Heavy metal accumulation in Artemisia and foliaceous lichen species from the Azerbaijan flora

Artemisia plants and foliaceous lichens are known to be capable of accumulating heavy metals (HM) from soil and air. These plant species are widespread on polluted sites of Azerbaijan. However, so far their capacity to accumulate HM in their shoots and roots has not been tested. Three Artemisia and two lichen species were collected from different contaminated sites of Azerbaijan. Plant and surface soil samples were measured for Cd, Cu, Pb, Ni and Zn concentrations by ICP-AES.The results indicated that among the Artemisia species A. scoparia showed the best HM accumulation properties. Lichen species were also distinguished by very high amounts of HM in their biomass, while in surrounding soil samples HM concentrations had higher contents than the soils occupied only with Artemisia species.The results indicate that on contaminated sites Artemisia and lichens accumulated metals in their biomass without toxicity symptoms. Taking large biomass and high adaptation ability into account, A. scoparia represents a good tool for a phytoremediation approach on polluted soils

Blade-explicit fluid structure interaction of a ducted high-solidity tidal turbine

This work elaborates a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model utilised in the investigation of the structural performance concerning a ducted high-solidity tidal turbine in aligned and yawed inlet flows. Analysing the hydrodynamic performance at aligned flows portrayed the distinctive power curve at which energy is transferred via the fluid-structure interaction. At distinct bearing angles with the axis of the turbine, variations in the blade-interaction due to the presence of the duct was acknowledged within a limited angular range at distinct tip-speed ratio values. As a result of the hydrodynamic analysis, a structural investigation of the blades was discretely evaluated in an effort to acknowledge fluid-structure phenomena

Role of bacteria in acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Levent Erkan, Oguz Uzun, Serhat Findik, Didem Katar, Ahmet Sanic, Atilla G AticiOndokuz Mayis University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Samsun, TurkeyBackground and study objective: Infections are major causes of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which result in significant mortality and morbidity. The primary aim of the study was to determine the microbiological spectrum including atypical agents in acute exacerbations. The secondary aim was to evaluate resistance patterns in the microorganisms.Methods: The sputum culture of 75 patients admitted to our clinic from January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2002 was evaluated prospectively, for aerobic Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, and serologically for Chlamydophila pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae. Sensitivity patterns in potentially pathogenic microorganisms (PPMs) were also investigated.Results: An infectious agent was identified in 46 patients, either serologically or with sputum culture. Pathogens most commonly demonstrated were: Haemophilus influenzae (30%), Chlamydophila pneumoniae (17%), and Mycoplasma pneumoniae (9%). Mixed infections were diagnosed in 9 patients. PPMs showed a high resistance rate to commonly used antibiotics.Conclusion: We have shown that microorganisms causing acute exacerbations of COPD are not only typical bacteria (46%) but also atypical pathogens (26%), with unpredictable high rates. Typical agents showed a high resistance to commonly used antibiotics.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, acute exacerbation, infection, atypical pathogens, Haemophilus influenza

Creation and implementation of an emergency medicine education and training program in Turkey: An effective educational intervention to address the practitioner gap

Background The specialty of Emergency Medicine has enjoyed recognition for nearly 20 years in Turkey. However, the majority of underserved and rural Turkish emergency departments are staffed by general practitioners who lack formal training in the specialty and have few opportunities to increase emergency medicine-specific knowledge and skills. Methods To address this “practitioner gap,” the authors developed a four-phase comprehensive emergency medicine education and training program for general practitioners practicing in government hospitals in Turkey. Results From April 2006 until June 2009, 42 courses were taught by 62 trainers across seven regions in Turkey. A total of 2,262 physicians were trained. The mean course pre-test score for all regions was 42.3 (95% CI 39.8 to 44.7). The mean course post-test score was 70.1 (95% CI 67.2 to 72.9). The difference between the mean scores was 27.8 (95% CI 25.3 to 30.4, P \u3c0.0001), reflecting an improvement of 65.7%. Conclusions A partnership between an academic emergency medicine department and an emergency medicine society to implement country-wide training of physicians practicing in public emergency departments can serve as a successful model for capacity-building global emergency medicine endeavors

Site response from Istanbul vertical arrays and strong motion network

In the framework of Istanbul Microzonation Project for the European side, the investigated region was divided by a grid system of 250m×250m and site investigations were performed for each cell based on borings and in-situ seismic wave velocity measurements for defining representative soil profiles with shear wave velocity values extending down to the engineering bedrock. Geological and geotechnical laboratory and field testing data with measured seismicwave velocities enabled to determine the engineering properties of the soil and rock layers encountered in all the cells. There have been limited number of earthquakes within 100km range of Istanbul with local magnitude in the range of ML=4-5 and few more distant and more stronger earthquakes that were recorded by the existing three vertical arrays as well as by the Istanbul Rapid Response Network (IRRN) strong motion stations. Even though the maximum PGA were similar, the observed spectral response were different indicating the importance of the distance and source magnitude concerning the frequency content and predominant soil period ranges. Even though the level of ground shaking intensity is relatively low, efforts were made to evaluate the variation of the recorded accelerations with depth in vertical arrays located at Ataköy, Zeytinburnu and Fatih. Attempts were also made to model the recorded acceleration time histories at the triggered IRRN stations using the acceleration records obtained at the bedrock level from the vertical array stations in the case of the recent 19.5.2011 Mw=5.7 Kütahya earthquake that took place approximately 185km away

Preoperative Embolization in Surgical Treatment of a Primary Hemangiopericytoma of the Rib : A Case Report

