Outdoor weathering performance parameters of exterior wood coating systems on tropical hardwood substrates

Wood coating research almost exclusively focuses on softwood as substrate despite the fact that coatings applied on tropical hardwoods show a different weathering behaviour. The objective of this study was to quantify the impact of wood substrate and coating type on the weathering behaviour of finished wooden joinery in outdoor exposure using a set of statistical methods. Therefore, a broad range of white opaque paints and mid-oak semi-transparent stains were used. The coatings were industrially applied on window frames made of frequently used commercial tropical hardwood species. The general appearance of the wood/coating systems was assessed visually using a rating scale that takes into account the anatomical characteristics of hardwood. For the evaluation, a required minimum exposure time of 2.5 years outdoor weathering for joinery in vertical position and facing south-west was determined. At 30 months best performances were recorded for waterborne alkyd primers with an acrylic topcoat when dry coating film was sufficiently thick. The dry layer thickness also affected the impact of the hiding power on the performance of the wood/coating system. Within hardwood species the degradation rate of coatings on species with a fine texture was the lowest. The significant influence of the substrate's texture on the weathering behaviour of coated hardwood stressed the need to evaluate the wood/coating system in total

Microstructured optical fiber Bragg grating-based strain and temperature sensing in the concrete buffer of the Belgian supercontainer concept

We present the use of microstructured optical fiber Bragg grating-based sensors for strain and temperature monitoring inside the concrete buffer of the Belgian supercontainer concept, demonstrated in a half-scale test in 2013. This test incorporated several optical fiber sensors inside the concrete buffer for production and condition monitoring. The optical fiber sensors presented here consist of small carbon-reinforced composite plates in which highly birefringent Butterfly microstructured optical fibers, equipped with fiber Bragg gratings, were embedded. The double reflection spectrum of these MOFGBs allows to simultaneously monitor strain and temperature, as confirmed by comparison with data obtained from thermocouples and vibrating-wire sensors installed near the MOFBGs

Outcome of intracranial bleeding managed with prothrombin complex concentrate in patients on direct factor Xa inhibitors or vitamin K antagonists

Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) is the most feared complication of anticoagulation with a high mortality and morbidity. Before registration of a specific reversal agent for factor Xa inhibitors (FXa-I), international guidelines recommended prothrombin complex concentrate (PCC), which also is the specific reversal agent for vitamin K antagonists (VKA). In two contemporary cohorts, we compared clinical outcomes between patients with FXa-I and VKA related ICH treated with PCC between 2014 and 2018. Primary outcome was effective hemostasis after 24 h, according to the International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis definition. Safety outcomes were defined as venous and arterial thromboembolic complications and death within 30 days. Thirty-six patients with FXa-I-ICH and 39 patients with VKA-ICH were available for analysis. Baseline characteristics were comparable between both groups, except for time from start of symptoms to presentation at the hospital. In the FXa-I-ICH cohort, 24 (73%) patients achieved effective hemostasis compared to 23 (62%) patients in the VKA-ICH cohort (crude odds ratio [OR] 1.62 [95%CI 0.59–4.48], adjusted OR 1.45 [95%CI 0.44–4.83]). Eight (24%) patients with FXa-I-ICH deceased compared to 17 (45%) patients with VKA-ICH (crude OR 0.38 [95%CI 0.14–1.24], adjusted OR 0.41 [95%CI 0.12–1.24]). In this observational cohort study, the outcome of ICH managed with PCC was similar in patients with FXa-I-ICH and in patients with VKA-ICH

