RESUMEN

Anomalous coronary artery is a rare but potentially life-threatening alteration in the coronary vascular system that is related to an increased risk of myocardial ischemia, ventricular arrhythmias, heart failure, and sudden cardiac death (SCD). Here, we present the case of a young male who presented to the hospital after a witnessed sudden cardiac arrest. Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation was started immediately, and normal sinus rhythm was achieved after electrical cardioversion three times. He was admitted to the ICU for further care upon admission. A CT of the chest showed a potential vascular structure in between the aorta and the pulmonary trunk. He underwent cardiac catheterization, which identified minimal coronary artery disease with the anomalous takeoff of the right coronary artery from the left coronary cusp. A cardiac CT scan obtained also showed an anomalous right coronary artery (ARCA) with an inter-arterial course. After explaining available treatment options and obtaining informed consent, a surgical correction by cardiothoracic surgery was performed using the coronary artery bypass graft technique. The patient recovered well after the surgery and was discharged home. After two years of follow-up, he continued to live life normally without any symptoms. Early and accurate diagnosis of an anomalous coronary artery is imperative for timely intervention, as malignant coronary artery diseases can often have a catastrophic presentation with acute coronary syndromes, myocardial infarction, or SCD. We present here a case of successful diagnosis of ARCA and its prompt surgical correction using coronary artery bypass grafting technique in a young adult. Despite the availability of various other treatment options, our case underscores coronary artery bypass grafting as a viable choice for individuals with anomalous coronary arteries, particularly in urgent situations.

RESUMEN

We demonstrate fabrication of nano-patterned thin ALD (Atomic layer deposition) membrane (suspended/transferable) by using a bi-layer resist process where the bottom layer resist acts as a sacrificial layer. This method enables an all dry deterministic transfer of nano-patterned ALD membrane on desired substrate, allowing assembly of multitude of hetero-structures and functionalities that are not yet accessible. Unlike conventional ways of achieving patterned alumina membrane reported in literature our technique requires significantly less fabrication steps and paves the way for novel ALD membrane-based technology.

RESUMEN

Salinity is one of the significant factors in decreasing wheat yield and quality. To counter this, it is necessary to develop salt-tolerant wheat varieties through conventional and advanced molecular techniques. The current study identified quantitative trait loci in response to salt stress among worldwide landraces and improved varieties of wheat at the seedling stage. A total of 125 landraces and wheat varieties were subjected to salt treatment (50, 100, and 150 mM) with control. Morphological seedling traits, i.e., shoot length, root length, and fresh and dry shoot and root weights for salinity tolerance were observed to assess salt tolerance and genetic analysis using SNP data through DArT-seq. The results showed that, at the seedling stage, 150 mM NaCl treatment decreased shoot length, root length, and fresh and dry weights of the shoot and root. The root length and dry root weight were the most affected traits at the seedling stage. Effective 4417 SNPs encompassing all the chromosomes of the wheat genome with marker density, i.e., 37%, fall in genome B, genome D (32%), and genome A (31%). Five loci were found on four chromosomes 6B, 6D, 7A, and 7D, showing strong associations with the root length, fresh shoot weight, fresh root weight, and dry root weight at the p < 0.03 significance level. The positive correlation was found among all morphological traits under study.

RESUMEN

Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) is a facultative heterogeneous parasite that belongs to Apicomplexa and can infect almost all warm-blooded animals, including ruminants, birds and humans. To date, no information is available about the molecular investigation of T. gondii in large ruminants from Pakistan. In the present study, prevalence, risk factors and genetic diversity of this parasite were evaluated by using PCR based on ITS-1 gene followed by sequencing of three selected positive PCR products. A total of 310 blood samples from cattle (N = 190) and buffaloes (N = 120) were collected from randomly selected farms located in Rajanpur district in Punjab (Pakistan). The overall infection rates of T. gondii were 12.2% (23/190) and 0% (0/120), respectively, in cattle and buffaloes. All studied epidemiological factors were not found associated with T. gondii infection in cattle. Sequence analysis of our T. gondii isolates infecting cattle revealed only one sequence considered as the most represented genetic variant (GV1) among T. gondii isolates around the world. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that ITS-1 partial sequences of our isolates clustered with those from T. gondii isolates infecting goats and birds from Pakistan and other isolates found in several animal species from different worldwide countries like China, Thailand, Poland, Canada, USA and Brazil. Our report indicates a natural infection with T. gondii of cattle for the first time in Pakistan by using molecular method. This study is important to the design of control strategy against this parasite in order to improve the output of livestock sector which is the main income source of the population in Pakistan.

