Signal tracking method of GNSS receivers for spinning vehicles

A signal tracking method of GNSS receivers for spinning vehicles is proposed in order to eliminate the influence of spinning to the GNSS signal of a vehicle. In the proposed method, a rotation tracking loop is added into the carrier tracking loop of a conventional GNSS receiver. The proposed method was verified through computer simulations and an experiment for live GPS signals. The results show that the proposed method gives an accurate tracking performance.     

Effect of calcination on characteristics and sintering behaviour of Al2O3-ZrO2 composite powders

The effect of calcination on the characteristics and sintering behaviour of zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) composite powders has been investigated. TiO₂ was selected as an additive to promote the sinterability of ZTA powders. The starting materials were Al₂O₃ powder, Zr(OC₃H₇)₄ and Ti(OC₃H₇)₄, and homogeneous ZTA powder containing Zr-O-Ti bonding was prepared. Calcination affected the tetragonalmonoclinic phase transformation temperature of ZrO₂ crystallizing from the gels. Calcination improved the densification rate of ZTA powder compact during sintering, which was attributed to the optimal ZrO₂ particle size and distribution on the surface of alumina. A ZTA specimen with high bulk density and high tetragonal ZrO₂ content was obtained under the conditions of 850°C/1 h calcination and 1500°C/1 h sintering.     

Application of a hybrid finite element method to determine stress intensity factors in unidirectional composites

In this paper a hybrid finite element method is applied in evaluation of the stress intensity factors K _I and K _II of unidirectional fiber reinforced composites. In order to satisfy the stress singularity at the crack tip a singular super-element based on a modified complementary energy principle is developed. The stress and displacement fields in the super-element are expressed in terms of polynomials of two complex variables ₁ and ₂ in the transformed -plane. The stiffness matrix of the super-element was determined by using a line integral along the boundary of the super-element. The displacement vector was expressed in terms of the element nodal displacement vector {q} and a properly selected shape function defined along the element boundary.Numerical results for K _I and K _II of glass-epoxy and graphite-epoxy unidirectional composites with cracks along the diameter of a circular cut out as well as elliptical cut outs were evaluated

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Résumé On applique, dans la présente étude, une méthode d'éléments finis hybrides à l'évaluation des facteurs d'intensité de contrainte K_I et K_II pour des composites renforcés de fibres unidirectionnelles. Pour tenir compte de la singularité de la contrainte à l'extrémité de la fissure, on développe un super élément singulier en se basant sur un principe modifié d'énergie complémentaire. Les champs de contraintes et de déplacements dans le super-élément sont exprimés sous forme polynormale de deux variables complexes ₁, et ₂ dans le plan de la transformée. La matrice de rigidité du super élément est, quant à elle, définie en utilisant une intégrale linéaire le long du contour de l'élément. Le vecteur de déplacement est exprimé par un vecteur (9) de déplacement nodal de l'élément, et par une fonction de forme appropriée, définie le long du contour de l'élément.On évalue les résultats numériques pour K_I et K_II, correspondant à des composites à fibres unidirection-nelles de types verre-epoxy et graphite-epoxy, oú des fissures se situeraient sur le diamètre de découpes circulaires et elliptiques

     

CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Generation of Pathogen-Resistant Tomato against Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus and Powdery Mildew

Tomato is one of the major vegetable crops consumed worldwide. Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) and fungal Oidium sp. are devastating pathogens causing yellow leaf curl disease and powdery mildew. Such viral and fungal pathogens reduce tomato crop yields and cause substantial economic losses every year. Several commercial tomato varieties include Ty-5 (SlPelo) and Mildew resistance locus o 1 (SlMlo1) locus that carries the susceptibility (S-gene) factors for TYLCV and powdery mildew, respectively. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (Cas) is a valuable genome editing tool to develop disease-resistant crop varieties. In this regard, targeting susceptibility factors encoded by the host plant genome instead of the viral genome is a promising approach to achieve pathogen resistance without the need for stable inheritance of CRISPR components. In this study, the CRISPR/Cas9 system was employed to target the SlPelo and SlMlo1 for trait introgression in elite tomato cultivar BN-86 to confer host-mediated immunity against pathogens. SlPelo-knockout lines were successfully generated, carrying the biallelic indel mutations. The pathogen resistance assays in SlPelo mutant lines confirmed the suppressed accumulation of TYLCV and restricted the spread to non-inoculated plant parts. Generated knockout lines for the SlMlo1 showed complete resistance to powdery mildew fungus. Overall, our results demonstrate the efficiency of the CRISPR/Cas9 system to introduce targeted mutagenesis for the rapid development of pathogen-resistant varieties in tomato.     

An Overview of Next-Generation Androgen Receptor-Targeted Therapeutics in Development for the Treatment of Prostate Cancer

Traditional endocrine therapy for prostate cancer (PCa) has been directed at suppression of the androgen receptor (AR) signaling axis since Huggins et al. discovered that diethylstilbestrol (DES; an estrogen) produced chemical castration and PCa tumor regression. Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) still remains the first-line PCa therapy. Insufficiency of ADT over time leads to castration-resistant PCa (CRPC) in which the AR axis is still active, despite castrate levels of circulating androgens. Despite the approval and use of multiple generations of competitive AR antagonists (antiandrogens), antiandrogen resistance emerges rapidly in CRPC due to several mechanisms, mostly converging in the AR axis. Recent evidence from multiple groups have defined noncompetitive or noncanonical direct binding sites on AR that can be targeted to inhibit the AR axis. This review discusses new developments in the PCa treatment paradigm that includes the next-generation molecules to noncanonical sites, proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC), or noncanonical N-terminal domain (NTD)-binding of selective AR degraders (SARDs). A few lead compounds targeting each of these novel noncanonical sites or with SARD activity are discussed. Many of these ligands are still in preclinical development, and a few early clinical leads have emerged, but successful late-stage clinical data are still lacking. The breadth and diversity of targets provide hope that optimized noncanonical inhibitors and/or SARDs will be able to overcome antiandrogen-resistant CRPC.     

