High-efficiency photovoltaic cells with wide optical band gap polymers based on fluorinated phenylene-alkoxybenzothiadiazole

A series of semi-crystalline, wide band gap (WBG) photovoltaic polymers were synthesized with varying number and topology of fluorine substituents. To decrease intramolecular charge transfer and to modulate the resulting band gap of D-A type copolymers, electron-releasing alkoxy substituents were attached to electron-deficient benzothiadiazole (A) and electron-withdrawing fluorine atoms (0-4F) were substituted onto a 1,4-bis(thiophen-2-yl)benzene unit (D). Intra- and/or interchain noncovalent Coulombic interactions were also incorporated into the polymer backbone to promote planarity and crystalline intermolecular packing. The resulting optical band gap and the valence level were tuned to 1.93-2.15 eV and -5.37 to -5.67 eV, respectively, and strong interchain organization was observed by differential scanning calorimetry, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and grazing incidence X-ray scattering measurements. The number of fluorine atoms and their position significantly influenced the photophysical, morphological and optoelectronic properties of bulk heterojunctions (BHJs) with these polymers. BHJ photovoltaic devices showed a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of up to 9.8% with an open-circuit voltage of 0.94-1.03 V. To our knowledge, this PCE is one of the highest values for fullerene-based single BHJ devices with WBG polymers having a band gap of over 1.90 eV. A tandem solar cell was also demonstrated successfully to show a PCE of 10.3% by combining a diketopyrrolopyrrole-based low band gap polymer

Cucurbit[7]uril as a Supramolecular Artificial Enzyme for Diels–Alder Reactions

The ability to mimic the activity of natural enzymes using supramolecular constructs (artificial enzymes) is a vibrant scientific research field. Herein, we demonstrate that cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) can catalyse Diels–Alder reactions for a number of substituted and unreactive N-allyl-2-furfurylamines under biomimetic conditions, without the need for protecting groups, yielding powerful synthons in previously unreported mild conditions. CB[7] rearranges the substrate in a highly reactive conformation and shields it from the aqueous environment, thereby mimicking the mode of action of a natural Diels–Alderase. These findings can be directly applied to the phenomenon of product inhibition observed in natural Diels–Alderase enzymes, and pave the way toward the development of novel, supramolecular-based green catalysts.O.A.S. and A.P. acknowledge an ERC starting investigator grant (ASPiRe 240629) and EPSRC Programme Grant (NOtCH, EP/L027151/1) for the support, G.W. thanks the Leverhulme Trust (Natural material innovation for sustainable living) for the support, S.J.B. thanks the European Commission for a Marie Curie Fellowship (NANOSPHERE, 658360), E.R. gratefully acknowledges financial support from EPSRC (EP/N020669/1), E.M. and X.L. acknowledge the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund (PRF No. 51053-ND4), the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, the College of Arts and Sciences and the Vice President for Research at Ohio University

Decadal changes of the Western Arabian sea ecosystem

Historical data from oceanographic expeditions and remotely sensed data on outgoing longwave radiation, temperature, wind speed and ocean color in the western Arabian Sea (1950–2010) were used to investigate decadal trends in the physical and biochemical properties of the upper 300 m. 72 % of the 29,043 vertical profiles retrieved originated from USA and UK expeditions. Increasing outgoing longwave radiation, surface air temperatures and sea surface temperature were identified on decadal timescales. These were well correlated with decreasing wind speeds associated with a reduced Siberian High atmospheric anomaly. Shoaling of the oxycline and nitracline was observed as well as acidification of the upper 300 m. These physical and chemical changes were accompanied by declining chlorophyll-a concentrations, vertical macrofaunal habitat compression, declining sardine landings and an increase of fish kill incidents along the Omani coast

I Feel what You Feel if You Are Similar to Me

Social interactions are influenced by the perception of others as similar or dissimilar to the self. Such judgements could depend on physical and semantic characteristics, such as membership in an ethnic or political group. In the present study we tested whether social representations of the self and of others could affect the perception of touch. To this aim, we assessed tactile perception on the face when subjects observed a face being touched by fingers. In different conditions we manipulated the identity of the shown face. In a first experiment, Caucasian and Maghrebian participants viewed a face belonging either to their own or to a different ethnic group; in a second experiment, Liberal and Conservative politically active participants viewed faces of politicians belonging to their own or to the opposite political party. The results showed that viewing a touched face most strongly enhanced the perception of touch on the observer's face when the observed face belonged to his/her own ethnic or political group

