Docking Point Research Articles

Fast rendezvous profile evolution: From ISS to lunar station

Recently, the fast rendezvous profile trend is observed in the manned spaceflight domain. Since 2012, docking of 28 Russian vehicles (18 of them were Soyuz crew vehicles) has been accomplished using the 6-h and 4-orbit rendezvous profile. The heritage and the return of experience from those flights made possible to develop and implement a two-orbit rendezvous with an unmanned Progress vehicle in 2018 that demonstrated the feasibility to develop and fly a fast rendezvous with Soyuz in 2020. The fast rendezvous profile will bring the crew vehicle to docking point in just 3 h after the insertion into orbit. Furthermore, in the future an ultrafast (one-orbit) rendezvous profile is considered as well. Crew comfort on the way to the ISS is just one of the advantages of the fast rendezvous profile which will also be required to develop the double-launch approach for the transfer to a lunar station. Since the double-launch approach considers separate launches of the crew vehicle and the upper stage, this allows arranging an effective traffic toward the Moon using launch vehicles of lower capacity. Launches at different times will allow the crew vehicle to wait for a successful launch of the upper stage while being docked to the orbital station, and that will give much higher reliability of the double-launch scenario. In the future, double-launch scenarios which include visiting an orbital station could be applied to reusable spacecraft transit from the orbital station to the lunar station and back. Fast rendezvous is especially favorable for double-launch scenarios because of the upper stage's limited lifetime if fueled with low boiling point propellant components. The paper reviews the evolution of the fast rendezvous profiles which were initially used in the ISS program for further utilization of this experience for development of rendezvous concepts in double-launch scenarios for missions to a lunar station.

Percutaneous Endoscopic Contralateral Lumbar Foraminal Decompression via an Interlaminar Approach: 2-Dimensional Operative Video.

Nerve root compression by foraminal pathology is challenging for a surgeon to decompress without violating the facet joint, which may necessitate a fusion procedure. One nonfusion approach to foraminal pathology is a combination intracanal approach for a laminotomy/foraminotomy followed by a paraspinal Wiltse approach for far lateral decompression. Unfortunately, even with the combination approach, it continues to be difficult to achieve adequate decompression without violating much of the facet joint overlying the nerve root. Spine endoscopy offers the ability to decompress the foraminal portion of the nerve without significant violation of the facet joint. We present a surgical video describing the technique for performing a percutaneous endoscopic contralateral L5-S1 foraminal decompression via an interlaminar approach, for a patient presenting with a left L5 radiculopathy due to L5-S1 foraminal stenosis. We explain the differences in the endoscopic channel docking point between ipsilateral and contralateral interlaminar approaches. The steps of an endoscopic foraminotomy are then described: dissect soft tissue and ligamentum flavum off the medial left S1 lamina and superior articulating process (SAP), undercut the superior articulating process of S1 and the inferior articulating process (IAP) of L5 with a drill, resect lateral ligamentum flavum off SAP and IAP exposing epidural fat, and finally dissect the left L5 nerve root and remove compressive lesions throughout its course in the lateral recess, foramen, and laterally. The presentation ends with an intraoperative photograph showing a decompressed L5 nerve root and postoperative imaging confirming this decompression. Appropriate patient consent was obtained.

Trajectory optimization for rendezvous with bearing-only tracking

In this paper the observability of bearing-only tracking is analyzed and the trajectory optimization algorithms to enhance the observability during the rendezvous are presented. Firstly, the relative dynamic model and measurement model are established, and the necessary and sufficient condition for observability when maneuvering is determined using the pseudo linear method. Then, the observability indices, such as the filter covariance matrix trace and the Fisher information matrix (FIM) determinant, are combined with the fuel consumption index to optimize the approaching trajectory. In order to keep the line-of-sight (LOS) aligned with the target and to ensure continuous observation, the attitude of the observer is adjusted synchronously during the rendezvous. Finally, the coordinated control of attitude and orbit for the observer is achieved by optimizing the thrust distribution of the onboard propulsion system. Numerical results demonstrate that the combined optimization of the observability and fuel consumption can generate an optimal control trajectory with high tracking accuracy. The simulation also presents how to choose the optimal relative weight of the two optimization terms, optimal rendezvous time and optimal docking point according to the practical requirements to get the best comprehensive performance of observability and fuel consumption.

