Анализ индукционных методов сельскохозяйственной навигации

Выполнен анализ индукционных методов определения местоположения сельскохозяйственных машинно-тракторных агрегатов при движении над подземным проводником с током. Установлены математические описания основных технических параметров устройств местоопределения, реализующих рассматриваемые методы

Altered Cytokine Response of Human Brain Endothelial Cells after Stimulation with Malaria Patient Plasma

Infections with the deadliest malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, are accompanied by a strong immunological response of the human host. To date, more than 30 cytokines have been detected in elevated levels in plasma of malaria patients compared to healthy controls. Endothelial cells (ECs) are a potential source of these cytokines, but so far it is not known if their cytokine secretion depends on the direct contact of the P. falciparum-infected erythrocytes (IEs) with ECs in terms of cytoadhesion. Culturing ECs with plasma from malaria patients (27 returning travellers) resulted in significantly increased secretion of IL-11, CXCL5, CXCL8, CXCL10, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) if compared to matching controls (22 healthy individuals). The accompanying transcriptome study of the ECs identified 43 genes that were significantly increased in expression (≥1.7 fold) after co-incubation with malaria patient plasma, including cxcl5 and angptl4. Further bioinformatic analyses revealed that biological processes such as cell migration, cell proliferation and tube development were particularly affected in these ECs. It can thus be postulated that not only the cytoadhesion of IEs, but also molecules in the plasma of malaria patients exerts an influence on ECs, and that not only the immunological response but also other processes, such as angiogenesis, are altered

Architecture and Advanced Electronics Pathways Toward Highly Adaptive Energy- Efficient Computing

With the explosion of the number of compute nodes, the bottleneck of future computing systems lies in the network architecture connecting the nodes. Addressing the bottleneck requires replacing current backplane-based network topologies. We propose to revolutionize computing electronics by realizing embedded optical waveguides for onboard networking and wireless chip-to-chip links at 200-GHz carrier frequency connecting neighboring boards in a rack. The control of novel rate-adaptive optical and mm-wave transceivers needs tight interlinking with the system software for runtime resource management

Lead ions abrogate lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric monoxide toxicity by reducing the expression of STAT1 and iNOS

Lead is a widespread environmental pollutant and the highly poisonous metal compromises multiple organs in the body. Among other tissues and cells, lead ions (Pb2+) can affect macrophages and microglia cells. The present study observed a concentration-dependent protection of BV-2 microglia and RAW 264.7 macrophages by Pb2+ against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced toxicity. Both cell lines are potent producers of two substances that have previously been shown to mediate cytotoxic effects of LPS. These are the pro-inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and nitric monoxide (NO), which creates nitrosative stress, hampering the distribution of invading pathogens and tumor cells. While the expression of TNF-alpha. was unaffected by Pb2+, the production of NO was significantly inhibited. Moreover, blocking NO synthesis by low molecular weight inhibitors prevented LPS-mediated toxicity, confirming the role of NO in these events. Pb2+ exposure led to a downregulation of LPS-induced expression of the transcription factor STAT1, which is involved in iNOS transcription. Moreover, iNOS mRNA and protein levels were reduced in the presence of Pb2+, explaining the reduced formation of NO and a subsequent increase of cellular viability in vitro. In vivo, the effect might limit collateral damage caused by excessive NO production, but also impair the efficiency of NO as a central mediator of the defense against various pathogens. (C) 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved

Adhesion between P. falciparum infected erythrocytes and human endothelial receptors follows alternative binding dynamics under flow and febrile conditions

Characterizing the adhesive dynamics of Plasmodium falciparum infected erythrocytes (IEs) to different endothelial cell receptors (ECRs) in flow is a big challenge considering available methods. This study investigated the adhesive dynamics of IEs to five ECRs (CD36, ICAM-1, P-selectin, CD9, CSA) using simulations of in vivo-like flow and febrile conditions. To characterize the interactions between ECRs and knobby and knobless IEs of two laboratory-adapted P. falciplarum isolates, cytoadhesion analysis over time was performed using a new tracking bioinformatics method. The results revealed that IEs performed rolling adhesion exclusively over CD36, but exhibited stationary binding to the other four ECRs. The absence of knobs affected rolling adhesion both with respect to the distance travelled by IEs and their velocity. Knobs played a critical role at febrile temperatures by stabilizing the binding interaction. Our results clearly underline the complexity of the IE-receptor interaction and the importance of knobs for the survival of the parasite at fever temperatures, and lead us to propose a new hypothesis that could open up new strategies for the treatment of malaria