Poly(HEMA) hydrogels with controlled pore architecture for tissue regeneration applications

The technique for fabrication of soft porous hydrogels, in which both the size and the orientation of inner pores can be controlled, was developed. Three-dimensional hydrophilic gels based on poly[2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate] are designed as scaffolds for regeneration of soft tissues, e.g., nerve tissue. Anisotropic macropores of the size ranging from 10 to 50 μm were formed (1) by using a porogen-leaching method with a solid organic porogen, (2) by phase-separation during gelation in solvent-nonsolvent mixture, or (3) by combination of solid porogen elimination and phase-separation. As a porogen, poly(l-lactide) fibers were applied and consequently washed away under mild conditions to obtain desired spatial orientation of pores. Highly water-swollen polymer gels were characterized with high pressure (low vacuum) scanning electron microscopy (AquaSEM). The morphology of voids remaining after removing the solid PLLA porogen (the macropores) was clearly shown.     

Software‐defined network‐based prioritization to avoid video freezes in HTTP adaptive streaming

HTTP adaptive streaming (HAS) is becoming the de facto standard for video streaming services over the Internet. In HAS, each video is segmented and stored in different qualities. Rate adaptation heuristics, deployed at the client, allow the most appropriate quality level to be dynamically requested, based on the current network conditions. It has been shown that state‐of‐the‐art heuristics perform suboptimal when sudden bandwidth drops occur, therefore leading to freezes in the video playout, the main factor influencing users' quality of experience (QoE). This issue is aggravated in case of live events, where the client‐side buffer has to be kept as small as possible in order to reduce the playout delay between the user and the live signal. In this article, we propose a framework capable of increasing the QoE of HAS clients by reducing video freezes. The framework is based on OpenFlow, a widely adopted protocol to implement the software‐defined networking principle. An OpenFlow controller is in charge of introducing prioritized delivery of HAS segments, based on the network conditions and the HAS clients' status. Particularly, the HAS clients' status is obtained without any explicit clients‐to‐controller communication, and thus, no extra signaling is introduced into the network. Moreover, this OpenFlow controller is transparent to the quality decision process of the clients, as it assists the delivery of the segments, but it does not determine the actual quality to be requested. In order to provide a comprehensive analysis of the proposed approach, we investigate the performance of the proposed OpenFlow‐based framework in the presence of realistic Internet cross‐traffic. Particularly, we model two types of applications, namely, HTTP web browsing and progressive download video streaming, which currently represent the majority of Internet traffic together with HAS. By evaluating this novel approach through emulation in several multi‐client scenarios, we show how the proposed approach can reduce freeze time for the HAS clients due to network congestion up to 10 times compared with state‐of‐the‐art heuristics, without impacting the performance of the cross‐traffic applications. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Role of nitrogen lewis basicity in boronate affinity chromatography of nucleosides

Urinary modified nucleosides have a potential role as cancer biomarkers, and most of the methods used in their study have utilized low-pressure phenylboronate affinity chromatography materials for the purification of the cis-diol-containing nucleosides. In this study, a boronate HPLC column was surprisingly shown not to trap the nucleosides as would be expected from experience with the classic Affigel 601 resin but showed only partial selectivity toward cis-diol groups while other groups exhibited better retention. In aprotic conditions, trapping of nucleosides was possible; however, the selectivity toward cis-diol-containing compounds was lost with the Lewis basicity of available nitrogens being the main determinant of retention. The experimental findings are compared to and confirmed by DFT calculations.     

Comparative analysis and performance of two predictive fadedetection schemes for Ka-band fade countermeasures

The design of Ka-band satellite fade countermeasure (FCM) systems is conditioned by the detection/prediction algorithm to be included within practical DSP-based FCM controllers. It depends upon the ability of systems to efficiently integrate the dynamic and stochastic nature of the Ka-band fading process which is dominated by rain attenuation and amplitude scintillation. The paper analyzes the modeling and statistical performance of two predictive fade detection algorithms. Prediction is introduced as a way to minimize the impact of the finite response time on the BER/throughput of practical FCM systems. Both fixed (FDM) and variable (VDM) detection margin strategies are introduced and compared in terms of their margin requirements, FCM utilization factor, and channel capacity utilization. The VDM is shown to be more efficient than its fixed counterpart. The long-term BER availability and average user data throughput of a VDM/fixed-FEC/adaptive transmission rate FCM are then evaluated for a typical low-power low-rate Ka-band in-bound VSAT link     

