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Sample records for active growth phase

  1. Nitrogen controlled iron catalyst phase during carbon nanotube growth

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bayer, Bernhard C., E-mail: bernhard.bayer@univie.ac.at [Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0FA (United Kingdom); Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, A-1090 Vienna (Austria); Baehtz, Carsten [Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, D-01314 Dresden (Germany); Kidambi, Piran R.; Weatherup, Robert S.; Caneva, Sabina; Cabrero-Vilatela, Andrea; Hofmann, Stephan [Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0FA (United Kingdom); Mangler, Clemens; Kotakoski, Jani; Meyer, Jannik C. [Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, A-1090 Vienna (Austria); Goddard, Caroline J. L. [Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0FS (United Kingdom)

    2014-10-06

    Close control over the active catalyst phase and hence carbon nanotube structure remains challenging in catalytic chemical vapor deposition since multiple competing active catalyst phases typically co-exist under realistic synthesis conditions. Here, using in-situ X-ray diffractometry, we show that the phase of supported iron catalyst particles can be reliably controlled via the addition of NH{sub 3} during nanotube synthesis. Unlike polydisperse catalyst phase mixtures during H{sub 2} diluted nanotube growth, nitrogen addition controllably leads to phase-pure γ-Fe during pre-treatment and to phase-pure Fe{sub 3}C during growth. We rationalize these findings in the context of ternary Fe-C-N phase diagram calculations and, thus, highlight the use of pre-treatment- and add-gases as a key parameter towards controlled carbon nanotube growth.

  2. Grain nucleation and growth during phase transformations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Offerman, S.E.; Dijk, N.H. van; Sietsma, J.

    2002-01-01

    of individual grains. Our measurements show that the activation energy for grain nucleation is at least two orders of magnitude smaller than that predicted by thermodynamic models. The observed growth curves of the newly formed grains confirm the parabolic growth model but also show three fundamentally...... different types of growth. Insight into the grain nucleation and growth mechanisms during phase transformations contributes to the development of materials with optimal mechanical properties....

  3. Bulk water phase and biofilm growth in drinking water at low nutrient conditions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Boe-Hansen, Rasmus; Albrechtsen, Hans-Jørgen; Arvin, Erik

    2002-01-01

    , and cell-specific leucine incorporation rate. Bacteria in the bulk water phase incubated without the presence of biofilmexhibited a bacterial growth rate of 0.30 day1. The biofilmwas radioactively labelled by the addition of 14C-benzoic acid. Subsequently, a biofilmdetachm ent rate of 0.013 day1...... the formation of a mature quasi-stationary biofilm. At retention times of 12 h, total bacterial counts increased equivalent to a net bacterial growth rate of 0.048 day1. The bulk water phase bacteria exhibited a higher activity than the biofilmbacteria in terms of culturability, cell-specific ATP content......In this study, the bacterial growth dynamics of a drinking water distribution system at low nutrient conditions was studied in order to determine bacterial growth rates by a range of methods, and to compare growth rates in the bulk water phase and the biofilm. A model distribution system was used...

  4. Growth order and activation energies for grain growth of Ti-6Al-4V alloy in β phase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gil, F.J.; Planell, J.A.

    1991-01-01

    This paper reports that one of the reasons usually stated for avoiding annealing treatments and hot working of Ti-6Al-4V alloy at temperatures over the β transus is the large grain growth which takes place at such temperatures. The aim of the present work is to quantify the grain growth kinetics when the alloy is heat treated in its β phase. It is well known that the driving force for grain growth comes from the surface energy of the grain boundaries. When thermal energy is given to the material, diffusion takes place which leads to grain selection. This means that the number of grains decreases, their size increases, the area of the grain boundaries decreases with the total energy stored in them and consequently a state of higher thermodynamic stability is reached

  5. Phase-field crystal simulation facet and branch crystal growth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Zhi; Wang, Zhaoyang; Gu, Xinrui; Chen, Yufei; Hao, Limei; de Wit, Jos; Jin, Kexin

    2018-05-01

    Phase-field crystal model with one mode is introduced to describe morphological transition. The relationship between growth morphology and smooth density distribution was investigated. The results indicate that the pattern selection of dendrite growth is caused by the competition between interface energy anisotropy and interface kinetic anisotropy based on the 2D phase diagram. When the calculation time increases, the crystal grows to secondary dendrite at the dimensionless undercooling equal to - 0.4. Moreover, when noise is introduced in the growth progress, the symmetry is broken in the growth mode, and there becomes irregular fractal-like growth morphology. Furthermore, the single crystal shape develops into polycrystalline when the noise amplitude is large enough. When the dimensionless undercooling is less than - 0.3, the noise has a significant effect on the growth shape. In addition, the growth velocity of crystal near to liquid phase line is slow, while the shape far away from the liquid adapts to fast growth. Based on the simulation results, the method was proved to be effective, and it can easily obtain different crystal shapes by choosing the different points in 2D phase diagram.

  6. Gingival crevicular fluid alkaline phosphatase activity in relation to pubertal growth spurt and dental maturation: A multiple regression study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Perinetti, G.

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: The identification of the onset of the pubertal growth spurt has major clinical implications when dealing with orthodontic treatment in growing subjects. Aim: Through multivariate methods, this study evaluated possible relationships between the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF alkaline phosphatase (ALP activity and pubertal growth spurt and dentition phase. Materials and methods: One hundred healthy growing subjects (62 females, 38 males; mean age, 11.5±2.4 years were enrolled into this doubleblind, prospective, cross-sectional-design study. Phases of skeletal maturation (pre - pubertal, pubertal, post - pubertal was assessed using the cervical vertebral maturation method. Samples of GCF for the ALP activity determination were collected at the mesial and distal sites of the mandibular central incisors. The phases of the dentition were recorded as intermediate mixed, late mixed, or permanent. A multinomial multiple logistic regression model was used to assess relationships of the enzymatic activity to growth phases and dentition phases. Results: The GCF ALP activity was greater in the pubertal growth phase as compared to the pre - pubertal and post - pubertal growth phases. Significant adjusted odds ratios for the GCF ALP activity for the pre - pubertal and post - pubertal subjects, in relation to the pubertal group, were 0.76 and 0.84, respectively. No significant correlations were seen for the dentition phase. Conclusions: The GCF ALP activity is a valid candidate as a non - invasive biomarker for the identification of the pubertal growth spurt irrespective of the dentition phase.

  7. Determination of the rate of crystal growth from the gas phase under conditions of turbulent free convection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alad'Ev, S. I.

    1987-04-01

    Crystal growth in vertical and horizontal cylindrical vials, with the substrate and the source serving as the vial ends, is investigated analytically, assuming that the medium consists of a binary mixture of an active and an inert gas. The active gas is made up of the gaseous products of reactions taking place at the substrate and at the source. It is shown that turbulent free convection leads to an increase in crystal growth rate. All other conditions being equal, crystal growth in vertical vials is greater than that in horizontal ones; in both cases crystal growth rate increases with the vial radius, temperature gradient in the gas phase, and gas phase density. The results are compared with experimental data on the growth of Ge crystals in the Ge-GeI4 system.

  8. Pulsating aurora and cosmic noise absorption associated with growth-phase arcs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. McKay

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The initial stage of a magnetospheric substorm is the growth phase, which typically lasts 1–2 h. During the growth phase, an equatorward moving, east–west extended, optical auroral arc is observed. This is called a growth-phase arc. This work aims to characterize the optical emission and riometer absorption signatures associated with growth-phase arcs of isolated substorms. This is done using simultaneous all-sky camera and imaging riometer observations. The optical and riometric observations allow determination of the location of the precipitation within growth-phase arcs of low- (< 10  keV and high- (>  10 keV energy electrons, respectively. The observations indicate that growth-phase arcs have the following characteristics: 1. The peak of the cosmic noise absorption (CNA arc is equatorward of the optical emission arc. This CNA is contained within the region of diffuse aurora on the equatorward side.2. Optical pulsating aurora are seen in the border region between the diffuse emission region on the equatorward side and the bright growth-phase arc on the poleward side. CNA is detected in the same region. 3. There is no evidence of pulsations in the CNA. 4. Once the equatorward drift starts, it proceeds at constant speed, with uniform separation between the growth-phase arc and CNA of 40 ± 10 km. Optical pulsating aurora are known to be prominent in the post-onset phase of a substorm. The fact that pulsations are also seen in a fairly localized region during the growth phase shows that the substorm expansion-phase dynamics are not required to closely precede the pulsating aurora.

  9. Crystal growth within a phase change memory cell.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sebastian, Abu; Le Gallo, Manuel; Krebs, Daniel

    2014-07-07

    In spite of the prominent role played by phase change materials in information technology, a detailed understanding of the central property of such materials, namely the phase change mechanism, is still lacking mostly because of difficulties associated with experimental measurements. Here, we measure the crystal growth velocity of a phase change material at both the nanometre length and the nanosecond timescale using phase-change memory cells. The material is studied in the technologically relevant melt-quenched phase and directly in the environment in which the phase change material is going to be used in the application. We present a consistent description of the temperature dependence of the crystal growth velocity in the glass and the super-cooled liquid up to the melting temperature.

  10. Bulk water phase and biofilm growth in drinking water at low nutrient conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boe-Hansen, Rasmus; Albrechtsen, Hans-Jørgen; Arvin, Erik; Jørgensen, Claus

    2002-11-01

    In this study, the bacterial growth dynamics of a drinking water distribution system at low nutrient conditions was studied in order to determine bacterial growth rates by a range of methods, and to compare growth rates in the bulk water phase and the biofilm. A model distribution system was used to quantify the effect of retention times at hydraulic conditions similar to those in drinking water distribution networks. Water and pipe wall samples were taken and examined during the experiment. The pipes had been exposed to drinking water at approximately 13 degrees C, for at least 385 days to allow the formation of a mature quasi-stationary biofilm. At retention times of 12 h, total bacterial counts increased equivalent to a net bacterial growth rate of 0.048 day(-1). The bulk water phase bacteria exhibited a higher activity than the biofilm bacteria in terms of culturability, cell-specific ATP content, and cell-specific leucine incorporation rate. Bacteria in the bulk water phase incubated without the presence of biofilm exhibited a bacterial growth rate of 0.30 day(-1). The biofilm was radioactively labelled by the addition of 14C-benzoic acid. Subsequently, a biofilm detachment rate of 0.013 day(-1) was determined by measuring the release of 14C-labelled bacteria of the biofilm. For the quasi-stationary phase biofilm, the detachment rate was equivalent to the net growth rate. The growth rates determined in this study by different independent experimental approaches were comparable and within the range of values reported in the literature.

  11. Global properties of the magnetosphere during a substorm growth phase: A case study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baker, D.N.; Hones, E.W. Jr.; Higbie, P.R.; Belian, R.D.; Stauning, P.

    1981-01-01

    At approximately 0100 UT on December 29, 1976, a large injection of energetic (>30 keV) particles was observed by Los Alamos instrumentation onboard spacecraft 1976--059 (35 0 W longitude) at geostationary orbit. This injection was closely associated with the onset of a major substorm (also at 0100 UT) identified by sharp negative bays in the H components of magnetic records at Leirvogur (22 0 W) and Narssarssuaq (45 0 W) and by the occurrence of a positive H component bay at 0100 UT in the mid-latitude magnetogram record at M'Bour (17 0 W). This substorm expansion onset (and concomitant particle injection) was preceded (between 2330 and 0100 UT) by a pronounced 'stretching' of the magnetic field at synchronous orbit into a taillike configuration and by a development of highly cigarlike (field-aligned) electron distributions at geostationary orbit that we have in the past identified with the substorm growth phase. Of principal importance in this case are two other auxiliary data sets. The first is a well-timed set of DMSP auroral images taken during the course of the growth and expansion phases of the substorm. The images before and during the growth (cigar) phase, including one auroral zone crossing at approx.0050 UT, show quiet aurora with no observable substorm activity in the visible polar region. The second relevant data set is a broad set of riometer data from 13 separate stations in three general meridians (west coast Greenland, east coast Greenland, and northern Scandinavia) from magnetic latitudes of approx.65 0 to approx.90 0 . The riometer data also show clearly that there was no measurable substorm activity anywhere, either in longitude or latitude, as the magnetosphere developed its very stressed, growth-phase configuration prior to substorm expansion onset. These results support the concept of a storage of energy (growth phase) prior to its rapid release at substorm onset

  12. Effect of p53 activation on cell growth, thymidine kinase-1 activity, and 3'-deoxy-3'fluorothymidine uptake

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schwartz, Jeffrey L.; Tamura, Yasuko; Jordan, Robert; Grierson, John R.; Krohn, Kenneth A.

    2004-01-01

    The use of thymidine (TdR) and thymidine analogs such as 3'-deoxy-3'-fluorothymidine (FLT) as positron emission tomography (PET)-based tracers of tumor proliferation rate is based on the hypothesis that measurement of uptake of these nucleosides, a function primarily of thymidine kinase-1 (TK 1 ) activity, provides an accurate measure of cell proliferation in tumors. Tumor growth is influenced by many factors including the oxygen concentration within tumors and whether tumor cells have been exposed to cytotoxic therapies. The p53 gene plays an important role in regulating growth under both of these conditions. The goal of this study was to investigate the influence of p53 activation on cell growth, TK 1 activity, and FLT uptake. To accomplish this, TK 1 activity, S phase fraction, and the uptake of FLT were determined in plateau-phase and exponentially growing cultures of an isogenic pair of human tumor cell lines in which p53 expression was normal or inactivated by human papilloma virus type 16 E6 expression. Ionizing radiation exposure was used to stimulate p53 activity and to induce alterations in cell cycle progression. We found that exposure of cells to ionizing radiation induced dose-dependent changes in cell cycle progression in both cell lines. The relationship between S phase percentage, TK 1 activity, and FLT uptake were essentially unchanged in the p53-normal cell line. In contrast, TK 1 activity and FLT uptake remained high in the p53-deficient variant even when S phase percentage was low due to a p53-dependent G2 arrest. We conclude that a functional p53 response is required to maintain the normal relationship between TK1 activity and S phase percentage following radiation exposure

  13. Nanoparticle growth by particle-phase chemistry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Apsokardu, Michael J.; Johnston, Murray V.

    2018-02-01

    The ability of particle-phase chemistry to alter the molecular composition and enhance the growth rate of nanoparticles in the 2-100 nm diameter range is investigated through the use of a kinetic growth model. The molecular components included are sulfuric acid, ammonia, water, a non-volatile organic compound, and a semi-volatile organic compound. Molecular composition and growth rate are compared for particles that grow by partitioning alone vs. those that grow by a combination of partitioning and an accretion reaction in the particle phase between two organic molecules. Particle-phase chemistry causes a change in molecular composition that is particle diameter dependent, and when the reaction involves semi-volatile molecules, the particles grow faster than by partitioning alone. These effects are most pronounced for particles larger than about 20 nm in diameter. The modeling results provide a fundamental basis for understanding recent experimental measurements of the molecular composition of secondary organic aerosol showing that accretion reaction product formation increases linearly with increasing aerosol volume-to-surface-area. They also allow initial estimates of the reaction rate constants for these systems. For secondary aerosol produced by either OH oxidation of the cyclic dimethylsiloxane (D5) or ozonolysis of β-pinene, oligomerization rate constants on the order of 10-3 to 10-1 M-1 s-1 are needed to explain the experimental results. These values are consistent with previously measured rate constants for reactions of hydroperoxides and/or peroxyacids in the condensed phase.

  14. Phase-field model of vapor-liquid-solid nanowire growth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Nan; Upmanyu, Moneesh; Karma, Alain

    2018-03-01

    We present a multiphase-field model to describe quantitatively nanowire growth by the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) process. The free-energy functional of this model depends on three nonconserved order parameters that distinguish the vapor, liquid, and solid phases and describe the energetic properties of various interfaces, including arbitrary forms of anisotropic γ plots for the solid-vapor and solid-liquid interfaces. The evolution equations for those order parameters describe basic kinetic processes including the rapid (quasi-instantaneous) equilibration of the liquid catalyst to a droplet shape with constant mean curvature, the slow incorporation of growth atoms at the droplet surface, and crystallization within the droplet. The standard constraint that the sum of the phase fields equals unity and the conservation of the number of catalyst atoms, which relates the catalyst volume to the concentration of growth atoms inside the droplet, are handled via separate Lagrange multipliers. An analysis of the model is presented that rigorously maps the phase-field equations to a desired set of sharp-interface equations for the evolution of the phase boundaries under the constraint of force balance at three-phase junctions (triple points) given by the Young-Herring relation that includes torque term related to the anisotropy of the solid-liquid and solid-vapor interface excess free energies. Numerical examples of growth in two dimensions are presented for the simplest case of vanishing crystalline anisotropy and the more realistic case of a solid-liquid γ plot with cusped minima corresponding to two sets of (10 ) and (11 ) facets. The simulations reproduce many of the salient features of nanowire growth observed experimentally, including growth normal to the substrate with tapering of the side walls, transitions between different growth orientations, and crawling growth along the substrate. They also reproduce different observed relationships between the nanowire growth

  15. Nanoparticle growth by particle-phase chemistry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. J. Apsokardu

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The ability of particle-phase chemistry to alter the molecular composition and enhance the growth rate of nanoparticles in the 2–100 nm diameter range is investigated through the use of a kinetic growth model. The molecular components included are sulfuric acid, ammonia, water, a non-volatile organic compound, and a semi-volatile organic compound. Molecular composition and growth rate are compared for particles that grow by partitioning alone vs. those that grow by a combination of partitioning and an accretion reaction in the particle phase between two organic molecules. Particle-phase chemistry causes a change in molecular composition that is particle diameter dependent, and when the reaction involves semi-volatile molecules, the particles grow faster than by partitioning alone. These effects are most pronounced for particles larger than about 20 nm in diameter. The modeling results provide a fundamental basis for understanding recent experimental measurements of the molecular composition of secondary organic aerosol showing that accretion reaction product formation increases linearly with increasing aerosol volume-to-surface-area. They also allow initial estimates of the reaction rate constants for these systems. For secondary aerosol produced by either OH oxidation of the cyclic dimethylsiloxane (D5 or ozonolysis of β-pinene, oligomerization rate constants on the order of 10−3 to 10−1 M−1 s−1 are needed to explain the experimental results. These values are consistent with previously measured rate constants for reactions of hydroperoxides and/or peroxyacids in the condensed phase.

  16. Regulatory design governing progression of population growth phases in bacteria.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agustino Martínez-Antonio

    Full Text Available It has long been noted that batch cultures inoculated with resting bacteria exhibit a progression of growth phases traditionally labeled lag, exponential, pre-stationary and stationary. However, a detailed molecular description of the mechanisms controlling the transitions between these phases is lacking. A core circuit, formed by a subset of regulatory interactions involving five global transcription factors (FIS, HNS, IHF, RpoS and GadX, has been identified by correlating information from the well- established transcriptional regulatory network of Escherichia coli and genome-wide expression data from cultures in these different growth phases. We propose a functional role for this circuit in controlling progression through these phases. Two alternative hypotheses for controlling the transition between the growth phases are first, a continuous graded adjustment to changing environmental conditions, and second, a discontinuous hysteretic switch at critical thresholds between growth phases. We formulate a simple mathematical model of the core circuit, consisting of differential equations based on the power-law formalism, and show by mathematical and computer-assisted analysis that there are critical conditions among the parameters of the model that can lead to hysteretic switch behavior, which--if validated experimentally--would suggest that the transitions between different growth phases might be analogous to cellular differentiation. Based on these provocative results, we propose experiments to test the alternative hypotheses.

  17. Regulatory design governing progression of population growth phases in bacteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martínez-Antonio, Agustino; Lomnitz, Jason G; Sandoval, Santiago; Aldana, Maximino; Savageau, Michael A

    2012-01-01

    It has long been noted that batch cultures inoculated with resting bacteria exhibit a progression of growth phases traditionally labeled lag, exponential, pre-stationary and stationary. However, a detailed molecular description of the mechanisms controlling the transitions between these phases is lacking. A core circuit, formed by a subset of regulatory interactions involving five global transcription factors (FIS, HNS, IHF, RpoS and GadX), has been identified by correlating information from the well- established transcriptional regulatory network of Escherichia coli and genome-wide expression data from cultures in these different growth phases. We propose a functional role for this circuit in controlling progression through these phases. Two alternative hypotheses for controlling the transition between the growth phases are first, a continuous graded adjustment to changing environmental conditions, and second, a discontinuous hysteretic switch at critical thresholds between growth phases. We formulate a simple mathematical model of the core circuit, consisting of differential equations based on the power-law formalism, and show by mathematical and computer-assisted analysis that there are critical conditions among the parameters of the model that can lead to hysteretic switch behavior, which--if validated experimentally--would suggest that the transitions between different growth phases might be analogous to cellular differentiation. Based on these provocative results, we propose experiments to test the alternative hypotheses.

  18. Activity of toluene-degrading Pseudomonas putida in the early growth phase of a biofilm for waste gas treatment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, A.R.; Møller, S.; Molin, S.

    1997-01-01

    A biological trickling filter for treatment of toluene-containing waste gas was studied. The overall kinetics of the biofilm growth was followed in the early growth phase. A rapid initial colonization took place during the first three days. The biofilm thickness increased exponentially, whereas...

  19. Effect of p53 activation on cell growth, thymidine kinase-1 activity, and 3'-deoxy-3'fluorothymidine uptake

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schwartz, Jeffrey L. E-mail: jschwart@u.washington.edu; Tamura, Yasuko; Jordan, Robert; Grierson, John R.; Krohn, Kenneth A

    2004-05-01

    The use of thymidine (TdR) and thymidine analogs such as 3'-deoxy-3'-fluorothymidine (FLT) as positron emission tomography (PET)-based tracers of tumor proliferation rate is based on the hypothesis that measurement of uptake of these nucleosides, a function primarily of thymidine kinase-1 (TK{sub 1}) activity, provides an accurate measure of cell proliferation in tumors. Tumor growth is influenced by many factors including the oxygen concentration within tumors and whether tumor cells have been exposed to cytotoxic therapies. The p53 gene plays an important role in regulating growth under both of these conditions. The goal of this study was to investigate the influence of p53 activation on cell growth, TK{sub 1} activity, and FLT uptake. To accomplish this, TK{sub 1} activity, S phase fraction, and the uptake of FLT were determined in plateau-phase and exponentially growing cultures of an isogenic pair of human tumor cell lines in which p53 expression was normal or inactivated by human papilloma virus type 16 E6 expression. Ionizing radiation exposure was used to stimulate p53 activity and to induce alterations in cell cycle progression. We found that exposure of cells to ionizing radiation induced dose-dependent changes in cell cycle progression in both cell lines. The relationship between S phase percentage, TK{sub 1} activity, and FLT uptake were essentially unchanged in the p53-normal cell line. In contrast, TK{sub 1} activity and FLT uptake remained high in the p53-deficient variant even when S phase percentage was low due to a p53-dependent G2 arrest. We conclude that a functional p53 response is required to maintain the normal relationship between TK1 activity and S phase percentage following radiation exposure.

  20. Phase evolution and dendrite growth in laser cladding of aluminium on zirconium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yue, T.M.; Xie, H.; Lin, X.; Yang, H.O.

    2011-01-01

    Research highlights: → Laser cladding of Al on pure Zr. → A series of phase evolutions occurred across the laser-clad coating. → Epitaxial crystal growth, backward dendrite growth and two-phase eutectic dendritic growth. → Phase and microstructure evolution is discussed. - Abstract: Aluminium was laser clad on a pure zirconium substrate using the blown powder method. The microstructure across the laser-clad coating was studied. Starting from the bottom to the top surface of the coating, a series of phase evolutions had occurred: (Zr) → (Zr) + AlZr 2 + AlZr 3 → Al 4 Zr 5 + Al 3 Zr 2 → Al 3 Zr 2 + AlZr 2 → Al 2 Zr → Al 2 Zr + Al 3 Zr. This resulted in an epitaxial columnar crystal growth at the re-melt substrate boundary, a band of backward growth Al 3 Zr 2 dendrites towards the lower half of the coating, and a two-phase eutectic dendritic growth of Al 2 Zr + Al 3 Zr towards the top of the coating. The evolution of the various phases and microstructures is discussed in conjunction with the Al-Zr phase diagram, the criteria for planar interface instability, and the theory of eutectic growth under rapid solidification conditions (the TMK model).

  1. Diffusion and phase growth in heterophase systems. 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mchedlov-Petrosyan, P.O.

    1989-01-01

    The present paper gives the view of theoretical study of diffusion processes in ternary and more component solid-state systems, caused by chemical reactions and phase growth. Internal oxidation of alloys, nitridation, borating etc. are the well-known and widely investigated processes of such type. Self-consistent theoretical model of such processes must take into account both the effect of concentration macroscopic districutions on new phase precipitation growth and precipitation reaction on concentration distribution; heterophase must be explicitly allowed for. As for binary system, diffusion theory, running into the phase growth, is well developed and completely presented in monographs, the carried out theoretical investigations of ternary systems are explicitly deficient. The first part of the review presents analysis of available theoretical studies approximately up to 1980. Ratios between various analytically solved models are discussed in detail. It is shown that they don't satisfy to full extent the above-given requirements. More consistent, both numerically and analytically solvable models developed for the last years, are considered in the review second part. 119 refs

  2. Growth and phase transformations of Ir on Ge(111)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mullet, C. H.; Stenger, B. H.; Durand, A. M.; Morad, J. A.; Sato, Y.; Poppenheimer, E. C.; Chiang, S.

    2017-12-01

    The growth of Ir on Ge(111) as a function of temperature between 23 °C and 820 °C is characterized with low energy electron microscopy (LEEM), low energy electron diffraction (LEED), scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), and x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS). Deposition onto a substrate at 350 °C revealed a novel growth mode consisting of multilayer Ir islands with (√3 × √3)R30° (abbreviated as √3) structure interconnected by ;bridges; of single-layer Ir several atoms wide. For deposition onto substrates above 500 °C, the √3 Ir phase grows with dendritic morphology, and substrate step bunches act as barriers to √3 Ir growth. LEEM images showed Stranski-Krastanov growth for 650-820 °C: after the √3 phase covers the surface, corresponding to 2 monolayers (ML) Ir coverage, multilayer hexagonal-shaped Ir islands form, surrounded by regions of IrGe alloy. Hexagonal-shaped Ir islands also formed upon heating 1.2 ML of √3 Ir beyond 830 °C, which resulted in the elimination of √3 structure from the surface. The transformation from √3 to (1 × 1) structure upon heating to 830 °C was an irreversible surface phase transition. Annealing > 2.0 ML of Ir in the √3 phase above the 830 °C disorder temperature, followed by cooling, produced a (3 × 1) structure. Subsequent heating and cooling through 830 °C give evidence for a reversible (3 × 1) to (1 × 1) phase transition.

  3. Physics of Substorm Growth Phase, Onset, and Dipolarization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    C.Z. Cheng

    2003-10-22

    A new scenario of substorm growth phase, onset, and depolarization during expansion phase and the corresponding physical processes are presented. During the growth phase, as a result of enhanced plasma convection, the plasma pressure and its gradient are continued to be enhanced over the quiet-time values in the plasma sheet. Toward the late growth phase, a strong cross-tail current sheet is formed in the near-Earth plasma sheet region, where a local magnetic well is formed, the plasma beta can reach a local maximum with value larger than 50 and the cross-tail current density can be enhanced to over 10nA/m{sup 2} as obtained from 3D quasi-static magnetospheric equilibrium solutions for the growth phase. The most unstable kinetic ballooning instabilities (KBI) are expected to be located in the tailward side of the strong cross-tail current sheet region. The field lines in the most unstable KBI region map to the transition region between the region-1 and region-2 currents in the ionosphere, which is consistent with the observed initial brightening location of the breakup arc in the intense proton precipitation region. The KBI explains the AMPTE/CCE observations that a low-frequency instability with a wave period of 50-75 seconds is excited about 2-3 minutes prior to substorm onset and grows exponentially to a large amplitude at the onset of current disruption (or current reduction). At the current disruption onset higher frequency instabilities are excited so that the plasma and electromagnetic field fluctuations form a strong turbulent state. Plasma transport takes place due to the strong turbulence to relax the ambient plasma pressure profile so that the plasma pressure and current density are reduced and the ambient magnetic field intensity increases by more than a factor of 2 in the high-beta(sub)eq region and the field line geometry recovers from tail-like to dipole-like dipolarization.

  4. Physics of Substorm Growth Phase, Onset, and Dipolarization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cheng, C.Z.

    2003-01-01

    A new scenario of substorm growth phase, onset, and depolarization during expansion phase and the corresponding physical processes are presented. During the growth phase, as a result of enhanced plasma convection, the plasma pressure and its gradient are continued to be enhanced over the quiet-time values in the plasma sheet. Toward the late growth phase, a strong cross-tail current sheet is formed in the near-Earth plasma sheet region, where a local magnetic well is formed, the plasma beta can reach a local maximum with value larger than 50 and the cross-tail current density can be enhanced to over 10nA/m 2 as obtained from 3D quasi-static magnetospheric equilibrium solutions for the growth phase. The most unstable kinetic ballooning instabilities (KBI) are expected to be located in the tailward side of the strong cross-tail current sheet region. The field lines in the most unstable KBI region map to the transition region between the region-1 and region-2 currents in the ionosphere, which is consistent with the observed initial brightening location of the breakup arc in the intense proton precipitation region. The KBI explains the AMPTE/CCE observations that a low-frequency instability with a wave period of 50-75 seconds is excited about 2-3 minutes prior to substorm onset and grows exponentially to a large amplitude at the onset of current disruption (or current reduction). At the current disruption onset higher frequency instabilities are excited so that the plasma and electromagnetic field fluctuations form a strong turbulent state. Plasma transport takes place due to the strong turbulence to relax the ambient plasma pressure profile so that the plasma pressure and current density are reduced and the ambient magnetic field intensity increases by more than a factor of 2 in the high-beta(sub)eq region and the field line geometry recovers from tail-like to dipole-like dipolarization

  5. Mechanical model for filament buckling and growth by phase ordering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rey, Alejandro D; Abukhdeir, Nasser M

    2008-02-05

    A mechanical model of open filament shape and growth driven by phase ordering is formulated. For a given phase-ordering driving force, the model output is the filament shape evolution and the filament end-point kinematics. The linearized model for the slope of the filament is the Cahn-Hilliard model of spinodal decomposition, where the buckling corresponds to concentration fluctuations. Two modes are predicted: (i) sequential growth and buckling and (ii) simultaneous buckling and growth. The relation among the maximum buckling rate, filament tension, and matrix viscosity is given. These results contribute to ongoing work in smectic A filament buckling.

  6. Phase field simulation of grain growth in porous uranium dioxide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmed, Karim; Pakarinen, Janne; Allen, Todd; El-Azab, Anter

    2014-01-01

    Graphical abstract: Display Omitted -- Abstract: A novel phase field model has been developed to investigate grain growth in porous polycrystalline UO 2 . Based on a system of Cahn–Hilliard and Allen–Cahn equations, the model takes into consideration both the curvature driven grain boundary motion and pore migration by surface diffusion. As such, the model accounts for the interaction between pore and grain boundary kinetics, which tends to retard the growth process. The phase field model parameters are found in terms of measurable material properties. Hence, quantitative results that can be compared with experiments were obtained. The model has been used to investigate the effect of porosity on the kinetics of grain growth in UO 2 . It is found that, as the amount of porosity increases, grain growth in UO 2 gradually changes from boundary controlled growth to pore controlled growth. For high porosity levels, the grain growth completely stops after a short evolution time. It is also found that the inhomogeneous distribution of pores leads to abnormal grain growth even without taking into account the anisotropy in grain boundary energy and mobility. The effects of porosity, temperature and initial microstructure on grain growth were thoroughly investigated. The model predictions are in good agreement with published experimental results of grain growth in UO 2

  7. Production of Vibrio vulnificus metalloprotease VvpE begins during the early growth phase: usefulness of gelatin-zymography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Choon-Mee; Kang, Sang-Mee; Jeon, Ho-Jong; Shin, Sung-Heui

    2007-07-01

    Recent studies have demonstrated that expression of the vvpE gene begins during the early growth phase albeit at low levels. However, we found that the traditional protease assay method that is used to measure caseinolytic activity in culture supernatants is not suitable for the measurement of extracellular VvpE that is produced at low levels during the early growth phase. By using gelatin-zymography in place of the protease assay, we could specifically detect only VvpE of several proteases produced by Vibrio vulnificus. Moreover, we could sensitively measure VvpE produced at low levels during the early growth phase, which was consistent with transcription of the vvpE gene. The extracellular production of VvpE was reduced or delayed by mutation of the pilD gene which encodes for the type IV leader peptidase/N-methyltransferase associated with the type II general secretion system; the delayed production of VvpE was recovered by in trans complementation of the wild-type pilD gene. These results indicate that VvpE begins to be produced during the early growth phase via the PilD-mediated type II general secretion system, and that the use of gelatin-zymography is recommended as a simple method for the sensitive and specific detection of VvpE production.

  8. Effects of Phytoplankton Growth Phase on the Formation and Properties of Marine Snow

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montgomery, Q. W.; Proctor, K. W.; Prairie, J. C.

    2016-02-01

    Marine snow aggregates often dominate carbon export from the upper mixed layer to the deep ocean. Thus, understanding the formation and the properties of these aggregates is essential to the study of the biological pump. Aggregate formation is determined by both the encounter rate and the stickiness of the particles that they are composed of. Stickiness of phytoplankton has been linked to production of transparent exopolymer particles (TEP), which has been previously shown to vary in concentration throughout different parts of the phytoplankton growth cycle. The objective of this study is to determine the effects of the growth phase of the diatom Thalassiosira weissflogii to both TEP production and the properties of the resulting aggregates produced. Cultures of T. weissflogii were stopped at separate phases of the phytoplankton growth curve and incubated in rotating cylindrical tanks to form aggregates. Aggregate properties such as size, density, and porosity were measured at the end of each period of roller incubation. Preliminary results describe little variation in the size of the aggregates formed from different parts of the growth phase, but show a significant effect of growth phase on aggregate density. Density is an important factor in the settling of marine aggregates. Therefore, variations in aggregate density during different growth phases may have large implications for the efficiency of the biological pump during different stages of a phytoplankton bloom. Further examination will be performed on the potential effects of TEP abundance on the properties of the aggregates formed at separate growth phases and the resulting implications for carbon flux.

  9. Effect of algal growth phase on Aureococcus anophagefferens susceptibility to hydrogen peroxide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Randhawa, Varunpreet; Thakkar, Megha; Wei, Liping

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: •Brown tide alga's susceptibility to H 2 O 2 was examined via growth and physiology responses. •The study was designed equalizing the influence of the media and cell density in test cultures. •Stationary cells was more sensitive to H 2 O 2 than exponential cells. •Stationary cells showed weaker non-protein thiol up-regulation than exponential cells. •Stationary cells mediated greater H 2 O 2 decomposition than exponential cells did. -- Abstract: A cell's growth phase could affect its susceptibility to a biocide in microbial control. This study examines the growth phase dependent susceptibility of a brown tide bloom alga Aureococcus anophagefferens to microbial biocide hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ). Test cultures of A. anophagefferens cells in exponential and stationary growth phase and similar initial cell density (1.6 × 10 6 cells mL −1 ) were exposed to 0.4–1.6 mg L −1 H 2 O 2 . Changes in algal growth (in vivo fluorescence, total chlorophyll a, and cell density), cell physiology (maximum quantum yield of photosystem II, and total intracellular non-protein thiols), and H 2 O 2 decomposition were quantified. Results show that the stationary phase cells are more susceptible to H 2 O 2 than the exponential phase cells, and this is attributed to the weaker ROS (reactive oxygen species) scavenging system and consequently greater cell damage in stationary phase cells. The stationary phase cells potentially require 30–40% less H 2 O 2 to reach 90% removal within 12 h of treatment as compared to the exponential phase cells. The results have practical implications in brown tide bloom control with respect to the timing and the dosage of H 2 O 2 application

  10. The speed of growth of the gamma phase comes prime in nickel based alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peretti, M.M; Ges, A.M; Versaci, R.A

    2004-01-01

    Nickel-based alloys have a high fraction in volume of precipitate phase. This precipitate phase provides the characteristics of high mechanical resistance to high temperatures and, therefore, a study of the growth of this phase can predict the behavior of the components in service. This work studies the speed of growth in the alloy INCONEL 713C at temperatures of 800 o C, 875 o C and 950 o C with different treatment times. The present phase in this alloy is Ni3(AlTi), with a very high fraction in volume. The follow-up on the growth of the phase was carried out using scanning and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The speed of growth presents modifications that increase and decrease as a function of time. These variations in speed are attributed to modifications in the size and morphology of the precipitate particles. The changes in size and morphology directly influence the interfacial energy that produces the change in the speed of growth (CW)

  11. Phase Characterization of Cucumber Growth: A Chemical Gel Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bo Li

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Cucumber grows with complex phenomena by changing its volume and shape, which is not fully investigated and challenges agriculture and food safety industry. In order to understand the mechanism and to characterize the growth process, the cucumber is modeled as a hydrogel in swelling and its development is studied in both preharvest and postharvest stages. Based on thermodynamics, constitutive equations, incorporating biological quantities, are established. The growth behavior of cucumber follows the classic theory of continuous or discontinuous phase transition. The mechanism of bulged tail in cucumber is interpreted by phase coexistence and characterized by critical conditions. Conclusions are given for advances in food engineering and novel fabrication techniques in mechanical biology.

  12. Growth dynamics explain the development of spatiotemporal burst activity of young cultured neuronal networks in detail.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Taras A Gritsun

    Full Text Available A typical property of isolated cultured neuronal networks of dissociated rat cortical cells is synchronized spiking, called bursting, starting about one week after plating, when the dissociated cells have sufficiently sent out their neurites and formed enough synaptic connections. This paper is the third in a series of three on simulation models of cultured networks. Our two previous studies [26], [27] have shown that random recurrent network activity models generate intra- and inter-bursting patterns similar to experimental data. The networks were noise or pacemaker-driven and had Izhikevich-neuronal elements with only short-term plastic (STP synapses (so, no long-term potentiation, LTP, or depression, LTD, was included. However, elevated pre-phases (burst leaders and after-phases of burst main shapes, that usually arise during the development of the network, were not yet simulated in sufficient detail. This lack of detail may be due to the fact that the random models completely missed network topology .and a growth model. Therefore, the present paper adds, for the first time, a growth model to the activity model, to give the network a time dependent topology and to explain burst shapes in more detail. Again, without LTP or LTD mechanisms. The integrated growth-activity model yielded realistic bursting patterns. The automatic adjustment of various mutually interdependent network parameters is one of the major advantages of our current approach. Spatio-temporal bursting activity was validated against experiment. Depending on network size, wave reverberation mechanisms were seen along the network boundaries, which may explain the generation of phases of elevated firing before and after the main phase of the burst shape.In summary, the results show that adding topology and growth explain burst shapes in great detail and suggest that young networks still lack/do not need LTP or LTD mechanisms.

  13. A scheme for reducing deceleration-phase Rayleigh-Taylor growth in inertial confinement fusion implosions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, L. F.; Ye, W. H.; Wu, J. F.; Liu, Jie; Zhang, W. Y.; He, X. T.

    2016-05-01

    It is demonstrated that the growth of acceleration-phase instabilities in inertial confinement fusion implosions can be controlled, especially in the high-foot implosions [O. A. Hurricane et al., Phys. Plasmas 21, 056314 (2014)] on the National Ignition Facility. However, the excessive growth of the deceleration-phase instabilities can still destroy the hot spot ignition. A scheme is proposed to retard the deceleration-phase Rayleigh-Taylor instability growth by shock collision near the waist of the inner shell surface. Two-dimensional radiation hydrodynamic simulations confirm the improved deceleration-phase hot spot stability properties without sacrificing the fuel compression.

  14. A scheme for reducing deceleration-phase Rayleigh–Taylor growth in inertial confinement fusion implosions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, L. F., E-mail: wang-lifeng@iapcm.ac.cn; Ye, W. H.; Liu, Jie [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100094 (China); HEDPS, Center for Applied Physics and Technology, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Center for Fusion Energy Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics, Beijing 100088 (China); Wu, J. F. [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100094 (China); Center for Fusion Energy Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics, Beijing 100088 (China); Zhang, W. Y. [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100094 (China); He, X. T. [Institute of Applied Physics and Computational Mathematics, Beijing 100094 (China); HEDPS, Center for Applied Physics and Technology, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China)

    2016-05-15

    It is demonstrated that the growth of acceleration-phase instabilities in inertial confinement fusion implosions can be controlled, especially in the high-foot implosions [O. A. Hurricane et al., Phys. Plasmas 21, 056314 (2014)] on the National Ignition Facility. However, the excessive growth of the deceleration-phase instabilities can still destroy the hot spot ignition. A scheme is proposed to retard the deceleration-phase Rayleigh–Taylor instability growth by shock collision near the waist of the inner shell surface. Two-dimensional radiation hydrodynamic simulations confirm the improved deceleration-phase hot spot stability properties without sacrificing the fuel compression.

  15. Unusual Growth Phase and Oxygen Tension Regulation of Oxidative Stress Protection Enzymes, Catalase and Superoxide Dismutase, in the Phytopathogen Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae

    OpenAIRE

    Chamnongpol, S.; Mongkolsuk, S.; Vattanaviboon, P.; Fuangthong, M.

    1995-01-01

    The enzymes catalase and superoxide dismutase play major roles in protecting phytopathogenic bacteria from oxidative stress. In Xanthomonas species, these enzymes are regulated by both growth phase and oxygen tension. The highest enzyme levels were detected within 1 h of growth. Continued growth resulted in a decline of both enzyme activities. High oxygen tension was an inducing signal for both enzyme activities. An 80,000-Da monofunctional catalase and a manganese superoxide dismutase were t...

  16. Effect of algal growth phase on Aureococcus anophagefferens susceptibility to hydrogen peroxide

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Randhawa, Varunpreet; Thakkar, Megha; Wei, Liping, E-mail: liping.wei@njit.edu

    2013-10-15

    Highlights: •Brown tide alga's susceptibility to H{sub 2}O{sub 2} was examined via growth and physiology responses. •The study was designed equalizing the influence of the media and cell density in test cultures. •Stationary cells was more sensitive to H{sub 2}O{sub 2} than exponential cells. •Stationary cells showed weaker non-protein thiol up-regulation than exponential cells. •Stationary cells mediated greater H{sub 2}O{sub 2} decomposition than exponential cells did. -- Abstract: A cell's growth phase could affect its susceptibility to a biocide in microbial control. This study examines the growth phase dependent susceptibility of a brown tide bloom alga Aureococcus anophagefferens to microbial biocide hydrogen peroxide (H{sub 2}O{sub 2}). Test cultures of A. anophagefferens cells in exponential and stationary growth phase and similar initial cell density (1.6 × 10{sup 6} cells mL{sup −1}) were exposed to 0.4–1.6 mg L{sup −1} H{sub 2}O{sub 2}. Changes in algal growth (in vivo fluorescence, total chlorophyll a, and cell density), cell physiology (maximum quantum yield of photosystem II, and total intracellular non-protein thiols), and H{sub 2}O{sub 2} decomposition were quantified. Results show that the stationary phase cells are more susceptible to H{sub 2}O{sub 2} than the exponential phase cells, and this is attributed to the weaker ROS (reactive oxygen species) scavenging system and consequently greater cell damage in stationary phase cells. The stationary phase cells potentially require 30–40% less H{sub 2}O{sub 2} to reach 90% removal within 12 h of treatment as compared to the exponential phase cells. The results have practical implications in brown tide bloom control with respect to the timing and the dosage of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} application.

  17. Effects of H2O2 under low- and high-aeration-level conditions on growth and catalase activity in Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans T-2-2T.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takebe, Fumihiko; Hara, Isao; Matsuyama, Hidetoshi; Yumoto, Isao

    2007-12-01

    The effects of H2O2 under low- and high-aeration-level conditions on growth and catalase activity in Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans T-2-2T were investigated. Continuous addition of 5-200 mM H2O2 to the culture medium from the mid-exponential growth phase enhanced the growth of the strain under the low-aeration-level condition, whereas the addition of 5-50 mM H2O2 decreased intracellular specific catalase activity and extracellular total catalases activity. The detection of extracellular catalase by the cells and the decrease in intracellular specific catalase activity and extracellular total catalase activity under the high-aeration-level condition account for the stimulation of growth by the introduced H2O2 and the decrease in catalase activities induced by O(2) from H2O2 in the medium. On the other hand, the addition of H2O2 to the medium prior to the initiation of growth inhibited the growth but increased the specific activity of intracellular catalase in the stationary growth phase. Strain T-2-2T grew when 10 mM H2O2 was added to the medium prior to growth. However, the growth was completely inhibited by the catalase inhibitor 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (3-AT). The continuous addition of H2O2 at an appropriate concentration from prior to the initiation of growth to the stationary growth phase under the low-aeration-level condition resulted in higher intracellular specific catalase activity and cell growth rate than single H2O2 addition prior to growth.

  18. Effects of salt stress imposed during two growth phases on cauliflower production and quality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Giuffrida, Francesco; Cassaniti, Carla; Malvuccio, Angelo; Leonardi, Cherubino

    2017-03-01

    Cultivation of cauliflower is diffused in Mediterranean areas where water salinity results in the need to identify alternative irrigation sources or management strategies. Using saline water during two growth phases (from transplanting to visible appearance of inflorescence or from appearance of inflorescence to head harvest), the present study aimed to identify the growth period that is more suitable for irrigation with low quality water in relation to cauliflower production and quality. Salinity affected cauliflower growth mainly when imposed in the first growth phase. The growth reduction depended mainly on ion-specific effects, although slight nutrient imbalances as a result of Na + and Cl - antagonisms were observed. The use of non-saline water in the first or second growth period reduced both the osmotic and toxic effects of salinity. When salinity was applied during inflorescence growth, yield was reduced because of a restriction of water accumulation in the head. The results of the present study demonstrate the possibility of producing marketable cauliflower heads under conditions of salinity by timing the application of the best quality water during the first growth phase to improve fruit quality and during the second phase to reduce the negative effects of salinity on yield. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

  19. Abnormal grain growth in Eurofer-97 steel in the ferrite phase field

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Oliveira, V.B. [Lorena School of Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Lorena, SP, 12602-810 (Brazil); Sandim, H.R.Z., E-mail: hsandim@demar.eel.usp.br [Lorena School of Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Lorena, SP, 12602-810 (Brazil); Raabe, D. [Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung, Düsseldorf, D-40237 (Germany)

    2017-03-15

    Reduced-activation ferritic-martensitic (RAFM) Eurofer-97 steel is a candidate material for structural applications in future fusion reactors. Depending on the amount of prior cold rolling strain and annealing temperature, important solid-state softening reactions such as recovery, recrystallization, and grain growth occur. Eurofer-97 steel was cold rolled up to 70, 80 and 90% reductions in thickness and annealed in the ferrite phase field (below ≈ 800 °C). Changes in microstructure, micro-, and mesotexture were followed by orientation mappings provided by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Eurofer-97 steel undergoes abnormal grain growth above 650 °C and this solid-state reaction seems to be closely related to the high mobility of a few special grain boundaries that overcome pinning effects caused by fine particles. This solid-state reaction promotes important changes in the microstructure and microtexture of this steel. Abnormal grain growth kinetics for each condition was determined by means of quantitative metallography. - Highlights: • Abnormal grain growth (AGG) occurs in Eurofer-97 steel deformed to several strains. • Kinetics of abnormal grain growth has been determined at 750 and 800 °C. • Significant changes in crystallographic texture take place during AGG. • Grain boundaries with misorientations above 45° may explain abnormal grain growth. • Local microstructural instabilities (coarsening of M23C6 carbides) also explain AGG.

  20. Cdc7 is required throughout the yeast S phase to activate replication origins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donaldson, A D; Fangman, W L; Brewer, B J

    1998-02-15

    The long-standing conclusion that the Cdc7 kinase of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is required only to trigger S phase has been challenged by recent data that suggests it acts directly on individual replication origins. We tested the possibility that early- and late-activated origins have different requirements for Cdc7 activity. Cells carrying a cdc7(ts) allele were first arrested in G1 at the cdc7 block by incubation at 37 degrees C, and then were allowed to enter S phase by brief incubation at 23 degrees C. During the S phase, after return to 37 degrees C, early-firing replication origins were activated, but late origins failed to fire. Similarly, a plasmid with a late-activated origin was defective in replication. As a consequence of the origin activation defect, duplication of chromosomal sequences that are normally replicated from late origins was greatly delayed. Early-replicating regions of the genome duplicated at approximately their normal time. The requirements of early and late origins for Cdc7 appear to be temporally rather than quantitatively different, as reducing overall levels of Cdc7 by growth at semi-permissive temperature reduced activation at early and late origins approximately equally. Our results show that Cdc7 activates early and late origins separately, with late origins requiring the activity later in S phase to permit replication initiation.

  1. Monte carlo simulation of anisotropic grain growth in liquid phase sintering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Han, Yoon Soo; Kim, Do Kyung

    2003-01-01

    One of the key techniques in modern engineering ceramic system is microstructural control of anisotropic grain growth because grain orientation and shape proved to have an influence on mechanic, dielectric and electric behavior of ceramics. But until now, computer simulation for grain growth has not sufficiently addressed to this subject. The reason is that simulation algorithm was laborious because it has to contain mass transfer through liquid phase and especially anisotropic grain growth has to be considered based on interfacial properties in real system. The goal of present study is simulation of anisotropic grain growth in liquid phase by Q-states model. To give anisotropic inherency to grains, constraint on mobility to specific boundaries was applied. For comparison, we measured grain size distribution and deduced grain growth kinetics from relation ship between average grain size and time. As a result, the grain size distribution functions become broader and the peak height decreases as the anisotropy is increased. The growth exponent 0.67 and 0.47 found by linear fitting have slightly different values in comparison with work of Grest et al. but similar is trend to the decrease of exponent with anisotropy

  2. Pseudobreakup and substorm growth phase in the ionosphere and magnetosphere

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koskinin, H.E.J.; Pellinen, R.J.; Pulkkinen, T.I.; Lopez, R.E.; Baker, D.N.; Boesinger, T.

    1993-01-01

    The authors present space and ground based observations made during the growth phase and the onset of a substorm on August 31, 1986. Roughly 20 minutes after the var-epsilon parameter at the magnetopause had exceeded 10 11 W, the AMPTE Charge Composition Explorer spacecraft observed an increase in energetic particle fluxes consistent with magnetic field depolarization. The craft was close to magnetic midnight at a geocentric distance of 8.7R E . The event had the initial signature of a substorm onset, but it did not lead to a full-scale substorm expansion based on several ground based observations. There were no large particle injection events at geostationary orbit. After another 20 minutes the event did enter a normal substorm expansion phase. The authors interpret the initial activation as a open-quotes pseudobreakupclose quotes. They correlate observations made by spacecraft in the near-Earth plasma sheet, with ground based observations of the ionospheric development from magnetometer and electric field measurements from the STARE radar. The strength and the consequences are concluded to be the main differences of pseudobreakups and ordinary breakups

  3. Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II activity regulates the proliferative potential of growth plate chondrocytes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yuwei; Ahrens, Molly J; Wu, Amy; Liu, Jennifer; Dudley, Andrew T

    2011-01-01

    For tissues that develop throughout embryogenesis and into postnatal life, the generation of differentiated cells to promote tissue growth is at odds with the requirement to maintain the stem cell/progenitor cell population to preserve future growth potential. In the growth plate cartilage, this balance is achieved in part by establishing a proliferative phase that amplifies the number of progenitor cells prior to terminal differentiation into hypertrophic chondrocytes. Here, we show that endogenous calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CamkII, also known as Camk2) activity is upregulated prior to hypertrophy and that loss of CamkII function substantially blocks the transition from proliferation to hypertrophy. Wnt signaling and Pthrp-induced phosphatase activity negatively regulate CamkII activity. Release of this repression results in activation of multiple effector pathways, including Runx2- and β-catenin-dependent pathways. We present an integrated model for the regulation of proliferation potential by CamkII activity that has important implications for studies of growth control and adult progenitor/stem cell populations.

  4. Effect of combined function of temperature and water activity on the growth of Vibrio harveyi

    OpenAIRE

    Zhou,Kang; Gui,Meng; Li,Pinglan; Xing,Shaohua; Cui,Tingting; Peng,Zhaohui

    2012-01-01

    Vibrio harveyi is considered as a causative agent of the systemic disease, vibriosis, which occurs in many biological fields. The effects of temperatures (12.9-27.1 ºC) and water activity (NaCl% 0.6%-3.4%) on V. harveyi were investigated. The behavior and growth characteristics of V. harveyi was studied and modeled. Growth curves were fitted by using Gompertz and Baranyi models, and the Baranyi model showed a better fittness. Then, the maximum growth rates (µmax) and lag phase durations (LPD,...

  5. QPSK regeneration without active phase-locking

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjøller, Niels-Kristian; Da Ros, Francesco; Røge, Kasper Meldgaard

    2016-01-01

    QPSK regeneration without active phase stabilization is investigated in numerical simulations. We propose an improved scheme for phase-locking free QPSK regeneration showing significant improvements in the error vector magnitude of the signal.......QPSK regeneration without active phase stabilization is investigated in numerical simulations. We propose an improved scheme for phase-locking free QPSK regeneration showing significant improvements in the error vector magnitude of the signal....

  6. Investigations on liquid phase electroepitaxial growth kinetics of GaAs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mouleeswaran, D.; Dhanasekaran, R.

    2004-01-01

    This paper presents a model based on solving a two-dimensional diffusion equation incorporating the electromigration effect by numerical simulation method corresponding to liquid phase electroepitaxial (LPEE) growth of GaAs, whose growth is limited by diffusion and electro migration of solute species. Using the numerical simulation method, the concentration profiles of As in Ga rich solution during the electroepitaxial growth of GaAs have been constructed in front of the growing crystal interface. Using the concentration gradient at the interface, the growth rate and thickness of the epitaxial layer of GaAs have been determined for different experimental growth conditions. The proposed model is based on the assumption that there is no convection in the solution. The results are discussed in detail

  7. Nerve Growth Factor Gene Therapy Activates Neuronal Responses in Alzheimer’s Disease

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tuszynski, Mark H.; Yang, Jennifer H.; Barba, David; U, H S.; Bakay, Roy; Pay, Mary M.; Masliah, Eliezer; Conner, James M.; Kobalka, Peter; Roy, Subhojit; Nagahara, Alan H.

    2016-01-01

    IMPORTANCE Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder, and lacks effective disease modifying therapies. In 2001 we initiated a clinical trial of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) gene therapy in AD, the first effort at gene delivery in an adult neurodegenerative disorder. This program aimed to determine whether a nervous system growth factor prevents or reduces cholinergic neuronal degeneration in AD patients. We present post-mortem findings in 10 subjects with survival times ranging from 1 to 10 years post-treatment. OBJECTIVE To determine whether degenerating neurons in AD retain an ability to respond to a nervous system growth factor delivered after disease onset. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS 10 patients with early AD underwent NGF gene therapy using either ex vivo or in vivo gene transfer. The brains of all eight patients in the first Phase 1 ex vivo trial and two patients in a subsequent Phase 1 in vivo trial were examined. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Brains were immunolabeled to evaluate in vivo gene expression, cholinergic neuronal responses to NGF, and activation of NGF-related cell signaling. In two cases, NGF protein levels were measured by ELISA. RESULTS Degenerating neurons in the AD brain respond to NGF. All patients exhibited a trophic response to NGF, in the form of axonal sprouting toward the NGF source. Comparing treated and non-treated sides of the brain in three patients that underwent unilateral gene transfer, cholinergic neuronal hypertrophy occurred on the NGF-treated side (P>0.05). Activation of cellular signaling and functional markers were present in two patients that underwent AAV2-mediated NGF gene transfer. Neurons exhibiting tau pathology as well as neurons free of tau expressed NGF, indicating that degenerating cells can be infected with therapeutic genes with resulting activation of cell signaling. No adverse pathological effects related to NGF were observed. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE These findings indicate that

  8. Bacterial Growth Phase Influences Methylmercury Production by the Sulfate-Reducing Bacterium Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Biswas, Abir [ORNL; Brooks, Scott C [ORNL; Miller, Carrie L [ORNL; Mosher, Jennifer J [ORNL; Yin, Xiangping Lisa [ORNL; Drake, Meghan M [ORNL

    2011-01-01

    The effect of bacterial growth phase is an aspect of mercury (Hg) methylation that previous studies have not investigated in detail. Here we consider the effect of growth phase (mid-log, late-log and late stationary phase) on Hg methylation by the known methylator Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132. We tested the addition of Hg alone (chloride-complex), Hg with Suwannee River natural organic matter (SRNOM) (unequilibrated), and Hg equilibrated with SRNOM on monomethylmercury (MMHg) production by ND132 over a growth curve in pyruvate-fumarate media. This NOM did not affect MMHg production even under very low Hg:SRNOM ratios, where Hg binding is predicted to be dominated by high energy sites. Adding Hg or Hg-NOM to growing cultures 24h before sampling (late addition) resulted in {approx}2x greater net fraction of Hg methylated than for comparably aged cultures exposed to Hg from the initial culture inoculation (early addition). Mid- and late-log phase cultures produced similar amounts of MMHg, but late stationary phase cultures (both under early and late Hg addition conditions) produced up to {approx}3x more MMHg, indicating the potential importance of growth phase in studies of MMHg production.

  9. Bacterial Growth Phase Influences Methylmercury Production by the Sulfate-Reducing Bacterium Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Biswas, Abir [ORNL; Brooks, Scott C [ORNL; Miller, Carrie L [ORNL; Mosher, Jennifer J [ORNL; Yin, Xiangping Lisa [ORNL; Drake, Meghan M [ORNL

    2011-01-01

    The effect of bacterial growth phase is an aspect of mercury (Hg) methylation that previous studies have not investigated in detail. Here we consider the effect of growth phase (mid-log, late-log and late stationary phase) on Hg methylation by the known methylator Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132. We tested the addition of Hg alone (chloride-complex), Hg with Suwannee River natural organic matter (SRNOM) (unequilibrated), and Hg equilibrated with SRNOM on monomethylmercury (MMHg) production by ND132 over a growth curve in pyruvate fumarate media. This NOM did not affect MMHg production even under very low Hg: SRNOM ratios, where Hg binding is predicted to be dominated by high energy sites. Adding Hg or Hg NOM to growing cultures 24 h before sampling (late addition) resulted in ~2 greater net fraction of Hg methylated than for comparably aged cultures exposed to Hg from the initial culture inoculation (early addition). Mid-and late-log phase cultures produced similar amounts of MMHg, but late stationary phase cultures (both under early and late Hg addition conditions) produced up to ~3 more MMHg, indicating the potential importance of growth phase in studies of MMHg production.

  10. Electron-irradiation induced changes in the phases and photocatalytic activity of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sapnar, K.B.; Dhole, S.D. [Department of Physics, University of Pune, Pune 411007 (India); Bhoraskar, V.N., E-mail: vnb@physics.unipune.ac.in [Department of Physics, University of Pune, Pune 411007 (India)

    2012-04-01

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The phases of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles have been changed by electron irradiation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The photocatalytic activity of TiO{sub 2} gets enhanced after electron irradiation. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The brookite phase has appeared in TiO{sub 2} after electron irradiation. - Abstract: Samples of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles, with mixed anatase and rutile phases, were irradiated with 6.5 MeV electrons at fluences, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, and 3.5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 15} e cm{sup -2} and characterized by several methods. With increasing electron fluence, a continuous decrease in the average particle size from {approx}80 nm to around 30 nm were observed along with a decrease in the rutile and the anatase phases of TiO{sub 2}, but at different rates, and growth of the TiO{sub 2} brookite phase at slow rate. The photocatalytic activities of different electron irradiated TiO{sub 2} samples, in the photodegradation of methylene blue, were studied by recording UV-Vis absorption spectra of the respective solutions. On electron irradiation, even though the rutile phase in the TiO{sub 2} was decreasing, the photocatalytic activity of the nanoparticles increased continuously with fluence up to {approx}3.0 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 15} e cm{sup -2}, but decreased at 3.5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 15} e cm{sup -2}. The energy levels introduced by the brookite phase and the electron induced defects in TiO{sub 2} could have effectively reduced the electron-hole recombination rate in the absence of the rutile phase. The observed enhancement in the photocatalytic activity of the irradiated TiO{sub 2} is attributed to the formation of small size particles, the introduction of the oxygen related vacancies and other defects, the growth of the brookite phase, and increased absorption of radiation over the ultraviolet and visible range.

  11. Epitaxial growth of Ge-Sb-Te based phase change materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perumal, Karthick

    2013-01-01

    Ge-Sb-Te based phase change materials are considered as a prime candidate for optical and electrical data storage applications. With the application of an optical or electrical pulse, they can be reversibly switched between amorphous and crystalline state, thereby exhibiting large optical and electrical contrast between the two phases, which are then stored as information in the form of binary digits. Single crystalline growth is interesting from both the academic and industrial perspective, as ordered Ge-Sb-Te based metamaterials are known to exhibit switching at reduced energies. The present study deals with the epitaxial growth and analysis of Ge-Sb-Te based thin films. The first part of the thesis deals with the epitaxial growth of GeTe. Thin films of GeTe were grown on highly mismatched Si(111) and (001) substrates. On both the substrate orientations the film grows along [111] direction with an amorphous-to-crystalline transition observed during the initial stages of growth. The amorphous-to-crystalline transition was studied in-vivo using azimuthal reflection high-energy electron diffraction scans and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction. In the second part of the thesis epitaxy and characterization of Sb 2 Te 3 thin films are presented. The third part of the thesis deals with the epitaxy of ternary Ge-Sb-Te alloys. The composition of the films are shown to be highly dependent on growth temperatures and vary along the pseudobinary line from Sb 2 Te 3 to GeTe with increase in growth temperatures. A line-of-sight quadrupole mass spectrometer was used to reliably control the GeSbTe growth temperature. Growth was performed at different Ge, Sb, Te fluxes to study the compositional variation of the films. Incommensurate peaks are observed along the [111] direction by X-ray diffraction. The possibility of superstructural vacancy ordering along the [111] direction is discussed.

  12. GPU-accelerated 3D phase-field simulations of dendrite competitive growth during directional solidification of binary alloy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sakane, S; Takaki, T; Ohno, M; Shimokawabe, T; Aoki, T

    2015-01-01

    Phase-field method has emerged as the most powerful numerical scheme to simulate dendrite growth. However, most phase-field simulations of dendrite growth performed so far are limited to two-dimension or single dendrite in three-dimension because of the large computational cost involved. To express actual solidification microstructures, multiple dendrites with different preferred growth directions should be computed at the same time. In this study, in order to enable large-scale phase-field dendrite growth simulations, we developed a phase-field code using multiple graphics processing units in which a quantitative phase-field method for binary alloy solidification and moving frame algorithm for directional solidification were employed. First, we performed strong and weak scaling tests for the developed parallel code. Then, dendrite competitive growth simulations in three-dimensional binary alloy bicrystal were performed and the dendrite interactions in three-dimensional space were investigated. (paper)

  13. Role of microorganism growth phase in the accumulation and characteristics of biomacromolecules (BMM) in a membrane bioreactor

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhou, Zhongbo; Meng, Fangang; Liang, Shuang

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this study was to highlight the significance of microorganism growth on the production of biomacromolecules (BMM) in a membrane bioreactor (MBR). During the MBR operation, both polysaccharides and proteins in the sludge supernatant were found to increase steadily in exponential...... growth phase (EGP) due to higher organic loading rates and microbial primary metabolism. Subsequently, both increased continuously and then decreased sharply in the following deceleration growth phase (DGP). Finally, the BMM maintained a low and steady level as the sludge reached stationary growth phase...

  14. Growth Characteristics of an Estuarine Heterocystous Cyanobacterium

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pablo Guimarães

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available A new estuarine filamentous heterocystous cyanobacterium was isolated from intertidal sediment of the Lagoa dos Patos estuary (Brazil. The isolate may represent a new genus related to Cylindrospermopsis. While the latter is planktonic, contains gas vesicles, and is toxic, the newly isolated strain is benthic and does not contain gas vesicles. It is not known whether the new strain is toxic. It grows equally well in freshwater, brackish and full salinity growth media, in the absence of inorganic or organic combined nitrogen, with a growth rate 0.6 d-1. Nitrogenase, the enzyme complex responsible for fixing dinitrogen, was most active during the initial growth phase and its activity was not different between the different salinities tested (freshwater, brackish, and full salinity seawater. Salinity shock also did not affect nitrogenase activity. The frequency of heterocysts was high, coinciding with high nitrogenase activity during the initial growth phase, but decreased subsequently. However, the frequency of heterocysts decreased considerably more at higher salinity, while no change in nitrogenase activity occurred, indicating a higher efficiency of dinitrogen fixation. Akinete frequency was low in the initial growth phase and higher in the late growth phase. Akinete frequency was much lower at high salinity, which might indicate better growth conditions or that akinete differentiation was under the same control as heterocyst differentiation. These trends have hitherto not been reported for heterocystous cyanobacteria but they seem to be well fitted for an estuarine life style.

  15. Differentiating the growth phases of single bacteria using Raman spectroscopy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strola, S. A.; Marcoux, P. R.; Schultz, E.; Perenon, R.; Simon, A.-C.; Espagnon, I.; Allier, C. P.; Dinten, J.-M.

    2014-03-01

    In this paper we present a longitudinal study of bacteria metabolism performed with a novel Raman spectrometer system. Longitudinal study is possible with our Raman setup since the overall procedure to localize a single bacterium and collect a Raman spectrum lasts only 1 minute. Localization and detection of single bacteria are performed by means of lensfree imaging, whereas Raman signal (from 600 to 3200 cm-1) is collected into a prototype spectrometer that allows high light throughput (HTVS technology, Tornado Spectral System). Accomplishing time-lapse Raman spectrometry during growth of bacteria, we observed variation in the net intensities for some band groups, e.g. amides and proteins. The obtained results on two different bacteria species, i.e. Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis clearly indicate that growth affects the Raman chemical signature. We performed a first analysis to check spectral differences and similarities. It allows distinguishing between lag, exponential and stationary growth phases. And the assignment of interest bands to vibration modes of covalent bonds enables the monitoring of metabolic changes in bacteria caused by growth and aging. Following the spectra analysis, a SVM (support vector machine) classification of the different growth phases is presented. In sum this longitudinal study by means of a compact and low-cost Raman setup is a proof of principle for routine analysis of bacteria, in a real-time and non-destructive way. Real-time Raman studies on metabolism and viability of bacteria pave the way for future antibiotic susceptibility testing.

  16. Change in Photosystem II Photochemistry During Algal Growth Phases of Chlorella vulgaris and Scenedesmus obliquus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oukarroum, Abdallah

    2016-06-01

    Sensitivity of photosynthetic processes towards environmental stress is used as a bioanalytical tool to evaluate the responses of aquatic plants to a changing environment. In this paper, change of biomass density, chlorophyll a fluorescence and photosynthetic parameters during growth phases of two microalgae Chlorella vulgaris and Scenedesmus obliquus were studied. The photosynthetic growth behaviour changed significantly with cell age and algae species. During the exponential phase of growth, the photosynthesis capacity reached its maximum and decreased in ageing algal culture during stationary phase. In conclusion, the chlorophyll a fluorescence OJIP method and the derived fluorescence parameters would be an accurate method for obtaining information on maximum photosynthetic capacities and monitoring algal cell growth. This will contribute to more understanding, for example, of toxic actions of pollutants in microalgae test.

  17. Growth-Dependent Catalase Localization in Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans T-2-2T Reflected by Catalase Activity of Cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanaoka, Yoshiko; Takebe, Fumihiko; Nodasaka, Yoshinobu; Hara, Isao; Matsuyama, Hidetoshi; Yumoto, Isao

    2013-01-01

    A psychrotolerant and H2O2-resistant bacterium, Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans T-2-2T, exhibits extraordinary H2O2 resistance and produces catalase not only intracellularly but also extracellularly. The intracellular and extracellular catalases exhibited the same enzymatic characteristics, that is, they exhibited the temperature-dependent activity characteristic of a cold-adapted enzyme, their heat stabilities were similar to those of mesophilic enzymes and very high catalytic intensity. In addition, catalase gene analysis indicated that the bacterium possessed the sole clade 1 catalase gene corresponding to intracellular catalase. Hence, intracellular catalase is secreted into the extracellular space. In addition to intracellular and extracellular catalases, the inner circumference of the cells showed the localization of catalase in the mid-stationary growth phase, which was observed by immunoelectron microscopy using an antibody against the intracellular catalase of the strain. The cells demonstrated higher catalase activity in the mid-stationary growth phase than in the exponential growth phase. The catalase localized in the inner circumference can be dissociated by treatment with Tween 60. Thus, the localized catalase is not tightly bound to the inner circumference of the cells and may play a role in the oxidative defense of the cells under low metabolic state. PMID:24204687

  18. Growth-dependent catalase localization in Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans T-2-2T reflected by catalase activity of cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanaoka, Yoshiko; Takebe, Fumihiko; Nodasaka, Yoshinobu; Hara, Isao; Matsuyama, Hidetoshi; Yumoto, Isao

    2013-01-01

    A psychrotolerant and H2O2-resistant bacterium, Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans T-2-2(T), exhibits extraordinary H2O2 resistance and produces catalase not only intracellularly but also extracellularly. The intracellular and extracellular catalases exhibited the same enzymatic characteristics, that is, they exhibited the temperature-dependent activity characteristic of a cold-adapted enzyme, their heat stabilities were similar to those of mesophilic enzymes and very high catalytic intensity. In addition, catalase gene analysis indicated that the bacterium possessed the sole clade 1 catalase gene corresponding to intracellular catalase. Hence, intracellular catalase is secreted into the extracellular space. In addition to intracellular and extracellular catalases, the inner circumference of the cells showed the localization of catalase in the mid-stationary growth phase, which was observed by immunoelectron microscopy using an antibody against the intracellular catalase of the strain. The cells demonstrated higher catalase activity in the mid-stationary growth phase than in the exponential growth phase. The catalase localized in the inner circumference can be dissociated by treatment with Tween 60. Thus, the localized catalase is not tightly bound to the inner circumference of the cells and may play a role in the oxidative defense of the cells under low metabolic state.

