Determination of the contents of the main biochemical compounds of Adlay (Coxi lachrymal-jobi)

Adlay (Coxi lachrymal-jobi), an annual crop, has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine for its biological activity and as a nourishing food. Its phytochemical composition has been extensively studied; however, information on its policosanol (PC) and phytosterol content is scarce. The objective of this study was to examine and compare the PC, phytosterol and oleamide contents of different fractions of adlay collected from Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan. Biochemical compositions of the samples were identified using a gas chromatograph coupled with a mass spectrometer (GC–MS). The adlay bran had higher contents of policosanols (246 mg/kg), phytosterols (4733 mg/kg) and oleamide (45.8 mg/kg) than had hulled and polished fractions. Although plant sterols reduce cholesterol absorption, policosanols may inhibit endogenous cholesterol synthesis. Although adlay contains beneficial phytochemicals that justify its use as a food ingredient or dietary supplement, research is still needed to confirm its traditional use in Asian medicine.     

Experimental study of laminar flames obtained by the homogenization of three forest fuels

This work aims to improve the understanding of the parameters involved in the burning of vegetative fuels. As the role of the surface-to-volume ratio is already known, we focused on the influence of other parameters. Three Mediterranean species (Pinus pinaster, Erica arborea and Cistus monspeliensis) were crushed in order to decrease the surface-to-volume ratio effects. The burning of these fuel samples produces unsteady, axisymmetric, non-premixed, laminar flames. The thermal properties and the mass loss of the crushed fuels, the distribution of temperature inside the sample and in the flame, the gases released by the fuels and the flame geometry were investigated. Thanks to these experimental data, the influence of the different fuel properties was underlined. We observed that the mass burning rate of the samples mainly controls the flame dynamics. However, the combustion kinetics in the flame depends on the degradation gases released by the fuels: the reaction zone is shifted and the flame height is changed. It appears that the composition of the degradation gases has to be taken into account to improve forest fire modeling.     

Nanodevices in nature: Electrochemical aspects

Electrochemical multielectron reactions in photosynthesis and respiration are evaluated by thermodynamic and kinetic analysis. Kharkats and Volkov [Yu.I. Kharkats, A.G. Volkov, Biochim. Biophys. Acta 891 (1987) 56] were the first to present proof that cytochrome c oxidase reduces molecular oxygen by synchronous multielectron mechanism without O₂⁻ intermediate formation. After this pioneering observation, it became clear that the first step of oxygen reduction is two-electron concerted process. The energy for the H⁺-pump of cytochrome oxidase is liberated when the third and fourth electrons are added in the last two steps of water formation independent of the reaction pathway. Electrochemical principles govern many biological properties of organisms, such as the generation of electric fields, and the conduction of fast excitation waves. These properties are supported by the function of a variety of natural nanodevices. Ionic channels, as natural nanodevices, control the plasma membrane potential, and the movement of ions across membranes; thereby, regulating various biological functions. Some voltage-gated ion channels work as plasma membrane nanopotentiostats. In plants, excitation waves are possible mechanisms for intercellular and intracellular communication in response to environmental changes. The role of electrified nanointerface of the plasma membrane in signal transduction is discussed as well.     

Robust facial landmarking for registration

Finding landmark positions on facial images is an important step in face registration and normalization, for both 2D and 3D face recognition. In this paper, we inspect shortcomings of existing approaches in the literature and compare several methods for performing automatic landmarking on near-frontal faces in different scales. Two novel methods have been employed to analyze facial features in coarse and fine scales successively. The first method uses a mixture of factor analyzers to learn Gabor filter outputs on a coarse scale. The second method is a template matching of block-based Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) features. In addition, a structural analysis subsystem is proposed that can determine false matches, and correct their positions.     

Constraint-based network model of pathogen–immune system interactions

Pathogenic bacteria such as Bordetella bronchiseptica modulate host immune responses to enable their establishment and persistence; however, the immune response is generally successful in clearing these bacteria. Here, we model the dynamic outcome of the interplay between host immune components and B. bronchiseptica virulence factors. The model extends our previously published interaction network of B. bronchiseptica and includes the existing experimental information on the relative timing of IL10 and IFNγ activation in the form of qualitative inequalities. The current model improves the previous one in two directions: (i) by augmenting the network with new nodes with specific function in T helper cell differentiation and effector mechanisms and (ii) by using a dynamic approach that allows us to quantify node states and mechanisms revealed to be important from our previous model. The model makes predictions about the time scales of each process, the activity thresholds of each node and novel regulatory interactions. For example, the model predicts that the activity threshold of IL4 is higher than that of IL12 and that pro-inflammatory cytokines regulate the activity of Th2 cells. Some of these predictions are supported by the literature, and many can serve as targets of future experiments.     

Numerical modeling of flow and scouring around a cofferdam

When planning river hydraulic structures, the analysis of the hydrodynamic and bed elevation change is of great importance, particularly the assessment of the scour depth around a cofferdam. In this study, the flow field variation and the corresponding scour depth was simulated using two-dimensional hydrodynamic analysis and a bed-load transport model. The hydrodynamic model used the streamlined upwind Petrov–Galerkin (SUPG) finite element scheme to solve the Reynolds-averaged turbulent flow equations. Based on the results of flow field analysis, the bed-load transport model was able to simulate the scour hole development, where it was shown that velocity gradients dramatically increase due to the existence of hydraulic structures. The applicability of the model was tested by simulating the velocity field and bed elevation changes around the cofferdam constructed during the Lock and Dam No. 26 replacement project in the Mississippi River. The model created in this study is able to estimate the maximum scour depth, determine the configuration of the cofferdam to suggest changes to reduce any local scour, and suggest if protection materials around the cofferdam are needed.     

Metamodels in Europe: Languages, Tools, and Applications

Editor's note:This article provides an overview of current efforts in Europe for using metamodeling in the integrated development of critical systems such as automotive electronics. It distinguishes between lightweight versus heavyweight approaches, surveys a number of related current European projects, and gives details about the Speeds project to illustrate the role of metamodeling-driven system engineering.—Sandeep Shukla, Virginia Tech     

Forced periodic temperature cycling of chemical reactions in microstructure devices

In this publication, several stainless steel microstructure reactors specially designed to obtain rapid and periodic temperature changes are presented. Different microstructure reactor designs have been manufactured and tested for their thermal behaviour and equally by running a test reaction under stationary and non-stationary temperature conditions. The devices were continuously electrically heated and periodically cooled by a deionized water flow. The objective of the experimental measurements was to demonstrate that non-stationary temperature conditions may lead to an increase in the reaction rate compared to the stationary conditions. The heterogeneously catalysed oxidation of CO was chosen as the test reaction. The catalyst used was a dispersion of platinum on a porous alumina support generated by sol-gel technology. The experiments realized under non-stationary temperature conditions with a temperature oscillation amplitude of 41 K and a period duration of 21 s show an increase in the mean CO₂ concentration of a factor 1.72 compared to the mean concentration under quasi-stationary temperature conditions. The simulations of a simple monomolecular reaction under non-stationary temperature conditions indicate that the presence of a transitional surface coverage generated by the temperature oscillations may be a possible explanation for the observed phenomenon.