Electrochemical cardiac troponin I immunosensor based on nitrogen and boron-doped graphene quantum dots electrode platform and Ce-doped SnO2/SnS2 signal amplification

The detection of acute myocardial infarction directly depends on the concentration of the cardiac troponin I (CTnI) in human blood plasma. In this study, the sensitive, selective, and fast sandwich-type electrochemical CTnI immunosensor was developed by using nitrogen and boron-dopped graphene quantum dots -as electrode platform and two-dimensional Ce-dopped SnO2/SnS2 (Ce–SnO2/SnS2) as signal amplification. In preparation of electrochemical CTnI immunosensor, the coordinated covalent bond between capture antibody (anti-CTnI-Ab1) and nitrogen and boron-dopped graphene quantum dots as electrode platform led to immobilization of anti-CTnI-Ab1, and the strong esterification between the secondary antibody (anti-CTnI-Ab2) and thioglycolic acid-modified Ce–SnO2/SnS2 resulted in anti-CTnI-Ab2 conjugation. Finally, the resultant electrochemical CTnI immunosensor was formed via antigen-antibody interaction. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, UV–Vis spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy, as well as some electrochemical characterization techniques, including cyclic voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were used to characterize the prepared immunosensor. The detection limit of CTnI in plasma samples was calculated as 2.00 fg mL−1, making it an effective tool for acute myocardial infarction testing. © 2021 Elsevier Lt

Structure and Growth of Core–shell Nanoprecipitates in Al–Er–Sc–Zr–V–Si High-temperature Alloys

Lightweight Sc-containing aluminum alloys exhibit superior mechanical performance at high temperatures due to core–shell, L12-ordered trialuminide nanoprecipitates. In this study, the structure of these nanoprecipitates was studied, using different transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques, for an Al–Er– Sc–Zr–V–Si alloy that was subjected to a two-stage overaging heat treatment. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy of the spherical Al3(Sc, Zr, Er ,V) nanoprecipitates revealed a core–shell structure with an Sc- and Er-enriched core and a Zr-enriched shell, without a clear V outer shell. This structure is stable up to 72% of the absolute melting temperature of Al for extended periods of time. High-angle annular dark-field scanning TEM was used to image the {100} planes of the nanoprecipitates, demonstrating a homogeneous L12-ordered superlattice structure for the entire nanoprecipitates, despite the variations in the concentrations of solute atoms within the unit cells. A possible growth path and compositional trajectory for these nanoprecipitates was proposed using high-resolution TEM observations, where different rod-like structural defects were detected, which are considered to be precursors to the spherical L12-ordered nanoprecipitates. It is also hypothesized that the structural defects could consist of segregated Si; however, this was not possible to verify with HAADF-STEM because of the small differences in Al and Si atomic numbers. The results herein allow a better understanding of how the Al–Sc alloys’ core–shell nanoprecipitates form and evolve temporally, thereby providing a better physical picture for future atomistic structural mappings and simulations

Fungi in the legislation of the Republic of Serbia

Conservation and protection of fungi have lately been considered as extremely important elements of the environmental conservation, and numerous environmental, scientific, medical, economic, cultural, ethical, and other reasons for such attitude exist today. This paper presents an overview of official regulations on the protection of fungi in the Republic of Serbia from the Act of Protection of 1991 until today. The paper lists and analyses the good and bad provisions of individual legal regulations. It registers the effects of the adopted regulations on the actual efficiency of protection of endangered species of fungi (macrofungi, mushrooms), and considers the impact of chronological development of legislation on the population of fungi in nature, and presents general measures to improve protection of mushrooms in the future. These measures primarily include reliable information and study of fungi as a basis for their effective protection based on scientific knowledge. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. OI-179079

