Development and status of protection functions for the normal conducting LINAC at ESS

The European Spallation Source faces a great challenge in succeeding with its ambitious availability goals. The aim is to construct a machine that allows for 95% availability for neutron beam production. This goal requires a robust protection system that allows for high availability by continuously monitoring and acting on the machine states, in order to avoid long facility downtimes and optimize the operation at any stage. The normal conducting section consists of the first 48 meters of the machine, and performs the initial acceleration, bunching, steering, and focusing of the beam, which sets it up for optimal transition into the superconducting section. Through a fit-for-purpose risk management process, a set of protection functions has been identified. The risk identification, analysis, and treatment were done in compliance with modern safety and ISO standards. This ensures that the risks, in this case downtime and equipment damage, are properly prevented and mitigated. This paper describes this process of defining the protection functions for the normal conducting LINAC at ESS

Development of a shape specification based on the waviness parameter of tapered roller bearing

Tapered roller bearings can accommodate high radial loads as well as high axial loads. The manufacturing process consists of rings machining processes and components assembly, followed by an intense quality control. In this contribution, a study of the parameters of influence in the inspection procedure has been carried out. The main objective of this work is to develop a shape specification using real parts and to optimize the process of specification development. This requires to study the influence of several parameters in the inspection and to determine how they affect the waviness specification

Impactos ambientales del ciclo de vida de las baldosas cerámicas: análisis sectorial, identificación de estrategias de mejora y comunicación (I)

El artículo analiza el impacto ambiental que generan las baldosas cerámicas mediante el Análisis de Ciclo de Vida (AC) a nivel sectorial en el que participaron más de 50 empresas españolas. Los resultados han servido para la redacción de las Reglas de Categoría de Producto (RCP) para los recubrimientos de materiales cerámicos, necesarias para la edición de Declaraciones Ambientales de Producto. (Debido a la extensión del artículo recogeremos en esta edición la primera parte, correspondiente a la definición de objetivos y alcance del estudio y el análisis del inventario. La segunda parte, que consta de la evaluación de impactos e interpretación, la identificación de estrategias de mejora, la comunicación ambiental y las conclusiones se publicarán en el número 236 de Piscinas XXI).The article analyses the environmental impact of ceramic tiles by means of a sector-level Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) involving over 50 Spanish firms. The findings were then used to draw up the Product Category Rules (PCR) for ceramic coverings, which are needed to be able to issue Environmental Product Declarations. (Due to the length of the paper, in this edition we will include only the first part, which covers the definition of the aims and scope of the study, as well as the inventory analysis. The second part, which comprises the evaluation of the impacts and interpretation, the identification of the improvement strategies, environmental communication and the conclusions, will be published in issue 236 of Piscinas XXI.

Fullerene-Based Materials as Hole-Transporting/Electron Blocking Layers. Applications in Perovskite Solar Cells

Here we report for the first time an efficient fullerenebased compound, FU7, able to act as Hole-Transporting Material (HTM) and electron blocking contact. It has been applied on perovskite solar cells (PSCs), obtaining 0.81 times the efficiency of PSCs with the standard HTM, spiro-OMeTAD, with the additional advantage that this performance is reached without any additive introduced in the HTM layer. Moreover, as a proof of concept, we have described for the first time efficient PSCs where both selective contacts are fullerene derivatives, to obtain unprecedented “fullerene sandwich” PSCs

Cubic Microcontainers Improve In Situ Colonic Mucoadhesion and Absorption of Amoxicillin in Rats

An increased interest in colonic drug delivery has led to a higher focus on the design of delivery devices targeting this part of the gastrointestinal tract. Microcontainers have previously facilitated an increase in oral bioavailability of drugs. The surface texture and shape of microcontainers have proven to influence the mucoadhesion ex vivo. In the present work, these findings were further investigated using an in situ closed-loop perfusion technique in the rat colon, which allowed for simultaneous evaluation of mucoadhesion of the microcontainers as well as drug absorption. Cylindrical, triangular and cubic microcontainers, with the same exterior surface area, were evaluated based on in vitro release, in situ mucoadhesion and in situ absorption of amoxicillin. Additionally, the mucoadhesion of empty cylindrical microcontainers with and without pillars on the top surface was investigated. From the microscopy analysis of the colon sections after the in situ study, it was evident that a significantly higher percentage of cubic microcontainers than cylindrical microcontainers adhered to the intestinal mucus. Furthermore, the absorption rate constants and blood samples indicated that amoxicillin in cubic microcontainers was absorbed more readily than when cylindrical or triangular microcontainers were dosed. This could be due to a higher degree of mucoadhesion for these particular microcontainers

