IEP

Surface blocking is a well-known process for reducing unwanted nonspecific adsorption in sensor fabrication, especially important in the emerging field where DNA/RNA applied. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) is one of the most popular blocking agents with an isoelectric point at pH 4.6. Although it is widely recognized that the adsorption of a blocking agent is strongly affected by its net charge and the maximum adsorption is often observed under its isoelectric form, BSA has long been perfunctorily used for blocking merely in neutral solution, showing poor blocking performances in the optical-fiber evanescent wave (OFEW) based sensing toward DNA target...

CONTEXT:   The extent to which lower extremity lean mass (LELM) relative to total body mass influences one's ability to maintain safe landing biomechanics during prolonged exercise when injury incidence increases is unknown. OBJECTIVES:   To examine the influence of LELM on (1) pre-exercise lower extremity biomechanics and (2) changes in biomechanics during an intermittent exercise protocol (IEP) and (3) determine whether these relationships differ by sex. We hypothesized that less LELM would predict higher-risk baseline biomechanics and greater changes toward higher-risk biomechanics during the IEP...

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is an acute mosquito-borne viral zoonosis whose outbreaks are often associated with prolonged rainfall and flooding, during which large numbers of vectors emerge. Recent studies into the inter-epidemic maintenance of RVF virus (RVFV) suggest that both vertical transmission in vectors and direct transmission between hosts act in combination with predisposing factors for persistence of the virus. A comparative longitudinal survey was carried out in Tana River County, Kenya, in irrigated, riverine and pastoral ecosystems from September 2014-June 2015...

Parents of children with (versus without) intellectual and developmental disabilities report greater stress; such stress may be exacerbated by dissatisfaction with school services, poor parent-school partnerships, and the need for parent advocacy. Increasingly, mindfulness interventions have been used to reduce parent stress. However, it is unclear whether parents apply mindfulness strategies during the special education process to reduce school-related stress. To investigate whether mindfulness may reduce school-related stress, interviews were conducted with 26 parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities who completed a mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention...

This is the second of two articles outlining the professional school nurse's role in the special education process for students with disabilities. The Individuals with Disabilities in Education Improvement Act of 2004 mandates the special education process: identification, full and individual evaluation, eligibility determination, and development of the individual education program (IEP), including special education placement. Part 1 focused on the importance of the school nurse's role in student identification, response to intervention, and the full and individual evaluation...

The splicing of group II introns in vivo requires the assistance of a multifunctional intron encoded protein (IEP, or maturase). Each IEP is also a reverse-transcriptase enzyme that enables group II introns to behave as mobile genetic elements. During splicing or retro-transposition, each group II intron forms a tight, specific complex with its own encoded IEP, resulting in a highly reactive holoenzyme. This review focuses on the structural basis for IEP function, as revealed by recent crystal structures of an IEP reverse transcriptase domain and cryo-EM structures of an IEP-intron complex...

The ability to comprehensively characterize biological samples, including tissues and body fluids, opens up new possibilities to diagnose and treat diseases and to better understand fundamental biological processes. For this purpose, suitable experimental workflows need to be designed. In this context, materials with particular chemoselective properties are used for the enrichment of certain classes of (bio)molecules. Metal oxides such as titanium dioxide have become the materials of choice for the large-scale study of protein phosphorylation in phosphoproteomics...

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurologic disorders. Underlying cause of epilepsy is unknown in 60 % of the patients. Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular parasite which is capable of forming tissue cysts in brain of chronically infected hosts including humans. Some epidemiological studies suggested an association between toxoplasmosis and acquisition of epilepsy. In this study we determined seroprevalence of latent Toxoplasma infection in a population of Iranian epileptic patients. Participants were classified in three groups as Iranian epileptic patients (IEP, n = 414), non-epileptic patients who had other neurologic disorders (NEP, n = 150), and healthy people without any neurologic disorders (HP, n = 63)...

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM: Whether masking or translucency should be the goal for achieving an esthetic restoration with ceramic materials is unknown. PURPOSE: The purpose of this in vitro study was to examine the effect of the number of firings on the color and translucency of ceramic core material with different thicknesses of veneer ceramic. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Three different ceramic systems were used: IPS Empress (IE), IPS e.max Press (IEP), and Turkom Cera (TC)...

Primary mediastinal seminoma is a rare extragonadal germ cell tumour that mainly occurs in males. The present study reports the case of a 27-year-old woman that presented with superior vena cava syndrome and a large mass in the mediastinum, which was diagnosed as primary female mediastinal seminoma. The patient received 6 cycles of cisplatin-based chemotherapy [4 cycles BEP chemotherapy (120 mg cisplatin, 0.45 g etoposide and 60 mg bleomycin, once every 3 weeks); 2 cycles IEP chemotherapy (120 mg cisplatin, 100 mg epirubicin and 6 g ifosfamide, once every 3 weeks)] and the patient showed an increase in the size of the mediastinal mass and hydropericardium, indicating a resistance to chemotherapy...