Asunto(s)

Enfermedades de los Bovinos , Enfermedades de las Cabras , Toxoplasma , Toxoplasmosis Animal , Animales , Búfalos/parasitología , Bovinos , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/epidemiología , Enfermedades de los Bovinos/parasitología , Pakistán/epidemiología , Filogenia , Toxoplasma/genética , Toxoplasmosis Animal/epidemiología , Toxoplasmosis Animal/parasitología

RESUMEN

We have calculated and investigated the electronic states, dynamical polarization function and the plasmon excitations for [Formula: see text] nanoribbons with armchair-edge termination. The obtained plasmon dispersions are found to depend significantly on the number of atomic rows across the ribbon and the energy gap which is also determined by the nanoribbon geometry. The bandgap appears to have the strongest effect on both the plasmon dispersions and their Landau damping. We have determined the conditions when relative hopping parameter [Formula: see text] of an [Formula: see text] lattice has a strong effect on the plasmons which makes our material distinguished from graphene nanoribbons. Our results for the electronic and collective properties of [Formula: see text] nanoribbons are expected to find numerous applications in the development of the next-generation electronic, nano-optical and plasmonic devices.

RESUMEN

We have utilized the finite-difference approach to explore electron-tunneling properties in gapped graphene through various electrostatic-potential barriers ranging from Gaussian to a triangular envelope function in comparison with a square potential barrier. The transmission coefficient is calculated numerically for each case and applied to the corresponding tunneling conductance. It is well known that Klein tunneling in graphene will be greatly reduced in gapped graphene. Our results further demonstrate that such a decrease of transmission can be significantly enhanced for spatially-modulated potential barriers. Moreover, we investigate the effect from a bias field applied to those barrier profiles, from which we show that it enables the control of electron flow under normal incidence. Meanwhile, the suppression of Klein tunneling is found more severe for a non-square barrier and exhibits a strong dependence on bias-field polarity for all kinds of barriers. Finally, roles of a point impurity on electron transmission and conductance are analyzed with a sharp peak appearing in electron conductance as the impurity atom is placed in the middle of a square barrier. For narrow triangular and Gaussian barriers, however, the conductance peaks become significantly broadened, associated with an enhancement in tunneling conductance.

RESUMEN

In microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) switches, the microcontact is crucial in determining reliability and performance. In the past, actual MEMS devices and atomic force microscopes (AFM)/scanning probe microscopes (SPM)/nanoindentation-based test fixtures have been used to collect relevant microcontact data. In this work, we designed a unique microcontact support structure for improved post-mortem analysis. The effects of contact closure timing on various switching conditions (e.g., cold-switching and hot-switching) was investigated with respect to the test signal. Mechanical contact closing time was found to be approximately 1 us for the contact force ranging from 10⁻900 µN. On the other hand, for the 1 V and 10 mA circuit condition, electrical contact closing time was about 0.2 ms. The test fixture will be used to characterize contact resistance and force performance and reliability associated with wide range of contact materials and geometries that will facilitate reliable, robust microswitch designs for future direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF) applications.

RESUMEN

Antimonide compounds are fabricated in membrane form to enable materials combinations that cannot be obtained by direct growth and to support strain fields that are not possible in the bulk. InAs/(InAs,Ga)Sb type II superlattices (T2SLs) with different in-plane geometries are transferred from a GaSb substrate to a variety of hosts, including Si, polydimethylsiloxane, and metal-coated substrates. Electron microscopy shows structural integrity of transferred membranes with thickness of 100 nm to 2.5 [Formula: see text]m and lateral sizes from [Formula: see text]m2 to [Formula: see text] cm2 Electron microscopy reveals the excellent quality of the membrane interface with the new host. The crystalline structure of the T2SL is not altered by the fabrication process, and a minimal elastic relaxation occurs during the release step, as demonstrated by X-ray diffraction and mechanical modeling. A method to locally strain-engineer antimonide-based membranes is theoretically illustrated. Continuum elasticity theory shows that up to [Formula: see text]3.5% compressive strain can be induced in an InSb quantum well through external bending. Photoluminescence spectroscopy and characterization of an IR photodetector based on InAs/GaSb bonded to Si demonstrate the functionality of transferred membranes in the IR range.