Sampling-based Algorithms for Optimal Motion Planning

During the last decade, sampling-based path planning algorithms, such as Probabilistic RoadMaps (PRM) and Rapidly-exploring Random Trees (RRT), have been shown to work well in practice and possess theoretical guarantees such as probabilistic completeness. However, little effort has been devoted to the formal analysis of the quality of the solution returned by such algorithms, e.g., as a function of the number of samples. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap, by rigorously analyzing the asymptotic behavior of the cost of the solution returned by stochastic sampling-based algorithms as the number of samples increases. A number of negative results are provided, characterizing existing algorithms, e.g., showing that, under mild technical conditions, the cost of the solution returned by broadly used sampling-based algorithms converges almost surely to a non-optimal value. The main contribution of the paper is the introduction of new algorithms, namely, PRM* and RRT*, which are provably asymptotically optimal, i.e., such that the cost of the returned solution converges almost surely to the optimum. Moreover, it is shown that the computational complexity of the new algorithms is within a constant factor of that of their probabilistically complete (but not asymptotically optimal) counterparts. The analysis in this paper hinges on novel connections between stochastic sampling-based path planning algorithms and the theory of random geometric graphs.Comment: 76 pages, 26 figures, to appear in International Journal of Robotics Researc

Bioindicative values of microfungi in starch and possible deficiencies of the new Serbian regulation on food hygiene

The results of tests on the presence of yeasts and molds in cornstarch [AD ‘IPOK’ Zrenjanin, 2007-2008, made at the time when previous Regulations were valid] were analyzed in terms of bioindicative values of microfungi as indicators of quality and safety of raw material or final food products. Microbiological analysis was used to detect the presence of a number of microorganisms MMI-0001, and a questionnaire was designed at the Department of Public Health in Zrenjanin town (Republic of Serbia), where the anal­yses were done, regarding the microbiological tests on starch. In order to rationalize the analyses and make them more economical, several areas of product quality control (water, food, raw materials, space) were recommended either to be excluded or regarded as optional. Thus, analysis of presence of microfungi as indicators of product quality was categorized as optional. The results obtained from this research suggest a different conclusion because the bacteria in the samples indicated ˮmicrobiologically“, namely bacteriologically, safe samples of food, while, on the contrary, the presence of some microfungi as distinct xerophilous or xerotolerant microorganisms, indicated that the food was mycologically non-safe. The obtained data are crucial for questioning the decision to exclude the earlier required (mycological) analysis of the samples (in the production of starch, or end products, etc.) and categorize such analyses in new Regulations as optional, depending on the manufacturer’s preference. Bioindicative values of microfungi as indicators of the quality of starch, clearly point to the shortsightedness of the new Regulations on food hygiene and safety, where tests on certain microorganisms (in this case, yeasts and molds) are not legally defined as mandatory, but the Law leaves manufacturers a possibility to choose (or not to choose) the testing and frequency of testing on the presence (absence) of microorganisms, which can be risky, both in the production and marketing of the finial products. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. OI-179079

633 Comparison of soluble proteins from skin sections of acne and TCA induced postinflammatory hyperpigmentation and erythema

Postinflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) is an acquired hypermelanosis occurring after cutaneous inflammation or injury that can arise in all skin types, but more frequently affects skin-of-color. The differences in the ethology of PIH and Postinflammatory erythema (PIE) in skin of color were evaluated from soluble protein extracts collected from skin section samples, using Somascan protein kit1.3 k (n=5). The skin samples were collected from selected gluteal TCA-induced lesions and truncal acne pustules, of either PIH or PIE, at day 28 post initial evaluation. Differences between proteins (FDR\u3c0.05) from PIH and PIE were analyzed with STRING version 11.5 and analysis points toward involvement of JAK/STAT signaling pathway and enhanced IL17 signaling in PIH compared to PIE lesions (OSM, CSF3, IL10RA, IL12RB2, IL10RB, IL3, CSF2, IL17D, IL17F, IFNA2, IFNA10, CRLF2, IL5RA, TYK2, IL12RB1, PRLR, GHR). The involvement of JAK/STAT signaling pathway has been described for some chronic cutaneous inflammatory conditions and acne. A higher occurrence of dermal remodeling proteases and inhibitors were found in PIE (MMP1, MMP2, MMP7, TIMP2) indicating a dermal remodeling phase at the time of excision. Concurrently, elevated levels of IL-1β, and TGF-β (critical for triggering and continuing differentiation programs of naïve CD4+ T cells to IL-17 secreting Th17 cells) in PIH samples suggests continuing promotion of macrophage infiltration and sustained inflammation. In addition to MMP13 and MMP16, the protein Keap1 was found to be increased in the PIH samples. Keap1, a repressor of master cellular defense against oxidative and electrophilic stresses, has been reported to be involved in the imbalance of proteolysis that can lead towards premature aging and in a senescent phenotype of endothelial cells. The sustained inflammation with excess of Keap1 protein might contribute to an altered proteostasis and ethology of PIH