  19. Identification of growth phases and influencing factors in cultivations with AGE1.HN cells using set-based methods.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steffen Borchers

    Full Text Available Production of bio-pharmaceuticals in cell culture, such as mammalian cells, is challenging. Mathematical models can provide support to the analysis, optimization, and the operation of production processes. In particular, unstructured models are suited for these purposes, since they can be tailored to particular process conditions. To this end, growth phases and the most relevant factors influencing cell growth and product formation have to be identified. Due to noisy and erroneous experimental data, unknown kinetic parameters, and the large number of combinations of influencing factors, currently there are only limited structured approaches to tackle these issues. We outline a structured set-based approach to identify different growth phases and the factors influencing cell growth and metabolism. To this end, measurement uncertainties are taken explicitly into account to bound the time-dependent specific growth rate based on the observed increase of the cell concentration. Based on the bounds on the specific growth rate, we can identify qualitatively different growth phases and (in-validate hypotheses on the factors influencing cell growth and metabolism. We apply the approach to a mammalian suspension cell line (AGE1.HN. We show that growth in batch culture can be divided into two main growth phases. The initial phase is characterized by exponential growth dynamics, which can be described consistently by a relatively simple unstructured and segregated model. The subsequent phase is characterized by a decrease in the specific growth rate, which, as shown, results from substrate limitation and the pH of the medium. An extended model is provided which describes the observed dynamics of cell growth and main metabolites, and the corresponding kinetic parameters as well as their confidence intervals are estimated. The study is complemented by an uncertainty and outlier analysis. Overall, we demonstrate utility of set-based methods for analyzing cell

  20. Identification of growth phases and influencing factors in cultivations with AGE1.HN cells using set-based methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borchers, Steffen; Freund, Susann; Rath, Alexander; Streif, Stefan; Reichl, Udo; Findeisen, Rolf

    2013-01-01

    Production of bio-pharmaceuticals in cell culture, such as mammalian cells, is challenging. Mathematical models can provide support to the analysis, optimization, and the operation of production processes. In particular, unstructured models are suited for these purposes, since they can be tailored to particular process conditions. To this end, growth phases and the most relevant factors influencing cell growth and product formation have to be identified. Due to noisy and erroneous experimental data, unknown kinetic parameters, and the large number of combinations of influencing factors, currently there are only limited structured approaches to tackle these issues. We outline a structured set-based approach to identify different growth phases and the factors influencing cell growth and metabolism. To this end, measurement uncertainties are taken explicitly into account to bound the time-dependent specific growth rate based on the observed increase of the cell concentration. Based on the bounds on the specific growth rate, we can identify qualitatively different growth phases and (in-)validate hypotheses on the factors influencing cell growth and metabolism. We apply the approach to a mammalian suspension cell line (AGE1.HN). We show that growth in batch culture can be divided into two main growth phases. The initial phase is characterized by exponential growth dynamics, which can be described consistently by a relatively simple unstructured and segregated model. The subsequent phase is characterized by a decrease in the specific growth rate, which, as shown, results from substrate limitation and the pH of the medium. An extended model is provided which describes the observed dynamics of cell growth and main metabolites, and the corresponding kinetic parameters as well as their confidence intervals are estimated. The study is complemented by an uncertainty and outlier analysis. Overall, we demonstrate utility of set-based methods for analyzing cell growth and

  1. Effect of Nb on the Growth Behavior of Co3Sn2 Phase in Undercooled Co-Sn Melts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kang, Jilong; Xu, Wanqiang; Wei, Xiuxun; Ferry, Michael; Li, Jinfu

    2016-12-01

    The growth behavior of the primary β-Co3Sn2 phase in (Co67Sn33)100- x Nb x ( x = 0, 0.5, 0.8, 1.0) hypereutectic alloys at different melt undercoolings was investigated systematically. The growth pattern of the β-Co3Sn2 phase at low undercooling changes with the Nb content from fractal seaweed ( x = 0, 0.5) into dendrite ( x = 0.8) and then returns to fractal seaweed ( x = 1.0) as a response to the changes in interface energy anisotropy and interface kinetic anisotropy. As undercooling increases, the dendritic growth of the β-Co3Sn2 phase in (Co67Sn33)99.2Nb0.8 alloy gives way to fractal seaweed growth at an undercooling of 32 K (-241 °C). At larger undercooling, the fractal seaweed growth is further replaced by compact seaweed growth, which occurred in the other three alloys investigated. The growth velocity of the β-Co3Sn2 phase slightly increases at low and intermediate undercooling but clearly decreases at larger undercooling due to the Nb addition. The growth velocity sharply increases as the growth pattern of the Co3Sn2 phase transits from fractal seaweed into compact seaweed.

  2. Epitaxial growth of Ge-Sb-Te based phase change materials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Perumal, Karthick

    2013-07-30

    Ge-Sb-Te based phase change materials are considered as a prime candidate for optical and electrical data storage applications. With the application of an optical or electrical pulse, they can be reversibly switched between amorphous and crystalline state, thereby exhibiting large optical and electrical contrast between the two phases, which are then stored as information in the form of binary digits. Single crystalline growth is interesting from both the academic and industrial perspective, as ordered Ge-Sb-Te based metamaterials are known to exhibit switching at reduced energies. The present study deals with the epitaxial growth and analysis of Ge-Sb-Te based thin films. The first part of the thesis deals with the epitaxial growth of GeTe. Thin films of GeTe were grown on highly mismatched Si(111) and (001) substrates. On both the substrate orientations the film grows along [111] direction with an amorphous-to-crystalline transition observed during the initial stages of growth. The amorphous-to-crystalline transition was studied in-vivo using azimuthal reflection high-energy electron diffraction scans and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction. In the second part of the thesis epitaxy and characterization of Sb{sub 2}Te{sub 3} thin films are presented. The third part of the thesis deals with the epitaxy of ternary Ge-Sb-Te alloys. The composition of the films are shown to be highly dependent on growth temperatures and vary along the pseudobinary line from Sb{sub 2}Te{sub 3} to GeTe with increase in growth temperatures. A line-of-sight quadrupole mass spectrometer was used to reliably control the GeSbTe growth temperature. Growth was performed at different Ge, Sb, Te fluxes to study the compositional variation of the films. Incommensurate peaks are observed along the [111] direction by X-ray diffraction. The possibility of superstructural vacancy ordering along the [111] direction is discussed.

  3. Nerve Growth Factor Gene Therapy: Activation of Neuronal Responses in Alzheimer Disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tuszynski, Mark H; Yang, Jennifer H; Barba, David; U, Hoi-Sang; Bakay, Roy A E; Pay, Mary M; Masliah, Eliezer; Conner, James M; Kobalka, Peter; Roy, Subhojit; Nagahara, Alan H

    2015-10-01

    Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder and lacks effective disease-modifying therapies. In 2001, we initiated a clinical trial of nerve growth factor (NGF) gene therapy in AD, the first effort at gene delivery in an adult neurodegenerative disorder. This program aimed to determine whether a nervous system growth factor prevents or reduces cholinergic neuronal degeneration in patients with AD. We present postmortem findings in 10 patients with survival times ranging from 1 to 10 years after treatment. To determine whether degenerating neurons in AD retain an ability to respond to a nervous system growth factor delivered after disease onset. Patients in this anatomicopathological study were enrolled in clinical trials from March 2001 to October 2012 at the University of California, San Diego, Medical Center in La Jolla. Ten patients with early AD underwent NGF gene therapy using ex vivo or in vivo gene transfer. The brains of all 8 patients in the first phase 1 ex vivo trial and of 2 patients in a subsequent phase 1 in vivo trial were examined. Brains were immunolabeled to evaluate in vivo gene expression, cholinergic neuronal responses to NGF, and activation of NGF-related cell signaling. In 2 patients, NGF protein levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Among 10 patients, degenerating neurons in the AD brain responded to NGF. All patients exhibited a trophic response to NGF in the form of axonal sprouting toward the NGF source. Comparing treated and nontreated sides of the brain in 3 patients who underwent unilateral gene transfer, cholinergic neuronal hypertrophy occurred on the NGF-treated side (P < .05). Activation of cellular signaling and functional markers was present in 2 patients who underwent adeno-associated viral vectors (serotype 2)-mediated NGF gene transfer. Neurons exhibiting tau pathology and neurons free of tau expressed NGF, indicating that degenerating cells can be infected with therapeutic

  4. Solid-state diffusion-controlled growth of the phases in the Au-Sn system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baheti, Varun A.; Kashyap, Sanjay; Kumar, Praveen; Chattopadhyay, Kamanio; Paul, Aloke

    2018-01-01

    The solid state diffusion-controlled growth of the phases is studied for the Au-Sn system in the range of room temperature to 200 °C using bulk and electroplated diffusion couples. The number of product phases in the interdiffusion zone decreases with the decrease in annealing temperature. These phases grow with significantly high rates even at the room temperature. The growth rate of the AuSn4 phase is observed to be higher in the case of electroplated diffusion couple because of the relatively small grains and hence high contribution of the grain boundary diffusion when compared to the bulk diffusion couple. The diffraction pattern analysis indicates the same equilibrium crystal structure of the phases in these two types of diffusion couples. The analysis in the AuSn4 phase relating the estimated tracer diffusion coefficients with grain size, crystal structure, the homologous temperature of experiments and the concept of the sublattice diffusion mechanism in the intermetallic compounds indicate that Au diffuses mainly via the grain boundaries, whereas Sn diffuses via both the grain boundaries and the lattice.

  5. Effect of combined function of temperature and water activity on the growth of Vibrio harveyi

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kang Zhou

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Vibrio harveyi is considered as a causative agent of the systemic disease, vibriosis, which occurs in many biological fields. The effects of temperatures (12.9-27.1 ºC and water activity (NaCl% 0.6%-3.4% on V. harveyi were investigated. The behavior and growth characteristics of V. harveyi was studied and modeled. Growth curves were fitted by using Gompertz and Baranyi models, and the Baranyi model showed a better fittness. Then, the maximum growth rates (µmax and lag phase durations (LPD, λ obtained from both Gompertz and Baranyi model were modeled as a combination function of temperature and water activity using the response surface and Arrhenius-Davey models for secondary model. The value of r², MSE, bias and accuracy factor suggest Baranyi model has better fitness than Gompertz model. Furthermore, validation of the developed models with independent data from ComBase also shown better interrelationship between observed and predicted growth parameter when using Baranyi model.

  6. Effect of combined function of temperature and water activity on the growth of Vibrio harveyi.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Kang; Gui, Meng; Li, Pinglan; Xing, Shaohua; Cui, Tingting; Peng, Zhaohui

    2012-10-01

    Vibrio harveyi is considered as a causative agent of the systemic disease, vibriosis, which occurs in many biological fields. The effects of temperatures (12.9-27.1 °C) and water activity (NaCl% 0.6%-3.4%) on V. harveyi were investigated. The behavior and growth characteristics of V. harveyi was studied and modeled. Growth curves were fitted by using Gompertz and Baranyi models, and the Baranyi model showed a better fittness. Then, the maximum growth rates (μmax) and lag phase durations (LPD, λ) obtained from both Gompertz and Baranyi model were modeled as a combination function of temperature and water activity using the response surface and Arrhenius-Davey models for secondary model. The value of r(2), MSE, bias and accuracy factor suggest Baranyi model has better fitness than Gompertz model. Furthermore, validation of the developed models with independent data from ComBase also shown better interrelationship between observed and predicted growth parameter when using Baranyi model.

  7. Multiphase flow and transport caused by spontaneous gas phase growth in the presence of dense non-aqueous phase liquid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roy, James W; Smith, James E

    2007-01-30

    Disconnected bubbles or ganglia of trapped gas may occur below the top of the capillary fringe through a number of mechanisms. In the presence of dense non-aqueous phase liquid (DNAPL), the disconnected gas phase experiences mass transfer of dissolved gases, including volatile components from the DNAPL. The properties of the gas phase interface can also change. This work shows for the first time that when seed gas bubbles exist spontaneous gas phase growth can be expected to occur and can significantly affect water-gas-DNAPL distributions, fluid flow, and mass transfer. Source zone behaviour was observed in three different experiments performed in a 2-dimensional flow cell. In each case, a DNAPL pool was created in a zone of larger glass beads over smaller glass beads, which served as a capillary barrier. In one experiment effluent water samples were analyzed to determine the vertical concentration profile of the plume above the pool. The experiments effectively demonstrated a) a cycle of spontaneous gas phase expansion and vertical advective mobilization of gas bubbles and ganglia above the DNAPL source zone, b) DNAPL redistribution caused by gas phase growth and mobilization, and c) that these processes can significantly affect mass transport from a NAPL source zone.

  8. Quantitative assessment of growth plate activity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harcke, H.T.; Macy, N.J.; Mandell, G.A.; MacEwen, G.D.

    1984-01-01

    In the immature skeleton the physis or growth plate is the area of bone least able to withstand external forces and is therefore prone to trauma. Such trauma often leads to premature closure of the plate and results in limb shortening and/or angular deformity (varus or valgus). Active localization of bone seeking tracers in the physis makes bone scintigraphy an excellent method for assessing growth plate physiology. To be most effective, however, physeal activity should be quantified so that serial evaluations are accurate and comparable. The authors have developed a quantitative method for assessing physeal activity and have applied it ot the hip and knee. Using computer acquired pinhole images of the abnormal and contralateral normal joints, ten regions of interest are placed at key locations around each joint and comparative ratios are generated to form a growth plate profile. The ratios compare segmental physeal activity to total growth plate activity on both ipsilateral and contralateral sides and to adjacent bone. In 25 patients, ages 2 to 15 years, with angular deformities of the legs secondary to trauma, Blount's disease, and Perthes disease, this technique is able to differentiate abnormal segmental physeal activity. This is important since plate closure does not usually occur uniformly across the physis. The technique may permit the use of scintigraphy in the prediction of early closure through the quantitative analysis of serial studies

  9. Influence of temperature on growth rate and lag phase of fungi isolated from Argentine corn.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González, H H; Resnik, S L; Vaamonde, G

    1988-03-01

    The influence of temperature on the growth of nine strains of fungi belonging to the genera Eurotium, Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium has been investigated for the temperature range 15-35 degrees C. The lag phase and the growth rate were evaluated by using a laboratory medium. The maximum growth rate for E. repens, A. wentii and P. chrysogenum was observed at about 25 degrees C, for P. citrinum near 30 degrees C and for F. semitectum and F. moniliforme between 20 and 25 degrees C. The growth rate of A. niger, A. flavus and A. parasiticus increased with increasing temperatures in the range studied. For all strains studied it appeared that the higher the growth rate the lower the lag phase was.

  10. Stabilisation of late transition metal and noble metal films in hexagonal and body centred tetragonal phases by epitaxial growth

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hueger, E.

    2005-08-26

    In this work ultrathin metallic films with a crystal phase different to their natural bulk structure were produced by hetero-epitaxial growth on metallic substrates. A further aim of this work was to understand the initiation, growth and stability of crystal phase modifications of these films. there exist cases where the films turn beyond the pseudomorphic-growth to a crystal phase different from their natural bulk structure. The present work presents and discusses such a case in addition to the general phenomenon of pseudomorphic-growth. In particular it is shown that metals whose natural phase is face centred cubic (fcc) can be grown in body centred tetragonal (bct) or hexagonal close packed (hcp) phases in the form of thin films on (001) surfaces of appropriate substrates. The growth behavior, electron diffraction analysis, appearance conditions, geometric fit considerations, examples and a discussion of the phase stability of non-covered films and superlattices is given reviewing all epitaxial-systems whose diffraction pattern can be explained by the hexagonal or pseudomorphic bct phase. (orig.)

  11. Hybrid vapor phase-solution phase growth techniques for improved CZT(S,Se) photovoltaic device performance

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chang, Liang-Yi; Gershon, Talia S.; Haight, Richard A.; Lee, Yun Seog

    2016-12-27

    A hybrid vapor phase-solution phase CZT(S,Se) growth technique is provided. In one aspect, a method of forming a kesterite absorber material on a substrate includes the steps of: depositing a layer of a first kesterite material on the substrate using a vapor phase deposition process, wherein the first kesterite material includes Cu, Zn, Sn, and at least one of S and Se; annealing the first kesterite material to crystallize the first kesterite material; and depositing a layer of a second kesterite material on a side of the first kesterite material opposite the substrate using a solution phase deposition process, wherein the second kesterite material includes Cu, Zn, Sn, and at least one of S and Se, wherein the first kesterite material and the second kesterite material form a multi-layer stack of the absorber material on the substrate. A photovoltaic device and method of formation thereof are also provided.

  12. Minimization of diauxic growth lag-phase for high-efficiency biogas production.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Min Jee; Kim, Sang Hun

    2017-02-01

    The objective of this study was to develop a minimization method of a diauxic growth lag-phase for the biogas production from agricultural by-products (ABPs). Specifically, the effects of proximate composition on the biogas production and degradation rates of the ABPs were investigated, and a new method based on proximate composition combinations was developed to minimize the diauxic growth lag-phase. Experiments were performed using biogas potential tests at a substrate loading of 2.5 g VS/L and feed to microorganism ratio (F/M) of 0.5 under the mesophilic condition. The ABPs were classified based on proximate composition (carbohydrate, protein, and fat etc.). The biogas production patterns, lag phase, and times taken for 90% biogas production (T90) were used for the evaluation of the biogas production with biochemical methane potential (BMP) test. The high- or medium-carbohydrate and low-fat ABPs (cheese whey, cabbage, and skim milk) showed a single step digestion process and low-carbohydrate and high-fat ABPs (bean curd and perilla seed) showed a two-step digestion process. The mixture of high-fat ABPs and high-carbohydrate ABPs reduced the lag-phase and increased the biogas yield more than that from single ABP by 35-46%. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. The extracellular proteome of Rhizobium etli CE3 in exponential and stationary growth phase

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mendoza-Hernández Guillermo

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The extracellular proteome or secretome of symbiotic bacteria like Rhizobium etli is presumed to be a key element of their infection strategy and survival. Rhizobia infect the roots of leguminous plants and establish a mutually beneficial symbiosis. To find out the possible role of secreted proteins we analyzed the extracellular proteome of R. etli CE3 in the exponential and stationary growth phases in minimal medium, supplemented with succinate-ammonium. Results The extracellular proteins were obtained by phenol extraction and identified by LC-ESI MS/MS. We identified 192 and 191 proteins for the exponential and stationary phases respectively. Using the software Signal P, we predicted signal peptides for 12.95% and 35.60% of the proteins identified in the exponential and stationary phases, respectively, which could therefore be secreted by the Sec pathway. For the exponential growth phase, we found in abundance proteins like the ribosomal proteins, toxins and proteins belonging to the group "defence mechanisms". For the stationary growth phase, we found that the most abundant proteins were those with unknown function, and in many of these we identified characteristic domains of proteases and peptidases. Conclusions Our study provided the first dataset of the secretome of R. etli and its modifications, which may lead to novel insights into the adaptive response of different stages of growth. In addition, we found a high number of proteins with unknown function; these proteins could be analyzed in future research to elucidate their role in the extracellular proteome of R. etli.

  14. Phase field simulations of ice crystal growth in sugar solutions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sman, Van Der R.G.M.

    2016-01-01

    We present the first model ever, that describes explicitly ice crystal growth in a sugar solution during freezing. This 2-D model uses the phase field method, supplemented with realistic, and predictive theories on the thermodynamics and (diffusion) kinetics of this food system. We have to make

  15. Methyl Sartortuoate Inhibits Colon Cancer Cell Growth by Inducing Apoptosis and G2/M-Phase Arrest.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lan, Qiusheng; Li, Shoufeng; Lai, Wei; Xu, Heyang; Zhang, Yang; Zeng, Yujie; Lan, Wenjian; Chu, Zhonghua

    2015-08-17

    The potential anti-neoplastic activity of terpenoids is of continued interest. In this study, we investigate whether methyl sartortuoate, a terpenoid isolated from soft coral, induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in a human colon cancer cell line. Culture studies found that methyl sartortuoate inhibited colon cancer cell (LoVo and RKO) growth and caused apoptotic death in a concentration- and time-dependent manner, by activation of caspase-8, caspase-9, caspase-3, p53 and Bax, and inactivation of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) apoptosis regulating proteins. Methyl sartortuoate treatment led to reduced expression of cdc2 and up-regulated p21 and p53, suggesting that Methyl sartortuoate induced G2-M arrest through modulation of p53/p21/cdc2 pathways. Methyl sartortuoate also up-regulated phospho-JNK and phospho-p38 expression levels. This resulted in cell cycle arrest at the G2-M phase and apoptosis in LoVo and RKO cells. Treatment with the JNK inhibitor SP600125 and the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580 prevented methyl sartortuoate-induced apoptosis in LoVo cells. Moreover, methyl sartortuoate also prevented neoplasm growth in NOD-SCID nude mice inoculated with LoVo cells. Taken together, these findings suggest that methyl sartortuoate is capable of leading to activation of caspase-8, -9, -3, increasing p53 and Bax/Bcl-2 ratio apoptosis through MAPK-dependent apoptosis and results in G2-M phase arrest in LoVo and RKO cells. Thus, methyl sartortuoate may be a promising anticancer candidate.

  16. STAT5 Activation in the Dermal Papilla Is Important for Hair Follicle Growth Phase Induction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Legrand, Julien M D; Roy, Edwige; Ellis, Jonathan J; Francois, Mathias; Brooks, Andrew J; Khosrotehrani, Kiarash

    2016-09-01

    Hair follicles are skin appendages that undergo periods of growth (anagen), regression (catagen), and rest (telogen) regulated by their mesenchymal component, the dermal papilla (DP). On the basis of the reports of its specific expression in the DP, we investigated signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT5) activation during hair development and cycling. STAT5 activation in the DP began in late catagen, reaching a peak in early anagen before disappearing for the rest of the cycle. This was confirmed by the expression profile of suppressor of cytokine signaling 2, a STAT5 target in the DP. This pattern of expression starts after the first postnatal hair cycle. Quantification of hair cycling using the Flash canonical Wnt signaling in vivo bioluminescence reporter found that conditional knockout of STAT5A/B in the DP targeted through Cre-recombinase under the control of the Sox18 promoter resulted in delayed anagen entry compared with control. Microarray analysis of STAT5 deletion versus control revealed key changes in tumor necrosis factor-α, Wnt, and fibroblast growth factor ligands, known for their role in inducing anagen entry. We conclude that STAT5 activation acts as a mesenchymal switch to trigger natural anagen entry in postdevelopmental hair follicle cycling. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Oxidation phase growth diagram of vanadium oxides film fabricated by rapid thermal annealing

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Tamura KOZO; Zheng-cao LI; Yu-quan WANG; Jie NI; Yin HU; Zheng-jun ZHANG

    2009-01-01

    Thermal evaporation deposited vanadium oxide films were annealed in air by rapid thermal annealing (RTP). By adjusting the annealing temperature and time, a series of vanadium oxide films with various oxidation phases and surface morphologies were fabricated, and an oxidation phase growth diagram was established. It was observed that different oxidation phases appear at a limited and continuous annealing condition range, and the morphologic changes are related to the oxidation process.

  18. Phase diagram of nanoscale alloy particles used for vapor-liquid-solid growth of semiconductor nanowires.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sutter, Eli; Sutter, Peter

    2008-02-01

    We use transmission electron microscopy observations to establish the parts of the phase diagram of nanometer sized Au-Ge alloy drops at the tips of Ge nanowires (NWs) that determine their temperature-dependent equilibrium composition and, hence, their exchange of semiconductor material with the NWs. We find that the phase diagram of the nanoscale drop deviates significantly from that of the bulk alloy, which explains discrepancies between actual growth results and predictions on the basis of the bulk-phase equilibria. Our findings provide the basis for tailoring vapor-liquid-solid growth to achieve complex one-dimensional materials geometries.

  19. Effect of vapor-phase oxygen on chemical vapor deposition growth of graphene

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terasawa, Tomo-o.; Saiki, Koichiro

    2015-03-01

    To obtain a large-area single-crystal graphene, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth on Cu is considered the most promising. Recently, the surface oxygen on Cu has been found to suppress the nucleation of graphene. However, the effect of oxygen in the vapor phase was not elucidated sufficiently. Here, we investigate the effect of O2 partial pressure (PO2) on the CVD growth of graphene using radiation-mode optical microscopy. The nucleation density of graphene decreases monotonically with PO2, while its growth rate reaches a maximum at a certain pressure. Our results indicate that PO2 is an important parameter to optimize in the CVD growth of graphene.

  20. Neural electrical activity and neural network growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gafarov, F M

    2018-05-01

    The development of central and peripheral neural system depends in part on the emergence of the correct functional connectivity in its input and output pathways. Now it is generally accepted that molecular factors guide neurons to establish a primary scaffold that undergoes activity-dependent refinement for building a fully functional circuit. However, a number of experimental results obtained recently shows that the neuronal electrical activity plays an important role in the establishing of initial interneuronal connections. Nevertheless, these processes are rather difficult to study experimentally, due to the absence of theoretical description and quantitative parameters for estimation of the neuronal activity influence on growth in neural networks. In this work we propose a general framework for a theoretical description of the activity-dependent neural network growth. The theoretical description incorporates a closed-loop growth model in which the neural activity can affect neurite outgrowth, which in turn can affect neural activity. We carried out the detailed quantitative analysis of spatiotemporal activity patterns and studied the relationship between individual cells and the network as a whole to explore the relationship between developing connectivity and activity patterns. The model, developed in this work will allow us to develop new experimental techniques for studying and quantifying the influence of the neuronal activity on growth processes in neural networks and may lead to a novel techniques for constructing large-scale neural networks by self-organization. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Red Guava Leaf Harvesting Impact on Flavonoid Optimation in Different Growth Phases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MUNIF GHULAMAHDI

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Harvesting process is a critical time to identify the quality of raw material for traditional medicine. The time and harvesting techniques, drying process after harvesting, and processing to make the simplicia, are the crucial role to make the good quality of the natural product. On the other hand, there is a lack of general understanding and appreciation about the processes involved in governing shoot and tree growth and development, i.e. red guava. The research objective was to evaluate the influence of leaf harvesting and growth phases on red guava for flavonoid production as antioxidant. Randomized factorial block design in time were laid out with two factors and followed by Duncan’s multiple range test. The treatments were the amount of leaf harvested on tertiary branches (0, 25, 50, and 100% and growth phases of the plant (vegetative and generative. Leaf harvesting 25% on tertiary branches significantly increased the leaf number (766.3 tree-1 and the number of new quarternary branches, decreasing leaf area index (LAI and leaf dry weight at the end of the experiment (22 weeks of observation/WO. The highest leaf dry weight (156.94 g tree-1 and LAI (0.47 was found in harvesting 25% tertiary branches. Harvesting 100% leaf on tertiary branches in vegetative phase significantly produced the lowest flavonoid production (7.82 g tree-1. The result suggested that flavonoid production from red guava leaves should be done by harvesting 50% leaf on tertiary branches in generative phase can be used to produce the highest flavonoid (89.90 g tree-1.

  2. Liquid phase electro epitaxy growth kinetics of GaAs-A three-dimensional numerical simulation study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mouleeswaran, D.; Dhanasekaran, R.

    2006-01-01

    A three-dimensional numerical simulation study for the liquid phase electro epitaxial growth kinetic of GaAs is presented. The kinetic model is constructed considering (i) the diffusive and convective mass transport, (ii) the heat transfer due to thermoelectric effects such as Peltier effect, Joule effect and Thomson effect, (iii) the electric current distribution with electromigration and (iv) the fluid flow coupled with concentration and temperature fields. The simulations are performed for two configurations namely (i) epitaxial growth from the arsenic saturated gallium rich growth solution, i.e., limited solution model and (ii) epitaxial growth from the arsenic saturated gallium rich growth solution with polycrystalline GaAs feed. The governing equations of liquid phase electro epitaxy are solved numerically with appropriate initial and boundary conditions using the central difference method. Simulations are performed to determine the following, a concentration profiles of solute atoms (As) in the Ga-rich growth solution, shape of the substrate evolution, the growth rate of the GaAs epitaxial film, the contributions of Peltier effect and electromigration of solute atoms to the growth with various experimental growth conditions. The growth rate is found to increase with increasing growth temperature and applied current density. The results are discussed in detail

  3. Transcriptome analysis of spermatogenically regressed, recrudescent and active phase testis of seasonally breeding wall lizards Hemidactylus flaviviridis.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mukesh Gautam

    Full Text Available Reptiles are phylogenically important group of organisms as mammals have evolved from them. Wall lizard testis exhibits clearly distinct morphology during various phases of a reproductive cycle making them an interesting model to study regulation of spermatogenesis. Studies on reptile spermatogenesis are negligible hence this study will prove to be an important resource.Histological analyses show complete regression of seminiferous tubules during regressed phase with retracted Sertoli cells and spermatognia. In the recrudescent phase, regressed testis regain cellular activity showing presence of normal Sertoli cells and developing germ cells. In the active phase, testis reaches up to its maximum size with enlarged seminiferous tubules and presence of sperm in seminiferous lumen. Total RNA extracted from whole testis of regressed, recrudescent and active phase of wall lizard was hybridized on Mouse Whole Genome 8×60 K format gene chip. Microarray data from regressed phase was deemed as control group. Microarray data were validated by assessing the expression of some selected genes using Quantitative Real-Time PCR. The genes prominently expressed in recrudescent and active phase testis are cytoskeleton organization GO 0005856, cell growth GO 0045927, GTpase regulator activity GO: 0030695, transcription GO: 0006352, apoptosis GO: 0006915 and many other biological processes. The genes showing higher expression in regressed phase belonged to functional categories such as negative regulation of macromolecule metabolic process GO: 0010605, negative regulation of gene expression GO: 0010629 and maintenance of stem cell niche GO: 0045165.This is the first exploratory study profiling transcriptome of three drastically different conditions of any reptilian testis. The genes expressed in the testis during regressed, recrudescent and active phase of reproductive cycle are in concordance with the testis morphology during these phases. This study will pave

  4. Growth of cadmium zinc telluride by liquid phase electroepitaxy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Armour, N.; Dost, S. [Crystal Growth Laboratory, Faculty of Engineering, University of Victoria, Victoria BC, V8W 3P6 (Canada); Sheibani, H. [Department of Industrial Engineering, Alhosn University, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates)

    2006-10-15

    This study was undertaken to examine the feasibility of growing CdZnTe by liquid phase electroepitaxy. Based on our successful LPEE system of GaInAs, a new crucible to grow CdZnTe was developed. The development presented numerous difficulties. The physical properties of CdZnTe make this material very difficult to grow. All components of the system were investigated. Electromigration of the solute across the solution carries species towards the growth interface. In liquid Cd-Zn-Te, the CdTe and ZnTe species remain associated, contrary to the GaInAs system. Experiments showed that LPEE growth of CdZnTe is possible and the electromigration mechanism functions well in the CdZnTe solution. Despite this, other problems remained with the new LPEE system. The preparation of the solution proved difficult without pressurizing the LPEE crucible. Control of the reaction required the use of pre-compounded CdTe and ZnTe. Proper control of the solution saturation is imperative to ensure minimal dissolution of the seed prior to growth initiation and a reasonable growth rate during growth. The solution remained an issue during the duration of growth due to the high vapor pressures of the constituents. Tellurium evaporation during growth could lower solution volume until electrical contact across the solution is broken. Careful preparation of appropriate solution volume was imperative for successful growth. In LPEE, a uniform electric current passage across the growth interface is necessary for uniform and stable growth interface. This requires the design of a uniform contact zone between the bottom graphite electrode and the seed crystal. The contact zone issue was not adequately resolved in this study. However, a number of successful growth runs were achieved despite the electrical contact problems. Results show that the LPEE of growth CdZnTe is feasible. (copyright 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

  5. Growth of cadmium zinc telluride by liquid phase electroepitaxy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Armour, N.; Dost, S.; Sheibani, H.

    2006-01-01

    This study was undertaken to examine the feasibility of growing CdZnTe by liquid phase electroepitaxy. Based on our successful LPEE system of GaInAs, a new crucible to grow CdZnTe was developed. The development presented numerous difficulties. The physical properties of CdZnTe make this material very difficult to grow. All components of the system were investigated. Electromigration of the solute across the solution carries species towards the growth interface. In liquid Cd-Zn-Te, the CdTe and ZnTe species remain associated, contrary to the GaInAs system. Experiments showed that LPEE growth of CdZnTe is possible and the electromigration mechanism functions well in the CdZnTe solution. Despite this, other problems remained with the new LPEE system. The preparation of the solution proved difficult without pressurizing the LPEE crucible. Control of the reaction required the use of pre-compounded CdTe and ZnTe. Proper control of the solution saturation is imperative to ensure minimal dissolution of the seed prior to growth initiation and a reasonable growth rate during growth. The solution remained an issue during the duration of growth due to the high vapor pressures of the constituents. Tellurium evaporation during growth could lower solution volume until electrical contact across the solution is broken. Careful preparation of appropriate solution volume was imperative for successful growth. In LPEE, a uniform electric current passage across the growth interface is necessary for uniform and stable growth interface. This requires the design of a uniform contact zone between the bottom graphite electrode and the seed crystal. The contact zone issue was not adequately resolved in this study. However, a number of successful growth runs were achieved despite the electrical contact problems. Results show that the LPEE of growth CdZnTe is feasible. (copyright 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

  6. Phase competition in the growth of SrCoOx/LaAlO3 thin films

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Jie; Meng, Dechao; Huang, Haoliang; Cai, Honglei; Huang, Qiuping; Wang, Jianlin; Yang, Yuanjun; Zhai, Xiaofang; Fu, Zhengping; Lu, Yalin

    2018-02-01

    The reversible topotactic phase transformation between brownmillerite SrCoO2.5 to perovskite SrCoO3 has attracted more and more attention for potential applications as solid oxide fuels and electrolysis cells. However, the relatively easy transformation result from small thermal stable energy barriers between the two phases leads to unstable the structures. In the paper, amounts of SrCoO3-δ films have been prepared by pulsed laser deposition at optimized growth conditions with the temperature range of 590-720°C. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results demonstrated that a phase competition emerged around 650°C. The Gibbs free energies of two phases at high temperature revealed the difference of stability of these two phases under different growth temperature. The optical spectroscopies and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies were used to verify the electronic structure and chemical state differences between the two phases with distinct crystal structures.

  7. Phase competition in the growth of SrCoOx/LaAlO3 thin films

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jie Zhang

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The reversible topotactic phase transformation between brownmillerite SrCoO2.5 to perovskite SrCoO3 has attracted more and more attention for potential applications as solid oxide fuels and electrolysis cells. However, the relatively easy transformation result from small thermal stable energy barriers between the two phases leads to unstable the structures. In the paper, amounts of SrCoO3-δ films have been prepared by pulsed laser deposition at optimized growth conditions with the temperature range of 590-720°C. The X-ray diffraction (XRD results demonstrated that a phase competition emerged around 650°C. The Gibbs free energies of two phases at high temperature revealed the difference of stability of these two phases under different growth temperature. The optical spectroscopies and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies were used to verify the electronic structure and chemical state differences between the two phases with distinct crystal structures.

  8. Growth of high purity semiconductor epitaxial layers by liquid phase ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Unknown

    semiconductor materials in high purity form by liquid phase epitaxy (LPE) technique. Various possible sources of impurities in such ... reference to the growth of GaAs layers. The technique of growing very high purity layers ... the inner walls of the gas lines and (e) the containers for storing, handling and cleaning of the mate-.

  9. Modifying effect of caffeine on cell radiosensitivity in stationary and logarithmic phases of growth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Plotnikova, E.D.; Kostenko, G.A.

    1978-01-01

    Studied was reproductive killing of cultivated fibroblasts of a Chinese hamster in stationary and exponential growth phases after gamma irradiation. After cell irradiation in a stationary phase at 1200 rad dose rate and postirradiation incubation in conditioned medium before resowing for 5 hrs the survival rate increased almost 5 times due to the reparation of potential-lethal injuries. Under sodium caffein-benzoate (4 mg/ml) effect on cells in a stationary growth phase for 5 hrs before irradiation the survival rate increased; protection level was almost the same as in case of reduction in a conditioned media. Modification factor of dose curve incline was 1.3. Caffein protective effect may be conjectured to relate to the inhibition of potentially-lethal injury fraction realization

  10. The Role of Gamma Irradiation on Growth and Some Metabolic Activities of Spirulina platensis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moussa, H.R.; El-Shaer, E.A.; Ismaiel, M.M.S.; Shabana, E.F.; Gabr, M.A.

    2015-01-01

    Spirulina platensis cells were exposed to different doses of gamma irradiation 0.0; (control), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0 Kilo Gray (kGy) using Co 60 as a gamma source at the Cyclotron Unit, Nuclear Research Center, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority. After which, the cells were cultivated on Zarrouk medium for 14 days (the exponential phase of growth). The optimum growth of Spirulina platensis was recorded at 2.0 kGy as compared to the control after the 14th day of incubation. All of the following analyses were done after 10 days of growth. The results of pigments analysis revealed that the chlorophyll a and carotenoid contents of Spirulina platensis were reached their maximum rate at a dose of 2.0 kGy, Which induces the same trend for phycobiliproteins fractions. The photosynthetic activity and total carbohydrate content of the irradiated Spirulina cells increased with elevating the doses of gamma irradiation and reached a maximum value at a dose of 2.0 kGy as compared to the control. The activity of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate-carboxylase/oxygenase (RUBISCO) was increased up to irradiation dose of 2.0 kGy. whereas, the maximum activity of the phosphoenol pyruvate carboxylase (PEPCASE) was recorded at the irradiation dose of 1.0 kGy Spirulina platensis cells were exposed to different doses of gamma irradiation 0.0; (control), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0 Kilo Gray (kGy) using Co 60 as a gamma source at the Cyclotron Unit, Nuclear Research Center, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority. After which, the cells were cultivated on Zarrouk medium for 14 days (the exponential phase of growth). The optimum growth of Spirulina platensis was recorded at 2.0 kGy as compared to the control after the 14th day of incubation. All of the following analyses were done after 10 days of growth. The results of pigments analysis revealed that the chlorophyll a and carotenoid contents of Spirulina platensis were reached their maximum rate at a dose of 2.0 kGy, Which induces the same

  11. Investigations on the growth kinetics of Laves phase precipitates in 12% Cr creep-resistant steels: Experimental and DICTRA calculations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Prat, O. [Max Planck Institute fuer Eisenforschung GmbH, Max Planck Strasse 1, 40237 Duesseldorf (Germany)] [Universidad de Concepcion, Departamento de Ingenieria de Materiales, Edmundo Larenas 270, Concepcion (Chile); Garcia, J., E-mail: jose.garcia@helmholtz-berlin.de [Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fuer Materialien und Energie GmbH, Hahn-Meitner-Platz 1, 14109 Berlin (Germany); Rojas, D. [Max Planck Institute fuer Eisenforschung GmbH, Max Planck Strasse 1, 40237 Duesseldorf (Germany); Carrasco, C. [Universidad de Concepcion, Departamento de Ingenieria de Materiales, Edmundo Larenas 270, Concepcion (Chile); Inden, G. [Max Planck Institute fuer Eisenforschung GmbH, Max Planck Strasse 1, 40237 Duesseldorf (Germany)

    2010-10-15

    The growth kinetics of Laves phase precipitates (type Fe{sub 2}W) in the early stage of creep (650 deg. C for 10,000 h) in two 12% Cr ferrite-martensitic steels has been investigated. In one alloy the Laves phase formed on tempering, while in the second alloy the Laves phase precipitated during creep. Kinetic simulations were performed using the software DICTRA. The particle size of the Laves phase was measured on transmission electron microscopy samples. The equilibrium phase fraction of the Laves phase was reached in the first thousand hours. Simulations of particle growth showed good agreement with the experimental results. Competitive growth between M{sub 23}C{sub 6} and the Laves phase showed that M{sub 23}C{sub 6} carbides reached their equilibrium after 12 days, whereas the Laves phase reached equilibrium after 3 months. Simulations of the influence of the interfacial energy and addition of Co, Cu and Si on Laves phase precipitation are presented.

  12. Investigations on the growth kinetics of Laves phase precipitates in 12% Cr creep-resistant steels: Experimental and DICTRA calculations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prat, O.; Garcia, J.; Rojas, D.; Carrasco, C.; Inden, G.

    2010-01-01

    The growth kinetics of Laves phase precipitates (type Fe 2 W) in the early stage of creep (650 deg. C for 10,000 h) in two 12% Cr ferrite-martensitic steels has been investigated. In one alloy the Laves phase formed on tempering, while in the second alloy the Laves phase precipitated during creep. Kinetic simulations were performed using the software DICTRA. The particle size of the Laves phase was measured on transmission electron microscopy samples. The equilibrium phase fraction of the Laves phase was reached in the first thousand hours. Simulations of particle growth showed good agreement with the experimental results. Competitive growth between M 23 C 6 and the Laves phase showed that M 23 C 6 carbides reached their equilibrium after 12 days, whereas the Laves phase reached equilibrium after 3 months. Simulations of the influence of the interfacial energy and addition of Co, Cu and Si on Laves phase precipitation are presented.

  13. Sinorhizobium meliloti sigma factors RpoE1 and RpoE4 are activated in stationary phase in response to sulfite.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bénédicte Bastiat

    Full Text Available Rhizobia are soil bacteria able to establish a nitrogen-fixing symbiosis with legume plants. Both in soil and in planta, rhizobia spend non-growing periods resembling the stationary phase of in vitro-cultured bacteria. The primary objective of this work was to better characterize gene regulation in this biologically relevant growth stage in Sinorhizobium meliloti. By a tap-tag/mass spectrometry approach, we identified five sigma factors co-purifying with the RNA polymerase in stationary phase: the general stress response regulator RpoE2, the heat shock sigma factor RpoH2, and three extra-cytoplasmic function sigma factors (RpoE1, RpoE3 and RpoE4 belonging to the poorly characterized ECF26 subgroup. We then showed that RpoE1 and RpoE4 i are activated upon metabolism of sulfite-generating compounds (thiosulfate and taurine, ii display overlapping regulatory activities, iii govern a dedicated sulfite response by controlling expression of the sulfite dehydrogenase SorT, iv are activated in stationary phase, likely as a result of endogenous sulfite generation during bacterial growth. We showed that SorT is required for optimal growth of S. meliloti in the presence of sulfite, suggesting that the response governed by RpoE1 and RpoE4 may be advantageous for bacteria in stationary phase either by providing a sulfite detoxification function or by contributing to energy production through sulfite respiration. This paper therefore reports the first characterization of ECF26 sigma factors, the first description of sigma factors involved in control of sulphur metabolism, and the first indication that endogenous sulfite may act as a signal for regulation of gene expression upon entry of bacteria in stationary phase.

  14. CCR 20th anniversary commentary: a chimeric antibody, C225, inhibits EGFR activation and tumor growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendelsohn, John; Prewett, Marie; Rockwell, Patricia; Goldstein, Neil I

    2015-01-15

    Murine mAb 225 was effective against the EGFR tyrosine kinase and inhibited tumor growth in preclinical studies. A phase I trial showed safety, tumor localization, and satisfactory pharmacokinetics. Human:murine chimeric C225 retained biologic activity, which was essential for the conduct of subsequent combination therapy trials and eventual regulatory approval. ©2015 American Association for Cancer Research.

  15. Mutations Enhancing Amino Acid Catabolism Confer a Growth Advantage in Stationary Phase

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zinser, Erik R.; Kolter, Roberto

    1999-01-01

    Starved cultures of Escherichia coli undergo successive rounds of population takeovers by mutants of increasing fitness. These mutants express the growth advantage in stationary phase (GASP) phenotype. Previous work identified the rpoS819 allele as a GASP mutation allowing cells to take over stationary-phase cultures after growth in rich media (M. M. Zambrano, D. A. Siegele, M. A. Almirón, A. Tormo, and R. Kolter, Science 259:1757–1760, 1993). Here we have identified three new GASP loci from an aged rpoS819 strain: sgaA, sgaB, and sgaC. Each locus is capable of conferring GASP on the rpoS819 parent, and they can provide successively higher fitnesses for the bacteria in the starved cultures. All four GASP mutations isolated thus far allow for faster growth on both individual and mixtures of amino acids. Each mutation confers a growth advantage on a different subset of amino acids, and these mutations act in concert to increase the overall catabolic capacity of the cell. We present a model whereby this enhanced ability to catabolize amino acids is responsible for the fitness gain during carbon starvation, as it may allow GASP mutants to outcompete the parental cells when growing on the amino acids released by dying cells. PMID:10482523

  16. Modeling the Lag Period and Exponential Growth of Listeria monocytogenes under Conditions of Fluctuating Temperature and Water Activity Values▿

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muñoz-Cuevas, Marina; Fernández, Pablo S.; George, Susan; Pin, Carmen

    2010-01-01

    The dynamic model for the growth of a bacterial population described by Baranyi and Roberts (J. Baranyi and T. A. Roberts, Int. J. Food Microbiol. 23:277-294, 1994) was applied to model the lag period and exponential growth of Listeria monocytogenes under conditions of fluctuating temperature and water activity (aw) values. To model the duration of the lag phase, the dependence of the parameter h0, which quantifies the amount of work done during the lag period, on the previous and current environmental conditions was determined experimentally. This parameter depended not only on the magnitude of the change between the previous and current environmental conditions but also on the current growth conditions. In an exponentially growing population, any change in the environment requiring a certain amount of work to adapt to the new conditions initiated a lag period that lasted until that work was finished. Observations for several scenarios in which exponential growth was halted by a sudden change in the temperature and/or aw were in good agreement with predictions. When a population already in a lag period was subjected to environmental fluctuations, the system was reset with a new lag phase. The work to be done during the new lag phase was estimated to be the workload due to the environmental change plus the unfinished workload from the uncompleted previous lag phase. PMID:20208022

  17. Modeling the lag period and exponential growth of Listeria monocytogenes under conditions of fluctuating temperature and water activity values.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muñoz-Cuevas, Marina; Fernández, Pablo S; George, Susan; Pin, Carmen

    2010-05-01

    The dynamic model for the growth of a bacterial population described by Baranyi and Roberts (J. Baranyi and T. A. Roberts, Int. J. Food Microbiol. 23:277-294, 1994) was applied to model the lag period and exponential growth of Listeria monocytogenes under conditions of fluctuating temperature and water activity (a(w)) values. To model the duration of the lag phase, the dependence of the parameter h(0), which quantifies the amount of work done during the lag period, on the previous and current environmental conditions was determined experimentally. This parameter depended not only on the magnitude of the change between the previous and current environmental conditions but also on the current growth conditions. In an exponentially growing population, any change in the environment requiring a certain amount of work to adapt to the new conditions initiated a lag period that lasted until that work was finished. Observations for several scenarios in which exponential growth was halted by a sudden change in the temperature and/or a(w) were in good agreement with predictions. When a population already in a lag period was subjected to environmental fluctuations, the system was reset with a new lag phase. The work to be done during the new lag phase was estimated to be the workload due to the environmental change plus the unfinished workload from the uncompleted previous lag phase.

  18. Phase and structural transformations in annealed copper coatings in relation to oxide whisker growth

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dorogov, M.V.; Priezzheva, A.N. [Togliatti State University, Belorusskaya 14, 445667 Togliatti (Russian Federation); Vlassov, S., E-mail: vlassovs@ut.ee [Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia, Kengaraga 8, LV-1063 Riga (Latvia); Kink, I.; Shulga, E. [Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, Ravila 14c, 50411 Tartu (Estonia); Dorogin, L.M. [Togliatti State University, Belorusskaya 14, 445667 Togliatti (Russian Federation); Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, Ravila 14c, 50411 Tartu (Estonia); ITMO University, Kronverkskiy 49, 197101 Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation); Lõhmus, R. [Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, Ravila 14c, 50411 Tartu (Estonia); Tyurkov, M.N.; Vikarchuk, A.A. [Togliatti State University, Belorusskaya 14, 445667 Togliatti (Russian Federation); Romanov, A.E. [Togliatti State University, Belorusskaya 14, 445667 Togliatti (Russian Federation); Institute of Physics, University of Tartu, Ravila 14c, 50411 Tartu (Estonia); ITMO University, Kronverkskiy 49, 197101 Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation); Ioffe Physical Technical Institute, RAS, Polytechnicheskaya 26, 194021 Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation)

    2015-08-15

    Highlights: • Coatings prepared by Cu microparticle electrodeposition. • Structural and phase transformation in Cu coatings annealed at 400 °C. • Annealing is accompanied by intensive growth of CuO whiskers. • Layered oxide phases (Cu{sub 2}O and CuO) in the coating are characterized. • Formation of volumetric defects in the coating is demonstrated. - Abstract: We describe structural and phase transformation in copper coatings made of microparticles during heating and annealing in air in the temperature range up to 400 °C. Such thermal treatment is accompanied by intensive CuO nanowhisker growth on the coating surface and the formation of the layered oxide phases (Cu{sub 2}O and CuO) in the coating interior. X-ray diffraction and focused ion beam (FIB) are employed to characterize the multilayer structure of annealed copper coatings. Formation of volumetric defects such as voids and cracks in the coating is demonstrated.

  19. Intercellular signaling pathways active during and after growth and differentiation of the lumbar vertebral growth plate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dahia, Chitra Lekha; Mahoney, Eric J; Durrani, Atiq A; Wylie, Christopher

    2011-06-15

    Vertebral growth plates at different postnatal ages were assessed for active intercellular signaling pathways. To generate a spatial and temporal map of the major signaling pathways active in the postnatal mouse lumbar vertebral growth plate. The growth of all long bones is known to occur by cartilaginous growth plates. The growth plate is composed of layers of chondrocyets that actively proliferate, differentiate, die and, are replaced by bone. The role of major cell signaling pathways has been suggested for regulation of the fetal long bones. But not much is known about the molecular or cellular signals that control the postnatal vertebral growth plate and hence postnatal vertebral bone growth. Understanding such molecular mechanisms will help design therapeutic treatments for vertebral growth disorders such as scoliosis. Antibodies against activated downstream intermediates were used to identify cells in the growth plate responding to BMP, TGFβ, and FGF in cryosections of lumbar vertebrae from different postnatal age mice to identify the zones that were responding to these signals. Reporter mice were used to identify the chondrocytes responding to hedgehog (Ihh), and Wnt signaling. We present a spatial/temporal map of these signaling pathways during growth, and differentiation of the mouse lumbar vertebral growth plate. During growth and differentiation of the vertebral growth plate, its different components respond at different times to different intercellular signaling ligands. Response to most of these signals is dramatically downregulated at the end of vertebral growth.

  20. The active phasing experiment: Part II. Design and developments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gonte, F.; Yaitskova, N.; Derie, F.; Araujo, C.; Brast, R.; Delabre, B.; Dierickx, P.; Dupuy, C.; Frank, C.; Guisard, S.; Karban, R.; Noethe, L.; Sedghi, B.; Surdej, I.; Wilhelm, R.; Reyes, M.; Esposito, S.; Langlois, M.

    2006-06-01

    The purpose of the Active Phasing Experiment, designed under the lead of ESO, is to validate wavefront control concepts for ELT class telescopes. This instrument includes an Active Segmented Mirror, located in a pupil image. It will be mounted at a Nasmyth focus of one of the Unit Telescopes of the ESO VLT. APE contains four different types of phasing sensors, which are developed by Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica in Arcetri, Instituto Astrofisica Canarias, Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille and ESO. These phasing sensors can be compared simultaneously under identical optical and environmental conditions. All sensors receive telecentric F/15 beams with identical optical quality and intensity. Each phasing sensor can measure segmentation errors of the active segmented mirror and correct them in closed loop. The phasing process is supervised by an Internal Metrology system developed by FOGALE Nanotech and capable of measuring piston steps with an accuracy of a few nanometers. The Active Phasing Experiment is equipped with a turbulence generator to simulate atmospheric seeing between 0.45 and 0.85 arcsec in the laboratory. In addition, the Active Phasing Experiment is designed to control simultaneously with the phasing corrections the guiding and the active optics of one of the VLT Unit Telescopes. This activity is supported by the European Community (Framework Programme 6, ELT Design Study, contract No 011863).

  1. Effects of Phytoplankton Growth Phase on Delayed Settling Behavior of Marine Snow Aggregates at Sharp Density Transitions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Proctor, K. W.; Montgomery, Q. W.; Prairie, J. C.

    2016-02-01

    Marine snow aggregates play a fundamental role in the marine carbon cycle. Since marine snow aggregates are larger and thus sink faster than individual phytoplankton, aggregates often dominate carbon flux. Previous studies have shown that marine snow aggregates will significantly decrease their settling velocity when passing through sharp density transitions within the ocean, a phenomenon defined as delayed settling. Given the importance of aggregate settling to carbon export, these small-scale changes in aggregate settling dynamics may have significant impacts on the efficiency of the biological pump. However, there is still a lack of knowledge about how different physical properties of aggregates can affect this delayed settling. In this study, we investigated the effect of phytoplankton growth phase on delayed settling behavior. Using phytoplankton cultures stopped at four different growth phases, we formed marine snow aggregates in the laboratory in rotating cylindrical tanks. We then observed individual aggregates as they settled through a stratified tank. We will present data which illustrates that aggregates experience greatly reduced settling rates when passing through sharp density gradients and that the growth phase of the phytoplankton used to form these aggregates has a significant effect on this delayed settling behavior. A thorough understanding of the impact of phytoplankton growth phase on the delayed settling behavior of marine snow will offer insight into the way phytoplankton growth phase may influence the efficiency of the biological pump, carbon flux, and the carbon cycle as a whole.

  2. Changes in pyridine metabolism profile during growth of trigonelline-forming Lotus japonicus cell cultures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Yuling; Matsui, Ayu; Sakuta, Masaaki; Ashihara, Hiroshi

    2008-12-01

    Changes in the profile of pyridine metabolism during growth of cells were investigated using trigonelline-forming suspension-cultured cells of Lotus japonicus. Activity of the de novo and salvage pathways of NAD biosynthesis was estimated from the in situ metabolism of [(3)H] quinolinic acid and [(14)C] nicotinamide. Maximum activity of the de novo pathway for NAD synthesis was found in the exponential growth phase, whereas activity of the salvage pathway was increased in the lag phase of cell growth. Expression profiles of some genes related to pyridine metabolism were examined using the expression sequence tags obtained from the L. japonicus database. Transcript levels of NaPRT and NIC, encoding salvage enzymes, were enhanced in the lag phase of cell growth, whereas the maximum expression of NADS was found in the exponential growth phase. Correspondingly, the activities of the salvage enzymes, nicotinate phosphoribosyltransferase (EC 2.4.2.11) and nicotinamidase (EC 3.5.1.19), increased one day after transfer of the stationary phase cells to the fresh medium. The greatest in situ trigonelline synthesis, both from [(3)H] quinolinic acid and [(14)C] nicotinamide, was found in the stationary phase of cell growth. The role of trigonelline in leguminous plants is discussed.

  3. Orientation selection process during the early stage of cubic dendrite growth: A phase-field crystal study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang Sai; Wang Zhijun; Guo Yaolin; Wang Jincheng; Yu Yanmei; Zhou Yaohe

    2012-01-01

    Using the phase-field crystal model, we investigate the orientation selection of the cubic dendrite growth at the atomic scale. Our simulation results reproduce how a face-centered cubic (fcc) octahedral nucleus and a body-centered cubic (bcc) truncated-rhombic dodecahedral nucleus choose the preferred growth direction and then evolve into the dendrite pattern. The interface energy anisotropy inherent in the fcc crystal structure leads to the fastest growth velocity in the 〈1 0 0〉 directions. New { 1 1 1} atomic layers prefer to nucleate at positions near the tips of the fcc octahedron, which leads to the directed growth of the fcc dendrite tips in the 〈1 0 0〉 directions. A similar orientation selection process is also found during the early stage of bcc dendrite growth. The orientation selection regime obtained by phase-field crystal simulation is helpful for understanding the orientation selection processes of real dendrite growth.

  4. GaN Bulk Growth and Epitaxy from Ca-Ga-N Solutions, Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This SBIR proposal addresses the liquid phase epitaxy (LPE) of gallium nitride (GaN) films using nitrogen-enriched metal solutions. Growth of GaN from solutions...

  5. Load compensation for single phase system using series active filter

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    Keywords: Active power filter (APF), current source type of harmonic load ... Single phase active filters could attract less attention than three phase due to its low ..... Generalised single-phase p-q theory for active power filtering: simulation and.

  6. Platelet-derived growth factor receptor-β, carrying the activating mutation D849N, accelerates the establishment of B16 melanoma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suzuki, Shioto; Heldin, Carl-Henrik; Heuchel, Rainer Lothar

    2007-01-01

    Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB and PDGF receptor (PDGFR)-β are mainly expressed in the developing vasculature, where PDGF-BB is produced by endothelial cells and PDGFR-β is expressed by mural cells, including pericytes. PDGF-BB is produced by most types of solid tumors, and PDGF receptor signaling participates in various processes, including autocrine stimulation of tumor cell growth, recruitment of tumor stroma fibroblasts, and stimulation of tumor angiogenesis. Furthermore, PDGF-BB-producing tumors are characterized by increased pericyte abundance and accelerated tumor growth. Thus, there is a growing interest in the development of tumor treatment strategies by blocking PDGF/PDGFR function. We have recently generated a mouse model carrying an activated PDGFR-β by replacing the highly conserved aspartic acid residue (D) 849 in the activating loop with asparagine (N). This allowed us to investigate, in an orthotopic tumor model, the role of increased stromal PDGFR-β signaling in tumor-stroma interactions. B16 melanoma cells lacking PDGFR-β expression and either mock-transfected or engineered to express PDGF-BB, were injected alone or in combination with matrigel into mice carrying the activated PDGFR-β (D849N) and into wild type mice. The tumor growth rate was followed and the vessel status of tumors, i.e. total vessel area/tumor, average vessel surface and pericyte density of vessels, was analyzed after resection. Tumors grown in mice carrying an activated PDGFR-β were established earlier than those in wild-type mice. In this early phase, the total vessel area and the average vessel surface were higher in tumors grown in mice carrying the activated PDGFR-β (D849N) compared to wild-type mice, whereas we did not find a significant difference in the number of tumor vessels and the pericyte abundance around tumor vessels between wild type and mutant mice. At later phases of tumor progression, no significant difference in tumor growth rate was

  7. Phase transformations in intermetallic phases in zirconium alloys

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Filippov, V. P., E-mail: vpfilippov@mephi.ru [National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute) (Russian Federation); Kirichenko, V. G. [Kharkiv National Karazin University (Ukraine); Salomasov, V. A. [National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute) (Russian Federation); Khasanov, A. M. [University of North Carolina – Asheville, Chemistry Department (United States)

    2017-11-15

    Phase change was analyzed in intermetallic compounds of zirconium alloys (Zr – 1.03 at.% Fe; Zr – 0.51 at.% Fe; Zr – 0.51 at.% Fe – M(M = Nb, Sn). Mössbauer spectroscopy on {sup 57}Fe nuclei in backscattering geometry with the registration of the internal conversion electrons and XRD were used. Four types of iron bearing intermetallic compounds with Nb were detected. A relationship was found between the growth process of intermetallic inclusions and segregation of these phases. The growth kinetics of inclusions possibly is not controlled by bulk diffusion, and a lower value of the iron atom’s activation energy of migration can be attributed to the existence of enhanced diffusion paths and interface boundaries.

  8. Strand specific RNA-sequencing and membrane lipid profiling reveals growth phase-dependent cold stress response mechanisms in Listeria monocytogenes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hingston, Patricia; Chen, Jessica; Allen, Kevin; Truelstrup Hansen, Lisbeth

    2017-01-01

    The human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes continues to pose a challenge in the food industry, where it is known to contaminate ready-to-eat foods and grow during refrigerated storage. Increased knowledge of the cold-stress response of this pathogen will enhance the ability to control it in the food-supply-chain. This study utilized strand-specific RNA sequencing and whole cell fatty acid (FA) profiling to characterize the bacterium’s cold stress response. RNA and FAs were extracted from a cold-tolerant strain at five time points between early lag phase and late stationary-phase, both at 4°C and 20°C. Overall, more genes (1.3×) were suppressed than induced at 4°C. Late stationary-phase cells exhibited the greatest number (n = 1,431) and magnitude (>1,000-fold) of differentially expressed genes (>2-fold, pmonocytogenes, the growth-phase dependency of its cold-stress regulon, and the active roles of antisense transcripts in regulating its cold stress response. PMID:28662112

  9. Phase diagram of interfacial growth modes by vapor deposition and its application for ZnO nanostructures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shu, Da-Jun; Xiong, Xiang; Liu, Ming; Wang, Mu

    2017-09-01

    Interfacial growth from vapor has been extensively studied. However, a straightforward picture of the growth mode under different growth conditions is still lacking. In this paper, we develop a comprehensive interfacial growth theory based on the stochastic approach. Using a critical interisland separation, we construct a general phase diagram of the growth modes. It has been revealed that if the Ehrlich-Schwoebel barrier EES is smaller than a critical value, the interfacial growth proceeds in a layer-by-layer (LBL) mode at any deposition rate. However, if EES is larger than the critical value, LBL growth occurs only at very small or very large deposition rates relative to the intralayer hopping rate, and multilayer (ML) growth occurs at a moderate deposition rate. Experiments with zinc oxide growth by chemical vapor deposition have been designed to qualitatively demonstrate the theoretical model. By changing the flux of the carrier gas (nitrogen gas) in chemical vapor deposition, we realize LBL, ML, and then reentrance of LBL homoepitaxial growth of ZnO successively. Moreover, we find that surface kinetics of ZnO is suppressed by decreasing oxygen partial pressure by comparing the experimental observations and theoretical models, which is supported by our recent first-principles calculations. Since the influence of the substrate and the growth species on growth can approximately be represented by binding energy and surface kinetics, we suggest that the phase diagram is essential for interfacial growth of different materials by vapor deposition.

  10. Growth Law For Peritectic Phases Formation In The Zinc Coating

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guzik E.

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Some experiments dealing with the isothermal hot dip galvanizing were carried out. The (Zn – coating settled on the Armco-iron substrate were examined after arresting the solidification for different periods of time. The measurement of the thickness of each sub-layer in the coating were performed due to the SEM – analysis. The zinc segregation on the cross-section of the studied sub-layers were also determined by the EDS technique. The growth laws are formulated mathematically for each of the observed sub-layer. The mechanism of the sub-layer formation is also analysed due to the observation of the birth/nucleation of the phases in the sub-layers and the effect of flux onto the sub-layers morphology formation. The appearance of each phase is referred to the Fe-Zn diagram for stable equilibrium according to which these phases are the products of the adequate peritectic transformation.

  11. A two-phase kinetic model for fungal growth in solid-state cultivation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hamidi-Esfahani, Z.; Hejazi, P.; Abbas Shojaosadati, S.; Hoogschagen, M.J.; Vasheghani-Farahani, E.; Rinzema, A.

    2007-01-01

    A new two-phase kinetic model including exponential and logistic models was applied to simulate the growth rate of fungi at various temperatures. The model parameters, expressed as a function of temperature, were determined from the oxygen consumption rate of Aspergillus niger during cultivation on

  12. Upper Extremity Muscle Activity During In-Phase and Anti-Phase Continuous Pushing Tasks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gruevski, Kristina M; Hodder, Joanne N; Keir, Peter J

    2017-11-01

    To determine the effect of anti-phase, in-phase bimanual and unimanual simulated industrial pushing tasks and frequency on upper extremity muscle activity. Research investigating symmetrical (in-phase) and asymmetrical (anti-phase) pushing exertions is limited despite a high prevalence in industry. Fifteen female participants completed five pushing tasks using a dual handle apparatus at three frequencies: 15 cycles per minute (cpm), 30 cpm, and self-selected. Tasks included two bimanual symmetrical pushes (constrained and unconstrained), two bimanual asymmetrical pushes (reciprocating and continuous), and one right unimanual push. Surface electromyography (EMG) from the right anterior, middle, and posterior deltoid (AD, MD, and PD); right and left trapezius (RT and LT); right pectoralis major (PM); and right and left external obliques (REO and LEO) was collected and normalized to maximum voluntary effort. There was a task by frequency interaction in the AD, MD, PD, and RT ( p pushes and constrained, in-phase pushes had the highest muscle activity demands and the least amount of variability in muscle activity and therefore may present the greatest risk of injury. Anti-phase pushing is known to have a greater cognitive demand, and this study demonstrated that it also has a greater physical demand when performed continuously.

  13. An absorbing phase transition from a structured active particle phase

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lopez, Cristobal [Instituto Mediterraneo de Estudios Avanzados IMEDEA (CSIC-UIB), Campus de la Universidad de las Islas Baleares, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca (Spain); Ramos, Francisco [Departamento de Electromagnetismo y Fisica de la Materia and Instituto de Fisica Teorica y Computacional Carlos I, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, 18071 Granada (Spain); Hernandez-GarcIa, Emilio [Instituto Mediterraneo de Estudios Avanzados IMEDEA (CSIC-UIB), Campus de la Universidad de las Islas Baleares, E-07122 Palma de Mallorca (Spain)

    2007-02-14

    In this work we study the absorbing state phase transition of a recently introduced model for interacting particles with neighbourhood-dependent reproduction rates. The novelty of the transition is that as soon as the active phase is reached by increasing a control parameter a periodically arranged structure of particle clusters appears. A numerical study in one and two dimensions shows that the system falls into the directed percolation universality class.

  14. Activation of ErbB3, EGFR and Erk is essential for growth of human breast cancer cell lines with acquired resistance to fulvestrant

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frogne, Thomas; Benjaminsen, Rikke; Sonne-Hansen, Katrine

    2008-01-01

    cell lines concomitant with inhibition of Erk and unaltered Akt activation. In concert, inhibition of Erk with U0126 preferentially reduced growth of resistant cell lines. Treatment with ErbB3 neutralizing antibodies inhibited ErbB3 activation and resulted in a modest but statistically significant...... activation was observed only in the parental MCF-7 cells. The downstream kinases pAkt and pErk were increased in five of seven and in all seven resistant cell lines, respectively. Treatment with the EGFR inhibitor gefitinib preferentially inhibited growth and reduced the S phase fraction in the resistant...... growth inhibition of two resistant cell lines. These data indicate that ligand activated ErbB3 and EGFR, and Erk signaling play important roles in fulvestrant resistant cell growth. Furthermore, the decreased level of ErbB4 in resistant cells may facilitate heterodimerization of ErbB3 with EGFR and ErbB2...

  15. Hydrogen induced crack growth in Grade-12 titanium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahn, T.M.; Lee, K.S.

    1984-01-01

    Internal hydrogen induced crack growth rates were measured in Grade-12 titanium which is a candidate material for high-level nuclear waste containers. As-received and hydrogen charged samples (5 ppM to 330 ppM hydrogen) were used for slow crack growth measurements at constant loads using a Krak Gauge. The testing temperature ranged from room temperature to 148 0 C. The crack growth kinetics under low to moderate loads are linear, but this linear rate is interrupted by discrete fast crack jump segments with parabolic or cubic type kinetics. These fast jump segments are thought to be associated with the passage of the crack front through the alpha-beta interface phase or with the initial loading sequence. By measuring striation spacings on the fracture surface, most crack growth rates observed are found to be in stage II. The striations are considered to be associated with hydride fracture. The crack path is either transgranular in the alpha phase or interfacial in the alpha phase adjacent to the beta phase. For transgranular growth, crack growth rates are constant and slower than those for interfacial growth which is associated with fast crack growth through a high hydrogen concentration region. Most stage II crack growth rates depend slightly on the stress intensity suggesting the contribution of plastic tearing process to stage II kinetics. The activation energies for crack growth are much lower than the activation energy of hydrogen diffusion through the alpha phase, implying that hydrogen is transported along dislocations, grain boundaries or interfaces. When the temperature is increased, the crack velocity first reaches a maximum and then decreases at higher temperatures. These temperature effects come from lower hydrogen concentration trapped at dislocations or from slower hydride nucleation kinetics, both at higher temperatures

  16. Synthesis of Cubic Phase-Co Microspheres by Mechanical Solid-State Reaction-Thermal Decomposition and Research on Its Growth Kinetics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ying Deng

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Cubic phase cobalt (Co, which can be used as a key component for composite materials given its excellent ductility and internal structure, is not easy to obtain at room temperature. In this study, oxalic acid and cobalt nitrate are used as raw materials to synthesize the cobalt oxalate precursor, which has a stable structure with a five-membered chelate ring. Cobalt oxalate microspheres, having a high internal energy content, were prepared by using mechanical solid-state reaction in the presence of a surfactant, which can produce spherical micelles. The thermal decomposition of the precursor was carried out by maintaining it in a nitrogen atmosphere at 450°C for 3 h. At the end of the procedure, 100 nm cubic phase-Co microspheres, stable at room temperature, were obtained. Isothermal and nonisothermal kinetic mechanisms of cobalt grain growth were investigated. The cubic-Co grain growth activation energy, Q, was calculated in this study to be 71.47 kJ/mol. The required reaction temperature was low, making the production process simple and suitable for industrial applications.

  17. Crystal phase-based epitaxial growth of hybrid noble metal nanostructures on 4H/fcc Au nanowires

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Qipeng; Wang, An-Liang; Gong, Yue; Hao, Wei; Cheng, Hongfei; Chen, Junze; Li, Bing; Yang, Nailiang; Niu, Wenxin; Wang, Jie; Yu, Yifu; Zhang, Xiao; Chen, Ye; Fan, Zhanxi; Wu, Xue-Jun; Chen, Jinping; Luo, Jun; Li, Shuzhou; Gu, Lin; Zhang, Hua

    2018-03-01

    Crystal-phase engineering offers opportunities for the rational design and synthesis of noble metal nanomaterials with unusual crystal phases that normally do not exist in bulk materials. However, it remains a challenge to use these materials as seeds to construct heterometallic nanostructures with desired crystal phases and morphologies for promising applications such as catalysis. Here, we report a strategy for the synthesis of binary and ternary hybrid noble metal nanostructures. Our synthesized crystal-phase heterostructured 4H/fcc Au nanowires enable the epitaxial growth of Ru nanorods on the 4H phase and fcc-twin boundary in Au nanowires, resulting in hybrid Au-Ru nanowires. Moreover, the method can be extended to the epitaxial growth of Rh, Ru-Rh and Ru-Pt nanorods on the 4H/fcc Au nanowires to form unique hybrid nanowires. Importantly, the Au-Ru hybrid nanowires with tunable compositions exhibit excellent electrocatalytic performance towards the hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline media.

  18. Effect of Strain Restored Energy on Abnormal Grain Growth in Mg Alloy Simulated by Phase Field Methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yan; Huang, Yuan-yuan

    2018-03-01

    Abnormal grain growth of single phase AZ31 Mg alloy in the spatio-temporal process has been simulated by phase field models, and the influencing factors of abnormal grain growth are studied in order to find the ways to control secondary recrystallization in the microstructure. The study aims to find out the mechanisms for abnormal grain growth in real alloys. It is shown from the simulated results that the abnormal grain growth can be controlled by the strain restored energy. Secondary recrystallization after an annealing treatment can be induced if there are grains of a certain orientation in the microstructure with local high restored energy. However, if the value of the local restored energy at a certain grain orientation is not greater than 1.1E 0, there may be no abnormal grain growth in the microstructure.

  19. Potential synergistic effects of human placental extract and minoxidil on hair growth-promoting activity in C57BL/6J mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwon, T-R; Oh, C T; Park, H M; Han, H J; Ji, H J; Kim, B J

    2015-08-01

    Human placenta extract (HPE) has been used to alleviate tiredness and promote wound healing, and for its antiageing functions; however, it has not yet been studied for its effects on hair growth. In the present study, we evaluated the in vitro effect of HPE on hair growth by observing its actions on human dermal papilla cells (DPCs). To define how HPE promotes induction of anagen hair growth during the telogen phase, and to understand the synergistic molecular mechanisms of HPE and minoxidil (MXD) actions on hair growth. We examined the effects of HPE and MXD on C57BL6/J mice using haematoxylin and eosin staining, quantitative histomorphometry, hair growth scoring, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence on the dorsal skins of C57BL/6J mice. We found that HPE synergistically augmented the effects of MXD, a promoter of hair growth. In particular, histomorphometric analysis data indicated that subcutaneous injection of HPE induced an earlier anagen phase and prolonged the anagen phase. It also stimulated increases in both the number and size of hair follicles in groups treated with HPE alone and HPE + MXD. From our data, we conclude that HPE increases β-catenin and Wnt3a expression levels. Overall, our findings suggest that HPE in combination with MXD has hair growth-promoting activity and is a potential novel therapeutic treatment for alopecia or baldness in humans. © 2015 British Association of Dermatologists.

  20. Competitive grain growth in directional solidification investigated by phase field simulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li Junjie; Wang Zhijun; Wang Jincheng; Yang Yujuan

    2012-01-01

    During directional solidification, the competitive dendritic growth between various oriented grains is a key factor to obtain desirable texture. In order to understand the mechanism of competitive dendritic growth, the phase field method was adopted to simulate the microstructure evolution of bicrystal samples. The simulation has well reproduced the whole competitive growth process for both diverging and converging dendrites. In converging case, besides the block of the unfavorably oriented dendrite by the favorably oriented one, the unfavorably oriented dendrite is also able to overgrow the favorable one under the condition of relatively low pulling velocity. This unusual overgrowth is dictated by the solute interaction of the converging dendrite tips. In diverging case, it was found that the grain boundary can be either inclined or parallel to the favorably oriented grain depending on the disposition of two grains.

  1. Crystalline phase control and growth selectivity of β-MnO{sub 2} thin films by remote plasma assisted pulsed laser deposition

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Abi-Akl, M.; Tabbal, M., E-mail: malek.tabbal@aub.edu.lb; Kassem, W.

    2016-08-01

    In this paper, we exploit the effect of coupling an oxygen remote plasma source to Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) for the growth of pure and well crystallized β-MnO{sub 2} films. Films were grown on Si substrates by laser ablation of a MnO target in oxygen ambient and remote plasma. X-Ray Diffraction, Fourier Transform Infra-Red spectroscopy and Raman scattering were used to determine the crystalline structure and bonding in the grown layers, whereas Atomic Force Microscopy was used to study their morphology and surface roughness. Deposition at 500 °C and high oxygen pressure (33.3–66.6 Pa) resulted in the formation of films with roughness of 12 nm consisting of nsutite γ-MnO{sub 2}, a structure characterized by the intergrowth of the pyrolusite β-MnO{sub 2} in a ramsdellite R-MnO{sub 2} matrix. Deposition at the same temperature but low pressure (1.33–3.33 Pa) in oxygen ambient lead to the formation of Mn{sub 2}O{sub 3} whereas plasma activation within the same pressure range induced the growth of single phase highly crystalline β-MnO{sub 2} having smooth surfaces with a roughness value of 0.6 nm. Such results underline the capability of remote plasma assisted PLD in selecting and controlling the crystalline phase of manganese oxide layers. - Highlights: • MnO{sub 2} films were grown by Remote Plasma Assisted Pulsed Laser Deposition. • Crystalline MnO{sub 2} is formed at a substrate temperature of 500 °C. • Smooth crystalline single phase β-MnO{sub 2} films were obtained at 1.33–3.33 Pa. • Deposition at 1.33–3.33 Pa without plasma activation lead to the growth of Mn{sub 2}O{sub 3}. • Without plasma, mixed phases of MnO{sub 2} polymorphs are obtained at 33.3 Pa and above.

