Explore the vast range of titles available.

Silver nanoparticles have attracted great interests widely in medicine due to its great characteristics of antibacterial activity. In this research, the antibacterial activity and biocompatibility of a topical gel synthesized from polyvinyl alcohol, chitosan, and silver nanoparticles were studied. Hydrogels with different concentrations of silver nanoparticles (15 ppm, 30 ppm, and 60 ppm) were evaluated to compare their antibacterial activity, nanoparticles’ sizes, and in vivo behaviors. The resulted silver nanoparticles in the hydrogel were characterized by TEM showing the nanoparticles’ sizes less than 22 nm. The in vitro results prove that the antibacterial effects of all of the samples are satisfied. However, the in vivo results demonstrate the significant difference among different hydrogels in wound healing, where hydrogel with 30 ppm shows the best healing rate.

Natural-derived wound dressing products with on-demand antibacterial properties have recently captured accentuated attention in the application field of dermal wound treatment. Herein, an affordable approach to the fabrication of electrospun membranes employing polycaprolactone (PCL), Poloxamer 407 (POX), and Calophyllum inophyllum oil (CIO) for antibacterial dressings is demonstrated. Briefly, the influence of POX and CIO concentration on the obtained membranes is evaluated to determine the optimal parameters for dressing applications. The surface morphology, chemical compositions, surface wettability, moisture permeability, mechanical properties, and antibacterial activity of the obtained membranes are evaluated. The results show that the PCL_POX_CIO membranes exhibit the enlargement of fiber diameter, indicating a causal correlation between the PCL and CIO concentration. In addition, POX concentration is discovered to have a positive impact on water absorption capacity with recorded WCA of 0°, however, reduces mechanical strength due to bead formations. Specifically, when the CIO content reached 15 v/v%, the recorded inhibition zone was measured to be 15.7 ± 1.34 (mm). Furthermore, our study underscores the significant antibacterial activity of CIO in agar-diffusion tests against Staphylococcus aureus strains. Despite several limitations, the successful fabrication of the PCL_POX_CIO membranes open an economically sustainable approach for the scalable fabrication of antibacterial wound dressing. Graphical abstract

In this study, we proposed a straightforward electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) loaded with silver nanoparticles (SNPs) membrane fabrication process, in which SNPs were directly synthesized from silver nitrate (AgNO 3 ) in PCL–acetone mixture by gamma irradiation. The insolubility of AgNO 3 in PCL solution was solved using an auxiliary dimethyl sulfoxide solvent. As a physical approach, gamma rays readily converted silver ions into SNPs without the addition of harmful reduction agents, which reduced the cytotoxicity of the synthesized material. By avoiding some processes such as purification, solvent removal, or redispersion of SNPs, this method was more time-saving compared to other related studies. SNPs formation was confirmed by both UV–Visible spectrum (UV–Vis) and X-ray diffraction analysis. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that the addition of SNPs significantly reduced the fiber diameter of PCL–Ag membranes compared to that of raw PCL. Uniform spherical-shaped SNPs incorporated in PCL fibers were observed under transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The tensile test showed that the electrospun PCL–Ag membranes exhibited good mechanical characteristics. Moisture easily penetrated the porous microstructure of PCL–Ag, facilitating wound humidity regulation. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) was employed to study the release profiles of SNPs at different time intervals. Overall, the PCL–Ag 500 ppm sample exerted excellent antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus strains and low in vitro cytotoxicity.

This study is the first to examine how limit-to-arbitrage factors impact the distress risk puzzle in Vietnam before and after implementing bankruptcy regulations. Our research utilizes asset pricing models, portfolio sorting methodologies, and the Fama and French four-factor model to analyze an unbalanced panel with 35,255 firm-month observations from non-financial firms in the Vietnam stock market from 2008 to 2021. We find a persistent negative correlation between distress risk and corporate profitability, even after accounting for limit-to-arbitrage factors. Notably, this trend is more pronounced among larger firms. Intriguingly, the distress risk puzzle disappears after the introduction of bankruptcy regulations. Additionally, we observe that limit-to-arbitrage factors suppress stock returns due to mispricing issues, supporting liquidity risk theory. Our study provides valuable insights into the distress risk puzzle, especially in emerging markets. JEL Classification: G11, G12, G14.

