Literature review and experimental investigation of heat pipes

Tests on heat pipes determine operational limits, external boundary conditions, noncondensable gas effects, startup behavior, and geometric configurations. Experiment consists of design, construction, and testing of an apparatus for measuring wick properties, conventional heat pipes and coplanar heat pipes

Thermal energy storage testing facility

The thermal performance of resistance storage heaters in respect to current standards is determined. The design and construction of a storage heater test facility with capability for measuring the performance of electric resistance heated storage units is described. The performance of commercial units are compared based on existing standards. Additional performance standards are proposed

Improved fluid dynamics similarity analysis and verification. Part 1 - Similarity studies of discharge of liquid from containers through orifices and tubes Final report, 29 Jun. 1965 - 28 Jun. 1968

Scaling and similarity study of liquids discharged from containers through orifices and tube

Improved fluid dynamics similarity, analysis and verification. Part 4 - Acoustic velocities in two-phase mixtures of some cryogenic fluids Final report, 29 Jun. 1965 - 28 Jun. 1968

Model calculations and graphical presentation of acoustic velocities in two-phase mixtures of some cryogenic fluid

Improved fluid dynamics similarity, analysis and verification Annual report, 29 Jun. 1965 - 28 Jun. 1966

Fluid mechanics and dynamic reactions in liquid flow, single-phase flow, and two-phase flo

Improved fluid dynamics similarity, analysis and verification. Part 2 - Effects of longitudinal vibration on discharge of liquids from propellant tanks Final report, 29 Jun. 1965 - 28 Jun. 1968

Longitudinal vibration effects on liquid flow from propellant tan

Identification and reproducibility of diagnostic DNA markers for tuber starch and yield optimization in a novel association mapping population of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.)

KEY MESSAGE: SNPs in candidate genesPain-1,InvCD141(invertases),SSIV(starch synthase),StCDF1(transcription factor),LapN(leucine aminopeptidase), and cytoplasm type are associated with potato tuber yield, starch content and/or starch yield. ABSTRACT: Tuber yield (TY), starch content (TSC), and starch yield (TSY) are complex characters of high importance for the potato crop in general and for industrial starch production in particular. DNA markers associated with superior alleles of genes that control the natural variation of TY, TSC, and TSY could increase precision and speed of breeding new cultivars optimized for potato starch production. Diagnostic DNA markers are identified by association mapping in populations of tetraploid potato varieties and advanced breeding clones. A novel association mapping population of 282 genotypes including varieties, breeding clones and Andean landraces was assembled and field evaluated in Northern Spain for TY, TSC, TSY, tuber number (TN) and tuber weight (TW). The landraces had lower mean values of TY, TW, TN, and TSY. The population was genotyped for 183 microsatellite alleles, 221 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in fourteen candidate genes and eight known diagnostic markers for TSC and TSY. Association test statistics including kinship and population structure reproduced five known marker–trait associations of candidate genes and discovered new ones, particularly for tuber yield and starch yield. The inclusion of landraces increased the number of detected marker–trait associations. Integration of the present association mapping results with previous QTL linkage mapping studies for TY, TSC, TSY, TW, TN, and tuberization revealed some hot spots of QTL for these traits in the potato genome. The genomic positions of markers linked or associated with QTL for complex tuber traits suggest high multiplicity and genome wide distribution of the underlying genes. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00122-016-2665-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

