Numerical Method for Front Tracking in Mold Filling Modeling in Composite Injection Molding: Non-reacting System

Pemodelan proses pengisian cetakan sangat penting untuk perancangan cetakan untuk pencetakan komposit polimer. Harga software komersial untuk simulasi pengisian cetakan sangat mahal untuk ukuran rata-rata perusahaan Indonesia. Keberadan software yang lebih terjangakau akan mendorong perkembangan teknologi domestik yang berhubungan dengan pencetakan komposit polimer. Paper ini menyajikan pemodelan pengisian cetakan komposit polimer dalam sistem 3 dimensi berbasis metoda numeris control volume finite difference (CV-FD) pada elemen yang tetap (fixed grids). Pemodelan bentuk ujung aliran polimer (front) dilakukan dengan menggunakan metoda volume of fluid (VOF). Profile kecepatan dihitung dengan menggunakan persamaanDarcy untuk sistem 3 dimensi. Perhitungan dilakukan dengan menggunakan bahasa pemrogaman Fortran dan penggambaran hasil perhitungan dilakukan dengan menggunakan Matlab. Model yang dikembangkan dapat mendekati hasil pengukuran secara eksperimen untuk tekanan pada lobang pemasukan (gate) dengan relatf baik. Karena data eksperimen perkembangan ujung aliran olimer tidak ada, maka hasil perhitungan model yang dikembangkan dibandingkan dengan hasil perhitungan dengan menggunakan software yang dikembangkan dan digunakan oleh US NIST. Software yang dikembangakn dapat memperkirakan dengan baik posisi ujung aliran polimer yang dihitung dengan menggunakan software dari US NIST. Kata kunci: komposit, polimer, pencetakan, pemodelan Mold filing simulation is important in mold design for liquid composite molding. Cost of commercial software for mold filling simulation is very expensive for average Indonesian companies. Therefore a more affordable simulation program is necessary to promote development of domestic technology related to liquid composite molding. This paper presents 3-dimension mold filling model based on control volume finite difference (CV-FD) numerical method on fixed grids. Front tracking was performed using volume of fluid method (VOF) implemented on CV-FD. Velocity field was computed using Darcy's equation. Computation was implemented on Fortran while contour plot were prepared using Matlab. The developed model predicts well gate pressure obtained experimentally. Since experimental data for front advancement is not available, calculation results were compared with results for other software developed by US’s NIST. The developed model predict front position obtain by the other software quite well. Key words: mold filling, simulation, reaction, injection, composite

Disulfide Bonds in the Ectodomain of Anthrax Toxin Receptor 2 Are Required for the Receptor-Bound Protective-Antigen Pore to Function

BACKGROUND: Cell-surface receptors play essential roles in anthrax toxin action by providing the toxin with a high-affinity anchor and self-assembly site on the plasma membrane, mediating the toxin entry into cells through endocytosis, and shifting the pH threshold for prepore-to-pore conversion of anthrax toxin protective antigen (PA) to a more acidic pH, thereby inhibiting premature pore formation. Each of the two known anthrax toxin receptors, ANTXR1 and ANTXR2, has an ectodomain comprised of an N-terminal von Willebrand factor A domain (VWA), which binds PA, and an uncharacterized immunoglobulin-like domain (Ig) that connects VWA to the membrane-spanning domain. Potential roles of the receptor Ig domain in anthrax toxin action have not been investigated heretofore. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We expressed and purified the ANTXR2 ectodomain (R2-VWA-Ig) in E. coli and showed that it contains three disulfide bonds: one in R2-VWA and two in R2-Ig. Reduction of the ectodomain inhibited functioning of the pore, as measured by K(+) release from liposomes or Chinese hamster ovary cells or by PA-mediated translocation of a model substrate across the plasma membrane. However, reduction did not affect binding of the ectodomain to PA or the transition of ectodomain-bound PA prepore to the pore conformation. The inhibitory effect depended specifically on reduction of the disulfides within R2-Ig. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We conclude that disulfide integrity within R2-Ig is essential for proper functioning of receptor-bound PA pore. This finding provides a novel venue to investigate the mechanism of anthrax toxin action and suggests new strategies for inhibiting toxin action

