Automation in Leather Making

Content: In most of the tanneries, water and chemicals are added manually in the tanning drum and pH of the float / leather is adjusted. Addition of correct amount of process recipe are necessary for better processing of the hides and minimizing wastage of utility, thereby controlling pollution load in effluent. However, fugitive-emission from process and drains accumulate ammonia, hydrogen-sulphide and volatile organic compounds which contribute bad odor in tannery as well as in wastewater-treatment premises causing problems to occupational health & safety of workers. Both local and supervisory control stations are employed to monitor and accurately manage the unit operations. The objective of this work is to produce consistent quality of leathers and to provide a healthy environment through automatic dosing and odor abatement system. Therefore the entire process control operation is integrated to operate through PLCs with following five modules: i) Water addition module ii) Chemical preparation and dosing system iii) pH monitoring and float recycle system iv) Drum rotation module v) Odor reduction module. In the integrated system, critical and bulk chemicals are stored in bulk storage tanks and are drawn into the load cell (LC) as per process sequence or recipe for feeding into the drums through auxiliary tanks. The float-recycle system helps to remix & heat the float where a pH electrode is housed to monitor pH online. The pH monitoring system adjusts addition of critical chemicals that indicates automatic end point. The contaminated air inside the tannery is sucked and passed through blower and then through bio-filter. The filtration process is based on the principle that VOCs (in the order of 50-200 ppm) and odors can be biologically treated by naturally occurring microbes. The control parameters monitored are: moisture in the bed and uniformity of media (contaminated air or process liquor). The humidity and temperature of inlet media is controlled and contact time with microbes is 10-30 secs. Moisture is controlled to maintain microbial population. A lead in laboratory scale has been developed to measure process variables (PV) considering their spatial distribution in two dimensions. Spatial distribution of process variables inside hides (across cross section) may provide accurate measurement of through reconstruction of image and data driven models using artificial intelligence tools. Computational intelligence is developed for updation of model parameters as that can be used for direct estimation of PV Take-Away: 1. Cleaner production is provided through automation of dosing & pH monitoring using PLC in indegeneous way 2. Pollution Load in exit stream and odor-gas emmision are minimized 3. Artificial Intelligence and data analytics techniques are used in Leather makin

Effects of quercetin on insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and their binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) secretion and induction of apoptosis in human prostate cancer cells

BACKGROUND: Quercetin, the predominant flavonoid, has been reported to lower the risk of several cancers. This flavonoid found in onion, grapes, green vegetables, etc. has been shown to possess potent antiproliferative effects against various malignant cells. This study was designed to investigate its effects on insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and their binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) proteins secretion and also apoptosis induction in the human prostate cancer cell line, PC-3. METHODS: We evaluated the secretion of IGF-I, -II and IGFBP-3 in quercetin treated cells by immunoradiometric (IRMA) method. Apoptosis was studied in quercetin treated cells by TUNEL and DNA fragmentation. Protein expressions of Bcl-2, Bcl-x(L), Bax and caspase-3 were studied by western blot. RESULTS: At a dose of 100 μM concentration, we observed increased IGFBP-3 accumulation in PC-3 cells conditioned medium with a dose dependent increase with 2 fold over a base line, and significantly reduced the both IGF-I and IGF-II levels. Apoptosis induction was also confirmed by TUNEL assay. Bcl-2 and Bcl-x(L )protein expressions were significantly decreased and Bax and caspase-3 were increased. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the decreased level of IGFs could be due to the increased levels of IGFBP-3, because of the high binding affinity towards IGFs, thereby decreasing the cell proliferation. The increased level of IGFBP-3 was associated with increased pro-apoptotic proteins and apoptosis in response to quercetin, suggesting it may be a p53-independent effector of apoptosis in prostate cancer cells

Tool speed and polarity effects in micro-EDM drilling of 316L stainless steel

This paper focuses on the issues of Resistor-Capacitor-based Electrical Discharge Micro-Machining process and investigates the effects of tool speed and polarity on the performance measures such as Tool Wear Rate, Material Removal Rate, Overcut and Taper Angle by drilling on 316L Stainless Steel. Taguchi’s L54 mixed orthogonal array design is employed to conduct experiments by varying tool polarity at two levels and voltage, capacitance, spindle speed at three levels. The cause and effect relationship between the experimental factors and responses are analysed and discussed using Factorial Analysis of Variance technique. Optimum combinations of machining parameters are also evaluated using Taguchi-based Grey Relational Analysis, by considering grey relational grade matrix and influence of process parameters on the responses. Further, microscopic analysis is done to identify the micro-voids, globular formation, and cracks present on the surface of the hole produced under various machining conditions

In vitro study of UHMWPE/MWCNT – Preliminary results

In the present work, authors describe the response of osteoblast-like cells MG63 after 6 days of culture in contact with artificially generated particles from both ultra high molecular weight polyethylene polymer (UHMWPE) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes/ ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (MWCNT/UHMWPE) nanocomposites

AU-Rich Element RNA Binding Proteins: At the Crossroads of Post-Transcriptional Regulation and Genome Integrity.

