Barium Sulphate Agglomeration in a Pipe – An Experimental Study and CFD Modeling

Agglomeration effects, observed during precipitation of barium sulphate in the unpremixed feed two‐dimensional tubular precipitator, are studied experimentally and interpreted theoretically. Effects of process parameters on precipitation–agglomeration phenomena are predicted using a CFD based model that describes micromixing (the multiple‐time‐scale turbulent mixer model is used) and precipitation (including nucleation, growth and agglomeration of crystals). Agglomeration rate is defined as a product of the collision frequency and the probability of agglomeration.     

On the formation of liquid inclusions in some solution-grown crystals: (II) potassium dihydrogen phosphate

The observations of the formation of liquid inclusions in KDP single crystals grown from aqueous solution in static conditions are presented. It was found that the mechanism of creation of inclusions as proposed by Chernov may be applied to understand their morphology.     

Narcotic dependence problems studied at the Poison Center in Wroclaw

We present an infant born with bilaterally symmetric, anterior and posterior port-wine stains. These lesions presented a striking resemblance to Rorschach inkblots, a phenomenon not previously reported. A discussion of the case as well as a discussion of syndromes associated with port-wine stains is provided.     

Atypical case of retroperitoneal paraganglioma parasympaticum coexisting with recurrent bleeding from upper gastrointestinal tract

The authors report a case of 47 years old male who was treated for 1,5 year because of recurrent bleedings from upper GIT. Performed examinations showed the presence of retroperitoneal paraganglioma parasympaticum with multiple metastases in bones. A Zollinger-Ellison syndrome was suspected. The final correct diagnosis was established at last microscopically after surgical excision of the specimens.     

The influence of thrombopoietin (TpO) on human erythropoiesis. In vitro studies--clinical implications

beta-Glucuronidase of human or bacterial origin may deconjugate bilirubin diglucuronide, causing pigment gallstones. Intrinsic interference by biliary compounds must be minimized for accurate assay of beta-glucuronidase. We report a modified ion-pair extraction of interfering substances by tetrahexylammonium chloride (THAC) in ethyl acetate in the presence of albumin, and a microtitre plate assay for biliary beta-glucuronidase activity in bile with the substrate p-nitrophenol-glucuronide. Adding albumin improved the recovery of beta-glucuronidase activity to 99.8% (CV 1.9%), and 92.2% of the bilirubin in bile samples was extracted in one step. Competitive inhibition was overcome by increasing the substrate concentration. In endoscopically obtained common duct bile from 44 patients, five different beta-glucuronidase activity peaks were identified, at pH 3.9, 4.8, 5.3, 5.8 and 7.2. The pH profiles were classified into one bacterial pattern and five patterns for presumed human beta-glucuronidase. Of the latter patterns, four displayed dual activity peaks. In a second sample, obtained at follow up in four patients, their original pH profile was maintained. In conclusion, using the modified purification and assay system, we found functionally diverse subcategories of human beta-glucuronidase with respect to activity at variable pH. Our results indicate that several pH optima have to be taken into consideration in order to clarify the role of human biliary beta-glucuronidase in the pathogenesis of pigment gallstones. Bacterial beta-glucuronidase activity was associated with duodenal diverticula (p < 0.05) and common duct stones (p < 0.05).     

Severe polyneuropathy in a 3-year-old child after dichlorophenoxyacetic herbicide--chwastox intoxication, treated successfully with plasmapheresis (PF)

The clinical picture of intoxication with dichlorophenoxy acetic herbicides is well recognised in adults and some treatment recommendations are established. To the best of our knowledge there is scarcity of well documented cases of intoxication with this substance in children. Our report describes the clinical picture of Chwastox intoxication in a 3-year-old child. Some similarities and differences between adults and children are discussed, as well as the indications for plasmapheresis, which could be a valuable mode of treatment in such cases.     

Modulation of plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 biosynthesis in vitro and in vivo with oligo(nucleoside phosphorothioate)s and related constructs

Oligonucleotides with a nucleotide sequence complementary to various regions of human plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 (PAI-1) mRNA have been studied as antisense inhibitors of expression of PAI-1 protein in cultured cells [human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), human aortic smooth muscle cells, human hybrid endothelial cells]. Hexadeca(deoxyribonucleoside phosphorothioate) 13 complementary to a fragment of a signal peptide PAI-1 mRNA was found to be most active, giving ca. 70% inhibition of PAI-1 release in a time- and dose-dependent way. The stereo-regular All-S(P) and All-R(P) diastereomers of 13 were studied and found to inhibit PAI-1 synthesis in HUVEC in a stereo-dependent manner, with the All-S(P) diastereomer considerably more active than the stereo-random construct and All-R(P) isomer. The observed stereo-dependent activity of oligonucleotide phosphorothioate constructs is presumably governed by their resistance to nucleases. The corresponding phosphodiester analogue of 13 was not active unless covalently bound at its 5'-end to a lipophilic alcohol residue (menthol, heptadecanol). The observed antisense activity of phosphodiester oligonucleotide bioconjugates in cultured human hybrid endothelial cells was paralleled by their increased stability in human plasma with respect to unconjugated oligonucleotide. The oligo(deoxyribonucleoside phosphorothioate) complementary to the same signal peptide region of rat PAI-1 mRNA was found to reduce the PAI-1 level in blood plasma of rats after intravenous administration into the tail vein. The effect was both time- and dose-dependent. The same oligonucleotide was found to protect against arterial thrombus formation in the rat (lower incidence of venous thrombosis, lower thrombus weight, and increased occlusion time in experimentally induced thrombosis). An anti-PAI-1 inhibitory activity has been independently reported for a 20-mer oligo(2'-O-methyl-ribonucleoside phosphorothioate) complementary to a 3'-untranslated region of human PAI-1 mRNA in cultured HUVEC and human aortic smooth muscle cells.     

The influence of RS-Timolol in comparison with R-Timolol and S-Timolol on the intraocular pressure in water-loaded rabbits

During gross anatomy dissection of the neck region, an anatomical variation of the ascending cervical artery was detected. Normally this artery is a branch of the inferior thyroid artery, which is a branch of the thyrocervical trunk. In our case, we found that the ascending cervical artery emerged from the superficial cervical artery, nearly 1 cm. lateral to the origin of this artery from the thyrocervical trunk.