarian reserve, normal semen analysis, and negative autoimmune tests but experienced four early miscarriages, which suggested an immune-mediated issue. LIT was chosen as a treatment option to address the possibility of immune system dysregulation contributing to pregnancy loss. LIT is the process of infusing the husband’s lymphocytes to promote maternal tolerance of paternal antigens, reducing the possibility of immune foetal rejection. A received LIT was performed six weeks prior to a fresh ICSI cycle, with successful fertilization and transfer of embryos. There is evidence that positive outcomes occurred in serial ultrasounds and hormone levels at 6, 8, and 12 weeks with subsequent birth at term of a healthy baby. This case points to the possibility of using LIT as a therapeutic intervention in the treatment of unexplained recurrent miscarriage in patients who had previously failed previous assisted reproductive treatments. While the mechanism of action for LIT remains unknown, it would seem to somehow modulate the immune responses so that pregnancy results in better outcomes. This case may thus provide new evidence for LIT as a possible management strategy for those with immune causes of recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) but warrants additional studies to optimize its use and effectivity.
Guilherme Lamartine de Mello, Marcelo Finger, and Felipe Serras
et al.
In this paper we present PeLLE, a family of large language models based on the RoBERTa architecture, for Brazilian Portuguese, trained on curated, open data from the Carolina corpus. Aiming at reproducible results, we describe details of the pretraining of the models. We also evaluate PeLLE models against a set of existing multilingual and PT-BR refined pretrained Transformer-based LLM encoders, contrasting performance of large versus smaller-but-curated pretrained models in several downstream tasks. We conclude that several tasks perform better with larger models, but some tasks benefit from smaller-but-curated data in its pretraining.
Krzysztof Nosek, Milena Samiec, Hubert Ziółkowski
et al.
<b>Background:</b> Renal replacement therapy (RRT), widely used in the treatment of renal injury during sepsis, aims to eliminate the toxins and proinflammatory cytokines involved in the pathomechanism underlying septic shock. Dialysis filters are characterized by a high adsorption potential for cytokines in RRT in the case of septic renal injury. For the treatment of sepsis with antibiotics, it is of key importance to achieve the desired values of PK/PD indices. Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) may affect antimicrobial clearance, increasing their elimination in some cases. <b>Methods:</b> The aim of this study was to determine the degree of adsorption for linezolid on three different types of filters used in CRRT. In our in vitro study, a continuous veno-venous hemofiltration (CVVH) was conducted using three types of filters: polysulfone (PS), polyethyleneimine-treated polyacrylonitrile (PAN PEI), and non-PEI-treated polyacrylonitrile (PAN). Each type of filter was used in three CVVH cycles, involving the use of 600 mg of linezolid dissolved in 700 mL of bovine blood or in 700 mL of 0.9% NaCl. In each case, the total volume of the obtained solution was 1000 mL. Blood samples were collected at particular time points to measure their drug concentration. The differences in mean drug/NaCl adsorption and drug/blood adsorption were determined using a one-way ANOVA with multiple comparisons via Tukey’s post hoc test; a <i>p</i>-value of <0.05 was considered significant. <b>Results</b>: A significant adsorption of linezolid was found for PAN PEI filters, both in samples obtained from bovine blood and 0.9% NaCl solutions, at the endpoint. In PAN PEI samples, the concentration of linezolid in 0.9% NaCl solutions decreased from 594.74 μg/mL to 310.66 μg/mL after 120 min (the difference was established at 52%). In blood samples, the initial concentration was 495.18 μg/mL, which then decreased to 359.84 μg/mL (73% of the beginning value). No significant adsorption was demonstrated on PAN or PS filters. <b>Conclusion:</b> There is a need for in vivo research to confirm the effect of filter type on linezolid concentration in patients undergoing CRRT.
Rakesh K. Jha, Meghali Kaple, Ranjit S. Ambad
et al.
Background:
Sickle cell disease (SCD), thalassemia, and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency are significant genetic disorders prevalent in Central India, particularly among tribal populations. Early detection through the neonatal screening can improve health outcomes.
