Photoluminescence of Ce3+ and Eu2+ in low-P ternesite from the Negev Desert, Israel

For the first time, the photoluminescence of ions of Ce3+ and Eu2+ in natural low-P ternesite has been measured. The emission bands of Ce3+ ions at 405, 426, and 440 nm and the corresponding excitation wavelengths suggest the presence of Ce3+ ions in three different cationic sites. In the photoluminescence spectra of Eu2+, emission bands at 530 and 620 nm can be seen that originate from two different cationic sites. In addition, it is demonstrated that an energy transfer occurs between Ce3+ and Eu2+ ions situated in those cationic sites where the force of the crystallic field is weakest. The photoluminescence spectra were obtained for a thin section sample with low contents of these two elements (41.2 ppm Ce, 2.11 ppm Eu)

O banalności dobra wspólnego - studium hermeneutyczne

Article is an attempt for the creation a new way of think-ing about the common good, which is possible to realize in practice (particularly in view of depleting natural resources). Firstly, author defi nes terms such as: the good, the community , the common good, indicating a tendency to bipolar thinking about these ideas: relativist and absolutist. The second part consist analysis of these ideas from the one perspective – hermeneutics. In this part „banality” is not a „name” for common good. It is a „name” for the way of thinking (bipolar). In the third thematic sequence, author explain the new way of thinking. From now we have formal and material good defi ned in political sphere rather than ethics.Artykuł – zbudowany z trzech sekwencji tematycznych – stanowi próbę wypracowania nowego wymiaru idei dobra wspólnego, możliwego do urzeczywistnienia w wymiarze praktycznym, szczególnie w perspektywie uszczuplających się zasobów naturalnych. Po pierwsze, autorka defi niuje pojęcia takie jak: dobro, wspólnota, dobro wspólne, wskazując tendencje do dwubiegunowego myślenia o powyższych ideach: relatywistycznego i absolutystycznego. Drugim etapem rozważań jest analiza idei z perspektywy hermeneutyki. Autorka uzasadnia tytułową banalność dobra wspólnego, tkwiącą nie w samej idei, ale w sposobie myślenia o niej. Trzecia sekwencja tematyczna stanowi próbę wyjaśnienia nowego podejścia do zagadnienia dobra wspólnego, którego najważniejszym elementem jest jego podział na dobra formalne oraz materialne (defi niowane odtąd na gruncie polityki nie zaś etyki)

Increased percentage of L-selectin+ and ICAM-1+ peripheral blood CD4+/CD8+ T cells in active Graves' ophthalmopathy.

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the percentage of CD4+/CD8+ peripheral T cells expressing CD62L+ and CD54+ in patients with Graves' disease and to assess if these estimations could be helpful as markers of active ophthalmopathy. The study was carried out in 25 patients with Graves' disease (GD) divided into 3 groups: 1/ 8 patients with active Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) (CAS 3-6, GO complaints pound 1 year), 2/ 9 patients with hyperthyroid GD without symptoms of ophthalmopathy (GDtox) and 3/ 8 patients with euthyroid GD with no GO symptoms (GDeu). The control group consisted of 15 healthy volunteers age and sex matched to groups 1-3. The expression of lymphocyte adhesion molecules was evaluated by using three-color flow cytometry. In GO group the percentage of CD8+CD54+, CD8+CD62L+, CD4+CD54+ and CD4+CD62L+ T cells was significantly higher as compared to controls (

Differential Quantitative Proteomics of Human Microvascular Endothelial Cells 1 by iTRAQ Reveals Palladin to be a New Biomarker During TGF-β1 Induced Endothelial Mesenchymal Transition

The study uses global quantitative proteomics to investigate the molecular mechanisms behind the induction of endothelial-mesenchymal transition (EndMT) by transforming growth factor–β (TGF-β). Orbitrap Velos mass spectrometers and iTRAQ – a labeling-based analysis were used to perform a global and quantitative comparison of two proteomes of Human Microvascular Endothelial Cells-1 (HMEC-1) treated or not treated by TGF-β1. iTRAQ analysis identified 43 differentially-expressed proteins in the early stages of EndMT induced by TGF-β1. From 5522 identified proteins, 26 were downregulated and 17 were upregulated, including proteins such as palladin, POTE I, torsin A and nucleoporin (NDC1). Further analysis of palladin revealed its increased mRNA and protein expression in response to TGF-β and Snail transcription factor. Our findings demonstrate that the newly- identified proteins may be involved in early stages of biological processes leading to EndM

Fluid dynamic characterization of a polymeric heart valve prototype (Poli-Valve) tested under continuous and pulsatile flow conditions.

PURPOSE: Only mechanical and biological heart valve prostheses are currently commercially available. The former show longer durability but require anticoagulant therapy; the latter display better fluid dynamic behavior but do not have adequate durability. New Polymeric Heart Valves (PHVs) could potentially combine the hemodynamic properties of biological valves with the durability of mechanical valves. This work presents a hydrodynamic evaluation of 2 groups of newly developed supra-annular, trileaflet prosthetic heart valves made from styrenic block copolymers (SBC): Poli-Valves. METHODS: 2 types of Poli-Valves made of SBC and differing in polystyrene fraction content were tested under continuous and pulsatile flow conditions as prescribed by ISO 5840 Standard. A pulse duplicator designed ad hoc allowed the valve prototypes to be tested at different flow rates and frequencies. Pressure and flow were recorded; pressure drops, effective orifice area (EOA), and regurgitant volume were computed to assess the behavior of the valve. RESULTS: Both types of Poli-Valves met the minimum requirements in terms of regurgitation and EOA as specified by the ISO 5840 Standard. Results were compared with 5 mechanical heart valves (MHVs) and 5 tissue heart valves (THVs), currently available on the market. CONCLUSIONS: Based on these results, PHVs based on styrenic block copolymers, as are Poli-Valves, can be considered a promising alternative for heart valve replacement in the near future.This work was funded by the British Heart Foundation, New Horizons grant NH/11/4/29059.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Wichtig Publishing via http://dx.doi.org/10.5301/ijao.500045

A bio-inspired microstructure induced by slow injection moulding of cylindrical block copolymers.