Swarm Intelligence Application to UAV Aided IoT Data Acquisition Deployment Optimization

It is feasible and safe to use unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as the data collection platform of the Internet of things (IoT). In order to save the energy loss of the platform and make the UAV perform the collection work effectively, it is necessary to optimize the deployment of UAV. The objective problem is to minimize the sum of the lost energy of UAV and the loss of data transmission of Internet of things devices. The key to solving the problem is to calculate the location of the docking points and the number of docking points when the UAV is working to collect data. This paper proposes a coding scheme based on swarm intelligence optimization, which encapsulates the docking position of UAV into a dimension, so the number of docking points to be calculated is the dimension number of optimization objective. This problem is considered as a dynamic dimension optimization problem. Each individual in swarm intelligence algorithm is a solution. When adjusting the dimension, the best individual is added or deleted to achieve dynamic search in the evolutionary process. Collaborative search among multiple individuals can improve the local optimal limit of search to a certain extent. Finally, the validity of the swarm intelligence-based coding approach is verified by simulation under seven IoT device distribution scenarios. The swarm intelligence algorithms we used are flower pollination algorithm (FPA), salp swarm algorithm (SSA), sine cosine algorithm (SCA). FPA and SCA perform most efficiently in three and four scenarios among the seven IoT device scenarios, respectively.

Joint analysis of the impacts of built environment on bikeshare station capacity and trip attractions

Shared micromobility is proliferating throughout the world. Many researchers have extensively studied the links among factors representing the built and natural environment and bikeshare demand. One common feature of the existing demand models is that they view bikeshare infrastructure as a group of exogenous variables along with other influential factors. Indeed, this assumption is seldom true in planning practices. Bikeshare system operators usually allocate resources in dense urban areas based upon the environmental correlates. This study contributes to the literature by jointly exploring the determinants of bikeshare station capacity (i.e., the number of docking points) and trip arrivals at the station-level. The research dataset is constructed from the Citi Bike system in New York City in September 2016. The analytical results reveal that the effects of built environment characteristics on bikeshare usage could be carefully considered during the system installation process. We find existing bicycle facilities do not significantly influence the supply of docking points at the station-level. However, they exert direct and positive effects on hourly trip arrivals. The findings improve our understanding of the bikeshare system installation process.

LOCAL MAXIMUM DENSITY APPROACH FOR SMALL-SCALE CLUSTERING OF URBAN TAXI STOPS

Abstract. Taxi trajectory data contains the detailed spatial and temporal traveling information of urban residents. By using a clustering algorithm, the hotspots’ distributions of pick-up and drop-off points can be extracted to explore the patterns of taxi traveling behaviors and its relationship with urban environment. Comparing with traditional methods that determine hotspots at a relatively large scale, we propose an approach to detect small-scale hotspots, so called docking points, to represent the local clusters in both sparse and dense stops areas. In this method, we divide the research area into grids and extract the docking points by finding local maximums of a certain range. The extracted docking points are classified into five levels for the subsequent analysis. Finally, to uncover detail characteristics of taxi mobility patterns, we analyze the distributions of docking points from three aspects – the overall, by day of the week, and by time of the day.

Surface modification of chitosan films with a fibronectin fragment-DNA aptamer complex to enhance osteoblastic cell activity: A mass spectrometry approach probing evidence on protein behavior.

