Short fiber-reinforced oxide fiber composites

This paper presents a novel fiber spraying process for the manufacturing of short fiber bundle-reinforced Nextel™ 610/Al₂O₃-ZrO₂ oxide fiber composites (SF-OFC) and its characterization. First, the influence of varying fiber lengths (7, 14, and 28 mm, continuous fibers) and fiber orientations (unidirectional 0°, quasi-isotropic, ±45°) was investigated using hand-laid SF-OFC. Due to the weak matrix, the hand-laid material exhibited a strongly fiber-dominated material behavior, that is, variations in fiber length and orientation had a strong influence on the material properties. Second, the automated sprayed SF-OFC, however, exhibited a random orientation of the fiber bundles, which resulted in in-plane isotropic material properties. Average bending strengths of up to 177 MPa, strains of .39%, and a quasi-ductile fracture behavior were achieved. The strain was, therefore, in the range of fabric-reinforced OFC. While the bending strength of the SF-OFC was somewhat lower than that of fabric-reinforced OFC with the fiber orientation parallel to the loading direction, it was more than two times higher than the strength in 45° direction relative to the fabric reinforcement. Combined with good drapability and lower material costs compared to fabric-reinforced OFC, SF-OFC is, therefore, a promising material for industrial applications.     

Hyperthermia and Serotonin: The Quest for a “Better Cyproheptadine”

Fine temperature control is essential in homeothermic animals. Both hyper- and hypothermia can have deleterious effects. Multiple, efficient and partly redundant mechanisms of adjusting the body temperature to the value set by the internal thermostat exist. The neural circuitry of temperature control and the neurotransmitters involved are reviewed. The GABAergic inhibitory output from the brain thermostat in the preoptic area POA to subaltern neural circuitry of temperature control (Nucleus Raphe Dorsalis and Nucleus Raphe Pallidus) is a function of the balance between the (opposite) effects mediated by the transient receptor potential receptor TRPM2 and EP3 prostaglandin receptors. Activation of TRPM2-expressing neurons in POA favors hypothermia, while inhibition has the opposite effect. Conversely, EP3 receptors induce elevation in body temperature. Activation of EP3-expressing neurons in POA results in hyperthermia, while inhibition has the opposite effect. Agonists at TRPM2 and/or antagonists at EP3 could be beneficial in hyperthermia control. Activity of the neural circuitry of temperature control is modulated by a variety of 5-HT receptors. Based on the theoretical model presented the “ideal” antidote against serotonin syndrome hyperthermia appears to be an antagonist at the 5-HT receptor subtypes 2, 4 and 6 and an agonist at the receptor subtypes 1, 3 and 7. Very broadly speaking, such a profile translates in a sympatholytic effect. While a compound with such an ideal profile is presently not available, better matches than the conventional antidote cyproheptadine (used off-label in severe serotonin syndrome cases) appear to be possible and need to be identified.     

miRNome Profiling and Functional Analysis Reveal Involvement of hsa-miR-1246 in Colon Adenoma-Carcinoma Transition by Targeting AXIN2 and CFTR

Regulatory changes occurring early in colorectal cancer development remain poorly investigated. Since the majority of cases develop from polyps in the adenoma-carcinoma transition, a search of early molecular features, such as aberrations in miRNA expression occurring prior to cancer development, would enable identification of potentially causal, rather than consequential, candidates in the progression of polyp to cancer. In the current study, by employing small RNA-seq profiling of colon biopsy samples, we described differentially expressed miRNAs and their isoforms in the adenoma-carcinoma transition. Analysis of healthy-adenoma-carcinoma sequence in an independent validation group enabled us to identify early deregulated miRNAs including hsa-miR-1246 and hsa-miR-215-5p, the expressions of which are, respectively, gradually increasing and decreasing. Loss-of-function experiments revealed that inhibition of hsa-miR-1246 lead to reduced cell viability, colony formation, and migration rate, thereby indicating an oncogenic effect of this miRNA in vitro. Subsequent western blot and luciferase reporter assay provided evidence of hsa-miR-1246 being involved in the regulation of target AXIN2 and CFTR genes’ expression. To conclude, the present study revealed possible involvement of hsa-miR-1246 in early colorectal cancer development and regulation of tumor suppressors AXIN2 and CFTR.     

