The Ameliorative Effect of Dexamethasone on the Development of Autoimmune Lung Injury and Mediastinal Fat-Associated Lymphoid Clusters in an Autoimmune Disease Mouse Model

In our previous study, we revealed the ameliorative therapeutic effect of dexamethasone (Dex) for Lupus nephritis lesions in the MRL/MpJ-Fas ^lpr/lpr (Lpr) mouse model. The female Lpr mice developed a greater number of mediastinal fat-associated lymphoid clusters (MFALCs) and inflammatory lung lesions compared to the male mice. However, the effect of Dex, an immunosuppressive drug, on both lung lesions and the development of MFALCs in Lpr mice has not been identified yet. Therefore, in this study, we compared the development of lung lesions and MFALCs in female Lpr mice that received either saline (saline group “SG”) or dexamethasone (dexamethasone group “DG”) in drinking water as a daily dose along with weekly intraperitoneal injections for 10 weeks. Compared to the SG group, the DG group showed a significant reduction in the levels of serum anti-dsDNA antibodies, the size of MFALCs, the degree of lung injury, the area of high endothelial venules (HEVs), and the number of proliferating and immune cells in both MFALCs and the lungs. A significant positive correlation was observed between the size of MFALCs and the cellular aggregation in the lungs of Lpr mice. Therefore, this study confirmed the ameliorative effect of Dex on the development of lung injury and MFALCs via their regressive effect on both immune cells’ proliferative activity and the development of HEVs. Furthermore, the reprogramming of MFALCs by targeting immune cells and HEVs may provide a therapeutic strategy for autoimmune-disease-associated lung injury.     

Comparison of MEA and DGA performance for CO2 capture under different operational conditions

Carbon capture and storage from flue gases is the most common method to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Using a primary amine as the solvent of CO₂ capture unit is popular because of its high activity and ability to be used for streams with low concentration and low partial pressure of CO₂. Monoethanolamine(MEA) and Diglycolamine(DGA) are the most common kinds of primary amines which have been traditionally used in many natural gas sweetening plants. In this research, the capture plant has been designed for these two solvents at various CO₂ concentrations in the feed flue gas. This paper proposes different possible alters to overcome the high energy requirements of capture plant. It also presents the results of technical evaluation of different parameters, in order to design an actual plant with minimum energy requirement. The results of different parameters show that for DGA solvent, there will be an improvement in overall energy usage in the capture plant rather than MEA for some special cases. To gain the practical results, actual stages have been used for absorber and stripper instead of equilibrium stages. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sink-oriented tree based data dissemination protocol for mobile sinks wireless sensor networks

Wireless Networks - Data dissemination toward static sinks causes the nearby nodes to deplete their energy quicker than the other nodes in the field (i.e., this is referred to as the hotspot...     

Phase evolution during the low temperature formation of stoichiometric hydroxyapatite-gypsum composites

Both plaster of Paris (CaSO₄·(1/2)H₂O, POP) and bone-like synthetic calcium phosphates (CaP) have been used as bone-like cements. The current study investigated the formation of composites involving POP with each of three types of stoichiometric hydroxyapatites (abbreviated as SHAp, S-SH, and C-SH, each with a Ca/P molar ratio of 1.67). The kinetics, variations in solution chemistry during the formation of these composites and phase compositions of the formed products were investigated over a course of 24 h. Although the presence of gypsum precursors was shown to decrease the alkalinity of the medium involving SHAp formation from its precursors, a delay in the growth kinetics of gypsum was observed. The same behavior was observed in the presence of commercial apatite (C-SH), whereas in the presence of synthetic apatite (S-SH), no delay was observed. A possibility of formation of a calcium sulfate phosphate double salt, as an intermediate, was investigated and confirmed by XRD analysis.     

Matching Trajectories of Anatomical Landmarks Under Viewpoint,Anthropometric and Temporal Transforms

An approach is presented to match imaged trajectories of anatomical landmarks (e.g. hands, shoulders and feet) using semantic correspondences between human bodies. These correspondences are used to provide geometric constraints for matching actions observed from different viewpoints and performed at different rates by actors of differing anthropometric proportions. The fact that the human body has approximate anthropometric proportion allows innovative use of the machinery of epipolar geometry to provide constraints for analyzing actions performed by people of different sizes, while ensuring that changes in viewpoint do not affect matching. In addition, for linear time warps, a novel measure, constructed only from image measurements of the locations of anatomical landmarks across time, is proposed to ensure that similar actions performed at different rates are accurately matched as well. An additional feature of this new measure is that two actions from cameras moving at constant (and possibly different) velocities can also be matched. Finally, we describe how dynamic time warping can be used in conjunction with the proposed measure to match actions in the presence of nonlinear time warps. We demonstrate the versatility of our algorithm in a number of challenging sequences and applications, and report quantitative evaluation of the matching approach presented.     

