Invariant three- and four-phase equilibria in the magnesium-rich corner of the Mg-Cu-Sn ternary system

Invariant three- and four-phase equilibria in the magnesium-rich corner of the Mg-Cu-Sn ternary system have been studied by differential thermal analysis, optical microscopy, electron probe microanalysis and X-ray diffraction. The L(Mg) + Mg₂ Cu + Mg₂Sn ternary eutectic reaction was found to be at 467 °C and at Mg–13.5 at % Cu–4.4 at% Sn. The LMg₂Cu + Mg₂Sn pseudo-binary eutectic reaction is tentatively located at 522°C and at Mg–26.0 at % Cu–7.7 at % Sn.     

Prediction of MOR and MOE of structural plywood board using an artificial neural network and comparison with a multivariate regression model

The structural application of plywood boards has increased considerably in recent years. In this context, determining plywood mechanical properties such as bending strength and modulus of elasticity through predictive models using more-easily obtained properties is a very useful tool for in-factory quality control. Artificial neural networks have demonstrated their high capacity for modelling complex relations between variables, considerably improving on results obtained through regression techniques. Four neural networks were developed to obtain these mechanical properties by determining board thickness, moisture content, specific gravity, bending strength and modulus of elasticity of test pieces of small dimensions. The results were compared with those of a regression model and in all cases the results of the present study were better.     

Inhibition of hIAPP Amyloid Aggregation and Pancreatic β‐Cell Toxicity by OH‐Terminated PAMAM Dendrimer

Human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP, or amylin) forms amyloid deposits in the islets of Langerhans, a phenomenon that is associated with type‐2 diabetes impacting millions of people worldwide. Accordingly, strategies against hIAPP aggregation are essential for the prevention and eventual treatment of the disease. Here, it is shown that generation‐3 OH‐terminated poly(amidoamine) dendrimer, a polymeric nanoparticle, can effectively halt the aggregation of hIAPP and shut down hIAPP toxicity in pancreatic MIN6 and NIT‐1 cells as well as in mouse islets. This finding is supported by high‐throughput dynamic light scattering experiment and thioflavin T assay, where the rapid evolution of hIAPP nucleation and elongation processes is halted by the addition of the dendrimer up to 8 h. Discrete molecular dynamics simulations further reveal that hIAPP residues bound strongly with the dendrimer near the c‐terminal portion of the peptide, where the amyloidogenic sequence (residues 22–29) locates. Furthermore, simulations of hIAPP dimerization reveal that binding with the dendrimer significantly reduces formation of interpeptide contacts and hydrogen bonds, thereby prohibiting peptide self‐association and amyloidosis. This study points to a promising nanomedicinal strategy for combating type‐2 diabetes and may have broader implications for targeting neurological disorders whose distinct hallmark is also amyloid fibrillation.     

Highly stable,mesoporous mixed lanthanum–cerium oxides with tailored structure and reducibility

Pure and mixed lanthanum and cerium oxides were synthesized via a reverse microemulsion-templated route. This approach yields highly homogeneous and phase-stable mixed oxides with high surface areas across the entire range of La:Ce ratios from pure lanthana to pure ceria. Surprisingly, all mixed oxides show the fluorite crystal structure of ceria, even for lanthanum contents as high as 90%. Varying the La:Ce ratio not only allows tailoring of the oxide morphology (lattice parameter, pore structure, particle size, and surface area), but also results in a fine-tuning of the reducibility of the oxide which can be explained by the creation of oxygen vacancies in the ceria lattice upon La addition. Such finely controlled syntheses, which enable the formation of stable, homogeneous mixed oxides across the entire composition range, open the path towards functional tailoring of oxide materials, such as rational catalyst design via fine-tuning of redox activity.     

Design of novel urogenital pharmabiotic formulations containing lactobacilli,salivaricin CRL 1328 and non-microbial compounds with different functionalities

Context: The administration of pharmabiotics is a promising alternative to antimicrobial drugs for the treatment and/or prevention of female urogenital infections.

Objective: To design pharmabiotic formulations including bioactive ingredients of microbial origin combined with non-microbial substances and then to evaluate the stability of the combinations during freeze-drying and storage.

