The Expression of Active CD11b Monocytes in Blood and Disease Progression in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Monocytes expressing the inflammation suppressing active CD11b, a beta2 integrin, may regulate neuroinflammation and modify clinical outcomes in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In this single site, retrospective study, peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 38 individuals living with ALS and 20 non-neurological controls (NNC) were investigated using flow cytometry to study active CD11b integrin classical (CM), intermediate (IM) and non-classical (NCM) monocytes during ALS progression. Seventeen ALS participants were sampled at the baseline (V1) and at two additional time points (V2 and V3) for longitudinal analysis. Active CD11b+ CM frequencies increased steeply between the baseline and V3 (ANOVA repeated measurement, p < 0.001), and the V2/V1 ratio negatively correlated with the disease progression rate, similar to higher frequencies of active CD11b+ NCM at the baseline (R = −0.6567; p = 0.0031 and R = 0.3862; p = 0.0168, respectively). CD11b NCM, clinical covariates and neurofilament light-chain plasma concentration at the baseline predicted shorter survival in a multivariable and univariate analysis (CD11b NCM—HR: 1.05, CI: 1.01–1.11, p = 0.013. Log rank: above median: 43 months and below median: 21.22 months; p = 0.0022). Blood samples with the highest frequencies of active CD11b+ IM and NCM contained the lowest concentrations of soluble CD11b. Our preliminary data suggest that the levels of active CD11b+ monocytes and NCM in the blood predict different clinical outcomes in ALS.     

Differential Metabotypes in Synovial Fibroblasts and Synovial Fluid in Hip Osteoarthritis Patients Support Inflammatory Responses

Changes in cellular metabolism have been implicated in mediating the activated fibroblast phenotype in a number of chronic inflammatory disorders, including pulmonary fibrosis, renal disease and rheumatoid arthritis. The aim of this study was therefore to characterise the metabolic profile of synovial joint fluid and synovial fibroblasts under both basal and inflammatory conditions in a cohort of obese and normal-weight hip OA patients. Furthermore, we sought to ascertain whether modulation of a metabolic pathway in OA synovial fibroblasts could alter their inflammatory activity. Synovium and synovial fluid was obtained from hip OA patients, who were either of normal-weight or obese and were undergoing elective joint replacement surgery. The synovial fluid metabolome was determined by 1H NMR spectroscopy. The metabolic profile of isolated synovial fibroblasts in vitro was characterised by lactate secretion, oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) using the Seahorse XF Analyser. The effects of a small molecule pharmacological inhibitor and siRNA targeted at glutaminase-1 (GLS1) were assessed to probe the role of glutamine metabolism in OA synovial fibroblast function. Obese OA patient synovial fluid (n = 5) exhibited a different metabotype, compared to normal-weight patient fluid (n = 6), with significantly increased levels of 1, 3-dimethylurate, N-Nitrosodimethylamine, succinate, tyrosine, pyruvate, glucose, glycine and lactate, and enrichment of the glutamine–glutamate metabolic pathway, which correlated with increasing adiposity. In vitro, isolated obese OA fibroblasts exhibited greater basal lactate secretion and aerobic glycolysis, and increased mitochondrial respiration when stimulated with pro-inflammatory cytokine TNFα, compared to fibroblasts from normal-weight patients. Inhibition of GLS1 attenuated the TNFα-induced expression and secretion of IL-6 in OA synovial fibroblasts. These findings suggest that altered cellular metabolism underpins the inflammatory phenotype of OA fibroblasts, and that targeted inhibition of glutamine–glutamate metabolism may provide a route to reducing the pathological effects of joint inflammation in OA patients who are obese.     

Pressure drop during air flow in aluminum foams

This paper aims at investigating experimentally the pressure drop during air flow in six different aluminum open-cell foam samples with different number of pores per inch (PPI) and different porosity under a wide range of air mass flow rate. Three imposed heat fluxes are considered for each foam sample. The collected pressure drop data are analysed with reference to models available in the literature. A new simple pressure drop model, based on present data, has then been developed. The consistency of the proposed model is finally checked by comparison to data available in the literature from different laboratories.     

