Short- and long-term learning of job interview with a serious game in virtual reality: influence of eyestrain,stereoscopy, and apparatus

Virtual Reality - Do apparatuses and eyestrain have effects on learning performances and quality of experience? Materials and Methods: 42 participants played a serious game simulating a job...     

RB Regulates DNA Double Strand Break Repair Pathway Choice by Mediating CtIP Dependent End Resection

Inactivation of the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor gene (RB1) leads to genome instability, and can be detected in retinoblastoma and other cancers. One damaging effect is causing DNA double strand breaks (DSB), which, however, can be repaired by homologous recombination (HR), classical non-homologous end joining (C-NHEJ), and micro-homology mediated end joining (MMEJ). We aimed to study the mechanistic roles of RB in regulating multiple DSB repair pathways. Here we show that HR and C-NHEJ are decreased, but MMEJ is elevated in RB-depleted cells. After inducing DSB by camptothecin, RB co-localizes with CtIP, which regulates DSB end resection. RB depletion leads to less RPA and native BrdU foci, which implies less end resection. In RB-depleted cells, less CtIP foci, and a lack of phosphorylation on CtIP Thr847, are observed. According to the synthetic lethality principle, based on the altered DSB repair pathway choice, after inducing DSBs by camptothecin, RB depleted cells are more sensitive to co-treatment with camptothecin and MMEJ blocker poly-ADP ribose polymerase 1 (PARP1) inhibitor. We propose a model whereby RB can regulate DSB repair pathway choice by mediating the CtIP dependent DNA end resection. The use of PARP1 inhibitor could potentially improve treatment outcomes for RB-deficient cancers.     

Living Materials Herald a New Era in Soft Robotics

Living beings have an unsurpassed range of ways to manipulate objects and interact with them. They can make autonomous decisions and can heal themselves. So far, a conventional robot cannot mimic this complexity even remotely. Classical robots are often used to help with lifting and gripping and thus to alleviate the effects of menial tasks. Sensors can render robots responsive, and artificial intelligence aims at enabling autonomous responses. Inanimate soft robots are a step in this direction, but it will only be in combination with living systems that full complexity will be achievable. The field of biohybrid soft robotics provides entirely new concepts to address current challenges, for example the ability to self‐heal, enable a soft touch, or to show situational versatility. Therefore, “living materials” are at the heart of this review. Similarly to biological taxonomy, there is a recent effort for taxonomy of biohybrid soft robotics. Here, an expansion is proposed to take into account not only function and origin of biohybrid soft robotic components, but also the materials. This materials taxonomy key demonstrates visually that materials science will drive the development of the field of soft biohybrid robotics.     

Different metabolic and absorption patterns of betaine in response to dietary intake of whole-wheat grain, wheat aleurone or rye aleurone in catheterized pigs

In the present study, a novel method of measuring the uptake of nutrients by 1H NMR spectroscopy was performed to determine dietary effects. Six pigs catheterized in the portal vein and mesenteric artery were fed breads made from whole-wheat grain (WWG), wheat aleurone flour (WAF; 19?% aleurone of bread) or rye aleurone flour (RAF; 15?% aleurone of bread) in a repeated 3?×?3 crossover design. Three meals were provided daily (at 0, 5 and 10?h), and each period comprised of 1?week. Portal and arterial blood samples were collected at fasting (?30?min) on day 4–7, and on day 7, pooled blood samples were collected at 0–2.5, 2.5–5, 5–7.5 and 7.5–10?h after first (0?h) daily meal. Using the arterial-venous difference and ANOVA–simultaneous component analysis, plasma betaine was found to accumulate during the experimental period. On day 7, plasma betaine concentrations was 20–40?% higher than when feeding the WAF diet compared with RAF and WWG (P?=?0.001), whereas the content of betaine in the WAF diet was about twice as high. The arterial-venous difference showed a tendency (P?=?0.078) for the diet–time interaction of betaine absorption in the absorption phases but there was no diet effect (P?=?0.31), which indicates a steady-state absorption has been reached on day 7. Furthermore, high plasma betaine levels correlated with low plasma creatine of endogenous origin. In conclusion, the explorative method revealed that the plasma concentration and absorption of betaine were differentially modified by the diets.     

