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In this work, the input-output method of dynamic parameters' identification is experimentally tested. A method based on the transformation of a dynamic problem into a static problem by means of integration of the input and output signal was presented. The problem discussed in this article is the identification of the coefficients of stiffness matrices and eigenfrequencies of a discrete dynamic system subjected to kinematic input. The experimental analysis was carried out on a three-storey slab-and-column structure, which constitutes a physical model of a building. The vibrations of the model were excited kinematically by an earthquake simulator. The device has a computer-controlled, movable table top, which can move independently in three directions, that is, horizontally, vertically, and rotationally around the vertical axis.

Objective: To compare regional stiffness of the white line (objective 1) and image-based metrics of damage (objective 2) of control claws and claws subjected to an abrasion simulator mimicking animals abrading their claws against a concrete surface commonly found in feedlots., Methods: Sixteen (n = 16) cadaveric bovine hind limbs were acquired from participating commercial feedlots and separated into different testing groups: lateral claws subjected to an abrasion simulation (n = 8) and control claws manually rasped to the same level of wear found after the abrasion simulation (n = 8). Claws were subjected to indentation testing along the white line to determine regional stiffness (control = 8; abraded = 8) and contrast-enhanced, high-resolution imaging (control = 6; abraded = 6) where mean image intensity was used to characterize damage. Analysis of variance was used to compare regional stiffness and image intensity of the different groups., Results: Lower stiffness of the white line along the apical region was noted in abraded claws versus control claws (P < .019). Higher mean intensity (a measure of damage) was found in abraded claws versus control claws (P < .026)., Conclusions: Study findings indicate that abraded claws exhibited lower stiffness along the apical region of the white line relative to control claws. Also, analyses of contrast-enhanced, high-resolution imaging data suggested that pathways for foreign material to enter the claw may be present following abrasion., Clinical Relevance: These findings support the premise that abrasion may be involved in white line separation and toe tip necrosis pathogenesis. Alternative floorings that minimize abrasion may be beneficial for avoiding toe tip necrosis.

Despite the interest in different temperature acclimatisations of higher plants, few studies have considered the mechanisms that allow psychrotolerant microalgae to live in a cold environment. Although the analysis of the genomes of some algae revealed the presence of specific genes that encode enzymes that can be involved in the response to stress, this area has not been explored deeply. This work aims to clarify the acclimatisation mechanisms that enable the psychrotolerant green alga Coccomyxa subellipsoidea C-169 to grow in a broad temperature spectrum. The contents of various biochemical compounds in cells, the lipid composition of the biological membranes of entire cells, and the thylakoid fraction as well as the electron transport rate and PSII efficiency were investigated. The results demonstrate an acclimatisation mechanism that is specific for C. subellipsoidea and that allows the maintenance of appropriate membrane fluidity, for example, in thylakoid membranes. It is achieved almost exclusively by changes within the unsaturated fatty acid pool, like changes from C18:2 into C18:3 and C16:2 into C16:3 or vice versa. This ensures, for example, an effective transport rate through PSII and in consequence a maximum quantum yield of it in cells growing at different temperatures. Furthermore, reactions characteristic for both psychrotolerant and mesophilic microalgae, involving the accumulation of lipids and soluble sugars in cells at temperatures other than optimal, were observed. These findings add substantially to our understanding of the acclimatisation of psychrotolerant organisms to a wide range of temperatures and prove that this process could be accomplished in a species-specific manner., (© 2023 The Authors. Physiologia Plantarum published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.)

