Towards the integration of dark- and photo-fermentative waste treatment. 2. Optimization of starch-dependent fermentative hydrogen production

Eight natural microbial consortia collected from different sites were tested for dark, hydrogen production during starch degradation. The most active consortium was from silo pit liquid under mesophilic (37 °C) conditions. The fermentation medium for this consortium was optimized (Fe, NH₄⁺, phosphates, peptone, and starch content) for both dark fermentation and for subsequent purple photosynthetic bacterial H₂ photoproduction [Laurinavichene TV, Tekucheva DN, Laurinavichius KS, Ghirardi ML, Seibert M, Tsygankov AA. Towards the integration of dark and photo fermentative waste treatment. 1. Hydrogen photoproduction by purple bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus using potential products of starch fermentation. Int J Hydrogen Energy 2008;33(23):7020–26], in the presence of the spent dark, fermentation effluent. The addition of Zn (10 mg L⁻¹), as a methanogenesis inhibitor that does not inhibit purple bacteria at this concentration, also did not inhibit dark, fermentative H₂ production. The influence of various fermentation end products at different concentrations (up to 30 g L⁻¹) on dark, H₂ production was also examined. Added lactate stimulated, but added isobutyrate and butanol strongly inhibited gas production. Under optimal conditions the fermentation of starch (30 g L⁻¹) resulted in 5.7 L H₂ L⁻¹ of culture (1.6 mol H₂ per mole of hexose) with the co-production mainly of butyrate and acetate.     

Application of predictive control methods for Radio telescope disk rotation control

Radio telescope (RT) installations are highly valuable assets and during the period of their service life they need regular repair and maintenance to be carried out for delivering satisfactory performance and minimizing downtime. Same down time can be expected during machinery usage. Constant control of telescope rotation angle is done manually using visual inspection of hardware. The accuracy of this procedure is very low, therefore, automation and computer control systems are required. With the growing automation technologies, predictive control can prove to be a better approach than the traditionally applied visual inspection policy and linear control models. In this paper, Irbene Radio telescope RT-16 disk rotation control motors are analysed using control voltage from the converters. Retrieved data from the small DC motor is used for the predictive control approach using two different methods: a neural network trained with Basic Levenberg-Marquardt method and a linear model. A multilayer perceptron network approach is used for prediction of the indicator voltage output which affects the monitoring of the disk rotating angle. Finally, an experimental control system was proposed and installed using National Instruments equipment.     

Towards the integration of dark and photo fermentative waste treatment. 1. Hydrogen photoproduction by purple bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus using potential products of starch fermentation

In this study, the H₂-photoproduction capacity of Rhodobacter capsulatus B10 was measured as a function of variations in the nature and concentration of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and other products of dark fermentation. When an equimolar mixture of VFAs was provided, C4 substrates (butyrate and isobutyrate) were not consumed until the C2–C3 substrates (acetate, propionate, and lactate) became unavailable, but in order for the cells to produce H₂ at high rates they could not be exposed to severe growth substrate depletion. Among other possible fermentation products, the highest inhibition was observed by the addition of butanol (50% inhibition at 50 mM). The influence of high concentrations of VFAs, phosphate (used to stabilize the pH during dark fermentation) and some heavy metals (known inhibitors of methanogenesis) was also shown. Based on the results, the conditions of fermentation can be manipulated to avoid the inhibition of subsequent H₂ photoproduction by photosynthetic bacteria.     