Tumour-derived alkaline phosphatase regulates tumour growth, epithelial plasticity and disease-free survival in metastatic prostate cancer

BACKGROUND: Recent evidence suggests that bone-related parameters are the main prognostic factors for overall survival in advanced prostate cancer (PCa), with elevated circulating levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) thought to reflect the dysregulated bone formation accompanying distant metastases. We have identified that PCa cells express ALPL, the gene that encodes for tissue nonspecific ALP, and hypothesised that tumour-derived ALPL may contribute to disease progression. METHODS: Functional effects of ALPL inhibition were investigated in metastatic PCa cell lines. ALPL gene expression was analysed from published PCa data sets, and correlated with disease-free survival and metastasis. RESULTS: ALPL expression was increased in PCa cells from metastatic sites. A reduction in tumour-derived ALPL expression or ALP activity increased cell death, mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition and reduced migration. Alkaline phosphatase activity was decreased by the EMT repressor Snail. In men with PCa, tumour-derived ALPL correlated with EMT markers, and high ALPL expression was associated with a significant reduction in disease-free survival. CONCLUSIONS: Our studies reveal the function of tumour-derived ALPL in regulating cell death and epithelial plasticity, and demonstrate a strong association between ALPL expression in PCa cells and metastasis or disease-free survival, thus identifying tumour-derived ALPL as a major contributor to the pathogenesis of PCa progression.British Journal of Cancer advance online publication, 22 December 2016; doi:10.1038/bjc.2016.402 www.bjcancer.com

The complexity of Orion : an ALMA view II. gGg '-ethylene glycol and acetic acid

We report the first detection and high angular resolution (1.8 '' x 1.1 '') imaging of acetic acid (CH3COOH) and gGg'-ethylene glycol (gGg'(CH2OH)(2)) toward the Orion Kleinmann-Low (Orion-KL) nebula. The observations were carried out at similar to 1.3 mm with ALMA during Cycle 2. A notable result is that the spatial distribution of the acetic acid and ethylene glycol emission di ff ers from that of the other O-bearing molecules within Orion-KL. While the typical emission of O-bearing species harbors a morphology associated with a V-shape linking the hot core region to the compact ridge (with an extension toward the BN object), the emission of acetic acid and ethylene glycol mainly peaks at about 2 '' southwest from the hot core region (near sources I and n). We find that the measured CH3COOH:aGg' (CH2OH)(2) and CH3COOH:gGg' (CH2OH)(2) ratios di ff er from those measured toward the low-mass protostar IRAS 16293-2422 by more than one order of magnitude. Our best hypothesis to explain these findings is that CH3COOH, aGg' (CH2OH)(2), and gGg' (CH2OH)(2) are formed on the icy surface of grains and are then released into the gas-phase via co-desorption with water, by way of a bullet of matter ejected during the explosive event that occurred in the heart of the nebula about 500 - 700 yr ago.CF acknowledges support from the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research, project SIR (RBSI14ZRHR). The authors thank Hannah Calcutt for providing the acetic acid partition function. We also thank Melvyn Wright and Rick Plambeck for their HC3N emission map. This work was carried out in part at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is operated for NASA by the California Institute of Technology. MC acknowledges financial funding from the project FIS2014-53448-C2-2-P (MINECO, Spain), and CMST COST Action CM1405 MOLIM. CF and MC acknowledge support from CMST COST Action CM1401 Our Astro-Chemical History. LP thanks Arnaud Belloche and H.S.P. Muller for their help with molecular spectroscopy data. CF thanks Claudio Codella for an enlightening discussion on shocks. Finally, CF thanks Vianney Taquet and Franck Hersant for a fruitful discussion about the binding energies and acetic acid formation routes. This paper makes use of the following ALMA data: ADS/JAO. ALMA#2013.1.00533. S. ALMA is a partnership of ESO (representing its member states), NSF (USA) and NINS (Japan), together with NRC (Canada), NSC and ASIAA (Taiwan), and KASI (Republic of Korea), in cooperation with the Republic of Chile. The Joint ALMA Observatory is operated by ESO, AUI/NRAO and NAOJ

Inhibition of Hippocampal Synaptic Activity by ATP, Hypoxia or Oxygen-Glucose Deprivation Does Not Require CD73

