Hydraulic reactivity and cement formation of baghdadite

In this study, the hydraulic reactivity and cement formation of baghdadite (Ca₃ZrSi₂O₉) was investigated. The material was synthesized by sintering a mixture of CaCO₃, SiO₂, and ZrO₂ and then mechanically activated using a planetary mill. This leads to a decrease in particle and crystallite size and a partial amorphization of baghdadite as shown by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and laser diffraction measurements. Baghdadite cements were formed by the addition of water at a powder to liquid ratio of 2.0 g/ml. Maximum compressive strengths were found to be ~2 MPa after 3-day setting for a 24-h ground material. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) measurements showed an incongruent dissolution profile of set cements with a preferred dissolution of calcium and only marginal release of zirconium ions. Cement formation occurs under alkaline conditions, whereas the unground raw powder leads to a pH of 11.9 during setting, while prolonged grinding increased pH values to approximately 12.3.     

Commenting in the Online Arab Public Sphere: Debating the Swiss Minaret Ban and the “Ground Zero Mosque” Online

This article focuses on the emerging online Arab public sphere that the web has enabled. It explores how the “local” interacts with the “global,” critically examining their implications on global politics. Specifically looking at online readers' comments about the Swiss minaret ban the so‐called “Ground Zero Mosque,” how does the Arab online public sphere respond to and frame these issues? What implications do these reader frames portend locally and globally? The study analyzes online comments and responses that readers of Al Arabiya.net and Al Jazeera.net posted on related news articles. The article concludes that the new online public sphere does make it possible for Arab citizens to circumvent and challenge traditional authoritarian controls.     

Rapid real-time generation of super-resolution hyperspectral images through compressive sensing and GPU

Recently, compressive sensing (CS) has offered a new framework whereby a signal can be recovered from a small number of noisy non-adaptive samples. This is now an active area of research in many image-processing applications, especially super-resolution. CS algorithms are widely known to be computationally expensive. This paper studies a real time super-resolution reconstruction method based on the compressive sampling matching pursuit (CoSaMP) algorithm for hyperspectral images. CoSaMP is an iterative compressive sensing method based on the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP). Multi-spectral images record enormous volumes of data that are required in practical modern remote-sensing applications. A proposed implementation based on the graphical processing unit (GPU) has been developed for CoSaMP using computed unified device architecture (CUDA) and the cuBLAS library. The CoSaMP algorithm is divided into interdependent parts with respect to complexity and potential for parallelization. The proposed implementation is evaluated in terms of reconstruction error for different state-of-the-art super-resolution methods. Various experiments were conducted using real hyperspectral images collected by Earth Observing-1 (EO-1), and experimental results demonstrate the speeding up of the proposed GPU implementation and compare it to the sequential CPU implementation and state-of-the-art techniques. The speeding up of the GPU-based implementation is up to approximately 70 times faster than the corresponding optimized CPU.     

A green approach for modification and functionalization of wool fabric using bio- and nano-technologies

In the present work, we propose a green and sustainable strategy for eco-friendly surface modification of wool structure using biosynthesized kerationlytic proteases, from C4-ITA-EGY, Streptomyces harbinensis S11-ITA-EGY and Streptomyces carpaticus S33-ITA-EGY, followed by subsequent environmentally sound functionalization of the bio-treated substrates using ZnONPs, ZrO₂NPs, ascorbic acid and vanillin, individually, to provide durable antibacterial as well as UV-protection properties. Both surface modification changes and the extent of functionalization of the final products were characterized by SEM, EDX, antibacterial efficacy, UV-blocking ability, loss in weight, nitrogen content and durability to washing analysis. The obtained data reveal that the developed green wool fabrics exhibit outstanding durable antibacterial activity and UV-blocking ability for fabricating multi-functional textile products that can be utilized in a wide range of sustainable protective textiles, irrespective of the used post-finishing formulation ingredients. The results also show that both modification and functionalization processes are governed by the type of enzyme and kind of active material respectively. Moreover, the biosynthesized kerationlytic proteases could be accessibly used to remove protein-based stains like blood and egg.

