Free-standing graphene films embedded in epoxy resin with enhanced thermal properties

The poor thermal conductivity of polymer composites has long been a deterrent to their increased use in high-end aerospace or defence applications. This study describes a new approach for the incorporation of graphene in an epoxy resin, through the addition of graphene as free-standing film in the polymeric matrix. The electrical and thermal conductivity of composites embedding two different free-standing graphene films was compared to composites with embedded carbon nanotube buckypapers (CNT-BP). Considerably higher thermal conductivity values than those achieved with conventional dispersing methods of graphene or CNTs in epoxy resins were obtained. The characterisation was complemented with a study of the structure at the microscale by cross-sectional scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The films are preconditioned in order to incorporate them into the composites, and the complete manufacturing process proposed allows the production and processing of these materials in large batches. The high thermal conductivity obtained for the composites opens the way for their use in demanding thermal management applications, such as electronic enclosures or platforms facing critical temperature loads.European Defence Agency tender No 17.ESI.OP.066. Study on the Impact of Graphene on Defence Application

Tegillarca granosa extract Haishengsu (HSS) suppresses expression of mdr1, BCR/ABL and sorcin in drug-resistant K562/ADM tumors in mice

ABSTRACT Purpose: To evaluate the effect of Haishengsu (HSS), a protein extract from Tegillarca granosa, on multidrug-resistance genes mdr1, BCR/ABL and sorcin in transplanted tumors. Material/Methods: Mice were inoculated subcutaneously with a drug resistant leukemia cell line K562/ADM. Tumorbearing animals were divided into control, adriamycin, HSS and combination therapy (adriamycin plus HSS) groups. Flow cytometry was used to detect apoptosis of tumor cells, and RT-PCR was used to evaluate the expression of mdr1, BCR/ABL and sorcin. Results: The apoptosis rate in the high (71.8%), medium (72.3%) and low doses HSS group (72.4%) was higher than in control (1.2%, p<0.01), adriamycin (34.4%, p<0.05) or combination therapy group (46.4%, p<0.05). The mean optical density of mdr1, BCR/ABL and sorcin in HSS groups was lower than in control, adriamycin and combination therapy group (p<0.01). The optical density of the three genes in high HSS group was lower than in medium and low HSS group (p<0.01). Conclusions: Haishengsu promotes apoptosis of drug-resistant K562/ADM tumors in mice in a dose-dependent manner. The pro-apoptotic effect of Haishengsu may be related to a reduced expression of multidrug-resistance genes mdr1, BCR/ABL and sorcin

Comparative analysis of the lambda-interferons IL-28A and IL-29 regarding their transcriptome and their antiviral properties against hepatitis C virus.

Specific differences in signaling and antiviral properties between the different Lambda-interferons, a novel group of interferons composed of IL-28A, IL-28B and IL-29, are currently unknown. This is the first study comparatively investigating the transcriptome and the antiviral properties of the Lambda-interferons IL-28A and IL-29. Expression studies were performed by microarray analysis, quantitative PCR (qPCR), reporter gene assays and immunoluminometric assays. Signaling was analyzed by Western blot. HCV replication was measured in Huh-7 cells expressing subgenomic HCV replicon. All hepatic cell lines investigated as well as primary hepatocytes expressed both IFN-λ receptor subunits IL-10R2 and IFN-λR1. Both, IL-28A and IL-29 activated STAT1 signaling. As revealed by microarray analysis, similar genes were induced by both cytokines in Huh-7 cells (IL-28A: 117 genes; IL-29: 111 genes), many of them playing a role in antiviral immunity. However, only IL-28A was able to significantly down-regulate gene expression (n = 272 down-regulated genes). Both cytokines significantly decreased HCV replication in Huh-7 cells. In comparison to liver biopsies of patients with non-viral liver disease, liver biopsies of patients with HCV showed significantly increased mRNA expression of IL-28A and IL-29. Moreover, IL-28A serum protein levels were elevated in HCV patients. In a murine model of viral hepatitis, IL-28 expression was significantly increased. IL-28A and IL-29 are up-regulated in HCV patients and are similarly effective in inducing antiviral genes and inhibiting HCV replication. In contrast to IL-29, IL-28A is a potent gene repressor. Both IFN-λs may have therapeutic potential in the treatment of chronic HCV

