D0 Values Research Articles

Prognozowanie procesu emisji wodoru z obudowy turbogeneratora z powstawaniem palnych mieszanin wodorowo-powietrznych i spalaniem pochodni

Predicting the process of hydrogen emission from the turbogenerator housing with the formation of flammable hydrogen-air mixtures and flare combustion The operation of turbogenerators of nuclear and thermal power plants is accompanied by the release of heat, which contributes to the heating of generator components and can lead to an emergency situation (fire). Since As turbogenerators operate for long periods of time, the process of continuous cooling of generator equipment plays an important role, as its overheating can lead to emergency chain reactions, fires, explosions, etc. Analysis of statistical data on the occurrence of emergency situations (fires) related to hydrogen leaks from process equipment indicates insufficient operational qualifications of operational personnel, poor quality of equipment repair, errors of repair personnel and their violation of technical requirements for repairing equipment and their systems, design defects in equipment and systems that ensure its operation. It has been established that the causes of emergency situations are: hydrogen leakage due to leaks in equipment, spontaneous ignition of hydrogen, the presence of air space in turbogenerator equipment, violation of technological regulations, contamination of hydrogen with moisture and pollution, unhermetization of the generator body. Modeling of the hydrogen combustion process during its release from the casing of a turbine-generator was carried out using the example of a power plant engine room. The study showed that the longest hydrogen combustion time will occur when hydrogen is released through holes with geometric size d0 in the range of 0.05--0.1 m (50--100 mm). At larger values of the geometric size of the hole d0 > 0.1 m, the hydrogen burning time is insignificant, and at values of d0 < 0.005 m, the length of the flame burner L does not exceed 1.15 m. The results of the study confirm that hydrogen flame torch combustion can occur as a result of turbogenerator failure. The calculations established the need for fire protection of the supporting metal structures of the engine room to ensure a fire resistance limit of at least 45 minutes under the hydrocarbon curve.

Oyster mushroom drying in tray dryer: Parameter optimization using response surface methodology, drying kinetics, and characterization

In this study, the drying of oyster mushrooms (P. ostreatus) in a tray dryer was optimized. The parameters used to optimize the drying process were drying temperature, airspeed, mass loading, and moisture content. Its drying kinetics were investigated at the optimum drying parameters. A quadratic equation was obtained to predict the moisture content of mushrooms at the given drying temperature, airspeed, and mass loading, and it was validated against experimental results. A minimum moisture content (9.99 wt%) was obtained at the optimum conditions of 60 °C, 3 m/s airspeed, and mass loading of 200 g using a tray dryer. Proximate analysis, shelf-life analysis, inorganic elemental analysis, and functional group analysis were done as a characterization method for mushrooms after drying at the optimum drying conditions. About 27.8 wt% protein and 50.2 wt% carbohydrates were found in proximate results. Besides, potassium and sodium were the dominant elements as estimated by spectrophotometry analysis. The induction period (IP) of dried mushrooms at room temperature is 3520:47 (hour: minute) from the oxidation stability analysis, and the water activity of dried mushrooms was found to be 0.36. The drying kinetics of oyster mushrooms were studied at various temperatures (50–75 °C), optimum airspeed (3 m/s), and mass loading (200 g). The best-fit model describing the mushrooms drying kinetics was found to be Midilli et al., with the lowest RMSE (0.008749), X2 (0.0014), and the highest R2(0.9993) values. The kinetic triplet activation energy, effective diffusivity, and diffusivity constant (Ea, Deff, D0) for oyster mushrooms drying were determined and found to lay in the general range for foodstuffs. The value of Deff results lies within the range of 10−8 to 10−12 m2/s, with Ea of 15.32 kJ/mol and D0 value 2.263 × 10−6 m2/s.

D-dimer as a Predictive Biomarker of Response to Chemotherapy in Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer.

