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Chemotherapy is a powerful means of cancer treatment but its efficacy is compromised by the emergence of multidrug resistance (MDR), mainly linked to the efflux transporter P-glycoprotein (P-gp). Based on the chemical structure of the P-gp reverser betulin identified in our previous work, a series of analogs were designed, synthesized and evaluated as a source of novel inhibitors. Compounds 6g and 6i efficiently inhibited rhodamine 123 efflux in the P-gp overexpressed leukemia cells, Lucena 1, at concentrations of 0.19 and 0.39 µM, respectively, and increased the intracellular accumulation of doxorubicin at the submicromolar concentration of 0.098 µM. Compounds 6g and 6i were able to restore the sensitivity of Lucena 1 to Dox at 0.024 and 0.19 µM, respectively. Structure-activity relationship analysis and molecular modeling revealed important information about the structural features conferring activity. All the active compounds fitted in a specific region involving mainly transmembrane helices (TMH) 4–6 from one homologous half and TMH 7 and 12 from the other, also showing close contacts with TMH 6 and 12. Compounds that bound preferentially to another region were inactive, regardless of their free energy of binding. It should be noted that compounds 6g and 6i were devoid of toxic effects against peripheral blood mononuclear normal cells and erythrocytes. The data obtained indicates that both compounds might be proposed as scaffolds for obtaining promising P-gp inhibitors for overcoming MDR.

A potent nontoxic antitumor drug, 2-hydroxyoleic acid (6, 2OHOA) used for membrane lipid therapy, was selected as a self-assembly inducer due to its ability to form nanoparticles (NPs) in water. For this purpose, it was conjugated with a series of anticancer drugs through a disulfide-containing linker to enhance cell penetration and to secure drug release inside the cell. The antiproliferative evaluation of the synthesized NP formulations against three human tumor cell lines (biphasic mesothelioma MSTO-211H, colorectal adenocarcinoma HT-29, and glioblastoma LN-229) showed that nanoassemblies 16–22a,bNPs exhibit antiproliferative activity at micromolar and submicromolar concentrations. Furthermore, the ability of the disulfide-containing linker to promote cellular effects was confirmed for most nanoformulations. Finally, 17bNP induced intracellular ROS increase in glioblastoma LN-229 cells similarly to free drug 8, and such elevated production was decreased by pretreatment with the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine. Also, nanoformulations 18bNP and 21bNP confirmed the mechanism of action of the free drugs.

Liposomes are amphipathic lipidic supramolecular aggregates that are able to encapsulate and carry molecules of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic nature. They have been widely used as in vivo drug delivery systems for some time because they offer features such as synthetic flexibility, biodegradability, biocompatibility, low immunogenicity, and negligible toxicity. In recent years, the chemical modification of liposomes has paved the way to the development of smart liposome-based drug delivery systems, which are characterized by even more tunable and disease-directed features. In this review, we highlight the different types of chemical modification introduced to date, with a particular focus on internal stimuli-responsive liposomes and prodrug activation.

Dehydroabietic Acid (DHA, 1) derivatives are known for their antiproliferative properties, among others. In the context of this work, DHA was initially modified to two key intermediates bearing a C18 methyl ester, a phenol moiety at C12, and an acetyl or formyl group at C13 position. These derivatives allowed us to synthesize a series of DHA-chalcone hybrids, suitable for structure–activity relationship studies (SARS), following their condensation with a variety of aryl-aldehydes and methyl ketones. The antiproliferative evaluation of the synthesized DHA-chalcone hybrids against three breast cancer cell lines (the estrogen-dependent MCF-7 and the estrogen-independent MDA-MB-231 and Hs578T) showed that eight derivatives (33, 35, 37, 38, 39, 41, 43, 44) exhibit low micromolar activity levels (IC50 2.21–11.5 μΜ/MCF-7). For instance, some of them showed better activity compared to the commercial anticancer drug 5-FU against MCF-7 cells (33, 41, 43, 44) and against MDA-MB231 (33 and 41). Hybrid 38 is a promising lead compound for the treatment of MCF-7 breast cancer, exhibiting comparable activity to 5-FU and being 12.9 times less toxic (SI = 22.7). Thus, our findings suggest that DHA-chalcone hybrids are drug candidates worth pursuing for further development in the search for novel breast cancer therapies.