Kuppelproduktion und Umweltpolitik: Eine Fallstudie zur Chlorchemie und zur Schwefelsäureindustrie

Joint Production and Environmental Policy: A Case Study for the Chlorine and Sulphuric Acid Industry The chemical industry is a key sector of industrialised economy. Thus, environmental policy with a focus on the chemical industry is likely to affect the economy as a whole. In this article we show, that environmental regulation of the chemical industry has major consequences for other production sectors. Two major problem areas of the chemical industry are considered: the chlorine industry and the sulphur industry. While the chlorine industry can cope with environmental legislation by process and product innovation without a substantial impact on other sectors, this is not the case with the sulphur industry. The production of its key product, sulphuric acid, utilises joint products of other sectors as inputs. The chemical industry offers these sectors the possibility to dispose of their unwanted by-products. Environmental policy, directed towards a reduction of sulphuric acid is likely to cause a waste disposal problem in sectors which manufacture sulphur or sulphur dioxide as by-products. Solving environmental problems within the chemical industry therefore creates new problems in other sectors.     

Untersuchungen zum Transfer pharmakologisch wirksamer Substanzen aus der Nutztierhaltung in Porree und Weißkohl

Investigation on the transfer of pharmacologically active substances used in animal husbandry into leek and cabbage. The potential of leek and cabbage for uptake of highly prescribed veterinary drugs (antibiotics) was tested in hydroponically grown plants. For this purpose the antibiotics sulfadiazine (SFD), enrofloxacine (ENR), tetracycline (TC), chlortetracycline (CTC) and monensine (MON) were chosen. A further aim was to gain data on the situation of vegetables grown in agricultural practise with regard to antibiotic residues. The evident effects of the antibiotics on plants grown hydroponically (each antibiotic was administered at 5 μmol/l nutrient solution) were greatly different: With regard to leek there were no visible effects (MON, SFD), a weak bleaching of the younger leaf sections (CTC), and strong effects of ENR. The (phytotoxic) effects of antibiotics on cabbage were much more distinct. CTC caused a yellowing of the plant vasculature in cabbage. MON induced lesions on some leaves and finally led to leaf wilting. With administration of ENR a nearly complete bleaching of young leaves was observed. Using LC-MS/MS-methods (low-resolution and high-resolution MS) the administered antibiotics, as well as conversion products and metabolites, were separately identified and quantified in various organs of leek (roots, young and old sections of leaves) and cabbage (roots, stalks, young and old leaves). Depending on the type of antibiotic, vegetable species, and plant organ, the detected concentrations of antibiotic residues comprised several orders of magnitude ranging from μg/kg to mg/kg of fresh weight (fw). The highest concentrations of antibiotics were found in roots of both vegetable species: CTC and TC were detected at approximately 10 mg/kg fw in cabbage roots and at approximately 20 mg/kg fw in leek roots and ENR was determined at approximately 12 mg/kg fw in cabbage roots. Low amounts of ENR were metabolised to ciprofloxacine (CIP). ENR occurred at similar concentrations of approximately 7 mg/kg fw in roots and old leaves of cabbage, indicating a high transport rate of this antibiotic in the cabbage plant. In stalks, young and old leaves of cabbage and in young and old leaf sections of leek all administered antibiotics were detected. Within these antibiotics, ENR and CTC and their conversion products, e. g. demeclocycline (DMC) and TC, occurred at the highest concentrations. SFD and MON were found in considerably lower concentrations (<100 μg/kg fw). The results of our experiments in hydroponic cultures, using defined concentrations of antibiotics in the nutrient solution, evidently demonstrate that cabbage and leek have a very high potential for uptake of a number of veterinary antibiotic drugs, especially for tetracycline and ENR.     

Systematic survey on the prevalence of genes coding for staphylococcal enterotoxins SElM, SElO, and SElN

Staphylococcus aureus remains a leading cause of food-poisoning with substantial impact on public health. Using a multiplex polymerase chain reaction-DNA enzyme immunoassay (PCR-DEIA), we studied the presence of genes encoding staphylococcal enterotoxin-like (SEl) superantigens sem, sen, and seo, associated with the enterotoxin gene cluster (egc), in 429 clinical Staphylococcus aureus isolates. 294 (68.5%) isolates tested positive for at least one of the three SEl genes. In contrast to the fixed gene combination seg/sei also located on egc, a substantial number of isolates (n = 108) were found to bear only one or two of the genes encoding SElM, SElN, and SElO. Regarding the origin of the S. aureus isolates, a significant difference (P = 0.022) was found for the possession of seo (61.2% of blood isolates versus 42.9% of nasal strains). Also sem (not significantly) was found more common in blood isolates (52.1% versus 40.5%). The survey of the newly described SEl genes sem-seo supports the concept that most clinical S. aureus isolates harbor subsets of pyrogenic toxin superantigens. The potential contribution of seo and sem to the pathogenic potential of S. aureus has to be further evaluated.     

MgAl2O4-Spinel Synthesized by High-Energy Ball Milling and Reaction Sintering

A new way to prepare magnesia-alumina-spinel was investigated making use of a mixed powder system of MgO and metallic Al-3 wt% Mg. Intensive ball milling was applied which provides the formation of new powder particles as composite of both components in intimate contact. The new configuration of the particles had a significant impact on the reaction sintering behavior leading to single phase spinel microstructures at moderate temperatures below 1400°C. Optimized milling of the powder mixture was therefore required providing reduced crystallite sizes and strongly enlarged interfacial area shared by the reacting components. The optimal milling time was identified by the complete reaction of the starting powders to spinel during sintering. Shorter milling times led to incomplete reactions and longer milling times contaminated the milling product by debris from the milling tools. The amount of interfaces generated by the intimate mixing dominated the sintering reaction kinetics whereas the specific surfaces area was of secondary importance.     

Writing with Fluid: Structuring Hydrogels with Micrometer Precision by AFM in Combination with Nanofluidics

Hydrogels have many applications in biomedical surface modification and tissue engineering. However, the structuring of hydrogels after their formation represents still a major challenge, in particular due to their softness. Here, a novel approach is presented that is based on the combination of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and nanofluidics, also referred to as FluidFM technology. Its applicability is demonstrated for supramolecular hydrogel films that are prepared from low‐molecular weight hydrogelators, such as derivates of 1,3,5‐benzene tricarboxamides (BTAs). BTA films can be dissolved selectively by ejecting alkaline solution through the aperture of a hollow AFM‐cantilever connected to a nanofluidic controller. The AFM‐based force control is essential in preventing mechanical destruction of the hydrogels. The resulting “chemical writing” process is studied in detail and the influence of various parameters, such as applied pressure and time, is validated. It is demonstrated that the achievable structuring precision is primarily limited by diffusion and the aperture dimensions. Recently, various additive techniques have been presented to pattern hydrogels. The here‐presented subtractive approach can not only be applied to structure hydrogels from the large class of reversibly formed gels with superior resolution but would also allow for the selective loading of the hydrogels with active substances or nanoparticles.     

Verbesserung der Floating-Liner Methode zur Messung der Kolbengruppenreibung durch Einsatz doppelschrägverzahnter Zahnriemen

Forschung im Ingenieurwesen - Die mechanischen Verluste von Verbrennungsmotoren hängen maßgeblich von den auftretenden Reibkräften innerhalb der Kolbengruppe ab. Da die Kolbengruppe...     

Ellipsometrische Charakterisierung von C‐Schutzschichten für die Speichertechnologie

Spectroscopic Ellipsometry is a fast, non‐destructive and reliable method for characterizing thin films, based on interaction between incident light and a multilayer system. For our investigations, light in the visible spectral range has been used to characterize protective carbon coatings with thicknesses of 2‐7nm on magnetic hard disks. The specific disk layer stack has been described with an adequate one‐layer model. With regard to an accurate analysis of the covering carbon coating a reproducible procedure for determining the underlying metallic material has been developed. The measured ellipsometric parameters (ψ, Δ) display a linear dependence on carbon film thickness which shows an appropriate application of the used model down to a thickness of 2 nm. By means of simulation calculations, criteria for the selection of optimized wavelengths with respect to film characterization has been established. Furthermore, an increasing extinction coefficient κ with rising nitrogen content in the carbon coating could be stated. Apparent time instabilities in the determination of layer thickness d and extinction coefficient κ of the carbon film could be explained as due to adsorption processes on the surface.