Highly Compact GCPW-Fed Multi-Branch Structure Multi-Band Antenna for Wireless Applications

In this work, we present a highly compact multi-branch structure multi-band antenna with a grounded coplanar waveguide (GCPW)-fed structure printed on 26 ×13 ×1.6 mm3 sized FR-4 substrate having dielectric constant r of 4.3 and loss tangent of 0.02. In the proposed antenna, ve branches are extended from the main radiator to provide multi-band behavior. Two branches are introduced at the upper end of the main radiator, e ectively covering the lower bands, while the other three branches are introduced near the center of the main radiator to extend operation to higher bands. e designed antenna covers ve di erent bands: 2.4 GHz, 4.5 GHz, 5.5 GHz, 6.5 GHz, and 7.8 GHz, with respective gain values of 1.34, 1.60, 1.83, 1.80, and 3.50 dBi and respective radiation e ciency values of 90, 88, 84, 75, and 89%. e antenna shows a good impedance bandwidth, ranging from 170MHz to 3070 MHz. e proposed antenna is simulated in CST Microwave Studio, while its performance is experimentally validated by the fabrication and testing process. e antenna has potential applications for IoT, sub-6 GHz 5G and WLAN (both enablers for IoT), C-band, and X-band services.Dr. Mohammad Alibakhshikenari acknowledges support from the CONEX-Plus programme funded by Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 801538

Novel MIMO Antenna System for Ultra Wideband Applications

The design of a 4 x 4 MIMO antenna for UWB communication systems is presented in this study. The single antenna element is comprised of a fractal circular ring structure backed by a modified partial ground plane having dimensions of 30 x 30 mm2. The single antenna element has a wide impedance bandwidth of 9.33 GHz and operates from 2.67 GHz to 12 GHz. Furthermore, the gain of a single antenna element increases as the frequency increases, with a peak realized gain and antenna efficiency of 5 dBi and >75%, respectively. For MIMO applications, a 4 x 4 array is designed and analyzed. The antenna elements are positioned in a plus-shaped configuration to provide pattern as well as polarization diversity. It is worth mentioning that good isolation characteristics are achieved without the utilization of any isolation enhancement network. The proposed MIMO antenna was fabricated and tested, and the results show that it provides UWB response from 2.77 GHz to over 12 GHz. The isolation between the antenna elements is more than 15 dB. Based on performance attributes, it can be said that the proposed design is suitable for UWB MIMO applications.The authors would like to appreciate Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme for the funding of this research work under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Grant 801538

Isolation and Characterization of Chi-like \u3ci\u3eSalmonella\u3c/i\u3e Bacteriophages Infecting Two \u3ci\u3eSalmonella enterica\u3c/i\u3e Serovars, Typhimurium and Enteritidis

Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium and Salmonella enterica Serovar Enteritidis are well-known pathogens that cause foodborne diseases in humans. The emergence of antibiotic-resistant Salmonella serovars has caused serious public health problems worldwide. In this study, two lysogenic phages, STP11 and SEP13, were isolated from a wastewater treatment plant in Jeddah, KSA. Transmission electron microscopic images revealed that both phages are new members of the genus “Chivirus” within the family Siphoviridae. Both STP11 and SEP13 had a lysis time of 90 min with burst sizes of 176 and 170 PFU/cell, respectively. The two phages were thermostable (0 ◦C ≤ temperature \u3c 70 ◦C) and pH tolerant at 3 ≤ pH \u3c 11. STP11 showed lytic activity for approximately 42.8% (n = 6), while SEP13 showed against 35.7% (n = 5) of the tested bacterial strains. STP11 and STP13 have linear dsDNA genomes consisting of 58,890 bp and 58,893 bp nucleotide sequences with G + C contents of 57% and 56.5%, respectively. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that the genomes of phages STP11 and SEP13 contained 70 and 71 ORFs, respectively. No gene encoding tRNA was detected in their genome. Of the 70 putative ORFs of phage STP11, 27 (38.6%) were assigned to functional genes and 43 (61.4%) were annotated as hypothetical proteins. Similarly, 29 (40.8%) of the 71 putative ORFs of phage SEP13 were annotated as functional genes, whereas the remaining 42 (59.2%) were assigned as nonfunctional proteins. Phylogenetic analysis of the whole genome sequence demonstrated that the isolated phages are closely related to Chi-like Salmonella viruses

Management of Major Trauma and the Role of Interventional Radiology

This study aimed at exploring the management of major trauma and analyzing the role of interventional radiology for major trauma patients. As there are no prospective randomized controlled trials of interventional radiology in major trauma. Therefore, this review aims to summarize the evidence supporting the use of interventional radiological techniques in the management of major trauma. The study concluded that interventional radiology has become an essential part of the modern trauma unit. Roles in pelvic haemorrhage and aortic injury are now well established and have contributed to improving patient survival and reducing long-term morbidity

Broadband 3-D shared aperture high isolation nine-element antenna array for on-demand millimeter-wave 5G applications