The correlation between 1H MRS choline concentrations and MR diffusion trace values in human brain tumors

Objective  The aim of this study was to develop a method for evaluating the spatial distribution of human brain gliomas in individual subjects by evaluating the correlation between the Choline (Cho) signal intensity and the diffusion trace (Tr_ADC) values. Materials and methods  Eleven patients with different histopathologic diagnoses and five healthy subjects were examined with diffusion-weighted EPI-trace sequence and ¹H MR spectroscopic imaging. The calculation of the correlation between choline and Tr_ADC values on a pixel-by-pixel basis and simulations estimating the influence of partial volume effects on the result were performed. Results  Statistical evaluation of the data in the patients with a glioblastoma showed that pixels corresponding to different tissue states are situated in different areas in the Cho–Tr_ADC correlation graph. Namely, points forming an inverse linear dependence interpreted as an area of an active tumor were observed. Different types of correlations were found in grade II and III gliomas. No statistically significant correlation was found in healthy subjects. Simulations proved that the observed linear dependence cannot be attributed solely to partial volume effects. Conclusion  The analysis of the correlation between Cho concentrations and Tr_ADC values on a pixel-by-pixel basis should help the regional identification of the pathological state of a tissue in patients with a glioblastoma.     

Bewertung und Optimierung von dynamischen Dämmsystemen unter Berücksichtigung des Wiener Klimas

In den letzten Jahren fanden immer wieder Anstrengungen statt um den CO₂‐Haushalt der Erdatmosphäre zu senken. Begriffe wie “sparsamer”, “effizienter” oder “effektiver” werden häufig in diesem Zusammenhang verwendet. Auch das Fachgebiet Bauphysik kann einen wesentlichen Beitrag zur Energieeffizienz leisten. Das ist eine berechtigte Forderung, da Gebäudeheizung und Gebäudekühlung einen bedeutenden Anteil am Ausstoß schädlicher Treibhausgase besitzen. Grenzwerte für die U‐Werte werden immer niedriger angesetzt, was dickere und teurere Dämmsysteme zur Folge hat. Neben diesen trivialen Lösungen werden auch komplexere Systeme entwickelt und erprobt. In dieser Untersuchung werden zwei davon genauer betrachtet und bezugnehmend auf den Heiz wärmebedarf sowie den Kühlbedarf gegenüberstellt. Dabei handelt es sich um sogenannte schaltbare Dämmungen, und um ein neues System mit der Bezeichnung “Thermocollect”. Ein Vergleich beider Systeme ist mit Software‐Standardlösungen nicht möglich, da diese mit nichtvariablen Wärmeleitwerten arbeiten, weshalb ein eigenes Simulationsmodell entwickelt werden musste. Zunächst werden im Rahmen einer Einführung beide Systeme vorgestellt. Ein Abschnitt beinhaltet eine Ausführung zum Simulationsmodell und Erläuterungen zu seinen Eigenheiten. Abschließend folgen Ergebnisse von Parameterstudien, eine Interpretation der Ergebnisse sowie Schlussfolgerungen und die Optimierung der neuartigen Dämmsysteme. Evaluation and optimization of switchable insulation using the climatic conditions of Vienna. There have been numerous efforts to reduce CO₂ emissions in recent years. Terms such as ”more economical”, ”more efficient”, and ”more effective” are often used in discussion of this theme. The field of building physics can make a significant contribution to energy efficiency since building heating and cooling produces a significant portion of overall hazardous greenhouse gases. In response, heat transfer coefficient limits are being set lower and lower resulting in thicker and more expensive insulation systems. Very creative systems are being developed and tested parallel to conventional solutions. This study examines and contrasts two of the systems focusing upon the heating and cooling requirements: the so called ”switchable insulation” and a new system called ”Thermocollect”. The systems cannot be compared using standard software programs as the calculations are based on steady‐state thermal conductivities. Therefore, an in‐house simulation model was developed. Both systems are described in the introduction. A presentation of the basic thermodynamic concepts applied in the simulation fol lows. One section contains an explanation of the simulation model and its distinctive properties. The study is concluded by the results of the parametric studies, an interpretation of the results and implications, and engineering optimizations for the new insulation systems.     

