73 research outputs found
Design and Analysis of Induction Heating System with Parallel Resonance Inverter
No full textIn comparison to the conventional heating systems, the induction heating systems have not only higher efficiency but also quite shorter processing time. Depending on their working conditions, they do not dissipate heat to the environment and cause pollution, and this makes them be environmentally friendly. The fact that the system does not allow any case such as explosion, combustion or injury reveals the reliability of this system. Because of the superiorities mentioned above, day by day it is more widely used in the modern industry treatments such as surface hardening, welding, tempering, rolling, heating, and melting. Whereas the induction heating systems with series resonance are designed as single-phase and low-powered in general, the induction heating systems with parallel resonance are used in high-powered and high-frequency three-phase industrial applications. In this study, an induction heating system which has 17 kW power enabling melting of brass material containing 58% copper, and has a frequency of 14,5 kHz, three-phase, voltage sourced, and full-bridged rectifier with parallel resonance inverter is designed. MATLAB simulation of the designed system is performed, and an analysis is carried out with the obtained results. In the operation of the system, a high current of 1132 A is provided on the load during the resonance. Thus, it is provided that the high value of short circuit current circulating in the brass material, which is considered as a load, produces heat in the part, and melts the metal part in a quite short time
Prognostic Value of TRPM7 Expression and Factor XIIIa-Expressing Tumor-Associated Macrophages in Gastric Cancer
No full textPurpose. TRPM7 is known to play a key role in tumor progression by regulating cellular proliferation, migration, and invasion in various cancer cell lines. However, there are no comprehensive clinical studies about the effect of TRPM7 expression on gastric cancer (GC) prognosis. In this study, it was aimed at investigating the effect of TRPM7 expression on prognosis in GC patients. Additionally, for the first time, it was investigated whether the density of Factor XIIIa-expressing tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in GC has an effect on the biological behaviour of the tumor. Methods. TRPM7 expression and Factor XIIIa-expressing TAM density were immunohistochemically evaluated in paraffin-embedded tumor tissues of 204 GC patients undergoing surgery at a single institution. Results. Tumor size was clearly higher in cases with high TRPM7 expression than those with low expression (p<0.001, Mann-Whitney U). TRPM7 overexpression was closely related to high depth of tumor invasion (p<0.001, ANOVA), increased lymph node metastasis (p<0.001, ANOVA), and high distant metastasis rate (p<0.001, Mann-Whitney U). These findings exposed that high TRPM7 expression is effective in the progression and aggressiveness of GC. In addition, while high CD8+ TIL density affects the prognosis positively, it was determined that high Factor XIIIa+ TAM density negatively affects the prognosis of patients with GC. Furthermore, multivariate analyses revealed TRPM7 overexpression was independently related with short overall (HR 9.64, 95% CI 5.74–16.19, p<0.001) and disease-free survival (HR 5.67, 95% CI 3.61-8.92, p<0.001) in GC patients. Conclusions. Our data suggest that high TRPM7 expression is closely related to progressive tumor behaviour in GC and independently negatively affects survival in patients. In addition, it was determined that a high density of Factor XIIIa+ TAMs negatively affects the prognosis of patients with GC
A Novel Interactive Fuzzy Programming Approach for Optimization of Allied Closed-Loop Supply Chains
No full textIn recent years, the relationship between companies and suppliers has changed with the continuous rise in environmental awareness and customer expectations. In order to fulfill customers' needs, the actors in a Supply Chain (SC) network sometimes compete and sometimes cooperate with each other. In SC management, both competitive and collaborative strategies have become important and have required different points of view. In a collaborative environment, companies should strive for common targets with mutual relationship. After managers decided to share their resources, some positive effects have appeared on the companies and suppliers' performance such as profitability, flexibility and efficiency. Consequently, many companies are willing to cooperate with each other in a SC network because of these reasons. On the other hand, Closed-Loop Supply Chain (CLSC) management has been attracting a growing interest because of increased environmental issues, government regulations and customer pressures. Based on this initiative, our paper presents a novel allied CLSC network design model with two different SCs including common suppliers and common collection centers. First, a decentralized multi-level Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) model that consists of two different levels of Decision Makers (DMs) is developed. The plants of common SCs comprise the upper-level DMs, common suppliers, common collection centers, and the logistics firm comprises the lower-level DMs. A novel Interactive Fuzzy Programming (IFP) approach using Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is proposed to obtain a preferred compromise solution for the developed model. Through use of Fuzzy AHP in the proposed IFP approach, the DMs can identify the importance of the lower-level DMs. In order to validate the developed model and the proposed IFP approach, a numerical example is implemented. According to the obtained results, our proposed IFP method outperforms Sakawa and Nishizaki's(1) and Calik et al.' s(2) approach with respect to the satisfaction degrees of upper-level DMs for the developed CLSC model.Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (International Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program)In carrying out this study, the third author, Turan Paksoy, is granted by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (International Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program)
P2X7 receptor as an independent prognostic indicator in gastric cancer
No full textGastric cancer (GC) is one of the foremost causes of cancer-related death around the world. The P2X7 receptor (P2X7R), a member of the P2X7R subfamily of P2 receptors, is a unique molecule that has been shown to affect tumor growth and progression as well as various inflammatory processes, including proliferation of T lymphocytes, release of cytokines, and production of free oxygen radicals. P2X7R has been established as a prognostic parameter in some cancers, and recently, it has been investigated in the development of new targeted therapies. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the prognostic value of P2X7R expression in GC. The expression profile of P2X7R was evaluated immunohistochemically in 156 paraffin-embedded human GC specimens. P2X7R expression was higher in patients with lymph node metastasis than in those without (p < 0.001). P2X7R overexpression was closely related with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) (p = 0.001), vascular invasion (p = 0.006), depth of invasion (p < 0.001), distant metastasis (p < 0.001), and advanced tumor, node, metastasis stage (p < 0.001). Moreover, univariate (hazard ratio [HR] 3.98; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.89-11.82; p < 0.001) and multivariate (HR 2.24; 95% CI 3.53-12.50; p < 0.001) Cox regression analysis showed that upregulated P2X7R expression clearly correlated with worsened overall survival. In summary, our data revealed that P2X7R may serve as a reliable prognostic parameter and promising therapeutic target for GC
Intratumoral Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte Density and PD-L1 Expression Are Prognostic Biomarkers for Patients with Colorectal Cancer
No full textBackground and objectives: Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL)-mediated inflammatory response to tumors plays a crucial role in preventing the progression of some cancers. Programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), a cell-surface glycoprotein, has been reported to repress T-cell-mediated immune responses against tumors. However, the clinical significance of PD-L1 in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. Our aim was to elucidate the prognostic significance of PD-L1 expression and CD8+ CTL density in CRC. Materials and methods: CD8 and PD-L1 immunostaining was conducted on 157 pathologic specimens from patients with CRC. The CD8+ CTL density and PD-L1 expression within the tumor microenvironment were assessed by immunohistochemistry. Results: Tumor invasion (pT) was significantly correlated with intratumoral (p = 0.011) and peritumoral (p = 0.016) CD8+ CTLs density in the tumor microenvironment. In addition, there was a significant difference in the intensity of CD8+ CTLs between patients with and without distant metastases (intratumoral p = 0.007; peritumoral p = 0.037, T-test). Lymph node metastasis (pN) and TNM stage were significantly correlated with PD-L1 expression in CRC cells (p = 0.015, p = 0.029, respectively). Multivariate analysis revealed a statistically significant relationship between the intratumoral CD8+ CTL density and disease-free survival (DFS) (hazard ratio [HR] 2.06; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01–4.23; p = 0.043). The DFS was considerably shorter in patients with a high expression of PD-L1 in cancer cells than those with a low expression (univariate HR 2.55; 95% CI 1.50–4.34; p = 0.001; multivariate HR 0.48; 95% CI 0.28–0.82; p = 0.007). Conversely, patients with high PD-L1 expression in tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes had a longer DFS in both univariate analysis (HR 0.25; 95% CI: 0.14–0.44; p < 0.001) and multivariate analysis (HR 3.42; 95% CI: 1.95–6.01; p < 0.001). Conclusion: The CD8+ CTL density and PD-L1 expression are prognostic biomarkers for the survival of patients with CRC
