Combining thermal spraying and magnetron sputtering for the development of Ni/Ni-20Cr thin film thermocouples for plastic flat film extrusion processes

In the digitalization of production, temperature determination is playing an increasingly important role. Thermal spraying and magnetron sputtering were combined for the development of Ni/Ni-20Cr thin film thermocouples for plastic flat film extrusion processes. On the thermally sprayed insulation layer, AlN and BCN thin films were deposited and analyzed regarding their structural properties and the interaction between the plastic melt and the surfaces using Ball-on-Disc experiments and High-Pressure Capillary Rheometer. A modular tool, containing the deposited Ni/Ni-20Cr thin film thermocouple, was developed and analyzed in a real flat film extrusion process. When calibrating the thin film thermocouple, an accurate temperature determination of the flowing melt was achieved. Industrial type K sensors were used as reference. In addition, PP foils were produced without affecting the surface quality by using thin film thermocouples

The Distribution of Blastocystis Subtypes among School-aged Children in Mugla, Turkey

Background: Blastocystis is a common protozoon that inhabits human intestinal tract and has a worldwide distribution. This study aimed to determine subtype (ST) distribution of Blastocystis among school-aged children in a western city of Turkey between Mar and Jun 2014. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among primary school children in Mugla between Mar and Jun 2014. Overall, 468 stool samples from children were examined by direct microscopy and inoculated into Jones medium. Blastocystis partial small subunit ribosomal RNA gene (SSU-rDNA) was amplified and sequenced from culture positive isolates. Subtypes were determined according to closest or exact match at GenBank and Blastocystis ST (18S) database. Results: The positive rate of Blastocystis was 7.4% (n=35) with xenic in-vitro culture (XIVC). The subtypes could be identified for 33 (94.2%) isolates; 12 (34.2%) were ST3, 11 (31.4%) were ST1, 9 (25.7%) were ST2, one was (2.8%) ST7. No relationship was found between Blastocystis infected and non-infected cases in terms of gastrointestinal symptoms. Additionally, none of the possible risk factors was related to Blastocystis infection. Conclusion: Subtypes in children was similar to those reported in most of the studies that found ST3 as the most common subtype.

Effects of AlN and BCN thin film multilayer design on the reaction time of Ni/Ni-20Cr thin film thermocouples on thermally sprayed Al2O3

Thin film thermocouples are widely used for local temperature determinations of surfaces. However, depending on the environment in which they are used, thin film thermocouples need to be covered by a wear or oxidation resistant top layer. With regard to the utilization in wide-slit nozzles for plastic extrusion, Ni/Ni-20Cr thin film thermocouples were manufactured using direct-current (DC) magnetron sputtering combined with Aluminiumnitride (AlN) and Boron-Carbonitride (BCN) thin films. On the one hand, the deposition parameters of the nitride layers were varied to affect the chemical composition and morphology of the AlN and BCN thin films. On the other hand, the position of the nitride layers (below the thermocouple, above the thermocouple, around the thermocouple) was changed. Both factors were investigated concerning the influence on the Seebeck coefficient and the reaction behaviour of the thermocouples. Therefore, the impact of the nitride thin films on the morphology, physical structure, crystallite size, electrical resistance and hardness of the Ni and Ni-20Cr thin films is analysed. The investigations reveal that the Seebeck coefficient is not affected by the different architectures of the thermocouples. Nevertheless, the reaction time of the thermocouples can be significantly improved by adding a thermal conductive top coat over the thin films, whereas the top coat should have a coarse structure and low nitrogen content

Retrospective Analysis of Cystic Echinococcosis Results in Aydın Adnan Menderes University Training and Research Hospital Parasitology Laboratory Between 2005 and 2017

