Cell-mediated immunological responses in cervical and vaginal cancer patients immunized with a lipidated epitope of human papillomavirus type 16 E7

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection has been causally associated with cervical cancer. We tested the effectiveness of an HLA-A*0201-restricted, HPV-16 E7 lipopeptide vaccine in eliciting cellular immune responses in vivo in women with refractory cervical cancer. In a nonrandomized Phase I clinical trial, 12 women expressing the HLA-A2 allele with refractory cervical or vaginal cancer were vaccinated with four E786-93 lipopeptide inoculations at 3-week intervals. HLA-A2 subtyping was also performed, and HPV typing was assessed on tumor specimens. Induction of epitope-specific CD8+ T-lymphocyte (CTL) responses was analyzed using peripheral blood leukapheresis specimens obtained before and after vaccination. CTL specificity was measured by IFN-gamma release assay using HLA-A*0201 matched target cells. Clinical responses were assessed by physical examination and radiographic images. All HLA-A*0201 patients were able to mount a cellular immune response to a control peptide. E786-93-specific CTLs were elicited in 4 of 10 evaluable HLA-A*0201 subjects before vaccination, 5 of 7 evaluable HLA-A*0201 patients after two vaccinations, and 2 of 3 evaluable HLA-A*0201 cultures after all four inoculations. Two of three evaluable patients' CTLs converted from unreactive to reactive after administration of all four inoculations. There were no clinical responses or treatment toxicities. The ability to generate specific cellular immune responses is retained in patients with advanced cervical cancer. Vaccination with a lipidated HPV peptide epitope appears capable of safely augmenting CTL reactivity. Although enhancements of cellular immune responses are needed to achieve therapeutic utility in advanced cervical cancer, this approach might prove useful in treating preinvasive disease.     

Effect of Thickness on the Structure and Tribological Properties of MoSx Coating

MoSx coatings were prepared by bipolar-pulse DC unbalanced magnetron-sputtering system with the variation of coating thickness at different Ar pressures.The composition and surface morphology were determined by using energy dispersive X-ray and scanning electron microscopy;the structural characterization was analyzed by X-ray diffraction.The friction and wear properties were investigated by fretting tests in air with less than 10% and 50% relative humidity.At 0.40 Pa pressure,(002) basal plane orientation was formed throughout the coatings.At 0.88 Pa and 1.60 Pa pressures,(002) basal plane orientation was only noticed in the first stage of coating growth(around 0.20 μm in thickness), and then edge orientations with their basal planes perpendicular to the surface would be evolved in the coatings.Humidity has a minor influence on the coatings that have(002) basal plane orientation,whereas the tribological properties of MoSx coatings with edge orientations are greatly affected by humidity.The mechanisms of coating growth and friction and wear processes are discussed.     

Comparison of tribological properties of industrial low friction coatings

MX2(M= Mo, W; X=S, Se) and DLC (a-C: H and WC/C) are the two kinds of typical low friction coatings widely used in industry. The friction and wear properties of these two kinds of coatings marked as MOVIC,MOST, MoSez/Ni, WSez, a-C: H and WC/C coatings were determined by fretting tests in ambient air of different humidity. The results show that the coefficient of friction of MXz coatings increases when the relative humidity of air increases whereas the coefficient of friction DLC coatings decreases with the increasing of relative humidity. MOVIC and WSe2 coatings have a poor friction and wear resistance because of non-basal planes (100) and ( 101 ) parallel to the surface in the MOVIC coating, or the rough and porous surface of WSe2 coatings. Among these six coatings, MoSe2/Ni and WC/C eoatinas have the highest wear resistance which seems to be unaffected by the relative humidity.     

Effect of substrate pretreatment on the porosity in thin nickel electrodeposits

Substrate pretreatment affects the porosity of thin nickel electrolytic coatings which is a combined function of the composition and the roughness of the substrate surface. Electropolishing the substrate surface is an effective method of reducing coating porosity, whereas coatings plated on either electroetched or mechanically ground substrates are relatively porous owing to the remaining oxide layer on the substrate and the increased roughness of the substrate. For nickel coatings plated on mechanically ground rough substrates, the relationship between nickel porosity, apparent coating thickness and substrate roughness has been examined.     