Blockade of Fatty Acid Synthase Triggers Significant Apoptosis in Mantle Cell Lymphoma

Fatty acid synthase (FASN), a key player in the de novo synthetic pathway of long-chain fatty acids, has been shown to contribute to the tumorigenesis in various types of solid tumors. We here report that FASN is highly and consistently expressed in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), an aggressive form of B-cell lymphoid malignancy. Specifically, the expression of FASN was detectable in all four MCL cell lines and 15 tumors examined. In contrast, benign lymphoid tissues and peripheral blood mononuclear cells from normal donors were negative. Treatment of MCL cell lines with orlistat, a FASN inhibitor, resulted in significant apoptosis. Knockdown of FASN expression using siRNA, which also significantly decreased the growth of MCL cells, led to a dramatic decrease in the cyclin D1 level. β-catenin, which has been previously reported to be upregulated in a subset of MCL tumors, contributed to the high level of FASN in MCL cells, Interesting, siRNA knock-down of FASN in turn down-regulated β-catenin. In conclusion, our data supports the concept that FASN contributes to the pathogenesis of MCL, by collaborating with β-catenin. In view of its high and consistent expression in MCL, FASN inhibitors may hold promises for treating MCL

Isolation and Characterization of Antibacterial Compounds from <i>Aspergillus fumigatus:</i> An Endophytic Fungus from a Mangrove Plant of the Sundarbans.

The Sundarbans, a UNESCO world heritage site, is one of the largest mangrove forests in one stretch. Mangrove plants from this forest are little studied for their endophytic fungi. In this study, we isolated fourteen endophytic fungi from the plants Ceriops decandra and Avicennia officinalis collected from the Sundarbans. Five of them were identified as Aspergillus sp. and one as Penicillium sp. by macroscopic and microscopic observation. Antibacterial activity of the crude extracts obtained from these endophytes was determined against Staphylococcus aureus, Micrococcus luteus, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa using resazurin-based microtiter assay. The isolated endophytes showed varying degrees of antibacterial activity with MICs ranging between 5 and 0.078 mg/mL. Molecular identification of the most active endophyte revealed its identity as Aspergillus fumigatus obtained from the leaves of C. decandra. Acute toxicity study of the ethyl acetate extract of A. fumigatus in mice revealed no mortality even at the highest dose of 2000 mg/kg bodyweight, though some opposing results are found in the subacute toxicity study. The extract was subjected to silica gel and Sephadex column chromatography resulting in the isolation of three pure compounds. LC-MS analysis of these pure compounds revealed their identity as fumigaclavine C, azaspirofuran B, and fraxetin. This is the first report of fraxetin from A. fumigatus. All three identified compounds were previously reported for their antibacterial activity against different strains of both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Therefore, the observed antibacterial activity of the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) extract of A. fumigatus could be due to the presence of these compounds. These results support the notion of investigating fungal endophytes from the Sundarbans for new antimicrobial compounds

Causal hierarchy within the thalamo-cortical network in spike and wave discharges

Background: Generalised spike wave (GSW) discharges are the electroencephalographic (EEG) hallmark of absence seizures, clinically characterised by a transitory interruption of ongoing activities and impaired consciousness, occurring during states of reduced awareness. Several theories have been proposed to explain the pathophysiology of GSW discharges and the role of thalamus and cortex as generators. In this work we extend the existing theories by hypothesizing a role for the precuneus, a brain region neglected in previous works on GSW generation but already known to be linked to consciousness and awareness. We analysed fMRI data using dynamic causal modelling (DCM) to investigate the effective connectivity between precuneus, thalamus and prefrontal cortex in patients with GSW discharges. Methodology and Principal Findings: We analysed fMRI data from seven patients affected by Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy (IGE) with frequent GSW discharges and significant GSW-correlated haemodynamic signal changes in the thalamus, the prefrontal cortex and the precuneus. Using DCM we assessed their effective connectivity, i.e. which region drives another region. Three dynamic causal models were constructed: GSW was modelled as autonomous input to the thalamus (model A), ventromedial prefrontal cortex (model B), and precuneus (model C). Bayesian model comparison revealed Model C (GSW as autonomous input to precuneus), to be the best in 5 patients while model A prevailed in two cases. At the group level model C dominated and at the population-level the p value of model C was ∼1. Conclusion: Our results provide strong evidence that activity in the precuneus gates GSW discharges in the thalamo-(fronto) cortical network. This study is the first demonstration of a causal link between haemodynamic changes in the precuneus - an index of awareness - and the occurrence of pathological discharges in epilepsy. © 2009 Vaudano et al

Pesticidal Activity of Sundarban Mangrove Plant Extracts against Sitophilus Pests and Identification of Active Constituents Using LC-MS.