Tumor-induced coagulation is widely observed in cancer patients. Moreover, it is associated with tumorigenesis, tumor progression and metastasis, by creating a proliferative and proangiogenic microenvironment. Therefore, D-dimer, a fibrin degradation product, correlates with tumor prognosis in several cancer types. This study aims to investigate whether D-dimer levels can be a predictive and monitoring indicator for chemotherapy response in metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients. This was a prospective study. This study included two groups, 76 patients diagnosed with metastatic breast carcinoma and 25 patients with primary breast carcinoma. Plasma D-dimer levels were measured prospectively before chemotherapy initiation, and after the fourth treatment cycle in MBC patients. D-dimer levels before chemotherapy (D0) were analyzed using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves to determine the optimal cut-off baseline values of D0, and to evaluate their discriminatory abilities in predicting response to chemotherapy. In the preliminary response evaluation, the mean level of D-dimer significantly decreased by 0.65 μg/ml in patients with partial response patterns, and by 0.5 μg/ml in patients with stable disease. In the disease progression group, a marked increase was seen in D-dimer levels by 1.2 μg/ml. Analysis of ROC curves showed that D-dimer levels at D0 could discriminate the response to chemotherapy, whereas progressive disease rate correlated with higher levels of D-dimer. D-dimer level in plasma is a useful predictive and monitoring marker of response to chemotherapy in metastatic breast cancer.

Dosimetric comparison of postoperative interstitial high-dose-rate brachytherapy and modern external beam radiotherapy modalities in tongue and floor of the mouth tumours in terms of doses to critical organs.

The aim of the study was to dosimetrically compare interstitial high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy (BT) and modern external beam radiotherapy modalities, as volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) and stereotactic radiotherapy with Cyberknife (CK) of tumours of the tongue and floor of the mouth in terms of dose to the critical organs. In National Institute of Oncology, Budapest, between March 2013 and August 2022 twenty patients (11 male/9 female) with stage T1-3N0M0 tongue (n = 14) and floor of mouth (n = 6) tumours received postoperative radiotherapy because of close/positive surgical margin and/or lymphovascular and/or perineural invasion. High-dose-rate interstitial brachytherapy applying flexible plastic catheters with a total dose of 15 × 3 Gy was used for treatment. In addition to BT plans VMAT and stereotactic CK plans were also made in all cases, using the same fractionation scheme and dose prescription. As for the organs at risk, the doses to the mandible, the ipsilateral and the contralateral salivary glands were compared. The mean volume of the planning target volume (PTV) was 12.5 cm3, 26.5 cm3 and 17.5 cm3 in BT, VMAT and CK techniques, respectively, due to different safety margin protocols. The dose to the mandible was the most favourable with BT, as for the salivary glands (parotid and submandibular) the CK technique resulted in the lowest dose. The highest dose to the critical organs was observed with the VMAT technique. The mean values of D2cm3 and D0.1cm3 for the critical organs were as follows for BT, VMAT and CK plans: 47.4% and 73.9%, 92.2% and 101.8%, 68.4% and 92.3% for the mandible, 4.8% and 6.7%, 7.3% and 13.8%, 2.3% and 5.1% for the ipsilateral parotid gland, 3.5% and 4.9%, 6.8% and 10.9%, 1.5% and 3.3% for the contralateral parotid gland, 7.3% and 9.4%, 9.0% and 14.3%, 3.6% and 5.6% for the contralateral submandibular gland. The present results confirm that BT, despite being an invasive technique, is dosimetrically clearly beneficial in the treatment of oral cavity tumours and is a modality worth considering when applying radiotherapy, not only as definitive treatment, but also postoperatively. The use of the CK in the head and neck region requires further investigation.

Development and Optimization of Enzalutamide Nanosuspension by Design of Experiments for Dissolution Enhancement

Enzalutamide is an anticancer molecule used for prostate cancer. The goal of the study was to develop a nanosuspension of enzalutamide in order to improve its solubility and dissolution properties. High-speed homogenization method was employed to formulate the nanosuspension. Preliminary studies suggested the amount of stabilizer, homogenization time and homogenization speed as critical variables to be taken for the optimization process. Box-Behnken design was employed for the optimization of process and formulation variables. Nanosuspension was evaluated for particle size, PDI, zeta potential, and in-vitro drug release at 10 minutes (D10) studies. Regression analysis suggested the influence of independent variables on the responses. The optimized batch obtained from the overlay plot exhibited 198.36 nm of particle size, (-33.27 mV of zeta potential and 80.47% of D10 values). The characterization studies i.e., DSC, and XRD illustrated retention in crystallinity of the drug. The drug and formulation were found to be stable over a 6-month period in accelerated stability testing. Using high speed homogenization method, the particle size of the formulation was reduced to nano-size, which was further responsible for the improvement in dissolution and bioavailability of the drug.

