Determinants of foreign policy in Turkish-Greek relations

The Turkish-Greek relations are thorny relations, dominated by military intervention on some occasions and the threat of the use of military force at other times. This study came to analyze the principles of both Turkey and Greek foreign policy, shed light on the most important factors that limit Turkish-Greek relations, and present three scenarios for the future of Turkish-Greek relations. To achieve these objectives, the study used a decision-making approach and revealed that Turkish-Greek relations are determined by various contentious issues represented by the dispute in the Aegean Sea, the dispute over the island of Cyprus, the dispute over the continental shelf, the refusal to recognize the Turkish minority in Greece, Athens’ harboring of Turkish and Kurdish opponents wanted by the Turkish government, exploratory talks, Greece’s strategy in dealing with Turkey, and the exploration for natural resources in the Mediterranean. In light of the determinants of Turkish-Greek relations, the study proposed three Scenarios for the future of that bilateral relation: The first scenario is to maintain the status quo, the second scenario is to improve Turkish-Greek relations, the third scenario is to worsen Turkish-Greek relations. These scenarios are subject to their occurrence in light of developments on the ground. تعد العلاقات التركية اليونانية علاقات شائكة سادها التدخل العسكري في بعض المرات والتهديد باستخدام القوة العسكرية في مرات أخرى، وكل ذلك ناتج عن التنازع على العديد من القضايا المزمنة في منطقة تشهد أزمة مستمرة. وقد جاءت هذه الدراسة لتحليل مبادئ كل من السياسة الخارجية التركية واليونانية، وإلقاء الضوء على أهم العوامل التي تحد من العلاقات التركية- اليونانية، وعرض ثلاثة سيناريوهات لمستقبل العلاقات التركية- اليونانية، ولتحقيق هذه الأهداف، استخدمت الدراسة منهج صنع القرار في السياسة الخارجية، وكشفت نتائج الدراسة عن أن العلاقات التركية-اليونانية تحددها العديد من القضايا الخلافية التي تتمثل في النزاع في بحر إيجه، والنزاع على جزيرة قبرص، والنزاع على الجرف القاري، ورفض الاعتراف بالأقلية التركية في اليونان، وإيواء اليونان لمعارضين أتراك وأكراد مطلوبين من الحكومة التركية، والمحادثات الاستكشافية، واستراتيجية اليونان في التعامل مع تركيا، وإشكالية التنقيب عن الموارد الطبيعية في البحر الأبيض المتوسط، وفي ضوء محددات العلاقات التركية- اليونانية، اقترحت الدراسة ثلاثة سيناريوهات لمستقبل تلك العلاقات، حيث يتمثل السيناريو الأول بالحفاظ على الوضع الراهن، ويتمثل السيناريو الثاني بتحسن العلاقات التركية- اليونانية، بينما يتمثل السيناريو الثالث بسوء العلاقات التركية- اليونانية ودخولها مرحلة الصدام العسكري، وتخضع هذه السيناريوهات لحدوثها في ظل المستجدات على الأرض

Identification of new pillared-layered carbon nitride materials at high pressure

The compression of the layered carbon nitride C6N9H3·HCl was studied experimentally and with density functional theory (DFT) methods. This material has a polytriazine imide structure with Cl− ions contained within C12N12 voids in the layers. The data indicate the onset of layer buckling accompanied by movement of the Cl− ions out of the planes beginning above 10–20 GPa followed by an abrupt change in the diffraction pattern and c axis spacing associated with formation of a new interlayer bonded phase. The transition pressure is calculated to be 47 GPa for the ideal structures. The new material has mixed sp2–sp3 hybridization among the C and N atoms and it provides the first example of a pillared-layered carbon nitride material that combines the functional properties of the graphitic-like form with improved mechanical strength. Similar behavior is predicted to occur for Cl-free structures at lower pressures

Sublingual immunisation with GBS serotype III capsular polysaccharide-tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine induces systemic and mucosal antibody responses which are opsonophagocytic and inhibit GBS colonisation of vaginal epithelial cells