Adenosine, through activation of its A1 receptors, has neuroprotective effects during hypoxia and ischemia. Recently, using transgenic mice with neuronal expression of human equilibrative nucleoside transporter 1 (hENT1), we reported that nucleoside transporter-mediated release of adenosine from neurons was not a key mechanism facilitating the actions of adenosine at A1 receptors during hypoxia/ischemia. The present study was performed to test the importance of CD73 (ecto-5′-nucleotidase) for basal and hypoxic/ischemic adenosine production. Hippocampal slice electrophysiology was performed with CD73+/+ and CD73−/− mice. Adenosine and ATP had similar inhibitory effects in both genotypes, with IC50 values of approximately 25 µM. In contrast, ATP was a less potent inhibitor (IC50 = 100 µM) in slices from mice expressing hENT1 in neurons. The inhibitory effects of ATP in CD73+/+ and CD73−/− slices were blocked by the adenosine A1 receptor antagonist 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX) and were enhanced by the nucleoside transport inhibitor S-(4-nitrobenzyl)-6-thioinosine (NBTI), consistent with effects that are mediated by adenosine after metabolism of ATP. AMP showed a similar inhibitory effect to ATP and adenosine, indicating that the response to ATP was not mediated by P2 receptors. In comparing CD73−/− and CD73+/+ slices, hypoxia and oxygen-glucose deprivation produced similar depression of synaptic transmission in both genotypes. An inhibitor of tissue non-specific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) was found to attenuate the inhibitory effects of AMP and ATP, increase basal synaptic activity and reduce responses to oxygen-glucose deprivation selectively in slices from CD73−/− mice. These results do not support an important role for CD73 in the formation of adenosine in the CA1 area of the hippocampus during basal, hypoxic or ischemic conditions, but instead point to TNAP as a potential source of extracellular adenosine when CD73 is absent

Synthesis of Well-Defined, Surfactant-Free Co₃O₄ Nanoparticles:The Impact of Size and Manganese Promotion on Co₃O₄ Reduction and Water Oxidation Activity

Abstract: A surfactant-free synthetic route has been developed to produce size-controlled, cube-like cobalt oxide nanoparticles of three different sizes in high yields. It was found that by using sodium nitrite as salt-mediating agent, near-quantitative yields could be obtained. The size of the nanoparticles could be altered from 11 to 22 nm by changing the cobalt concentration and reaction time. These surfactant-free nanoparticles form ideal substrates for facile deposition of further elements such as manganese. The effect of size of the cobalt oxide nanoparticles and the presence of manganese on the reducibility of cobalt oxide to metallic cobalt was investigated. Similarly, the effect of these parameters was investigated with a visible light promoted water oxidation system with cobalt oxide as catalyst, together with [Ru(bpy) 3] 2+ light harvester dye and an electron acceptor. Graphical Abstract: A novel surfactant-free synthetic route has been developed to produce size-controlled, cube shaped cobalt oxide nanoparticles in high yields. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]. </p

Wolfram Syndrome: New Mutations, Different Phenotype

BACKGROUND: Wolfram Syndrome (WS) is an autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by Diabetes Insipidus, Diabetes Mellitus, Optic Atrophy, and Deafness identified by the acronym "DIDMOAD". The WS gene, WFS1, encodes a transmembrane protein called Wolframin, which recent evidence suggests may serve as a novel endoplasmic reticulum calcium channel in pancreatic β-cells and neurons. WS is a rare disease, with an estimated prevalence of 1/550.000 children, with a carrier frequency of 1/354. The aim of our study was to determine the genotype of WS patients in order to establish a genotype/phenotype correlation. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We clinically evaluated 9 young patients from 9 unrelated families (6 males, 3 females). Basic criteria for WS clinical diagnosis were coexistence of insulin-treated diabetes mellitus and optic atrophy occurring before 15 years of age. Genetic analysis for WFS1 was performed by direct sequencing. Molecular sequencing revealed 5 heterozygous compound and 3 homozygous mutations. All of them were located in exon 8, except one in exon 4. In one proband only an heterozygous mutation (A684V) was found. Two new variants c.2663 C>A and c.1381 A>C were detected. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our study increases the spectrum of WFS1 mutations with two novel variants. The male patient carrying the compound mutation [c.1060_1062delTTC]+[c.2663 C>A] showed the most severe phenotype: diabetes mellitus, optic atrophy (visual acuity 5/10), deafness with deep auditory bilaterally 8000 Hz, diabetes insipidus associated to reduced volume of posterior pituitary and pons. He died in bed at the age of 13 years. The other patient carrying the compound mutation [c.409_424dup16]+[c.1381 A>C] showed a less severe phenotype (DM, OA)