Biocidal action of ozone-treated polystyrene surfaces on vegetative and sporulated bacteria

Surfaces of materials can be modified to ensure specific interaction features with microorganisms. The current work discloses biocidal properties of polystyrene (PS) Petri-dish surfaces that have been exposed to a dry gaseous-ozone flow. Such treated PS surfaces are able to inactivate various species of vegetative and sporulated bacteria on a relatively short contact time. Denaturation of proteins seems likely based on a significant loss of enzymatic activity of the lysozyme protein. Characterization of these surfaces by atomic-force microscopy (AFM), Fourier-transform infra-red (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveals specific structural and chemical modifications as compared to untreated PS. Persistence of the biocidal properties of these treated surfaces is observed. This ozone-induced process is technically simple to achieve and does not require active precursors as in grafting.     

Ultrahigh-Q of the L3 photonic crystal microcavity

In this paper, we theoretically investigate the L3 cavity with three missing holes in the center. They are of great interest for the realization of low threshold laser nanosources and for a strong interaction between the cavity and sources. In order to improve the transmission and Q factor simultaneously of these structure, by reducing unwanted reflection due to mismatch and through minimization of propagation losses, we modified L3 geometry: three missing holes in a line where both lateral displacement of the first hole adjacent to the cavity, d, and their radius, r, were changed. A photonic microcavity with a high Q factor of 1.8741 × 10⁷ and a modal volume V of 0.351 is demonstrated. We demonstrate that the calculated Q factor for the designed cavity increases by a factor of 49 relative to that for a cavity without displaced and reduced air holes, while the modal volume remains almost constant.     

A convergence result for history-dependent quasivariational inequalities

In this paper, we consider a general class of history-dependent quasivariational inequalities with constraints. Our aim is to study the behavior of the solution with respect to the set of constraints and, in this matter, we prove a continuous dependence result. The proof is based on various estimates and monotonicity arguments. Then, we consider two mathematical models which describe the equilibrium of a viscoplastic and viscoelastic body, respectively, in contact with a deformable foundation. The variational formulation of each model is in a form of a history-dependent quasivariational inequality for the displacement field, governed by a set of constraints. We prove the unique weak solvability of each model, then we use our abstract result to prove the continuous dependence of the solution with respect to the set of constraints.     

Analysis of Chemical Composition and In Vitro and In Vivo Antifungal Activity of Raphanus raphanistrum Extracts against Fusarium and Pythiaceae,Affecting Apple and Peach Seedlings

The goal of this investigation was to evaluate the in vitro and in vivo efficiency of Raphanus raphanistrum extracts against Fusarium and Pythiaceae species associated with apple and peach seedling decline in Tunisian nurseries. A chemical composition of organic extracts was accomplished using liquid chromatography, thin layer chromatography, and gas chromatography analysis. The in vitro test of three aqueous extract doses of R. raphanistrum against some apple and peach decline agents showed its efficacy in reducing mycelia growth. The in vivo assay of fine powder of this plant on peach seedlings revealed that treatment 8-weeks before the inoculation and planting was more efficient than the treatment before one week. This experiment revealed that the root weight of peach seedlings inoculated by F. oxysporum was improved to 207.29%. For apple seedlings, the treatment 8 weeks before the inoculation and plantation was more efficient than the treatment one week before; it reduced the root browning index. The study of R. raphanistrum chemical composition and its efficiency showed that the glucosinolates products: nitrile (4-Hydroxy-3-(4-methylphenylthio) butane nitrile, benzene acetonitrile, 4-fluoro,butane nitrile, 4-hydroxy-3-[(4-methylphenyl) thio] nitrile), and thiocyanate molecules (thiocyanic acid, ethyle) are responsible for the anti-fungal activities.     

Hydrothermal Synthesis and Structure of Fe<Subscript>6.36</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>0.64</Subscript>(PO<Subscript>3</Subscript>(OH))<Subscript>4</Subscript>(PO<Subscript>4</Subscript>)<Subscript>2</Subscript>

Abstract  

Single crystals of iron and manganese phosphate Fe_6.36Mn_0.64(PO₃(OH))₄(PO₄)₂ was synthesized by hydrothermal method. The compound crystallizes in the Fe₇(PO₄)₆ structure type and is isotypic with the solid solution \textM_{7 - \textx} \textM_\textx^￠ ( \textHPO₄ )₄ ( \textPO₄ )₂ {\text{M}}_{{7 - {\text{x}}}} {\text{M}}_{\text{x}}^{\prime} \left( {{\text{HPO}}_{4} } \right)_{4} \left( {{\text{PO}}_{4} } \right)_{2} where M is Fe, Co, Mg, Mn. The compound is triclinic, P-1, a = 6.571(5), b = 7.993(3), c = 9.547(2) Ǻ, α = 103.97(1)°, β = 109.29(2)°, γ = 101.57(3)°. The structure is based on a three-dimensional framework of distorted edge-sharing MO₆ and MO₅ polyhedra, forming infinite chains, which are interlinked by corner-sharing with PO₄ tetrahedra. The formula unit is centrosymmetric, with all atoms in general positions except for one Fe atom, which has site symmetry −1.     

