C-LiFePO4 and C-Li4Ti5O12 electrodes were studied for their electrochemical performance at sub-zero temperatures with two different electrolytes, conventional and low temperature electrolytes. ...18,650-size cylindrical cell using the conventional electrolyte 1 mol L-1 LiPF6 in EC + DEC displayed a discharge capacity of 1.01 Ah, when cycled between 1.0 and 2.8 V, during low 0.1 C charge-discharge rates at 25 degree C with 98%. Same cell with LiPF6 in EC/DEC electrolyte showed a discharge capacity of 0.97 Ah at 10 degree C during low 0.1 C charge-discharge rates and retained more than 75% of rated capacity at 5 C-rate. However, the cell failed at 8 C-rate due to poor ionic conductivity of the electrolyte. The 18,650 cell using the low temperature electrolyte 1 mol L-1 LiPF6 and 0.2 mol L-1 LiFSI in quaternary blend of aliphatic solvents such as PC + MP + EMC + 5% FEC displayed a similar electrochemical performance at 25 degree C as that of the cell with conventional electrolyte, but in contrast showed improved electrochemical performance down to -10 degree C due to improvement in ionic conductivity of the electrolyte. HPPC test performed on the C-LiFePO4//C-Li4Ti5O12 18,650 cell with low temperature electrolyte indicated the cells remain functional between 0 degree C and -10 degree C.
Upgrade of the monitoring system of LHCb ECAL Guz, Yu; Konoplyannikov, A.; Perret, P. ...
Nuclear instruments & methods in physics research. Section A, Accelerators, spectrometers, detectors and associated equipment,
12/2018, Letnik:
912
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
In order to improve the stability of the LHCb ECAL monitoring system, the light guides transporting LED light to PMTs have been replaced by radiation hard quartz fibers. The behavior of transparency ...of the selected fibers under moderate radiation doses, up to few kGy, was studied in detail. The performance of the upgraded version of the LHCb ECAL monitoring system is also discussed.
•Transparency variations of quartz fibers at moderate radiation doses studied in detail.•The ECAL monitoring system light guides replaced to radiation hard quartz ones.•Performance of the upgraded monitoring system was studied and found satisfactory.
A non‐random association between an environmental factor and a given trait could be explained by directional selection (genetic determinism) and by phenotypic plasticity (environmental determinism). ...A previous study showed a significant relationship between morphology and water velocity in Salaria fluviatilis that conformed to functional expectations. The objective of this study was to test whether this relationship could be explained by phenotypic plasticity. Salaria fluviatilis from a Corsican stream were placed in four experimental channels with different water velocities (0, 10, 20 and 30 cm s−1) to test whether there was a morphological response associated with this environmental factor. After 28 days, fish shape changed in response to water velocity without any significant growth. Fish in higher water velocities exhibited a more slender body shape and longer anal and caudal fins. These results indicate a high degree of morphological plasticity in riverine populations of S. fluviatilis and suggest that the previous relationship between morphology and water velocity observed in the field may largely be due to an environmental determinism.
Atmospheric particles have several impacts on health and the environment, especially in urban areas. Parts of those particles are not fresh and have undergone atmospheric chemical and physical ...processes. Due to a lack of representativeness of experimental conditions and experimental artifacts such as particle wall losses in chambers, there are uncertainties on the effects of physical processes (condensation, nucleation and
coagulation) and their role in particle evolution from modern vehicles. This study develops a new method to correct wall losses, accounting for
size dependence and experiment-to-experiment variations. It is applied to the evolution of fresh diesel exhaust particles to characterize the physical
processes which they undergo. The correction method is based on the black
carbon decay and a size-dependent coefficient to correct particle
distributions. Six diesel passenger cars, Euro 3 to Euro 6, were driven on a chassis dynamometer with Artemis Urban cold start and Artemis Motorway cycles. Exhaust was injected in an 8 m3 chamber with Teflon walls. The
physical evolution of particles was characterized during 6 to 10 h.