Primary hemangiopericytoma of the rib is extremely rare and only a few cases have been reported. A 62-yr-old man presented with an aching chest pain and dyspnea. Thoracic computed tomography revealed a homogenous mass expanding the right seventh rib. A diagnosis of hemangiopericytoma was established by percutaneous needle biopsy. Preoperative embolization of the feeding vessels of the tumor was performed in order to prevent perioperative bleeding. There was no significant bleeding during the surgery, where complete resection of the tumor with 7th to 9th ribs with a surgical margin of 5 cm was performed. Postoperative course was uneventful and there has been no recurrence for thirteen months. To our knowledge, there has been no report to apply a preoperative embolization of a primary hemangiopericytoma of the rib

A numerical structural analysis of ducted, high-solidity, fibre-composite tidal turbine rotor configurations in real flow conditions

Establishing a design and material evaluation of unique tidal turbine rotors in true hydrodynamic conditions by means of a numerical structural analysis has presented inadequacies in implementing spatial and temporal loading along the blade surfaces. This study puts forward a structural performance investigation of true-scale, ducted, high-solidity, fibre-composite tidal turbine rotor configurations in aligned and yawed flows by utilising outputs from unsteady blade-resolved computational fluid dynamic models as boundary condition loads within a finite-element numerical model. In implementation of the partitioned-approach fluid–structure interaction procedure, three distinct internal blade designs were analysed. Investigating criteria related to structural deformation and induced strains, hydrostatic & hydrodynamic analyses are put forward in representation of the rotor within the flow conditions at the installation depth. The resultant axial deflections for the proposed designs describe a maximum deflection-to-bladespan ratio of 0.04, inducing a maximum strain of 0.9%. A fatigue response analysis is undertaken to acknowledge the blade material properties required to prevent temporal failure

A numerical performance analysis of a ducted high-solidity tidal turbine

This study puts forward an investigation into the hydrodynamic performance concerning a ducted, high-solidity tidal turbine utilising blade-resolved computational fluid dynamics. The model achieves similarity values of over 0.96 with experimentation data regarding a three-bladed horizontal-axis tidal turbine in validation of three distinct parameters: power & torque coefficient, thrust coefficient, and wake velocity profiles. Accordingly, the model was employed for the analysis of a ducted, high-solidity turbine in axially-aligned flows at distinct free-stream velocities. The resultant hydrodynamic performance characteristics portrayed a peak power coefficient of 0.34, with a thrust coefficient of 0.97, at a nominal tip-speed ratio of 1.75. Coefficient trend agreement was attained between the numerical model and experimentation data established in literature and blade-element momentum theory; the model furthers the analysis by elaborating the temporal hydrodynamic features induced by the fluid-structure interaction in specification to the wake formation velocity profiles, pressure distribution along the blades and duct, mass flow rate, and vortex shedding effects to establish the characteristic flow physics of the tidal turbine

Complex consequences of Cantu syndrome SUR2 variant R1154Q in genetically modified mice

Cantu syndrome (CS) is caused by gain-of-function (GOF) mutations in pore-forming (Kir6.1, KCNJ8) and accessory (SUR2, ABCC9) ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channel subunits, the most common mutations being SUR2[R1154Q] and SUR2[R1154W], carried by approximately 30% of patients. We used CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering to introduce the equivalent of the human SUR2[R1154Q] mutation into the mouse ABCC9 gene. Along with minimal CS disease features, R1154Q cardiomyocytes and vascular smooth muscle showed much lower KATP current density and pinacidil activation than WT cells. Almost complete loss of SUR2-dependent protein and KATP in homozygous R1154Q ventricles revealed underlying diazoxide-sensitive SUR1-dependent KATP channel activity. Surprisingly, sequencing of SUR2 cDNA revealed 2 distinct transcripts, one encoding full-length SUR2 protein; and the other with an in-frame deletion of 93 bases (corresponding to 31 amino acids encoded by exon 28) that was present in approximately 40% and approximately 90% of transcripts from hetero- and homozygous R1154Q tissues, respectively. Recombinant expression of SUR2A protein lacking exon 28 resulted in nonfunctional channels. CS tissue from SUR2[R1154Q] mice and human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived (hiPSC-derived) cardiomyocytes showed only full-length SUR2 transcripts, although further studies will be required in order to fully test whether SUR2[R1154Q] or other CS mutations might result in aberrant splicing and variable expressivity of disease features in human CS

HIPK2 and extrachromosomal histone H2B are separately recruited by Aurora-B for cytokinesis

Cytokinesis, the final phase of cell division, is necessary to form two distinct daughter cells with correct distribution of genomic and cytoplasmic materials. Its failure provokes genetically unstable states, such as tetraploidization and polyploidization, which can contribute to tumorigenesis. Aurora-B kinase controls multiple cytokinetic events, from chromosome condensation to abscission when the midbody is severed. We have previously shown that HIPK2, a kinase involved in DNA damage response and development, localizes at the midbody and contributes to abscission by phosphorylating extrachromosomal histone H2B at Ser14. Of relevance, HIPK2-defective cells do not phosphorylate H2B and do not successfully complete cytokinesis leading to accumulation of binucleated cells, chromosomal instability, and increased tumorigenicity. However, how HIPK2 and H2B are recruited to the midbody during cytokinesis is still unknown. Here, we show that regardless of their direct (H2B) and indirect (HIPK2) binding of chromosomal DNA, both H2B and HIPK2 localize at the midbody independently of nucleic acids. Instead, by using mitotic kinase-specific inhibitors in a spatio-temporal regulated manner, we found that Aurora-B kinase activity is required to recruit both HIPK2 and H2B to the midbody. Molecular characterization showed that Aurora-B directly binds and phosphorylates H2B at Ser32 while indirectly recruits HIPK2 through the central spindle components MgcRacGAP and PRC1. Thus, among different cytokinetic functions, Aurora-B separately recruits HIPK2 and H2B to the midbody and these activities contribute to faithful cytokinesis