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Background: The Editorial Board of EJNMMI Radiopharmacy and Chemistry releases a biannual highlight commentary to update the readership on trends in the field of radiopharmaceutical development. Main body: This selection of highlights provides commentary on 21 different topics selected by each coauthoring Editorial Board member addressing a variety of aspects ranging from novel radiochemistry to first-in-human application of novel radiopharmaceuticals. Conclusion: Trends in radiochemistry and radiopharmacy are highlighted. Hot topics cover the entire scope of EJNMMI Radiopharmacy and Chemistry, demonstrating the progress in the research field in many aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design of reinforced soil is usually based solely on the mechanical properties of the fill, in the case of new structures, or the soil in the case of soil nailing. All soils display electrokinetic properties but these have largely been ignored in geotechnical design. The development of electrokinetic geosynthetic materials, which act as both electrodes as well as providing the established geosynthetic functions, has made it possible to combine the electrokinetic and mechanical properties of soils in geotechnical design. Using this approach, it is possible to improve the mechanical properties of the soil or fill prior to or during construction. The objective of the electrokinetic improvement is to increase the availability of suitable fill or make soils/waste materials previously not suitable for soil reinforcement acceptable and hence extend the application of reinforced soil. The use of computer-controlled electrokinetic treatment has resulted in effective and economic design and construction protocols, which in turn have led to a growing number of applications which provide positive evidence of the economic and environmental benefits of combining both the electrokinetic and mechanical properties of the soil in the design of reinforced soil structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neuroinflammation is an important component of many neurodegenerative diseases, whether as a primary cause or a secondary outcome. For that reason, either as diagnostic tools or to monitor progression and/or pharmacological interventions, there is a need for robust biomarkers of neuroinflammation in the brain. Mitochondrial TSPO (18 kDa Translocator protein) is one of few available biomarkers of neuroinflammation for which there are clinically available PET imaging agents. In this study, we further characterised neuroinflammation in a mouse model of prion-induced chronic neurodegeneration (ME7) including a pharmacological intervention via a CSF1R inhibitor. This was achieved by autoradiographic binding of the second-generation TSPO tracer, [3H]PBR28, along with a more comprehensive examination of the cellular contributors to the TSPO signal changes by immunohistochemistry. We observed regional increases of TSPO in the ME7 mouse brains, particularly in the hippocampus, cortex and thalamus. This increased TSPO signal was detected in the cells of microglia/macrophage lineage as well as in astrocytes, endothelial cells and neurons. Importantly, we show that the selective CSF1R inhibitor, JNJ-40346527 (JNJ527), attenuated the disease-dependent increase in TSPO signal, particularly in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, where JNJ527 attenuated the number of Iba1+ microglia and neurons, but not GFAP+ astrocytes or endothelial cells. These findings suggest that [3H]PBR28 quantitative autoradiography in combination with immunohistochemistry are important translational tools for detecting and quantifying neuroinflammation, and its treatments, in neurodegenerative disease. Furthermore, we demonstrate that although TSPO overexpression in the ME7 brains was driven by various cell types, the therapeutic effect of the CSF1R inhibitor was primarily to modulate TSPO expression in microglia and neurons, which identifies an important route of biological action of this particular CSF1R inhibitor and provides an example of a cell-specific effect of this type of therapeutic agent on the neuroinflammatory process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the contract won by Lloyd's Register from the Nuclear Installation Inspectorate (NII) in Great Britain. The company got a series of contract from the NII for the provision of various types of technical services which include internal hazards, probabilistic safety analysis and management for safety and quality assurance. According to Jain Light, energy director of Lloyd's, the firm collaborated with Scandpower AS and Tony Gee & Partners LLP to provide advanced technical services aimed at supporting the safe development and operation of clean, sustainable energy solutions.