Increase in particle mass is observed even without photochemical reactions due to the presence of intermediate-volatility organic compounds and semi-volatile organic compounds. These compounds were quantified at
emission and induce a particle mass increase up to 17 % h−1, mainly for the older vehicles (Euro 3 and Euro 4). Condensation is 4 times
faster when the available particle surface is multiplied by 6.5. If initial particle number concentration is below 8–9 × 104 cm−3, a nucleation mode seems to be present but not
measured by a scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS). The growth of nucleation-mode particles results in an increase in measured PN. Above this threshold, particle number concentration decreases due to coagulation, up to −27 % h−1. Under those conditions, the chamber and experimental setup are well suited to characterizing and quantifying the process of coagulation.
It is poorly understood whether female morphological and behavioural traits can be used as 'signals'. In particular, experimental tests of the hypothesis that female ornaments reflect quality are ...scarce. Here, we experimentally examine whether female plumage coloration might signal maternal quality in the blue tit, Cyanistes caeruleus by forcing half of the females breeding in our population to produce a replacement clutch. Using statistical models that controlled for the effects of male coloration, and the effects of age and condition of both parents, we found that carotenoid-based female coloration was positively linked to key proxies of bird lifetime reproductive success: clutch size, fledgling success and recruitment. Importantly, the relationships between maternal yellow carotenoid coloration and both clutch size and recruitment were stronger in the experimental group than in the control group, indicating that breeding females with higher values of yellow coloration were better able to handle the cost of producing a second clutch. Finally, UV-blue female coloration was positively linked to female survival and marginally linked to laying date. Taken together, these results show for the first time in a natural population that female coloration can indicate individual and maternal quality under natural and adverse reproductive conditions. They highlight the potential for the evolution of female ornamental traits through sexual selection.
Ruminants are healthy carriers of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC). If good hygienic and agricultural practices at the farm level, especially during the milking process, are not ...adequately followed, milk and dairy products made with raw milk could become contaminated. Sporadic cases and rare food outbreaks have been linked with dairy products. Consequently, understanding STEC behavior in cheeses would help to evaluate risks for human health. The behavior of 4 different STEC strains belonging to the serotypes O26:H11, O103:H2, O145:H28, and O157:H7 were monitored during the manufacture, ripening, and storage of a white mold soft cheese. These strains, originating from dairy products, were inoculated individually in raw milk from cow at 102 cfu/mL. During the first 24 to 36h of the manufacturing stage, the STEC level increased by 2 to 3 log10 cfu/g. Over the course of the ripening stage, the concentration of the non-O157 STEC remained relatively constant, whereas a decrease of the E. coli O157:H7 concentration was observed. During the storage stage, the level of the different non-O157 STEC strains decreased slowly in the core and in the rind of cheeses. The non-O157 STEC level reached between 3.1 and 4.1 log10 cfu/g at d 56. Interestingly, the concentration of the E. coli O157:H7 strain decreased dramatically: the strains remained detectable only after enrichment. During ripening and storage, STEC levels were generally higher in rinds than in cheese cores. In contrast to what was seen in cheese cores, the E. coli O157:H7 strain remained enumerable in rinds during these steps. These results highlight that STEC can grow during the manufacture and survive during the ripening and storage of a white mold soft cheese.
By advancing spring leaf flush and ensuing food availability, climatic warming results in a mismatch between the timing of peak food supply and nestling demand, shifting the optimal time for ...reproduction in birds. Two populations of blue tits (Parus caeruleus) that breed at different dates in similar, but spatially distinct, habitat types in Corsica and southern France provide a unique opportunity to quantify the energetic and fitness consequences when breeding is mismatched with local productivity. As food supply and demand become progressively mismatched, the increased cost of rearing young pushes the metabolic effort of adults beyond their apparent sustainable limit, drastically reducing the persistence of adults in the breeding population. We provide evidence that the economics of parental foraging and limits to sustainable metabolic effort are key selective forces underlying synchronized seasonal breeding and long-term shifts in breeding date in response to climatic change.
