Aerodynamic Interference between Oscillating Lifting Surfaces and Fuselage Part 2: Some Applications of Oscillating Lifting Surface Theory

This is the second article of a series that deals with the calculation of the aerodynamic unsteady forces on lifting surfaces. It presents some new important details on the lifting surface theory that performs oscillations in subsonic flow. These features will be applied to the aerodynamic response to certain kind of gusts and to the flapping wing calculations

A Rotary Wing System for Micro Air Vehicle Applications. Part 1

The goal of the paper is to propose a new type of ornithopter that avoids the mechanical difficulties of a flapping system. It uses a modified design of a cycloidal propulsor. The modification regards the special setting of the wings that is intended to help the formation of a stable leading edge vortex (LEV). It is known that the LEV is the main feature that allows the insects to achieve the necessary lift to fly

A VORTEX MODEL OF A HELICOPTER ROTOR

A vortex model of a helicopter rotor is presented. Each blade of the rotor has three degrees of freedom: flapping, lagging and feathering. The motions after each degree of freedom are also known for all blades. The blade is modelled as a thin vortex surface. The wakes are free fluid surfaces. A system of five equations are obtained: the first one is the integral equation of the lifting surface (rotor), the next three describe the wakes motion, and the last one relates the vortex strength on the wakes and the variation of vorticity on the rotor. A numerical solution of this system is presented. To avoid the singularities that can occur due to the complexity of vortex system, a desingularized model of the vortex core was adopted. A Mathcad worksheet containing the method has been written.The original contribution of the work. The calculation method of the motion of the wakes free vortex system, the development of the vortex cores in time and a new method to approximate the aerodynamic influence of remoted wake regions

Co-encapsulation of dexamethasone 21-acetate and SPIONs into biodegradable polymeric microparticles designed for intra-articular delivery

Objective: Intra-articular drug delivery systems still suffer from too short-lasting effects. Magnetic particles retained in the joint using an external magnetic field might prolong the local release of an anti-inflammatory drug. For the purpose, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) and dexamethasone 21-acetate (DXM) were co-encapsulated into biodegradable microparticles. Methods: Poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) microparticles embedding both SPIONs and DXM were prepared by a double emulsion technique. The formulation was optimized in two steps, a screening design and a full factorial design, aiming at 10-mm particle diameter and high DXM encapsulation efficacy. Results: The most significant parameters were the polymer concentration, the stirring speed during solvent extraction and the extractive volume. Increasing the polymer concentration from 200 to 300 mgml-1, both the microparticle mean diameter and the DXM encapsulation efficacy increased up to 12 mm and 90%, respectively. The microparticles could be retained with an external magnet of 0.8T placed at 3 mm. Faster DXM release was obtained for smaller microparticles. Conclusion: The experimental set-up offered the tools for tailoring a formulation with magnetic retention properties and DXM release patterns corresponding to the required specifications for intra-articular administration

Particles for Local Delivery of Proteins Using Intra-Articular Route

Designing a vehicle for local delivery of proteins using intra-articular route is an attractive option to minimize the adverse effects associated with systemic exposure and to maximize the efficacy. Slowly dissolving silylated microparticles are designed with specific size and shape that are capable of extending the retention time of a model protein (bovine serum albumin) in the murine knee joint. No cytotoxicity is observed for the reconstituted formulation when tested against synovial fibroblasts and RAW 264.7 macrophages

Hematologic Safety of Radium-223 Dichloride: Baseline Prognostic Factors Associated With Myelosuppression in the ALSYMPCA Trial.

BACKGROUND: Myelosuppression is common in patients with progressive castration-resistant prostate cancer and bone metastases. Radium-223 prolongs overall survival in these patients but may cause myelosuppression; understanding risk factors will improve clinical decision making. We describe hematologic safety of radium-223 in ALSYMPCA and post hoc analyses identifying patients at increased risk for hematologic toxicity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Hematologic parameters and adverse events were analyzed. Multivariate analyses assessing baseline risk factors for hematologic toxicities were performed separately for radium-223 and placebo patients. RESULTS: Nine hundred one patients received radium-223 (n = 600) or placebo (n = 301); 65% of radium-223 and 48% of placebo patients had the full 6 cycles. Grade 3/4 thrombocytopenia was more common in radium-223 versus placebo patients (6% vs. 2%). Logistic regression analyses identified significant baseline predictors for grade 2-4 hematologic toxicities related to radium-223 treatment: extent of disease (6-20 vs. < 6 bone metastases; odds ratio [OR] = 2.76; P = .022) and elevated prostate-specific antigen (OR = 1.65; P = .006) for anemia; prior docetaxel (OR = 2.16; P = .035), decreased hemoglobin (OR = 1.35; P = .008), and decreased platelets (OR = 1.44; P = .030) for thrombocytopenia. Neutropenia events were too few in placebo patients for a comparative analysis. There were no significant associations between hematologic toxicities and number of radium-223 injections received (4-6 vs. 1-3). CONCLUSION: Radium-223 has a favorable safety profile with a low myelosuppression incidence. Understanding baseline factors associated with myelosuppression may assist clinicians in avoiding severe myelosuppression events with radium-223

Engineering nanoparticles for targeting rheumatoid arthritis: Past, present, and future trends

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by synovial joint inflammation and cartilage and bone tissue destruction. Although there exist some treatment strategies for RA, they are not completely safe and effective. Therefore, it is important to develop and test new drugs for RA that specifically target inflamed/swollen joints and simultaneously attenuate other possible damages to healthy tissues. Nanotechnology can be a good alternative to consider when envisioning precise medication for treating RA. Through the use of nanoparticles, it is possible to increase bioavailability and bioactivity of therapeutics and enable selective targeting to damaged joints. Herein, recent studies using nanoparticles for the treatment of RA, namely with liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, dendrimers, and metallic nanoparticles, have been reviewed. These therapeutic strategies have shown great promise in improving the treatment over that by traditional drugs. The results of these studies confirm that feasibility of the use of nanoparticles is mainly due to their biocompatibility, low toxicity, controlled release, and selective drug delivery to inflamed tissues in animal RA models. Therefore, it is possible to claim that nanotechnology will, in the near future, play a crucial role in advanced treatments and patient-specific therapies for human diseases such as RA.Financial support under the ARTICULATE project (No. QREN-13/SI/2011-23189). This study was also funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) project OsteoCart (No. PTDC/CTM-BPC/115977/2009), as well as the European Union’s FP7 Programme under grant agreement no REGPOT-CT2012-316331-POLARIS. The FCT distinction attributed to J. M. O. under the Investigator FCT program (No. IF/00423/2012) is also greatly acknowledged. C. G. also wished to acknowledge FCT for supporting her research (No. SFRH/BPD/94277/2013)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio