INFLUENCE OF RADIATION DAMAGE OF REACTOR INNER COMPONENTS ON THE RESULTS OF INDENTATION TESTS

Irradiation of inner components of the WWER reactor type made from austenitic steel 08Ch18N10T alters their material properties and may cause component degradation. Numerical simulations of the indentation test on the non- and neutron-irradiated reactor's inner components were carried out. The aim of this study is to find out whether the indentation test is suitable for assessing the material radiation damage of studied components

COMPARISON OF TWO TECHNIQUES FOR EVALUATING SPHERICAL INDENTATION DATA

Flow curves of 15Kh2MFA, Sv 08Kh19N10G2B and 08Kh18N10T steels used for fabrication of WWER-440 nuclear reactor pressure vessel and core internals were obtained using the automated ball indentation (ABI) test technique and compared with flow curves evaluated from the same measured load-displacement data and widely used Oliver-Pharr method. Differences in results obtained by both studied methods do not exceed 12 % and are attributed to the amount of material pile-up

Mapping Climate Change Vulnerabilities to Infectious Diseases in Europe

Background: The incidence, outbreak frequency, and distribution of many infectious diseases are generally expected to change as a consequence of climate change, yet there is limited regional information available to guide decision making

Epidemiologic characteristics of amniotic band sequence with limb malformations without body wall defect: data from the Polish Registry of Congenital Malformations

Abstract Amniotic Band Sequence (ABS) is a rare disruptive condition, with a variable spectrum of congenital defects caused by fibrous bands emerging as a result of amniotic rupture in the first trimester of gestation. Several factors, such as young parental age, primigravidity, febrile maternal illness, and drug use in the first trimester, were postulated to have substantial influence on ABS prevalence rate. We aimed our study to determine the prevalence of ABS with limb defects, but no body wall affectation, in a Polish population. We also examined the influence of different parental, gestational and environmental factors on the ABS prevalence value, and assessed the rate of gestational complications associated with this disorder. Among 1 706 639 births surveilled between 1998 and 2005, 36 liveborn infants with ABS-L were reported to the Polish Registry of Congenital Malformations, giving a global prevalence for a Polish population of 1 per 47 619 livebirths. We found that young maternal age, young paternal age, and primigravidity significantly increase the risk of ABS-L, when their effect was analyzed independently. However, because of a close relationship of these variables, we analyzed their mutually adjusted effect using conditional logistic regression models, and found that young maternal age proved the strongest risk factor for ABS-L (p = 0.0508). The condition was also more prevalent in infants with low birthweight (OR = 5.71; p < 0.0001). Since gestational complications are often relevant to maternal age and birth order, we introduced an adjustment for these variables, and found that respiratory tract infections and vaginal bleeding/spotting convey approximately fourfold increased risk of ABS-L (OR = 3.72/p = 0.0058 and OR = 3.70/p = 0.0014 respectively)

Life-threatening hypersplenism due to idiopathic portal hypertension in early childhood: case report and review of the literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Idiopathic portal hypertension (IPH) is a disorder of unknown etiology and is characterized clinically by portal hypertension, splenomegaly, and hypersplenism accompanied by pancytopenia. This study evaluates the pathogenic concept of the disease by a systematic review of the literature and illustrates novel pathologic and laboratory findings.</p> <p>Case Presentation</p> <p>We report the first case of uncontrolled splenic hyperperfusion and enlargement with subsequent hypersplenism leading to life-threatening complications of IPH in infancy and emergent splenectomy.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results suggest that splenic NO and VCAM-1, rather than ET-1, have a significant impact on the development of IPH, even at a very early stage of disease. The success of surgical interventions targeting the splenic hyperperfusion suggests that the primary defect in the regulation of splenic blood flow seems to be crucial for the development of IPH. Thus, beside other treatment options splenectomy needs to be considered as a prime therapeutic option for IPH.</p

Vliv chronické expozice chloridazonu a jeho metabolitu chloridazon desphenylu na raka signálního

The aim of this thesis was to evaluate the effect of chloridazon (Ch) and its major metabolite chloridazon desphenyl (Ch-D) at environmentally relevant concentrations 0.45 micrograms/l (Ch1; Ch-D1) and 2.7 micrograms/l (Ch2; Ch-D2) on adult signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus). The exposure was 30-day and followed by a 15-day depuration period. The effect of the tested substances was evaluated on the basis of behavior, biochemical profile of hemolymph, biomarker of oxidative stress and antioxidants parameters. The tested substances did not effect on the behavior of crayfish. Chloridazone at concentration 2.7 micrograms/l (Ch2) caused a significant (P<0.01) increase of glucose (GLU), lactate (LACT), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activity in haemolymph of crayfish and changes in catalase (CAT) levels in the gills and the hepatopancreas, compared to controls. Crayfish exposed to chloridazon in both tested concentrations (0.45 micrograms/l and 2.7 micrograms/l) showed significantly (P<0.01) higher level of reduced glutathione (GSH) in hepatopancreas and gills compared to control. Exposure of chloridazon desphenyl at concentration 0.45 micrograms/l and 2.7 micrograms/l caused significantly (P<0.01) higher levels of glucose, lactate, ammonia (NH3), calcium (Ca), alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase activity in haemolymph of exposed crayfish compared to control. Chloridazon desphenyl in both tested concentrations caused significant (P<0.01) changes in the levels of lipid peroxidation (LPO) in the hepatopancreas and catalase (CAT) and GSH level in the gills and hepatopancreas compared to the control group. Some effects persist after a depuration period. The results showed that the metabolite chloridazon desphenyl has more pronounced effects on the physiology of adult signal crayfish than its parent compound chloridazon. It can be stated, that chloridazon and its metabolite chloridazon desphenyl has the strongly negative and harmful effects of on crayfish as representatives of non-target aquatic organisms