On processing development for fabrication of fiber reinforced composite, part 2

Fiber-reinforced composite laminates are used in many aerospace and automobile applications. The magnitudes and durations of the cure temperature and the cure pressure applied during the curing process have significant consequences for the performance of the finished product. The objective of this study is to exploit the potential of applying the optimization technique to the cure cycle design. Using the compression molding of a filled polyester sheet molding compound (SMC) as an example, a unified Computer Aided Design (CAD) methodology, consisting of three uncoupled modules, (i.e., optimization, analysis and sensitivity calculations), is developed to systematically generate optimal cure cycle designs. Various optimization formulations for the cure cycle design are investigated. The uniformities in the distributions of the temperature and the degree with those resulting from conventional isothermal processing conditions with pre-warmed platens. Recommendations with regards to further research in the computerization of the cure cycle design are also addressed

Detecting Mutations in the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Pyrazinamidase Gene pncA to Improve Infection Control and Decrease Drug Resistance Rates in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Coinfection.

Hospital infection control measures are crucial to tuberculosis (TB) control strategies within settings caring for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients, as these patients are at heightened risk of developing TB. Pyrazinamide (PZA) is a potent drug that effectively sterilizes persistent Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacilli. However, PZA resistance associated with mutations in the nicotinamidase/pyrazinamidase coding gene, pncA, is increasing. A total of 794 patient isolates obtained from four sites in Lima, Peru, underwent spoligotyping and drug resistance testing. In one of these sites, the HIV unit of Hospital Dos de Mayo (HDM), an isolation ward for HIV/TB coinfected patients opened during the study as an infection control intervention: circulating genotypes and drug resistance pre- and postintervention were compared. All other sites cared for HIV-negative outpatients: genotypes and drug resistance rates from these sites were compared with those from HDM. HDM patients showed high concordance between multidrug resistance, PZA resistance according to the Wayne method, the two most common genotypes (spoligotype international type [SIT] 42 of the Latino American-Mediterranean (LAM)-9 clade and SIT 53 of the T1 clade), and the two most common pncA mutations (G145A and A403C). These associations were absent among community isolates. The infection control intervention was associated with 58-92% reductions in TB caused by SIT 42 or SIT 53 genotypes (odds ratio [OR] = 0.420, P = 0.003); multidrug-resistant TB (OR = 0.349, P < 0.001); and PZA-resistant TB (OR = 0.076, P < 0.001). In conclusion, pncA mutation typing, with resistance testing and spoligotyping, was useful in identifying a nosocomial TB outbreak and demonstrating its resolution after implementation of infection control measures

Constitutively Activated PI3K Accelerates Tumor Initiation and Modifies Histopathology of Breast Cancer

The gene encoding phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase catalytic subunit α-isoform (PIK3CA, p110α) is frequently activated by mutation in human cancers. Based on detection in some breast cancer precursors, PIK3CA mutations have been proposed to have a role in tumor initiation. To investigate this hypothesis, we generated a novel mouse model with a Cre-recombinase regulated allele of p110α (myristoylated-p110α, myr-p110α) along with p53fl/fl deletion and KrasG12D also regulated by Cre-recombinase. After instillation of adenovirus-expressing Cre-recombinase into mammary ducts, we found that myr-p110α accelerated breast tumor initiation in a copy number-dependent manner. Breast tumors induced by p53fl/fl;KrasG12D with no or one copy of myr-p110α had predominantly sarcomatoid features, whereas two copies of myr-p110α resulted in tumors with a carcinoma phenotype. This novel model provides experimental support for importance of active p110α in breast tumor initiation, and shows that the amount of PI3K activity can affect the rate of tumor initiation and modify the histological phenotype of breast cancer

GASP II. A MUSE view of extreme ram-pressure stripping along the line of sight: kinematics of the jellyfish galaxy JO201

This paper presents a spatially-resolved kinematic study of the jellyfish galaxy JO201, one of the most spectacular cases of ram-pressure stripping (RPS) in the GASP (GAs Stripping Phenomena in Galaxies with MUSE) survey. By studying the environment of JO201, we find that it is moving through the dense intra-cluster medium of Abell 85 at supersonic speeds along our line of sight, and that it is likely accompanied by a small group of galaxies. Given the density of the intra-cluster medium and the galaxy's mass, projected position and velocity within the cluster, we estimate that JO201 must so far have lost ~50% of its gas during infall via RPS. The MUSE data indeed reveal a smooth stellar disk, accompanied by large projected tails of ionised (Halpha) gas, composed of kinematically cold (velocity dispersion <40km/s) star-forming knots and very warm (>100km/s) diffuse emission which extend out to at least ~50 kpc from the galaxy centre. The ionised Halpha-emitting gas in the disk rotates with the stars out to ~6 kpc but in the disk outskirts becomes increasingly redshifted with respect to the (undisturbed) stellar disk. The observed disturbances are consistent with the presence of gas trailing behind the stellar component, resulting from intense face-on RPS happening along the line of sight. Our kinematic analysis is consistent with the estimated fraction of lost gas, and reveals that stripping of the disk happens outside-in, causing shock heating and gas compression in the stripped tails.Comment: ApJ, revised version after referee comments, 15 pages, 16 figures. The interactive version of Figure 9 can be viewed at web.oapd.inaf.it/gasp/publications.htm