Spherical energy shells in General Relativity tend to collapse due to gravitational effects and/or due to tension effects. Shell stabilization may be achieved by modifying the gravitational properties of the background spacetime. Thus, gravastars consist of stiff matter shells with an interior deSitter space and an exterior Schwarzshild spacetime whose attractive gravity balances the interior repulsive gravity of the interior deSitter spacetime leading to a stable stiff matter shell. Similar stabilization effects may be achieved by considering rotating shells. Here we study the stability of slowly rotating fluid shells. We show that the angular velocity of the shell has stabilizing properties analogous to the repulsive deSitter gravity of the interior of a gravastar. We thus use the Israel junction conditions and the fluid equation of state of the rotating shell to construct the dynamical equations that determine the evolution of the rotating shell radius. These dynamical equations depend on the parameters of the background spacetime and on the angular velocity of the shell. Assuming a rotating interior and a Schwarzschild exterior spacetime we show that the angular velocity of the shell has interesting stabilizing properties on the evolution of its radius R. Thus rotating matter (or vacuum) shells can imitate black holes while avoiding the presence of a singularity and without the presence of an interior deSitter space., 19 pages, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in International Journal of Modern Physics D (to appear)

Malaria, despite many efforts, remains among the most problematic infectious diseases worldwide, mainly due to the development of drug resistance by Plasmodium falciparum. The antibiotic fosmidomycin (FSM) is also known for its antimalarial activity by targeting the non-mevalonate isoprenoid synthesis pathway, which is essential for the malaria parasites but is absent in mammalians. In this study, we synthesized and evaluated against the chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum FcB1/Colombia strain, a series of FSM analogs, derivatives, and conjugates with other antimalarial agents, such as artemisinin (ART) and aminochloroquinoline (ACQ). The biological evaluation revealed four new compounds with higher antimalarial activity than FSM: two FSM-ACQ derivatives and two FSM-ART conjugates, with 3.5&ndash, 5.4 and 41.5&ndash, 23.1 times more potent activities than FSM, respectively.

Patient selection for critical care admission must balance patient safety with optimal resource allocation. This study aimed to determine the relationship between critical care admission, and postoperative mortality after abdominal surgery.This prespecified secondary analysis of a multicentre, prospective, observational study included consecutive patients enrolled in the DISCOVER study from UK and Republic of Ireland undergoing major gastrointestinal and liver surgery between October and December 2014. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Multivariate logistic regression was used to explore associations between critical care admission (planned and unplanned) and mortality, and inter-centre variation in critical care admission after emergency laparotomy.Of 4529 patients included, 37.8% (n=1713) underwent planned critical care admissions from theatre. Some 3.1% (n=86/2816) admitted to ward-level care subsequently underwent unplanned critical care admission. Overall 30-day mortality was 2.9% (n=133/4519), and the risk-adjusted association between 30-day mortality and critical care admission was higher in unplanned [odds ratio (OR): 8.65, 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.51-19.97) than planned admissions (OR: 2.32, 95% CI: 1.43-3.85). Some 26.7% of patients (n=1210/4529) underwent emergency laparotomies. After adjustment, 49.3% (95% CI: 46.8-51.9%, P0.001) were predicted to have planned critical care admissions, with 7% (n=10/145) of centres outside the 95% CI.After risk adjustment, no 30-day survival benefit was identified for either planned or unplanned postoperative admissions to critical care within this cohort. This likely represents appropriate admission of the highest-risk patients. Planned admissions in selected, intermediate-risk patients may present a strategy to mitigate the risk of unplanned admission. Substantial inter-centre variation exists in planned critical care admissions after emergency laparotomies.

