2,326 research outputs found
Demixing kinetics of phase separated polymer solutions in microgravity
Phase separated solutions of two neutral polymers in buffer provide a useful and versatile medium for the partition separation of biological cells. However, the efficiency of such separations is orders of magnitude lower than the thermodynamic limit. To test the hypothesis that this inefficiency is at least partially due to the convection and sedimentation that occur during the gravity driven demixing that follows introduction of cells to the systems, a series of experiments were begun aimed at performing cell partition in a low g environment. Demixing of isopycnic three polymer solvent systems was studied, experiments were performed on KC-135 aircraft and one shuttle middeck experiment was completed. Analysis of the results of these experiments and comparisons with the predictions of scaling relations for the dependence of phase domain size on time, derived for a number of possible demixing mechanisms, are presented
Separation of biological materials in microgravity
Partition in aqueous two phase polymer systems is a potentially useful procedure in downstream processing of both molecular and particulate biomaterials. The potential efficiency of the process for particle and cell isolations is much higher than the useful levels already achieved. Space provides a unique environment in which to test the hypothesis that convection and settling phenomena degrade the performance of the partition process. The initial space experiment in a series of tests of this hypothesis is described
Demixing of aqueous polymer two-phase systems in low gravity
When polymers such as dextran and poly(ethylene glycol) are mixed in aqueous solution biphasic systems often form. On Earth the emulsion formed by mixing the phases rapidly demixes because of phase density differences. Biological materials can be purified by selective partitioning between the phases. In the case of cells and other particulates the efficiency of these separations appears to be somewhat compromised by the demixing process. To modify this process and to evaluate the potential of two-phase partitioning in space, experiments on the effects of gravity on phase emulsion demixing were undertaken. The behavior of phase systems with essentially identical phase densities was studied at one-g and during low-g parabolic aircraft maneuvers. The results indicate the demixing can occur rather rapidly in space, although more slowly than on Earth. The demixing process was examined from a theoretical standpoint by applying the theory of Ostwald ripening. This theory predicts demizing rates many orders of magnitude lower than observed. Other possible demixing mechanisms are considered
Activin A inhibits MPTP and LPS-induced increases in inflammatory cell populations and loss of dopamine neurons in the mouse midbrain in Vivo
© 2017 Stayte et al. Parkinson's disease is a chronic neurodegenerative disease characterized by a significant loss of dopaminergic neurons within the substantia nigra pars compacta region and a subsequent loss of dopamine within the striatum. A promising avenue of research has been the administration of growth factors to promote the survival of remaining midbrain neurons, although the mechanism by which they provide neuroprotection is not understood. Activin A, a member of the transforming growth factor β superfamily, has been shown to be a potent anti-inflammatory following acute brain injury and has been demonstrated to play a role in the neuroprotection of midbrain neurons against MPP+-induced degeneration in vitro. We hypothesized that activin A may offer similar anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects in in vivo mouse models of Parkinson's disease. We found that activin A significantly attenuated the inflammatory response induced by both MPTP and intranigral administration of lipopolysaccharide in C57BL/6 mice. We found that administration of activin A promoted survival of dopaminergic and total neuron populations in the pars compacta region both 8 days and 8 weeks after MPTP-induced degeneration. Surprisingly, no corresponding protection of striatal dopamine levels was found. Furthermore, activin A failed to protect against loss of striatal dopamine transporter expression in the striatum, suggesting the neuroprotective action of activin A may be localized to the substantia nigra. Together, these results provide the first evidence that activin A exerts potent neuroprotection and anti-inflammatory effects in the MPTP and lipopolysaccharide mouse models of Parkinson's disease
Improving the representational strategies of children in a music-listening and playing task: an intervention-based study.
This intervention-based study focuses on the relation between music and its graphic representation from a meta-representational point of view. It aims to determine whether middle school students show an increase in meta-representational competence (MRC) after an educational intervention. Three classes of 11 to 14-year-old students participated in the teaching experiment: one experimental class (E) and two control classes (C). An intervention on MRC was carried out on the E class during the hours that were allocated for the regular music lessons, while students from the C classes followed the regular music curriculum. E and C classes were given the same pretest and posttest, which measured students' MRC by means of six representational criteria. One month after the posttest, all classes completed a retention test. The results reveal an overall effect in favour of the E group, despite the negative results for two representational criteria. Moreover, the overall gain, to a great extent, was due to a decrease in the score of the C classes, while the gains in the E class were rather small. Theoretical, methodological and educational implications are discussed
Testing the Resolving Power of 2-D K^+ K^+ Interferometry
Adopting a procedure previously proposed to quantitatively study
two-dimensional pion interferometry, an equivalent 2-D chi^2 analysis was
performed to test the resolving power of that method when applied to less
favorable conditions, i.e., if no significant contribution from long lived
resonances is expected, as in kaon interferometry. For that purpose, use is
made of the preliminary E859 K^+ K^+ interferometry data from Si+Au collisions
at 14.6 AGeV/c. As expected, less sensitivity is achieved in the present case,
although it still is possible to distinguish two distinct decoupling
geometries. The present analysis seems to favor scenarios with no resonance
formation at the AGS energy range, if the preliminary K^+ K^+ data are
confirmed. The possible compatibility of data with zero decoupling proper time
interval, conjectured by the 3-D experimental analysis, is also investigated
and is ruled out when considering more realistic dynamical models with
expanding sources. These results, however, clearly evidence the important
influence of the time emission interval on the source effective transverse
dimensions. Furthermore, they strongly emphasize that the static Gaussian
parameterization, commonly used to fit data, cannot be trusted under more
realistic conditions, leading to distorted or even wrong interpretation of the
source parameters!Comment: 11 pages, RevTeX, 4 Postscript figures include
Correlation measurements in high-multiplicity events
Requirements for correlation measurements in high--multiplicity events are
discussed. Attention is focussed on detection of so--called hot spots,
two--particle rapidity correlations, two--particle momentum correlations (for
quantum interferometry) and higher--order correlations. The signal--to--noise
ratio may become large in the high--multiplicity limit, allowing meaningful
single--event measurements, only if the correlations are due to collective
behavior.Comment: MN 55455, 20 pages, KSUCNR-011-92 and TPI-MINN-92/47-T (revised).
Revised to correct typo in equation (30), and to fill in a few steps in
calculations. Now published as Phys. Rev. C 47 (1993) 232
Mobile Phones as Secure Gateways for Message-Based Ubiquitous Communication (Revised)
For ubiquitous communication self-organising ad-hoc networks become
more and more important. We consider mobile phones as appropriate
secure gateways to provide access to the Internet for external
machines with low communication needs. A message-based approach is
best in such a scenario with moving mobile phones and machines. In
this paper we propose a security model for access control to the
communication infrastructure, which is also message oriented. To
meet the requirements of ubiquitously communicating machines, all
algorithms on the sender\u27s side are based on symmetric cryptography
resulting in low computation requirements. Our sophisticated
symmetric key infrastructure for access control is based on unique
combinations of keys and is completed with an effective key
management. This results in a carrier grade security level although
many parties share the same keys. Adopting the Subscriber Identity
Module as a secure storage and computing module achieves the
trustworthiness of the mobile phone. This makes it possible to use
the mobile phone not only as a user terminal but also as a trusted
infrastructure component of the mobile network.
This document is an update of earlier work [BWS07]
presented at the Workshop in Information Security Theory and
Practices 2007 in Crete, Greece
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