Aim: Visceral obesity is a key risk factor in the development of oesophagogastric junctional adenocarcinoma (OGJ), predominantly via generation of systemic low grade inflammation. Obesity-induced inflammation promotes resistance to current standards of care, enhancing tumour cell growth and survival. This study investigates the effect of the visceral adipose tissue secretome from OGJ patients with early versus advanced tumours on T-cell immunity and the role of immune checkpoint blockade in enhancing anti-tumour immunity., Methods and Results: Visceral adipose conditioned media (ACM) from both early and late-stage OGJ patients significantly altered T cell activation status, upregulating co-stimulatory marker CD27 on T cells. ACM from both early and late-stage OGJ patients significantly altered immune checkpoint expression profiles downregulating immune checkpoints (ICs) on the surface of dual Th1/17-like and Th17-like cells and upregulating ICs on the surface of Th1-like cells and Treg cells. ACM derived from early-stage OGJ patients but not late-stage OGJ patients increased IFN-γ production by T cells. The addition of immune checkpoint blockers (ICBs) did not increase IFN-γ production by T cells in the presence of late-stage ACM, collectively highlighting the dichotomous immunostimulatory effect of early-stage ACM and immune-inhibitory effect of late-stage ACM. Interestingly, ACM from early-stage OGJ patients was more pro-inflammatory than ACM from late-stage patients, reflected by decreased levels of IL-17A/F, TNF-α, IL-1RA and IL-5., Conclusion: The ACM-induced upregulation of ICs on T cells highlights a therapeutic vulnerability that could be exploited by ICBs to harness anti-cancer immunity and improve clinical outcomes for OGJ patients. Schematic workflow - (A) visceral adipose tissue was taken from OAC patients at time of surgery and cultured for 72 h in media. (B) The harvested ACM was co-cultured with healthy donor PBMCs that were concurrently activated with anti-CD3/28 for 48 h and T cell immunophenotyping was carried out by flow cytometry. Key findings - (A) Early and late stage ACM enhanced a Th1-like phenotype and upregulated CTLA-4 on Th1-like cells. A Th17-like phenotype was also enhanced in addition with a Treg-like phenotype. CTLA-4 and PD-L1 were upregulated on the surface of Treg-like cells. (B) ICB-attenuated IL-17 production by T cells. However, ACM attenuated ICB-mediated reduction in IL-10 production by T cells. Higher levels of pro-inflammatory factors were found in early stage ACM compared with late stage ACM., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

The pulsed high power microwave (HPM) technology has been developed worldwide for over 20 years. The sources of HPM pulses are a weapon of mass destruction. They pose danger especially to computer and telecommunications equipment and systems, both the military and civilian ones. This paper presents a survey of literature on electromagnetic wave radiation absorbing and shielding materials to be used in construction. Relevant protective measures should include the shielding of buildings or their parts and the absorption of radiation by building envelopes and their elements. The main focus is on the possibilities of improving the shielding and absorptive properties of common construction materials, such as concrete, mortars and synthetic resins. The survey covers the following groups of materials: carbon-based admixtures, nickel powder, iron powders, ferrites, magnetite and polymers. The final part of the survey is devoted to hybrid foam microwave absorbers in which the shape of the material's inner structure and that of its surface play a special role.

Four gauges (14G, 16G, 18G, 20G) of single use hypodermic needles were evaluated for sharpness by measuring the force required to puncture rehydrated bovine leather. The needles began to dull after 1 use with maximum bluntness occurring within 4 to 5 uses.