No vaccines are currently licensed against Group B streptococcus (GBS), an important cause of morbidity and mortality in babies and adults. Using a mouse model, and in vitro opsonophagocytosis and colonisation assays, we evaluated the potential of a sublingually-administered polysaccharide-conjugate vaccine against GBS serotype III. Sublingual immunisation of mice with 10 µg of GBS conjugate vaccine once a week for 5 weeks induced a substantial systemic IgG anti-polysaccharide response which was similar to the level induced by subcutaneous immunsation. In addition, sublingual immunisation also induced mucosal (IgA) antibody responses in the mouth, intestines and vagina. Immune sera and intestinal washes were functionally active at mediating killing of the homologous GBS serotype III in an opsonophagocytosis assay. In addition, intestinal and vaginal washes inhibited the colonisation of mouse vaginal epithelial cells by the vaccine homologous strain. These results suggest that, in addition to the induction of high levels of IgG antibodies that could be transduced from the immunised mother to the foetus to protect the newborn against GBS infection, sublingual immunisation can elicit a substantial mucosal antibody response which might play an important role in the prevention of GBS colonisation in immunised women, thereby eliminating the risk of GBS transmission from the mother to the baby during pregnancy or at birth

Formation of an ion-free crystalline carbon nitride and its reversible intercalation with ionic species and molecular water

The development of processes to tune the properties of materials is essential for the progression of next-generation technologies for catalysis, optoelectronics and sustainability including energy harvesting and conversion. Layered carbon nitrides have also been identified as of significant interest within these fields of application. However, most carbon nitride materials studied to date have poor crystallinity and therefore their properties cannot be readily controlled or easily related to their molecular level or nanoscale structures. Here we report a process for forming a range of crystalline layered carbon nitrides with polytriazine imide (PTI) structures that can be interconverted by simple ion exchange processes, permitting the tunability of their optoelectronic and chemical properties. Notable outcomes of our work are (a) the creation of a crystalline, guest-ion-free PTI compound that (b) can be re-intercalated with ions or molecules using "soft chemistry" approaches. This includes the intercalation of HCl, demonstrating a new ambient pressure route to the layered PTI· HCl material that was previously only available by a high-pressure-high-temperature route (c). Our work also shows (d) that the intercalant-free (IF-) PTI material spontaneously absorbs up to 10 weight% H O from the ambient atmosphere and that this process is reversible, leading to potential applications for membranes and water capture in dry environments

Nano-Architecture of nitrogen-doped graphene films synthesized from a solid CN source

New synthesis routes to tailor graphene properties by controlling the concentration and chemical configuration of dopants show great promise. Herein we report the direct reproducible synthesis of 2-3% nitrogen-doped ‘few-layer’ graphene from a solid state nitrogen carbide a-C:N source synthesized by femtosecond pulsed laser ablation. Analytical investigations, including synchrotron facilities, made it possible to identify the configuration and chemistry of the nitrogen-doped graphene films. Auger mapping successfully quantified the 2D distribution of the number of graphene layers over the surface, and hence offers a new original way to probe the architecture of graphene sheets. The films mainly consist in a Bernal ABA stacking three-layer architecture, with a layer number distribution ranging from 2 to 6. Nitrogen doping affects the charge carrier distribution but has no significant effects on the number of lattice defects or disorders, compared to undoped graphene synthetized in similar conditions. Pyridinic, quaternary and pyrrolic nitrogen are the dominant chemical configurations, pyridinic N being preponderant at the scale of the film architecture. This work opens highly promising perspectives for the development of self-organized nitrogen-doped graphene materials, as synthetized from solid carbon nitride, with various functionalities, and for the characterization of 2D materials using a significant new methodology

PBPK modelling of ceftriaxone Na-loaded starch-sodium alginate polymeric blend prepared by water-in-oil emulsification for oral delivery

Ceftriaxone is a third-generation cephalosporin antibiotic effective against many bacterial infections. However, owing to its instability in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), it is administered by injections, which is an unfavourable route of administration. Therefore, the aim of this study was to formulate ceftriaxone into biodegradable and thermally stable polymeric blend microparticles that are suitable for oral delivery. The drug-loaded microparticles were prepared by the water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion method and consisted of starch and sodium alginate (NaAlg) as a polymeric matrix and glutaraldehyde (GA) as a cross-linking agent. Characterization of these particles using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the particles were spherical in shape with a smooth surface. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) of these particles showed no drug-polymer interactions. The highest percentage yield of particles was obtained at 3% polymer concentration. The particle size increased slightly after drug loading. The drug loading and entrapment efficiency appeared to increase with increasing polymer concentration. In vitro drug release at pH 1.2 and pH 7.4, revealed that drug release was below 20% at the acidic pH, while at pH 7.4, drug release of up to 85% was observed. The release mechanism followed first-order and Fickian diffusion patterns. Plasma concentration-time profiles were simulated for subcontinental Asian populations using commercial PBPK software, and the results suggest that microencapsulation of ceftriaxone sodium in a polymeric blend could represent a promising approach for controlled oral delivery of the drug, with enhanced absorption and bioavailability of the drug