A Co-axial Multi-tube Heat Exchanger Applicable for a Geothermal ORC Power Plant

AbstractThe study proposes a Co-axial multi-tube heat exchanger (CMTHE) applicable to geothermal heat extraction. The heat exchanger is integrated with a 50kW geothermal ORC power plant having a working fluid of R-245fa. Two field tests were performed to examine the system response of the ORC system subject to change of CMTHE. In case 1 where the flow rate in the shell-side of CMTHE is maintained, the pressure variation in the shell-side of CMTHE casts minor variations on heat extraction, ORC power generation, and ORC efficiency during the transient. Moreover, the effect of pressure has barely any influence of the final states of heat extraction, ORC power generation, and ORC efficiency. In case 2 where the pressure is preserved in the CMTHE, it is found that a decrease of flow rate in the CMTHE results in degradation of heat extraction, ORC power generation and ORC system efficiency. On the contrary, increasing the flow rate in the CMTHE leads to a rise of heat extraction, ORC power generation and ORC system efficiency. Unlike that in case 1, the effect of flow rate has a detectable effect on the final states of heat extraction, ORC power generation, and ORC efficiency

Increasing levels of circulating Th17 cells and interleukin-17 in rheumatoid arthritis patients with an inadequate response to anti-TNF-α therapy

Introduction: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha inhibitors on circulating T helper-type 17 (Th17) cells and Th17-related cytokines in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods: The frequencies of circulating Th17 cells and serum levels of Th17-related cytokines were determined using flow cytometry analysis and ELISA, respectively, in 48 RA patients both before (baseline) and six months after anti-TNF-alpha therapy. Therapeutic response was evaluated using European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) response criteria. Results: Significantly higher baseline frequencies of circulating Th17 cells and serum levels of interleukin (IL)-6, IL17, IL-21, IL-23 and TNF-alpha were observed in active RA patients than in 12 healthy controls (all P < 0.001). After anti-TNF-alpha therapy, 36 patients (75%) were EULAR responders (20 good responders and 16 moderate responders) and 12 (25.0%) were non-responders. The mean levels of circulating Th17 cells and IL-17 significantly decreased (1.13% vs. 0.79%; 43.1 pg/ml vs. 27.8 pg/ml; respectively, both P < 0.001) in parallel with clinical remission in responders. Levels of IL-6, IL-21, IL-23 and TNF-alpha were significantly decreased after anti-TNF-alpha therapy in responders. In contrast, the mean levels of circulating Th17 cells and IL-17 significantly increased after anti-TNF-alpha therapy (2.94% vs. 4.23%; 92.1 pg/ml vs. 148.6 pg/ml; respectively, both P < 0.05) in non-responders. Logistic regression analysis identified a high baseline level of IL-17 as a significant predictor of poor therapeutic response. Conclusions: The beneficial effect of anti-TNF-alpha therapy might involve a decrease in Th17-related cytokines in responders, whereas rising levels of circulating Th17-cells and IL-17 were observed in patients with an inadequate response to anti-TNF-alpha therapy

Short-term outcomes of fetoscopic laser surgery for severe twin–twin transfusion syndrome from Taiwan single center experience: Demonstration of learning curve effect on the fetal outcomes

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate the learning curve effect on fetal outcomes while using fetoscopic laser photocoagulation (FLP) for twin–twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) as managed by a newly established single center in Taiwan.Materials and MethodsBetween October 2005 and October 2010, women diagnosed to have TTTS before 26 weeks of gestation were offered FLP surgery. Cases were divided into first-half and second-half groups to evaluate the learning effect on fetal outcomes including at least one survival rate, two survival rate, and gestational age of delivery.ResultsA total of 44 cases with a median gestational age of 20.1 weeks (range 16–25) at operation were included in the study. Overall, both twins survived in 22 (50.0%) cases, whereas only one twin was born alive in 13 (29.5%), and neither was born alive in the remaining nine cases (20.5%). The total survival rate was 64.8%. When comparing the first-half 22 cases and the second-half 22 cases, there were significant improvements in total survival rate (54.7% vs. 75.0%, p = 0.045), a prolonged interval between operation and delivery (62.1 vs. 89.1 days, p = 0.042), and more advanced gestational age of delivery (28.3 vs. 33.0 weeks, p = 0.008) in the second-half 22 cases.ConclusionsWith increasing experience in using fetoscopic guide laser therapy for TTTS, the fetal survival rate could be improved with advanced gestational age at delivery

The relative efficacy of different strain combinations of lactic acid bacteria in the reduction of populations of Salmonella enterica Typhimurium in the livers and spleens of mice

Multispecies probiotics have been reported to be more effective than monostrain probiotics in health promoting for the host. In this study, 12 lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains were selected based on the level of induction of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha in RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. Their adherence to Caco-2 cells and inhibitory effects on Salmonella invasion of Caco-2 cells were compared. Strains with different probiotic properties were then combined and BALB/c mice were fed with LAB strains for 63 days; then the mice were challenged with Salmonella on day 64. For Salmonella-unchallenged mice that received a multistrain combination of LAB strains that have greater TNF-alpha production in macrophages, greater adherence and inhibit Salmonella invasion of Caco-2 cells to a greater extent, their peritoneal macrophages had greater phagocytic activity. For Salmonella-challenged mice, a significant reduction of Salmonella cells in the livers and spleens of the mice was observed 8 days post challenge. The addition of 12% skim milk powder together with LAB strain combinations significantly enhanced the reduction of Salmonella cells in the mice livers and spleens. In conclusion, we have shown that LAB strain combinations with particular probiotic properties when fed to mice can inhibit Salmonella invasion of the liver and spleen

