Lie symmetries, Kac-Moody-Virasoro algebras and integrability of certain (2+1)-dimensional nonlinear evolution equations

In this paper we study Lie symmetries, Kac-Moody-Virasoro algebras, similarity reductions and particular solutions of two different recently introduced (2+1)-dimensional nonlinear evolution equations, namely (i) (2+1)-dimensional breaking soliton equation and (ii) (2+1)-dimensional nonlinear Schr\"odinger type equation introduced by Zakharov and studied later by Strachan. Interestingly our studies show that not all integrable higher dimensional systems admit Kac-Moody-Virasoro type sub-algebras. Particularly the two integrable systems mentioned above do not admit Virasoro type subalgebras, eventhough the other integrable higher dimensional systems do admit such algebras which we have also reviewed in the Appendix. Further, we bring out physically interesting solutions for special choices of the symmetry parameters in both the systems

PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING, TOXICITY EVALUATION OF POLYCARPAEA CORYMBOSA LAMK AND ITS EFFECT ON CANCER BIOMARKERS OF EHRLICH ASCITES CARCINOMA-INDUCED MICE COMPARED WITH THE REFERENCE STANDARD DRUG 5- FLUOROURACIL

Objective: The current investigation focuses on the study of efficacy of whole plant of Polycarpaea corymbosa Lamk in Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) inoculated Swiss albino mice. Methods: The whole plant of P. corymbosa Lamk (WPC) was extracted with solvents of increasing polarity and their percentage yields were calculated. The major phytoconstituents present in the plant extracts were determined by standard chemical tests. Tumor was induced in mice by intraperitoneal injection of EAC cells (1×106 cells/mouse). The in vivo antitumor effect of extracts was assessed by monitoring the mean survival time, tumor volume, effect on hematological parameters, determination of lysosome specific cancer markers (cathepsin-D), β-D glucuronidase and acid phosphatase, liver marker enzymes (5’-nuclotidase and lactate dehydrogenase), membrane bound ATPase (Na+/K+ ATPase and Mg2+ ATPase), DNA, and RNA content. Results: The percentage yield obtained were 9.87%w/w, 7.88%w/w, and 16.56% w/w for petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, and ethanol extract, respectively. The phytochemical screenings of those extracts were performed. The order of activity of extracts was ethanol extract > ethyl acetate > petroleum ether. Among the extracts, Ethanol extract of P. corymbosa Lamk. showed a significant increase in life span and decrease in viable cancer cell number and tumor volume. The protective effect of the extract on the hemopoietic system at the dose 200mg∕kg was noted. The alterations in the hematological profile, lysosome-specific cancer markers, liver-specific cancer markers, and membrane-bound ATPases DNA and RNA were restored. Conclusion: The ethanolic extract of P. corymbosa Lamk. possesses in vivo anticancer activity when compared to the tumor control group

Corrosion study of pipeline material for seabed sediment in tropical climate

Corrosive environments such as marine sediments can cause corrosion to steel pipelines at any time when certain conditions are met. Seabed sediment could cause severe corrosion damage due to its corrosiveness to the pipelines buried under it. Many consequences could take place in case if there is incident in oil/gas pipelines. Successfully identifying elements of corrosion in marine sediment would enhance the future of steel structure protection and monitoring systems. This article focuses on the behaviour of corrosion rate of steel located near shore environment and the aim is to determine the effect of sediment on corrosion of steel. To investigate that, simulated near shore sediment conditions have been used where the steel coupons buried in sediments which have different characteristics. Weight loss technique has been implemented to determine the weight loss rate of the steel specimens. Based on the results of this study, metal weight loss increases as the duration of exposure to seabed sediment environment become longer. The sea sediment simulated condition has given significant levels of corrosion. Conclusively, the corrosion rate of steel in seabed sediment located in tropical region is complicated and further studies are suggested

Computer Simulations of Pulsatile Blood Flow in Fusiform Models of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms

Flow dynamics have been investigated in model aneurysms under physiologically realistic pulsatile flow condition via computational modeling techniques. The computer simulations are based on finite element method. Vortex pattern emergence and evolution were evaluated. Throughout the bulge in all models regardless of size, the systolic flow was found to be forward-directed. Vortices were initially evident in the bulge during deceleration from peak systole and further expanded during the retrograde flow phase. Flow in larger models become increasingly unstable compared to smaller models. It was also noted that these unstable flow fields were much significant towards the distal half of the bulge models. This increased intensity of turbulent flow fields in larger models may contribute significantly to wall shear stress magnitude and subsequently contributing to higher rupture risks. (Abstract by authors

Hotspot analysis: a first prototype Python plugin enabling exploratory spatial data analysis into QGIS

The growing popularity of Free and Open Source (FOSS) GIS software is without doubts due to the possibility to build and customize geospatial applications to meet specific requirements for any users. From this point of view, QGIS is one of the most flexible as well as fashionable GIS software environment which enables users to develop powerful geospatial applications using Python. Exploiting this feature, we present here a first prototype plugin for QGIS dedicated to Hotspot analysis, one of the techniques included in the Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA). These statistics aim to perform analysis of geospatial data when spatial autocorrelation is not neglectable and they are available inside different Python libraries, but still not integrated within the QGIS core functionalities. The main plugin features, including installation requirements and computational procedures, are described together with an example of the possible applications of the Hotspot analysis

Geostatistical upscaling of rain gauge data to support uncertainty analysis of lumped urban hydrological models

In this study we develop a method to estimate the spatially averaged rainfall intensity together with associated level of uncertainty using geostatistical upscaling. Rainfall data collected from a cluster of eight paired rain gauges in a 400 × 200m urban catchment are used in combination with spatial stochastic simulation to obtain optimal predictions of the spatially averaged rainfall intensity at any point in time within the urban catchment. The uncertainty in the prediction of catchment average rainfall intensity is obtained for multiple combinations of intensity ranges and temporal averaging intervals. The two main challenges addressed in this study are scarcity of rainfall measurement locations and non-normality of rainfall data, both of which need to be considered when adopting a geostatistical approach. Scarcity of measurement points is dealt with by pooling sample variograms of repeated rainfall measurements with similar characteristics. Normality of rainfall data is achieved through the use of normal score transformation. Geostatistical models in the form of variograms are derived for transformed rainfall intensity. Next spatial stochastic simulation which is robust to nonlinear data transformation is applied to produce realisations of rainfall fields. These realisations in transformed space are first back-transformed and next spatially aggregated to derive a random sample of the spatially averaged rainfall intensity. Results show that the prediction uncertainty comes mainly from two sources: spatial variability of rainfall and measurement error. At smaller temporal averaging intervals both these effects are high, resulting in a relatively high uncertainty in prediction. With longer temporal averaging intervals the uncertainty becomes lower due to stronger spatial correlation of rainfall data and relatively smaller measurement error. Results also show that the measurement error increases with decreasing rainfall intensity resulting in a higher uncertainty at lower intensities. Results from this study can be used for uncertainty analyses of hydrologic and hydrodynamic modelling of similar-sized urban catchments as it provides information on uncertainty associated with rainfall estimation, which is arguably the most important input in these models. This will help to better interpret model results and avoid false calibration and force-fitting of model parameters

Oncogenic R132 IDH1 Mutations Limit NADPH for De Novo Lipogenesis through (D)2-Hydroxyglutarate Production in Fibrosarcoma Sells.

Neomorphic mutations in NADP-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenases (IDH1 and IDH2) contribute to tumorigenesis in several cancers. Although significant research has focused on the hypermethylation phenotypes associated with (D)2-hydroxyglutarate (D2HG) accumulation, the metabolic consequences of these mutations may also provide therapeutic opportunities. Here we apply flux-based approaches to genetically engineered cell lines with an endogenous IDH1 mutation to examine the metabolic impacts of increased D2HG production and altered IDH flux as a function of IDH1 mutation or expression. D2HG synthesis in IDH1-mutant cells consumes NADPH at rates similar to de novo lipogenesis. IDH1-mutant cells exhibit increased dependence on exogenous lipid sources for in vitro growth, as removal of medium lipids slows growth more dramatically in IDH1-mutant cells compared with those expressing wild-type or enzymatically inactive alleles. NADPH regeneration may be limiting for lipogenesis and potentially redox homeostasis in IDH1-mutant cells, highlighting critical links between cellular biosynthesis and redox metabolism

Emerging contaminants of high concern for the environment: Current trends and future research

Wastewater is contaminated water that must be treated before it may be transferred into other rivers and lakes in order to prevent further groundwater pollution. Over the last decade, research has been conducted on a wide variety of contaminants, but the emerging contaminants are those caused primarily by micropollutants, endocrine disruptors (EDs), pesticides, pharmaceuticals, hormones, and toxins, as well as industrially-related synthetic dyes and dye-containing hazardous pollutants. Most emerging pollutants did not have established guidelines, but even at low concentrations they could have harmful effects on humans and aquatic organisms. In order to combat the above ecological threats, huge efforts have been done with a view to boosting the effectiveness of remediation procedures or developing new techniques for the detection, quantification and efficiency of the samples. The increase of interest in biotechnology and environmental engineering gives an opportunity for the development of more innovative ways to water treatment remediation. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of emerging sources of contaminants, detection technologies, and treatment strategies. The goal of this review is to evaluate adsorption as a method for treating emerging pollutants, as well as sophisticated and cost-effective approaches for treating emerging contaminants

A Method to Identify and Isolate Pluripotent Human Stem Cells and Mouse Epiblast Stem Cells Using Lipid Body-Associated Retinyl Ester Fluorescence.

We describe the use of a characteristic blue fluorescence to identify and isolate pluripotent human embryonic stem cells and human-induced pluripotent stem cells. The blue fluorescence emission (450–500 nm) is readily observed by fluorescence microscopy and correlates with the expression of pluripotency markers (OCT4, SOX2, and NANOG). It allows easy identification and isolation of undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, high-throughput fluorescence sorting and subsequent propagation. The fluorescence appears early during somatic reprogramming. We show that the blue fluorescence arises from the sequestration of retinyl esters in cytoplasmic lipid bodies. The retinoid-sequestering lipid bodies are specific to human and mouse pluripotent stem cells of the primed or epiblast-like state and absent in naive mouse embryonic stem cells. Retinol, present in widely used stem cell culture media, is sequestered as retinyl ester specifically by primed pluripotent cells and also can induce the formation of these lipid bodies