The Effect of Sr2+ and Fe3+ Cations and the Stirring Speed on The Precipitation of Barium Sulfate in a Batch System

The batch system investigation explored the effect of Sr2+ and Fe3+ cations and the stirring speed on the characteristics of precipitated barium sulfate. A series of experiments were conducted to evaluate the rate of barium sulfate precipitation in laboratory equipment from brines containing barium ions (3500 ppm) and varying amounts of Sr2+ and Fe3+ ions (10 and 20 ppm). Kinetic analysis was also performed to explore how stirring speeds (240 and 480 rpm) affect barium sulfate scales' crystallization by increasing the stirring speed and promoting Sr2+ and Fe3+-cation solubility while decreasing the precipitation rate. All solid crystals obtained were mostly pure barite, as the X-ray diffraction (XRD) method confirmed. The SEM micrograph of barite morphology revealed particles with tablet-shaped crystals 2 to 5 nm in size. With the presence of Sr2+ and Fe3+-cation, the shape of barium sulfate was modified into spherical tablets or flower-like clusters of tablets. Meanwhile, the morphological changes could result from increased stirring rates. Moreover, the kinetic results yielded a general reaction rate equation that might be used to estimate barium sulfate deposition in pipelines for various brine, supersaturation, and mixing time durations

The Strategy of Economic Security of the Municipality from the Standpoint of ESG-Principles

The practice of building strategies for the development of modern Russian municipalities is filled with both new methodological content and the content of the strategies themselves. So, for example, the release of the law on strategic planning in the Russian Federation was followed by the Decree of the President of Russia, which determined the strategy of economic security in the country and was reflected in the strategies of the regions and municipalities. However, in the methodological plan, there are no recommendations for determining the content of the elements of the economic security strategy both at the regional and municipal levels of government. Traditionally, the results of the analysis of factors of the external and internal environment serve as the basis for determining the content of strategies, but if we analyze the content of the results of the analysis and the content of the strategies, it is easy to see that these two subsystems of the strategy (the results of the analysis and the content of the strategy itself) are largely not interconnected. The purpose of this study is the desire to find tools that allow the transition from the results of the traditional SWOT analysis (but in terms of the non-traditional sphere of analysis — economic security) to the content of the economic security strategy of the municipality. Among the research methods used are content analysis of documents, the method of constructing morphological matrices, methods of grouping and generalization, as well as methods of logical analysis and synthesis of information within the subject area of the study. In this paper, on the example of one of the leading districts of the Vladimir region, an algorithm for the formation of an economic security strategy is shown, based on the application of ESG principles of sustainable development and economic security tasks limited by the powers of municipalities, the combination of which is filled with the content of the results of a modified SWOT analysis with subsequent aggregation of the formulated solutions in the strategy of economic security of the municipality. The result obtained in the study indicates that the economic security of the municipality in the form of interconnected projects and programs can be formed in three main directions that ensure security in the field of ecology, economy and society of the municipality. In the future, it is necessary to study the aspect related to the distribution of these projects and programs in the areas recommended by the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation in terms of implementing the law on strategic planning in the Russian Federation