Pulmonary surfactant coating of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) influences their oxidative and pro-inflammatory potential in vitro

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Increasing concern has been expressed regarding the potential adverse health effects that may be associated with human exposure to inhaled multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). Thus it is imperative that an understanding as to the underlying mechanisms and the identification of the key factors involved in adverse effects are gained. In the alveoli, MWCNTs first interact with the pulmonary surfactant. At this interface, proteins and lipids of the pulmonary surfactant bind to MWCNTs, affecting their surface characteristics. Aim of the present study was to investigate if the pre-coating of MWCNTs with pulmonary surfactant has an influence on potential adverse effects, upon both (i) human monocyte derived macrophages (MDM) monocultures, and (ii) a sophisticated in vitro model of the human epithelial airway barrier. Both in vitro systems were exposed to MWCNTs either pre-coated with a porcine pulmonary surfactant (Curosurf) or not. The effect of MWCNTs surface charge was also investigated in terms of amino (NH2) and carboxyl (COOH) surface modifications. RESULTS: Pre-coating of MWCNTs with Curosurf affects their oxidative potential by increasing the reactive oxygen species levels and decreasing intracellular glutathione depletion in MDM as well as decreases the release of Tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). In addition, an induction of apoptosis was observed after exposure to Curosurf pre-coated MWCNTs. In triple cell-co cultures the release of Interleukin-8 (IL-8) was increased after exposure to Curosurf pre-coated MWCNTs. Effects of the MWCNTs functionalizations were minor in both MDM and triple cell co-cultures. CONCLUSIONS: The present study clearly indicates that the pre-coating of MWCNTs with pulmonary surfactant more than the functionalization of the tubes is a key factor in determining their ability to cause oxidative stress, cytokine/chemokine release and apoptosis. Thus the coating of nano-objects with pulmonary surfactant should be considered for future lung in vitro risk assessment studies.     

An overview on properties and applications of poly(butylene adipate‐co‐terephthalate)–PBAT based composites

There is growing interest in biodegradable polymers (BP), in particular poly(butylene adipate‐co‐terephthalate) (PBAT), due to environmental problems associated with the disposal of non‐biodegradable polymers into the environment. However, high production cost and low thermo‐mechanical properties restrict the use of this sustainable material, making its biodegradability advantageous only when it is decisively required. The addition of different compositions of monomers and selective addition of natural fillers have been reported as alternatives to develop more accessible PBAT‐based bioplastics with performance that could match or even exceed that of the most widely used commodity plastics. This review explores the recent progress of the applications and biodegradation of PBAT. The addition of natural fillers and its effect on the final performance of the PBAT‐based composites is also reported with respect to improving the properties of composites. The advance of polymerization reaction engineering combined with sustainable trend offers great opportunities for innovative green chemical manufacturing. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 59:E7–E15, 2019. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers     

果蔬热烫

<正>热烫是植物性食品进行各种贮藏加工(冷冻,冻干,杀菌,脱水)之前的热处理工序。常见的热烫工序是把蔬菜或水果浸入开水或放入 95~100℃的热蒸汽中,热烫时间视使用技术和果蔬数量而异。热烫所起的作用因贮藏方法不同相差很大。     

Study of the electro-oxidation of CoO and Co(OH)2 at 90 °C in alkaline medium

Cobalt is usually post-added as CoO or Co(OH)₂ to nickel hydroxide at the positive electrode (nickel oxide electrode) of alkaline batteries, to form a conductive network. In the present work, we focus on the transformation of CoO and Co(OH)₂ phases when oxidized at 90 °C. The Co₃O₄ phase is the majority product of such a reaction, with CoOOH as a secondary product. It is shown that the Co₃O₄ phase results from the reaction of the CoOOH phase, formed by electrochemical oxidation of Co(OH)₂, with Co²⁺ species in the electrolyte, which is made possible by temperature. This process requires a global migration of the cobalt phases towards the current collector.     

élaboration de l'échelle de satisfaction de vie professionnelle (éSVP) en langue fran?aise: Une démarche exploratoire.

The purpose of this article was to develop a new French language measure of global professional life satisfaction, namely the "échelle de satisfaction de vie professionnelle (éSVP)". This scale included 5 items, derived from the French adaptation by M. R. Blais et al (1989) of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (E. Diener et al, 1985). A total of 5 studies were conducted to assess the psychometric properties of this scale. Overall, preliminary results show that the éSVP has adequate levels of internal consistency, temporal stability, and good construct stability. In addition, the unidimensional structure of the scale was supported by exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and the construct validity by significant correlations among éSVP and MSQ indices. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Antennal structure of male and female Aphidius rhopalosiphi DeStefani-Peres (Hymenoptera:Braconidae): description and morphological alterations after cold storage or heat exposure

Several species of the genus Aphidius are used in biological control programs against aphid pests throughout the world and their behavior and physiology are well studied. But despite knowing the importance of sensory organs in their behavior, their antennal structure has never been described. We describe here the types and distribution of antennal sensilla in Aphidius rhopalosiphi, a larval parasitoid of several aphid species and observe how this antennal structure is modified after cold storage or heat exposure. Six types of sensilla were found on both male and female antennae. Male and female antennae differed in the total number of antennomeres (16 in males, 14 in females) and in the number and distribution of three of the six types of sensilla. After cold storage or heat exposure, we observed the appearance of a small number of abnormal sensilla.     

Characterization of vegetable oils by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry fingerprinting: classification, quality, adulteration, and aging

An improved approach for the direct infusion electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) analysis of vegetable oils is described. The more polar components of the oils, including the fatty acids, are simply extracted with methanol/water (1:1) solution and analyzed by direct infusion ESI-MS in both the negative and positive ion modes. This fingerprinting analysis was applied to genuine samples of olive, soybean, corn, canola, sunflower, and cottonseed oil, to admixtures of these oils, and samples of aged soybean oil. ESI-MS fingerprints in the positive ion mode of the extracts divide the oils into well-defined groups, as confirmed by principal component analysis, whereas ESI-MS fingerprints in the negative ion mode clearly differentiate olive oil from the five other refined oils. The method is also shown to detect aging and adulteration of vegetable oils.     

An investigation of the fault-proneness of clone evolutionary patterns

Two identical or similar code fragments form a clone pair. Previous studies have identified cloning as a risky practice. Therefore, a developer needs to be aware of any clone pairs in order to properly propagate any changes between clones. A clone pair may experience many changes during the creation and maintenance of a software system. A change can either maintain or remove the similarity between clones in a clone pair. If a change maintains the similarity between clones, the clone pair is left in a consistent state. When a change makes the clones no longer similar, the clone pair is left in an inconsistent state. The set of states and changes experienced by clone pairs over time form an evolution history known as a clone genealogy. In this paper, we examine clone genealogies to identify fault-prone “patterns” of states and changes. We explore the use of clone genealogy information in fault prediction. We conduct a quasi-experiment with four long-lived software systems (i.e., Apache Ant, ArgoUML, JEdit, Maven) and identify clones using the NiCad and iClones clone detection tools. Overall, we find that the size of the clone can impact the fault-proneness of a clone pair. However, there is no clear impact of the time interval between changes to a clone pair on the fault-proneness of the clone pair. We also discover that adding clone genealogy information can increase the explanatory power of fault prediction models.     

Inverse modeling applications in emulsion polymerization of vinyl acetate

The optimization of emulsion polymerization processes can benefit from the application of neural networks (NNs). The aim of this paper is to present yet another important example of how NNs can help with the optimization of emulsion polymerization reactors, and more specifically, with the “inverse” problem, i.e., starting from the polymer's properties and productivity to determine the reactor's operating conditions. The procedure presented in this paper combines a mathematical model with a NN that predicts appropriate operating conditions for the reactor with a maximum error of 5%. The specific example is with the emulsion polymerization of vinyl acetate.