Leaching of PAHs from rubber modified asphalt pavements

The present study aimed to, for the first time, quantify the total content of 16 priority EPA PAHs in end-of-life tyre derived crumb rubber granulates and various manufactured rubberised asphalt mix designs. After identifying the availability of 16 EPA PAHs, the leaching behaviour of rubberised asphalt specimens, were evaluated using the Dynamic Surface Leaching Test (DSLT) based on CEN/TS 16637-2:2014 standard. This was prior to modelling the release mechanisms of PAHs by utilizing a mathematical diffusion-controlled leaching model. According to the results, the total content of 16 EPA PAHs in crumb rubber granulates ranged between 0.061 and 8.322 μg/g, which were associated with acenaphthene and pyrene, respectively. The total content of PAHs in rubberised asphalt specimens varied between 0.019 and 4.992 μg/g depending on the volume of crumb rubber granulates in the asphalt concrete mix design, and type of binder. Results of the leaching experiments revealed that the highest leached PAHs were benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene and naphthalene with a 64-days cumulative release per specimen surface area > 1 μg/m2. Acenaphthylene, fluoranthene, fluorene and indeno[1,2,3-c,d]pyrene were released in cumulative concentrations between 0.1 and 1 μg/m2. The PAHs with a cumulative release potential below 0.1 μg/m2 during DSLT were benzo[a]anthracene, benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[g,h,i]perylene and chrysene. The diffusion coefficients, which were calculated by mathematical modelling of DSLT data, revealed that the leaching process of 16 EPA PAHs from surface of rubberised asphalt concrete mix designs fitted all the criteria set by the NEN 7345 standard for diffusion-controlled leaching during all stages of leaching experiments

Up-Regulation of Tmevpg1 and Rmrp LncRNA Levels in Splenocytes and Brain of Mouse with Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis

Background: Two long noncoding (lnc) RNAs, which have been recognized as Tmevpg1/Ifng-AS1/NeST and Rmrp play indispensable roles in the differentiation of TH1 and TH17, respectively. The aim of the present scientific study was to analyze the expression levels of the aforementioned lncRNAs in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) as an animal model for multiple sclerosis (MS).Materials and Methods: Initially, EAE was induced in C57BL/6 mice via immunization by using MOG peptide. The leukocyte infiltration rate and demyelination of neuronal axons were determined. Secondly, the expression levels of Tmevpg1, Rmrp, Tbx21, and Rorc were analyzed in the cultured splenocytes and brain lysates, by using Real-Time PCR assay; eventually, the levels of interferon-gamma and interleukin-17 evaluated by ELISA.Results: Gene expression analysis revealed that Rorc expression in the splenocytes of EAE mice in comparison to the controls was elevated; however, Tbx21 expression did not show any significant difference. Tmevpg1 and Rmrp levels increased in the splenocytes of EAE mice (4.48 times and 39.70 times, respectively, p = 0.0001). Besides, in the brain lysate, the entire genes that have been mentioned were higher than the controls (Tmevpg1: 3.35 times p = 0.02 and Rmrp 11.21 times, p = 0.0001).Conclusion: The marked up-regulation in Tmevpg1 and Rmrp transcripts suggested the essential roles of lncRNAs in the pathogenesis of EAE and multiple sclerosis indeed. Further investigations are necessary to evaluate the values of these lncRNAs as the target for the therapy or molecular marker for disease monitoring

Using sterile insect technique against Carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller) (Lep.: Pyralidae), in Yazd province, Iran

Carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller) (Lep.: Pyralidae), is the most important pest of pomegranate fruit in Iran where the cryptic activity of its larva makes the application of insecticides practically impossible. In this research, we evaluated the viability of the sterile insect technique against the carob moth in two isolated regions in Yazd province (Aqda and Mehriz). The mass rearing of the pest was performed in clean rooms on artificial diet under environmental conditions, 29±1 ºC and 75±5 %RH applying 165 Gy gamma ray as sterilizing doze. The sterile insects were released periodically in Aqda orchards (45 hectares) and in Chah Sheida (12 hectares) in Mehriz between March and November 2015. The infestation rate of carob moth in Aqda and Mehriz significantly reduced, in both target regions and control areas, by 12.27% and 44.02%, as well as 12.06% and 50.11%, for Aqda and Mehriz, respectively. It was concluded that periodical release of sterile carob moths can effectively lower the density of pest population and its economic loss on the harvest

APPLICATION OF SENSOR FUSION TO IMPROVE UAV IMAGE CLASSIFICATION

Image classification is one of the most important tasks of remote sensing projects including the ones that are based on using UAV images. Improving the quality of UAV images directly affects the classification results and can save a huge amount of time and effort in this area. In this study, we show that sensor fusion can improve image quality which results in increasing the accuracy of image classification. Here, we tested two sensor fusion configurations by using a Panchromatic (Pan) camera along with either a colour camera or a four-band multi-spectral (MS) camera. We use the Pan camera to benefit from its higher sensitivity and the colour or MS camera to benefit from its spectral properties. The resulting images are then compared to the ones acquired by a high resolution single Bayer-pattern colour camera (here referred to as HRC). We assessed the quality of the output images by performing image classification tests. The outputs prove that the proposed sensor fusion configurations can achieve higher accuracies compared to the images of the single Bayer-pattern colour camera. Therefore, incorporating a Pan camera on-board in the UAV missions and performing image fusion can help achieving higher quality images and accordingly higher accuracy classification results

Effect of 8 Weeks Resistance Training on Some Antioxidant/Oxidative Indexes in Postmenopausal Women with Breast Cancer

Aims Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women that usually begins with abnormal growth and division of different breast cells. There is some evidence that there is an inverse relationship between levels of antioxidants and the risk of breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of 8 weeks resistance training on some antioxidant/oxidative indexes in postmenopausal women with breast cancer. Materials & Methods In this semi-experimental study, in 2014, 30 postmenopausal women with breast cancer in Khorramabad city were selected by available sampling method and randomly divided into 2 groups: experimental group (n=16) and control group (n=14). The experimental group performed resistance training for 8 weeks, which started from 30% 1RM (one repetition maximum) and reached 45-50% 1RM at the end of the eighth week. Blood samples were taken from subjects for the measurement of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX) and malondialdehyde (MDA) serum levels, 48 hours before and after the training protocol. Data were analyzed by SPSS 19 software using independent t-test and dependent t-test. Findings After performing 8 weeks of resistance training, serum levels of SOD and GPX significantly increased and MDA levels decreased significantly (p<0.05), but changes in control group were not significant (p>0.05). Conclusion Resistance training for 8 weeks increases antioxidant indexes and decreases oxidative indexes in postmenopausal women with breast cancer