Performance comparison of micromixers

The present paper proposes a detailed comparison of mixing efficiency of different mixers that have been characterized by the Villermaux/Dushman test reaction. Considering simple relations of mixing in laminar flow, it is shown how to obtain the theoretical mixing time and how to relate it with operating parameters as the Reynolds number of the flow and the specific power dissipation per mass unit of fluid. The comparison of the experimental and of the theoretical mixing times indicates that only a few percents of the total mechanical power transmitted to the fluid is effective for mixing.     

Comprehensive Identification of Immunodominant Proteins of Brucella abortus and Brucella melitensis Using Antibodies in the Sera from Naturally Infected Hosts

Brucellosis is a debilitating zoonotic disease that affects humans and animals. The diagnosis of brucellosis is challenging, as accurate species level identification is not possible with any of the currently available serology-based diagnostic methods. The present study aimed at identifying Brucella (B.) species-specific proteins from the closely related species B. abortus and B. melitensis using sera collected from naturally infected host species. Unlike earlier reported investigations with either laboratory-grown species or vaccine strains, in the present study, field strains were utilized for analysis. The label-free quantitative proteomic analysis of the naturally isolated strains of these two closely related species revealed 402 differentially expressed proteins, among which 63 and 103 proteins were found exclusively in the whole cell extracts of B. abortus and B. melitensis field strains, respectively. The sera from four different naturally infected host species, i.e., cattle, buffalo, sheep, and goat were applied to identify the immune-binding protein spots present in the whole protein extracts from the isolated B. abortus and B. melitensis field strains and resolved on two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Comprehensive analysis revealed that 25 proteins of B. abortus and 20 proteins of B. melitensis were distinctly immunoreactive. Dihydrodipicolinate synthase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and lactate/malate dehydrogenase from B. abortus, amino acid ABC transporter substrate-binding protein from B. melitensis and fumarylacetoacetate hydrolase from both species were reactive with the sera of all the tested naturally infected host species. The identified proteins could be used for the design of serological assays capable of detecting pan-Brucella, B. abortus- and B. melitensis-specific antibodies.     

Combination of the Glutaminyl Cyclase Inhibitor PQ912 (Varoglutamstat) and the Murine Monoclonal Antibody PBD-C06 (m6) Shows Additive Effects on Brain Aβ Pathology in Transgenic Mice

Compelling evidence suggests that pyroglutamate-modified Aβ (pGlu3-Aβ; AβN3pG) peptides play a pivotal role in the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Approaches targeting pGlu3-Aβ by glutaminyl cyclase (QC) inhibition (Varoglutamstat) or monoclonal antibodies (Donanemab) are currently in clinical development. Here, we aimed at an assessment of combination therapy of Varoglutamstat (PQ912) and a pGlu3-Aβ-specific antibody (m6) in transgenic mice. Whereas the single treatments at subtherapeutic doses show moderate (16–41%) but statistically insignificant reduction of Aβ42 and pGlu-Aβ42 in mice brain, the combination of both treatments resulted in significant reductions of Aβ by 45–65%. Evaluation of these data using the Bliss independence model revealed a combination index of ≈1, which is indicative for an additive effect of the compounds. The data are interpreted in terms of different pathways, in which the two drugs act. While PQ912 prevents the formation of pGlu3-Aβ in different compartments, the antibody is able to clear existing pGlu3-Aβ deposits. The results suggest that combination of the small molecule Varoglutamstat and a pE3Aβ-directed monoclonal antibody may allow a reduction of the individual compound doses while maintaining the therapeutic effect.     