Information diffusion in the U.S. real estate investment trust market

This study examines the information diffusion process in the U.S. Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) market with a focus on the impacts of changing market environments, information supply, and information demand on the lead-lag effect. The results suggest that a significant lead-lag relationship exists between the lagged returns of big REITs and the current returns of small REITs. This relationship has slightly decreased along with policy and environment changes that occurred in the U.S. REIT market during the study period from 1986 to 2012, while still remaining significant in the most recent REIT market. The process of information diffusion is becoming unstable in recent years and the reverse lead-lag effect from small REITs to big REITs is observed especially when REIT market liquidity and return volatility are high. The lead-lag effect among REITs is driven largely by slow adjustment to negative information, which is magnified by a lack of information supply, especially as demand for such information increases. Finally, information flow from REITs with more media coverage to those with less media coverage becomes even more sluggish than the information flow from big REITs to small REITs

Primary de novo malignant giant cell tumor of kidney: a case report

BACKGROUND: Osteoclast-like giant cell tumors are usually observed in osseous tissue or as tumors of tendon sheath, characterized by the presence of multinucleated giant cells and mononuclear stromal cells. It has been reported in various extraosseous sites including breast, skin, soft tissue, salivary glands, lung, pancreas, female genital tract, thyroid, larynx and heart. However, extraosseus occurrence of such giant cell tumors in the kidney is extremely rare and is usually found in combination with a conventional malignancy. De-novo primary malignant giant cell tumors of the kidney are unusual lesions and to our knowledge this is the second such case. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a rare case of extraosseous primary denovo malignant giant cell tumor of the renal parenchyma in a 39-year-old Caucasian female to determine the histogenesis of this neoplasm with a detailed literature review. CONCLUSION: Primary denovo malignant giant cell tumor of the kidney is extremely rare. The cellular origin of this tumor is favored to be a pluripotential mesenchymal stromal cell of the mononuclear/phagocytic cellular lineage. Awareness of this neoplasm is important in the pathological interpretation of unusual findings at either fine needle aspiration or frozen section of solid renal masses

Impaired Resting-State Functional Integrations within Default Mode Network of Generalized Tonic-Clonic Seizures Epilepsy

Generalized tonic-clonic seizures (GTCS) are characterized by unresponsiveness and convulsions, which cause complete loss of consciousness. Many recent studies have found that the ictal alterations in brain activity of the GTCS epilepsy patients are focally involved in some brain regions, including thalamus, upper brainstem, medial prefrontal cortex, posterior midbrain regions, and lateral parietal cortex. Notably, many of these affected brain regions are the same and overlap considerably with the components of the so-called default mode network (DMN). Here, we hypothesize that the brain activity of the DMN of the GTCS epilepsy patients are different from normal controls, even in the resting state. To test this hypothesis, we compared the DMN of the GTCS epilepsy patients and the controls using the resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Thirteen brain areas in the DMN were extracted, and a complete undirected weighted graph was used to model the DMN for each participant. When directly comparing the edges of the graph, we found significant decreased functional connectivities within the DMN of the GTCS epilepsy patients comparing to the controls. As for the nodes of the graph, we found that the degree of some brain areas within the DMN was significantly reduced in the GTCS epilepsy patients, including the anterior medial prefrontal cortex, the bilateral superior frontal cortex, and the posterior cingulate cortex. Then we investigated into possible mechanisms of how GTCS epilepsy could cause the reduction of the functional integrations of DMN. We suggested the damaged functional integrations of the DMN in the GTCS epilepsy patients even during the resting state, which could help to understand the neural correlations of the impaired consciousness of GTCS epilepsy patients