The resilience of indigenous knowledge in small-scale African agriculture: key drivers

The successful use of indigenous knowledge (IK) in development practice in rural Africa over the last couple of decades has proved to be elusive and disappointing. Using empirical field data from northern Malawi, this study suggests that the two key drivers for farmers in this area are household food security and the maintenance of soil fertility. Indigenous ways of knowing underpin the agricultural system which has been developed, rather than the adoption of more modern, ‘scientific’ ways, to deliver against these drivers. Such IKs, however, are deeply embedded in the economic, social and cultural environments in which they operate

Functions of Phenylalanine Residues within the β-Barrel Stem of the Anthrax Toxin Pore

Background: A key step of anthrax toxin action involves the formation of a protein-translocating pore within the endosomal membrane by the Protective Antigen (PA) moiety. Formation of this transmembrane pore by PA involves interaction of the seven 2b2–2b3 loops of the heptameric precursor to generate a 14-strand transmembrane b barrel. Methodology/Principal Findings: We examined the effects on pore formation, protein translocation, and cytotoxicity, of mutating two phenylalanines, F313 and F314, that lie at the tip the b barrel, and a third one, F324, that lies part way up the barrel. Conclusions/Significance: Our results show that the function of these phenylalanine residues is to mediate membrane insertion and formation of stable transmembrane channels. Unlike F427, a key luminal residue in the cap of the pore, F313, F314, and F324 do not directly affect protein translocation through the pore. Our findings add to our knowledge of structure-function relationships of a key virulence factor of the anthrax bacillus

Anthrax Toxin Receptor 2 Determinants that Dictate the pH Threshold of Toxin Pore Formation

The anthrax toxin receptors, ANTXR1 and ANTXR2, act as molecular clamps to prevent the protective antigen (PA) toxin subunit from forming pores until exposure to low pH. PA forms pores at pH ∼6.0 or below when it is bound to ANTXR1, but only at pH ∼5.0 or below when it is bound to ANTXR2. Here, structure-based mutagenesis was used to identify non-conserved ANTXR2 residues responsible for this striking 1.0 pH unit difference in pH threshold. Residues conserved between ANTXR2 and ANTXR1 that influence the ANTXR2-associated pH threshold of pore formation were also identified. All of these residues contact either PA domain 2 or the neighboring edge of PA domain 4. These results provide genetic evidence for receptor release of these regions of PA as being necessary for the protein rearrangements that accompany anthrax toxin pore formation

Space Use, Daily Movements, and Roosting Behavior of Male Wild Turkeys During Spring in Louisiana and Texas

Because wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) are an important game species and turkey hunter numbers are increasing, the need for better information on how turkeys use their environment is critical. With the recent advent of GPS technology suitable for use on wild turkeys, we are now able to collect data on a scale not previously possible. We used backpack style GPS units to detail home range and core area sizes, daily movement distances, and roosting characteristics of male Eastern (M. g. silvestris) and Rio Grande (M. g. intermedia) wild turkeys in Louisiana and Texas. Mean home range size was larger in Louisiana (383 ha) than in Texas (270 ha), and mean distance between consecutive roost sites was farther in Louisiana (803 m) than in Texas (211 m). However, average daily distance traveled was shorter in Louisiana (3725 m) than in Texas (4608 m). The mean distance between consecutive roost sites was 803m in Louisiana and 211m in Texas. Our findings suggest that space use and daily movements of male wild turkeys vary little from Eastern to Rio Grande, but that roosting habits and movements associated with roosting differ strongly. Managers should recognize that availability of roost sites may greatly influence daily movements and behavior of Rio Grande wild turkeys but may have limited impacts on Eastern wild turkeys