Water quality of small rivers in the Ulba basin has been assessed in the impact zone of the mining industry of the Ridder region in East Kazakhstan.

• Book : 15(14)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.11034-11044
• Keyword :

Introduction: Augmented reality (AR) technology has existed for decades but is not commonly used in spine surgery. Studies have found AR to have a good safety profile and workflow advantages over robotic navigation in pedicle screw placement. This study evaluates the safety and accuracy of AR navigation with S2 alar-iliac (S2AI) screw placement, an area with challenging surgical anatomy and little published research. Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted on patients undergoing spine surgery involving the S2AI corridor between November 2022 and September 2024 at two large academic medical centers. Patient and screw information was collected, and radiographs and CT scans were analyzed for screw safety and accuracy. Results: All 70 screws analyzed fully penetrated the sacroiliac joint with only one screw breaching the pelvis medially and no screws breaching the greater sciatic notch. No complications were found in the S2AI corridor. Conclusion: The S2AI corridor contains high-risk neurovasculature. Studies have demonstrated the superiority of robotic navigation over freehand navigation in this area. AR is noninferior to robotic navigation. AR, however, has radiation exposure, workflow, and training advantages over robotic navigation. Future work should investigate patient-reported outcomes, cost-benefit, and learning curve.

• Book : 9(4)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
• Keyword :

Deinococcus radiodurans is a remarkably unique microorganism, exhibiting extraordinary tolerance to extreme conditions such as ionizing radiation, ultraviolet light, and desiccation. However, the response mechanisms of D. radiodurans under low-temperature stress remain largely unexplored and have yet to be fully elucidated. The DohD protein is a hydrophilic member of the late embryogenesis abundant 3 (LEA3) family of D. radiodurans, playing a pivotal role in abiotic stress adaptation. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that DohD contains tandem repeats and disordered domains, with a remarkably high α-helix content (91.41%). Furthermore, DohD exhibits extremely low homology with other proteins, highlighting its uniqueness to D. radiodurans. Under low-temperature stress (15 °C), the expression of dohD was significantly upregulated (5-fold), regulated by a dual mechanism involving positive control by DrRRA and negative regulation by Csp. Circular dichroism spectroscopy unveiled temperature-dependent structural plasticity: as the temperature increased from 0 °C to 50° C, the α-helix content decreased from 23.5% to 18.7%, while the antiparallel β-sheet content increased from 31.3% to 50.8%. This suggests an α-helix to β-sheet interconversion mechanism as a strategy for thermal adaptation. Additionally, deletion of dohD impaired the tolerance of D. radiodurans to cold, desiccation, oxidative, and high-salt stresses, accompanied by the reduced activities of antioxidant enzymes (SOD, CAT, POD) and the downregulation of related gene expression. This study elucidates the multifunctional role of DohD in stress resistance through structural dynamics, transcriptional regulation, and redox homeostasis, providing valuable insights into the adaptation mechanisms of extremophiles.

• Book : 26(8)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.3511-3511
• Keyword :

최근 스마트폰, 태블릿과 같은 휴대용 전자기기의 대중화에 따라, 디스플레이에서 방출되는 인공적인자외선의 위험성에 대한 경각심이 고조되고 있다. 자외선 흡수율이 높은 금속 산화물 기반의 기능성 필름이다양하게 제안되어 왔지만, 전통적인 레이어드 복합체로는 우수한 자외선 차단율과 높은 투명성을 동시에 구현하기가 쉽지 않다. 본 연구에서는 각설탕에서 유래된 미세다공성 구조를 활용하여, 3차원 네트워크 구조화된ZnO 박막이 삽입된 PDMS 기반의 나노복합체 필름을 소개한다. 이러한 3차원 나노복합체 필름은 내부의 3차원 이종 계면에서 발생하는 독특한 광학적 거동으로 인해 투명하면서도 우수한 자외선 차단 성능을 발현할수 있음이 입증되었다. 임의의 표면에 탈부착 가능한 3차원 나노복합체 필름은 향후 일시적인 자외선 차단을위한 악세서리형 광학 부품으로 활용될 수 있을 것이다.

• Book : 26(1)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.9-14
• Keyword :

Abstract. This paper presents the results of three weeks of aerosol sampling at the Henties Bay coastal site in Namibia during the Aerosols, Radiation and Clouds in southern Africa (AEROCLO-sA) field campaign in August–September 2017. The campaign coincided with a transition period between two synoptic regimes and corresponded to a significant change in the aerosol composition measured at the site and in particular of that of mineral dust. During August, the dust was natural windblown from the southerly gravel plains with a composition consistent with that previously observed in Namibia. In September, the dust was fugitive from anthropogenic mining and possibly minor contribution of smelting emissions in northern Namibia or as far as the Copper Belt in Zambia, one of the regional hotspot of pollution. Chemical analysis of filter samples highlights the difference in elemental composition, in particular heavy metals, such as As, Cu, Cd, Pb, and Zn, but also silicon, in the anthropogenic dust. The metal solubility of the natural dust was higher, including that of iron. In addition to the higher content of iron oxides and the larger size of particles in the anthropogenic dust, we found that the iron solubility, and, more in general, the metals’ solubility, correlated to the high concentrations of fluoride ion which are attributed to marine emissions from the Namibian shelf. These results highlight in a renewed manner the importance of ocean-atmosphere exchanges affecting both the atmospheric composition and the marine biogeochemistry in the Benguela region.

• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
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AbstractHuman norovirus (HNoV) and human adenovirus (HAdV) are major causes of acute viral gastroenteritis globally and environmentally transmitted via the faecal-oral route through contaminated food and water. Recent evidence of these enteric viruses residing within environmental free-living amoebae (FLA)—specifically Vermamoeba vermiformis, Acanthamoeba polyphaga, and Willaertia magna—has significant implications for environmental virology and public health. The incorporation of HNoV into the cytoplasm and vacuoles of V. vermiformis and A. polyphaga, as well as the nuclear localization of HAdV within W. magna, was demonstrated using quantitative PCR and fluorescence microscopy. Intact HNoV and HAdV virions persisted inside FLA trophozoites, cysts, and extracellular vesicles for up to 12 days. Moreover, HAdV retained infectivity in buffalo green monkey kidney cells following intracellular persistence, suggesting these viruses can evade amoebal digestion and structural degradation. In the case of HAdV, nuclear incorporation, preservation of capsid integrity, and detection of mRNA associated with adenoviral fiber protein synthesis further suggest the possible initiation of virus-related transcriptional activity within the amoeba host.These findings challenge current assumptions about virus removal rates in sewage treatment, food safety protocols, and drinking water production. The enhanced persistence and protection conferred by FLA may also impact microbial risk assessments for recreational water use, particularly in sewage-impacted rivers and lakes. Recognition of FLA as reservoirs and transport vessels for enteric viruses necessitates a re-evaluation of existing water and sanitation guidelines to better mitigate environmental transmission pathways.Graphical Abstract

• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
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ABSTRACTOverexpression of spike glycoprotein G of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSVG) can induce the release of fusogenic plasma membrane vesicles (fPMVs), which can transport cytoplasmic, nuclear, and surface proteins directly to target cells. This study aimed to investigate the roles of rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (rBMSCs)‐derived fPMVs containing VSVG protein in myocardial injury and their related mechanisms. The plasmids of pLP‐VSVG were used to transfect rBMSCs, and then fPMVs were obtained by mechanical extrusion. After that, H9c2 cells were first treated with hypoxia reoxygenation (HR) to establish a cardiomyocyte injury model, and then were treated with fPMVs to evaluate the rescue of rBMSCs‐derived fPMVs on HR‐induced cardiomyocyte injury. FPMVs containing VSVG protein were successfully prepared from rBMSCs with VSVG overexpression. Compared with control fPMVs, ACTB, HDAC1, VSVG, CD81, MTCO1, and TOMM20 were significantly up‐regulated (p < 0.05), while eEF2 was significantly down‐regulated (p < 0.05) in the fPMVs containing VSVG protein. Additionally, it was obvious fPMVs could carry mitochondria into H9c2 cells, and HR treatment significantly inhibited viability and induced apoptosis of H9c2 cells, as well as significantly increased the contents of TNF‐α and IL‐1β, and ROS levels both in cells and cellular mitochondria, while evidently reducing the levels of ATP, MRCC IV, and MT‐ND1 (p < 0.05). However, fPVMs could remarkably reverse the changes in these indexes caused by HR (p < 0.05). RBMSCs‐derived fPMVs containing VSVG protein may have protective effects on myocardial injury by mediating mitochondrial transfer and regulating mitochondrial functions.

• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
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• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page :
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• Book : ()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.100961-100961
• Keyword :

Abstract This study investigates the response of Timepix3 semiconductor pixel detectors in proton beams of varying intensities, with a focus on FLASH proton therapy. Using the Timepix3 application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) chip, we measured the spatial and spectral characteristics of 220 MeV proton beams delivered in short pulses. The experimental setup involved Minipix readout electronics integrated with a Timepix3 chipboard in a flexible architecture, and an Advapix Timepix3 with a silicon sensor. Measurements were carried out with Timepix3 detectors equipped with experimental gallium arsenide (GaAs) and silicon (Si) sensors. We also investigated the response of a bare Timepix3 ASIC chip (without sensor). The detectors were placed within a waterproof holder attached to the positioning system of the IBA Blue water phantom, with additional measurements performed in air behind a 2 cm-thick polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) phantom. The results demonstrated the capability of the Timepix3 detectors to measure time-over-threshold (ToT, deposited energy) and event counts (number of events in a pixel) in both conventional and ultra-high-dose-rates (UHDR) proton beams. The bare ASIC chip configuration sustained up to a dose rate (DR) of 270 Gy/s, the maximum tested intensity, although it exhibited limited spatial resolution due to low detection efficiency. In contrast, Minipix Timepix3 with experimental GaAs sensors showed saturation at low DR∼5 Gy/s. Furthermore, the Advapix Timepix3 detector was used in both standard and customized configurations. In the standard configuration (Ikrum = 5), the detector showed saturation at DR∼5 Gy/s. But, in the customized configuration when the per-pixel discharging signal (called “Ikrum”) was increased (Ikrum = 80), the detector demonstrated enhanced performance by reducing the duration of the ToT signal, allowing beam spot imaging up to DR=∼28 Gy/s in the plateau region of the Bragg curve. For such DR or higher, the frame acquisition time was reduced to the order of microseconds, meaning only a fraction of the pulse (with pulse lengths on the order of milliseconds) was captured.

• Book : 20(04)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.C04030-C04030
• Keyword :