Immersed Fatigue Performance of Glass-Fibre Reinforced Composites for Tidal Turbine Blade Applications

This work presents an experimental study on the fatigue of glass fibre-reinforced polymers (GFRP) for use in ocean energy structures, with particular emphasis on the effects of water saturation. Quasi-isotropic specimens with either epoxy or vinyl-ester matrix were reinforced with E-glass or E-CR glass and immersion-aged for a period of up to two and a half years, using a moderately accelerated ageing technique. A number of the specimens were kept under constant tensile stress while immersed. The water-saturated specimens were fatigue tested while immersed in water. Dry specimens of the same materials were also fatigue tested and comparative results are presented. It was established that moisture saturation has a detrimental stress-dependent effect on the fatigue strength of the epoxy/E-glass composite. The measured evolution of specimen stiffness during the fatigue cycles was similar for both dry and water-saturated coupons

Bioinformatic identification of proteins with tissue-specific expression for biomarker discovery

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is an important need for the identification of novel serological biomarkers for the early detection of cancer. Current biomarkers suffer from a lack of tissue specificity, rendering them vulnerable to non-disease-specific increases. The present study details a strategy to rapidly identify tissue-specific proteins using bioinformatics.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Previous studies have focused on either gene or protein expression databases for the identification of candidates. We developed a strategy that mines six publicly available gene and protein databases for tissue-specific proteins, selects proteins likely to enter the circulation, and integrates proteomic datasets enriched for the cancer secretome to prioritize candidates for further verification and validation studies.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using colon, lung, pancreatic and prostate cancer as case examples, we identified 48 candidate tissue-specific biomarkers, of which 14 have been previously studied as biomarkers of cancer or benign disease. Twenty-six candidate biomarkers for these four cancer types are proposed.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We present a novel strategy using bioinformatics to identify tissue-specific proteins that are potential cancer serum biomarkers. Investigation of the 26 candidates in disease states of the organs is warranted.</p

Exploiting bacterial DNA gyrase as a drug target: current state and perspectives

DNA gyrase is a type II topoisomerase that can introduce negative supercoils into DNA at the expense of ATP hydrolysis. It is essential in all bacteria but absent from higher eukaryotes, making it an attractive target for antibacterials. The fluoroquinolones are examples of very successful gyrase-targeted drugs, but the rise in bacterial resistance to these agents means that we not only need to seek new compounds, but also new modes of inhibition of this enzyme. We review known gyrase-specific drugs and toxins and assess the prospects for developing new antibacterials targeted to this enzyme

Aquatic toxicity evaluation of TiO2 nanoparticle produced from sludge of TiCl4 flocculation of wastewater and seawater

Flocculation using titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4) as a coagulant is an efficient and economical application because the flocculated sludge can be recycled to produce a valuable byproduct, namely titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles. However, toxicity of TiCl4 has not yet been assessed while it is used in water treatment. The aquatic toxicity of TiCl4 flocculation process was investigated to assess the environmental safety of the coagulant. D. magna and V. fischeri bioassays were carried out to evaluate the supernatant toxicity after TiCl4 flocculation. Artificial wastewater, biologically treated sewage effluent, and seawater were used to study the toxicity of TiCl4 flocculation. Results showed that supernatant toxicity was very low when TiCl4 flocculation was conducted (no observed effect concentration = 100 mg/L and lowest observed effect concentration = 150 mg/L exposed to D. magna and V. fischeri, respectively). Similarly, TiO2 nanoparticles recovered from wastewater and seawater flocculated sludge were also found to have low toxicity. The regenerated TiO2 nanoparticles indicated low toxicity values when compared to the commercial-TiO2 nanoparticle, P-25close242