Fish oil prevents change in arachidonic acid and cholesterol content in rat caused by dietary cholesterol

Rats were fed diets high in either saturated fat (beef tallow) or α-linolenic acid (linseed oil) or eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids (fish oil) with or without 2% cholesterol supplementation. Consumption of linseed oil and fish oil diets for 28 days lowered arachidonic acid content of plasma, liver and heart phospholipids. Addition of 2% cholesterol to diets containing beef tallow or linseed oil lowered 20∶4ω6 levels but failed to reduce 20∶4ω6 levels when fed in combination with fish oil. Feeding ω3 fatty acids lowered plasma cholesterol levels. Addition of 2% cholesterol to the beef tallow or linseed oil diet increased plasma cholesterol concentrations but not when fish oil was fed. Feeding the fish oil diet reduced the cholesterol content of liver, whereas feeding the linseed oil diet did not. Dietary cholesterol supplementation elevated the cholesterol concentration in liver in the order: linseed oil > beef tallow > fish oil (8.6-, 5.5-, 2.6-fold, respectively). Feeding fish oil and cholesterol apparently reduced 20∶4ω6 levels in plasma and tissue lipids. Fish oil accentuates the 20∶4ω6 lowering effect of dietary cholesterol and appears to prevent accumulation of cholesterol in plasma and tissue lipids under a high dietary load of cholesterol.     

Relationship between dietary supply of long-chain fatty acids and membrane composition of long- and very long chain essential fatty acids in developing rat photoreceptors

The present study was designed to determine if dietary supply of long-chain fatty acid (LCFA, C20∶4n-6, and/or C22∶6n-3), reflecting levels that might be incorporated into infant formulas, influences the fatty acid composition of the visual cell membrane. The rod outer segment (ROS) of the retina was analyzed from rats fed diets varying in the ratio of 18∶2n-6 to 18∶3n-3 with or without 20∶4n-6 [arachidonic acid (AA)] and 22∶6n-3 (docosahexaenoic acid) from birth to six weeks of age. The level of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFA, C₂₄−C₃₆) was identified using gas chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. In the ROS, the highest relative percent of AA was attained in phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) of animals fed 1% AA diet, whereas feeding 0.7% docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) diet significantly increased the DHA level in PC, phosphatidylserine, and phosphatidylinositol compared to feeding diets containing AA. VLCFA of n-6 and n-3 up to C₃₆ were found in PC, with the most abundant fatty acids being C₃₂ and C₃₄. In PC, phosphatidylserine and PE, the n-6 tetraenoic VLCFA level was highly increased in animals fed 1% AA compared to other dietary groups. This study suggests that dietary fat containing small amounts of AA or DHA is an important factor influencing membrane fatty acid composition of the visual cell during development. Based on a presentation at the AOCS Annual Meeting & Expo in San Antonio, Texas, May 7–11, 1995.     

Towards Increased Understanding of Open Data Use for Software Development

Information Systems Frontiers - The way open data resources of varied type and volume are used by software applications remains only partly known. In this study, following CRoss-Industry Standard...     

Path Loss Modelling for Location Service Applications

The aim of this paper is the path loss modelling for the radiolocation services in radio communication networks, particularly in cellular networks. The main results of the measurements obtained in the physical layer of the UMTS are introduced. A new method for the utilization of the multipath propagation phenomenon to improve the estimation of the distance between the MS （mobile station） and the BS （base station） is outlined. This method significantly increases the quality of location services in systems which use a radio interface with DS （direct sequence） CDMA （code division multiple access）.     

Temperatures in linguistics as a model of thermodynamics

Natural languages have been taken as models of systems with strong statistical correlations. In such systems the usual probabilistic limiting laws (Gauss etc.) are no more valid and the concept of higher order temperatures can be applied. It has been shown that this is the case in such languages as English, German, French, Russian and Japanese, for letter and word statistics. The corresponding temperatures (up to the 5-th order), entropies and statistical moments have been calculated and their mutual relations have been checked.... erst wenn du plötzlich Fänger wirst des Balles, den eine ewige Mitspielerin dir zuwarf, ... erst dann ist Fangen-können ein Vermögen, nicht deines, einer Welt.(... only when you suddenly catch the ball which the eternal fellow player throws to you,... only then the catching ability is an accomplishment, not of you, but of the world.)R. M. Rilke (from the motto of [3])Supported by Committee of Scientific Research, Warsaw (KBN), Project Nr. 20412 91 01.     

