Flat-Plate PHP with Gravity-Independent Performance and High Maximum Thermal Load

In many energy-related applications, components with high heat loads, such as power electronics, play an important role. Pulsating heat pipes (PHPs) are an effective solution to deal with the increasing heat load of these components. In many real-life applications, the PHP must work against gravity and still be able to operate efficiently. However, the majority of present flat-plate PHP designs do not perform well under this condition. Therefore, this paper presents a flat-plate PHP with a conventional channel design optimized for gravity-independent operation. The PHP was capable of transmitting a heat output of 754 watts in all orientations, while the testing heater in use never exceeded a temperature of 100 °C. No indications of dryout were observed, implying that the maximum thermal load the PHP can handle is even higher. Additionally, three different condenser zone sizes were tested with the PHP. Previously published results indicated that there is a specific range of suitable condenser zone sizes, and performance problems will occur if the condenser zone size falls outside of this range. The findings from this work point in the same direction

Epithelial–Mesenchymal Transition in Endometriosis—When Does It Happen?

Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is an important process of cell remodeling characterized by the gradual loss of the epithelial phenotype and progressive gain of a mesenchymal phenotype. EMT is not an all-or-nothing process, but instead a transition of epithelial to mesenchymal cells with intermediate cell states. Recently, EMT was described in endometriosis, and many EMT-specific pathways like Twist, Snail, Slug, Zinc finger E-box-binding homeobox 1/2 (ZEB1/2), E/N-cadherin, keratins, and claudins are involved. However, as pointed out in this review, a comparison of the eutopic endometrium of women with and without endometriosis yielded only subtle changes of these EMT markers. Furthermore, only very few alterations in cell–cell contacts could be found but without changes in the epithelial phenotype. This suggests only a partial EMT which is not a prerequisite for the detachment of endometrial cells and, thus, not critical for the first step(s) in the pathogenesis of endometriosis. In contrast, the majority of changes in the EMT-related marker expression were found in the ectopic endometrium, especially in the three endometriotic entities, ovarian, peritoneal, and deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE), compared with the eutopic endometrium. In this review, we examine the most important EMT pathways described in endometriosis and propose that partial EMT might result from the interaction of endometrial implants with their surrounding microenvironment

Thirty-two new cases with small supernumerary marker chromosomes detected in connection with fertility problems: detailed molecular cytogenetic characterization and review of the literature

Thirty-two patients with fertility problems were identified as carriers of small supernumerary marker chromosomes (sSMC). Molecular cytogenetic techniques were used to characterize their chromosomal origin. Together with the other cases available in the literature 111 sSMC cases have now been detected in connection with fertility problems in otherwise clinically healthy persons and characterized for their genetic content. According to this study, in 60% of the cases the sSMC originated from chromosomes 14 or 15. Euchromatic imbalances were caused by the sSMC presence in 30% of the cases. Notably, in 53% of infertile sSMC carriers, the sSMC was parentally transmitted. As we found indications of an as yet unknown mechanism for the elimination of sSMC from the human gene pool, sSMC could also play a role in elucidating the process of chromosome gain and loss during evolution. Nonetheless, further detailed molecular analysis will be necessary in the future to characterize the mechanisms and genetic basis for this phenomenon