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Osteoarthritis (OA) is a major health problem worldwide that affects the joints and causes severe disability. It is characterized by pain and low-grade inflammation. However, the exact pathogenesis remains unknown and the therapeutic options are limited. In OA articular chondrocytes undergo a phenotypic transition becoming hypertrophic, which leads to cartilage damage, aggravating the disease. Therefore, a therapeutic agent inhibiting hypertrophy would be a promising disease-modifying drug. The therapeutic use of tyrosine kinase inhibitors has been mainly focused on oncology, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the Janus kinase inhibitor Tofacitinib in Rheumatoid Arthritis has broadened the applicability of these compounds to other diseases. Interestingly, tyrosine kinases have been associated with chondrocyte hypertrophy. In this review, we discuss the experimental evidence that implicates specific tyrosine kinases in signaling pathways promoting chondrocyte hypertrophy, highlighting their potential as therapeutic targets for OA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dry reforming of methane with CO 2 is a common route to transform CO 2 /CH 4 mixtures into added value syngas. Ni based catalysts are highly active for this goal but suffer from deactivation, as such promoters need to be introduced to counteract this, and improve performance. In this study, mono- and bi-metallic formulations based on 10 wt.% Ni/CeO 2 -Al 2 O 3 are explored and compared to a reference 10 wt.% Ni/γ-Al 2 O 3 . The effect of Sn and Pt as promoters of Ni/CeO 2 -Al 2 O 3 was also investigated. The formulation promoted with Sn looked especially promising, showing CO 2 conversions stabilising at 65% after highs of 95%. Its increased performance is attributed to the additional dispersion Sn promotion causes. Changes in the reaction conditions (space velocity and temperature) cement this idea, with the Ni-Sn/CeAl material performing superiorly to the mono-metallic material, showing less deactivation. However, in the long run it is noted that the mono-metallic Ni/CeAl performs better. As such the application is key when deciding which catalyst to employ in the dry reforming process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Española de Medicina Nuclear e Imagen Molecular is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

As-deposited bismuth sulfide thin films prepared by means of a chemical bath deposition were treated with argon AC plasma. In this paper, we present the results on the physical modifications which were observed when a pre-treatment, containing a solution of 1 M sodium hydroxide, was applied to the glass substrates before depositing the bismuth sulfide. The bismuth sulfide thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, UV–VIS, and electrical measurements. The XRD analysis demonstrated an enhancement in the crystalline properties, as well as an increment in the crystal size. The energy band gap value was calculated as 1.60 eV. Changes in photoconductivity (σ p ) values were also observed due to the pre-treatment in NaOH. A value of σ p = 6.2 × 10 − 6 (Ω cm) − 1 was found for samples grown on substrates without pre-treatment, and a value of σ p = 0.28 (Ω cm) − 1 for samples grown on substrates with pre-treatment. Such σ p values are optimal for the improvement of solar cells based on Bi 2 S 3 thin films as absorber material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wheat by-products could be an alternative feedstuff for sustainable pork production. The effects of substitution of soybean meal (SBM) and wheat with increasing inclusion of wheat millrun on diet nutrient digestibility and growth performance of young pigs were evaluated. In total, 160 weaned pigs were fed five pelleted wheat-based diets containing 0, 50, 100, 150 or 200 g wheat millrun/kg in substitution for up to 150 g SBM/kg and 50 g wheat/kg for 3 weeks (day 1–21) starting 2 weeks after weaning at 21 days of age. Diets were balanced for net energy (NE) using canola oil and for amino acids using crystalline amino acids to provide 10.1 MJ NE/kg and 1.05 g standardised ileal digestible (SID) lysine (Lys)/MJ NE. Increasing inclusion of wheat millrun to 200 g/kg linearly reduced ( P < 0.001) diet apparent total tract digestibility coefficient (CATTD) of dry matter by 0.04 and CATTD of gross energy by 0.03, but did not affect CATTD of crude protein. Increasing dietary inclusion of wheat millrun linearly increased ( P < 0.05) the calculated diet NE value by 0.07 MJ/kg indicating that the NE value of wheat millrun was underestimated. Increasing dietary inclusion of wheat millrun did not affect average daily feed intake (ADFI) and average daily gain (ADG) for each week or for the entire trial (day 1–21). Increasing dietary inclusion of wheat millrun linearly increased ( P < 0.05) feed efficiency (G:F) by 0.12 for day 8–14 or by 0.04 for the entire trial. In conclusion, up to 200 g wheat millrun/kg can replace 150 g SBM/kg and 50 g wheat/kg in diets formulated to equal dietary NE value and SID Lys content and fed to nursery pigs starting 2 weeks after weaning without detrimental effects on growth performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Medical Mycology / Journal de Mycologie Médicale is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper proposes an all-pass filter-based true time delay (TTD) element covering a 3–5-GHz ultra-wideband (UWB) frequency. The proposed TTD element designed in a standard 0.18- μ m CMOS technology achieves a tunable delay range of 385–540 ps with 6-ps delay steps and maximum 11% absolute delay error over a 3–5-GHz frequency band. It exhibits an average 3.6–4.6-dB noise figure (NF) within the whole bandwidth. A four-channel beamforming receiver realized by the proposed TTD element is designed and examined in this paper, as well. With the maximum delay of 540 ps and 6-ps average delay resolution, a maximum steering angle of ± 45 ° with 5 ° (18 steps) steering resolution is demonstrated for the beamforming receiver with 2-cm antenna spacing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]