To find alternative compounds against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA), novel derivatives from dehydroabietic acid were synthesized. Methods & results: Compound 12 was the most effective against 15 MRSA and 11 MSSA with minimum inhibitory concentration values ranging from 3.9 to 15.6 μg/ml. Although less active than 12, compound 11, followed by 25 and 13, also exhibited anti-staphylococcal activity. Additional studies showed that compound 12 is devoid of toxic effect on non-target cells. A structure-activity relationship study revealed that an oxime at C-13 together with a hydroxyl at C-12 could play a key role in the activity. Conclusion: These structures, in particular compound 12, could arise as templates for the development of agents against MRSA and MSSA. Fil: Funes Chabán, Macarena. Universidad Católica de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales y Sustentabilidad José Sanchez Labrador S. J. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales y Sustentabilidad José Sanchez Labrador S. J.; Argentina Fil: Antoniou, Antonia I.. University Of Patras. Department Of Chemistry; Grecia Fil: Karagianni, Catherine. University Of Patras. Department Of Chemistry; Grecia Fil: Toumpa, Dimitra. University Of Patras. Department Of Chemistry; Grecia Fil: Joray, Mariana Belén. Universidad Católica de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales y Sustentabilidad José Sanchez Labrador S. J. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales y Sustentabilidad José Sanchez Labrador S. J.; Argentina Fil: Bocco, Jose Luis. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología; Argentina Fil: Sola, Claudia del Valle. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones en Bioquímica Clínica e Inmunología; Argentina Fil: Athanassopoulos, Constantinos. University Of Patras. Department Of Chemistry; Grecia Fil: Carpinella, Maria Cecilia. Universidad Católica de Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales y Sustentabilidad José Sanchez Labrador S. J. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones en Recursos Naturales y Sustentabilidad José Sanchez Labrador S. J.; Argentina

On June 12, 2017, an Mw 6.3 earthquake struck Lesvos Island (Northeastern Aegean, Greece). Building damage was observed in its southeastern part with very heavy structural damage limited in the settlement of Vrissa. Taking into account that Vrissa is located further inland from the epicenter than other settlements with less damage, Vrissa looks like an earthquake impact paradox. For interpreting this paradox, a complete approach for damage assessment in an earthquake-affected area was applied during the first hours of the emergency response phase in order to provide crucial information to civil protection agencies. It comprises integration of building-by-building inspection, use of desktop and web GIS applications, UAV survey and digital post processing, extraction of data and information related to the buildings of the affected area, application of the European Macroseismic Scale 1998 and assignment of macroseismic intensities. Correlation of the all aforementioned data with the geological, geomorphological, geotechnical and seismological properties of the affected area along with its buildings characteristics was followed. This damage scene is attributed to the synergy of the near-field location of Vrissa, recent deposits, geotechnically unstable zones, proximity to active faults, rupture directivity phenomena and vulnerable buildings. The integration of UAV and web GIS applications during a rapid post-earthquake field macroseismic reconnaissance can potentially be considered as a methodological framework that can be applied for similar analysis in other areas affected not only by earthquakes but also by other extreme events that have the potential to cause destructive effects on the natural environment, humans and infrastructures. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd

In the original article, the affiliation number 16 for authors E. Berti and S. Alberti Violetti was incorrect. It originally read: 'Dermatologic Clinic, University of Milano, Milano, Italy' and has now been changed to 'Department of Dermatology, Fondazione Cà Granda, IRCCS,OMP, Milano, Italy'. © The Author(s) 2018. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Activation of minoxidil (MNX) with N,N'-carbonyldiimidazole and coupling with natural polyamines (PAs) and commercially available aliphatic or aromatic amines provided a series of new conjugates which were evaluated for their ability to induce differentiation to HL-60 acute myeloid leukemia cancer cells, using a modified NBTZ reduction test. Although neither MNX nor 4,4'-methylenedianiline (MDA) or 2,7-diaminofluorene (DAF), alone or in combination, had any effect, the MNX-spermine (SPM) conjugate (11) and the conjugates 7 and 8 of MNX with MDA and DAF exhibited a differentiation-inducing effect at a concentration of 10 μM without being toxic on proliferating human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

