Colloidal stability of tannins: astringency, wine tasting and beyond

Tannin-tannin and tannin-protein interactions in water-ethanol solvent mixtures are studied in the context of red wine tasting. While tannin self-aggregation is relevant for visual aspect of wine tasting (limpidity and related colloidal phenomena), tannin affinities for salivary proline-rich proteins is fundamental for a wide spectrum of organoleptic properties related to astringency. Tannin-tannin interactions are analyzed in water-ethanol wine-like solvents and the precipitation map is constructed for a typical grape tannin. The interaction between tannins and human salivary proline-rich proteins (PRP) are investigated in the framework of the shell model for micellization, known for describing tannin-induced aggregation of beta-casein. Tannin-assisted micellization and compaction of proteins observed by SAXS are described quantitatively and discussed in the case of astringency

Vascular acetylcholine response during chronic NO synthase inhibition: in vivo versus in vitro

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the response to NO-mediated vasodilators in vivo and in vitro during chronic NO synthase inhibition. Methods:NG-Nitro-l-arginine-methyl ester (l-NAME, 0.4 g/l) or vehicle was administered in the drinking water for 6 weeks to male Wistar rats weighing 220-240 g. The effect of acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside was examined in vivo, on systemic blood pressure and heart rate and in vitro, on the precontracted isolated mesenteric artery. The in vivo response to both vasodilators was examined in awake rats monitored by an indwelling catheter in the femoral artery. Isolated segments of the third-generation mesenteric artery were examined in vitro with a Mulvany dual myograph after precontraction with noradrenaline. Results: In isolated mesenteric arteries obtained from rats chronically treated with l-NAME, the initial relaxant response to acetylcholine was significantly decreased whereas that to sodium nitroprusside was enhanced. A late acetylcholine-induced contractile response was present and abolished by indomethacin. In vivo, the hypotensive action of sodium nitroprusside was also enhanced in the l-NAME-treated rats. Acetylcholine reduced blood pressure in the l-NAME-treated hypertensive animals more than in normotensive controls, but less than in control rats infused intravenously with noradrenaline at a dose increasing their blood pressure to hypertensive levels. Conclusions: The NO-mediated vasodilation induced by acetylcholine is attenuated during chronic NO synthase inhibition, both in vivo and in vitro. The blunted hypotensive response to acetylcholine can be demonstrated only if blood pressure of control rats is acutely increased to hypertensive level

Environmental assessment of light weighting solutions for automotive components: results, trade‐off and challenges from real case studies

In the last few decades, the automotive industry is facing the most deal with sustainability programs due to the increase of legislate limits on CO2 emissions and vehicle recyclability rate. Consequently, decisions on products design and development go together with environmental considerations, by starting to look for the employment of lighter materials, thus reducing vehicle mass weight and therefore fuel consumption and CO2 emissions during the dominant operation stage of a vehicle’s life cycle. To tackle this problem many of today automotive components are made of alternative materials like plastics, polymer composites, lighter metals which should lead to weight reduction with the same mechanical performances. Magneti Marelli® designs and produces hi-tech systems and components for the automotive sector representing a significant contribution on vehicle mass weight with a roughly 15% portion of incidence. So, in accordance to the environmental regulations, the Company has started to get involved into sustainability programs by focusing attention on the environmental impact of its products. In particular since 2012 Magneti Marelli has included in its mission the “improvement of environmental and energy performances of products and relatives processes during their whole life cycle, through innovative methodologies that assess the potential impacts in a quantitative way”, in this way highlighting the importance of meeting the increasing stakeholders’ expectations and their requests for transparency in results’ communication. This work addresses the main outcomes stemmed from the several LCA studies carried out over different components in terms of materials and technologies production allowing a wider environmental conscious related to the usage of different materials and manufacturing processes. Results showed that the materials employed offer the major contribution on the total impact especially for raw materials extraction and production and for the vehicle use phase, with a further substantial difference connected to the use of virgin instead of recycled materials. The main discussed points will be: i) the trade-off between production phase and use phase impacts; ii) End-of-Life analysis at component level beside the ISO 22628:2002 for the whole vehicle; iii) critical analysis and selection of environmental indicators significant for the automotive sector. Keywords Automotive sector, Life Cycle Assessment, vehicle component, Sustainable Manufacturing, Design for Environment, composites, light weightin

Kohn-Luttinger instability of the t-t' Hubbard model in two dimensions: variational approach