Genome integrity must be tightly preserved to ensure cellular survival and to deter the genesis of disease. Endogenous and exogenous stressors that impose threats to genomic stability through DNA damage are counteracted by a tightly regulated DNA damage response (DDR). RNA binding proteins (RBPs) are emerging as regulators and mediators of diverse biological processes. Specifically, RBPs that bind to adenine uridine (AU)-rich elements (AREs) in the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of mRNAs (AU-RBPs) have emerged as key players in regulating the DDR and preserving genome integrity. Here we review eight established AU-RBPs (AUF1, HuR, KHSRP, TIA-1, TIAR, ZFP36, ZFP36L1, ZFP36L2) and their ability to maintain genome integrity through various interactions. We have reviewed canonical roles of AU-RBPs in regulating the fate of mRNA transcripts encoding DDR genes at multiple post-transcriptional levels. We have also attempted to shed light on non-canonical roles of AU-RBPs exploring their post-translational modifications (PTMs) and sub-cellular localization in response to genotoxic stresses by various factors involved in DDR and genome maintenance. Dysfunctional AU-RBPs have been increasingly found to be associated with many human cancers. Further understanding of the roles of AU-RBP in maintaining genomic integrity may uncover novel therapeutic strategies for cancer

Obesity appears to be associated with altered muscle protein synthetic and breakdown responses to increased nutrient delivery in older men, but not reduced muscle mass or contractile function.

Obesity is increasing, yet despite the necessity to maintain muscle mass and function with age, the effect of obesity on muscle protein turnover in older adults remains unknown. Eleven obese (BMI 31.9 ±1.1) and 15 healthy weight (HW; BMI 23.4 ±0.3) older men (55-75 years old) participated in a study that determined muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and leg protein breakdown (LPB) under post-absorptive (hypoinsulinaemic euglycaemic clamp) and post-prandial (hyperinsulinemic hyperaminoacidaemic euglycaemic clamp) conditions. Obesity was associated with systemic inflammation, greater leg fat mass, and patterns of mRNA expression consistent with muscle deconditioning, whilst leg lean mass, strength and work done during maximal exercise were no different. Under post-absorptive conditions, MPS and LPB were equivalent between groups, while insulin and amino acid administration increased MPS in only HW subjects and was associated with lower leg glucose disposal (LGD, 63%) in obese. Blunting of MPS in the obese was offset by an apparent decline in LPB, which was absent in HW subjects. Lower post-prandial LGD in obese subjects and blunting of MPS responses to amino acids suggests obesity in older adults is associated with diminished muscle metabolic quality. However this doesn’t appear to be associated with lower leg lean mass or strength

Excessive reactive oxygen species induce transcription-dependent replication stress.

Elevated levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) reduce replication fork velocity by causing dissociation of the TIMELESS-TIPIN complex from the replisome. Here, we show that ROS generated by exposure of human cells to the ribonucleotide reductase inhibitor hydroxyurea (HU) promote replication fork reversal in a manner dependent on active transcription and formation of co-transcriptional RNA:DNA hybrids (R-loops). The frequency of R-loop-dependent fork stalling events is also increased after TIMELESS depletion or a partial inhibition of replicative DNA polymerases by aphidicolin, suggesting that this phenomenon is due to a global replication slowdown. In contrast, replication arrest caused by HU-induced depletion of deoxynucleotides does not induce fork reversal but, if allowed to persist, leads to extensive R-loop-independent DNA breakage during S-phase. Our work reveals a link between oxidative stress and transcription-replication interference that causes genomic alterations recurrently found in human cancer. [Abstract copyright: © 2023. The Author(s).

HSP90 inhibitors reduce cholesterol storage in Niemann-Pick type C1 mutant fibroblasts

Niemann Pick type C1 (NPC1) disease is a lysosomal lipid storage disorder caused by mutations of the NPC1 gene. More than 300 disease-associated mutations are reported in patients, resulting in abnormal accumulation of unesterified cholesterol, glycosphingolipids and other lipids in late endosomes and lysosomes (LE/Ly) of many cell types. Previously, we showed that treatment of many different NPC1 mutant fibroblasts with histone deacetylase inhibitors resulted in reduction of cholesterol storage, and we found that this was associated with enhanced exit of the NPC1 protein from the endoplasmic reticulum and delivery to LE/Ly. This suggested that histone deacetylase inhibitors may work through changes in protein chaperones to enhance the folding of NPC1 mutants, allowing them to be delivered to LE/Ly. In this study we evaluated the effect of several HSP90 inhibitors on NPC