大不里士医科大学

In recent years, temporary skin grafts (TSG) based on natural biopolymers modified with carbon nanostructures have received considerable attention for wound healing. Developments are required to improve physico-mechanical properties of these materials to match to natural skins. Additionally, in-deep pre-clinical examinations are necessary to ensure biological performance and toxicity effect in vivo. In the present work, we show superior acute-wound healing effect of graphene oxide nanosheets embedded in ultrafine biopolymer fibers (60 nm) on adult male rats. Nano-fibrous chitosan-based skin grafts crosslinked by Genepin with physico-mechanical properties close to natural skins were prepared by electrospinning of highly concentrated chitosan- polyvinylpyrrolidone solutions containing graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets. No surfactants and organic solvents were utilized to ensure high biocompatibility of the fibrous structure. In vitro evaluations by human skin fibroblast cells including live and dead assay and MTT results show that GO promote cell viability of porous nanofibrous membrane while providing enhanced bactericidal capacity. In vivo studies on rat’s skin determine accelerated healing effect, i.e. a large open wound (1.5 × 1.5 cm2) is fully regenerated after 14-day of post operation while healing is observed for sterile gauze sponge (as the control). Pathological studies support thick dermis formation and complete epithelialization in the presence of 1.5 wt% GO nanosheets. Over 99% wound healing occurs after 21 days for the injury covered with TSG containing 1.5 wt% GO while this would takes weeks for the control. Therefore, the developed materials have a high potential to be used as TSG as pre-clinical testing has shown.

There are various environmental toxins, especially heavy metals, in soil, water, and air, which have toxic effects on humans, animals, and plants. These toxic elements are widespread in the environment and cause various disturbances in biological systems. Recently, several strategies have been applied to reduce heavy metal pollution. However, most of these strategies are costly and appear to be harmful to our environment. Recent research has been conducted on detoxification processes, including microorganisms such as probiotics and their metabolites. The term "postbiotics" describes soluble substances such as peptides, enzymes, teichoic acids, muropeptides produced from peptidoglycans, polysaccharides, proteins, and organic acids that are secreted by living bacteria or released after bacterial lysis. These postbiotics have attracted attention due to their distinct chemical structure, safe dosage regimens, long shelf life, and the presence of various signaling molecules that may have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity, antihypertensive, and immunomodulatory effects. They can also detoxify heavy metals, mycotoxins, and pesticides. Surface adsorption has been proposed as a potential mechanism for heavy metal detoxification. The present review discusses the role of postbiotics in heavy metal detoxification and their mechanism of action. Clinical Trial Number: Not applicable.

INTRODUCTION:Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurological disorder associated with high prevalence. Numerous studies have been conducted to regulate the expression of inflammatory genes, indicating that any changes may ultimately lead the nervous system toward disease pathogenesis. ANXA1, VCAM1, and CCL2 are among the genes involved in immune and inflammatory pathways. In this study, we aim to examine their expression in individuals with Alzheimer's disease and healthy individuals using bioinformatics and laboratory methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS:This study aimed to analyze the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the entorhinal cortex with AD and identify featured genes related to AD. Gene expression profile GSE118553 was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus, including 37 AD and 24 control samples. Based on the filters applied to the data, the immune genes ANXA1, VCAM1, and CCL2 were selected to investigate changes in expression in Alzheimer's disease. The expression of ANXA1, VCAM1, and CCL2 genes in the peripheral blood of 50 AD patients and 50 healthy controls was examined using Real-time polymerase chain reaction (Real-time PCR). Subsequently, statistical analyses of expression differences and biomarker analysis were conducted on the resulting data. FINDINGS:In the peripheral blood of AD patients, ANXA1 expression increased, while VCAM1 expression decreased compared to controls. No significant change was observed in CCL2. the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed that ANXA1 is effective in distinguishing AD from healthy individuals. CONCLUSION:This study provides new insights into the role of the ANXA1 gene in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, but further research is needed to confirm this role.

Au/Nd2O3 nanocomposites (NCs) have potential applications in nanomedicine due to their unique physicochemical properties. The interaction of biomacromolecules with NCs, known as protein corona (PC) formation, is influenced by the surface characteristics, which in turn depend on the synthesis method. In this study, Au/Nd2O3NCs were synthesized using both phytochemical (Myrtus communis extract) and chemical methods, and XRD, SEM, EDX, DLS, and FTIR were used to characterize their physicochemical properties. The NCs were analyzed with and without protein corona formation after exposure to healthy human plasma using SDS-PAGE and DLS. Results showed that protein corona formation reduced the hydrodynamic size and enhanced the stability of NCs. SDS-PAGE revealed differences in protein composition between NCs synthesized by the two methods, likely due to variations in surface chemistry and lattice parameters. Phytochemically synthesized NCs exhibited higher cellular internalization compared to chemically synthesized NCs, while MTT assays indicated minimal cytotoxicity in MDA-MB-231 and RAW264.7 cell lines, even at concentrations up to 200 µg/mL, regardless of protein corona formation. The results demonstrate that the synthesis route significantly influences protein corona formation and cellular interactions. Moreover, phytochemically synthesized Au/Nd2O3 NCs exhibited high stability and low toxicity, underscoring their potential for biomedical applications.

Abstract Contractor-related deficiencies remain a critical challenge in workplace health and safety management within high-risk industries, particularly in the oil and gas sector, where heterogeneous safety practices and fragmented oversight mechanisms undermine effective risk control. Existing contractor evaluation approaches often rely on checklist-based or lagging indicators, offering limited ability to capture interdependencies among safety dimensions or to differentiate contractor performance in a meaningful and decision-relevant manner. This study develops and validates the Contractor Health, Safety, Environment, and Quality Performance Index (CHPI) as an integrated, evidence-based framework for systematic contractor performance evaluation. The study adopted a multi-method approach integrating expert judgment and archival compliance data. Health and safety indicators were identified through literature review and expert consultation, refined using Content Validity Index assessment, and weighted using a Fuzzy Analytic Network Process to capture interdependencies. The resulting weights were combined with standardized contractor records to compute CHPI scores. Robustness was confirmed through sensitivity analysis demonstrating stable contractor rankings, while a Random Forest-based analysis was used as a complementary validation to assess alignment between expert-based weights and data-driven importance. The results show that the CHPI enables nuanced differentiation of contractor performance, supports pre-contract screening and targeted intervention strategies, and enhances transparency in performance-based regulation. By integrating interdependency-aware weighting with empirical validation, the CHPI provides a scalable and adaptive decision-support tool that can strengthen contractor governance, improve safety performance monitoring, and support societal progress through more accountable risk management in high-risk industrial environments.