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Classical spin liquids are paramagnetic phases that feature nontrivial patterns of spin correlations within their ground-state manifold whose degeneracy scales with system size. Often they harbor fractionalized excitations, and their low-energy fluctuations are described by emergent gauge theories. In this work, we discuss a model composed of chiral three-body spin interactions on the pyrochlore lattice that realizes a novel classical chiral spin liquid whose excitations are fractonalized while also displaying a fracton-like behavior. We demonstrate that the ground-state manifold of this spin liquid is given by a subset of the so-called color-ice states. We show that the low-energy states are captured by an effective gauge theory which possesses a divergence-free condition and an additional chiral term that constrains the total flux of the fields through a single tetrahedron. The divergence-free constraint on the gauge fields results in two-fold pinch points in the spin structure factor and the identification of bionic charges as excitations of the system. Chiral spin liquids are nontrivial states of matter characterized by fractionalized excitations, but they have been mostly found in quantum models. Here the authors present a simple model of a classical chiral spin liquid, which exhibits fractons as low-temperature excitations.

Engineering the electromagnetic environment of a quantum emitter gives rise to a plethora of exotic light-matter interactions. In particular, photonic lattices can seed long-lived atom-photon bound states inside photonic band gaps. Here, we report on the concept and implementation of a novel microwave architecture consisting of an array of compact superconducting resonators in which we have embedded two frequency-tunable artificial atoms. We study the atom-field interaction and access previously unexplored coupling regimes, in both the single- and double-excitation subspace. In addition, we demonstrate coherent interactions between two atom-photon bound states, in both resonant and dispersive regimes, that are suitable for the implementation of swap and cz two-qubit gates. The presented architecture holds promise for quantum simulation with tunable-range interactions and photon transport experiments in the nonlinear regime.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

The enormous versatility of mesoporous silica nanoparticles permits the creation of a large number of nanotherapeutic systems for the treatment of cancer and many other pathologies. In addition to the controlled release of small drugs, these materials allow a broad number of molecules of a very different nature and sizes. In this review, we focus on biogenic species with therapeutic abilities (proteins, peptides, nucleic acids, and glycans), as well as how nanotechnology, in particular silica-based materials, can help in establishing new and more efficient routes for their administration. Indeed, since the applicability of those combinations of mesoporous silica with bio(macro)molecules goes beyond cancer treatment, we address a classification based on the type of therapeutic action. Likewise, as illustrative content, we highlight the most typical issues and problems found in the preparation of those hybrid nanotherapeutic materials.

Abstract Information on species distribution is recognized as a crucial input for biodiversity conservation and management. To that end, considerable resources have been dedicated towards increasing the quantity and availability of species occurrence data, boosting their use in species distribution modeling and online platforms for their dissemination. Currently, those platforms face the challenge of bringing biology into modeling by making informed decisions that result in meaningful models, based on limited occurrence and ecological data. Here we describe BioModelos

We propose a simple phenomenological theory for quantum tunneling of Cooper pairs, in superconductor/insulator/superconductor tunnel junctions, for a regime where the system can be modeled as bosonic particles. Indeed, provided there is an absence of quasiparticle excitations (fermions), our model reveals a rapid increase in tunneling current, around zero bias voltage, which rapidly saturates. This manifests as a zero bias conductance peak that strongly depends on the superconductors temperature in a non-monotonic way. This low energy tunneling of Cooper pairs could serve as an alternative explanation for a number of tunneling experiments where zero bias conductance peak has been observed.

Nanotechnology changed the concept of treatment for a variety of diseases, producing a huge impact regarding drug and gene delivery. Among the different targeted diseases, osteoporosis has devastating clinical and economic consequences. Since current osteoporosis treatments present several side effects, new treatment approaches are needed. Recently, the application of small interfering RNA (siRNA) has become a promising alternative. Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway controls bone development and formation. This pathway is negatively regulated by sclerostin, which knock‐down through siRNA application would potentially promote bone formation. However, the major bottleneck for siRNA‐based treatments is the necessity of a delivery vector, bringing nanotechnology as a potential solution. Among the available nanocarriers, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) have attracted great attention for intracellular delivery of siRNAs. The mesoporous structure of MSNs permits the delivery of siRNAs together with another biomolecule, achieving a combination therapy. Here, the effectiveness of a new potential osteoporosis treatment based on MSNs is evaluated. The proposed system is effective in delivering SOST siRNA and osteostatin through systemic injection to bone tissue. The nanoparticle administration produced an increase expression of osteogenic related genes improving the bone microarchitecture. The treated osteoporotic mice recovered values of a healthy situation approaching to osteoporosis remission. A mesoporous silica nanoparticles‐based system is designed for co‐delivering small interfering RNAs and an osteogenic peptide (osteostatin). The system is able to protect and deliver both biomolecules in the target tissue with promising results. It modifies gene expression and improves bone microarchitecture recovering healthy values. The application of nanoparticles can be considered a new potential alternative for osteoporosis remission.

