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Topic Review

Intra-Organismal Distribution of Tetrodotoxin in Tetrodotoxin-Bearing Animals

Tetrodotoxin (TTX), one of the deadliest natural toxins, has attracted the interest of researchers from various fields for decades. This non-protein, weakly basic, heat-resistant low-molecular-weight toxin selectively blocks voltage-gated sodium channels along the muscle and nerve cells.

2.9K
08 Nov 2022

Topic Review

Centaurus, a prominent southern hemisphere constellation, is one of the largest and most recognizable constellations in the night sky. Named after the centaur Chiron from Greek mythology, Centaurus features the bright Alpha Centauri system, one of the closest star systems to Earth.

2.9K
29 Feb 2024

Topic Review

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor

Immunological checkpoint inhibitors (ICPI) are monoclonal antibodies that target the signaling pathways of the immune system that involve the programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1), programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA-4) molecules, contributing to restore the immune responses against neoplastic cells.

2.9K
26 Oct 2020

Topic Review

Escherichia coli Shiga Toxins

Escherichia coli (EHEC) and Shigella dysenteriae serotype 1 are enterohemorrhagic bacteria that induce hemorrhagic colitis. This, in turn, may result in potentially lethal complications, such as hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which is characterized by thrombocytopenia, acute renal failure, and neurological abnormalities. Both species of bacteria produce Shiga toxins (Stxs), a phage-encoded exotoxin inhibiting protein synthesis in host cells that are primarily responsible for bacterial virulence.

2.9K
23 Jun 2021

Topic Review

Digital rights are fundamental rights in the digital age related to privacy protection in smart cities. In this vein, it has encouraged the United Nations to take an advocacy role regarding the ‘right to have digital rights’ and create the Hub for Human Rights and Digital Technology: ‘Together, as we seek to recover from the pandemic, we must learn to better curtail harmful use of digital technology and better unleash its power as a democratising force and an enabler’.

2.9K
22 Oct 2021

Topic Review

The Gathas (/ˈɡɑːtəz, -tɑːz/) are 17 Avestan hymns believed to have been composed by Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) himself. They form the core of the Zoroastrian liturgy (the Yasna). They are arranged in five different modes or metres. The Avestan term gāθā (𐬔𐬁𐬚𐬁 "hymn", but also "mode, metre") is cognate with Sanskrit gāthā (गाथा), both from the Proto-Indo-Iranian word *gaHtʰáH, from the root *gaH- "to sing".

2.9K
24 Oct 2022

Topic Review

Caduceus as a Symbol of Medicine

The caduceus is the traditional symbol of Hermes and features two snakes winding around an often winged staff. It is often used as a symbol of medicine, especially in the United States, despite its ancient and consistent associations with trade, liars, thieves, eloquence, negotiation, alchemy, and wisdom. The modern use of the caduceus as a symbol of medicine became established in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century as a result of well-documented mistakes, misunderstandings of symbology and classical culture. The correct symbol for medicine is the Rod of Asclepius, which has only one snake and no wings.

2.9K
02 Nov 2022

Topic Review

Titanium Wear of Dental Implants

Titanium is considered high-ly biocompatible with low corrosion and toxicity, but recent studies indicate that this understand-ing may be misleading as the properties of the material change drastically when titanium nano-particles (NPs) are shed from implant surfaces. These NPs are immunogenic and are associated with a macrophage-mediated inflammatory response by the host.

2.9K
02 Feb 2021

Topic Review

SiC Trench MOSFETs’ Reliability under Short-Circuit Conditions

MOSFETs exhibit different failure modes at different DC bus voltages. For double trench SiC MOSFETs, the failure modes are gate fault at lower DC bus voltage and thermal runaway at higher DC bus voltage, while the failure modes for asymmetric trench SiC MOSFETs are soft failure and thermal runaway, respectively. The short-circuit withstand time (SCWT) of the asymmetric trench MOSFET is higher than that of the double trench MOSFET. The thermal and mechanical stresses inside the device during short-circuit test are simulated to explore the failure mechanism and reveal the impact of device structure on device reliability. Finally, a post-failure analysis was performed to verify the root cause of the equipment failure.

2.9K
28 Mar 2022

Topic Review

Microcontroller Unit-Based Wireless Sensor Network Nodes

Despite numerous research efforts in the fast-growing field of wireless sensor devices, energy consumption remains a challenge that limits the lifetime of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The Internet-of-Things (IoT) technology utilizes WSNs for providing an efficient sensing and communication infrastructure. Thus, a comparison of the existing wireless sensor nodes is crucial. Of particular interest are the advances in the recent MCU-based wireless sensor node platforms, which have become diverse and fairly advanced in relation to the currently available commercial WSN platforms.

2.9K
28 Nov 2022

Topic Review

The Mini Clubman is a supermini engineered and manufactured by BMW and sold under the Mini marque. The first-generation Clubman was introduced in 2007, as a variant of the Mini Hatch (Hardtop in the US). A commercial version called Clubvan was added to the range in 2012. The current second-generation model is produced since 2015 and available with front- and all-wheel drive.

