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In this study, a simple potassium hydroxide (KOH) post-treatment was applied to increase the catalytic performance of [gamma]-MnOOH in the carbonylation of n-BuNH.sub.2 with CO.sub.2 by the hydrothermal method. The catalytic activity of [gamma]-MnOOH was significantly boosted and the degree of enhancement is directly related to the add amount of KOH, i.e. K(6.7)-[gamma]-MnOOH > K(6.9)-[gamma]-MnOOH > K(6.0)-[gamma]-MnOOH > [gamma]-MnOOH, in which the catalytic activity of K(6.7)-[gamma]-MnOOH with n(KOH):n([gamma]-MnOOH) = 6.7 showed the greatest lift with the conversion of n-BuNH.sub.2 and the N,N'-dibutylurea yield from 48.81% and 47.85% for pristine [gamma]-MnOOH up to 75.26% and 74.53% for K(6.7)-[gamma]-MnOOH under 5.0 MPa at 160 °C for 4 h, respectively. XRD, SEM, FT-IR, BET, ESR, TG-DSC and XPS were utilized for additional characterization in order to explore the mechanism behind the increased catalytic activity of the as-synthesised K(x)-[gamma]-MnOOH (x = 6.0, 6.7, and 6.9). And it is found that after KOH treatment that the surface oxygen vacancy concentration of [gamma]-MnOOH is significantly enhanced by a surface hydroxyl dehydration of [gamma]-MnOOH and thus promoted an increase of the catalytic activities of K(x)-[gamma]-MnOOH (x = 6.0, 6.7 and 6.9) in the carbonylation of BuNH.sub.2 with CO.sub.2. This method provides a simple, economical, and effective way to enhance the catalytic activities of metal oxides in CO.sub.2 capture and utilization.

A new protocol for the synthesis of N-vinyl azoles using vinyl selenones and azoles in the presence of potassium hydroxide was developed. This reaction proceeded under mild and transition metal-free conditions through an addition/elimination cascade process. Both aromatic and aliphatic vinyl selenones and various mono-, bi- and tri-cyclic azoles can be tolerated and give terminal N-vinyl azoles in moderate to high yields. A plausible mechanism is also proposed.

In this paper, the inhibitory effect of various nanomaterials on the growth of Aspergillus niger was studied. Among them, copper nanorods had the most obvious inhibitory effect on the growth of Aspergillus niger. The phase of copper nanorods was modified by chitosan, and its inhibitory effect on the expansion of Aspergillus niger was measured. 1. Preparation of copper nanorods and chitosan@copper nanorods: Copper nanorods with a diameter of about 300–350 nm and a length of about 100–800 nm were prepared by the liquid-phase reduction method. The chitosan solution was prepared by using the characteristics of chitosan dissolved in dilute acid to prepare chitosan@copper nanorods and modify the phase of copper nanorods. 2. Determination of the inhibitory effect of various copper nanomaterials on the growth of Aspergillus niger, including Cuprous Oxide nanoparticles, copper nanorods, nano copper oxide, and copper hydroxide, which have certain inhibitory effects on the growth of Aspergillus niger. Among them, copper nanorods have a better effect. On this basis, chitosan@copper nanorods are obtained by modifying the phase of copper nanorods with chitosan. The measured antibacterial effect is that the EC[sub.50] value is 344 mg/L.

Gas/liquid contactors are widely used in chemical and biotechnological applications. The selection and design of bubble-column-type gas/liquid contactors requires knowledge about the gas distributor design to provide appropriate gas flow patterns. This study presents the continuous chemisorption of CO[sub.2] in 0.1 molar sodium hydroxide solution in a counter currently operated gas/liquid Taylor-Couette disc contactor (TCDC). This vertical-column-type contactor is a multi-stage agitated gas/liquid contactor. The performance of a lab-size TCDC contactor in gas/liquid mass transfer operations was investigated. The apparatus design was adjusted for gas/liquid operations by installing perforated rotor discs to provide a rotational-speed-dependent dispersed gas phase holdup in the column. The parameters of dispersed gas phase holdup, volumetric mass transfer coefficient and residence time distribution were measured. In the first step, hydraulic characterization was performed. Then, the efficiency in gas/liquid operations was investigated by continuous neutralization of 0.1 molar sodium hydroxide with a gas mixture of 30 vol% CO[sub.2] and 70 vol% N[sub.2]. Temperature, rotational speed and gas flow rate were varied. The desired pH value of pH 9 at the column outlet was kept constant by adjusting the sodium hydroxide feed. From the experimental results, the volume-based liquid-side mass transfer coefficient k[sub.L]a was deduced in order to model the reaction according to the two-film theory over the column height. The CSTR cascade model fitted the experimental data best. The experimental results confirm stable and efficient reactive gas/liquid contact in the Taylor-Couette disc contactor.

