Dielectric and magnetic behavior of BaCd2−xSrxFe16O27 W-type hexagonal ferrites

We have prepared BaCd_2−xSr_xFe₁₆O₂₇ (x = 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2.0) W-type hexagonal ferrites by standard ceramic method. In this work, the structural, dielectric and magnetic properties have been studied of the prepared samples. The XRD analysis of the samples reveals single phase behavior sintered at 1400 °C for 6 h. The saturation magnetization (M_s) shows increasing behavior with the increasing concentration of Sr²⁺. While the coercivity (H_c) decreases rapidly up to 409 G for x = 1.5 and then increases for (x > 1.5) due to the preference of Cd²⁺ for tetrahedral sites and the number of spin-down magnetic ions. The real and imaginary parts of the dielectric constant (?′,?″) and dielectric loss tangent (tan δ) are determined in the frequency range 0.1-10⁷ Hz. It is observed that both the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric constant and tan δ decrease with the increasing concentration of Sr²⁺, which is due to the contribution of Cd²⁺ ions in addition to Fe³⁺ and Fe²⁺ ions to interfacial polarization.     

Identification of a Small‐Molecule Inhibitor of HIV‐1 Assembly that Targets the Phosphatidylinositol (4,5)‐bisphosphate Binding Site of the HIV‐1 Matrix Protein

The development of drug resistance remains a critical problem for current HIV‐1 antiviral therapies, creating a need for new inhibitors of HIV‐1 replication. We previously reported on a novel anti‐HIV‐1 compound, N²‐(phenoxyacetyl)‐N‐[4‐(1‐piperidinylcarbonyl)benzyl]glycinamide ( 14 ), that binds to the highly conserved phosphatidylinositol (4,5)‐bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P₂) binding pocket of the HIV‐1 matrix (MA) protein. In this study, we re‐evaluate the hits from the virtual screen used to identify compound 14 and test them directly in an HIV‐1 replication assay using primary human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. This study resulted in the identification of three new compounds with antiviral activity; 2‐(4‐{[3‐(4‐fluorophenyl)‐1,2,4‐oxadiazol‐5‐yl]methyl})‐1‐piperazinyl)‐N‐(4‐methylphenyl)acetamide ( 7 ), 3‐(2‐ethoxyphenyl)‐5‐[[4‐(4‐nitrophenyl)piperazin‐1‐yl]methyl]‐1,2,4‐oxadiazole ( 17 ), and N‐[4‐ethoxy‐3‐(1‐piperidinylsulfonyl)phenyl]‐2‐(imidazo[2,1‐b][1,3]thiazol‐6‐yl)acetamide ( 18 ), with compound 7 being the most potent of these hits. Mechanistic studies on 7 demonstrated that it directly interacts with and functions through HIV‐1 MA. In accordance with our drug target, compound 7 competes with PI(4,5)P₂ for MA binding and, as a result, diminishes the production of new virus. Mutation of residues within the PI(4,5)P₂ binding site of MA decreased the antiviral effect of compound 7 . Additionally, compound 7 displays a broadly neutralizing anti‐HIV activity, with IC₅₀ values of 7.5–15.6 μM for the group M isolates tested. Taken together, these results point towards a novel chemical probe that can be used to more closely study the biological role of MA and could, through further optimization, lead to a new class of anti‐HIV‐1 therapeutics.     

Theranostic Interpolation of Genomic Instability in Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is a diverse disease caused by mutations in multiple genes accompanying epigenetic aberrations of hazardous genes and protein pathways, which distress tumor-suppressor genes and the expression of oncogenes. Alteration in any of the several physiological mechanisms such as cell cycle checkpoints, DNA repair machinery, mitotic checkpoints, and telomere maintenance results in genomic instability. Theranostic has the potential to foretell and estimate therapy response, contributing a valuable opportunity to modify the ongoing treatments and has developed new treatment strategies in a personalized manner. “Omics” technologies play a key role while studying genomic instability in breast cancer, and broadly include various aspects of proteomics, genomics, metabolomics, and tumor grading. Certain computational techniques have been designed to facilitate the early diagnosis of cancer and predict disease-specific therapies, which can produce many effective results. Several diverse tools are used to investigate genomic instability and underlying mechanisms. The current review aimed to explore the genomic landscape, tumor heterogeneity, and possible mechanisms of genomic instability involved in initiating breast cancer. We also discuss the implications of computational biology regarding mutational and pathway analyses, identification of prognostic markers, and the development of strategies for precision medicine. We also review different technologies required for the investigation of genomic instability in breast cancer cells, including recent therapeutic and preventive advances in breast cancer.     