Coefficient of permeability prediction of soils using gene expression programming

The coefficient of permeability is the most important parameter for characterizing the permeability characteristics of soil. In this study, a database of the coefficient of permeability (k) for soils was compiled firstly, including effective size (d10), mean grain size (d50), the particle diameters at the cumulative percent content of 60% (d60) and void ratio (e), which can reflect the impact of the particle size distribution characteristics. Gene expression programming (GEP), was employed to develop a predictive equation of k, which is convenient for engineering application. The GEP model was compared with eight empirical models and other artificial intelligence models (i.e., random forest (RF) and group method of data handling (GMDH)). The results show that the GEP model and RF model have the highest accuracy, followed by GMDH model and empirical models. Then, the sensitivity analysis was conducted. According to the results, k increases with increasing d10, d50 and e; the effective size d10 has the largest influence on k, followed by d50 and e, which indicates that fine particle content has the control effect on seepage and the effect of soil gradation parameters on k is greater than that of void ratio. Additionally, the SHAP and PDP analysis were conducted to investigate the feature importance and conditional expectation of each feature. The feature importance order is d10 > d50 > e > d60, and the SHAP values of d10, d50 and e increase with the increase of them, while the SHAP value of d60 is basically unchanged.

Modeling the γ-irradiation inactivation kinetics of foodborne pathogens Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus in instant soup.

The objective of the present study was to assess the inactivation kinetics of γ-irradiation of selected foodborne pathogens in instant soup. Escherichia coli O157:H7 (ATCC 25922), Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Enteritidis (ATCC 13076), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 2592), and Bacillus cereus (ATCC 11778) were inoculated into instant soup and irradiated at various doses of 0 (control), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, and 10.0 kGy using 60Co source. The radiation response of these four major foodborne disease pathogens in instant soup was tested. As expected, the pathogen population decreased with increasing irradiation dose. By comparing bacterial resistance in instant soups according to D10 values, E coli O157: H7 was the most radio-resistant bacteria (D10 of 1.580 kGy), followed by Salmonella (D10 of 1.160 kGy), S aureus (D10 of 0.775 kGy), B cereus (D10 of 0.462 kGy). For modeling of inactivation kinetics, both, the conventional first-order linear model and Weibull model were compared and the goodness of fit of these models was investigated. Weibull model produced a better fit to the data. This research has shown that γ-irradiation was effective to eliminate pathogens in instant soup and it can be a great way to assure the microbiological safety of the instant soup.

Seasonal variation of microphysical characteristics for different rainfall types in the Tianshan Mountains of China

Three-year (2020−2022) raindrop size distribution (DSD) measurements from a second-generation PARSIVEL disdrometer deployed at Zhaosu, which is located in the Tianshan Mountains of China, are analyzed to investigate the seasonal variability of microphysical characteristics of two types of rainfall. Rainfall at Zhaosu is classified as stratiform rainfall and convective rainfall in the normalized intercept parameter–median volume diameter (log10Nw–D0) and log10Nw–mass-weighted mean diameter (log10Nw–Dm) spaces, respectively. Both stratiform rainfall and convective rainfall samples in the log10Nw–D0 space are more than three times those in the log10Nw–Dm space, accompanied by smaller mean rainfall rate (R). Rainfall in summer (spring) has the lowest (highest) concentration of small-size raindrops, while rainfall in fall (summer) has the lowest (highest) concentration of mid- and large-size raindrops, accompanied by the largest (smallest) mean Dm and D0 values and the smallest (largest) mean log10Nw values in summer (spring). Convective rainfall exhibits more significant seasonal variation in microphysical parameters and DSD than stratiform rainfall, whether in the log10Nw–D0 space or the log10Nw–Dm space. The convective rainfall in spring is more like maritime cluster, whereas that in summer is more like continental cluster in the log10Nw–Dm space. Furthermore, in the log10Nw–D0 and log10Nw–Dm spaces, localized relationships of radar reflectivity factor – R (Z–R) and shape parameter – slope parameter (μ–∧) are derived across seasons for different rainfall types. The results indicate that there are significant seasonal variations in the microphysical characteristics of rainfall in the Tianshan Mountains of China for the two rainfall types. This study further emphasizes that different classification schemes for rainfall types can lead to significant differences in the characteristics of DSD, Z–R, and μ–∧ relationships for different rainfall types.