RationaleProtein dynamics are fundamental for biological activity. Direct surface functionalization with these biomolecules often creates regions presenting non‐homogeneous and altered protein functionality. Aptamers have been shown to be an effective method to enhance the biocompatibility of biomaterials by acting as docking points for biomolecules capable of improving cell responses and the colonization/proliferation processes. Here mass spectrometry (MS) was successfully applied as an analytical approach to study the interactions between a fibronectin fragment (FN) and anti‐fibronectin aptamers in solution and on a chitosan film.MethodsA 30 kDa N‐terminal fibronectin fragment, a ssDNA anti‐fibronectin 40 nucleotide long aptamer and chitosan 95/50 (degree of deacetylation 92.6–97.5%; molecular weight 80–220 kDa) were used. First, the dynamics of the FN in aqueous solution, in the presence or absence of anti‐FN‐specific DNA aptamers, were described. Thus, the same study was carried out on 2% (w/w) chitosan‐based films, functionalized with FN alone or through aptamers as selective spacers.ResultsAmide hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX‐MS) analysis identified the SYRIGDTWSKKDNRGNL and YRVGDTYERPKDSMI, YVVGETWEKPYQGWMM and WERTYLGNAL fragments as presumably involved in the interaction of FN with aptamers. MS findings indicated the improved functionality of FN on chitosan when aptamers were used as selective spacer, and this may explain why cells preferentially attached to aptamer‐bound FN rather than on chitosan‐FN films.ConclusionsAptamers did not affect the amount of adsorbed FN, but influenced its conformation enhancing its biological activity toward adhesion and growth of osteoblasts. HDX‐MS data allowed the identification of the FN/aptamer interaction regions. Differences in FN flexibility on the chitosan film in the presence or absence of the aptamer were established providing insights at the molecular level to better understand the protein biological functionality on cell proliferation.

Model Predictive Control to Autonomously Approach a Failed Spacecraft

In this study, a model predictive control (MPC) method is developed for a servicer spacecraft autonomously approaching a tumbling failed spacecraft at an ultraclose range. Flight safety and collision avoidance are basic requirements during the approach. Two types of a failed spacecraft with complex configurations are considered, and a double-ellipsoid composite envelope strategy is designed to model their keep-out zones. Given the keep-out zone of the servicer, two expanded ellipsoids are subsequently introduced to determine the collision and sufficient conditions for collision avoidance are derived by using the form of concave constraint. The tumbling motion of the target is considered, and a CW-based translational dynamics and derived attitude dynamics of the target are formulated to predict the motion of the docking point and keep-out zone. The MPC is formulated to drive the servicer tracking the docking point with collision avoidance and handle constraints including control input saturation and relative velocity bound. Convexification of the collision avoidance constraint and sequential convex programming are adopted for the implementation of MPC. Scenarios on the servicer with different initial positions approaching the target with different angular velocities are simulated, and the simulation results indicate that the proposed MPC method is effective.

Impact analysis and adaptive sliding mode control for cislunar payload transportation using spinning tether system

PurposeThis paper aims to present the impact analysis of payload rendezvous with tethered satellite system and the design of an adaptive sliding mode controller which can deal with mass parameter uncertainty of targeted payload, so that the proposed cislunar transportation scheme with spinning tether system could be extended to a wider and more practical range.Design/methodology/approachIn this work, dynamical model is first derived based on Langrangian equations to describe the motion of a spinning tether system in an arbitrary Keplerian orbit, which takes the mass of spacecraft, tether and payload into account. Orbital design and optimal open-loop control for the payload tossed by the spinning tether system are then presented. The real payload rendezvous impact around docking point is also analyzed. Based on reference acceleration trajectory given by optimal theories, a sliding mode controller with saturation functions is designed in the close-loop control of payload tossing stage under initial disturbance caused by actual rendezvous error. To alleviate the influence of inaccurate/unknown payload mass parameters, the adaptive law is designed and integrated into sliding mode controller. Finally, the performance of the proposed controller is evaluated using simulations. Simulation results validate that proposed controller is found effective in driving the spinning tether system to carry payload into desired cislunar transfer orbit and in dealing with payload mass parameter uncertainty in a relatively large range.FindingsThe results show that unideal rendezvous manoeuvres have significant impact on in-plane motion of spinning tether system, and the proposed adaptive sliding mode controller with saturation functions not only guarantees the stability but also provides good performance and robustness against the parameter and unstructured uncertainties.Originality/valueThis work addresses the analysis of actual impact on spinning tether system motion when payload is docking with system within tolerated docking window, rather than at the particular ideal docking point, and the robust tracking control of deep-space payload tossing missions with the spinning tether system using the adaptive sliding mode controller dealing with parameter uncertainties. This combination has not been proposed before for tracking control of multivariable spinning tether systems.