Output-sensitive 3D line integral convolution

We propose an output-sensitive visualization method for 3D line integral convolution (LIC) whose rendering speed is largely independent of the data set size and mostly governed by the complexity of the output on the image plane. Our approach of view-dependent visualization tightly links the LIC generation with the volume rendering of the LIC result in order to avoid the computation of unnecessary LIC points: early-ray termination and empty-space leaping techniques are used to skip the computation of the LIC integral in a lazy-evaluation approach; both ray casting and texture slicing can be used as volume-rendering techniques. The input noise is modeled in object space to allow for temporal coherence under object and camera motion. Different noise models are discussed, covering dense representations based on filtered white noise all the way to sparse representations similar to oriented LIC. Aliasing artifacts are avoided by frequency control over the 3D noise and by employing a 3D variant of MIPmapping. A range of illumination models is applied to the LIC streamlines: different codimension-2 lighting models and a novel gradient-based illumination model that relies on precomputed gradients and does not require any direct calculation of gradients after the LIC integral is evaluated. We discuss the issue of proper sampling of the LIC and volume-rendering integrals by employing a frequency-space analysis of the noise model and the precomputed gradients. Finally, we demonstrate that our visualization approach lends itself to a fast graphics processing unit (GPU) implementation that supports both steady and unsteady flow. Therefore, this 3D LIC method allows users to interactively explore 3D flow by means of high-quality, view-dependent, and adaptive LIC volume visualization. Applications to flow visualization in combination with feature extraction and focus-and-context visualization are described, a comparison to previous methods is provided, and a detailed performance analysis is included.     

Temporal development of brominated flame retardants in peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) eggs from South Greenland (1986-2003)

A time trend between 1986 and 2003 was found for brominated flame retardants in peregrine falcon eggs from South Greenland, with significantly increasing concentrations of the polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) 99, 100, 153, 154, and 209. For BDE-99 and -100, the concentration increased approximately 10% per year. The concentrations of PBDEs were among the highest detected in wildlife so far and ranged from 300 to 12,900 ng/g lipid weight (lw) for sigmaPBDE. While tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) was below the limit of detection in all eggs, hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), dimethyl-TBBPA, and brominated biphenyl BB-153 were detected in a majority of eggs, with median concentrations of 2.4, 230, and 550 ng/g lw, respectively. Analyses of eggs of the same bird showed no significant intra-clutch variation for PBDEs, BB-153, and HBCD but larger variations for dimethyl-TBBPA. Inter-clutch variations with increasing time trends exist for the BDEs 99, 100, 153, 154, and 209, while a decreasing contamination with the BDEs 183, 49, 47, 66 and 153 was indicated in a subset of eggs.     

具有世界一流水平的LEIPA#4纸机--以100%的废纸生产轻量涂布纸

德国LEIPA Georg Leinfelder集团的#4纸机,以100%的废纸为原料,年产50万吨优质轻量涂布纸.这条世界一流生产线,配有创新的TwinDrum双鼓碎浆机、EcoCell浮选系统、两套具有新分散概念的热分散系统、同一平台概念纸机、EcoSoft与Janus MK2软压光机、SpeedSizer涂布机、Sirus卷纸系统、VariTop复卷机、Twister 2纸卷包卷站、双层PrintFlex O毛毯等.     

A hierarchical design concept for shape optimization based on the interaction of CAGD and FEM

The numerical treatment of shape optimization problems requires sophisticated software tools such as Computer Aided Design (CAD), the Finite Element Method (FEM) and a suitable Mathematical Programming (MP) algorithm. Efficiency of the overall procedure is guaranteed if these tools interact optimally. The theoretical and numerical effort for sensitivity analysis reflect the complexity of this engineering problem.In this paper we outline a general modelling concept for shape optimization problems. Hierarchical design models within Computer Aided Geometrical Design (CAGD) and the interaction of geometry and FEM lead to an efficient overall optimization procedure. Our concept has been derived, implemented and tested for shell structures but it is seen to be generally applicable.After a short introduction containing the state of the art we give an overview of the numerical tools used and outline the interaction of CAGD and FEM within the overall optimization procedure.The paper is mainly devoted to the hierarchical design space based on a hierarchical geometrical modelling. The major part of computational effort is consumed by sensitivity analysis related to the number of design variables. Therefore, this number should be limited and only few powerful design variables corresponding to the special interests of the considered problem should be defined. This procedure may lead to a considerable limitation of the design space. Based on a hierarchy in the geometrical model different types of design variables are introduced: design variables with global, regional and local influence. The new method is based on successive activation of these types of design variables. This procedure leads to a considerable reduction of computational time for the sensitivity analysis without loss of geometrical flexibility.A new method of geometrical refinement and a successive adaptively driven expansion and reduction of the design space is described. It is based on the degree elevation or degree reduction of parametric curves and surfaces, respectively.A numerical example illustrates the new method and the efficiency of the overall optimization procedure.