The Gas-to-Particle Heat Transfer and Hydrodynamics in Spouted Bed Drying of Sawdust

This article presents experimental results for spouted bed drying of sawdust, carried out in a full-scale as well as in a laboratory-scale dryer using air as well as steam as drying media. The aim is to present design parameters for a spouted-bed sawdust dryer that can be used by the industry in designing full-scale dryers. A hydrodynamically stable spouted jet spouted bed was obtained. The heat transfer characteristics of the bed were represented in terms of a volumetric heat transfer coefficient (VHC). When sawdust is dried in a spouted bed, the mean VHC is increasing up to fiber saturation level (20-25% wb) from 40 to 110 W/m³ K. The VHC decreases with the residence time and with an increased static bed height. Gas temperature profiles are also presented for the bottom part of the drying chamber.     

A case study of factor influencing role improvisation in crisis response teams

Common characteristics of crisis situations are ambiguous and unplanned for events. The need for improvised roles can therefore be an imperative factor for the success of an operation. The aim of this study is to deepen the understanding of the processes taking place during improvised work “as it happens”. A case study of a crisis management team at work is presented and provides an in-depth analysis of the information and communication flow of persons acting in improvised roles, including contextual factors influencing the task at hand. The analysis suggests that three main factors lay behind decreased performance by the team when some of its members were forced to take on roles for which they lacked professional training; lack of language skills, lack of domain knowledge and insufficient organizational structure of the tasks. Based on the observations from this case study, we suggest three ways of improving a team’s performance and hence resilience when forced to improvise due to lack of personnel in one or more required competence areas. These are training to take on the responsibility for tasks or roles outside ones professional area of specialization, developing formal routines for changes in roles and tasks and developing and using tools and routines for information sharing.     

Valorisation of mango seed via extraction of starch: preliminary techno-economic analysis

Reducing environmental impacts and obtaining economic benefits based on utilisation of waste materials are drivers for the implementation of cleaner production policies and technologies in food processing industries. Starch is a very versatile material with a wide range of applications in the food, pharmaceutical, textile, paper, cosmetic and construction industries. In Ethiopia, starch is widely used in the textile industry. To meet the starch demand, the country imports approximately 45% of the starch used in the country. Consequently, it is imperative to find additional sources of starch that could substitute for the amount of starch that is currently being imported. Mango seeds, a waste material that is disposed of after consumption of mangos, were studied for potential use as an alternative resource for starch production. The results showed that starch extraction from mango seeds was facile and a good quality product was obtained. The present study is concerned with a techno-economic analysis for industrial production of starch from mango seeds. The study shows that extraction of starch from waste mango seeds is feasible: the project is financially viable with an accounting rate of return of 83% and a break-even analysis of 78% with a payback period of 2 years.     

Towards 3D Bioprinted Spinal Cord Organoids

Three-dimensional (3D) cultures, so-called organoids, have emerged as an attractive tool for disease modeling and therapeutic innovations. Here, we aim to determine if boundary cap neural crest stem cells (BC) can survive and differentiate in gelatin-based 3D bioprinted bioink scaffolds in order to establish an enabling technology for the fabrication of spinal cord organoids on a chip. BC previously demonstrated the ability to support survival and differentiation of co-implanted or co-cultured cells and supported motor neuron survival in excitotoxically challenged spinal cord slice cultures. We tested different combinations of bioink and cross-linked material, analyzed the survival of BC on the surface and inside the scaffolds, and then tested if human iPSC-derived neural cells (motor neuron precursors and astrocytes) can be printed with the same protocol, which was developed for BC. We showed that this protocol is applicable for human cells. Neural differentiation was more prominent in the peripheral compared to central parts of the printed construct, presumably because of easier access to differentiation-promoting factors in the medium. These findings show that the gelatin-based and enzymatically cross-linked hydrogel is a suitable bioink for building a multicellular, bioprinted spinal cord organoid, but that further measures are still required to achieve uniform neural differentiation.     

Alpha-Synuclein Autoimmune Decline in Prodromal Multiple System Atrophy and Parkinson’s Disease