This study enriches the current literature because it is the first to examine how foreign ownership and Investor attention affect the risk-taking behaviors of property and casualty insurance companies in Vietnam. This study is unique because it tests whether foreign ownership moderates the relationship between investor attention and the risk-taking behavior of insurance firms or vice versa. This study employs the Random Effect Models, Generalized Least Squares, Johnson-Neyman test, and simple slope analyses to analyze 28 property and casualty insurance companies from 2010 to 2022. The findings indicate that foreign ownership and investor attention increases the risk-taking behaviors of insurance firms. Moreover, the findings indicate that foreign ownership moderates the relationship between investor attention and the risk-taking behavior of insurance firms in Vietnam. The findings align with agency theory, stakeholder theory, limited attention theory, and prior literature. This study supports managers and policymakers in developing the insurance sector sustainably, especially in emerging markets.

This study delves into the impact of reversals and investor attention on cryptocurrency returns before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. We employ the Two Stages Least Squares to analyze a sample of the top 20 cryptocurrencies from January 2016 to April 2021. Our results reveal that investor attention positively influences bitcoin returns in both periods, with a more pronounced effect during the pandemic. Conversely, reversals demonstrate a positive correlation with cryptocurrency returns before the outbreak but a negative relationship during the pandemic. Our robustness test further indicates that investor attention positively affects the returns of small and medium-cap cryptocurrencies, while reversals only exhibit positive consequences for small-cap cryptocurrencies. Additionally, our findings highlight stablecoins as a safe haven during the epidemic. The results suggest that investor attention has little influence on the returns of stablecoins, indicating that these coins are primarily resistant to market sentiment due to their inherent stability. The negative impact of the pandemic on the crypto market demonstrates a downward trend through each wave. Despite aligning with attention-induced price pressure and behavioral finance hypotheses, our results do not support efficient market theory or the notion of heterogeneity among investors. This research provides valuable insights for investors and policymakers in devising effective strategies for the cryptocurrency market.

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in Vietnamese women, but its mutational landscape and actionable alterations for targeted therapies remain unknown. After treatment, a sensitive biomarker to complement conventional imaging to monitor patients is also lacking. In this prospective multi‐center study, 134 early‐stage breast cancer patients eligible for curative‐intent surgery were recruited. Genomic DNA from tumor tissues and paired white blood cells were sequenced to profile all tumor‐derived mutations in 95 cancer‐associated genes. Our bioinformatic algorithm was then utilized to identify top mutations for individual patients. Serial plasma samples were collected before surgery and at scheduled visits after surgery. Personalized assay tracking the selected mutations were performed to detect circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in the plasma. We found that the mutational landscape of the Vietnamese was largely similar to other Asian cohorts, showing higher TP53 mutation frequency than in Caucasians. Alterations in PIK3CA and PI3K signaling were dominant, particularly in our triple‐negative subgroup. Using top‐ranked mutations, we detected ctDNA in pre‐operative plasma in 24.6–43.5% of the hormone‐receptor‐positive groups and 76.9–80.8% of the hormone‐receptor‐negative groups. The detection rate was associated with breast cancer subtypes and clinicopathological features that increased the risk of relapse. Interim analysis after a 15‐month follow‐up revealed post‐operative detection of ctDNA in all three patients that had recurrence, with a lead time of 7–13 months ahead of clinical diagnosis. Our personalized assay is streamlined and affordable with promising clinical utility in residual cancer surveillance. We also generated the first somatic variant dataset for Vietnamese breast cancer women that could lay the foundation for precision cancer medicine in Vietnam. The authors determine, for the first time, the somatic variant landscape of Vietnamese women with breast cancer, and establish a personalized tumor‐informed assay (K‐Track®) to detect ctDNA in liquid biopsy. This assay is streamlined and affordable, with promising clinical utilities in both residual cancer surveillance and actionable mutation profiling for breast cancer patients.

Purpose This paper aims to explore the determinants of the livelihoods of return migrant workers in Vietnam. The findings will help authorities updating their regulations on migration, thus grasping the economic benefit from documented but low-skilled return migrant workers. Design/methodology/approach The sample is collected when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the Vietnamese economy severely. The author considers six issues of income and employment, including total income, stable income, financial pressure experiences, unemployment, stable job and time to find a job. For this purpose, through a pre-structured questionnaire, the primary data is collected from 258 Vietnamese return migrant workers in various foreign countries. Notably, all respondents in the sample are documented but low-skilled return migrant workers. The author uses various empirical regression analyses to conclude that personal traits, family characteristics and their characteristics before and after migration play a critical role in determining the livelihood of migrants returning to Vietnam. Findings The author finds that personal traits, family characteristics and their characteristics before and after migration play a critical role in determining the livelihood of migrants returning to Vietnam. Practical implications The findings are critical for Vietnamese authorities in finalizing and updating their regulations on migration, thus grasping the economic benefit from documented but low-skilled return migrant workers. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to exploit the drivers of the livelihoods of return migrants in Vietnam, a rich, two-wave panel survey of respondents in Vietnam aimed at characterizing the history of migration of low-skilled and documented migrants back to Vietnam and to use these histories to gain insight into Vietnamese return migrants’ economic status, access to financial, welfare and health insurance benefits and employment prospects.