Amaç: Echinococcus granulosus insanlarda kistik ekinokokkozis (KE) olarak adlandırılan hastalığa yol açan bir helminttir. Parazitinbaşta karaciğer ve/veya akciğer olmak üzere iç organlarda yavaş büyüyen içi sıvı dolu kistler oluşturduğu bilinmektedir. Buhastalık Türkiye’de ve hayvancılığın yaygın olduğu diğer ülkelerde halk sağlığı ve ekonomik açıdan halen önemini korumaktadır.Bu çalışmada Ocak 2005- Ocak 2017 tarihleri arasında Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi ParazitolojiLaboratuvarı'na KE şüphesiyle başvuran olguların retrospektif olarak değerlendirilmesi amaçlanmıştır.Yöntemler: Toplam 3446 serum örneği (2019 kadın ve 1427 erkek), anti-E. granulosus immünoglobulin G antikorlarının varlığınısaptamak için ELISA yöntemi ile çalışılmıştır. Patolojik olarak KE olduğu doğrulanmış olgular sosyo-demografik özellikleri (yaş,cinsiyet, yaşadığı yer ve köpek besleme vb), pozitiflik dilüsyonları ve kist lokalizasyonları açısından değerlendirilmiştir.Bulgular: Yaşları 4-87 aralığında değişen toplam 3446 olgunun 1104’ü (%32) pozitif olarak saptanmış olup, bunlardan 642’sini(%58,1) kadınlar, 462’sini (%41,9) erkekler oluşturmaktadır. Olguların 247’sinin (%22,3) KE tanısı patolojik olarak kesinleşmiştir.Olgular parazitin yerleştiği lokalizasyona göre incelendiğinde en sık tutulan organ (%81,8) karaciğer olup, bunu akciğer (%6,1)takip etmektedir.Sonuç: İlimizde KE’nin önemli bir halk sağlığı sorunu olmaya devam ettiği bu nedenle, önleyici çalışmaların yapılması gerektiğibir kez daha vurgulanmıştır.Objective: Echinococcus granulosus is the causative helminth of cystic echinococcosis (CE). The parasite is known to form fluidfilledcysts that grow slowly in the internal organs, particularly the liver and/or lungs. This disease is still important in termsof public health and economically in Turkey and other countries where animal husbandry is widespread. The aim of our studywas to retrospectively evaluate the cases that were admitted to the Adnan Menderes University, Training and Research HospitalParasitology laboratory on suspicion of CE between January 2005 and January 2017.Methods: Totally, 3446 sera (from 2019 female and 1427 male) were tested with an in-house ELISA for the presence of E.granulosus specific IgG antibodies at the timeswhen they were sent. Socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, residence, anddog ownership), positivity titers, and cyst locations of pathologically confirmed CE patients were analyzed retrospectively. Results: The ages of patients varied between 4-87 years. It was found that 1104 (32%) of the 3446 sera were positive, and of them, 642 (58.1%) were femaleand 462 (41.9%) were male. Patients who had pathologically confirmed CE diagnosis constituted 247 (22.3%) of the total seropositive sera. Liver was themost commonly affected organ (81.8%), followed by lungs (6.1%).Conclusion: CE remains an important public health problem in our city; therefore, it is once again emphasized that preventive studies should be planned

Transfection of Leishmania tropica with Green Fluorescent Protein (gfp) Gene and Investigation of the In Vitro Drug Effect

WOS: 000465377600009PubMed ID: 31130125Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a parasitic disease transmitted by vector sand flies Phlebotomus and Lutzomyia. This disease is characterized by long time non-healing skin lesions, and caused by Leishmania species. CL is the most common infection in Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia in Turkey and L. tropica is known as the main agent of the disease. Number of cases is increasing in our country in time because of malnutrition, migration, travel, low socioeconomic level and ecological changes. For the treatment, the pentavalent antimonials are often used as intralesionally for many years, and it was reported that resistant cases have increased in recent years. New treatment methods and anti-Leishmanial activity of new agents have been investigated because of side effects, resistance development and toxic reactions of the present drugs. These studies are first carried out in vitro and afterwards with in vivo experimental animal models. Reporter gene technology has been used to investigate a variety of purposes like biological events in microorganisms and the efficacy and resistance of drugs in recent years. The major areas that green fluorescent protein (gfp) used are that they can be incorporated into different genes to determine the amount of expression of these genes in different organisms and can be used as markers in living cells. Especially gfp gene, which encodes the green fluorescent protein, is widely used nowadays. Gene-based assays have several advantages like being easy to follow-up, inexpensive and have improved biosecurity. The aim of the present study was to perform the transfection of L. tropica with "enhanced gfp (egfp)" and in vitro usefulness of gfp-transfectants as a drug screening model in comparison to the conventional methods. Promastigotes of L. tropica were transfected with p6.5/egfp by electroporation and selected for tunicamycin-resistance as previously described. L. tropica promastigotes transfected with gfp and in vitro effect of meglumine animoniate was assessed using different methods such as fluorescence microscopy, fluorometer and XTT (2,3-bis-(2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxyanilide) assay. The use of gfp-transfected Leishmania strains was found more rapid and more sensitive by fluorescent microscopy and fluorometry than conventional assays for the evaluation of potential anti-leishmanial agents. Consequently, stable gfp-transfected Leishmania species will be used in vitro and in vivo for screening of anti-leishmanial drugs and vaccine development as well as for understanding the biology of the host-parasite interactions at the cellular level. As a result ot this study, gfp transfected model using a Turkish L. tropica isolate was established to be used in further studies