Large deformations and extreme behaviours

Large deformations of a solid are investigated. We use a polar decomposition of gradient matrix F = RW (R is rotation matrix, W is stretch matrix). Large deformations of solids involve local spacial interactions either in an extension or in a rotation. Because local interactions are well described by spacial gradient, matrix W intervene for extensions and matrix grad R intervene for rotations. Thus the free energy depends on W and on grad R. Moreover, free energy takes into account the local impenetrability condition. Reactions to this impenetrability condition are important in constitutive laws. Within our parti-pris, self contact and extreme behaviours like the flattening (for example, structure flattened by a power hammer evolving from dimension 3 to dimension 2) are accounted for. To cite this article: M. Fremond, C R. Mecanique 337 (2009). (C) 2009 Academie des sciences. Publid par Elsevier Masson SAS. Tous droits reserves

Solid-liquid phase changes with different densities

In this paper we present a new thermodynamically consistent phase transition model describing the evolution of a liquid substance, e.g., water, in a rigid container Omega when we freeze the container. Since the density rho(2) of ice with volume fraction beta(2) is lower than the density rho(1) of water with volume fraction beta(1), experiments, for instance the freezing of a glass bottle filled with water, show that the water pressure increases up to the rupture of the bottle. When the container is not impermeable, freezing play produce a nonhomogeneous material, for instance water, ice or sorbet. Here we describe a general class of phase transition processes, including this example as a particular case. Moreover, we study the resulting nonlinear and singular PDE system from the analytical viewpoint, recovering existence of a global (in time) weak solution and also uniqueness for some particular choices of the nonlinear functions involved

Collisions and fractures: a predictive theory

We investigate collisions of solids which can fracture. Equations of motion and constitutive laws provide a predictive theory. Assuming the collision as instantaneous, the equations of motion are derived from the principle of virtual work introducing new interior forces which describe the very large stresses and the very large contact forces resulting from the kinematic incompatibilities. They are interior volume percussion stresses and interior surface percussions both on the unknown fractures and on the colliding surface. In order to approximate these equations, we assume solids are damageable. In this point of view, it results that velocity is continuous with respect to space but its strain rate is very large in a thin region where the material is completely damaged, so approximating a fracture. When the velocity before collision is very large, the damaged zone may be large accounting for parts of the solid completely transformed into powder. The constitutive laws result from dissipative functions satisfying the second law of thermodynamics and able to model the fracturation phenomenon at the macroscopic engineering level. Representative numerical examples confirm that the model accounts for the fracturation qualitative properties

A new approach to non-isothermal models for nematic liquid crystals

We introduce a new class of non-isothermal models describing the evolution of nematic liquid crystals and prove their consistency with the fundamental laws of classical thermodynamics. The resulting system of equations captures all essential features of physically relevant models; in particular, the effect of stretching of the director field is taken into account. In addition, the associated initial-boundary value problem admits global-in-time weak solutions without any essential restrictions on the size of the initial data

Fatal Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection despite adaptive immune response in the absence of MyD88

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) such as TLR2 and TLR4 have been implicated in host response to mycobacterial infection. Here, mice deficient in the TLR adaptor molecule myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88) were infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB). While primary MyD88–/– macrophages and DCs are defective in TNF, IL-12, and NO production in response to mycobacterial stimulation, the upregulation of costimulatory molecules CD40 and CD86 is unaffected. Aerogenic infection of MyD88–/– mice with MTB is lethal within 4 weeks with 2 log10 higher CFU in the lung; high pulmonary levels of cytokines and chemokines; and acute, necrotic pneumonia, despite a normal T cell response with IFN-γ production to mycobacterial antigens upon ex vivo restimulation. Vaccination with Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin conferred a substantial protection in MyD88–/– mice from acute MTB infection. These data demonstrate that MyD88 signaling is dispensable to raise an acquired immune response to MTB. Nonetheless, this acquired immune response is not sufficient to compensate for the profound innate immune defect and the inability of MyD88–/– mice to control MTB infection