An effective Hamiltonian for the Kohn-Luttinger superconductor is constructed and solved in the BCS approximation. The method is applied to the t-t' Hubbard model in two dimensions with the following results: (i) The superconducting phase diagram at half filling is shown to provide a weak-coupling analog of the recently proposed spin liquid state in the J_1-J_2 Heisenberg model. (ii) In the parameter region relevant for the cuprates we have found a nontrivial energy dependence of the gap function in the dominant d-wave pairing sector. The hot spot effect in the angular dependence of the superconducting gap is shown to be quite weak

P-537: Pioglitazone blunts the blood pressure response to angiotensin II in insulin-resistant zucker rats

Thiazolidinediones are high-affinity agonists of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR)-γ which have been found to lower blood pressure (BP) in animal models of diabetes and reno-vascular hypertension. The mechanisms leading to this decrease in blood pressure are still unclear. Since the renin-angiotensin system is a main regulator of blood pressure, we investigated the effects of pioglitazone on blood pressure, plasma renin activity and on the blood pressure response to exogenous angiotensin II in insulin-resistant Zucker rats. Pioglitazone 20mg/kg/d or vehicle were administered for 4 weeks to 8-weeks old fa/fa Zucker rats. Pioglitazone-treated rats were heavier than vehicle-treated rats (respectively 481g±8g vs 437±5g, p=0.0002, mean±SEM) and ate more (35.6±0.5g/d vs 28.9±0.3, p<0.0001). The increase in blood sugar after an intra-venous glucose tolerance test was significantly attenuated in the pioglitazone treated rats at 10,15 and 30 minutes. Systolic (SBP), diastolic (DBP) blood pressure and heart rate (HR) were lower in pioglitazone-treated rats: SBP: 124±3 mmHg vs 144±3, p<0.001; DBP: 80±2 vs 94±2, p<0.001; HR: 369±6 vs 397±8, p<0.01. The BP response to exogenous angiotensin II was significantly attenuated in pioglitazone treated rats. With the 25 ng/kg Ang II dose the increase in BP was 27.8±2.4 mmHg with pioglitazone and 37.5±3.3 with the vehicle (p=0.04) and with the Ang II 100 ng/kg dose the increase in BP was respectively 36.1±2.7 mmHg and 49.2±2.3 (p=0.003). Plasma renin activity was comparable in both groups. In conclusion, these results show that pioglitazone blunts the BP response to angiotensin II in insulin-resistant Zucker rats. This effect may partially explain the blood pressure lowering effect of PPAR-γ agonist

Electrophoretic co-deposition of Mn1.5Co1.5O4, Fe2O3 and CuO: Unravelling the effect of simultaneous addition of Cu and Fe on the microstructural, thermo-mechanical and corrosion properties of in-situ modified spinel coatings for solid oxide cell interconnects

A systematic microstructural, thermo-mechanical and electrical characterization of simultaneous Fe–Cu doped Mn–Co spinel coatings processed by electrophoretic co-deposition on Crofer 22 APU is here reported and discussed. An innovative approach for the simultaneous electrophoretic deposition of three spinel precursors is designed, conceived and optimised, with the aim of outlining time- and energy-saving spinel modification routes. The effect of different levels of Cu and Fe co-doping is observed on the stability of the modified Mn–Co spinel phase, the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), the corrosion resistance and on the densification behaviour of the obtained coatings. Cu determines an increase of CTE, while Fe has the opposite behavior. The synergic effect of the simultaneous Fe and Cu co-doping results in an improved densification and the stabilization of the MnCo2O4 cubic phase. The most interesting results in terms of corrosion resistance are obtained for the Mn1.28Co1.28Fe0.15Cu0.29O4 spinel

P-620: Pioglitazone stimulates renin and favors sodium retention and weight gain in healthy subjects

