Palladium nanoparticles–polypyrrole composite (Pd/PPy) catalyzes the addition of perfluoroalkyl halides to olefins to produce a variety of products with good yields. An effective fluoroalkylation ...technique tested with various olefins, fluoroalkyl halides and Pd/PPy was developed. The reaction proceeds highly efficient under mild phosphine-free reaction conditions with different substrates, easy catalyst recycling and provides a general and straightforward access to fluoroalkylated products. Furthermore, we were able to control whether the addition of perfluoroalkyl occurs with various monomer (fluoroalkylated alkene or alkane with R
F
and OH moieties) or dimer formation (under electrochemical conditions).
Graphical Abstract
Objective
Health literacy is critical for understanding information from health‐care providers and correct use of medications and includes the capacity to filter other information in navigating ...health care systems. Older adults with low health literacy exhibit more chronic health conditions, worse physical functioning, and poorer mental health. This study examined the relationship between sociodemographic variables and health literacy, and the impact of cognitive training on change in health literacy over 10 years in older adults.
Methods
Participants (N = 2,802) aged 65 years and older completed assessments, including reading and numeracy health literacy items, as part of the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) study. We evaluated baseline sociodemographic variables and change in health literacy over a 10‐year period in individuals exposed to cognitive training in reasoning, processing speed, memory, or a no‐contact control condition.
Results
Age, sex, race, education level, and general cognitive functioning at baseline were all associated with baseline health literacy in older adults. Predictors of change in health literacy over the 10‐year follow‐up were age, race, education level, general cognitive functioning, and neighborhood income; disparities in health literacy because of race attenuated over time, while the effect of age increased over time. Health literacy was generally stable across the ACTIVE intervention groups over 10 years.
Conclusions
The present study showed important disparities in health literacy level and change over 10 years. Cognitive training did not significantly impact health literacy, suggesting that alternative approaches are needed to reduce the disparities.
NASICON with a composition of Na
3
Zr
2
Si
2
PO
12
was first synthesized by pyrolysis of a mixture of organic solutions. The ratio of initial components required for the formation of this composition ...was determined. The temperature conditions for processing the precursor were examined. The material was obtained with an average grain size of 0.2 μm. The composition and morphology of the compound were confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis and scanning electron microscopy. The synthesis of NASICON takes 9 h on the average, which is the minimum time among all known methods for the preparation of this material.
According to the substorm paradigm, the tail magnetic flux F is accumulated during the growth phase and suddenly released afterward. However, only 33 out of 142 isolated midtail sudden unloading ...events identified by Geotail in 1995–1998 demonstrated monotonous F increase (type 1 substorms). In 32 cases, balanced tail flux (BTF) period (F ~constant) with enhanced dissipation and pseudobreakup activity during 0.5–2 h before unloading was registered (type 2, a new substorm class). The rest 77 substorms lie between types 1 and 2. Superposed epoch analysis revealed that during ~40 min before unloading, both groups demonstrate almost identical plasma sheet thinning and Bz decrease at Geotail. By the sudden unloading time, both groups have nearly identical Bz values in the midtail as well as at 6.6 RE. We conclude that pre‐onset midtail configuration changes are common for all substorm types irrespective of flux growth.
Key Points
Magnetotail has different paths to substorm onsetTail flux can grow or saturate before sudden unloading onsetConfiguration changes irrespective of flux behavior just before onset
Allergic rhinitis is the most common clinical presentation of allergy, affecting 400 million people worldwide, with increasing incidence in westernized countries
. To elucidate the genetic ...architecture and understand the underlying disease mechanisms, we carried out a meta-analysis of allergic rhinitis in 59,762 cases and 152,358 controls of European ancestry and identified a total of 41 risk loci for allergic rhinitis, including 20 loci not previously associated with allergic rhinitis, which were confirmed in a replication phase of 60,720 cases and 618,527 controls. Functional annotation implicated genes involved in various immune pathways, and fine mapping of the HLA region suggested amino acid variants important for antigen binding. We further performed genome-wide association study (GWAS) analyses of allergic sensitization against inhalant allergens and nonallergic rhinitis, which suggested shared genetic mechanisms across rhinitis-related traits. Future studies of the identified loci and genes might identify novel targets for treatment and prevention of allergic rhinitis.