The paper presents the results of a novel 3-D shared aperture 3 × 3 matrix antenna-array for 26 GHz band 5 G wireless networks. Radiation elements constituting the array are hexagonal-shaped patches that are elevated above the common dielectric substrate by 3.35 mm and excited through a metallic rod of 0.4 mm diameter. The rod protrudes through the substrate of 0.8 mm thickness. It is shown that by isolating each radiating element in the array with a wall suppresses unwanted electromagnetic (EM) wave interactions, resulting in improvement in the antenna’s impedance matching and radiation characteristics. Moreover, the results show that by embedding hexagonalshaped slots in the patches improve the antenna’s gain and radiation efficiency performance. The subwavelength length slots in the patches essentially transform the radiating elements to exhibit metasurface characteristics when the array is illuminated by EM-waves. The proposed array structure has an average gain and radiation efficiency of 20 dBi and 93%, respectively, across 24.0–28.4 GHz. The isolation between its radiation elements is greater than 22 dB. Compared to the unslotted array the improvement in isolation between radiating elements is greater than 11dB, and the gain and efficiency are better than 10.5 dBi, and 25%, respectively. The compact array has a fractional bandwidth of 16% and a form factor of 20 × 20 × 3.35 mm3.Dr. Mohammad Alibakhshikenari acknowledges support from the CONEX-Plus programme funded by Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 801538. Also, this work was supported by Project RTI2018-095499-B-C31, funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Gobierno de España (MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE)

Design and study of a miniaturized millimeter wave array antenna for wireless body area network

A miniaturized millimeter wave (mmWave) antenna for wireless body area networks is proposed in this paper. The antenna is found to be operational in the V-band, around the 60 GHz frequency range, with high efficiency of up to 99.98% in free space simulations. A multilayer, thin substrate was implemented in the design to enhance radiation efficiency and gain. The antenna seems to be most suitable for small electronic devices and wireless body area network (WBAN) applications because of its low profile and lighter weight concept. To enhance its performance, several arrays of different orders were created. The Parallel-Fed and Tapered Feed Line methods were followed to design the planar arrays with 1 × 2, 1 × 4, and 2 × 2 elements in the primary design. Free space results were compared, and a 2 × 2 element array was found to be the most balanced according to the simulations. To justify the eligibility of these designs for WBAN applications, a virtual human body model was created within the 3D computer-simulated environment and the simulations were repeated, where four equal-spaced distances were taken into account to identify the antenna and its array behavior more accurately. Simulations returned optimistic results for the 2 × 2 element planar array arrangement in almost all parameters, even when placed close to the human body at any distance greater than 2 mm

A population-based study of 15,000 people on Knowledge and awareness of lung cancer symptoms and risk factors in Saudi Arabia

Background: Lung cancer is currently the most fatal form of cancer worldwide, ranking as the fourth most prevalent type in Saudi Arabia, particularly among males. This trend is expected to increase with growing population, lifestyle changes, and aging population. Understanding the awareness of the Saudi population regarding the risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer is necessary to attenuate the predicted increase in cases. Method: A cross-sectional, population-based survey was performed using a previously validated questionnaire (Lung CAM). Multiple linear regression analysis was used to assess variables associated with deficiency in knowledge and awareness of risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer. Results: Majority of the 15,099 respondents were male (65%), aged between 18 and 30 years (53%), 50% of which were educated up to a bachelor’s degree level. Overall awareness of lung cancer signs and symptoms was 53%, with painful cough and coughing up blood being the best-known symptoms. Conversely, persistent shoulder pain (44%) and clubbing fingers (47%) were the least known lung cancer symptoms. Also, 60% of the respondents showed low confidence in identifying the signs and symptoms of lung cancer. The overall awareness of the risk factors for lung cancer development was 74%, with first-hand (74%) and second-hand (68%) smoking being the most known risk factors. However, only ≤ 62% know the other non-smoking risk factors. Awareness of the risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer depended on age, gender, education, marital and employment status (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Public awareness of the risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer in Saudi Arabia is inadequate and heavily dependent on education and socio-economic status. Awareness can be improved through campaigns to raise awareness about other lesser-known lung cancer risk factors and symptoms

A population-based study of 15,000 people on Knowledge and awareness of lung cancer symptoms and risk factors in Saudi Arabia

Background: Lung cancer is currently the most fatal form of cancer worldwide, ranking as the fourth most prevalent type in Saudi Arabia, particularly among males. This trend is expected to increase with growing population, lifestyle changes, and aging population. Understanding the awareness of the Saudi population regarding the risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer is necessary to attenuate the predicted increase in cases. Method: A cross-sectional, population-based survey was performed using a previously validated questionnaire (Lung CAM). Multiple linear regression analysis was used to assess variables associated with deficiency in knowledge and awareness of risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer. Results: Majority of the 15,099 respondents were male (65%), aged between 18 and 30 years (53%), 50% of which were educated up to a bachelor’s degree level. Overall awareness of lung cancer signs and symptoms was 53%, with painful cough and coughing up blood being the best-known symptoms. Conversely, persistent shoulder pain (44%) and clubbing fingers (47%) were the least known lung cancer symptoms. Also, 60% of the respondents showed low confidence in identifying the signs and symptoms of lung cancer. The overall awareness of the risk factors for lung cancer development was 74%, with first-hand (74%) and second-hand (68%) smoking being the most known risk factors. However, only ≤ 62% know the other non-smoking risk factors. Awareness of the risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer depended on age, gender, education, marital and employment status (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Public awareness of the risk factors and symptoms of lung cancer in Saudi Arabia is inadequate and heavily dependent on education and socio-economic status. Awareness can be improved through campaigns to raise awareness about other lesser-known lung cancer risk factors and symptoms

Erratum to: 36th International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1186/s13054-016-1208-6.]