28 research outputs found
Automated Retrieval of Non-Engineering Domain Solutions to Engineering Problems
Organised by: Cranfield UniversityBiological inspiration for engineering design has occurred through a variety of techniques such as creation
and use of databases, keyword searches of biological information in natural-language format, prior
knowledge of biology, and chance observations of nature. This research focuses on utilizing the reconciled
Functional Basis function and flow terms to identify suitable biological inspiration for function based design.
The organized search provides two levels of results: (1) associated with verb function only and (2) narrowed
results associated with verb-noun (function-flow). A set of heuristics has been complied to promote efficient
searching using this technique. An example for creating smart flooring is also presented and discussed.Mori Seiki – The Machine Tool Compan
McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica - A Mars Phoenix Mission Analog
The Phoenix mission (PHX; May 25 - Nov. 2, 2008) studied the north polar region of Mars (68deg N) to understand the history of water and potential for habitability. Phoenix carried with it a wet chemistry lab (WCL) capable of determining the basic solution chemistry of the soil and the pH value, a thermal and evolved-gas analyzer capable of determining the mineralogy of the soil and detecting ice, microscopes capable of seeing soil particle shapes, sizes and colors at very high resolution, and a soil probe (TECP) capable of detecting unfrozen water in the soil. PHX coincided with an international effort to study the Earth s polar regions named the International Polar Year (IPY; 2007-2008). The best known Earth analog to the Martian high-northern plains, where Phoenix landed, are the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV), Antarctica (Fig. 1). Thus, the IPY afforded a unique opportunity to study the MDV with the same foci - history of water and habitability - as PHX. In austral summer 2007, our team took engineering models of WCL and TECP into the MDV and performed analgous measurements. We also collected sterile samples and analyzed them in our home laboratories using state-of-the-art tools. While PHX was not designed to perform biologic analyses, we were able to do so with the MDV analog samples collected
Finite Volume Kolmogorov-Johnson-Mehl-Avrami Theory
We study Kolmogorov-Johnson-Mehl-Avrami (KJMA) theory of phase conversion in
finite volumes. For the conversion time we find the relationship . Here is the space dimension, the nucleation time in the volume , and a scaling function.
Its dimensionless argument is , where
is an expansion time, defined to be proportional to the
diameter of the volume divided by expansion speed. We calculate in
one, two and three dimensions. The often considered limits of phase conversion
via either nucleation or spinodal decomposition are found to be volume-size
dependent concepts, governed by simple power laws for .Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Additions after referee reports: Scaling of the
variable q is proven. Additional references are adde
Effects of parental imprisonment on child antisocial behaviour and mental health: a systematic review
Parental imprisonment can cause many problems for the family left behind,
including difficulty organising childcare, loss of family income, trouble maintaining
contact with the imprisoned parent, stigma, and home, school and neighbourhood
moves. Children and parents can be distressed by the separation. Children may
respond by acting out or becoming withdrawn, anxious or depressed. We conducted
an exhaustive search for studies that examined children's antisocial behaviour and
mental health after parental imprisonment. We found 16 studies with appropriate
evidence. These studies all showed that children of prisoners are more likely than
other children to show antisocial and mental health problems. However, it was
unclear whether parental imprisonment actually caused these problems. They might
have been caused by other disadvantages in children's lives that existed before
parental imprisonment occurred. Children of prisoners are a vulnerable group. More
research is required to determine whether or not parental imprisonment causes an
increase in child antisocial behaviour and mental health problems
An Engineering-to-Biology Thesaurus To Promote Better Collaboration, Creativity and Discovery
Organised by: Cranfield UniversityBiological inspiration for engineering design has occurred through a variety of techniques such as database
searches, keyword and antonym searches, knowledge of biology, observations of nature and other “aha”
moments. This research aims to alleviate the knowledge gap problem by providing a link between
engineering and biology with a thesaurus. The biologically connotative terms that comprise the thesaurus
were collected utilizing an organized verb-noun search; collocated words were extracted from texts based
on a functional search word. This thesaurus should enable the engineering and biology communities to
better collaborate, create and discover.Mori Seiki – The Machine Tool Compan
Glycoproteomic Analysis of Malignant Ovarian Cancer Ascites Fluid Identifies Unusual Glycopeptides
Ovarian cancer is
a major cause of cancer mortality among women,
largely due to late diagnosis of advanced metastatic disease. More
extensive molecular analysis of metastatic ovarian cancer is needed
to identify post-translational modifications of proteins, especially
glycosylation that is particularly associated with metastatic disease
to better understand the metastatic process and identify potential
therapeutic targets. Glycoproteins in ascites fluid were enriched
by affinity binding to lectins (ConA or WGA) and other affinity matrices.
Separate glycomic, proteomic, and glycopeptide analyses were performed.
Relative abundances of different N-glycan groups and proteins were
identified from ascites fluids and a serum control. Levels of biomarkers
CA125, MUC1, and fibronectin were also monitored in OC ascites samples
by Western blot analysis. N-Glycan analysis of ascites fluids showed
the presence of large, highly fucosylated and sialylated complex and
hybrid glycans, some of which were not observed in normal serum. OC
ascites glycoproteins, haptoglobin, fibronectin, lumican, fibulin,
hemopexin, ceruloplasmin, alpha-1-antitrypsin, and alpha-1-antichymotrypsin
were more abundant in OC ascites or not present in serum control samples.
Further glycopeptide analysis of OC ascites identified N- and O-glycans
in clusterin, hemopexin, and fibulin glycopeptides, some of which
are unusual and may be important in OC metastasis
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Proteomic profiling of lung adenocarcinoma indicates heightened DNA repair, antioxidant mechanisms and identifies LASP1 as a potential negative predictor of survival
BackgroundLung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality in the United States. Non-small cell lung cancer accounts for 85% of all lung cancers for which adenocarcinoma is the most common histological type. Management of lung cancer is hindered by high false-positive rates due to difficulty resolving between benign and malignant tumors. Better molecular analysis comparing malignant and non-malignant tissues will provide important evidence of the underlying biology contributing to tumorigenesis.MethodsWe utilized a proteomics approach to analyze 38 malignant and non-malignant paired tissue samples obtained from current or former smokers with early stage (Stage IA/IB) lung adenocarcinoma. Statistical mixed effects modeling and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis were used to identify key cancer-associated perturbations in the adenocarcinoma proteome. Identified proteins were subsequently assessed against clinicopathological variables.ResultsTop cancer-associated protein alterations were characterized by: (1) elevations in APEX1, HYOU1 and PDIA4, indicative of increased DNA repair machinery and heightened anti-oxidant defense mechanisms; (2) increased LRPPRC, STOML2, COPG1 and EPRS, suggesting altered tumor metabolism and inflammation; (3) reductions in SPTB, SPTA1 and ANK1 implying dysregulation of membrane integrity; and (4) decreased SLCA41 suggesting altered pH regulation. Increased protein levels of HYOU1, EPRS and LASP1 in NSCLC adenocarcinoma was independently validated by tissue microarray immunohistochemistry. Immunohistochemistry for HYOU1 and EPRS indicated AUCs of 0.952 and 0.841, respectively, for classifying tissue as malignant. Increased LASP1 correlated with poor overall survival (HR 3.66 per unit increase; CI 1.37-9.78; p = 0.01).ConclusionThese results reveal distinct proteomic changes associated with early stage lung adenocarcinoma that may be useful prognostic indicators and therapeutic targets