Microelectronica (Romania)

Background: Focal chondral lesions of the knee are frequently underdiagnosed, and their clinical presentation does not always correlate with structural severity. This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic utility of clinical examination tests and musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSK-US) in identifying high-grade chondral defects, using MRI-based ICRS grading as the reference standard. Methods: In this observational cross-sectional study, 57 consecutive patients with mechanical knee pain and MRI-confirmed focal chondral lesions were evaluated through standardized clinical examination, MSK-US, and MRI. Clinical maneuvers—including Wilson’s test, McMurray’s test, and ligamentous stability tests—were analyzed using Chi-square tests, Pearson correlations, and odds ratios (OR). Statistical processing was performed in Python. Results: According to MRI grading, 87.7% of lesions were ICRS 3, and 12.3% were ICRS 4. Pain and functional impairment (as measured by the WOMAC) were moderate and comparable across lesion grades. Wilson’s test showed high sensitivity in both ICRS 3 (66%) and ICRS 4 (100%) lesions, but no statistical association with lesion severity (p = 0.955). McMurray’s test demonstrated strong discriminative value, being positive in 30% of ICRS 3 versus 86% of ICRS 4 lesions, and was the only clinical maneuver significantly associated with lesion grade (χ2 = 4.29, p = 0.038; OR = 0.20, 95% CI: 0.05–0.79). Correlation analysis revealed weak associations between clinical tests and the location of compartment-specific defects. MRI identified meniscal tears in 86% of ICRS 4 lesions compared with 30% of ICRS 3 lesions. Conclusions: Symptom severity alone does not reliably distinguish between ICRS Grade 3 and Grade 4 focal chondral lesions. McMurray’s test, while not cartilage-specific, was associated with lesion complexity due to its reflection of concomitant meniscal pathology rather than cartilage depth itself. Accordingly, McMurray’s test should be interpreted as an indirect clinical indicator of combined osteochondral–meniscal involvement. The integration of targeted clinical tests (Wilson’s and McMurray’s), MSK-US and MRI-based ICRS grading may support clinical orientation and preoperative risk stratification, forming a pragmatic diagnostic framework rather than a definitive staging tool.

The mismatch between rising sleep need and the fluctuating ability to fall asleep underlies insomnia—the most common sleep disorder—yet remains poorly understood. While sleep need increases steadily with time awake, sleep propensity—the likelihood of transitioning from wake to sleep—follows a bimodal pattern, peaking in the mid-afternoon, dipping in the evening, and rising again near bedtime. Building on our previously developed wave model of sleep dynamics, we extend this homeostatic framework to the waking period and show that it predicts the observed bimodal sleep propensity curve. This pattern emerges from two interacting factors: wake-state instability, which increases exponentially across the day, and interaction strength between states, which follows a biphasic trajectory. Together, they produce a daily profile of sleep propensity that closely aligns with experimental data. Notably, the empirical curve demonstrates a deeper evening dip than the model alone predicts—reflecting the known circadian modulation of sleep propensity. The model reveals that the mid-afternoon peak reflects maximal interaction at the homeostatic equilibrium threshold, while the evening dip results from minimal coupling between sleep and wake states, counteracting high instability. A late-day rise in both factors facilitates sleep onset at bedtime and beyond. Experimental data from sleep deprivation further support these predictions. This work provides a mechanistic foundation for understanding daily sleep propensity and may inform strategies to improve sleep and performance in both health and disease.Statement of SignificanceMonotonic increases in sleep need across the day contrast sharply with the bimodal pattern of sleep propensity—the ability to fall asleep—which peaks in the mid-afternoon and again near bedtime. This phenomenon, inherent to normal sleep physiology, may also underlie key forms of insomnia: the inability to fall asleep despite high sleep pressure. Here, we apply the wave model of sleep dynamics to show how similar bimodal sleep propensity pattern can emerge purely from nonlinear, homeostatic changes in the interaction strength between wake and sleep states.

Recent outbreaks and pandemics have emphasized the need for safe and reliable viral inactivation methods. The purpose of this work is to develop a simple and effective modeling approach to investigate viral inactivation via microwave absorption mediated by dipolar coupling. Leveraging established techniques from the dynamic analysis of structures, a generalized Single-Degree-Of-Freedom (SDOF) model is developed, which is fully consistent with the dipolar resonance mode. The model can reproduce the main features of dipolar coupling with minimal computational time. Moreover, it allows mimicking the broadening of the resonance range associated with heterogeneous virus size, via Monte Carlo simulations, as well as water induced damping. The results support the potential role of dipolar coupling for viral inactivation by microwave irradiation in the GHz range. The model can be used to assist in the interpretation of the experimental results, leading to an optimization of the inactivation protocols. The proposed approach is versatile and can be extended to describe more complex cases, such as non-spherical geometries and/or non-homogeneous material properties.