Aim and Objective:
This study aims to assess the prevalence of SCD, thalassemia, and G6PD deficiency in a cohort of newborns from tribal regions in Central India and to evaluate the effectiveness of neonatal screening programs.
Materials and Methods:
A total of 382 newborns were screened using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for hemoglobinopathies and a colorimetric method for G6PD deficiency. Data on demographics and family history were collected and analyzed.
Results:
The screening revealed 22 cases of SCD (5.8%), 37 cases of thalassemia (9.7%), and 29 cases of G6PD deficiency (7.6%). A significant correlation was found between family history and the prevalence of these disorders.
Conclusion:
The findings highlight the need for comprehensive neonatal screening programs in tribal populations to enhance early detection and management of genetic disorders.
Sivanan Sivasinprasasn, Jiraporn Tocharus, Sugunya Mahatheeranont
et al.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder in the aging population. An accumulation of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles causes degeneration of neurons, leading to neuronal cell death. The anthocyanin-rich fraction of black rice (<i>Oryza sativa</i> L. variety “Luem Pua”) bran (AFBRB), extracted using a solution of ethanol and water and fractionated using Amberlite XAD7HP column chromatography, contains a high anthocyanin content (585 mg of cyanidin-3-<i>O</i>-glucoside and 24 mg of peonidin-3-<i>O</i>-glucoside per gram of the rich extract), which has been found to reduce neurodegeneration. This study focused on the neuroprotective effects of AFBRB in Aβ<sub>25–35</sub>-induced toxicity in the human neuroblastoma cell line (SK-N-SH). SK-N-SH was exposed to Aβ<sub>25–35</sub> (10 µM) to induce an AD cell model in vitro. Pretreatment with AFBRB (0.1, 1, or 10 µg/mL) or C3G (20 µM) was conducted for 2 h prior to the treatment with Aβ<sub>25–35</sub> (10 µM) for an additional 24 h. The results indicate that AFBRB can protect against the cytotoxic effect of Aβ<sub>25–35</sub> through attenuation of intracellular ROS production, downregulation of the expression of the proteins Bax, cytochrome c, cleaved caspase-9, and cleaved caspase-3, upregulation of the expression of Bcl-2 in the mitochondrial death pathway, and reduction in the expression of the three major markers of ER stress pathways in similar ways. Interestingly, we found that pretreatment with AFBRB significantly alleviated Aβ-induced oxidative stress, ER stress, and apoptosis in SK-N-SH cells. This suggests that AFBRB might be a potential therapeutic agent in preventing neurodegenerative diseases.
Mohammad Khursheed Alam, Mashael Zaid Alfuhigi, Mohammad Younis Hajeer
et al.
Background:
Orthodontic treatment involves the use of various materials, including brackets and wires, which come into direct contact with oral tissues. Biocompatibility of these materials is crucial to ensure patient safety and treatment success. This study aims to evaluate the biocompatibility of orthodontic brackets and wires through an in-vitro investigation.
Materials and Methods:
Orthodontic brackets and wires commonly used in clinical practice were selected for this study. A series of in-vitro tests were conducted to assess the biocompatibility of these materials. Cell culture assays were performed to evaluate cytotoxicity, cell proliferation, and inflammatory response. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the surface characteristics of the materials.
Results:
The cytotoxicity assays revealed minimal adverse effects on cell viability, with cell viability percentages ranging from 90% to 95% for all materials tested. Cell proliferation assays demonstrated similar rates of cell growth on the surfaces of both brackets and wires. SEM analysis indicated smooth surfaces with minimal irregularities, suggesting favorable biocompatibility.
Conclusion:
The findings of this in-vitro study suggest that the orthodontic brackets and wires examined exhibit satisfactory biocompatibility characteristics. Minimal cytotoxicity and favorable cell proliferation indicate that these materials are well suited for use in orthodontic treatment. Further clinical studies are warranted to validate these findings and ensure the safety and efficacy of orthodontic appliances in patient care.