A fractional approach to cluster radioactivity
No full textThe cluster radioactivity of 222,224,226Ra, 223,225Ac, 232,234,235,236U, 236,238Pu, 234,236U, 232,233,234,235,236U and 230,232Th isotopes which emitted 14C, 24Ne, 28Mg, 26Ne, 28Mg, 24Ne, respectively, has been analyzed with the help of fractional calculus for investigating the connection between order of the fractional derivative and nuclear structure. When the neutron number of daughter nuclei is equal to magic number, order of the fractional derivative shows a maximum. It is shown that there is a relationship between the order of fractional derivative and shell effect. This order has a similar role to the preformation factor in cluster radioactivity
Our Long Term Results with Trans-Obturator Tape (TOT) Treatment for Stress Urinary Incontinence: Retrospective Clinical Study
No full textAmelioration of radiation-induced lung injury by halofuginone: An experimental study in Wistar-Albino rats
No full textTo evaluate effects of halofuginone (H) on radiation-induced lung injury (RILI), 60 rats were divided into six groups: Group (G) 1 control, G2 radiotherapy (RT) only, G3 and G4 2. 5 and 5 g H and G5 and G6 RT + 2.5 and 5 g H groups, respectively. A single dose of 12 Gy RT was given to both lungs. H was applied intraperitoneally with daily doses, until animals were killed at 6 and 16 weeks after RT. At 6th and 16th weeks of RT, five rats from each group were killed. Lung tissues were dissected for light and electron microscopy. Chronic inflammation, fibrosis and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF)- scores of all study groups were significantly different at 6th and 16th week (p < 0.001). Chronic inflammation, fibrosis and TGF- scores of G2 were higher than G5 and G6 at 6th and 16th weeks of RT. At 16th week, fibrosis and TGF- scores of G5 were higher than G6 (p = 0.040 and 0.028, respectively). Electron microscopical findings also supported these results. Therefore, H may ameliorate RILI. The effect of the H was more prominent at higher dose and after long-term follow-up. These findings should be clarified with further studies.Konya Training and Research HospitalKonya Egitim Training & Research HospitalThe author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was supported by Konya Training and Research Hospital
Design and Development of a Physical and a Virtual Embodied Conversational Agent for Social Support of Older Adults
No full textPopulations in developed societies show an increasingly higher life expectancy across the globe. To support older adults to live longer and healthier lives in the familiar surroundings of their homes, technological developments, such as robots and avatars, have a great potential. To investigate long-term interactions between older adults and a "bi-bodied conversational agent" (an agent that has both an avatar and a robot embodiment), a user-centred design approach was employed in the design and development of a conversational agent. Firstly, the requirements of the agent were elicited through a set of focus groups with the target users – older adults. Then, the agent was iteratively designed and implemented: a robot body and avatar body were created. Finally, a Wizard-of-Oz control panel was created to control and compare each of the two bodies. Current research outcomes describe the elicited requirements baseline of a bi-bodied conversational agent for older adults. Future research involves the use of this set-up to investigate long-term interaction between older adults and a bibodied conversational agent
Deep-learning-based precise characterization of microwave transistors using fully-automated regression surrogates
No full text© 2023, The Author(s).Accurate models of scattering and noise parameters of transistors are instrumental in facilitating design procedures of microwave devices such as low-noise amplifiers. Yet, data-driven modeling of transistors is a challenging endeavor due to complex relationships between transistor characteristics and its designable parameters, biasing conditions, and frequency. Artificial neural network (ANN)-based methods, including deep learning (DL), have been found suitable for this task by capitalizing on their flexibility and generality. Yet, rendering reliable transistor surrogates is hindered by a number of issues such as the need for finding good match between the input data and the network architecture and hyperparameters (number and sizes of layers, activation functions, data pre-processing methods), possible overtraining, etc. This work proposes a novel methodology, referred to as Fully Adaptive Regression Model (FARM), where all network components and processing functions are automatically determined through Tree Parzen Estimator. Our technique is comprehensively validated using three examples of microwave transistors and demonstrated to offer a competitive edge over the state-of-the-art methods in terms of modeling accuracy and handling the aforementioned issues pertinent to standard ANN-based surrogates
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