Accelerated multi-contrast high isotropic resolution 3D intracranial vessel wall MRI using a tailored k-space undersampling and partially parallel reconstruction strategy

Objective

To develop a 3D multi-contrast IVW protocol with 0.5-mm isotropic resolution and a scan time of 5 min per sequence.

Materials and methods

Pre-contrast T1w VISTA, DANTE prepared PDw VISTA, SNAP, and post-contrast T1w VISTA were accelerated using cartesian undersampling with target ordering method (CUSTOM) and self-supporting tailored k-space estimation for parallel imaging reconstruction (STEP). CUSTOM + STEP IVW was compared to full-sample IVW, SENSE-accelerated IVW, and CUSTOM + zero-filled Fourier reconstruction in normal volunteers and subjects with intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD). Image quality, vessel delineation, CSF suppression, and blood suppression were compared.

Results

CUSTOM + STEP vessel wall delineation was comparable to full-sample IVW and better than SENSE IVW for vessel wall delineation on T1w VISTA and luminal contrast on SNAP. Average image quality and wall depiction were significantly improved using STEP reconstruction compared with zero-filled Fourier reconstruction, with no significant difference in CSF or blood suppression.

Conclusions

CUSTOM + STEP allowed multi-contrast 3D 0.5-mm isotropic IVW within 30 min. Although some quantitative and qualitative scores for CUSTOM − STEP were lower than fully sampled IVW, CUSTOM + STEP provided comparable vessel wall delineation as full-sample IVW and was superior to SENSE. CUSTOM + STEP IVW was well tolerated by patients and showed good delineation of ICAD plaque.

     

Pregnancy by Assisted Reproductive Technology Is Associated with Shorter Telomere Length in Neonates

Telomere length (TL) influences the development of lifestyle-related diseases, and neonatal TL may influence their prevalence. Various factors have been reported to affect neonatal TL. Although the fetus is exposed to multiple conditions in utero, the main factors affecting the shortening of neonatal TL are still not known. In this study, we sought to identify factors that influence fetal TL. A total of 578 mother-newborn pairs were included for TL analysis. TL was measured in genomic DNA extracted from cord blood samples using quantitative PCR. The clinical factors examined at enrollment included the following intrauterine environmental factors: maternal age, assisted reproductive technology (ART) used, body mass index (BMI), gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), maternal stress, smoking, alcohol consumption, preterm delivery, small-for-gestational-age, neonatal sex, and placental weight. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were used to verify the relationship between neonatal TL and these clinical factors. The median neonatal TL to single-copy gene ratio was 1.0. Pregnancy with ART was among the 11 factors associated with shorter neonatal TL. From multiple regression analysis, we determined that neonatal TL was significantly shorter for pregnancies in the ART group than in the other groups. We conclude that pregnancy with ART is associated with shorter neonatal TL.     

Review on Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles: Antibacterial Activity and Toxicity Mechanism

Nano-Micro Letters - Antibacterial activity of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) has received significant interest worldwide particularly by the implementation of nanotechnology to synthesize...     

Structurally Diverse Histone Deacetylase Photoreactive Probes: Design,Synthesis, and Photolabeling Studies in Live Cells and Tissue

Histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity is modulated in vivo by post-translational modifications and formation of multiprotein complexes. Novel chemical tools to study how these factors affect engagement of HDAC isoforms by HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) in cells and tissues are needed. In this study, a synthetic strategy to access chemically diverse photoreactive probes (PRPs) was developed and used to prepare seven novel HDAC PRPs 9 – 15 . The class I HDAC isoform engagement by PRPs was determined in biochemical assays and photolabeling experiments in live SET-2, HepG2, HuH7, and HEK293T cell lines and in mouse liver tissue. Unlike the HDAC protein abundance and biochemical activity against recombinant HDACs, the chemotype of the PRPs and the type of cells were key in defining the engagement of HDAC isoforms in live cells. Our findings suggest that engagement of HDAC isoforms by HDACi in vivo may be substantially modulated in a cell- and tissue-type-dependent manner.     

Influences of copolymers (Copovidone,Eudragit RL PO and Kollicoat MAE 30 DP) on stability and bioactivity of spray-dried and freeze-dried lysozyme

Protein stability is the most crucial factor in protein pharmaceutical preparations. Various techniques were applied for producing stable protein formulations such as spray-drying and freeze-drying. However, heating and freezing stresses are disadvantages for proteins using these methods, respectively. Accordingly, excipients have been used to preserve therapeutic effects of proteins during processing and for long period of time. Therefore, influences of Copovidone, Eudragit^® RL-PO and Kollicoat^® MAE-30 DP (as excipients) on stability and integrity of lysozyme (as a model protein) in spray-dried and freeze-dried forms were investigated. Protein formulations in both dried forms were prepared without and with the addition of mentioned excipients at different concentrations. Protein formulations were characterized for yield determination, morphology using scanning electron microscopic (SEM), thermal analysis by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), secondary structure stability using Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and biological activity. All protein formulations were subjected to a stability study as solid protein formulations for 3 weeks at 24?°C/76% relative humidity and aqueous protein samples were stored at 50?°C for 30?min in a water bath. Results showed that Copovidone successfully preserved integrity and biological activity of lysozyme before and after storage in both spray-dried and freeze-dried forms with more advantage for using higher concentration of the same excipient. Smooth spheres of spray-dried lysozyme formulations with Copovidone were smaller than spray-dried lysozyme without and with Kollicoat^® MAE-30 DP, which affected %yield produced. Copovidone has demonstrated valuable protection ability for lysozyme.     

