Modeling the Non-linear Viscoelastic Response of High Temperature Polyimides

A constitutive model is developed to predict the viscoelastic response of polyimide resins that are used in high temperature applications. This model is based on a thermodynamic framework that uses the notion that the `natural configuration' of a body evolves as the body undergoes a process and the evolution is determined by maximizing the rate of entropy production in general and the rate of dissipation within purely mechanical considerations. We constitutively prescribe forms for the specific Helmholtz potential and the rate of dissipation (which is the product of density, temperature and the rate of entropy production), and the model is derived by maximizing the rate of dissipation with the constraint of incompressibility, and the reduced energy dissipation equation is also regarded as a constraint in that it is required to be met in every process that the body undergoes. The efficacy of the model is ascertained by comparing the predictions of the model with the experimental data for PMR-15 and HFPE-II-52 polyimide resins.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Mechanics of Material

Alloreactive T Cell Receptor Diversity against Structurally Similar or Dissimilar HLA-DP Antigens Assessed by Deep Sequencing

Immunobiology of allogeneic stem cell transplantation and immunotherapy of hematological disease

Modeling of viscoelasticity and damage in composite laminates by continuum thermodynamics

Ph.D.Ramesh Talrej

HIGH LIPOCALIN-2 EXPRESSION INCREASES PEMETREXED SENSITIVITY IN PATIENTS WITH LUNG ADENOCARCINOMA

Introduction: The aim of this study is to determine the expression level of lipocalin-2 protein in human lung adenocarcinom tissues and to evaluate the relationship between its expression levels and clinicopathological parameters, including response to pemetrexed, degree of tumor differentiation, driver mutation status, progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS)

Information Bundling and Capital Market Feedback: Evidence from Patent Tuesdays

We examine whether bundling the release of information affects managers' ability to gather decision-relevant information from market prices. Using the plausibly exogenous timing of patent grant disclosures by the United States Patent and Trademark Office as a source of variation in the simultaneous release of firm-specific value-relevant information, we show that the market's response to patent grants is more informative for managerial decisions if the firm receives fewer patent grants on the same day. This effect is more pronounced for patents that relate to relatively more exploratory innovative strategies for which feedback is arguably more important. Firms with more distinct information releases also produce more valuable and higher quality innovations in the future. Taken together, our results suggest that bundling the release of multiple pieces of information at once potentially impedes managers' ability to benefit from the market's feedback

Polysomnographic characteristics of sleep-related bruxism: What are the determinant factors for temporomandibular disorders?

This study aimed to evaluate the clinical and polysomnographic characteristics of sleep bruxism (SB) and delineate the determinant factors for temporomandibular disorders (TMD). Forty-six patients were allocated into the SB group (n = 26) and control group (n = 20). The signs and symptoms of TMD were recorded using the Research Diagnostic Criteria for TMD. Patients underwent a full-night polysomnographic recording and masseter and temporal muscle electromyographic recordings. Clinical and polysomnographic data in patients with SB were analyzed in relation to TMD. The presence of TMJ sounds was significantly correlated with the number of bruxism bursts. Intra-articular pain in the TMJ was neither correlated with clinical nor polysomnographic parameters in patients with SB. Lower sleep efficiency in patients with SB was caused by a higher number of bruxism episodes. Morning headaches were associated with the severity of SB during rapid eye movement sleep

Multiple Knockout of Classical HLA Class II beta-Chains by CRISPR/Cas9 Genome Editing Driven by a Single Guide RNA

Comprehensive knockout of HLA class II (HLA-II) beta-chain genes is complicated by their high polymorphism. In this study, we developed CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing to simultaneously target HLA-DRB, -DQB1, and -DPB1 through a single guide RNA recognizing a conserved region in exon 2. Abrogation of HLA-II surface expression was achieved in five different HLA-typed, human EBV-transformed B lymphoblastoid cell lines (BLCLs). Next-generation sequencing-based detection confirmed specific genomic insertion/deletion mutations with 99.5% penetrance in sorted cells for all three loci. No alterations were observed in HLA-I genes, the HLA-II peptide editor HLA-DMB, or its antagonist HLA-DOB, showing high on-target specificity. Transfection of full-length HLA-DPB1 mRNA into knockout BLCLs fully restored HLA-DP surface expression and recognition by alloreactive human CD4 T cells. The possibility to generate single HLA-II-expressing BLCLs by one-shot genome editing opens unprecedented opportunities for mechanistically dissecting the interaction of individual HLA variants with the immune system.Immunobiology of allogeneic stem cell transplantation and immunotherapy of hematological disease