Materials and methods: Different formulations including Lactobacillus gasseri CRL 1263, Lactobacillus salivarius CRL 1328, salivaricin CRL 1328 (a bacteriocin) and non-microbial compounds (lactose, inulin and ascorbic acid) were assayed, and the ingredients were freeze-dried together or separately. The formulations were stored in gelatin capsules at 4?°C for 360?d.

Results: The viability of lactobacilli was affected to different extents depending on the strains and on the formulations assayed. L. salivarius and ascorbic acid were successfully combined only after the freeze-drying process. Salivaricin activity was not detected in formulations containing L. gasseri. However, when combined with ascorbic acid, lactose, inulin or L. salivarius, the bacteriocin maintained its activity for 360?d. The selected microorganisms proved to be compatible for their inclusion in multi-strain formulations together with lactose, inulin and ascorbic acid. Salivaricin could be included only in a L. salivarius CRL 1328 single-strain formulation together with non-microbial substances.

Conclusions: This study provides new insights into the design of urogenital pharmabiotics combining beneficial lactobacilli, salivaricin CRL 1328 and compounds with different functionalities.     

Exploring Web keyword analysis as an alternative to link analysis: a multi-industry case

The study explored the feasibility of using Web keyword analysis as an alternative to link analysis and tested the feasibility in a multi-industry environment. The keyword is the organization??s name, in this case the company name. American companies from five industries were included in the study. The study found that the Web visibility of a company as measured by the number of Webpages on which the company name appears correlates with the company??s business measures (revenue, profits, and assets). The correlation coefficients are similar to that between the inlink counts and the business measures. This suggests that the keyword count (searched by the company name) could replace inlink count as an alternative indicator of some commonly used business measures. The co-word (the co-occurrence of the names of two companies on Webpages) count was used as a measure of the relatedness of the two companies. Multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis was applied to the co-word matrices and generated MDS maps that showed relationships among companies in a multi-industry context. Keyword data were collected from three different types of Websites (general Websites, blog sites, and Web news sites) and results were compared. The study found blog sites to be the better source to collect data for this type of study. The comparison of MDS maps generated from co-link data and the blog co-word data showed that the co-word analysis is as effective as co-link analysis in mapping business relationships. The value of the study is not limited to the business sector as the co-word method could be applied to analysing relationships among other types of organizations.     

Experimental Determination of Densities and Isobaric Vapor–Liquid Equilibria of Methyl Acetate and Ethyl Acetate with Alcohols (C3 and C4) at 0.3 MPa

The densities and excess volumes were determined at 298.15 K for the methyl acetate + 1-propanol, methyl acetate + 1-butanol, and ethyl acetate + 1-butanol mixtures. The vapor–liquid equilibria data at 0.3 MPa for these binary systems were obtained using a stainless steel equilibrium still. The activity coefficients were obtained from the experimental data using the Hayden and O’Connell method and the Yen and Woods equation. The binary systems in this study showed positive deviations from ideality. The experimental VLE data were verified with the point-to-point test of van Ness using the Barker routine and the Fredenslund criterion. The different versions of the UNIFAC and the ASOG group contribution models were applied.     

Effective parameter study for the facile and controlled growth of silver molybdate nano/micro rods

Controlled growth of nano/micro structures by controlling the effective parameters is the basic requirement for the application point of view in various areas. Here we report the facile growth of silver molybdate nano/micro rods by mixing the solution of silver nitrate and ammonium molybdate at ambient condition followed by hydrothermal treatment at various temperatures for 12 h. To achieve the goal for the synthesis of long, high yield and homogeneous nanorods various effective parameters have been studied to set the most effective conditions for the growth. Among possible effective parameters first the temperature of the furnace was set by warring the temperature and then at the set temperature the concentration of reactants (NH₄)₆Mo₇O₂₄ and silver nitrate are varied respect to each other. The pH and temperature values were monitored during the mixing of the reactants. Structural/microstructural characterization revealed the optimum condition of 150°C of the furnace and the concentration of (NH₄)₆Mo₇O₂₄ and silver nitrate as described in various tables.