Regional cardiac motion and strain estimation in three-dimensional echocardiography: a validation study in thick-walled univentricular phantoms

Automatic quantification of regional left ventricular deformation in volumetric ultrasound data remains challenging. Many methods have been proposed to extract myocardial motion, including techniques using block matching, phase-based correlation, differential optical flow methods, and image registration. Our lab previously presented an approach based on elastic registration of subsequent volumes using a B-spline representation of the underlying transformation field. Encouraging results were obtained for the assessment of global left ventricular function, but a thorough validation on a regional level was still lacking. For this purpose, univentricular thick-walled cardiac phantoms were deformed in an experimental setup to locally assess strain accuracy against sonomicrometry as a reference method and to assess whether regions containing stiff inclusions could be detected. Our method showed good correlations against sonomicrometry: r(2) was 0.96, 0.92, and 0.84 for the radial (ε(RR)), longitudinal (ε(LL)), and circumferential (ε(CC)) strain, respectively. Absolute strain errors and strain drift were low for ε(LL) (absolute mean error: 2.42%, drift: -1.05%) and ε(CC) (error: 1.79%, drift: -1.33%) and slightly higher for ε(RR) (error: 3.37%, drift: 3.05%). The discriminative power of our methodology was adequate to resolve full transmural inclusions down to 17 mm in diameter, although the inclusion-to-surrounding tissue stiffness ratio was required to be at least 5:2 (absolute difference of 39.42 kPa). When the inclusion-to-surrounding tissue stiffness ratio was lowered to approximately 2:1 (absolute difference of 22.63 kPa), only larger inclusions down to 27 mm in diameter could still be identified. Radial strain was found not to be reliable in identifying dysfunctional regions.     

Elemental composition of Physarum compressum Alb. et Schw. sporocarps and their structures cultivated on rabbit dung and agar substrates

The elemental composition of spores, peridium walls, and lime nodes of Physarum compressum sporocarps, cultivated on rabbit dung as a natural growing environment for the slime mold and on artificial agar medium, was compared to evaluate differences that may be dependent on substrates. Whole fruiting bodies and samples of both experimental media were extracted with nitric acid or Parr digest bomb, respectively, and analyzed by means of total X-ray reflection fluorescence (TXRF). Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) of spores, peridium walls, and lime nodes structure was carried out with the scanning electron microscope equipped with energy-dispersive spectrometer. Because of minute sizes and roughness of investigated structures, Monte Carlo simulations were utilized to establish analytical conditions of EPMA. Biological and geological standards were used in the quantification of element concentrations. According to TXRF, the fruiting bodies from agar medium revealed lower concentrations of K, Ca, Cr, Mn, and Fe in relation to fruiting bodies from the dung, reflecting elemental relationships in the experimental media. According to EPMA, the highest Ca concentration was found in the lime nodes followed by the peridium and the spores. Culturing of the slime molds on the rabbit dung indicated higher concentration of Ca in the lime nodes and peridium walls when compared with those obtained from the sporocarps grown on agar media. The opposite relation was found for the spores. The concentration of Na, Mg, P, S, and Cl was generally lower in all structures of the sporocarps harvested from the dung than from the agar medium. K was in higher concentration in analyzed structures from dung than from agar. Different element uptake (except for Ca and K) was revealed by the two methods: TXRF and EPMA.     

Photocatalytic hydrogen generation over alkaline-earth titanates in the presence of electron donors

The efficiency of alkaline-earth titanate-based compounds (Ca, Sr, Ba) for catalysts in photocatalytic hydrogen generation has been investigated. In this report, we have shown that the addition of organic donors (such as formic acid, acetic acid, methanol, 2-propanol and formaldehyde) enhanced the efficiency of the studied process. The systematic study has shown that the most efficient organic donor in regards to its hydrogen generation efficiency is formic acid. Of the catalysts explored, the highest photocatalytic activity was shown by SrTiO₃:TiO₂. Additionally, the effects of photocatalyst quantity and formic acid concentration on hydrogen evolution have been investigated.     

Effect of the Additive Fire Retardants on the Properties of Rigid Polyurethane Foams,Obtained Using Hydroxyethyl Derivatives of Oxamide and Polymeric 4,4′-diphenylmethane Diisocyanate

The present work investigates the effect of polyol structure and physical addition of boric acid and N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)oxamide on the properties of rigid polyurethane foams. The product of hydroxyalkylation of oxamide by ethylene carbonate has been used as a polyol component. The new polyol has been foamed using polymeric 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate, water, and triethylamine. To decrease the flammability of the foams, boric acid, and N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)oxamide were used as the additive flame retardants. It has been found, that chemical modification of the foam structure by means of oxamide groups decreases their flammability only to a small extent, whereas physical addition of N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)oxamide does not influence the flammability. However, the addition of boric acid to the foam composition resulted in a distinct decrease of foam flammability, according to the amount of boric acid added. All the foams, modified and nonmodified by boron, have been categorized into flammability class HF-1, according to the applicable standard. The introduction of flame retardants had its impact on the properties of polyurethane foams obtained, as described in this work.     