Preventive effects of Spirulina platensis on skeletal muscle damage under exercise-induced oxidative stress

The effects of spirulina supplementation on preventing skeletal muscle damage on untrained human beings were examined. Sixteen students volunteered to take Spirulina platensis in addition to their normal diet for 3-weeks. Blood samples were taken after finishing the Bruce incremental treadmill exercise before and after treatment. The results showed that plasma concentrations of malondialdehyde (MDA) were significantly decreased after supplementation with spirulina (P < 0.05). The activity of blood superoxide dismutase (SOD) was significantly raised after supplementation with spirulina or soy protein (P < 0.05). Both of the blood glutathione peroxidaes (GP (x) ) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels were significantly different between spirulina and soy protein supplementation by an ANCOVA analysis (P < 0.05). In addition, the lactate (LA) concentration was higher and the time to exhaustion (TE) was significantly extended in the spirulina trail (P < 0.05). These results suggest that ingestion of S. platensis showed preventive effect of the skeletal muscle damage and that probably led to postponement of the time of exhaustion during the all-out exercise

Expression of mercuric reductase from Bacillus megaterium MB1 in eukaryotic microalga Chlorella sp DT: an approach for mercury phytoremediation

A eukaryotic microalga, Chlorella sp. DT, was transformed with the Bacillus megaterium strain MB1 merA gene, encoding mercuric reductase (MerA), which mediates the reduction of Hg2+ to volatile elemental Hg-0. The transformed Chlorella cells were selected first by hygromycin B and then by HgCl2. The existence of merA gene in the genomic DNA of transgenic strains was shown by polymerase chain reaction amplification, while the stable integration of merA into genomic DNA of transgenic strains was confirmed by Southern blot analysis. The ability to remove Hg2+ in merA transgenic strains was higher than that in the wild type. The merA transgenic strains showed higher growth rate and photosynthetic activity than the wild type did in the presence of a toxic concentration of Hg2+. Cultured with Hg2+, the expression level of superoxide dismutase in transgenic strains was lower than that in the wild type, suggesting that the transgenic strains faced a lower level of oxidative stress. All the results indicated that merA gene was successfully integrated into the genome of transgenic strains and functionally expressed to promote the removal of Hg2+

The Fluctuating Phenotype of the Lymphohematopoietic Stem Cell with Cell Cycle Transit

The most primitive engrafting hematopoietic stem cell has been assumed to have a fixed phenotype, with changes in engraftment and renewal potential occurring in a stepwise irreversible fashion linked with differentiation. Recent work shows that in vitro cytokine stimulation of murine marrow cells induces cell cycle transit of primitive stem cells, taking 40 h for progression from G0 to mitosis and 12 h for subsequent doublings. At 48 h of culture, progenitors are expanded, but stem cell engraftment is markedly diminished. We have investigated whether this effect on engraftment was an irreversible step or a reversible plastic feature correlated with cell cycle progression. Long-term engraftment (2 and 6 mo) of male BALB/c marrow cells exposed in vitro to interleukin (IL)-3, IL-6, IL-11, and steel factor was assessed at 2–4-h intervals of culture over 24–48 h using irradiated female hosts; the engraftment phenotype showed marked fluctuations over 2–4-h intervals, with engraftment nadirs occurring in late S and early G2. These data show that early stem cell regulation is cell cycle based, and have critical implications for strategies for stem cell expansion and engraftment or gene therapy, since position in cell cycle will determine whether effective engraftment occurs in either setting

Isothermal and Cyclic Aging of 310S Austenitic Stainless Steel

Unusual damage and high creep strain rates have been observed on components made of 310S stainless steel subjected to thermal cycles between room temperature and 1143 K (870 °C). Microstructural characterization of such components after service evidenced high contents in sigma phase which formed first from δ-ferrite and then from γ-austenite. To get some insight into this microstructural evolution, isothermal and cyclic aging of 310S stainless steel has been studied experimentally and discussed on the basis of numerical simulations. The higher contents of sigma phase observed after cyclic agings than after isothermal treatments are clearly associated with nucleation triggered by thermal cycling

Identification of alpha-enolase as an autoantigen in lung cancer: Its overexpression is associated with clinical outcomes

Purpose: Although existence of humoral immunity has been previously shown in malignant pleural effusions, only a limited number of immunogenic tumor-associated antigens (TAA) have been identified and associated with lung cancer. In this study, we intended to identify more TAAs in pleural effusion-derived tumor cells. Experimental Design: Using morphologically normal lung tissues as a control lysate in Western blotting analyses, 54 tumor samples were screened with autologous effusion antibodies. Biochemical purification and mass spectrometric identification of TAAs were done using established effusion tumor cell lines as antigen sources. We identified a p48 antigen as of-enolase (ENO1). Semiquantitative immunohistochemistry was used to evaluate expression status of ENO1 in the tissue samples of 80 patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and then correlated with clinical variables. Results: Using ENO1-specifc antiserum, up-regulation of ENO1 expression in effusion tumor cells from 11 of 17 patients was clearly observed compared with human normal lung primary epithelial and non-cancer-associated effusion cells. Immunohistochemical studies consistently showed high level of ENO1 expression in all the tumors we have examined thus far. Log-rank and Cox's analyses of ENO1 expression status revealed that its expression level in primary tumors was a key factor contributing to overall- and progression-free survivals of patients (P < 0.05). The same result was also obtained in the early stage of NSCLC patients, showing that tumors expressing relatively higher ENO1 level were tightly correlated with poorer survival outcomes. Conclusions: Our data strongly support a prognostic role of ENO1 in determining tumor malignancy of patients with NSCLC