Effect of Impurity Scattering on the Nonlinear Microwave Response in High-Tc Superconductors

We theoretically investigate intermodulation distortion in high-Tc superconductors. We study the effect of nonmagnetic impurities on the real and imaginary parts of nonlinear conductivity. The nonlinear conductivity is proportional to the inverse of temperature owing to the dependence of the damping effect on energy, which arises from the phase shift deviating from the unitary limit. It is shown that the final-states interaction makes the real part predominant over the imaginary part. These effects have not been included in previous theories based on the two-fluid model, enabling a consistent explanation for the experiments with the rf and dc fields

Rhinoplasty. The Difficult Nasal Tip: Total Resection of the Alar Cartilages

There are many ways to reconstruct and make nasal tips more attractive. Sometimes we cannot find the best way unless we at least remove all surplus from the tip. This may occur in primary or secondary rhinoplasty. In principle, anything is possible when relocating and reconstructing. However, sometimes we face reality when we uncover the tip: broken or bulging cartilages that are difficult to put right. For this reason, in 1987 we thought of totally resectioning the alar cartilages in a case of secondary rhinoplasty with an unsightly appearance. After a year the result was seen to be correct from an aesthetic and a functional perspective and is still so today. Aesthetically, it kept its shape and did not collapse with nasal respiratory failure. We covered the end of the crus medialis with a small, temporary, one- to two-layered fascia patch. Except in exceptional cases, we now use this procedure: Total sectioning of the alar cartilages including the domes, or maintenance of them by preserving the fibroadipose tip tissue with a suture in the middle of the end of the crus medialis and by covering this with temporary fascia, which usually has two layers depending on the thickness of the skin of the tip. This procedure is indicated mainly in secondary rhinoplasty when the cartilages of the tip are completely destroyed, and in primary rhinoplasty when the tip is excessively wide and bulbous. Our philosophy is, therefore, elegance and beauty of the nasal tip with a solid and equilateral base without prejudices

Proteome Profiling of Breast Tumors by Gel Electrophoresis and Nanoscale Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry

We have conducted proteome-wide analysis of fresh surgery specimens derived from breast cancer patients, using an approach that integrates size-based intact protein fractionation, nanoscale liquid separation of peptides, electrospray ion trap mass spectrometry, and bioinformatics. Through this approach, we have acquired a large amount of peptide fragmentation spectra from size-resolved fractions of the proteomes of several breast tumors, tissue peripheral to the tumor, and samples from patients undergoing noncancer surgery. Label-free quantitation was used to generate protein abundance maps for each proteome and perform comparative analyses. The mass spectrometry data revealed distinct qualitative and quantitative patterns distinguishing the tumors from healthy tissue as well as differences between metastatic and non-metastatic human breast cancers including many established and potential novel candidate protein biomarkers. Selected proteins were evaluated by Western blotting using tumors grouped according to histological grade, size, and receptor expression but differing in nodal status. Immunohistochemical analysis of a wide panel of breast tumors was conducted to assess expression in different types of breast cancers and the cellular distribution of the candidate proteins. These experiments provided further insights and an independent validation of the data obtained by mass spectrometry and revealed the potential of this approach for establishing multimodal markers for early metastasis, therapy outcomes, prognosis, and diagnosis in the future. © 2008 American Chemical Society

Directed flow of antiprotons in Au+Au collisions at AGS

Directed flow of antiprotons is studied in Au+Au collisions at a beam momentum of 11.5A GeV/c. It is shown that antiproton directed flow is anti-correlated to proton flow. The measured transverse momentum dependence of the antiproton flow is compared with predictions of the RQMD event generator.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figure

Modification of turbulent dissipation rates by a deep Southern Ocean eddy

The impact of a mesoscale eddy on the magnitude and spatial distribution of diapycnal ocean mixing is investigated using a set of hydrographic and microstructure measurements collected in the Southern Ocean. These data sampled a baroclinic, mid-depth eddy formed during the disintegration of a deep boundary current. Turbulent dissipation is suppressed within the eddy, but is elevated by up to an order of magnitude along the upper and lower eddy boundaries. A ray-tracing approximation is employed asa heuristic device to elucidate how the internal wave field evolves in the ambient velocity and stratification conditions accompanying the eddy. These calculations are consistent with the observations, suggesting reflection of internal wave energy from the eddy center and enhanced breaking through critical layer processes along the eddy boundaries. These results have important implications for understanding where and how internal wave energy is dissipated in the presence of energetic deep geostrophic flows