Melatonin and Glycine Reduce Uterus Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in a Rat Model of Warm Ischemia

Ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) remains a significant problem to be solved in uterus transplantation (UTx). Melatonin and glycine have been shown to possess direct cytoprotective activities, mainly due to their antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects of melatonin and glycine and their combination on IRI in a rat model of warm ischemia. In this study, Sprague-Dawley rats were assigned to eight groups, including sham and IRI (n = 80). Melatonin and glycine alone or their combination were administered prior to 1 h of uterus ischemia followed by 1 h of reperfusion. Melatonin (50 mg/kg) was administered via gavage 2 h before IRI and glycine in an enriched diet for 5 days prior to intervention. Uterus IRI was estimated by histology, including immunohistochemistry, and biochemical tissue analyses. Histology revealed that uterus IRI was significantly attenuated by pretreatment with melatonin (p = 0.019) and glycine (p = 0.044) alone as well as their combination (p = 0.003). Uterus IRI led to increased myeloperoxidase expression, which was significantly reduced by melatonin (p = 0.004), glycine (p < 0.001) or their combination (p < 0.001). The decline in superoxide dismutase activity was significantly reduced in the melatonin (p = 0.027), glycine (p = 0.038) and combined treatment groups (p = 0.015) when compared to the IRI control group. In conclusion, melatonin, glycine and their combination significantly reduced oxidative stress-induced cell damage after IRI in a small animal warm ischemia model, and, therefore, clinical studies are required to evaluate the protective effects of these well-characterized substances in uterus IRI.     

Atomic layer deposition of aluminum oxide films for carbon nanotube network transistor passivation

Ultra-thin (2-5 nm thick) aluminum oxide layers were grown on non-functionalized individual single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and their bundles by atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique in order to investigate the mechanism of the coating process. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to examine the uniformity and conformality of the coatings grown at different temperatures (80 degrees C or 220 degrees C) and with different precursors for oxidation (water and ozone). We found that bundles of SWCNTs were coated continuously, but at the same time, bare individual nanotubes remained uncoated. The successful coating of bundles was explained by the formation of interstitial pores between the individual SWCNTs constituting the bundle, where the precursor molecules can adhere, initiating the layer growth. Thicker alumina layers (20-35 nm thick) were used for the coating of bottom-gated SWCNT-network based field effect transistors (FETs). ALD layers, grown at different conditions, were found to influence the performance of the SWCNT-network FETs: low temperature ALD layers caused the ambipolarity of the channel and pronounced n-type conduction, whereas high temperature ALD processes resulted in hysteresis suppression in the transfer characteristics of the SWCNT transistors and preserved p-type conduction. Fixed charges in the ALD layer have been considered as the main factor influencing the conduction change of the SWCNT network based transistors.     

Quality evaluation of the appearance of virtual close-fitting woven garments

The goal of this research was to investigate the quality of the appearance of close-fitting virtual garment with respect to textile materials’ mechanical (tensile, bending, shear and surface) properties. During the research, the panel of experienced experts was rating visual quality of virtual dresses which were simulated with the help of Modaris 3D Fit (Lectra) software. The objects of the investigations were 100% cotton and cotton-blended woven fabrics. Mechanical properties were defined by Kawabata Measurement System, main part of which is based on uniaxial testing. Mannequin of standard size 164–92–96 was covered with close-fitting virtual dress. The fit evaluation of virtual garment was performed on the basis of local tensile strains at 11 points in warp, weft and bias directions. Simulation results of close-fitted garment showed that mechanical characteristics of selected materials effect strain distribution and the quality of garment appearance. It was defined that tensile properties (tensile strain and tensile energy) of textile materials in weft direction had the strongest effect.     

Probiotic Supplementation Suppresses Tumor Growth in an Experimental Colorectal Cancer Liver Metastasis Model

