In this study, an experimental investigation of the influence of the applied static load and rotational speed on the behaviour of a 160-mm diameter cylindrical journal bearing with two axial grooves ...was conducted. The rotational speed ranged from 66rpm to 1440rpm, and the applied static load varied from 0kN to 350kN in the vertical direction. The profiles of the pressure and the oil-film thickness during the shaft rotation have been measured by one proximity probe and one pressure probe installed in the rotating shaft. Measurements of the shaft centre position, dynamic coefficients, hydrodynamic pressure, temperature distributions on the bearing, film thickness, and bearing deformation under several operating conditions are presented and discussed.
•The journal bearing operates under severe conditions, i.e., high static load (350kN) with very low speed (66rpm).•Oil film thickness is measured using a rotating proximity sensor which installed inside of the hollow rotating shaft.•Calculation of experimental dynamic coefficients using the robust estimation method.•The bearing deformation is calculated based on the oil-film thickness.•The centre position of the bearing can be identified from the oil-film thickness profile by a fitting procedure.
We developed an immunoassay platform for the detection of human Thyroglobulin (Tg) to be integrated with fine-needle aspiration biopsy for early detection of lymph node metastases in thyroid cancer ...patients. The sensing platform detects Tg by a sandwich immunoassay involving a self-assembled surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate assisted by functionalized gold nanoparticles that provide additional Raman signal amplification and improved molecular specificity. Specifically, the SERS-active substrates were functionalized with Tg Capture antibodies and fabricated either on-chip or on optical fiber tips by nanosphere lithography. Gold nanoparticles were functionalized with Detection antibodies and conjugated with 4-mercaptobenzoic acid, which serves as a Raman reporter. The sandwich assay platform was validated in the planar configuration and a detection limit as low as 7 pg/mL was successfully achieved. Careful morphological examination of the SERS substrates before and after Tg measurements further assessed the effective capture of nanoparticles and correlated the average nanoparticle coverage with the Tg concentration obtained by SERS measurements. The sandwich assay was successfully demonstrated on washout fluids of fine needle aspiration biopsies from cancer patients and confirmed the high specificity of the proposed methodology when complex biological matrices are considered. Finally, SERS optrodes were fabricated and successfully used to detect Tg concentration by applying the same bio-recognition strategy and Raman interrogation through an optical fiber. This opens the possibility of transferring the Tg detection approach to the optical fiber tip to develop point-of-care platforms that can be directly integrated into fine needle aspiration biopsies.
In states of sodium deficiency many animals seek and consume salty solutions to restore body fluid homeostasis. These behaviors reflect the presence of sodium appetite that is a manifestation of a ...pattern of central nervous system (CNS) activity with facilitatory and inhibitory components that are affected by several neurohumoral factors. The primary focus of this review is on one structure in this central system, the lateral parabrachial nucleus (LPBN). However, before turning to a more detailed discussion of the LPBN, a brief overview of body fluid balance-related body-to-brain signaling and the identification of the primary CNS structures and humoral factors involved in the control of sodium appetite is necessary. Angiotensin II, mineralocorticoids, and extracellular osmotic changes act on forebrain areas to facilitate sodium appetite and thirst. In the hindbrain, the LPBN functions as a key integrative node with an ascending output that exerts inhibitory influences on forebrain regions. A nonspecific or general deactivation of LPBN-associated inhibition by GABA or opioid agonists produces NaCl intake in euhydrated rats without any other treatment. Selective LPBN manipulation of other neurotransmitter systems e.g., serotonin, cholecystokinin (CCK), corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF), glutamate, ATP, or norepinephrine greatly enhances NaCl intake when accompanied by additional treatments that induce either thirst or sodium appetite. The LPBN interacts with key forebrain areas that include the subfornical organ and central amygdala to determine sodium intake. To summarize, a model of LPBN inhibitory actions on forebrain facilitatory components for the control of sodium appetite is presented in this review.
Previous studies from our laboratory have shown that the pressor response to intracerebroventricular (icv) administered ANG II in normotensive rats or spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) is ...attenuated by increased central H2O2 concentration, produced either by direct H2O2 icv injection or by increased endogenous H2O2 centrally in response to local catalase inhibition with 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole (ATZ). In the present study, we evaluated the effects of ATZ administered peripherally on arterial pressure and sympathetic and angiotensinergic activity in SHRs. Male SHRs weighing 280–330 g were used. Mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR) were recorded in conscious freely moving SHRs. Acute intravenous injection of ATZ (300 mg/kg of body weight) did not modify MAP and HR during the next 4 h, however, the treatment with ATZ (300 mg/kg of body weight twice per day) for 3 days reduced MAP (144 ± 6, vs. saline, 183 ± 13 mmHg), without changing HR. Intravenous hexamethonium (ganglionic blocker) produced a smaller decrease in MAP 4 h after ATZ (−25 ± 3, vs saline −38 ± 4 mmHg). Losartan (angiotensinergic AT1 receptor blocker) produced a significant depressor response 4 h after ATZ (−22 ± 4, vs. saline: −2 ± 4 mmHg) and in 3-day ATZ treated SHRs (−25 ± 5, vs. saline: −9 ± 4 mmHg). The results suggest that the treatment with ATZ reduces sympathetic activity in SHRs and simultaneously increases angiotensinergic activity.
•Acute catalase blockade with ATZ reduces sympathetic activity in SHRs.•Acute or chronic treatment with ATZ increases angiotensinergic activity in SHRs.•Chronic treatment with ATZ reduces arterial pressure in SHRs.•Chronic catalase blockade reduces arterial pressure in SHRs.
•CHP utilization is demonstrated to allow a reduction of primary energy consumption.•The consideration of various investment indexes leads to the determination of different optimal powers.•The choice ...of a specific investment index to evaluate a CHP is linked to the strategy of the company.