Complexity, Diversity, Homogeneity and Topology Measures Re-Define Biological Tumor Aggressiveness as a Function of Intercellular Connectivity

Similarity between patterns of cellular self-organization in primary tumor and in its normal counterpart underlies the concept of biological tumor aggressiveness. That subjective parameter is supposed to correlate with both dynamics of local tumor growth and the risk of progression. Subjective evaluation during the microscopic examination is inaccurate. The co-application of fractal geometry and algebraic topology offers a novel perspective. A set of prostate carcinomas comprising all patterns of self-organization was classified according to complexity and entropy to investigate how complexity relates to topology of the patterns. Prostate carcinomas evolve from order to disorder along the increasing entropy as many physical dynamic complex systems do. Carcinomas can be classified into the classes of complexity equivalence according to both the values of the global fractal dimensions D0 or D1 and the Shannon entropy H. Topological measures, such as the bottleneck distance or the Wasserstein distance reveal different topology in very low- and low-aggressive prostate carcinomas (class C1, C2, C3) in comparison with high-aggressive carcinomas (class C6, C7). This is contingent on the appearance of infiltrating cancer cells. While the persistent homology entropy Hph remains similar in all classes, the persistent barcode entropy Hpb is significantly decreased in class C1 and increased in class C7 in comparison with the other ones. Patterns of self-organization can now be defined according to changes in intercellular connectivity by the set of complexity, diversity, homogeneity, and topology measures.

Abstract P3125: Big Data Evaluation Of Cardiac Remodeling Trajectories After Myocardial Infarction In Male And Female Mice

Female mice display higher survival rates by day (D) 7 after myocardial infarction (MI) compared to their male counterparts. We used big data analysis of the mouse Heart Attack Research Tool (mHART) 2.0 database to identify sex similarities and differences in cardiac wound healing after MI. The database includes echocardiogram and necropsy analysis from n=1,746 (1,146M and 600F) C57BL/6J wild-type adult mice (age 2-9 months). The extent of cardiac dilation over the first week after MI (calculated as fold-change of average D0 value) was parallel in males and females on all days except MI D5. At D5, males displayed 22% higher end systolic volume and 17% higher end diastolic volume than females (both p<0.0001). D5 infarct size did not explain the dilation or survival differences (53±1% in males and 50±2% in females, p>0.99). Analysis of extracellular matrix (ECM) gene expression data for 84 ECM genes (by Qiagen array) from no MI D0 left ventricle (n=40, 24M/16F) and MI D5 (n=28, 21M/7F) infarct tissue revealed molecular signaling differences by sex. Compared to D0, MI D5 showed 70 ECM genes differentially expressed (all p<0.05). MI D5 showed 38 genes differentially expressed by sex (all p<0.05 by t-test), of which 20 were higher and 18 were lower in males. The top 3 genes ranked by variable important scores were Timp3, Col4a2, and Mmp7 , and all were increased in males. The most enriched pathway represented was focal adhesion in males and matrix metalloproteinases in females. Focal adhesion was enriched in both males and females at MI D5, albeit through upregulation of different gene profiles; Itgb1, Col3a1, Col4a1/2 in males and Lamb3, Lama1, and Itgax in females. Overall, our results indicate that male and female mice show unique cardiac remodeling trajectories with notable divergence at D5, leading to higher early survival.