The Hedgehog pathway has emerged as a favourable target to address drug resistance in cancer stem cells. Inhibitors of Gli1, the terminal effector of the pathway, are anticipated to evade drug resistance and to display fewer side effects than inhibitors targeting Smo. Inspired by the Gli-mediated transcription inhibitor taepeenin D, synthesis and evaluation of a series of second generation analogues has led to the enrichment of available structure–activity relationships for this natural product and has identified an oxazole analogue as an improved lead compound.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the neuroendocrine and inflammation response to laparoscopic total ovariohysterectomy (TOH) in rabbits, by comparing surgical stress markers of laparoscopic group with those of conventional open ovariohysterectomy and open ovariohysterectomy with pre-incisional local anaesthesia groups. Blood was sampled from 18 rabbits, of which six underwent laparoscopic TOH, six conventional open TOH and six conventional open TOH with pre-incisional local anaesthesia, 30 min before induction of anaesthesia (T0), immediately after skin incision (T1), 90 min postoperatively (T2), and 24 h postoperatively (T3). Cortisol and C-reactive protein serum, and adrenocorticothrophic hormone, tumour necrosis factor-a (TNF-a), adrenaline, noradrenaline and IL-6 plasma concentrations were evaluated. Laparoscopic TOH in rabbits has advantages over the open surgical technique because it causes less surgical stress response in terms of serum cortisol concentrations immediately after skin incision (p =.04), as well as plasma adrenaline (p =.035) and TNF-a (p =.047) concentrations 24 h postoperatively.Impact statementWhat is already known on this subject? Hysterectomy is the second most common surgery performed on women after caesarean section. Research has focussed on methods to modify the stress response associated with surgery. Various studies both in humans and animals, have demonstrated the less systemic, immunological and neurohormonal response of the laparoscopic technique, which is expressed by less elevated serum enzymes’ and proteins’ concentrations. However, other studies have documented that the systemic stress response after open hysterectomy is similar to that following laparoscopic surgery. What do the results of this study add? Laparoscopic total ovariohysterectomy in rabbits has advantages over the open surgical technique because it causes less surgical stress response in terms of serum cortisol concentrations, as well as plasma adrenaline and TNF-a concentrations during the first 24 h postoperatively. What are the implications are of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? There were no significant differences between the groups in number of surgical stress markers (p >.05) perioperatively. We cannot exclude the possibility that a later increase of surgical stress response might take place after the first 24 h postoperatively. © 2018, © 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Introduction: Hypothermic circulatory arrest is widely used for correction of acute type A aortic dissection pathology. We present our experience of 45 consecutive patients operated in our unit with bilateral antegrade cerebral perfusion and moderate hypothermic circulatory arrest. Methods: Between January 2011 and April 2015, 45 consecutive patients were admitted for acute type A aortic dissection and operated emergently under moderate hypothermic circulatory arrest and bilateral antegrade cerebral perfusion. Results: Mean age was 58±11.4 years old. Median circulatory arrest time was 41.5 (30-54) minutes while the 30-day mortality and postoperative permanent neurological deficits rates were 6.7% and 13.3%, respectively. Unadjusted analysis revealed that the factors associated with 30-day mortality were: preoperative hemodynamic instability (OR: 14.8, 95% CI: 2.41, 90.6, P=0.004); and postoperative requirement for open sternum management (OR: 5.0, 95% CI: 1.041, 24.02, P=0.044) while preoperative hemodynamic instability (OR: 8.8, 95% CI: 1.41, 54.9, P=0.02) and postoperative sepsis or multiple organ dysfunction (OR: 13.6, 95% CI: 2.1, 89.9, P=0.007) were correlated with neurological dysfunction. By multivariable logistic regression analysis, postoperative sepsis and multiple organ dysfunction independently predicted (OR: 15.9, 95% CI: 1.05, 96.4, P=0.045) the incidence of severe postoperative neurological complication. During median follow-up of 6 (2-12) months, the survival rate was 86.7%. Conclusion: Bilateral antegrade cerebral perfusion and direct carotid perfusion for cardiopulmonary bypass, in the surgical treatment for correction of acute aortic dissection type A, is a valuable technique with low 30-day mortality rate. However, postoperative severe neurological dysfunctions remain an issue that warrants further research. © 2018, Sociedade Brasileira de Cirurgia Cardiovascular. All rights reserved.

This work comprises a systematic experimental investigation of the effect of gel electrolytes in the properties of partly covered photoelectrochromic devices. A series of gel electrolytes was fabricated with different concentrations of poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, (Mw 120.000), ranging from 0% w/w to 45% w/w, dissolved in acetonitrile with 0.5 M lithium iodide, 0.005 M iodine and 0.5 M 4-tert-butylpyridine. The ionic conductivity of the electrolytes was in the order of 10−5 S/cm, decreasing with increasing PMMA concentration. These electrolytes were incorporated in partly covered photoelectrochromic devices. It was found that with increasing PMMA concentration, the power conversion efficiency of the incorporated solar cells decreases (from 1.7% to 0.5%), mostly due to the reduction of the short-circuit current. Regarding coloration kinetics, the photocoloration efficiency, PhCE of the devices was nearly constant up to 35% w/w concentration of PMMA, decreasing with further increase in the PMMA concentration. Of the electrolytes tested, that with 35% w/w concentration of PMMA was favored as it leads to devices with satisfactory electrical and optical characteristics. The long-term stability of devices with the aforementioned electrolyte was tested. A gradual decrease of the coloration depth with storage time was observed, due to losses at the WO3/electrolyte interface. A 35 nm thin ZnS barrier on top of WO3 suppressed these losses, leading to a stabilized contrast ratio of 2.1:1, 137 days post fabrication. Devices exposed to insolation in open-circuit and in short-circuit conditions remained operational for more than 200 days, without the stability problems related to liquid electrolytes.

