Effect of inert propellant injection on Mars ascent vehicle performance

A Mars ascent vehicle is limited in performance by the propellant which can be brought from Earth. In some cases the vehicle performance can be improved by injecting inert gas into the engine, if the inert gas is available as an in-situ resource and does not have to be brought from Earth. Carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and argon are constituents of the Martian atmosphere which could be separated by compressing the atmosphere, without any chemical processing step. The effect of inert gas injection on rocket engine performance was analyzed with a numerical combustion code that calculated chemical equilibrium for engines of varying combustion chamber pressure, expansion ratio, oxidizer/fuel ratio, and inert injection fraction. Results of this analysis were applied to several candidate missions to determine how the required mass of return propellant needed in low Earth orbit could be decreased using inert propellant injection

Production and use of metals and oxygen for lunar propulsion

Production, power, and propulsion technologies for using oxygen and metals derived from lunar resources are discussed. The production process is described, and several of the more developed processes are discussed. Power requirements for chemical, thermal, and electrical production methods are compared. The discussion includes potential impact of ongoing power technology programs on lunar production requirements. The performance potential of several possible metal fuels including aluminum, silicon, iron, and titanium are compared. Space propulsion technology in the area of metal/oxygen rocket engines is discussed

Occupancy Modeling for Improved Accuracy and Understanding of Pathogen Prevalence and Dynamics

Most pathogen detection tests are imperfect, with a sensitivity < 100%, thereby resulting in the potential for a false negative, where a pathogen is present but not detected. False negatives in a sample inflate the number of non-detections, negatively biasing estimates of pathogen prevalence. Histological examination of tissues as a diagnostic test can be advantageous as multiple pathogens can be examined and providing important information on associated pathological changes to the host. However, it is usually less sensitive than molecular or microbiological tests for specific pathogens. Our study objectives were to 1) develop a hierarchical occupancy model to examine pathogen prevalence in spring Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and their distribution among host tissues 2) use the model to estimate pathogen-specific test sensitivities and infection rates, and 3) illustrate the effect of using replicate within host sampling on sample sizes required to detect a pathogen. We examined histological sections of replicate tissue samples from spring Chinook salmon O. tshawytscha collected after spawning for common pathogens seen in this population: Apophallus/echinostome metacercariae, Parvicapsula minibicornis, Nanophyetus salmincola/metacercariae, and Renibacterium salmoninarum. A hierarchical occupancy model was developed to estimate pathogen and tissue-specific test sensitivities and unbiased estimation of host- and organ-level infection rates. Model estimated sensitivities and host- and organ-level infections rates varied among pathogens and model estimated infection rate was higher than prevalence unadjusted for test sensitivity, confirming that prevalence unadjusted for test sensitivity was negatively biased. The modeling approach provided an analytical approach for using hierarchically structured pathogen detection data from lower sensitivity diagnostic tests, such as histology, to obtain unbiased pathogen prevalence estimates with associated uncertainties. Accounting for test sensitivity using within host replicate samples also required fewer individual fish to be sampled. This approach is useful for evaluating pathogen or microbe community dynamics when test sensitivity is <100%

Innate and adaptive immune responses in migrating spring-run adult chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Adult Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) migrate from salt water to freshwater streams to spawn. Immune responses in migrating adult salmon are thought to diminish in the run up to spawning, though the exact mechanisms for diminished immune responses remain unknown. Here we examine both adaptive and innate immune responses as well as pathogen burdens in migrating adult Chinook salmon in the Upper Willamette River basin. Messenger RNA transcripts encoding antibody heavy chain molecules slightly diminish as a function of time, but are still present even after fish have successfully spawned. In contrast, the innate anti-bacterial effector proteins present in fish plasma rapidly decrease as spawning approaches. Fish also were examined for the presence and severity of eight different pathogens in different organs. While pathogen burden tended to increase during the migration, no specific pathogen signature was associated with diminished immune responses. Transcript levels of the immunosuppressive cytokines IL-10 and TGF beta were measured and did not change during the migration. These results suggest that loss of immune functions in adult migrating salmon are not due to pathogen infection or cytokine-mediated immune suppression, but is rather part of the life history of Chinook salmon likely induced by diminished energy reserves or hormonal changes which accompany spawning.Keywords: Parasite burden, Salmon, Immune respons