The present work presents an investigation regarding the feasibility analysis of a cogeneration plant for a food processing facility with the aim to decrease the cost of energy supply. The monthly electricity and heat consumption profiles are analyzed, in order to understand the consumption profiles, as well as the costs of the current furniture of electricity and gas. Then, a detailed thermodynamic model of the cogeneration cycle is implemented and the investment costs are linked to the thermodynamic variables by means of cost functions. The optimal electricity power of the co-generator is determined with reference to various investment indexes. The analysis highlights that the optimal dimension varies according to the chosen indicator, therefore it is not possible to establish it univocally, but it depends on the financial/economic strategy of the company through the considered investment index.
The mammillary bodies (MBs) have repeatedly been shown to be critical for memory, yet little is known about their involvement in numerous neurological conditions linked to memory impairments, ...including neonatal encephalopathy.
We implemented a multicentre retrospective study, assessing magnetic resonance scans of 219 infants with neonatal encephalopathy who had undergone hypothermia treatment in neonatal intensive care units located in the Netherlands and Italy.
Abnormal MB signal was observed in ~40% of infants scanned; in half of these cases, the brain appeared otherwise normal. MB involvement was not related to the severity of encephalopathy or the pattern/severity of hypoxic-ischaemic brain injury. Follow-up scans were available for 18 cases with abnormal MB signal; in eight of these cases, the MBs appeared severely atrophic.
This study highlights the importance of assessing the status of the MBs in neonatal encephalopathy; this may require changes to scanning protocols to ensure that the slices are sufficiently thin to capture the MBs. Furthermore, long-term follow-up of infants with abnormal MB signal is needed to determine the effects on cognition, which may enable the use of early intervention strategies. Further research is needed to assess the role of therapeutic hypothermia in MB involvement in neonatal encephalopathy.
The MBs are particularly sensitive to hypoxia in neonates. Current hypothermia treatment provides incomplete protection against MB injury. MB involvement is likely overlooked as it can often occur when the rest of the brain appears normal. Given the importance of the MBs for memory, it is necessary that this region is properly assessed in neonatal encephalopathy. This may require improvements in scanning protocols.
ABSTRACT
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission is providing the scientific community with millions of light curves of stars spread across the whole sky. Since 2018, the telescope ...has detected thousands of planet candidates that need to be meticulously scrutinized before being considered amenable targets for follow-up programs. We present the second catalog of the Planet Patrol citizen science project containing 999 uniformly vetted exoplanet candidates within the TESS ExoFOP archive. The catalog was produced by fully exploiting the power of the Citizen Science Planet Patrol project. We vetted TESS Objects of Interest (TOIs) based on the results of Discovery And Vetting of Exoplanets (dave) pipeline. We also implemented the automatic disposition generator, a custom procedure aimed at generating the final classification for each TOI that was vetted by at least three vetters. The majority of the candidates in our catalog, 752 TOIs, passed the vetting process and were labelled as planet candidates. We ruled out 142 candidates as false positives and flagged 105 as potential false positives. Our final dispositions and comments for all the planet candidates are provided as a publicly available supplementary table.
The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) controls hypertonic NaCl intake driven by sodium appetite. Here we investigated whether the antagonism of RAS interferes with hedonic and aversive orofacial motor ...responses, or palatability, to intraoral infusion of 0.3 M NaCl (hNaCl). Adult rats were depleted of sodium by combined sc injection of furosemide and 24 h removal of ambient sodium. In experiment 1, losartan (AT1 angiotensin II receptor antagonist, intracerebroventricular, 200 μg/μl), produced a three-fold increase in aversive orofacial motor responses to hNaCl. Losartan also suppressed hNaCl intake recorded immediately thereafter. In experiment 2, each animal had repeated recordings of hNaCl intake and orofacial responses to hNaCl distributed for 180 min. Paired recordings of intake and orofacial responses occurred within five successive blocks after the recordings of only orofacial responses when the animals were still sodium deplete (block zero). Captopril (angiotensin converting enzyme blocker, intraperitoneal, 30 mg/kg) inhibited by 75% the hedonic orofacial responses to hNaCl in blocks zero and 1. The hedonic responses to captopril remained the same throughout blocks, but became similar to vehicle from blocks 2 to 5. There was no difference in aversive responses to 0.3 M NaCl between captopril and vehicle. Captopril produced a 70–100% inhibition of hNaCl intake in blocks 1 to 5. The results suggest that angiotensin II acts in the brain increasing the palatability of hypertonic sodium during the consummatory phase of sodium appetite.
Time-resolved polarization measurements of pulsars offer a unique insight into the geometry of their emission regions. Such measurements provide observational constraints on the different models ...proposed for the pulsar emission mechanisms. Optical polarization data of the Crab nebula were obtained from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) archive. The data set consists of a series of observations of the nebula taken with the HST/Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). We produced polarization vector maps of the inner nebula and measured, for the first time, the degree of linear polarization (P.D.) and the position angle (P.A.) of the pulsar's integrated pulse beam, and of its nearby synchrotron knot. This yielded P.D. = 5.2 ± 0.3 per cent and P.A. = 105
1 ± 1
6 for the pulsar, and P.D. = 59.0 ± 1.9 per cent and P.A. = 124
7 ± 1
0 for the synchrotron knot. This is the first high-spatial resolution multi-epoch study of the polarization of the inner nebula and pulsar. None of the main features in the nebula shows evidence of significant polarization evolution in the period covered by these observations. The results for the pulsar are consistent with those obtained by S owikowska et al. using the high-time resolution photo-polarimeter - Optical Pulsar Timing Analyzer (OPTIMA), once the constant component (DC) component has been subtracted. Our results clearly prove that the knot is the main source of the DC component.
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