Direct Evaluation of Live Uropathogenic Escherichia coli Adhesion and Efficiency of Antiadhesive Compounds Using a Simple Microarray Approach

Many pathogens use host glycans as docking points for adhesion. Therefore, the use of compounds blocking carbohydrate-binding adhesins is a promising strategy for fighting infections. In this work, we describe a simple and rapid microarray approach for assessing the bacterial adhesion and efficiency of antiadhesive compounds targeting uropathogenic Escherichia coli UTI89, which displays mannose-specific adhesin FimH at the tip of fimbriae. The approach consisted in direct detection of live fluorescently labeled bacteria bound to mannan printed onto microarray slides. The utility of the arrays for binding/inhibition assays was first validated by comparing array-derived results for the model mannose-binding lectin concanavalin A with data obtained by isothermal titration calorimetry. Growth phase-dependent binding of UTI89 to the arrays was observed, proving the usefulness of the setup for detecting differences in FimH expression. Importantly, bacteria labeling and binding assays entailed minimal manipulation, helping to preserve the integrity of fimbriae. The efficiency of three different dodecamannosylated fullerenes as FimH-targeted antiadhesives was next evaluated in competition assays. The results revealed a superior activity of the mannofullerenes (5- to 18-fold per mannose residue) over methyl α-d-mannopyranoside. Moreover, differences in activity were detected for mannofullerenes differing in the structure/length of the spacer used for grafting mannose onto the fullerene core, further demonstrating the sensitivity of the assay. Overall, the approach combines straightforward and time-saving protocols for microarray preparation, bacteria labeling, and binding assays, and it can be easily tailored to other bacteria bearing carbohydrate-binding adhesins.

Cylindrical Inclusion Protein of Turnip Mosaic Virus Serves as a Docking Point for the Intercellular Movement of Viral Replication Vesicles.

Plant viruses move from the initially infected cell to adjacent cells through plasmodesmata (PDs). To do so, viruses encode dedicated protein(s) that facilitate this process. How viral proteins act together to support the intercellular movement of viruses is poorly defined. Here, by using an infection-free intercellular vesicle movement assay, we investigate the action of CI (cylindrical inclusion) and P3N-PIPO (amino-terminal half of P3 fused to Pretty Interesting Potyviridae open reading frame), the two PD-localized potyviral proteins encoded by Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV), in the intercellular movement of the viral replication vesicles. We provide evidence that CI and P3N-PIPO are sufficient to support the PD targeting and intercellular movement of TuMV replication vesicles induced by 6K2, a viral protein responsible for the generation of replication vesicles. 6K2 interacts with CI but not P3N-PIPO. When this interaction is impaired, the intercellular movement of TuMV replication vesicles is inhibited. Furthermore, in transmission electron microscopy, vesicular structures are observed in connection with the cylindrical inclusion bodies at structurally modified PDs in cells coexpressing 6K2, CI, and P3N-PIPO. CI is directed to PDs through its interaction with P3N-PIPO. We hypothesize that CI serves as a docking point for PD targeting and the intercellular movement of TuMV replication vesicles. This work contributes to a better understanding of the roles of different viral proteins in coordinating the intercellular movement of viral replication vesicles.

Discursive Synergies for a ‘Great Transformation’ Towards Sustainability: Pragmatic Contributions to a Necessary Dialogue Between Human Development, Degrowth, and Buen Vivir

There is a growing awareness that a whole-societal “Great Transformation” of Polanyian scale is needed to bring global developmental trajectories in line with ecological imperatives. The mainstream Sustainable Development discourse, however, insists in upholding the myth of compatibility of current growth-based trajectories with biophysical planetary boundaries. This article explores potentially fertile complementarities among trendy discourses challenging conventional notions of (un)sustainable development – Human Development, Degrowth, and Buen Vivir – and outlines pathways for their realization. Human Development presents relative transformative strengths in political terms, while Degrowth holds keys to unlocking unsustainable material-structural entrenchments of contemporary socio-economic arrangements, and Buen Vivir offers a space of cultural alterity and critique of the Euro-Atlantic cultural constellation. The weaknesses or blind spots (‘Achilles heels’) of each discourse can be compensated through the strengths of the other ones, creating a dialogical virtuous circle that would open pathways towards a global new “Great Transformation”. As one of the main existing platforms for pluralist and strong-sustainability discussions, Ecological Economics is in a privileged position to deliberately foster such strategic discursive dialogue. A pathway towards such dialogue is illuminated through a model identifying and articulating key discursive docking points.

