Retinoprotective Effects of PACAP Eye Drops in Microbead-Induced Glaucoma Model in Rats

Glaucoma is associated with increased intraocular pressure (IOP), causing the apoptosis of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) and the loss of their axons leading to blindness. Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) is neuroprotective in several neural injuries, including retinopathies. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of PACAP1-38 eye drops in a model of glaucoma. IOP was elevated bilaterally by injections of microbeads to block the aqueous humor outflow. The control groups received the same volume of saline. Animals were treated with PACAP1-38 (1 µg/drop, 3 × 1 drop/day) or vehicle for 4 weeks starting one day after the injections. Retinal morphology by histology and optical coherence tomography, function by electroretinography, and IOP changes were analyzed. Animals were sacrificed 8 weeks after the injections. Microbeads injections induced a significant increase in the IOP, while PACAP1-38 treatment lowered it to normal levels (~10 mmHg). Significant retinal degeneration and functional impairment were observed in the microbead-injected group without PACAP1-38 treatment. In the microbeads + PACAP1-38 group, the retinal morphology and functionality were close to the normal values. In summary, our results show that PACAP1-38, given in form of eye drops, is neuroprotective in glaucoma, providing the basis for potential future therapeutic administration.     

Notes on An Interdisciplinary Introduction to Image Processing

A 2012 MIT Press book by Steven L. Tanimoto focuses on types of images that are markedly different from the examples found in other texts on similar topics. In addition to introducing basic image programming methods, it encourages exploration of the artistic and esthetic aspects of image synthesis and image transformations.     

Compensation of the Skin Effect in Low-Frequency Potential Drop Measurements

Potential drop measurements are routinely used in the non-destructive evaluation of component integrity. Potential drop measurements use either direct current (DC) or alternating current (AC), the latter will have superior noise performance due to the ability to perform phase sensitive detection and the reduction of flicker noise. AC measurements are however subject to the skin effect where the current is electromagnetically constricted to the surface of the component. Unfortunately, the skin effect is a function of magnetic permeability, which in ferromagnetic materials is sensitive to a number of parameters including stress and temperature, and consequently in-situ impedance measurements are likely to be unstable. It has been proposed that quasi-DC measurements, which benefit from superior noise performance, but also tend to the skin-effect independent DC measurement, be adopted for in-situ creep measurements for power station components. Unfortunately, the quasi-DC measurement will only tend to the DC distribution and therefore some remnant sensitivity to the skin effect will remain. This paper will present a correction for situations where the remnant sensitivity to the skin effect is not adequately suppressed by using sufficiently low frequency; the application of particular interest being the in-situ monitoring of the creep strain of power station components. The correction uses the measured phase angle to approximate the influence of the skin effect and allow recovery of the DC-asymptotic value of the resistance. The basis of the correction, that potential drop measurements are minimum phase is presented and illustrated on two cases; the creep strain sensor of practical interest and a conducting rod as another common case to illustrate generality. The correction is demonstrated experimentally on a component where the skin effect is manipulated by application of a range of elastic stresses.     

Non-linear Ultrasonic NDE of Titanium Diffusion Bonds

Diffusion bonding is an attractive solid-state welding technique that represents a valuable tool for reducing weight and improving performance in the aerospace industry. However, its full exploitation in titanium components is currently limited by a lack of robust NDE techniques capable of overcoming the crystallographic anisotropy of these important materials. Advanced ultrasonic techniques have been explored previously, but their sensitivity to imperfections is limited by the linear acoustic phenomena on which they depend. Non-linear ultrasonic methods have been shown to be significantly more sensitive than their linear counterparts to these types of imperfections, but suppressing extraneous contributions to the non-linear response of the interface is not trivial. An approach that succeeds in suppressing such contributions is presented here. The technique, which is based on the non-collinear mixing of ultrasonic waves to generate a spectrally, modally and spatially dissociable third wave, was used to reliably characterise a set of samples whose bond quality was indeterminable using conventional ultrasonic methods.     

Numerical Modeling of Macrosegregation in Binary Alloys Solidifying in the Presence of Electromagnetic Stirring

A model for predicting solidification and solute segregation of binary alloys undergoing electromagnetic stirring has been developed. A dual-zone formulation was employed to describe the velocity fields in the mushy region. The key feature of this model lies in its accounting for flow damping in the suspended particle region via turbulent interactions the crystallite surfaces. The damping force is given in terms of the turbulent kinetic energy, fraction solid, and the crystallite sphericity. The computed macrosegregation results for Al-4.5 pctCu alloy were validated against, and were found to agree with, experimental measurements. The effect of final grain size and frequency on segregation was also determined. This validated model represents a rigorous mathematical framework for describing the flow behavior and solute segregation in electromagnetically stirred melts.