The musculoskeletal Involvement can be seen In alkaptonuria, which Is an autosomal recessive disease. Homogentisic acid levels elevate during the disease. The accumulation of homogentisic acid in the body tissues and the formation of pigment is termed ochronosis. We present a 51-year-old male patient with intraoperative ochronotic arthropathy of the knees and bilateral punctate brown pigmentation on the sclera. Spine movements in the lumbar and cervical movements were limited. Movements of both hips were limited and painful in all directions. On the sacroiliac joint graphy, severe narrowing, irregularity, and erosions were detected in the bilateral coxofemoral areas, especially on the right, which might suggest grade 3 sacroiliitis. When the patient's urine was mixed with sodium hydroxide, the urine became alkaline and its color turned black.

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs), also known as anionic nanoclays or hydrotalcite-like compounds, have attracted a great deal of interest for their potential as delivery carriers. In this article, we describe the cellular uptake behaviors and uptake pathway of LDHs and , which can not only explain the mechanism by which high efficacy of biomolecules delivered through LDH nanocarriers could be obtained, but also provide novel strategies to enhance their delivery efficiency. Toxicological effects of LDHs in cell lines and in animal models are also present, aiming at providing critical information about their toxicity potential, which should be carefully considered for their biomedical application. Understanding the uptake behaviors, uptake mechanism and toxicity of LDHs in terms of dose-–response relationship, diverse physicochemical properties and interaction with different biological systems is important to optimize delivery efficiency as well as biocompatibility.

Background: The current upsurge of complicated dermatophytosis in India and other parts of the world has necessitated the development of rapid and accurate diagnostic techniques. Conventional methods such as potassium hydroxide (KOH) mount lack color contrast and require a trained eye, whereas fungal culture is laborious and costly. Chicago sky blue 6B (CSB) a new contrast stain promises to be a reliable and rapid diagnostic method. It contains 1% CSB stain and is used with 10% KOH as clearing agent. Aims and Objectives: The objective of this study is to compare the efficacy of a novel contrast stain (CSB) and KOH mount in the diagnosis of dermatophytoses with culture as the reference method. Methods: The infected skin scrapings, nail clippings, and hair specimens from 100 patients, with clinically diagnosed dermatophytoses, were subjected to KOH mount, CSB stain, and culture on Sabouraud's dextrose agar. Using fungal culture as the reference standard, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and accuracy of CSB stain and KOH mount were determined. An inter-rater reliability analysis was performed using the Cohen's κ statistic to determine agreement amongst the different diagnostic modalities. Results: Of the 100 cases, the CSB stain and KOH mount were positive in 85 (85%) and 70 (70%) cases, respectively. Cultures on Sabouraud's agar yielded growth in 59 (59%) cases. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV, and accuracy of CSB stain were 98%, 34%, 68%, 93%, and 72%, respectively. The same for KOH mount were 71%, 32%, 60%, 43%, and 55%, respectively. Conclusion: CSB stain is a simple, rapid, sensitive, accurate, and inexpensive office-based method with qualitatively superior demonstration of dermatophytes compared to KOH mount.