NINscope, a versatile miniscope for multi-region circuit investigations

Miniaturized fluorescence microscopes (miniscopes) have been instrumental to monitor neural signals during unrestrained behavior and their open-source versions have made them affordable. Often, the footprint and weight of open-source miniscopes is sacrificed for added functionality. Here, we present NINscope: a light-weight miniscope with a small footprint that integrates a high-sensitivity image sensor, an inertial measurement unit and an LED driver for an external optogenetic probe. We use it to perform the first concurrent cellular resolution recordings from cerebellum and cerebral cortex in unrestrained mice, demonstrate its optogenetic stimulation capabilities to examine cerebello-cerebral or cortico-striatal connectivity, and replicate findings of action encoding in dorsal striatum. In combination with cross-platform acquisition and control software, our miniscope is a versatile addition to the expanding tool chest of open-source miniscopes that will increase access to multi-region circuit investigations during unrestrained behavior

Saturated fatty acids differently affect mitochondrial function and the intestinal epithelial barrier depending on their chain length in the in vitro model of IPEC-J2 enterocytes

Introduction: Maintenance of the intestinal barrier mainly relies on the mitochondrial function of intestinal epithelial cells that provide ATP through oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). Dietary fatty acid overload might induce mitochondrial dysfunction of enterocytes and may increase intestinal permeability as indicated by previous in vitro studies with palmitic acid (C16:0). Yet the impact of other dietary saturated fatty acids remains poorly described.Methods: To address this question, the in vitro model of porcine enterocytes IPEC-J2 was treated for 3 days with 250 µM of lauric (C12:0), myristic (C14:0), palmitic (C16:0) or stearic (C18:0) acids.Results and discussion: Measurement of the transepithelial electrical resistance, reflecting tight junction integrity, revealed that only C16:0 and C18:0 increased epithelial permeability, without modifying the expression of genes encoding tight junction proteins. Bioenergetic measurements indicated that C16:0 and C18:0 were barely β-oxidized by IPEC-J2. However, they rather induced significant OXPHOS uncoupling and reduced ATP production compared to C12:0 and C14:0. These bioenergetic alterations were associated with elevated mitochondrial reactive oxygen species production and mitochondrial fission. Although C12:0 and C14:0 treatment induced significant lipid storage and enhanced fusion of the mitochondrial network, it only mildly decreased ATP production without altering epithelial barrier. These results point out that the longer chain fatty acids C16:0 and C18:0 increased intestinal permeability, contrary to C12:0 and C14:0. In addition, C16:0 and C18:0 induced an important energy deprivation, notably via increased proton leaks, mitochondrial remodeling, and elevated ROS production in enterocytes compared to C12:0 and C14:0

Clinical outcome of patients with a vitamin K antagonist-associated bleeding treated with prothrombin complex concentrate

Background: Vitamin K antagonists (VKA) are used for the treatment of thromboembolism. Patients with severe VKA-associated bleeding require immediate restoration of haemostasis. Clinical studies on the effect of prothrombin complex concentrate (PCC) are heterogeneous with respect to outcome of bleeding. Objective: To evaluate the clinical outcome of patients treated with PCC for VKA-associated bleeding. Methods: We performed a cohort study of consecutive patients who received PCC for VKA-related bleeding in five Dutch hospitals. Data were collected by chart review on the bleeding event, international normalized ratio (INR), haemostatic efficacy, thromboembolic (TE) complications, and mortality. The primary outcome was effective haemostasis, assessed by an adaptation of the Sarode criteria with a surrogate outcome for patients with ICH without repeat CT. Results: One hundred patients were included. Mean age was 74 years, 54% were male and 79% received VKA for atrial fibrillation. Most patients presented with ICH (41%) or GI bleeding (36%). Effective haemostasis was achieved in 67/98 (68%) patients using the adapted classification. Surrogate outcomes were applied for 32 patients and data for two patients was missing. Median pre-treatment INR was 3.9 (IQR 2.9-5.8). One hour after PCC infusion, the INR was available for 50 patients and of these, 35 (70%) had an INR s1.4. TE complications occurred in five patients and 22 died (60% bleeding-related) within 30 days. Conclusion: PCC achieved effective haemostasis in 68% of evaluable patients with VKA-associated bleeding. TE complication rates were low, but mortality rates were high, due to the large number of patients with ICH