Membrane TNF confers protection to acute mycobacterial infection

BACKGROUND: Tumour necrosis factor (TNF) is crucial for the control of mycobacterial infection as TNF deficient (KO) die rapidly of uncontrolled infection with necrotic pneumonia. Here we investigated the role of membrane TNF for host resistance in knock-in mice with a non-cleavable and regulated allele (mem-TNF). METHODS: C57BL/6, TNF KO and mem-TNF mice were infected with M. tuberculosis H37Rv (Mtb at 100 CFU by intranasal administration) and the survival, bacterial load, lung pathology and immunological parameters were investigated. Bone marrow and lymphocytes transfers were used to test the role of membrane TNF to confer resistance to TNF KO mice. RESULTS: While TNF-KO mice succumbed to infection within 4–5 weeks, mem-TNF mice recruited normally T cells and macrophages, developed mature granuloma in the lung and controlled acute Mtb infection. However, during the chronic phase of infection mem-TNF mice succumbed to disseminated infection with necrotic pneumonia at about 150 days. Reconstitution of irradiated TNF-KO mice with mem-TNF derived bone marrow cells, but not with lymphocytes, conferred host resistance to Mtb infection in TNF-KO mice. CONCLUSION: Membrane expressed TNF is sufficient to allow cell-cell signalling and control of acute Mtb infection. Bone marrow cells, but not lymphocytes from mem-TNF mice confer resistance to infection in TNF-KO mice. Long-term infection control with chronic inflammation likely disrupting TNF mediated cell-cell signalling, additionally requires soluble TNF

Toll-Like Receptors 2 and 4 Regulate the Frequency of IFNγ-Producing CD4+ T-Cells during Pulmonary Infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae

TLR2 and TLR4 are crucial for recognition of Chlamydia pneumoniae in vivo, since infected TLR2/4 double-deficient mice are unable to control the infection as evidenced by severe loss of body weight and progressive lethal pneumonia. Unexpectedly, these mice display higher pulmonary levels of the protective cytokine IFNγ than wild type mice. We show here, that antigen-specific CD4+ T-cells are responsible for the observed IFNγ-secretion in vivo and their frequency is higher in TLR2/4 double-deficient than in wild type mice. The capacity of TLR2/4 double-deficient dendritic cells to re-stimulate CD4+ T-cells did not differ from wild type dendritic cells. However, the frequency of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ T-cells was considerably higher in wild type compared to TLR2/4 double-deficient mice and was inversely related to the number of IFNγ-secreting CD4+ effector T-cells. Despite increased IFNγ-levels, at least one IFNγ-mediated response, protective NO-secretion, could not be induced in the absence of TLR2 and 4. In summary, CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T-cells fail to expand in the absence of TLR2 and TLR4 during pulmonary infection with C. pneumoniae, which in turn enhances the frequency of CD4+IFNγ+ effector T-cells. Failure of IFNγ to induce NO in TLR2/4 double-deficient cells represents one possible mechanism why TLR2/4 double-deficient mice are unable to control pneumonia caused by C. pneumoniae and succumb to the infection

Membrane-Bound TNF Induces Protective Immune Responses to M. bovis BCG Infection: Regulation of memTNF and TNF Receptors Comparing Two memTNF Molecules

Several activities of the transmembrane form of TNF (memTNF) in immune responses to intracellular bacterial infection have been shown to be different from those exerted by soluble TNF. Evidence is based largely on studies in transgenic mice expressing memTNF, but precise cellular mechanisms are not well defined and the importance of TNF receptor regulation is unknown. In addition, memTNF activities are defined for a particular modification of the extracellular domain of TNF but a direct comparison of different mutant memTNF molecules has not been done in vivo

Human Macrophages Infected with a High Burden of ESAT-6-Expressing M. tuberculosis Undergo Caspase-1- and Cathepsin B-Independent Necrosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infects lung macrophages, which instead of killing the pathogen can be manipulated by the bacilli, creating an environment suitable for intracellular replication and spread to adjacent cells. The role of host cell death during Mtb infection is debated because the bacilli have been shown to be both anti-apoptotic, keeping the host cell alive to avoid the antimicrobial effects of apoptosis, and pro-necrotic, killing the host macrophage to allow infection of neighboring cells. Since mycobacteria activate the NLRP3 inflammasome in macrophages, we investigated whether Mtb could induce one of the recently described inflammasome-linked cell death modes pyroptosis and pyronecrosis. These are mediated through caspase-1 and cathepsin-B, respectively. Human monocyte-derived macrophages were infected with virulent (H37Rv) Mtb at a multiplicity of infection (MOI) of 1 or 10. The higher MOI resulted in strongly enhanced release of IL-1β, while a low MOI gave no IL-1β response. The infected macrophages were collected and cell viability in terms of the integrity of DNA, mitochondria and the plasma membrane was determined. We found that infection with H37Rv at MOI 10, but not MOI 1, over two days led to extensive DNA fragmentation, loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, loss of plasma membrane integrity, and HMGB1 release. Although we observed plasma membrane permeabilization and IL-1β release from infected cells, the cell death induced by Mtb was not dependent on caspase-1 or cathepsin B. It was, however, dependent on mycobacterial expression of ESAT-6. We conclude that as virulent Mtb reaches a threshold number of bacilli inside the human macrophage, ESAT-6-dependent necrosis occurs, activating caspase-1 in the process