BACKGROUND: While opiate substitution therapy and injecting equipment provision (IEP) have reduced blood-borne viruses (BBV) among people who inject drugs (PWID), some PWID continue to share injecting equipment and acquire BBV. Psychosocial interventions that address risk behaviours could reduce BBV transmission among PWID. METHODS: A pragmatic, two-armed randomised controlled, open feasibility study of PWID attending drug treatment or IEP in four UK regions. Ninety-nine PWID were randomly allocated to receive a three-session manualised psychosocial group intervention and BBV transmission information booklet plus treatment as usual (TAU) (n = 52) or information booklet plus TAU (n = 47)...

A major obstacle in the introduction of luminescent nanoparticles (NPs) for medical applications is that quantum dots, the most widely studied luminescent materials, despite being biologically safe after coating with a bioshell, still contain a toxic core mostly consisting of semi-conductor NPs, which are not approved by regulatory agencies. Here we point to a potential solution of this problem by using rare-earth (RE) doped hafnia NPs. Hafnia is approved for medical injections as an effective means for the treatment of radiosensitive and radioresistant tumors and can significantly decrease potential toxicity of RE ions...

The self-assembly of lipid bilayer membranes to enclose functional biomolecules, thus defining a "protocell," was a seminal moment in the emergence of life on Earth and likely occurred at the micro-environment of the mineral-water interface. Mineral-lipid interactions are also relevant in biomedical, industrial and technological processes. Yet, no structure-activity relationships (SARs) have been identified to predict lipid self-assembly at mineral surfaces. Here we examined the influence of minerals on the self-assembly and survival of vesicles composed of single chain amphiphiles as model protocell membranes...

Graphene is an ideal candidate for the development of solid state nanopores due to its thickness at the atomic scale and its high chemical and mechanical stabilities. A facile method was adopted to prepare single graphene nanopore supported by PET membrane (G/PET nanopore) within the three steps assisted by the swift heavy ion irradiation and asymmetric etching technology. The inversion of the ion rectification effect was confirmed in G/PET nanopore while comparing with bare PET nanopore in KCl electrolyte solution...

The influence of inorganic anions on the photoreactivity and aggregation of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (NPs) was assessed by dosing carbonate, chloride, nitrate, phosphate, and sulfate as potassium salts at multiple concentrations. NP stability was monitored in terms of aggregate morphology and electrophoretic mobility (EPM). Aggregate size and fractal dimension were measured over time by laser diffraction, and the isoelectric point (IEP) as a function of anion and concentration was obtained by measuring EPM versus pH...

Soft amphoteric microgel systems exhibit a rich phase behavior. Crystalline phases of these material systems are of interest because they exhibit photonic stop-gaps, giving rise to iridescent color. Such microgel systems are promising for applications in soft, switchable, and programmable photonic filters and devices. We here report a composite microgel system consisting of a hard and fluorescently labeled core and a soft, amphoteric microgel shell. At pH above the isoelectric point (IEP), these colloids easily crystallize into three-dimensional colloidal assemblies...

The pH-dependent structure and interaction of anionic silica nanoparticles (diameter 18 nm) with two globular model proteins, lysozyme and bovine serum albumin (BSA), have been studied. Cationic lysozyme adsorbs strongly on the nanoparticles, and the adsorption follows exponential growth as a function of lysozyme concentration, where the saturation value increases as pH approaches the isoelectric point (IEP) of lysozyme. By contrast, irrespective of pH, anionic BSA does not show any adsorption. Despite having a different nature of interactions, both proteins render a similar phase behavior where nanoparticle-protein systems transform from being one-phase (clear) to two-phase (turbid) above a critical protein concentration (CPC)...

BACKGROUND: Knowledge about the user' needs is important to develop targeted rehabilitation for cancer patients with chronic fatigue (CF). The aims of the study were to examine prevalence of CF in cancer survivors attending an one-week inpatient educational program (IEP) and to identify characteristics of those with CF. Further to examine the perceived needs for different components in a rehabilitation program, need of complex rehabilitation (at least two components) and aspects of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among survivors with CF versus those without CF...

The short lifetime of proteinaceous microbubbles produced using conventional sonication method has hindered their applications in drug delivery and metal removal from wastewater. In this study, we aimed to synthesize stable proteinaceous microbubbles and to demonstrate their reactivity. Our model protein, bovine serum albumin (BSA) was treated with 2-iminothiolane hydrochloride (Traut's reagent) to convert primary amines to thiols before the synthesis of microbubbles. Microbubbles produced with the Traut's reagent-treated BSA (BSA-SH MBs) were initially concentrated at median sizes of 0...

Despite the broad range of interest and applications, controls on calcite surface charge in aqueous solution, especially at conditions relevant to natural systems, remain poorly understood. The primary data source to understand calcite surface charge comprises measurements of zeta potential. Here we collate and review previous measurements of zeta potential on natural and artificial calcite and carbonate as a resource for future studies, compare and contrast the results of these studies to determine key controls on zeta potential and where uncertainties remain, and report new measurements of zeta potential relevant to natural subsurface systems...