It is well known that block copolymers with cylindrical morphology show alignment with shear, resulting in anisotropic mechanical properties. Here we show that well-ordered bi-directional orientation can be achieved in such materials by slow injection moulding. This results in a microstructure, and anisotropic mechanical properties, similar to many natural tissues, making this method attractive for engineering prosthetic fibrous tissues. An application of particular interest to us is prosthetic polymeric heart valve leaflets, mimicking the shape, microstructure and hence performance of the native valve. Anisotropic layers have been observed for cylinder-forming block copolymers centrally injected into thin circular discs. The skin layers exhibit orientation parallel to the flow direction, whilst the core layer shows perpendicularly oriented domains; the balance of skin to core layers can be controlled by processing parameters such as temperature and injection rate. Heart valve leaflets with a similar layered structure have been prepared by injection moulding. Numerical modelling demonstrates that such complex orientation can be explained and predicted by the balance of shear and extensional flow.This is the author-accepted manuscript. It will be under embargo for 12 months after publication. The final version of this article is published by RSC in Soft Matter and can be found here: http://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2014/SM/C4SM00884G#!divAbstract

A Newly Developed Tri-Leaflet Polymeric Heart Valve Prosthesis.

The potential of polymeric heart valves (PHV) prostheses is to combine the hemodynamic performances of biological valves with the durability of mechanical valves. The aim of this work is to design and develop a new tri-leaflet prosthetic heart valve (HV) made from styrenic block copolymers. A computational finite element model was implemented to optimize the thickness of the leaflets, to improve PHV mechanical and hydrodynamic performances. Based on the model outcomes, 8 prototypes of the designed valve were produced and tested in vitro under continuous and pulsatile flow conditions, as prescribed by ISO 5840 Standard. A specially designed pulse duplicator allowed testing the PHVs at different flow rates and frequency conditions. All the PHVs met the requirements specified in ISO 5840 Standard in terms of both regurgitation and effective orifice area (EOA), demonstrating their potential as HV prostheses.This work was funded by the British Heart Foundation (New Horizons NH/11/4/29059).This is the final published version. It first appeared at http://www.worldscientific.com/doi/abs/10.1142/S0219519415400096?src=recsys

The mRNA expression of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in T regulatory cells in children with type 1 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is caused by the autoimmune-mediated destruction of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. T regulatory cells (Tregs) represent an active mechanism of suppressing autoreactive T cells that escape central tolerance. The aim of our study was to test the hypothesis that T regulatory cells express pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines, elements of cytotoxicity and OX40/4-1BB molecules. The examined group consisted of 50 children with T1DM. Fifty two healthy individuals (control group) were enrolled into the study. A flow cytometric analysis of T-cell subpopulations was performed using the following markers: anti-CD3, anti-CD4, anti-CD25, anti-CD127, anti-CD134 and anti-CD137. Concurrently with the flow cytometric assessment of Tregs we separated CD4+CD25+CD127dim/- cells for further mRNA analysis. mRNA levels for transcription factor FoxP3, pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines (interferon gamma, interleukin-2, interleukin-4, interleukin-10, transforming growth factor beta1 and tumor necrosis factor alpha), activatory molecules (OX40, 4-1BB) and elements of cytotoxicity (granzyme B, perforin 1) were determined by real-time PCR technique. We found no alterations in the frequency of CD4+CD25highCD127low cells between diabetic and control children. Treg cells expressed mRNA for pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Lower OX40 and higher 4-1BB mRNA but not protein levels in Treg cells in diabetic patients compared to the healthy children were noted. Our observations confirm the presence of mRNA for pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in CD4+CD25+CD127dim/- cells in the peripheral blood of children with T1DM. Further studies with the goal of developing new strategies to potentiate Treg function in autoimmune diseases are warranted

In Vivo Assessment of Parenteral Formulations of Oligo(3-Hydroxybutyric Acid) Conjugates with the Model Compound Ibuprofen

Polymer-drug conjugates have gained significant attention as pro-drugs releasing an active substance as a result of enzymatic hydrolysis in physiological environment. In this study, a conjugate of 3-hydroxybutyric acid oligomers with a carboxylic acid group-bearing model drug (ibuprofen) was evaluated in vivo as a potential pro-drug for parenteral administration. Two different formulations, an oily solution and an o/w emulsion were prepared and administered intramuscularly (IM) to rabbits in a dose corresponding to 40 mg of ibuprofen/kilogramme. The concentration of ibuprofen in blood plasma was analysed by HPLC, following solid–phase extraction and using indometacin as internal standard (detection limit, 0.05 μg/ml). No significant differences in the pharmacokinetic parameters (Cmax, Tmax, AUC) were observed between the two tested formulations of the 3-hydroxybutyric acid conjugate. In comparison to the non-conjugated drug in oily solution, the relative bioavailability of ibuprofen conjugates from oily solution, and o/w emulsion was reduced to 17% and 10%, respectively. The 3-hydroxybutyric acid formulations released the active substance over a significantly extended period of time with ibuprofen still being detectable 24 h post-injection, whereas the free compound was almost completely eliminated as early as 6 h after administration. The conjugates remained in a muscle tissue for a prolonged time and can hence be considered as sustained release systems for carboxylic acid derivatives