Artificial organs

Although the importance of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) has been widely recognized, it is still a challenge to realize high-efficiency and accurate enrichment and identification of highly heterogeneous CTCs derived from various types of tumors in complex cancer processes. Currently, the most widely used methods follow the general idea of sequential immunoaffinitive capture and immunostaining to achieve the abovementioned goal. However, different organ/tissue origins as well as the inherent heterogeneity of CTCs would lead to the missed detection of certain CTC subtypes using such methods...

Renal pathology is a relatively recent entry in nephrology. While diseases of the kidney are old, their study began in the 19th century with the report of Richard Bright of the lesions of end-stage kidney disease. Its easy diagnosis from albuminuria soon elevated Bright's nephritis into a leading cause of death. The transformative events in the care of these cases were renal replacement therapy that converted a fatal into a chronic disease, and kidney biopsy that allowed study of the course and pathogenesis of kidney disease...

Sustainability of a medical device has not yet become a major issue in public discussions compared to other topics with impact to material performance, clinical application, production economy and environmental pollution. Due to their unique properties, polymers (plastics) allow for multiple, flexible applications in medical device technology. Polymers are part of the majority of disposable and single use medical device and contribute with 3% to the worldwide production of plastics. The global medical polymer market size was valued 19...

In this editorial, we comment on the article by Marangoni et al , published in the recent issue of the World Journal of Gastroenterology 2023; 29: 5618-5629, about "Diet as an epigenetic factor in inflammatory bowel disease". The authors emphasized the role of diet, especially the interaction with genetics, in promoting the inflammatory process in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients, focusing on DNA methylation, histone modifications, and the influence of microRNAs. In this editorial, we explore the interaction between genetics, gut microbiota, and diet, in an only way...

Artificial intelligence (AI) provides a unique opportunity to help meet the demands of the future healthcare system. However, hospitals may not be well equipped to handle safe and effective development and/or procurement of AI systems. Furthermore, upcoming regulations such as the EU AI Act may enforce the need to establish new management systems, quality assurance and control mechanisms, novel to healthcare organizations. This paper discusses challenges in AI implementation, particularly potential gaps in current management systems (MS), by reviewing the harmonized standard for AI MS, ISO 42001, as part of a gap analysis of a tertiary acute hospital with ongoing AI activities...

Artificial brain is conceived as advanced intelligence technology, capable to emulate in-memory processes occurring in the human brain by integrating synaptic devices. Within this context, improving the functionality of synaptic transistors to increase information processing density in neuromorphic chips is a major challenge in this field. In this article, we present Li-ion migration promoting long afterglow organic light-emitting transistors, which display exceptional postsynaptic brightness of 7000 cd·m-2 under low operational voltages of 10 V...

Coffee berry disease (CBD) is caused by Colletotrichum kahawae , a quarantine fungus still absent from most coffee-producing countries. Given the potential adverse effects on coffee berry production, it is a severe worldwide threat to farmers and industry. Current biosecurity management focuses on exclusion by applying quarantine measures, including certification of coffee plants and their products. However, methods for detecting C. kahawae by the NPPO (National Plant Protection Organization) laboratories still need approval...

Rhodiola crenulata, a plant of great medicinal value found in cold high-altitude regions, has been excessively exploited due to the difficulty in cultivation. Understanding Rhodiola crenulata's adaptation mechanisms to cold environment can provide a theoretical basis for artificial breeding. Glutathione peroxidases (GPXs), critical enzymes found in plants, play essential roles in antioxidant defense through the ascorbate-glutathione cycle. However, it is unknown whether GPX5 contributes to Rhodiola crenulata's cold tolerance...

1,2,3-Trichloropropane (TCP) is an emerging groundwater pollutant, but there is a lack of reported studies on the abiotic natural attenuation of TCP by iron minerals. Furthermore, perturbation by O2 is common in the shallow subsurface by both natural and artificial processes. In this study, natural magnetite was selected as the reactive iron mineral to investigate its role in the degradation of TCP under O2 perturbation. The results indicated that the mineral structural Fe(II) on magnetite reacted with dissolved oxygen to generate O2 - · and HO·...

Innovative analytical instruments and development of new methods has provided a better understanding of protein particle formation in biopharmaceuticals but have also challenged the ability to obtain reproducible and reliable measurements. The need for protein-like particle standards mimicking the irregular shape, translucent nature and near-to-neutral buoyancy of protein particles remained one of the hot topics in the field of particle detection and characterization in biopharmaceutical formulations. An innovative protein-like particle model has been developed using two photo polymerization (2PP) printing allowing to fabricate irregularly shaped particles with similar properties as protein particles at precise size of 50 µm and 150 µm, representative of subvisible particles and visible particles, respectively...