Clinical Significance of Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes in Association with Hormone Receptor Expression Patterns in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Hormone receptor expression patterns often correlate with infiltration of specific lymphocytes in tumors. Specifically, the presence of specific tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) with particular hormone receptor expression is reportedly associated with breast cancer, however, this has not been revealed in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Therefore, we investigated the association between hormone receptor expression and TILs in EOC. Here we found that ERα, AR, and GR expression increased in EOC, while PR was significantly reduced and ERβ expression showed a reduced trend compared to normal epithelium. Cluster analysis indicated poor disease-free survival (DFS) in AR+/GR+/PR+ subgroup (triple dominant group); while the Cox proportional-hazards model highlighted the triple dominant group as an independent prognostic factor for DFS. In addition, significant upregulation of FoxP3+ TILs, PD-1, and PD-L1 was observed in the triple dominant group compared to other groups. NanoString analyses further suggested that tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and/or NF-κB signaling pathways were activated with significant upregulation of RELA, MAP3K5, TNFAIP3, BCL2L1, RIPK1, TRAF2, PARP1, and AKT1 in the triple dominant EOC group. The triple dominant subgroup correlates with poor prognosis in EOC. Moreover, the TNF and/or NF-κB signaling pathways may be responsible for hormone-mediated inhibition of the immune microenvironment.     

Current Perspectives on the Physiological Activities of Fermented Soybean-Derived Cheonggukjang

Cheonggukjang (CGJ, fermented soybean paste), a traditional Korean fermented dish, has recently emerged as a functional food that improves blood circulation and intestinal regulation. Considering that excessive consumption of refined salt is associated with increased incidence of gastric cancer, high blood pressure, and stroke in Koreans, consuming CGJ may be desirable, as it can be made without salt, unlike other pastes. Soybeans in CGJ are fermented by Bacillus strains (B. subtilis or B. licheniformis), Lactobacillus spp., Leuconostoc spp., and Enterococcus faecium, which weaken the activity of putrefactive bacteria in the intestines, act as antibacterial agents against pathogens, and facilitate the excretion of harmful substances. Studies on CGJ have either focused on improving product quality or evaluating the bioactive substances contained in CGJ. The fermentation process of CGJ results in the production of enzymes and various physiologically active substances that are not found in raw soybeans, including dietary fiber, phospholipids, isoflavones (e.g., genistein and daidzein), phenolic acids, saponins, trypsin inhibitors, and phytic acids. These components prevent atherosclerosis, oxidative stress-mediated heart disease and inflammation, obesity, diabetes, senile dementia, cancer (e.g., breast and lung), and osteoporosis. They have also been shown to have thrombolytic, blood pressure-lowering, lipid-lowering, antimutagenic, immunostimulatory, anti-allergic, antibacterial, anti-atopic dermatitis, anti-androgenetic alopecia, and anti-asthmatic activities, as well as skin improvement properties. In this review, we examined the physiological activities of CGJ and confirmed its potential as a functional food.     

Preparation of high-strength and high-modulus poly(vinyl alcohol) fibers by crosslinking wet spinning/multistep drawing method

This study is mainly focused on the preparation of high-strength and high-modulus poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) fibers by crosslinking wet spinning and multistep drawing. High strength as well as high modulus can be achieved by introduction of the crosslinks into the oriented chains to reduce entanglement degree and slippage between chains. The relationships between mechanical properties and fine structure of the drawn fibers were examined based on results of measurements of tensile property, thermal property, dynamic viscoelasticity, crystallinity, and orientation. The strength and Young's modulus of the drawn fibers are approximated to 1.82 and 51.76 GPa, respectively. The fiber has a sharp melting peak temperature that appeared at 236.7°C in the differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) curve. Our results indicate the multistep drawing procedure is superior to the conventional one-step drawing procedure. These excellent mechanical properties can be directly attributed to their high orientation of the amorphous chains. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Effects of Radiation and Hydrogen on the Fracture Resistance of Borosilicate Glasses

In this study, short bar fracture toughness samples were used to determine the effects of radiation and hydrogen on the resistance to fracture of vitreous silica and four commercial borosilicate glasses. The results showed that neither exposure to 10¹⁰ rads of γ-radiation nor saturation to a room-temperature-equivalent exposure of 408 atm of hydrogen had an effect on fracture resistance. Nevertheless, when samples were saturated with hydrogen and then exposed to radiation, resistance to fracture increased significantly in some of the glasses. The increase in the resistance to fracture correlated directly with the increase in concentration of hydroxyl and hydride groups created by exposure to radiation and hydrogen. The concentration of these groups differs with glass composition and accounts for the difference in behavior between the types of glass studied.