Design of a reinforced concrete Wave Energy Converter in extreme wave conditions

In the last decades, the growth of renewable energies showed to be more cost competitive, although traditional fossil fuels are still more affordable. Among the renewable energies, one of the most promising is wave energy, thanks to the high energy density stored in the waves. However, this precious resource requires further development, in particular to identify convenient and reliable production processes for conversion devices, known as Wave Energy Converters (WECs), and a view toward future changes and improvements of the existing prototypes. An interesting method to reduce the technological costs of energy and its environmental footprint could be found in the use of concrete structures, as opposed to traditional steel ones. This paper investigates the use of reinforced concrete for PeWEC, a floating wave energy converter, which converts wave energy into electrical energy thanks to its pitch motion. A preliminary design is carried out; pressure and mooring forces are evaluated and their structural effects are calculated by means of a finite element analysis. The design of reinforcements in a concrete shell is then reviewed. The general procedure is applicable to the case of a shell subjected to both bending and membrane stresses

Odontogenic differentiation of human dental pulp stem cells on hydrogel scaffolds derived from decellularized bone extracellular matrix and collagen type I

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of odontogenic differentiation of dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) on hydrogel scaffolds derived from bone extracellular matrix (bECM) in comparison to those seeded on collagen I (Col-I), one of the main components of dental pulp ECM. Methods: DPSCs isolated from human third molars were characterized for surface marker expression and odontogenic potential prior to seeding into bECM or Col-I hydrogel scaffolds. The cells were then seeded onto bECM and Col-I hydrogel scaffolds and cultured under basal conditions or with odontogenic and growth factor (GF) supplements. DPSCs cultivated on tissue culture polystyrene (TCPS) with and without supplements were used as controls. Gene expression of dentin sialophosphoprotein (DSPP), dentin matrix protein 1 (DMP-1) and matrix extracellular phosphoglycoprotein (MEPE) was evaluated by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and mineral deposition was observed by Von Kossa staining. Results: When DPSCs were cultured on bECM hydrogels, the mRNA expression levels of DSPP, DMP-1 and MEPE genes were significantly upregulated with respect to those cultured on Col-I scaffolds or TCPS in the absence of extra odontogenic inducers. In addition, more mineral deposition was observed on bECM hydrogel scaffolds as demonstrated by Von Kossa staining. Moreover, DSPP, DMP-1 and MEPE mRNA expressions of DPSCs cultured on bECM hydrogels were further upregulated by the addition of GFs or osteo/odontogenic medium compared to Col-I treated cells in the same culture conditions. Significance: These results demonstrate the potential of the bECM hydrogel scaffolds to stimulate odontogenic differentiation of DPSCs

Micelles by self-assembling peptide-conjugate amphiphile: synthesis and structural characterization.

The solid-phase synthesis of a novel amphiphilic peptide conjugate I, contg. in the same mol. three different functions: N,N-bis[2-[bis(carboxyethyl)amino]ethyl]-L-glutamic acid chelating agent, the CCK8 bioactive peptide, and a hydrophobic moiety contg. four alkyl chains with 18 carbon atoms each, is reported. In water soln. at pH 7.4, I self-assembles in very stable micelles at very low concn. [crit. micellar concn. (cmc) values of 5 10-7 mol kg-1] as confirmed by fluorescence spectroscopy. The structural characterization, obtained with small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) measurements, indicates that the aggregates are substantially represented by ellipsoidal micelles with an aggregation no. of 39 2 and the two micellar axes of about 52 and 26

Synthesis and characterization of multifunctional nanovesicles composed of POPC lipid molecules for nuclear imaging

The integration of nuclear imaging analysis with nanomedicine has tremendously grown and represents a valid and powerful tool for the development and clinical translation of drug delivery systems. Among the various types of nanostructures used as drug carriers, nanovesicles represent intriguing platforms due to their capability to entrap both lipophilic and hydrophilic agents, and their well-known biocompatibility and biodegradability. In this respect, here we present the development of a labelling procedure of POPC (1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3- phosphocholine)-based liposomes incorporating an ad hoc designed lipophilic NOTA (1, 4, 7- triazacyclononane-1, 4, 7-triacetic acid) analogue, derivatized with an oleic acid residue, able to bind the positron emitter gallium-68(III). Based on POPC features, the optimal conditions for liposome labelling were studied with the aim of optimizing the Ga(III) incorporation and obtaining a significant radiochemical yield. The data presented in this work demonstrate the feasibility of the labelling procedure on POPC liposomes co-formulated with the ad hoc designed NOTA analogue. We thus provided a critical insight into the practical aspects of the development of vesicles for theranostic approaches, which in principle can be extended to other nanosystems exploiting a variety of bioconjugation protocols

lipid oxidation in buffalo meat from animals with dietary supplementation of vitamin e

Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) meat is not widely used in the diet, but it is recently reconsidered due to its valuable nutritional qualities. New strategies aiming to improve the quality of buffalo meat have to be applied particularly to face the problem of lipid peroxidation, one of the most important causes of meat food deterioration. The aim of this study was to evaluate the lipid oxidation of buffalo meat (muscles Caput longum tricipitis brachii, Longissimus dorsi and Semimembranosus), coming from animals fed with two different amount of vitamin E (600 IU/die and 1500 IU/die for 102 -123 days) considering, as markers for lipid oxidation, the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) by HPLC-UV and TBA test. Moreover it was evaluated, by HPLC-DAD, vitamin E concentration in the meat samples. Muscles coming from animals with vitamin E supplementation were in mean 2 times more enriched of vitamin E than control (p < 0.05). Meat from buffalo fed with 600 IU/die vitamin E had significant lower MDA concentration in comparison with control (in mean -53%, n= 4). Both for MDA and vitamin E concentrations not significant differences were found between the supplementation of 600 IU/die and 1500 IU/die. It is concluded that dietary supplementation with Vitamin E is a promising strategy to prevent lipid oxidation of buffalo meat and to prolong its shelf-life

A Flexible Robotic Depalletizing System for Supermarket Logistics

Depalletizing robotic systems are commonly deployed to automatize and speed-up parts of logistic processes. Despite this, the necessity to adapt the preexisting logistic processes to the automatic systems often impairs the application of such robotic solutions to small business realities like supermarkets. In this work we propose a robotic depalletizing system designed to be easily integrated into supermarket logistic processes. The system has to schedule, monitor and adapt the depalletizing process considering both on-line perceptual information given by non-invasive sensors and constraints provided by the high-level management system or by a supervising user. We describe the overall system discussing two case studies in the context of a supermarket logistic process. We show how the proposed system can manage multiple depalletizing strategies and multiple logistic requests

A thermodynamic signature of lipid segregation in biomembranes induced by a short peptide derived from glycoprotein gp36 of feline immunodeficiency virus.

The interactions between proteins/peptides and lipid bilayers are fundamental in a variety of key biological processes, and among these, the membrane fusion process operated by viral glycoproteins is one of the most important, being a fundamental step of the infectious event. In the case of the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), a small region of the membrane proximal external region (MPER) of the glycoprotein gp36 has been demonstrated to be necessary for the infection to occur, being able to destabilize the membranes to be fused. In this study, we report a physicochemical characterization of the interaction process between an eight-residue peptide, named C8, modeled on that gp36 region and some biological membrane models (liposomes) by using calorimetric and spectroscopic measurements. CD studies have shown that the peptide conformation changes upon binding to the liposomes. Interestingly, the peptide folds from a disordered structure (in the absence of liposomes) to a more ordered structure with a low but significant helix content. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results show that C8 binds with high affinity the lipid bilayers and induces a significant perturbation/reorganization of the lipid membrane structure. The type and the extent of such membrane reorganization depend on the membrane composition. These findings provide interesting insights into the role of this short peptide fragment in the mechanism of virus-cell fusion, demonstrating its ability to induce lipid segregation in biomembranes

A Reconfigurable Gripper for Robotic Autonomous Depalletizing in Supermarket Logistics

Automatic depalletizing is becoming a practice widely applied in warehouses to automatize and speed-up logistics. On the other hand, the necessity to adapt the preexisting logistic lines to a custom automatic system can be a limit for the application of robotic solutions into smaller facilities like supermarkets. In this work, we tackle this issue by proposing a flexible and adaptive gripper for robotic depalletizing. The gripper is designed to be assembled on the end-tip of an industrial robotic arm. A novel patent-pending mechanism allows grasping boxes and products from both the upper and the lateral side enabling the depalletizing of boxes with complex shape. Moreover, the gripper is reconfigurable with five actuated degrees of freedom, that are automatically controlled using the embedded sensors to adapt grasping to different shapes and weights

RGB-D Recognition and Localization of Cases for Robotic Depalletizing in Supermarkets

Integrating a robotic system into the depalletizing process of a supermarket demands a high level of autonomy, based on strong perceptive capabilities. This letter presents a system for detection, recognition, and localization of heterogeneous cases in a depalletizing robotic cell, using a single RGB-D camera. Such a system integrates apriori information on the content of the pallet with data from the RGB-D camera, exploiting a sequence of 2D and 3D model-based computer-vision algorithms. The effectiveness of the proposed methodology is assessed in an experiment where multiple cases and pallet configurations are considered. Finally, a complete depalletizing process is shown