This paper presents the results of the flexural testing to destruction of two cast iron girders preserved during the demolition of a railway bridge in Scotland. The 151-year-old girders were reinforced with ultrahigh modulus carbon fiber polymer composite (CFRP) plates in 2004. The CFRP plates on one girder were damaged during the demolition and were rendered completely ineffective before testing. The girders were 9 m long and were be tested in four-point bending to failure which gave a unique opportunity to compare the behavior of unreinforced and reinforced cast iron at full-scale. Fragments of cast iron and CFRP that remained after the flexural testing were be used to prepare test specimens and were used to determine material properties. The tests demonstrated the considerable benefits of CFRP strengthening (an increase in load-bearing capacity of 43.9% and an increase in stiffness of 31%) and confirmed that the CFRP was fully bonded to the cast iron until close to the point of failure. The test results have been compared with theoretical and original design predictions that showed that the theoretical predictions were remarkably accurate and the design predictions were conservative as is required for a safe design. This paper includes details of the girders, the test rig, and test procedure, and presents in detail the test results that include the failure mechanisms and will discuss the benefits obtained from the CFRP strengthening of cast iron girders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The violence inherent in boxing has been a topic of public discourse since the early days of the sport, as has its supposed effect on society. In 1751, artist and social commentator William Hogarth weighed in by including boxing references in his four-part work addressing cruelty in 1740s London. In his Second Stage, dedicated to cruelty to animals, he somewhat incongruously includes a poster for a prizefight. This essay examines boxing in early-to-mid Hanoverian London to reveal why Hogarth chose to include this particular fight, using a variety of sources including an unpublished eyewitness account. This examination will allow us to better understand a transformational period in the sport of boxing and its place in 1740s London society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The west flyover at Stockley airport junction forms part of the 'On network works' of the Crossrail project. The structure is a two-span weathering steel truss 117·8 m long, curved in plan, carrying one new line from Heathrow airport to London. It passes at a highly skewed angle over five railway tracks, including the Great Western main and relief lines. The structure was launched into position at Easter 2014 and was opened to regular services at the end of December 2014. The west flyover includes the longest single span constructed on the Great Western railway since Brunel's Saltash Bridge in 1859. The trusses are formed from fabricated closed box sections. The structure was assembled on a strengthened earthworks approach ramp using extensive site welding. The launch philosophy was based on a requirement to install the superstructure while maintaining unrestricted live railway operations beneath. The launch system included roller bogies on the approach ramp with jackable, sliding stainless steel–polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) supports at the abutments and central pier. To facilitate construction of the central pier crosshead within a restricted island site between the up main and down relief lines, a permanent, bespoke, precast concrete formwork shell was developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper questions the current construction of a 54 metres statue of Maitreya against a 108 metres stupa in the steppe south of Ulaanbaatar, that will stand at the edge of a new 'eco-city,' Maidar City. The Grand Maitreya Project (GMP) was initiated in 2009 by H. Battulga, businessman and MP (before he was elected president of Mongolia). The project aims to be 'one of the largest Buddhist complex in the world,' and now is a 'National project for reviving traditional Buddhist education and culture.' I propose to use religious and art-historical approaches in order to document the 'birth' of a Buddhist project, with a special interest in the long process of conception, fundraising and promotional programme. Relying on recent studies on the entanglement of Buddhism, politics, culture, consumerization and tourism that gave rise to new cultual modalities, and on studies of colossal statues recently built in Asia, this article asks what the GMP tells us about modern Mongolian politics and public religious culture. What are the sources of inspiration and foreign references of the GMP? Is it a religious monument that will benefit from the tourist economy, a tourist attraction, or a unifying, nationalist symbol of 21st-century Mongolia? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information on the topics discussed at the Young Investigators Meeting (YIM) held in the headquarters of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM) in Vienna, Austria on July 17, 2016 is presented. Topics include prostate cancer imaging, the radiochemistry of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) inhibitors, and radionuclide therapy, fluorescence and novel tracers.