Relative Biological Effectiveness (RBE) of [64Cu]Cu and [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F (ab')2 radioimmunotherapeutic agents vs. γ-radiation for decreasing the clonogenic survival in vitro of human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells

IntroductionOur objective was to compare [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab')2 and [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab')2 radioimmunotherapy (RIT) agents for decreasing the clonogenic survival fraction (SF) in vitro of EGFR-positive human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cell lines and estimate the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) vs. γ-radiation (XRT). MethodsEGFR-positive PDAC cell lines (AsPC-1, PANC-1, MIAPaCa-2, Capan-1) and EGFR-knockout PANC-1 EGFR KO cells were treated in vitro for 18 h with (0–19.65 MBq; 72 nmols/L) of [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 or [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 or XRT (0–8 Gy) followed by clonogenic assay. The SF was determined after culturing single treated cells for 14 d. Cell fractionation studies were performed for cells incubated with 1 MBq (72 nmols/L) of [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 or [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 for 1, 4, or 24 h to estimate the time-integrated activity (Ã) on the cell surface, cytoplasm, nucleus and medium. Radiation absorbed doses in the nucleus were calculated by multiplying à by S-factors calculated by Monte Carlo N Particle (MCNP) modeling using monolayer cell culture geometry. The SF of PDAC cells was plotted vs. dose and fitted to a linear quadratic model to estimate the dose required to decrease the SF to 0.1 (D10). The D10 for RIT agents were compared to XRT to estimate the RBE. DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) caused by [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 or [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 continuous exposure for 5 h or 20 h were probed by immunofluorescence for γ-H2AX. Relative EGFR expression of PDAC cells was assessed by flow cytometry (scored + to +++) and cell doubling times for untreated cells were determined. ResultsThe D10 for [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 ranged from 9.1 Gy (PANC-1) to 39.9 Gy (Capan-1). The D10 for [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 ranged from 11.7 Gy (AsPC-1) to 170.8 Gy (Capan-1). The D10 for XRT ranged from 2.5 Gy (Capan-1) to 6.7 Gy (PANC-1 EGFR KO). D10 values were not correlated with EGFR expression over a relatively narrow range (++ to +++) or with cell doubling times. Based on D10 values, PANC-1 EGFR KO cells were 1.6-fold less sensitive than PANC-1 cells to [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 and 1.9-fold less sensitive to [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2. The RBE for [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 ranged from 0.06 for Capan-1 cells to 0.45 for PANC-1 cells. The RBE for [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 ranged from 0.015 for Capan-1 cells to 0.28 for AsPC-1 cells. DNA DSBs were detected in PDAC cells exposed to [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 or [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 but were not correlated with the SF of the cells. ConclusionsWe conclude that at the same dose delivered to the cell nucleus [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 and [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 were less radiobiologically effective than XRT for decreasing the SF of human PDAC cells, but [64Cu]Cu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 was more cytotoxic than [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2 except for AsPC-1 cells which were more sensitive to [177Lu]Lu-NOTA-panitumumab F(ab′)2. Advances in knowledge and implications for patient careThis study demonstrates that higher radiation doses may be required for RIT than XRT to achieve radiobiologically equivalent effects when used to treat PDAC.

TMT-based quantitative proteomic and scanning electron microscopy reveals biological and morphological changes of Staphylococcus aureus irradiated by electron beam

Electron beam irradiation is an efficient cold sterilization technique that has been widely utilized in food preservation. To understand the biological and morphological changes of microorganisms by electron beam irradiation, the D10 value, growth curve, and morphological characterization by scanning electron microscope (SEM) of Staphylococcus aureus were studied. Furthermore, Tandem mass tag (TMT)-based quantitative proteomic was performed to investigate the responses of Staphylococcus aureus to electron beam. The results showed that electron beam prolonged the lag phase of bacterial growth, and irradiated bacteria were more sensitive to irradiation than unirradiated bacteria. Compared to unirradiated cells, there were 53, 96, 1055, and 431 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) detected in 1-kGy and 2-kGy irradiated cells after 0 h and 24 h incubation, respectively. Most of the DEPs involved in DNA repair were found to be up-regulated, whereas those involved in biofilm formation and staphylococcal enterotoxin production were down-regulated. No noticeable morphological changes were observed in irradiated S. aureus. These findings provided valuable information in the responses of S. aureus to electron beam irradiation, leading to a better understanding of the effects of electron beam irradiation on food pathogens.