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer for women all over the world. Great interests have been paid to discover accurate and noninvasive methods for breast cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Although the diagnostic and prognostic value of microRNA-200 (miRNA- 200, miR-200) family has been revealed in many studies, the results were inconsistent. Thus, this meta-analysis aims to assess the overall value of miRNA-200 family in breast cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Relevant studies were searched from the following databases: PubMed, PMC, EMBASE, and ScienceDirect using key words: (\"miRNA-200 family\" or \"miR-141\" or \"miR-200a\" or \"miR-200b\" or \"miR-200c\" or \"miR-429\") and (“HER2” or “Luminal A” or “Luminal B” or “TNBC”) and (\"breast cancers\" or \"breast carcinoma\" or \"breast malignancy\" or \"breast tumor\"). The sensitivity, specificity, AUC were then calculated to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of the miR-200 family. As for the prognostic value of the miR-200 family, the pooled hazard ratio (HR) was assessed. Heterogeneity among individual studies was also examined by subgroup analyses. A total of 24 articles were included in the meta-analysis. The diagnostic value of miR-200s in BC was presented by the pooled sensitivity was 0.86 (95% CI: 0.83-0.88); the pooled specificity was 0.82 (95% CI: 0.72-0.89); the pooled AUC was 0.931 (95% CI: 0.919-0.942). Besides, expression of miR-200s in metastatic breast cancer has sensitivity, specificity and AUC of 0.70 (95%CI: 0.56-0.81), 0.72 (95%CI: 0.61-0.81), and 0.814 (95%CI: 0.741-0.903), respectively. The meta-analysis then revealed that high expression of miR-200 family corresponded to poor OS (HR: 1.63, 95% CI: 1.03-2.52), poor DFS (HR: 1.55, 95% CI: 0.95-2.56) in BC patients while downregulation of miRNA-200s corresponded to poor OS (HR= 0.84, 95%CI: 0.46-1.63) in TNBC patients and poor OS (HR=0.49; 95%CI: 0.27-0.88) in luminal BC patient. The MiR-200 family has high diagnostic accuracy and can be used as an important biomarker to prognosticate breast cancer. •This meta-analysis included 24 articles which provides an overall view about diagnostic and prognostic value of miR-200 family in breast cancer.•An accurate diagnostic marker of miR-200 family in breast cancer was investigated from 6 studies with 3101 cases and 409 controls. Besides, diagnostic value of miR-200 s in metastasis breast cancer was investigated from 5 articles with 330 cases and 534 controls.•A high expression of miR-200 family was associated with poor OS, poor DFS in Breast cancer patients. However, an up-regulation of miR-200 s was associated with better OS in luminal breast cancer patients and TNBC patients.•Combination of miR-200 family members is a useful biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis in breast cancer.

Cordyceps militaris, recognized for its diverse and potent medicinal properties, plays a critical role in herbal medicine. This study investigates the genus Cordyceps, particularly focusing on C. militaris, a species widely utilized in East Asian traditional medicine for its therapeutic properties. C. militaris is rich in bioactive compounds, including cordycepin, adenosine, polysaccharides, ergosterol, and mannitol, which contribute to its broad physiological activities. The research aims to explore the diversity of host species in the cultivation of C. militaris and assess their impact on the biological activity and chemical composition of the fungus. The study highlights the variability in the efficacy of bioactive compounds due to different cultivation conditions and host species, emphasizing the need for standardized cultivation practices. Advances in genetic engineering and fermentation technology have significantly enhanced the production of these metabolites, supporting the sustainable scale-up of C. militaris cultivation. Future research should continue to explore the molecular mechanisms of its bioactive compounds, identify new clinical applications, and improve production efficiency and environmental sustainability. This comprehensive review provides insights for researchers, healthcare professionals, and cultivators on optimizing C. militaris for medicinal and commercial applications.