Radiation-Induced Senescence Reprograms Secretory and Metabolic Pathways in Colon Cancer HCT-116 Cells

Understanding the global metabolic changes during the senescence of tumor cells can have implications for developing effective anti-cancer treatment strategies. Ionizing radiation (IR) was used to induce senescence in a human colon cancer cell line HCT-116 to examine secretome and metabolome profiles. Control proliferating and senescent cancer cells (SCC) exhibited distinct morphological differences and expression of senescent markers. Enhanced secretion of pro-inflammatory chemokines and IL-1, anti-inflammatory IL-27, and TGF-β1 was observed in SCC. Significantly reduced levels of VEGF-A indicated anti-angiogenic activities of SCC. Elevated levels of tissue inhibitors of matrix metalloproteinases from SCC support the maintenance of the extracellular matrix. Adenylate and guanylate energy charge levels and redox components NAD and NADP and glutathione were maintained at near optimal levels indicating the viability of SCC. Significant accumulation of pyruvate, lactate, and suppression of the TCA cycle in SCC indicated aerobic glycolysis as the predominant energy source for SCC. Levels of several key amino acids decreased significantly, suggesting augmented utilization for protein synthesis and for use as intermediates for energy metabolism in SCC. These observations may provide a better understanding of cellular senescence basic mechanisms in tumor tissues and provide opportunities to improve cancer treatment.     

Microstructure Evolution and Tensile Properties of a Selectively Laser Melted CoNi-Base Superalloy

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A - A high $$\gamma ^{\prime }$$ volume fraction CoNi-base superalloy with roughly equal amounts of cobalt and nickel was successfully processed through...     

Calculated hardenability for improved consistency of properties in heat treatable engineering steels

Hardenability is one of the most important parameters controlling the heat treated properties of engineering steels. It affects the consistency of response for microstructure, hardness, strength, toughness, and dimensional change (distortion). This study illustrates that a major benefit of controlling hardenability is improving the consistency of dimensional distortion resulting from heat treatment. To facilitate the supply of steels to hardenability limits, especially restricted hardenability, a new technique was developed for the prediction of Jominy hardenability from chemical composition. The technique, termed the “Database Method,” uses measured Jominy hardenability and chemical composition data, contained in a database, to calculate the hardenability for a query composition. Using up to ten known steels, selected from the database with compositions closely matching that of the query steel, a small adjustment is made to the measured hardenability of each known steel allowing for the small difference in composition between the query and chosen steel. The final calculated result for the query steel is taken as the average of the various estimates. The basis of the Database Method is explained, and the advantages are illustrated for selecting engineering grades.     

OptaDOS: A tool for obtaining density of states,core-level and optical spectra from electronic structure codes

We present OptaDOS, a program for calculating core-electron and low-loss electron energy loss spectra (EELS) and optical spectra along with total-, projected- and joint-density of electronic states (DOS) from single-particle eigenenergies and dipole transition coefficients. Energy-loss spectroscopy is an important tool for probing bonding within a material. Interpreting these spectra can be aided by first principles calculations. The spectra are generated from the eigenenergies through integration over the Brillouin zone. An important feature of this code is that this integration is performed using a choice of adaptive or linear extrapolation broadening methods which we show produces higher accuracy spectra than standard fixed-width Gaussian broadening. OptaDOS  may be straightforwardly interfaced to any electronic structure code. OptaDOS  is freely available under the GNU General Public licence from http://www.optados.org.     

Effects of a single dose of N-Acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine (Melatonin) and resistance exercise on the growth hormone/IGF-1 axis in young males and females

Melatonin and resistance exercise alone have been shown to increase the levels of growth hormone (GH). The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of ingestion of a single dose of melatonin and heavy resistance exercise on serum GH, somatostatin (SST), and other hormones of the GH/insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) axis. Physically active males (n = 30) and females (n = 30) were randomly assigned to ingest either a melatonin supplement at 0.5 mg or 5.0 mg, or 1.0 mg of dextrose placebo. After a baseline blood sample, participants ingested the supplement and underwent blood sampling every 15 min for 60 min, at which point they underwent a single bout of resistance exercise with the leg press for 7 sets of 7 reps at 85% 1-RM. After exercise, participants provided additional blood samples every 15 min for a total of 120 min. Serum free GH, SST, IGF-1, IGFBP-1, and IGFBP-3 were determined with ELISA. Data were evaluated as the peak pre- and post-exercise values subtracted from baseline and the delta values analyzed with separate three-way ANOVA (p < 0.05). In males, when compared to placebo, 5.0 mg melatonin caused GH to increase (p = 0.017) and SST to decrease prior to exercise (p = 0.031), whereas both 0.5 and 5.0 mg melatonin were greater than placebo after exercise (p = 0.045) and less than placebo for SST. No significant differences occurred for IGF-1; however, males were shown to have higher levels of IGFBP-1 independent of supplementation (p = 0.004). The 5.0 mg melatonin dose resulted in higher IGFBP-3 in males (p = 0.017). In conclusion, for males 5.0 mg melatonin appears to increase serum GH while concomitantly lowering SST levels; however, when combined with resistance exercise both melatonin doses positively impacts GH levels in a manner not entirely dependent on SST.     