The development of modern Japanese materia medica began with the passing of the Book Compendium of Materia Medica to Japan. With the spread and popularity of compendium of Materia Medica and the influence of Confucian thoughts such as “learning from things to know”, Beiyuan Yixuan, a Confucianist, herbalist and naturalist, has become Japan’s first original materia medica natural history work - Daiwa materia medica. Among them, there are 772 kinds collected from compendium of Materia Medica, except for the parts not owned by Japan, 203 kinds collected from other bibliographies, 358 kinds produced in Japan and 29 kinds imported from the Netherlands. A total of 1362 varieties were collected. This paper intends to analyze the origin relationship between compendium of Materia Medica and Da he materia medica. The investigation of Da he materia medica has important reference value for exploring the influence of compendium of Materia Medica on its eastward transmission to Japan and re examining the significance of the translation, introduction and dissemination of traditional Chinese medicine culture with traditional Chinese Medicine Classics as the carrier abroad.
Celastrol, an active triterpenoid extracted from one of the most famous traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), <i>Tripterygium wilfordii</i> Hook.f., is a novel anti-cancer drug with significant anti-angiogenesis activity. However, the exact molecular mechanisms underlying its anti-tumor angiogenesis effect remain unclear. The process of angiogenesis needs lots of energy supply, which mostly derives from mitochondria, the “energy factory” in our body. This study shows that celastrol exerts visible suppression on tumor growth and angiogenesis in a cell-derived xenograft (CDX). Likewise, it reduced the tube formation and migration of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), suppressed the energy metabolism of mitochondria in the Seahorse XF Mito Stress Test, and triggered mitochondrial fragmentation and NF-κB activation. Mechanically, celastrol downregulated the expression of mitochondrial-sharping protein optic atrophy protein 1 (OPA1), which was further estimated by the OPA1 knockdown model of HUVECs. Specifically, celastrol directly suppressed OPA1 at the mRNA level by inhibiting the phosphorylation of STAT3, and stattic (STAT3 inhibitor) showed the same effects on OPA1 suppression and anti-angiogenesis activity. Overall, this study indicates that celastrol inhibits tumor angiogenesis by suppressing mitochondrial function and morphology via the STAT3/OPA1/P65 pathway and provides new insight for mitochondrion-targeted cancer therapy.
Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the leading causes of death by World Health Organization in 2019 and is considered a significant cause of other diseases including heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, blindness, and lower limb amputation. Sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) is a protein that reabsorbs around 90% of glucose from plasma glucose. SGLT2 is a recognised target for the treatment and management of diabetes. SGLT2 inhibitors (SGLT2-I) have entered in the market for managing glucose levels in diabetes. There are six SGLT proteins in the human body varying in their preference for sugar binding. The therapeutic approach focuses on the SGLT2 located in the intestine and early proximal tubule of the nephron that facilitates glucose reabsorption by approximately 90%. The expression of SGLT2, and tubular glucose load increases in the diabetic condition and hence the glucose reabsorption leads to hyperglycemia. SGLT2-I functions by inhibiting the reabsorption of glucose from renal tubule and enhancing the glucose excretion via urine. Discovery and development of selective SGLT2-I have a great potential for the treatment and maintenance of diabetes mellitus. This review provides an understanding of medicinal chemistry approaches toward the discovery of novel SGLT2-I over a decade. Compiled studies will help to describe the safety, efficacy, and benefits of various SGLT2-I in the management of blood glucose in diabetic patients.
Pharmacy and materia medica, Other systems of medicine
Afsaneh Yegdaneh, Leila Safaeian*, Mahnaz Halvaei-Varnousfaderani
et al.