Investigation of improved dielectric and thermal properties of ternary nanocomposite PMMA/MXene/ZnO fabricated by in-situ bulk polymerization

Electric power system applications demand for high-temperature dielectric materials. The improved performance of polymer nanocomposites requires improvement in their thermal conductivity & stability, dielectric stability and processing technique. However, they often lose their dielectric properties with a rise in temperature. Here, we offer a solution by incorporating electrically conducting material (MXene) and semiconducting inorganic nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) into an insulating PMMA polymer matrix to maintain high dielectric constant, both at the room and high temperature. Therefore, to achieve desirable thermal and dielectric properties is the main objective of the present study based on the homogeneous distribution of the nanofillers by in-situ bulk polymerization assisted by strong sonication in the corresponding polymer. The introduction of MXene and ZnO NPs into the PMMA not only acquires a substantial increment in the dielectric constant, to attain a value 437, with minimum energy loss of 0.36 at 25 Hz, but also improves the thermal conductivity of PMMA up to 14 times by causing the reduction of thermal resistance, which is actually responsible for the poor thermal conductivity of amorphous pure PMMA polymer. More importantly, hybrid PMMA/4:2 wt% MXene:ZnO nanocomposite leads to an excellent thermal stability. Moreover, further characterization of the synthesized nanocomposites by FTIR, SEM and XRD leads to the evaluation of strong interaction of ternary components with PMMA matrix.     

Magnetron sputtered Dy_2O_3 with chromium and copper contents for antireflective thin films with enhanced absorption

Dy_2O_3 is a rare earth oxide having a number of advanced applications in various fields including protective or antireflective coatings, Main objective of this novel research work is to check the effect of Cr and Cu addition on different properties of Dy_2O_3 and achievement of antireflective thin films with enhanced abso rption. Thin films of these materials we re deposited using DC magnetron with reactive cosputtering. XRD studies reveals the crystalline nature of thin films having Dy_2O_3(222) reflection in all samples with Cr_2O_3(116) and CuO(111) reflections in Cr and Cu containing compositions. Field emission scanning electron microscopy demonstrates the homogeneous deposition of thin films with uniform shape, size and distribution of grains. Refractive index, extinction coefficient and absorption coefficient significantly increase while optical reflectance decreases with Cr and Cu mediation corroborating an improved antireflective mechanism. The imaginary part of dielectric constant is found to increase slightly with low tangent loss for Cr containing composition co nsidered favorable for energy storage applications.     

Oxidation stability and compositional characteristics of oils from microwave roasted pumpkin seeds during thermal oxidation

The oxidative stability and compositional characteristics of the pumpkin seed oil (PSO) exposed to microwaves were studied during heating at 170°C. The oxidative indices such as free fatty acid (FFA), peroxide value (PV), p-anisidine value (p-AV), TOTOX, specific extinctions and thiobarbituric acid (TBA) value of oils were significantly increased, and the increments were found to be significantly higher (P < 0.05) in unroasted seed oil as compared to roasted seed oil. The relative contents of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were decreased to 84.7%, and saturated fatty acids (SFAs) were increased to 119.5% in unroasted sample, after 9 h of heating. On the other hand, in 12 min roasted samples, the relative contents of PUFAs were decreased to 97.0%, and SFAs were increased to 102.6% after 9 h of heating. The triacylglycerol species LLL and OLL levels were decreased as a consequence of increased heating time, and the reduction tended to be significantly higher in unroasted samples as compared to roasted ones. The oxidation products formed were also investigated by FTIR. The present results indicated that microwave roasting of pumpkin seeds markedly enhanced the oxidative stability of the oils during heating.     

