A performance- and energy-oriented extended tuning process for time-step-based scientific applications

The Journal of Supercomputing - Scientific application codes are often long-running time- and energy-consuming parallel codes, and the tuning of these methods towards the characteristics of a...     

Magic Peptide: Unique Properties of the LRR11 Peptide in the Activation of Leukotriene Synthesis in Human Neutrophils

Neutrophil-mediated innate host defense mechanisms include pathogen elimination through bacterial phagocytosis, which activates the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) product synthesis. Here, we studied the effect of synthetic oligodeoxyribonucleotides (ODNs), which mimic the receptor-recognized sites of bacterial (CpG-ODNs) and genomic (G-rich ODNs) DNAs released from the inflammatory area, on the neutrophil functions after cell stimulation with Salmonella typhimurium. A possible mechanism for ODN recognition by Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) and RAGE receptor has been proposed. We found for the first time that the combination of the magic peptide LRR11 from the leucine-rich repeat (LRR) of TLR9 with the CpG-ODNs modulates the uptake and signaling from ODNs, in particular, dramatically stimulates 5-LOX pathway. Using thickness shear mode acoustic method, we confirmed the specific binding of CpG-ODNs, but not G-rich ODN, to LRR11. The RAGE receptor has been shown to play an important role in promoting ODN uptake. Thus, FPS-ZM1, a high-affinity RAGE inhibitor, suppresses the synthesis of 5-LOX products and reduces the uptake of ODNs by neutrophils; the inhibitor effect being abolished by the addition of LRR11. The results obtained revealed that the studied peptide-ODN complexes possess high biological activity and can be promising for the development of effective vaccine adjuvants and antimicrobial therapeutics.     

Adenosine Receptor Agonist HE-NECA Enhances Antithrombotic Activities of Cangrelor and Prasugrel in vivo by Decreasing of Fibrinogen Density in Thrombus

Blood platelets’ adenosine receptors (AR) are considered to be a new target for the anti-platelet therapy. This idea is based on in vitro studies which show that signaling mediated by these receptors leads to a decreased platelet response to activating stimuli. In vivo evidence for the antithrombotic activity of AR agonists published to date were limited, however, to the usage of relatively high doses given in bolus. The present study was aimed at verifying if these substances used in lower doses in combination with inhibitors of P2Y₁₂ could serve as components of dual anti-platelet therapy. We have found that a selective A_2A agonist 2-hexynyl-5’-N-ethylcarboxamidoadenosine (HE-NECA) improved the anti-thrombotic properties of either cangrelor or prasugrel in the model of ferric chloride-induced experimental thrombosis in mice. Importantly, HE-NECA was effective not only when applied in bolus as other AR agonists in the up-to-date published studies, but also when given chronically. In vitro thrombus formation under flow conditions revealed that HE-NECA enhanced the ability of P2Y₁₂ inhibitors to decrease fibrinogen content in thrombi, possibly resulting in their lower stability. Adenosine receptor agonists possess a certain hypotensive effect and an ability to increase the blood–brain barrier permeability. Therefore, the effects of anti-thrombotic doses of HE-NECA on blood pressure and the blood–brain barrier permeability in mice were tested. HE-NECA applied in bolus caused a significant hypotension in mice, but the effect was much lower when the substance was given in doses corresponding to that obtained by chronic administration. At the same time, no significant effect of HE-NECA was observed on the blood–brain barrier. We conclude that chronic administration of the A_2A agonist can be considered a potential component of a dual antithrombotic therapy. However, due to the hypotensive effect of the substances, dosage and administration must be elaborated to minimize the side-effects. The total number of animals used in the experiments was 146.     

Development and characterization of a biocompatible OH-modified copolymer based on polyurethane

Different polyurethanes were synthesized by varying the diol as well as the diisocyanate components and chain extenders. Polyurethanes with OH-groups were obtained by photo- and thermoinitiation of the radical polymerization of hydroxy alkyl acrylates in the presence of the polyurethanes. The polymers were evaluated with respect to their biocompatibility by measuring the cell spreading, the rates of DNA- and protein synthesis and the swelling behaviour. The differences in the surfaces and the bulks between the selected basic polyurethane and the functionalized modification were determined and characterized by XPS, FTIR-ATR and ¹³C-FT-NMR-spectroscopy. The mechanical data of Tecoflex EG 60D® and Pellethane 2363–80AE® were compared with the data of the synthesized polyurethanes.     

Processing and morphology of molecularly imprinted nylon thin films

The characterization of thin, selectively imprinted films of nylon‐6 was performed. Amino acids were used as template molecules. Spin‐cast films were prepared with sizes ranging from 2 μm to 300 nm, depending on the nylon and template concentration in the casting solution. The morphological characteristics of the film surface were examined by atomic force microscopy, and the structure within the films was observed by freeze‐fracture scanning electron microscopy. The film activity was clearly coordinated with the appearance of nanometer‐sized pores both on the surface and within the film. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 2919–2926, 2006     

Five-year experience with setup and implementation of an integrated database system for clinical documentation and research

In radiation oncology, where treatment concepts are elaborated in interdisciplinary collaborations, handling distributed, large heterogeneous amounts of data efficiently is very important, yet challenging, for an optimal treatment of the patient as well as for research itself. This becomes a strong focus, as we step into the era of modern personalized medicine, relying on various quantitative data information, thus involving the active contribution of multiple medical specialties. Hence, combining patient data from all involved information systems is inevitable for analyses. Therefore, we introduced a documentation and data management system integrated in the clinical environment for electronic data capture. We discuss our concept and five-year experience of a precise electronic documentation system, with special focus on the challenges we encountered. We specify how such a system can be designed and implemented to plan, tailor and conduct (multicenter) clinical trials, ultimately reaching the best clinical performance, and enhancing interdisciplinary and clinical research.     

Application of active coke in processes of SO2- and NOx-removal from flue gases

In the field of flue gas cleaning, active coke plays an important role as adsorbant and catalyst. In the temperature range usually prevailing downstream of the air preheater of power plants, SO₂ becomes adsorbed on carbonaceous materials and in a consecutive step is catalysed by the carbonaceous surface and converted to sulphuric acid. The quality demands for a cyclic regenerative process for SO₂ removal are fulfilled by the active coke which is used in the BF-process. The same active coke catalyses the reaction of NO with NH₃ to N₂ and steam. This is the basis for processes for simultaneous SO₂ and NO_x removal. By the addition of ammonia the SO₂ removal by active coke is improved. Two processes are described and results from the laboratory and from the demonstration plant for the BF-process are presented. These show that SO₂ removal efficiences exceed 95% and NO conversions of > 80% can be realized without problems. The cost of the processes using active coke with ammonia addition are comparable with those of wet flue gas desulphurization processes without any additional equipment should NO have to be removed.     

Invariant‐set‐based fault diagnosis in Lure systems

In this paper, we present an invariant‐set‐based method for actuator and sensor fault detection and isolation in Lure systems. The Lure plant is controlled by an observer‐based feedback tracking controller, designed for the nominal (fault‐free) system. Suitable residual signals are constructed from measurable system outputs and estimates associated with the nominal observer. Faults are diagnosed by online contrasting the residual signal trajectories against sets of values that the residuals are shown to attain under healthy or faulty operation. These values are obtained via set‐invariance analysis of the system closed‐loop trajectories. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.