Modeling the transit of containers through quay buffer storage zone in maritime terminals

The maritime container terminal allows the transfer of container flows from maritime vessels to the land transport network and vice versa. The transit capacity through the terminal is affected by the handling capacity of the equipment at the terminal, by the size of the storage areas and least by the technologies used in handling and storing the containers in the terminal. In this paper, the influence of these last two technologies on the duration of the process of unloading/loading of sea vessels within the terminal is analyzed. A discrete simulation model is used to evaluate the sizing method for short-term storage area located on the dock. The manner of allocating the flows of containers on it, as well as the working technology of the handling equipment, have an influence on the number of containers taken over, respectively loaded on the maritime vessels. The simulation model topology is developed following the existing physical structure of a container terminal from Constanta Port, in Romania. The obtained results can help the administration of the container terminal in optimizing the activity of handling, storing, and transferring the flows of containers from the maritime environment to the mainland and vice versa

Green Synthesized Gold and Silver Nanoparticles Increased Oxidative Stress and Induced Cell Death in Colorectal Adenocarcinoma Cells

The research investigated the effect of gold (Au-CM) and silver nanoparticles (Ag-CM) phytoreduced with Cornus mas fruit extract (CM) on a human colorectal adenocarcinoma (DLD-1) cell line. The impact of nanoparticles on the viability of DLD-1 tumor cells and normal cells was evaluated. Oxidative stress and cell death mechanisms (annexin/propidium iodide analysis, caspase-3 and caspase-8 levels, p53, BCL-2, BAX, NFkB expressions) as well as proliferation markers (Ki-67, PCNA and MAPK) were evaluated in tumor cells. The nanoparticles were characterized using UV–Vis spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and by measuring zeta potential, hydrodynamic diameter and polydispersity index (PDI). Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) analyses were also performed. The nanoparticles induced apoptosis and necrosis of DLD-1 cells and reduced cell proliferation, especially Ag-CM, while on normal cells, both nanoparticles maintained their viability up to 80%. Ag-CM and Au-CM increased the expressions of p53 and NFkB in parallel with the downregulation of BCL-2 protein and induced the activation of caspase-8, suggesting the involvement of apoptosis in cell death. Lipid peroxidation triggered by Ag-CM was correlated with tumor cell necrosis rate. Both nanoparticles obtained with phytocompounds from the CM extract protected normal cells and induced the death of DLD-1 tumor cells, especially by apoptosis