Shape memory polyester-based nanomaterials: cutting-edge advancements

ABSTRACT

Shape memory polymers have gained immense importance across technical industries ranging from aerospace and electronics to biomedical fields. This article presents state-of-the-art overview of versatile shape memory polyesters and derived nanocomposites. Shape memory polyesters such as polylactic acid, polyhydroxyalkanoate, polycarbonate, and polyester blends have been identified. Shape memory polyesters have also been reinforced with nanoreinforcements including fullerene, graphene, carbon nanotube, and polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS). Consequently, different groups of stimuli-responsive polyester nanocomposites have been discussed such as polyester/graphene, polyester/carbon nanotube, polyester/fullerene, and polyester/POSS. Future development of shape memory polyesters may reveal superior electrical, mechanical, and thermal performance for technical applications.     

Emulsion polymer derived nanocomposite: a review on design and tailored attributes

ABSTRACT

Recently, fabrication of polymeric nanocomposite via emulsion polymerization process has become a research spotlight. This review highlights the capability of emulsion polymerization technique to produce polymeric nanocomposite with tailored nanostructures, advanced properties, and high performance. Initially, overview on emulsion polymerization is presented. Afterward, advances in nanocomposites through the use of nanoparticles in emulsion polymerization have been elaborated. Main focus is given on the influence of graphene, carbon nanotube, carbon black, nanoclay, and inorganic nanoparticles on the essential features of emulsion polymerized nanocomposite. These materials have wide-ranging applications in coatings, adhesives, foaming/anti-foaming agents, packaging, paper/textiles, construction, and drug delivery fields.     

Environment-Friendly Synergistic Abiotic Stress for Enhancing the Yield of Lipids from Oleaginous Yeasts

The microbial lipids isolated from oleaginous yeasts are a potential alternative to tree borne oils. There is a need to optimize and enhance the production of lipid by various stress approaches. In the present study, yeasts are subjected to physico-chemical stresses, and growth, as well as lipid concentration at different time intervals are monitored. It is found that the nanoparticles (NP) such as Ag-NP and Zn-NP have an inhibitory effect on yeast growth. Most yeast strains show an increase in growth and lipid accumulation when ionic liquid (1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate) ([EMIM][OAc]) and table salt (NaCl) stress are applied. Lipid is chemically characterized using gas chromatography furnished with flame ionization detector (GC-FID), GC/MS, and NMR techniques. It contains a higher percentage of saturated fatty acids (SFA: 74.3%), monounsaturated fatty acids (19.1%) with low amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids (1.9%). The thermo-stability study reveals that the lipid have higher volatility (380–410 °C) as closely compared with coconut oil, and much lower with respect to the winged bean oil (430–470 °C). The melting point of the lipids (37 °C) is determined through differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The DSC and physico-chemical properties are supported that the yeast lipids may use as a cocoa-butter substitute. Production of lipid under NaCl stress (200 × 10⁻³ m ) is more than 60.4% higher as compared to the control. However, the combined stress effect of NaCl (200 × 10⁻³ m ) and 15 × 10⁻³ m of [EMIM][OAc] results in more than 96.4% yield of lipid. The exchange of inorganic and organic ions in combined treatment forces the microbial cells to accumulate more amounts of lipid, which may form a lipid-emulsion layer to protect the cell from osmosis. It is interestingly observed that the stress cells shift the flux to accumulate a significantly improved percentage of SFA, which could be provided better protection cover due to its expanded structure, less reactive characteristics, and completely insoluble nature in ionic-aqueous solvent. Practical applications: Oleaginous yeast is multiplied in a very limited space, and easily scalable for sustainable production of lipid to meet its commercial demand. This novel approach for enhancing the yield of lipid with the application of synergistic stress in between NaCl and the green solvent (ionic liquid) is being reported for the first time. This lipid has potential alternative applications as cocoa-butter.     

Novel sensing and joint beam and null steering based resource allocation for cross-tier interference mitigation in cognitive femtocell networks

Wireless Networks - Cognitive radios and femtocell networks are gaining much popularity due to the formers ability to carry out unlicensed transmission in licensed bands and the latter’s...