Alternative

Ecologists have historically sought to identify the mechanisms underlying the maintenance of local species diversity. High-dimensional trait-based relationships, such as alternative phenotypes, have been hypothesized as important for maintaining species diversity such that phenotypically dissimilar individuals compete less for resources but have similar performance in a given environment. The presence of alternative phenotypes has primarily been investigated at the community level, despite the importance of intraspecific variation to diversity maintenance...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Tafamidis is currently the only approved disease-modifying treatment for ATTR-CM. However, there have been important developments in the treatment of ATTR-CM, as the results of two phase 3 trials were published and several other trials are in their final stages. In this review, we summarize current and future therapies for ATTR-CM. RECENT FINDINGS: Recently, acoramidis, a TTR stabilizer has been proven to be effective in reducing mortality and morbidity compared to placebo in the ATTRibute-CM trial...

PURPOSE: Periprosthetic femoral fractures (PPFs) around the hip are challenging complications in orthopaedic surgery, particularly Vancouver type B2 (VTB2) fractures. The surgical management of these fractures is crucial and depends on various factors. Cementless short taper stem with plate osteosynthesis is an alternative surgical technique. This study aims to compare the outcomes of this surgical technique with revision arthroplasty (RA) with long stem in the treatment of VTB2 PPFs...

Widespread use of plant protection agents in agriculture is a major cause of pollution. Apart from active ingredients, the environmental impact of auxiliary synthetic polymers should be minimized if they are highly persistent. An alternative to synthetic polymers is the use of natural polysaccharides, which are abundant and biodegradable. In this study, we explore pectin microgels functionalized with anchor peptides (P-MAPs) to be used as an alternative biobased pesticide delivery system. Using complexed Cu2+ as the active ingredient, P-MAPs effectively prevented infection of grapevine plants with downy mildew under semi-field conditions on par with commercial copper pesticides...

Management of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains challenging due to population growth, frequent recurrence and drug resistance. Targeting of genes involved with the ferroptosis is a promising alternative treatment strategy for HCC. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of dihydroartemisinin (DHA) against HCC and explore the underlying mechanisms. The effects of DHA on induction of ferroptosis were investigated with the measurement of malondialdehyde concentrations, oxidised C11 BODIPY 581/591 staining, as well as subcutaneous xenograft experiments...

Vitiligo is characterized by skin depigmentation, which can lead to profound psychological effects and decreased quality of life, especially for those with skin of color. Individuals with vitiligo may utilize complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) due to limited treatment options with varying efficacy.An anonymous, multiple-choice, cross-sectional questionnaire was distributed to participants with vitiligo in the United States through online forums. Data on disease characteristics, use of prescription medications, use of topical therapies, supplements, and diets, and perceptions of CAM were collected...

The concept of a solid catalyst with an ionic liquid layer (SCILL) is a promising approach to improve the selectivity of noble metal catalysts in heterogeneous reactions. In order to understand the origins of this selectivity control, we investigated the growth and thermal stability of ultrathin 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluormethanesulfonate [C2 C1 Im][OTf] films on Pt(111) by infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) in time-resolved and temperature-programmed experiments...

Supercapacitors offer notable properties as energy storage devices, providing high power density and fast charging and discharging while maintaining a long cycling lifetime. Although poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) doped with poly(4-styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT/PSS) has become a gold standard among organic electronics materials, researchers are still investigating ways to further improve its capacitive characteristics. In this work, we introduced Nafion as an alternative polymeric counterion to PSS to form highly capacitive PEDOT/Nafion; its advantageous supercapacitive properties were further improved by treatment with either dimethyl sulfoxide or ethylene glycol...

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial effects of zahter extract, zahter essential oil, laurel extract, and laurel essential oil on Salmonella Typhimurium inoculated on chicken wings. METHODS: A total of 10 groups, including eight study groups and two control groups were formed, consisting of zahter extract and zahter essential oil and laurel extract and laurel essential oil in different proportions. In the study, laurel extract at 6.4% and 12...

DNA collection is essential for genotyping laboratory animals. Common collection methods require tissue amputation, causing discomfort and injury. Rectal swabbing has been proposed as an effective, minimally invasive alternative, but an evidence-backed protocol for the technique remains unavailable. This report evaluates the effects of collection parameters on the quality of PCR results and presents a protocol for genotyping a litter of rats within 3-5 h. Samples with 2-8 scrapes produced enough DNA to amplify targets up to ∼1800 bp long using PCR...