Influence of a graphene oxide additive and the conditions of membrane formation on the morphology and separative properties of poly(vinylidene fluoride) membranes

In this article, we present our study of the influence of a graphene oxide (GO) additive and the method of preparation on the properties of membranes. Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)/GO membranes were obtained by an inverse phase method, which was conducted by two different methods. The first one was based on solvent evaporation, and the second method was a coagulation bath in distilled water. Our studies clearly showed that the introduction of the GO nanoadditive into the polymer membrane matrix played a major role in the pore process formation, and it also contributed to the reduction of the contact angle, and this led to an improvement in the hydrophilic properties of the obtained membranes. Furthermore, the PVDF/GO membrane preparation process had a direct influence on the thickness and porosity. Both of these factors had a direct influence on the transport properties of the membrane. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42789.     

Opioid activity of Humana formula for newborns

Recent investigations have suggested that novel food should be evaluated not only from the nutritional but also from the physiological point of view. Opioid peptides derived from milk belong to compounds whose physiological importance has not yet been fully recognized. The commercial Humana formula for newborns sold on the Polish market was assayed in the study. Four opioid peptides with agonistic and antagonistic activity were found in a peptide extract from the Humana formula and its pepsin–trypsin hydrolysate: β‐casomorphin‐5, casoxin C and 6 and lactoferroxin A. The opioid activity of the peptide extracts was determined by examining their influence on the motor activity of isolated rabbit intestine. In conclusion, it was suggested that the opioid activity of the formulas could be an additional indicator of their diversity. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry     

Determination of lithium in mineral water samples by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry

A method is shown for the determination of trace amounts of lithium by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) in natural mineral waters with various therapeutic effects originating in Poland. The method is an expansion of X-ray fluorescence spectrometry applications to the determination of a very light element. The direct determination of lithium by XRF is practically impossible due to the extremely low fluorescence yield and long-wavelength characteristic radiation of such a light element. The lithium is determined via iron after precipitation with stoichiometric potassium lithium periodatoferrate(III) complex. The solution obtained after dissolving the complex was pipetted onto Mylar foil for XRF analysis. As little as 1 μg Li may be determined with this method. Accurate lithium determinations can be obtained using simple calibration samples requiring only pipetting Fe solution in the range 8.0-28.0 μg onto the Mylar foil. The prepared samples are thin, which allows the errors resulting from self-absorption or matrix effects to be neglected. Our studies give essential information about the quality of the analyzed waters.     

Vitamin C—Protective Role in Oxidative Stress Conditions Induced in Human Normal Colon Cells by Label-Free Raman Spectroscopy and Imaging

Colorectal cancer is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide. Conventional diagnostics methods of colorectal cancer can detect it at an advanced stage. Spectroscopic methods, including Raman spectroscopy and imaging, are becoming more and more popular in medical applications, and allow fast, precise, and unambiguous differentiation of healthy and cancerous samples. The most important advantage of Raman spectroscopy is the ability to identify biomarkers that help in the differentiation of healthy and cancerous cells based on biochemistry of sample and spectra typical for lipids, proteins, and DNA. The aim of the study was to evaluate the biochemical and structural features of human colon cell lines based on Raman spectroscopy and imaging: normal cells CCD-18 Co, normal cells CCD-18 Co under oxidative stress conditions, and normal cells CCD-18 Co at first treated by using tert-Butyl hydroperoxide and then supplemented by vitamin C in high concentration to show the protective role of vitamin C in micromolar concentrations against ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species). Raman data obtained for normal cells injured by ROS were compared with spectra typical for cancerous cells. Statistically assisted analysis has shown that normal ROS-injured and cancerous human colon cells can be distinguished based on their unique vibrational properties. The research carried out proves that label-free Raman spectroscopy may play an important role in clinical diagnostics differentiation of normal and cancerous colon cells and may be a source of intraoperative information supporting histopathological analysis.     

Phenyltrialkylborates as co-initiators with cyanine dyes in visible light polymerization of acrylates

Photoredox pairs consisting of selenocarbocyanine dye cations and phenyltrialkylborate anions were employed as the novel, effective visible-wavelength initiators of the radical polymerization of acrylic monomer. The influence of the sensitizers and electron donor structure on the photopolymerization kinetics of multiacrylate monomer was investigated by photo-DSC. It was found that the polymerization rate and the final conversion degree were dependent on both dye and borate structure. The kinetic studies of the free radical polymerization revealed an increase in the polymerization rate with a decrease of the borate oxidation potentials which was additionally reflected by the linear relationship between the Hammett constant and rate of polymerization. The efficiency of these initiators was discussed on the basis of the free energy change for electron transfer from an excited cyanine dye cation to a borate anion. The ΔG_el values were estimated for photoredox pairs containing a series of phenyltrialkylborate anions and one selenocarbocyanine dye cation. The relationship between the rate of polymerization and the free energy of activation for electron transfer reaction gives the dependence predicted by the classical theory of electron transfer. The photoreduction of cyanine phenyltrialkylborate complex was studied using nanosecond laser flash photolysis. The dye triplet was found to be quenched by the electron donors via an electron transfer process. Rate constants (k_q) for the quenching of the excited states were high and approached diffusion-controlled limits and were found to depend on the borate structure.