Background and objectives: Recent data propose the beneficial antihyperlipidemic effects of several marine brown alga belonging to the genus Sargassum. In the current study, the effects of ethanol fraction of Sargassum angustifolium were assessed on dexamethasone-induced dyslipidemia in rats. Methods: The fraction was prepared by maceration method and then using a reverse phase column chromatography. It was evaluated for total phenolic and salt contents. Seven groups of six male rats were used as the following: group 1 (normal control) received vehicle for 1 week; group 2 (Sargassum control) was treated only with 80 mg/kg S. angustifolium for one week; group 3 (dyslipidemic control) received dexamethasone (10 mg/kg/day, subcutaneously) for one week; groups 4-6 (test groups) received dexamethasone and were simultaneously treated orally with 20, 40 or 80 mg/kg S. angustifolium and group 7 (reference) received dexamethasone and atorvastatin (40 mg/kg, orally) for one week. At the end of experiment, fasting blood glucose, lipid markers and malondialdehyde levels were evaluated in serum specimens. Livers were weighed and processed for histopathological inspection. Results: The content of total phenolics was 87.21 ± 2.4 mg/g as gallic acid equivalent and salt as NaCl was 6.5 g/100 g. Treatment with S. angustifolium significantly decreased serum blood sugar, triglycerides, total cholesterol, low‑density lipoprotein-cholesterol and malondialdehyde levels and also alleviated steatotic changes in liver tissues compared to the dexamethasone-induced dyslipidemic control group. Conclusion: Findings of the current study revealed anti-hyperglycemic, hypolipidemic and anti-lipid proxidative properties of S. angustifolium ethanol fraction in an animal model of dyslipidemia.
Andrea Bacci, Francesca Corsi, Massimiliano Runfola
et al.
Overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and alterations in metallostasis are common and related hallmarks in several neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). Nature-based derivatives always represent an attractive tool in MTDL drug design, especially against ROS in NDDs. On this notion, we designed a new series of 8-quinoline-N-substituted derivatives with a natural antioxidant portion (i.e., lipoic, caffeic, and ferulic acids). These compounds were shown to chelate copper, a metal involved in ROS-induced degeneration, and scavenger oxygen radicals in DPPH assay. Then, selected compounds <b>4</b> and <b>5</b> were evaluated in an in vitro model of oxidative stress and shown to possess cytoprotective effects in 661W photoreceptor-like cells. The obtained results may represent a starting point for the application of the proposed class of compounds in retinal neurodegenerative diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP), comprising a group of hereditary rod–cone dystrophies that represent a major cause of blindness in patients of working age, where the progression of the disease is a multifactorial event, with oxidative stress contributing predominantly.
Fernando Chierchie, Guillermo Fernandez Moroni, Leandro Stefanazzi
et al.
Image sensors with nondestructive charge readout provide single-photon or single-electron sensitivity, but at the cost of long readout times. We present a smart readout technique to allow the use of these sensors in visible-light and other applications that require faster readout times. The method optimizes the readout noise and time by changing the number of times pixels are read out either statically, by defining an arbitrary number of regions of interest (ROI) in the array, or dynamically, depending on the charge or energy of interest (EOI) in the pixel. This technique is tested in a Skipper CCD showing that it is possible to obtain deep sub-electron noise, and therefore, high resolution of quantized charge, while dynamically changing the readout noise of the sensor. These faster, low noise readout techniques show that the skipper CCD is a competitive technology even where other technologies such as Electron Multiplier Charge Coupled Devices (EMCCD), silicon photo multipliers, etc. are currently used. This technique could allow skipper CCDs to benefit new astronomical instruments, quantum imaging, exoplanet search and study, and quantum metrology.
Dynamical systems with binary-valued observations are widely used in information industry, technology of biological pharmacy and other fields. Though there have been much efforts devoted to the identification of such systems, most of the previous investigations are based on first-order gradient algorithm which usually has much slower convergence rate than the Quasi-Newton algorithm. Moreover, persistence of excitation(PE) conditions are usually required to guarantee consistent parameter estimates in the existing literature, which are hard to be verified or guaranteed for feedback control systems. In this paper, we propose an online projected Quasi-Newton type algorithm for parameter estimation of stochastic regression models with binary-valued observations and varying thresholds. By using both the stochastic Lyapunov function and martingale estimation methods, we establish the strong consistency of the estimation algorithm and provide the convergence rate, under a signal condition which is considerably weaker than the traditional PE condition and coincides with the weakest possible excitation known for the classical least square algorithm of stochastic regression models. Convergence of adaptive predictors and their applications in adaptive control are also discussed.