Analysis of an absorption machine driven by the heat recovery on an I.C. reciprocating engine

The present work studies an absorption machine driven by the heat recovery on an internal combustion (i.c.) reciprocating engine. The thermal energy recovered from the i.c. engine exhaust is used to drive a double‐effect water–lithium bromide cycle, while the heat recovered from the cooling jacket of the engine drives a single‐effect water–lithium bromide cycle. The two absorption cycles are integrated into a single unit with a common evaporator and absorber. The absorption unit was first evaluated by a cycle analysis determining the sensitivity to the main boundary conditions and to the internal parameters. Then a specific simulation code of all the different devices of the absorption machine was developed to evaluate the real performance and size of the unit together with its operating condition limits. The absorption machine shows a coefficient of performance around 1, very close to the performance of a traditional double‐effect absorption chiller driven by steam or by a gas burner. The absorption unit could operate with cooling water inlet temperature lower than 35–36°C and refrigerated outlet temperature higher than 3°C. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessment of intradialysis calcium mass balance by a single pool variable‐volume calcium kinetic model

Introduction: A reliable method of intradialysis calcium mass balance quantification is far from been established. We herein investigated the use of a single‐pool variable‐volume Calcium kinetic model to assess calcium mass balance in chronic and stable dialysis patients. Methods: Thirty‐four patients on thrice‐weekly HD were studied during 240 dialysis sessions. All patients were dialyzed with a nominal total calcium concentration of 1.50 mmol/L. The main assumption of the model is that the calcium distribution volume is equal to the extracellular volume during dialysis. This hypothesis is assumed valid if measured and predicted end dialysis plasma water ionized calcium concentrations are equal. A difference between predicted and measured end‐dialysis ionized plasma water calcium concentration is a deviation on our main hypothesis, meaning that a substantial amount of calcium is exchanged between the extracellular volume and a nonmodeled compartment. Findings: The difference between predicted and measured values was 0.02 mmol/L (range ?0.08:0.16 mmol/L). With a mean ionized dialysate calcium concentration of 1.25 mmol/L, calcium mass balance was on average negative (mean ± SD ?0.84 ± 1.33 mmol, range ?5.42:2.75). Predialysis ionized plasma water concentration and total ultrafiltrate were the most important predictors of calcium mass balance. A significant mobilization of calcium from the extracellular pool to a nonmodeled pool was calculated in a group of patients. Discussion: The proposed single pool variable‐volume Calcium kinetic model is adequate for prediction and quantification of intradialysis calcium mass balance, it can evaluate the eventual calcium transfer outside the extracellular pool in clinical practice.     

New cardo silylated poly(azomethine)s containing 9,9′‐diphenylfluorene units as materials with Brønsted acid‐dependent fluorescence

Aromatic poly(azomethine)s have been studied due to their attractive properties such as high thermal stability, semiconducting behavior and the ability to coordinate species with their imine units (C?N). In this paper, the synthesis and characterization of two novel silylated poly(azomethine)s containing cardo units are reported. These materials were highly soluble in organic solvents such as chloroform and m‐cresol and were thermally stable, and PAzMC1 exhibited a high glass transition temperature value (287 °C), while that for PAzMC2 was not observed. UV–visible spectrophotometry revealed absorption bands related to the aromatic backbone of both PAzMCs, 300–285 nm in tetrahydrofuran and 310–301 nm in dimethylsulfoxide, and bands attributed to the conjugated imine unit at around 350 nm. In order to investigate the phenomenon of the emission of fluorescence promoted by dopant agents with regard to potential optoelectronic applications, the materials were doped with H₂SO₄ and their optical and electrochemical properties investigated. Thus, the absorption band of the imine group was suppressed due to the nitrogen atoms being protonated. Fluorescence spectroscopy analysis developed in dilute solutions of polymers showed no emission from the undoped polymers, whereas the acid‐doped species emitted fluorescence in the UV and violet regions (322 nm). Cyclic voltammetry measurements were carried out and HOMO–LUMO energies were estimated. This study provides a starting point for the development of new poly(azomethine)s with doping‐dependent emission. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry