Radiopharmaceuticals for targeted radiotherapy

This work intends to find specific radiopharmaceuticals for cancer therapy based on beta (153Sm and 166Ho) or Auger (99Tc(m)) emitter radionuclides, using cyclic and acyclic polyamines as bifunctional chelators. These chelators are designed to allow the binding of a tumour seeking biomolecule and/or a DNA intercalator. The cyclic amines, such as 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid, 1,4,8,11-tetraazacyclotetradecane-1,4,8,11-tetraacetic acid and 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclotridecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid, were radiolabelled with 153Sm and 166Ho. The radiochemical and biological behaviour of the resulting complexes were evaluated in order to assess their potential as building blocks for the attachment of selected biomolecules, with the aim of further applying them for the development of specific therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals. Novel pyrazolyldiamines, bearing a DNA intercalating anthracenyl fragment, were also explored to synthesize radioactive complexes with the fac-[99Tc(m)(CO)]3]+ moiety. The identity of these 99Tc(m) tricarbonyl complexes was confirmed by high-performance liquid chromatography comparison with rhenium congeners fully characterized. By including a DNA intercalator into the chelator framework, we expect to induce more efficient and selective damage to the DNA of cancer cells by the action of the short-range Auger electrons emitted by 99Tc(m).     

Narrow resonances and ripple fluctuations in light scattering by a spheroid

We develop a semiclassical theory to explain the rapid ripple fluctuations in the extinction efficiency of light scattering by a transparent prolate spheroid. The theory is based on uniform asymptotic expansion of spheroidal radial functions. We have calculated the extinction efficiency for normal and oblique incidence. Our results suggest that the excitation of resonant electromagnetic modes inside a spheroidal particle is an important factor in the ripple structure. To verify this assumption and based on a Breit-Wigner formula, we develop a method to fit the peaks that appear in the spheroid's extinction cross section when some scattering parameters vary. In other words, our calculations suggest that narrow resonances are related to ripple fluctuations, whereas broad resonances contribute to extinction cross-sectional background.     

Phosphate inhibition on thermophilic acetoclastic methanogens: a warning.

The inhibitory effect of phosphate on acetoclastic-methanogens was investigated for three different thermophilic (55 degrees C) anaerobic consortia. When 70 mM of phosphate was tested, acetoclastic methanogens was completely inhibited in "Eerbeek" sludge which is dominated by Methanosaeta-like methanogens. For the "Hoogezand" sludge the specific methanogenic activity dropped by 79%, indicating that any of the acetate-consuming methanogens present in the sludge was more resistant to the phosphate applied. The results demonstrated that the inhibitory effect of phosphate may affect both methane production rate and final methane concentration and might also be time dependent. This study indicates that the degree of inhibition is species-dependent, and even more resistant species may be affected during long-term experiments. Such inhibition is a matter of concern for researchers since misleading conclusions might be taken from growth and specific methanogenic activity tests when considerable concentrations of phosphate buffer are used and no interference is expected.     

Using an image-extended relational database to support content-based image retrieval in a PACS

This paper presents a new Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS), called cbPACS, which has content-based image retrieval capabilities. The cbPACS answers range and k-nearest- neighbor similarity queries, employing a relational database manager extended to support images. The images are compared through their features, which are extracted by an image-processing module and stored in the extended relational database. The database extensions were developed aiming at efficiently answering similarity queries by taking advantage of specialized indexing methods. The main concept supporting the extensions is the definition, inside the relational manager, of distance functions based on features extracted from the images. An extension to the SQL language enables the construction of an interpreter that intercepts the extended commands and translates them to standard SQL, allowing any relational database server to be used. By now, the system implemented works on features based on color distribution of the images through normalized histograms as well as metric histograms. Metric histograms are invariant regarding scale, translation and rotation of images and also to brightness transformations. The cbPACS is prepared to integrate new image features, based on texture and shape of the main objects in the image.     

Diagnosis of lung nodule using semivariogram and geometric measures in computerized tomography images

This paper uses the geostatistical function - semivariogram and a set of 3D geometric measures - sphericity index, convexity index, extrinsic and intrinsic curvature index and surface type, to characterize lung nodules as malignant or benign in computerized tomography images. Based on a sample of 31 nodules, 25 benign and 6 malignant, these methods are first analyzed individually and then jointly, with techniques for classification and analysis (stepwise discriminant analysis, leave-one-out and ROC curve). We have concluded that the individual measures and their combinations produce good results in the diagnosis of lung nodules.     