Plants act as a rich source of novel natural pesticides. In the backdrop of the recent revival of interest in developing plant-based insecticides, this study was carried out to investigate the pesticidal activity of Sundarban mangrove plants. A total of nine different plant parts from five plants, namely, Aegiceras corniculatum, Excoecaria agallocha, Heritiera fomes, Xylocarpus moluccensis, and Xylocarpus granatum, were extracted with methanol and tested for insecticidal activity against two common stored product pests Sitophilus oryzae and Sitophilus zeamais using direct contact feeding deterrent wafer disc method. Three bark extracts from A. corniculatum, E. agallocha, and H. fomes showed potent and statistically significant insecticidal activity against both S. oryzae and S. zeamais pests (80-100% mortality). All the active bark extracts were further fractionated using C-18 solid-phase extraction (SPE) columns and tested for their insecticidal activity against S. oryzae pest to identify the active fraction. Only the SPE4 fraction (100% MeOH) from all the three active plants showed the activity against S. oryzae pest with a lethal concentration 50% (LC50) value of 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 mg/disc for A. corniculatum, E. agallocha, and H. fomes, respectively. The active fraction of A. corniculatum was further profiled for identification of active compounds using LC-ESI-MS and identified (along with some unknown peaks) two previously reported compounds at m/z 625.17630 (isorhamnetin 3-O-rutinoside) and 422.25346 (paspaline) as major constituents. Insecticidal activities of these plants are reported in this study for the first time and would be useful in promoting research aiming for the development of new biopesticides from mangrove plants

Informing the design of a national screening and treatment programme for chronic viral hepatitis in primary care: qualitative study of at-risk immigrant communities and healthcare professionals

n Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise statedThis paper presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under the Programme Grants for Applied Research programme (RP-PG-1209-10038).

Illness perceptions and explanatory models of viral hepatitis B & C among immigrants and refugees: a narrative systematic review.

© 2015 Owiti et al.; licensee BioMed Central. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.BACKGROUND: Hepatitis B and C (HBV, HCV) infections are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Many countries with traditionally low prevalence (such as UK) are now planning interventions (screening, vaccination, and treatment) of high-risk immigrants from countries with high prevalence. This review aimed to synthesise the evidence on immigrants' knowledge of HBV and HCV that might influence the uptake of clinical interventions. The review was also used to inform the design and successful delivery of a randomised controlled trial of targeted screening and treatment. METHODS: Five databases (PubMed, CINHAL, SOCIOFILE, PsycINFO & Web of Science) were systematically searched, supplemented by reference tracking, searches of selected journals, and of relevant websites. We aimed to identify qualitative and quantitative studies that investigated knowledge of HBV and HCV among immigrants from high endemic areas to low endemic areas. Evidence, extracted according to a conceptual framework of Kleinman's explanatory model, was subjected to narrative synthesis. We adapted the PEN-3 model to categorise and analyse themes, and recommend strategies for interventions to influence help-seeking behaviour. RESULTS: We identified 51 publications including quantitative (n = 39), qualitative (n = 11), and mixed methods (n = 1) designs. Most of the quantitative studies included small samples and had heterogeneous methods and outcomes. The studies mainly concentrated on hepatitis B and ethnic groups of South East Asian immigrants residing in USA, Canada, and Australia. Many immigrants lacked adequate knowledge of aetiology, symptoms, transmission risk factors, prevention strategies, and treatment, of hepatitis HBV and HCV. Ethnicity, gender, better education, higher income, and English proficiency influenced variations in levels and forms of knowledge. CONCLUSION: Immigrants are vulnerable to HBV and HCV, and risk life-threatening complications from these infections because of poor knowledge and help-seeking behaviour. Primary studies in this area are extremely diverse and of variable quality precluding meta-analysis. Further research is needed outside North America and Australia