A novel synthetic route to the chemoselectively protected N,S-ditritylglutathione monomethyl ester is described involving the chemical modification of the commercially available glutathione (GSH). The synthetic value of this building block in the facile preparation of GSH bioconjugates in a satisfying overall yield was exemplified by the case of trypanothione disulfide (TS2), a GSH-spermidine bioconjugate, involved in the antioxidative stress protection system of parasitic protozoa, such as trypanosoma and leishmania parasites.

Continuous developments and advances in membrane technology allow recovering to large extent reusable water from untraditional water sources, such as municipal effluents. In this paper, operational results and preliminary cost-analysis of a microfiltration (MF) process used for raw sewage and secondary effluent polishing are given. The research was conducted with a 22 sandwich-type flat-sheet membrane module (0.45 μm and 4.5 m2) employing aeration for fouling control. During raw sewage filtration the majority of the organics were retained (effluent COD < 90 mg/L and SS ∼ 0 mg/L). However, the fluxes were significantly lower [∼7 L/(m2 h)] compared to those achieved during secondary effluent filtration [∼29 L/(m2 h)] (at TMP 0.14 bar). In the second case, aeration was found to be suitable mean for fouling control. The total costs (capital and operational) for water recovery from raw sewage and secondary effluent were estimated to be in the order of 2 and 0.75 €/m3 respectively.

Hippocratic Oath indicates a prevailing ethos rather than a professional approach, and it is still regarded as the cornerstone and foundation of the medical profession. Medicine in Ancient Greece was strongly influenced by the values of classical philosophy as introduced by its main representatives: Plato and Aristotle. Hippocrates himself has been recognized not only as a pioneering physician, but also as an outstanding philosopher. In his writings, he claimed that "the physician must insert wisdom in medicine" and denounced the technocratic aspect of the medical profession. The Hippocratic Oath constitutes a synopsis of the moral code of Ancient Greek medicine and contributes to the stabilization of the tri-part relationship among the physician, the patient, and the illness, as described by Hippocrates. The harmony of this interactive triangle has been deranged by several factors, such as technological evolution, public media, and cost-effective modalities with multiple consequences. In these terms, the reevaluation of the Hippocratic Oath and its time-enduring messages seems essential to reinstate the relationship between the physician and the patient under a new philosophico-medical prism.

The snake has served as a medical emblem for more than 2400 years, since its association with the ancient Greek god of medicine and healing, Asclepius, in the 4th century BC. Its symbolic background can be traced further back to the worship of gods of earth's blossom in ancient Egypt and earth-related deities of the archaic period of Greek antiquity. It is featured entwined around a staff of knowledge and wisdom in most anaglyphs depicting Asclepius. The snake was impressed in the Old and the New Testament as well as in the Christian tradition as a symbol of sin, rejuvenation, death, resurrection, asthenia, and therapy. It is postulated that the double-snake motif was reintroduced by Renaissance philosophers as a medical emblem due to the symbolic connections of Hermes with deliverance and redemption. However, its use during the last two centuries seems to lack substantial historical background. The historical, mythological, and traditional retrospection of the snake's symbolism validates its appropriateness in the health-care field.