Background and Purpose. In heart failure (HF), metabolic alterations induce skeletal muscle wasting and decrease of exercise capacity and quality of life. The activation of skeletal muscle ...regeneration potential is a prospective strategy to reduce muscle wasting; therefore, the aim of this project was to determine if functional properties of skeletal muscle mesenchymal progenitor cells (SM-MPC) were affected by HF-induced functional and metabolic dysregulations. Methods. Gastrocnemius muscle biopsy samples were obtained from 3 healthy donors (HD) and 12 HF patients to purify mRNA for further analysis and to isolate SM-MPC. Cells were expanded in vitro and characterized by immunocytochemistry and flow cytometry for expression of mesenchymal (CD105/CD73/CD166/CD146/CD140b/CD140a/VIM) and myogenic (Myf5/CD56/MyoG) markers. Cells were induced to differentiate and were then analyzed by immunostaining and Q-PCR to verify the efficiency of differentiation. The expression of genes that control muscle metabolism and development was compared for HD/HF patients in both muscle biopsy and in vitro-differentiated myotubes. Results. The upregulation of MYH3/MYH8/Myf6 detected in HF skeletal muscle along with metabolic alterations indicates chronic pathological activation of the muscle developmental program. SM-MPC isolated from HD and HF patients represented a mixed population that coexpresses both mesenchymal and myogenic markers and differs from AD-MMSC, BM-MMSC, and IMF-MSC. The functional properties of SM-MPC did not differ between HD and HF patients. Conclusion. In the present work, we demonstrate that the metabolic and functional alterations we detected in skeletal muscle from HF patients do not dramatically affect the functional properties of purified and expanded in vitro SM-MPC. We speculate that skeletal muscle progenitor cells are protected by their niche and under beneficial circumstances could contribute to muscle restoration and prevention and treatment of muscle wasting. The potential new therapeutic strategies of HF-induced skeletal muscle wasting should be targeted on both activation of SM-MPC regeneration potential and improvement of skeletal muscle metabolic status to provide a favorable environment for SM-MPC-driven muscle restoration.
Abstract
The reliability of modern belt conveyors, whose length reaches tens of kilometers, is primarily determined by the reliability of the roller supports that support the belt and ensure its ...movement. As they wear out, some roller bearings fail and need to be repaired or replaced. The dynamics of the number of working roller supports is determined by the system of Kolmogorov equations. Their solution allows us to find the probabilities of finding the system in states with a different number of working elements. The article finds probabilities for two cases. In the first case, when restoring, only one roller support is repaired each time. In the second case, all roller supports are repaired or replaced. In the case of sequential recovery, the mathematical expectation of the number of properly working roller supports may be less than the total number by several units. There are always elements that need to be repaired. If the recovery rate of the elements is many times higher than the failure rate, the mathematical expectation of the number of properly operating roller supports is less than the total number of roller supports by less than one, during most of the time all roller supports are serviceable. In the case of simultaneous recovery of elements, an equally high level of reliability is achieved even with comparable failure and recovery rates.
The results obtained can be used to determine the necessary reserve of spare structural elements and to plan the maintenance of conveyors.
The article presents the results of laboratory and field tests of vibro-jet magnetic activation (VJMA) technology in the technological processes of preparation of drilling and cement mortars. Studies ...have shown a significant improvement in the quality of the mortars, reducing the preparation time and energy intensity of the process. The use of VJMA technology for processing grouting mortar allows increasing the fluidity of the solution and increasing the strength of the cement stone. This facilitates the filling of cement mortar.
The interaction of gold-containing rock and titanium-containing mineral raw materials with a mixture of ammonium hydrodifluoride NH
4
HF
2
and ammonium sulfate (NH
4
)
2
SO
4
at temperatures below ...430°C has been studied. A comparative analysis showed that the use of a mixture of NH
4
HF
2
and (NH
4
)
2
SO
4
allows more complete winning of mineral raw materials compared to the use of ammonium hydrodifluoride alone. The mixture of NH
4
HF
2
and (NH
4
)
2
SO
4
is recommended as a new promising reagent for the decomposition of rocks and mineral raw materials for complete extraction of the product into solution during water leaching.
The interaction of tungsten mineral raw materials with a mixture of NH
4
HF
2
and (NH
4
)
2
SO
4
upon heating was studied. It was determined that, first, at temperatures up to 200°C, the incoming ...components are fluorinated to form complex and simple fluorides. A further increase in temperature is accompanied by the decomposition of ammonium sulfate to form NH
4
HSO
4
, which leads to the conversion of fluorides into sulfates and of the tungsten ammonium fluoride complex into tungstic acid H
2
WO
4
. It was shown that water leaching of the product of the decomposition of tungsten-containing mineral raw materials with a mixture of NH
4
HF
2
and (NH
4
)
2
SO
4
makes it possible to extract tungsten from mineral raw materials in the form of the commercial product WO
3
.