596 research outputs found
Seismic resilience timber connection-adoption of shape memory alloy tubes as dowels
This study investigates a novel timber dowel-type connection system using superelastic shape memory alloy (SMA) bar and tubes as dowels, in order to provide self-centering effect. Double-shear connections with SMA and mild steel dowels were tested under dynamic loadings at different displacement levels. The results showed that SMA dowel-type connections have good self-centering behaviours and can mitigate the residual deformation effectively compared with steel dowel-type connections after excessive deformation; although the steel dowel-type connections present higher strength. These tests reveal that the connection with tube dowels show higher equivalent viscous damping ratio than those use solid bar as tube would allow larger deformation to dissipate energy. To demonstrate application of the benefit of this system, an analytical model of a 3-storey timber framed structure was built for parametric study. The results showed that the structures with conventional dowel-type type connections exhibit large unrecoverable deformation after timber framed structures experience an earthquake. In comparison, those with the connections developed in this project show limited unrecoverable deformation due to the self-centering capacity of the connections
A Novel Route to the Engineering of Zirconium Immobilized Nano-scale Carbon for Arsenate Removal from Water
10.1039/c3ta10858aJournal of Materials Chemistry A1308636-864
Identifying non-destructive growth and maturity indexes of Prickly pear (Opuntia albicarpa S. Var. Burrona) and evaluation of freeze-drying conditions
Around the world, prickly pear fruits are valued as a source of dietary functional compounds and
ingredients for innovative foods. Growth and physicochemical changes of Opuntia albicarpa S. fruits
were recorded from 0 to 132 days-after-flowering (DAF) to identify non-destructive maturity-indices.
Optimum-ripened fruits were freeze-dried to study physicochemical and functional characteristics of
dried and rehydrated pulp. Principal component analysis confirmed growth turned into fruit
ripening in DAF 99, and it lasted until DAF 132. Changes in color parameters of the peel correlated
with fruit texture and pulp sugar content and taste index (P < 0.01). During freeze-drying, plate
temperature had more significant effects than the thickness (P < 0.05). At 30°C, color ΔE between
dried and fresh slices augmented, but, texture Δ´s (medium force) between rehydrated and fresh
pulp was lower. Color tests could be used to harvest commercially-ripened fruits. Freeze-drying at
30°C improves the rehydrated slices texture regarding thickness maintaining rehydration
coefficients.Las tunas son apreciadas en todo el mundo como fuente de compuestos funcionales dietarios
e ingredientes para alimentos innovadores. Para identificar índices de maduración no destructivos,
se registraron cambios en el crecimiento y en los parámetros fisicoquímicos de frutos de Opuntia
albicarpa S. entre los días después de la floración (DAF) 0 al 132. Frutos con maduración óptima
fueron liofilizados para evaluar características fisicoquímicas y funcionales de pulpa seca
y rehidratada. El análisis de componentes principales confirmo que el crecimiento dio lugar a la
maduración en el DAF 99 y ésta prosiguió hasta el DAF 132. Los cambios en parámetros de color en
cáscara correlacionaron con la textura del fruto, y en pulpa, con el contenido de azúcares y el índice
de sabor (P< 0.01). Durante la liofilización, la temperatura de placa tiene más efectos significativos
que el espesor (P≤ 0.05). A 30°C, el ΔE de color entre la pulpa seca y fresca aumentó, pero, el Δ de
textura (fuerza media) fue menor entre la rehidratada y la fresca. Se pueden emplear evaluaciones
de color para cosechar frutos en su madurez comercial, y liofilizar estos frutos a 30°C mejora la
textura sin importar el espesor, manteniendo los coeficientes de rehidratación.This work was supported by the SIMORELOS program of CONACyT
Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 interacts with p21-activated kinase 6 to control neurite complexity in mammalian brain
Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) is a causative gene for Parkinson's disease, but the physiological function and the mechanism(s) by which the cellular activity of LRRK2 is regulated are poorly understood. Here, we identified p21-activated kinase 6 (PAK6) as a novel interactor of the GTPase/ROC domain of LRRK2. p21-activated kinases are serine-threonine kinases that serve as targets for the small GTP binding proteins Cdc42 and Rac1 and have been implicated in different morphogenetic processes through remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton such as synapse formation and neuritogenesis. Using an in vivo neuromorphology assay, we show that PAK6 is a positive regulator of neurite outgrowth and that LRRK2 is required for this function. Analyses of post-mortem brain tissue from idiopathic and LRRK2 G2019S carriers reveal an increase in PAK6 activation state, whereas knock-out LRRK2 mice display reduced PAK6 activation and phosphorylation of PAK6 substrates. Taken together, these results support a critical role of LRRK2 GTPase domain in cytoskeletal dynamics in vivo through the novel interactor PAK6, and provide a valuable platform to unravel the mechanism underlying LRRK2-mediated pathophysiology. We propose p21-activated kinase 6 (PAK6) as a novel interactor of leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2), a kinase involved in Parkinson's disease (PD). In health, PAK6 regulates neurite complexity in the brain and LRRK2 is required for its function, (a) whereas PAK6 is aberrantly activated in LRRK2-linked PD brain (b) suggesting that LRRK2 toxicity is mediated by PAK6
X-Linked Lymphoproliferative Disease Type 1: A Clinical and Molecular Perspective
X-linked lymphoproliferative disease (XLP) was first described in the 1970s as a fatal
lymphoproliferative syndrome associated with infection with Epstein–Barr virus (EBV).
Features include hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), lymphomas, and dysgammaglobulinemias.
Molecular cloning of the causative gene, SH2D1A, has provided
insight into the nature of disease, as well as helped characterize multiple features of
normal immune cell function. Although XLP type 1 (XLP1) provides an example of a
primary immunodeficiency in which patients have problems clearing primarily one infectious
agent, it is clear that XLP1 is also a disease of severe immune dysregulation, even
independent of EBV infection. Here, we describe clinical features of XLP1, how molecular
and biological studies of the gene product, SAP, and the associated signaling lymphocyte
activation molecule family receptors have provided insight into disease pathogenesis
including specific immune cell defects, and current therapeutic approaches including the
potential use of gene therapy. Together, these studies have helped change the outcome
of this once almost uniformly fatal disease
Genomic, Pathway Network, and Immunologic Features Distinguishing Squamous Carcinomas
This integrated, multiplatform PanCancer Atlas study co-mapped and identified distinguishing
molecular features of squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) from five sites associated with smokin
Pan-Cancer Analysis of lncRNA Regulation Supports Their Targeting of Cancer Genes in Each Tumor Context
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are commonly dys-regulated in tumors, but only a handful are known toplay pathophysiological roles in cancer. We inferredlncRNAs that dysregulate cancer pathways, onco-genes, and tumor suppressors (cancer genes) bymodeling their effects on the activity of transcriptionfactors, RNA-binding proteins, and microRNAs in5,185 TCGA tumors and 1,019 ENCODE assays.Our predictions included hundreds of candidateonco- and tumor-suppressor lncRNAs (cancerlncRNAs) whose somatic alterations account for thedysregulation of dozens of cancer genes and path-ways in each of 14 tumor contexts. To demonstrateproof of concept, we showed that perturbations tar-geting OIP5-AS1 (an inferred tumor suppressor) andTUG1 and WT1-AS (inferred onco-lncRNAs) dysre-gulated cancer genes and altered proliferation ofbreast and gynecologic cancer cells. Our analysis in-dicates that, although most lncRNAs are dysregu-lated in a tumor-specific manner, some, includingOIP5-AS1, TUG1, NEAT1, MEG3, and TSIX, synergis-tically dysregulate cancer pathways in multiple tumorcontexts
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