Colorectal cancer (CRC) ranks third in incidence and second in mortality of all cancers worldwide. At the time of primary diagnosis, around 20% of patients already have metastatic CRC and only around 20% are candidates for radical resection. Thus, most of the patients have to undergo chemotherapy (CTx). Due to chemoresistance and side effects, novel treatment additives are crucial for controlling the disease and prolonging patient survival. The aim of this study was to evaluate probiotic supplementation and its antitumorigenic effects in an experimental CRC liver metastasis model. Six-week-old male Wistar rats received either a multispecies probiotic (1.2 × 10⁹ CFU/daily) or placebo mixture. On day 14 of the experiment, rat CRC cells (CC531) were implanted under the liver capsule later treated by FOLFOX CTx. Change in tumor volume was measured by performing micro computed tomography (micro-CT) scanning on experimental days 28 and 34. Additionally, immunohistochemical staining with anti-MPO, anti-Ki67, and anti-CD31 were performed. Tumor apoptosis was evaluated using TUNEL staining. Micro-CT image analysis indicates that probiotic supplementation significantly inhibits tumor growth. No synergistic effects between probiotic supplementation and FOLFOX CTx was observed. Reduced tumor volume was achieved by inhibiting angiogenesis, as tumor microvascular density was significantly lower in rats receiving probiotic supplementation. This study shows that a multispecies probiotic mixture significantly reduces angiogenesis and inhibits CRC liver metastasis growth in an experimental rat model.     

Relaxin and Erythropoietin Significantly Reduce Uterine Tissue Damage during Experimental Ischemia–Reperfusion Injury

Successful uterus transplantation, a potential treatment method for women suffering from absolute uterine infertility, is negatively affected by ischemia–reperfusion injury (IRI). The aim of this study is to investigate the protective effect of relaxin (RLX) or/and erythropoietin (EPO) on experimental uterus IRI. Eighty rats, randomly assigned into eight groups (n = 10/group), were pretreated with either saline, 5 μg/kg human relaxin-2, 4000 IU/kg recombinant human erythropoietin or their combination. Ischemia was achieved by clamping the aorta and ovarian arteries for 60 min, following 120 min of reperfusion and tissue sampling. For sham animals, clamping was omitted during surgery. There were no differences in tissue histological score, malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, myeloperoxidase (MPO) and TUNEL-positive cell count between all sham-operated rats. Pretreatment with RLX preserved normal tissue morphology, reduced MDA levels, MPO and TUNEL-positive cell count, preserved SOD activity and upregulated NICD and HES1 gene expression when compared to the control group. Pretreatment with EPO reduced MDA levels. In conclusion, pretreatment with RLX, EPO or a combination of both EPO and RLX significantly alleviates uterine tissue damage caused by IRI.     

Functional fault models for non-scan sequential circuits

The paper presents two functional fault models that are applied for functional delay test generation for non-scan synchronous sequential circuits: the pin pair state (PPS) fault model and the pin pair full state (PPFS) fault model. The PPS fault model deals with the pairs of stuck-at faults on the primary inputs and the primary outputs, as well as, with the pairs of stuck-at faults on the previous state bits and the primary outputs. The PPFS fault model encompasses the PPS model, and additionally deals with the pairs of stuck-at faults on the primary inputs and the next state bits, as well as, with the pairs of stuck-at faults on the previous state bits and the next state bits. The main factor in assessing the quality of obtained test sequences was the transition fault coverage at the gate level of the selected according to the appropriate fault model test sequences from the generated randomly ones. The experimental results demonstrate that the implementation using presented functional fault models allow selecting the test sequences from the initial test set without the loss of transition fault coverage in many cases, and the number of the selected test sequences is much lesser than that of the initial test set. This result demonstrates that the functional delay test can be generated using the presented functional delay fault models before structural synthesis of the circuit.     

Tissue-Based Markers as a Tool to Assess Response to Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy in Rectal Cancer—Systematic Review

According to current guidelines, the current treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer is neoadjuvant therapy, followed by a total mesorectal excision. However, radiosensitivity tends to differ among patients due to tumor heterogeneity, making it difficult to predict the possible outcomes of the neoadjuvant therapy. This review aims to investigate different types of tissue-based biomarkers and their capability of predicting tumor response to neoadjuvant therapy in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer. We identified 169 abstracts in NCBI PubMed, selected 48 reports considered to meet inclusion criteria and performed this systematic review. Multiple classes of molecular biomarkers, such as proteins, DNA, micro-RNA or tumor immune microenvironment, were studied as potential predictors for rectal cancer response; nonetheless, no literature to date has provided enough sufficient evidence for any of them to be introduced into clinical practice.