An assessment of briefs used for designing healthcare environments: a survey in Sweden

The brief is a central document in decision-making during the early stages of the planning and construction (briefing/programming) of healthcare environments. Thus, the demand on the content and quality of these documents is high. The content and quality of initial briefs developed in Sweden were assessed to obtain an up-to-date picture of current practices of writing project statements in the early stages of designing healthcare environments. A new instrument called the Content and Quality of Brief Instrument (CQB-I) was used to study 29 initial briefs. In many cases, the documentation in the briefs was incomplete and the information did not adequately address users’ needs. In addition, the briefs often did not include any measurable outcomes or explicitly evidence-based information. These findings have implications for identifying areas for improvement in design teams’ documentation practices. Assessment can have a real impact on the quality of briefs and can raise awareness of the need to improve the briefing process itself. This is one of the first studies to assess the content and quality of briefs and it provides a starting point for both practitioners and future researchers to explore the role of briefs in briefing process quality improvement.     

Helium permeability of polymer materials as liners for composite overwrapped pressure vessels

Polymers have been identified as replacement materials for metallic liners in composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPVs) for future space launchers. PEEK, Nylon, and PVDF plastics formed from base powder grades have been permeability tested to determine their susceptibility to the diffusion of helium through flatwise panel cross sections. Permeability, diffusion, and solubility coefficients have been obtained for each material with PVDF and PA11 grades showing the lowest permeability coefficients and hence the best barrier properties to permeation. Crystallinity percentages and internal air void contents in the polymer samples have also been used to assess the differences in permeability between materials with an analysis of void dispersion effects given through X‐ray CT scanning techniques. The measured permeability coefficients have been used to assess the ability of all materials tested to act as a functional polymer liner in a standard COPV with final leak rates predicted based on liner thicknesses and weights. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 43675.     

Nanocomposites of PBAT and cellulose nanocrystals modified by in situ polymerization and melt extrusion

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) were successfully grafted with a low molecular weight poly(butylene glutarate) through an in situ polymerization procedure. The grafting treatment decreased the CNC hydrophilic character and increased the onset of their thermal degradation by approximately 20°C, thus increasing the possibilities of CNC application. Composites of grafted and nongrafted CNC with a poly(butylene‐adipate‐co‐terephthalate) (PBAT) matrix were prepared by melt extrusion. The CNC addition led to an increase of 50% of the tensile elastic modulus of the PBAT. In addition, dynamic mechanical thermal analysis showed that the composite with CNC retained its high modulus even at temperatures far above the glass transition temperature of PBAT. At 60°C the storage modulus of the composite with CNC was approximately 200% higher than that of the pure PBAT. Thus, in this work, nanocomposites of improved properties were obtained through a combination of in situ polymerization and melt extrusion. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 56:1339–1348, 2016. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Enhanced O2 Flux of CaTi0.85Fe0.15O3−δ Based Membranes by Mn Doping

Dense symmetric membranes of CaTi_0.85?xFe_0.15Mn_xO_3?δ (x = 0.1, 0.15, 0.25, 0.4) are investigated in order to determine the optimal Mn dopant content with respect to highest O₂ flux. O₂ permeation measurements are performed as function of temperature between 700°C–1000°C and as function of the feed side ranging between 0.01 and 1 bar. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy is utilized to elucidate the charge state of Mn, and synchrotron radiation X‐ray powder diffraction (SR‐XPD) is employed to investigate the structure symmetry and cell volume of the perovskite phase at temperatures up to 800°C. The highest O₂ permeability is found for x = 0.25 over the whole temperature and ranges, followed by x = 0.4 above 850°C. The O₂ permeability for x = 0.25 reaches 0.01 mL(STP) min^?1 cm^?1 at 925°C with 0.21 bar feed side and Ar sweep gas. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicates that the charge state of Mn changes from approx. +3 to +4 when x > 0.1, which implies that Mn mainly improves electronic conductivity for x > 0.1. The cell volume is found to decrease linearly with Mn content, which coincides with an increase in the activation energy of O₂ permeability. These results are consistent with the interpretation of the temperature and dependency of O₂ permeation. The sintering behavior and thermal expansion properties are investigated by dilatometry, which show improved sinterability with increasing Mn content and that the thermal expansion coefficient decreases from 12.4 to 11.9 × 10^?6 K^?1 for x = 0 and x = 0.25, respectively.     