Miniaturized ceramic differential scanning calorimeter with integrated oven and crucible in LTCC technology

A miniaturized ceramic differential scanning calorimeter (MC-DSC) with integrated oven and crucible is presented. Despite its small size of only 11 mm × 39 mm × 1.5 mm, all functions of a conventional DSC apparatus are integrated in this novel device - including the oven. The MC-DSC is fully manufactured in thick-film and green glass ceramic tape-based low temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) technology. Therefore, production costs are considered to be low. Initial results using indium as a sample material show a good dynamic performance of the MC-DSC. Full width at half maximum of the melting peak is 2.4 °C (sample mass approx. 11 mg, heating rate approx. 50 °C/min). Repeatability of the indium melting point is within ±0.02 °C. The melting peak area increases linearly with the sample mass up to at least 26 mg. Simulations of a strongly simplified finite element model of the MC-DSC are in a good agreement with measurement results allowing a model-based prediction of its basic characteristics.     

MDO: assessment and direction for advancement—an opinion of one international group

This paper is a summary of topics presented and discussed at the 2006 European–U.S. Multidisciplinary Optimization (MDO) Colloquium in Goettingen, Germany, attended by nearly seventy professionals from academia, industry, and government. An attempt is made to accurately reflect the issues discussed by this diverse group, qualified by interest, experience, and accomplishment to present an opinion about the state-of-the-art, trends, and developments in Multidisciplinary Design Optimization. As such, its main purpose is to provide suggestions and stimulus for future research in the field. The predominant content of the colloquium was centered on aerospace, with a few contributions from the automotive industry, and this is reflected in the article. Due to the timeframe that has passed since the conclusion of the workshop, the authors have updated topics where appropriate to reflect observed developments over the past 3 years. Finally, rather than dwelling extensively on past accomplishments and current capabilities in MDO we focus on the needs and identified shortcomings from the colloquium which lead to potential future research directions. A brief MDO background is provided to set the discussion in its proper context.     

Preparation of conjugated linoleic acid from safflower oil

Synthetically prepared mixtures of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) are widely used in animal and cell culture studies to investigate the potential effects of the Δ9c, 11t-18:2 isomer found in food products from ruminant animals. Alkali isomerization of linoleic acid is a common method used in the synthesis of a mixture of CLA isomers containing predominantly the Δ9c, 11t-18:2 and Δ10t, 12c-18:2 isomers. Some biological activity might also be mediated by the Δ10t, 12c-18:2 isomer. Currently few published methodologies exist describing procedures for the enrichment of these two isomers. A method is described herein to take advantage of an inexpensive oil, safflower oil, for use in synthesis of CLA and a procedure to enrich the Δ10t, 12c-18:2 isomer.     

Promising curaua fiber‐reinforced polyester composite for high‐impact ballistic multilayered armor

A typical multilayered armor system (MAS) is composed of a harder front ceramic tile, which is able to erode heavy ammunition, such as the 7.62 mm bullet, followed by a second layer to further reduce the impact energy. Aramid fabric is a common choice for the second layer. In the present work, polyester matrix composites reinforced with 10 to 30 vol% of curaua fibers, despite having much lower strength and stiffness than aramid fabric, displayed similar trauma indentation in a standard clay witness simulating the human body. Impedance matching and scanning electron microscopy analyses suggest effective energy absorption through ceramic fragment capture by curaua composites. Additionally, because of the high cost of aramid fabric, a full MAS with curaua fiber composite is much cheaper than a MAS composed of aramid fabric. Taking into consideration, both the economical and environmental advantages of natural fibers, it is concluded that curaua fiber‐reinforced polyester composite could replace aramid fabric as the second layer in MASs for personal ballistic protection. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 57:947–954, 2017. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers