Platelet-Rich Plasma Promotes the Proliferation of Human Keratinocytes via a Progression of the Cell Cycle. A Role of Prolidase

Although the role of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in tissue regeneration has been confirmed in many studies, the mechanism of this process is still not fully understood. Human keratinocytes (HaCaT) cells were used as an experimental model for studies on the effects of PRP on cell proliferation, migration, collagen biosynthesis, prolidase activity, and its expression and anabolic signaling. The activation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), β₁-integrin, and insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor (IGF-1R) by PRP were investigated by western blot and immunocytochemistry. It has been found that PRP induced keratinocytes migration and proliferation through activation of cell cycle progression and EGFR downstream signaling. Similar biological effects were achieved by an addition to the culture medium of prolidase (PEPD), a ligand of EGFR (PRP is a rich source of PEPD–2 ng/mL). PRP-dependent stimulation of collagen biosynthesis was accompanied by an increase in the expression of NF-κβ, IGF-1R-downstream signaling proteins, and PEPD activity. The data suggest that PRP activates a complex of growth factors and adhesion receptors that stimulate cell proliferation, migration, and collagen biosynthesis. PRP induces PEPD-dependent human keratinocyte proliferation through activation of the EGFR receptor. Our study provides a novel mechanism of PRP-dependent wound healing.     

Lipofilling in Breast Oncological Surgery: A Safe Opportunity or Risk for Cancer Recurrence?

Lipofilling (LF) is a largely employed technique in reconstructive and esthetic breast surgery. Over the years, it has demonstrated to be extremely useful for treatment of soft tissue defects after demolitive or conservative breast cancer surgery and different procedures have been developed to improve the survival of transplanted fat graft. The regenerative potential of LF is attributed to the multipotent stem cells found in large quantity in adipose tissue. However, a growing body of pre-clinical evidence shows that adipocytes and adipose-derived stromal cells may have pro-tumorigenic potential. Despite no clear indication from clinical studies has demonstrated an increased risk of cancer recurrence upon LF, these observations challenge the oncologic safety of the procedure. This review aims to provide an updated overview of both the clinical and the pre-clinical indications to the suitability and safety of LF in breast oncological surgery. Cellular and molecular players in the crosstalk between adipose tissue and cancer are described, and heterogeneous contradictory results are discussed, highlighting that important issues still remain to be solved to get a clear understanding of LF safety in breast cancer patients.     

High performance liquid chromatographic separation of sucrose fatty acid esters

The synthesis of sucrose fatty acid esters always results in complex mixtures. Two procedures for quantitative analysis of sucrose monoesters, respectively sucrose diesters, by means of high performance liquid chromatography on reversed-phase columns, are described. A mixture of methanol and water (85:15, v/v) was used for the separation of the monoesters, while methanol, ethyl acetate and water (65:25:10, v/v/v) was used for the separation of diesters. These methods gave information about the amount of monoesters and diesters in the product; the ratio between sucrose monopalmitate and sucrose monostearate, and the number of the most important structure isomers. A complete separation of all the possible diester products seemed to be impossible, due to the presence of more complex structure isomers. The described procedures can give important support during preparative work on sucrose fatty acid esters and also in the evaluation of these products for application purposes.     

Variable-gamma circuit for colour television based on the MOS voltage-translinear principle

In this paper a variable-gamma system is discussed for application in high-quality colour television receivers. A variable-gamma system can significantly improve the quality of the video image by enhancing the contrast in darker parts of the image without degrading the lighter areas of the screen. The adjustment of gamma can replace the traditional contrast and intensity adjustments.The main part of the variable-gamma system is a nonlinear function block, which is implemented by an MOS translinear (MTL) circuit. This circuit was realized in a standard 2.5 m CMOS process. The circuit operates at a single 5V supply voltage. The measured small-signal-3dB bandwidth is 20MHz. The circuit response is insensitive to temperature, which is an important property of translinear circuits.     

Temperature measurement in orthogonal metal cutting

Orthogonal cutting experiments were carried out on steel at different feedrates and cutting speeds. During these experiments the chip temperatures were measured using an infrared camera. The applied technique allows us to determine the chip temperature distribution at the free side of the chip. From this distribution the shear plane temperature at the top of the chip as well as the uniform chip temperature can be found. A finite-difference model was developed to compute the interfacial temperature between chip and tool, using the temperature distribution measured at the top of the chip.Nomenclature contact length with sticking friction behaviour [m] - c specific heat [J kg^–1 K^–1] - contact length with sliding friction behaviour [m] - F _P feed force [N] - F _V main cutting force [N] - h undeformed chip thickness [m] - h _c deformed chip thickness [m] - i,j denote nodal position - k thermal conductivity [W m^–2 K^–1] - L chip-tool contact length [m] - p defines time—space grid, Eq. (11) [s m^–2] - Q _C heat rate entering chip per unit width due to friction at the rake face [W m^–1] - Q _T total heat rate due to friction at the rake face [W m^–1] - Q _% percentage of the friction energy that enters the chip - q ₀ peak value ofq(x) [W m^–2] - q _e heat rate by radiation [W] - q(x) heat flux entering chip [W m^–2] - t time [s] - T temperature [K] - T _C uniform chip temperature [°C] - T _max maximum chip—tool temperature [°C] - T _mean mean chip—tool temperature [°C] - T _S measured shear plane temperature [°C] - x,y Cartesian coordinates [m] - V cutting speed [m s^–1] - V _C chip speed [m/s] - rake angle - ,, control volume lumped thermal diffusivity [m² s^–1] - emmittance for radiation - exponent, Eq. (3) - density [kg m^–3] - Stefan-Boltzmann constant [W m^–2 K⁴] - (x) shear stress distribution [N m^–2] - shear angle     

Psychological work characteristics,psychological workload and associated psychological and cognitive requirements of train drivers

This study aimed to assess the psychological work characteristics and psychological workload of train drivers and to define the psychological and cognitive requirements of their work. A systematic literature search was performed, and expert interviews were conducted. The following work demands were specific to train drivers: high emotional and mental demands, small amount of autonomy and skill discretion. No evidence of a high emotional workload, a high mental workload or short-term stress reactivity was found. In general, the drivers' fatigue complaints and recovery needs after work were comparable to that of other workers. However, severe sleepiness and high need for recovery did affect a substantial proportion of train drivers. The ability to stay aware, to anticipate, to remain attentive and to cope with fatigue are psychological and cognitive skills that are required to adequately and safely perform the train drivers' job. Including these requirements in periodic assessments of train drivers is recommended.     

Chrysin,Apigenin and Acacetin Inhibit Tumor Necrosis Factor-Related Apoptosis—Inducing Ligand Receptor-1 (TRAIL-R1) on Activated RAW264.7 Macrophages

Expression level of Tumor Necrosis Factor—related apoptosis—inducing ligand (TRAIL) receptors is one of the most important factors of TRAIL-mediated apoptosis in cancer cells. We here report for the first time data concerning TRAIL-R1 and TRAIL-R2 receptor expression on RAW264.7 macrophages. Three substances belonging to flavones: chrysin, apigenin and acacetin which differ from their substituents at the 4'' position in the phenyl ring were used in assays because of the variety of biological activities (e.g., anticancer activity) of the polyphenol compounds. The expression of TRAIL-R1 and TRAIL-R2 death receptors on non-stimulated and LPS (lipopolysaccharide)-stimulated macrophages was determined using flow cytometry. We demonstrate that RAW264.7 macrophages exhibit TRAIL-R1 surface expression and that the tested compounds: chrysin, apigenin and acacetin can inhibit TRAIL-R1 death receptor expression level on macrophages.     

Crystallinity and accessibility of fibrous carboxymethylcellulose by pad-roll technology

Statistically designed experiments have been made on partially carboxymethylated cotton fabric. The effect of the reaction parameters (concentration of sodium hydroxide and mono-chioroacetic acid and period of time) on the crystallinity (measured by x-ray diffraction), on the iodine sorption and on the disorder of amorphous fraction (calculated from iodine sorption capacity) are presented by polynomial models. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.