Autonomous inspection and repair of aircraft composite structures

This paper deals with the development of an innovative approach for inspection and repair of damage in aeronautical composites that took place in the first two years of the H2020 CompInnova project which. The aim is a newly designed robotic platform for autonomous inspection using combined infrared thermography (IRT) and phased array (PA) non-destructive investigation for damage detection and characterization, while integrated with laser repair capabilities. This will affect the increasing societal need for safer aircraft in the lowest possible cost, while new and effective techniques of inspection are needed because of the rapidly expanding use of composites in the aerospace industry

General updating scheme for the design and construction of assembly vectors that are compatible with BBF RFC 10 and BBF RFC 28

BBF RFC 75 intends to link the BBF RFC 28-based combinatorial multi-part assembly method to BBF RFC 10. Its aim is to easily redesign an expression vector to make it compatible to BBF RFC 10 for the construction of fusion proteins based on BBF RFC 28. These vectors can then directly be used for expression of the fusion protein

Mutations in DCC cause isolated agenesis of the corpus callosum with incomplete penetrance

Brain malformations involving the corpus callosum are common in children with developmental disabilities. We identified DCC mutations in four families and five sporadic individuals with isolated agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC) without intellectual disability. DCC mutations result in variable dominant phenotypes with decreased penetrance, including mirror movements and ACC associated with a favorable developmental prognosis. Possible phenotypic modifiers include the type and location of mutation and the sex of the individual

Role of Collectins and Complement Protein C1q in pregnancy and parturition

Collectins such as surfactant proteins SP-A, SP-D, and mannan-binding lectin (MBL), as well as complement protein C1q are evolutionarily conserved innate immune molecules. They are known to opsonize a range of microbial pathogens (bacteria, fungi, virus, and parasites) and trigger effector clearance mechanisms involving phagocytosis and/or complement activation. Collectins and C1q have also attracted attention in studies involving pregnancy as they are expressed in the female reproductive tissues during pregnancy; a unique state of immune suppression with increased susceptibility to infectious diseases. Recent studies are beginning to unravel their functional significance in implantation, placentation, pregnancy maintenance and parturition in normal and adverse pregnancies. Collectins and C1q, expressed in gestational tissues during pregnancy, might alter the status of mother’s immune response to the allogenic fetus and the microenvironment, thereby serving as important regulators of fetus-mother interaction. Here, we discuss the functional roles that have been assigned to SPA, SP-D, MBL and C1q in pregnancy and parturition

Threatened miscarriage: evaluation and management

Threatened miscarriage—vaginal bleeding before 20 gestational weeks—is the commonest complication in pregnancy, occurring in about a fifth of cases.w1 Miscarriage is 2.6 times as likely,1 and 17% of cases are expected to present complications later in pregnancy.2 Although general practitioners and gynaecologists often see this condition, management of threatened miscarriage is mostly empirical. Bed rest is routinely recommended, and about a third of women presenting with threatened miscarriage are prescribed drugs.w2 However, two thirds of the general practitioners recommending this do not believe it affects outcome.3 In this review, we present available evidence on the initial evaluation and management of threatened miscarriage, focusing mainly on the first trimester of pregnancy and primary healthcare settings

Neurodevelopmental Outcome of Fetuses with IncNreased Uchal Translucency and Apparently Normal Prenatal and/or Postnatal Assessment: a Systematic Review

Objectives: To systematically review and, when feasible, pool, published data regarding the prevalence of childhood neurodevelopmental delay in fetuses with increased first-trimester nuchal translucency (NT), normal karyotype and absence of structural defects or identifiable syndromes. Methods: MEDLINE and SCOPUS searches using combinations of the terms 'nuchal translucency' AND 'outcome*' were complemented by perusal of the references of the retrieved articles and an additional automated search using the 'search for related articles' PubMed function. Only children with a normal karyotype and no structural defects or syndromic abnormalities were included in the analysis. Between-studies heterogeneity was assessed using the I 2 statistic. Results: The total prevalence of developmental delay in all 17 studies was 28/2458 (1.14%; 95% CI, 0.79-1.64; I 2 = 57.6%). Eight studies (n = 1567) used NT > 99th centile as the cut-off; 15 children (0.96%; 95% CI, 0.58-1.58%) were reported as having developmental delay (I 2 = 72.2%). Four studies (n = 669) used the 95 th centile as the cut-off for increased NT; seven children (1.05%; 95% CI, 0.51-4.88%) were reported as having developmental delay (I 2 = 29.2%). Five studies used 3.0 mm as the cut-off for increased NT; the pooled rate of developmental delay was six of 222 children (2.70%; 95% CI, 1.24-5.77%; I 2 = 0.0%). Conclusion The rate of neurodevelopmental delay in children with increased fetal NT, a normal karyotype, normal anatomy and no identifiable genetic syndromes does not appear to be higher than that reported for the general population. More large-scale, prospective case-control studies would be needed to enhance the robustness of the results