  2. Tyrosine requirement during the rapid catch-up growth phase of recovery from severe childhood undernutrition

    Science.gov (United States)

    The requirement for aromatic amino acids, during the rapid catch-up in weight phase of recovery from severe childhood under nutrition (SCU) is not clearly established. As a first step, the present study aimed to estimate the tyrosine requirement of children with SCU during the catch-up growth phase ...

  3. A model for growth of beta-phase particles in zirconium-2.5 wt percent niobium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chow, C.K.; Liner, Y.; Rigby, G.L.

    1984-08-01

    The kinetics of the α → β phase change in Zr-2.5 percent Nb pressure-tube material at constant temperature have been studied. The volume-fraction change of the β phase due to diffusion in an infinite α-phase matrix was considered, and a mathematical model with a numerical solution was developed to predict the transient spherical growth of the β-phase region. This model has been applied to Zr-2.5 wt percent Nb, and the calculated results compared to experiment

  4. Effect of cultivation conditions on growth and antifungal activity of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Administrator

    Growth and production of antifungal agent by Mycena leptocephala was investigated in different culture media composition at various initial pH and temperatures. Maximum growth and activity was observed at the initial pH of 5.5 and 25oC. No detectable growth and activity was observed at pH of 3.5 and 7.5. Growth of the ...

  5. The nucleation and growth of intermetallic Al-Pt phases

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kovacs, A.; Barna, P.B.; Labar, J. l.

    2002-01-01

    The nucleation and growth of intermetallic Al-Pt phases on amorphous carbon was investigated by half shadow technique in co-deposited thin films. In such experimental condition, the composition of the deposited films varied in the range of Al x Pt 1-x (0≤x≤0.6). The coexistence of Al 5 Pt, Al 2 Pt, Al 3 Pt 2 intermetallic phases have been found in the whole range with varying ratio. Vapour depositions were performed in an UHV system. The Al and Pt components were evaporated simultaneously onto amorphous carbon layer supported by TEM micro-grids. Deposition rates were controlled separately by quartz crystal monitors. Substrate temperature during deposition was 350 grad C. A special evaporation arrangement made possible to create a half shadow area on the substrate in which the quantity one of the components increased from zero to the wanted composition of the sample. The composition of the zones was determined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) in TEM. The intermetallic phases developed in the sample were investigated by analytical TEM (Philips CM20) and high resolution TEM (JEOL 3010 UHR). The electron diffraction patterns have been evaluated by ProcessDiffraction program. (Authors)

  6. Physiological-phased kinetic characteristics of microalgae Chlorella vulgaris growth and lipid synthesis considering synergistic effects of light, carbon and nutrients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liao, Qiang; Chang, Hai-Xing; Fu, Qian; Huang, Yun; Xia, Ao; Zhu, Xun; Zhong, Nianbing

    2018-02-01

    To comprehensively understand kinetic characteristics of microalgae growth and lipid synthesis in different phases, a phase-feeding strategy was proposed to simultaneously regulate light, carbon and nutrients in adaption, growth and stationary phases of microalgae cultivation. Physiological-phased kinetic characteristics of microalgae Chlorella vulgaris growth and lipid synthesis under synergistic effects of light, carbon and nutrients were investigated, and supply-demand relationships of electrons and energy between light and dark reactions of photosynthesis process were discussed. Finally, the optimized cultivation strategy for microalgae in various phases were obtained, under which the lipid productivity was significantly improved from 130.11 mg/L/d to 163.42 mg/L/d. The study provided some important guidance for the large-scale production of biofuels from microalgae. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Near-earth Thin Current Sheets and Birkeland Currents during Substorm Growth Phase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sorin Zaharia; Cheng, C.Z.

    2003-01-01

    Two important phenomena observed during the magnetospheric substorm growth phase are modeled: the formation of a near-Earth (|X| ∼ 9 R E ) thin cross-tail current sheet, as well as the equatorward shift of the ionospheric Birkeland currents. Our study is performed by solving the 3-D force-balance equation with realistic boundary conditions and pressure distributions. The results show a cross-tail current sheet with large current (J φ ∼ 10 nA/m 2 ) and very high plasma β (β ∼ 40) between 7 and 10 R E . The obtained region-1 and region-2 Birkeland currents, formed on closed field lines due to pressure gradients, move equatorward and become more intense (J parallel max ∼ 3 (micro)A/m 2 ) compared to quiet times. Both results are in agreement with substorm growth phase observations. Our results also predict that the cross-tail current sheet maps into the ionosphere in the transition region between the region-1 and region-2 currents

  8. Impact of the growth phase on the activity of multidrug resistance pumps and membrane potential of S.cerevidiae: effect of pump overproduction and carbon source

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Čadek, R.; Chládková, K.; Sigler, Karel; Gášková, D.

    2004-01-01

    Roč. 1665, - (2004), s. 111-117 ISSN 0005-2736 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IBS5020202 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z5020903 Keywords : growth phases * s.cerevisiae * membrane potential Subject RIV: EE - Microbiology, Virology Impact factor: 3.441, year: 2004

  9. The effect of the phase composition of compound layer on the growth kinetics of the nitrided layer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ratajski, J.; Olik, R.; Suszko, T.; Tacikowski, J.

    2001-01-01

    This paper presents a part of research work on the kinetics of formation and growth of nitrided layers on 40HM steel that was conducted within the research project devoted to the control of gaseous nitriding processes. The purpose of the research was to find answers to still opened questions connected with the optimization of the growth kinetics of nitrided layer. It has been demonstrated in particular how important in diffusion layer kinetics of growth on steel is the role-played by compound layer phase composition. Mainly, this refers to designing changes of parameters in processes where accurate formation of layer on precise parts with required tolerance of size changes is demanded. It comes out of the presented research that proper diffusion layer growth kinetics can be achieved when phase ε dominates in the compound layer. This domination of the phase ε influences speed of growth of the compound layer and first of all growth of diffusion layer. The obtained results are also a starting point of for working-out of good functional relations which could create good basis for design of algorithms of potential values changes in the function of the process time which provides the optimal kinetics of the growth of the layers. In this respect it has been achieved very good qualitative relation between the simulated distribution of nitrogen concentration in the layer and experimentally established distribution of hardness. (author)

  10. Fibroblast growth factor-2-induced host stroma reaction during initial tumor growth promotes progression of mouse melanoma via vascular endothelial growth factor A-dependent neovascularization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsunoda, Satoshi; Nakamura, Toshiyuki; Sakurai, Hiroaki; Saiki, Ikuo

    2007-04-01

    Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2 has been considered to play a critical role in neovascularization in several tumors; however, its precise role in tumor progression is not fully understood. In the present study, we have characterized the role of FGF-2 in B16-BL6 mouse melanoma cells, focusing on effects during the initial phase of tumor growth. FGF-2 was injected at the tumor inoculation site of dorsal skin during the initial phase. FGF-2 induced marked tumor growth and lymph node metastasis. This was well correlated with an increase in neovascularization in the host stroma. FGF-2 also recruited inflammatory and mesenchymal cells in host stroma. Marked tumor growth, pulmonary metastasis and intensive neovascularization in tumor parenchyma were also observed after a single injection of FGF-2 into the footpad inoculation site. In contrast, repeated injections of FGF-2 at a site remote from the footpad tumor were ineffective in promoting tumor growth and metastasis. These promoting activities of FGF-2 were blocked by local injections of a glucocorticoid hormone, suggesting that host inflammatory responses induced by FGF-2 are associated with FGF-2-induced tumor progression. In addition, although FGF-2 did not promote cellular proliferation and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) mRNA expression in B16-BL6 cells in vitro, FGF-2 induced VEGFA expression in host stroma rather than tumor tissue, and local injections of a neutralizing antibody against VEGFA inhibited these activities of FGF-2 in vivo. These results indicate that abundant FGF-2 during the initial phase of tumor growth induces VEGFA-dependent intensive neovascularization in host stroma, and supports marked tumor growth and metastasis.

  11. Hydride vapor phase epitaxy growth of GaN, InGaN, ScN, and ScAIN

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bohnen, T.

    2010-01-01

    Chemical vapor deposition (CVD); hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE); gallium nitride (GaN); indium gallium nitride (InGaN); scandium nitride (ScN); scandium aluminum nitride (ScAlN); semiconductors; thin films; nanowires; III nitrides; crystal growth - We studied the HVPE growth of different III

  12. Measuring laves phase particle size and thermodynamic calculating its growth and coarsening behavior in P92 steels

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yao, Bing-Yin; Zhou, Rong-Can; Fan, Chang-Xin

    2010-01-01

    The growth of Laves phase particles in three kinds of P92 steels were investigated. Laves phase particles can be easily separated and distinguished from the matrix and other particles by atom number contrast using comparisons of the backscatter electrons (BSE) images and the secondary electrons (SE......) images in scanning electron microscope (SEM). The smaller Laves phase particle size results in higher creep strength and longer creep exposure time at the same conditions. DICTRA software was used to model the growth and coarsening behavior of Laves phase in the three P92 steels. Good agreements were...... attained between measurements in SEM and modeling by DICTRA. Ostwald ripening should be used for the coarsening calculation of Laves phase in P92 steels for time longer than 20000 h and 50000 h at 650°C and 600°C, respectively. © 2010 Chin. Soc. for Elec. Eng....

  13. Predicting the growth of S i3N4 nanowires by phase-equilibrium-dominated vapor-liquid-solid mechanism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yongliang; Cai, Jing; Yang, Lijun; Wu, Qiang; Wang, Xizhang; Hu, Zheng

    2017-09-01

    Nanomaterial synthesis is experiencing a profound evolution from empirical science ("cook-and-look") to prediction and design, which depends on the deep insight into the growth mechanism. Herein, we report a generalized prediction of the growth of S i3N4 nanowires by nitriding F e28S i72 alloy particles across different phase regions based on our finding of the phase-equilibrium-dominated vapor-liquid-solid (PED-VLS) mechanism. All the predictions about the growth of S i3N4 nanowires, and the associated evolutions of lattice parameters and geometries of the coexisting Fe -Si alloy phases, are experimentally confirmed quantitatively. This progress corroborates the general validity of the PED-VLS mechanism, which could be applied to the design and controllable synthesis of various one-dimensional nanomaterials.

  14. Liquid Solution Phase Epitaxial Growth of Al-doped f-SiC for LEDs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tang, Kai; Ma, Xiang; van der Eijk, Casper

    light quality and longer lifespan, compared to the current yellow phosphor based white LEDs. Liquid phase epitaxy technology is able to yield a high crystalline quality in terms of structural perfection owing to the fact that it is a near equilibrium process. In addition, the technological equipment...... are presented and discussed. Since operational temperature of LPE growth is much lower than that currently used in physical vapour transport (PVT) process, it is expected to save the energy consumption for SiC crystal growth....

  15. Crystal nucleation and dendrite growth of metastable phases in undercooled melts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Herlach, Dieter

    2011-01-01

    Research highlights: → Homogenous nucleation. → Effects of convection on dendrite growth kinetics. → Description of disorder trapping validated by experiment. - Abstract: An undercooled melt possesses an enhanced free enthalpy that opens up the possibility to crystallize metastable crystalline solids in competition with their stable counterparts. Crystal nucleation selects the crystallographic phase whereas the growth dynamics controls microstructure evolution. We apply containerless processing techniques such as electromagnetic and electrostatic levitation to containerlesss undercool and solidify metallic melts. Owing to the complete avoidance of heterogeneous nucleation on container-walls a large undercooling range becomes accessible with the extra benefit that the freely suspended drop is direct accessible for in situ observation of crystallization far away from equilibrium. Results of investigations of maximum undercoolability on pure zirconium are presented showing the limit of maximum undercoolability set by the onset of homogeneous nucleation. Rapid dendrite growth is measured as a function of undercooling by a high-speed camera and analysed within extended theories of non-equilibrium solidification. In such both supersaturated solid solutions and disordered superlattice structure of intermetallics are formed at high growth velocities. A sharp interface theory of dendrite growth is capable to describe the non-equilibrium solidification phenomena during rapid crystallization of deeply undercooled melts. Eventually, anomalous growth behaviour of Al-rich Al-Ni alloys is presented, which may be caused by forced convection.

  16. Light-optimized growth of cyanobacterial cultures: Growth phases and productivity of biomass and secreted molecules in light-limited batch growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, Ryan L; McGinley, Laura L; Purdy, Hugh M; Korosh, Travis C; Reed, Jennifer L; Root, Thatcher W; Pfleger, Brian F

    2018-03-27

    Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic microorganisms whose metabolism can be modified through genetic engineering for production of a wide variety of molecules directly from CO 2 , light, and nutrients. Diverse molecules have been produced in small quantities by engineered cyanobacteria to demonstrate the feasibility of photosynthetic biorefineries. Consequently, there is interest in engineering these microorganisms to increase titer and productivity to meet industrial metrics. Unfortunately, differing experimental conditions and cultivation techniques confound comparisons of strains and metabolic engineering strategies. In this work, we discuss the factors governing photoautotrophic growth and demonstrate nutritionally replete conditions in which a model cyanobacterium can be grown to stationary phase with light as the sole limiting substrate. We introduce a mathematical framework for understanding the dynamics of growth and product secretion in light-limited cyanobacterial cultures. Using this framework, we demonstrate how cyanobacterial growth in differing experimental systems can be easily scaled by the volumetric photon delivery rate using the model organisms Synechococcus sp. strain PCC7002 and Synechococcus elongatus strain UTEX2973. We use this framework to predict scaled up growth and product secretion in 1L photobioreactors of two strains of Synechococcus PCC7002 engineered for production of l-lactate or L-lysine. The analytical framework developed in this work serves as a guide for future metabolic engineering studies of cyanobacteria to allow better comparison of experiments performed in different experimental systems and to further investigate the dynamics of growth and product secretion. Copyright © 2018 International Metabolic Engineering Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. The Effects of Temperature and Growth Phase on the Lipidomes of Sulfolobus islandicus and Sulfolobus tokodaii

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Sara Munk; Neesgaard, Vinnie Lund; Skjoldbjerg, Sandra Landbo Nedergaard

    2015-01-01

    at three different temperatures, with samples withdrawn during lag, exponential, and stationary phases. Three abundant tetraether lipid classes and one diether lipid class were monitored. Beside the expected increase in the number of cyclopentane moieties with higher temperature in both archaea, we......The functionality of the plasma membrane is essential for all organisms. Adaption to high growth temperatures imposes challenges and Bacteria, Eukarya, and Archaea have developed several mechanisms to cope with these. Hyperthermophilic archaea have earlier been shown to synthesize tetraether...... membrane lipids with an increased number of cyclopentane moieties at higher growth temperatures. Here we used shotgun lipidomics to study this effect as well as the influence of growth phase on the lipidomes of Sulfolobus islandicus and Sulfolobus tokodaii for the first time. Both species were cultivated...

  18. Trade-offs between microbial growth phases lead to frequency-dependent and non-transitive selection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manhart, Michael; Adkar, Bharat V; Shakhnovich, Eugene I

    2018-02-14

    Mutations in a microbial population can increase the frequency of a genotype not only by increasing its exponential growth rate, but also by decreasing its lag time or adjusting the yield (resource efficiency). The contribution of multiple life-history traits to selection is a critical question for evolutionary biology as we seek to predict the evolutionary fates of mutations. Here we use a model of microbial growth to show that there are two distinct components of selection corresponding to the growth and lag phases, while the yield modulates their relative importance. The model predicts rich population dynamics when there are trade-offs between phases: multiple strains can coexist or exhibit bistability due to frequency-dependent selection, and strains can engage in rock-paper-scissors interactions due to non-transitive selection. We characterize the environmental conditions and patterns of traits necessary to realize these phenomena, which we show to be readily accessible to experiments. Our results provide a theoretical framework for analysing high-throughput measurements of microbial growth traits, especially interpreting the pleiotropy and correlations between traits across mutants. This work also highlights the need for more comprehensive measurements of selection in simple microbial systems, where the concept of an ordinary fitness landscape breaks down. © 2018 The Author(s).

  19. The Faceted Discrete Growth and Phase Differentiation During the Directional Solidification of 20SiMnMo5 Steel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Xiaoping; Li, Dianzhong

    2018-07-01

    The microstructures, segregation and cooling curve were investigated in the directional solidification of 20SiMnMo5 steel. The typical characteristic of faceted growth is identified. The microstructures within the single cellular and within the single dendritic arm, together with the contradictive segregation distribution against the cooling curve, verify the discrete crystal growth in multi-scales. Not only the single cellular/dendritic arm but also the single martensite zone within the single cellular/dendritic arm is produced by the discrete growth. In the viewpoint of segregation, the basic domain following continuous growth has not been revealed. Along with the multi-scale faceted discrete growth, the phase differentiation happens for both the solid and liquid. The differentiated liquid phases appear and evolve with different sizes, positions, compositions and durations. The physical mechanism for the faceted discrete growth is qualitatively established based on the nucleation of new faceted steps induced by the composition gradient and temperature gradient.

  20. The Faceted Discrete Growth and Phase Differentiation During the Directional Solidification of 20SiMnMo5 Steel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Xiaoping; Li, Dianzhong

    2018-03-01

    The microstructures, segregation and cooling curve were investigated in the directional solidification of 20SiMnMo5 steel. The typical characteristic of faceted growth is identified. The microstructures within the single cellular and within the single dendritic arm, together with the contradictive segregation distribution against the cooling curve, verify the discrete crystal growth in multi-scales. Not only the single cellular/dendritic arm but also the single martensite zone within the single cellular/dendritic arm is produced by the discrete growth. In the viewpoint of segregation, the basic domain following continuous growth has not been revealed. Along with the multi-scale faceted discrete growth, the phase differentiation happens for both the solid and liquid. The differentiated liquid phases appear and evolve with different sizes, positions, compositions and durations. The physical mechanism for the faceted discrete growth is qualitatively established based on the nucleation of new faceted steps induced by the composition gradient and temperature gradient.

  1. Fundamental aspects of nucleation and growth in the solution-phase synthesis of germanium nanocrystals

    KAUST Repository

    Codoluto, Stephen C.; Baumgardner, William J.; Hanrath, Tobias

    2010-01-01

    Colloidal Ge nanocrystals (NCs) were synthesized via the solution phase reduction of germanium(ii) iodide. We report a systematic investigation of the nanocrystal nucleation and growth as a function of synthesis conditions including the nature

  2. Quantum theoretical calculations of activation energies for the mass transfer at phase boundaries of ionic crystals. 4

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Winzer, A.

    1978-01-01

    It is shown that a direct proportionality exists between the activation energy for the mass transfer at the respective crystal faces of ionic crystals and the frequency of the phonones (longitudinal-optical), Planck's constant being found once more as a proportionality constant. Thus it could be demonstrated that the different activation energies measured at different time intervals for the mass transfer processes at phase boundaries of ionic crystals can be attributed to the specific growth of the crystal faces. Thus, NaCl crystal fractions which were mechanically stressed (pulverized and sifted) and consequently contained a great amount of [111]- and [110]-faces, respectively, experimentally yielded an activation energy which agrees with the values determined by quantum theory when the frequency of propagation of the phonons is inserted into a derived equation. This relation was also confirmed by NaCl crystal fractions predominantly containing cubic faces. This also indicates that in mass transfer processes on phase boundaries of ionic crystals quantum mechanical laws are of importance. (author)

  3. Interaction Between Second-Phase Particle Dissolution and Abnormal Grain Growth in an Austenitic Stainless Steel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dutra J.C.

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available The continuing development of stainless steels has resulted in complex steel compositions with substantial amounts of alloying elements. The benefits of such additions invariably come attached to unavoidable disadvantages. One of the most critical item is the potential microstructural instability of the material. Alloying elements may be in a supersaturated solid solution, in which the precipitation of carbides, nitrides, borides and intermetallic phases occurs in a wide range of temperatures. In order to dissolve the mentioned precipitates, solution annealing is commonly performed. However, at the temperature range in which this treatment is carried out, the onset of abnormal grain growth can occur. The interaction between the dissolution of these second-phase particles and the occurrence of abnormal grain growth is investigated in this work. This study also shows that the thermodynamics and the kinetics of dissolution of precipitates may be used to predict whether abnormal grain growth takes place.

  4. Liquid Phase Epitaxial Growth of Al-doped f-SiC for White Light-Emitting Diodes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tang, Kai; Ma, Xiang; can der Eijk, Casper

    efficiency, better light quality and longer lifespan, compared to the current yellow phosphor based white LEDs.Liquid phase epitaxy technology can yield a high crystalline quality in terms of structural perfection owing to the fact that it is a near equilibrium crystalline growth process. In addition....... The experimental results are presented and discussed. Since operational temperature of LPE growth is much lower than that currently used in physical vapour transport (PVT) process, it is expected to save the energy consumption for SiC crystal growth....

  5. Biomass growth aspects during bioreclamation of contaminated soils

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elektorowicz, M.; Yong, R.N.

    1993-01-01

    Some microorganisms metabolize petroleum compounds. Under favorable environmental conditions, the development of microorganisms can be used to reclamation of contaminated soils. The aim of each bioreclamation technique is to improve these conditions in order to accelerate microorganism activity in the soil. In practice, bioreclamation on an industrial scale is induced through the controlled growth of indigenous microorganisms or through inoculating the soil with specific microorganisms, developed in a lab. These two techniques can be applied either in-situ or ex-situ in the excavated soils. Generally, the growth process includes six phases: the lag phase, the acceleration phase, the exponential phase, the growth decline phase, the stationary phase and the endogenous phase. The goal of each technique is to diminish the time lag, increase the acceleration phase, extend the stationary phase and delay the endogenous phase. However, during the bioreclamation phase, the biochemical processes may postpone the treatment by slowing down its growth,. Very often, the advanced techniques developed in the laboratory does not equate with efficiency on the site itself. On the site, the biomass growth decreases faster then expected because of various interaction processes taking place in contaminated soil. The principal factors described in paper which delay the growth of microorganisms capable of reclaiming petroleum products include the following: competition among microorganisms, unavailability of nutrients, variation of the pH, inadequate moisture, temperature variation, sorption, toxicity of by-products, mutation and impact of additives. The most of the factors are insufficiently recognized, however, impact of some parameters is observed when additives as sawdust and nutrients are added. In similar cases the feasibility studies are necessary before implementation of any technique on industrial scale

  6. Changes In Growth Culture FDA Activity Under Changing Growth Conditions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jørgensen, Per Elberg; Eriksen, Thomas Juul; Jensen, Bjørn K.

    1992-01-01

    The FDA hydrolysis capacities and bacterial biomass concentrations (estimated by determination of ATP content) of growth cultures prepared from activated sludge and wastewater, were measured to find out whether the FDA activity would reflect bacterial biomass under different physiological states...... of the bacteria. The FDA activity/ATP ratio was calculated for different concentrations of autoclaved sludge. A faster decay rate of ATP relative to FDA hydrolysis activity was observed, thus causing changes in the ratio. Furthermore, comparison between values obtained from pure cultures and different soils...... revealed differences up to two orders of magnitude of the ratio. Based on these results it was concluded that the FDA activity should not be applied for measurements of viable biomass in environments in which different physiological conditions occur....

  7. Changes in Microbial Energy Metabolism Measured by Nanocalorimetry during Growth Phase Transitions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robador, Alberto; LaRowe, Douglas E.; Finkel, Steven E.; Amend, Jan P.; Nealson, Kenneth H.

    2018-01-01

    Calorimetric measurements of the change in heat due to microbial metabolic activity convey information about the kinetics, as well as the thermodynamics, of all chemical reactions taking place in a cell. Calorimetric measurements of heat production made on bacterial cultures have recorded the energy yields of all co-occurring microbial metabolic reactions, but this is a complex, composite signal that is difficult to interpret. Here we show that nanocalorimetry can be used in combination with enumeration of viable cell counts, oxygen consumption rates, cellular protein content, and thermodynamic calculations to assess catabolic rates of an isolate of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 and infer what fraction of the chemical energy is assimilated by the culture into biomass and what fraction is dissipated in the form of heat under different limiting conditions. In particular, our results demonstrate that catabolic rates are not necessarily coupled to rates of cell division, but rather, to physiological rearrangements of S. oneidensis MR-1 upon growth phase transitions. In addition, we conclude that the heat released by growing microorganisms can be measured in order to understand the physiochemical nature of the energy transformation and dissipation associated with microbial metabolic activity in conditions approaching those found in natural systems. PMID:29449836

  8. Nucleation and Growth of GaN on GaAs (001) Substrates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Drummond, Timothy J.; Hafich, Michael J.; Heller, Edwin J.; Lee, Stephen R.; Liliental-Weber, Zuzanna; Ruvimov, Sergei; Sullivan, John P.

    1999-01-01

    The nucleation of GaN thin films on GaAs is investigated for growth at 620 ''C. An rf plasma cell is used to generate chemically active nitrogen from N 2 . An arsenic flux is used in the first eight monolayer of nitride growth to enhance nucleation of the cubic phase. Subsequent growth does not require an As flux to preserve the cubic phase. The nucleation of smooth interfaces and GaN films with low stacking fault densities is dependent upon relative concentrations of active nitrogen species in the plasma and on the nitrogen to gallium flux ratio

  9. Strand specific RNA-sequencing and membrane lipid profiling reveals growth phase-dependent cold stress response mechanisms in Listeria monocytogenes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patricia Hingston

    Full Text Available The human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes continues to pose a challenge in the food industry, where it is known to contaminate ready-to-eat foods and grow during refrigerated storage. Increased knowledge of the cold-stress response of this pathogen will enhance the ability to control it in the food-supply-chain. This study utilized strand-specific RNA sequencing and whole cell fatty acid (FA profiling to characterize the bacterium's cold stress response. RNA and FAs were extracted from a cold-tolerant strain at five time points between early lag phase and late stationary-phase, both at 4°C and 20°C. Overall, more genes (1.3× were suppressed than induced at 4°C. Late stationary-phase cells exhibited the greatest number (n = 1,431 and magnitude (>1,000-fold of differentially expressed genes (>2-fold, p<0.05 in response to cold. A core set of 22 genes was upregulated at all growth phases, including nine genes required for branched-chain fatty acid (BCFA synthesis, the osmolyte transporter genes opuCBCD, and the internalin A and D genes. Genes suppressed at 4°C were largely associated with cobalamin (B12 biosynthesis or the production/export of cell wall components. Antisense transcription accounted for up to 1.6% of total mapped reads with higher levels (2.5× observed at 4°C than 20°C. The greatest number of upregulated antisense transcripts at 4°C occurred in early lag phase, however, at both temperatures, antisense expression levels were highest in late stationary-phase cells. Cold-induced FA membrane changes included a 15% increase in the proportion of BCFAs and a 15% transient increase in unsaturated FAs between lag and exponential phase. These increases probably reduced the membrane phase transition temperature until optimal levels of BCFAs could be produced. Collectively, this research provides new information regarding cold-induced membrane composition changes in L. monocytogenes, the growth-phase dependency of its cold

  10. Analysis of expression profile of mce operon genes (mce1, mce2, mce3 operon) in different Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates at different growth phases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Pratibha; Katoch, V M; Mohanty, K K; Chauhan, Devendra Singh

    2016-04-01

    Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) has four homologous mammalian cell entry (mce) operons (mce1-4) that encode exported proteins and have a possible role in the virulence mechanism of this pathogen. The expression of mce operon is considered to be complex and not completely understood. Although expression of mce operon at different in vitro growth phases has been studied earlier, its expression in different M. tuberculosis isolates under different growth phases is not yet studied. The present preliminary study was conducted on a limited number of isolates to know the trend of expression pattern of mce operon genes in different M. tuberculosis isolates under different growth stages. In this study, we monitored the transcriptional profile of selected mce operon genes (mce1A, mce1D, mce2A, mce2D, mce3A, mce3C) in different M.tuberculosis isolates (MDR1, MDR2, and sensitive isolate) at early exponential and stationary phases using real-time quantitative PCR. The expression ratio of all selected mce operon genes in all M. tuberculosis isolates was reduced at the initial phase and increased substantially at a later phase of growth. Higher expression of mce1 operon genes was found in all M. tuberculosis isolates as compared to other mce operon genes (mce2 and mce3 operons) at stationary growth phase. the higher expression of mce operon genes at stationary phase (as compared to early exponential phase) suggested growth phase dependent expression of mce operon genes. This indicated that the mce operon genes might have a role in M. tuberculosis survival and adaptation on the onset of adverse condition like stationary phase. Identification of differentially expressed genes will add to our understanding of the bacilli involved in adaptation to different growth conditions.

  11. Insurance Market Activity and Economic Growth: Evidence from Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip Chimobi Omoke

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available The focus of this study is to empirically assess insurance market activities in Nigeria withthe view to determining its impact on economic growth. The period of study was 1970- 2008, thestudy made use of insurance density measures (premium per capita as a measure for insurancemarket activity and real GDP for economic growth. It also employed control variables such asinflation and savings rate as other determinants ofgrowth. The Johansen cointegration and vectorerror correction approach was used to estimate therelationship between the variables. All thevariables used were stationary at first differenceand the result showed a long term relationshipexisting among the variables. The hallmark findingof this study is that the insurance sector did notreveal any positively and significant affect on economic growth in Nigeria within the period of study.The result shows a low insurance market activity inNigeria and that Nigerians have not fully embracethe insurance industry despite its importance to the growth of theeconomy.

  12. Study of Stationary Phase Metabolism Via Isotopomer Analysis of Amino Acids from an Isolated Protein

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shaikh, AfshanS.; Tang, YinjieJ.; Mukhopadhyay, Aindrila; Martin, Hector Garcia; Gin, Jennifer; Benke, Peter; Keasling, Jay D.

    2009-09-14

    Microbial production of many commercially important secondary metabolites occurs during stationary phase, and methods to measure metabolic flux during this growth phase would be valuable. Metabolic flux analysis is often based on isotopomer information from proteinogenic amino acids. As such, flux analysis primarily reflects the metabolism pertinent to the growth phase during which most proteins are synthesized. To investigate central metabolism and amino acids synthesis activity during stationary phase, addition of fully 13C-labeled glucose followed by induction of green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression during stationary phase was used. Our results indicate that Escherichia coli was able to produce new proteins (i.e., GFP) in the stationary phase, and the amino acids in GFP were mostly from degraded proteins synthesized during the exponential growth phase. Among amino acid biosynthetic pathways, only those for serine, alanine, glutamate/glutamine, and aspartate/asparagine had significant activity during the stationary phase.

  13. Transcriptional Characterization of Salmonella TAl00 in Growth and Stationary Phase: Mutagenesis of MX in Both Types of Cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    The Salmonella (Ames) mutagenicity assay can be performed using cells that are in different growth phases. Thus, the plate-incorporation assay involves plating stationary-phase cells with the mutagen, after which the cells undergo a brief lag phase and, consequently, are exposed ...

  14. Phase separation and large deviations of lattice active matter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whitelam, Stephen; Klymko, Katherine; Mandal, Dibyendu

    2018-04-01

    Off-lattice active Brownian particles form clusters and undergo phase separation even in the absence of attractions or velocity-alignment mechanisms. Arguments that explain this phenomenon appeal only to the ability of particles to move persistently in a direction that fluctuates, but existing lattice models of hard particles that account for this behavior do not exhibit phase separation. Here we present a lattice model of active matter that exhibits motility-induced phase separation in the absence of velocity alignment. Using direct and rare-event sampling of dynamical trajectories, we show that clustering and phase separation are accompanied by pronounced fluctuations of static and dynamic order parameters. This model provides a complement to off-lattice models for the study of motility-induced phase separation.

  15. Growth kinetics and mass transport mechanisms of GaN columns by selective area metal organic vapor phase epitaxy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Xue; Hartmann, Jana; Mandl, Martin; Sadat Mohajerani, Matin; Wehmann, Hergo-H.; Strassburg, Martin; Waag, Andreas

    2014-04-01

    Three-dimensional GaN columns recently have attracted a lot of attention as the potential basis for core-shell light emitting diodes for future solid state lighting. In this study, the fundamental insights into growth kinetics and mass transport mechanisms of N-polar GaN columns during selective area metal organic vapor phase epitaxy on patterned SiOx/sapphire templates are systematically investigated using various pitch of apertures, growth time, and silane flow. Species impingement fluxes on the top surface of columns Jtop and on their sidewall Jsw, as well as, the diffusion flux from the substrate Jsub contribute to the growth of the GaN columns. The vertical and lateral growth rates devoted by Jtop, Jsw and Jsub are estimated quantitatively. The diffusion length of species on the SiOx mask surface λsub as well as on the sidewall surfaces of the 3D columns λsw are determined. The influences of silane on the growth kinetics are discussed. A growth model is developed for this selective area metal organic vapor phase epitaxy processing.

  16. E-cadherin homophilic ligation inhibits cell growth and epidermal growth factor receptor signaling independently of other cell interactions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Perrais, Michaël; Chen, Xiao; Perez-Moreno, Mirna

    2007-01-01

    growth inhibitory signals. To address this question, we have selectively formed E-cadherin homophilic bonds at the cell surface of isolated epithelial cells by using functionally active recombinant E-cadherin protein attached to microspheres. We find that E-cadherin ligation alone reduces the frequency...... of cells entering the S phase, demonstrating that E-cadherin ligation directly transduces growth inhibitory signals. E-cadherin binding to beta-catenin is required for cell growth inhibition, but beta-catenin/T-cell factor transcriptional activity is not involved in growth inhibition resulting from...... homophilic binding. Neither E-cadherin binding to p120-catenin nor beta-catenin binding to alpha-catenin, and thereby the actin cytoskeleton, is required for growth inhibition. E-cadherin ligation also inhibits epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor-mediated growth signaling by a beta...

  17. A study on fatigue crack growth in dual phase martensitic steel in air

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Dual phase (DP) steel was intercritically annealed at different temperatures from fully martensitic state to achieve martensite plus ferrite, microstructures with martensite contents in the range of 32 to 76%. Fatigue crack growth (FCG) and fracture toughness tests were carried out as per ASTM standards E 647 and E 399, ...

  18. Platelet-derived growth factor inhibits platelet activation in heparinized whole blood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Selheim, F; Holmsen, H; Vassbotn, F S

    1999-08-15

    We previously have demonstrated that human platelets have functionally active platelet-derived growth factor alpha-receptors. Studies with gel-filtered platelets showed that an autocrine inhibition pathway is transduced through this tyrosine kinase receptor during platelet activation. The physiological significance of this inhibitory effect of platelet-derived growth factor on gel-filtered platelets activation is, however, not known. In the present study, we investigated whether platelet-derived growth factor inhibits platelet activation under more physiological conditions in heparinized whole blood, which represents a more physiological condition than gel-filtered platelets. Using flow cytometric assays, we demonstrate here that platelet-derived growth factor inhibits thrombin-, thrombin receptor agonist peptide SFLLRN-, and collagen-induced platelet aggregation and shedding of platelet-derived microparticles from the platelet plasma membrane during platelet aggregation in stirred heparinized whole blood. The inhibitory effect of platelet-derived growth factor was dose dependent. However, under nonaggregating conditions (no stirring), we could not demonstrate any significant effect of platelet-derived growth factor on thrombin- and thrombin receptor agonist peptide-induced platelet surface expression of P-selectin. Our results demonstrate that platelet-derived growth factor appears to be a true antithrombotic agent only under aggregating conditions in heparinized whole blood.

  19. Characterization of secondary phases in modified vertical bridgman growth czt

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Duff, Martine

    2009-01-01

    CdZnTe or 'CZT' crystals are highly suitable for use as a room temperature based spectrometer for the detection and characterization of gamma radiation. Over the last decade, the methods for growing high quality CZT have improved the quality of the produced crystals however there are material features that can influence the performance of these materials as radiation detectors. For example, various structural heterogeneities within the CZT crystals, such as twinning, pipes, grain boundaries (polycrystallinity), and secondary phases (SP) can have a negative impact on the detector performance. In this study, a CZT material was grown by the modified vertical Bridgman growth (MVB) method with zone leveled growth without excess Te in the melt. Visual observations of material from the growth of this material revealed significant voids and SP. Three samples from this material was analyzed using various analytical techniques to evaluate its electrical properties, purity and detector performance as radiation spectrometers and to determine the morphology, dimension and elemental/structural composition of one of the SP in this material. This material was found to have a high resistivity but poor radiation spectrometer performance. It had SP that were rich in polycrystalline aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), metallic Te and polycrystalline CdZnTe and 15 to 50 (micro)m in diameter. Bulk elemental analyses of sister material from elsewhere in the boule did not contain high levels of Al so there is considerable elemental impurity heterogeneity within the boule from this growth

  20. Theory and modeling of microstructural evolution in polycrystalline materials: Solute segregation, grain growth and phase transformations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Ning

    2005-11-01

    To accurately predict microstructure evolution and, hence, to synthesis metal and ceramic alloys with desirable properties involves many fundamental as well as practical issues. In the present study, novel theoretical and phase field approaches have been developed to address some of these issues including solute drag and segregation transition at grain boundaries and dislocations, grain growth in systems of anisotropic boundary properties, and precipitate microstructure development in polycrystalline materials. The segregation model has allowed for the prediction of a first-order segregation transition, which could be related to the sharp transition of solute concentration of grain boundary as a function of temperature. The incorporating of interfacial energy and mobility as functions of misorientation and inclination in the phase field model has allowed for the study of concurrent grain growth and texture evolution. The simulation results were analyzed using the concept of local grain boundary energy density, which simplified significantly the development of governing equations for texture controlled grain growth in Ti-6Al-4V. Quantitative phase field modeling techniques have been developed by incorporating thermodynamic and diffusivity databases. The models have been validated against DICTRA simulations in simple 1D problems and applied to simulate realistic microstructural evolutions in Ti-6Al-4V, including grain boundary a and globular a growth and sideplate development under both isothermal aging and continuous cooling conditions. The simulation predictions agree well with experimental observations.

  1. Grain growth kinetics for B2O3-doped ZnO ceramics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuksel Berat

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Grain growth kinetics in 0.1 to 2 mol % B2O3-added ZnO ceramics was studied by using a simplified phenomenological grain growth kinetics equation Gn = K0 · t · exp(-Q/RT together with the physical properties of sintered samples. The samples, prepared by conventional ceramics processing techniques, were sintered at temperatures between 1050 to 1250 °C for 1, 2, 3, 5 and 10 hours in air. The kinetic grain growth exponent value (n and the activation energy for the grain growth of the 0.1 mol % B2O3-doped ZnO ceramics were found to be 2.8 and 332 kJ/mol, respectively. By increasing B2O3 content to 1 mol %, the grain growth exponent value (n and the activation energy decreased to 2 and 238 kJ/mol, respectively. The XRD study revealed the presence of a second phase, Zn3B2O6 formed when the B2O3 content was > 1 mol %. The formation of Zn3B2O6 phase gave rise to an increase of the grain growth kinetic exponent and the grain growth activation energy. The kinetic grain growth exponent value (n and the activation energy for the grain growth of the 2 mol % B2O3-doped ZnO ceramics were found to be 3 and 307 kJ/mol, respectively. This can be attributed to the second particle drag (pinning mechanism in the liquid phase sintering.

  2. The active phasing experiment: Part I. Concept and objectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yaitskova, Natalia; Gonte, Frederic; Derie, Frederic; Noethe, Lothar; Surdej, Isabelle; Karban, Robert; Dohlen, Kjetil; Langlois, Maud; Esposito, Simone; Pinna, Enrico; Reyes, Marcos; Montoya, Lusma; Terrett, David

    2006-06-01

    In a framework of ELT design study our group is building an Active Phasing Experiment (APE), the main goals of which is to demonstrate the non-adaptive wavefront control scheme and technology for Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). The experiment includes verification and test of different phasing sensors and integration of a phasing wavefront sensor into a global scheme of segmented telescope active control. After a sufficient number of tests in the laboratory APE will be mounted and tested on sky at a Nasmyth focus of a VLT unit telescope. The paper presents APE as a demonstrator of particular aspects of ELT and provides a general understanding concerning the strategy of segmented mirrors active control.

  3. Activity induced phase transition in mixtures of active and passive agents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sinha Mahapatra, Pallab; Kulkarni, Ajinkya

    2017-11-01

    Collective behaviors of self-propelling agents are ubiquitous in nature that produces interesting patterns. The objective of this study is to investigate the phase transition in mixtures of active and inert agents suspended in a liquid. A modified version of the Vicsek Model has been used (see Ref.), where the particles are modeled as soft disks with finite mass, confined in a square domain. The particles are required to align their local motion to their immediate neighborhood, similar to the Vicsek model. We identified the transition from disorganized thermal-like motion to an organized vortical motion. We analyzed the nature of the transition by using different order parameters. Furthermore the switching between the phases has been investigated via artificial nucleation of randomly picked active agents spanning the entire domain. Finally the motivation for this phase transition has been explained via average dissipation and the mean square displacement (MSD) of the agents.

  4. Impact of metabolism and growth phase on the hydrogen isotopic composition of microbial fatty acids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heinzelmann, Sandra M.; Villanueva, Laura; Sinke-Schoen, Danielle; Sinninghe Damsté, Jaap S.; Schouten, Stefan; van der Meer, Marcel T. J.

    2015-01-01

    Microorganisms are involved in all elemental cycles and therefore it is important to study their metabolism in the natural environment. A recent technique to investigate this is the hydrogen isotopic composition of microbial fatty acids, i.e., heterotrophic microorganisms produce fatty acids enriched in deuterium (D) while photoautotrophic and chemoautotrophic microorganisms produce fatty acids depleted in D compared to the water in the culture medium (growth water). However, the impact of factors other than metabolism have not been investigated. Here, we evaluate the impact of growth phase compared to metabolism on the hydrogen isotopic composition of fatty acids of different environmentally relevant microorganisms with heterotrophic, photoautotrophic and chemoautotrophic metabolisms. Fatty acids produced by heterotrophs are enriched in D compared to growth water with εlipid/water between 82 and 359‰ when grown on glucose or acetate, respectively. Photoautotrophs (εlipid/water between −149 and −264‰) and chemoautotrophs (εlipid/water between −217 and −275‰) produce fatty acids depleted in D. Fatty acids become, in general, enriched by between 4 and 46‰ with growth phase which is minor compared to the influence of metabolisms. Therefore, the D/H ratio of fatty acids is a promising tool to investigate community metabolisms in nature. PMID:26005437

  5. Experimental evidence for several spheroid growth mechanisms in the liquid-phase sintered tungsten-base composites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zukas, E.G.; Rogers, P.S.Z.; Rogers, R.S.

    1976-01-01

    The generally accepted mechanism for spheroid growth during sintering of tungsten-base composites in the presence of a liquid phase is the dissolution of the small spheroids with simultaneous precipitation of tungsten from the molten matrix onto the larger spheroids, the process being driven by the difference in surface energy between the larger and smaller spheroids. From theoretical considerations, the slope of the straight line of log diameter versus log time should be 1 / 3 for this process. The experimental evidence for the dissolution and reprecipitation mechanism is meager, being based primarily on the spheroid growth rate during the latter stages of liquid-phase sintering. Experimental evidence is presented that shows spheroid growth taking place in systems where the tungsten and the matrix are mutually insoluble thereby making dissolution and reprecipitation impossible. Furthermore, the results from these studies and others using the usual matrix compositions indicate that spheroid growth takes place predominantly by the combination or coalescence of two or more spheroids. Deposition of tungsten from the molten matrix also occurs, although not necessarily on spheroid surfaces which have the lowest surface energy. Thus, many mechanisms, each depending on temperature and other variables, operate simultaneously. A satisfactory theoretical treatment must include them all

  6. Growth potential of exponential- and stationary-phase Salmonella Typhimurium during sausage fermentation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Birk, Tina; Henriksen, Sidsel; Müller, K.

    2016-01-01

    - and stationary-phase Salmonella Typhimurium (DT12 and DTU292) during freezing at − 18 °C and their subsequent growth potential during 72 h sausage fermentation at 25 °C. After 0, 7 and > 35 d of frozen storage, sausage batters were prepared with NaCl (3%) and NaNO2 (0, 100 ppm) and fermented with and without...

  7. The growth and tensile deformation behavior of the silver solid solution phase with zinc

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu, Jiaqi; Lee, Chin C.

    2016-01-01

    The growth of homogeneous silver solid solution phase with zinc are conducted at two different compositions. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Scanning electron microscope/Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDX) are carried out for phase identification and chemical composition verification. The mechanical properties of silver solid solution phase with zinc are evaluated by tensile test. The engineering and true stress vs. strain curves are presented and analyzed, with those of pure silver in comparison. According to the experimental results, silver solid solution phase with zinc at both compositions show tempered yield strength, high tensile strength and large uniform strain compared to those of pure silver. Fractography further confirmed the superior ductility of silver solid solution phase with zinc at both compositions. Our preliminary but encouraging results may pave the way for the silver based alloys to be applied in industries such as electronic packaging and structure engineering.

  8. The Growth Hormone Receptor: Mechanism of Receptor Activation, Cell Signaling, and Physiological Aspects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Farhad Dehkhoda

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The growth hormone receptor (GHR, although most well known for regulating growth, has many other important biological functions including regulating metabolism and controlling physiological processes related to the hepatobiliary, cardiovascular, renal, gastrointestinal, and reproductive systems. In addition, growth hormone signaling is an important regulator of aging and plays a significant role in cancer development. Growth hormone activates the Janus kinase (JAK–signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT signaling pathway, and recent studies have provided a new understanding of the mechanism of JAK2 activation by growth hormone binding to its receptor. JAK2 activation is required for growth hormone-mediated activation of STAT1, STAT3, and STAT5, and the negative regulation of JAK–STAT signaling comprises an important step in the control of this signaling pathway. The GHR also activates the Src family kinase signaling pathway independent of JAK2. This review covers the molecular mechanisms of GHR activation and signal transduction as well as the physiological consequences of growth hormone signaling.

  9. Self-consistent quasi-static radial transport during the substorm growth phase

    Science.gov (United States)

    Le Contel, O.; Pellat, R.; Roux, A.

    2000-06-01

    We develop a self-consistent description of the slowly changing magnetic configuration of the near-Earth plasma sheet (NEPS) during substorm growth phase. This new approach is valid for quasi-static fluctuations ωcurrent. The quasi-neutrality condition (QNC) is solved via an expansion in the small parameter Te/Ti (Te/Ti is the ratio between the electronic and ionic temperatures). To the lowest order in Te/Ti, we find that the enforcement of QNC implies the presence of a global electrostatic potential which is constant for a given magnetic field line but varies across the magnetic field. The corresponding electric field shields the effect of the inductive component of the electric field, thereby producing a partial reduction of the motion that would correspond to the inductive electric field. Furthermore, we show that enforcing the QNC implies a field-aligned potential drop which is computed to the next order in Te/Ti in a companion paper [Le Contel et al., this issue]. In the present paper, we show that the direction of the azimuthal electric field varies along the field line, thus the equatorial electric field cannot be mapped onto the ionosphere. Furthermore during the growth phase, the (total) azimuthal electric field is directed eastward, close to the equator, and westward, off-equator. Thus large equatorial pitch angle particles drift tailward, whereas small pitch angle particles drift earthward.

  10. Effect of growth phase on harvesting characteristics, autoflocculation and lipid content of Ettlia texensis for microalgal biodiesel production

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Salim, S.; Shi, Z.; Vermuë, M.H.; Wijffels, R.H.

    2013-01-01

    The effect of growth phase on the recovery of the autoflocculating microalgae Ettlia texensis was studied. In the stationary phase, 90% recovery was achieved after 3 h settling. Scanning electron microscopic pictures revealed that extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) on the cell surface were

  11. Relationship between geomagnetic classes’ activity phases and their occurrence during the sunspot cycle

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frédéric Ouattara

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Four well known geomagnetic classes of activity such as quiet days activity, fluctuating activity, recurrent activity
    and shock activity time occurrences have been determined not only by using time profile of sunspot number
    Rz but also by using aa index values.
    We show that recurrent wind stream activity and fluctuating activity occur in opposite phase and slow solar wind
    activity during minimum phase and shock activity at the maximum phase.
    It emerges from this study that fluctuating activity precedes the sunspot cycle by π/2 and the latter also precedes
    recurrent activity by π/2. Thus in the majority the activities do not happen at random; the sunspot cycle starts
    with quiet days activity, continues with fluctuating activity and during its maximum phase arrives shock activity.
    The descending phase is characterized by the manifestation of recurrent wind stream activity.

  12. CK2 activity is modulated by growth rate in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tripodi, Farida; Cirulli, Claudia; Reghellin, Veronica; Marin, Oriano; Brambilla, Luca; Schiappelli, Maria Patrizia; Porro, Danilo; Vanoni, Marco; Alberghina, Lilia; Coccetti, Paola

    2010-01-01

    Research highlights: → CK2 subunits are nuclear both in glucose and in ethanol growing yeast cells. → CK2 activity is modulated in S. cerevisiae. → CK2 activity is higher in conditions supporting higher growth rates. → V max is higher in faster growing cells, while K m is not affected. -- Abstract: CK2 is a highly conserved protein kinase controlling different cellular processes. It shows a higher activity in proliferating mammalian cells, in various types of cancer cell lines and tumors. The findings presented herein provide the first evidence of an in vivo modulation of CK2 activity, dependent on growth rate, in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In fact, CK2 activity, assayed on nuclear extracts, is shown to increase in exponential growing batch cultures at faster growth rate, while localization of catalytic and regulatory subunits is not nutritionally modulated. Differences in intracellular CK2 activity of glucose- and ethanol-grown cells appear to depend on both increase in molecule number and k cat . Also in chemostat cultures nuclear CK2 activity is higher in faster growing cells providing the first unequivocal demonstration that growth rate itself can affect CK2 activity in a eukaryotic organism.

  13. Proteomic analysis of growth phase-dependent expression of Legionella pneumophila proteins which involves regulation of bacterial virulence traits.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tsuyoshi Hayashi

    Full Text Available Legionella pneumophila, which is a causative pathogen of Legionnaires' disease, expresses its virulent traits in response to growth conditions. In particular, it is known to become virulent at a post-exponential phase in vitro culture. In this study, we performed a proteomic analysis of differences in expression between the exponential phase and post-exponential phase to identify candidates associated with L. pneumophila virulence using 2-Dimentional Fluorescence Difference Gel Electrophoresis (2D-DIGE combined with Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization-Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS. Of 68 identified proteins that significantly differed in expression between the two growth phases, 64 were up-regulated at a post-exponential phase. The up-regulated proteins included enzymes related to glycolysis, ketone body biogenesis and poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB biogenesis, suggesting that L. pneumophila may utilize sugars and lipids as energy sources, when amino acids become scarce. Proteins related to motility (flagella components and twitching motility-associated proteins were also up-regulated, predicting that they enhance infectivity of the bacteria in host cells under certain conditions. Furthermore, 9 up-regulated proteins of unknown function were found. Two of them were identified as novel bacterial factors associated with hemolysis of sheep red blood cells (SRBCs. Another 2 were found to be translocated into macrophages via the Icm/Dot type IV secretion apparatus as effector candidates in a reporter assay with Bordetella pertussis adenylate cyclase. The study will be helpful for virulent analysis of L. pneumophila from the viewpoint of physiological or metabolic modulation dependent on growth phase.

  14. Substorm activity during the main phase of magnetic storms induced by the CIR and ICME events

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boroyev, R. N.; Vasiliev, M. S.

    2018-01-01

    In this work, the relation of high-latitude indices of geomagnetic activity (AE, Kp) with the rate of storm development and a solar wind electric field during the main phase of magnetic storm induced by the CIR and ICME events is investigated. 72 magnetic storms induced by CIR and ICME events have been selected. It is shown that for the CIR and ICME events the increase of average value of the Kp index (Kpaver) is observed with the growth of rate of storm development. The value of Kpaver index correlates with the magnitude of minimum value of Dst index (|Dstmin|) only for the ICME events. The analysis of average values of AE and Kp indices during the main phase of magnetic storm depending on the SW electric field has shown that for the CIR events, unlike the ICME events, the value of AEaver increases with the growth of average value of the electric field (Eswaver). The value of Kpaver correlates with the Eswaver only for the ICME events. The relation between geomagnetic indices and the maximum value of SW electric field (Eswmax) is weak. However, for the ICME events Kpaver correlates with Eswmax.

  15. Characterization of secondary phases in modified vertical bridgman growth czt

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Duff, Martine

    2009-07-10

    CdZnTe or 'CZT' crystals are highly suitable for use as a room temperature based spectrometer for the detection and characterization of gamma radiation. Over the last decade, the methods for growing high quality CZT have improved the quality of the produced crystals however there are material features that can influence the performance of these materials as radiation detectors. For example, various structural heterogeneities within the CZT crystals, such as twinning, pipes, grain boundaries (polycrystallinity), and secondary phases (SP) can have a negative impact on the detector performance. In this study, a CZT material was grown by the modified vertical Bridgman growth (MVB) method with zone leveled growth without excess Te in the melt. Visual observations of material from the growth of this material revealed significant voids and SP. Three samples from this material was analyzed using various analytical techniques to evaluate its electrical properties, purity and detector performance as radiation spectrometers and to determine the morphology, dimension and elemental/structural composition of one of the SP in this material. This material was found to have a high resistivity but poor radiation spectrometer performance. It had SP that were rich in polycrystalline aluminum oxide (Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}), metallic Te and polycrystalline CdZnTe and 15 to 50 {micro}m in diameter. Bulk elemental analyses of sister material from elsewhere in the boule did not contain high levels of Al so there is considerable elemental impurity heterogeneity within the boule from this growth.

  16. Pb sub(1-x) Sn sub(x) Te monocrystal growth by vapor phase transport, with formation of a liquid/solid growth interphase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    An, C.Y.; Bandeira, I.N.

    1983-01-01

    Due to segregation effects single-crystals of Pb sub(1-x) Sn sub(x) Te growth by Bridgman techniques have an inhomogenous composition profile. A vapor phase transport growth process has been developed in order to reduce convective flows. This is due to the very thin melt layer in front of the crystal, that makes convective flows small and solute mixing in the melt very low. By this process single-crystals with 60 mm lenght by 15 mm diameter and a high degree of homogeneity have been grown. (Author) [pt

  17. Secondary growth mechanism of SiGe islands deposited on a mixed-phase microcrystalline Si by ion beam co-sputtering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ke, S Y; Yang, J; Qiu, F; Wang, Z Q; Wang, C; Yang, Y

    2015-11-06

    We discuss the SiGe island co-sputtering deposition on a microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si) buffer layer and the secondary island growth based on this pre-SiGe island layer. The growth phenomenon of SiGe islands on crystalline silicon (c-Si) is also investigated for comparison. The pre-SiGe layer grown on μc-Si exhibits a mixed-phase structure, including SiGe islands and amorphous SiGe (a-SiGe) alloy, while the layer deposited on c-Si shows a single-phase island structure. The preferential growth and Ostwald ripening growth are shown to be the secondary growth mechanism of SiGe islands on μc-Si and c-Si, respectively. This difference may result from the effect of amorphous phase Si (AP-Si) in μc-Si on the island growth. In addition, the Si-Ge intermixing behavior of the secondary-grown islands on μc-Si is interpreted by constructing the model of lateral atomic migration, while this behavior on c-Si is ascribed to traditional uphill atomic diffusion. It is found that the aspect ratios of the preferential-grown super islands are higher than those of the Ostwald-ripening ones. The lower lateral growth rate of super islands due to the lower surface energy of AP-Si on the μc-Si buffer layer for the non-wetting of Ge at 700 °C and the stronger Si-Ge intermixing effect at 730 °C may be responsible for this aspect ratio difference.

  18. Inquiry-Based Laboratory Activity to Investigate Physical Growth Requirements of Microorganisms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michelle Furlong

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available Standard "cookbook" laboratory activities that are used to teach students the optimal physical growth conditions of microorganisms should be modified so that they more effectively foster student's higher order cognitive skills and attract student interest.  This paper describes a laboratory activity that engages students in an inquiry-based approach to studying the physical growth requirements of microorganisms.  In this activity, students design and implement an experiment to obtain pure cultures of specific microorganisms, with distinct growth properties, that are provided to them in a mixed culture.

  19. Growth Phase-Dependent Proteomes of the Malaysian Isolated Lactococcus lactis Dairy Strain M4 Using Label-Free Qualitative Shotgun Proteomics Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Theresa Wan Chen Yap

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Lactococcus lactis is the most studied mesophilic fermentative lactic acid bacterium. It is used extensively in the food industry and plays a pivotal role as a cell factory and also as vaccine delivery platforms. The proteome of the Malaysian isolated L. lactis M4 dairy strain, obtained from the milk of locally bred cows, was studied to elucidate the physiological changes occurring between the growth phases of this bacterium. In this study, ultraperformance liquid chromatography nanoflow electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC- nano-ESI-MSE approach was used for qualitative proteomic analysis. A total of 100 and 121 proteins were identified from the midexponential and early stationary growth phases, respectively, of the L. lactis strain M4. During the exponential phase, the most important reaction was the generation of sufficient energy, whereas, in the early stationary phase, the metabolic energy pathways decreased and the biosynthesis of proteins became more important. Thus, the metabolism of the cells shifted from energy production in the exponential phase to the synthesis of macromolecules in the stationary phase. The resultant proteomes are essential in providing an improved view of the cellular machinery of L. lactis during the transition of growth phases and hence provide insight into various biotechnological applications.

  20. Growth phase-dependent proteomes of the Malaysian isolated Lactococcus lactis dairy strain M4 using label-free qualitative shotgun proteomics analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yap, Theresa Wan Chen; Rabu, Amir; Abu Bakar, Farah Diba; Rahim, Raha Abdul; Mahadi, Nor Muhammad; Illias, Rosli Md; Murad, Abdul Munir Abdul

    2014-01-01

    Lactococcus lactis is the most studied mesophilic fermentative lactic acid bacterium. It is used extensively in the food industry and plays a pivotal role as a cell factory and also as vaccine delivery platforms. The proteome of the Malaysian isolated L. lactis M4 dairy strain, obtained from the milk of locally bred cows, was studied to elucidate the physiological changes occurring between the growth phases of this bacterium. In this study, ultraperformance liquid chromatography nanoflow electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC- nano-ESI-MS(E)) approach was used for qualitative proteomic analysis. A total of 100 and 121 proteins were identified from the midexponential and early stationary growth phases, respectively, of the L. lactis strain M4. During the exponential phase, the most important reaction was the generation of sufficient energy, whereas, in the early stationary phase, the metabolic energy pathways decreased and the biosynthesis of proteins became more important. Thus, the metabolism of the cells shifted from energy production in the exponential phase to the synthesis of macromolecules in the stationary phase. The resultant proteomes are essential in providing an improved view of the cellular machinery of L. lactis during the transition of growth phases and hence provide insight into various biotechnological applications.

  1. Growth Phase-Dependent Proteomes of the Malaysian Isolated Lactococcus lactis Dairy Strain M4 Using Label-Free Qualitative Shotgun Proteomics Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yap, Theresa Wan Chen; Rabu, Amir; Abu Bakar, Farah Diba; Abdul Rahim, Raha; Mahadi, Nor Muhammad; Illias, Rosli Md.

    2014-01-01

    Lactococcus lactis is the most studied mesophilic fermentative lactic acid bacterium. It is used extensively in the food industry and plays a pivotal role as a cell factory and also as vaccine delivery platforms. The proteome of the Malaysian isolated L. lactis M4 dairy strain, obtained from the milk of locally bred cows, was studied to elucidate the physiological changes occurring between the growth phases of this bacterium. In this study, ultraperformance liquid chromatography nanoflow electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC- nano-ESI-MSE) approach was used for qualitative proteomic analysis. A total of 100 and 121 proteins were identified from the midexponential and early stationary growth phases, respectively, of the L. lactis strain M4. During the exponential phase, the most important reaction was the generation of sufficient energy, whereas, in the early stationary phase, the metabolic energy pathways decreased and the biosynthesis of proteins became more important. Thus, the metabolism of the cells shifted from energy production in the exponential phase to the synthesis of macromolecules in the stationary phase. The resultant proteomes are essential in providing an improved view of the cellular machinery of L. lactis during the transition of growth phases and hence provide insight into various biotechnological applications. PMID:24982972

  2. Hydrodynamic effects on phase transition in active matter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gidituri, Harinadha; Akella, V. S.; Panchagnula, Mahesh; Vedantam, Srikanth; Multiphase flow physics lab Team

    2017-11-01

    Organized motion of active (self-propelled) objects are ubiquitous in nature. The objective of this study to investigate the effect of hydrodynamics on the coherent structures in active and passive particle mixtures. We use a mesoscopic method Dissipative Particle Dynamics (DPD). The system shows three different states viz. meso-turbulent (disordered state), polar flock and vortical (ordered state) for different values of activity and volume fraction of active particles. From our numerical simulations we construct a phase diagram between activity co-efficient, volume fraction and viscosity of the passive fluid. Transition from vortical to polar is triggered by increasing the viscosity of passive fluid which causes strong short-range hydrodynamic interactions. However, as the viscosity of the fluid decreases, both vortical and meso-turbulent states transition to polar flock phase. We also calculated the diffusion co-efficients via mean square displacement (MSD) for passive and active particles. We observe ballistic and diffusive regimes in the present system.

  3. Comparison of growth methods and biological activities of brazilian marine Streptomyces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. C. Granato

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The present work describes the study of the growth and the cytotoxic and antitumor activities of the extracts of the marine microorganisms Streptomyces acrymicini and Streptomyces cebimarensis, the latter a new strain. Both microorganisms were collected from coastal marine sediments of the north coast of São Paulo state. Growth was performed in a shaker and in a bioreactor using Gym medium and the broths of both microorganisms were extracted with ethyl acetate and n-butanol. Three extracts, two organic and one aqueous, from each microorganism were obtained and tested for cytotoxic and antitumor activity using the SF-295 (Central Nervous System, HCT-8 (Colon cell lines, and the MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide method. The growth methods were compared and show that, although the shaker presented reasonable results, the bioreactor represents the best choice for growth of these microorganisms. The biological activity of the different extracts was evaluated and it was demonstrated that the growth methodology may influence the secondary metabolite production and the biological activity.

  4. Phenotypic diversity of diploid and haploid Emiliania huxleyi cells and of cells in different growth phases revealed by comparative metabolomics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mausz, Michaela A; Pohnert, Georg

    2015-01-01

    In phytoplankton a high species diversity of microalgae co-exists at a given time. But diversity is not only reflected by the species composition. Within these species different life phases as well as different metabolic states can cause additional diversity. One important example is the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi. Diploid cells play an important role in marine ecosystems since they can form massively abundant algal blooms but in addition the less abundant haploid life phase of E. huxleyi occurs in lower quantities. Both life phases may fulfill different functions in the plankton. We hypothesize that in addition to the functional diversity caused by this life phase transition the growth stage of cells can also influence the metabolic composition and thus the ecological impact of E. huxleyi. Here we introduce a metabolomic survey in dependence of life phases as well as different growth phases to reveal such changes. The comparative metabolomic approach is based on the extraction of intracellular metabolites from intact microalgae, derivatization and analysis by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Automated data processing and statistical analysis using canonical analysis of principal coordinates (CAP) revealed unique metabolic profiles for each life phase. Concerning the correlations of metabolites to growth phases, complex patterns were observed. As for example the saccharide mannitol showed its highest concentration in the exponential phase, whereas fatty acids were correlated to stationary and sterols to declining phase. These results are indicative for specific ecological roles of these stages of E. huxleyi and are discussed in the context of previous physiological and ecological studies. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  5. Effect of second phase particles topology on the onset temperature of abnormal grain growth in Fe - 3%Si steels

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stoyka, V.

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available The relations between regimes of dynamic annealing, state of secondary particles system and the onset temperature of abnormal grain growth are investigated. Two distinguish types of Fe-3%Si grain-oriented steels, after one and two stage cold rolling, were studied. The second phase particles remain unaffected in first type of steel during the heat treatment. Vice versa, the increased density of second phases was observed after annealing in the second type of the investigated materials. It is shown that start/onset of abnormal grain growth strongly depends on both volume fraction of second phase particles and annealing temperature. Texture and magnetic properties of the investigated samples are investigated within the current study.

  6. Correlating oxygen vacancies and phase ratio/interface with efficient photocatalytic activity in mixed phase TiO2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Verma, Ranjana; Samdarshi, S.K.

    2015-01-01

    Graphical abstract: The correlation of interfacial behavior and oxygen vacancies in mixed phase titania nanoparticles on their performance as photocatalyst has been investigated to explain the impact of photoactivity under UV and visible irradiation compared to pristine counterparts. The defects at the junction effectively reduce the band gap as well decrease the carrier recombination to enhance the photocatalytic activity. - Highlights: • Pristine and mixed phases (A/R ratio) TiO 2 synthesized by sol gel route. • Photoactivity variation has been correlated with the changes in the phase ratio. • Enhanced UV and visible activity attributable to oxygen vacancy present at the interface. • Role of A/R ratio and oxygen vacancy in the photoactivity of mixed TiO 2 depicted through a model. - Abstract: The photocatalytic activity is a result of the synergy of a succession of phenomena-photogeneration, separation, and participation of the charge carriers in redox reaction at the catalyst surface. While the extent of photogeneration is assessable in terms of absorption spectrum (band gap), the redox reaction can be correlated to specific surface area. However the respective change in the photocatalytic activity has not been rationally and consistently correlated with the above mentioned parameters. A satisfactory explanation of suppression of recombination based on separation of carriers due to differential mobility/diffusivity in the material phase(s) and/or intrinsic potential barrier exists but its correlation with common identifiable parameter/characteristics is still elusive. This paper attempts to address this issue by correlating the carrier separation with the phase ratio (phase interface) in mixed phase titania and generalizing it with the presence of oxygen vacancy at the phase interface. It essentially appears to complete the quest for identifiable parameters in the sequence of phenomena, which endow a photocatalyst with an efficient activity level. It has

  7. Scaling of cluster growth for coagulating active particles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cremer, Peet; Löwen, Hartmut

    2014-02-01

    Cluster growth in a coagulating system of active particles (such as microswimmers in a solvent) is studied by theory and simulation. In contrast to passive systems, the net velocity of a cluster can have various scalings dependent on the propulsion mechanism and alignment of individual particles. Additionally, the persistence length of the cluster trajectory typically increases with size. As a consequence, a growing cluster collects neighboring particles in a very efficient way and thus amplifies its growth further. This results in unusual large growth exponents for the scaling of the cluster size with time and, for certain conditions, even leads to "explosive" cluster growth where the cluster becomes macroscopic in a finite amount of time.

  8. Phase-field simulation of nucleation and growth of M{sub 23}C{sub 6} carbide and ferromagnetic phases during creep deformation in Type 304 steel

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsukada, Yuhki, E-mail: tsukada@silky.numse.nagoya-u.ac.j [Department of Materials, Physics and Energy Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya 464-8603 (Japan); Shiraki, Atsuhiro; Murata, Yoshinori [Department of Materials, Physics and Energy Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya 464-8603 (Japan); Takaya, Shigeru [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 4002 Narita-cho, O-arai-machi, Higashi-ibaraki-gun, Ibaraki 311-1393 (Japan); Koyama, Toshiyuki [National Institute for Materials Science, 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0047 (Japan); Morinaga, Masahiko [Department of Materials, Physics and Energy Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya 464-8603 (Japan)

    2010-06-15

    A phase-field method was applied to the simulation of simultaneous nucleation and growth of both M{sub 23}C{sub 6} carbide and ferromagnetic {alpha} phases during the creep process in Type 304 steel. Nucleation events of these product phases were explicitly introduced through a probabilistic Poisson seeding process based on local nucleation rates that were calculated as a function of local concentration. The defect energy of the creep dislocations near the carbides, which increases during creep, was integrated into the nucleation driving force for the {alpha} phase. The simulation used in this study accurately reproduced changes in the amounts of the precipitated phases as a function of creep time. Furthermore, we examine the effect of the dislocation density on precipitation of the {alpha} phase, and show that the phase-field method is useful for examining the stochastic and kinetic phenomenon of phase transformation.

  9. Three phase active power filter with selective harmonics elimination

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sozański Krzysztof

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper describes a three phase shunt active power filter with selective harmonics elimination. The control algorithm is based on a digital filter bank. The moving Discrete Fourier Transformation is used as an analysis filter bank. The correctness of the algorithm has been verified by simulation and experimental research. The paper includes exemplary results of current waveforms and their spectra from a three phase active power filter.

  10. Composition of essential oil of costmary [Balsamita major (L.) Desf.] at different growth phases

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bylaite, E.; Venskutonis, R.; Roozen, J.P.; Posthumus, M.A.

    2000-01-01

    The essential oils from leaves and flowers of costmary, Balsamita major (L.) Desf. (syn. Chrysanthemum balsamita L.), were analyzed at various phases of plant growth. The highest contents of oil both in leaves and in flowers were determined before full blooming, 1.15 and 1.34øw/w), respectively.

  11. Crystal growth of pure substances: Phase-field simulations in comparison with analytical and experimental results

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nestler, B.; Danilov, D.; Galenko, P.

    2005-07-01

    A phase-field model for non-isothermal solidification in multicomponent systems [SIAM J. Appl. Math. 64 (3) (2004) 775-799] consistent with the formalism of classic irreversible thermodynamics is used for numerical simulations of crystal growth in a pure material. The relation of this approach to the phase-field model by Bragard et al. [Interface Science 10 (2-3) (2002) 121-136] is discussed. 2D and 3D simulations of dendritic structures are compared with the analytical predictions of the Brener theory [Journal of Crystal Growth 99 (1990) 165-170] and with recent experimental measurements of solidification in pure nickel [Proceedings of the TMS Annual Meeting, March 14-18, 2004, pp. 277-288; European Physical Journal B, submitted for publication]. 3D morphology transitions are obtained for variations in surface energy and kinetic anisotropies at different undercoolings. In computations, we investigate the convergence behaviour of a standard phase-field model and of its thin interface extension at different undercoolings and at different ratios between the diffuse interface thickness and the atomistic capillary length. The influence of the grid anisotropy is accurately analyzed for a finite difference method and for an adaptive finite element method in comparison.

  12. A spectroscopic and catalytic investigation of active phase-support interactions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Haller, G.L.

    1991-01-01

    Active catalytic phases (metal, mixed metals, oxide or mixed oxides) interacting with oxide support on which the active phase is dispersed can affect the percentage exposed, the morphology of supported particles, the degree of reducibility of cations, etc., in a variety of ways. Our objective is to characterize the physical chemistry of the active phase-oxide support by spectroscopic methods and to correlate this structure with catalytic function. The three systems discussed in this progress report are Ag/TiO{sub 2}, Ru-Cu/SiO{sub 2} and SiO{sub 2}/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}. 24 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs.

  13. Clustering and phase behaviour of attractive active particles with hydrodynamics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Navarro, Ricard Matas; Fielding, Suzanne M

    2015-10-14

    We simulate clustering, phase separation and hexatic ordering in a monolayered suspension of active squirming disks subject to an attractive Lennard-Jones-like pairwise interaction potential, taking hydrodynamic interactions between the particles fully into account. By comparing the hydrodynamic case with counterpart simulations for passive and active Brownian particles, we elucidate the relative roles of self-propulsion, interparticle attraction, and hydrodynamic interactions in determining clustering and phase behaviour. Even in the presence of an attractive potential, we find that hydrodynamic interactions strongly suppress the motility induced phase separation that might a priori have been expected in a highly active suspension. Instead, we find only a weak tendency for the particles to form stringlike clusters in this regime. At lower activities we demonstrate phase behaviour that is broadly equivalent to that of the counterpart passive system at low temperatures, characterized by regimes of gas-liquid, gas-solid and liquid-solid phase coexistence. In this way, we suggest that a dimensionless quantity representing the level of activity relative to the strength of attraction plays the role of something like an effective non-equilibrium temperature, counterpart to the (dimensionless) true thermodynamic temperature in the passive system. However there are also some important differences from the equilibrium case, most notably with regards the degree of hexatic ordering, which we discuss carefully.

