CO preferential oxidation in a novel Au@ZrO₂ flow-through catalytic membrane reactor with high stability and efficiency

CO preferential oxidation (CO-PROX) achieves much interest as a strategy to remove trace CO in reformed gases for hydrogen utilization. Herein, we reported a novel Au@ZrO₂ catalytic membrane reactor by embedding gold nano-particles in ZrO₂ hollow fiber membrane for CO-PROX. The flow-through catalytic membrane exhibited high catalytic activity and oxygen selectivity, which gave a turnover frequency of 4.73 s⁻¹ at 60 °C, 2–3 times higher than conventional catalyst pellets. CO conversion of >95% was achieved over the catalytic membrane, which maintained great operational stability during 500-h operation even CO₂ and H₂O were added in the feed stream. The excellent catalytic performance of the flow-through catalytic membrane makes gold catalyst possible for practical application in the removal of CO from hydrogen

SYNTHESIS OF MESOPOROUS TITANIUM OXIDE AND CATALYTIC ACTIVITY OF Ru/m-TiO2

A series of mesoporous TiO2 oxide (m-TiO2) were synthesized by using n-cetylpyridinium chloride (C16PyCl) as a structure-directing agent under complete different conditions. The synthesized mesoporous samples were characterized by means of FT-IR, XRD, and N2 adsorption methods. Effects of template, solvent, pH, ageing temperature and C16PyCl/TTIP molar ratio on the structure and stability of m-TiO2 were also discussed. The results show that the property of m-TiO2 synthesized by using C16PyCl as template, C2H5OH as solvent, pH 7-8, ageing temperature 20 oC and C16PyCl/TTIP molar ratio 2 are superior to that of m-TiO2 prepared under other conditions. After being loaded by the impregnating method, the Ru particle strongly interacts with the mesoporous supports. The catalytic activity of Ru/m-TiO2 for methanol decomposition to carbon monoxide and hydrogen was investigated. It is found that synthesizing conditions of mesoporous materials affect the catalytic activity of Ru/m-TiO2. KEY WORDS: Mesoporous titanium oxide, Methanol decomposition, Ruthenium, Catalyst support, n-Cetylpyridinium chloride Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2005, 19(2), 277-288

Cooperative-Competitive Healthcare Service Negotiation

Service negotiation is a complex activity, especially in complex domains such as healthcare. The provision of healthcare services typically involves the coordination of several professionals with different skills and locations. There is usually negotiation between health- care service providers as different services have specific constraints, variables, and features (scheduling, waiting lists, availability of resources, etc.), which may conflict with each other. While automating the negotiation processes by using software can improve the e±ciency and quality of healthcare services, most of the existing negotiation automations are positional bargaining in nature, and are not suitable for complex scenarios in healthcare services. This paper proposes a cooperative-competitive negotiation model that enables negotiating parties to share their knowledge and work toward optimal solutions. In this model, patients and healthcare providers work together to develop a patient-centered treatment plan. We further automate the new negotiation model with software agents

Efficacy of progestin-primed ovarian stimulation in women with polycystic ovary syndrome undergoing in vitro fertilization: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrinopathy causing infertility in childbearing women. Progestin-primed ovarian stimulation (PPOS) protocol has recently been used for infertile women. However, whether PPOS provides a significant benefit over gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogue protocols in PCOS is still controversial. The objective of this systematic review is to investigate the efficacy of PPOS in patients with PCOS during in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). We searched Medline, Embase, Google Scholar, ClinicalTrials, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from inception to April 1, 2023. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies comparing the efficacy between PPOS and conventional GnRH analogue protocols in patients with PCOS in English were included. The primary outcomes included live birth rate, the incidence of moderate or severe ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), and the number of metaphase II oocytes. The pooled estimates were calculated using the random-effects models as odds ratios (OR) or mean differences (MD) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Three RCTs and six cohort studies involving 2289 patients were included. Results from RCTs suggest that PPOS leads to no significant difference in the risk of OHSS, the number of metaphase II oocytes, or the rate of live birth when compared to GnRH analogue protocols. The pooling estimates of cohort studies showed consistent results. Additionally, in cohort studies, PPOS required a higher dose of Gn and tended to improve the implantation rate, clinical pregnancy rate, and ongoing pregnancy rate. For subgroup analyses, the higher implantation rate, clinical pregnancy rate, and ongoing pregnancy rate were found in PPOS compared to the GnRH agonist short protocol. However, the certainty of the evidence for the outcomes was generally low. Overall, There is currently no evidence to support that PPOS could reduce the risk of OHSS, increase oocyte maturation, or improve pregnancy outcomes in women with PCOS undergoing IVF/ICSI when compared to GnRH analogue protocols. Considering its efficiency and safety, this protocol could be a patient-friendly and viable alternative for PCOS patients, especially when frozen-thawed embryo transfer is planned. Future high-quality randomized trials with children’s long-term safety and cost-effective analyses are still required.System Review RegistrationNPLASY (202340059). https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2023-4-0059