A waste heat recovery system development and analysis using ORC for the energy efficiency improvement in aluminium electrolysis cells

The present work investigates an active waste heat recovery system for the side walls of the aluminium electrolysis cells, enabling utilization of the extracted heat in power generation. This will potentially lead to energy efficiency improvement in the primary aluminium production industry and an enhanced aluminium production rate. An experimentally validated loop thermosyphon heat pipe model was used for heat extraction from the cell side wall. Boosting system thermal efficiency through waste heat recovery, by means of a heat utilization system, and increasing the level of control, as well as thermal equilibrium, stand as the main addressed objectives of the current study, which consequently result in an increased aluminium production rate. An organic Rankine cycle is incorporated into the system, and its performance is evaluated, taking into consideration the operating situations in terms of available temperature and thermal power range.     

Design and Use of Linear Models for Image Motion Analysis

Linear parameterized models of optical flow, particularly affine models, have become widespread in image motion analysis. The linear model coefficients are straightforward to estimate, and they provide reliable estimates of the optical flow of smooth surfaces. Here we explore the use of parameterized motion models that represent much more varied and complex motions. Our goals are threefold: to construct linear bases for complex motion phenomena; to estimate the coefficients of these linear models; and to recognize or classify image motions from the estimated coefficients. We consider two broad classes of motions: i) generic motion features such as motion discontinuities and moving bars; and ii) non-rigid, object-specific, motions such as the motion of human mouths. For motion features we construct a basis of steerable flow fields that approximate the motion features. For object-specific motions we construct basis flow fields from example motions using principal component analysis. In both cases, the model coefficients can be estimated directly from spatiotemporal image derivatives with a robust, multi-resolution scheme. Finally, we show how these model coefficients can be use to detect and recognize specific motions such as occlusion boundaries and facial expressions.     

The plastic-crystalline phase of succinonitrile as a universal matrix for solid-state ionic conductors

Solid ionic conductors are actively sought for their potential application in electrochemical devices, particularly lithium batteries. We have found high ionic conductivity for a large variety of salts dissolved in the highly polar medium based on the plastic-crystal form of succinonitrile (N[triple bond]C[bond]CH(2)[bond]CH(2)[bond]C[triple bond]N). Its high diffusivity, plasticity and solvating power allowed the preparation of a large number of materials with high ionic conductivity, reaching values of 3 mS cm(-1) at 25 degrees C (two orders of magnitude above polymers). Their ease of preparation and processing allowed us to study the influence of the solute on ionic conduction within this medium. Comparisons revealed a dichotomy between plastic crystals and conventional polymer media. The usefulness of these new, easily processed electrolytes was asserted in electrochemical tests with lithium intercalation electrodes.     

Dynamic properties of calcareous and siliceous sands under isotropic and anisotropic stress conditions

The strain-dependent dynamic properties of sand are generally described by their relative density and mean effective stress, while the contribution of other factors, like soil origin, mineralogy, grain morphology, and initial stress anisotropy, have not been fully recognized. This paper presents the results of an experimental study on the shear modulus and damping ratio of calcareous and siliceous sands of different origins and their identical grain size distribution and stress-density states. Resonant column and cyclic triaxial tests were conducted on reconstituted samples of these two sands obtained from coastal areas. The significance of the initial effective confining pressure and stress anisotropy on the dynamic properties of the sands is evaluated and compared. It is demonstrated that the small-strain shear modulus of the calcareous sand is more affected by an increase in mean effective confining pressure than the siliceous sand. However, the effect of the initial shear on the secant shear modulus of the sands is unique. Based on the test data, a rigorous correction factor is proposed to account for the influence of the initial stress anisotropy on the small-strain shear modulus of the sands. A comparison between the strain-dependent dynamic properties of the calcareous and siliceous sands reveals that the calcareous sand has a higher secant shear modulus, lower damping ratio, and higher linear and volumetric threshold strain. Since the stress-density states and grain size distribution of the two sands were identical in the experiments, the discrepancy in the dynamic properties can be attributed to other factors, including sand origin, grain angularity, mineralogy, and formation processes, which are not commonly taken into account in the current practice.     

Synthesis and process modeling of mesoporous γ-Al2O3 granules using the biopolymer chitosan via experimental design

In this study, biopolymer chitosan is presented as a template for synthesizing and shaping the mesoporous γ-Al₂O₃ macrospheres. This porous γ-Al₂O₃ granule has a high surface area (310 m²/g), high pore volume (.6148 cm³/g), and pore diameter between 2 and 10 nm. The full factorial design based on a mathematical model was implemented to study the acid concentration, chitosan amount, ammonia concentration, and aging time affecting the responses (Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area and pore volume). Predicted responses were found to be in satisfactory agreement with experimental values (R² = .9580 and .9109, respectively). The adequacy of the model was examined by analyzing the residual distribution plots and Pareto graph. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis, and N₂ adsorption/desorption techniques are employed to characterize the structure of the prepared γ-alumina sample.