A new framework for sign language alphabet hand posture recognition using geometrical features through artificial neural network (part 1)

Hand pose tracking is essential in sign languages. An automatic recognition of performed hand signs facilitates a number of applications, especially for people with speech impairment to communication with normal people. This framework which is called ASLNN proposes a new hand posture recognition technique for the American sign language alphabet based on the neural network which works on the geometrical feature extraction of hands. A user’s hand is captured by a three-dimensional depth-based sensor camera; consequently, the hand is segmented according to the depth analysis features. The proposed system is called depth-based geometrical sign language recognition as named DGSLR. The DGSLR adopted in easier hand segmentation approach, which is further used in segmentation applications. The proposed geometrical feature extraction framework improves the accuracy of recognition due to unchangeable features against hand orientation compared to discrete cosine transform and moment invariant. The findings of the iterations demonstrate the combination of the extracted features resulted to improved accuracy rates. Then, an artificial neural network is used to drive desired outcomes. ASLNN is proficient to hand posture recognition and provides accuracy up to 96.78% which will be discussed on the additional paper of this authors in this journal

Curcumin-Loaded Apotransferrin Nanoparticles Provide Efficient Cellular Uptake and Effectively Inhibit HIV-1 Replication In Vitro

Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) shows significant activity across a wide spectrum of conditions, but its usefulness is rather limited because of its low bioavailability. Use of nanoparticle formulations to enhance curcumin bioavailability is an emerging area of research.In the present study, curcumin-loaded apotransferrin nanoparticles (nano-curcumin) prepared by sol-oil chemistry and were characterized by electron and atomic force microscopy. Confocal studies and fluorimetric analysis revealed that these particles enter T cells through transferrin-mediated endocytosis. Nano-curcumin releases significant quantities of drug gradually over a fairly long period, ∼50% of curcumin still remaining at 6 h of time. In contrast, intracellular soluble curcumin (sol-curcumin) reaches a maximum at 2 h followed by its complete elimination by 4 h. While sol-curcumin (GI(50) = 15.6 µM) is twice more toxic than nano-curcumin (GI(50) = 32.5 µM), nano-curcumin (IC(50)<1.75 µM) shows a higher anti-HIV activity compared to sol-curcumin (IC(50) = 5.1 µM). Studies in vitro showed that nano-curcumin prominently inhibited the HIV-1 induced expression of Topo II α, IL-1β and COX-2, an effect not seen with sol-curcumin. Nano-curcumin did not affect the expression of Topoisomerase II β and TNF α. This point out that nano-curcumin affects the HIV-1 induced inflammatory responses through pathways downstream or independent of TNF α. Furthermore, nano-curcumin completely blocks the synthesis of viral cDNA in the gag region suggesting that the nano-curcumin mediated inhibition of HIV-1 replication is targeted to viral cDNA synthesis.Curcumin-loaded apotransferrin nanoparticles are highly efficacious inhibitors of HIV-1 replication in vitro and promise a high potential for clinical usefulness

An Efficient Targeted Drug Delivery through Apotransferrin Loaded Nanoparticles

BACKGROUND: Cancerous state is a highly stimulated environment of metabolically active cells. The cells under these conditions over express selective receptors for assimilation of factors essential for growth and transformation. Such receptors would serve as potential targets for the specific ligand mediated transport of pharmaceutically active molecules. The present study demonstrates the specificity and efficacy of protein nanoparticle of apotransferrin for targeted delivery of doxorubicin. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Apotransferrin nanoparticles were developed by sol-oil chemistry. A comparative analysis of efficiency of drug delivery in conjugated and non-conjugated forms of doxorubicin to apotransferrin nanoparticle is presented. The spherical shaped apotransferrin nanoparticles (nano) have diameters of 25-50 etam, which increase to 60-80 etam upon direct loading of drug (direct-nano), and showed further increase in dimension (75-95 etam) in conjugated nanoparticles (conj-nano). The competitive experiments with the transferrin receptor specific antibody showed the entry of both conj-nano and direct-nano into the cells through transferrin receptor mediated endocytosis. Results of various studies conducted clearly establish the superiority of the direct-nano over conj-nano viz. (a) localization studies showed complete release of drug very early, even as early as 30 min after treatment, with the drug localizing in the target organelle (nucleus) (b) pharmacokinetic studies showed enhanced drug concentrations, in circulation with sustainable half-life (c) the studies also demonstrated efficient drug delivery, and an enhanced inhibition of proliferation in cancer cells. Tissue distribution analysis showed intravenous administration of direct nano lead to higher drug localization in liver, and blood as compared to relatively lesser localization in heart, kidney and spleen. Experiments using rat cancer model confirmed the efficacy of the formulation in regression of hepatocellular carcinoma with negligible toxicity to kidney and liver. CONCLUSIONS: The present study thus demonstrates that the direct-nano is highly efficacious in delivery of drug in a target specific manner with lower toxicity to heart, liver and kidney

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

On the wear of aluminium-corundum composites

The effect of corundum particle content on the wear of aluminium was studied. Composites of different corundum contents were tested for their wear characteristics. Hardness and density measurements were made on specimens before and after test. Specimens were examined by scanning electron microscopy in the as-compacted, sintered and worn states. The wear decreased as the oxide content increased, showing an optimum value at a composition range of 25 wt.%–35 wt.% of corundum. The mechanism of reinforcement and its effect on the operative wear mode are discussed