Relative biological effectiveness for epithermal neutron beam contaminated with fast neutrons in the linear accelerator-based boron neutron capture therapy system coupled to a solid-state lithium target.

This study aimed to quantify the relative biological effectiveness (RBE) for epithermal neutron beam contaminated with fast neutrons in the accelerator-based boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) system coupled to a solid-state lithium target. The experiments were performed in National Cancer Center Hospital (NCCH), Tokyo, Japan. Neutron irradiation with the system provided by Cancer Intelligence Care Systems (CICS), Inc. was performed. X-ray irradiation, which was assigned as the reference group, was also performed using a medical linear accelerator (LINAC) equipped in NCCH. The four cell lines (SAS, SCCVII, U87-MG and NB1RGB) were utilized to quantify RBE value for the neutron beam. Before both of those irradiations, all cells were collected and dispensed into vials. The doses of 10% cell surviving fraction (SF) (D10) were calculated by LQ model fitting. All cell experiments were conducted in triplicate at least. Because the system provides not only neutrons, but gamma-rays, the contribution from the gamma-rays to the survival fraction were subtracted in this study. D10 value of SAS, SCCVII, U87-MG and NB1RGB for the neutron beam was 4.26, 4.08, 5.81 and 2.72Gy, respectively, while that acquired by the X-ray irradiation was 6.34, 7.21, 7.12 and 5.49Gy, respectively. Comparison of both of the D10 values, RBE value of SAS, SCCVII, U87-MG and NB1RGB for the neutron beam was calculated as 1.7, 2.2, 1.3 and 2.5, respectively, and the average RBE value was 1.9. This study investigated RBE of the epithermal neutron beam contaminated with fast neutrons in the accelerator-based BNCT system coupled to a solid-state lithium target.

Probing the Chemical Bond between Lanthanides and Carbon: CeC, PrC, NdC, LuC, and TmC2.

Resonant two-photon ionization experiments have been conducted to probe the bond dissociation energy (BDE) of the lanthanide-carbon bond, allowing the BDEs of CeC, PrC, NdC, LuC, and Tm-C2 to be measured to high precision. Values of D0(CeC) = 4.893(3) eV, D0(PrC) = 4.052(3) eV, D0(NdC) = 3.596(3) eV, D0(LuC) = 3.685(4) eV, and D0(Tm-C2) = 4.797(6) eV are obtained. Additionally, the adiabatic ionization energy of LuC was measured, giving IE(LuC) = 7.05(3) eV. The electronic structure of these species, along with the previously measured LaC, has been further investigated using quantum chemical calculations. Despite LaC, CeC, PrC, and NdC having ground electronic configurations that differ only in the number of 4f electrons present and have virtually identical bond orders, bond lengths, fundamental stretching frequencies, and metallic oxidation states, a peculiar 1.30 eV range in bond dissociation energies exists for these molecules. A natural bond orbital analysis shows that the metal atoms in these molecules have a natural charge of +1 with a 5d2 4fn 6s0 configuration while the carbon atom has a natural charge of -1 and a 2p3 configuration. The diabatic bond dissociation energies, calculated with respect to the lowest energy level of this separated ion configuration, show a greatly reduced energy range of 0.32 eV, with the diabatic BDE decreasing as the amount of 4f character in the σ-bond increases. Thus, the wide range of measured BDEs for these molecules is a consequence of the variation in atomic promotion energies at the separated ion limit. TmC2 has a smaller BDE than the other LnC2 molecules, due to the tiny amount of 5d participation in the valence molecular orbitals.

D-dimer as a predictive biomarker of response to chemotherapy in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

e13000 Background: Tumor-induced coagulation is considerably observed in cancer patients. Moreover, it is associated with tumorigenesis, tumor progression, and metastasis, by creating a proliferative and proangiogenic microenvironment. Therefore, D-dimer, a fibrin degradation product, correlates with tumor prognosis in several cancer types. This study aims to investigate whether D-dimer levels can be a predictive and monitoring indicator for chemotherapy response in metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients. Methods: This study included two groups, 76 patients diagnosed with metastatic breast carcinoma, and 25 with early breast carcinoma as a control group. Plasma D-dimer levels were measured prospectively before chemotherapy initiation, and after the fourth treatment cycle in MBC patients. The levels of D-dimer before chemotherapy (D0) were analyzed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves to determine the optimal cutoff baseline values of D0, and to evaluate their discriminatory abilities in predicting response to chemotherapy. Results: In the preliminary response evaluation, the mean level of D-dimer significantly decreased by 2.74 μg/ml in patients with partial response, and by 2.17 μg/ml in patients with stable disease. In the progression disease group, a considerable increase was seen in D-dimer levels by 2.16 μg/ml. Analysis of ROC curves showed that D-dimer levels at D0 could discriminate the response to chemotherapy, whereas the progressive disease rate correlated with higher levels of D-dimer (>1.055 μg/ml; P= 0.000). Conclusions: D-dimer level in plasma is a useful predictive and monitoring marker of response to chemotherapy in metastatic breast cancer.

Inactivation of Group I and Group II Clostridium botulinum spores by ultraviolet irradiation in water

Spores of Clostridium botulinum are widely distributed in the environment, including in foods. Prevention of foodborne botulism relies on the inhibition of spore germination and subsequent growth and toxin production, or the destruction of viable spores in food and beverages. This study examined the lethality of 254 nm UV radiation (UV-C) to spores of Group I and Group II C. botulinum. Spores of C. botulinum were inactivated by UV-C, with doses required for incremental log reduction (D10) values calculated using linear regression ranging from 2.87 to 3.70 mJ/cm2 for Group I strains and 4.46 to 6.15 mJ/cm2 for Group II strains. The measured D10 value for spores of C. sporogenes ATCC 19404 was 8.27 mJ/cm2 indicating it was more resistant than the strains of C. botulinum used in this study. Calculation of dose per log using a Weibull model resulted in higher D10 values of 6.67 to 8.81 mJ/cm2 for Group I strains and 9.24 to 10.7 mJ/cm2 for Group II strains. Spores of C. sporogenes possessed a D10 value of 14.4 mJ/cm2. The higher values for the Weibull model indicate the Weibull model to be more conservative as a result as it factors in the lag prior to inactivation and the tailing observed with very low numbers of survivors. Spores of both Group I and Group II C. botulinum strains tended to form large aggregates, visible with phase contrast microscopy, that resulted in severe tailing. Disruption of aggregates by ultrasonication was necessary to obtain linear destruction curves extending beyond 5 log reduction. All strains from Group I and Group II required <55 mJ/cm2 to achieve 5 log inactivation. The strain of C. sporogenes used in this work can therefore be a conservative non-pathogenic surrogate, having higher UV-C resistance than the C. botulinum strains used in this study. Overall, this study is the first detailed study to demonstrate UV-C as an effective treatment method to inactivate C. botulinum spores in a suspending medium. In addition, the study paves the way for further studies towards the applications of this technology to inactivate C. botulinum spores in beverages or other liquids.

Antifungal Activity and Mechanism of Electron Beam Irradiation Against Rhizopus oryzae

Electron beam irradiation is a physical fungicidal technique that has emerged as a potential application in China. However, its antifungal activity and mechanism against Rhizopus oryzae have not been reported. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the antifungal activity and mechanism of electron beam irradiation of R. oryzae. The antifungal activity analysis showed that the D10 value and complete elimination dose of R. oryzae irradiated by electron beam were 1.73 kGy and 8.08 kGy, respectively. Electron beam irradiation has a strong inhibitory effect on the filamentous biomass of R. oryzae. To reveal the antifungal mechanism of electron beam against R. oryzae, this study analyzed the dynamic changes in the cell wall, cell membrane, and oxidative stress induced by different irradiation doses. The results showed that electron beam irradiation destroyed the cell wall structure of R. oryzae, increasing chitinase activity and decreasing chitin content. Cell membrane integrity is disrupted, increasing relative conductivity, decreasing pH values, and decreasing soluble protein content. Electron beam irradiation causes oxidative stress in cells, increasing H2O2 content, decreasing antisuperoxide anion activity, decreasing DPPH free radical scavenging activity, and inhibiting defense enzyme (CAT and SOD) activity. This phenomenon indicates that electron beams can cause structural damage to and metabolic dysfunction of cells and disorders of redox homeostasis, which may be the main cause of growth inhibition and cell death in R. oryzae.