Friction and lubrication are ubiquitous in all kinds of movements and play a vital role in the smooth operation of production machinery. Water is indispensable both in the lubrication systems of natural organisms and in hydration lubrication systems. There exists a high degree of similarity between these systems, which has driven the development of hydration lubrication from biomimetic to artificial manufacturing. In particular, significant advancements have been made in the understanding of the mechanisms of hydration lubrication over the past 30 years...

Digestate is a complex by-product of anaerobic digestion and its composition depends on the digestor inputs. It can be exploited as a sustainable source of nutrients for microalgae cultivation but its unbalanced composition and toxic elements make the use challenging. Screening algae in a simplified synthetic digestate which mimics the main nutrient constraints of a real digestate is proposed as a reproducible and effective method to select suitable species for real digestate valorisation and remediation. Growth performance, nutrient removal and biomass composition of eight microalgae exposed to high amounts of NH4 + , PO4 - and organic-C were assessed...

Cancers remain the second leading cause of mortality in the world. Preclinical and clinical studies point an important role of cancer/leukaemia stem cells (CSCs/LSCs) in the colonisation at secondary organ sites upon metastatic spreading, although the precise mechanisms for specific actions are still not fully understood. Reviewing the present knowledge on the crucial role of CSCs/LSCs, their plasticity, and population heterogeneity in treatment failures in cancer patients is timely. Standard chemotherapy, which acts mainly on rapidly dividing cells, is unable to adequately affect CSCs with a low proliferation rate...

Methanol-gasoline blends have emerged as a promising and environmentally friendly bio-fuel option, garnering widespread attention and promotion globally. The methanol content within these blends significantly influences their quality and combustion performance. This study explores the qualitative and qualitative analysis of methanol-gasoline blends using Raman spectroscopy coupled with machine learning methods. Experimentally, methanol-gasoline blends with varying methanol concentrations were artificially configured, commencing with initial market samples...

Four years post-pandemic, SARS-CoV-2 continues to affect many lives across the globe. An estimated 65 million people suffer from long COVID, a term used to encapsulate the post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infections that affect multiple organ systems. Known symptoms include chronic fatigue syndrome, brain fog, cardiovascular issues, autoimmunity, dysautonomia, and clotting due to inflammation. Herein, we review long COVID symptoms, the proposed theories behind the pathology, diagnostics, treatments, and the clinical trials underway to explore treatments for viral persistence, autonomic and cognitive dysfunctions, sleep disturbances, fatigue, and exercise intolerance...

The growth and development of apricot flower organs are severely impacted by spring frosts. To better understand this process, apricot flowers were exposed to temperatures ranging from 0 °C to -8 °C, including a control at 18 °C, in artificial incubators to mimic diverse low-temperature environments. We aimed to examine their physiological reactions to cold stress, with an emphasis on changes in phenotype, membrane stability, osmotic substance levels, and antioxidant enzyme performance. Results reveal that cold stress induces significant browning and cellular damage, with a sharp increase in browning rate and membrane permeability below -5 °C...

(1) Background: The authenticity of eggs in relation to the housing system of laying hens is susceptible to food fraud due to the potential for egg mislabeling. (2) Methods: A total of 4188 egg yolks, obtained from four different breeds of laying hens housed in colony cage, barn, free-range, and organic systems, were analyzed using 1 H NMR spectroscopy. The data of the resulting 1 H NMR spectra were used for different machine learning methods to build classification models for the four housing systems. (3) Results: The comparison of the seven computed models showed that the support vector machine (SVM) model gave the best results with a cross-validation accuracy of 98...

Soil organic matter (SOM) is one of the best indicators to assess soil health and understand soil productivity and fertility. Therefore, measuring SOM content is a fundamental practice in soil science and agricultural research. The traditional approach (oven-dry) of measuring SOM is a costly, arduous, and time-consuming process. However, the integration of cutting-edge technology can significantly aid in the prediction of SOM, presenting a promising alternative to traditional methods. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that an accurate estimate of SOM might be obtained by combining the ground-based sensor-captured soil parameters and soil analysis data along with drone images of the farm...

Advance care planning (ACP) is essential in managing serious and chronic illnesses to ensure that patients receive care aligned with their personal values, goals, and preferences. This review focuses on integrating ACP in the treatment of patients receiving implantable left ventricular assist devices (VADs). The heart failure palliative care team developed a unique advance directive form and pamphlet to facilitate ACP discussions, emphasizing not only medical treatment preferences but also patients' values and life goals...

Health equity and accessing Spanish kidney transplant information continues being a substantial challenge facing the Hispanic community. This study evaluated ChatGPT's capabilities in translating 54 English kidney transplant frequently asked questions (FAQs) into Spanish using two versions of the AI model, GPT-3.5 and GPT-4.0. The FAQs included 19 from Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), 15 from National Health Service (NHS), and 20 from National Kidney Foundation (NKF). Two native Spanish-speaking nephrologists, both of whom are of Mexican heritage, scored the translations for linguistic accuracy and cultural sensitivity tailored to Hispanics using a 1-5 rubric...