A high confidence, manually validated human blood plasma protein reference set

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The immense diagnostic potential of human plasma has prompted great interest and effort in cataloging its contents, exemplified by the Human Proteome Organization (HUPO) Plasma Proteome Project (PPP) pilot project. Due to challenges in obtaining a reliable blood plasma protein list, HUPO later re-analysed their own original dataset with a more stringent statistical treatment that resulted in a much reduced list of high confidence (at least 95%) proteins compared with their original findings. In order to facilitate the discovery of novel biomarkers in the future and to realize the full diagnostic potential of blood plasma, we feel that there is still a need for an ultra-high confidence reference list (at least 99% confidence) of blood plasma proteins.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>To address the complexity and dynamic protein concentration range of the plasma proteome, we employed a linear ion-trap-Fourier transform (LTQ-FT) and a linear ion trap-Orbitrap (LTQ-Orbitrap) for mass spectrometry (MS) analysis. Both instruments allow the measurement of peptide masses in the low ppm range. Furthermore, we employed a statistical score that allows database peptide identification searching using the products of two consecutive stages of tandem mass spectrometry (MS3). The combination of MS3 with very high mass accuracy in the parent peptide allows peptide identification with orders of magnitude more confidence than that typically achieved.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Herein we established a high confidence set of 697 blood plasma proteins and achieved a high 'average sequence coverage' of more than 14 peptides per protein and a median of 6 peptides per protein. All proteins annotated as belonging to the immunoglobulin family as well as all hypothetical proteins whose peptides completely matched immunoglobulin sequences were excluded from this protein list. We also compared the results of using two high-end MS instruments as well as the use of various peptide and protein separation approaches. Furthermore, we characterized the plasma proteins using cellular localization information, as well as comparing our list of proteins to data from other sources, including the HUPO PPP dataset.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Superior instrumentation combined with rigorous validation criteria gave rise to a set of 697 plasma proteins in which we have very high confidence, demonstrated by an exceptionally low false peptide identification rate of 0.29%.</p

Computational analysis of expression of human embryonic stem cell-associated signatures in tumors

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The cancer stem cell model has been proposed based on the linkage between human embryonic stem cells and human cancer cells. However, the evidences supporting the cancer stem cell model remain to be collected. In this study, we extensively examined the expression of human embryonic stem cell-associated signatures including core genes, transcription factors, pathways and microRNAs in various cancers using the computational biology approach.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We used the class comparison analysis and survival analysis algorithms to identify differentially expressed genes and their associated transcription factors, pathways and microRNAs among normal vs. tumor or good prognosis vs. poor prognosis phenotypes classes based on numerous human cancer gene expression data. We found that most of the human embryonic stem cell- associated signatures were frequently identified in the analysis, suggesting a strong linkage between human embryonic stem cells and cancer cells.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The present study revealed the close linkage between the human embryonic stem cell associated gene expression profiles and cancer-associated gene expression profiles, and therefore offered an indirect support for the cancer stem cell theory. However, many interest issues remain to be addressed further.</p

Melanoma Spheroids Grown Under Neural Crest Cell Conditions Are Highly Plastic Migratory/Invasive Tumor Cells Endowed with Immunomodulator Function

International audienceBACKGROUND: The aggressiveness of melanoma tumors is likely to rely on their well-recognized heterogeneity and plasticity. Melanoma comprises multi-subpopulations of cancer cells some of which may possess stem cell-like properties. Although useful, the sphere-formation assay to identify stem cell-like or tumor initiating cell subpopulations in melanoma has been challenged, and it is unclear if this model can predict a functional phenotype associated with aggressive tumor cells. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We analyzed the molecular and functional phenotypes of melanoma spheroids formed in neural crest cell medium. Whether from metastatic or advanced primary tumors, spheroid cells expressed melanoma-associated markers. They displayed higher capacity to differentiate along mesenchymal lineages and enhanced expression of SOX2, NANOG, KLF4, and/or OCT4 transcription factors, but not enhanced self-renewal or tumorigenicity when compared to their adherent counterparts. Gene expression profiling attributed a neural crest cell signature to these spheroids and indicated that a migratory/invasive and immune-function modulating program could be associated with these cells. In vitro assays confirmed that spheroids display enhanced migratory/invasive capacities. In immune activation assays, spheroid cells elicited a poorer allogenic response from immune cells and inhibited mitogen-dependent T cells activation and proliferation more efficiently than their adherent counterparts. Our findings reveal a novel immune-modulator function of melanoma spheroids and suggest specific roles for spheroids in invasion and in evasion of antitumor immunity. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: The association of a more plastic, invasive and evasive, thus a more aggressive tumor phenotype with melanoma spheroids reveals a previously unrecognized aspect of tumor cells expanded as spheroid cultures. While of limited efficiency for melanoma initiating cell identification, our melanoma spheroid model predicted aggressive phenotype and suggested that aggressiveness and heterogeneity of melanoma tumors can be supported by subpopulations other than cancer stem cells. Therefore, it could be constructive to investigate melanoma aggressiveness, relevant to patients and clinical transferability