Hydrogel/bioactive glass composites for bone regeneration applications: Synthesis and characterisation

Due to the deficiencies of current commercially available biological bone grafts, alternative bone graft substitutes have come to the forefront of tissue engineering in recent times. The main challenge for scientists in manufacturing bone graft substitutes is to obtain a scaffold that has sufficient mechanical strength and bioactive properties to promote formation of new tissue. The ability to synthesise hydrogel based composite scaffolds using photopolymerisation has been demonstrated in this study. The prepared hydrogel based composites were characterised using techniques including Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDX), rheological studies and compression testing. In addition, gel fraction, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), porosity and swelling studies of the composites were carried out. It was found that these novel hydrogel bioglass composite formulations did not display the inherent brittleness that is typically associated with bioactive glass based bone graft materials and exhibited enhanced biomechanical properties compared to the polyethylene glycol hydrogel scaffolds along. Together, the combination of enhanced mechanical properties and the deposition of apatite on the surface of these hydrogel based composites make them an ideal candidate as bone graft substitutes in cancellous bone defects or low load bearing applications.     

Microstructure and texture analysis of narrow copper line versus widths and annealing for reliability improvement

In this article, we focus on the possible influence of interconnect Cu microstructure on electromigration phenomenon. First three annealing conditions were applied on interconnects. Microstructure and texture of copper were characterized by Electron BackScattered Diffraction (EBSD). Then electromigration tests have been carried out on 70 and 150 nm line widths of 45 nm node technology. In both cases no significant difference was observed in term of reliability performance versus annealing conditions. On the contrary large difference is observed on Electron BackScattered Diffraction results. Then, a statistical approach was used to investigate local microstructure and texture of copper for 150 nm line width. The results underline that morphological parameters of copper can vary versus annealing conditions but lead to similar reliability performances. We can thus conclude that these parameters are not in relationship with electromigration phenomena in these interconnects. On the other hand, high amount of misorientation has been highlighted as responsible of early failures.     

Comparison of analytical and CFD models with regard to micron particle deposition in a human 16-generation tracheobronchial airway model

A representative human tracheobronchial tree has been geometrically represented with adjustable triple-bifurcation units (TBUs) in order to effectively simulate local and global micron particle depositions. It is the first comprehensive attempt to compute micron-particle transport in a (Weibel Type A) 16-generation model with realistic inlet conditions. The CFD modeling predictions are compared to experimental observations as well as analytical modeling results. Based on the findings with the validated computer simulation model, the following conclusions can be drawn:(i) Surprisingly, simulated inspiratory deposition fractions for the entire tracheobronchial region (say, G0–G15) with repeated TBUs in parallel and in series agree rather well with those calculated using analytical/semi-empirical expressions. However, the predicted particle-deposition fractions based on such analytical formulas differ greatly from the present simulation results for most local bifurcations, due to the effects of local geometry and resulting local flow features and particle distributions. Clearly, the effects of realistic geometries, flow structures and particle distributions in different individual bifurcations accidentally cancel each other so that the simulated deposition efficiencies during inspiration in a relatively large airway region may agree quite well with those obtained from analytical expressions. Furthermore, with the lack of local resolution, analytical models do not provide any physical insight to the air–particle dynamics in the tracheobronchial region.(ii) The maximum deposition enhancement factors (DEF) may be in the order of 10² to 10³ for micron particles in the tracheobronchial airways, implying potential health effects when the inhaled particles are toxic.(iii) The presence of sedimentation for micron particles in lower bronchial airways may change the local impaction-based deposition patterns seen for larger airways and hence reduces the maximum DEF values.(iv) Rotation of an airway bifurcation cause a significant impact on distal bifurcations rather than on the proximal ones. Such geometric effects are minor when compared to the effects of airflow and particle transport/deposition history, i.e., upstream effects.