Coherent spin transport through dynamic quantum dots

Spin transport and manipulation in semiconductors have been studied intensively with the ultimate goal of realizing spintronic devices. Previous work in GaAs has focused on controlling the carrier density, crystallographic orientation and dimensionality to limit the electron spin decoherence and allow transport over long distances. Here, we introduce a new method for the coherent transport of spin-polarized electronic wave packets using dynamic quantum dots (DQDs) created by the piezoelectric field of coherent acoustic phonons. Photogenerated spin carriers transported by the DQDs in undoped GaAs (001) quantum wells exhibit a spin coherence length exceeding 100 microm, which is attributed to the simultaneous control of the carrier density and the dimensionality by the DQDs during transport. In the absence of an applied magnetic field, we observe the precession of the electron spin induced by the internal magnetic field associated with the spin splitting of the conduction band (Dresselhaus term). The coherent manipulation of the precession frequency is also achieved by applying an external magnetic field.     

The <Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis>-Track Assignment Problem on Partial Orders

The k-track assignment problem is a scheduling problem in which a collection of jobs, represented by intervals, are to be processed by k machines. Two different jobs can be processed by the same machine only if the corresponding intervals do not overlap. We give a compact formulation of the problem and state some polyhedral results for the associated polytope, working in the more general context where job compatibility stems not necessarily from intervals but rather from an arbitrary strict partial order.This authors research was financially supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT).     

A study of drilling performances with minimum quantity of lubricant using fuzzy logic rules

Nowadays the increasing interest to perform machining operations is in dry/near-dry environments. The reason includes health and safety of operator, cost, ease of chip recyclability, etc. However one important process, which is difficult to perform in dry, is drilling. Without coolant, drilling leads to excessive thermal distortion and poor tool life. In order to tackle these conflicting requirements, the essentiality of study on machining performances with minimum quantity lubricant (MQL) becomes important.Fuzzy logic rules, which are derived based on fuzzy set theory, are used to develop fuzzy rule based model (FRBM). The performance of FRBM depends on two different aspects: structures of fuzzy rules and the associated fuzzy sets (membership function distributions, MFDs). The aim of this study is to investigate the performances of FRBMs based on Mamdani and TSK-types of fuzzy logic rules with different shapes of MFDs for prediction and performance analysis of machining with MQL in drilling of aluminum alloy. A comparison of the model predictions with experimental results and those published in the literature shows that FRBM with TSK-type fuzzy rules describes excellent trade-off with experimental measurements.     

Simulating the displacement of a heavy oil by a lighter oil in an offshore production line

An analysis was conducted on the displacement of a heavy fluid by a miscible light fluid in the flow assurance operation of injecting diesel oil to displace heavy oil in an insulated offshore production line. A three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics model was developed and implemented in OpenFOAM®. It stimulates the production stages, no-touch time, and oil displacement, considering heat transfer through natural convection and conjugated heat transfer through the solid layers of the pipeline. The specific test case focused on the first 180 m of an existing offshore production line. The simulations revealed two primary mechanisms of mixing: turbulence and secondary flows generated by the pipeline curves. Remarkably, the results demonstrate that by injecting a volume of lighter oil 1.3 times the pipeline volume, approximately 90%–95% of the heavy oil can be effectively removed.     

Effect of SiC and Al2O3 particles on the electrodeposition of Zn, Co and ZnCo: II. Electrodeposition in the presence of SiC and Al2O3 and production of ZnCo–SiC and ZnCo–Al2O3 coatings

SiC or Al₂O₃ microsized particles were added to acid sulfate-based solutions for the electrodeposition of Zn, Co, and ZnCo. Initially, their effects on the electrochemical processes were evaluated. The Zn electrodeposition rate was increased in both SiC and Al₂O₃-loaded solutions. The Co electrodeposition rate was also increased by SiC. However, Al₂O₃ decreased it, especially at the beginning. Both SiC and Al₂O₃ influenced the electrodeposition of ZnCo positively at moderate loadings. The factors involved in producing ZnCo–SiC and ZnCo–Al₂O₃ composites were evaluated. ZnCo–SiC composites could be deposited with a higher [Co/Zn] ratio in the metal matrix than for pure ZnCo. In ZnCo–Al₂O₃, the [Co/Zn] ratio was smaller than in ZnCo and ZnCo–SiC. It was necessary to reduce the CoSO₄ concentration to improve the Al₂O₃ co-deposition. The variation in [Co/Zn] ratio could, in principle, be related to the effects of SiC and Al₂O₃ on the individual Zn and Co electrodeposition.