Structure–Activity Relationships of JMV4463, a Vectorized Cathepsin D Inhibitor with Antiproliferative Properties: The Unique Role of the AMPA‐Based Vector

Cathepsin D (CathD) is overexpressed and secreted by several solid tumors and stimulates their growth, the mechanism of which is still not understood. In this context, the pepstatin bioconjugate JMV4463 [Ac‐arg‐O₂Oc‐(Val)₃‐Sta‐Ala‐Sta‐(AMPA)₄‐NH₂; O₂Oc=8‐amino‐3,6‐dioxaoctanoyl, Sta=statine, AMPA=ortho‐aminomethylphenylacetyl], containing a new kind of cell‐penetrating vector, was previously shown to exhibit potent antiproliferative effects in vitro and to delay the onset of tumors in vivo. In this study, we performed a structure–activity relationship analysis to evaluate the significance of the inhibitor and vector moieties of JMV4463. By modifying both statine residues of pepstatin we found that the antiproliferative activity is correlated with CathD inhibition, supporting a major role of the catalytic activity of intracellular CathD in cancer cell proliferation. Replacing the vector composed of four AMPA units with other vectors was found to abolish cytotoxicity, although all of the conjugates enabled pepstatin transport into cells. In addition, the AMPA₄ vector must be localized at the C terminus of the bioconjugate. The unexpected importance of the vector structure and position for cytotoxic action suggests that AMPA₄ enables pepstatin to inhibit the proteolysis of critical CathD substrates involved in cell proliferation via a unique mechanism of action.     

Development of Simplified Heterocyclic Acetogenin Analogues as Potent and Selective Trypanosoma brucei Inhibitors

Neglected tropical diseases caused by parasitic infections are an ongoing and increasing concern. They are a burden to human and animal health, having the most devastating effect on the world′s poorest countries. Building upon our previously reported triazole analogues, in this study we describe the synthesis and biological testing of other novel heterocyclic acetogenin‐inspired derivatives, namely 3,5‐isoxazoles, furoxans, and furazans. Several of these compounds maintain low‐micromolar levels of inhibition against Trypanosoma brucei, whilst having no observable inhibitory effect on mammalian cells, leading to the possibility of novel lead compounds for selective treatment.     

G-quadruplex formation of oligonucleotides containing ALS and FTD related GGGGCC repeat

A largely increased number of GGGGCC repeats located in the non-coding region of C9orf72 gene have been identified as the leading cause of two related neurological disorders, familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). We examined G-quadruplex forming ability of GGGGCCrepeat containing oligonucleotides with four guanine tracts chosen as the smallest possible model to form a unimolecular G-quadruplex. These oligonucleotides are readily to folded into G-quadruplexes in the presence of K⁺ ions. However, the formation of multiple structures makes structural analysis challenging and time consuming. We observed that flanking sequences on 5'- and 3'-ends as well as mutations of loop residues have a profound effect on folding. Sequence d[(G₄C₂)₃G₄] was chosen for further scrutiny and optimization of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic properties with dG to 8Br-dG substitutions at specific positions in the sequence under different folding conditions. Expectedly, folding into desired predominant topology is facilitated when substituted residue adopted a syn conformation in the naturally-occurring structure. Single dG to 8Br-dG substitution at position 21 and fine tuning of folding conditions facilitate folding of d[(G₄C₂)₃GG^BrGG] into (mostly) a single G-quadruplex, and thus enable determination of its high-resolution structure by high-field NMR.

Open image in new window

     

A methodology to determine the elastic properties of anisotropic rocks from a single uniaxial compression test

This paper introduces a new methodology to measure the elastic constants of transversely isotropic rocks from a single uniaxial compression test. We first give the mathematical proof that a uniaxial compression test provides only four independent strain equations. As a result, the exact determination of all five independent elastic constants from only one test is not possible. An approximate determination of the Young's moduli and the Poisson's ratios is however practical and efficient when adding the Saint–Venant relation as the fifth equation. Explicit formulae are then developed to calculate both secant and tangent definitions of the five elastic constants from a minimum of four strain measurements. The results of this new methodology applied on three granitic samples demonstrate a significant stress-induced nonlinear behavior, where the tangent moduli increase by a factor of three to four when the rock is loaded up to 20 MPa. The static elastic constants obtained from the uniaxial compression test are also found to be significantly smaller than the dynamic ones obtained from the ultrasonic measurements.     

Impact of Functionalized Polystyrenes as the Electron Injection Layer on Gold and Aluminum Surfaces: A Combined Theoretical and Experimental Study

At metal/organic interfaces, the insertion of an organic monolayer can significantly modify the surface properties of the substrate, especially in terms of charge injection across the interface. Herein, we study the formation of an insulating monolayer of morpholine or amine-functionalized polystyrene on Al(111) and Au(111) surfaces and its impact on surface work-function and charge injection. First-principles calculations based on Density Functional Theory have been carried out and point to a significant decrease in the work-function of modified metal surfaces; this is in very good agreement with ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy measurements performed on the Au(111) surface. In addition, a bilayer cathode, consisting of a thin film of high-work-function metal, such as Al and Au, and a layer of amine-functionalized polystyrene, was also fabricated and tested in organic light-emitting diodes. Such bilayer structures exhibit substantially enhanced efficiency when compared with controls without the functionalized polymers. Our combined theoretical and experimental investigation gives insight into how a thin layer of a commodity polymer can be used to transform rather high-work-function metals into high-performance cathodes to provide efficient electron injection.