Power curve measurements are encumbered with large uncertainty as wind measurements take place only at hub height. The wind profile over the turbine rotor is an expression of the kinetic energy available to the wind turbine and the evolution of large rotors prohibits the assumption that the hub height wind speed is representative of the wind speed over the whole rotor. Even in the case where measurements cover the lower half of the turbine rotor and extrapolations are attempted, the uncertainties remain considerable. We argue for that the measurement of the wind speed over the whole rotor height should be the future preferred approach. Such a measurement will minimize the uncertainty in estimating the wind potential of a site and the uncertainty in the power curve measurement method and the AEP calculation of wind turbines. To document this, we present wind speed and power curve results from wind and power measurement campaigns, one in flat terrain suffering an energy deficit and one in complex terrain presenting a surplus. Common for both is the inadequacy of the hub height wind speed measurement to describe the energy contents of the flow. In the flat terrain campaign we use one-year period of data in order to study the wind shear profiles at heights which correspond to an assumed rotor area of a modern multi-MW turbine. The energy flux through the “turbine rotor” is seen to be subject to seasonal variations caused by differences in atmospheric stability which influence the shear profile shape. Considerable deviations occur relative to the flux measured when only the cup anemometer at hub height is used. In the complex terrain campaign, a wind turbine power curve has been measured for a period of eight months in a Midwest (US) site following a site calibration. Wind shear measurements over the lower rotor part were taken throughout this period at three heights (hub, lower tip and midway between the two). Considerable wind shear during nights and well-mixed profiles during days were observed. Large differences in the power curve and the AEP between day and night periods were observed, the power curve and the AEP being better during the night. The data analysis was combined with in-house aeroelastic simulations, over a wide range of wind shear and turbulence intensities values, in order to verify the analysis findings. The combined simulations and data analysis results made it clear that the upper turbine rotor part was influenced by the presence of a low level jet during nighttime. This caused considerable deviations from the expected power curve and AEP, which were not detected either by the site calibration or the lower rotor part rotor speed measurements. We conclude the paper by presenting results from combined cup and LIDAR power curve measurements, and suggest a method which compensates for the wind shear influence on the power curve.

To identify the influence of wind shear and turbulence on wind turbine performance, flat terrain wind profiles are analysed up to a height of 160 m. The profiles' shapes are found to extend from no shear to high wind shear, and on many occasions, local maxima within the profiles are also observed. Assuming a certain turbine hub height, the profiles with hub-height wind speeds between 6 m s−1 and 8 m s−1 are normalized at 7 m s−1 and grouped to a number of mean shear profiles. The energy in the profiles varies considerably for the same hub-height wind speed. These profiles are then used as input to a Blade Element Momentum model that simulates the Siemens 3.6 MW wind turbine. The analysis is carried out as time series simulations where the electrical power is the primary characterization parameter. The results of the simulations indicate that wind speed measurements at different heights over the swept rotor area would allow the determination of the electrical power as a function of an ‘equivalent wind speed’ where wind shear and turbulence intensity are taken into account. Electrical power is found to correlate significantly better to the equivalent wind speed than to the single point hub-height wind speed. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The advantages and limitations of the ZephIR®, a continuous-wave, focused light detection and ranging (LiDAR) wind profiler, to observe offshore winds and turbulence characteristics were tested during a 6 month campaign at the transformer/platform of Horns Rev, the world's largest wind farm. The LiDAR system is a ground-based sensing technique which avoids the use of high and costly meteorological masts. Three different inflow conditions were selected to perform LiDAR wind profiling. Comparisons of LiDAR mean wind speeds against cup anemometers from different masts showed high correlations for the open sea sectors and good agreement with their longitudinal turbulence characteristics. Cup anemometer mean wind speed profiles were extended with LiDAR profiles up to 161 m on each inflow sector. The extension resulted in a good profile match for the three surrounding masts. These extended profiles, averaged over all observed stabilities and surface roughness lengths, were compared to the logarithmic profile. The observed deviations were relatively small. Offshore wind farm wakes were also observed from LiDAR measurements where the wind speed deficits were detected at all LiDAR heights. Profile-derived friction velocities and roughness lengths were compared to Charnock's sea roughness model. These average values were found to be close to the model, although the scatter of the individual estimations of sea roughness length was large. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Although hybrid-electric vehicles have been studied mainly with the aim of increasing fuel economy, little has been done in order to improve both fuel economy and performance. However, vehicular-dynamic-performance characteristics such as acceleration and climbing ability are of prime importance in military vehicles such as the high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle (HMMWV). This paper concentrates on the models that describe hybridized HMMWV vehicles and the simulation results of those models. Parallel and series configurations have been modeled using the advanced-vehicle-simulator software developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Both a retrofit approach and a constant-power approach have been tested, and the results are compared to the conventional model results. In addition, the effects of using smaller engines than the existing ones in hybrid HMMWV drive trains have been studied, and the results are compared to the data collected from an actual implementation of such a vehicle. Moreover, the integrated-starter/alternator (ISA) configuration has been considered, and the results were encouraging