Association between Cutaneous Nevi and Breast Cancer in the Nurses' Health Study: A Prospective Cohort Study

Background: Cutaneous nevi are suggested to be hormone-related. We hypothesized that the number of cutaneous nevi might be a phenotypic marker of plasma hormone levels and predict subsequent breast cancer risk. Methods and Findings: We followed 74,523 female nurses for 24 y (1986–2010) in the Nurses' Health Study and estimate the relative risk of breast cancer according to the number of cutaneous nevi. We adjusted for the known breast cancer risk factors in the models. During follow-up, a total of 5,483 invasive breast cancer cases were diagnosed. Compared to women with no nevi, women with more cutaneous nevi had higher risks of breast cancer (multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio, 1.04, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.98–1.10 for 1–5 nevi; 1.15, 95% CI, 1.00–1.31 for 6–14 nevi, and 1.35, 95% CI, 1.04–1.74 for 15 or more nevi; p for continuous trend = 0.003). Over 24 y of follow-up, the absolute risk of developing breast cancer increased from 8.48% for women without cutaneous nevi to 8.82% (95% CI, 8.31%–9.33%) for women with 1–5 nevi, 9.75% (95% CI, 8.48%–11.11%) for women with 6–14 nevi, and 11.4% (95% CI, 8.82%–14.76%) for women with 15 or more nevi. The number of cutaneous nevi was associated with increased risk of breast cancer only among estrogen receptor (ER)–positive tumors (multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio per five nevi, 1.09, 95% CI, 1.02–1.16 for ER+/progesterone receptor [PR]–positive tumors; 1.08, 95% CI, 0.94–1.24 for ER+/PR− tumors; and 0.99, 95% CI, 0.86–1.15 for ER−/PR− tumors). Additionally, we tested plasma hormone levels according to the number of cutaneous nevi among a subgroup of postmenopausal women without postmenopausal hormone use (n = 611). Postmenopausal women with six or more nevi had a 45.5% higher level of free estradiol and a 47.4% higher level of free testosterone compared to those with no nevi (p for trend = 0.001 for both). Among a subgroup of 362 breast cancer cases and 611 matched controls with plasma hormone measurements, the multivariable-adjusted odds ratio for every five nevi attenuated from 1.25 (95% CI, 0.89–1.74) to 1.16 (95% CI, 0.83–1.64) after adjusting for plasma hormone levels. Key limitations in this study are that cutaneous nevi were self-counted in our cohort and that the study was conducted in white individuals, and thus the findings do not necessarily apply to other populations. Conclusions: Our results suggest that the number of cutaneous nevi may reflect plasma hormone levels and predict breast cancer risk independently of previously known factors. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summar

RETRACTED: Treatment mechanism of hexavalent chromium wastewater in constructed wetland-microbial fuel cell coupling system

Cr(VI) is toxic to the human body and environment. As a suitable wastewater treatment with low energy requirement technology, constructed wetland-microbial fuel cells (CW-MFCs) can treat Cr(VI) wastewater while generating electricity. In this study, CW-MFC and constructed wetland systems were developed to purify Cr(VI) wastewater. The removal mechanism of Cr(VI) was examined by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results demonstrated that the average pollutant removal efficiency of the CW-MFC system is 2.99–8.13% higher than that of the constructed wetland system, and the maximum power density is 505.61 mW m−2. Moreover, the XPS and EPR analyses demonstrated that Cr in substrates and Leersia hexandra Swartz primarily is in the form of Cr(III). Moreover, in plants and substrates, the Cr(III) content of the CW-MFC system was higher than that of the control, and the bioconcentration and translocation factors were 0.23 and 0.05 higher than those in the control group, respectively. Therefore, the CW-MFC system can efficiently remove Cr(VI) and promote the accumulation and transport of Cr. Microbial community diversity in the CW-MFC was significantly higher than CW. The abundance of electrogenic bacteria Geobacter and metal dissimilatory reducing bacteria Acinetobacter in CW-MFC is higher than that in CW. To summarize, the study results provide a theoretical basis for the mechanism study of Cr(VI) wastewater treatment using CW-MFC systems