5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) oxidation in aqueous media using visible photocatalysis is a green and sustainable route for the valorization of lignocellulosic biomass derivatives. Several semiconductors have already been applied for this purpose; however, the use of Poly(heptazine imides), which has high crystallinity and a special cation exchange property that allows the replacement of the cation held between the layers of C[sub.3]N[sub.4] structure by transition metal ions (TM), remains scarce. In this study, PHI(Na) was synthesized using a melamine/NaCl method and used as precursor to prepare metal (Fe, Co, Ni, or Cu)-doped PHI catalysts. The catalysts were tested for selective oxidation of HMF to 2,5-diformylfuran (DFF) in water and O[sub.2] atmosphere under blue LED radiation. The catalytic results revealed that the 0.1 wt% PHI(Fe) catalyst is the most efficient photocatalyst while higher Fe loading (1 and 2 wt%) favors the formation of Fe[sup.3+] clusters, which are responsible for the drop in HMF oxidation. Moreover, the 0.1 wt% PHI(Fe) photocatalyst has strong oxidative power due to its efficiency in H[sub.2]O[sub.2] production, thus boosting the generation of nonselective hydroxyl radicals ([sup.●]OH) via different pathways that can destroy HMF. We found that using 50 mM, the highest DFF production rate (393 μmol·h[sup.−1]·g[sup.−1]) was obtained in an aqueous medium under visible light radiation.

Shigella remains in the top four pathogens responsible for moderate to severe diarrhoea in children below 5 years of age. The shigella O-specific polysaccharide (O-SP) is a promising vaccine target. We developed a conjugate vaccine prototype incorporating a unique well defined synthetic oligosaccharide hapten, chemically designed for optimal antigenic, conformational, structural, and functional mimicry of the O-SP from Shigella flexneri 2a (SF2a). We aimed to assess the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of this original synthetic oligosaccharide-based vaccine candidate, SF2a-TT15, conceived to drive the antibody response towards the key protective determinants of the native lipopolysaccharide antigen, in a first-in-human phase 1 study. We did a first-in-human, dose-escalating, single-blind, observer-masked, randomised, placebo-controlled study at the Clinical Research Center of Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Israel). Participants were healthy adults aged 18–45 years with low titres of serum SF2a-specific IgG antibodies. 64 eligible participants were assigned to one of two cohorts. 32 participants in each of the two cohorts were randomly assigned via computer-generated algorithm in a stepwise manner to receive the 2 μg (cohort 1) and 10 μg oligosaccharide dose (cohort 2) of the SF2a-TT15 vaccine candidate non-adjuvanted or adjuvanted with aluminium hydroxide (alum) or matching placebos. The vaccine was administered as three single intramuscular injections into the arm, 28 days apart. The primary outcome was the incidence and severity of adverse events, which were assessed in the intention-to-treat safety population analysis including all participants who were randomly assigned and received at least one vaccine or placebo injection. The immunogenicity endpoints were secondary outcomes and were analysed in all participants who were randomly assigned, received all of the assigned injections before the time of the immunogenicity assessment, and provided blood samples for immunological follow-up (per-protocol immunogenicity analysis). The study is registered with ClinicalStudies.gov, NCT02797236 and is completed. Of 203 volunteers initially screened, 64 participants were enrolled between Sept 20, 2016, and Sept 26, 2017. In each of the two cohorts, 12 participants received the adjuvanted vaccine, 12 received the non-adjuvanted vaccine and eight received the matching placebo (four each). The SF2a-TT15 glycoconjugate was well tolerated at both doses. No serious or severe adverse events occurred. Overall, seven (88%) of eight to 12 (100%) of 12 in each group of volunteers had one adverse event or more after receiving the study agents with the majority of adverse events, 300 (98%) of 307, considered mild in intensity. Of the seven adverse events defined as moderate in severity, one (nausea) was suspected to be related to the vaccine candidate. At all post-immunisation days and for both oligosaccharide doses, whether adjuvanted or not, SF2a-TT15 induced significantly higher serum IgG anti-SF2a lipopolysaccharide geometric mean titres (GMTs) as compared with baseline or with the corresponding GMTs in placebo recipients (p<0·01). After one injection, the non-adjuvanted 10 μg oligosaccharide dose induced a 27-times increase in IgG GMT (5080 vs 189) and the non-adjuvanted 2 μg oligosaccharide dose induced a five-times increase (1411 vs 283), compared with baseline. Alum enhanced the specific IgG response at 2 μg oligosaccharide dose after the third injection (GMTs 3200 vs 1176, p=0.045). SF2a-TT15 was safe and well tolerated and induced high titres of anti-SF2a LPS IgG antibodies. These results support further evaluation of this original synthetic oligosaccharide-protein conjugate vaccine candidate for safety, immunogenicity, and protective efficacy in target populations. The European Union Seventh Framework Programme.