  14. THE PHASE REACTOR INDUCTANCE SELECTION TECHNIQUE FOR POWER ACTIVE FILTER

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. V. Tugay

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. The goal is to develop technique of the phase inductance power reactors selection for parallel active filter based on the account both low-frequency and high-frequency components of the electromagnetic processes in a power circuit. Methodology. We have applied concepts of the electrical circuits theory, vector analysis, mathematical simulation in Matlab package. Results. We have developed a new technique of the phase reactors inductance selection for parallel power active filter. It allows us to obtain the smallest possible value of THD network current. Originality. We have increased accuracy of methods of the phase reactor inductance selection for power active filter. Practical value. The proposed technique can be used in the design and manufacture of the active power filter for real objects of energy supply.

  15. A multiscale coupled finite-element and phase-field framework to modeling stressed grain growth in polycrystalline thin films

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jamshidian, M., E-mail: jamshidian@cc.iut.ac.ir [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Institute of Structural Mechanics, Bauhaus-University Weimar, Marienstrasse 15, 99423 Weimar (Germany); Thamburaja, P., E-mail: prakash.thamburaja@gmail.com [Department of Mechanical & Materials Engineering, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600 (Malaysia); Rabczuk, T., E-mail: timon.rabczuk@tdt.edu.vn [Division of Computational Mechanics, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City (Viet Nam); Faculty of Civil Engineering, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City (Viet Nam)

    2016-12-15

    A previously-developed finite-deformation- and crystal-elasticity-based constitutive theory for stressed grain growth in cubic polycrystalline bodies has been augmented to include a description of excess surface energy and grain-growth stagnation mechanisms through the use of surface effect state variables in a thermodynamically-consistent manner. The constitutive theory was also implemented into a multiscale coupled finite-element and phase-field computational framework. With the material parameters in the constitutive theory suitably calibrated, our three-dimensional numerical simulations show that the constitutive model is able to accurately predict the experimentally-determined evolution of crystallographic texture and grain size statistics in polycrystalline copper thin films deposited on polyimide substrate and annealed at high-homologous temperatures. In particular, our numerical analyses show that the broad texture transition observed in the annealing experiments of polycrystalline thin films is caused by grain growth stagnation mechanisms. - Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Developing a theory for stressed grain growth in polycrystalline thin films. • Implementation into a multiscale coupled finite-element and phase-field framework. • Quantitative reproduction of the experimental grain growth data by simulations. • Revealing the cause of texture transition to be due to the stagnation mechanisms.

  16. Miniature Active Space Radiation Dosimeter, Phase II

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Space Micro will extend our Phase I R&D to develop a family of miniature, active space radiation dosimeters/particle counters, with a focus on biological/manned...

  17. Quantitative Phase-Field Approach for Simulating Grain Growth in Anisotropic Systems with Arbitrary Inclination and Misorientation Dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moelans, N.; Blanpain, B.; Wollants, P.

    2008-01-01

    A phase-field approach for quantitative simulations of grain growth in anisotropic systems is introduced, together with a new methodology to derive appropriate model parameters that reproduce given misorientation and inclination dependent grain boundary energy and mobility in the simulations. The proposed model formulation and parameter choice guarantee a constant diffuse interface width and consequently give high controllability of the accuracy in grain growth simulations

  18. Growth of NH4Cl Single Crystal from Vapor Phase in Vertical Furnace

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nigara, Yutaka; Yoshizawa, Masahito; Fujimura, Tadao

    1983-02-01

    A pure and internally stress-free single crystal of NH4Cl was grown successfully from the vapor phase. The crystal measured 1.6 cmφ× 2 cm and had the disordered CsCl structure, which was stable below 184°C. The crystal was grown in an ampoule in a vertical furnace, in which the vapor was efficiently transported both by diffusion and convection. In line with the growth mechanism of a single crystal, the temperature fluctuation (°C/min) on the growth interface was kept smaller than the product of the temperature gradient (°C/cm) and the growth rate (cm/min). The specific heat of the crystal was measured around -31°C (242 K) during cooling and heating cycles by AC calorimetry. The thermal hysteresis (0.4 K) obtained here was smaller than that (0.89 K) of an NH4Cl crystal grown from its aqueous solution with urea added as a habit modifier.

  19. Photosynthetic Entrainment of the Circadian Clock Facilitates Plant Growth under Environmental Fluctuations: Perspectives from an Integrated Model of Phase Oscillator and Phloem Transportation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Takayuki Ohara

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Plants need to avoid carbon starvation and resultant growth inhibition under fluctuating light environments to ensure optimal growth and reproduction. As diel patterns of carbon metabolism are influenced by the circadian clock, appropriate regulation of the clock is essential for plants to properly manage their carbon resources. For proper adjustment of the circadian phase, higher plants utilize environmental signals such as light or temperature and metabolic signals such as photosynthetic products; the importance of the latter as phase regulators has been recently elucidated. A mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana that is deficient in phase response to sugar has been shown, under fluctuating light conditions, to be unable to adjust starch turnover and to realize carbon homeostasis. Whereas, the effects of light entrainment on growth and survival of higher plants are well studied, the impact of phase regulation by sugar remains unknown. Here we show that endogenous sugar entrainment facilitates plant growth. We integrated two mathematical models, one describing the dynamics of carbon metabolism in A. thaliana source leaves and the other growth of sink tissues dependent on sucrose translocation from the source. The integrated model predicted that sugar-sensitive plants grow faster than sugar-insensitive plants under constant as well as changing photoperiod conditions. We found that sugar entrainment enables efficient carbon investment for growth by stabilizing sucrose supply to sink tissues. Our results highlight the importance of clock entrainment by both exogenous and endogenous signals for optimizing growth and increasing fitness.

  20. Research in Korea on Gas Phase Synthesis and Control of Nanoparticles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choi, Mansoo

    2001-01-01

    Research activity into the gas phase synthesis of nanoparticles has witnessed rapid growth on a worldwide basis, which is also reflected by Korean research efforts. Nanoparticle research is inherently a multi-disciplinary activity involving both science and engineering. In this paper, the recent studies undertaken in Korea on the gas phase synthesis and control of nanoparticles are reviewed. Studies on the synthesis of various kinds of nanoparticles are first discussed with a focus on the different types of reactors used. Recent experimental and theoretical studies and newly developed methods of measuring and modeling nanoparticle growth are also reviewed

  1. Kinetics of solid state phase transformation UAl3 + Al -> UAl4

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cunha, C.A. da.

    1986-01-01

    The Kinetics of phase transformation UAl 3 + Al -> UAl 4 of two Al-U alloys, with 31.4 and 33.4 wt% U respectively, was studied by quantitative microscopy. The results have shown that this transformation is a nucleation and thermally activated growth process. The nucleation occurs heterogeneously at the UAl 3 /Al (∞) interfaces and the growth is controlled by volume diffusion. The empirical activation energy of the process was determined, which mean value is about 54.8 Kcal/mol. The growth Kinetic of UAl 4 phase is a parabolic law. The UAl 4 /UAl 3 and UAl 4 /Al (∞) interfaces migrates in opposite directions, with the UAl 4 /UAl 3 interface velocity being approximately 5 times greater than that of UAl 4 /Al (∞) interface. The chemical diffusion coefficient of Al and U in the UAl 4 phase were evaluated to be of the order of 10 -9 cm 2 /s at 600 0 C. (author) [pt

  2. Preliminary studies of plasma growth hormone releasing activity during medical therapy of acromegaly

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hagen, T.C.; Lawrence, A.M.; Kirsteins, L.

    1978-01-01

    The in vitro growth hormone releasing activity of plasma obtained from six acromegalic subjects was measured before and during therapy. In five subjects, plasmas were obtained before and during successful medical therapy with medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA). The sixth subject was sampled before and after transphenoidal Sr 90 -induced hypopituitarism. All subjects had a decrement in fasting growth hormone levels with respective therapies (29-88%). The in vitro growth hormone released from Rhesus monkey anterior pituitaries was assessed after incubating one lateral half in control plasma (pre-therapy) and the contralateral pituitary half in plasma obtained during or after therapy. Studies with plasmas obtained from the five patients successfully treated with MPA showed a decrease in growth hormone releasing activity during therapy in all (18-57%). Plasma obtained after Sr 90 pituitary ablation in the sixth subject had 35% more growth hormone releasing activity than obtained before therapy. These results suggest that active acromegalics who respond to MPA with significantly lowered growth hormone levels may actually achieve this response because of a decrease in growth hormone releasing factor measured peripherally. The opposite response in one acromegalic subject, following Sr 90 pituitary ablation and hypopituitarism, suggests that growth hormone releasing factor secretion may increase when growth hormone levels are lowered by ablative therapy. (orig.) [de

  3. Growth of second phase particles in a copper--beryllium alloy. Final technical report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bunch, R.; Wells, R.; Mukherjee, A.K.

    1977-01-01

    Growth of second phase particles from a solid solution of copper-beryllium was studied to determine this alloy's suitability for acoustic emission testing. Optical and Scanning Electron microscopes were used to study the microstructure. Micro and macro hardness tests were also performed. A hardness curve for aging at 550 0 F was determined. Microscopic examination revealed the presence of large inclusions which make this alloy unsuitable for the acoustic tests envisioned

  4. 29 CFR 510.23 - Agricultural activities eligible for minimum wage phase-in.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Agricultural activities eligible for minimum wage phase-in..., DEPARTMENT OF LABOR REGULATIONS IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MINIMUM WAGE PROVISIONS OF THE 1989 AMENDMENTS TO THE... eligible for minimum wage phase-in. Agriculture activities eligible for an extended phase-in of the minimum...

  5. Fluoxetine regulates cell growth inhibition of interferon-α.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Yu-Min; Yu, Bu-Chin; Chiu, Wen-Tai; Sun, Hung-Yu; Chien, Yu-Chieh; Su, Hui-Chen; Yen, Shu-Yang; Lai, Hsin-Wen; Bai, Chyi-Huey; Young, Kung-Chia; Tsao, Chiung-Wen

    2016-10-01

    Fluoxetine, a well-known anti-depression agent, may act as a chemosensitizer to assist and promote cancer therapy. However, how fluoxetine regulates cellular signaling to enhance cellular responses against tumor cell growth remains unclear. In the present study, addition of fluoxetine promoted growth inhibition of interferon-alpha (IFN-α) in human bladder carcinoma cells but not in normal uroepithelial cells through lessening the IFN-α-induced apoptosis but switching to cause G1 arrest, and maintaining the IFN-α-mediated reduction in G2/M phase. Activations and signal transducer and transactivator (STAT)-1 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPAR-α) were involved in this process. Chemical inhibitions of STAT-1 or PPAR-α partially rescued bladder carcinoma cells from IFN-α-mediated growth inhibition via blockades of G1 arrest, cyclin D1 reduction, p53 downregulation and p27 upregulation in the presence of fluoxetine. However, the functions of both proteins were not involved in the control of fluoxetine over apoptosis and maintained the declined G2/M phase of IFN-α. These results indicated that activation of PPAR-α and STAT-1 participated, at least in part, in growth inhibition of IFN-α in the presence of fluoxetine.

  6. Impact of insurance sector activity on economic growth – A meta-analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zuzana Richterková

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study is to compute the overall effect size concerning the impact of insurance sector activity on economic growth. The connection of insurance activity and economic growth has been a widely investigated topic due to numerous papers and research attempts performed so far. The results, however, often differ among individual studies. Therefore a comprehensive analysis of the significance of causality from insurance activity, measured by insurance premium, to business cycle fluctuation, is well-required. Using 10 published and unpublished studies, we conduct a meta-analysis of the literature on the impact of insurance activity on economic growth. Insurance premium is taken as the measure of insurance activity. The combined significance test of individual t-statistics is employed. The calculation of the effect size allows understand the true effect relying on synthesis of so far published research with significantly higher amount of observations and better precision. Our results confirm positive effect of insurance activity on economic growth and are particularly important for policy makers who set the policy towards subjects in the insurance market.

  7. Control of phase synchronization of neuronal activity in the rat hippocampus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lian, Jun; Shuai, Jianwei; Durand, Dominique M

    2004-03-01

    Analysis of the synchronization mechanisms of neural activity is crucial to the understanding of the generation, propagation and control of epileptiform activity. Recently, phase synchronization (PS) analysis was applied to quantify the partial synchrony that exists in complex chaotic or noisy systems. In a previous study, we have shown that neural activity between two remotely located sites can be synchronized through a complete cut of the tissue by endogenous non-synaptic signals. Therefore, it should be possible to apply signals to control PS. In this study, we test the hypothesis that stimulation amplitudes below excitation level (sub-threshold) can be used to control phase synchronization of two neural signals and we investigate the underlying mechanisms. PS of neuronal activity is first analysed in two coupled Rossler neuron models. Both synchronization and desynchronization could be generated with sub-threshold sinusoidal stimulation. Phase synchronization was then studied in in vitro brain slices. Neuronal activity between two sites was modulated by the application of small sinusoidal electric fields. PS between two remote sites could be achieved by the application of two identical waveforms while phase desynchronization of two close sites was generated by the application of a stimulus at a single site. These results show that sub-threshold stimuli are able to phase synchronize or desynchronize two networks and suggest that small signals could play an important role in normal neural activity and epilepsy.

  8. Effect of V-Nd co-doping on phase transformation and grain growth process of TiO2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khatun, Nasima; Amin, Ruhul; Anita, Sen, Somaditya

    2018-05-01

    The pure and V-Nd co-doped TiO2 samples are prepared by the modified sol-gel process. The phase formation is confirmed by XRD spectrum. Phase transformation is delayed in V-Nd co-doped TiO2 (TVN) samples compared to pure TiO2. The particle size is comparatively small in TVN samples at both the temperature 450 °C and 900 °C. Hence the effect of Nd doping is dominated over V doping in both phase transformation and grain growth process of TiO2.

  9. Hormone activities and the cell cycle machinery in immunity-triggered growth inhibition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reitz, M U; Gifford, M L; Schäfer, P

    2015-04-01

    Biotic stress and diseases caused by pathogen attack pose threats in crop production and significantly reduce crop yields. Enhancing immunity against pathogens is therefore of outstanding importance in crop breeding. However, this must be balanced, as immune activation inhibits plant growth. This immunity-coupled growth trade-off does not support resistance but is postulated to reflect the reallocation of resources to drive immunity. There is, however, increasing evidence that growth-immunity trade-offs are based on the reconfiguration of hormone pathways, shared by growth and immunity signalling. Studies in roots revealed the role of hormones in orchestrating growth across different cell types, with some hormones showing a defined cell type-specific activity. This is apparently highly relevant for the regulation of the cell cycle machinery and might be part of the growth-immunity cross-talk. Since plants are constantly exposed to Immuno-activating microbes under agricultural conditions, the transition from a growth to an immunity operating mode can significantly reduce crop yield and can conflict our efforts to generate next-generation crops with improved yield under climate change conditions. By focusing on roots, we outline the current knowledge of hormone signalling on the cell cycle machinery to explain growth trade-offs induced by immunity. By referring to abiotic stress studies, we further introduce how root cell type-specific hormone activities might contribute to growth under immunity and discuss the feasibility of uncoupling the growth-immunity cross-talk. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  10. Cytotoxicity and apoptotic inducibility of Vitex agnus-castus fruit extract in cultured human normal and cancer cells and effect on growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ohyama, Kunio; Akaike, Takenori; Hirobe, Chieko; Yamakawa, Toshio

    2003-01-01

    A crude extract was prepared with ethanol from dried ripened Vitex agnus-castus fruits growing in Israel (Vitex extract). Cytotoxicity of the extract against human uterine cervical canal fibroblast (HCF), human embryo fibroblast (HE-21), ovarian cancer (MCF-7), cervical carcinoma (SKG-3a), breast carcinoma (SKOV-3), gastric signet ring carcinoma (KATO-III), colon carcinoma (COLO 201), and small cell lung carcinoma (Lu-134-A-H) cells was examined. After culture for 24 h (logarithmic growth phase) or 72 h (stationary growth phase), the cells were treated with various concentrations of Vitex extract. In both growth phases, higher growth activity of cells and more cytotoxic activity of Vitex extract were seen. The cytotoxic activity against stationary growth-phase cells was less than that against logarithmic growth-phase cells. DNA fragmentation of Vitex extract-treated cells was seen in SKOV-3, KATO-III, COLO 201, and Lu-134-A-H cells. The DNA fragmentation in Vitex extract-treated KATO-III cells was inhibited by the presence of the antioxidative reagent pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate or N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC). Western blotting analysis showed that in Vitex extract-treated KATO-III cells, the presence of NAC also inhibited the expression of heme oxygenase-1 and the active forms of caspases-3, -8 and -9. It is concluded that the cytotoxic activity of Vitex extract may be attributed to the effect on cell growth, that cell death occurs through apoptosis, and that this apoptotic cell death may be attributed to increased intracellular oxidation by Vitex extract treatment.

  11. The activation energy for loop growth in Cu and Cu-Ni alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barlow, P.; Leffers, T.; Singh, B.N.

    1978-08-01

    The apparent activation energy for the growth of interstitial dislocation loops in copper, Cu-1%Ni, Cu-2%Ni, and Cu-5%Ni during high voltage electron microscope irradiation was determined. The apparent activation energy for loop growth in all these materials can be taken to be 0.34eV+-0.02eV. This value together with the corresponding value of 0.44eV+-0.02eV determined earlier for Cu-10%Ni is discussed with reference to the void growth rates observed in these materials. The apparent activation energy for loop growth in copper (and in Cu-1%Ni that has a void growth rate similar to that in pure copper) is interpreted as twice the vacancy migration energy (indicating that divacancies do not play any significant role). For the materials with higher Ni content (in which the void growth rate is much lower than that in Cu and Cu-1%Ni) the measured apparent activation energy is interpreted to be characteristic of loops positioned fairly close to the foil surface and not of loops in ''bulk material''. From the present results in combination with the earlier results for Cu-10%Ni it is concluded that interstitial trapping is the most likely explanation of the reduced void growth rate in Cu-Ni alloys. (author)

  12. Pyridine nucleotide cycling and control of intracellular redox state in relation to poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase activity and nuclear localization of glutathione during exponential growth of Arabidopsis cells in culture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pellny, Till K; Locato, Vittoria; Vivancos, Pedro Diaz; Markovic, Jelena; De Gara, Laura; Pallardó, Federico V; Foyer, Christine H

    2009-05-01

    Pyridine nucleotides, ascorbate and glutathione are major redox metabolites in plant cells, with specific roles in cellular redox homeostasis and the regulation of the cell cycle. However, the regulation of these metabolite pools during exponential growth and their precise functions in the cell cycle remain to be characterized. The present analysis of the abundance of ascorbate, glutathione, and pyridine nucleotides during exponential growth of Arabidopsis cells in culture provides evidence for the differential regulation of each of these redox pools. Ascorbate was most abundant early in the growth cycle, but glutathione was low at this point. The cellular ascorbate to dehydroascorbate and reduced glutathione (GSH) to glutathione disulphide ratios were high and constant but the pyridine nucleotide pools were largely oxidized over the period of exponential growth and only became more reduced once growth had ceased. The glutathione pool increased in parallel with poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) activities and with increases in the abundance of PARP1 and PARP2 mRNAs at a time of high cell cycle activity as indicated by transcriptome information. Marked changes in the intracellular partitioning of GSH between the cytoplasm and nucleus were observed. Extension of the exponential growth phase by dilution or changing the media led to increases in the glutathione and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, oxidized form (NAD)-plus-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, reduced form (NADH) pools and to higher NAD/NADH ratios but the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate, oxidized form (NADP)-plus-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate, reduced form (NADPH) pool sizes, and NAPD/NADPH ratios were much less affected. The ascorbate, glutathione, and pyridine nucleotide pools and PARP activity decreased before the exponential growth phase ended. We conclude that there are marked changes in intracellular redox state during the growth cycle but that redox homeostasis is

  13. Labour management and Obstetric outcomes among pregnant women admitted in latent phase compared to active phase of labour at Bugando Medical Centre in Tanzania.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chuma, Clotrida; Kihunrwa, Albert; Matovelo, Dismas; Mahendeka, Marietha

    2014-02-12

    Interventions given to women admitted in latent or active phase of labor may influence the outcomes of labor and ameliorate complications which can affect the mother and fetus. Labour management, maternal and fetal outcomes among low risk women presenting both in latent phase and active phase of labour in Tanzania have not recently been explored. This was a descriptive cross-sectional study. It was done from February to April 2013. Case notes were collected serially until the sample size was reached. A structured checklist was used to extract data. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 17. A p women were collected, half of each presented in latent phase and active phase of labour. Key interventions including augmentation with oxytocin, artificial rupture of membranes and caesarean section were significantly higher in the latent phase group than the active phase group 84(33.6%) versus 52(20.8%) p women admitted initially in active phase than in latent phase groups 180(72.0%), versus 153(61.2%) p > 0.01). There were more women in the active phase group who sustained genital tract tear and postpartum haemorrhage than in the latent phase group 101(18.6%), versus 38(15.6%) p women admitted at BMC in latent phase of labour are subjected to more obstetric interventions than those admitted in the active phase. There is need to produce guidelines on management of women admitted in latent phase of labour at BMC to reduce the risk of unnecessary interventions.

  14. Switchable CO2 electroreduction via engineering active phases of Pd nanoparticles

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Dunfeng Gao; Fan Yang; Shu Miao; Jianguo Wang; Guoxiong Wang; Xinhe Bao; Hu Zhou; Fan Cai; Dongniu Wang; Yongfeng Hu; Bei Jiang; Wen-Bin Cai; Xiaoqi Chen; Rui Si

    2017-01-01

    Active-phase engineering is regularly utilized to tune the selectivity of metal nanoparticles (NPs) in heterogeneous catalysis.However,the lack of understanding of the active phase in electrocatalysis has hampered the development of efficient catalysts for CO2 electroreduction.Herein,we report the systematic engineering of active phases of Pd NPs,which are exploited to select reaction pathways for CO2 electroreduction.In situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy,in situ attenuated total reflection-infrared spectroscopy,and density functional theory calculations suggest that the formation of a hydrogen-adsorbed Pd surface on a mixture of the α-and β-phases of a palladium-hydride core (α+β PdHx@PdHx) above-0.2 V (vs.a reversible hydrogen electrode) facilitates formate production via the HCOO* intermediate,whereas the formation of a metallic Pd surface on the β-phase Pd hydride core (β PdHx@Pd) below-0.5 V promotes CO production via the COOH* intermediate.The main product,which is either formate or CO,can be selectively produced with high Faradaic efficiencies (>90%) and mass activities in the potential window of 0.05 to-0.9 V with scalable application demonstration.

  15. Heat-shock induction of ionizing radiation resistance in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and the correlation with stationary growth phase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitchel, R.E.J.; Morrison, D.P.

    1982-01-01

    Radiation resistance and thermal resistance vary as a function of culture temperature in logarithmically growing Saccharomyces cerevisiae and are related to the optimum temperature for growth. Radiation resistance and thermal resistance were also induced when cells grown at low temperatures were subjected to a heat shock at or above the optimum growth temperature. Exposure to ionizing radiation followed by a short incubation at low temperature also induced resistance to killing by heat. Heat-shocked cells are induced to a level of thermal and radioresistance much greater than the characteristic resistance level of cells grown continuously at the shock temperature. This high level of resistance, which resembles that of stationary-phase cells, decays to the characteristic log-phase level within one doubling of cell number after the heat shock. Both induction of resistance and decay of that induction require protein synthesis. It is postulated that induction of resistance by heat shock or ionizing radiation is a response of the cells to stress and represents a preparation to enter stationary phase

  16. Photo-induced optical activity in phase-change memory materials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borisenko, Konstantin B; Shanmugam, Janaki; Williams, Benjamin A O; Ewart, Paul; Gholipour, Behrad; Hewak, Daniel W; Hussain, Rohanah; Jávorfi, Tamás; Siligardi, Giuliano; Kirkland, Angus I

    2015-03-05

    We demonstrate that optical activity in amorphous isotropic thin films of pure Ge2Sb2Te5 and N-doped Ge2Sb2Te5N phase-change memory materials can be induced using rapid photo crystallisation with circularly polarised laser light. The new anisotropic phase transition has been confirmed by circular dichroism measurements. This opens up the possibility of controlled induction of optical activity at the nanosecond time scale for exploitation in a new generation of high-density optical memory, fast chiroptical switches and chiral metamaterials.

  17. Effect of Time-Dependent Pinning Pressure on Abnormal Grain Growth: Phase Field Simulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Jeong Min; Min, Guensik; Shim, Jae-Hyeok; Lee, Kyung Jong

    2018-05-01

    The effect of the time-dependent pinning pressure of precipitates on abnormal grain growth has been investigated by multiphase field simulation with a simple precipitation model. The application of constant pinning pressure is problematic because it always induces abnormal grain growth or no grain growth, which is not reasonable considering the real situation. To produce time-dependent pinning pressure, both precipitation kinetics and precipitate coarsening kinetics have been considered with two rates: slow and fast. The results show that abnormal grain growth is suppressed at the slow precipitation rate. At the slow precipitation rate, the overall grain growth caused by the low pinning pressure in the early stage indeed plays a role in preventing abnormal grain growth by reducing the mobility advantage of abnormal grains. In addition, the fast precipitate coarsening rate tends to more quickly transform abnormal grain growth into normal grain growth by inducing the active growth of grains adjacent to the abnormal grains in the early stage. Therefore, the present study demonstrates that the time dependence of the pinning pressure of precipitates is a critical factor that determines the grain growth mode.

  18. Role of Phase Composition of PEO Coatings on AA2024 for In-Situ LDH Growth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Serdechnova

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO is an environmentally friendly anodizing technique leading to the formation of a ceramic-like coatings under high-voltage discharges. Layered double hydroxides (LDHs were grown directly on γ, α, and amorphous Al2O3 powders, respectively, in order to investigate the phase responsible for in-situ LDH growth on PEO coating. Furthermore, it is shown that LDH growth is limited by the high tortuosity of the PEO layer and the accessibility of Al ( OH 4 − anions from the substrate covered with thin amorphous aluminum oxide, through the pores.

  19. Phase-field-lattice Boltzmann study for lamellar eutectic growth in a natural convection melt

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ang Zhang

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available In the present study, the influence of natural convection on the lamellar eutectic growth is determined by a phase-field-lattice Boltzmann study for Al-Cu eutectic alloy. The mass difference resulting from concentration difference led to the fluid flow, and a robust parallel and adaptive mesh refinement algorithm was employed to improve the computational efficiency without any compromising accuracy. Results show that the existence of natural convection would affect the growth undercooling and thus control the interface shape by adjusting the lamellar width. In particular, by alternating the magnitude of the solute expansion coefficient, the strength of the natural convection is changed. Corresponding microstructure patterns are discussed and compared with those under no-convection conditions.

  20. Computational thermodynamic investigations of growth and coarsening of laves phase precipitates in 12%Cr creep resistant steels

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Prat, O.; Rojas, D. [Max-Planck-Institut fuer Eisenforschung GmbH, Duesseldorf (Germany); Garcia, J.; Kaysser-Pyzalla, A.R. [Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin fuer Materialien und Energie GmbH, Berlin (Germany); Bochum Univ. (Germany)

    2010-07-01

    Precipitation phenomena in 12%Cr high alloyed steels have been investigated at creep conditions of 650 and 150 MPa up to 6.500 hours in two different alloys. Growth and coarsening of Laves phase was determined experimentally by measuring the size of Laves phase on crept samples using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The simulations were performed using the software DICTRA based on the assumption the local equilibrium at the moving phase interface. For equilibrium calculations, the Thermo-Calc software was used. The experimental results were compared with DICTRA simulations, showing good agreement. Both the quantitative metallographic measurements as well as the simulations indicate very low coarsening for Laves Phase. The influence of different elements such as Co, Si and Cu on coarsening for Laves phase was simulated. (orig.)

  1. Inhibitory Activity of Yokukansankachimpihange against Nerve Growth Factor-Induced Neurite Growth in Cultured Rat Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chiaki Murayama

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Chronic pruritus is a major and distressing symptom of many cutaneous diseases, however, the treatment remains a challenge in the clinic. The traditional Chinese-Japanese medicine (Kampo medicine is a conservative and increasingly popular approach to treat chronic pruritus for both patients and medical providers. Yokukansankachimpihange (YKH, a Kampo formula has been demonstrated to be effective in the treatment of itching of atopic dermatitis in Japan although its pharmacological mechanism is unknown clearly. In an attempt to clarify its pharmacological actions, in this study, we focused on the inhibitory activity of YKH against neurite growth induced with nerve growth factor (NGF in cultured rat dorsal root ganglion (DRG neurons because epidermal hyperinnervation is deeply related to itch sensitization. YKH showed approximately 200-fold inhibitory activity against NGF-induced neurite growth than that of neurotropin (positive control, a drug used clinically for treatment of chronic pruritus. Moreover, it also found that Uncaria hook, Bupleurum root and their chemical constituents rhynchophylline, hirsutine, and saikosaponin a, d showed inhibitory activities against NGF-induced neurite growth, suggesting they should mainly contribute to the inhibitory activity of YKH. Further study on the effects of YKH against epidermal nerve density in “itch-scratch” animal models is under investigation.

  2. Increase of vitamin D2 by UV-B exposure during the growth phase of white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hanne L. Kristensen

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Background: Mushrooms are the only non-animal food source of vitamin D. Wild mushrooms have naturally high vitamin D2 content, and cultivated mushrooms produce vitamin D2 from ergosterol when exposed to supplementary UV-B during the post-harvest phase.Objectives: This study investigated the effects of providing supplementary UV-B during the growth phase on vitamin D2 formation and the interactions with growth of mushrooms, as compared to supplementary UV-B during the post-harvest phase or exposure to sunlight for both cultivated and wild mushrooms.Methods: Experiments were carried out with exposure to supplementary UV-B just prior to harvest in the range of 0–2,400 mJ cm−2. Mushrooms grew for 2 days with or without repeated UV-B exposure each day. Vitamin D2 and growth rate were determined. In addition, some mushrooms were post-harvest treated by exposure at 200 mJ cm−2 supplementary UV-B or natural sunlight, prior to vitamin D2 determination.Results: The content of vitamin D2 was 0.2–164 µg 100 g−1 fresh weight, and there was a linear relationship between UV-dose up to 1,000 mJ cm−2 and vitamin D2 content. The fast growth rate of the mushrooms diluted the vitamin D2 from 24 to 3 µg 100 g−1 within 2 days of exposure at 200 mJ cm−2. Following repeated UV-B exposure, vitamin D2 increased to 33 µg vitamin D2 100 g−1. Growth was unaffected by UV-B. Post-harvest exposure to supplementary UV-B resulted in a higher vitamin D2 content of 32 µg 100 g−1 compared to the 24 µg 100 g−1 obtained from exposure to UV-B during the growth phase. In contrast, wild and cultivated mushrooms with and without exposure to sunlight had vitamin D2 content in the range of 0.2–1.5 µg vitamin D2 100 g−1.Conclusions: This study showed that mushrooms with a well-defined content of vitamin D2 can be obtained by exposure to supplementary UV-B just prior to harvest.

  3. Influence of gallic and tannic acids on enzymatic activity and growth ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The effect of phenolic acids (gallic and tannic acids) on growth of Pectobacterium chrysanhemi, and its protease and pectate lyase activities was tested. The results obtained showed a significant inhibiting effect of the tannic and gallic acids on the growth of this strain. The growth rate decreases in the presence of 400 g/ml ...

  4. Growth kinetics of the intermetallic phase in diffusion-soldered (Cu-5 at.%Ni)/Sn/(Cu-5 at.%Ni) interconnections

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wierzbicka-Miernik, A.; Miernik, K.; Wojewoda-Budka, J.; Szyszkiewicz, K.; Filipek, R.; Litynska-Dobrzynska, L.; Kodentsov, A.; Zieba, P.

    2013-01-01

    A stereological analysis was carried out in order to obtain the kinetics parameters of the (Cu1-xNix)6Sn5 growth in the diffusion soldered (Cu–5 at.%Ni)/Sn/(Cu–5 at.%Ni) interconnections where previously anomalous fast growth of this phase was described. The n-parameter in the equation x = ktn was

  5. Recovery Efficiency Test Project: Phase 1, Activity report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Overbey, W.K. Jr.; Wilkins, D.W.; Keltch, B.; Saradji, B.; Salamy, S.P.

    1988-04-01

    This report is the second volume of the Recovery Efficiency Test Phase I Report of Activities. Volume 1 covered selection, well planning, drilling, coring, logging and completion operations. This volume reports on well testing activities, reclamation activities on the drilling site and access roads, and the results of physical and mechanical properties tests on the oriented core material obtained from a horizontal section of the well. 3 refs., 21 figs., 10 tabs.

  6. Effect of dietary energy levels and phase feeding by protein levels on growth performance, blood profiles and carcass characteristics in growing-finishing pigs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. S. Hong

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Providing of insufficient nutrients limits the potential growth of pig, while feeding of excessive nutrients increases the economic loss and causes environment pollution. For these reasons, phase feeding had been introduced in swine farm for improving animal production. This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary energy levels and phase feeding by protein levels on growth performance, blood profiles and carcass characteristics in growing-finishing pigs. Methods A total of 128 growing pigs ([Yorkshire × Landrace] × Duroc, averaging 26.62 ± 3.07 kg body weight, were assigned in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement with 4 pigs per pen. The first factor was two dietary energy level (3,265 kcal of ME/kg or 3,365 kcal of ME/kg, and the second factor was four different levels of dietary protein by phase feeding (1growing(G-2finishing(F phases, 2G-2F phases, 2G-3F phases and 2G-3F phases with low CP requirement. Results In feeding trial, there was no significant difference in growth performance. The BUN concentration was decreased as dietary protein level decreased in 6 week and blood creatinine was increased in 13 week when pigs were fed diets with different dietary energy level. The digestibility of crude fat was improved as dietary energy levels increased and excretion of urinary nitrogen was reduced when low protein diet was provided. Chemical compositions of longissimus muscle were not affected by dietary treatments. In backfat thickness (P2 at 13 week, pigs fed high energy diet had thicker backfat thickness (P = 0.06 and pigs fed low protein diet showed the trend of backfat thinness reduction (P = 0.09. In addition, water holding capacity was decreased (P = 0.01 and cooking loss was increased (P = 0.07 as dietary protein level reduced. When pigs were fed high energy diet with low subdivision of phase feeding, days to 120 kg market weight was reached earlier compared to

  7. The Brazilian business and growth cycles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chauvet Marcelle

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper uses several produceres to date and analyse the Brazilian business and growth cycles. In particular, a Markov switching model is fitted to quarterly and annual real production data. The smoothed probabilities of the Markov states are used as predictive rules to define different phases of cyclical fluctuations of real Brazilian production. The results are compared with different non-parametric rules. All methods implemented yield similar dating and reveal asymmetries across the different states of the Brazilian business and growth cycles, in which slowdowns and recessions are short and abrupt, while high growth phases and expansions are longer and less steep. The resulting dating of the Brazilian economic cycles can be used as a reference point for construction and evaluation of the predictive performance of coincident, leading, or lagging indicators of economic activity. In addition, the filtered probabilities obtained from the Markov switching model allow early recognition of the transition to a new business cycle phase, wich can be used, for example, for evaluation of the adequate strength and timing of countercyclical policies, for reassessment of projected sales or profits by businesses and investors, or for monitoring of inflation pressures.

  8. Phase-field model of eutectic growth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Karma, A.

    1994-01-01

    A phase-field model which describes the solidification of a binary eutectic alloy with a simple symmetric phase diagram is introduced and the sharp-interface limit of this model is explored both analytically and numerically

  9. Muscle activation patterns in acceleration-based phases during reach-to-grasp movement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tokuda, Keisuke; Lee, Bumsuk; Shiihara, Yasufumi; Takahashi, Kazuhiro; Wada, Naoki; Shirakura, Kenji; Watanabe, Hideomi

    2016-11-01

    [Purpose] An earlier study divided reaching activity into characteristic phases based on hand velocity profiles. By synchronizing muscle activities and the acceleration profile, a phasing approach for reaching movement, based on hand acceleration profiles, was attempted in order to elucidate the roles of individual muscle activities in the different phases of the acceleration profile in reaching movements. [Subjects and Methods] Ten healthy volunteer subjects participated in this study. The aim was to electromyographically evaluate muscles around the shoulder, the upper trapezius, the anterior deltoid, the biceps brachii, and the triceps brachii, most of which have been used to evaluate arm motion, as well as the acceleration of the upper limb during simple reaching movement in the reach-to-grasp task. [Results] Analysis showed the kinematic trajectories of the acceleration during a simple biphasic profile of the reaching movement could be divided into four phases: increasing acceleration (IA), decreasing acceleration (DA), increasing deceleration (ID), and decreasing deceleration (DD). Muscles around the shoulder showed different activity patterns, which were closely associated with these acceleration phases. [Conclusion] These results suggest the important role of the four phases, derived from the acceleration trajectory, in the elucidation of the muscular mechanisms which regulate and coordinate the muscles around the shoulder in reaching movements.

  10. Effect of menstrual cycle phase on corticolimbic brain activation by visual food cues.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frank, Tamar C; Kim, Ginah L; Krzemien, Alicja; Van Vugt, Dean A

    2010-12-02

    Food intake is decreased during the late follicular phase and increased in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. While a changing ovarian steroid milieu is believed to be responsible for this behavior, the specific mechanisms involved are poorly understood. Brain activity in response to visual food stimuli was compared during the estrogen dominant peri-ovulatory phase and the progesterone dominant luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Twelve women underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging during the peri-ovulatory and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle in a counterbalanced fashion. Whole brain T2* images were collected while subjects viewed pictures of high calorie (HC) foods, low calorie (LC) foods, and control (C) pictures presented in a block design. Blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal in the late follicular phase and luteal phase was determined for the contrasts HC-C, LC-C, HC-LC, and LC-HC. Both HC and LC stimuli activated numerous corticolimbic brain regions in the follicular phase, whereas only HC stimuli were effective in the luteal phase. Activation of the nucleus accumbens (NAc), amygdala, and hippocampus in response to the HC-C contrast and the hippocampus in response to the LC-C contrast was significantly increased in the late follicular phase compared to the luteal phase. Activation of the orbitofrontal cortex and mid cingulum in response to the HC-LC contrast was greater during the luteal phase. These results demonstrate for the first time that brain responses to visual food cues are influenced by menstrual cycle phase. We postulate that ovarian steroid modulation of the corticolimbic brain contributes to changes in ingestive behavior during the menstrual cycle. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Two-phase flow measurements using a photochromic dye activation technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kawaji, M.

    1998-01-01

    A novel flow visualization method called photochromic dye activation (PDA) technique has been used to investigate flow structures and mechanisms in various two-phase flow regimes. This non-intrusive flow visualization technique utilizes light activation of a photochromic dye material dissolved in a clear liquid and is a molecular tagging technique, requiring no seed particles. It has been used to yield both quantitative and qualitative flow data in the liquid phase in annular flow, slug flow and stratified-wavy flows. (author)

  12. Growth of Vanadium Carbide by Halide-Activated Pack Diffusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fernandes, Frederico Augusto Pires; Christiansen, Thomas Lundin; Dahl, Kristian Vinter

    The present work investigates growth of vanadium carbide (VC) layers by the pack diffusion method on a Vanadis 6 tool steel. The VC layers were produced by pack diffusion at 1000°C for 1, 4 and 16 hours. The VC layers were characterized with optical and electron microscopy, Vickers hardness tests...... and X-ray diffraction. Homogeneous VC mono-phase layers with Vickers hardness of more than 2400 HV were obtained. Hardening and tempering of the vanadized Vanadis 6 steel did not affect the VC layers....

  13. Changes in growth, survival and digestive enzyme activities of Asian ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    A study was conducted to determine the effects of different dietary treatments on the growth, survival and digestive enzyme activities of Mystus nemurus larvae. Newly hatched larvae were reared for 14 days in twelve 15 L glass aquaria (for growth and survival) and eight 300 L fiberglass tanks (for enzyme samples) at a ...

  14. Beneficial effect of physical activity on linear growth rate of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    It is not known if nutritional and/or other interventions could improve linear growth in adolescents. The purpose of this study was to assess the role of physical activity in promoting linear growth velocity of black adolescents in a low-income shanty town in South Africa. Two schools in a disadvantaged shanty town participated ...

  15. CORONAL DYNAMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE DECLINING PHASE OF A SOLAR CYCLE

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jang, Minhwan; Choe, G. S. [Department of Astronomy and Space Science, Kyung Hee University, Yongin 17104 (Korea, Republic of); Woods, T. N. [Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303 (United States); Hong, Sunhak, E-mail: gchoe@khu.ac.kr [School of Space Research, Kyung Hee University, Yongin 17104 (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-12-10

    It has been known that some solar activity indicators show a double-peak feature in their evolution through a solar cycle, which is not conspicuous in sunspot number. In this Letter, we investigate the high solar dynamic activity in the declining phase of the sunspot cycle by examining the evolution of polar and low-latitude coronal hole (CH) areas, splitting and merging events of CHs, and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) detected by SOHO /LASCO C3 in solar cycle 23. Although the total CH area is at its maximum near the sunspot minimum, in which polar CHs prevail, it shows a comparable second maximum in the declining phase of the cycle, in which low-latitude CHs are dominant. The events of CH splitting or merging, which are attributed to surface motions of magnetic fluxes, are also mostly populated in the declining phase of the cycle. The far-reaching C3 CMEs are also overpopulated in the declining phase of the cycle. From these results we suggest that solar dynamic activities due to the horizontal surface motions of magnetic fluxes extend far in the declining phase of the sunspot cycle.

  16. CORONAL DYNAMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE DECLINING PHASE OF A SOLAR CYCLE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jang, Minhwan; Choe, G. S.; Woods, T. N.; Hong, Sunhak

    2016-01-01

    It has been known that some solar activity indicators show a double-peak feature in their evolution through a solar cycle, which is not conspicuous in sunspot number. In this Letter, we investigate the high solar dynamic activity in the declining phase of the sunspot cycle by examining the evolution of polar and low-latitude coronal hole (CH) areas, splitting and merging events of CHs, and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) detected by SOHO /LASCO C3 in solar cycle 23. Although the total CH area is at its maximum near the sunspot minimum, in which polar CHs prevail, it shows a comparable second maximum in the declining phase of the cycle, in which low-latitude CHs are dominant. The events of CH splitting or merging, which are attributed to surface motions of magnetic fluxes, are also mostly populated in the declining phase of the cycle. The far-reaching C3 CMEs are also overpopulated in the declining phase of the cycle. From these results we suggest that solar dynamic activities due to the horizontal surface motions of magnetic fluxes extend far in the declining phase of the sunspot cycle.

  17. Gamma power is phase-locked to posterior alpha activity.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daria Osipova

    Full Text Available Neuronal oscillations in various frequency bands have been reported in numerous studies in both humans and animals. While it is obvious that these oscillations play an important role in cognitive processing, it remains unclear how oscillations in various frequency bands interact. In this study we have investigated phase to power locking in MEG activity of healthy human subjects at rest with their eyes closed. To examine cross-frequency coupling, we have computed coherence between the time course of the power in a given frequency band and the signal itself within every channel. The time-course of the power was calculated using a sliding tapered time window followed by a Fourier transform. Our findings show that high-frequency gamma power (30-70 Hz is phase-locked to alpha oscillations (8-13 Hz in the ongoing MEG signals. The topography of the coupling was similar to the topography of the alpha power and was strongest over occipital areas. Interestingly, gamma activity per se was not evident in the power spectra and only became detectable when studied in relation to the alpha phase. Intracranial data from an epileptic subject confirmed these findings albeit there was slowing in both the alpha and gamma band. A tentative explanation for this phenomenon is that the visual system is inhibited during most of the alpha cycle whereas a burst of gamma activity at a specific alpha phase (e.g. at troughs reflects a window of excitability.

  18. Vaginal cone use in passive and active phases in patients with stress urinary incontinence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jorge Milhem Haddad

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To evaluate vaginal cone therapy in two phases, passive and active, in women with stress urinary incontinence. METHODS: A prospective study was conducted at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, São Paulo University, Brazil. Twenty-four women with a clinical and urodynamic diagnosis of stress urinary incontinence were treated with vaginal cones in a passive phase (without voluntary contractions of the pelvic floor and an active phase (with voluntary contractions, each of which lasted three months. Clinical complaints, a functional evaluation of the pelvic floor, a pad test, and bladder neck mobility were analyzed before and after each phase. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients completed the treatment. The reduction in absolute risk with the pad test was 0.38 (p<0.034 at the end of the passive phase and 0.67 (p<0.0001 at the end of the active phase. The reduction in absolute risk with the pelvic floor evaluation was 0.62 (p<0.0001 at the end of the passive phase and 0.77 (p<0.0001 at the end of the active phase. The reduction in absolute risk of bladder neck mobility was 0.38 (p<0.0089 at the end of the passive phase and 0.52 (p<0.0005 at the end of the active phase. Complete reversal of symptomatology was observed in 12 (57.1% patients, and satisfaction was expressed by 19 (90.4%. CONCLUSION: Using vaginal cones in the passive phase, as other researchers did, was effective. Inclusion of the active phase led to additional improvement in all of the study parameters evaluated in women with stress urinary incontinence. Randomized studies are needed, however, to confirm these results.

  19. Growth of single - crystals of Pb1-x Snx Te by vapor phase transport with the formation of a liquid/solid growth interface

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    An, C.Y.; Bandeira, I.N.

    1985-01-01

    Due to segregation effects single-crystals of Pb 1-x Sn x Te growth by Bridgman techniques have an inhomogeneous composition profile. A vapor phase transport growth process has been developed in order to reduce convective flows. This is due to the very thin melt layer in front of the crystal, that makes convective flows small and solute mixing in the melt very low. By this process single-crystals with 60mm length by 15 mm diameter and a high degree of homogeneity have been grown. A process for determination of the exact composition profile by measurements of the crystal density, for isomorphous alloys of the type A 1-x B x , is also shown. (Author) [pt

  20. The effect of growth phase on the surface properties of three oleaginous microalgae (Botryococcus sp. FACGB-762, Chlorella sp. XJ-445 and Desmodesmus bijugatus XJ-231).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xia, Ling; Huang, Rong; Li, Yinta; Song, Shaoxian

    2017-01-01

    The effects of growth phase on the lipid content and surface properties of oleaginous microalgae Botryococcus sp. FACGB-762, Chlorella sp. XJ-445 and Desmodesmus bijugatus XJ-231 were investigated in this study. The results showed that throughout the growth phases, the lipid content of microalgae increased. The surface properties like particle size, the degree of hydrophobicity, and the total concentration of functional groups increased while net surface zeta potential decreased. The results suggested that the growth stage had significant influence not only on the lipid content but also on the surface characteristics. Moreover, the lipid content was significantly positively related to the concentration of hydroxyl functional groups in spite of algal strains or growth phases. These results provided a basis for further studies on the refinery process using oleaginous microalgae for biofuel production.

  1. Expression of PML tumor suppressor in A 431 cells reduces cellular growth by inhibiting the epidermal growth factor receptor expression

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vallian, S.; Chang, K.S.

    2004-01-01

    Our previous studies showed that the promyelocytic leukemia, PML, protein functions as a cellular and growth suppressor. Transient expression of PML was also found to repress the activity of the epidermal growth factor receptor gene promoter. In this study we have examined the effects of PML on A431 cells, which express a high level of + protein. The PML gene was introduced into the cells using the adenovirus-mediated gene transfer system. Western blot analysis on the extracts from the cells expressing PML showed a significant repression in the expression of the epidermal growth factor receptor protein. The cells were examined for growth and DNA synthesis. The data showed a marked reduction in both growth and DNA synthesis rate in the cells expressing PML compared with the control cells. Furthermore, in comparison with the controls, the cells expressing PML were found to be more in G1 phase, fewer in S and about the same number in the G2/M phase. This data clearly demonstrated that the repression of epidermal growth factor receptor expression in A 431 cells by PML was associated with inhibition of cell growth and alteration of the cell cycle distribution, suggesting a novel mechanism for the known growth inhibitory effects of PML

  2. Development and Evaluation of Herbal Formulations for Hair Growth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lipi Purwal

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Hair formulation of Emblica officinalis (Euphorbiaceae, Bacopa, monnieri (Scrophulariaceae, Trigonella foenumgraecum (Leguminosae, Murraya koenigii (Rutaceae in various concentrations in the form of herbal oil were studied for their hair growth activity. Each drug was tested for their hair growth activity in a concentration range for 1-10% separately. Based on these results mixture of crude drugs Murraya koeniigi, leaf (Rutaceae, Bacopa monnieri, leaf (Scrophulariaceae, Trigonella foenumgraecum (Leguminosae, Murraya koenigii (Rutaceae were prepared in varying concentration in the form of herbal hair oil by three different oils preparation techniques and were tested for hair growth activity. The result revealed that the hair growth activity of each drug was found proportional to the concentration range tested. Similarly higher concentrations of drug in the formulation were found to have higher hair growth activities. But looking towards the formulation viscosity the maximum concentration of combined drug was found to be 30% at their maximum level. The formulation containing 7.5% of each drug used for the study and showed excellent hair growth activity with standard (2% minoxidil ethanolic solution by an enlargement of follicular size and prolongation of the anagen phase. It holds the promise of potent herbal alternative for minoxidil. Excellent results of hair growth were seen in formulation prepared by cloth pouch decoction method of oils preparation technique.

  3. TEAD4-YAP interaction regulates tumoral growth by controlling cell-cycle arrest at the G1 phase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takeuchi, Shin; Kasamatsu, Atsushi; Yamatoji, Masanobu; Nakashima, Dai; Endo-Sakamoto, Yosuke; Koide, Nao; Takahara, Toshikazu; Shimizu, Toshihiro; Iyoda, Manabu; Ogawara, Katsunori; Shiiba, Masashi; Tanzawa, Hideki; Uzawa, Katsuhiro

    2017-01-01

    TEA domain transcription factor 4 (TEAD4), which has critical functions in the process of embryonic development, is expressed in various cancers. However, the important role of TEAD4 in human oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs) remain unclear. Here we investigated the TEAD4 expression level and the functional mechanism in OSCC using quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, Western blot analysis, and immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, TEAD4 knockdown model was used to evaluate cellular proliferation, cell-cycle analysis, and the interaction between TEAD4 and Yes-associated protein (YAP) which was reported to be a transcription coactivator of cellular proliferation. In the current study, we found that TEAD4 expression increased significantly in vitro and in vivo and correlated with tumoral size in OSCC patients. TEAD4 knockdown OSCC cells showed decreased cellular proliferation resulting from cell-cycle arrest in the G1 phase by down-regulation of cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), and up-regulation of CDK inhibitors. We also found that the TEAD4-YAP complex in the nuclei may be related closely to transcriptions of G1 arrest-related genes. Taken together, we concluded that TEAD4 might play an important role in tumoral growth and have potential to be a therapeutic target in OSCCs. - Highlights: • TEAD4 contributes to tumor progression in OSCCs. • TEAD4 knockdown results in cell-cycle arrest at the G1phase in OSCC cells. • In TEAD4 knockdown cells, the amount of YAP in the nucleus decreases. • Activation of the TEAD4-YAP complex is an important factor in OSCC tumor growth. • TEAD4 might be a critical biomarker and a therapeutic target for OSCCs.

  4. Analysis of the effect on growth kinetics of gamma prima phase in Inconel 713C alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thorp, S.I.; Versaci, R.A.; Ges, A.; Palacio, H.A.

    1993-01-01

    This work shows the analysis of the effect on growth kinetics of gamma prima phase in Inconel 713C alloy of two thermic treatments. In this study, SEM are used and the results are analyzed by means of the theory developed by Lifshitz, Slyozov and Wagner (LSW theory). The findings have revealed that with such theory it is not possible to determine if the process of growth is controlled either through diffusion or through diffusion in the interface as to the time employed in the experiment (2600 hours); the time required is approximately 10000 hours. (Author)

  5. Intercellular signaling pathways active during intervertebral disc growth, differentiation, and aging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dahia, Chitra Lekha; Mahoney, Eric J; Durrani, Atiq A; Wylie, Christopher

    2009-03-01

    Intervertebral discs at different postnatal ages were assessed for active intercellular signaling pathways. To generate a spatial and temporal map of the signaling pathways active in the postnatal intervertebral disc (IVD). The postnatal IVD is a complex structure, consisting of 3 histologically distinct components, the nucleus pulposus, fibrous anulus fibrosus, and endplate. These differentiate and grow during the first 9 weeks of age in the mouse. Identification of the major signaling pathways active during and after the growth and differentiation period will allow functional analysis using mouse genetics and identify targets for therapy for individual components of the disc. Antibodies specific for individual cell signaling pathways were used on cryostat sections of IVD at different postnatal ages to identify which components of the IVD were responding to major classes of intercellular signal, including sonic hedgehog, Wnt, TGFbeta, FGF, and BMPs. We present a spatial/temporal map of these signaling pathways during growth, differentiation, and aging of the disc. During growth and differentiation of the disc, its different components respond at different times to different intercellular signaling ligands. Most of these are dramatically downregulated at the end of disc growth.

  6. Continuation versus discontinuation of oxytocin in the active phase of labour

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bor, Isil Pinar; Ledertoug, Susanne; Boie, Sidsel

    2016-01-01

    . POPULATION: Women with singleton pregnancy in the vertex position undergoing labour induction or augmentation. METHODS: Two hundred women were randomised when cervical dilation was ≤4 cm to either continue or discontinue oxytocin infusion when cervical dilation reached 5 cm. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES......, and neonatal outcomes. RESULTS: The active phase of labour was longer by 41 minutes (95% confidence interval 11-75 minutes) in the discontinued group (median 125 minutes in 85 women who had reached the active phase and delivered vaginally) versus the continued group (median 88 minutes in 78 women......OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether discontinuation of oxytocin infusion increases the duration of the active phase of labour and reduces maternal and neonatal complications. DESIGN: Randomised controlled trial. SETTING: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Regional Hospital of Randers, Denmark...

  7. Phenobarbital indirectly activates the constitutive active androstane receptor (CAR) by inhibition of epidermal growth factor receptor signaling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mutoh, Shingo; Sobhany, Mack; Moore, Rick; Perera, Lalith; Pedersen, Lee; Sueyoshi, Tatsuya; Negishi, Masahiko

    2013-05-07

    Phenobarbital is a central nervous system depressant that also indirectly activates nuclear receptor constitutive active androstane receptor (CAR), which promotes drug and energy metabolism, as well as cell growth (and death), in the liver. We found that phenobarbital activated CAR by inhibiting epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling. Phenobarbital bound to EGFR and potently inhibited the binding of EGF, which prevented the activation of EGFR. This abrogation of EGFR signaling induced the dephosphorylation of receptor for activated C kinase 1 (RACK1) at Tyr(52), which then promoted the dephosphorylation of CAR at Thr(38) by the catalytic core subunit of protein phosphatase 2A. The findings demonstrated that the phenobarbital-induced mechanism of CAR dephosphorylation and activation is mediated through its direct interaction with and inhibition of EGFR.

  8. Implementation of a more physiological plasma rich in growth factor (PRGF) protocol: Anticoagulant removal and reduction in activator concentration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anitua, Eduardo; Prado, Roberto; Troya, María; Zalduendo, Mar; de la Fuente, María; Pino, Ander; Muruzabal, Francisco; Orive, Gorka

    2016-07-01

    Plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF) is a biological therapy that uses patient's own growth factors for promoting tissue regeneration. Given the current European regulatory framework in which anticoagulant solution in blood extraction tubes could be considered as a medicinal product, a new PRGF protocol has been developed. The actual protocol (PRGF-A) and the new one (PRGF-B) have been performed and compared under Good Laboratory Practices. PRGF-A protocol uses extraction tubes with 0.9 mL of trisodium citrate as anticoagulant and 50 μL of calcium chloride/mL PRGF to activate it. The PRGF-B reduces the amount of sodium citrate and calcium chloride to 0.4 mL and to 20 μL, respectively. Basic hematological parameters, platelet function, the scaffold obtaining process, growth factors content, and the biological effect were compared between both PRGF obtaining protocols. PRGF-B protocol led to a statistically significant higher enrichment and recovery of platelets regarding to the PRGF-A. Hypotonic stress response by platelets was significantly better in the new protocol. A statistically significant decrease in the basal platelet activation status of PRGF-B compared to PRGF-A was also observed. The duration of the lag phase in the platelet aggregation assay was statistically lower for the PRGF-B protocol. Both the clotting and the clot retraction time were significantly reduced in the B protocol. A higher growth factor concentration was detected in the plasma obtained using the PRGF-B protocol. The new PRGF obtaining protocol, with a reduction in the amount of anticoagulant and activator, has even improved the actual one.

  9. Silicon transport under rotating and combined magnetic fields in liquid phase diffusion growth of SiGe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Armour, N.; Dost, S. [Crystal Growth Laboratory, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P6 (Canada)

    2010-04-15

    The effect of applied rotating and combined (rotating and static) magnetic fields on silicon transport during the liquid phase diffusion growth of SiGe was experimentally studied. 72-hour growth periods produced some single crystal sections. Single and polycrystalline sections of the processed samples were examined for silicon composition. Results show that the application of a rotating magnetic field enhances silicon transport in the melt. It also has a slight positive effect on flattening the initial growth interface. For comparison, growth experiments were also conducted under combined (rotating and static) magnetic fields. The processed samples revealed that the addition of static field altered the thermal characteristics of the system significantly and led to a complete melt back of the germanium seed. Silicon transport in the melt was also enhanced under combined fields compared with experiments with no magnetic field. (copyright 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

  10. Mechanisms of integrin-vascular endothelial growth factor receptor cross-activation in angiogenesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahabeleshwar, Ganapati H; Feng, Weiyi; Reddy, Kumar; Plow, Edward F; Byzova, Tatiana V

    2007-09-14

    The functional responses of endothelial cells are dependent on signaling from peptide growth factors and the cellular adhesion receptors, integrins. These include cell adhesion, migration, and proliferation, which, in turn, are essential for more complex processes such as formation of the endothelial tube network during angiogenesis. This study identifies the molecular requirements for the cross-activation between beta3 integrin and tyrosine kinase receptor 2 for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor (VEGFR-2) on endothelium. The relationship between VEGFR-2 and beta3 integrin appears to be synergistic, because VEGFR-2 activation induces beta3 integrin tyrosine phosphorylation, which, in turn, is crucial for VEGF-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of VEGFR-2. We demonstrate here that adhesion- and growth factor-induced beta3 integrin tyrosine phosphorylation are directly mediated by c-Src. VEGF-stimulated recruitment and activation of c-Src and subsequent beta3 integrin tyrosine phosphorylation are critical for interaction between VEGFR-2 and beta3 integrin. Moreover, c-Src mediates growth factor-induced beta3 integrin activation, ligand binding, beta3 integrin-dependent cell adhesion, directional migration of endothelial cells, and initiation of angiogenic programming in endothelial cells. Thus, the present study determines the molecular mechanisms and consequences of the synergism between 2 cell surface receptor systems, growth factor receptor and integrins, and opens new avenues for the development of pro- and antiangiogenic strategies.

  11. Hydrodynamic suppression of phase separation in active suspensions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matas-Navarro, Ricard; Golestanian, Ramin; Liverpool, Tanniemola B; Fielding, Suzanne M

    2014-09-01

    We simulate with hydrodynamics a suspension of active disks squirming through a Newtonian fluid. We explore numerically the full range of squirmer area fractions from dilute to close packed and show that "motility induced phase separation," which was recently proposed to arise generically in active matter, and which has been seen in simulations of active Brownian disks, is strongly suppressed by hydrodynamic interactions. We give an argument for why this should be the case and support it with counterpart simulations of active Brownian disks in a parameter regime that provides a closer counterpart to hydrodynamic suspensions than in previous studies.

  12. Growth-supporting activity for Legionella pneumophila in tap water cultures and implication of hartmannellid amoebae as growth factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wadowsky, R M; Butler, L J; Cook, M K; Verma, S M; Paul, M A; Fields, B S; Keleti, G; Sykora, J L; Yee, R B

    1988-11-01

    Photosynthetic cyanobacteria, heterotrophic bacteria, free-living amoebae, and ciliated protozoa may support growth of Legionella pneumophila. Studies were done with two tap water cultures (WS1 and WS2) containing L. pneumophila and associated microbiota to characterize growth-supporting activity and assess the relative importance of the microbiota in supporting multiplication of L. pneumophila. The water cultures were incubated in the dark at 35 degrees C. The growth-supporting factor(s) was separated from each culture by filtration through 1-micron-pore-size membrane filters. The retentate was then suspended in sterile tap water. Multiplication of L. pneumophila occurred when both the retentate suspension and the filtrate from either culture were inoculated into sterile tap water. L. pneumophila did not multiply in tap water inoculated with only the filtrate, even though filtration did not reduce the concentration of L. pneumophila or heterotrophic bacteria in either culture. Growth-supporting activity of the retentate suspension from WS1 was inactivated at 60 degrees C but unaffected at 0, 25, and 45 degrees C after 30-min incubations. Filtration experiments indicated that the growth-supporting factor(s) in WS1 was 2 to 5 micron in diameter. Ciliated protozoa were not detected in either culture. Hartmannellid amoebae were conclusively demonstrated in WS2 but not in WS1. L. pneumophila multiplied in tap water inoculated with the amoebae (10(3)/ml) and the 1-micron filtrate of WS2. No multiplication occurred in tap water inoculated with the filtrate only. Growth-supporting activity for L. pneumophila may be present in plumbing systems; hartmannellid amoebae appear to be important determinants of multiplication of L. pneumophila in some tap water cultures.

  13. Correlation between protein kinase C alpha activity and membrane phase behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Micol, V; Sánchez-Piñera, P; Villalaín, J; de Godos, A; Gómez-Fernández, J C

    1999-02-01

    Lipid activation of protein kinase C alpha (PKC alpha) was studied by using a model mixture containing 1, 2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC), 1, 2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoserine (DMPS), and 1, 2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycerol (1,2-DMG). This lipid mixture was physically characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and 31P-nuclear magnetic resonance (31P-NMR). Based on these techniques, a phase diagram was constructed by keeping a constant DMPC/DMPS molar ratio of 4:1 and changing the concentration of 1,2-DMG. This phase diagram displayed three regions and two compounds: compound 1 (C1), with 45 mol% 1,2-DMG, and compound 2 (C2), with 60 mol% 1,2-DMG. When the phase diagram was elaborated in the presence of Ca2+ and Mg2+, at concentrations similar to those used in the PKC alpha activity assay, the boundaries between the regions changed slightly and C1 had 35 mol% 1,2-DMG. The activity of PKC alpha was studied at several temperatures and at different concentrations of 1,2-DMG, with a maximum of activity reached at 30 mol% 1,2-DMG and lower values at higher concentrations. In the presence of Ca2+ and Mg2+, maximum PKC alpha activity occurred at concentrations of 1,2-DMG that were close to the boundary in the phase diagram between region 1, where compound C1 and the pure phospholipid coexisted in the gel phase, and region 2, where compounds C1 and C2 coexisted. These results suggest that the membrane structure corresponding to a mixture of 1,2-DMG/phospholipid complex and free phospholipid is better able to support the activity of PKC alpha than the 1,2-DMG/phospholipid complex alone.

  14. Growth of anatase and rutile phase TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles using pulsed laser ablation in liquid: Influence of surfactant addition and ablation time variation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chaturvedi, Amita, E-mail: amita-chaturvedi@rrcat.gov.in [Laser Material Processing Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, MP (India); Joshi, M.P. [Laser Material Processing Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, MP (India); Homi Bhabha National Institute, Training School Complex, Anushakti Nagar, Mumbai – 400094 (India); Mondal, P.; Sinha, A.K.; Srivastava, A.K. [Indus Synchrotron Utilization Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, MP (India)

    2017-02-28

    Highlights: • Ablations of Ti metal target were carried out in DI water and in 0.001 M SDS solution for different times using PLAL process. • Different characterization studies have been carried out to confirm the growth of TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles in both the liquid mediums. • Anatase phase TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles were obtained in DI water and rutile phase in 0.001 M SDS aqueous solution. • In surfactant solution, longer time ablation leads depletion of SDS molecules causes growth of anatase phase for 90 min. • Our studies confirmed the role of liquid ambience conditions variation over the different phase formations of nanoparticles. - Abstract: Titanium dioxide (TiO{sub 2}) nanoparticles were grown using nanosecond pulsed laser ablation of Ti target in DI water and in 0.001 M sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) surfactant aqueous solution. Growth was carried out with varying ablation times i. e. 30 min, 60 min and 90 min. The objective of our study was to investigate the influence of variations in liquid ambience conditions on the growth of the nanoparticles in a pulsed laser ablation in liquid (PLAL) process. Size, composition and optical properties of the grown TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles were investigated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), optical absorption, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies. The obtained nanoparticles of TiO{sub 2} were found almost spherical in shape and polycrystalline in nature in both the liquid mediums i.e. DI water and aqueous solution of surfactant. Nanoparticles number density was also found to increase with increasing ablation time in both the liquid mediums. However crystalline phase of the grown TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles differs with the change in liquid ambience conditions. Selected area electron diffraction (SAED), PL and XRD studies suggest that DI water ambience is favorable for the growth of anatase phase TiO{sub 2} nanoparticles for all

  15. Effect of a static magnetic field on silicon transport in liquid phase diffusion growth of SiGe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Armour, N.; Dost, S. [Crystal Growth Laboratory, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 3P6 (Canada)

    2010-03-15

    Liquid phase diffusion experiments have been performed without and with the application of a 0.4 T static magnetic field using a three-zone DC furnace system. SiGe crystals were grown from the germanium side for a period of 72 h. Experiments have led to the growth of single crystal sections varying from 0 to 10 mm thicknesses. Examination of the processed samples (single and polycrystalline sections) has shown that the effect of the applied static magnetic field is significant. It alters the temperature distribution in the system, reduces mass transport in the melt, and leads to a much lower growth rate. The initial curved growth interface was slightly flattened under the effect of magnetic field. There were no growth striations in the single crystal sections of the samples. (copyright 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

  16. Piperine causes G1 phase cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in melanoma cells through checkpoint kinase-1 activation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neel M Fofaria

    Full Text Available In this study, we determined the cytotoxic effects of piperine, a major constituent of black and long pepper in melanoma cells. Piperine treatment inhibited the growth of SK MEL 28 and B16 F0 cells in a dose and time-dependent manner. The growth inhibitory effects of piperine were mediated by cell cycle arrest of both the cell lines in G1 phase. The G1 arrest by piperine correlated with the down-regulation of cyclin D1 and induction of p21. Furthermore, this growth arrest by piperine treatment was associated with DNA damage as indicated by phosphorylation of H2AX at Ser139, activation of ataxia telangiectasia and rad3-related protein (ATR and checkpoint kinase 1 (Chk1. Pretreatment with AZD 7762, a Chk1 inhibitor not only abrogated the activation of Chk1 but also piperine mediated G1 arrest. Similarly, transfection of cells with Chk1 siRNA completely protected the cells from G1 arrest induced by piperine. Piperine treatment caused down-regulation of E2F1 and phosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein (Rb. Apoptosis induced by piperine was associated with down-regulation of XIAP, Bid (full length and cleavage of Caspase-3 and PARP. Furthermore, our results showed that piperine treatment generated ROS in melanoma cells. Blocking ROS by tiron protected the cells from piperine mediated cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. These results suggest that piperine mediated ROS played a critical role in inducing DNA damage and activation of Chk1 leading to G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis.

  17. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 activation is associated with bladder cancer cell growth and survival

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hsieh Fu-Chuan

    2008-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Constitutive activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3 signaling pathway plays an important role in several human cancers. Activation of Stat3 is dependent on the phosphorylation at the tyrosine residue 705 by upstream kinases and subsequent nuclear translocation after dimerization. It remains unclear whether oncogenic Stat3 signaling pathway is involved in the oncogenesis of bladder cancer. Results We found that elevated Stat3 phosphorylation in 19 of 100 (19% bladder cancer tissues as well as bladder cancer cell lines, WH, UMUC-3 and 253J. To explore whether Stat3 activation is associated with cell growth and survival of bladder cancer, we targeted the Stat3 signaling pathway in bladder cancer cells using an adenovirus-mediated dominant-negative Stat3 (Y705F and a small molecule compound, STA-21. Both prohibited cell growth and induction of apoptosis in these bladder cancer cell lines but not in normal bladder smooth muscle cell (BdSMC. The survival inhibition might be mediated through apoptotic caspase 3, 8 and 9 pathways. Moreover, down-regulation of anti-apoptotic genes (Bcl-2, Bcl-xL and survivin and a cell cycle regulating gene (cyclin D1 was associated with the cell growth inhibition and apoptosis. Conclusion These results indicated that activation of Stat3 is crucial for bladder cancer cell growth and survival. Therefore, interference of Stat3 signaling pathway emerges as a potential therapeutic approach for bladder cancer.

  18. Phase development and kinetics of high temperature Bi-2223 phase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yavuz, M.; Maeda, H.; Hua, K.L.; Shi, X.D.

    1998-01-01

    The two-dimensional nucleation (random)-growth mechanism were observed as a support for the related previous works, which is attributable to the growth of the Bi-2223 grain in the a-b plane direction of the Bi-2212 matrix is being much faster than in the c-direction, or that the early-formed plate-like 2212 phase confines the 2223 product. At the beginning of the reaction, the additional phases are partially melted. Because of the structure, composition and thermal fluctuation, the 2223 nucleates and grows in the phase boundary between the liquid phase and Bi-2212. It was shown here that the nucleation and the growth rate were relatively fast between 0 and 36 h. At the final stage, between 36 and 60 h, because of the impingement of the growth fronts of different nuclei, the high formation rate of 2223 is suppressed. The major reactant 2212 remains as a solid and its plate-like configuration determines the two dimensional nature of the reaction. The amount of liquid forms during reaction is small. (orig.)

  19. Abstracts of 4. International Workshop on Molecular Beam Epitaxy and Vapour Phase Epitaxy Growth Physics and Technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2001-01-01

    4. International Workshop on Molecular Beam Epitaxy and Vapour Phase Epitaxy Growth Physics and Technology is the periodically held forum for discussion the problems connected with manufacturing of different nanostructures (thin films, quantum wells, quantum dots) needed in microelectronics. Preparation of such materials with desirable optical, electrical and magnetic properties being determined by their chemical composition and crystal structure has been discussed in detail during the workshop sessions. Optimization of crystal growth methods such as VPE and MBE from the view point of obtained material properties has also been extensively discussed

  20. Research for the energy turnaround. Phase transitions actively shape. Contributions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Szczepanski, Petra; Wunschick, Franziska; Martin, Niklas

    2015-01-01

    The Annual Conference 2014 of the Renewable Energy Research Association was held in Berlin on 6 and 7 November 2014. This book documents the contributions of the conference on research for the energy turnaround, phase transitions actively shape. After an introduction and two contributions to the political framework, the contributions to the economic phases of the energy transition, the phase of the current turn, the phases of social energy revolution, the stages of heat turnaround (Waermewende), and the stages of the mobility turn deal with the stages of development of the energy system. Finally, the Research Association Renewable Energy is briefly presented. [de

  1. Nurse’s A-Phase Material Enhance Adhesion, Growth and Differentiation of Human Bone Marrow-Derived Stromal Mesenchymal Stem Cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ruben Rabadan-Ros

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to evaluate the bioactivity and cell response of a well-characterized Nurse’s A-phase (7CaO·P2O5·2SiO2 ceramic and its effect compared to a control (tissue culture polystyrene-TCPS on the adhesion, viability, proliferation, and osteogenic differentiation of ahMSCs in vitro. Cell proliferation (Alamar Blue Assay, Alizarin Red-S (AR-s staining, alkaline phosphatase (ALP activity, osteocalcin (OCN, and collagen I (Col I were evaluated. Also, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM images were acquired in order to visualise the cells and the topography of the material. The proliferation of cells growing in a direct contact with the material was slower at early stages of the study because of the new environmental conditions. However, the entire surface was colonized after 28 days of culture in growth medium (GM. Osteoblastic differentiation markers were significantly enhanced in cells growing on Nurse’s A phase ceramic and cultured with osteogenic medium (OM, probably due to the role of silica to stimulate the differentiation of ahMSCs. Moreover, calcium nodules were formed under the influence of ceramic material. Therefore, it is predicted that Nurse’s A-phase ceramic would present high biocompatibility and osteoinductive properties and would be a good candidate to be used as a biomaterial for bone tissue engineering.