The complexes [2-(1H-imidazol-4-yl-kappaN(3))ethylamine-kappaN]bis(tri-tert-butoxysilanethiolato-kappaS)cobalt(II), [Co(C(12)H(27)O(3)SSi)(2)(C(5)H(9)N(3))], and [2-(1H-imidazol-4-yl-kappaN(3))ethylamine-kappaN]bis(tri-tert-butoxysilanethiolato-kappaS)zinc(II), [Zn(C(12)H(27)O(3)SSi)(2)(C(5)H(9)N(3))], are isomorphous. The central Zn(II)/Co(II) ions are surrounded by two S atoms from the tri-tert-butoxysilanethiolate ligand and by two N atoms from the chelating histamine ligand in a distorted tetrahedral geometry, with two intramolecular N-H...O hydrogen-bonding interactions between the histamine NH(2) groups and tert-butoxy O atoms. Molecules of the complexes are joined into dimers via two intermolecular bifurcated N-H...(S,O) hydrogen bonds. The Zn(II) atom in [(1H-imidazol-4-yl-kappaN(3))methanol]bis(tri-tert-butoxysilanethiolato-kappa(2)O,S)zinc(II), [Zn(C(12)H(27)O(3)SSi)(2)(C(4)H(6)N(2)O)], is five-coordinated by two O and two S atoms from the O,S-chelating silanethiolate ligand and by one N atom from (1H-imidazol-4-yl)methanol; the hydroxy group forms an intramolecular hydrogen bond with sulfur. Molecules of this complex pack as zigzag chains linked by N-H...O hydrogen bonds. These structures provide reference details for cysteine- and histidine-ligated metal centers in proteins.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to detect the effects of graded peripheral nerve injury at the spinal level. Graded peripheral nerve injury in rats was accomplished by transection of nerves entering the spinal cord at the L3 and L4 levels of the spinal cord segments. Electrical stimulation of the hindpaw was used to elicit activity within the spinal cord. The stimulation experimental paradigm consisted of 62 functional images, 5 slices each, with a total of 3 rest and 2 stimulation periods. A 9.4 T MRI system and a quadrature volume rf coil covering the lumbar spinal cord were used for the fMRI study. Sets of fast spin echo images were acquired repeatedly following sham preparatory surgery under control conditions and in rats following sham surgery (pre nerve cut), followed by L3 nerve and then L4 nerve section. In rats with sham surgery, there was a significant activation within the dorsal horn of slices corresponding to L3 and L4 spinal cord segments. Following section of the L3 nerve, there was a reduction in the number of active voxels in the L3 and L4 spinal cord segments. The activation was reduced further by sectioning of the L4 nerve. Thus, following an increasing loss of axonal connections to the spinal cord, there was a decreasing number of active voxels within the spinal cord. The results demonstrate that spinal fMRI in the rat has sufficient sensitivity to detect within the spinal cord the effects of a graded reduction in peripheral connectivity.

Magnetic resonance diffusion anisotropy imaging (DAI) of the rat spinal cord after contusion using weight-drop method was used to study the neuroprotecting effect of 2-methyl-6-(phenylethynyl)-pyridine (MPEP), an mGluR5 receptor antagonist. Eighteen rats were used, divided into 3 groups of 6 animals: a reference group without any operation, a control group with injury and a test group with injury and MPEP. DAI was performed at 4.7 T at 1 h, 24 h, 48 h and 7 day after the injury. Locomotor function was evaluated using Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) open field locomotor activity test each day starting one day after the injury. DAI results confirm positive effect of MPEP on the limitation of secondary excitotoxic injury in the spinal cord.

The effects of a single intraperitoneal injection of a non-metabolizable glucose analog 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG, 500 mg/kg) on the levels of beta-APP expression, and phosphorylated and unphosphorylated tau protein in the rat cerebral cortex were investigated. The effects of 2-DG on the ultrastructure of cortical neurons with particular emphasis on the morphology of the Golgi apparatus, and on brain bioenergetics assessed by in vivo 31P-MRS technique were also evaluated. Seven and a half hours after injection of 2-deoxyglucose a significant increase in brain cortex beta-APP expression, increased tau phosphorylation, and a marked relative expansion of the trans- part of the Golgi intracellular secretory pathway in cortical neurons has been found. The changes of beta-APP expression and tau phosphorylation appeared within 1 h after 2-DG application and continued for at least 24 h. However, brain 31P resonance spectra remained unchanged for up to 7.5 h after 2-DG. It is suggested that the increase of beta-APP expression represents a response of brain tissues to 2-DG-evoked biochemical stress, while tau hyperphosphorylation and the change in Golgi morphology may be secondary phenomena.