EHD3 Protein Is Required for Tubular Recycling Endosome Stabilization, and an Asparagine-Glutamic Acid Residue Pair within Its Eps15 Homology (EH) Domain Dictates Its Selective Binding to NPF Peptides

An elaborate network of dynamic lipid membranes, termed tubular recycling endosomes (TRE), coordinates the process of endocytic recycling in mammalian cells. The C-terminal Eps15 homology domain (EHD)-containing proteins have been implicated in the bending and fission of TRE, thus regulating endocytic recycling. EHD proteins have an EH domain that interacts with proteins containing an NPF motif. We found that NPF-containing EHD1 interaction partners such as molecules interacting with CasL-like1 (MICAL-L1) and Syndapin2 are essential for TRE biogenesis. Also crucial for TRE biogenesis is the generation of phosphatidic acid, an essential lipid component of TRE that serves as a docking point for MICAL-L1 and Syndapin2. EHD1 and EHD3 have 86% amino acid identity; they homo- and heterodimerize and partially co-localize to TRE. Despite their remarkable identity, they have distinct mechanistic functions. EHD1 induces membrane vesiculation, whereas EHD3 supports TRE biogenesis and/or stabilization by an unknown mechanism. While using phospholipase D inhibitors (which block the conversion of glycerophospholipids to phosphatidic acid) to deplete cellular TRE, we observed that, upon inhibitor washout, there was a rapid and dramatic regeneration of MICAL-L1-marked TRE. Using this "synchronized" TRE biogenesis system, we determined that EHD3 is involved in the stabilization of TRE rather than in their biogenesis. Moreover, we identify the residues Ala-519/Asp-520 of EHD1 and Asn-519/Glu-520 of EHD3 as defining the selectivity of these two paralogs for NPF-containing binding partners, and we present a model to explain the atomic mechanism and provide new insight for their differential roles in vesiculation and tubulation, respectively.

From land- to water-use-planning: A consequence based case-study related to cruise ship risk

Even if safety in the shipping industry improved significantly over the last decades, by novel design and construction techniques, driven by technological, cultural and regulation improvements, recent passenger ship accidents emphasized that significant safety challenges still remain. The modern trend towards large cruise ships can pose a serious threat in terms of both people evacuation/rescue and potential impact on sensible environmental targets. This paper firstly presents a critical analysis of three passenger ship accidents, identifying main similarities with the process sector and relevant learning points. Secondly, the study approaches risk evaluation, acceptance criteria and sea use planning in connection with cruise activity, referring to the worldwide known sensible area of Portofino (Italy). By utilizing numerical methods, the study develops a consequence-based framework incorporating the effects, the hazardous distance and the reaction time scale, related to fuel spill and fire scenarios with smoke spreading. The results evidence that the approach can be a powerful tool to design optimal ship route and temporary docking points for cruise tourism, balancing economic issues and mitigating physical impact to sensitive biological communities. Additionally, it can provide a technical basis for setting-up emergency planning, with appropriate response equipment and thus minimizing coastal impact from a spill.

Towards a socio-structural framework for life course analysis

Abstract In spite of several decades of development, the theoretical underpinnings of life course research go rarely beyond the five general principles formulated by Elder. This article proposes a socio-structural framework based on a definition of the life course as an individual movement through social space. It integrates structural and cultural aspects, but gives priority to the former, and considers social space to be defined by three basic dimensions of differentiation: hierarchical ranks, specialisation, and system levels. In a second part, we discuss how Elder’s principles relate to and can be used in the framework we propose. Since several disciplines are interested in this topic, our approach includes a series of docking points not only for other theoretical perspectives from sociology, but also from other disciplines such as social psychology or political science.

The Ciliopathy Protein CC2D2A Associates with NINL and Functions in RAB8-MICAL3-Regulated Vesicle Trafficking.

