603 research outputs found
The impact of two-dimensional elastic disk
The impact of a two-dimensional elastic disk with a wall is numerically
studied. It is clarified that the coefficient of restitution (COR) decreases
with the impact velocity. The result is not consistent with the recent
quasi-static theory of inelastic collisions even for very slow impact. The
abrupt drop of COR is found due to the plastic deformation of the disk, which
is assisted by the initial internal motion.(to be published in J. Phys. Soc.
Jpn.)Comment: 6 Pages,2 figure
Percutaneous transfemoral-transseptal implantation of a second-generation CardiAQ™ mitral valve bioprosthesis: first procedure description and 30-day follow-up
Transcatheter mitral valve implantation for mitral valve regurgitation is in the very early phase of development because of challenging anatomy and device dimensions. We describe the procedure of a transfemoral-transseptal implantation of the second-generation CardiAQ™ mitral valve bioprosthesis and 30-day follow-up
Phytoplankton Community Response to Nutrients, Temperatures, and a Heat Wave in Shallow Lakes: An Experimental Approach
Phytoplankton usually responds directly and fast to environmental fluctuations, making them useful indicators of lake ecosystem changes caused by various stressors. Here, we examined the phytoplankton community composition before, during, and after a simulated 1-month heat wave in a mesocosm facility in Silkeborg, Denmark. The experiment was conducted over three contrasting temperature scenarios (ambient (A0), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change A2 scenario (circa +3 degrees C, A2) and A2+ %50 (circa +4.5 degrees C, A2+)) crossed with two nutrient levels (low (LN) and high (HN)) with four replicates. The facility includes 24 mesocosms mimicking shallow lakes, which at the time of our experiment had run without interruption for 11 years. The 1-month heat wave effect was simulated by increasing the temperature by 5 degrees C (1 July to 1 August) in A2 and A2+, while A0 was not additionally heated. Throughout the study, HN treatments were mostly dominated by Cyanobacteria, whereas LN treatments were richer in genera and mostly dominated by Chlorophyta. Linear mixed model analyses revealed that high nutrient conditions were the most important structuring factor, which, regardless of temperature treatments and heat waves, increased total phytoplankton, Chlorophyta, Bacillariophyta, and Cyanobacteria biomasses and decreased genus richness and the grazing pressure of zooplankton. The effect of temperature was, however, modest. The effect of warming on the phytoplankton community was not significant before the heat wave, yet during the heat wave it became significant, especially in LN-A2+, and negative interaction effects between nutrient and A2+ warming were recorded. These warming effects continued after the heat wave, as also evidenced by Co-inertia analyses. In contrast to the prevailing theory stating that more diverse ecosystems would be more stable, HN were less affected by the heat wave disturbance, most likely because the dominant phytoplankton group cyanobacteria is adapted to high nutrient conditions and also benefits from increased temperature. We did not find any significant change in phytoplankton size diversity, but size evenness decreased in HN as a result of an increase in the smallest and largest size classes simultaneously. We conclude that the phytoplankton community was most strongly affected by the nutrient level, but less sensitive to changes in both temperature treatments and the heat wave simulation in these systems, which have been adapted for a long time to different temperatures. Moreover, the temperature and heat wave effects were observed mostly in LN systems, indicating that the sensitivity of phytoplankton community structure to high temperatures is dependent on nutrient availability
Simulation for the oblique impact of a lattice system
The oblique collision between an elastic disk and an elastic wall is
numerically studied.
We investigate the dependency of the tangential coefficient of restitution on
the incident angle of impact.
From the results of simulation, our model reproduces experimental results and
can be explained by a phenomenological theory of the oblique impact.Comment: 30 pages, 9 figures, submitted to J. Phys. Soc. Japa
Combined and single effects of pesticide carbaryl and toxic Microcystis aeruginosa on the life history of Daphnia pulicaria
The combined influence of a pesticide (carbaryl) and a cyanotoxin (microcystin LR) on the life history of Daphnia pulicaria was investigated. At the beginning of the experiments animals were pulse exposed to carbaryl for 24 h and microcystins were delivered bound in Microcystis’ cells at different, sub-lethal concentrations (chronic exposure). In order to determine the actual carbaryl concentrations in the water LC–MS/MS was used. For analyses of the cyanotoxin concentration in Daphnia’s body enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used. Individual daphnids were cultured in a flow-through system under constant light (16 h of light: 8 h of dark), temperature (20°C), and food conditions (Scenedesmus obliquus, 1 mg of C l−1). The results showed that in the treatments with carbaryl egg numbers per female did not differ significantly from controls, but the mortality of newborns increased significantly. Increasing microcystin concentrations significantly delayed maturation, reduced size at first reproduction, number of eggs, and newborns. The interaction between carbaryl and Microcystis was highly significant. Animals matured later and at a smaller size than in controls. The number of eggs per female was reduced as well. Moreover, combined stressors caused frequent premature delivery of offspring with body deformations such as dented carapax or an undeveloped heart. This effect is concluded to be synergistic and could not be predicted from the effects of the single stressors.