Caffeic Acid Enhances the Anti-Leukemic Effect of Imatinib on Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Cells and Triggers Apoptosis in Cells Sensitive and Resistant to Imatinib

Among the phenolic acids tested on the K562 cell line, a model of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), caffeic acid (CA) was biologically active on sensitive and imatinib (IM)-resistant cells at micro-molar concentration, either in terms of reduction of cell proliferation or triggering of apoptosis. The CA treatment provoked mitochondrial membrane depolarization, genomic DNA fragmentation and phosphatidylserine exposure, hallmarks of apoptosis. Cell cycle analysis following the treatment with comparable cytotoxic concentrations of IM or CA showed marked differences in the distribution profiles. The reduction of cell proliferation by CA administration was associated with increased expression of two cell cycle repressor genes, CDKN1A and CHES1, while IM at a cytotoxic concentration increased the CHES1 but not the CDKN1A expression. In addition, CA treatment affected the proliferation and triggered the apoptosis in IM-resistant cells. Taken together, these data suggested that CA induced the anti-proliferative effect and triggered apoptosis of CML cells by a different mechanism than IM. Finally, the combined administration of IM and CA at suboptimal concentrations evidenced a synergy of action in determining the anti-proliferative effect and triggering apoptosis. The ability of CA to potentiate the anti-leukemic effect of IM highlighted the nutraceutical potential of CA in CML.     

A new design of magnetorheological fluid based braking system using genetic algorithm optimization

This paper proposes a new design for an automotive magnetorheological (MR) braking system using multiple rotary disks. We develop an analytical model to calculate the torque and validate our results using finite element analysis considering a non-linear relationship between magnetic field and magnetic flux. Using genetic algorithm, we optimize the system’s dimensions to generate maximum torque. The optimized geometry shows an improvement in output torque compared to existing systems. Moreover, our design directs higher flux onto the MR fluid and subsequently generates greater shear frictions. This design can be used in applications such as rehabilitation devices.     

Effects of rarefaction,viscous dissipation and rotation mode on the first and second law analyses of rarefied gaseous slip flows confined between a rotating shaft and its concentric housing

A parametric analytical study is carried out to scrutinize the mechanism of fluid flow, heat transfer and entropy generation in a low-speed rarefied gaseous flow confined between a shaft and its concentric housing, i.e., the cylindrical Couette flow. In the first law analysis, closed form solutions for the radial temperature profiles are obtained by incorporating the calculated velocity distribution into the energy equation. The derivations for three thermal cases, which are founded on imposing different thermal conditions, namely, the Uniform Heat Flux (UHF) and the Constant Wall Temperature (CWT) boundary conditions, are presented. In the second law analysis, the contributions of thermal diffusion and fluid friction irreversibility to the total entropy generation in the micro domain are illustrated, and the relevant expressions for the Bejan number and the entropy generation number as well as the average entropy generation rate are derived. Finally, the variations of major variables with influential parameters such as the Knudsen number, the Brinkman number and rotation mode are investigated to elucidate the associated effects of rarefaction phenomenon, viscous dissipation and geometric condition on the characteristics of the flow.     

Static and dynamic compressive properties of polypropylene/zinc oxide nanocomposites

The effect of strain rate is widely recognized as an essential factor that influences the mechanical properties of polymer matrix composites. Despite its importance, no previous work has been reported on the high‐strain rate behavior of polypropylene/zinc oxide nanocomposites. Based on this, static and dynamic compression properties of polypropylene/zinc oxide nanocomposites, with particle contents of 1%, 3%, and 5% by weight, were successfully studied at different strain rates (i.e., 0.01 s^?1, 0.1 s^?1, 650 s^?1, 900 s^?1, and 1100 s^?1) using a universal testing machine and a split Hopkinson pressure bar apparatus. For standardization, approximately 24 nm of zinc oxide nanoparticles were embedded into polypropylene matrix for each of the tested polypropylene/zinc oxide nanocomposites. Results show that the yield strength, the ultimate strength, and the stiffness properties, of polypropylene/zinc oxide nanocomposites, were greatly affected by both particle loading and applied strain rate. Furthermore, the rate sensitivity and the absorbed energy of all tested specimens showed a positive increment with increasing strain rate, whereas the thermal activation volume showed a contrary trend. In addition, the fractographic analysis and particle dispersion of all composite specimens were successfully obtained using a field emisission scanning electron microscopy. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 54:949–960, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers