Optical Properties for Thin Film of Coumarin 334 Organic Laser Dye doped with PVA Polymer and Al2O3 Nanoparticles

Background: In this work, the optical properties for thin film of Coumarin 334 organic laser dye doped with PVA polymer and AL2O3 nanoparticles are determined at different concentrations, dissolved in ethanol solvent. Methods: Solutions at concentration (10-4 M) from coumarin (334) dye  in ethanol solvent at Different concentrations from dye (1, 3, 5, and 7)  ×10-5 M  were  prepared. Results: The AFM measurements show that the  grain size, root mean  square and roughness belong to the surface of the thin films rises with thickness rise for thin films  .  It has also increased the absorbance due to the increase in concentration. Conclusion: By using Gaussian beam from CW pulsed laser at 457 nm, we used Z-scan to study the nonlinear optical properties. The nonlinearity of thin film highly excels the pure dye solutions

Cellular Infiltration and Cytokine Expression Correlate with Fistulizing State in Crohn\u27s Disease

The purpose of this study was to determine the degree of infiltration of different cell subpopulations (tissue dendritic macrophages, T-helper cells, cytotoxic T lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophils, and B cells) and the expression of the cytokines interleukin-12 (IL-12) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) in inflamed and noninflamed resected tissues from Crohn\u27s disease (CD) and non-CD patients. Twenty-one resected full-thickness intestinal tissue specimens representing 13 subjects (8 CD and 5 non-CD patients) were included in this study. Sections of 20 mu m in thickness were cut and then stained using immunohistochemistry. The sections were analyzed using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Patterns of staining for inflamed CD and noninflamed CD tissues versus non-CD tissues demonstrated significant differences in the macrophage and T-helper subpopulations. Surprisingly, the T-helper subset was decreased significantly in the inflamed CD sections compared to the noninflamed CD and non-CD sections. The staining patterns also suggested differences in the expression of both IL-12 and TNF-alpha between the groups, with cytokine overexpression directly relating to the fistulizing state in CD patients. Cytokine expression is upregulated in chronic CD patients; therefore, the degree of inflammation and tissue damage in CD is dependent on the expression of specific cytokines within the tissue. Differentiation of cell subpopulations may be important for establishing a direct relationship with each state of CD (inflammatory, stricturing, and fistulizing states)

Separation and identification of phenolics and flavonoids from wild Pistacia palaestina extract and its antioxidant activity

An in-vitro evaluation of the antioxidant activities of wild Palestinian Pistacia palaestina extracts was done. In parallel, the total phenolic content (TPC) and the total flavonoids content (TFC) were measured. The antioxidant activities were determined spectrophotometrically by DPPH, FRAP, CUPRAC and the ABTS methods. The phenolic and flavonoid contents were separated and identified using LC-PDA-MS. The P. palaestina extract was found to contain many phenolic and flavonoids that enhance its reducing activity and free radical scavenging ability. Total phenolic content, and total flavonoids contents were found to be 66.5 ± 2.2 mg Gallic acid/g, and 20.3 ± 1.1 mg catechin/g, respectively. Antioxidant activity represented as FRAP, CUPRAC, DPPH and ABTS was found to be 23.5± 1.2 mmol Fe+2/g, 4562 ± 63 μmol Trolox/g, 344 ± 11 μmol/g, 53.1 ± 6.6 μmol/g, respectively. The aim of the study is therefore to employ different antioxidant tests to evaluate the antioxidant activities of crude ethanol leaf extracts of P. palaestina, and to determine its phenolic and flavonoids content

Polymorphisms in TNF Receptor Superfamily 1B (TNFRSF1B:rs3397) are Linked to Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis Infection and Osteoporosis in Rheumatoid Arthritis