  2. Numerical analysis of interfacial growth and deformation in horizontal stratified two-phase flow by lattice Boltzmann method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ebihara, Ken-ichi

    2005-03-01

    paper, first, the validity and the usefulness of the lattice-gas model and the lattice Boltzmann method for the numerical analysis of two-phase flow are examined by applying the two-phase fluid model of these methods to the phenomena of the falling droplet and the rising bubble. Next, on the basis of the examination of its numerical results, the horizontal stratified two-phase flow, which is the fundamental and important flow and often observed in a practical situation, is simulated by use of the HCZ model that is the two-phase fluid model of the lattice Boltzmann method proposed by He, Chen, and Zhang. The HCZ model can simulate Rayleigh-Taylor instability which shows complex interfacial phenomena. It is verified that the simulated interfacial growth is subject to the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability theory and can reproduce the curve concerning the interfacial growth of the theoretical flow regime map proposed by Taitel and Dukler (T-D map). Furthermore, it is found that the interfacial growth in the channel with the narrow width needs more superficial flow velocity than that given by the T-D map. In the simulation of the droplet generation in the horizontal stratified two-phase flow, it is verified that the HCZ model can also reproduce the experimental correlation proposed by Ishii and Grolmes within the range of the distribution of experimental data. According to the results of this report, it is found that the HCZ model of the lattice Boltzmann method can simulate complex interfacial phenomena in the horizontal stratified two-phase flow and reproduce the theoretical flow regime map and the experimental correlation. Considering the application of this model to more practical two-phase flow, it is also seen that this model has some problems which have to be solved, such as practical density difference, thermal influence and so on. (author)

  3. Growth enhancement and gene expression of Arabidopsis thaliana irradiated with active oxygen species

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watanabe, Satoshi; Ono, Reoto; Hayashi, Nobuya; Shiratani, Masaharu; Tashiro, Kosuke; Kuhara, Satoru; Inoue, Asami; Yasuda, Kaori; Hagiwara, Hiroko

    2016-07-01

    The characteristics of plant growth enhancement effect and the mechanism of the enhancement induced by plasma irradiation are investigated using various active species in plasma. Active oxygen species in oxygen plasma are effective for growth enhancement of plants. DNA microarray analysis of Arabidopsis thaliana indicates that the genes coding proteins that counter oxidative stresses by eliminating active oxygen species are expressed at significantly high levels. The size of plant cells increases owing to oxygen plasma irradiation. The increases in gene expression levels and cell size suggest that the increase in the expression level of the expansin protein is essential for plant growth enhancement phenomena.

  4. Economic growth and energy demand in Brazil from 1930 to 1980

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Theis, I.M.

    1988-10-01

    There are enough evidences that economic growth and energy demand are closely related indeed. These evidences show that the growth of the economic activity calls for greater energy inputs. The Brazilian case is similar to the other industrialized economies, in spite of our industrialization process being started only in the 1930. Two periods excelled as phases of quick and accelerated growth of the Economic Product: the later fifties and the famous miracle from 1968 to 1973. During those periods the demand for energy in Brazil increased to amounts previously unthinkable. More remarkable, however, is that, after those phases of accelerated growth, Brazilian economy had changed the consumption profile considerably: while, until 1968 firewood was the most important resource, since then petroleum has taken this position. (author). 213 refs, 115 tabs

  5. Protein and mRNA levels support the notion that a genetic regulatory circuit controls growth phases in E. coli populations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agustino Martinez-Antonio

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Bacterial populations transition between growing and non-growing phases, based on nutrient availability and stresses conditions. The hallmark of a growing state is anabolism, including DNA replication and cell division. In contrast, bacteria in a growth-arrested state acquire a resistant physiology and diminished metabolism. However, there is little knowledge on how this transition occurs at the molecular level. Here, we provide new evidence that a multi-element genetic regulatory circuit might work to maintain genetic control among growth-phase transitions in Escherichia coli. This work contributes to the discovering of design principles behind the performance of biological functions, which could be of relevance on the new disciplines of biological engineering and synthetic biology.

  6. Proteomic Analysis of Bacillus thuringiensis Strain 4.0718 at Different Growth Phases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaohui Li

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The growth process of Bacillus thuringiensis Bt4.0718 strain was studied using proteomic technologies. The proteins of Bt whole cells at three phases—middle vegetative, early sporulation, and late sporulation—were extracted with lysis buffer, followed with separation by 2-DE and identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF MS. Bioactive factors such as insecticidal crystal proteins (ICPs including Cry1Ac(3, Cry2Aa, and BTRX28, immune inhibitor (InhA, and InhA precursor were identified. InhA started to express at the middle vegetative phase, suggesting its contribution to the survival of Bt in the host body. At the early sporulation phase, ICPs started their expression. CotJC, OppA, ORF1, and SpoIVA related to the formation of crystals and spores were identified, the expression characteristics of which ensured the stable formation of crystals and spores. This study provides an important foundation for further exploration of the stable expression of ICPs, the smooth formation of crystals, and the construction of recombinant strains.

  7. Gold catalyzed nickel disilicide formation: a new solid-liquid-solid phase growth mechanism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Wei; Picraux, S Tom; Huang, Jian Yu; Liu, Xiaohua; Tu, K N; Dayeh, Shadi A

    2013-01-01

    The vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism is the predominate growth mechanism for semiconductor nanowires (NWs). We report here a new solid-liquid-solid (SLS) growth mechanism of a silicide phase in Si NWs using in situ transmission electron microcopy (TEM). The new SLS mechanism is analogous to the VLS one in relying on a liquid-mediating growth seed, but it is fundamentally different in terms of nucleation and mass transport. In SLS growth of Ni disilicide, the Ni atoms are supplied from remote Ni particles by interstitial diffusion through a Si NW to the pre-existing Au-Si liquid alloy drop at the tip of the NW. Upon supersaturation of both Ni and Si in Au, an octahedral nucleus of Ni disilicide (NiSi2) forms at the center of the Au liquid alloy, which thereafter sweeps through the Si NW and transforms Si into NiSi2. The dissolution of Si by the Au alloy liquid mediating layer proceeds with contact angle oscillation at the triple point where Si, oxide of Si, and the Au alloy meet, whereas NiSi2 is grown from the liquid mediating layer in an atomic stepwise manner. By using in situ quenching experiments, we are able to measure the solubility of Ni and Si in the Au-Ni-Si ternary alloy. The Au-catalyzed mechanism can lower the formation temperature of NiSi2 by 100 °C compared with an all solid state reaction.

  8. Parafibromin inhibits cancer cell growth and causes G1 phase arrest

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Chun; Kong Dong; Tan, M.-H.; Pappas, Donald L.; Wang, P.-F.; Chen, Jindong; Farber, Leslie; Zhang Nian; Koo, H.-M.; Weinreich, Michael; Williams, Bart O.; Teh, B.T.

    2006-01-01

    The HRPT2 (hereditary hyperparathyroidism type 2) tumor suppressor gene encodes a ubiquitously expressed 531 amino acid protein termed parafibromin. Inactivation of parafibromin predisposes one to the development of HPT-JT syndrome. To date, the role of parafibromin in tumorigenesis is largely unknown. Here, we report that parafibromin is a nuclear protein that possesses anti-proliferative properties. We show that overexpression of parafibromin inhibits colony formation and cellular proliferation, and induces cell cycle arrest in the G1 phase. Moreover, HPT-JT syndrome-derived mutations in HRPT2 behave in a dominant-negative manner by abolishing the ability of parafibromin to suppress cell proliferation. These findings suggest that parafibromin has a critical role in cell growth, and mutations in HRPT2 can directly inhibit this role

  9. Linking algal growth inhibition to chemical activity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schmidt, Stine N.; Mayer, Philipp

    Unitless chemical activity, expressing the energetic level of a compound relative to its energetic level in pure liquid [0-1], has proven useful to quantify the effective exposure to hydrophobic organic compounds through both aerial and aqueous media. Several studies have linked toxicity to chemi......Unitless chemical activity, expressing the energetic level of a compound relative to its energetic level in pure liquid [0-1], has proven useful to quantify the effective exposure to hydrophobic organic compounds through both aerial and aqueous media. Several studies have linked toxicity...... to chemical activity, as opposed to e.g. the total concentration. Baseline toxicity (narcosis) for neutral hydrophobic organic compounds has been shown to initiate in the narrow chemical activity range of 0.01 to 0.1. This presentation focuses on linking algal growth inhibition to chemical activity......-polar liquids were applied to challenge the chemical activity range for baseline toxicity. For each compound, the effective activity (Ea50) was estimated as the ratio of the effective concentration (EC50) and water solubility. Of these ratios, 90% were within the expected chemical activity range of 0.01 to 0...

  10. The influence of phase transitions in phosphatidylethanolamine models on the activity of violaxanthin de-epoxidase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vieler, Astrid; Scheidt, Holger A; Schmidt, Peter; Montag, Cindy; Nowoisky, Janine F; Lohr, Martin; Wilhelm, Christian; Huster, Daniel; Goss, Reimund

    2008-04-01

    In the present study, the influence of the phospholipid phase state on the activity of the xanthophyll cycle enzyme violaxanthin de-epoxidase (VDE) was analyzed using different phosphatidylethanolamine species as model lipids. By using (31)P NMR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and temperature dependent enzyme assays, VDE activity could directly be related to the lipid structures the protein is associated with. Our results show that the gel (L beta) to liquid-crystalline (L alpha) phase transition in these single lipid component systems strongly enhances both the solubilization of the xanthophyll cycle pigment violaxanthin in the membrane and the activity of the VDE. This phase transition has a significantly stronger impact on VDE activity than the transition from the L alpha to the inverted hexagonal (HII) phase. Especially at higher temperatures we found increased VDE reaction rates in the presence of the L alpha phase compared to those in the presence of HII phase forming lipids. Our data furthermore imply that the HII phase is better suited to maintain high VDE activities at lower temperatures.

  11. Generalized thermodynamics of phase equilibria in scalar active matter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Solon, Alexandre P.; Stenhammar, Joakim; Cates, Michael E.; Kafri, Yariv; Tailleur, Julien

    2018-02-01

    Motility-induced phase separation (MIPS) arises generically in fluids of self-propelled particles when interactions lead to a kinetic slowdown at high densities. Starting from a continuum description of scalar active matter akin to a generalized Cahn-Hilliard equation, we give a general prescription for the mean densities of coexisting phases in flux-free steady states that amounts, at a hydrodynamics scale, to extremizing an effective free energy. We illustrate our approach on two well-known models: self-propelled particles interacting either through a density-dependent propulsion speed or via direct pairwise forces. Our theory accounts quantitatively for their phase diagrams, providing a unified description of MIPS.

  12. Relative phase asynchrony and long-range correlation of long-term solar magnetic activity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Linhua

    2017-07-01

    Statistical signal processing is one of the most important tasks in a large amount of areas of scientific studies, such as astrophysics, geophysics, and space physics. Phase recurrence analysis and long-range persistence are the two dynamical structures of the underlying processes for the given natural phenomenon. Linear and nonlinear time series analysis approaches (cross-correlation analysis, cross-recurrence plot, wavelet coherent transform, and Hurst analysis) are combined to investigate the relative phase interconnection and long-range correlation between solar activity and geomagnetic activity for the time interval from 1932 January to 2017 January. The following prominent results are found: (1) geomagnetic activity lags behind sunspot numbers with a phase shift of 21 months, and they have a high level of asynchronous behavior; (2) their relative phase interconnections are in phase for the periodic scales during 8-16 years, but have a mixing behavior for the periodic belts below 8 years; (3) both sunspot numbers and geomagnetic activity can not be regarded as a stochastic phenomenon because their dynamical behaviors display a long-term correlation and a fractal nature. We believe that the presented conclusions could provide further information on understanding the dynamical coupling of solar dynamo process with geomagnetic activity variation, and the crucial role of solar and geomagnetic activity in the long-term climate change.

  13. Kinetics of sigma phase formation in a Duplex Stainless Steel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodrigo Magnabosco

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available This work determines the kinetics of sigma phase formation in UNS S31803 Duplex Stainless Steel (DSS, describing the phase transformations that occur in isothermal aging between 700 and 900 ºC for time periods up to 1032 hours, allowing the determination of the Time-Temperature-Precipitation (TTP diagram for sigma phase and proposing a model to predict the kinetics of sigma phase formation using a Johnson-Mehl-Avrami (JMA type expression. The higher kinetics of sigma phase formation occurs at 850 ºC. However, isothermal aging between 700 and 900 ºC for time periods up to 1032 hours are not sufficient to the establishment of thermodynamic equilibrium. Activation energy for both nucleation and growth of sigma phase is determined (185 kJ.mol-1 and its value is equivalent to the activation energy for Cr diffusion in ferrite, indicating that diffusion of Cr is probably the major thermally activated process involved in sigma phase formation. The determined JMA type expression presents good fit with experimental data between 700 and 850 ºC.

  14. SR phase contrast imaging to address the evolution of defects during SiC growth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Argunova, Tatiana S.; Gutkin, Mikhail Yu.; Je, Jung Ho; Mokhov, Evgeniy N.; Nagalyuk, Sergey S.; Hwu, Yeukuang

    2011-01-01

    Sliced SiC boule grown by physical vapor transport is investigated using synchrotron white beam phase contrast imaging combined with Bragg diffraction. The evolution of defects is revealed. In the early growth stage, foreign polytype inclusions not only induce massive generation of full-core dislocations and dislocated micropipes but also attract them, forming slit-type pores at the boundaries of inclusions. In the intermediate stage, when inclusions stop to grow and become overgrown by the matrix, the pore density significantly reduces, which is attributed to their transformation into new micropipes. In the later stage, the micropipe density decreases, providing evidence for their partial annihilation and healing. Mechanisms for the evolution from inclusions to pores and finally to micropipes during the crystal growth are further discussed. (Copyright copyright 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

  15. Layered growth model and epitaxial growth structures for SiCAlN alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Zhaoqing; Ni Jun; Su Xiaoao; Dai Zhenhong

    2009-01-01

    Epitaxial growth structures for (SiC) 1-x (AlN) x alloys are studied using a layered growth model. First-principle calculations are used to determine the parameters in the layered growth model. The phase diagrams of epitaxial growth are given. There is a rich variety of the new metastable polytype structures at x=1/6 ,1/5 ,1/4 ,1/3 , and 1/2 in the layered growth phase diagrams. We have also calculated the electronic properties of the short periodical SiCAlN alloys predicted by our layered growth model. The results show that various ordered structures of (SiC) 1-x (AlN) x alloys with the band gaps over a wide range are possible to be synthesized by epitaxial growth.

  16. A Phase II Safety and Efficacy Study of the Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Pazopanib in Patients With Metastatic Urothelial Cancer

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pili, Roberto; Qin, Rui; Flynn, P.J.; Picus, Joel; Millward, Michael; Ho, Wing Ming; Pitot, Henry; Tan, Winston; Miles, Kiersten M.; Erlichman, Charles; Vaishampayan, Ulka

    2013-01-01

    Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is expressed in human bladder tumors. A phase II study was conducted to assess the VEGF inhibitor pazopanib in patients with metastatic, urothelial carcinoma. Nineteen patients with one prior systemic therapy were enrolled. No objective responses were observed and median progression-free survival was 1.9 months. The role of anti-VEGF therapies in urothelial carcinoma remains to be determined. Background Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is produced by bladder cancer cell lines in vitro and expressed in human bladder tumor tissues. Pazopanib is a vascular endothelial receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor with anti-angiogenesis and anti-tumor activity in several preclinical models. A 2-stage phase II study was conducted to assess the activity and toxicity profile of pazopanib in patients with metastatic, urothelial carcinoma. Methods Patients with one prior systemic therapy for metastatic urothelial carcinoma were eligible. Patients received pazopanib at a dose of 800 mg orally for a 4-week cycle. Results Nineteen patients were enrolled. No grade 4 or 5 events were experienced. Nine patients experienced 11 grade 3 adverse events. Most common toxicities were anemia, thrombocytopenia, leucopenia, and fatigue. For stage I, none of the first 16 evaluable patients were deemed a success (complete response or partial response) by the Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors criteria during the first four 4-week cycles of treatment. Median progression-free survival was 1.9 months. This met the futility stopping rule of interim analysis, and therefore the trial was recommended to be permanently closed. Conclusions Pazopanib did not show significant activity in patients with urothelial carcinoma. The role of anti-VEGF therapies in urothelial carcinoma may need further evaluation in rational combination strategies. PMID:23891158

  17. Fe(III) and Fe(II) ions different effects on Enterococcus hirae cell growth and membrane-associated ATPase activity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vardanyan, Zaruhi [Department of Biophysics of the Biology Faculty, Yerevan State University, 1 A. Manoukian Str., 0025 Yerevan (Armenia); Trchounian, Armen, E-mail: trchounian@ysu.am [Department of Biophysics of the Biology Faculty, Yerevan State University, 1 A. Manoukian Str., 0025 Yerevan (Armenia)

    2012-01-06

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Fe{sup 3+} stimulates but Fe{sup 2+} suppresses Enterococcus hirae wild-type and atpD mutant growth. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Fe ions change oxidation-reduction potential drop during cell growth. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Fe{sup 3+} and Fe{sup 2+} have opposite effects on a membrane-associated ATPase activity. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer These effects are either in the presence of F{sub 0}F{sub 1} inhibitor or non-functional F{sub 0}F{sub 1}. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Fe ions decrease protons and coupled potassium ions fluxes across the membrane. -- Abstract: Enterococcus hirae is able to grow under anaerobic conditions during glucose fermentation (pH 8.0) which is accompanied by acidification of the medium and drop in its oxidation-reduction potential (E{sub h}) from positive values to negative ones (down to {approx}-200 mV). In this study, iron (III) ions (Fe{sup 3+}) have been shown to affect bacterial growth in a concentration-dependent manner (within the range of 0.05-2 mM) by decreasing lag phase duration and increasing specific growth rate. While iron(II) ions (Fe{sup 2+}) had opposite effects which were reflected by suppressing bacterial growth. These ions also affected the changes in E{sub h} values during bacterial growth. It was revealed that ATPase activity with and without N,N Prime -dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD), an inhibitor of the F{sub 0}F{sub 1}-ATPase, increased in the presence of even low Fe{sup 3+} concentration (0.05 mM) but decreased in the presence of Fe{sup 2+}. It was established that Fe{sup 3+} and Fe{sup 2+} both significantly inhibited the proton-potassium exchange of bacteria, but stronger effects were in the case of Fe{sup 2+} with DCCD. Such results were observed with both wild-type ATCC9790 and atpD mutant (with defective F{sub 0}F{sub 1}) MS116 strains but they were different with Fe{sup 3+} and Fe{sup 2+}. It is suggested that the effects of Fe{sup 3+} might be due to

  18. Proteomic analysis of lactose-starved Lactobacillus casei during stationary growth phase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hussain, M A; Knight, M I; Britz, M L

    2009-03-01

    Starvation stress is a condition that nonstarter lactic acid bacteria (NSLAB) normally encounter. This study was aimed to investigate starvation-induced proteins in Lactobacillus casei during stationary growth phase. The impact of carbohydrate starvation on L. casei GCRL163 was investigated using two different media (a modified de Man, Rogosa and Sharpe broth and a semi-defined medium). Cells were grown in the presence of excess lactose (1%) or starvation (0%) and differences in the patterns of one-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and two-dimensional electrophoresis of the cytosolic protein fractions were investigated. Differentially regulated proteins were identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry. Many differentially regulated proteins were enzymes of various metabolic pathways involved in carbohydrate metabolism to yield energy. Differences in protein expression were also observed in the two culture conditions tested in this experiment. Numerous glycolytic enzymes were differentially regulated under lactose starvation. The differential expression of these glycolytic enzymes suggests a potential survival strategy under harsh growth conditions (i.e. lactose starvation). This paper reports improved understanding of stress responses and survival mechanism of NSLAB under lactose-depleted cheese-ripening condition. This knowledge of how NSLAB bacteria adapt to lactose starvation could be applied to predict the performances of bacteria in other industrial applications.

  19. Nonequilibrium phase transitions, fluctuations and correlations in an active contractile polar fluid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gowrishankar, Kripa; Rao, Madan

    2016-02-21

    We study the patterning, fluctuations and correlations of an active polar fluid consisting of contractile polar filaments on a two-dimensional substrate, using a hydrodynamic description. The steady states generically consist of arrays of inward pointing asters and show a continuous transition from a moving lamellar phase, a moving aster street, to a stationary aster lattice with no net polar order. We next study the effect of spatio-temporal athermal noise, parametrized by an active temperature TA, on the stability of the ordered phases. In contrast to its equilibrium counterpart, we find that the active crystal shows true long range order at low TA. On increasing TA, the asters dynamically remodel, concomitantly we find novel phase transitions characterized by bond-orientational and polar order upon "heating".

  20. Multiobjective Optimization Method for Multichannel Microwave Components of Active Phased Array Antenna

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lu Wang

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Multichannel microwave components are widely used and the active phased array antenna is a typical representative. The high power generated from T/R modules in active phased array antenna (APAA leads to the degradation of its electrical performances, which seriously restricts the development of high-performance APAA. Therefore, to meet the demand of thermal design for APAA, a multiobjective optimization design model of cold plate is proposed. Furthermore, in order to achieve temperature uniformity and case temperature restrictions of APAA simultaneously, optimization model of channel structure is developed. Besides, an airborne active phased array antenna was tested as an example to verify the validity of the optimization model. The valuable results provide important reference for engineers to enhance thermal design technology of antennas.

  1. Effects of metal ions on growth, β-oxidation system, and thioesterase activity of Lactococcus lactis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Liang; Ma, Ying

    2014-10-01

    The effects of divalent metal ions (Ca(2+), Mg(2+), Fe(2+), and Cu(2+)) on the growth, β-oxidation system, and thioesterase activity of Lactococcus lactis were investigated. Different metal ions significantly influenced the growth of L. lactis: Ca(2+) and Fe(2+) accelerated growth, whereas Cu(2+) inhibited growth. Furthermore, Mg(2+) inhibited growth of L. lactis at a low concentration but stimulated growth of L. lactis at a high concentration. The divalent metal ions had significant effects on activity of the 4 key enzymes of the β-oxidation system (acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, enoyl-CoA hydratase, L-3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, and thiolase) and thioesterase of L. lactis. The activity of acyl-CoA dehydrogenases increased markedly in the presence of Ca(2+) and Mg(2+), whereas it decreased with 1 mmol/L Fe(2+) or 12 mmol/L Mg(2+). All the metal ions could induce activity of enoyl-CoA hydratase. In addition, 12 mmol/L Mg(2+) significantly stimulated activity of L-3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, and all metal ions could induce activity of thiolase, although thiolase activity decreased significantly when 0.05 mmol/L Cu(2+) was added into M17 broth. Inhibition of thioesterase activity by all 4 metal ions could be reversed by 2 mmol/L Ca(2+). These results help us understand the effect of metal ions on the β-oxidation system and thioesterase activity of Lactococcus lactis. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Inhibitory activity of Iranian plant extracts on growth and biofilm formation by Pseudomonas aeruginosa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mansouri, S.

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Aims: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a drug resistance opportunistic bacterium. Biofilm formation is key factor for survivalof P. aeruginosa in various environments. Polysaccharides may be involved in biofilm formation. The purpose of thisstudy was to evaluate antimicrobial and anti-biofilm activities of seven plant extracts with known alpha-glucosidaseinhibitory activities on different strains of P. aeruginosa.Methodology and results: Plants were extracted with methanol by the maceration method. Antimicrobial activities weredetermined by agar dilution and by growth yield as measured by OD560nm of the Luria Bertani broth (LB culture with orwithout extracts. In agar dilution method, extracts of Quercus infectoria inhibited the growth of all, while Myrtuscommunis extract inhibited the growth of 3 out of 8 bacterial strains with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC of 1000μg/mL. All extracts significantly (p≤0.003 reduced growth rate of the bacteria in comparison with the control withoutextracts in LB broth at sub-MIC concentrations (500 μg/mL. All plant extracts significantly (p≤0.003 reduced biofilmformation compared to the controls. Glycyrrhiza glabra and Q. infectoria had the highest anti-biofilm activities. Nocorrelation between the alpha-glucosidase inhibitory activity with growth or the intensity of biofilm formation was found.Conclusion, significance and impact of study: Extracts of Q. infectoria and M. communis had the most antimicrobial,while Q. infectoria and G. glabra had the highest anti-biofilm activities. All plant extracts had anti-biofilm activities withmarginal effect on growth, suggesting that the mechanisms of these activities are unrelated to static or cidal effects.Further work to understand the relation between antimicrobial and biofilm formation is needed for development of newmeans to fight the infectious caused by this bacterium in future.

  3. In vitro antifungal activities of 26 plant extracts on mycelial growth of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Antifungal activities of 26 plant extracts were tested against Phytophthora infestans using radial growth technique. While all tested plant extracts produced some antifungal activities Xanthium strumarium, Lauris nobilis, Salvia officinalis and Styrax officinalis were the most active plants that showed potent antifungal activity.

  4. RNA-Seq analysis of isolate- and growth phase-specific differences in the global transcriptomes of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli prototype isolates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hazen, Tracy H.; Daugherty, Sean C.; Shetty, Amol; Mahurkar, Anup A.; White, Owen; Kaper, James B.; Rasko, David A.

    2015-01-01

    Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) are a leading cause of diarrheal illness among infants in developing countries. E. coli isolates classified as typical EPEC are identified by the presence of the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) and the bundle-forming pilus (BFP), and absence of the Shiga-toxin genes, while the atypical EPEC also encode LEE but do not encode BFP or Shiga-toxin. Comparative genomic analyses have demonstrated that EPEC isolates belong to diverse evolutionary lineages and possess lineage- and isolate-specific genomic content. To investigate whether this genomic diversity results in significant differences in global gene expression, we used an RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) approach to characterize the global transcriptomes of the prototype typical EPEC isolates E2348/69, B171, C581-05, and the prototype atypical EPEC isolate E110019. The global transcriptomes were characterized during laboratory growth in two different media and three different growth phases, as well as during adherence of the EPEC isolates to human cells using in vitro tissue culture assays. Comparison of the global transcriptomes during these conditions was used to identify isolate- and growth phase-specific differences in EPEC gene expression. These analyses resulted in the identification of genes that encode proteins involved in survival and metabolism that were coordinately expressed with virulence factors. These findings demonstrate there are isolate- and growth phase-specific differences in the global transcriptomes of EPEC prototype isolates, and highlight the utility of comparative transcriptomics for identifying additional factors that are directly or indirectly involved in EPEC pathogenesis. PMID:26124752

  5. The effect of growth phase on the lipid class, fatty acid and sterol composition in the marine dinoflagellate, Gymnodinium sp. in batch culture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mansour, Maged P; Volkman, John K; Blackburn, Susan I

    2003-05-01

    We have studied the effects of growth phase on the lipid composition in batch cultures of Gymnodinium sp. CS-380/3 over 43 days of culturing. The lipid content increased two fold, from late logarithmic (day 6) to linear growth phase (day 22) then decreased at stationary phase (day 43) while the lipid yield (mg l(-1)) increased 30-fold from day 6 to 30 mg l(-1) at day 43. Changes in fatty acid content mirrored those observed for the total lipid, while the sterol content continued to increase with culture age through to stationary phase. The largest changes occurred in the lipid classes, especially the polar lipids and triacylglycerols (oil). The proportion of triacylglycerols increased from 8% (of total lipids) at day 6 to 30% at day 43, with a concomitant decrease in the polar lipid fraction. The proportions of 16:0 and DHA [22:6(n-3)] increased while those of 18:5(n-3) and EPA [20:5(n-3)] decreased with increasing culture age. The proportion of the major sterol, dinosterol, decreased from 41% (day 6) to 29% (day 43), while the major dinostanol epimer (23R,24R) increased from 33% (day 6) to 38% (day 22). Despite small changes in the proportion of the main sterols, the same sterols were present at all stages of growth, indicating their value as a chemotaxonomic tool for distinguishing between strains within the same genus. Growth phase could be a useful variable for optimising the oil and DHA content with potential for aquaculture feeds and a source of DHA-rich oils for nutraceuticals.

  6. Renal epithelial cell growth can occur in absence of Na+-H+ exchanger activity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohrmann, M.; Cantiello, H.F.; Ausiello, D.A.

    1987-01-01

    An electroneutral Na+-H+ exchange system has been described in a variety of tissues and cell types, including those of renal origin, and has been proposed to play a role in the activation of growth. We have recently characterized the presence of this ubiquitous transporter in the apical domain of confluent epithelial LLC-PK1 cells. Because most apical membrane proteins appear late in cell growth, accompanying epithelial cell polarization, we determined whether the Na+-H+ exchanger is required for the growth of LLC-PK1 cells. The studies reported here show that there is no obligatory requirement for increased H+ efflux or Na+ entry via the Na+-H+ exchanger for the initiation of cell growth in this epithelial cell line. We used 22 Na+ influx, acid extrusion, and intracellular pH determinations to show that onset of cell growth, as measured by DNA content, precedes the activity of the Na+-H+ exchanger in exponentially growing cells, whereas confluent monolayers express Na+-H+ exchanger activity. When confluent cells are replated at low density, Na+-H+ exchanger activity disappears within 8 h in contrast to high-density replated cells. The fact that Na+-H+ exchanger activity is only present in confluent monolayers suggests that the development of tight junctions and polar differentiation play a role in the expression of the Na+-H+ exchanger and that this exchanger is more important to the polar epithelial cell for transepithelial transport than for the maintenance of intracellular pH

  7. Light contamination during the dark phase in "photoperiodically controlled" animal rooms: effect on tumor growth and metabolism in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dauchy, R T; Sauer, L A; Blask, D E; Vaughan, G M

    1997-10-01

    Enhanced neoplastic growth and metabolism have been reported in animals maintained in a constant light (24L:0D) environment. Results from this laboratory indicate that tumor growth is directly dependent upon increased ambient blood concentrations of arachidonic and linoleic acids, particularly linoleic acid. Tumor linoleic acid utilization and production if its putative mitogenic metabolite, 13-hydroxyoctadecadienoic acid (13-HODE), are suppressed by the circadian neurohormone melatonin, the production of which is itself regulated by light in all mammals. This study was performed to determine whether minimal light contamination (0.2 lux) in an animal room during an otherwise normal dark phase may disrupt normal circadian production of melatonin and affect tumor growth and metabolism. Animals of groups I (12L:12D), II (12L:12-h light-contaminated dark phase), and III (24L:0D) had plasma total fatty acid (TFA), linoleic acid (LA), and melatonin concentrations measured prior to tumor implantation; groups I and II had daily cycles in plasma TFA and LA values, whereas group III had constant values throughout the day. The integrated mean TFA and LA values for the entire day were similar in all groups. Although group-I animals had a normal nocturnal surge of melatonin (127.0 pg/ml) at 2400 h, the nocturnal amplitude was suppressed in group-II animals (16.0 pg/ml); circadian variation in melatonin concentration was not seen in group-III animals (7.4 pg/ml). At 12 weeks of age, rats had the Morris hepatoma 7288CTC implanted as "tissue-isolated" tumors grown subcutaneously. Latency to onset of palpable tumor mass for groups I, II, and III was 11, 9, and 5 days respectively. Tumor growth rates were 0.72 +/- 0.09, 1.30 +/- 0.15, and 1.48 +/- 0.17 g/d (mean +/- SD, n = 6/group) in groups I, II, and III respectively. Arteriovenous difference measurements for TFA and LA across the tumors were 4.22 +/- 0.89 and 0.83 +/- 0.18 (group I), 8.26 +/- 0.66 and 1.64 +/- 0.13 (group II

  8. Thermally activated phase slips of one-dimensional Bose gases in shallow optical lattices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kunimi, Masaya; Danshita, Ippei

    2017-03-01

    We study the decay of superflow via thermally activated phase slips in one-dimensional Bose gases in a shallow optical lattice. By using the Kramers formula, we numerically calculate the nucleation rate of a thermally activated phase slip for various values of the filling factor and flow velocity in the absence of a harmonic trapping potential. Within the local density approximation, we derive a formula connecting the phase-slip nucleation rate with the damping rate of a dipole oscillation of the Bose gas in the presence of a harmonic trap. We use the derived formula to directly compare our theory with the recent experiment done by the LENS group [L. Tanzi et al., Sci. Rep. 6, 25965 (2016), 10.1038/srep25965]. From the comparison, the observed damping of dipole oscillations in a weakly correlated and small velocity regime is attributed dominantly to thermally activated phase slips rather than quantum phase slips.

  9. Phase I study of neratinib in combination with temsirolimus in patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-dependent and other solid tumors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gandhi, Leena; Bahleda, Rastislav; Tolaney, Sara M; Kwak, Eunice L; Cleary, James M; Pandya, Shuchi S; Hollebecque, Antoine; Abbas, Richat; Ananthakrishnan, Revathi; Berkenblit, Anna; Krygowski, Mizue; Liang, Yali; Turnbull, Kathleen W; Shapiro, Geoffrey I; Soria, Jean-Charles

    2014-01-10

    Human epidermal growth factor (HER) -mediated signaling is critical in many cancers, including subsets of breast and lung cancer. HER family members signal via the phosphatidylinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) -AKT/protein kinase B-mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) cascade; mTOR activation is critical for the expression of multiple contributors to tumor growth and invasion. On the basis of preclinical data suggesting synergy of HER2 inhibition and mTOR inhibition in breast and lung cancer models, we conducted a phase I combination study of neratinib, a small-molecule irreversible pan-HER tyrosine kinase inhibitor, and temsirolimus, an mTOR inhibitor, in patients with advanced solid tumors. This study enrolled patients to dosing combinations of neratinib and temsirolimus. The primary objective was to estimate the toxicity contour of the combination and establish recommended phase II doses. Sixty patients were treated on 12 of 16 possible dosing combinations. Diarrhea was the most common drug-related (93%) and dose-limiting toxicity (DLT), constituting four of 10 DLTs. Dose-limiting grade 3 metabolic abnormalities were also observed. Other frequent drug-related toxicities included nausea, stomatitis (both 53%), and anemia (48%). Two maximum-tolerated dose combinations were identified: 200 mg of neratinib/25 mg of temsirolimus and 160 mg of neratinib/50 mg of temsirolimus. Responses were noted in patients with HER2-amplified breast cancer resistant to trastuzumab, HER2-mutant non-small-cell lung cancer, and tumor types without identified mutations in the HER-PI3K-mTOR pathway. The combination of neratinib and temsirolimus was tolerable and demonstrated antitumor activity in multiple tumor types, warranting further evaluation.

  10. Effect of gas flow on the selective area growth of gallium nitride via metal organic vapor phase epitaxy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodak, L. E.; Kasarla, K. R.; Korakakis, D.

    2007-08-01

    The effect of gas flow on the selective area growth (SAG) of gallium nitride (GaN) grown via metal organic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) has been investigated. In this study, the SAG of GaN was carried out on a silicon dioxide striped pattern along the GaN direction. SAG was initiated with the striped pattern oriented parallel and normal to the incoming gas flow in a horizontal reactor. The orientation of the pattern did not impact cross section of the structure after re-growth as both orientations resulted in similar trapezoidal structures bounded by the (0 0 0 1) and {1 1 2¯ n} facets ( n≈1.7-2.2). However, the growth rates were shown to depend on the orientation of the pattern as the normally oriented samples exhibited enhanced vertical and cross-sectional growth rates compared to the parallel oriented samples. All growths occurred under identical conditions and therefore the difference in growth rates must be attributed to a difference in mass transport of species.

  11. Interleaved Buck Converter with Variable Number of Active Phases and a Predictive Current Sharing Scheme

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jakobsen, Lars Tønnes; Garcia, O.; Oliver, J. A.

    2008-01-01

    The efficiency of an interleaved Buck converter is typically low at light load conditions because of the switching losses in each of the switching stages. Improvements in the converter efficiency can be achieved by dynamically changing the number of active phases depending on the load current....... This paper addresses the issues related to the transient response of the converter when the number of active phases is changed by a digital control scheme. The problem arises because the current in the individual phases of the interleaved Buck converter will not be equal immediately after the controller has...... changed the number of active phases. This paper proposes a current equalisation scheme that adjusts the duty cycle of each phase in a manner that ensures equal average inductor current in all active phases in one or two PWM periods. The current equalisation scheme relies on the measurement of the output...

  12. Benzimidazoles diminish ERE transcriptional activity and cell growth in breast cancer cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Payton-Stewart, Florastina [Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA (United States); Tilghman, Syreeta L. [Division of Basic Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA (United States); Williams, LaKeisha G. [Division of Clinical and Administrative Sciences, College of Pharmacy Xavier University of Louisiana, New Orleans, LA (United States); Winfield, Leyte L., E-mail: lwinfield@spelman.edu [Department of Chemistry, Spelman College, Atlanta, GA (United States)

    2014-08-08

    Highlights: • The methyl-substituted benzimidazole was more effective at inhibiting growth in MDA-MB 231 cells. • The naphthyl-substituted benzimidazole was more effective at inhibiting growth in MCF-7 cells than ICI. • The benzimidazole molecules demonstrated a dose-dependent reduction in ERE transcriptional activity. • The benzimidazole molecules had binding mode in ERα and ERβ comparable to that of the co-crystallized ligand. - Abstract: Estrogen receptors (ERα and ERβ) are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily. They regulate the transcription of estrogen-responsive genes and mediate numerous estrogen related diseases (i.e., fertility, osteoporosis, cancer, etc.). As such, ERs are potentially useful targets for developing therapies and diagnostic tools for hormonally responsive human breast cancers. In this work, two benzimidazole-based sulfonamides originally designed to reduce proliferation in prostate cancer, have been evaluated for their ability to modulate growth in estrogen dependent and independent cell lines (MCF-7 and MDA-MB 231) using cell viability assays. The molecules reduced growth in MCF-7 cells, but differed in their impact on the growth of MDA-MB 231 cells. Although both molecules reduced estrogen response element (ERE) transcriptional activity in a dose dependent manner, the contrasting activity in the MDA-MB-231 cells seems to suggest that the molecules may act through alternate ER-mediated pathways. Further, the methyl analog showed modest selectivity for the ERβ receptor in an ER gene expression array panel, while the naphthyl analog did not significantly alter gene expression. The molecules were docked in the ligand binding domains of the ERα-antagonist and ERβ-agonist crystal structures to evaluate the potential of the molecules to interact with the receptors. The computational analysis complimented the results obtained in the assay of transcriptional activity and gene expression suggesting that the molecules

  13. Benzimidazoles diminish ERE transcriptional activity and cell growth in breast cancer cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Payton-Stewart, Florastina; Tilghman, Syreeta L.; Williams, LaKeisha G.; Winfield, Leyte L.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The methyl-substituted benzimidazole was more effective at inhibiting growth in MDA-MB 231 cells. • The naphthyl-substituted benzimidazole was more effective at inhibiting growth in MCF-7 cells than ICI. • The benzimidazole molecules demonstrated a dose-dependent reduction in ERE transcriptional activity. • The benzimidazole molecules had binding mode in ERα and ERβ comparable to that of the co-crystallized ligand. - Abstract: Estrogen receptors (ERα and ERβ) are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily. They regulate the transcription of estrogen-responsive genes and mediate numerous estrogen related diseases (i.e., fertility, osteoporosis, cancer, etc.). As such, ERs are potentially useful targets for developing therapies and diagnostic tools for hormonally responsive human breast cancers. In this work, two benzimidazole-based sulfonamides originally designed to reduce proliferation in prostate cancer, have been evaluated for their ability to modulate growth in estrogen dependent and independent cell lines (MCF-7 and MDA-MB 231) using cell viability assays. The molecules reduced growth in MCF-7 cells, but differed in their impact on the growth of MDA-MB 231 cells. Although both molecules reduced estrogen response element (ERE) transcriptional activity in a dose dependent manner, the contrasting activity in the MDA-MB-231 cells seems to suggest that the molecules may act through alternate ER-mediated pathways. Further, the methyl analog showed modest selectivity for the ERβ receptor in an ER gene expression array panel, while the naphthyl analog did not significantly alter gene expression. The molecules were docked in the ligand binding domains of the ERα-antagonist and ERβ-agonist crystal structures to evaluate the potential of the molecules to interact with the receptors. The computational analysis complimented the results obtained in the assay of transcriptional activity and gene expression suggesting that the molecules

  14. Phase- and shape-controlled hydrothermal synthesis of CdS nanoparticles, and oriented attachment growth of its hierarchical architectures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Yali; Hu, Pengfei; Jia, Dianzeng

    2013-01-01

    Hydrothermal strategies were successfully used to control the phases and morphologies of CdS nanocrystals. In the absence of an external direction-controlling process, the hexagonal and cubic phase well-defined leaf- and flower-like CdS nanocrystals were controlled obtained via adjusting the reaction duration or the concentration of surfactant. Oriented attachment growth modes were suggested for the formation of CdS superstructures, which was clarified through the tracing of temporal evolution of CdS nanoparticles. The CdS superstructures were structured by primary building nanoparticles, and held excellent visible emission with a peak in the green regions. This strategy is very helpful for studying the phase and morphology controlled fabrication of sulfides nanocrystals.

  15. Polycrystalline indium phosphide on silicon by indium assisted growth in hydride vapor phase epitaxy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Metaferia, Wondwosen; Sun, Yan-Ting, E-mail: yasun@kth.se; Lourdudoss, Sebastian [Laboratory of Semiconductor Materials, Department of Materials and Nano Physics, KTH—Royal Institute of Technology, Electrum 229, 164 40 Kista (Sweden); Pietralunga, Silvia M. [CNR-Institute for Photonics and Nanotechnologies, P. Leonardo da Vinci, 32 20133 Milano (Italy); Zani, Maurizio; Tagliaferri, Alberto [Department of Physics Politecnico di Milano, P. Leonardo da Vinci, 32 20133 Milano (Italy)

    2014-07-21

    Polycrystalline InP was grown on Si(001) and Si(111) substrates by using indium (In) metal as a starting material in hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) reactor. In metal was deposited on silicon substrates by thermal evaporation technique. The deposited In resulted in islands of different size and was found to be polycrystalline in nature. Different growth experiments of growing InP were performed, and the growth mechanism was investigated. Atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy for morphological investigation, Scanning Auger microscopy for surface and compositional analyses, powder X-ray diffraction for crystallinity, and micro photoluminescence for optical quality assessment were conducted. It is shown that the growth starts first by phosphidisation of the In islands to InP followed by subsequent selective deposition of InP in HVPE regardless of the Si substrate orientation. Polycrystalline InP of large grain size is achieved and the growth rate as high as 21 μm/h is obtained on both substrates. Sulfur doping of the polycrystalline InP was investigated by growing alternating layers of sulfur doped and unintentionally doped InP for equal interval of time. These layers could be delineated by stain etching showing that enough amount of sulfur can be incorporated. Grains of large lateral dimension up to 3 μm polycrystalline InP on Si with good morphological and optical quality is obtained. The process is generic and it can also be applied for the growth of other polycrystalline III–V semiconductor layers on low cost and flexible substrates for solar cell applications.

  16. Active phase correction of high resolution silicon photonic arrayed waveguide gratings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gehl, M; Trotter, D; Starbuck, A; Pomerene, A; Lentine, A L; DeRose, C

    2017-03-20

    Arrayed waveguide gratings provide flexible spectral filtering functionality for integrated photonic applications. Achieving narrow channel spacing requires long optical path lengths which can greatly increase the footprint of devices. High index contrast waveguides, such as those fabricated in silicon-on-insulator wafers, allow tight waveguide bends which can be used to create much more compact designs. Both the long optical path lengths and the high index contrast contribute to significant optical phase error as light propagates through the device. Therefore, silicon photonic arrayed waveguide gratings require active or passive phase correction following fabrication. Here we present the design and fabrication of compact silicon photonic arrayed waveguide gratings with channel spacings of 50, 10 and 1 GHz. The largest device, with 11 channels of 1 GHz spacing, has a footprint of only 1.1 cm2. Using integrated thermo-optic phase shifters, the phase error is actively corrected. We present two methods of phase error correction and demonstrate state-of-the-art cross-talk performance for high index contrast arrayed waveguide gratings. As a demonstration of possible applications, we perform RF channelization with 1 GHz resolution. Additionally, we generate unique spectral filters by applying non-zero phase offsets calculated by the Gerchberg Saxton algorithm.

  17. Constitutive stimulatory G protein activity in limb mesenchyme impairs bone growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karaca, Anara; Malladi, Vijayram Reddy; Zhu, Yan; Tafaj, Olta; Paltrinieri, Elena; Wu, Joy Y; He, Qing; Bastepe, Murat

    2018-05-01

    GNAS mutations leading to constitutively active stimulatory G protein alpha-subunit (Gsα) cause different tumors, fibrous dysplasia of bone, and McCune-Albright syndrome, which are typically not associated with short stature. Enhanced signaling of the parathyroid hormone/parathyroid hormone-related peptide receptor, which couples to multiple G proteins including Gsα, leads to short bones with delayed endochondral ossification. It has remained unknown whether constitutive Gsα activity also impairs bone growth. Here we generated mice expressing a constitutively active Gsα mutant (Gsα-R201H) conditionally upon Cre recombinase (cGsα R201H mice). Gsα-R201H was expressed in cultured bone marrow stromal cells from cGsα R201H mice upon adenoviral-Cre transduction. When crossed with mice in which Cre is expressed in a tamoxifen-regulatable fashion (CAGGCre-ER™), tamoxifen injection resulted in mosaic expression of the transgene in double mutant offspring. We then crossed the cGsα R201H mice with Prx1-Cre mice, in which Cre is expressed in early limb-bud mesenchyme. The double mutant offspring displayed short limbs at birth, with narrow hypertrophic chondrocyte zones in growth plates and delayed formation of secondary ossification center. Consistent with enhanced Gsα signaling, bone marrow stromal cells from these mice demonstrated increased levels of c-fos mRNA. Our findings indicate that constitutive Gsα activity during limb development disrupts endochondral ossification and bone growth. Given that Gsα haploinsufficiency also leads to short bones, as in patients with Albright's hereditary osteodystrophy, these results suggest that a tight control of Gsα activity is essential for normal growth plate physiology. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Scalable solution-phase epitaxial growth of symmetry-mismatched heterostructures on two-dimensional crystal soft template.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Zhaoyang; Yin, Anxiang; Mao, Jun; Xia, Yi; Kempf, Nicholas; He, Qiyuan; Wang, Yiliu; Chen, Chih-Yen; Zhang, Yanliang; Ozolins, Vidvuds; Ren, Zhifeng; Huang, Yu; Duan, Xiangfeng

    2016-10-01

    Epitaxial heterostructures with precisely controlled composition and electronic modulation are of central importance for electronics, optoelectronics, thermoelectrics, and catalysis. In general, epitaxial material growth requires identical or nearly identical crystal structures with small misfit in lattice symmetry and parameters and is typically achieved by vapor-phase depositions in vacuum. We report a scalable solution-phase growth of symmetry-mismatched PbSe/Bi 2 Se 3 epitaxial heterostructures by using two-dimensional (2D) Bi 2 Se 3 nanoplates as soft templates. The dangling bond-free surface of 2D Bi 2 Se 3 nanoplates guides the growth of PbSe crystal without requiring a one-to-one match in the atomic structure, which exerts minimal restriction on the epitaxial layer. With a layered structure and weak van der Waals interlayer interaction, the interface layer in the 2D Bi 2 Se 3 nanoplates can deform to accommodate incoming layer, thus functioning as a soft template for symmetry-mismatched epitaxial growth of cubic PbSe crystal on rhombohedral Bi 2 Se 3 nanoplates. We show that a solution chemistry approach can be readily used for the synthesis of gram-scale PbSe/Bi 2 Se 3 epitaxial heterostructures, in which the square PbSe (001) layer forms on the trigonal/hexagonal (0001) plane of Bi 2 Se 3 nanoplates. We further show that the resulted PbSe/Bi 2 Se 3 heterostructures can be readily processed into bulk pellet with considerably suppressed thermal conductivity (0.30 W/m·K at room temperature) while retaining respectable electrical conductivity, together delivering a thermoelectric figure of merit ZT three times higher than that of the pristine Bi 2 Se 3 nanoplates at 575 K. Our study demonstrates a unique epitaxy mode enabled by the 2D nanocrystal soft template via an affordable and scalable solution chemistry approach. It opens up new opportunities for the creation of diverse epitaxial heterostructures with highly disparate structures and functions.

  19. ECONOMIC GROWTH THEORIES, CONCEPTUAL ELEMENTS, CHARACTERISTICS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Florina, POPA

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available The approach of economic growth involves understanding the concept and growth factors, respectively, analysing the growth theories, their trend in the context of the development of economic and social life. The economic growth signifies a process aimed at increasing activities in the national economy, expressed by macroeconomic indicators, respectively, the dynamics of the overall Gross Domestic Product or per inhabitant. It can appreciate that, in the short term, this process signifies phases of economic prosperity and on the long-term, expresses an upward trend, a consequence of the succession of increases and decreases. The study presents some elements which outlines the concept of economic growth, that is, definitions, meanings and the main characteristics of the theories of growth, as well as some of its determinant factors. Also, it gives a brief overview of the main theories of economic growth, as they have evolved over time, in line with the economic reality dynamics and the development of the instruments of economic analysis, starting from the classical theories to the new theories and models of economic growth of the modern age.

  20. Growth Phase, Oxygen, Temperature and Starvation Affect the Development of Viable but Non-Culturable State of Vibrio cholerae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bin eWu

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available AbstractVibrio cholerae can enter into a viable but non-culturable (VBNC state in order to survive in unfavourable environments. In this study, we studied the roles of five physicochemical and microbiological factors or states, namely, different strains, growth phases, oxygen, temperature, and starvation, on the development of VBNC of V. cholerae in artificial sea water (ASW. Different strains of the organism, the growth phase, and oxygen levels affected the progress of VBNC development. It was found that the VBNC state was induced faster in V. cholerae serogroup O1 classical biotype strain O395 than in O1 El Tor biotype strains C6706 and N16961. When cells in different growth phases were used for VBNC induction, stationary-phase cells lost their culturability more quickly than exponential-phase cells, while induction of a totally non-culturable state took longer to achieve for stationary-phase cells in all three strains, suggesting that heterogeneity of cells should be considered. Aeration strongly accelerated the loss of culturability. During the development of the VBNC state, the culturable cell count under aeration conditions was almost 106-fold lower than under oxygen-limited conditions for all three strains. The other two factors, temperature and nutrients-rich environment, may prevent the induction of VBNC cells. At 22°C or 37°C in ASW, most of the cells rapidly died and the culturable cell count reduced from about 108 CFU/mL to 106–105 CFU/mL. The total cell counts showed that cells that lost viability were decomposed, and the viable cell counts were the same as culturable cell counts, indicating that the cells did not reach the VBNC state. VBNC state development was blocked when ASW was supplied with Luria-Bertani broth (LB, but it was not affected in ASW with M9, suggesting that specific nutrients in LB may prevent the development of VBNC state. These results revealed that the five factors evaluated in this study had different

  1. Three Phase Bone Scintigraphy in Active and Inactive Osteomyelitis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang, Woo Jin; Chung, Soo Kyo; Ha, Hyun Kwon; Bahk, Yong Whee

    1988-01-01

    To Appreciate the value of bone scintigraphy in determination of the bony infection, we performed three phase bone scintigraphy in 34 cases of osteomyelitis of extremities prospectively. They were clinically inactive in 11 and active in 23 cases. We confirmed the active osteomyelitis by operation or aspiration within one week after scintigraphy. Perfusion, blood pool and delayed images were analyzed respectively and compared with the plain roentgenograms. All 23 active lesions showed diffusely increased perfusion in affected limbs. The areas of the increased activities on blood pool images were larger than or similar to those on delayed images in 17 cases (73.9%) with active osteomyelitis and smaller in 6 cases (26.1%). 5 of the latter 6 cases showed definite soft tissue activities on blood pool images. In inactive cases bone scintigrams were completely normal in 4 cases. Two of those were normal on plain films and remaining two showed mild focal bony sclerosis. Among 7 inactive lesions, perfusion was normal in 2 cases, diffusely increased in 4 cases and diffusely decreased in 1 case. 6 of these 7 cases showed increased activities both on blood pool and delayed images and the areas of increased activities on blood pool images didn't exceed those on delayed images. Bony sclerosis was noted on plain films in those 7 inactive lesions and the extent of the sclerosis correlated well to delayed images. Large blood pool activity was characteristics of active osteomyelitis. Normal three phase bone scintigram may indicate the time to terminate the treatment, but increased activity on perfusion and blood pool scans is not absolute indication of active lesion if the extent of the lesion on the blood pool image is smaller than that on delayed image and if no definite soft tissue activity is noted on perfusion and blood pool images in clinically inactive patient.

  2. Application of solid-phase microextraction with gas chromatography and mass spectrometry for the early detection of active moulds on historical woollen objects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sawoszczuk, Tomasz; Syguła-Cholewińska, Justyna; Del Hoyo-Meléndez, Julio M

    2017-02-01

    The goal of this work was to determine the microbial volatile organic compounds emitted by moulds growing on wool in search of particular volatiles mentioned in the literature as indicators of active mould growth. The keratinolytically active fungi were inoculated on two types of media: (1) samples of wool placed on broths, and (2) on broths containing amino acids that are elements of the structure of keratin. All samples were prepared inside 20 mL vials (closed system). In the first case (1) the broths did not contain any sources of organic carbon, nitrogen, or sulfur, i.e. wool was the only nutrient for the moulds. A third type of sample was historical wool prepared in a Petri dish without a broth and inoculated with a keratinolytically active mould (open system). The microbial volatiles emitted by moulds were sampled with the headspace solid-phase microextraction method. Volatiles extracted on solid-phase microextraction fibers were analyzed in a gas chromatography with mass spectrometry system. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of chromatograms were carried out in search of indicators of metabolic activity. The results showed that there are three groups of volatiles that can be used for the detection of active forms of moulds on woollen objects. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  3. Aluminum Gallium Nitride Alloys Grown via Metalorganic Vapor-Phase Epitaxy Using a Digital Growth Technique

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodak, L. E.; Korakakis, D.

    2011-04-01

    This work investigates the use of a digital growth technique as a viable method for achieving high-quality aluminum gallium nitride (Al x Ga1- x N) films via metalorganic vapor-phase epitaxy. Digital alloys are superlattice structures with period thicknesses of a few monolayers. Alloys with an AlN mole fraction ranging from 0.1 to 0.9 were grown by adjusting the thickness of the AlN layer in the superlattice. High-resolution x-ray diffraction was used to determine the superlattice period and c-lattice parameter of the structure, while reciprocal-space mapping was used to determine the a-lattice parameter and evaluate growth coherency. A comparison of the measured lattice parameter with both the nominal value and also the underlying buffer layer is discussed.

  4. Absence of rotational activity detected using 2-dimensional phase mapping in the corresponding 3-dimensional phase maps in human persistent atrial fibrillation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pathik, Bhupesh; Kalman, Jonathan M; Walters, Tomos; Kuklik, Pawel; Zhao, Jichao; Madry, Andrew; Sanders, Prashanthan; Kistler, Peter M; Lee, Geoffrey

    2018-02-01

    Current phase mapping systems for atrial fibrillation create 2-dimensional (2D) maps. This process may affect the accurate detection of rotors. We developed a 3-dimensional (3D) phase mapping technique that uses the 3D locations of basket electrodes to project phase onto patient-specific left atrial 3D surface anatomy. We sought to determine whether rotors detected in 2D phase maps were present at the corresponding time segments and anatomical locations in 3D phase maps. One-minute left atrial atrial fibrillation recordings were obtained in 14 patients using the basket catheter and analyzed off-line. Using the same phase values, 2D and 3D phase maps were created. Analysis involved determining the dominant propagation patterns in 2D phase maps and evaluating the presence of rotors detected in 2D phase maps in the corresponding 3D phase maps. Using 2D phase mapping, the dominant propagation pattern was single wavefront (36.6%) followed by focal activation (34.0%), disorganized activity (23.7%), rotors (3.3%), and multiple wavefronts (2.4%). Ten transient rotors were observed in 9 of 14 patients (64%). The mean rotor duration was 1.1 ± 0.7 seconds. None of the 10 rotors observed in 2D phase maps were seen at the corresponding time segments and anatomical locations in 3D phase maps; 4 of 10 corresponded with single wavefronts in 3D phase maps, 2 of 10 with 2 simultaneous wavefronts, 1 of 10 with disorganized activity, and in 3 of 10 there was no coverage by the basket catheter at the corresponding 3D anatomical location. Rotors detected in 2D phase maps were not observed in the corresponding 3D phase maps. These findings may have implications for current systems that use 2D phase mapping. Copyright © 2017 Heart Rhythm Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. The effect of doping titanium dioxide nanoparticles on phase transformation, photocatalytic activity and anti-bacterial properties

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buzby, Scott Edward

    Nanosized titanium dioxide has a variety of important applications in everyday life including a photocatalyst for pollution remediation, photovoltaic devices, sunscreen, etc. This study focuses on the various properties of titanium dioxide nanoparticles doped with various cation and anion species. Samples were produced by various methods including metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), plasma assisted metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (PA-MOCVD) and sol-gel. Numerous techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electron microscopy both scanning (SEM) and transmission (TEM) were used for physical characterization. Photocatalytic properties were determined by the oxidation of methylene blue dye and 2-chlorophenol in water as well as gaseous formic acid with results analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and ultra violet - visible spectroscopy (UV-VIS). For the purpose of enhancement of the photocatalytic activity of titanium dioxide nanoparticles, the effect of anion doping and the anatase-rutile phase ratio were studied. Although anatase, rutile and mixed crystallite phases all show some degree of activity in photocatalytic reactions, these results show that anatase is better suited for the degradation of organic compounds in an aqueous medium any advantage in photocatalytic activity gained through the enhancement in optical response from the smaller band gap by addition of rutile was overcome by the negatives associated with the rutile phase. Furthermore substitutional nitrogen doping showed significant improvement in UV photocatalysis as well as allowing for visible light activation of the catalyst. Further studies on the phase transitions in titanium dioxide nanoparticles were carried out by synthesizing various cation doped samples by sol-gel. Analysis of the phases by XRD showed an inverse relationship between dopant size and rutile percentage

  6. Effect of water activity and temperature on the growth of Eurotium species isolated from animal feeds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greco, Mariana; Pardo, Alejandro; Pose, Graciela; Patriarca, Andrea

    Xerophilic fungi represent a serious problem due to their ability to grow at low water activities causing the spoiling of low and intermediate moisture foods, stored goods and animal feeds, with the consequent economic losses. The combined effect of water activity and temperature of four Eurotium species isolated from animal feeds was investigated. Eurotium amstelodami, Eurotium chevalieri, Eurotium repens and Eurotium rubrum were grown at 5, 15, 25, 37 and 45°C on malt extract agar adjusted with glycerol in the range 0.710-0.993 of water activities. The cardinal model proposed by Rosso and Robinson (2001) was applied to fit growth data, with the variable water activity at fixed temperatures, obtaining three cardinal water activities (a wmin , a wmax , a wopt ) and the specific growth rate at the optimum a w (μ opt ). A probabilistic model was also applied to define the interface between growth and no-growth. The cardinal model provided an adequate estimation of the optimal a w to grow and the maximum growth rate. The probabilistic model showed a good performance to fit growth/no-growth cases in the predicted range. The results presented here could be applied to predict Eurotium species growth in animal feeds. Copyright © 2017 Asociación Española de Micología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  7. Skeletal muscle protease activities in the early growth and development of wild Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lysenko, Liudmila A; Kantserova, Nadezda P; Kaivarainen, Elena I; Krupnova, Marina Yu; Nemova, Nina N

    2017-09-01

    Growth-related dynamics of intracellular protease activities in four year classes of the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L. 1758) parr and smolts inhabiting salmon rivers of northwestern Russia (the White Sea basin) were studied. Cathepsin B, cathepsin D, proteasome, and calpain activities in the skeletal muscles of salmon were assessed to investigate their relative contribution to the total protein degradation as well as to young fish growth process. It was confirmed that calpain activity dominates in salmon muscles while proteasome plays a minor role, in contrast to terrestrial vertebrates. Calpain and proteasome activities were maximal at the early post-larval stage (in parrs 0+) and declined with age (parrs 1+ through 2+) dropping to the lowest level in salmon smolts. Annual growth increments and proteolytic activities of calpains and proteasome in the muscles of salmon juveniles changed with age in an orchestrated manner, while lysosomal cathepsin activities increased with age. Comparing protease activities and growth increments in salmon parr and smolts we suggested that the partial suppression of the protein degradation could be a mechanism stimulating efficient growth in smoltifying salmon. Growth and smoltification-related dynamics of protease activities was quite similar in salmon populations from studied spawning rivers, such as Varzuga and Indera; however, some habitat-related differences were observed. Growth increments and protease activities varied in salmon parr 0+ (but not on later ages) inhabiting either main rivers or small tributaries apparently due to habitat difference on the resources for fish growth. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Dynamic grain growth in superplastic Y-TZP and Al2O3/YTZ

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nieh, T.G.; Tomasello, C.M.; Wadsworth, J.

    1990-01-01

    This paper reports that both static and dynamic grain growth have been studied during superplastic deformation of fine-grained yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia (Y-TZP) and alumina reinforced yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia (Al 2 O 3 /YTZ). Grain growth was observed in both materials at temperatures above 1350 degrees C. In the case of Y-TZP, both static and dynamic grain growth were found to obey a similar equation of the form: D 3 -D 0 3 = kt where D is the instantaneous grain size, D 0 is the initial grain size, t is the time, and k is a kinetic constant which depends primarily on temperature and grain boundary energy. The activation energies for Y-TZP were approximately 580 and 520 kJ/mol, for static and dynamic grain growth, respectively. In the case of Al 2 O 3 /YTZ, it was found that the grain growth rate for the Al 2 O 3 phase was slower than that for the ZrO 2 phase. The growth rate of the ZrO 2 phase in Al 2 O 3 /YTZ is, however, similar to that in monolithic ZrO 2 i.e., Y-TZP

  9. A first-in-man phase 1 trial for long-acting TransCon Growth Hormone.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gilfoyle, David; Mortensen, Eva; Christoffersen, Eva Dam; Leff, Jonathan A; Beckert, Michael

    2018-04-01

    TransCon growth hormone (GH) is a sustained-release inactive prodrug consisting of unmodified GH transiently bound to an inert carrier molecule designed to release fully active GH over a one-week period. This was a first-in-man phase 1 randomized trial was to evaluate the safety, tolerability, immunogenicity, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics (PD) of a single dose of TransCon GH as compared to equivalent doses of daily GH (Omnitrope) or placebo in healthy adults. Forty-four healthy male adults were randomized to 4 cohorts of 11 subjects, distributed in a 7:2:2 ratio (TransCon GH: Omnitrope: placebo). A single injection of 4 possible TransCon GH doses (i.e., 0.04, 0.08, 0.16, or 0.24mg GH/kg/wk) or two different Omnitrope doses (i.e., 0.08 or 0.16mg GH/kg/wk divided into 7 equal daily doses) were administered with subjects evaluated for adverse events, immunogenicity, and GH and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels. TransCon GH was well tolerated; no serious adverse events occurred, no injection site reaction differences between TransCon GH, Omnitrope, or placebo were identified, no nodules or lipoatrophy were reported, and no anti-GH binding antibodies or ECG changes were detected. Overall, the exposure of GH (C max ) and IGF-1 (AUC 0-168h ) following administration of equivalent doses of TransCon GH and Omnitrope were similar. GH and IGF-1 kinetics showed a dose-proportional increase following a single SC administration of TransCon GH and indicated that the prodrug is suitable for weekly administration. These results support advancement of TransCon GH to pediatric and adult GHD trials. Clinical trial registration numbers: NCT01010425 (clinicaltrials.gov). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Transforming growth factor β recruits persistent MAPK signaling to regulate long-term memory consolidation in Aplysia californica.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shobe, Justin; Philips, Gary T; Carew, Thomas J

    2016-05-01

    In this study, we explore the mechanistic relationship between growth factor signaling and kinase activity that supports the protein synthesis-dependent phase of long-term memory (LTM) consolidation for sensitization ofAplysia Specifically, we examine LTM for tail shock-induced sensitization of the tail-elicited siphon withdrawal (T-SW) reflex, a form of memory that requires both (i) extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2; MAPK) activity within identified sensory neurons (SNs) that mediate the T-SW and (ii) the activation of transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) signaling. We now report that repeated tail shocks that induce intermediate-term (ITM) and LTM for sensitization, also induce a sustained post-training phase of MAPK activity in SNs (lasting at least 1 h). We identified two mechanistically distinct phases of post-training MAPK: (i) an immediate phase that does not require ongoing protein synthesis or TGFβ signaling, and (ii) a sustained phase that requires both protein synthesis and extracellular TGFβ signaling. We find that LTM consolidation requires sustained MAPK, and is disrupted by inhibitors of protein synthesis and TGFβ signaling during the consolidation window. These results provide strong evidence that TGFβ signaling sustains MAPK activity as an essential mechanistic step for LTM consolidation. © 2016 Shobe et al.; Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.

  11. Growth of high phase-match temperature LiNbO3 single crystals. Annual report for period ending March 15, 1978

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kway, W.L.; Feigelson, R.S.

    1978-09-01

    LiNbO 3 crystal with T/sub pm/ greater than or equal to 180 0 C together with excellent phase matching characteristics and a high degree of optical homogeneity can be grown by the Czochralski technique with the following set of growth parameters: a melt composition of .54 Li 2 O/.46 Nb 2 O 5 doped with 1.0 mole % MgO; a growth rate of 2 mm/hr or less; positive axial and radial temperature gradients; and a crystal rotation rate of 50 rpm or higher to provide for a planar solid-liquid growth interface

  12. The effect of high pressure on the intracellular trehalose synthase activity of Thermus aquaticus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Yongsheng; Ma, Lei; Duan, Yuanliang

    2016-01-01

    To understand the effect of high pressure on the intracellular trehalose synthase activity, Thermus aquaticus (T. aquaticus) in the logarithmic growth phase was treated with high-pressure air, and its intracellular trehalose synthase (TSase) activity was determined. Our results indicated that pressure is a factor strongly affecting the cell growth. High pressure significantly attenuated the growth rate of T. aquaticus and shortened the duration of stationary phase. However, after 2 h of culture under 1.0 MPa pressure, the activity of intracellular TSase in T. aquaticus reached its maximum value, indicating that pressure can significantly increase the activity of intracellular TSase in T. aquaticus. Thus the present study provides an important guide for the enzymatic production of trehalose.

  13. Growth activity in human septal cartilage: age-dependent incorporation of labeled sulfate in different anatomic locations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vetter, U.; Pirsig, W.; Heinze, E.

    1983-01-01

    Growth activity in different areas of human septal cartilage was measured by the in vitro incorporation of 35 S-labeled NaSO 4 into chondroitin sulfate. Septal cartilage without perichondrium was obtained during rhinoplasty from 36 patients aged 6 to 35 years. It could be shown that the anterior free end of the septum displays high growth activity in all age groups. The supra-premaxillary area displayed its highest growth activity during prepuberty, showing thereafter a continuous decline during puberty and adulthood. A similar age-dependent pattern in growth activity was found in the caudal prolongation of the septal cartilage. No age-dependent variations could be detected in the posterior area of the septal cartilage

  14. Seasonal variations in ectotherm growth rates: Quantifying growth as an intermittent non steady state compensatory process

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guarini, J.-M.; Chauvaud, Laurent; Cloern, J.E.; Clavier, J.; Coston-Guarini, J.; Patry, Y.

    2011-01-01

    Generally, growth rates of living organisms are considered to be at steady state, varying only under environmental forcing factors. For example, these rates may be described as a function of light for plants or organic food resources for animals and these could be regulated (or not) by temperature or other conditions. But, what are the consequences for an individual's growth (and also for the population growth) if growth rate variations are themselves dynamic and not steady state? For organisms presenting phases of dormancy or long periods of stress, this is a crucial question. A dynamic perspective for quantifying short-term growth was explored using the daily growth record of the scallop Pecten maximus (L.). This species is a good biological model for ectotherm growth because the shell records growth striae daily. Independently, a generic mathematical function representing the dynamics of mean daily growth rate (MDGR) was implemented to simulate a diverse set of growth patterns. Once the function was calibrated with the striae patterns, the growth rate dynamics appeared as a forced damped oscillation during the growth period having a basic periodicity during two transitory phases (mean duration 43. days) and appearing at both growth start and growth end. This phase is most likely due to the internal dynamics of energy transfer within the organism rather than to external forcing factors. After growth restart, the transitory regime represents successive phases of over-growth and regulation. This pattern corresponds to a typical representation of compensatory growth, which from an evolutionary perspective can be interpreted as an adaptive strategy to coping with a fluctuating environment. ?? 2011 Elsevier B.V.

  15. Growth hormone biases amygdala network activation after fear learning

    OpenAIRE

    Gisabella, Barbara; Farah, Shadia; Peng, Xiaoyu; Burgos-Robles, Anthony Noel; Lim, Seh Hong; Goosens, Ki Ann

    2016-01-01

    Prolonged stress exposure is a risk factor for developing posttraumatic stress disorder, a disorder characterized by the ?over-encoding' of a traumatic experience. A potential mechanism by which this occurs is through upregulation of growth hormone (GH) in the amygdala. Here we test the hypotheses that GH promotes the over-encoding of fearful memories by increasing the number of neurons activated during memory encoding and biasing the allocation of neuronal activation, one aspect of the proce...

  16. Influence of muscle groups' activation on proximal femoral growth tendency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yadav, Priti; Shefelbine, Sandra J; Pontén, Eva; Gutierrez-Farewik, Elena M

    2017-12-01

    Muscle and joint contact force influence stresses at the proximal growth plate of the femur and thus bone growth, affecting the neck shaft angle (NSA) and femoral anteversion (FA). This study aims to illustrate how different muscle groups' activation during gait affects NSA and FA development in able-bodied children. Subject-specific femur models were developed for three able-bodied children (ages 6, 7, and 11 years) using magnetic resonance images. Contributions of different muscle groups-hip flexors, hip extensors, hip adductors, hip abductors, and knee extensors-to overall hip contact force were computed. Specific growth rate for the growth plate was computed, and the growth was simulated in the principal stress direction at each element in the growth front. The predicted growth indicated decreased NSA and FA (of about [Formula: see text] over a four-month period) for able-bodied children. Hip abductors contributed the most, and hip adductors, the least, to growth rate. All muscles groups contributed to a decrease in predicted NSA ([Formula: see text]0.01[Formula: see text]-0.04[Formula: see text] and FA ([Formula: see text]0.004[Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]), except hip extensors and hip adductors, which showed a tendency to increase the FA ([Formula: see text]0.004[Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text]). Understanding influences of different muscle groups on long bone growth tendency can help in treatment planning for growing children with affected gait.

  17. A Possible Role of Peptides in the Growth Enhancement of an Industrial Strain of Saccharomyces sp.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dino Paolo Cortes

    2005-06-01

    Full Text Available Individual addition of a commercially available nutritional supplement and a methanol extract from an industrial Saccharomyces sp. strain SMC resulted in the enhanced growth of Saccharomyces sp. strain SMC in minimal medium. Isolation of the growth enhancing components from aqueous extracts of the supplement and the cellular extract was performed using reversed-phase, gel filtration, and ion exchange chromatography. Reversed-phase chromatography using Sep-Pak® vac C18 yielded aqueous washes which elicited increased yeast growth. Gel filtration chromatography of the aqueous washes in a group separation mode using Sephadex G25 gave three distinct groups for the nutritional supplement, and four distinct groups for the cellular extract. Fraction groups that exhibited growth enhancing activity also exhibited high absorbances at all three wavelengths of 214, 260, and 280 nm. Two major fractions which tested positive for growth enhancing activity in succeeding experiments were obtained after passing each of the active GFC groups through a Toyopearl SP 550C cation exchanger column. The active component from the cellular extract did not bind to the cation exchanger. The absorbance data at 214 nm (peptide bond experimental absorbance maximum wavelength, the Bradford assay (showing the presence of proteinaceous matter, and the active component’s inclusion in the Sephadex G25 fractionation range of 1-5 kDa (characteristic of small peptides suggest that the growth enhancing components of the nutritional supplement and methanol cell extracts are peptides.