Multiple-system trophy (MSA) and Parkinson’s Disease (PD) are both progressive, neurodegenerative diseases characterized by neuropathological deposition of aggregated alpha-synuclein (αSyn). The causes behind this aggregation are still unknown. We have reported aberrancies in MSA and PD patients in naturally occurring autoantibodies (nAbs) against αSyn (anti-αSyn-nAbs), which are important partakers in anti-aggregatory processes, immune-mediated clearance, and anti-inflammatory functions. To elaborate further on the timeline of autoimmune aberrancies towards αSyn, we investigated here the Immunoglobulin (Ig) affinity profile and subclass composition (IgG-total, IgG1-4 and IgM) of anti-αSyn-nAbs in serum samples from prodromal (p) phases of MSA and PD. Using an electrochemiluminescence competition immunoassay, we confirmed that the repertoire of high-affinity anti-αSyn-nAbs is significantly reduced in pMSA and pPD. Further, we demonstrated that pPD had increased anti-αSyn IgG-total levels compared to pMSA and controls, concordant with increased anti-αSyn IgG1 levels in pPD. Anti-αSyn IgG2 and IgG4 levels were reduced in pMSA and pPD compared with controls, whereas anti-αSyn IgG3 levels were reduced in pMSA compared to pPD and controls. The results indicate that the impaired reactivity towards αSyn occurs prior to disease onset. The apparent lack of high-affinity anti-αSyn nAbs may result in reduced clearance of αSyn, leading to aggregation of the protein. Thus, this study provides novel insights into possible causes behind the pathogenesis in synucleinopathies such as MSA and PD.     

Enabling Coarse X-ray Fluorescence Imaging Scans with Enlarged Synchrotron Beam by Means of Mosaic Crystal Defocusing Optics

Trace elements, functionalized nanoparticles and labeled entities can be localized with sub-mm spatial resolution by X-ray fluorescence imaging (XFI). Here, small animals are raster scanned with a pencil-like synchrotron beam of high energy and low divergence and the X-ray fluorescence is recorded with an energy-dispersive detector. The ability to first perform coarse scans to identify regions of interest, followed by a close-up with a sub-mm X-ray beam is desirable, because overall measurement time and X-ray dose absorbed by the (biological) specimen can thus be minimized. However, the size of X-ray beams at synchrotron beamlines is usually strongly dependent on the actual beamline setup and can only be adapted within specific pre-defined limits. Especially, large synchrotron beams are non-trivial to generate. Here, we present the concept of graphite-based, convex reflection optics for the one-dimensional enlargement of a 1 mm wide synchrotron beam by a factor of 5 to 10 within a 1 m distance. Four different optics are tested and characterized and their reflection properties compared to ray tracing simulations. The general shape and size of the measured reflection profiles agree with expectations. Enhancements with respect to homogeneity and efficiency can be expected with improved optics manufacturing. A mouse phantom is used for a proof-of-principle XFI experiment demonstrating the applicability of coarse and fine scans with the suggested optics design.     

Effects of Long-Term Temozolomide Treatment on Glioblastoma and Astrocytoma WHO Grade 4 Stem-like Cells

Glioblastoma leads to a fatal course within two years in more than two thirds of patients. An essential cornerstone of therapy is chemotherapy with temozolomide (TMZ). The effect of TMZ is counteracted by the cellular repair enzyme O⁶-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT). The MGMT promoter methylation, the main regulator of MGMT expression, can change from primary tumor to recurrence, and TMZ may play a significant role in this process. To identify the potential mechanisms involved, three primary stem-like cell lines (one astrocytoma with the mutation of the isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH), CNS WHO grade 4 (HGA)), and two glioblastoma (IDH-wildtype, CNS WHO grade 4) were treated with TMZ. The MGMT promoter methylation, migration, proliferation, and TMZ-response of the tumor cells were examined at different time points. The strong effects of TMZ treatment on the MGMT methylated cells were observed. Furthermore, TMZ led to a loss of the MGMT promoter hypermethylation and induced migratory rather than proliferative behavior. Cells with the unmethylated MGMT promoter showed more aggressive behavior after treatment, while HGA cells reacted heterogenously. Our study provides further evidence to consider the potential adverse effects of TMZ chemotherapy and a rationale for investigating potential relationships between TMZ treatment and change in the MGMT promoter methylation during relapse.     

Antibacterial Surface Coatings from Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Embedded in Poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) Hydrogel Surface Layers

Despite multiple research approaches to prevent bacterial colonization on surfaces, device‐associated infections are currently responsible for about 50% of nosocomial infections in Europe and significantly increase health care costs, which demands development of advanced antibacterial surface coatings. Here, novel antimicrobial composite materials incorporating zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NP) into biocompatible poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) hydrogel layers are prepared by mixing the PNIPAAm prepolymer with ZnO NP, followed by spin‐coating and photocrosslinking. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterization of the composite film morphology reveals a homogeneous distribution of the ZnO NP throughout the film for every applied NP/polymer ratio. The optical properties of the embedded NP are not affected by the matrix as confirmed by UV‐vis spectroscopy. The nanocomposite films exhibit bactericidal behavior towards Escherichia coli (E. coli) for a ZnO concentration as low as ≈0.74 μg cm^?2 (1.33 mmol cm^?3), which is determined by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. In contrast, the coatings are found to be non‐cytotoxic towards a mammalian cell line (NIH/3T3) at bactericidal loadings of ZnO over an extended period of seven days. The differential toxicity of the ZnO/hydrogel nanocomposite thin films between bacterial and cellular species qualifies them as promising candidates for novel biomedical device coatings.