Copper nitride: a versatile semiconductor with great potential for next-generation photovoltaics

Copper nitride (Cu3N) has gained significant attention recently due to its potential in several scientific and technological applications. This study focuses on using Cu3N as a solar absorber in photovoltaic technology. Cu3N thin films were deposited on glass substrates and silicon wafers by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering at different nitrogen flow ratios with total pressures ranging from 1.0 to 5.0 Pa. The thin films' structural, morphology and chemical properties were determined by XRD, Raman, AFM and SEM/EDS techniques. The results revealed that the Cu3N films exhibited a polycrystalline structure, with the preferred orientation varying from (100) to (111) depending on the working pressure employed. Raman spectroscopy confirmed the presence of Cu-N bonds through characteristic peaks observed in the 618-627 cm-1 range. While SEM and AFM images confirmed the presence of uniform and smooth surface morphologies. The optical properties of the films were investigated using UV-VIS-NIR spectroscopy and photothermal de-flection spectroscopy (PDS). The obtained band gap, refractive index, and Urbach energy values demonstrated promising optical properties for Cu3N, indicating their potential as solar absorbers in photovoltaic technology. This study highlights the favorable properties of Cu3N films deposited by the RF sputtering method, paving the way for their implementation in thin-film photovoltaic technologies. These findings contribute to the progress and optimisation of Cu3N-based materials for efficient solar energy conversion

Glutathione and Bcl-2 targeting facilitates elimination by chemoradiotherapy of human A375 melanoma xenografts overexpressing bcl-xl, bcl-2, and mcl-1

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Bcl-2 is believed to contribute to melanoma chemoresistance. However, expression of Bcl-2 proteins may be different among melanomas. Thus correlations among expression of Bcl-2-related proteins and <it>in vivo </it>melanoma progression, and resistance to combination therapies, was investigated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Human A375 melanoma was injected s.c. into immunodeficient nude mice. Protein expression was studied in tumor samples obtained by laser microdisection. Transfection of siRNA or ectopic overexpression were applied to manipulate proteins which are up- or down-regulated, preferentially, during melanoma progression. Anti-<it>bcl</it>-2 antisense oligonucleotides and chemoradiotherapy (glutathione-depleting agents, paclitaxel protein-binding particles, daunorubicin, X rays) were administered in combination.</p> <p>Results</p> <p><it>In vivo </it>A375 cells down-regulated pro-apoptotic <it>bax </it>expression; and up-regulated anti-apoptotic <it>bcl-2</it>, <it>bcl-xl</it>, and <it>mcl-1</it>, however only Bcl-2 appeared critical for long-term tumor cell survival and progression <it>in vivo</it>. Reduction of Bcl-2, combined with partial therapies, decreased melanoma growth. But only Bcl-2 targeting plus the full combination of chemoradiotherapy eradicated A375 melanoma, and led to long-term survival (> 120 days) without recurrence in 80% of mice. Tumor regression was not due to immune stimulation. Hematology and clinical chemistry data were within accepted clinical toxicities.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Strategies to target Bcl-2, may increase the effectiveness of antitumor therapies against melanomas overexpressing Bcl-2 and likely other Bcl-2-related antiapoptotic proteins.</p

Diseño de metodologías docentes innovadoras para el desarrollo de competencias emocionales en estudiantes universitarios

El Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES) incorpora al proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje competencias genéricas y específicas con el objetivo de preparar a los futuros profesionales. El profesional en Criminología requiere de una elevada fortaleza emocional para el correcto desempeño de sus actividades profesionales. El objetivo de esta red es el diseño de nuevas metodologías y prácticas docentes, entre asignaturas de diferentes niveles de enseñanza, para potenciar el desarrollo de las competencias emocionales en el alumnado. Se presentan los resultados obtenidos de la evaluación en competencias emocionales de una muestra representativa de alumnos/as de último curso en el Grado en Criminología, con el propósito de detectar las necesidades formativas en este ámbito, y se describe el diseño de nuevas metodologías y prácticas docentes en asignaturas de primer y último año del Grado en Criminología

Competencias emocionales en estudiantes del Grado en Criminología

La adquisición de competencias profesionales es un objetivo prioritario dentro del marco del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior. El abordaje de la inteligencia emocional en el profesional en Criminología es importante, ya que en el desempeño de sus funciones requiere de una elevada fortaleza emocional. En este sentido, la competencia emocional que el estudiante del Grado en Criminología adquiera en su proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje es un elemento clave en su futura práctica profesional. El objetivo del presente estudio es evaluar la capacidad de reconocer, comprender y regular los estados emocionales en estudiantes en Criminología. Ha participado una muestra representativa de 52 estudiantes universitarios matriculados en la asignatura optativa Profiling: perfil psicológico del delincuente de cuarto curso del Grado en Criminología de la Universidad de Alicante. Los instrumentos utilizados son el autoinforme Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS-24) y el programa Facial Action Coding System (FACS). Se presentan los resultados obtenidos de la evaluación de las competencias emocionales del alumnado con el propósito de detectar las necesidades formativas en este ámbito

Competencias emocionales en estudiantes del Grado en Criminología: diferencias de sexo y curso académico