  18. Nanoscale Phase Stability Reversal During the Nucleation and Growth of Titanium Oxide Minerals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hummmer, D. R.; Heaney, P. J.; Kubicki, J. D.; Kent, P. R.; Post, J. E.

    2008-12-01

    Fine-grained titanium oxide minerals are important in soils, where they affect a variety of geochemical processes. They are also industrially important as catalysts, pigments, food additives, and dielectrics. Recent research has indicated an apparent reversal of thermodynamic stability between TiO2 phases at the nanoscale thought to be caused by an increased contribution of surface energy to the total free energy. Time-resolved X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments in which titanium oxides crystallize from aqueous TiCl4 solutions confirm that anatase, a metastable phase, is always the first phase to nucleate under our range of initial conditions. Rutile peaks are observed only minutes after the first appearance of anatase, after which anatase abundance slowly decreases while rutile continues to form. Whole pattern refinement of diffraction data reveals that lattice constants of both phases increase throughout the crystallization process. In addition, transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations and kinetic modeling indicate that anatase does not undergo a solid-state transformation to the rutile structure as once thought. Instead, anatase appears to re-dissolve and then feed the growth of already nucleated rutile nanocrystals. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were employed to model 1, 2, and 3 nm particles of both mineral phases. The total surface energies calculated from these models did yield lower values for anatase than for rutile by 8-13 kJ/mol depending on particle size, indicating that surface free energy is sufficient to account for stability reversal. However, these whole-particle surface energies were much higher than the sum of energies of each particle's constituent crystallographic surfaces. We attribute the excess energy to defects associated with the edges and corners of nanoparticles, which are not present on a 2-D periodic surface. This previously unreported edge and corner energy may play a dominant role in the stability reversal

  19. Molecular analysis of bacterial microbiota associated with oysters (Crassostrea gigas and Crassostrea corteziensis) in different growth phases at two cultivation sites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trabal, Natalia; Mazón-Suástegui, José M; Vázquez-Juárez, Ricardo; Asencio-Valle, Felipe; Morales-Bojórquez, Enrique; Romero, Jaime

    2012-08-01

    Microbiota presumably plays an essential role in inhibiting pathogen colonization and in the maintenance of health in oysters, but limited data exist concerning their different growth phases and conditions. We analyzed the bacterial microbiota composition of two commercial oysters: Crassostrea gigas and Crassostrea corteziensis. Differences in microbiota were assayed in three growth phases: post-larvae at the hatchery, juvenile, and adult at two grow-out cultivation sites. Variations in the microbiota were assessed by PCR analysis of the 16S rRNA gene in DNA extracted from depurated oysters. Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) profiles were studied using Dice's similarity coefficient (Cs) and statistical principal component analysis (PCA). The microbiota composition was determined by sequencing temperature gradient gel electrophoresis (TGGE) bands. The RFLP analysis of post-larvae revealed homology in the microbiota of both oyster species (Cs > 88 %). Dice and PCA analyses of C. corteziensis but not C. gigas showed differences in the microbiota according to the cultivation sites. The sequencing analysis revealed low bacterial diversity (primarily β-Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Spirochaetes), with Burkholderia cepacia being the most abundant bacteria in both oyster species. This study provides the first description of the microbiota in C. corteziensis, which was shown to be influenced by cultivation site conditions. During early growth, we observed that B. cepacia colonized and remained strongly associated with the two oysters, probably in a symbiotic host-bacteria relationship. This association was maintained in the three growth phases and was not altered by environmental conditions or the management of the oysters at the grow-out site.

  20. Comprehensive modeling of solid phase epitaxial growth using Lattice Kinetic Monte Carlo

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martin-Bragado, Ignacio

    2013-01-01

    Damage evolution of irradiated silicon is, and has been, a topic of interest for the last decades for its applications to the semiconductor industry. In particular, sometimes, the damage is heavy enough to collapse the lattice and to locally amorphize the silicon, while in other cases amorphization is introduced explicitly to improve other implanted profiles. Subsequent annealing of the implanted samples heals the amorphized regions through Solid Phase Epitaxial Regrowth (SPER). SPER is a complicated process. It is anisotropic, it generates defects in the recrystallized silicon, it has a different amorphous/crystalline (A/C) roughness for each orientation, leaving pits in Si(1 1 0), and in Si(1 1 1) it produces two modes of recrystallization with different rates. The recently developed code MMonCa has been used to introduce a physically-based comprehensive model using Lattice Kinetic Monte Carlo that explains all the above singularities of silicon SPER. The model operates by having, as building blocks, the silicon lattice microconfigurations and their four twins. It detects the local configurations, assigns microscopical growth rates, and reconstructs the positions of the lattice locally with one of those building blocks. The overall results reproduce the (a) anisotropy as a result of the different growth rates, (b) localization of SPER induced defects, (c) roughness trends of the A/C interface, (d) pits on Si(1 1 0) regrown surfaces, and (e) bimodal Si(1 1 1) growth. It also provides physical insights of the nature and shape of deposited defects and how they assist in the occurrence of all the above effects

  1. The NEA Forum on Stakeholder Confidence - Phase I Lessons and Phase II Activities

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brown, Peter [Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa (Canada). Uranium and Radioactive Waste Div.; Pescatore, Claudio [Nuclear Energy Agency, Paris (France)

    2006-09-15

    The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) was created under a mandate from the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC) to facilitate the sharing of international experience in addressing the societal dimension of radioactive waste management. It explores means of ensuring an effective dialogue with the public, and considers ways to strengthen confidence in decision-making processes. The Forum was launched in August 2000 and completed its first phase in 00 . Major findings and principles for action were published under the title of 'Learning and Adapting to Societal Requirements'. Activities of the FSC were also reported at Valdor 2003. In the second mandate of the FSC, there is continued use of a variety of tools and formats to allow dialogue among stakeholders in an atmosphere of mutual trust: national workshops and community visits, topical sessions, and desk and interview studies. In Phase II, the FSC is exploring: the link between research, development and demonstration and stakeholder confidence; cultural and organisational changes in RWM institutions; the role of media relations and outreach opportunities; tools and processes to help society prepare and manage decisions through stakeholder involvement; and increasing the value of waste management facilities to local communities. Workshops have been held in Germany and Spain. A large set of publications makes both Phase I and Phase II findings widely available.

  2. The NEA Forum on Stakeholder Confidence - Phase I Lessons and Phase II Activities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brown, Peter

    2006-01-01

    The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) was created under a mandate from the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) Radioactive Waste Management Committee (RWMC) to facilitate the sharing of international experience in addressing the societal dimension of radioactive waste management. It explores means of ensuring an effective dialogue with the public, and considers ways to strengthen confidence in decision-making processes. The Forum was launched in August 2000 and completed its first phase in 00 . Major findings and principles for action were published under the title of 'Learning and Adapting to Societal Requirements'. Activities of the FSC were also reported at Valdor 2003. In the second mandate of the FSC, there is continued use of a variety of tools and formats to allow dialogue among stakeholders in an atmosphere of mutual trust: national workshops and community visits, topical sessions, and desk and interview studies. In Phase II, the FSC is exploring: the link between research, development and demonstration and stakeholder confidence; cultural and organisational changes in RWM institutions; the role of media relations and outreach opportunities; tools and processes to help society prepare and manage decisions through stakeholder involvement; and increasing the value of waste management facilities to local communities. Workshops have been held in Germany and Spain. A large set of publications makes both Phase I and Phase II findings widely available

  3. Ostwald ripening of decomposed phases in Cu-Ni-Cr alloys

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hernandez-Santiago, Felipe; Lopez-Hirata, Victor; Dorantes-Rosales, Hector J.; Saucedo-Munoz, Maribel L.; Gonzalez-Velazquez, Jorge L.; Paniagua-Mercado, Ana Ma.

    2008-01-01

    A study of the coarsening process of the decomposed phases was carried out in the Cu-34 wt.% Ni-4 wt.% Cr and Cu-45 wt.% Ni-10 wt.% Cr alloys using transmission electron microscopy. As aging progressed, the morphology of the coherent decomposed Ni-rich phase changed from cuboids to platelets aligned in the Cu-rich matrix directions. Prolonged aging caused the loss of coherency between the decomposed phases and the morphology of the Ni-rich phase changed to ellipsoidal. The variation of mean radius of the coherent decomposed phases with aging time followed the modified LSW theory for thermally activated growth in ternary alloy systems. The linear variation of the density number of precipitates and matrix supersaturation with aging time, also confirmed that the coarsening process followed the modified LSW theory in both alloys. The coarsening rate was faster in the symmetrical Cu-45 wt.% Ni-10 wt.% Cr alloy due to its higher volume fraction of precipitates. The activation energy for thermally activated growth was determined to be about 182 and 102 kJ mol -1 in the Cu-34 wt.% Ni-4 wt.% Cr and Cu-45 wt.% Ni-10 wt.% Cr alloys, respectively. The lower energy for the former alloy seems to be related to an increase in the atomic diffusion process as the chromium content increases. The size distributions of precipitates in the Cu-Ni-Cr alloys were broader and more symmetric than that predicted by the modified LSW theory for ternary alloys

  4. [Placental gene activity of significant angiogenetic factors in the background of intrauterine growth restriction].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kovács, Péter; Rab, Attila; Szentpéteri, Imre; Joó, József Gábor; Kornya, László

    2017-04-01

    Placental vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) gene and endoglin gene are both overexpressed in placental samples obtained from pregnancies with intrauterine growth restriction compared to normal pregnancies. In the background of these changes a mechanism can be supposed, in which the increased endoglin activity in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) leads to impaired placental circulation through an antioangiogenetic effect. This results in the development of placental vascular dysfunction and chronic fetal hypoxia. It is chronic hypoxia that turns on VEGF-A as a compensatory mechanism to improve fetal vascular blood supply by promoting placental blood vessel formation. Although the maternal serum placental growth factor (PlGF) level is a potential predictor for both IUGR and praeeclampsia, placental PlGF gene activity may be less of an active in the regulation of placental circulation in IUGR pregnancies during the later stages of gestation. Orv. Hetil., 2017, 158(16), 612-617.

  5. Changes in auxin level in the course of growth of a sunflower crown-gall suspension culture

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zofia Chirek

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The auxin level in the cell mass and culture medium was determined by means of the Avena straight caleoptile test in various periods of the suspension culture cycle of the sunflower crown-gall tumour. The investigations were performed in the course of the zero passage (PO and first one (Pl, differing in their time of duration of maximum growth and its intensity. In both passages the intra- and extra-cellular auxin levels reach values of the same order. At the beginning of the maximal growth phase the activity corresponding to IAA in the cells prevails over that of the other auxin-like compounds. This disproportion diminishes with further development of the culture, and with the beginning of the stationary phase the cellular IAA level is lower than that of the remaining auxin-like compounds. The short phase of maximal growth (PO occurs with an auxin level decreasing in the cell mass and increasing in the medium, and towards the end of the cycle these levels become equal. During the long phase of maximal growth (Pl the total amount of auxins in the cells increases and is 2-3 times higher than in the medium, whereas IAA in the cells remains at a constant level. These results suggest that the participation of IAA in the intracellular pool of auxin-like substances is decisive for the mitotic activity of the cells and maintenance of growth in the culture.

  6. Kinetic attractor phase diagrams of active nematic suspensions: the dilute regime.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forest, M Gregory; Wang, Qi; Zhou, Ruhai

    2015-08-28

    Large-scale simulations by the authors of the kinetic-hydrodynamic equations for active polar nematics revealed a variety of spatio-temporal attractors, including steady and unsteady, banded (1d) and cellular (2d) spatial patterns. These particle scale activation-induced attractors arise at dilute nanorod volume fractions where the passive equilibrium phase is isotropic, whereas all previous model simulations have focused on the semi-dilute, nematic equilibrium regime and mostly on low-moment orientation tensor and polarity vector models. Here we extend our previous results to complete attractor phase diagrams for active nematics, with and without an explicit polar potential, to map out novel spatial and dynamic transitions, and to identify some new attractors, over the parameter space of dilute nanorod volume fraction and nanorod activation strength. The particle-scale activation parameter corresponds experimentally to a tunable force dipole strength (so-called pushers with propulsion from the rod tail) generated by active rod macromolecules, e.g., catalysis with the solvent phase, ATP-induced propulsion, or light-activated propulsion. The simulations allow 2d spatial variations in all flow and orientational variables and full spherical orientational degrees of freedom; the attractors correspond to numerical integration of a coupled system of 125 nonlinear PDEs in 2d plus time. The phase diagrams with and without the polar interaction potential are remarkably similar, implying that polar interactions among the rodlike particles are not essential to long-range spatial and temporal correlations in flow, polarity, and nematic order. As a general rule, above a threshold, low volume fractions induce 1d banded patterns, whereas higher yet still dilute volume fractions yield 2d patterns. Again as a general rule, varying activation strength at fixed volume fraction induces novel dynamic transitions. First, stationary patterns saturate the instability of the isotropic

  7. Growth of β-FeSi2 layers on Si (111) by solid phase and reactive deposition epitaxies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Miquita, D.R.; Paniago, R.; Rodrigues, W.N.; Moreira, M.V.B.; Pfannes, H.-D.; Oliveira, A.G. de

    2005-01-01

    Iron silicides were grown on Si (111) substrates by Solid Phase Epitaxy (SPE) and Reactive Deposition Epitaxy (RDE) to identify the optimum conditions to obtain the semiconducting β-FeSi 2 phase. The films were produced under different growth and annealing conditions and analyzed in situ and ex situ by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy, and ex situ by Conversion Electron Moessbauer Spectroscopy. The use of these techniques allowed the investigation of different depth regions of the grown layer. Films of the ε-FeSi and β-FeSi 2 phases were obtained as well as the mixtures Fe 3 Si + ε-FeSi and ε-FeSi + β-FeSi 2 . The sequence Fe 3 Si→ε-FeSi→β-FeSi 2 was found upon annealing, where the phase transformation occurred due to the migration of silicon atoms from the substrate to the surface region of the grown layer. The best conditions for the phase transformation in SPE samples were met after annealing in the range 700 - 800 deg. C. For the RDE samples, the transition to the beta phase occurred between 600 and 700 deg. C, but pure β-FeSi 2 was obtained only after two hours of annealing at 700 deg. C

  8. Differential expression of myogenic regulatory factor MyoD in pacu skeletal muscle (Piaractus mesopotamicus Holmberg 1887: Serrasalminae, Characidae, Teleostei) during juvenile and adult growth phases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Almeida, Fernanda Losi Alves; Carvalho, Robson Francisco; Pinhal, Danillo; Padovani, Carlos Roberto; Martins, Cesar; Dal Pai-Silva, Maeli

    2008-12-01

    Skeletal muscle is the edible part of the fish. It grows by hypertrophy and hyperplasia, events regulated by differential expression of myogenic regulatory factors (MRFs). The study of muscle growth mechanisms in fish is very important in fish farming development. Pacu (Piaractus mesopotamicus) is one of the most important food species farmed in Brazil and has been extensively used in Brazilian aquaculture programs. The aim of this study was to analyze hyperplasia and hypertrophy and the MRF MyoD expression pattern in skeletal muscle of pacu (P. mesopotamicus) during juvenile and adult growth stages. Juvenile (n=5) and adult (n=5) fish were anaesthetized, sacrificed, and weight (g) and total length (cm) determined. White dorsal region muscle samples were collected and immersed in liquid nitrogen. Transverse sections (10 microm thick) were stained with Haematoxilin-Eosin (HE) for morphological and morphometric analysis. Smallest fiber diameter from 100 muscle fibers per animal was calculated in each growth phase. These fibers were grouped into three classes (50 microm) to evaluate hypertrophy and hyperplasia in white skeletal muscle. MyoD gene expression was determined by semi-quantitative RT-PCR. PCR products were cloned and sequenced. Juvenile and adult pacu skeletal muscle had similar morphology. The large number of fish confirms active hyperplasia. In adult fish, most fibers were over 50 microm diameter and denote more intense muscle fiber hypertrophy. The MyoD mRNA level in juveniles was higher than in adults. A consensus partial sequence for MyoD gene (338 base pairs) was obtained. The Pacu MyoD nucleotide sequence displayed high similarity among several vertebrates, including teleosts. The differential MyoD gene expression observed in pacu white muscle is possibly related to differences in growth patterns during the phases analyzed, with hyperplasia predominant in juveniles and hypertrophy in adult fish. These results should provide a foundation for

  9. Growth of cubic GaN on a nitrided AlGaAs (001) substrate by using hydried vapor phase epitaxy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, H. J.; Yang, M.; Ahn, H. S.; Kim, K. H.; Yi, J. Y.; Jang, K. S.; Chang, J. H.; Kim, H. S.; Cho, C. R.; Kim, S. W.

    2006-01-01

    GaN layers were grown on AlGaAs (001) substrates by using hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE). Growth parameters such as the nitridation temperature of the AlGaAs substrate and the growth rate of the GaN layer were found to be critical determinants for the growth of cubic GaN layer. Nitridation of the AlGaAs surface was performed in a NH 3 atmosphere at a temperature range of 550 - 700 .deg. C. GaN layers were grown at different growth rates on the nitrided AlGaAs substrates. The surface morphologies and the chemical constituents of the nitrided AlGaAs layers were characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). For the optical and the crystalline characterization of the GaN films, cathodoluminescence (CL) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were carried out.

  10. A 4-D dataset for validation of crystal growth in a complex three-phase material, ice cream

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rockett, P.; Karagadde, S.; Guo, E.; Bent, J.; Hazekamp, J.; Kingsley, M.; Vila-Comamala, J.; Lee, P. D.

    2015-06-01

    Four dimensional (4D, or 3D plus time) X-ray tomographic imaging of phase changes in materials is quickly becoming an accepted tool for quantifying the development of microstructures to both inform and validate models. However, most of the systems studied have been relatively simple binary compositions with only two phases. In this study we present a quantitative dataset of the phase evolution in a complex three-phase material, ice cream. The microstructure of ice cream is an important parameter in terms of sensorial perception, and therefore quantification and modelling of the evolution of the microstructure with time and temperature is key to understanding its fabrication and storage. The microstructure consists of three phases, air cells, ice crystals, and unfrozen matrix. We perform in situ synchrotron X-ray imaging of ice cream samples using in-line phase contrast tomography, housed within a purpose built cold-stage (-40 to +20oC) with finely controlled variation in specimen temperature. The size and distribution of ice crystals and air cells during programmed temperature cycling are determined using 3D quantification. The microstructural evolution of three-phase materials has many other important applications ranging from biological to structural and functional material, hence this dataset can act as a validation case for numerical investigations on faceted and non-faceted crystal growth in a range of materials.

  11. A 4-D dataset for validation of crystal growth in a complex three-phase material, ice cream

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rockett, P; Karagadde, S; Guo, E; Kingsley, M; Lee, P D; Bent, J; Hazekamp, J; Vila-Comamala, J

    2015-01-01

    Four dimensional (4D, or 3D plus time) X-ray tomographic imaging of phase changes in materials is quickly becoming an accepted tool for quantifying the development of microstructures to both inform and validate models. However, most of the systems studied have been relatively simple binary compositions with only two phases. In this study we present a quantitative dataset of the phase evolution in a complex three-phase material, ice cream. The microstructure of ice cream is an important parameter in terms of sensorial perception, and therefore quantification and modelling of the evolution of the microstructure with time and temperature is key to understanding its fabrication and storage. The microstructure consists of three phases, air cells, ice crystals, and unfrozen matrix. We perform in situ synchrotron X-ray imaging of ice cream samples using in-line phase contrast tomography, housed within a purpose built cold-stage (-40 to +20 o C) with finely controlled variation in specimen temperature. The size and distribution of ice crystals and air cells during programmed temperature cycling are determined using 3D quantification. The microstructural evolution of three-phase materials has many other important applications ranging from biological to structural and functional material, hence this dataset can act as a validation case for numerical investigations on faceted and non-faceted crystal growth in a range of materials. (paper)

  12. Active Metamaterial Based Ultrasonic Guided Wave Transducer System, Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — An active and tunable metamaterial phased array transducer for guided wave mode selection with high intensity per driving channel and with dramatically lower modal...

  13. Cell surface acid-base properties of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus: Influences of nitrogen source, growth phase and N:P ratios

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yuxia; Alessi, D. S.; Owttrim, G. W.; Kenney, J. P. L.; Zhou, Qixing; Lalonde, S. V.; Konhauser, K. O.

    2016-08-01

    The distribution of many trace metals in the oceans is controlled by biological uptake. Recently, Liu et al. (2015) demonstrated the propensity for a marine cyanobacterium to adsorb cadmium from seawater, suggesting that cell surface reactivity might also play an important role in the cycling of metals in the oceans. However, it remains unclear how variations in cyanobacterial growth rates and nutrient supply might affect the chemical properties of their cellular surfaces. In this study we used potentiometric titrations and Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry to profile the key metabolic changes and surface chemical responses of a Synechococcus strain, PCC 7002, during different growth regimes. This included testing various nitrogen (N) to phosphorous (P) ratios (both nitrogen and phosphorous dependent), nitrogen sources (nitrate, ammonium and urea) and growth stages (exponential, stationary, and death phase). FT-IR spectroscopy showed that varying the growth substrates on which Synechococcus cells were cultured resulted in differences in either the type or abundance of cellular exudates produced or a change in the cell wall components. Potentiometric titration data were modeled using three distinct proton binding sites, with resulting pKa values for cells of the various growth conditions in the ranges of 4.96-5.51 (pKa1), 6.67-7.42 (pKa2) and 8.13-9.95 (pKa3). According to previous spectroscopic studies, these pKa ranges are consistent with carboxyl, phosphoryl, and amine groups, respectively. Comparisons between the titration data (for the cell surface) and FT-IR spectra (for the average cellular changes) generally indicate (1) that the nitrogen source is a greater determinant of ligand concentration than growth phase, and (2) that phosphorus limitation has a greater impact on Synechococcus cellular and extracellular properties than does nitrogen limitation. Taken together, these techniques indicate that nutritional quality during cell growth can

  14. The quiet evening auroral arc and the structure of the growth phase near-Earth plasma sheet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coroniti, F. V.; Pritchett, P. L.

    2014-03-01

    The plasma pressure and current configuration of the near-Earth plasma sheet that creates and sustains the quiet evening auroral arc during the growth phase of magnetospheric substorms is investigated. We propose that the quiet evening arc (QEA) connects to the thin near-Earth current sheet, which forms during the development of the growth phase enhancement of convection. The current sheet's large polarization electric fields are shielded from the ionosphere by an Inverted-V parallel potential drop, thereby producing the electron precipitation responsible for the arc's luminosity. The QEA is located in the plasma sheet region of maximal radial pressure gradient and, in the east-west direction, follows the vanishing of the approximately dawn-dusk-directed gradient or fold in the plasma pressure. In the evening sector, the boundary between the Region1 and Region 2 current systems occurs where the pressure maximizes (approximately radial gradient of the pressure vanishes) and where the approximately radial gradient of the magnetic flux tube volume also vanishes in an inflection region. The proposed intricate balance of plasma sheet pressure and currents may well be very sensitive to disruption by the arrival of equatorward traveling auroral streamers and their associated earthward traveling dipolarization fronts.

  15. Growth-Inhibitory and Antiangiogenic Activity of the MEK Inhibitor PD0325901 in Malignant Melanoma with or without BRAF Mutations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ludovica Ciuffreda

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available The Raf/MEK/ERK pathway is an importantmediator of tumor cell proliferation and angiogenesis. Here, weinvestigated the growth-inhibitory and antiangiogenic properties of PD0325901, a novel MEK inhibitor, in human melanoma cells. PD0325901 effects were determined in a panel of melanoma cell lines with different genetic aberrations. PD0325901 markedly inhibited ERK phosphorylation and growth of both BRAF mutant and wild-type melanoma cell lines, with IC50 in the nanomolar range even in the least responsive models. Growth inhibition was observed both in vitro and in vivo in xenograft models, regardless of BRAF mutation status, and was due to G1-phase cell cycle arrest and subsequent induction of apoptosis. Cell cycle (cyclin D1, c-Myc, and p27KIP1 and apoptosis (Bcl-2 and survivin regulators were modulated by PD0325901 at the protein level. Gene expression profiling revealed profound modulation of several genes involved in the negative control of MAPK signaling and melanoma cell differentiation, suggesting alternative, potentially relevant mechanisms of action. Finally, PD0325901 inhibited the production of the proangiogenic factors vascular endothelial growth factor and interleukin 8 at a transcriptional level. In conclusion, PD0325901 exerts potent growth-inhibitory, proapoptotic, and antiangiogenic activity in melanoma lines, regardless of their BRAF mutation status. Deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms of action of MEK inhibitors will likely translate into more effective treatment strategies for patients experiencing malignant melanoma.

  16. Two-phase flow measurement by pulsed neutron activation techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kehler, P.

    1978-01-01

    The Pulsed Neutron Activation (PNA) technique for measuring the mass flow velocity and the average density of two-phase mixtures is described. PNA equipment can be easily installed at different loops, and PNA techniques are non-intrusive and independent of flow regimes. These features of the PNA technique make it suitable for in-situ measurement of two-phase flows, and for calibration of more conventional two-phase flow measurement devices. Analytic relations governing the various PNA methods are derived. The equipment and procedures used in the first air-water flow measurement by PNA techniques are discussed, and recommendations are made for improvement of future tests. In the present test, the mass flow velocity was determined with an accuracy of 2 percent, and average densities were measured down to 0.08 g/cm 3 with an accuracy of 0.04 g/cm 3 . Both the accuracy of the mass flow velocity measurement and the lower limit of the density measurement are functions of the injected activity and of the total number of counts. By using a stronger neutron source and a larger number of detectors, the measurable density can be decreased by a factor of 12 to .007 g/cm 3 for 12.5 cm pipes, and to even lower ranges for larger pipes

  17. Study on mutual diffusion and phase diagram in the Ni-Ta system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pimenov, V.N.; Ugaste, Yu.Eh.; Akkushkarova, K.A.

    1977-01-01

    The mutual diffusion in the Ni-Ta system has been investigated with a view of refining the constitutional diagram. The mutual diffusion factors and their effective values in the various phases and the diffusion activation energies are calculated. Given are the dependences of the phase growth constants and the mutual diffusion factors upon the temperature. The existence of five new phases Ta 2 Ni, TaNi, TaNi 2 , TaNi 3 , TaNi 8 has been discovered in the range of temperatures between 1150 and 1300 deg C. It is established that all the phases have a small concentration range of existence. It is noted that the diffusion characteristics in the phases (mutual diffusion factor and activation energy) differ widely, but fail to correlate with their melting points

  18. Catalytic Growth of Macroscopic Carbon Nanofibers Bodies with Activated Carbon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdullah, N.; Rinaldi, A.; Muhammad, I. S.; Hamid, S. B. Abd.; Su, D. S.; Schlogl, R.

    2009-06-01

    Carbon-carbon composite of activated carbon and carbon nanofibers have been synthesized by growing Carbon nanofiber (CNF) on Palm shell-based Activated carbon (AC) with Ni catalyst. The composites are in an agglomerated shape due to the entanglement of the defective CNF between the AC particles forming a macroscopic body. The macroscopic size will allow the composite to be used as a stabile catalyst support and liquid adsorbent. The preparation of CNT/AC nanocarbon was initiated by pre-treating the activated carbon with nitric acid, followed by impregnation of 1 wt% loading of nickel (II) nitrate solutions in acetone. The catalyst precursor was calcined and reduced at 300° C for an hour in each step. The catalytic growth of nanocarbon in C2H4/H2 was carried out at temperature of 550° C for 2 hrs with different rotating angle in the fluidization system. SEM and N2 isotherms show the level of agglomeration which is a function of growth density and fluidization of the system. The effect of fluidization by rotating the reactor during growth with different speed give a significant impact on the agglomeration of the final CNF/AC composite and thus the amount of CNFs produced. The macrostructure body produced in this work of CNF/AC composite will have advantages in the adsorbent and catalyst support application, due to the mechanical and chemical properties of the material.

  19. Growth of metal-organic framework HKUST-1 in capillary using liquid-phase epitaxy for open-tubular capillary electrochromatography and capillary liquid chromatography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bao, Tao; Zhang, Juan; Zhang, Wenpeng; Chen, Zilin

    2015-02-13

    Much attention is being paid to applying metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as stationary phases in chromatography because of their fascinating properties, such as large surface-to-volume ratios, high levels of porosity, and selective adsorption. HKUST-1 is one of the best-studied face-centered-cubic MOF containing nano-sized channels and side pockets for film growth. However, growth of HKUST-1 framework inside capillary column as stationary phase for capillary electrochromatography is a challenge work. In this work, we carry out the growth of HKUST-1 on the inner wall of capillary by using liquid-phase epitaxy process at room temperature. The fabricated HKUST-1@capillary can be successfully used for the separation of substituted benzene including methylbenzene, ethylbenzene, styrene, chlorobenzene, bromobenzene, o-dichlorobenzene, benzene series, phenolic acids, and benzoic acids derivates. High column efficiency of 1.5×10(5) N/m for methylbenzene was achieved. The formation of HKUST-1 grown in the capillary was confirmed and characterized by scanning electron microscopy images, Fourier transform infrared spectra and X-ray diffraction. The column showed long lifetime and excellent stability. The relative standard deviations for intra-day and inter-day repeatability of the HKUST-1@capillary were lower than 7%. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Localization and stretch-dependence of lung elastase activity in development and compensatory growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Young, Sarah Marie; Liu, Sheng; Joshi, Rashika; Batie, Matthew R; Kofron, Matthew; Guo, Jinbang; Woods, Jason C; Varisco, Brian Michael

    2015-04-01

    Synthesis and remodeling of the lung matrix is necessary for primary and compensatory lung growth. Because cyclic negative force is applied to developing lung tissue during the respiratory cycle, we hypothesized that stretch is a critical regulator of lung matrix remodeling. By using quantitative image analysis of whole-lung and whole-lobe elastin in situ zymography images, we demonstrated that elastase activity increased twofold during the alveolar stage of postnatal lung morphogenesis in the mouse. Remodeling was restricted to alveolar walls and ducts and was nearly absent in dense elastin band structures. In the mouse pneumonectomy model of compensatory lung growth, elastase activity increased threefold, peaking at 14 days postpneumonectomy and was higher in the accessory lobe compared with other lobes. Remodeling during normal development and during compensatory lung growth was different with increased major airway and pulmonary arterial remodeling during development but not regeneration, and with homogenous remodeling throughout the parenchyma during development, but increased remodeling only in subpleural regions during compensatory lung growth. Left lung wax plombage prevented increased lung elastin during compensatory lung growth. To test whether the adult lung retains an innate capacity to remodel elastin, we developed a confocal microscope-compatible stretching device. In ex vivo adult mouse lung sections, lung elastase activity increased exponentially with strain and in peripheral regions of lung more than in central regions. Our study demonstrates that lung elastase activity is stretch-dependent and supports a model in which externally applied forces influence the composition, structure, and function of the matrix during periods of alveolar septation. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

  1. Growth Kinetics of Laves Phase and Its Effect on Creep Rupture Behavior in 9Cr Heat Resistant Steel

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Zhi-xin XIA; Chuan-yang WANG; Chen LEI; Yun-ting LAI; Yan-fen ZHAO; Lu ZHANG

    2016-01-01

    The effects of Laves phase formation and growth on creep rupture behaviors of P92 steel at 883 K were studied.The microstructural evolution was characterized using scanning electron microscopy and transmission elec-tron microscopy.Kinetic modeling was carried out using the software DICTRA.The results indicated Fe2 (W,Mo) Laves phase has formed during creep with 200 MPa applied stress at 883 K for 243 h.The experimental results showed a good agreement with thermodynamic calculations.The plastic deformation of laths is the main reason of creep rupture under the applied stress beyond 160 MPa,whereas,creep voids initiated by coarser Laves phase play an effective role in creep rupture under the applied stress lower than 160 MPa.Laves phase particles with the mean size of 243 nm lead to the change of creep rupture feature.Microstructures at the vicinity of fracture surface,the gage portion and the threaded ends of creep rupture specimens were also observed,indicating that creep tensile stress enhances the coarsening of Laves phase.

  2. Dynamics of longitudinal-latitudinal asymmetry of solar activity at various solar cycle phases

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baranov, D.G.; Vernova, E.S.; Grigoryan, M.S.; Tyasto, M.I.

    1995-01-01

    Solar activity longitudinal asymmetry in 1943-1984 was studied by means of the polar diagram technique. Longitudinal changes of the activity distribution for northern and southern hemispheres were considered separately. Heliolongitudinal asymmetry was compared with the first harmonic of the 27-days cosmic ray intensity variation and with phases of the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation. There is certain correspondence between the dominance of the asymmetry in one of the solar hemispheres and the phase of the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation. Correlation exists between the amplitude of the 27-days galactic cosmic ray variation and the phase of the Quasi-Biennial Oscillation. 8 refs.; 3 figs

  3. Silicon-photonic interferometric biosensor using active phase demodulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marin, Y.; Toccafondo, V.; Velha, P.; Scarano, S.; Tirelli, S.; Nottola, A.; Jeong, Y.; Jeon, H. P.; Minunni, M.; Di Pasquale, F.; Oton, C. J.

    2018-02-01

    Silicon photonics is becoming a consolidated technology, mainly in the telecom/datacom sector, but with a great potential in the chemical and biomedical sensor market too, mainly due to its CMOS compatibility, which allows massfabrication of huge numbers of miniaturized devices at a very low cost per chip. Integrated photonic sensors, typically based on resonators, interferometers, or periodic structures, are easy to multiplex as the light is confined in optical waveguides. In this work, we present a silicon-photonic sensor capable of measuring refractive index and chemical binding of biomolecules on the surface, using a low-cost phase interrogation scheme. The sensor consists of a pair of balanced Mach-Zehnder interferometers with interaction lengths of 2.5 mm and 22 mm, wound to a sensing area of only 500 μm x500 μm. The phase interrogation is performed with a fixed laser and an active phase demodulation approach based on a phase generated carrier (PGC) technique using a phase demodulator integrated within the chip. No laser tuning is required, and the technique can extract the univocal phase value with no sensitivity fading. The detection only requires a photo-receiver per interferometer, analog-to-digital conversion, and simple processing performed in real-time. We present repeatable and linear refractive index measurements, with a detection limit down to 4.7·10-7 RIU. We also present sensing results on a chemically-functionalized sample, where anti-BSA to BSA (bovine serum albumin) binding curves are clearly visible for concentrations down to 5 ppm. Considering the advantages of silicon photonics, this device has great potential over several applications in the chemical/biochemical sensing industry.

  4. Growth Hacking a Global Community

    OpenAIRE

    Sarkkinen, Laura; Rauhala, Marita

    2015-01-01

    As technology is developing at a fast phase people are engaging in community activities more and more online, either by extending their offline social life or by creating themselves a whole new parallel life as a member of virtual community. Companies behind communities are rivaling for attention and need to come up with increasingly clever tactics to attract and engage new members. In this thesis the relatively new phenomenon of growth hacking, the use of unconventional methods in order ...

  5. Lapatinib versus hormone therapy in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma: a randomized phase III clinical trial

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ravaud, Alain; Hawkins, Robert; Gardner, Jason P

    2008-01-01

    PURPOSE: Lapatinib is an orally reversible inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2) tyrosine kinases with demonstrated activity in patients with HER-2-positive breast cancer. In the current phase III open-label trial, lapatinib was comp...

  6. Effect of benzalkonium chloride on viability and energy metabolism in exponential- and stationary-growth-phase cells of Listeria monocytogenes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luppens, S B; Abee, T; Oosterom, J

    2001-04-01

    The difference in killing exponential- and stationary-phase cells of Listeria monocytogenes by benzalkonium chloride (BAC) was investigated by plate counting and linked to relevant bioenergetic parameters. At a low concentration of BAC (8 mg liter(-1)), a similar reduction in viable cell numbers was observed for stationary-phase cells and exponential-phase cells (an approximately 0.22-log unit reduction), although their membrane potential and pH gradient were dissipated. However, at higher concentrations of BAC, exponential-phase cells were more susceptible than stationary-phase cells. At 25 mg liter(-1), the difference in survival on plates was more than 3 log units. For both types of cells, killing, i.e., more than 1-log unit reduction in survival on plates, coincided with complete inhibition of acidification and respiration and total depletion of ATP pools. Killing efficiency was not influenced by the presence of glucose, brain heart infusion medium, or oxygen. Our results suggest that growth phase is one of the major factors that determine the susceptibility of L. monocytogenes to BAC.

  7. Chirality-Controlled Growth of Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes Using Vapor Phase Epitaxy: Mechanistic Understanding and Scalable Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-09-15

    AFRL-AFOSR-VA-TR-2016-0319 Chirality -Controlled Growth of Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes Using Vapor Phase Epitaxy: Mechanistic Understanding and...TELEPHONE NUMBER (Include area code) DISTRIBUTION A: Distribution approved for public release. 15-06-2016 final Jun 2014 - Jun 2016 Chirality ...for Public Release; Distribution is Unlimited. In this report, we present our efforts in establishing a novel and effective approach for chirality

  8. Loss of catalase increases malignant mouse keratinocyte cell growth through activation of the stress activated JNK pathway.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanke, Neale T; Finch, Joanne S; Bowden, G Timothy

    2008-05-01

    A cell line that produces mouse squamous cell carcinoma (6M90) was modified to develop a cell line with an introduced Tet-responsive catalase transgene (MTOC2). We have previously reported that the overexpressed catalase in the MTOC2 cells reverses the malignant phenotype in part by decreasing epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling. With this work we expanded the investigation into the differences between these two cell lines. We found that the decreased EGFR pathway activity of the MTOC2 cells is not because of reduced autocrine secretion of an epidermal growth factor (EGF) ligand but rather because of lower basal receptor activity. Phosphorylated levels of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) members JNK and p38 were both higher in the 6M90 cells with low catalase when compared with the MTOC2 cell line. Although treatment with an EGFR inhibitor, AG1478, blocked the increased activity of JNK in the 6M90 cells, a similar effect was not observed for p38. Basal levels of downstream c-jun transcription were also found to be higher in the 6M90 cells versus MTOC2 cells. Activated p38 was found to down-regulate the JNK MAPK pathway in the 6M90 cells. However, the 6M90 cells contain constitutively high levels of phosphorylated JNK, generating higher levels of phosphorylated c-jun and total c-jun than those in the MTOC2 cells. Inhibition of JNK activity in the 6M90 cells reduced AP-1 transcription and cell proliferation. The data confirm the inhibitory effects of catalase on tumor cell growth, specifically through a ligand-independent decrease in the stress activated JNK pathway. (c) 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  9. CTX-M-1 β-lactamase expression in Escherichia coli is dependent on cefotaxime concentration, growth phase and gene location

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjeldsen, Thea S. B.; Overgaard, Martin; Nielsen, Søren S.

    2015-01-01

    blaCTX-M-1 mRNA expression and CTX-M-1 protein levels were dependent on cefotaxime concentration, growth phase and gene location. These results provide insight into the expression of cephalosporin resistance in CTX-M-1-producing E. coli, improving our understanding of the relationship between ant...

  10. THE EFFECT OF FEEDING Lactobacillus ON GROWTH, SURVIVAL RATE AND PROTEASE ACTIVITY OF Litopenaeus vannamei

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nunak Nafiqoh

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available This study examined the effect of two Lactobacillus bacteria on protease activity and growth rate of Litopenaeus vannamei. An experiment was conducted to examine protease activity and growth rate. The experiment consisted of two treatment tanks, the first tank was provided with artemia immersed in 2.6 x 1016 cfu/mL of bacteria solution, the second tank served as the control tank. After 20 days, the L. vannamei in the tank that received Lactobacillus have significantly different in growth, survival rate and protease activity (P<0.05 compared to the control, but no significant difference between Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum treatments. Within the digestive organ, protease activity of hepatopancreas and stomach demonstrated significant higher activity (P<0.05 compared to the intestine.

  11. Active cancellation of probing in linear dipole phased array

    CERN Document Server

    Singh, Hema; Jha, Rakesh Mohan

    2015-01-01

    In this book, a modified improved LMS algorithm is employed for weight adaptation of dipole array for the generation of beam pattern in multiple signal environments. In phased arrays, the generation of adapted pattern according to the signal scenario requires an efficient adaptive algorithm. The antenna array is expected to maintain sufficient gain towards each of the desired source while at the same time suppress the probing sources. This cancels the signal transmission towards each of the hostile probing sources leading to active cancellation. In the book, the performance of dipole phased array is demonstrated in terms of fast convergence, output noise power and output signal-to-interference-and noise ratio. The mutual coupling effect and role of edge elements are taken into account. It is established that dipole array along with an efficient algorithm is able to maintain multilobe beamforming with accurate and deep nulls towards each probing source. This work has application to the active radar cross secti...

  12. Growth-Phase-Specific Modulation of Cell Morphology and Gene Expression by an Archaeal Histone Protein.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dulmage, Keely A; Todor, Horia; Schmid, Amy K

    2015-09-08

    In all three domains of life, organisms use nonspecific DNA-binding proteins to compact and organize the genome as well as to regulate transcription on a global scale. Histone is the primary eukaryotic nucleoprotein, and its evolutionary roots can be traced to the archaea. However, not all archaea use this protein as the primary DNA-packaging component, raising questions regarding the role of histones in archaeal chromatin function. Here, quantitative phenotyping, transcriptomic, and proteomic assays were performed on deletion and overexpression mutants of the sole histone protein of the hypersaline-adapted haloarchaeal model organism Halobacterium salinarum. This protein is highly conserved among all sequenced haloarchaeal species and maintains hallmark residues required for eukaryotic histone functions. Surprisingly, despite this conservation at the sequence level, unlike in other archaea or eukaryotes, H. salinarum histone is required to regulate cell shape but is not necessary for survival. Genome-wide expression changes in histone deletion strains were global, significant but subtle in terms of fold change, bidirectional, and growth phase dependent. Mass spectrometric proteomic identification of proteins from chromatin enrichments yielded levels of histone and putative nucleoid-associated proteins similar to those of transcription factors, consistent with an open and transcriptionally active genome. Taken together, these data suggest that histone in H. salinarum plays a minor role in DNA compaction but important roles in growth-phase-dependent gene expression and regulation of cell shape. Histone function in haloarchaea more closely resembles a regulator of gene expression than a chromatin-organizing protein like canonical eukaryotic histone. Histones comprise the major protein component of eukaryotic chromatin and are required for both genome packaging and global regulation of expression. The current paradigm maintains that archaea whose genes encode

  13. Nitrogenase activity of Beijerinckia derxii is preserved under adverse conditions for its growth A atividade da nitrogenase de Beijerinckia derxii é preservada sob condições diversas para seu crescimento

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Heloiza R. Barbosa

    2002-09-01

    Full Text Available In order to evaluate the response of Beijerinckia derxii ICB-10 to different environmental factors, growth curves and specific nitrogenase activity were studied. Tested conditions were as follows: a media with different pH values (2.5, 2.8, 4.2 and 5.7; b medium supplemented with 230 µM aluminium sulphate; c media with two different potassium phosphate concentrations (50 mM and 100 mM; d shaken or still cultures; e medium supplemented with 40 mM sodium thiosulphate. Growth curves and specific nitrogenase activity at pH 4.2 were closely similar to those for cultures at pH 5.7 (standard condition, whereas no growth occurred at pH 2.5. Changes in growth curves and/or specific nitrogenase activity were observed under the following conditions: I pH 2.8 (decrease in initial CFU number, reduction of maximum specific growth rate, reduced number of generations and stimulation of nitrogenase activity, II presence of aluminium (early death phase, III 50 mM PO4(3- (reduction of maximum specific growth rate, IV 100 mM PO4(3- (reduction of both number of generations and maximum specific growth rate as well as early death phase, V low O2 availability (increasing nitrogenase activity, and VI presence of thiosulphate (reduction of maximum specific growth rate; early death phase and high stimulation of nitrogenase activity. The data obtained showed the high variability of the cell growth response to environmental factors. Nitrogenase activity was always preserved even when population growth was affected.Os parâmetros utilizados para se avaliar a ação de diferentes fatores ambientais sobre Beijerinckia derxii foram curvas de crescimento e medidas de atividade específica de nitrogenase. As condições estudadas foram: a meios com os valores de pH 2,5, 2,8, 4,2 e 5,7; b meio suplementado com 230 mM de sulfato de alumínio; c meio com as concentrações de fosfato de potássio: 50 mM and 100 mM; d culturas agitada e estacionada; e meio suplementado com 40 mM de

  14. Estrogenic and AhR activities in dissolved phase and suspended solids from wastewater treatment plants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dagnino, Sonia; Gomez, Elena; Picot, Bernadette; Cavaillès, Vincent; Casellas, Claude; Balaguer, Patrick; Fenet, Hélène

    2010-05-15

    The distribution of estrogen receptor (ERalpha) and Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) activities between the dissolved phase and suspended solids were investigated during wastewater treatment. Three wastewater treatment plants with different treatment technologies (waste stabilization ponds (WSPs), trickling filters (TFs) and activated sludge supplemented with a biofilter system (ASB)) were sampled. Estrogenic and AhR activities were detected in both phases in influents and effluents. Estrogenic and AhR activities in wastewater influents ranged from 41.8 to 79 ng/L E(2) Eq. and from 37.9 to 115.5 ng/L TCDD Eq. in the dissolved phase and from 5.5 to 88.6 ng/g E(2) Eq. and from 15 to 700 ng/g TCDD Eq. in the suspended solids. For both activities, WSP showed greater or similar removal efficiency than ASB and both were much more efficient than TF which had the lowest removal efficiency. Moreover, our data indicate that the efficiency of removal of ER and AhR activities from the suspended solid phase was mainly due to removal of suspended solids. Indeed, ER and AhR activities were detected in the effluent suspended solid phase indicating that suspended solids, which are usually not considered in these types of studies, contribute to environmental contamination by endocrine disrupting compounds and should therefore be routinely assessed for a better estimation of the ER and AhR activities released in the environment. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Crystallite-growth, phase transition, magnetic properties, and sintering behaviour of nano-CuFe2O4 powders prepared by a combustion-like process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Köferstein, Roberto; Walther, Till; Hesse, Dietrich; Ebbinghaus, Stefan G.

    2014-01-01

    The synthesis of nano-crystalline CuFe 2 O 4 powders by a combustion-like process is described herein. Phase formation and evolution of the crystallite size during the decomposition process of a (CuFe 2 )—precursor gel were monitored up to 1000 °C. Phase-pure nano-sized CuFe 2 O 4 powders were obtained after reaction at 750 °C for 2 h resulting in a crystallite size of 36 nm, which increases to 96 nm after calcining at 1000 °C. The activation energy of the crystallite growth process was calculated as 389 kJ mol −1 . The tetragonal⇄cubic phase transition occurs between 402 and 419 °C and the enthalpy change (ΔH) was found to range between 1020 and 1229 J mol −1 depending on the calcination temperature. The optical band gap depends on the calcination temperature and was found between 2.03 and 1.89 eV. The shrinkage and sintering behaviour of compacted powders were examined. Dense ceramic bodies can be obtained either after conventional sintering at 950 °C or after a two-step sintering process at 800 °C. Magnetic measurements of both powders and corresponding ceramic bodies show that the saturation magnetization rises with increasing calcination-/sintering temperature up to 49.1 emu g −1 (2.1 µ B fu −1 ), whereas the coercivity and remanence values decrease. - Graphical abstract: A cheap one-pot synthesis was developed to obtain CuFe 2 O 4 nano-powders with different crystallite sizes (36–96 nm). The optical band gaps, phase transition temperatures and enthalpies were determined depending on the particle size. The sintering behaviour of nano CuFe 2 O 4 was studied in different sintering procedures. The magnetic behaviour of the nano-powders as well as the corresponding ceramic bodies were investigated. - Highlights: • Eco-friendly and simple synthesis for nano CuFe 2 O 4 powder using starch as polymerization agent. • Monitoring the phase evolution and crystallite growth kinetics during the synthesis. • Determination of the optical band gap

  16. Liquid and vapour-phase antifungal activities of selected essential oils against candida albicans: microscopic observations and chemical characterization of cymbopogon citratus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Malik Anushree

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Use of essential oils for controlling Candida albicans growth has gained significance due to the resistance acquired by pathogens towards a number of widely-used drugs. The aim of this study was to test the antifungal activity of selected essential oils against Candida albicans in liquid and vapour phase and to determine the chemical composition and mechanism of action of most potent essential oil. Methods Minimum Inhibitory concentration (MIC of different essential oils in liquid phase, assayed through agar plate dilution, broth dilution & 96-well micro plate dilution method and vapour phase activity evaluated through disc volatilization method. Reduction of C. albicans cells with vapour exposure was estimated by kill time assay. Morphological alteration in treated/untreated C. albicans cells was observed by the Scanning electron microscopy (SEM/Atomic force microscopy (AFM and chemical analysis of the strongest antifungal agent/essential oil has been done by GC, GC-MS. Results Lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus essential oil exhibited the strongest antifungal effect followed by mentha (Mentha piperita and eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus essential oil. The MIC of lemon grass essential oil in liquid phase (288 mg/l was significantly higher than that in the vapour phase (32.7 mg/l and a 4 h exposure was sufficient to cause 100% loss in viability of C. albicans cells. SEM/AFM of C. albicans cells treated with lemon grass essential oil at MIC level in liquid and vapour phase showed prominent shrinkage and partial degradation, respectively, confirming higher efficacy of vapour phase. GC-MS analysis revealed that lemon grass essential oil was dominated by oxygenated monoterpenes (78.2%; α-citral or geranial (36.2% and β-citral or neral (26.5%, monoterpene hydrocarbons (7.9% and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons (3.8%. Conclusion Lemon grass essential oil is highly effective in vapour phase against C. albicans, leading to deleterious

  17. Physical activity counteracts tumor cell growth in colon carcinoma C26-injected muscles: an interim report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Charlotte Hiroux

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Skeletal muscle tissue is a rare site of tumor metastasis but is the main target of the degenerative processes occurring in cancer-associated cachexia syndrome. Beneficial effects of physical activity in counteracting cancer-related muscle wasting have been described in the last decades. Recently it has been shown that, in tumor xeno-transplanted mouse models, physical activity is able to directly affect tumor growth by modulating inflammatory responses in the tumor mass microenvironment. Here, we investigated the effect of physical activity on tumor cell growth in colon carcinoma C26 cells injected tibialis anterior muscles of BALB/c mice. Histological analyses revealed that 4 days of voluntary wheel running significantly counteracts tumor cell growth in C26-injected muscles compared to the non-injected sedentary controls. Since striated skeletal muscle tissue is the site of voluntary contraction, our results confirm that physical activity can also directly counteract tumor cell growth in a metabolically active tissue that is usually not a target for metastasis.

  18. Correlation between viscous-flow activation energy and phase diagram in four systems of Cu-based alloys

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ning Shuang [Key Laboratory of Liquid Structure and Heredity of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China); Bian Xiufang, E-mail: xfbian@sdu.edu.c [Key Laboratory of Liquid Structure and Heredity of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China); Ren Zhenfeng [Key Laboratory of Liquid Structure and Heredity of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China)

    2010-09-01

    Activation energy is obtained from temperature dependence of viscosities by means of a fitting to the Arrhenius equation for liquid alloys of Cu-Sb, Cu-Te, Cu-Sn and Cu-Ag systems. We found that the changing trend of activation energy curves with concentration is similar to that of liquidus in the phase diagrams. Moreover, a maximum value of activation energy is in the composition range of the intermetallic phases and a minimum value of activation energy is located at the eutectic point. The correlation between the activation energy and the phase diagrams has been further discussed.

  19. Activated platelet-derived growth factor β receptor and Ras-mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway in natural bovine urinary bladder carcinomas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corteggio, Annunziata; Di Geronimo, Ornella; Roperto, Sante; Roperto, Franco; Borzacchiello, Giuseppe

    2012-03-01

    Bovine papillomavirus types 1 or 2 (BPV-1/2) are involved in the aetiopathogenesis of bovine urinary bladder cancer. BPV-1/2 E5 activates the platelet-derived growth factor β receptor (PDGFβR). The aim of this study was to analyse the Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway in relation to activation of PDGFβR in natural bovine urinary bladder carcinomas. Co-immunoprecipitation and Western blot analysis demonstrated that recruitment of growth factor receptor bound protein 2 (GRB-2) and Sos-1 to the activated PDGFβR was increased in carcinomas compared to normal tissues. Higher grade bovine urinary bladder carcinomas were associated with activation of Ras, but not with activation of downstream mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (Mek 1/2) or extracellular signal-regulated kinase (Erk 1/2). Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. ING3 promotes prostate cancer growth by activating the androgen receptor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nabbi, Arash; McClurg, Urszula L; Thalappilly, Subhash; Almami, Amal; Mobahat, Mahsa; Bismar, Tarek A; Binda, Olivier; Riabowol, Karl T

    2017-05-16

    The androgen receptor (AR) is a major driver of prostate cancer, and increased AR levels and co-activators of the receptor promote the development of prostate cancer. INhibitor of Growth (ING) proteins target lysine acetyltransferase or lysine deacetylase complexes to the histone H3K4Me3 mark of active transcription, to affect chromatin structure and gene expression. ING3 is a stoichiometric member of the TIP60 lysine acetyltransferase complex implicated in prostate cancer development. Biopsies of 265 patients with prostate cancer were stained for ING3, pan-cytokeratin, and DNA. LNCaP and C4-2 androgen-responsive cells were used for in vitro assays including immunoprecipitation, western blotting, Luciferase reporter assay and quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Cell viability and migration assays were performed in prostate cancer cell lines using scrambled siRNA or siRNA targeting ING3. We find that ING3 levels and AR activity positively correlate in prostate cancer. ING3 potentiates androgen effects, increasing expression of androgen-regulated genes and androgen response element-driven reporters to promote growth and anchorage-independent growth. Conversely, ING3 knockdown inhibits prostate cancer cell growth and invasion. ING3 activates the AR by serving as a scaffold to increase interaction between TIP60 and the AR in the cytoplasm, enhancing receptor acetylation and translocation to the nucleus. Activation is independent of ING3's ability to target the TIP60 complex to H3K4Me3, identifying a previously unknown chromatin-independent cytoplasmic activity for ING3. In agreement with in vitro observations, analysis of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data (n = 498) and a prostate cancer tissue microarray (n = 256) show that ING3 levels are higher in aggressive prostate cancers, with high levels of ING3 predicting shorter patient survival in a low AR subgroup. Including ING3 levels with currently used indicators such as the Gleason score provides more

  1. DEPDC1 promotes cell proliferation and tumor growth via activation of E2F signaling in prostate cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Lin; Chen, Keng; Cai, Zhao-Peng; Chen, Fu-Chao; Shen, Hui-Yong; Zhao, Wei-Hua; Yang, Song-Jie; Chen, Xu-Biao; Tang, Guo-Xue; Lin, Xi

    2017-08-26

    DEP domain containing 1 (DEPDC1) is recently reported to be overexpressed in several types of human cancer; however the role of DEPDC1 in prostate cancer remains to be investigated. Herein, we identified that the DEPDC1 mRNA and protein expression levels were dramatically increased in prostate cancer tissues and cell lines. Overexpression of DEPDC1 promoted, but depletion of DEPDC1 inhibited cell proliferation by regulating the G1-S phase cell cycle transition. Importantly, we found that DEPDC1 was essential for the tumor growth and formation of bone metastases of prostate cancer cells in vivo. Finally, we demonstrated that DEPDC1 interacted with E2F1 and increased its transcriptional activity, leading to hyper-activation of E2F signaling in prostate cancer cells. Our findings reveal an oncogenic role of DEPDC1 in prostate cancer progression via activation of E2F signaling, and suggest DEPDC1 might be a potential therapeutic target against the disease. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Hydrothermal growth of photoelectrochemically active titanium dioxide cauliflower-like nanostructures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pawar, Sachin A.; Devan, R.S.; Patil, D.S.; Burungale, V.V.; Bhat, T.S.; Mali, S.S.; Shin, S.W.; Ae, J.E.; Hong, C.K.; Ma, Y.R.; Kim, J.H.; Patil, P.S.

    2014-01-01

    Hierarchical titanium dioxide nanostructures have been synthesized by a simple and cost-effective hydrothermal deposition method onto the conducting glass substrates. In order to study the effect of titanium tetrachloride precursor quantity on the growth of TiO 2 ; the thin films of TiO 2 have been synthesized with the variations in the TiCl 4 from 0.4 mL to 1.0 mL at the interval of 0.2 mL. These films are characterized for their optical, structural, compositional, morphological properties using UV-vis spectrophotometer, Photoluminescence, X-ray Diffraction, High resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy techniques. The optical band gap energy is found to increase from 2.74 to 3.06 eV with the increase in TiCl 4 quantities exhibiting a blue shift. XRD patterns show the formation of polycrystalline TiO 2 with the tetragonal crystal structure possessing rutile phase. Rise in the TiCl 4 quantity leads to the decrease in the particle size. The chemical composition and valence states of the constituent elements were analysed by XPS. FESEM images showed the formation of cauliflower-like structure at the highest TiCl 4 precursor quantity. The films were photoelectrochemically active with the maximum current density of 202 μA/cm 2 for the sample prepared at 1.0 mL

  3. Morphological and quantitative changes in mitochondria, plastids, and peroxisomes during the log-to-stationary transition of the growth phase in cultured tobacco BY-2 cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toyooka, Kiminori; Sato, Mayuko; Wakazaki, Mayumi; Matsuoka, Ken

    2016-01-01

    We developed a wide-range and high-resolution transmission electron microscope acquisition system and obtained giga-pixel images of tobacco BY-2 cells during the log and stationary phases of cell growth. We demonstrated that the distribution and ultrastructure of compartments involved in membrane traffic (i.e., Golgi apparatus, multivesicular body, and vesicle cluster) change during the log-to-stationary transition. Mitochondria, peroxisomes, and plastids were also enumerated. Electron densities of mitochondria and peroxisomes were altered during the growth-phase shift, while their numbers were reduced by nearly half. Plastid structure dramatically changed from atypical to spherical with starch granules. Nearly the same number of plastids was observed in both log and stationary phases. These results indicate that mechanisms regulating organelle populations differ from organelle to organelle.

  4. Storage and growth of denitrifiers in aerobic granules: part I. model development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ni, Bing-Jie; Yu, Han-Qing

    2008-02-01

    A mathematical model, based on the Activated Sludge Model No.3 (ASM3), is developed to describe the storage and growth activities of denitrifiers in aerobic granules under anoxic conditions. In this model, mass transfer, hydrolysis, simultaneous anoxic storage and growth, anoxic maintenance, and endogenous decay are all taken into account. The model established is implemented in the well-established AQUASIM simulation software. A combination of completely mixed reactor and biofilm reactor compartments provided by AQUASIM is used to simulate the mass transport and conversion processes occurring in both bulk liquid and granules. The modeling results explicitly show that the external substrate is immediately utilized for storage and growth at feast phase. More external substrates are diverted to storage process than the primary biomass production process. The model simulation indicates that the nitrate utilization rate (NUR) of granules-based denitrification process includes four linear phases of nitrate reduction. Furthermore, the methodology for determining the most important parameter in this model, that is, anoxic reduction factor, is established. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  5. Sulindac metabolites inhibit epidermal growth factor receptor activation and expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ahnen Dennis

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Regular use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs is associated with a decreased mortality from colorectal cancer (CRC. NSAIDs induce apoptotic cell death in colon cancer cells in vitro and inhibit growth of neoplastic colonic mucosa in vivo however, the biochemical mechanisms required for these growth inhibitory effects are not well defined. We previously reported that metabolites of the NSAID sulindac downregulate extracellular-signal regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2 signaling and that this effect is both necessary and sufficient for the apoptotic effects of these drugs. The goal of this project was to specifically test the hypothesis that sulindac metabolites block activation and/or expression of the epidermal growth factor (EGF receptor (EGFR. Methods HT29 human colon cancer cells were treated with EGF, alone, or in the presence of sulindac sulfide or sulindac sulfone. Cells lysates were assayed by immunoblotting for phosphorylated EGFR (pEGFR, pY1068, total EGFR, phosphorylated ERK1/2 (pERK1/2, total ERK1/2, activated caspase-3, and α-tubulin. Results EGF treatment rapidly induced phosphorylation of both EGFR and ERK1/2 in HT29 colon cancer cells. Pretreatment with sulindac metabolites for 24 h blocked EGF-induced phosphorylation of both EGFR and ERK1/2 and decreased total EGFR protein expression. Under basal conditions, downregulation of pEGFR and total EGFR was detected as early as 12 h following sulindac sulfide treatment and persisted through at least 48 h. Sulindac sulfone induced downregulation of pEGFR and total EGFR was detected as early as 1 h and 24 h, respectively, following drug treatment, and persisted through at least 72 h. EGFR downregulation by sulindac metabolites was observed in three different CRC cell lines, occurred prior to the observed downregulation of pERK1/2 and induction of apoptosis by these drugs, and was not dependent of caspase activation. Conclusion These results suggest that

  6. Mechanosensation Dynamically Coordinates Polar Growth and Cell Wall Assembly to Promote Cell Survival.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davì, Valeria; Tanimoto, Hirokazu; Ershov, Dmitry; Haupt, Armin; De Belly, Henry; Le Borgne, Rémi; Couturier, Etienne; Boudaoud, Arezki; Minc, Nicolas

    2018-04-23

    How growing cells cope with size expansion while ensuring mechanical integrity is not known. In walled cells, such as those of microbes and plants, growth and viability are both supported by a thin and rigid encasing cell wall (CW). We deciphered the dynamic mechanisms controlling wall surface assembly during cell growth, using a sub-resolution microscopy approach to monitor CW thickness in live rod-shaped fission yeast cells. We found that polar cell growth yielded wall thinning and that thickness negatively influenced growth. Thickness at growing tips exhibited a fluctuating behavior with thickening phases followed by thinning phases, indicative of a delayed feedback promoting thickness homeostasis. This feedback was mediated by mechanosensing through the CW integrity pathway, which probes strain in the wall to adjust synthase localization and activity to surface growth. Mutants defective in thickness homeostasis lysed by rupturing the wall, demonstrating its pivotal role for walled cell survival. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Developmental Effects of the ToxCast™ Phase I and Phase II Chemicals in Caenorhabditis elegans and Corresponding Responses in Zebrafish, Rats, and Rabbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyd, Windy A.; Smith, Marjolein V.; Co, Caroll A.; Pirone, Jason R.; Rice, Julie R.; Shockley, Keith R.; Freedman, Jonathan H.

    2015-01-01

    Background: Modern toxicology is shifting from an observational to a mechanistic science. As part of this shift, high-throughput toxicity assays are being developed using alternative, nonmammalian species to prioritize chemicals and develop prediction models of human toxicity. Methods: The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) was used to screen the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) ToxCast™ Phase I and Phase II libraries, which contain 292 and 676 chemicals, respectively, for chemicals leading to decreased larval development and growth. Chemical toxicity was evaluated using three parameters: a biologically defined effect size threshold, half-maximal activity concentration (AC50), and lowest effective concentration (LEC). Results: Across both the Phase I and Phase II libraries, 62% of the chemicals were classified as active ≤ 200 μM in the C. elegans assay. Chemical activities and potencies in C. elegans were compared with those from two zebrafish embryonic development toxicity studies and developmental toxicity data for rats and rabbits. Concordance of chemical activity was higher between C. elegans and one zebrafish assay across Phase I chemicals (79%) than with a second zebrafish assay (59%). Using C. elegans or zebrafish to predict rat or rabbit developmental toxicity resulted in balanced accuracies (the average value of the sensitivity and specificity for an assay) ranging from 45% to 53%, slightly lower than the concordance between rat and rabbit (58%). Conclusions: Here, we present an assay that quantitatively and reliably describes the effects of chemical toxicants on C. elegans growth and development. We found significant overlap in the activity of chemicals in the ToxCast™ libraries between C. elegans and zebrafish developmental screens. Incorporating C. elegans toxicological assays as part of a battery of in vitro and in vivo assays provides additional information for the development of models to predict a chemical

  8. Modelling of toluene biodegradation and biofilm growth in a fixed biofilm reactor

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Arcangeli, Jean-Pierre; Arvin, Erik

    1992-01-01

    The modelling of aerobic biodegradation of toluene and the associated biofilm growth in a fixed biofilm system is presented. The model includes four biomass fractions, three dissolved components, and seven processes. It is assumed that part of the active biomass is composed of filamentous bacteria...... which grow relatively fast and detach easily, leading to a biomass growth delayed with respect to substrate degradation. The non-filamentous bacteria inside the biofilm also degrade toluene but with a slower rate compared to the filamentous bacteria. Because the nonfilamentous bacteria do not detach......, they are primarily responsible for the biofilm growth. The active biomass decays into biodegradable and ``inert'' dead biomass which is hydrolyzed into soluble products at two different rates. These products are partly degradable by the biomass and constitute the endogenous respiration. The dynamic growth phase...

  9. Modelling of toluene biodegradation and biofilm growth in a fixed biofilm reactor

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Arcangeli, Jean-Pierre; Arvin, Erik

    1992-01-01

    The modelling of aerobic biodegradation of toluene and the associated biofilm growth in a fixed biofilm system is presented. The model includes four biomass fractions, three dissolved components, and seven processes. It is assumed that part of the active biomass is composed of filamentous bacteria......, they are primarily responsible for the biofilm growth. The active biomass decays into biodegradable and ``inert'' dead biomass which is hydrolyzed into soluble products at two different rates. These products are partly degradable by the biomass and constitute the endogenous respiration. The dynamic growth phase...... which grow relatively fast and detach easily, leading to a biomass growth delayed with respect to substrate degradation. The non-filamentous bacteria inside the biofilm also degrade toluene but with a slower rate compared to the filamentous bacteria. Because the nonfilamentous bacteria do not detach...

  10. Promotion of ovarian follicle growth following mTOR activation: synergistic effects of AKT stimulators.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuan Cheng

    Full Text Available Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR is a serine/threonine kinase and mTOR signaling is important in regulating cell growth and proliferation. Recent studies using oocyte- and granulosa cell-specific deletion of mTOR inhibitor genes TSC1 or TSC2 demonstrated the important role of mTOR signaling in the promotion of ovarian follicle development. We now report that treatment of ovaries from juvenile mice with an mTOR activator MHY1485 stimulated mTOR, S6K1 and rpS6 phosphorylation. Culturing ovaries for 4 days with MHY1485 increased ovarian explant weights and follicle development. In vivo studies further demonstrated that pre-incubation of these ovaries with MHY1485 for 2 days, followed by allo-grafting into kidney capsules of adult ovariectomized hosts for 5 days, led to marked increases in graft weights and promotion of follicle development. Mature oocytes derived from MHY1485-activated ovarian grafts could be successfully fertilized, leading the delivery of healthy pups. We further treated ovaries with the mTOR activator together with AKT activators (PTEN inhibitor and phosphoinositol-3-kinase stimulator before grafting and found additive enhancement of follicle growth. Our studies demonstrate the ability of an mTOR activator in promoting follicle growth, leading to a potential strategy to stimulate preantral follicle growth in infertile patients.

  11. Light pollution reduces activity, food consumption and growth rates in a sandy beach invertebrate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luarte, T; Bonta, C C; Silva-Rodriguez, E A; Quijón, P A; Miranda, C; Farias, A A; Duarte, C

    2016-11-01

    The continued growth of human activity and infrastructure has translated into a widespread increase in light pollution. Natural daylight and moonlight cycles play a fundamental role for many organisms and ecological processes, so an increase in light pollution may have profound effects on communities and ecosystem services. Studies assessing ecological light pollution (ELP) effects on sandy beach organisms have lagged behind the study of other sources of disturbance. Hence, we assessed the influence of this stressor on locomotor activity, foraging behavior, absorption efficiency and growth rate of adults of the talitrid amphipod Orchestoidea tuberculata. In the field, an artificial light system was assembled to assess the local influence of artificial light conditions on the amphipod's locomotor activity and use of food patches in comparison to natural (ambient) conditions. Meanwhile in the laboratory, two experimental chambers were set to assess amphipod locomotor activity, consumption rates, absorption efficiency and growth under artificial light in comparison to natural light-dark cycles. Our results indicate that artificial light have significantly adverse effects on the activity patterns and foraging behavior of the amphipods, resulting on reduced consumption and growth rates. Given the steady increase in artificial light pollution here and elsewhere, sandy beach communities could be negatively affected, with unexpected consequences for the whole ecosystem. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Growth factors related to the activation of primordial follicles in cattle

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lidy Viviana Castillo Barón

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available This article analyzes the presence and expression of molecules, called growth factors that act to control follicular dynamics in early stages; It also describes the nature and mechanism of action of the major growth factors involved in the activation of the paramount follicles in cattle. This is to show the importance of these molecules in developing follicle and oocyte quality, which can become fertilized on the way to increase the reproductive potential of domestic animals.

  13. ONC201 activates ER stress to inhibit the growth of triple-negative breast cancer cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yuan, Xun; Kho, Dhonghyo; Xu, Jing; Gajan, Ambikai; Wu, Kongming; Wu, Gen Sheng

    2017-03-28

    ONC201 was previously identified as a first-in-class antitumor agent and small-molecule inducer of the TRAIL (tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand) gene that induces apoptosis in cancer cells. ONC201 has a safety profile and is currently in phase II clinical trials for the treatment of various malignancies. In the current study, we examine the effect of ONC201 on triple-negative breast cancer cells (TNBC), a subtype of breast cancer that is sensitive to TRAIL. We find that ONC201 inhibits the growth of TNBC cells including TNBC cells that have developed acquired TRAIL resistance. However, TNBC cells that have developed acquired ONC201 resistance are cross-resistant to TRAIL. Mechanistically, ONC201 triggers an integrated stress response (ISR) involving the activation of the transcription factor ATF4. Knockdown of ATF4 impairs ONC201-induced apoptosis of TNBC cells. Importantly, the activation of ATF4 is compromised in ONC201-resistant TNBC cells. Thus, our results indicate that ONC201 induces an ISR to cause TNBC cell death and suggest that TNBC patients may benefit from ONC201-based therapies.

  14. Low temperature diamond growth by linear antenna plasma CVD over large area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Izak, Tibor; Babchenko, Oleg; Potocky, Stepan; Kromka, Alexander; Varga, Marian

    2012-01-01

    Recently, there is a great effort to increase the deposition area and decrease the process temperature for diamond growth which will enlarge its applications including use of temperature sensitive substrates. In this work, we report on the large area (20 x 30 cm 2 ) and low temperature (250 C) polycrystalline diamond growth by pulsed linear antenna microwave plasma system. The influence of substrate temperature varied from 250 to 680 C, as controlled by the table heater and/or by microwave power, is studied. It was found that the growth rate, film morphology and diamond to non-diamond phases (sp 3 /sp 2 carbon bonds) are influenced by the growth temperature, as confirmed by SEM and Raman measurements. The surface chemistry and growth processes were studied in terms of activation energies (E a ) calculated from Arrhenius plots. The activation energies of growth processes were very low (1.7 and 7.8 kcal mol -1 ) indicating an energetically favourable growth process from the CO 2 -CH 4 -H 2 gas mixture. In addition, from activation energies two different growth regimes were observed at low and high temperatures, indicating different growth mechanism. (Copyright copyright 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

  15. Three-phase Photovoltaic Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kerekes, Tamas; Sera, Dezso; Máthé, Lászlo

    2015-01-01

    , detailing the different photovoltaic inverter structures and topologies as well as discussing the different control layers within a grid-connected photovoltaic plant. Modulation schemes for various photovoltaic inverter topologies, grid synchronization, current control, active and reactive power control......Photovoltaic technology has experienced unprecedented growth in the last two decades, transforming from mainly off-grid niche generation to a major renewable energy technology, reaching approximately 180 GW of capacity worldwide at the end of 2014. Large photovoltaic power plants interfacing...... the grid through a three-phase power electronic converter are now well on the way to becoming a major player in the power system in many countries. Therefore, this article gives an overview of photovoltaic systems with a focus on three-phase applications, presenting these both from a hardware point of view...