Toughening of a Cordierite Glass–Ceramic by Compressive Surface Layers

An indentation fracture mechanics analysis is developed to characterize the toughening effects of a compressive surface layer in brittle materials. The analysis is used to describe the enhanced toughness of cordierite glass–ceramic laminate composites, in which thermal-expansion mismatch effects induced uniform stress in the exterior layers of the symmetric exterior:interior:exterior structures. Interpretation of indentation crack length and inert strength tests via the analysis shows that cracks can be viewed as experiencing discrete regions of decreasing stabilization on propagation from small cracks and complete containment within the compressive layer to large cracks and partial extension into the compensating tensile interior. The observations are described using a stress-intensity factor for circular cracks in linear stress fields that includes different base and surface values for extended cracks. Deconvolution of inert strength data for the model cordierite system studied suggested an increase in toughness from 1.4 MPa·m^1/2 for the base material to a peak of about 5 MPa·m^1/2 for a 1:18:1 composite structure, with attendant increases in strength and flaw tolerance.     

Automatic dimensional reduction and meshing of stiffened thin-wall structures

The creation of idealised, dimensionally reduced meshes for preliminary design and optimisation remains a time-consuming, manual task. A dimensionally reduced model is ideal for assessing design changes through modification of element properties without the need to create a new geometry or mesh. In this paper, a novel approach for automating the creation of mixed dimensional meshes is presented. The input to the process is a solid model which has been decomposed into a non-manifold assembly of smaller volumes with different meshing significance. Associativity between the original solid model and the dimensionally reduced equivalent is maintained. The approach is validated by means of a free-free modal analysis on an output mesh of a gas turbine engine component of industrial complexity. Extensions and enhancements to this work are also discussed.     

INTEGRATING ALBEMARLE RESOLVE DESULFURIZATION TECHNOLOGY WITH NOVEL PETRO-CANADA PROCESS CONCEPTS IN COMMERCIAL FCCU OPERATIONS

The gasoline and distillate sulfur regulations promulgated throughout the world to reduce tail-pipe emissions are now strongly impacting refinery operations and investments. FCC gasoline is recognized as the principal contributor of sulfur to the gasoline pool and has become the focus for meeting the new specifications. The difficulty in removing sterically hindered sulfur species in the fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) cycle oil drives up the hydrogen and investment costs for treating the distillates. Although installation of pre- and post-treatment facilities is planned by many refiners, other non-capital approaches such as undercutting are being evaluated to meet interim and future sulfur levels. Even when expensive treatment facilities are installed, operating costs can be lowered and the flexibility of the facility increased with improvements in the ability to remove sulfur in the FCCU. In this article, we detail Petro-Canada's experience in integrating Albemarle's RESOLVE sulfur reduction technology with a combination of innovative process ideas. These concepts include heavy naphtha recycle, coprocessing of hydrogen donor feeds, and recycle of light cycle oil (LCO) to a specially designed stripper reactor. Special attention is paid to the interaction of deep FCC feed hydrodesulfurization with the FCC performance. The results demonstrate that very low FCC gasoline sulfur levels can be achieved without significant capital investment through novel approaches to recycle, creative integration of cat feed hydrotreating unit (CFHTU)-FCCU designs and operations, and application of state-of-the-art sulfur reduction additive technology. An added benefit of the RESOLVE 950 sulfur reduction technology is the substantial elimination of sulfur oxides in the FCC flue gas. This has been observed in Petro-Canada operations and numerous other RESOLVE 950 applications around the world.     

Responses of the Aphids Phorodon humuli and Rhopalosiphum padi to Sex Pheromone Stereochemistry in the Field

Gynoparous female and male damson-hop aphids, Phorodon humuli (Schrank), were caught in the field by water traps that were releasing the sex pheromone of this species, (1RS,4aR,7S,7aS)-nepetalactol. No behavioral activity was elicited by (4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactone, the major sex pheromone component of other aphid species such as Megoura viciae Buckton, even though olfactory cells were found in the secondary rhinaria on the third antennal segment of P. humuli that responded strongly to this compound. Gynoparous female P. humuli in the field responded less strongly to (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol, the sex pheromone of the bird cherry-oat aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi (L.), than they did to the (4aR,7S,7aS)-nepetalactols, but males responded only to the latter. The (4aR,7S,7aS)-nepetalactone showed no electrophysiological activity so was not used in field trials. Releasing either the (4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactone or the (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol with the (4aR,7S,7aS)-nepetalactols did not inhibit the response of P. humuli gynoparous females and males to the latter. Males of R. padi responded as strongly to the (4aR,7S,7aS)-nepetalactols as they did to (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol. Males of P. humuli and R. padi responded positively to an increased concentration of the (4aR,7S,7aS)-nepetalactols released from two vials compared with that from a single vial, as did P. humuli (in one of two experiments) and R. padi to the (1RS,4aR,7S,7aS)- and (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactols when released together.     

Influence of alginite on the reflectance of vitrinite from Joadja,NSW, and some other coals and oil shales containing alginite

Reflectance data for vitrinite occurring in torbanites indicate that the mean maximum reflectance and the range of reflectance values are significantly lowered by the presence of alginite. This is the probable cause of apparently anomalous rank gradients in some deep oil exploration wells. Intermaceral effects need to be considered in assessing rank or maturity from vitrinite reflectance, and by inference, in most other methods. The interpretation of the cause of the effect is open to further study but the findings are highly significant in relation to coal utilization, oil and gas exploration, and studies of oil shales.