Recruitment and Activation of Pancreatic Stellate Cells from the Bone Marrow in Pancreatic Cancer: A Model of Tumor-Host Interaction

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer are characterised by extensive stellate cell mediated fibrosis, and current therapeutic development includes targeting pancreatic cancer stroma and tumor-host interactions. Recent evidence has suggested that circulating bone marrow derived stem cells (BMDC) contribute to solid organs. We aimed to define the role of circulating haematopoietic cells in the normal and diseased pancreas. METHODS: Whole bone marrow was harvested from male β-actin-EGFP donor mice and transplanted into irradiated female recipient C57/BL6 mice. Chronic pancreatitis was induced with repeat injections of caerulein, while carcinogenesis was induced with an intrapancreatic injection of dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA). Phenotype of engrafted donor-derived cells within the pancreas was assessed by immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence and in situ hybridisation. RESULTS: GFP positive cells were visible in the exocrine pancreatic epithelia from 3 months post transplantation. These exhibited acinar morphology and were positive for amylase and peanut agglutinin. Mice administered caerulein developed chronic pancreatitis while DMBA mice exhibited precursor lesions and pancreatic cancer. No acinar cells were identified to be donor-derived upon cessation of cerulein treatment, however rare occurrences of bone marrow-derived acinar cells were observed during pancreatic regeneration. Increased recruitment of BMDC was observed within the desmoplastic stroma, contributing to the activated pancreatic stellate cell (PaSC) population in both diseases. Expression of stellate cell markers CELSR3, PBX1 and GFAP was observed in BMD cancer-associated PaSCs, however cancer-associated, but not pancreatitis-associated BMD PaSCs, expressed the cancer PaSC specific marker CELSR3. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that BMDC can incorporate into the pancreas and adopt the differentiated state of the exocrine compartment. BMDC that contribute to the activated PaSC population in chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer have different phenotypes, and may play important roles in these diseases. Further, bone marrow transplantation may provide a useful model for the study of tumor-host interactions in cancer and pancreatitis

Global patient outcomes after elective surgery: prospective cohort study in 27 low-, middle- and high-income countries.

BACKGROUND: As global initiatives increase patient access to surgical treatments, there remains a need to understand the adverse effects of surgery and define appropriate levels of perioperative care. METHODS: We designed a prospective international 7-day cohort study of outcomes following elective adult inpatient surgery in 27 countries. The primary outcome was in-hospital complications. Secondary outcomes were death following a complication (failure to rescue) and death in hospital. Process measures were admission to critical care immediately after surgery or to treat a complication and duration of hospital stay. A single definition of critical care was used for all countries. RESULTS: A total of 474 hospitals in 19 high-, 7 middle- and 1 low-income country were included in the primary analysis. Data included 44 814 patients with a median hospital stay of 4 (range 2-7) days. A total of 7508 patients (16.8%) developed one or more postoperative complication and 207 died (0.5%). The overall mortality among patients who developed complications was 2.8%. Mortality following complications ranged from 2.4% for pulmonary embolism to 43.9% for cardiac arrest. A total of 4360 (9.7%) patients were admitted to a critical care unit as routine immediately after surgery, of whom 2198 (50.4%) developed a complication, with 105 (2.4%) deaths. A total of 1233 patients (16.4%) were admitted to a critical care unit to treat complications, with 119 (9.7%) deaths. Despite lower baseline risk, outcomes were similar in low- and middle-income compared with high-income countries. CONCLUSIONS: Poor patient outcomes are common after inpatient surgery. Global initiatives to increase access to surgical treatments should also address the need for safe perioperative care. STUDY REGISTRATION: ISRCTN5181700