  16. Measurement of cellular copper levels in Bacillus megaterium during exponential growth and sporulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krueger, W B; Kolodziej, B J

    1976-01-01

    Both atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) and neutron activation analysis have been utilized to determine cellular Cu levels in Bacillus megaterium ATCC 19213. Both methods were selected for their sensitivity to detection of nanogram quantities of Cu. Data from both methods demonstrated identical patterms of Cu uptake during exponenetial growth and sporulation. Late exponential phase cells contained less Cu than postexponential t2 cells while t5 cells contained amounts equivalent to exponential cells. The t11 phase-bright forespore containing cells had a higher Cu content than those of earlier time periods, and the free spores had the highest Cu content. Analysis of the culture medium by AAS corroborated these data by showing concomitant Cu uptake during exponential growth and into t2 postexponential phase of sporulation. From t2 to t4, Cu egressed from the cells followed by a secondary uptake during the maturation of phase-dark forespores into phase-bright forespores (t6--t9).

  17. Strain-induced grain growth of cryomilled nanocrystalline Al in trimodal composites during forging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yao, B.; Simkin, B.; Majumdar, B.; Smith, C.; Bergh, M. van den; Cho, K.; Sohn, Y.H.

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Grain growth of cryomilled nanocrystalline aluminum during hot forging. ► Use of hollow cone dark field imaging technique in TEM for grain size measurement. ► Grain growth model of strain, strain rate and temperature for forging optimization. - Abstract: Grain growth of nanocrystalline aluminum ( nc Al) in trimodal Al metal-matrix-composites (MMCs) during hot forging was investigated. The nc Al phase formed through cryomilling of inert gas-atomized powders in liquid nitrogen has an average grain size down to 21 nm, exhibits excellent thermal stability. However, substantial grain growth of nc Al up to 63 nm was observed when the Al MMCs were thermo-mechanically processed even at relatively low temperatures. Grain growth of the cryomilled nc Al phase in trimodal Al MMCs after hot forging was documented with respect to temperature ranging from 175 °C to 287 °C, true strain ranging from 0.4 to 1.35 and strain rate ranging from 0.1 to 0.5 s −1 . Hollow cone dark field imaging technique was employed to provide statistically confident measurements of nc Al grain size that ranged from 21 to 63 nm. An increase in forging temperature and an increase in true strain were correlated with an increase in grain size of nc Al. Results were correlated to devise a phenomenological grain growth model for forging that takes strain, strain rate and temperature into consideration. Activation energy for the grain growth during thermo-mechanical hot-forging was determined to be 35 kJ/mol, approximately a quarter of activation energy for bulk diffusion of Al and a half of activation energy for static recrystallization.

  18. Scientific and engineering aspects of the Active Phase Separator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klipping, G.

    1986-01-01

    The development of the Active Phase Separator (APS), which was initiated by the rather extreme demands for the GIRL (German Infrared Laboratory) mission, is reviewed. As a final result the APS model V is presented, which is suitable for space qualification and can be considered not only as a universal phase separator but also as a multifunctional component for space cooling systems, allowing a simplification of the valve plan. Besides discussing the scientific results obtained with annular flow channels and presentation of performance tests with the APS, the status of the actual IR telescopes IRAS, (Infra Red Astronomy Sattelite), GIRL, and ISO (Infrared Space Observatory) is summarized

  19. Evaluation of auxin and thiamine interaction effect on PAL activity and phenolic compounds content in vegetative growth stage of soybean plants

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    nazi nadernejad

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Soybean (Glycin max L. is one of the most important oily seeds in the world. This plant is rich in protein and unsaturated fats, and plays a significant role in human health with phenolic compounds and flavonoids. Indole Butyric Acid (IBA is a plant growth regulator that plays a key role in producing phenolic compounds and increasing the antioxidant capacity of the plant. Thiamine is one of the important vitamins in strengthening the immune system and increasing the resistance to environmental stresses in the plant's growth stages. Regarding the effect of hormone auxin and thiamine on the production of phenolic compounds as one of the antioxidant compounds in growth stages, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the two compounds in two stages of soybean growth and compare their effect on phenolic compounds changes in order to Detecting higher antioxidant capacity in environmental stress tolerance. For this purpose, the DPX cultivar of soybean seeds were prepared from Dezful Agriculture Research Center and planted in perlite containing flowers. The plants were planted under factorial design under IBA treatments with three concentrations of 0, 10 and 50 and thiamine with three concentrations of 0, 50 and 200. Extraction and evaluation of phenolic compounds, anthocyanins and pigments in leaves were performed. Data were analyzed using Duncan's test at a significant level of 5%. The results showed that the combined use of auxin and thiamine increased the carotenoid content in both phases and caused a significant increase in phenolic content. Application of auxin alone reduced auxin and thiamine the anthocyanin content significantly in both phases, but did not have a significant effect on phenolic content. The results showed that the PAL activity of the phenolic and anthocyanin content increased significantly in the 9-leaf stage compared to 3-leaf. Generally, the results showed that interaction effect between auxin and thiamine on

  20. Ultrafast growth of wadsleyite in shock-produced melts and its implications for early solar system impact processes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tschauner, Oliver; Asimow, Paul; Kostandova, Natalia; Ahrens, Thomas; Ma, Chi; Sinogeikin, Stanislav; Liu, Zhenxian; Fakra, Sirine; Tamura, Nobumichi

    2009-12-01

    We observed micrometer-sized grains of wadsleyite, a high-pressure phase of (Mg,Fe)2SiO4, in the recovery products of a shock experiment. We infer these grains crystallized from shock-generated melt over a time interval of <1 fs, the maximum time over which our experiment reached and sustained pressure sufficient to stabilize this phase. This rapid crystal growth rate (=1 m/s) suggests that, contrary to the conclusions of previous studies of the occurrence of high-pressure phases in shock-melt veins in strongly shocked meteorites, the growth of high-pressure phases from the melt during shock events is not diffusion-controlled. Another process, such as microturbulent transport, must be active in the crystal growth process. This result implies that the times necessary to crystallize the high-pressure phases in shocked meteorites may correspond to shock pressure durations achieved on impacts between objects 1-5 m in diameter and not, as previously inferred, =1-5 km in diameter. These results may also provide another pathway for syntheses, via shock recovery, of some high-value, high-pressure phases.

  1. Endophytic fungi isolated from wheat (Triticum durum Desf.): evaluation of their antimicrobial activity, antioxidant activity and host growth promotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harzallah, Daoud; Sadrati, Nouari; Zerroug, Amina; Dahamna, Saliha; Bouharati, Saddek

    2012-01-01

    The emergence of antibiotic-resistant micro-organisms calls for inventive research and development strategies. The screening for antimicrobial compounds from endophytes is a promising way to meet the increasing threat of drug-resistant strains of human and plant pathogens. Endophytes may be defined as "microbes that colonize living, internal tissues of plants without causing any immediate, overt negative effects". Endophytes are relatively unstudied as potential sources of novel natural products for exploitation in medicine, agriculture, and industry. The purpose of this study was to evaluate several isolated fungi from wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) Mohamed Ben Bachir variety and to select endophytic fungi for further evaluation of its antimicrobial, antioxidant activities and host growth promotion. A total of 20 endophytic fungi have been isolated. Antimicrobial activity was evaluated for crude ethyl acetate extracts using an agar diffusion assay. All extracts showed inhibitory activity on at least one or more pathogenic microorganism, with an average zone of inhibition varied between 7 mm to 25 mm, a large zone of 23 and 25mm against candida albicans and Escherichia coli respectively. The antioxidant capacity of the extracts was evaluated by beta-carotene/linoleic acid assay. Results showed that 70% of these extracts have antioxidant activity, exhibiting 50, 57% to 78, 96% inhibitions. While 30% from them, their inhibitory activity for oxidation of linoleic acid Were less than 50%. Growth promotion ability of these endophytes was tested on seed germination among ten isolates tested, two isolates showed significant growth promotion effects on wheat seeds. From the present work we can conclude that these microorganisms could be promising source of bioactive compounds, growth promotion and warrant further study.

  2. Temperature dependence of InN growth on (0001) sapphire substrates by atmospheric pressure hydride vapor phase epitaxy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumagai, Yoshinao; Adachi, Hirokazu; Otake, Aya; Higashikawa, Yoshihiro; Togashi, Rie; Murakami, Hisashi; Koukitu, Akinori

    2010-01-01

    The temperature dependence of InN growth on (0001) sapphire substrates by atmospheric pressure hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) was investigated. N-polarity single-crystal InN layers were successfully grown at temperatures ranging from 400 to 500 C. The a and c lattice constants of InN layers grown at 450 C or below were slightly larger than those of InN layers grown above 450 C due to oxygen incorporation that also increased the carrier concentration. The optical absorption edge of the InN layer decreased from above 2.0 to 0.76 eV when the growth temperature was increased from 450 to 500 C. (copyright 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

  3. AMSAA Reliability Growth Guide

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Broemm, William

    2000-01-01

    ... has developed reliability growth methodology for all phases of the process, from planning to tracking to projection. The report presents this methodology and associated reliability growth concepts.

  4. Hierarchical structures and phase nucleation and growth during pressure-induced crystallization of polypropylene containing dispersion of nanoclay: The impact on physical and mechanical properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Misra, R.D.K.; Yuan, Q.; Chen, J.; Yang, Y.

    2010-01-01

    The objective of this study is to describe the evolution of structure and phases during pressure-induced crystallization of polymers containing dispersion of nanoparticles, in the pressure range of 0.1-200 MPa. The model material for nanoparticles is nanoclay and the model polymer is polypropylene, which can potentially form several crystalline phases. While the phase selection in polypropylene is dictated by pressure and temperature, however, the introduction of nanoparticles alters the nucleation and growth of phases via nanoparticle interface driven evolution. To delineate and separate the effects of applied crystallization pressure from nanoparticle effects, a relative comparison is made between neat polypropylene and polypropylene containing dispersion of nanoclay under similar experimental conditions. The significant finding is that nanoclay interacts with the host polypropylene in a manner such that it alters the structural morphology of α- and γ-crystals of polypropylene. Furthermore, nanoclay promotes the formation of γ-phase at ambient pressure suggesting its role as structure and morphology director in the stabilization of the less accessible γ-phase, and with the possibility of epitaxial growth that enhances toughness. The equilibrium melting point measurements point to thermodynamic interaction between nanoclay and polypropylene, which is supported by the change in glass transition temperature. Thus, the two components, nanoclay and pressure, together provide a unique opportunity to tune hierarchical structures and phase evolution, which has significant implication on physico-chemical and mechanical properties.

  5. Morphological analysis of GeTe in inline phase change switches

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    King, Matthew R., E-mail: matthew.king2@ngc.com [Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems, Advanced Concepts and Technologies Division, 1212 Winterson Rd., Linthicum, Maryland 21090 (United States); Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695 (United States); El-Hinnawy, Nabil [Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems, Advanced Concepts and Technologies Division, 1212 Winterson Rd., Linthicum, Maryland 21090 (United States); Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 (United States); Salmon, Mike; Gu, Jitty [Evans Analytical Group, 628 Hutton St., Raleigh, North Carolina 27606 (United States); Wagner, Brian P.; Jones, Evan B.; Howell, Robert S.; Nichols, Doyle T.; Young, Robert M. [Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems, Advanced Concepts and Technologies Division, 1212 Winterson Rd., Linthicum, Maryland 21090 (United States); Borodulin, Pavel [Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems, Advanced Concepts and Technologies Division, 1212 Winterson Rd., Linthicum, Maryland 21090 (United States); Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218 (United States)

    2015-09-07

    Crystallization and amorphization phenomena in indirectly heated phase change material-based devices were investigated. Scanning transmission electron microscopy was utilized to explore GeTe phase transition processes in the context of the unique inline phase change switch (IPCS) architecture. A monolithically integrated thin film heating element successfully converted GeTe to ON and OFF states. Device cycling prompted the formation of an active area which sustains the majority of structural changes during pulsing. A transition region on both sides of the active area consisting of polycrystalline GeTe and small nuclei (<15 nm) in an amorphous matrix was also observed. The switching mechanism, determined by variations in pulsing parameters, was shown to be predominantly growth-driven. A preliminary model for crystallization and amorphization in IPCS devices is presented.

  6. Morphological analysis of GeTe in inline phase change switches

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    King, Matthew R.; El-Hinnawy, Nabil; Salmon, Mike; Gu, Jitty; Wagner, Brian P.; Jones, Evan B.; Howell, Robert S.; Nichols, Doyle T.; Young, Robert M.; Borodulin, Pavel

    2015-01-01

    Crystallization and amorphization phenomena in indirectly heated phase change material-based devices were investigated. Scanning transmission electron microscopy was utilized to explore GeTe phase transition processes in the context of the unique inline phase change switch (IPCS) architecture. A monolithically integrated thin film heating element successfully converted GeTe to ON and OFF states. Device cycling prompted the formation of an active area which sustains the majority of structural changes during pulsing. A transition region on both sides of the active area consisting of polycrystalline GeTe and small nuclei (<15 nm) in an amorphous matrix was also observed. The switching mechanism, determined by variations in pulsing parameters, was shown to be predominantly growth-driven. A preliminary model for crystallization and amorphization in IPCS devices is presented

  7. Elevated p21-Activated Kinase 2 Activity Results in Anchorage-Independent Growth and Resistance to Anticancer Drug–Induced Cell Death

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jerry W. Marlin

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available p21-Activated kinase 2 (PAK-2 seems to be a regulatory switch between cell survival and cell death signaling. We have shown previously that activation of full-length PAK-2 by Rac or Cdc42 stimulates cell survival, whereas caspase activation of PAK-2 to the proapoptotic PAK-2p34 fragment is involved in the cell death response. In this study, we present a role of elevated activity of full-length PAK-2 in anchorage-independent growth and resistance to anticancer drug–induced apoptosis of cancer cells. Hs578T human breast cancer cells that have low levels of PAK-2 activity were more sensitive to anticancer drug–induced apoptosis and showed higher levels of caspase activation of PAK-2 than MDA-MB435 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells that have high levels of PAK-2 activity. To examine the role of elevated PAK-2 activity in breast cancer, we have introduced a conditionally active PAK-2 into Hs578T human breast cells. Conditional activation of PAK-2 causes loss of contact inhibition and anchorage-independent growth of Hs578T cells. Furthermore, conditional activation of PAK-2 suppresses activation of caspase 3, caspase activation of PAK-2, and apoptosis of Hs578T cells in response to the anticancer drug cisplatin. Our data suggest a novel mechanism by which full-length PAK-2 activity controls the apoptotic response by regulating levels of activated caspase 3 and thereby its own cleavage to the proapoptotic PAK-2p34 fragment. As a result, elevated PAK-2 activity interrupts the apoptotic response and thereby causes anchorage-independent survival and growth and resistance to anticancer drug–induced apoptosis.

  8. MOCVD with gas phase composition control for the growth of high quality YBa2Cu3O7-x thin films for microwave applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Musolf, J.

    1997-01-01

    The MOCVD growth technique has demonstrated YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-x thin films with adequate transport properties (T c >90 K, J c > x 10 6 A cm -2 , R s p /C v ) and the species concentrations. After determining the correlation between gas phase and solid phase composition this technique enables the reproducible growth of YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7-x thin films by MOCVD with composition very close to 123. Further refinement of growth temperature, total pressure, oxygen partial pressure and total flow rates has produced films with excellent properties. Smooth surface morphology with a low density of outgrowths ( 4 cm -2 ), narrow XRD rocking curve peaks FWHM c =92 K), low surface resistance (device R s <350 μΩ at 77 K, 10 GHz) have been demonstrated using this growth concept. Special focus was placed on optimization of the performance of a microwave test device which serves as a process control monitor of the suitability of these films for passive microwave applications. (orig.)

  9. Load compensation for single phase system using series active filter ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Load compensation for single phase system using series active filter. ... KK Mishra, R Gupta ... load varies from time to time, the non linear load ranging from voltage source type harmonic load (VSHL) dominant to current source type harmonic ...

  10. Neurotensin-induced Erk1/2 phosphorylation and growth of human colonic cancer cells are independent from growth factors receptors activation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Massa, Fabienne; Tormo, Aurelie; Beraud-Dufour, Sophie; Coppola, Thierry [Institut de Pharmacologie Moleculaire et Cellulaire, Universite de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, CNRS UMR 6097, 660 route des Lucioles, 06560 Valbonne (France); Mazella, Jean, E-mail: mazella@ipmc.cnrs.fr [Institut de Pharmacologie Moleculaire et Cellulaire, Universite de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, CNRS UMR 6097, 660 route des Lucioles, 06560 Valbonne (France)

    2011-10-14

    Highlights: {yields} We compare intracellular pathways of NT and EGF in HT29 cells. {yields} NT does not transactivate EGFR. {yields} Transactivation of EGFR is not a general rule in cancer cell growth. -- Abstract: Neurotensin (NT) promotes the proliferation of human colonic cancer cells by undefined mechanisms. We already demonstrated that, in the human colon adenocarcinoma cell line HT29, the effects of NT were mediated by a complex formed between the NT receptor-1 (NTSR1) and-3 (NTSR3). Here we examined cellular mechanisms that led to NT-induced MAP kinase phosphorylation and growth factors receptors transactivation in colonic cancer cells and proliferation in HT29 cells. With the aim to identify upstream signaling involved in NT-elicited MAP kinase activation, we found that the stimulatory effects of the peptide were totally independent from the activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) both in the HT29 and the HCT116 cells. NT was unable to promote phosphorylation of EGFR and to compete with EGF for its binding to the receptor. Pharmacological approaches allowed us to differentiate EGF and NT signaling in HT29 cells since only NT activation of Erk1/2 was shown to be sensitive to PKC inhibitors and since only NT increased the intracellular level of calcium. We also observed that NT was not able to transactivate Insulin-like growth factor receptor. Our findings indicate that, in the HT29 and HCT116 cell lines, NT stimulates MAP kinase phosphorylation and cell growth by a pathway which does not involve EGF system but rather NT receptors which transduce their own intracellular effectors. These results indicate that depending on the cell line used, blocking EGFR is not the general rule to inhibit NT-induced cancer cell proliferation.

  11. Activated H-Ras regulates hematopoietic cell survival by modulating Survivin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fukuda, Seiji; Pelus, Louis M.

    2004-01-01

    Survivin expression and Ras activation are regulated by hematopoietic growth factors. We investigated whether activated Ras could circumvent growth factor-regulated Survivin expression and if a Ras/Survivin axis mediates growth factor independent survival and proliferation in hematopoietic cells. Survivin expression is up-regulated by IL-3 in Ba/F3 and CD34 + cells and inhibited by the Ras inhibitor, farnesylthiosalicylic acid. Over-expression of constitutively activated H-Ras (CA-Ras) in Ba/F3 cells blocked down-modulation of Survivin expression, G 0 /G 1 arrest, and apoptosis induced by IL-3 withdrawal, while dominant-negative (DN) H-Ras down-regulated Survivin. Survivin disruption by DN T34A Survivin blocked CA-Ras-induced IL-3-independent cell survival and proliferation; however, it did not affect CA-Ras-mediated enhancement of S-phase, indicating that the anti-apoptotic activity of CA-Ras is Survivin dependent while its S-phase enhancing effect is not. These results indicate that CA-Ras modulates Survivin expression independent of hematopoietic growth factors and that a CA-Ras/Survivin axis regulates survival and proliferation of transformed hematopoietic cells

  12. Cytosolic phospholipase A2 activation correlates with HER2 overexpression and mediates estrogen-dependent breast cancer cell growth.

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    Caiazza, Francesco

    2010-05-01

    Cytosolic phospholipase A(2)alpha (cPLA(2)alpha) catalyzes the hydrolysis of membrane glycerol-phospholipids to release arachidonic acid as the first step of the eicosanoid signaling pathway. This pathway contributes to proliferation in breast cancer, and numerous studies have demonstrated a crucial role of cyclooxygenase 2 and prostaglandin E(2) release in breast cancer progression. The role of cPLA(2)alpha activation is less clear, and we recently showed that 17beta-estradiol (E2) can rapidly activate cPLA(2)alpha in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Overexpression or gene amplification of HER2 is found in approximately 30% of breast cancer patients and correlates with a poor clinical outcome and resistance to endocrine therapy. This study reports the first evidence for a correlation between cPLA(2)alpha enzymatic activity and overexpression of the HER2 receptor. The activation of cPLA(2)alpha in response to E2 treatment was biphasic with the first phase dependent on trans-activation through the matrix metalloproteinase-dependent release of heparin-bound epidermal growth factor. EGFR\\/HER2 heterodimerization resulted in downstream signaling through the ERK1\\/2 cascade to promote cPLA(2)alpha phosphorylation at Ser505. There was a correlation between HER2 and cPLA(2)alpha expression in six breast cancer cell lines examined, and inhibition of HER2 activation or expression in the SKBR3 cell line using herceptin or HER2-specific small interfering RNA, respectively, resulted in decreased activation and expression of cPLA(2)alpha. Pharmacological blockade of cPLA(2)alpha using a specific antagonist suppressed the growth of both MCF-7 and SKBR3 cells by reducing E2-induced proliferation and by stimulating cellular apoptosis and necrosis. This study highlights cPLAalpha(2) as a potential target for therapeutic intervention in endocrine-dependent and endocrine-independent breast cancer.

  13. Examination and modeling of void growth kinetics in modern high strength dual phase steels during uniaxial tensile deformation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Saeidi, N., E-mail: navidsae@gmail.com [Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Ashrafizadeh, F.; Niroumand, B. [Department of Materials Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Forouzan, M.R.; Mohseni mofidi, S. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Barlat, F. [Materials Mechanics Laboratory (MML), Graduate Institute of Ferrous Technology (GIFT), Pohang University of Science and Technology - POSTECH, San 31 Hyoja-dong, Nam-gu, Pohang, Gyeongbuk 790-784 (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-04-01

    Ductile fracture mechanisms during uniaxial tensile testing of two different modern high strength dual phase steels, i.e. DP780 and DP980, were studied. Detailed microstructural characterization of the strained and sectioned samples was performed by scanning electron microscopy as well as EBSD examination. The results revealed that interface decohesion, especially at martensite particles located at ferrite grain boundaries, was the most probable mechanism for void nucleation. It was also revealed that the creation of cellular substructure can reduce stored strain energy and thereby, higher true fracture strain was obtained in DP980 than DP780 steel. Prediction of void growth behavior based on some previously proposed models showed unreliable results. Therefore, a modified model based on Rice-Tracey family models was proposed which showed a very lower prediction error compared with other models. - Highlights: • Damage mechanism in two modern high strength dual phase steels was studied. • Creation of cellular substructures can reduce the stored strain energy within the ferrite grains. • The experimental values were examined by Agrawal as well as RT family models. • A modified model was proposed for prediction of void growth behavior of DP steels.

  14. Layer-by-Layer Epitaxial Growth of Defect-Engineered Strontium Cobaltites

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Andersen, Tassie K. [Materials Science; Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States; Cook, Seyoung [Materials Science; Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States; Wan, Gang [Materials Science; Hong, Hawoong [Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, United States; Marks, Laurence D. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States; Fong, Dillon D. [Materials Science

    2018-01-31

    Control over structure and composition of (ABO(3)) perovskite oxides offers exciting opportunities since these materials possess unique, tunable properties. Perovskite oxides with cobalt B-site cations are particularly promising, as the range of the cations stable oxidation states leads to many possible structural frameworks. Here, we report growth of strontium cobalt oxide thin films by molecular beam epitaxy, and conditions necessary to stabilize different defect concentration phases. In situ X-ray scattering is used to monitor structural evolution during growth, while in situ X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy is used to probe oxidation state and measure changes to oxygen vacancy concentration as a function of film thickness. Experimental results are compared to kinetically limited thermodynamic predictions, in particular, solute trapping, with semiquantitative agreement. Agreement between observations of dependence of cobaltite phase on oxidation activity and deposition rate, and predictions indicates that a combined experimental/theoretical approach is key to understanding phase behavior in the strontium cobalt oxide system.

  15. Computer simulation of phase separation and ordering processes in low-dimensional systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mouritsen, O.G.; Shah, P.J.; Vitting Andersen, J.

    1991-01-01

    An account is given of recent activity in the field of dynamics of phase separation and ordering processes in two-dimensional statistical mechanical models. The fundamental questions of the dynamics involve the form of the growth law, the value of the growth exponent, the dynamical scaling...... properties, and a possible universal classification of the late-stage dynamics. Evidence from kinetic lattice model calculations using computer-simulation techniques is presented in favor of a universal description of the dynamics in terms of algebraic growth laws with exponents which only depend...

  16. Optimization of lag phase shapes the evolution of a bacterial enzyme.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adkar, Bharat V; Manhart, Michael; Bhattacharyya, Sanchari; Tian, Jian; Musharbash, Michael; Shakhnovich, Eugene I

    2017-04-28

    Mutations provide the variation that drives evolution, yet their effects on fitness remain poorly understood. Here we explore how mutations in the essential enzyme adenylate kinase (Adk) of Escherichia coli affect multiple phases of population growth. We introduce a biophysical fitness landscape for these phases, showing how they depend on molecular and cellular properties of Adk. We find that Adk catalytic capacity in the cell (the product of activity and abundance) is the major determinant of mutational fitness effects. We show that bacterial lag times are at a well-defined optimum with respect to Adk's catalytic capacity, while exponential growth rates are only weakly affected by variation in Adk. Direct pairwise competitions between strains show how environmental conditions modulate the outcome of a competition where growth rates and lag times have a tradeoff, shedding light on the multidimensional nature of fitness and its importance in the evolutionary optimization of enzymes.

  17. Strand specific RNA-sequencing and membrane lipid profiling reveals growth phase-dependent cold stress response mechanisms in Listeria monocytogenes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hingston, Patricia; Chen, Jessica; Allen, Kevin

    2017-01-01

    The human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes continues to pose a challenge in the food industry, where it is known to contaminate ready-to-eat foods and grow during refrigerated storage. Increased knowledge of the cold-stress response of this pathogen will enhance the ability to control it in the food-supply-chain....... This study utilized strand-specific RNA sequencing and whole cell fatty acid (FA) profiling to characterize the bacterium’s cold stress response. RNA and FAs were extracted from a cold-tolerant strain at five time points between early lag phase and late stationary-phase, both at 4°C and 20°C. Overall, more...... genes (1.3×) were suppressed than induced at 4°C. Late stationary-phase cells exhibited the greatest number (n = 1,431) and magnitude (>1,000-fold) of differentially expressed genes (>2-fold, pcold. A core set of 22 genes was upregulated at all growth phases, including nine genes...

  18. RESEARCH REGARDING THE POTENTIAL ACTIVITY OF SOME HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS ON PLANTS GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    OANA-IRINA PATRICIU

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available It is well known that growth and morphogenesis of plant tissue cultures can be improved by small amounts of some organic compounds. Heterocyclic compounds such as chromanones and thiazoles derivatives, valuable because of their potential biological activities, have also been reported as pesticides, herbicides and plant-growth regulators. In the present study, different concentrations of chromanones and thiazoles derivatives were employed to evaluate their effects on plantlets growth of Ocimum basilicum L. and Echinacea purpurea L. The studied compounds were proved to be growth inhibitors at high concentrations. A growth stimulation effect was registered at low concentration.

  19. Activation of Wnt Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) signaling promotes growth plate column formation in vitro.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Randall, Rachel M; Shao, Yvonne Y; Wang, Lai; Ballock, R Tracy

    2012-12-01

    Disrupting the Wnt Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) signaling pathway in vivo results in loss of columnar growth plate architecture, but it is unknown whether activation of this pathway in vitro is sufficient to promote column formation. We hypothesized that activation of the Wnt PCP pathway in growth plate chondrocyte cell pellets would promote columnar organization in these cells that are normally oriented randomly in culture. Rat growth plate chondrocytes were transfected with plasmids encoding the Fzd7 cell-surface Wnt receptor, a Fzd7 deletion mutant lacking the Wnt-binding domain, or Wnt receptor-associated proteins Ror2 or Vangl2, and then cultured as three-dimensional cell pellets in the presence of recombinant Wnt5a or Wnt5b for 21 days. Cellular morphology was evaluated using histomorphometric measurements. Activation of Wnt PCP signaling components promoted the initiation of columnar morphogenesis in the chondrocyte pellet culture model, as measured by histomorphometric analysis of the column index (ANOVA p = 0.01). Activation of noncanonical Wnt signaling through overexpression of both the cell-surface Wnt receptor Fzd7 and receptor-associated protein Ror2 with addition of recombinant Wnt5a promotes the initiation of columnar architecture of growth plate chondrocytes in vitro, representing an important step toward growth plate regeneration. Copyright © 2012 Orthopaedic Research Society.

  20. Widespread Dependence of Backup NHEJ on Growth State: Ramifications for the Use of DNA-PK Inhibitors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Singh, Satyendra K.; Wu Wenqi; Zhang Lihua; Klammer, Holger; Wang Minli; Iliakis, George

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: The backup pathway of nonhomologous end joining (B-NHEJ) enables cells to process DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) when the DNA-PK-dependent pathway of NHEJ (D-NHEJ) is compromised. Our previous results show marked reduction in the activity of B-NHEJ when LIG4 -/- mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs) cease to grow and enter a plateau phase. The dependence of B-NHEJ on growth state is substantially stronger than that of D-NHEJ and points to regulatory mechanisms or processing determinants that require elucidation. Because the different D-NHEJ mutants show phenotypes distinct in their details, it is necessary to characterize the dependence of their DSB repair capacity on growth state and to explore species-specific responses. Methods and Materials: DSB repair was measured in cells of different genetic background from various species using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, or the formation of γ-H2AX foci, at different stages of growth. Results: Using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, we report a marked reduction of B-NHEJ during the plateau phase of growth in KU and XRCC4, mouse or Chinese hamster, mutants. Notably, this reduction is only marginal in DNA-PKcs-deficient cells. However, reduced B-NHEJ is also observed in repair proficient, plateau-phase cells after treatment with DNA-PK inhibitors. The reduction of B-NHEJ activity in the plateau phase of growth does not derive from the reduced expression of participating proteins, is detectable by γ-H2AX foci analysis, and leads to enhanced cell killing. Conclusions: These results further document the marked dependence on growth state of an essential DSB repair pathway and show the general nature of the effect. Molecular characterization of the mechanism underlying this response will help to optimize the administration of DNA repair inhibitors as adjuvants in radiation therapy.

  1. Evaluation of Antimicrobial Activity of Lactoferrin against P.Aeruginosa and E.Coli Growth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R Sharbafi

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Lactoferrin(LF is an iron-binding glycoprotein that involves a diverse range of biological activities. Lactoferrin is a major component of milk and is present in exocrine secretions such  as tears, salvia, bile, and neutrophil granules. Lactoferrin has more potent antimicrobial activities against a wide range of gram negative and positive bacteria as well as antivirus activities. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of this protein on P.aeruginosa growth in patients with burns that show drug resistance. METHODS: In this study, antibacterial activity of Lactoferrin has been scrutinized after isolation and purification of bovine colostrum against pseudomonas aeroginosa. Bacteria samples were isolated from scald patients (Shahid Zare Hospital; then microbial activity was confirmed with biochemical tests like oxidase, catalase and growth on TSI medium. Four concentrations 400,500,600 and 700 µg/ml of lactoferrin were assayed. Pseudomonas colonies counted and compared with negative control (without lactoferrin as well as E.coli (DH5α as positive control was considered. FINDINGS: Our results showed that 400µg/ml concentration of lactoferrin has the least inhibitory effect with 35% and 29% growth inhibitory and 700µg/ml concentration of lactoferrin has the highest inhibitory effect with 86% and 66% on Pseudomonas and E.coli, respectively. CONCLUSION: Our result showed that all of lactoferrin concentrations have inhibitory activity which in 700µg/ml has the highest inhibition against Pseudomonas aeroginosa and also E.coli.

  2. Single-chain vascular endothelial growth factor variant with antagonist activity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Boesen, Thomas P; Soni, Bobby; Schwartz, Thue W

    2002-01-01

    receptor molecules and inducing dimerization. By mixing two vascular endothelial growth factor monomers, each with different substitutions, heterodimers with only one active receptor binding site have previously been prepared. These heterodimers bind the receptor molecule but are unable to induce...... dimerization and activation. However, preparation of heterodimers is cumbersome, involving separate expression of different monomers, refolding the mixture, and separating heterodimers from homodimers. Here we show that a fully functional ligand can efficiently be expressed as a single protein chain containing...

  3. [Peculiarities of growth of the monocellular green algae culture after the influence of electromagnetic field in deuterated water-containing media].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Semenov, K T; Aslanian, R R

    2013-01-01

    Exposing the inoculum of monocellular green algae Dunalialla tertiolecta and Tetraselmis viridis to 50 Hz electromagnetic field for several hours resulted in a reduced growth rate in both cultures. It was ascertained that heavy water inhibited growth of algae Dunaliella tertiolecta. The light water activated growth of the culture in the exponential phase only.

  4. Platelet-released growth factors can accelerate tenocyte proliferation and activate the anti-oxidant response element.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tohidnezhad, M; Varoga, D; Wruck, C J; Brandenburg, L O; Seekamp, A; Shakibaei, M; Sönmez, T T; Pufe, Thomas; Lippross, S

    2011-05-01

    Little is know about the pathophysiology of acute and degenerative tendon injuries. Although most lesions are uncomplicated, treatment is long and unsatisfactory in a considerable number of cases. Besides the common growth factors that were shown to be relevant for tendon integrity more recently protection against oxidative stress was shown to promote tendon healing. To improve tendon regeneration, many have advocated the use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP), a thrombocyte concentrate that can serve as an autologous source of growth factors. In this study, we investigated the effect of platelet-released growth factors (PRGF) on tenocytes. Tenocytes were isolated from the Achilles tendon of postnatal rats. Tenocyte cell cultures were stimulated with PRGF. We used a CyQuant assay and WST assay to analyse tendon cell growth and viability in different concentrations of PRGF. Migration and proliferation of cells grown in PRGF were assessed by a scratch test. A dual-luciferase assay was used to demonstrate the activation of the anti-oxidant response element (ARE) in tenocytes. A positive effect of PRGF could be shown on tendon cell growth and migratory capacity. PRGF activated the Nrf2-ARE pathway in a dose-dependent manner. Here, we provide evidence of a biological effect of PRGF on tenocytes by the promotion of tenocyte growth and activation of the Nrf2-ARE pathway. This is a novel aspect of the action of platelet concentrates on tendon growth.

  5. Preparation and Properties of Paraffin/TiO2/Active-carbon Composite Phase Change Materials

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    HAO Yong-gan

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available A novel composite phase change materials (PCMs of paraffin/TiO2/active-carbon was prepared by a microemulsion method, where paraffin acted as a PCM and titanium dioxide (TiO2 as matrix material, and a small amount of active carbon was added to improve the thermal conductivity. The compositions, morphology and thermal properties of the paraffin/TiO2/active-carbon composite PCMs were characterized by XRD, SEM, TGA and DSC respectively. The shape stability during phase change process of this composite was also tested. The results show that paraffin is well encapsulated by TiO2 matrix, and thus exhibiting excellent shape-stabilized phase change feature. Besides, this composite PCM also presents superhydrophobic property. Therefore, these multifunctional features will endow PCMs with important application potential in energy efficient buildings.

  6. Moessbauer study of iron-carbide growth and Fischer-Tropsch activity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rao, K.R.P.M.; Huggins, F.E.; Huffman, G.P. [Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, (United States)] [and others

    1995-12-31

    There is a need to establish a correlation between the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) activity of an iron-based catalyst and the catalyst phase during FT synthesis. The nature of iron phases formed during activation and FT synthesis is influenced by the nature of the gas and pressure apart from other parameters like temperature, flow rate etc., used for activation. Moessbauer investigations of iron-based catalysts subjected to pretreatment at two different pressures in gas atmospheres containing mixtures of CO, H{sub 2}, and He have been carried out. Studies on UCI 1185-57 (64%Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}/5%CuO/1%K{sub 2}O/30% Kaolin) catalyst indicate that activation of the catalyst in CO at 12 atms. leads to the formation of 100% magnetite and the magnetite formed gets rapidly converted to at least 90% of {chi}-Fe{sub 5}C{sub 2} during activation. The FT activity was found to be good at 70-80% of (H{sub 2}+CO) conversion. On the other hand, activation. The FT activity was found to be good at 70-80% of (H{sub 2}+CO) conversion. On the other hand, activation of the catalyst in synthesis gas at 12 atms. leads to formation of Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} and it gets sluggishly converted to {chi}-Fe{sub 5}C{sub 2} and {epsilon}-Fe{sub 2.2}C during activation and both continue to grow slowly during FT synthesis. FT activity is found to be poor. Pretreatment of the catalyst, 100fe/3.6Si/0.71K at a low pressure of 1 atms. in syngas gave rise to the formation of {chi}-Fe{sub 5}C{sub 2} and good FT activity. On the other hand, pretreatment of the catalyst, 100Fe/3.6Si/0.71K at a relatively high pressure of 12 atms. in syngas did not give rise to the formation any carbide and FT activity was poor.

  7. Stoichiometry-, phase- and orientation-controlled growth of polycrystalline pyrite (FeS 2) thin films by MOCVD

    Science.gov (United States)

    Höpfner, C.; Ellmer, K.; Ennaoui, A.; Pettenkofer, C.; Fiechter, S.; Tributsch, H.

    1995-06-01

    The growth process of polycrystalline pyrite thin films employing low pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (LP-MOCVD) in a vertical cold wall reactor has been investigated. Iron pentacarbonyl (IPC) and t-butyldisulfide (TBDS) were utilized as precursors. Study of the growth rate as a function of temperature reveals a kinetically controlled growth process with an activation energy of 73 kJ / mol over the temperature range from 250 to 400°C. From 500 to 630°C, the growth rate is mainly mass transport limited. Decomposition of the films into pyrrhotite (Fe 1 - xS) occurs at higher growth temperatures. The {S}/{Fe} ratio in the films has been controlled from 1.23 up to 2.03 by changing the TBDS partial pressure. With increasing deposition temperature, the crystallites in the films show the tendency to grow [100]-oriented on amorphous substrates at a growth rate of 2.5 Å / s. The grains show a preferential orientation in the [111] direction upon lowering the growth rate down to 0.3 Å / s. Temperatures above 550°C are beneficial in enhancing the grain size in the columnar structured films up to 1.0 μm.

  8. Effect of stimulated phase separation on properties of blue, green and monolithic white LEDs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsatsulnikov, A.F.; Lundin, W.V.; Sakharov, A.V.; Zavarin, E.E.; Nikolaev, A.E.; Sizov, V.S. [Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Politekhnicheskaya Str. 26, 194021 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Usov, S.O.; Zakgeim, A.L.; Mizerov, M.N. [Submicron Heterostructures for Microelectronics Research and Engineering Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, Politekhnicheskaya Str. 26, 194021 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Cherkashin, N.A.; Hytch, M. [CEMES-CNRS, Universite de Toulouse, Toulouse (France)

    2012-03-15

    Different methods of stimulation of phase separation in an InGaN QWs by technological methods and by design of structure were investigated. Effect of admixing of hydrogen during growth interruptions (GIs) after deposition of the InGaN QWs on their structural and optical properties and properties of InGaN-based LEDs was investigated. Effect of growth pressure on the phase separation was investigated and formation of separate InGaN islands at increase in growth pressure was revealed. It was shown that the phase separation is stimulated in composite InAlN/GaN/InGaN heterostructures and formation of well isolated InGaN islands was observed. Effect of the phase separation on the properties of the blue and deep green LEDs was investigated and strong changes in the spectral position and current dependence of the quantum efficiency were revealed. It was shown that formation of the island due to the phase separation allows control position and width of the emission line and maximum in current dependence of the quantum efficiency. Monolithic white LEDs are containing in active region blue and green InGaN QWs grown with applying of the GIs and emitting in spectral range from 440 nm to 560 nm were studied. Monolithic white LEDs having optimal design of active region demonstrate CCT in the range of 9000-12000 K and maximal external quantum efficiency up to 14 lm/W. (copyright 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

  9. Hair growth-promoting effect of Aconiti Ciliare Tuber extract mediated by the activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Phil-June; Moon, Byoung-San; Lee, Soung-Hoon; Kim, Su-Na; Kim, Ah-Reum; Kim, Hyung-Jun; Park, Won-Seok; Choi, Kang-Yell; Cho, Eun-Gyung; Lee, Tae Ryong

    2012-11-02

    The activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway plays an important role in hair follicle morphogenesis by stimulating bulge stem cells. This study was to obtain the activator of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway from natural products and to determine whether this activator can induce anagen hair growth in mice. To identify materials that activate Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, 800 natural product extracts were screened using pTOPFlash assay and neural progenitor cell (NPC) differentiation assay. A selected extract was further tested for its effects on alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity in human immortalized dermal papilla cell (iDPC) and the proliferation in iDPC and immortalized rat vibrissa DPC (RvDP). Finally, hair growth-promoting effects were evaluated in the dorsal skin of C57BL/6 mice. Aconiti Ciliare Tuber (ACT) extract was one of the most active materials in both pTOPFlash and NPC differentiation assays. It promoted the differentiation of NPC cells even under proliferation-stimulating conditions (basic fibroblast growth factor: bFGF). It also increased ALP activity and proliferation of iDPC in dose-dependent manners, and it stimulated the induction of the anagen hair growth in C57BL/6 mice. These results suggest that ACT extract activates the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway by enhancing β-catenin transcription and has the potential to promote the induction of hair growth via activation of the stem cell activity of the dermal papilla cells. This is the first report indicating benefits of ACT extract in hair loss prevention by triggering the activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and induction of the anagen hair growth in mice. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. BAG3 promotes pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma growth by activating stromal macrophages.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosati, Alessandra; Basile, Anna; D'Auria, Raffaella; d'Avenia, Morena; De Marco, Margot; Falco, Antonia; Festa, Michelina; Guerriero, Luana; Iorio, Vittoria; Parente, Roberto; Pascale, Maria; Marzullo, Liberato; Franco, Renato; Arra, Claudio; Barbieri, Antonio; Rea, Domenica; Menichini, Giulio; Hahne, Michael; Bijlsma, Maarten; Barcaroli, Daniela; Sala, Gianluca; di Mola, Fabio Francesco; di Sebastiano, Pierluigi; Todoric, Jelena; Antonucci, Laura; Corvest, Vincent; Jawhari, Anass; Firpo, Matthew A; Tuveson, David A; Capunzo, Mario; Karin, Michael; De Laurenzi, Vincenzo; Turco, Maria Caterina

    2015-11-02

    The incidence and death rate of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) have increased in recent years, therefore the identification of novel targets for treatment is extremely important. Interactions between cancer and stromal cells are critically involved in tumour formation and development of metastasis. Here we report that PDAC cells secrete BAG3, which binds and activates macrophages, inducing their activation and the secretion of PDAC supporting factors. We also identify IFITM-2 as a BAG3 receptor and show that it signals through PI3K and the p38 MAPK pathways. Finally, we show that the use of an anti-BAG3 antibody results in reduced tumour growth and prevents metastasis formation in three different mouse models. In conclusion, we identify a paracrine loop involved in PDAC growth and metastatic spreading, and show that an anti-BAG3 antibody has therapeutic potential.

  11. Method of manufacture of single phase ceramic superconductors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Jitrenda P.; Poeppel, Roger B.; Goretta, Kenneth C.; Chen, Nan

    1995-01-01

    A ceramic superconductor is produced by close control of oxygen partial pressure during sintering of the material. The resulting microstructure of YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x indicates that sintering kinetics are enhanced at reduced p(O.sub.2) and that because of second phase precipitates, grain growth is prevented. The density of specimens sintered at 910.degree. C. increased from 79 to 94% theoretical when p(O.sub.2) was decreased from 0.1 to 0.0001 MPa. The increase in density with decrease in p(O.sub.2) derives from enhanced sintering kinetics, due to increased defect concentration and decreased activation energy of the rate-controlling species undergoing diffusion. Sintering at 910.degree. C resulted in a fine-grain microstructure, with an average grain size of about 4 .mu.m. Post sintering annealing in a region of stability for the desired phase converts the second phases and limits grain growth. The method of pinning grain boundaries by small scale decompositive products and then annealing to convert its product to the desired phase can be used for other complex asides. Such a microstructure results in reduced microcracking, strengths as high as 230 MPa and high critical current density capacity.

  12. beta Phase Growth and Precipitation in the 5xxx Series Aluminum Alloy System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scotto D'Antuono, Daniel

    The 5xxx series aluminum alloys are commonly used for structural applications due to their high strength to weight ratio, corrosion resistance, and weldability. This material system is a non-heat treatable aluminum and derives its strength from a super saturation of magnesium (3%>), and from cold rolling. While these materials have many admiral properties, they can undergo a process known as sensitization when exposed to elevated temperatures (50-280°C) for extended periods of time. During this process, magnesium segregates toward the grain boundaries and forms the secondary precipitate β phase (Al3Mg2). When exposed to harsh environments such as sea water, a galvanic couple is formed between the Al matrix and the β phase precipitates. The precipitates become anodic to the matrix and preferentially dissolve leaving gaps along the boundary network, ultimately leading to stress corrosion cracking. While this problem has been known to occur for some time now, questions relating to nucleation sites, misorientation dependence, effect of prior strain, and preferred temperature regimes remain unanswered. The work contained in this thesis attempted to better understand the kinetics, growth, and misorientation dependence, of β phase precipitation using in situ transmission electron microscopy experiments which allowed for direct visualization of the precipitation process. Orientation imaging using a Nanomegas/ASTAR system (OIM in TEM) coupled with the in situ experiments, along with elemental STEM EELs mapping were used to better understand the diffusion of Mg and found low angle boundaries as potential sites for nucleation. The resulting STEM EELs experiments also showed that Mg is much more stable at the grain boundaries than previously thought. Concurrent bulk ex-situ studies were used to compare various heat treatments, as well as to failed in service material showing that the low temperature treatments yield the metastable β’ phase more readily than the

  13. Influence of the interface on growth rates in AlN/GaN short period superlattices via metal organic vapor phase epitaxy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodak, L. E.; Korakakis, D.

    2011-11-01

    AlN/GaN short period superlattices are well suited for a number of applications including, but not limited to, digital alloys, intersubband devices, and emitters. In this work, AlN/GaN superlattices with periodicities ranging from 10 to 20 Å have been grown via metal organic vapor phase epitaxy in order to investigate the influence of the interface on the binary alloy growth rates. The GaN growth rate at the interface was observed to decrease with increasing GaN thickness while the AlN growth rate remained constant. This has been attributed to a decrease in the decomposition rate of GaN at the hetero-interface as seen in other III-V hetero-structures.

  14. Antibody-induced dimerization activates the epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Spaargaren, M.; Defize, L. H.; Boonstra, J.; de Laat, S. W.

    1991-01-01

    The relationship between epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) protein tyrosine kinase activation and ligand-induced receptor dimerization was investigated using several bivalent anti-EGF-R antibodies directed against various receptor epitopes. In A431 membrane preparations and permeabilized

  15. Radiation-induced p53 protein response in the A549 cell line is culture growth-phase dependent

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johnson, N.F.; Gurule, D.M.; Carpenter, T.R.

    1995-12-01

    One role of the p53 tumor suppressor protein has been recently revealed. Kastan, M.B. reported that p53 protein accumulates in cells exposed to ionizing radiation. The accumulation of p53 protein is in response to DNA damage, most importantly double-strand breaks, that results from exposure to ionizing radiation. The rise in cellular p53 levels is necessary for an arrest in the G{sub 1} phase of the cell cycle to provide additional time for DNA repair. The p53 response has also been demonstrated to enhance PCNA-dependent repair. p53 is thus an important regulator of the cellular response to DNA-damaging radiation. From this data, it can be concluded that the magnitude of the p53 response is not dependent on the phase of culture growth.

  16. Collaborative Project: Understanding the Chemical Processes tat Affect Growth rates of Freshly Nucleated Particles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McMurry, Peter [Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (United States); Smuth, James [University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, Irvine, CA (United States)

    2015-11-12

    This final technical report describes our research activities that have, as the ultimate goal, the development of a model that explains growth rates of freshly nucleated particles. The research activities, which combine field observations with laboratory experiments, explore the relationship between concentrations of gas-phase species that contribute to growth and the rates at which those species are taken up. We also describe measurements of the chemical composition of freshly nucleated particles in a variety of locales, as well as properties (especially hygroscopicity) that influence their effects on climate.

  17. Effect of temperature and light intensity on growth and photosynthetic activity of Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alfonsel, M.; Fernandez Gonzalez, J.

    1986-01-01

    The effect of five temperatures (15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 0 C) and two levels of illumination on growth and photosynthetic activity of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii has been studied. The growth of the cultures was evaluated by optical density. Photosynthetic activity has been carried out studying either the assimilation rate of CO 2 labelled with C 14 or the oxygen evolution by means of polarographic measurements. The maximum photosynthetic rate has been obtained at 25 0 C for the lower lavel of illumination (2400 lux) and at 35 0 C for the higher one (13200 lux). These results suggest an interacton of temperature and illumination on photosynthetic activity. (author)

  18. Effects of growth hormone treatment on growth in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simon, D; Bechtold, S

    2009-11-01

    Several therapeutic trials have been conducted over the past decade to evaluate the role of exogenous growth hormone (GH) as a means of correcting the growth deficiency seen in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). Early studies showed the benefit of GH treatment with respect to final height in patients with JIA. Of 13 patients receiving GH, 84% (11 patients) achieved a final height within their target range compared with only 22% (4 of 18 patients) of untreated patients. There are, however, factors that may limit the statural gains achieved with GH therapy including severe inflammation, severe statural deficiency at GH therapy initiation, long disease duration and delayed puberty. Data on the efficacy of GH replacement therapy in children with JIA and factors that influence the statural growth response will be reviewed. Results from therapeutic trials show that treatment with GH can decrease the statural deficit that occurs during the active phase of JIA, producing an adult height that is close to the genetically determined target height. Copyright 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  19. Phase Coexistence in Two-Dimensional Passive and Active Dumbbell Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cugliandolo, Leticia F.; Digregorio, Pasquale; Gonnella, Giuseppe; Suma, Antonio

    2017-12-01

    We demonstrate that there is a macroscopic coexistence between regions with hexatic order and regions in the liquid or gas phase over a finite interval of packing fractions in active dumbbell systems with repulsive power-law interactions in two dimensions. In the passive limit, this interval remains finite, similar to what has been found in two-dimensional systems of hard and soft disks. We did not find discontinuous behavior upon increasing activity from the passive limit.

  20. Relationship of activity in ascending paths with phase encoding in the lumbar spinal cord

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. O. Shugurov

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available We studied the relationship of discharges phase characteristics in ascending column of spinal cord (SC and specificity of activation of neurones, which generate negative components of evoked potentials of SC. The discharges was recorded from SC at a level of a presence of dorsal column (DC, spinocervical and dorsal spinocerebellar tract in upper lumbar and thoracic segments at a stimulation of a nerve or DC. It is shown, that the phase of the discharges depends on the quantity of synaptic delays in generating chain of such signals. Thus, the phase of a signal can carry the additional information on specificity of activation of the sensory elements in CNS.

  1. Growth hormone-induced insulin resistance in human subjects involves reduced pyruvate dehydrogenase activity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nellemann, B.; Vendelbo, M.H.; Nielsen, Thomas Svava

    2014-01-01

    Insulin resistance induced by growth hormone (GH) is linked to promotion of lipolysis by unknown mechanisms. We hypothesized that suppression of the activity of pyruvate dehydrogenase in the active form (PDHa) underlies GH-induced insulin resistance similar to what is observed during fasting....

  2. Phase transitions and steady-state microstructures in a two-temperature lattice-gas model with mobile active impurities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Henriksen, Jonas Rosager; Sabra, Mads Christian; Mouritsen, Ole G.

    2000-01-01

    The nonequilibrium, steady-state phase transitions and the structure of the different phases of a two-dimensional system with two thermodynamic temperatures are studied via a simple lattice-gas model with mobile active impurities ("hot/cold spots'') whose activity is controlled by an external drive...... on the temperatures, microstructured phases of both lamellar and droplet symmetry arise, described by a length scale that is determined by the characteristic temperature controlling the diffusive motion of the active impurities....

  3. Influence of extracellular pH on growth, viability, cell size, acidification activity, and intracellular pH of Lactococcus lactis in batch fermentations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hansen, Gunda; Johansen, Claus Lindvald; Marten, Gunvor; Wilmes, Jacqueline; Jespersen, Lene; Arneborg, Nils

    2016-07-01

    In this study, we investigated the influence of three extracellular pH (pHex) values (i.e., 5.5, 6.5, and 7.5) on the growth, viability, cell size, acidification activity in milk, and intracellular pH (pHi) of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis DGCC1212 during pH-controlled batch fermentations. A universal parameter (e.g., linked to pHi) for the description or prediction of viability, specific acidification activity, or growth behavior at a given pHex was not identified. We found viability as determined by flow cytometry to remain high during all growth phases and irrespectively of the pH set point. Furthermore, regardless of the pHex, the acidification activity per cell decreased over time which seemed to be linked to cell shrinkage. Flow cytometric pHi determination demonstrated an increase of the averaged pHi level for higher pH set points, while the pH gradient (pHi-pHex) and the extent of pHi heterogeneity decreased. Cells maintained positive pH gradients at a low pHex of 5.5 and even during substrate limitation at the more widely used pHex 6.5. Moreover, the strain proved able to grow despite small negative or even absent pH gradients at a high pHex of 7.5. The larger pHi heterogeneity at pHex 5.5 and 6.5 was associated with more stressful conditions resulting, e.g., from higher concentrations of non-dissociated lactic acid, while the low pHi heterogeneity at pHex 7.5 most probably corresponded to lower concentrations of non-dissociated lactic acid which facilitated the cells to reach the highest maximum active cell counts of the three pH set points.

  4. Engineering catalytic activity via ion beam bombardment of catalyst supports for vertically aligned carbon nanotube growth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Islam, A. E.; Nikolaev, P.; Amama, P. B.; Zakharov, D.; Sargent, G.; Saber, S.; Huffman, D.; Erford, M.; Semiatin, S. L.; Stach, E. A.; Maruyama, B.

    2015-09-01

    Carbon nanotube growth depends on the catalytic activity of metal nanoparticles on alumina or silica supports. The control on catalytic activity is generally achieved by variations in water concentration, carbon feed, and sample placement on a few types of alumina or silica catalyst supports obtained via thin film deposition. We have recently expanded the choice of catalyst supports by engineering inactive substrates like c-cut sapphire via ion beam bombardment. The deterministic control on the structure and chemistry of catalyst supports obtained by tuning the degree of beam-induced damage have enabled better regulation of the activity of Fe catalysts only in the ion beam bombarded areas and hence enabled controllable super growth of carbon nanotubes. A wide range of surface characterization techniques were used to monitor the catalytically active surface engineered via ion beam bombardment. The proposed method offers a versatile way to control carbon nanotube growth in patterned areas and also enhances the current understanding of the growth process. With the right choice of water concentration, carbon feed and sample placement, engineered catalyst supports may extend the carbon nanotube growth yield to a level that is even higher than the ones reported here, and thus offers promising applications of carbon nanotubes in electronics, heat exchanger, and energy storage.

  5. Effect of oxygen on the thermomechanical behavior of tantalum thin films during the β-α phase transformation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knepper, Robert; Stevens, Blake; Baker, Shefford P.

    2006-01-01

    Tantalum thin films were prepared in the metastable β phase, and their thermomechanical behaviors were investigated in situ in an ultrahigh vacuum environment. Controlled levels of oxygen were incorporated into the films either during deposition, by surface oxidation after deposition, or during thermomechanical testing. The transformation from the β phase to the stable α phase takes place in conjunction with a distinct increase in tensile stress. The thermomechanical behavior is strongly affected by the amount of oxygen to which the film is exposed and the method of exposure. Increasing oxygen content inhibits the phase transformation, requiring higher temperatures to reach completion. It is shown that the phase transformation takes place by a nucleation and growth process that is limited by growth. Changes in the activation energy for the phase transformation due to solute drag are estimated as a function of oxygen content and the mechanisms behind the stress evolution are elucidated

  6. Growth and Extracellular Carbonic Anhydrase Activity of Zooxanthellae Symbiodinium sp. in Response of Zinc Enrichment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    WIDIASTUTI KARIM

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Coral reef communities contain a wide variety of mutualistic associations none more important than the relationship between corals and their symbiotic dinoflagellates of the genus Symbiodinium sp., commonly referred to as zooxanthellae. The function of Zinc (Zn as cofactor of several enzyme systems such as extracellular carbonic anhydrase (extracellular CA which catalyzes the interconversion of HCO3- and CO2. Concentrations of dissolved Zn in oligothropic waters are often very low therefore may limit the growth of zooxanthellae and their ability to fix CO2 from seawater via the carbonic anhydrase. The aim of this research is to investigate the effect of various concentrations of Zn on the growth and extracellular CA activity in zooxanthellae. Cell density was monitored daily by enumeration with hemocytometer-type chamber (0.1 mm. Extracellular CA was measured in homogenized intact whole cell by a pH drift assay. Results revealed that Zn status strongly influences the growth rate and extracelullar CA activity in zooxanthellae. The specific growth rate and cell density increased two-fold whilst extracelullar CA activity increased 10.5 times higher than that in control with increasing concentrations of Zn from 0 to 80 nM, but decreased when Zn was over 80 nM. Under a concentration of 80 nM was not Zn limited culture, consequently the growth rate of zooxanthellae not dependent on CO2 concentration yet offset by extracelullar CA activity.

  7. Growth and Extracellular Carbonic Anhydrase Activity of Zooxanthellae Symbiodinium sp. in Response of Zinc Enrichment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    WIDIASTUTI KARIM

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Coral reef communities contain a wide variety of mutualistic associations none more important than the relationship between corals and their symbiotic dinoflagellates of the genus Symbiodinium sp., commonly referred to as zooxanthellae. The function of Zinc (Zn as cofactor of several enzyme systems such as extracellular carbonic anhydrase (extracellular CA which catalyzes the interconversion of HCO3− and CO2. Concentrations of dissolved Zn in oligothropic waters are often very low therefore may limit the growth of zooxanthellae and their ability to fix CO2 from seawater via the carbonic anhydrase. The aim of this research is to investigate the effect of various concentrations of Zn on the growth and extracellular CA activity in zooxanthellae. Cell density was monitored daily by enumeration with hemocytometer-type chamber (0.1 mm. Extracellular CA was measured in homogenized intact whole cell by a pH drift assay. Results revealed that Zn status strongly influences the growth rate and extracelullar CA activity in zooxanthellae. The specific growth rate and cell density increased two-fold whilst extracelullar CA activity increased 10.5 times higher than that in control with increasing concentrations of Zn from 0 to 80 nM, but decreased when Zn was over 80 nM. Under a concentration of 80 nM was not Zn limited culture, consequently the growth rate of zooxanthellae not dependent on CO2 concentration yet offset by extracelullar CA activity.

  8. Time Course Exo-Metabolomic Profiling in the Green Marine Macroalga Ulva (Chlorophyta for Identification of Growth Phase-Dependent Biomarkers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Taghreed Alsufyani

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The marine green macroalga Ulva (Chlorophyta lives in a mutualistic symbiosis with bacteria that influence growth, development, and morphogenesis. We surveyed changes in Ulva’s chemosphere, which was defined as a space where organisms interact with each other via compounds, such as infochemicals, nutrients, morphogens, and defense compounds. Thereby, Ulva mutabilis cooperates with bacteria, in particular, Roseovarius sp. strain MS2 and Maribacter sp. strain MS6 (formerly identified as Roseobacter sp. strain MS2 and Cytophaga sp. strain MS6. Without this accompanying microbial flora, U. mutabilis forms only callus-like colonies. However, upon addition of the two bacteria species, in effect forming a tripartite community, morphogenesis can be completely restored. Under this strictly standardized condition, bioactive and eco-physiologically-relevant marine natural products can be discovered. Solid phase extracted waterborne metabolites were analyzed using a metabolomics platform, facilitating gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS analysis, combined with the necessary acquisition of biological metadata. Multivariate statistics of the GC-MS and LC-MS data revealed strong differences between Ulva’s growth phases, as well as between the axenic Ulva cultures and the tripartite community. Waterborne biomarkers, including glycerol, were identified as potential indicators for algal carbon source and bacterial-algal interactions. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that U. mutabilis releases glycerol that can be utilized for growth by Roseovarius sp. MS2.

  9. Phase-field modelling of β(Ti) solidification in Ti-45at.%Al: columnar dendrite growth at various gravity levels

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viardin, A.; Berger, R.; Sturz, L.; Apel, M.; Hecht, U.

    2016-03-01

    The effect of solutal convection on the solidification of γ titanium aluminides, specifically on β(Ti) dendrite growth, is not well known. With the aim of supporting directional solidification experiments under hyper-gravity using a large diameter centrifuge, 2D-phase field simulations of β(Ti) dendrite growth have been performed for the binary alloy Ti-45at.%Al and various gravity scenarios. Both, the direction and magnitude of the gravity vector were varied systematically in order to reveal the subtle interplay between the convective flow pattern and mushy zone characteristics. In this presentation, gravity effects are discussed for early dendrite growth. For selected cases the evolution on longer timescales is also analyse of and oscillatory modes leading to dynamically stable steady state growth are outlined. In a dedicated simulation series forced flow is superimposed, as to mimic thermally driven fluid flow expected to establish on the macroscopic scale (sample size) in the centrifugal experiments. Above a certain threshold this flow turns dominant and precludes solutally driven convective effects.

  10. Physical activity programs for promoting bone mineralization and growth in preterm infants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schulzke, Sven M; Kaempfen, Siree; Trachsel, Daniel; Patole, Sanjay K

    2014-04-22

    Lack of physical stimulation may contribute to metabolic bone disease of preterm infants, resulting in poor bone mineralization and growth. Physical activity programs combined with adequate nutrition might help to promote bone mineralization and growth. The primary objective was to assess whether physical activity programs in preterm infants improve bone mineralization and growth and reduce the risk of fracture.The secondary objectives included other potential benefits in terms of length of hospital stay, skeletal deformities and neurodevelopmental outcomes, and adverse events.Subgroup analysis:• Given that the smallest infants are most vulnerable for developing osteopenia (Bishop 1999), a subgroup analysis was planned for infants with birth weight affect an infant's ability to increase bone mineral content (Kuschel 2004). Therefore, an additional subgroup analysis was planned for infants receiving different amounts of calcium and phosphorus, along with full enteral feeds as follows. ∘ Below 100 mg/60 mg calcium/phosphorus or equal to/above 100 mg/60 mg calcium/phosphorus per 100 mL milk. ∘ Supplementation of calcium without phosphorus. ∘ Supplementation of phosphorus without calcium. The standard search strategy of the Cochrane Neonatal Review Group (CNRG) was used. The search included the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (2012, Issue 9), MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL (1966 to March 2013), and cross-references, as well as handsearching of abstracts of the Society for Pediatric Research and the International Journal of Sports Medicine. Randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials comparing physical activity programs (extension and flexion, range-of-motion exercises) versus no organized physical activity programs in preterm infants. Data collection, study selection, and data analysis were performed according to the methods of the CNRG. Eleven trials enrolling 324 preterm infants (gestational age 26 to 34 weeks) were included in this

  11. GAS PHASE SELECTIVE PHOTOXIDATION OF ALCOHOLS USING LIGHT-ACTIVATED TITANIUM DIOXIDE AND MOLECULAR OXYGEN

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gas Phase Selective Oxidation of Alcohols Using Light-Activated Titanium Dioxide and Molecular Oxygen Gas phase selective oxidations of various primary and secondary alcohols are studied in an indigenously built stainless steel up-flow photochemical reactor using ultravi...

  12. Effect of aflatoxin B1 on growth and enzymatic activity of a native strain of Bacillus sp

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alex Sáez Vega

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available The effect of different aflatoxin B1 (AFAB1 concentrations on alkaline protease growth and enzymatic activity was evaluated; a native strain of alkalophilic Bacillus sp cultivated in CSL (Corn Steep Liquor was used. It was found that the effect of AFAB1 on the strain inhibited its growth and enzymatic activity to 1 ppm, showing that the strain is highly sensible to AFAB1, meaning that medium obtained f rom Colombian corn contaminated with this mycotoxin cannot be easily used. Concentrations less than 0.1 ppm did not affect growth and enzymatic activity. Key words: Bacillus, aflatoxin, alkaline proteases.

  13. Phase 1 dose-escalation study of the antiplacental growth factor monoclonal antibody RO5323441 combined with bevacizumab in patients with recurrent glioblastoma

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lassen, Ulrik; Chinot, Olivier L; McBain, Catherine

    2015-01-01

    BACKGROUND: We conducted a phase 1 dose-escalation study of RO5323441, a novel antiplacental growth factor (PlGF) monoclonal antibody, to establish the recommended dose for use with bevacizumab and to investigate the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, safety/tolerability, and preliminary clinica...

  14. Large-Aperture Membrane Active Phased-Array Antennas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karasik, Boris; McGrath, William; Leduc, Henry

    2009-01-01

    Large-aperture phased-array microwave antennas supported by membranes are being developed for use in spaceborne interferometric synthetic aperture radar systems. There may also be terrestrial uses for such antennas supported on stationary membranes, large balloons, and blimps. These antennas are expected to have areal mass densities of about 2 kg/sq m, satisfying a need for lightweight alternatives to conventional rigid phased-array antennas, which have typical areal mass densities between 8 and 15 kg/sq m. The differences in areal mass densities translate to substantial differences in total mass in contemplated applications involving aperture areas as large as 400 sq m. A membrane phased-array antenna includes patch antenna elements in a repeating pattern. All previously reported membrane antennas were passive antennas; this is the first active membrane antenna that includes transmitting/receiving (T/R) electronic circuits as integral parts. Other integral parts of the antenna include a network of radio-frequency (RF) feed lines (more specifically, a corporate feed network) and of bias and control lines, all in the form of flexible copper strip conductors on flexible polymeric membranes. Each unit cell of a prototype antenna (see Figure 1) contains a patch antenna element and a compact T/R module that is compatible with flexible membrane circuitry. There are two membrane layers separated by a 12.7-mm air gap. Each membrane layer is made from a commercially available flexible circuit material that, as supplied, comprises a 127-micron-thick polyimide dielectric layer clad on both sides with 17.5-micron-thick copper layers. The copper layers are patterned into RF, bias, and control conductors. The T/R module is located on the back side of the ground plane and is RF-coupled to the patch element via a slot. The T/R module is a hybrid multilayer module assembled and packaged independently and attached to the membrane array. At the time of reporting the information for

  15. Phonon activity and intermediate glassy phase of YVO3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Massa, Nestor E.; Piamonteze, Cinthia; Tolentino, Helio C.N.; Alonso, Jose Antonio; Martinez-Lope, Maria Jesus; Casais, Maria Teresa

    2004-01-01

    We show that in YVO 3 additional hard phonons gradually become zone center infrared active below ∼210 K, verifying that a lattice phase transition takes place at about that temperature. Their gradual increment in intensity between ∼210 and ∼77 K is associated with a 'glassy' behavior found in the temperature-dependent V K edge pseudoradial distribution. This translates into an increase in the Debye-Waller factors ascribed to the appearance of V local structural disorder below ∼150 K. Conflicts between various ordering mechanisms in YVO 3 bring up similarities of the intermediate phase to known results in dielectric incommensurate systems, suggesting the formation of commensurate domains below 116 K, the onset temperature of G-type antiferromagnetism. We propose that ∼210 and ∼77 K be understood as the temperatures where the commensurate-incommensurate and incommensurate-commensurate 'lock-in' phase transitions take place. We found support for this interpretation in the inverted λ shapes of the measured heat capacity and in the overall temperature dependence of the hard phonons

  16. Radioimmunological activity of 22K variant of human growth hormone

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Camillo, M.A.P.; Ribela, M.T.C.P.; Rogero, J.R.

    1986-01-01

    From a preparation of human growth hormone its integral variant (hGH-22K) was isolated by isoelectric focusing, having a pI of 5,20 and relative mobility (Rm) of 0,621 in the polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Several experiments for the characterization of the isolated variant were carried out. The immunological properties was tested by radioimmunoassay (RIE), in which the activity of the isolated variant and the activity of the total preparation were compared. The dose response-curves obtained by RIE were found to be considered parallels (p [pt

  17. High growth rate GaN on 200 mm silicon by metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy for high electron mobility transistors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charles, M.; Baines, Y.; Bavard, A.; Bouveyron, R.

    2018-02-01

    It is increasingly important to reduce the cycle time of epitaxial growth, in order to reduce the costs of device fabrication, especially for GaN based structures which typically have growth cycles of several hours. We have performed a comprehensive study using metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) investigating the effects of changing GaN growth rates from 0.9 to 14.5 μm/h. Although there is no significant effect on the strain incorporated in the layers, we have seen changes in the surface morphology which can be related to the change in dislocation behaviour and surface diffusion effects. At the small scale, as seen by AFM, increased dislocation density for higher growth rates leads to increased pinning of growth terraces, resulting in more closely spaced terraces. At a larger scale of hundreds of μm observed by optical profiling, we have related the formation of grains to the rate of surface diffusion of adatoms using a random walk model, implying diffusion distances from 30 μm for the highest growth rates up to 100 μm for the lowest. The increased growth rate also increases the intrinsic carbon incorporation which can increase the breakdown voltage of GaN films. Despite an increased threading dislocation density, these very high growth rates of 14.5 μm/hr by MOVPE have been shown to be appealing for reducing epitaxial growth cycle times and therefore costs in High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) structures.

  18. Energy and protein requirements for growth of the local domestic ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The diet 3 in the grower phase improved growth with the highest EFU, 0.12, and was better utilized by the birds than in the chick starter phase where it was least utilized. High energy, high protein diet enhanced growth while low energy, high protein diet did not support maximum growth especially in the chick starter phase.

  19. Growth of ZnO nanostructures on Au-coated Si: Influence of growth temperature on growth mechanism and morphology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kumar, Rajendra; McGlynn, E.; Biswas, M.

    2008-01-01

    ZnO nanostructures were grown on Au-catalyzed Si silicon substrates using vapor phase transport at growth temperatures from 800 to 1150 degrees C. The sample location ensured a low Zn vapor supersaturation during growth. Nanostructures grown at 800 and 850 degrees C showed a faceted rodlike...... growth tended to dominate resulting in the formation of a porous, nanostructured morphology. In all cases growth was seen only on the Au-coated region. Our results show that the majority of the nanostructures grow via a vapor-solid mechanism at low growth temperatures with no evidence of Au nanoparticles...

  20. Moxifloxacin and ciprofloxacin induces S-phase arrest and augments apoptotic effects of cisplatin in human pancreatic cancer cells via ERK activation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yadav, Vikas; Varshney, Pallavi; Sultana, Sarwat; Yadav, Jyoti; Saini, Neeru

    2015-01-01

    Pancreatic cancer, one of the most dreadful gastrointestinal tract malignancies, with the current chemotherapeutic drugs has posed a major impediment owing to poor prognosis and chemo-resistance thereby suggesting critical need for additional drugs as therapeutics in combating the situation. Fluoroquinolones have shown promising and significant anti-tumor effects on several carcinoma cell lines. Previously, we reported growth inhibitory effects of fourth generation fluoroquinolone Gatifloxacin, while in the current study we have investigated the anti-proliferative and apoptosis-inducing mechanism of older generation fluoroquinolones Moxifloxacin and Ciprofloxacin on the pancreatic cancer cell-lines MIA PaCa-2 and Panc-1. Cytotoxicity was measured by MTT assay. Apoptosis induction was evaluated using annexin assay, cell cycle assay and activation of caspase-3, 8, 9 were measured by western blotting and enzyme activity assay. Herein, we found that both the fluoroquinolones suppressed the proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells by causing S-phase arrest and apoptosis. Blockade in S-phase of cell cycle was associated with decrease in the levels of p27, p21, CDK2, cyclin-A and cyclin-E. Herein we also observed triggering of extrinsic as well as intrinsic mitochondrial apoptotic pathway as suggested by the activation of caspase-8, 9, 3, and Bid respectively. All this was accompanied by downregulation of antiapoptotic protein Bcl-xL and upregulation of proapoptotic protein Bak. Our results strongly suggest the role of extracellular-signal-regulated kinases (ERK1/2), but not p53, p38 and c-JUN N-terminal kinase (JNK) in fluoroquinolone induced growth inhibitory effects in both the cell lines. Additionally, we also found both the fluoroquinolones to augment the apoptotic effects of broad spectrum anticancer drug Cisplatin via ERK. The fact that these fluoroquinolones synergize the effect of cisplatin opens new insight into therapeutic index in treatment of pancreatic

  1. MATHEMATICAL OPTIMIZATION METHODS TO ESTABLISH ACTIVE PHASES ON HETEROGENEOUS CATALYSIS: CASE OF BULK TRANSITION METAL SULPHIDES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Iván Machín

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a set of procedures based on mathematical optimization methods to establish optimal active sulphide phases with higher HDS activity. This paper proposes a list of active phases as a guide for orienting the experimental work in the search of new catalysts that permit optimize the HDS process. Studies in this paper establish Co-S, Cr-S, Nb-S and Ni-S systems have the greatest potential to improve HDS activity.