Graphical abstract

     

EAPB0503, an Imidazoquinoxaline Derivative Modulates SENP3/ARF Mediated SUMOylation,and Induces NPM1c Degradation in NPM1 Mutant AML

Nucleophosmin-1 (NPM1) is a pleiotropic protein involved in numerous cellular processes. NPM1 shuttles between the nucleus and the cytoplasm, but exhibits a predominant nucleolar localization, where its fate and functions are exquisitely controlled by dynamic post-translational modifications (PTM). Sentrin/SUMO Specific Peptidase 3 (SENP3) and ARF are two nucleolar proteins involved in NPM1 PTMs. SENP3 antagonizes ARF-mediated NPM1 SUMOylation, to promote ribosomal biogenesis. In Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), NPM1 is frequently mutated, and exhibits an aberrant cytoplasmic localization (NPM1c). NPM1c mutations define a separate AML entity with good prognosis in some AML patients, rendering NPM1c as a potential therapeutic target. SENP3-mediated NPM1 de-SUMOylation induces resistance to therapy in NPM1c AML. Here, we demonstrate that the imidazoquinoxaline EAPB0503 prolongs the survival and results in selective reduction in the leukemia burden of NPM1c AML xenograft mice. Indeed, EAPB0503 selectively downregulates HDM2 expression and activates the p53 pathway in NPM1c expressing cells, resulting in apoptosis. Importantly, we unraveled that NPM1c expressing cells exhibit low basal levels of SUMOylation paralleled with high SENP3 and low ARF basal levels. EAPB0503 reverted these molecular players by inducing NPM1c SUMOylation and ubiquitylation, leading to its proteasomal degradation. EAPB0503-induced NPM1c SUMOylation is concurrent with SENP3 downregulation and ARF upregulation in NPM1c expressing cells. Collectively, these results provide a strong rationale for testing therapies modulating NPM1c post-translational modifications in the management of NPM1c AML.     

Rennet coagulation of buffalo milk as affected by some factors

Thrombelastograph was used to measure the rennet coagulation properties of buffalo milk. The combined effect of pH with temperature fat and protein contents, addition of whey protein concentrat (WPC) and sodium chloride on rennet coagulation (r) and clot forming (K₂₀) times were evaluated. The fat content had little effect on r or K₂₀ compared to pH. Increasing temperature from 30 to 40 °C or the protein content of UF milk retentate from 3 to 12% decreased K₂₀ and K₂₀ of buffalo milk. The K₂₀ was greatly affected by the replacement of casein with 10, 20, 30 and 40% WPC while r was less affected. Addition of sodium chloride (2–10%) increased and K₂₀ and the effect was more pronounced at low pH. The relations between the studied factors and r and K₂₀ of buffalo milk were calculated and discussed.     

Oryctes monoceros Trapping with Synthetic Pheromone and Palm Material in Ivory Coast

Oryctes monoceros is the most serious pest in coconut plantations, causing up to 40% damage in tropical Africa, especially in Ivory Coast. With a view to reducing pest populations by olfactory trapping, field trials were carried out to assess the efficiency of a synthetic aggregation pheromone: ethyl 4-methyloctanoate (1), 4-methyloctanoic acid (2), a related volatile produced by males, and decaying palm material, either oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFB) or pieces of coconut wood (CW) of various ages. Vertical polyvinyl chloride tube traps (2 × 0.16 m with two openings in the upper half), embedded in the soil, were more efficient than 30-L pail traps 1.5 m above ground. EFB, which were inactive alone, synergized captures with synthetic pheromone. CW was more effective than EFB in comparative trials. Compound 2 did not catch any beetles when assessed with EFB, and reduced catches by 1 + EFB when tested at >10% with the pheromone. Trapping over 6 mo in 2002 and 2003 in a 19-ha coconut plot inside a 4,000-ha oil palm estate reduced damage from 3.8% in 2001 to 0.5% in 2002, then to 0.2% in 2003. Damage was 0.0% in 2004 with routine trapping using 32 traps, which caught 3369 beetles in 9 mo. The results are discussed in relation to other Dynastid palm pests and coconut protection in Ivory Coast.     

Polymerization kinetics of indene, methyl methacrylate and acrylonitrile and characterization of their terpolymer

The free radical terpolymerization of indene (In), methyl methacrylate (MMA) and acrylonitrile (AN) has been investigated. The rate of polymerization of all the binary systems involved has been measured dilatometrically for the homogeneous polymerization. The reactivity ratios of the three binary systems were calculated and were found to be equal to 0.031 and 0.397 for In/AN copolymers and 0.02 and 3.82 for In/MMA copolymers and finally 0.152 and 1.20 for AN/MMA copolymers. The rate of terpolymerization in bulk has been measured as well as the relationship between the monomer mixture composition and the obtained terpolymer in order to construct the compositional triangle. Also the effect of initiator concentration on the rate of terpolymerization was investigated. The activation energy of terpolymerization was determined. The terpolymers were characterized by spectral and thermo-gravimetric analyses. The data indicates that polyindene improves the thermal stability of the prepared terpolymers.