Facile fabrication of organic superhydrophobic corn silk-derived cellulose acetate nanofiber for the effective sequestration of oil from oil–water mixture

Oil spills and subsequent cleanup by oil–water separation remain a global concern. For the first time, corn silk-derived cellulose acetate (CSCA) and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) composite nanofiber are reported to create a superhydrophobic oil–water sequestration membrane. CA : PAN solutions with various PAN concentrations were evaluated for viscosity and conductivity. A CSCA nanofiber membrane was fabricated through electrospinning, which was superhydrophobic and oleophilic in water. Scanning electron microscope, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetric analysis/differential scanning calorimetry were used to analyze the membrane's morphological features. CSCA nanofibers formed a highly spherical bead with a maximum contact angle of 156° (>120°) in pure water solutions, demonstrating their superhydrophobicity. This study found that membranes can remove oil from oil–water mixtures and emulsions, as gravity is the only force required for propelling the system. Mineral oil had the highest oil sorption capability (908%), while toluene had the lowest (664%). For mineral oil–water mixtures, the CSCA membrane has the greatest separation flux at a maximum of 442 L/m2/h and the best separation efficiency at up to 99.67%. These findings provide strong support for using an as-prepared CSCA nanofiber membrane as a viable reusable oil sorbent in oil spill cleaning. HIGHLIGHTS Organic eco-friendly corn silk-derived cellulose acetate (CSCA) nanofiber was fabricated.; CSCA nanofiber featured exceptional oil–water separation capabilities.; The CSCA nanofiber exhibited superior durability and recyclable qualities.; With a separation efficiency of 99.67%, membranes are both superhydrophobic and oleophilic.

A Study on removal of Methylene Blue dye by photo catalysis integrated with nanofiltration using statistical and experimental approaches

In this work, the removal of Methylene Blue dye from the synthetic textile effluent has been investigated using a hybrid system (photocatalysis and nanofiltration). The Commercial ZnO powder was used as a catalyst in the photocatalytic operation. Response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to optimize the various operating parameters such as pH, catalyst loading and time duration and this optimization has enhanced the decolorization efficiencies. The results were compared and contrasted with the individual as well as the combined systems at optimized conditions. The results indicate that the photocatalysis process alone has resulted in 33% of dye decolorization and 26.5% of total organic carbon (TOC) removal, while the individual ceramic nanoflitration system has yielded 43% of decolorization and 35.03% TOC removal. About 94% of the dye were decolorized, and 70% of TOC was removed in 94.23 minutes of operation by the hybrid system at optimized initial operating conditions

A Study on removal of Methylene Blue dye by photo catalysis integrated with nanofiltration using statistical and experimental approaches

In this work, the removal of Methylene Blue dye from the synthetic textile effluent has been investigated using a hybrid system (photocatalysis and nanofiltration). The Commercial ZnO powder was used as a catalyst in the photocatalytic operation. Response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to optimize the various operating parameters such as pH, catalyst loading and time duration and this optimization has enhanced the decolorization efficiencies. The results were compared and contrasted with the individual as well as the combined systems at optimized conditions. The results indicate that the photocatalysis process alone has resulted in 33% of dye decolorization and 26.5% of total organic carbon (TOC) removal, while the individual ceramic nanoflitration system has yielded 43% of decolorization and 35.03% TOC removal. About 94% of the dye were decolorized, and 70% of TOC was removed in 94.23 minutes of operation by the hybrid system at optimized initial operating conditions

Efficacy, safety and anticancer activity of protein nanoparticle-based delivery of doxorubicin through intravenous administration in rats.

Doxorubicin is a potent anticancer drug and a major limiting factor that hinders therapeutic use as its high levels of systemic circulation often associated with various off-target effects, particularly cardiotoxicity. The present study focuses on evaluation of the efficacy of doxorubicin when it is loaded into the protein nanoparticles and delivered intravenously in rats bearing Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The proteins selected as carrier were Apotransferrin and Lactoferrin, since the receptors for these two proteins are known to be over expressed on cancer cells due to their iron transport capacity.Doxorubicin loaded apotransferrin (Apodoxonano) and lactoferrin nanoparticles (Lactodoxonano) were prepared by sol-oil chemistry. HCC in the rats was induced by 100 mg/l of diethylnitrosamine (DENA) in drinking water for 8 weeks. Rats received 5 doses of 2 mg/kg drug equivalent nanoparticles through intravenous administration. Pharmacokinetics and toxicity of nanoformulations was evaluated in healthy rats and anticancer activity was studied in DENA treated rats. The anticancer activity was evaluated through counting of the liver nodules, H & E analysis and by estimating the expression levels of angiogenic and antitumor markers.In rats treated with nanoformulations, the numbers of liver nodules were found to be significantly reduced. They showed highest drug accumulation in liver (22.4 and 19.5 µg/g). Both nanoformulations showed higher localization compared to doxorubicin (Doxo) when delivered in the absence of a carrier. Higher amounts of Doxo (195 µg/g) were removed through kidney, while Apodoxonano and Lactodoxonano showed only a minimal amount of removal (<40 µg/g), suggesting the extended bioavailability of Doxo when delivered through nanoformulation. Safety analysis shows minimal cardiotoxicity due to lower drug accumulation in heart in the case of nanoformulation.Drug delivery through nanoformulations not only minimizes the cardiotoxicity of doxorubicin but also enhances the efficacy and bioavailability of the drug in a target-specific manner