Influence of anthraquinones on the formation of urinary calculi in experimental animals (author''s transl)

A method is presented for the quantitation of urinary and CSF protein. In the presence of 0.10 N NaOH the peptide bonds of the protein remove and bind copper from an ion exchange resin. The resulting copper-protein complex is separated from low molecular weight substances by gel filtration and the copper in the eluted complex is determined colorimetrically with diethyldithiocarbamic acid. The method requires only 100mul of sample, has biuret specificity and uses a single prepacked column. The limit of sensitivity is 2 mg of protein per deciliter.     

Behavior of various blood parameters of carbohydrate and fat metabolism of light and heavy-weight rats of varying age and different diet groups]

The bone mineral content of the femoral neck of 61 autopsy specimens was assayed by x-ray spectrophotometry. The mechanical strength of the specimens was also determined experimentally by applying a compressive force perpendicularly to the shaft. The ultimate force at fracture was obtained from force/displacement plots. A coefficient of correlation of 0.89 between bone mineral content of the femoral neck and the ultimate force at fracture was found. Even when limited to a group of women aged 67-80 a fairly close correlation was found. This indicates that the bone mineral level, measured in vivo, can be used as a criterion of the risk of fracture in elderly women.     

Interactions in biofilms between Listeria monocytogenes and resident microorganisms from food industry premises

Twenty nine bacterial strains were grown as binary culture biofilms with Listeria monocytogenes to assess their influence on the settlement of the latter on stainless steel coupons. Most of the strains had been isolated from food processing plants after cleaning and disinfection and were tentatively identified by the APILAB Plus 3.3.3 database (bioMerieux). Sixteen of them decreased L. monocytogenes biofilm colony forming units (CFU) counts. Three strains, Bacillus sp. CCL 9 an unidentified Gram-positive strain CCL 59 and Pseudomonas fluorescens E9. 1, led to a 3-log difference in CFU counts between the pure L. monocytogenes biofilms and the mixed biofilms. Eleven strains had no effect and only four, Kocuria varians CCL 73, Staphylococcus capitis CCL 54, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia CCL 47 and Comamonas testosteroni CCL 24, had a positive effect, with a 0.5- to 1.0-log increase in the L. monocytogenes biofilm CFU counts. On its own, L. monocytogenes settled as single cells, but in binary biofilms, different spatial arrangements were observed: (i) with K. varians CCL 73, K. varians CCL 56 and S. capitis CCL 54, L. monocytogenes cells gathered around the microcolonies of the partner strain; (ii) with the two Gram-negative strains, C. testosteroni CCL 24 and CCL 25, L. monocytogenes cells formed its own microcolonies. No link could be found between the exopolysaccharide production capacity of the bacterial strains in pure-culture biofilms and their effect on the L. monocytogenes population in mixed biofilms. With one strain, C. testosteroni CCL 24, adding filter-sterilized supernatant from a pure-culture biofilm to a pure culture of L. monocytogenes increased the number of L. monocytogenes cells adhering to the stainless steel coupons and forming microcolonies. This study suggests that the "house flora" can have a strong effect on the likelihood of finding L. monocytogenes on inert surfaces.     

Ultrasonic testing of reactive powder concrete

Concrete is a critical material for the construction of infrastructure facilities throughout the world. Traditional concretes consist of cement paste and aggregates ranging in size from 6 to 25 mm that form a heterogeneous material with substantial compressive strength and a very low tensile strength. Steel reinforcement is used to provide tensile strength for reinforced concrete structures and as a composite the material is useful for structural applications. A new material known as reactive powder concrete (RPC) is becoming available. It differs significantly from traditional concrete; RPC has no large aggregates, and contains small steel fibers that provide additional strength and, in some cases, can replace traditional steel reinforcement. Due to its high density and lack of aggregates, ultrasonic inspections at frequencies 10 to 20 times that of traditional concrete inspections are possible. This paper reports on the initial findings of research conducted to determine the applicability of ultrasonic testing techniques for the condition assessment of RPC. Pulse velocities for shear and longitudinal waves and ultrasonic measurement of the modulus of elasticity for RPC are reported. Ultrasonic crack detection for RPC also is investigated.     

Phenolic Hyperbranched Polymers as Additives in Cationic Photopolymerization of Epoxy Systems

Summary: A phenolic group containing hyperbranched polyester (HBP) was synthesized and employed as chain transfer agent in cationic photopolymerization of a biscycloaliphatic epoxy monomer ( CE ). The epoxy group conversion increases by increasing the amount of HBP in the photocurable resin, due to a chain transfer reaction involving the phenolic‐OH groups. HBP acts as a plasticizer inducing decrease of the T_g values together with an increase of the toughness properties. Meanwhile gel content increases together with the E′ values. By increasing the amount of HBP in the photocurable resin an increase of the density is evident indicating a decrease of free volume. Therefore an improvement of the gas barrier properties might be expected; at the same time an increase of the thermal stability is evident.