Sol-gel Synthesis and Supercapacitive Characterization of Bismuth Vanadate

In this work, supercapacitive characterizations of the bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) nanoparticles is studied. BiVO4 is synthesized by the sol-gel method. The single phase of BiVO4 powder obeys monoclinic crystal structure as confirmed from X-ray diffraction. The electrodes of BiVO4 powder were prepared by doctor blade method. Electrochemical characterizations are carried by using cyclic voltammetry gives the maximum specific capacitance 494.1 F/gm at 5 mV/s scan rate. The maximum energy density, power density and efficiency for the optimized electrode is 435 Wh/kg, 1.69 kW/kg and 88.67 %, respectively. According to the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy curve of the optimized sample, the internal resistance of the BiVO4 electrode was 0.12 Ω

Suppressing miR-21 activity in tumor-associated macrophages promotes an antitumor immune response

microRNA-21 (miR-21) is the most commonly upregulated miRNA in solid tumors. This cancer-associated microRNA (oncomiR) regulates various downstream effectors associated with tumor pathogenesis during all stages of carcinogenesis. In this study, we analyzed the function of miR-21 in noncancer cells of the tumor microenvironment to further evaluate its contribution to tumor progression. We report that the expression of miR-21 in cells of the tumor immune infiltrate, and in particular in macrophages, was responsible for promoting tumor growth. Absence of miR-21 expression in tumor- associated macrophages (TAMs), caused a global rewiring of their transcriptional regulatory network that was skewed toward a proinflammatory angiostatic phenotype. This promoted an antitumoral immune response characterized by a macrophage-mediated improvement of cytotoxic T-cell responses through the induction of cytokines and chemokines, including IL-12 and C-X-C motif chemokine 10. These effects translated to a reduction in tumor neovascularization and an induction of tumor cell death that led to decreased tumor growth. Additionally, using the carrier peptide pH (low) insertion peptide, we were able to target miR-21 in TAMs, which decreased tumor growth even under conditions where miR-21 expression was deficient in cancer cells. Consequently, miR-21 inhibition in TAMs induced an angiostatic and immunostimulatory activation with potential therapeutic implications

Investigating effects of parasite infection on body condition of the Kafue lechwe (Kobus leche kafuensis) in the Kafue basin

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Kafue lechwe (<it>Kobus leche Kafuensis</it>), a medium-sized semi-aquatic antelope, is endemic to the Kafue basin of Zambia. The population of the Kafue lechwe has significantly dropped in the last decades leading to its subsequent inclusion on the red list of endangered species. In order to save the remaining population from extinction, it has become increasingly important that the impact of parasite infection and infestation on the Kafue lechwe is investigated.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>Endoparasites accounted for the majority of parasites observed from a study of 40 Kafue lechwe occurring in the the Kafue basin. <it>Amphistoma spp. </it>were present in all animals examined, while <it>Fasciola gigantica </it>had a prevalence rate of 0.525 (95% CI: 0.36 to 0.69) and species of <it>Schistosoma </it>0.3 (95% CI: 0.15 to 0.45). Among the ectoparasites, <it>Strobiloestrous vanzyli</it>, had a prevalence rate of 0.15 (95% CI: 0.03 to 0.27), while <it>Rhipicephalus appendiculatus </it>had a prevalence of 0.075 (3/40). Our findings indicate that body condition was not influenced by the parasitic infestation in Kafue lechwe. There was no association between sex and parasitic burden (odds ratio = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.8-1.3). However, an association between age and parasitic burden was observed as older animals above 15 years were more likely to get parasite infections than those aged between 1-5 years (odds ratio = 1.5, 95% CI: 1.1-2.4).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Overall, there was no evidence that parasitic infections and infestations adversely affected the lechwe population on the Kafue basin. These findings indicate that ecto- and endo-parasite infestation might not play a significant role in reducing the Kafue lechwe population on the Kafue basin.</p

Expression of glutamine transporter Slc38a3 (SNAT3) during acidosis is mediated by a different mechanism than tissue-specific expression

Background: Despite homeostatic pH regulation, systemic and cellular pH changes take place and strongly influence metabolic processes. Transcription of the glutamine transporter SNAT3 (Slc38a3) for instance is highly up-regulated in the kidney during metabolic acidosis to provide glutamine for ammonia production. Methods: Slc38a3 promoter activity and messenger RNA stability were measured in cultured cells in response to different extracellular pH values. Results: Up-regulation of SNAT3 mRNA was mediated both by the stabilization of its mRNA and by the up-regulation of gene transcription. Stabilisation of the mRNA involved a pH-response element, while enhanced transcription made use of a second pH-sensitive Sp1 binding site in addition to a constitutive Sp1 binding site. Transcriptional regulation dominated the early response to acidosis, while mRNA stability was more important for chronic adaptation. Tissue-specific expression of SNAT3, by contrast, appeared to be controlled by promoter methylation and histone modifications. Conclusions: Regulation of SNAT3 gene expression by extracellular pH involves post-transcriptional and transcriptional mechanisms, the latter being distinct from the mechanisms that control the tissue-specific expression of the gene.This study was supported by grants from the National Health and Medical Research Council (585479) to S.B. and by the NIH (DK60596 and DK53307) to M.H

Perspectives for High Performance Computing in Workstation Networks

. Networks of workstations have become increasingly popular for high performance computing. However, in order to becomea real alternative for MPPs, reliability and efficiency issues must be tackled. In this paper, we identify the key challenges for very large workstation networks, and describe implementation techniques at system software level to overcome these problems. CROWN, a testbed for experimenting with these mechanisms is briefly discussed. 1 Introduction High Performance Computing (HPC) to date has been attempted via one of three primary approaches: Vector-supercomputers (e.g., Cray), Massively Parallel Processors (MPPs, such as the Intel Paragon), and Networks of Workstations (NOWs). Vector supercomputers are expensive and MPPs are not cost-effective and often considered difficult to program. NOWs suffer from high latencies and scheduling overhead that is endemic in time-shared environments. Figure 1 projects the growth of workstation performance over the next two decades an..