Abstract The highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1) virus threatens animal and human health globally. Innovative strategies are needed to reduce airborne transmission and prevent outbreaks. This study investigated the efficacy of microwave inactivation against aerosolized A(H5N1) by (1) identifying the optimal frequency band in 10 min of exposure and (2) evaluating the effect of exposure time. A(H5N1) was aerosolized and exposed to various microwave frequencies (between 8 and 16 GHz with different ranges) for 10 minutes. Viral titers were quantified using TCID50, and inactivation was assessed by comparing irradiated samples to controls. The 11−13 GHz band resulted in the highest inactivation, with an average of 89% mean reduction in A(H5N1) titer in particular in the range of 11-12 GHZ (pick of efficacy). Considering the overall tests and results, the optimal band (8-12 GHZ) was further tested with 1, 3, and 5-minute exposures. Inactivation was time-dependent, with 5-minute exposure yielding a 94% mean reduction, compared to 58% and 48% for 3 and 1-minute exposures, respectively. Optimized microwave emitters in high-risk environments like poultry farms and veterinary clinics could offer a novel, non-chemical approach to mitigating avian influenza spread and outbreaks.

Myeloid neoplasms arising after methotrexate

El presente trabajo busca desarrollar un prototipo capaz de detectar movimientos y posiciones de la mano para su uso como sistema de apuntado en un ordenador. Para ello, la adquisición y procesado de los datos se llevará a cabo con un microprocesador que hará uso una red neuronal.

Para a construção civil o estudo detalhado dos materiais de construção são de suma importância a fim de se garantir a qualidade e integridade estruturas das edificações. Neste sentido este trabalho visa a caracterização microestrutural de superfícies e interfaces de vergalhões de aço auto-revenidos utilizando microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e análise química se torna uma importante ferramenta para se conhecer a fundo o comportamento de um dos materiais mais importantes, mais utilizados e mais exigidos nas edificações. Para isso foi utilizado: Microscópio Eletrônico de Varredura - JEOL JSM - 6360LV com detector de elétrons secundários para alto e baixo vácuo, detector de elétrons retroespalhados para alto e baixo vácuo, detector de EDS (espectrômetro de raio-X de energia dispersiva) e detector de EBSD (difração de elétrons retroespalhados). Os resultados obtidos a partir da pesquisa mostram que a caracterização de materiais metálicos para a construção civil com Microscopia Eletrônica de Varredura (MEV) é de suma importância para o entendimento de suas características microestruturais que influenciam diretamente as propriedades mecânicas, os processos de corte e principalmente o processo de solda dos vergalhões fabricados pelo processo de auto-revenimento.

En el presente estudio se evaluó la falta de capacidad para satisfacer las necesidades de abastecimiento de agua dulce para los habitantes de la zona rural del cantón Jipijapa en la provincia de Manabí. La población enfrenta problemas ambientales como la deforestación, la escasez de fuentes de agua dulce y el aumento no planificado de la población. Debido a esta problemática, surge la necesidad de implementar modelos de optimización adaptados a las características locales del cantón Jipijapa para tratar de manera responsable y eficiente los desafíos que presenta la gestión del agua potable. Considerando la creciente demanda, la variabilidad climática, la asignación eficiente de recursos, la resiliencia ante eventos climáticos extremos y la mejora de la calidad del suministro; el objetivo de la investigación fue diseñar un modelo de planificación operativa óptima de la red de agua potable en Jipijapa. Los métodos utilizados en la investigación fueron el método geométrico, el método aritmético, el método logarítmico y caudales de diseño; se trabajó con una proyección poblacional a 20 años: desde el año 2023 hasta el año 2043. Los resultados obtenidos indican que los datos tomados pueden ser utilizados para realizar un análisis preliminar de los cálculos de caudales, ya que estos cumplen con el 95 % de factibilidad respecto a la tendencia normal y por ultimo los Gráficos de Radar e Histograma muestran que la calidad de Qdiseño, Qdistribución y Qmáxhorario, son efectivos debido a que existe dispersión en los resultados proyectados.