  2. Endocrine Regulation of Compensatory Growth in Fish

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eugene T. Won

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Compensatory growth (CG is a period of accelerated growth that occurs following the alleviation of growth-stunting conditions during which an organism can make up for lost growth opportunity and potentially catch-up in size with non-stunted cohorts. Fish show a particularly robust capacity for the response and have been the focus of numerous studies that demonstrate their ability to compensate for periods of fasting once food is made available again. Compensatory growth is characterized by an elevated growth rate resulting from enhanced feed intake, mitogen production and feed conversion efficiency. Because little is known about the underlying mechanisms that drive the response, this review describes the sequential endocrine adaptations that lead to CG; namely during the precedent catabolic phase (fasting that taps endogenous energy reserves, and the following hyperanabolic phase (refeeding when accelerated growth occurs. In order to elicit a CG response, endogenous energy reserves must first be moderately depleted, which alters endocrine profiles that enhance appetite and growth potential. During this catabolic phase, elevated ghrelin and growth hormone (GH production increase appetite and protein-sparing lipolysis, while insulin-like growth factors (IGFs are suppressed, primarily due to hepatic GH resistance. During refeeding, temporal hyperphagia provides an influx of energy and metabolic substrates that are then allocated to somatic growth by resumed IGF signaling. Under the right conditions, refeeding results in hyperanabolism and a steepened growth trajectory relative to constantly fed controls. The response wanes as energy reserves are re-accumulated and homeostasis is restored. We ascribe possible roles for select appetite and growth-regulatory hormones in the context of these catabolic and hyperanabolic phases of the CG response in teleosts, with emphasis on GH, IGFs, cortisol, somatostatin, neuropeptide Y, ghrelin and leptin.

  3. Evaluation of Apoptotic and Growth Inhibitory Activity of Phloretin in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Results: The results show that the inhibitory activity of phloretin in BGC823 gastric cancer cells was mediated by induction of apoptosis ... anti-proliferative effects of phloretin was dose-dependent and inhibited the growth of BGC823 gastric cancer cells by 73 % at 30 μM; .... weeks at 37 °C in 5 % CO2 in humidified incubator.

  4. Formation of binucleated myocardial cells in the neonatal rat. An index for growth hypertrophy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Clubb, F.J. Jr.; Bishop, S.P.

    1984-01-01

    The purposes of this study were to characterize myocardial cell growth in neonatal rats and investigate the mechanism of binucleation in myocardial cells. To test the hypothesis that binucleated myocardial cells result from karyokinesis without cytokinesis, experiments were designed to measure the rate of DNA synthesis and the percentage of binucleated myocardial cells in neonatal rats during growth. Estimates of myocardial cell nuclear divisions were obtained from rats pulsed with tritiated thymidine at 17 days of gestation. Autoradiograms were prepared from isolated myocardial cells of rats killed at various ages postpartum, and the number of developed silver halide grains over myocardial cell nuclei was calculated. This estimated the mitotic activity of nuclei. To determine myocardial cell DNA synthesis postpartum, another set of rats were injected at various time periods with 4 hourly doses of tritiated thymidine, and hearts were fixed by perfusion 1 hour later. Labeling index of myocardial cells was calculated (labeled/total myocardial cells) from autoradiograms. Results indicated that the growth of myocardial cells in period can be divided into three phases: (a) a hyperplastic phase, (b) a transitional phase, and (c) a hypertrophic phase. Binucleation of myocardial cells was not due to fusion of mononucleated cells

  5. Living bacteria rheology: Population growth, aggregation patterns, and collective behavior under different shear flows

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patrício, P.; Almeida, P. L.; Portela, R.; Sobral, R. G.; Grilo, I. R.; Cidade, T.; Leal, C. R.

    2014-08-01

    The activity of growing living bacteria was investigated using real-time and in situ rheology—in stationary and oscillatory shear. Two different strains of the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus—strain COL and its isogenic cell wall autolysis mutant, RUSAL9—were considered in this work. For low bacteria density, strain COL forms small clusters, while the mutant, presenting deficient cell separation, forms irregular larger aggregates. In the early stages of growth, when subjected to a stationary shear, the viscosity of the cultures of both strains increases with the population of cells. As the bacteria reach the exponential phase of growth, the viscosity of the cultures of the two strains follows different and rich behaviors, with no counterpart in the optical density or in the population's colony-forming units measurements. While the viscosity of strain COL culture keeps increasing during the exponential phase and returns close to its initial value for the late phase of growth, where the population stabilizes, the viscosity of the mutant strain culture decreases steeply, still in the exponential phase, remains constant for some time, and increases again, reaching a constant plateau at a maximum value for the late phase of growth. These complex viscoelastic behaviors, which were observed to be shear-stress-dependent, are a consequence of two coupled effects: the cell density continuous increase and its changing interacting properties. The viscous and elastic moduli of strain COL culture, obtained with oscillatory shear, exhibit power-law behaviors whose exponents are dependent on the bacteria growth stage. The viscous and elastic moduli of the mutant culture have complex behaviors, emerging from the different relaxation times that are associated with the large molecules of the medium and the self-organized structures of bacteria. Nevertheless, these behaviors reflect the bacteria growth stage.

  6. Extended vapor-liquid-solid growth of silicon carbide nanowires.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajesh, John Anthuvan; Pandurangan, Arumugam

    2014-04-01

    We developed an alloy catalytic method to explain extended vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth of silicon carbide nanowires (SiC NWs) by a simple thermal evaporation of silicon and activated carbon mixture using lanthanum nickel (LaNi5) alloy as catalyst in a chemical vapor deposition process. The LaNi5 alloy binary phase diagram and the phase relationships in the La-Ni-Si ternary system were play a key role to determine the growth parameters in this VLS mechanism. Different reaction temperatures (1300, 1350 and 1400 degrees C) were applied to prove the established growth process by experimentally. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy studies show that the crystalline quality of the SiC NWs increases with the temperature at which they have been synthesized. La-Ni alloyed catalyst particles observed on the top of the SiC NWs confirms that the growth process follows this extended VLS mechanism. The X-ray diffraction and confocal Raman spectroscopy analyses demonstrate that the crystalline structure of the SiC NWs was zinc blende 3C-SiC. Optical property of the SiC NWs was investigated by photoluminescence technique at room temperature. Such a new alloy catalytic method may be extended to synthesis other one-dimensional nanostructures.

  7. Fabrication of a Schottky junction diode with direct growth graphene on silicon by a solid phase reaction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kalita, Golap; Hirano, Ryo; Ayhan, Muhammed E; Tanemura, Masaki

    2013-01-01

    We demonstrate fabrication of a Schottky junction diode with direct growth graphene on n-Si by the solid phase reaction approach. Metal-assisted crystallization of a-C thin film was performed to synthesize transfer-free graphene directly on a SiO 2 patterned n-Si substrate. Graphene formation at the substrate and catalyst layer interface is achieved in presence of a Co catalytic and CoO carbon diffusion barrier layer. The as-synthesized material shows a linear current–voltage characteristic confirming the metallic behaviour of the graphene structure. The direct grown graphene on n-Si substrate creates a Schottky junction with a potential barrier of 0.44 eV and rectification diode characteristic. Our finding shows that the directly synthesized graphene on Si substrate by a solid phase reaction process can be a promising technique to fabricate an efficient Schottky junction device. (paper)

  8. Requirement of carbon dioxide for initial growth of facultative methylotroph, Acidomonas methanolica MB58.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitsui, Ryoji; Katayama, Hiroko; Tanaka, Mitsuo

    2015-07-01

    The facultative methylotrophic bacterium Acidomonas methanolica MB58 can utilize C1 compounds via the ribulose monophosphate pathway. A large gene cluster comprising three components related to C1 metabolism was found in the genome. From upstream, the first was an mxa cluster encoding proteins for oxidation of methanol to formaldehyde; the second was the rmp cluster encoding enzymes for formaldehyde fixation; and the third was the cbb gene cluster encoding proteins for carbon dioxide (CO2) fixation. Examination of CO2 requirements for growth of A. methanolica MB58 cells demonstrated that it did not grow on any carbon source under CO2-free conditions. Measurement of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase activity and RT-PCR analysis demonstrated enzymatic activity was detected in A. methanolica MB58 at growth phase, regardless of carbon sources. However, methanol dehydrogenase and 3-hexlose-6-phosphate synthase expression was regulated by methanol or formaldehyde; it were detected during growth and apparently differed from ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase expression. These results suggested that A. methanolica MB58 may be initially dependent on autotrophic growth and that carbon assimilation was subsequently coupled with the ribulose monophosphate pathway at early- to mid-log phases during methylotrophic growth. Copyright © 2014 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  9. Antibacterial activity of irradiated and non-irradiated chitosan and chitosan derivatives against Escherichia coli growth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tg Ahbrizal Farizal Tg Ahmad; Norimah Yusof; Kamarudin Bahari; Kamaruddin Hashim

    2006-01-01

    Samples of chitosan and four chitosan derivatives [ionic chitosan, chitosan lactate, carboxymethyl chitosan (C) and carboxymethyl chitosan (L)] were studied for their antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli growth. Chitosan and chitosan derivatives were prepared at concentrations 20, 100, 1000, 10000 ppm and 250, 1000, 5000, 10000, 20000 ppm, respectively. Each of the samples was tested before and after irradiation with electron beam at 25 kGy. The turbidity of bacterial growth media was measured periodically at 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6 and 24 h after inoculation using the optical density method. The results indicated that non- irradiated chitosan inhibited E. coli growth at 20 and 100 ppm. Meanwhile, irradiated chitosan at 100 and 1000 ppm concentration inhibited E. coli growth. Both irradiated and non-irradiated ionic chitosan inhibited E. coli growth at all concentrations used. Chitosan lactate was found to inhibit E. coli at concentration as low as 5000 ppm for both irradiated and non-irradiated samples. E. coli growth was not inhibited by carboxymethyl chitosan (C) and carboxymethyl chitosan (L), before and after irradiation. The findings suggested that chitosan has greater antibacterial activity as compared to the chitosan derivative samples. (Author)

  10. Temporal transcriptomic analysis of Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough transition into stationary phase growth during electrondonor depletion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Clark, M.E.; He, Q.; He, Z.; Huang, K.H.; Alm, E.J.; Wan, X.-F.; Hazen, T.C.; Arkin, A.P.; Wall, J.D.; Zhou, J.-Z.; Fields, M.W.

    2006-08-01

    Desulfovibrio vulgaris was cultivated in a defined medium, and biomass was sampled for approximately 70 h to characterize the shifts in gene expression as cells transitioned from the exponential to the stationary phase during electron donor depletion. In addition to temporal transcriptomics, total protein, carbohydrate, lactate, acetate, and sulfate levels were measured. The microarray data were examined for statistically significant expression changes, hierarchical cluster analysis, and promoter element prediction and were validated by quantitative PCR. As the cells transitioned from the exponential phase to the stationary phase, a majority of the down-expressed genes were involved in translation and transcription, and this trend continued at the remaining times. There were general increases in relative expression for intracellular trafficking and secretion, ion transport, and coenzyme metabolism as the cells entered the stationary phase. As expected, the DNA replication machinery was down-expressed, and the expression of genes involved in DNA repair increased during the stationary phase. Genes involved in amino acid acquisition, carbohydrate metabolism, energy production, and cell envelope biogenesis did not exhibit uniform transcriptional responses. Interestingly, most phage-related genes were up-expressed at the onset of the stationary phase. This result suggested that nutrient depletion may affect community dynamics and DNA transfer mechanisms of sulfate-reducing bacteria via the phage cycle. The putative feoAB system (in addition to other presumptive iron metabolism genes) was significantly up-expressed, and this suggested the possible importance of Fe{sup 2+} acquisition under metal-reducing conditions. The expression of a large subset of carbohydrate-related genes was altered, and the total cellular carbohydrate levels declined during the growth phase transition. Interestingly, the D. vulgaris genome does not contain a putative rpoS gene, a common attribute

  11. Treatment of AVN Using Autologous BM Stem Cells and Activated Platelet-Derived Growth Factor Concentrates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nandeesh, Nagaraj H; Janardhan, Kiranmayee; Subramanian, Vignesh; Ashtekar, Abhishek Bhushan; Srikruthi, Nandagiri; Koka, Prasad S; Deb, Kaushik

    Avascular Necrosis (AVN) of hip is a devastating condition seen in younger individuals. It is the ischemic death of the constituents of the bone cartilage of the hip. The femoral head (FH) is the most common site for AVN. It results from interruption of the normal blood flow to the FH that fits into the hip socket. Earlier studies using autologous bone marrow stem cell concentrate injections have shown encouraging results with average success rates. The current study was designed to improve significantly the cartilage regeneration and clinical outcome. Total of 48 patients underwent autologous bone marrow stem cell and activated platelet-rich plasma derived growth factor concentrate (PRP-GFC) therapy for early and advanced stages AVN of femoral head in a single multi-specialty center. The total treatment was divided into three phases. In the phase I, all the clinical diagnostic measurements such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) etc. with respect to the AVN patients and bone marrow aspiration from posterior iliac spine from the patients were carried out. In the phase II, isolation of stem cells and preparation from the patients were performed. Subsequently, in phase III, the stem cells and PRP- GFCs were transplanted in the enrolled patients. Ninety three percent of the enrolled AVN patients showed marked enhancement in the hip bone joint space (more than 3mm) after combined stem cells and PRP-GFC treatment as evidenced by comparison of the pre- and post-treatment MRI data thus indicative of regeneration of cartilage. The treated patients showed significant improvement in their motor function, cartilage regrowth (3 to 10mm), and high satisfaction in the two-year follow-up. Combination of stem cell and PRP-GFC therapy has shown promising cartilage regeneration in 45 out of 48 patients of AVN. This study clearly demonstrates the safety and efficacy of this treatment. Larger numbers of patients need to be evaluated to better understand the

  12. Epidermal growth factor and active caspase-3 expression in the levator ani muscle of dogs with and without perineal hernia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez-Gutiérrez, J F; Argüelles, J C; Iglesias-Núñez, M; Oliveira, K S; De La Muela, M Sánchez

    2011-07-01

    To perform a histological and immunohistochemical study of epidermal growth factor, transforming growth factor-alpha and their receptor, as well as the apoptotic signal active caspase-3 in the levator ani muscle of dogs with and without perineal hernia. Biopsy specimens of the levator ani muscle were obtained from 25 dogs with perineal hernia and 4 non-affected dogs and were processed for Masson and immunohistochemical staining. The affected dogs exhibited myopathological features, internalised nuclei, destruction and abnormal size of muscle fibres, which were replaced by collagen. The immunohistochemical study revealed active caspase-3, epidermal growth factor, transforming growth factor-alpha and epidermal growth factor receptor in the levator ani. Compared to the healthy muscle, transforming growth factor-alpha staining intensity was lower in the affected muscle, whereas epidermal growth factor receptor and active caspase-3 staining were higher. Pelvic diaphragm muscle weakening is the leading cause of perineal hernia in the dog. Survival and death signals expressed in these muscles may contribute to the pathogenesis of this disease. This study reports epidermal growth factor, transforming growth factor-alpha and epidermal growth factor receptor immunohistochemical expression in the skeletal muscle and suggests that perineal hernia in the dog is accompanied by levator ani muscle atrophy, increased expression of epidermal growth factor receptor, caspase-3 activation, and decreased expression of transforming growth factor-alpha. © 2011 British Small Animal Veterinary Association.

  13. Homoepitaxial VPE growth of SiC active layers

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Burk, A.A. Jr. [Northrop Grumman Electron. Sensors and Syst. Div., Baltimore, MD (United States); Rowland, L.B. [Northrop Grumman Sci. and Technol. Center, Pittsburgh, PA (United States)

    1997-07-01

    SiC active layers of tailored thickness and doping form the heart of all SiC electronic devices. These layers are most conveniently formed by vapor phase epitaxy (VPE). Exacting requirements are placed upon the SiC-VPE layers` material properties by both semiconductor device physics and available methods of device processing. In this paper, the current ability of the SiC-VPE process to meet these requirements is described along with continuing improvements in SiC epitaxial reactors, processes and materials. (orig.) 48 refs.

  14. Activated-Lignite-Based Super Large Granular Slow-Release Fertilizers Improve Apple Tree Growth: Synthesis, Characterizations, and Laboratory and Field Evaluations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Yafu; Wang, Xinying; Yang, Yuechao; Gao, Bin; Wan, Yongshan; Li, Yuncong C; Cheng, Dongdong

    2017-07-26

    In this work, lignite, a low-grade coal, was modified using the solid-phase activation method with the aid of a Pd/CeO 2 nanoparticle catalyst to improve its pore structure and nutrient absorption. Results indicate that the adsorption ability of the activated lignite to NO 3 - , NH 4 + , H 2 PO 4 - , and K + was significantly higher than that of raw lignite. The activated lignite was successfully combined with the polymeric slow-release fertilizer, which exhibits typical slow-release behavior, to prepare the super large granular activated lignite slow-release fertilizer (SAF). In addition to the slow-release ability, the SAF showed excellent water-retention capabilities. Soil column leaching experiments further confirmed the slow-release characteristics of the SAF with fertilizer nutrient loss greatly reduced in comparison to traditional and slow-release fertilizers. Furthermore, field tests of the SAF in an orchard showed that the novel SAF was better than other tested fertilizers in improve the growth of young apple trees. Findings from this study suggest that the newly developed SAF has great potential to be used in apple cultivation and production systems in the future.

  15. Impact of lead tolerant plant growth promoting rhizobacteria on growth, physiology, antioxidant activities, yield and lead content in sunflower in lead contaminated soil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saleem, Muhammad; Asghar, Hafiz Naeem; Zahir, Zahir Ahmad; Shahid, Muhammad

    2018-03-01

    Present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of lead tolerant plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (LTPGPR) on growth, physiology, yield, antioxidant activities and lead uptake in sunflower in soil contaminated with lead under pot conditions. Three pre-characterized LTPGP strains (S2 (Pseudomonas gessardii strain BLP141), S5 (Pseudomonas fluorescens A506) and S10 (Pseudomonas fluorescens strain LMG 2189)) were used to inoculate sunflower growing in soil contaminated with different levels (300, 600 and 900 mg kg -1 ) of lead by using lead nitrate salt as source of lead. Treatments were arranged according to completely randomized design with factorial arrangements. At harvesting, data regarding growth attributes (root shoot length, root shoot fresh and dry weights), yield per plant, physiological attributes (Chlorophyll 'a', 'b' and carotenoids content), antioxidant activities (Ascorbate peroxidase, catalase, superoxide dismutase and glutathione reductase), proline and malanodialdehyde content, and lead content in root, shoot and achenes of sunflower were recorded. Data were analysed by standard statistical procedures. Results showed that lead contamination reduced the plants growth, physiology and yield at all levels of lead stress. But application of LTPGPR in soil contaminated with lead improved plant growth, physiology, yield, and antioxidant activities, proline, and reduced the malanodialdehyde content (that is reduced by the application of different strains in lead contamination) of sunflower as compared to plants grown in soil without inoculation. Inoculation also promoted the uptake of lead in root, shoots and reduced the uptake of lead in achenes of plants as compared to plants in lead contamination without inoculation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Dual-scale phase-field simulation of Mg-Al alloy solidification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Monas, A; Shchyglo, O; Tegeler, M; Steinbach, I; Höche, D

    2015-01-01

    Phase-field simulations of the nucleation and growth of primary α-Mg phase as well as secondary, β-phase of a Mg-Al alloy are presented. The nucleation model for α- and β-Mg phases is based on the “free growth model” by Greer et al.. After the α-Mg phase solidification we study a divorced eutectic growth of α- and β-Mg phases in a zoomed in melt channel between α-phase dendrites. The simulated cooling curves and final microstructures of α-grains are compared with experiments. In order to further enhance the resolution of the interdendritic region a high-performance computing approach has been used allowing significant simulation speed gain when using supercomputing facilities. (paper)

  17. Self-Limited Growth in Pentacene Thin Films.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pachmajer, Stefan; Jones, Andrew O F; Truger, Magdalena; Röthel, Christian; Salzmann, Ingo; Werzer, Oliver; Resel, Roland

    2017-04-05

    Pentacene is one of the most studied organic semiconducting materials. While many aspects of the film formation have already been identified in very thin films, this study provides new insight into the transition from the metastable thin-film phase to bulk phase polymorphs. This study focuses on the growth behavior of pentacene within thin films as a function of film thickness ranging from 20 to 300 nm. By employing various X-ray diffraction methods, combined with supporting atomic force microscopy investigations, one crystalline orientation for the thin-film phase is observed, while three differently tilted bulk phase orientations are found. First, bulk phase crystallites grow with their 00L planes parallel to the substrate surface; second, however, crystallites tilted by 0.75° with respect to the substrate are found, which clearly dominate the former in ratio; third, a different bulk phase polymorph with crystallites tilted by 21° is found. The transition from the thin-film phase to the bulk phase is rationalized by the nucleation of the latter at crystal facets of the thin-film-phase crystallites. This leads to a self-limiting growth of the thin-film phase and explains the thickness-dependent phase behavior observed in pentacene thin films, showing that a large amount of material is present in the bulk phase much earlier during the film growth than previously thought.

  18. Purification of Active Myrosinase from Plants by Aqueous Two-Phase Counter-Current Chromatography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wade, Kristina L.; Ito, Yoichiro; Ramarathnam, Aarthi; Holtzclaw, W. David; Fahey, Jed W.

    2014-01-01

    Introduction Myrosinase (thioglucoside glucohydrolase; E.C. 3.2.1.147), is a plant enzyme of increasing interest and importance to the biomedical community. Myrosinase catalyses the formation of isothiocyanates such as sulforaphane (frombroccoli) and 4-(α-l-rhamnopyranosyloxy)benzyl isothiocyanate (from moringa), which are potent inducers of the cytoprotective phase-2 response in humans, by hydrolysis of their abundant glucosinolate (β-thioglucoside N-hydroxysulphate) precursors. Objective To develop an aqueous two-phase counter-current chromatography (CCC) system for the rapid, three-step purification of catalytically active myrosinase. Methods A high-concentration potassium phosphate and polyethylene glycol biphasic aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) is used with a newly developed CCC configuration that utilises spiral-wound, flat-twisted tubing (with an ovoid cross-section). Results Making the initial crude plant extract directly in the ATPS and injecting only the lower phase permitted highly selective partitioning of the myrosinase complex before a short chromatography on a spiral disk CCC. Optimum phase retention and separation of myrosinase from other plant proteins afforded a 60-fold purification. Conclusion Catalytically active myrosinase is purified from 3-day broccoli sprouts, 7-day daikon sprouts, mustard seeds and the leaves of field-grown moringa trees, in a CCC system that is predictably scalable. PMID:25130502

  19. Purification of active myrosinase from plants by aqueous two-phase counter-current chromatography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wade, Kristina L; Ito, Yoichiro; Ramarathnam, Aarthi; Holtzclaw, W David; Fahey, Jed W

    2015-01-01

    Myrosinase (thioglucoside glucohydrolase; E.C. 3.2.1.147), is a plant enzyme of increasing interest and importance to the biomedical community. Myrosinase catalyses the formation of isothiocyanates such as sulforaphane (from broccoli) and 4-(α-l-rhamnopyranosyloxy)benzyl isothiocyanate (from moringa), which are potent inducers of the cytoprotective phase-2 response in humans, by hydrolysis of their abundant glucosinolate (β-thioglucoside N-hydroxysulphate) precursors. To develop an aqueous two-phase counter-current chromatography (CCC) system for the rapid, three-step purification of catalytically active myrosinase. A high-concentration potassium phosphate and polyethylene glycol biphasic aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) is used with a newly developed CCC configuration that utilises spiral-wound, flat-twisted tubing (with an ovoid cross-section). Making the initial crude plant extract directly in the ATPS and injecting only the lower phase permitted highly selective partitioning of the myrosinase complex before a short chromatography on a spiral disk CCC. Optimum phase retention and separation of myrosinase from other plant proteins afforded a 60-fold purification. Catalytically active myrosinase is purified from 3-day broccoli sprouts, 7-day daikon sprouts, mustard seeds and the leaves of field-grown moringa trees, in a CCC system that is predictably scalable. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  20. Activation of AMPK inhibits cervical cancer cell growth through AKT/FOXO3a/FOXM1 signaling cascade

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yung, Mingo Ming Ho; Chan, David Wai; Liu, Vincent Wing Sun; Yao, Kwok-Ming; Ngan, Hextan Yuen-Sheung

    2013-01-01

    Although advanced-stage cervical cancer can benefit from current treatments, approximately 30% patients may fail after definitive treatment eventually. Therefore, exploring alternative molecular therapeutic approaches is imperatively needed for this disease. We have recently shown that activation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a metabolic sensor, hampers cervical cancer cell growth through blocking the Wnt/β-catenin signaling activity. Here, we report that activated AMPK (p-AMPK) also inhibits cervical cancer cell growth by counteracting FOXM1 function. Effect of the activation of AMPK on FOXM1 expression was examined by hypoxia and glucose deprivation, as well as pharmacological AMPK activators such as A23187, AICAR and metformin. RT Q-PCR and Western blot analysis were employed to investigate the activities of AMPK, FOXM1 and AKT/FOXO3a signaling. Consistent with our previous findings, the activation of AMPK by either AMPK activators such as AICAR, A23187, metformin, glucose deprivation or hypoxia significantly inhibited the cervical cancer cell growth. Importantly, we found that activated AMPK activity was concomitantly associated with the reduction of both the mRNA and protein levels of FOXM1. Mechanistically, we showed that activated AMPK was able to reduce AKT mediated phosphorylation of p-FOXO3a (Ser253). Interestingly, activated AMPK could not cause any significant changes in FOXM1 in cervical cancer cells in which endogenous FOXO3a levels were knocked down using siRNAs, suggesting that FOXO3a is involved in the suppression of FOXM1. Taken together, our results suggest the activated AMPK impedes cervical cancer cell growth through reducing the expression of FOXM1

  1. PRODIGIOSIN INDUCES AUTOLYSINS IN ACTIVELY GROWN Bacillus subtilis CELLS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tjasa eDanevcic

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Prodigiosin produced by marine bacterium Vibrio ruber DSM 14379 exhibits a potent antimicrobial activity against a broad range of Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria. The mechanism of prodigiosin antimicrobial action, however, is not known. In this work, the effect of prodigiosin on B. subtilis growth, cell membrane leakage, and induction of autolysins was studied. Treating B. subtilis with prodigiosin resulted in rapid decline of optical density and increased cell membrane leakage measured by β-galactosidase activity. Cell lysis was initiated immediately after treatment with prodigiosin in the middle exponential phase and was completed within two hours. Lytic activity of prodigiosin in mutant strains with impaired autolysin genes lytABCD decreased for 80 % compared to the wild-type strain, while in lytABCDEF mutant strain prodigiosin had no bacteriolytic but only bacteriostatic effect. Fast prodigiosin lytic activity on individual B. subtilis cells was confirmed by a modified comet assay. The results indicate that prodigiosin autolysin induction in B. subtilis is growth phase dependent.

  2. Effects of cysteine on growth, protease production, and catalase activity of Pseudomonas fluorescens.

    OpenAIRE

    Himelbloom, B H; Hassan, H M

    1986-01-01

    Cysteine inhibits growth of and protease production by Pseudomonas fluorescens NC3. Catalase activity in P. fluorescens NC3 was increased by cysteine. The addition of exogenous hydrogen peroxide did not increase catalase activity, thus suggesting a role for the endogenous generation of hydrogen peroxide via the autoxidation of cysteine.

  3. Stoichiometry-, phase- and orientation-controlled growth of polycrystalline pyrite (FeS{sub 2}) thin films by MOCVD

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hoepfner, C.; Ellmer, K.; Ennaoui, A.; Pettenkofer, C.; Fiechter, S.; Tributsch, H. [Hahn-Meitner-Institut Berlin, Abteilung Solare Energetik, Berlin (Germany)

    1995-06-01

    The growth process of polycrystalline pyrite thin films employing low pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (LP-MOCVD) in a vertical cold wall reactor has been investigated. Iron pentacarbonyl (IPC) and t-butyldisulfide (TBDS) were utilized as precursors. Study of the growth rate as a function of temperature reveals a kinetically controlled growth process with an activation energy of 73 kJ/mol over the temperature range from 250 to 400C. From 500 to 630C, the growth rate is mainly mass transport limited. Decomposition of the films into pyrrhotite (Fe{sub 1-x}S) occurs at higher growth temperatures. The S/Fe ratio in the films has been controlled from 1.23 up to 2.03 by changing the TBDS partial pressure. With increasing deposition temperature, the crystallites in the films show the tendency to grow [100]-oriented on amorphous substrates at a growth rate of 2.5 A/s. The grains show a preferential orientation in the [111] direction upon lowering the growth rate down to 0.3 A/s. Temperatures above 550C are beneficial in enhancing the grain size in the columnar structured films up to 1.0 {mu}m

  4. Insulin-like growth factor-I, physical activity, and control of cellular anabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nindl, Bradley C

    2010-01-01

    The underlying mechanisms responsible for mediating the beneficial outcomes of exercise undoubtedly are many, but the insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) system is emerging as an important and central hormonal axis that plays a significant role concerning cellular anabolism. This introductory article summarizes the intent and the content for papers presented as part of a 2008 American College of Sports Medicine national symposium entitled "Insulin-like Growth Factor-I, Physical Activity, and Control of Cellular Anabolism." The individual authors and their papers are as follows: Jan Frystyk authoring "The relationship between exercise and the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor-I axis," Greg Adams authoring "IGF-I signaling in skeletal muscle and the potential for cytokine interactions," and Brad Nindl authoring "Insulin-like growth factor-I as a biomarker of health, fitness, and training status." These papers focus on 1) different assay methodologies for IGF-I within the paradigm of exercise studies, 2) research demonstrating that intracellular signaling components associated with several proinflammatory cytokines have the potential to interact with anabolic signaling processes in skeletal muscle, and 3) an overview of IGF-I as a biomarker related to exercise training, muscle and bone remodeling, body composition, cognition, and cancer. When summed in total, the contribution that these papers will make will undoubtedly involve bringing attention to the vast regulatory complexity of the IGF-I system and will hopefully convince the reader that the IGF-I system warrants further detailed scientific inquiry to resolve many unanswered questions and paradoxical experimental findings. The IGF-I system remains one of the most intriguing and captivating marvels of human physiology that seems central in mediating numerous adaptations from physical activity.

  5. Genetic Algorithm-Based Design of the Active Damping for an LCL-Filter Three-Phase Active Rectifier

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Liserre, Marco; Aquila, Antonio Dell; Blaabjerg, Frede

    2004-01-01

    Active rectifiers/inverters are becoming used more and more often in regenerative systems and distributed power systems. Typically, the interface between the grid and rectifier is either an inductor or an LCL-filter. The use of an LCL-filter mitigates the switching ripple injected in the grid...... by a three-phase active rectifier. However, stability problems can arise in the current control loop. In order to overcome them, a damping resistor can be inserted, at the price of a reduction of efficiency. The use of active damping by means of control may seem attractive, but it is often limited by the use...

  6. Accurate means of detecting and characterizing abnormal patterns of ventricular activation by phase image analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Botvinick, E.H.; Frais, M.A.; Shosa, D.W.; O' Connell, J.W.; Pacheco-Alvarez, J.A.; Scheinman, M.; Hattner, R.S.; Morady, F.; Faulkner, D.B.

    1982-08-01

    The ability of scintigraphic phase image analysis to characterize patterns of abnormal ventricular activation was investigated. The pattern of phase distribution and sequential phase changes over both right and left ventricular regions of interest were evaluated in 16 patients with normal electrical activation and wall motion and compared with those in 8 patients with an artificial pacemaker and 4 patients with sinus rhythm with the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome and delta waves. Normally, the site of earliest phase angle was seen at the base of the interventricular septum, with sequential change affecting the body of the septum and the cardiac apex and then spreading laterally to involve the body of both ventricles. The site of earliest phase angle was located at the apex of the right ventricle in seven patients with a right ventricular endocardial pacemaker and on the lateral left ventricular wall in one patient with a left ventricular epicardial pacemaker. In each case the site corresponded exactly to the position of the pacing electrode as seen on posteroanterior and left lateral chest X-ray films, and sequential phase changes spread from the initial focus to affect both ventricles. In each of the patients with the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, the site of earliest ventricular phase angle was located, and it corresponded exactly to the site of the bypass tract as determined by endocardial mapping. In this way, four bypass pathways, two posterior left paraseptal, one left lateral and one right lateral, were correctly localized scintigraphically. On the basis of the sequence of mechanical contraction, phase image analysis provides an accurate noninvasive method of detecting abnormal foci of ventricular activation.

  7. Accurate means of detecting and characterizing abnormal patterns of ventricular activation by phase image analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Botvinick, E.H.; Frais, M.A.; Shosa, D.W.; O'Connell, J.W.; Pacheco-Alvarez, J.A.; Scheinman, M.; Hattner, R.S.; Morady, F.; Faulkner, D.B.

    1982-01-01

    The ability of scintigraphic phase image analysis to characterize patterns of abnormal ventricular activation was investigated. The pattern of phase distribution and sequential phase changes over both right and left ventricular regions of interest were evaluated in 16 patients with normal electrical activation and wall motion and compared with those in 8 patients with an artificial pacemaker and 4 patients with sinus rhythm with the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome and delta waves. Normally, the site of earliest phase angle was seen at the base of the interventricular septum, with sequential change affecting the body of the septum and the cardiac apex and then spreading laterally to involve the body of both ventricles. The site of earliest phase angle was located at the apex of the right ventricle in seven patients with a right ventricular endocardial pacemaker and on the lateral left ventricular wall in one patient with a left ventricular epicardial pacemaker. In each case the site corresponded exactly to the position of the pacing electrode as seen on posteroanterior and left lateral chest X-ray films, and sequential phase changes spread from the initial focus to affect both ventricles. In each of the patients with the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, the site of earliest ventricular phase angle was located, and it corresponded exactly to the site of the bypass tract as determined by endocardial mapping. In this way, four bypass pathways, two posterior left paraseptal, one left lateral and one right lateral, were correctly localized scintigraphically. On the basis of the sequence of mechanical contraction, phase image analysis provides an accurate noninvasive method of detecting abnormal foci of ventricular activation

  8. Effect of flow and active mixing on bacterial growth in a colon-like geometry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cremer, Jonas; Segota, Igor; Arnoldini, Markus; Groisman, Alex; Hwa, Terence

    The large intestine harbors bacteria from hundreds of species, with bacterial densities reaching up to 1012 cells per gram. Many different factors influence bacterial growth dynamics and thus bacterial density and microbiota composition. One dominant force is flow which can in principle lead to a washout of bacteria from the proximal colon. Active mixing by Contractions of the colonic wall together with bacterial growth might counteract such flow-forces and allow high bacterial densities to occur. As a step towards understanding bacterial growth in the presence of mixing and flow, we constructed an in-vitro setup where controlled wall-deformations of a channel emulate Contractions. We investigate growth along the channel under a steady nutrient inflow. In the limits of no or very frequent Contractions, the device behaves like a plug-flow reactor and a chemostat respectively. Depending on mixing and flow, we observe varying spatial gradients in bacterial density along the channel. Active mixing by deformations of the channel wall is shown to be crucial in maintaining a steady-state bacterial population in the presence of flow. The growth-dynamics is quantitatively captured by a simple mathematical model, with the effect of mixing described by an effective diffusion term.

  9. MODULATION OF GROWTH AND PROTON PUMPING ATPase ACTIVITY OF PROBIOTIC Lactobacilli BY DIETARY CUCURBITS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irfan Ahmad

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Gastrointestinal tract predominantly harbor probiotic Lactobacilli which exert beneficial effects on human health. Aqueous extracts from fruits of Lagenaria siceraria (Ls, Luffa cylindrica (Lc and Cucurbita maxima (Cm were prepared and lyophilized. Fruit extracts were investigated for their effects on Lactobacillus rhamnosus (L. rhamnosus, Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum and Lactobacillus acidophilus (L. acidophilus. Extracts were found to enhance growth of Lactobacilli without any toxic effect (up to 1000µg/mL concentration. Minimum concentration of extracts at which growth of probiotic strains were found to be enhanced significantly were determined (103.67 µg/mL-118µg/mL and considered as effective concentration (EC or growth stimulatory concentration (GSC. Proton pumping ATPase activity of Lactobacilli were examined and found to be enhanced significantly (29.89- 61.96% in extracts treated probiotics (Lactobacilli as compared to the normal control. Inulin used as positive control and found to enhance the proton efflux activity (28.06-37.72% with respect to the control. These dietary cucurbits enhance metabolic activity of probiotic Lactobacilli by modulating their proton pumping ATPase mechanism. This study suggested that the consumption of cucurbit fruits might be a natural source of enhancing the activities of probiotic Lactobacilli in the gut.

  10. Plant and Floret Growth at Distinct Developmental Stages During the Stem Elongation Phase in Wheat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zifeng Guo

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Floret development is critical for grain setting in wheat (Triticum aestivum, but more than 50% of grain yield potential (based on the maximum number of floret primordia is lost during the stem elongation phase (SEP, from the terminal spikelet stage to anthesis. Dynamic plant (e.g., leaf area, plant height and floret (e.g., anther and ovary size growth and its connection with grain yield traits (e.g., grain number and width are not clearly understood. In this study, for the first time, we dissected the SEP into seven stages to investigate plant (first experiment and floret (second experiment growth in greenhouse- and field-grown wheat. In the first experiment, the values of various plant growth trait indices at different stages were generally consistent between field and greenhouse and were independent of the environment. However, at specific stages, some traits significantly differed between the two environments. In the second experiment, phenotypic and genotypic similarity analysis revealed that grain number and size corresponded closely to ovary size at anthesis, suggesting that ovary size is strongly associated with grain number and size. Moreover, principal component analysis (PCA showed that the top six principal components PCs explained 99.13, 98.61, 98.41, 98.35, and 97.93% of the total phenotypic variation at the green anther, yellow anther, tipping, heading, and anthesis stages, respectively. The cumulative variance explained by the first PC decreased with floret growth, with the highest value detected at the green anther stage (88.8% and the lowest at the anthesis (50.09%. Finally, ovary size at anthesis was greater in wheat accessions with early release years than in accessions with late release years, and anther/ovary size shared closer connections with grain number/size traits at the late vs. early stages of floral development. Our findings shed light on the dynamic changes in plant and floret growth-related traits in wheat and the

  11. The change of intracellular NAD level at the process of fusarium sambucinum growth and development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gulyamova, T.G.; Ehshtukhtarova, M.Kh.; Umarova, G.D.; Kerbalaeva, A.M.; Khalmuradov, A.G.

    1996-01-01

    Alterations of intracellular NAD(Nicotinamide-Adenine Dinucleotide) level have been studied in the process of growth and development of Fusanium sambucinum, selected earlier as a potential NAD producer. It was established that essential fluctuations of NAD concentration are dependent on growth phase, morphological cell type and DNA biosynthesis, that allowed to propose a real linkage between coenzyme pool and replicative activity of cells. (author). 7 refs., 2 figs

  12. Predictive Duty Cycle Control of Three-Phase Active-Front-End Rectifiers

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Song, Zhanfeng; Tian, Yanjun; Chen, Wei

    2016-01-01

    This paper proposed an on-line optimizing duty cycle control approach for three-phase active-front-end rectifiers, aiming to obtain the optimal control actions under different operating conditions. Similar to finite control set model predictive control strategy, a cost function previously...

  13. Thermodependence of growth and enzymatic activities implicated in pathogenicity of two Erwinia carotovora subspecies (Pectobacterium spp.).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smadja, Bruno; Latour, Xavier; Trigui, Sameh; Burini, Jean François; Chevalier, Sylvie; Orange, Nicole

    2004-01-01

    Erwinia carotovora subsp. atroseptica and Erwinia carotovora subsp. carotovora can cause substantial damage to economically important plant crops and stored products. The occurrence of the disease and the scale of the damage are temperature dependent. Disease development consists first of active multiplication of the bacteria in the infection area and then production of numerous extracellular enzymes. We investigated the effects of various temperatures on these two steps. We assayed the specific growth rate and the pectate lyase and protease activities for eight strains belonging to E. carotovora subsp. atroseptica and E. carotovora subsp. carotovora in vitro. The temperature effect on growth rate and on pectate lyase activity is different for the two subspecies, but protease activity appears to be similarly thermoregulated. Our results are in agreement with ecological data implicating E. carotovora subsp. atroseptica in disease when the temperature is below 20 degrees C. The optimal temperature for pathogenicity appears to be different from the optimal growth temperature but seems to be a compromise between this temperature and temperatures at which lytic activities are maximal.

  14. CDP-diacylglycerol synthetase coordinates cell growth and fat storage through phosphatidylinositol metabolism and the insulin pathway.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuan Liu

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available During development, animals usually undergo a rapid growth phase followed by a homeostatic stage when growth has ceased. The increase in cell size and number during the growth phase requires a large amount of lipids; while in the static state, excess lipids are usually stored in adipose tissues in preparation for nutrient-limited conditions. How cells coordinate growth and fat storage is not fully understood. Through a genetic screen we identified Drosophila melanogaster CDP-diacylglycerol synthetase (CDS/CdsA, which diverts phosphatidic acid from triacylglycerol synthesis to phosphatidylinositol (PI synthesis and coordinates cell growth and fat storage. Loss of CdsA function causes significant accumulation of neutral lipids in many tissues along with reduced cell/organ size. These phenotypes can be traced back to reduced PI levels and, subsequently, low insulin pathway activity. Overexpressing CdsA rescues the fat storage and cell growth phenotypes of insulin pathway mutants, suggesting that CdsA coordinates cell/tissue growth and lipid storage through the insulin pathway. We also revealed that a DAG-to-PE route mediated by the choline/ethanolamine phosphotransferase Bbc may contribute to the growth of fat cells in CdsA RNAi.

  15. [Serum calcium and phosphorus concentration and alkaline phosphatase activity in healthy children during growth and development].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savić, Ljiljana; Savić, Dejan

    2008-01-01

    Many changes happen during growth and development in an organism as a result of important hormon changes, especially biohumoral ones. These changes make a problem when interpreting biochemical results in pediatric population. The most important changes are intensive calcium and phosphorus metabolic turnover in bone tissue with changes in alkaline phosphatase activity as a result of osteoblast activity. The aim of this study was to follow the serum calcium and phosphorus concentration and alkaline phosphatase activity in children 1-15 years old in different growth and development period and of different sexes and to fortify the influence of growth and development dynamics on biohumoral status in healthy male and female children. We evaluated 117 healthy children of both sexes from 1-15 years of age and divided them into three age groups: 1-5, 6-10 and 11-15 years. We followed the serum calcium and phosphorus concentration and alkaline phosphatase activity in different groups and in different sexes. Our investigation found significantly higher values of serum calcium in boys than in girls with no important changes between the age groups and significantly higher values of serum phosphorus in the youngest age group in all children and in different sexes with no important sex differences. Alkaline phosphatase activity followed the growth spurt and was the biggest in 6-10 years group in girls and in 11-15 years group in boys.

  16. GABA signalling modulates plant growth by directly regulating the activity of plant-specific anion transporters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramesh, Sunita A; Tyerman, Stephen D; Xu, Bo; Bose, Jayakumar; Kaur, Satwinder; Conn, Vanessa; Domingos, Patricia; Ullah, Sana; Wege, Stefanie; Shabala, Sergey; Feijó, José A; Ryan, Peter R; Gilliham, Matthew; Gillham, Matthew

    2015-07-29

    The non-protein amino acid, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) rapidly accumulates in plant tissues in response to biotic and abiotic stress, and regulates plant growth. Until now it was not known whether GABA exerts its effects in plants through the regulation of carbon metabolism or via an unidentified signalling pathway. Here, we demonstrate that anion flux through plant aluminium-activated malate transporter (ALMT) proteins is activated by anions and negatively regulated by GABA. Site-directed mutagenesis of selected amino acids within ALMT proteins abolishes GABA efficacy but does not alter other transport properties. GABA modulation of ALMT activity results in altered root growth and altered root tolerance to alkaline pH, acid pH and aluminium ions. We propose that GABA exerts its multiple physiological effects in plants via ALMT, including the regulation of pollen tube and root growth, and that GABA can finally be considered a legitimate signalling molecule in both the plant and animal kingdoms.

  17. Biological energy from the igneous rock enhances cell growth and enzyme activity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Y.-L.; Kuo, H.-S; Chen, C.-T.; Kuo, S.-C.

    2000-01-01

    Some effects from natural resources might be ignored and unused by humans. Environmental hormesis could be a phenomena necessary to bio-organism existence on earth. Since 1919, radiation and some heavy metal hormesis from the environment were proved in various reports. In this study, igneous rock with very low radioactivity and high ferrous activity was measured by multichannel analyzer and inductively coupled plasma analyzer. The water treated by igneous rock, both directly soaked or indirectly in contact, induced increased activities of glucose oxidase, catalase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase. It also increased cell growth of SC-M1, HCT-15, Raji, and fibroblast cell lines. The water after treatment of igneous rock had no change in pH values, but displayed decreased conductivity values. We assume that the igneous rock could transfer energy to water to change the molecular structure or conformation of water cluster, or by radiation hormesis effect could then induce increased enzyme activity and cell growth. It is also possible that the energy from rock may combine radiation hormesis with other transferable biological energy forms to change water cluster conformation

  18. UO2 Grain Growth: Developing Phase Field Models for Pore Dragging, Solute Dragging and Anisotropic Grain Boundary Energies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmed, K.; Tonks, M.; Zhang, Y.; Biner, B.

    2016-01-01

    A detailed phase field model for the effect of pore drag on grain growth kinetics was implemented in MARMOT. The model takes into consideration both the curvature-driven grain boundary motion and pore migration by surface diffusion. As such, the model accounts for the interaction between pore and grain boundary kinetics, which tends to retard the grain growth process. Our 2D and 3D simulations demonstrate that the model capture all possible pore-grain boundary interactions proposed in theoretical models. For high enough surface mobility, the pores move along with the migrating boundary as a quasi-rigid-body, albeit hindering its migration rate compared to the pore-free case. For less mobile pores, the migrating boundary can separate from the pores. For the pore-controlled grain growth kinetics, the model predicts a strong dependence of the growth rate on the number of pores, pore size, and surface diffusivity in agreement with theroretical models. An evolution equation for the grain size that includes these parameters was derived and showed to agree well with numerical solution. It shows a smooth transition from boundary-controlled kinetics to pore-controlled kinetics as the surface diffusivity decreases or the number of pores or their size increases. This equation can be utilized in BISON to give accurate estimate for the grain size evolution. This will be accomplished in the near future. The effect of solute drag and anisotropy of grain boundary on grain growth will be investigated in future studies.

  19. The Stationary-Phase Cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Display Dynamic Actin Filaments Required for Processes Extending Chronological Life Span.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vasicova, Pavla; Lejskova, Renata; Malcova, Ivana; Hasek, Jiri

    2015-11-01

    Stationary-growth-phase Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast cultures consist of nondividing cells that undergo chronological aging. For their successful survival, the turnover of proteins and organelles, ensured by autophagy and the activation of mitochondria, is performed. Some of these processes are engaged in by the actin cytoskeleton. In S. cerevisiae stationary-phase cells, F actin has been shown to form static aggregates named actin bodies, subsequently cited to be markers of quiescence. Our in vivo analyses revealed that stationary-phase cultures contain cells with dynamic actin filaments, besides the cells with static actin bodies. The cells with dynamic actin displayed active endocytosis and autophagy and well-developed mitochondrial networks. Even more, stationary-phase cell cultures grown under calorie restriction predominantly contained cells with actin cables, confirming that the presence of actin cables is linked to successful adaptation to stationary phase. Cells with actin bodies were inactive in endocytosis and autophagy and displayed aberrations in mitochondrial networks. Notably, cells of the respiratory activity-deficient cox4Δ strain displayed the same mitochondrial aberrations and actin bodies only. Additionally, our results indicate that mitochondrial dysfunction precedes the formation of actin bodies and the appearance of actin bodies corresponds to decreased cell fitness. We conclude that the F-actin status reflects the extent of damage that arises from exponential growth. Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

  20. Study of Antibacterial Activity and Bacteriology of Latex from Asclepias syriaca L

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCay, Steven; Mahlberg, Paul

    1973-01-01

    Whole and fractionated latex of Asclepias syriaca was tested for antimicrobial or growth-promoting activity with 16 genera and species of bacteria. Latex and extracted fractions (distilled water, acetic acid, sodium bicarbonate, sulfuric acid, and ethyl ether) possessed no detectable antimicrobial activity. Comparison of growth curves of selected bacteria incubated with serum and rubber fractions, as well as controls, revealed no detectable inhibition of growth, except for a slight inhibitory response to autoclaved serum. Most bacteria were capable of utilizing latex for a substrate as indicated by the increased growth rate in the exponential phase. The stationary phase was entered simultaneously by both the treated cultures and the controls. Various bacteria cultured in a litmus latex mixture yielded populations which ranged from <104 organisms/ml for Lactobacillus casei, Staphylococcus aureus and Micrococcus lysodeikticus to 1.1 × 1010 organisms/ml for Clostridium acetobutylicum. Whole latex, as well as the serum and rubber fractions, support the growth of various bacteria, but under field conditions there is no evidence for systemic infection of this type of cell by bacteria. PMID:4790590

  1. Venture capital: Generator of growth of SME investment activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dželetović Milenko

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the paper is to point out the importance and role of venture capital in creation of new values based on the knowledge economy. By reviewing relevant literature about venture capital, this paper presents the importance of the venture capital investments in innovative activities of SMEs that have an impact on economic growth. Pointing to the importance and quantifying the overall effects of venture capital investments, will be used the overview and trends in venture capital investments in the sectors of economy in Europe which generate a larger number of patents. According to data during the period of 2007 - 2015 will be defined venture capital investments and number of registered patents in the sectors of the knowledge economy. Empirical analysis indicated that the venture investments in the sectors of the knowledge economy generated more patents in those sectors. In addition, the paper analyzes the venture capital investment and innovation activities of SMEs, which are reflected in patent activities, where the result is a correlation between these activities in the European economies.

  2. On the thermally activated crack propagation in alumina

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Devezas, T.C.

    1983-01-01

    Subcritical crack growth was studied in the temperature 25-100 0 C in two commercial aluminas containing different amounts of a glassy phase. The experimental method employed was that of double torsion under constant load, using a device specially built to carry out mechanical tests at constant compressive load and high temperatures. Activation enthalpies of subcritical crack growth were determined for the two materials. (Author) [pt

  3. Stability Improvements of an LCL-filter based Three-phase Active Rectifier

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Liserre, Marco; Dell'Aquila, Antonio; Blaabjerg, Frede

    2002-01-01

    Three-phase active rectifiers guarantee sinusoidal input currents and controllable dc voltage at the price of a high switching frequency ripple that can disturb and reduce efficiency of other EMI sensitive equipment connected to the grid. This problem could be solved choosing a high value...

  4. Aminopeptidases in Mycelium and Growth Medium of Streptomyces rimosus Strains

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jasminka Špoljarić

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Aminopeptidases (APs of the same substrate specificities have been detected in the mycelia and culture filtrate of Streptomyces rimosus. To compare extracellular and intracellular prolyl, leucyl and arginyl AP, dynamics of their biosynthesis, excretion and localization were analyzed during submerged cultivation of two S. rimosus strains, T55 and ZGL3, in several media. AP activity in mycelia reached maximum in the stationary phase, and decreased to different extent at a later stage. The accumulation of APs, except prolyl aminopeptidase (ProAP, in the culture filtrate followed the growth of bacteria and decreased later on, when peptide-richer medium was used. When S. rimosus was grown in glucose-richer medium, the accumulation of APs in the medium started at the late log phase and continued to the end of cultivation, due to cell lysis. The combined addition of calcium and ammonium salts to tryptone soy broth increased the AP activity in S. rimosus ZGL3 culture filtrates up to two times. The AP intracellular activity was significantly higher compared to its intercellular activity (2 to 24 times. Mycelium/medium AP activity ratio decreased with the age of the culture, its change being dependent on the S. rimosus strain, growth medium composition and AP specificity. Leucyl AP (LeuAP was the most prone to be released from the mycelium, suggesting that part of the enzyme could be excreted by active transport. Determination of AP distribution within cell compartments has confirmed that the three APs are intracellular enzymes residing in cytosol, but also suggested their partial association with cytoplasmic membrane.

  5. Effect of platelet lysate on human cells involved in different phases of wound healing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barsotti, Maria Chiara; Chiara Barsotti, Maria; Losi, Paola; Briganti, Enrica; Sanguinetti, Elena; Magera, Angela; Al Kayal, Tamer; Feriani, Roberto; Di Stefano, Rossella; Soldani, Giorgio

    2013-01-01

    Platelets are rich in mediators able to positively affect cell activity in wound healing. Aim of this study was to characterize the effect of different concentrations of human pooled allogeneic platelet lysate on human cells involved in the different phases of wound healing (inflammatory phase, angiogenesis, extracellular matrix secretion and epithelialization). Platelet lysate effect was studied on endothelial cells, monocytes, fibroblasts and keratinocytes, in terms of viability and proliferation, migration, angiogenesis, tissue repair pathway activation (ERK1/2) and inflammatory response evaluation (NFκB). Results were compared both with basal medium and with a positive control containing serum and growth factors. Platelet lysate induced viability and proliferation at the highest concentrations tested (10% and 20% v/v). Whereas both platelet lysate concentrations increased cell migration, only 20% platelet lysate was able to significantly promote angiogenic activity (pplatelet lysate concentrations activated important inflammatory pathways such as ERK1/2 and NFκB with the same early kinetics, whereas the effect was different for later time-points. These data suggest the possibility of using allogeneic platelet lysate as both an alternative to growth factors commonly used for cell culture and as a tool for clinical regenerative application for wound healing.

  6. Computer simulation of grain growth in HAZ

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Jinhua

    Two different models for Monte Carlo simulation of normal grain growth in metals and alloys were developed. Each simulation model was based on a different approach to couple the Monte Carlo simulation time to real time-temperature. These models demonstrated the applicability of Monte Carlo simulation to grain growth in materials processing. A grain boundary migration (GBM) model coupled the Monte Carlo simulation to a first principle grain boundary migration model. The simulation results, by applying this model to isothermal grain growth in zone-refined tin, showed good agreement with experimental results. An experimental data based (EDB) model coupled the Monte Carlo simulation with grain growth kinetics obtained from the experiment. The results of the application of the EDB model to the grain growth during continuous heating of a beta titanium alloy correlated well with experimental data. In order to acquire the grain growth kinetics from the experiment, a new mathematical method was developed and utilized to analyze the experimental data on isothermal grain growth. Grain growth in the HAZ of 0.2% Cu-Al alloy was successfully simulated using the EDB model combined with grain growth kinetics obtained from the experiment and measured thermal cycles from the welding process. The simulated grain size distribution in the HAZ was in good agreement with experimental results. The pinning effect of second phase particles on grain growth was also simulated in this work. The simulation results confirmed that by introducing the variable R, degree of contact between grain boundaries and second phase particles, the Zener pinning model can be modified as${D/ r} = {K/{Rf}}$where D is the pinned grain size, r the mean size of second phase particles, K a constant, f the area fraction (or the volume fraction in 3-D) of second phase.

  7. Dead layer and active volume determination for GERDA Phase II detectors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lehnert, Bjoern [TU Dresden (Germany); Collaboration: GERDA-Collaboration

    2013-07-01

    The GERDA experiment investigates the neutrinoless double beta decay of {sup 76}Ge and is currently running Phase I of its physics program. Using the same isotope as the Heidelberg Moscow (HDM) experiment, GERDA aims to directly test the claim of observation by a subset of the HDM collaboration. For the update to Phase II of the experiment in 2013, the collaboration organized the production of 30 new Broad Energy Germanium (BEGe) type detectors from original 35 kg enriched material and tested their performance in the low background laboratory HADES in SCK.CEN, Belgium. With additional 20 kg of detectors, GERDA aims to probe the degenerated hierarchy scenario. One of the crucial detector parameters is the active volume (AV) fraction which directly enters into all physics analysis. This talk presents the methodology of dead layer and AV determination with different calibration sources such as {sup 241}Am, {sup 133}Ba, {sup 60}Co and {sup 228}Th and the results obtained for the new Phase II detectors. Furthermore, the AV fraction turned out to be the largest systematic uncertainty in the analysis of Phase I data which makes it imperative to reduce its uncertainty for Phase II. This talk addresses the major contributions to the AV uncertainty and gives an outlook for improvements in Phase II analysis.

  8. Synthesis and catalytic activity of the metastable phase of gold phosphide

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fernando, Deshani; Nigro, Toni A.E.; Dyer, I.D. [Department of Chemistry, 107 Physical Sciences I, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078 (United States); Alia, Shaun M.; Pivovar, Bryan S. [Chemical and Materials Science Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO 80401 (United States); Vasquez, Yolanda, E-mail: yolanda.vasquez@okstate.edu [Department of Chemistry, 107 Physical Sciences I, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078 (United States)

    2016-10-15

    Recently, transition metal phosphides have found new applications as catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction that has generated an impetus to synthesize these materials at the nanoscale. In this work, Au{sub 2}P{sub 3} was synthesized utilizing the high temperature decomposition of tri-n-octylphosphine as a source of elemental phosphorous. Gold nanorods were used as morphological templates with the aim of controlling the shape and size of the resulting gold phosphide particles. We demonstrate that the surface capping ligand of the gold nanoparticle precursors can influence the purity and extent to which the gold phosphide phase will form. Gold nanorods functionalized with 1-dodecanethiol undergo digestive ripening to produce discrete spherical particles that exhibit reduced reactivity towards phosphorous, resulting in low yields of the gold phosphide. In contrast, gold phosphide was obtained as a phase pure product when cetyltrimethylammonium bromide functionalized gold nanorods are used instead. The Au{sub 2}P{sub 3} nanoparticles exhibited higher activity than polycrystalline gold towards the hydrogen evolution reaction. - Graphical abstract: Au{sub 2}P{sub 3} was synthesized utilizing the high temperature decomposition of tri-n-octylphosphine as a source of elemental phosphorous and gold nanoparticles as reactants. We demonstrate that the surface capping ligand of the gold nanoparticle precursors influence the purity and extent to which the Au{sub 2}P{sub 3} phase will form. Gold nanorods functionalized with 1-dodecanethiol undergo digestive ripening to produce discrete spherical particles that exhibit reduced reactivity towards phosphorous, resulting in low yields of the gold phosphide. In contrast, gold phosphide was obtained as a phase pure product when cetyltrimethylammonium bromide functionalized gold nanoparticles are used instead. The Au{sub 2}P{sub 3} nanoparticles exhibited higher activity than polycrystalline gold towards the hydrogen evolution

  9. EFFECT OF DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ON THE GROWTH DYNAMICS OF STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS IN MODEL MEDIUM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriana Studeničová

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available As the strains of S. aureus growing during fermentation of raw milk cheeses are exposed to the competitive growth of lactic acid bacteria and their metabolites, in this work, we characterized the growth of the strain S. aureus 2064 isolated from such environment against of water activity values and incubation temperature. Water activity of the tested media was adjusted by NaCl in the range from 0 % to 20.72 % and the experiments were carried out at 37 °C. It was found that the strain under study showed growth until NaCl concentration of 19.95 % in PCA broth. The complete growth cessation of S. aureus 2064 was observed at NaCl concentration higher than 20.72 %. The effect of water activity on the S. aureus 2064 lag-phase duration was described by the modified Davey model with discrepancy of 24.6 %. The growth rate dependence on water activity was described more precisely and reliably by Gibson model that provided the following validation indices: bias factor 0.999 and discrepancy factor 9.6 %. Based on the results we can conclude that secondary models used in this work were suitable to predict growth of S. aureus 2064, originally the ewes´cheese isolate.doi:10.5219/179

  10. The pairwise phase consistency in cortical network and its relationship with neuronal activation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wang Daming

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Gamma-band neuronal oscillation and synchronization with the range of 30-90 Hz are ubiquitous phenomenon across numerous brain areas and various species, and correlated with plenty of cognitive functions. The phase of the oscillation, as one aspect of CTC (Communication through Coherence hypothesis, underlies various functions for feature coding, memory processing and behaviour performing. The PPC (Pairwise Phase Consistency, an improved coherence measure, statistically quantifies the strength of phase synchronization. In order to evaluate the PPC and its relationships with input stimulus, neuronal activation and firing rate, a simplified spiking neuronal network is constructed to simulate orientation columns in primary visual cortex. If the input orientation stimulus is preferred for a certain orientation column, neurons within this corresponding column will obtain higher firing rate and stronger neuronal activation, which consequently engender higher PPC values, with higher PPC corresponding to higher firing rate. In addition, we investigate the PPC in time resolved analysis with a sliding window.

  11. Multilayer Pressure Vessel Materials Testing and Analysis Phase 2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Popelar, Carl F.; Cardinal, Joseph W.

    2014-01-01

    To provide NASA with a suite of materials strength, fracture toughness and crack growth rate test results for use in remaining life calculations for the vessels described above, Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI®) was contracted in two phases to obtain relevant material property data from a representative vessel. An initial characterization of the strength, fracture and fatigue crack growth properties was performed in Phase 1. Based on the results and recommendations of Phase 1, a more extensive material property characterization effort was developed in this Phase 2 effort. This Phase 2 characterization included additional strength, fracture and fatigue crack growth of the multilayer vessel and head materials. In addition, some more limited characterization of the welds and heat affected zones (HAZs) were performed. This report

  12. Galactose-binding lectin from mulberry (Morus alba L. seeds with growth hormone-like activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E. Khurtsidze

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Plant lectins are well documented to participate in multiple physiological activities based on selective binding to the carbohydrate structures. They have been reported to play significant roles in various processes such as growth and development, differentiation and plant protection. Nevertheless, the intrinsic roles of plant lectins still remain undefined. We purified a galactose-binding lectin, named MAL, from mulberry (M. alba L. seeds and analyzed its properties. The lectin is composed of one polypeptide of 17 kDa, which is abundant in the seed protein fraction. MAL interacted with GalNAc and galactose residues of saccharides with high binding ability. Western blotting analysis suggested that MAL is deposited in the mulberry leaves and inflorescence. MAL was examined for growth stimulatory activity on mulberry hypocotyls and internodal sections of in vitro grown P. euphratica cultures. Elongation of mulberry hypocotyls was detected in the apical parts of the hypocotyl, where the growth increment was 58%. MAL had no significant effect on the stem elongation and induction of new leaves. Our results suggest that MAL may be involved in the growth and cell elongation at initial stages of tissue development.

  13. Making the Right Moves: Promoting Smart Growth and Active Aging in Communities

    Science.gov (United States)

    This article describes an award program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for excellence in smart growth and active aging. Having examined qualitative and quantitative data, we suggest that any community can foster changes to improve the health and well-being ...

  14. Berberine suppresses tumorigenicity and growth of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells by inhibiting STAT3 activation induced by tumor associated fibroblasts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsang, Chi Man; Cheung, Yuk Chun; Lui, Vivian Wai-Yan; Yip, Yim Ling; Zhang, Guitao; Lin, Victor Weitao; Cheung, Kenneth Chat-Pan; Feng, Yibin; Tsao, Sai Wah

    2013-01-01

    Cortidis rhizoma (Huanglian) and its major therapeutic component, berberine, have drawn extensive attention in recent years for their anti-cancer properties. Growth inhibitory effects of berberine on multiple types of human cancer cells have been reported. Berberine inhibits invasion, induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human cancer cells. The anti-inflammatory property of berberine, involving inhibition of Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3) activation, has also been documented. In this study, we have examined the effects of berberine on tumorigenicity and growth of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells and their relationship to STAT3 signaling using both in vivo and in vitro models. Berberine effectively inhibited the tumorigenicity and growth of an EBV-positive NPC cell line (C666-1) in athymic nude mice. Inhibition of tumorigenic growth of NPC cells in vivo was correlated with effective inhibition of STAT3 activation in NPC cells inside the tumor xenografts grown in nude mice. In vitro, berberine inhibited both constitutive and IL-6-induced STAT3 activation in NPC cells. Inhibition of STAT3 activation by berberine induced growth inhibition and apoptotic response in NPC cells. Tumor-associated fibroblasts were found to secret IL-6 and the conditioned medium harvested from the fibroblasts also induced STAT3 activation in NPC cells. Furthermore, STAT3 activation by conditioned medium of tumor-associated fibroblasts could be blocked by berberine or antibodies against IL-6 and IL-6R. Our observation that berberine effectively inhibited activation of STAT3 induced by tumor-associated fibroblasts suggests a role of berberine in modulating the effects of tumor stroma on the growth of NPC cells. The effective inhibition of STAT3 activation in NPC cells by berberine supports its potential use in the treatment of NPC

  15. Thin-plate spline analysis of mandibular growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Franchi, L; Baccetti, T; McNamara, J A

    2001-04-01

    The analysis of mandibular growth changes around the pubertal spurt in humans has several important implications for the diagnosis and orthopedic correction of skeletal disharmonies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate mandibular shape and size growth changes around the pubertal spurt in a longitudinal sample of subjects with normal occlusion by means of an appropriate morphometric technique (thin-plate spline analysis). Ten mandibular landmarks were identified on lateral cephalograms of 29 subjects at 6 different developmental phases. The 6 phases corresponded to 6 different maturational stages in cervical vertebrae during accelerative and decelerative phases of the pubertal growth curve of the mandible. Differences in shape between average mandibular configurations at the 6 developmental stages were visualized by means of thin-plate spline analysis and subjected to permutation test. Centroid size was used as the measure of the geometric size of each mandibular specimen. Differences in size at the 6 developmental phases were tested statistically. The results of graphical analysis indicated a statistically significant change in mandibular shape only for the growth interval from stage 3 to stage 4 in cervical vertebral maturation. Significant increases in centroid size were found at all developmental phases, with evidence of a prepubertal minimum and of a pubertal maximum. The existence of a pubertal peak in human mandibular growth, therefore, is confirmed by thin-plate spline analysis. Significant morphological changes in the mandible during the growth interval from stage 3 to stage 4 in cervical vertebral maturation may be described as an upward-forward direction of condylar growth determining an overall "shrinkage" of the mandibular configuration along the measurement of total mandibular length. This biological mechanism is particularly efficient in compensating for major increments in mandibular size at the adolescent spurt.

  16. Towards closing the gap between hygroscopic growth and activation for secondary organic aerosol: Part 1 – Evidence from measurements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Wex

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Secondary Organic Aerosols (SOA studied in previous laboratory experiments generally showed only slight hygroscopic growth, but a much better activity as a CCN (Cloud Condensation Nucleus than indicated by the hygroscopic growth. This discrepancy was examined at LACIS (Leipzig Aerosol Cloud Interaction Simulator, using a portable generator that produced SOA particles from the ozonolysis of α-pinene, and adding butanol or butanol and water vapor during some of the experiments. The light scattering signal of dry SOA-particles was measured by the LACIS optical particle spectrometer and was used to derive a refractive index for SOA of 1.45. LACIS also measured the hygroscopic growth of SOA particles up to 99.6% relative humidity (RH, and a CCN counter was used to measure the particle activation. SOA-particles were CCN active with critical diameters of e.g. 100 nm and 55 nm at super-saturations of 0.4% and 1.1%, respectively. But only slight hygroscopic growth with hygroscopic growth factors ≤1.05 was observed at RH<98% RH. At RH>98%, the hygroscopic growth increased stronger than would be expected if a constant hygroscopicity parameter for the particle/droplet solution was assumed. An increase of the hygroscopicity parameter by a factor of 4–6 was observed in the RH-range from below 90% to 99.6%, and this increase continued for increasingly diluted particle solutions for activating particles. This explains an observation already made in the past: that the relation between critical super-saturation and dry diameter for activation is steeper than what would be expected for a constant value of the hygroscopicity. Combining measurements of hygroscopic growth and activation, it was found that the surface tension that has to be assumed to interpret the measurements consistently is greater than 55 mN/m, possibly close to that of pure water, depending on the different SOA-types produced, and therefore only in part accounts for the discrepancy

  17. Evaluation of the plant growth-promoting activity of Pseudomonas nitroreducens in Arabidopsis thaliana and Lactuca sativa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trinh, Cao Son; Lee, Hyeri; Lee, Won Je; Lee, Seok Jin; Chung, Namhyun; Han, Juhyeong; Kim, Jongyun; Hong, Suk-Whan; Lee, Hojoung

    2018-06-01

    Pseudomonas nitroreducens: strain IHB B 13561 (PnIHB) enhances the growth of Arabidopsis thaliana and Lactuca sativa via the stimulation of cell development and nitrate absorption. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) enhance plant development through various mechanisms; they improve the uptake of soil resources by plants to greatly promote plant growth. Here, we used Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings and Lactuca sativa to screen the growth enhancement activities of a purified PGPR, Pseudomonas nitroreducens strain IHB B 13561 (PnIHB). When cocultivated with PnIHB, both species of plants exhibited notably improved growth, particularly in regard to biomass. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis indicated high expression levels of the nitrate transporter genes, especially NRT2.1, which plays a major role in the high-affinity nitrate transport system in roots. Moreover, enhanced activity of the cyclin-B1 promoter was observed when wild-type 'Columbia-0' Arabidopsis seedlings were exposed to PnIHB, whereas upregulation of cyclin-B also occurred in the inoculated lettuce seedlings. Overall, these results suggest that PnIHB improves A. thaliana and L. sativa growth via specific pathways involved in the promotion of cell development and enhancement of nitrate uptake.

  18. EMPIRICAL EXAMINATION OF INTERRELATION BETWEEN PROFESSINAL ACTIVITY SATISFACTION AND CAREER GROWTH

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.A. Assoeva

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Interrelation between satisfaction with person’s professional activities and carrier growth was studied on the basis of three professional groups: layers, economists and managers. The study was carried out using three traditional methods updated by the author. Resulted from the study arecorrelation ties between the parameters examined, due regard being paid to respondents’ personal features. The centered component proved to be of great importance for the potential of carrier growth. Factor examination proved that the validation and the common sense factors contribute to this component to greatest extent, the factors being linked with confidence in current and future tasks as well as with ability to formulate life problems and to see ways to solve them.

  19. Vapor phase epitaxial growth of FeS sub 2 pyrite and evaluation of the carrier collection in liquid-junction solar cell

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ennaoui, A.; Schlichthoerl, G.; Fiechter, S.; Tributsch, H. (Hahn-Meitner-Inst., Abt. Solare Energetik und Materialforschung, Berlin (Germany))

    1992-01-01

    Photoactive epitaxial layers of FeS{sub 2} were grown using bromine as a transport agent and a simple closed ampoule technique. The substrates used were (100)-oriented slices of natural pyrite 1 mm thick. A vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth mechanism was elucidated by means of optical microscopy. Macrosteps, terrace surfaces and protuberances are often accompanied with the presence of liquid FeBr{sub 3} droplets. In the absence of a liquid phase growth hillocks are found. Localized photovoltaic response for the evaluation of carrier collection using a scanning laser spot system has been used to effectively locate and characterize non-uniformities present in the epitaxial thin films. (orig.).

  20. Anisotropy in wavelet-based phase field models

    KAUST Repository

    Korzec, Maciek; Mü nch, Andreas; Sü li, Endre; Wagner, Barbara

    2016-01-01

    When describing the anisotropic evolution of microstructures in solids using phase-field models, the anisotropy of the crystalline phases is usually introduced into the interfacial energy by directional dependencies of the gradient energy coefficients. We consider an alternative approach based on a wavelet analogue of the Laplace operator that is intrinsically anisotropic and linear. The paper focuses on the classical coupled temperature/Ginzburg--Landau type phase-field model for dendritic growth. For the model based on the wavelet analogue, existence, uniqueness and continuous dependence on initial data are proved for weak solutions. Numerical studies of the wavelet based phase-field model show dendritic growth similar to the results obtained for classical phase-field models.