Climate change impacts on lakes: an integrated ecological perspective based on a multi-faceted approach, with special focus on shallow lakes
Freshwater ecosystems and their biodiversity are presently seriously threatened by global development and population growth,
leading to increases in nutrient inputs and intensification of eutrophication-induced problems in receiving fresh waters, particularly in
lakes. Climate change constitutes another threat exacerbating the symptoms of eutrophication and species migration and loss. Unequivocal
evidence of climate change impacts is still highly fragmented despite the intensive research, in part due to the variety and
uncertainty of climate models and underlying emission scenarios but also due to the different approaches applied to study its effects.
We first describe the strengths and weaknesses of the multi-faceted approaches that are presently available for elucidating the effects
of climate change in lakes, including space-for-time substitution, time series, experiments, palaeoecology and modelling. Reviewing
combined results from studies based on the various approaches, we describe the likely effects of climate changes on biological communities,
trophic dynamics and the ecological state of lakes. We further discuss potential mitigation and adaptation measures to counteract
the effects of climate change on lakes and, finally, we highlight some of the future challenges that we face to improve our capacity for
successful prediction
New MACRO results on atmospheric neutrino oscillations
The final results of the MACRO experiment on atmospheric neutrino
oscillations are presented and discussed. The data concern different event
topologies with average neutrino energies of ~3 and ~50 GeV. Multiple Coulomb
Scattering of the high energy muons in absorbers was used to estimate the
neutrino energy of each event. The angular distributions, the L/E_nu
distribution, the particle ratios and the absolute fluxes all favour nu_mu -->
nu_tau oscillations with maximal mixing and Delta m^2 =0.0023 eV^2. A
discussion is made on the Monte Carlos used for the atmospheric neutrino flux.
Some results on neutrino astrophysics are also briefly discussed.Comment: Invited Paper at the NANP03 Int. Conf., Dubna, 200
An Integrated Disease/Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Model Suggests Improved Interleukin-21 Regimens Validated Prospectively for Mouse Solid Cancers
Interleukin (IL)-21 is an attractive antitumor agent with potent immunomodulatory functions. Yet thus far, the cytokine has yielded only partial responses in solid cancer patients, and conditions for beneficial IL-21 immunotherapy remain elusive. The current work aims to identify clinically-relevant IL-21 regimens with enhanced efficacy, based on mathematical modeling of long-term antitumor responses. For this purpose, pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) data were acquired from a preclinical study applying systemic IL-21 therapy in murine solid cancers. We developed an integrated disease/PK/PD model for the IL-21 anticancer response, and calibrated it using selected “training” data. The accuracy of the model was verified retrospectively under diverse IL-21 treatment settings, by comparing its predictions to independent “validation” data in melanoma and renal cell carcinoma-challenged mice (R2>0.90). Simulations of the verified model surfaced important therapeutic insights: (1) Fractionating the standard daily regimen (50 µg/dose) into a twice daily schedule (25 µg/dose) is advantageous, yielding a significantly lower tumor mass (45% decrease); (2) A low-dose (12 µg/day) regimen exerts a response similar to that obtained under the 50 µg/day treatment, suggestive of an equally efficacious dose with potentially reduced toxicity. Subsequent experiments in melanoma-bearing mice corroborated both of these predictions with high precision (R2>0.89), thus validating the model also prospectively in vivo. Thus, the confirmed PK/PD model rationalizes IL-21 therapy, and pinpoints improved clinically-feasible treatment schedules. Our analysis demonstrates the value of employing mathematical modeling and in silico-guided design of solid tumor immunotherapy in the clinic
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