Influence of Reaction Conditions on the Settling Behavior of Liquid-Liquid Dispersions

The settling behavior of liquid-liquid dispersions at ambient temperature and pressure is well investigated. However, little is known about the settling behavior of those systems at high pressure and high temperature. In this work, a novel stainless steel settling cell is presented, enabling investigations on liquid-liquid settling behavior at high pressures up to 130 bar. The settling behavior of a promising CO₂ hydrogenation reaction system is investigated by sequentially determining influences of dissolved CO₂, side components, and temperature.     

In situ X-ray diffraction of the intercalation of (C2H5)4N and BF4 into graphite from acetonitrile and propylene carbonate based supercapacitor electrolytes

The intercalation of (C₂H₅)₄N⁺ and BF₄⁻ from acetonitrile (AN) and propylene carbonate (PC) solutions into bound graphite electrodes during cyclic voltammetry was investigated by in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) using synchrotron radiation. The disappearance of the 0 0 2 reflection of graphite in the XRD patterns upon intercalation of (C₂H₅)₄N⁺ indicates that the cations are accumulated between the graphene layers. For the intercalation of BF₄⁻, the appearance of 0 0 l reflexes in the intercalated state provides clear evidence of staging. In both cases, the in-plane periodicity was not significantly altered by the intercalation process apart from slight changes in the CC bond length. The intercalation of BF₄⁻ from the PC-based electrolyte was found to have the least destructive effect on the periodicity of the graphite structure during initial cycling in the anodic potential range along with the highest charge/discharge efficiency.     

Separation of Indium from Acid Sulfate-Containing Solutions by Ion Exchange with Impregnated Resins

Indium separation using ion exchange resins from acidic polymetallic and very diluted solutions are investigated. Since the selectivity of commercial ion exchange resins have proven to be too low for an effective separation from solutions with high content of other metals, Lewatit® TP 208 was impregnated with common extractants to enhance its properties. By resin impregnation with D2EHPA and Cyanex 272, not only the selective indium recovery was reached but also the resin capacity was increased approx. two times. The best loading and elution performance were shown by Cyanex 272-impregnated Lewatit® TP 208, increasing the indium purity in the eluate from 0.75 % to 85 %.     

Immune Aging and Immunotherapy in Cancer

Immune functions decline as we age, while the incidence of cancer rises. The advent of immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) has not only revolutionized cancer therapy, but also spawned great interest in identifying predictive biomarkers, since only one third of patients show treatment response. The aging process extensively affects the adaptive immune system and thus T cells, which are the main target of ICB. In this review, we address age-related changes regarding the adaptive immune system with a focus on T cells and their implication on carcinogenesis and ICB. Differences between senescence, exhaustion, and anergy are defined and current knowledge, treatment strategies, and studies exploring T cell aging as a biomarker for ICB are discussed. Finally, novel approaches to improve immunotherapies and to identify biomarkers of response to ICB are presented and their potential is assessed in a comparative analysis.     

Multiscale modeling in rodent ventricular myocytes

This paper indicates that in ventricular myocytes when the SR (sarcoplasmic reticulum) is pharmacologically inhibited, the intracellular Ca²⁺concentration rapidly increases during Ca²⁺ entrance (0-70 ms), whereas the decay of Ca²⁺ is slow; in the absence of fluorescent dye, large Ca²⁺ concentration gradients might develop near the cell membrane; intracellular Ca²⁺ distribution is tightly regulated by the localization of Ca²⁺transporter proteins along the sarcolemma and strongly relays on the presence of mobile and stationary Ca²⁺ buffers. These studies also imply that in ventricular cells with intact and functional SR, the Ca²⁺ signal most likely would spread faster along the t-tubular system, surface membrane than to the cell interior and that in the absence of Ca²⁺ dye high Ca²⁺ gradients under the surface membrane and more uniform Ca²⁺ distribution in the cell interior might be expected.     

