434 research outputs found
Alginate Self-Crosslinking Ink for 3D Extrusion-Based Cryoprinting and Application for Epirubicin-HCl Delivery on MCF-7 Cells
No full text3D-printed hydrogels are particularly advantageous as drug-delivery platforms but their loading with water-soluble active compounds remains a challenge requiring the development of innovative inks. Here, we propose a new 3D extrusion-based approach that, by exploiting the internal gelation of the alginate, avoids the post-printing crosslinking process and allows the loading of epirubicin-HCl (EPI). The critical combinations of alginate, calcium carbonate and d-glucono-δ-lactone (GDL) combined with the scaffold production parameters (extrusion time, temperature, and curing time) were evaluated and discussed. The internal gelation in tandem with 3D extrusion allowed the preparation of alginate hydrogels with a complex shape and good handling properties. The dispersion of epirubicin-HCl in the hydrogel matrix confirmed the potential of this self-crosslinking alginate-based ink for the preparation of 3D-printed drug-delivery platforms. Drug release from 3D-printed hydrogels was monitored, and the cytotoxic activity was tested against MCF-7 cells. Finally, the change in the expression pattern of anti-apoptotic, pro-apoptotic, and autophagy protein markers was monitored by liquid-chromatography tandem-mass-spectrometry after exposure of MCF-7 to the EPI-loaded hydrogels
Supplemental Material - Changing the Microstructural and Chemical Properties of Graphene Oxide Through a Chemical Route
No full textSupplemental Material for Changing the Microstructural and Chemical Properties of Graphene Oxide Through a Chemical Route by Maria Lucia Protopapa, Emiliano Burresi, Martino Plamisano, Emanuela Pesce, Loredana Latterini, Nicola Taurisano, Giulia Quaglia, Raffaello Mazzaro, and Vittorio Morandi in Applied Spectroscopy</p
Modeling and simulation of ultrasound fields generated by 2D phased array transducers for medical applications
No full textModern ultrasound imaging instrumentation for clinical applications allows real-time volumetric scanning of the patients' body. 4D imaging has been made possible thanks to the development of new echographic probes which consist in 2D phased arrays of piezoelectric transducers. In these new devices it is the system electronics which properly drives the matrix elements and focuses the beam in order to obtain a sequence of volumetric images. This paper introduces an ultrasound field simulator based on the Spatial Impulse Response method which is being properly developed to analyze the characteristics of the ultrasound field generated by a 2D phased array of transducers. Thanks to its high configurability by the user, it will represent a very useful tool for electronics designers in developing 4D ultrasound imaging systems components
Simulating Ultrasound Fields for 2D Phased-Array Probes Design Optimization
No full textNowadays, ultrasound diagnostic imaging is one of the non-invasive techniques mostly used in the clinical practice. Recent advances in this field have brought to the development of small and portable systems. New bidimensional probes consisting of 2D phased arrays, allow to obtain real-time 3D representations of moving organs and blood vessels anatomy. Being the complexity of such 4D ultrasound imaging systems significantly increased, new challenges concerning electronics integration arise for designers. In this paper a software simulator is described, which has been developed in order to model ultrasound wave generation, pressure field distribution and echoes reception, with the aim to become a useful tool for optimizing the probe design. The paper mainly focuses on linear ultrasound field modeling; preliminary results on non-linear interactions with contrast agents are also here introduced
Les Jardins de Tauride. Une nouvelle inachevée d'Irène Némirovsky.
No full textThis article includes the transcription of an unfinished short story written by Irène Némirovsky, entitled Les Jardins de Tauride. The manuscript containing the short story is conserved at the IMEC archives, in Caen. The present introduction provides the context for the text, which was written in 1934, the same period that saw the author drafting the autobiographical novel Le Vin de solitude. The short story is thus an intriguing window on how Némirovsky transposed her life into her writing and the manner in which she developed her texts
Behavioral modeling of GaN-based power amplifiers: impact of electrothermal feedback on the model accuracy and identification
No full textIn this article, we discuss the accuracy of behavioral models in simulating the intermodulation distortion (IMD) of microwave GaN-based high-power amplifiers in the presence of strong electrothermal (ET) feedback. Exploiting an accurate self-consistent ET model derived from measurements and thermal finite-element method simulations, we show that behavioral models are able to yield accurate results, provided that the model identification is carried out with signals with wide bandwidth and large dynamics
Hybrid evaluation approaches for urban regeneration processes of landfills and industrial sites: the case of the Kwun Tong area in Hong Kong
No full textLarge-scale urban regeneration is usually characterized by a complex decision environment in which several different stakeholders are expected to agree on a shared strategy. Contrasting interests, different values and diverse objectives make the issue particularly appropriate to be inquired throughout multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). This paper elects the Asian context as a case study to apply a multi-methodological evaluation approach aimed at defining a regeneration strategy with respect to actors’ preferences. The Kwun Tong area (earlier industrial site in Hong Kong) represents the focus of the research where a combination of the following techniques has been used: context investigation, stakeholders analysis, scenario building, social multicriteria analysis through the Novel Approach to Imprecise Assessment and Decision Environments (NAIADE) method and Multi-Attribute Value Theory (MAVT). The aim is to demonstrate the complex role played by evaluation activities within a design process aimed at finding balanced regeneration scenarios with respect to the needs of most of the parties involve
The 'British Plan' as a Pace-Setter: The Europeanization of Banking Rescue Plans in the EU?
No full textThis article examines to what extent the British banking rescue plan announced in late 2008 set the pace for the adoption of similar banking rescue plans across the European Union. This case study can be seen a 'horizontal' type of Europeanization, whereby a (perceived successful) policy template adopted in one country is subsequently implicitly endorsed (hence, 'uploaded') at the EU level and then adopted (hence, 'downloaded') in other countries, albeit with considerable national variations. The two main caveats are that the British plan was not particularly innovative - it provided a functional solution to the problem at hand - and the adoption of similar measures across Europe was politically feasible because this did not envisage any substantial EU-level intervention as it proposed parallel "national "solutions to a "common" problem. Copyright (c) 2009 The Author(s). Journal compilation (c) 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Virulence evaluation of Israeli Marek's disease virus isolates from commercial poultry using their meq gene sequence
No full textFifty-seven Gallid alphaherpesvirus 2 (GaHV-2) isolates, collected during a 30-year period (1990-2019) from commercial poultry flocks affected by Marek's disease (MD), were molecularly characterised. The GaHV-2 meq gene was amplified and sequenced to evaluate the virus virulence, based on the number of PPPPs within the proline-rich repeats (PRRs) of its transactivation domain. The present illustration of virus virulence evaluation on a large scale of field virus isolates by molecular analysis exemplifies the practical benefit and usefulness of the molecular marker in commercial GaVH-2 isolates. The alternative assay of GaVH-2 virulence pathotyping is the classical Gold Standard ADOL method, which is difficult and impossible to employ on a large scale using the Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) chicks of the ADOL strains kept in isolators for two months. The phylogenetic analysis performed in the present study showed that the meq gene amino acid sequences of the 57 Israeli strains divide into 16 phylogenetic branches. The virulence evaluation was performed in comparison with 36 GaHV-2 prototype strains, previously characterised by the in vivo Gold Standard ADOL assay. The results obtained revealed that the GaHV-2 strains circulating in Israel have evolved into a higher virulence potential during the years, as the four-proline stretches number in the meq gene decreased over the investigated period, typically of very virulent virus prototypes. The present study supports the meq gene molecular markers for the assessment of field GaVH-2 strains virulence
Replicated computational results (RCR) Report for "Fast random integer generation in an interval"
No full textThe article "Fast Random Integer Generation in an Interval" by Lemire (2018) addressed the problem of reducing the cost of machine instructions needed for the random generation of integer values in a generic interval [0,s). The approach taken by the author is the one of exploiting the rejection method (Neumann 1951) to build an algorithm that almost eliminates the need for performing integer division operations-the algorithm still exploits divisions by powers of two, implemented in the form of cheap shift operations. In more details, the likelihood of not requiring an integer division in the proposed algorithm is 2 L -s/2 L , where L denotes the number of bits used to represent integer values. The author also presents a comparative experimental study where the new algorithm, and its implementation for x86 processors, are compared with solutions offered by common software libraries for different programming languages
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