The first goal of this study was to determine whether morphological variation in the freshwater blenny Salaria fluviatilis results in spatially structured populations distributed around Corsica, ...France, which would suggest genetically differentiated populations through reproductive isolation by distance. The second goal was to determine whether some morphological traits are related to water velocity, one of the most contrasting habitat characteristics in these rivers, which would suggest an adaptation to local conditions. The results showed that the morphology of S. fluviatilis differed among the three main geographic areas studied in Corsica and that geographically distant populations of S. fluviatilis were less similar morphologically and genetically than close ones. The results also indicated that the morphological differences among populations conformed to functional expectations. Overall, the results suggest that the morphological variation of S. fluviatilis from Corsican rivers is an adaptive response to water velocity and that these populations are in a process of reproductive isolation by distance.
The αvβ3 integrin plays an important role in tumour-induced angiogenesis, tumour proliferation, survival and metastasis. The tetrameric RGD-based peptide, regioselectively addressable functionalized ...template-(cyclo-RGDfK)4 (RAFT-RGD), specifically targets the αvβ3 integrin in vitro and in vivo. The aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic potential of RAFT-RGD radiolabelled with β(-) emitters in a nude mouse model of αvβ3 integrin-expressing tumours.
Biodistribution and SPECT/CT imaging studies were performed after injection of (90)Y-RAFT-RGD or (177)Lu-RAFT-RGD in nude mice subcutaneously xenografted with αvβ3 integrin-expressing U-87 MG cells. Experimental targeted radionuclide therapy with (90)Y-RAFT-RGD or (177)Lu-RAFT-RGD and (90)Y-RAFT-RAD or (177)Lu-RAFT-RAD (nonspecific controls) was evaluated by intravenous injection of the radionuclides into mice bearing αvβ3 integrin-expressing U-87 MG tumours of different sizes (small or large) or bearing TS/A-pc tumours that do not express αvβ3. Tumour volume doubling time was used to evaluate the efficacy of each treatment.
Injection of 37 MBq of (90)Y-RAFT-RGD into mice with large αvβ3-positive tumours or 37 MBq of (177)Lu-RAFT-RGD into mice with small αvβ3-positive tumours caused significant growth delays compared to mice treated with 37 MBq of (90)Y-RAFT-RAD or 37 MBq of (177)Lu-RAFT-RAD or untreated mice. In contrast, injection of 30 MBq of (90)Y-RAFT-RGD had no effect on the growth of αvβ3-negative tumours.
(90)Y-RAFT-RGD and (177)Lu-RAFT-RGD are potent agents targeting αvβ3-expressing tumours for internal targeted radiotherapy.
Con el aumento de los viajes internacionales se ha hecho cada vez más evidente la necesidad de prevenir y diagnosticar oportunamente enfermedades que no son endémicas en nuestro país. Para ello es ...fundamental conocer los riesgos en cada destino y las poblaciones más vulnerables. Centros de vigilancia de enfermedades en viajeros se han desarrollado en América y Europa, los cuales proporcionan importante información al respecto.
Enfermedades gastrointestinales, síndrome febril y alteraciones dermatológicas son las principales causas de consulta en viajeros que retornan de un viaje. Giardia y Campylobacter son los agentes causales de diarrea más frecuentes. La causa de fiebre sistémica es la malaria, en aquellos que vienen de África Subsahariana; y dengue en aquellos que retornan de Sudamérica o Sudeste Asiático. Larva cutánea migrante es la principal consulta dermatológica. Especial atención se debe prestar a poblaciones de riesgo como los niños y VFR (visitas a familiares y parientes) en la indicación de inmunizaciones y quimioprofilaxis.
With the increase in international travel it has become increasingly evident the need to prevent and promptly diagnose diseases that are not endemic in our country. For this purpose, it is essential to know the risks in each destination and the most vulnerable populations. Travel diseases surveillance centers have been developed in North America and Europe providing important information on the subject. Gastrointestinal diseases, febrile syndrome and skin disorders are the main causes of consultation in travelers returning from a trip. Giardia and Campylobacter are the main cause of diarrhea. The cause of systemic fever is malaria in those coming from sub-Saharan Africa and dengue in those who return from Central and South America or Southeast Asia. Cutaneous Larva Migrans is the principal dermatological disorder. Special attention should be put in risk populations such as children and VFR (Visiting family and relatives) for the prescription of immunizations and chemoprophylaxis.
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