We investigated the factors implicated in the pathogenesis of anastomotic aneurysm formation and the postoperative course of patients with such a complication. Forty-five patients with 49 anastomotic aneurysms were diagnosed and treated in two vascular surgery departments in Athens, Greece, during an 8-year period. Emergent complications occurred in 15 cases, rupture in 11, and thromboembolic episodes in another four. Preoperative diagnostic workup in the remaining elective cases (n = 34) included color duplex scan, computed tomographic scan, and angiography. All patients underwent operation, and cultures were obtained during the surgical procedures. Histological examination of the host artery wall adjacent to the aneurysm was also performed. Aortobifemoral bypass was the original operation performed in the majority of cases (71%), and the femoral anastomosis was the most frequent site involved (85.7%). Emergent procedures were associated with increased mortality (46.6%), whereas elective operation resulted in high patency rates and no mortality. In an attempt to isolate predisposing factors that contributed to aneurysm formation, we concluded that the etiology was multifactorial in approximately one-third of the cases and degenerative host artery disease was the main cause (40%). Arterial degeneration is the leading cause of anastomotic aneurysm formation, and emergency arterial reconstruction in cases of aneurysm complication is associated with a poor prognosis.

Modern methods of drug discovery and development in recent years make a wide use of computational algorithms. These methods utilise Virtual Screening (VS), which is the computational counterpart of experimental screening. In this manner the in silico models and tools initial replace the wet lab methods saving time and resources. This paper presents the overall design and implementation of a web based scientific workflow system for virtual screening called, the Life Sciences Informatics (LiSIs) platform. The LiSIs platform consists of the following layers: the input layer covering the data file input; the pre-processing layer covering the descriptors calculation, and the docking preparation components; the processing layer covering the attribute filtering, compound similarity, substructure matching, docking prediction, predictive modelling and molecular clustering; post-processing layer covering the output reformatting and binary file merging components; output layer covering the storage component. The potential of LiSIs platform has been demonstrated through two case studies designed to illustrate the preparation of tools for the identification of promising chemical structures. The first case study involved the development of a Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship (QSAR) model on a literature dataset while the second case study implemented a docking-based virtual screening experiment. Our results show that VS workflows utilizing docking, predictive models and other in silico tools as implemented in the LiSIs platform can identify compounds in line with expert expectations. We anticipate that the deployment of LiSIs, as currently implemented and available for use, can enable drug discovery researchers to more easily use state of the art computational techniques in their search for promising chemical compounds. The LiSIs platform is freely accessible (i) under the GRANATUM platform at: http://www.granatum.org and (ii) directly at: http://lisis.cs.ucy.ac.cy. © 2015 Bentham Science Publishers.

We extend the concept of implementability of semigroups of evolution operators associated with dynamical systems to quantum case. We show that such an extension can be properly formulated in terms of Jordan morphisms and isometries on non-commutative Lp spaces. We focus our attention on a non-commutative analog of the Banach-Lamperti theorem.

The lack of accurate methods for assessment of the productive capacity of wind power plants is becoming a bottleneck in an increasingly commercialized wind power industry. In this article the inherent components of performance assessment are identified and analysed and ways of minimizing uncertainties on the components are investigated. The main components are identified as ‘site calibration’, ‘wind turbine sensitivity to flow variables’, ‘plant blockage effects’ and ‘uncertainty analysis’. Site calibration is the action of estimating the flow variables at the wind turbine position from measurements of these quantities at another (reference) position. The purpose of sensitivity analysis is to clarify which and how flow variables influence power output. Plant blockage effects refer to the power plant's influence on the reference measurements of flow variables. Finally, the component uncertainties and in turn the integrated uncertainty on the average productive capacity of the wind power plant are investigated. It is found that uncertainties can be reduced (1) by including several more flow variables in addition to hub-height wind speed, (2) by carrying out site calibration with utmost care and by inclusion of more variables, (3) by taking plant blockage into consideration, (4) by aiming at ‘plant-average’ power instead of looking only at individual machines and, possibly, (5) by introduction of remote-sensing anemometer techniques. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.