Glitazones induce peripheral edema through an unknown mechanism in up to 20% of cases. This study examines the effects of pioglitazone (PIO) on renal sodium handling and renal hemodynamics in healthy male volunteers (HV) exposed to a high (HS) and low (LS) sodium diet. The influence of PIO on plasma renin activity (PRA), aldosterone and atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) was examined. Nine HV aged 22-28 y were enrolled. BMI, blood pressure and glucose tolerance were normal. The study had a double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled, twofold cross-over design. Each subject received either PIO 45 mg qd or placebo qd, for 6 weeks, with 2 weeks wash-out. From weeks 1-4, subjects were on their usual diet. During weeks 5 and 6, subjects were either on a LS or a HS diet for a week which was followed by ambulatory blood pressure measurements, hormonal measurements and renal function studies. The differences between PIO and placebo effects were examined (median, range among all subjects). No subject developed edema. Insulin sensitivity, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, glomerular filtration rate, renal plasma flow or filtration fraction did not change significantly with PIO. Weight increased with PIO in 7/9 subjects while on a LS diet (0.7kg; -1-2.9) and in 6/9 while on a HS diet (1.1kg; -1.5-3.4). Median sodium (Na) excretion with placebo was of 21.2mmol/24h and 239.7mmol/24h respectively while on a LS and HS diet. Urinary Na excretion decreased with PIO in 6/9 subjects on a LS diet (-12.2mmol/24h; -21-8.7, p=0.05), and in 5/9 subjects on a HS diet (-30mmol/24h; -344-69). Na clearance decreased in 6/9 subjects on a LS diet (-0.05 ml/min; -0.11-0.05) and in 6/9 subjects on a HS diet (-0.15 mmol/ml; -2.7-0.4). Na clearance at the proximal level decreased with PIO in 8/9 subjects on a LS diet (-4.9 ml/min; -14.4-1.5, p=0.01) and in 5/9 subjects on a HS diet (-2 ml/min; -43-8.5). PRA increased with PIO in 8/9 subjects on a LS diet (0.16 ng/ml/h; -0.07-0.8, p=0.02) and on a HS diet (0.09 ng/ml/h; -0.1-0.21, p=0.03). Aldosterone increased in 5/9 subjects on a LS diet (6 pg/ml; -19-144) and in 6/9 subjects on a HS diet (5 pg/ml; -20-74). ANP levels did not change. In conclusion, pioglitazone increases PRA, independently from Na intake and favors Na retention in healthy volunteers. This mechanism could contribute to the development of edema in subjects treated with glitazone

Microstructural, thermo-mechanical and corrosion properties of electrophoretically co-deposited Cu and Fe doped Mn–Co spinel coatings for solid oxide cell interconnects

Chromia forming ferritic stainless steels are employed as interconnects in SOC stacks; the deposition of a manganese cobalt spinel protective coating is widely accepted as a viable solution to mitigate both the oxidation and the chromium evaporation. Electrophoretic deposition (EPD) offers the possibility to deposit homogeneous coatings in few seconds and at room conditions and the need of a simple and adaptable apparatus, thus reducing processing time and cost. A successful deposition is ensured by the optimization of both the starting suspensions in terms of colloidal properties and the post-deposition sintering profile. Electrophoretic co-deposition is an innovative approach for the simultaneous deposition of spinel precursors and for designing in-situ modified manganese-cobalt spinel coatings. A systematic microstructural, thermo-mechanical and electrical characterization of simultaneous Fe–Cu doped Mn–Co spinel coatings processed by electrophoretic co-deposition on Crofer22APU is here reported and discussed. We demonstrate the feasibility to co-deposit Fe2O3, CuO and Mn–Co spinel to produce dense, stable and effective doped spinel coatings. Improved functional properties of produced coatings are assessed in terms of microstructure development, oxidation kinetics and area specific resistance at SOC stack relevant conditions. Furthermore, an assessment of the dilatometric properties of the Fe–Cu doped spinels reveals the influence of different doping levels on the thermomechanical compatibility of the Fe–Cu doped Mn–Co spinel coatings with the interconnect. This work proposes the electrophoretic co-deposition method as an innovative approach for the simultaneous deposition of spinel precursors and for designing in-situ modified coatings

Exact renormalization group flow equations for non-relativistic fermions: scaling towards the Fermi surface

We construct exact functional renormalization group (RG) flow equations for non-relativistic fermions in arbitrary dimensions, taking into account not only mode elimination but also the rescaling of the momenta, frequencies and the fermionic fields. The complete RG flow of all relevant, marginal and irrelevant couplings can be described by a system of coupled flow equations for the irreducible n-point vertices. Introducing suitable dimensionless variables, we obtain flow equations for generalized scaling functions which are continuous functions of the flow parameter, even if we consider quantities which are dominated by momenta close to the Fermi surface, such as the density-density correlation function at long wavelengths. We also show how the problem of constructing the renormalized Fermi surface can be reduced to the problem of finding the RG fixed point of the irreducible two-point vertex at vanishing momentum and frequency. We argue that only if the degrees of freedom are properly rescaled it is possible to reach scale-invariant non-Fermi liquid fixed points within a truncation of the exact RG flow equations.Comment: 20 Revtex pages, with 4 figures; final version to appear in Phys. Rev. B; references and some explanations adde