A Fully Automated Process Using a Magnetic Particle Based Kit for Removal of Dye Terminators from Sequencing Reactions

Prolinx,® Inc. of Bothell, WA has developed the RapXtract™ 384 Dye Terminator Removal Kit for full automation of DNA sequencing reaction purification. The RapXtract product line is based upon proprietary superparamagnetic particle technology that eliminates the need for centrifugation, vacuum filtration, or modified primers to achieve purification of sequencing reactions. The kit described here is pre-dispensed in a 384-well microtiter plate and run on the TECAN GENESIS Workstation 150 (Tecan U.S. Inc., Research Triangle Park, NC). This system enables rapid purification of up to 384 sequencing reactions in a single run.As the completion of the Human Genome Project nears, it is imperative for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to increase throughput of DNA sequencing in order to be competitive in the drug discovery and validation process. The “race to market” requires a shift from standard DNA sequencing processes-including DNA sequencing reaction purification-towards complete walk-away automation for all steps.Existing sequencing reaction purification methods (Table 1) require considerable resources including: plastic and other laboratory consumables; specialized equipment, such as high-speed centrifuges or vacuum filtration apparatus; and labor-intensive protocols requiring large amounts of technician time. As a result, walk-away automation of standard purification methods is difficult and expensive.     

Interkeratinocyte adherens junctions: immunocytochemical visualization of cell-cell junctional structures, distinct from desmosomes, in human epidermis

The intramedullary localization of schwannomas is rare, corresponding to 0.3% of all intraspinal tumors. The authors report the case of a 52-year-old white female patient that presented with symptoms of spinal compression by the presence of an intramedullary schwannoma at the level C4-C6. There were no symptoms of neurofibromatosis, entity frequently related to the lesion. The magnetic resonance imaging examination and the per-operatory biopsy were decisive factors in planning and executing the treatment, by establishing the characteristics, location and diagnosis of the lesion. Its delimitation and posterior location have facilitated total surgical exeresis. The transoperatively histopathologic examination allowed adequate surgical procedure. The Schwann cell is not found normally in the central nervous system and its presence in this site has been subject of many theories exposed in this paper, which proposes comprehensive review of the clinical aspects, imaging diagnosis, pathology, differential diagnosis and treatment of schwannomas. It is probable that, with the advances verified in the available diagnostic methods, a greater number of these lesions may be diagnosed in the future.     

A failure assessment diagram for strain hardening materials under cyclic and monotonic loading

Strain hardening is introduced in the failure assessment diagram by studying two simple collapse models. These models together with the new failure curves are used both to predict the maximum load of different types of specimens and to assess the stability of these specimens under controlled displacement. The models are also used to study crack growth under a cyclic load high enough to cause gross plastic deformation and thus invalidate Paris law.     

Untersuchungen zur Resistenz von Edelmetall-Dentallegierungen

A study of the dealloying resistance of noble metal dental alloys. In connection with the development of low gold dental alloys the corrosion resistance of homogeneous gold-palladium-silver-experimental alloys was investigated in a chloride solution. Analogous measurements were made with several noble metal containing intermetallic phases which may be present in dental alloys of more complex composition. The results indicate a high corrosion resistance of the homogeneous gold-palladium-silver-alloys, since their free corrosion potentials are always situated within a region of their anodic polarization curves, where the current density of metal dissolution is extremely low. Within the composition limits of these alloys the substitution of gold by palladium did not reduce the extension of this “region of immunity” in a significant way. Intermetallic phases, however, as present in the systems silver-tin, silver-palladium-tin and silver-palladium-indium show a clearly restricted “region of immunity” and, at the free corrosion potential, are dissolved at a relatively high rate.     

Differenzierung pflanzlicher und tierischer Proteine durch isoelektrische Focussierung in Agarosegel

Zusammenfassung Am Beispiel von Fleisch-, Fischund Kartoffelproteinen wird über die Leistungsfähigkeit einer modifizierten Focussiermethode in Agarosegel berichtet. Bei erhöhtem Probendurchsatz lassen sich Analysendauer und Kosten senken.

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Differentiation of plant and animal proteins by isoelectric focusing in agarose gel

Summary A modified time and cost saving method for isoelectric focusing of protein mixtures in agarose gel is described. The efficiency of the method is demonstrated by separation of meat, fish and potato proteins.