Synthesis of New Spiro-Cyclopropanes Prepared by Non-Stabilized Diazoalkane Exhibiting an Extremely High Insecticidal Activity

The synthesis of new insecticidal gem-dimethyspiro-cyclopropanes derived from pyrrolidine-2,3-dione have been described, and their biological effect against different insect species has been evaluated. The presented results demonstrate the excellent insecticidal activity of cyclopropane 5c against Aedes aegypti and Musca domestica. Cyclopropane 5c showed the quickest knockdown and the best killing against Aedes aegypti and Musca domestica compared to trans-chrysanthemic acid and pyrethrin. The biological results of the high insecticidal activity were confirmed by the results of docking. This is evident in the binding affinity obtained for cyclopropane 5c, indicating good binding with an important active amino acid residue of the 5FT3 protein.     

MIGAN: Mutual-Interaction Graph Attention Network for Collaborative Filtering

Many web platforms now include recommender systems. Network representation learning has been a successful approach for building these efficient recommender systems. However, learning the mutual influence of nodes in the network is challenging. Indeed, it carries collaborative signals accounting for complex user-item interactions on user decisions. For this purpose, in this paper, we develop a Mutual Interaction Graph Attention Network “MIGAN”, a new algorithm based on self-supervised representation learning on a large-scale bipartite graph (BGNN). Experimental investigation with real-world data demonstrates that MIGAN compares favorably with the baselines in terms of prediction accuracy and recommendation efficiency.     

Fluoro-substitution in hydrogen bonding liquid crystal benzoic acid: dielectric,electro-optic and optical proprieties and inducing polar nematic phase

ABSTRACT

Dielectric and electro-optic properties have been studied in order to understand the effect of the fluoro-substitution on hydrogen bonded liquid crystal proprieties. The fluoro-substitution alters the characteristics of pure LC structure and changes its physical parameters. In the present paper, variation in physical parameters like dielectric permittivity, response time, elastic constant, rotational viscosity etc. has been explained based on many factors. In addition, the fluorine substitution has lead to the appearance of the polar nematic phase.     

Synthesis and Crystal Structure of a New Mixed Alkali Oxalate A1?x(NH4)x(H2C2O4)(HC2O4)(H2O)2 with A?=?K, Rb

Abstract  

In the present study we report the synthesis, crystal structure, spectroscopic and thermal analysis of mixed alkali A_1−x (NH₄) _x (H₂C₂O₄)(HC₂O₄)(H₂O)₂ with A = K, Rb. Single crystal refinements showed that the two compounds Rb_0.86(NH₄)_0.14(H₂C₂O₄)(HC₂O₄)(H₂O)₂ and K_0.53(NH₄)_0.47(H₂C₂O₄)(HC₂O₄)(H₂O)₂ adopt P − 1 space group. The nine fold coordination cationic sites are randomly occupied by Rb⁺/NH₄ ⁺ and K⁺/NH₄ ⁺ respectively for rubidium and potassium compounds. The structure consists of a three-dimensional network formed by the succession along (c) axis of corrugated sheets formed by alkali polyhedra layers in the packing of four-membered rings [A₄(HC₂O₄)₂(H₂C₂O₄)₂] linked and bridged by oxalate groups that behave as bi and tetradentate ligand under three different coordination modes. The stability of the crystal lattice is ensured by interesting hydrogen bonding contacts: N–H···O and O–H···O. The thermal behavior under air reveals two anomalies at 368 and 402 K attributed respectively to a structural phase transition probably due to the reorientation of ammonium tetrahedral and to the release of crystalline water. IR spectroscopy further confirms that this material loses crystallization water gradually in the temperature range 400–460 K.     

The solid solution (Fe0.81Al0.19)(H2PO4)3 with a strong hydrogen bond

Single crystals of the solid solution iron aluminium tris(dihydrogenphosphate), (Fe_0.81Al_0.19)(H₂PO₄)₃, have been prepared under hydrothermal conditions. The compound is a new monoclinic variety (γ‐form) of iron aluminium phosphate (Fe,Al)(H₂PO₄)₃. The structure is based on a two‐dimensional framework of distorted corner‐sharing MO₆ (M = Fe, Al) polyhedra sharing corners with PO₄ tetrahedra. Strong hydrogen bonds between the OH groups of the H₂PO₄ tetrahedra and the O atoms help to consolidate the crystal structure.