Este estudio pretende evaluar las competencias emocionales que poseen los estudiantes de primer y cuarto curso del Grado en Criminología de la Universidad de Alicante, analizando si existen diferencias significativas en función del sexo y curso. Ha participado una muestra representativa formada por 124 estudiantes, 58 de primer curso y 66 de último curso del Grado en Criminología de la Universidad de Alicante (España). Los instrumentos utilizados son el autoinforme Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS-24) y el programa Facial Action Coding System. Los resultados obtenidos muestran un mejor desempeño en las dimensiones reconocimiento y claridad emocional de los estudiantes de cuarto curso. No se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en función del sexo. Teniendo en cuenta los resultados obtenidos, consideramos que es importante integrar dentro de la formación universitaria del grado en criminología métodos de enseñanza-aprendizaje que favorezcan el desarrollo de competencias emocionales como la regulación emocional, siendo de especial relevancia dado que los profesionales de criminología frecuentemente se enfrentan a situaciones que demandan elevadas competencias emocionales en su desarrollo profesional

Association between Pterostilbene and Quercetin Inhibits Metastatic Activity of B16 Melanoma

AbstractInhibition of cancer growth by resveratrol (trans-3,5,4'trihydroxystilbene; RESV), a phytoalexin present in many plant species, is limited by its low bioavailability. Pterostilbene (3,5-dimethoxy-4'-hydroxystilbene; PTER) and quercetin (3,3',4',5,6-pentahydroxyflavone; QUER), two structurally related and naturally occurring small polyphenols, show longer half-life in vivo. In vitro growth of highly malignant B16 melanoma F10 cells (B16M-F10) is inhibited (56%) by short-time exposure (60 min/day) to PTER (40 μM) and QUER (20 μM) (approximate mean values of plasma concentrations measured within the first hour after intravenous administration of 20 mg/kg of each polyphenol). Intravenous administration of PTER and QUER (20 mg/kg per day) to mice inhibits (73%) metastatic growth of B16M-F10 cells in the liver, a common site for metastasis development. The antimetastatic mechanism involves: 1) a PTER-induced inhibition of vascular adhesion molecule 1 expression in the hepatic sinusoidal endothelium, which consequently decreases B16M-F10 cell adhesion to the endothelium through very late activation antigen 4; and 2) a QUER- and PTER-induced inhibition of Bcl-2 expression in metastatic cells, which sensitizes them to vascular endothelium-induced cytotoxicity. Our findings demonstrate that the association of PTER and QUER inhibits metastatic melanoma growth and extends host survival

Assessment of oxidative damage to proteins and DNA in urine of newborn infants by a validated UPLC-MS/MS approach

The assessment of oxidative stress is highly relevant in clinical Perinatology as it is associated to adverse outcomes in newborn infants. This study summarizes results from the validation of an Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-tandem Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method for the simultaneous quantification of the urinary concentrations of a set of endogenous biomarkers, capable to provide a valid snapshot of the oxidative stress status applicable in human clinical trials, especially in the field of Perinatology. The set of analytes included are phenylalanine (Phe), para-tyrosine (p-Tyr), ortho-tyrosine (o-Tyr), meta-tyrosine (m-Tyr), 3-NO2-tyrosine (3NO 2-Tyr), 3-Cl-tyrosine (3Cl-Tyr), 2′-deoxyguanosine (2dG) and 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8OHdG). Following the FDA-based guidelines, appropriate levels of accuracy and precision, as well as adequate levels of sensitivity with limits of detection (LODs) in the low nanomolar (nmol/L) range were confirmed after method validation. The validity of the proposed UPLC-MS/MS method was assessed by analysing urine samples from a clinical trial in extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants randomized to be resuscitated with two different initial inspiratory fractions of oxygen

Experimental trade-offs between different strategies for multihop communications evaluated over real deployments of wireless sensor network for environmental monitoring

Although much work has been done since wireless sensor networks appeared, there is not a great deal of information available on real deployments that incorporate basic features associated with these networks, in particular multihop routing and long lifetimes features. In this article, an environmental monitoring application (Internet of Things oriented) is described, where temperature and relative humidity samples are taken by each mote at a rate of 2 samples/min and sent to a sink using multihop routing. Our goal is to analyse the different strategies to gather the information from the different motes in this context. The trade-offs between 'sending always' and 'buffering locally' approaches were analysed and validated experimentally, taking into account power consumption, lifetime, efficiency and reliability. When buffering locally, different options were considered such as saving in either local RAM or FLASH memory, as well different alternatives to reduce overhead with different packet sizes. The conclusion is that in terms of energy and durability, the best option is to reduce the overhead. Nevertheless, sending larger packets is not worthy when the probability of retransmission is high. If real-time monitoring is required, then sending always is better than buffering locally

Competem-UA. Metodologías docentes innovadoras para el desarrollo de competencias emocionales en estudiantes universitarios

El objetivo de esta red fue implantar nuevas metodologías y prácticas docentes, entre asignaturas de diferentes niveles de enseñanza, para potenciar el desarrollo de las competencias emocionales en el alumnado. Se presentan los resultados obtenidos de la evaluación en competencias emocionales de una muestra representativa de 120 estudiantes de primer curso en el Grado en Criminología y en el Grado de DeCrim con un doble propósito, por un lado detectar las necesidades formativas en este ámbito, y por otro iniciar un diseño longitudinal para evaluar las mejoras de las competencias emocionales a lo largo del tiempo. Por último, se muestran los resultados obtenidos en una encuesta elaborada ad hoc sobre la satisfacción de 133 estudiantes tras la implantación de nuevas prácticas de problemas donde se incorpora el entrenamiento en competencias emocionales