High-intensity laser-driven proton acceleration: influence of pulse contrast

Proton acceleration from the interaction of ultra-short laser pulses with thin foil targets at intensities greater than 10(18) W cm(-2) is discussed. An overview of the physical processes giving rise to the generation of protons with multi-MeV energies, in well defined beams with excellent spatial quality, is presented. Specifically, the discussion centres on the influence of laser pulse contrast on the spatial and energy distributions of accelerated proton beams. Results from an ongoing experimental investigation of proton acceleration using the 10 Hz multi-terawatt Ti:sapphire laser (35f s, 35 TW) at the Lund Laser Centre are discussed. It is demonstrated that a window of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) conditions exist, for which the direction of proton emission is sensitive to the ASE-pedestal preceding the peak of the laser pulse, and that by significantly improving the temporal contrast, using plasma mirrors, efficient proton acceleration is observed from target foils with thickness less than 50 nm.     

Structural and biomechanical characterizations of porcine myocardial extracellular matrix

Extracellular matrix (ECM) of myocardium plays an important role to maintain a multilayered helical architecture of cardiomyocytes. In this study, we have characterized the structural and biomechanical properties of porcine myocardial ECM. Fresh myocardium were decellularized in a rotating bioreactor using 0.1 % sodium dodecyl sulfate solution. Masson's trichrome staining and SEM demonstrated the removal of cells and preservation of the interconnected 3D cardiomyocyte lacunae. Movat's pentachrome staining showed the preservation of cardiac elastin ultrastructure and vascular elastin distribution/alignment. DNA assay result confirmed a 98.59 % reduction in DNA content; the acellular myocardial scaffolds were found completely lack of staining for the porcine α-Gal antigen; and the accelerating enzymatic degradation assessment showed a constant degradation rate. Tensile and shear properties of the acellular myocardial scaffolds were also evaluated. Our observations showed that the acellular myocardial ECM possessed important traits of biodegradable scaffolds, indicating the potentials in cardiac regeneration and whole heart tissue engineering.     

Radiolabeled gelatin type B analogues can be used for non-invasive visualisation and quantification of protein coatings on 3D porous implants

This study covers the quantification of the covalent attachment of gelatin type B (GelB) and the subsequent adsorption of Fibronectin (Fn) on poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL) surfaces, functionalised with 2-aminoethyl methacrylate (AEMA) by means of post-plasma UV-irradiation grafting. As typical surface characterisation tools do not allow quantification of deposited amounts of GelB or Fn, radiolabeled analogues were used for direct measurement of the amount of immobilized material. Bolton-Hunter GelB (BHG) and Fn were radioiodinated with (131)I and (125)I respectively and S-Hynic GelB (SHG) was labeled with (99m)Tc. Immobilisation of (131)I-BHG or (99m)Tc-SHG on both PCL and PCL-AEMA scaffolds was performed in analogy with earlier work. SPECT images on scaffolds coated with (99m)Tc-SHG conjugates were acquired on a U-SPECT II camera. There was a clear difference in the amount of deposited (131)I-BHG between blanco and AEMA-grafted PCL on 2D samples. No significant differences in immobilization behaviour were observed between (99m)Tc-SHG and (131)I-BHG. Subsequent immobilisation of Fn was successful and depended on the amounts of deposited GelB. SPECT imaging on cylindrical 3D scaffolds confirmed these findings and showed that the amount of immobilized (99m)Tc-SHG was depth dependant. The architecture of the scaffolds strongly influences the distribution of GelB within these structures. Furthermore, there is a clear difference in the homogeneity of the protein coating when different GelB immobilization protocols were applied. This study shows that radiolabeled compounds are a rapid and accurate tool in the quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the biofunctionalisation of AEMA grafted PCL scaffolds.