The temporal evolution of the electron cloud at room temperature has been recorded through a resonance circuit by observing the axial oscillation frequency of its center of mass. The electron cloud undergoes radial expansion by interacting with the residual gas molecules, and it is finally lost upon hitting the Penning trap electrodes. It has been confirmed through detailed experimental investigations that the unique temporal pattern of frequency variation is a consequence of the cloud's radial expansion. Consequently, this approach offers a non-destructive means for single-shot detection, enabling continuous monitoring of the electron cloud's radial expansion during the confinement time...

Climate change requires major mitigation efforts, mainly emission reduction. Carbon sequestration and avoided deforestation are complementary mitigation strategies that can promote nature conservation and local development but may also have undesirable impacts. We reviewed 246 articles citing impacts, risks, or concerns from carbon projects, and 78 others related to this topic. Most of the impacts cited focus on biodiversity, especially in afforestation projects, and on social effects related to avoided deforestation projects...

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is the gold standard technique for measuring protein biomarkers due to its high sensitivity, specificity, and throughput. Despite its success, continuous advancements in ELISA and immunoassay formats are crucial to meet evolving global challenges and to address new analytical needs in diverse applications. To expand the capabilities and applications of immunoassays, we introduce a novel ELISA-like assay that we call Bioluminescent-bacteria-linked immunosorbent assay (BBLISA)...

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) with interstitial lung disease (SSc-ILD) lacks curative pharmacological treatments, thus necessitating effective animal models for candidate drug discovery. Existing Bleomycin (BLM)-induced SSc-ILD mouse models feature spatially limited pulmonary fibrosis, spontaneously resolving after 28 days. Here, we present an alternative BLM administration approach in female C57BL/6 mice, combining oropharyngeal aspiration (OA) and subcutaneous mini-pump delivery (pump) of BLM to induce a sustained and more persistent fibrosis, while retaining stable skin fibrosis...

Distress intolerance-a broad band dispositional variable has been shown to serve as a transdiagnostic risk factor for psychopathology. We investigated the predictive validity of the physical and emotional subscales of the Distress Tolerance Inventory (DTI) on behavioral responding (immersion time) and moment-to-moment subjective distress ratings to the Cold-Pressor Test. College students ( N  = 134) completed self-report questionnaires indexing physical and emotional distress tolerance and then completed a cold pressor challenge...

Despite having current advanced therapy, vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) remains a common yet debated healthcare-associated topic worldwide due to multi-drug resistance Candida species. In our review, we outlined and highlighted upcoming values with scope of existing and emerging information regarding the possibility of using various natural molecules combined with modern technology that shows promising anti-candida activity in VVC. Furthermore, in this review, we compiled herbal drug molecules and their nanocarriers approach for enhancing the efficacy and stability of herbal molecules...

UNLABELLED: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a significant worldwide public health crisis that continues to threaten our ability to successfully treat bacterial infections. With the decline in effectiveness of conventional antimicrobial therapies and the lack of new antibiotic pipelines, there is a renewed interest in exploring the potential of metal-based antimicrobial compounds. Antimony-based compounds with a long history of use in medicine have re-emerged as potential antimicrobial agents...

Measurements of local density fluctuations are crucial to characterizing the interfacial properties of equilibrium fluids. A specific case that has been well-explored involves the heightened compressibility of water near hydrophobic entities. Commonly, a spatial profile of local fluctuation strength is constructed from the measurements of the mean and variance of solvent particle number fluctuations in a set of contiguous subvolumes of the system adjacent to the solvo-/hydrophobe. An alternative measure proposed by Evans and Stewart [J...

BACKGROUND/AIM: The International Association of Dental Traumatology (IADT) is considered the foremost authority in Dental Traumatology. Fellowship status was introduced in 2015 and is considered an international standard of excellence. The Fellowship Committee of the IADT believed it was essential to survey members seeking information on the benefits of the IADT Fellowship and potential considerations for future development. This survey aimed to explore the perceptions of members of IADT surrounding the fellowship process in terms of interest, accessibility, equality, perceived prestige, and value to the membership...

Electrocatalytic nitrogen fixation to ammonia (NH3 ), a precursor for fertilizer production and a promising energy carrier, has garnered widespread interest as an environment-friendly and sustainable alternative to the energy-intensive fossil-feedstock-dependent Haber-Bosch process. The large-scale deployment of this process is contingent on the identification of inexpensive, Earth-abundant systems that can operate efficiently, irrespective of the electrolyte pH for the selective production of NH3 . In this regard, we discuss the scalable synthesis of VO2 anchored on N-doped carbon (VO2@CN), and its applicability as a robust electrocatalyst for the nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR)...