Chagas disease is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. It affects several million people, mainly in Latin America, and severe cardiac and/or digestive complications occur in ~30% of the chronically infected patients. Disease acute stage is mostly asymptomatic and infection goes undiagnosed. In the chronic phase direct parasite detection is hampered due to its concealed presence and diagnosis is achieved by serological methods, like ELISA or indirect hemagglutination assays. Agreement in at least two tests must be obtained due to parasite wide antigenic variability. These techniques require equipped labs and trained personnel and are not available in distant regions. As a result, many infected people often remain undiagnosed until it is too late, as the two available chemotherapies show diminished efficacy in the advanced chronic stage. Easy-to-use rapid diagnostic tests have been developed to be implemented in remote areas as an alternative to conventional tests. They do not need electricity, nor cold chain, they can return results within an hour and some even work with whole blood as sample, like Chagas Stat-Pak (ChemBio Inc.) and Chagas Detect Plus (InBIOS Inc.). Nonetheless, in order to qualify a rapidly diagnosed positive patient for treatment, conventional serological confirmation is obligatory, which might risk its start. In this study two rapid tests based on distinct antigen sets were used in parallel as a way to obtain a fast and conclusive Chagas disease diagnosis using whole blood samples. Chagas Stat-Pak and Chagas Detect Plus were validated by comparison with three conventional tests yielding 100% sensitivity and 99.3% specificity over 342 patients seeking Chagas disease diagnosis in a reference centre in Sucre (Bolivia). Combined used of RDTs in distant regions could substitute laborious conventional serology, allowing immediate treatment and favouring better adhesion to it.

Vaccines represent one of the most significant advancements in public health since they prevented morbidity and mortality in millions of people every year. Conventionally, vaccine technology focused on either live attenuated or inactivated vaccines. However, the application of nanotechnology to vaccine development revolutionized the field. Nanoparticles emerged in both academia and the pharmaceutical industry as promising vectors to develop future vaccines. Regardless of the striking development of nanoparticles vaccines research and the variety of conceptually and structurally different formulations proposed, only a few of them advanced to clinical investigation and usage in the clinic so far. This review covered some of the most important developments of nanotechnology applied to vaccine technologies in the last few years, focusing on the successful race for the preparation of lipid nanoparticles employed in the successful anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines.

A substantial number of off-grid olive oil mills in Morocco are powered by diesel-fired generators, which hugely contribute to air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. In this research work, a biomass gasification combined heat and power (CHP) plant fueled with local by-products was explored as a renewable alternative to electrify off-grid olive oil mills in this country. The case study considered a gasification CHP plant with a rated power of 80 kWe, in order to enable adaptation of the producer gas flow rate to abrupt changes in the power generation unit under dynamic operation. A downdraft gasifier and a producer gas conditioning unit were modeled under steady state operation using Cycle-Tempo, while the power generation unit was modeled in the Thermoflex simulation environment under partial and full load operation. Olive cake pellets and olive pruning chips were evaluated as biomass feedstock, with moisture contents ranging from 5% to 20% (wet basis). The results from the simulation of the gasification CHP plant showed net electrical efficiencies and CHP efficiencies around 18% and 35%, respectively. Finally, a profitability assessment of the gasification CHP plant was developed for 2 months of continuous operation, together with a sensitivity analysis. The results for the baseline scenario reveal a payback period of 7–8 years and a 68.5% accumulated profit based on the capital investment, which suggest that biomass gasification CHP plants can represent an economically feasible and sustainable solution for the electrification of off-grid areas in Morocco.