Observation of a ppb mass threshoud enhancement in \psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p}) decay

The decay channel $\psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p})$ is studied using a sample of $1.06\times 10^8$ $\psi^\prime$ events collected by the BESIII experiment at BEPCII. A strong enhancement at threshold is observed in the $p\bar{p}$ invariant mass spectrum. The enhancement can be fit with an $S$-wave Breit-Wigner resonance function with a resulting peak mass of $M=1861^{+6}_{-13} {\rm (stat)}^{+7}_{-26} {\rm (syst)} {\rm MeV/}c^2$ and a narrow width that is $\Gamma<38 {\rm MeV/}c^2$ at the 90% confidence level. These results are consistent with published BESII results. These mass and width values do not match with those of any known meson resonance.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Chinese Physics

Haptic Guidance with a Soft Exoskeleton Reduces Error in Drone Teleoperation

Haptic guidance has been shown to improve performance in many fields as it can give additional information without overloading other sensory channels such as vision or audition. Our group is investigating new intuitive ways to interact with robots, and we developed a suit to control drones with upper body movement, called the FlyJacket. In this paper, we present the integration of a cable-driven haptic guidance in the FlyJacket. The aim of the device is to apply a force relative to the distance between the drone and a predetermined trajectory to correct user torso orientation and improve the flight precision. Participants (n=10) flying a simulated fixed-wing drone controlled with torso movements tested four different guidance profiles (three linear profiles with different stiffness and one quadratic). Our results show that a quadratically shaped guidance, which gives a weak force when the error is small and a strong force when the error becomes significant, was the most effective guidance to improve the performance. All participants also reported through questionnaires that the haptic guidance was useful for flight control

Risk factors for overweight and obesity, and changes in body mass index of Chinese adults in Shanghai

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Over the past two decades, the prevalence of overweight or obesity has increased in China. The aims of this study were to firstly assess the baseline prevelences and the risk factors for overweight and obesity, and secondly to detect the changes of body mass index (BMI) over a follow-up period in Chinese adults in Shanghai.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The data set of a population-based longitudinal study was analyzed. Anthropometric and biochemical data were collected for 5364 subjects (aged 25–95 years) during a period of 1998–2001. Among those individuals, 3032 subjects were interviewed and reexamined at the second survey from 2003 to 2004. Then the standardized prevalences for overweight and obesity were calculated using baseline data; the possible contributing factors of overweight and obesity were detected using binary logistic regression analysis; and the changes of BMI were evaluated after an average of 3.6-year follow-up period.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>(1) According to the WHO standard and the Chinese standard, the sex- and age-standardized prevalences were 27.5% and 32.4% for overweight, and 3.7% and 9.1% for obesity, respectively. (2) The risks of overweight and obesity differed among different age groups. Family history of obesity increased the risk of overweight and obesity by about 1.2-fold for both genders. Current male smokers had a lower risk of overweight and obesity (OR = 0.76, <it>p </it>< 0.05) than nonsmokers. In contrast, current male drinkers had a higher risk of overweight and obesity (OR = 1.42, <it>p </it>< 0.05) than nondrinkers. Compared with low-educated women, medium- and high- educated women were at lower risk of overweight and obesity, and the corresponding ORs (95% CIs) were 0.64 (0.52–0.79) and 0.50(0.36–0.68), respectively. (3) The annual changes of BMI means ranged from an increase of 0.1 kg/m²to a decrease of 0.2 kg/m²(by genders and age groups). Meanwhile, the BMI increase was statistically significant in the 35–44 years age group, and the BMI decrease was significant above 65 years for both genders.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study showed high prevalence of overweight and obesity in Shanghai metropolis populations. The risk factors of overweight and obesity were multifactorial and gender specific. After 3.6 years, BMI means changed slightly, BMI increased mainly in middle-aged individuals and decreased in old individuals.</p