Agglomerate properties

Modelling of wet granulation requires the rate of agglomerate coalescence to be estimated. Coalescence is dependent on the frequency of collisions that occur, and the fraction of collisions which result in coalescence. The collision rate is a function of granulator kinetics and powder properties, while the coalescence success rate is dependent on factors including the Stokes number and particle geometry. This work investigates an aspect of the geometry by examining the distribution of liquid on the surface of agglomerates in the capillary state. Agglomerates are created by adding particles, one at a time, about a central tetrahedral arrangement of four primary particles. For a given agglomerate, the wetted fraction of surface area, defined as the wetness, is evaluated using an approximate fluid surface. Packing density and binder saturation parameters are incorporated into the model. Given a number of primary particles and the volume of binder in a particle, the agglomerate wetness is able to be estimated using computational geometry

Solution of the Young-Laplace equation for three particles

This paper presents the solution to the liquid bridge profile formed between three equally sized spherical primary particles. The particles are equally separated, with sphere centres located on the vertices of an equilateral triangle. Equations for the problem are derived and solved numerically for given constant mean curvature H0, contact angle , and inter-particle separation distance S. The binding force between particles is calculated and plotted as a function of liquid bridge volume for a particular example. Agreement with experiment is provided

Activation of pluripotency genes in human fibroblast cells by a novel mRNA based approach

Background: Several methods have been used to induce somatic cells to re-enter the pluripotent state. Viral transduction of reprogramming genes yields higher efficiency but involves random insertions of viral sequences into the human genome. Although induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be obtained with the removable PiggyBac transposon system or an episomal system, both approaches still use DNA constructs so that resulting cell lines need to be thoroughly analyzed to confirm they are free of harmful genetic modification. Thus a method to change cell fate without using DNA will be very useful in regenerative medicine. Methodology/Principal Findings: In this study, we synthesized mRNAs encoding OCT4, SOX2, cMYC, KLF4 and SV40 large T (LT) and electroporated them into human fibroblast cells. Upon transfection, fibroblasts expressed these factors at levels comparable to, or higher than those in human embryonic stem (ES) cells. Ectopically expressed OCT4 localized to the cell nucleus within 4 hours after mRNA introduction. Transfecting fibroblasts with a mixture of mRNAs encoding all five factors significantly increased the expression of endogenous OCT4, NANOG, DNMT3 beta, REX1 and SALL4. When such transfected fibroblasts were also exposed to several small molecules (valproic acid, BIX01294 and 5'-aza-2'-deoxycytidine) and cultured in human embryonic stem cell (ES) medium they formed small aggregates positive for alkaline phosphatase activity and OCT4 protein within 30 days. Conclusion/Significance: Our results demonstrate that mRNA transfection can be a useful approach to precisely control the protein expression level and short-term expression of reprogramming factors is sufficient to activate pluripotency genes in differentiated cells

An atomic scale comparison of the reaction of Bioglass® in two types of simulated body fluid

A class of melt quenched silicate glasses, containing calcium, phosphorus and alkali metals, and having the ability to promote bone regeneration and to fuse to living bone, is produced commercially as Bioglass. The changes in structure associated with reacting the bioglass with a body fluid simulant (a buffered Tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane growth medium solution or a blood plasma-like salt simulated body fluid) at 37°C have been studied using both high energy and grazing incidence x-ray diffraction. This has corroborated the generic conclusions of earlier studies based on the use of calcia–silica sol-gel glasses whilst highlighting the important differences associated with glass composition; the results also reveal the more subtle effects on reaction rates of the choice of body fluid simulant. The results also indicate the presence of tricalcium phosphate crystallites deposited onto the surface of the glass as a precursor to the growth of hydroxyapatite, and indicates that there is some preferred orientation to their growth