We previously discovered that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in PTPN2/22 (T-cell negative-regulators) occur in 78% of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), along with Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis (MAP) infection in 33% of patients. In Crohn’s disease, we reported that SNPs in TNFα and receptors (TNFRSF1A/TNFRSF1B) benefited intracellular MAP-survival, increased infection, and elevated inflammatory response mimicking the poor response to anti-TNFα treatment in some patients. Here, we studied the frequency and effects of SNPs in TNFα/TNFRSF1A/TNFRSF1B in RA including gene expression, MAP infection, and osteoporosis marker levels in blood (54 RA and 48 healthy controls). TNFα:rs1800629 (GA) was detected in 19/48 (40%) RA and 8/54 (15%) controls (p-value CT (0.34 ± 0.14) and CC > TT (0.27 ± 0.12)), compared to wildtype CC (0.51 ± 0.17), p-value < 0.05. MAP DNA was detected significantly in 17/48 (35.4%) RA compared to 11/54 (20.4%) controls (p-value < 0.05, OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.12–5.20). The average osteocalcin level was significantly lower (p-value < 0.05) in RA (2.70 ± 0.87 ng/mL), RA + MAP (0.60 ± 0.31 ng/mL), RA + TNFRSF1B:rs3397 (TT) (0.67 ± 0.35 ng/mL), compared to the healthy control (5.31 ± 1.39 ng/mL), and MAP-free RA (3.85 ± 1.31 ng/mL). Overall, rs3397 appears to downregulate TNFRSF1B, increase MAP infection, worsen inflammation, and cause osteocalcin deficiency and possibly osteoporosis in RA

Oleuropein Is Responsible for the Major Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Olive Leaf Extract

Olive leaves are rich in polyphenolic compounds that are known to have antioxidant, antimicrobial, and antiinflammatory activities. Therefore, olive leaf extract (OLE) is considered as a natural supplement. In this study we evaluated the antibacterial and the anti-inflammatory effect of OLE and its individual phenolic components in vitro. Polymorphonuclear cells (PMNCs) were isolated from the whole blood using Histopaque solution and cultured in RPMI-enriched medium. Tumor necrosis factor a (TNFa) level was determined by ELISA after 24 h of lipopolysaccharide stimulation. The antibacterial activity of OLE was determined by well diffusion assay. We found a significant decrease in TNFa secretion level in PMNCs culture treated with OLE. Oleuropein is the only OLE component that has shown anti-inflammatory effects at a concentration of 20 lg/mL. Furthermore, OLE exhibited antibacterial activity against some gram positive bacterial strains; however, gram negative bacterial strains were resistant to OLE. Downregulation of TNFa secretion in PMNCs culture in response to OLE treatment indicates that this polyphenol-rich extract has an anti-inflammatory effect, and oleuropein is the major OLE component responsible for this effect. The antibacterial activity of OLE is limited to gram positive bacteria.Our thanks are due to all laboratory members who participated in this study

Study on the effect of the substrate material type and thickness on the performance of the filtering antenna design

This article presents a new design of a four-pole microstrip filtering antenna. The filtering antenna consists of a bandpass filter, which has four resonators integrated to a monopole patch antenna. The filtering antenna is designed with a relatively high bandwidth of about 1.22 GHz to satisfy a high-speed data transmission. Three types of dielectric substrate materials were used for the design of the filtering antenna, which is RT/Duroid 5880, RO3003, and FR-4. The simulation results of the filtering antenna design, which are established on the three different dielectric substrate materials, are done by using Computer Simulation Technology (CST) software. Comparison results of the filtering antenna that is established on the three different dielectric substrate materials are done at a fixed substrate height and different substrate heights. The filtering antenna is designed at a center frequency f0 = 2.412 GHz, which is suitable for WLAN applications

Development of multiplex PCR and multi-color fluorescent in situ hybridization (m-FISH) coupled protocol for detection and imaging of multi-pathogens involved in inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract Background Several pathogens have been debated to play a role in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) including Crohn’s disease (CD). None of these pathogens have been investigated together in same clinical samples. We developed a multiplex PCR and multi-color fluorescent in situ hybridization (m-FISH) protocols for simultaneous detection of CD-associated pathogens including Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP), Klebsiella pneumoniae, and adherent-invasive Escherichia coli strain LF82. Methods The multiplex PCR is based on 1-h DNAzol® extraction protocol modified for rapid extraction of bacterial DNA from culture, blood, and intestinal biopsies. Oligonucleotide primers sequences unique to these pathogens were evaluated individually and in combinations using bioinformatics and experimental approaches. m-FISH was based on fluorescent-tagged oligonucleotides and confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM). Results Following several attempts, the concentration of the oligonucleotide primers and DNA templates and the PCR annealing temperatures were optimized. Multiplex PCR analyses revealed excellent amplification signal in trials where a single primer set and combinations of two and three primers sets were tested against a mixture of DNA from three different bacteria or a mixture of three bacterial cultures mixed in one tube before DNA extraction. Slides with individual and mixtures of bacterial cultures and intestinal tissue sections from IBD patients were tested by m-FISH and the CSLM images verified multiplex PCR results detected on 3% agarose gel. Conclusion We developed a 4-h multiplex PCR protocol, which was validated by m-FISH images, capable of detecting up to four genes from major pathogens associated with CD. The new protocol should serve as an excellent tool to support efforts to study multi-pathogens involved in CD and other autoimmune disease