Synthesis of Nanoscale Zero-Valent Iron with Polyphenol Extract from Cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) Through a Stepwise Reaction and Adsorption Test on Pb(II)

Polyphenols from clove extract (Syzygium aromaticum) were successfully used as reducing agents to synthesize nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI). Optimization of nZVI synthesis was carried out by reacting polyphenols and FeSO4 at a composition of 0.25:4.75, 1:4, 2:3, and 3:2. The particle size analyzer showed that the smaller particle size distribution was obtained at nZVI 0.25:4.75, with values of D10 = 85.1 nm, D50 = 122 nm, and D90 = 175 nm. The results of the Pb(II) removal test showed that nZVI 0.25:4.75 had a fairly high percentage of Pb(II) removal, which was 96.4852% at 60 minutes. The smaller particle size of nZVI 0.25:4.75 compared to other samples is an important factor affecting the adsorption activity of Pb(II) in an aqueous medium.

Mengidentifikasi Jenis Tanah, Batas Plastis, Batas Cair Tanah Lempung

Soil is a material consisting of mineral grains bonded to one another. Soil itself has various types. One of them is clay. Clay soil is microscopic soil particles that come from weathering rocks. The water content in clay tends to be high so it has a low bearing capacity. In addition, it also has a high shrinkage. Therefore, the management of clay soils must be handled properly. The method used is Gradation Sieve, Liquid Limit, and Plastic Limit. These three methods are considered suitable for conducting tests on clay samples. From these tests, obtained D10 values of 0.14, D30 of 0.5 and D60 of 1.6. And the results of the calculation of Cu and Cc obtained the values of Cu 4 and 1 Cc 3 so that the soil is classified into the GC group (well granded gravel with clay). For the results of the liquid limit test (LL) on the soil samples that have been studied, the average liquid limit value of 25 strokes is 41.12%. For the results of the plastic limit (PL) test on the soil sample, the plastic limit value of 32.42% was obtained. And the results of reducing the liquid limit with the plastic limit obtained a plastic index value of 8.70% so that the soil is included in the criteria for low plasticity index.

Calculation of the Transport and Relaxation Properties of the Ar···HCl van der Waals Complex Using a New Potential Energy Surface: Comparison of the Classical and Full Quantum Mechanical Kinetic Theory Results with Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

The intermolecular potential energy surface (PES) of the Ar···HCl complex was calculated at the RCCSD(T)/aug-cc-pvQz-BF level of theory. The obtained potential was expanded in terms of Legendre polynomials and fitted to a mathematical model. The fitting results are highly correlated with the ab initio PES data with SD = 5.9 × 10-3 cm-1 and average absolute deviation (AAD) = 4.0 × 10-6 cm-1. The interaction second virial coefficients (B12) in the temperature range of 190-480 K were calculated by considering classical and first quantum corrections and compared with the available experimental data. A reasonable agreement with the experimental and calculated B12 was obtained. The PES was also used to obtain the rovibrational energy levels, and the spectroscopic rovibrational constants were obtained. It was found that the D0 values differ ∼2.25 cm-1 from the experimental values of the ground rovibrational state. Furthermore, the obtained potential was used to calculate the transport and relaxation properties using full quantum close-coupling (CC) formalism and the classical kinetic theory methods based on the Mason-Monchik approximation (MMA). It was found that the deviation between MMA and CC calculations is increased with increasing the temperature due to the higher influence of the rotational degrees of freedom on the transport properties. Also, the contribution of the inelastic (off-diagonal) transitions for diffusion coefficient is higher than the viscosity. Furthermore, the classical molecular dynamics simulations were performed using LJ(12,6) and Vashishta models, to calculate the interaction diffusion and viscosity coefficients, and compared with the results of the full quantum CC calculations. The obtained results confirm that the Vashishta model is better fitted to the ab initio potentials and is more accurate than LJ(12,6) in calculation of the diffusion coefficients.