Dibromido(4,4′-dimethyl-2,2′-bipyridine-κ2 N,N′)zinc(II)

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, [ZnBr2(C12H12N2)], contains two half-mol­ecules; both are completed by crystallographic twofold axes running through the ZnII atoms which are coordinated by an N,N′-bidentate 4,4′-dimethyl-2,2′-bipyridine ligand and two Br− ions, resulting in distorted ZnN2Br2 tetra­hedral coordination geometries. In the crystal, C—H⋯Br inter­actions link the mol­ecules

Flatworms have lost the right open reading frame kinase 3 gene during evolution

All multicellular organisms studied to date have three right open reading frame kinase genes (designated riok-1, riok-2 and riok-3). Current evidence indicates that riok-1 and riok-2 have essential roles in ribosome biosynthesis, and that the riok-3 gene assists this process. In the present study, we conducted a detailed bioinformatic analysis of the riok gene family in 25 parasitic flatworms (platyhelminths) for which extensive genomic and transcriptomic data sets are available. We found that none of the flatworms studied have a riok-3 gene, which is unprecedented for multicellular organisms. We propose that, unlike in other eukaryotes, the loss of RIOK-3 from flatworms does not result in an evolutionary disadvantage due to the unique biology and physiology of this phylum. We show that the loss of RIOK-3 coincides with a loss of particular proteins associated with essential cellular pathways linked to cell growth and apoptosis. These findings indicate multiple, key regulatory functions of RIOK-3 in other metazoan species. Taking advantage of a known partial crystal structure of human RIOK-1, molecular modelling revealed variability in nucleotide binding sites between flatworm and human RIOK proteins

A practical Java tool for small-molecule compound appraisal

The increased use of small-molecule compound screening by new users from a variety of different academic backgrounds calls for adequate software to administer, appraise, analyse and exchange information obtained from screening experiments. While software and spreadsheet solutions exist, there is a need for software that can be easily deployed and is convenient to use.The Java application cApp addresses this need and aids in the handling and storage of information on small-molecule compounds. The software is intended for the appraisal of compounds with respect to their physico-chemical properties, analysis in relation to adherence to likeness rules as well as recognition of pan-assay interference components and cross-linking with identical entries in the PubChem Compound Database. Results are displayed in a tabular form in a graphical interface, but can also be written in an HTML or PDF format. The output of data in ASCII format allows for further processing of data using other suitable programs. Other features include similarity searches against user-provided compound libraries and the PubChem Compound Database, as well as compound clustering based on a MaxMin algorithm.cApp is a personal database solution for small-molecule compounds which can handle all major chemical formats. Being a standalone software, it has no other dependency than the Java virtual machine and is thus conveniently deployed. It streamlines the analysis of molecules with respect to physico-chemical properties and drug discovery criteria; cApp is distributed under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3 and available from http://www.structuralchemistry.org/pcsb/. To download cApp, users will be asked for their name, institution and email address. A detailed manual can also be downloaded from this site, and online tutorials are available at http://www.structuralchemistry.org/pcsb/capp.php

Diagnostic Performance of Ultrasonography for Identification of Small Bowel Obstruction: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Introduction: Small bowel obstruction (SBO) is known as a common cause of acute abdominal complaints in the emergency department (ED). The modality of choice for the diagnosis of SBO has not yet been established. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the accuracy of ultrasonography for the diagnosis of SBO. Methods: Systematic search was performed on five electronic databases including Medline, Scopus, Web of Sciences, Embase, and Cochrane Library, and the retrieval period was from the inception of each database to November 2023. The quality of the included studies were investigated using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2). The pooled values of diagnostic characteristics for ultrasonography were estimated using meta-Disc and Stata statistical software. Results: Twenty-one studies with a total of 1977 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled estimate for sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and area under the summary ROC curve of ultrasonography for diagnosing SBO were 0.93 (95% CI: 0.91–0.95), 0.8 (95% CI: 0.77–0.83), 5.69 (95% CI: 3.64–8.89), 0.1 (95% CI: 0.07–0.16), 83.51 (95% CI: 18.12–182.91) and 0.96, respectively. Conclusion: The findings of this meta-analysis showed that the utilization of ultrasonography holds promise as a diagnostic imaging for SBO with high accuracy. However, additional worldwide studies are essential to get more evidence on the value of ultrasonography for the diagnosis of SBO

Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks

Pragmatism, Bohr, and the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics

In this article, we argue that although Bohr’s version of the Copenhagen interpretation is in line with several key elements of logical positivism, pragmatism is the closest approximation to a classification of the Copenhagen interpretation, whether or not pragmatists directly influenced the key figures of the interpretation. Pragmatism already encompasses important elements of operationalism and logical positivism, especially the liberalized Carnapian reading of logical positivism. We suggest that some elements of the Copenhagen interpretation, which are in line with logical positivism, are also supported by pragmatism. Some of these elements are empirical realism, fallibilism, holism, and instrumentalism. However, pragmatism goes beyond logical positivism in espousing some other key elements of the Copenhagen interpretation, though imperfectly, such as the correspondence principle, complementarity, and indeterminism

Bohm’s theory of the relationship of mind and matter revisited

In this paper it is claimed that Bohm’s holistic, realistic, causally deterministic, non-local theory of the relationship of mind and matter which is based on the key notion of “active information” suffers from an ill inductive reasoning. It is shown that the notion is a special case of the notion of pragmatic information as posed by Roederer which applies merely to natural living systems and artifacts (unnatural nonliving systems). So, the extension of the thesis of active information to the natural nonliving world would count as a violation of the key constituent concepts of pragmatic information and as an ill generalization of Bohm’s thesis itself. Active information as ‘mind’ will be found in biological systems and in some artifacts which represent the biological mind. There is no reason to think of inanimate nature being driven by information. This, in turn, would lead to the substitution of empirical realism for realism, modifying Bohm’s ideas to come even closer to the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics

The Interpretation of ‘Nour’ Surah in Avicenna and Darashokuh’s View

The study of Two Minds scholar and Imam Khomeini's views on Four Journeys, given the similarities between the two views at the same time, there are also differences. Imam and Qomshei both see the origin of the first trip as the created existents but unlike Qomshei who introduced the destination of the trip as the absolute Reality, Imam cosiders it as the qualified Reality. At the second trip, the Imam like Qomshei believe in similar provisions in the tour, vanishing intrinsic qualities and actions, including the necessity of divine grace to withdraw and return to Ananyt destruction of Leishmaniasis, a seeker's journey is outlined. However, as noted in tour, the site of the Imam against Qomshei who knows loss of mortals, for the traveler on this journey, just as the show is doomed. Instead, the trip to visit Imam's absolute right to know and secondly. However real nature and destination of the trip with created clear interpretation are consistent with this interpretation, traveler departing on the trip, his destination as the One and it is his justification for destination variable is the fourth trip. Both believe that the prophecy for the traveler on the trip is a prophetic other legislation because the seeker still no better field facility, descent and has not returned. Imam and Qomshei have most closely resembles in the interpretation of the nature and characteristics of their fourth trip. In terms of both, at first this trip is from created existents to created existents with along with the Real and secondly legislation prophecy has been obtained on this trip fully for the seeke

Dichlorido(6,6′-dimethyl-2,2′-bipyridine-κ2N,N′)cadmium(II)

In the title compound, [CdCl2(C12H12N2)], the CdII atom is four-coordinated in a distorted tetrahedral geometry by two N atoms from a 6,6′-dimethyl-2,2′-bipyridine ligand and two terminal Cl atoms. Intermolecular C—H...Cl hydrogen bonds and π–π stacking interactions between the pyridyl rings [centroid–centroid distance = 3.7337 (18) Å] are present in the crystal structure