2.9K
29 Nov 2022

Topic Review

Applications of Artificial Intelligence in Smart-Crop Breeding

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a revolutionary field, providing a great opportunity in shaping modern crop breeding, and is extensively used indoors for plant science. Advances in crop phenomics, enviromics, together with the other “omics” approaches are paving ways for elucidating the detailed complex biological mechanisms that motivate crop functions in response to environmental trepidations. These “omics” approaches have provided plant researchers with precise tools to evaluate the important agronomic traits for larger-sized germplasm at a reduced time interval in the early growth stages. The big data and the complex relationships within impede the understanding of the complex mechanisms behind genes driving the agronomic-trait formations. AI brings huge computational power and many new tools and strategies for future breeding.

2.9K
31 Aug 2023

Topic Review

TNF is a gene that plays an essential role in the body, it affects both immune response and inflammation. The gene encodes a protein called tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) [1].

2.9K
05 Nov 2020

Topic Review

Drama/Theatre Performance in Sustainability Awareness Education

The use of digital technologies in theatre/drama performances in education that address the sustainability issues that plague today’s world is highly acknowledged globally by the scientific community since digital technologies offer a variety of ways to provide students with an interactive and engaging learning experience.

2.9K
19 Sep 2023

Topic Review

Farmers’ Livelihood Capital and Sustainable Livelihood Strategies

Livelihood refers to a systematic procedure of making a living on the basis of skills, resources, and feasible activities. With a view to resolving the problem of the sustainability of farmers’ livelihoods, the livelihood safety and quality of farmers in poor areas is considered a primary issue, as well as a key research hotspot for experts and scholars. In order to fundamentally help rural areas out of poverty and comprehensively promote rural revitalization, the government needs to not only offer policy support from all aspects, but also to fundamentally improve the livelihood ability of farmers themselves, enrich their livelihood strategies, and help them retain a sustainable way of living.

2.9K
11 May 2022

Topic Review

Spousal Privilege

In the common law, spousal privilege (also called marital privilege or husband-wife privilege) is a term used in the law of evidence to describe two separate privileges that apply to spouses: the spousal communications privilege and the spousal testimonial privilege. Both types of privilege are based on the policy of encouraging spousal harmony and preventing spouses from having to condemn, or be condemned by, their spouses: the spousal communications privilege or confidences privilege is a form of privileged communication that protects the contents of confidential communications between spouses during their marriage from testimonial disclosure, while spousal testimonial privilege (also called spousal incompetency and spousal immunity) protects the individual holding the privilege from being called to testify in proceedings relating to his/her spouse. However, the spousal privileges have their roots in the legal fiction that a husband and wife were one person.

2.9K
20 Oct 2022

Topic Review Peer Reviewed

Epidemiology of Poliomyelitis in the United States and Its Recognition as an Infectious Disease from the Mid-19th Century to the Early 20th Century

This study reviews the role of epidemiology in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th century, which led to recognition that poliomyelitis is an infectious disease and set the stage for subsequent developments in virology and immunology, the development of inactivated and live attenuated polio vaccines, and a dramatic worldwide decrease in poliomyelitis mortality and morbidity. Epidemiological studies in the United States were systematically reviewed from the mid-19th to early 20th centuries. Isolated cases and scattered small outbreaks of poliomyelitis in the mid-19th century led to epidemics of increasing size by the end of the century, causing public consternation, especially as the disease was considered “new” and had a predilection for young children. By the 1890s, the seasonal pattern of epidemics suggested that poliomyelitis might have an infectious etiology, but direct evidence of communicability or contagiousness was lacking, so an infectious etiology was not widely suspected until the early 20th century. Reports of bacterial isolations from spinal fluid and postmortem tissues suggested that poliomyelitis might be a bacterial disease, and simultaneous outbreaks of paralytic disease in humans and animals suggested a possible zoonotic basis. Although experimental studies showed that it was theoretically possible for flies to serve as vectors of poliovirus, and occasional cases of polio were likely caused by fly-borne transfer of poliovirus from human feces to human food, a fly abatement field trial showed convincingly that flies, whether biting or non-biting, could not explain the bulk of cases during polio epidemics. In conclusion, the early application of epidemiological evidence beginning in the late 19th century strongly suggested the infectious nature of the disease, distinct from previously identified conditions. Subsequent advances in virology and immunology from 1909 to 1954 proved that poliomyelitis was a viral disease with no natural animal host and made feasible the development of an inactivated trivalent poliovirus vaccine by Salk, and, subsequently, a live-attenuated trivalent poliovirus vaccine by Sabin.

2.9K
21 Aug 2025

Topic Review

Bone: An Outstanding Composite Material

Bone is an outstanding, well-designed composite. It is constituted by a multi-level structure wherein its properties and behavior are dependent on its composition and structural organization at different length scales. The combination of unique mechanical properties with adaptive and self-healing abilities makes bone an innovative model for the future design of synthetic biomimetic composites with improved performance in bone repair and regeneration.

2.9K
16 May 2022

Topic Review

Laser Transmission Welding of Polymers

Laser Transmission Welding of Polymers is a joining technique frequently selected by contemporary researchers to weld two thermoplastic surfaces.

2.9K
30 Mar 2021

Topic Review

Asphaltenes is the heaviest and most polar fraction of petroleum not yet wery well characterized and only presently define by they solubility.

2.9K
29 Aug 2021

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