Wear failure of a leaded bronze bearing: Correlation between plant experience and laboratory wear test data

This paper describes an investigation on the failure of a large leaded bronze bearing that supports a nine-ton roller of a plastic calendering machine. At the end of the normal service life of a good bearing, which lasted for seven years, a new bearing was installed. However the new one failed catastrophically within a few days, generating a huge amount of metallic wear debris and causing pitting on the surface of the cast iron roller. Following the failure, samples were collected from both good and failed bearings. The samples were analyzed chemically and their microstructures examined. Both samples were subjected to accelerated wear tests in a laboratory type pin-on-disk apparatus. During the tests, the bearing materials acted as pins, which were pressed against a rotating cast iron disk. The wear behaviors of both bearing materials were studied using weight loss measurement. The worn surfaces of samples and the wear debris were examined by light optical microscope, scanning electron microscope, and energy-dispersive x-ray microanalyzer. It was found that the laboratory pin-on-disk wear data correlated well with the plant experience. It is suggested that the higher lead content (∼18%) of the good bearing compared with 7% lead of the failed bearing helped to establish a protective transfer layer on the worn surface. This transfer layer reduced metal-to-metal contact between the bearing and the roller and resulted in a lower wear rate. The lower lead content of the failed bearing does not allow the establishment of a well-protected transfer layer and leads to rapid wear.     

Biofilm development during the start-up of a sulfate-reducing down-flow fluidized bed reactor at different COD/SO4(2-) ratios and HRT

In sulfate-reducing reactors, it has been reported that the sulfate removal efficiency increases when the COD/SO4(2-) ratio is increased. The start-up of a down-flow fluidized bed reactor constitutes an important step to establish a microbial community in the biofilm able to survive under the operational bioreactor conditions in order to achieve effective removal of both sulfate and organic matter. In this work the influence of COD/SO4(2-) ratio and HRT in the development of a biofilm during reactor start-up (35 days) was studied. The reactor was inoculated with 1.6 g VSS/L of granular sludge, ground low density polyethylene was used as support material; the feed consisted of mineral medium at pH 5.5 containing 1 g COD/L (acetate:lactate, 70:30) and sodium sulfate. Four experiments were conducted at HRT of 1 or 2 days and COD/SO4(2-) ratio of 0.67 or 2.5. The results obtained indicated that a COD/SO4(2-) ratio of 2.5 and HRT 2 days allowed high sulfate and COD removal (66.1 and 69.8%, respectively), whereas maximum amount of attached biomass (1.9 g SVI/L support) and highest sulfate reducing biofilm activity (10.1 g COD-H2S/g VSS-d) was achieved at HRT of 1 day and at COD/sulfate ratios of 0.67 and 2.5, respectively, which suggests that suspended biomass also played a key role in the performance of the reactors.     

Gammagraphy of the carotid glomus

Using the colorant proteic complex labell with Tc-99 m. we visualize--by the first time--the carotideal glomus in the human in 6 volunteers and one patient with tumor. The results are very encorageous: the method was simple and safe (one single dose endovenously) and hardless (no radiotoxicity presents in 3 months of clinical and laboratory controls) and there is a good visualization by scan of carotideal bodies "in vivo", in human being. We think this new method and labell compound could be useful in research and medical diagnoses.     

Friction and wear behavior of plasma assisted chemical vapor deposited nanocomposites made of metal nanoparticles embedded in a hydrogenated amorphous carbon matrix

Nanocomposite coatings consisting of preformed silver or chromium nanoparticles embedded into a hydrogenated amorphous carbon matrix (a-C:H) were synthesized by Electron Cyclotron Resonance plasma assisted Chemical Vapor Deposition (ECR-CVD). In a first step, the nanoparticles were distributed on silicon substrates by dipping in an ethanol suspension. In a second step, the ECR-CVD deposition of the a-C:H layer was done. The effect of the incorporation and the concentration on the friction and wear behavior was derived from unlubricated reciprocating sliding tests performed in ambient air. A decrease in the coefficient of friction, more intense with Cr incorporation, is induced by the preferential metal interaction with environment. In addition, for both metals, the coefficient of friction becomes lower as the metal concentration increases. A gradual increase in the coefficient of friction is detected for increasing the number of sliding cycles, which is attributed to the combined effect of surface smoothing and oxidation in the sliding contact. In conclusion, the valuable protective properties of the fullerene-like a-C:H coatings are enhanced by metal addition. As a consequence, a considerable reduction of the surface roughness and the volume loss in the wear tracks is especially noticeable for 10,000 cycles tests.     

Influence of Deposition Conditions on the Crystal Structure of MoS2 Coating

MoS2 coatings were prepared using an unbalanced bipolar pulsed DC （direct current） magnetron sputtering apparatus under different targets, cathode current densities, power modes and bias voltages. The morphology, structure and growth characteristics of MoS2 coatings were observed and identified respectively by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry and mass spectrometry. The results show that MoS2 coatings evolve with the （002） basal plane parallel to the surface by using cold pressed target with lower density, lower cathodic current density, bipolar pulse DC power and minus bias voltage, whereas the coatings deposited under hot pressed target, higher cathodic current density, simple DC power and positive bias voltage have the （002） basal plane perpendicular to the surface. The influence of deposition conditions on the crystal structure of MoS2 coating is implemented by altering its growth rate and the energy of sputtering-deposition particles.