Glass systems xPbO-(50-x)ZnO-50(P2O5) (where x = 0,10,20,30,40,50 mol%) were made using the traditional melt quench method. The produced samples' amorphous phase was confirmed by x-ray diffraction (XRD). The effect of replacing Zn 2+ with Pb 2+ ions on the chemical structure of the studied system was investigated using Fouriertransform infrared (FTIR) in the range 400-4000 cm -1 . Moreover, the optical constants such as refractive index, absorption coefficient, extinction coefficient, optical band gap, and optical conductivity have been calculated using UV-Visible spectroscopy. Density, Molar volume, and hardness were measured, and they are found to be composition-dependent. 60 Co (6.95µci) and 137 Cs (10µci) radioactive sources were used to investigate the attenuation of gamma rays through the samples. The basic shielding quantities for determining the penetration of radiation in glass, such as mass attenuation coefficient (μ/ρ) and half value layer (HVL) were investigated experimentally and theoretically. The results proved that the prepared glass samples possess superior gamma-ray shielding effectiveness.

Background Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is often locally aggressive but rarely metastasizes. Detection of aggressive BCCs at an early stage is mandatory to avoid localized destruction, which causes disabilities to patients; several factors are associated with a more aggressive clinical course. Actin, which is found exclusively in normal epithelial cells, is substantially responsible for cell motility. The actin expression of some cancers may be changed, allowing for more aggressive invasion. Objective To evaluate the relevance of alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) as a BCC aggressiveness marker, regarding its expression in tumor cells as well as the surrounding stroma. Patients and methods This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out on skin biopsies that were obtained from 36 patients with BCC for routine histopathological and immunohistochemical study to evaluate the reactivity of α-SMA. Results The reactivity of α-SMA was noticed in 88.9% of BCC cases. Tumoral α-SMA positivity was found in 63.2% of indolent BCCs and in 76.5% of aggressive BCCs. Stromal reactivity was found in 31.6% of indolent BCC cases and in 76.5% of aggressive BCC cases. There was a statistically significant difference between the indolent and aggressive groups in terms of stromal positive α-SMA. However, there was no statistically significant difference between the indolent and aggressive groups in terms of the intensity of expression of tumoral α-SMA. Conclusion Our study findings suggested that stromal α-SMA expression is an accurate and reliable marker of aggressiveness in BCC.