Design and optimization of microstrip filtering antenna with modified shaped slots and SIR filter to improve the impedance bandwidth

This paper presents a new compact microstrip filtering antenna with modified shaped slots to improve the impedance bandwidth. The proposed microstrip filtering antenna consists of three parts; the monopole radiating patch antenna, the SIR filter, and the feeding microstrip line. The design structure is achieved on one sided glass epoxy FR-4 substrate with dielectric constant ε_r = 4.4 and thickness of h = 1.6 mm. The design procedures of the proposed filtering antenna starts from the second order Chebyshev low pass filter prototype. The simulation results throughout this article are done by a computer simulation technology (CST) software. The simulated results have been achieved show good performance of S11-parameter and broad side antenna gain on +z-direction. This design has two transmission zeros at 5.4 GHz and 7.7 GHz, and bandwidth (B.W) of about 1.66 GHz so; it is suitable for high speed data communication. This design has good skirt selectivity

Wavelet Neural Networks for Speed Control of BLDC Motor

In the recent years, researchers have sophisticated the synthesis of neural networks depending on the wavelet functions to build the wavelet neural networks (WNNs), where the wavelet function is utilized in the hidden layer as a sigmoid function instead of conventional sigmoid function that is utilized in artificial neural network. The WNN inherits the features of the wavelet function and the neural network (NN), such as self-learning, self-adapting, time-frequency location, robustness, and nonlinearity. Besides, the wavelet function theory guarantees that the WNN can simulate the nonlinear system precisely and rapidly. In this chapter, the WNN is used with PID controller to make a developed controller named WNN-PID controller. This controller will be utilized to control the speed of Brushless DC (BLDC) motor to get preferable performance than the traditional controller techniques. Besides, the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is utilized to optimize the parameters of the WNN-PID controller. The modification for this method of the WNN such as the recurrent wavelet neural network (RWNN) was included in this chapter. Simulation results for all the above methods are given and compared

Programmable Beam-Steering Capabilities Based on Graphene Plasmonic THz MIMO Antenna via Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS) for IoT Applications

The approaching sixth-generation (6G) communication network will modernize applications and satisfy user demands through implementing a smart and reconfigurable system with a higher data rate and wider bandwidth. The controllable THz waves are highly recommended for the instantaneous development the new technology in wireless communication systems. Recently, reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS), also called codded/tunable programmable metasurfaces, have enabled a conspicuous functionality for THz devices and components for influencing electromagnetic waves (EM) such as beam steering, multi-beam-scanning applications, polarization variation, and beam focusing applications. In this article, we proposed a graphene plasmonic two-port MIMO microstrip patch antenna structure that operates at a 1.9 THz resonance frequency. An E-shape MTM unit cell is introduced to enhance the isolation of the antenna from −35 dB to −54 dB. An implementation of controllable and reconfigurable surfaces based on graphene meta-atoms (G-RIS) placed above the radiating patches with a suitable separated distance to control the radiated beam to steer in different directions (±60°). The reconfigurable process is carried out via changing the (ON/OFF) meta-atoms states to get a specific code with a certain beam direction. The gain enhancement of the antenna can be implemented through an artificial magnetic conductor (AMC) based on graphene material. The G-AMC layer is located underneath the (MIMO antenna, G-RIS layer) to improve the gain from 4.5 dBi to 10 dBi. The suggested antenna structure results are validated with different techniques CST microwave studio and ADS equivalent circuit model. The results have asymptotic values. So, the proposed design of the MIMO antenna that is sandwiched between G-RIS and G-AMC is suitable for IoT applications