Ciliopathies are a group of human disorders caused by dysfunction of primary cilia, ubiquitous microtubule-based organelles involved in transduction of extra-cellular signals to the cell. This function requires the concentration of receptors and channels in the ciliary membrane, which is achieved by complex trafficking mechanisms, in part controlled by the small GTPase RAB8, and by sorting at the transition zone located at the entrance of the ciliary compartment. Mutations in the transition zone gene CC2D2A cause the related Joubert and Meckel syndromes, two typical ciliopathies characterized by central nervous system malformations, and result in loss of ciliary localization of multiple proteins in various models. The precise mechanisms by which CC2D2A and other transition zone proteins control protein entrance into the cilium and how they are linked to vesicular trafficking of incoming cargo remain largely unknown. In this work, we identify the centrosomal protein NINL as a physical interaction partner of CC2D2A. NINL partially co-localizes with CC2D2A at the base of cilia and ninl knockdown in zebrafish leads to photoreceptor outer segment loss, mislocalization of opsins and vesicle accumulation, similar to cc2d2a-/- phenotypes. Moreover, partial ninl knockdown in cc2d2a-/- embryos enhances the retinal phenotype of the mutants, indicating a genetic interaction in vivo, for which an illustration is found in patients from a Joubert Syndrome cohort. Similar to zebrafish cc2d2a mutants, ninl morphants display altered Rab8a localization. Further exploration of the NINL-associated interactome identifies MICAL3, a protein known to interact with Rab8 and to play an important role in vesicle docking and fusion. Together, these data support a model where CC2D2A associates with NINL to provide a docking point for cilia-directed cargo vesicles, suggesting a mechanism by which transition zone proteins can control the protein content of the ciliary compartment.

Internalization of staphylococcal leukotoxins that bind and divert the C5a receptor is required for intracellular Ca(2+) mobilization by human neutrophils.

A growing number of receptors, often associated with the innate immune response, are being identified as targets for bacterial toxins of the beta-stranded pore-forming family. These findings raise the new question of whether the receptors are activated or merely used as docking points facilitating the formation of a pore. To elucidate whether the Staphylococcus aureus Panton-Valentine leukocidin and the leukotoxin HlgC/HlgB act through the C5a receptor (C5aR) as agonists, antagonists or differ from the C5a complement-derived peptide, their activity is explored on C5aR-expressing cells. Both leukotoxins equally bound C5aR in neutrophils and in stable transfected U937 cells and initiated mobilization of intracellular Ca(2+) . HlgC/HlgB requires the presence of robust intracellular acidic Ca(2+) stores in order to evoke a rise in free [Ca(2+) ]i , while the LukS-PV/LukF-PV directly altered reticular Ca(2+) stores. Intracellular target specificity is conferred by the F-subunit associated to the S-subunit binding the receptor. Furthermore, internalization of the two leukotoxin components (S- and F-subunits) associated to C5aR is required for the initiation of [Ca(2+) ]i mobilization. Electrophysiological recordings on living cells demonstrated that LukS-PV/LukF-PV does not alter the membrane resistance of C5aR-expressing cells. The present observations suggest that part of the pore-forming process occurs in distinct intracellular compartments rather than at the plasma membrane.

The N-Terminal GH10 Domain of a Multimodular Protein from Caldicellulosiruptor bescii Is a Versatile Xylanase/β-Glucanase That Can Degrade Crystalline Cellulose.

The genome of the thermophilic bacterium Caldicellulosiruptor bescii encodes three multimodular enzymes with identical C-terminal domain organizations containing two consecutive CBM3b modules and one glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 48 (GH48) catalytic module. However, the three proteins differ much in their N termini. Among these proteins, CelA (or C. bescii Cel9A [CbCel9A]/Cel48A) with a GH9/CBM3c binary partner in the N terminus has been shown to use a novel strategy to degrade crystalline cellulose, which leads to its outstanding cellulose-cleaving activity. Here we show that C. bescii Xyn10C (CbXyn10C), the N-terminal GH10 domain from CbXyn10C/Cel48B, can also degrade crystalline cellulose, in addition to heterogeneous xylans and barley β-glucan. The data from substrate competition assays, mutational studies, molecular modeling, and docking point analyses point to the existence of only one catalytic center in the bifunctional xylanase/β-glucanase. The specific activities of the recombinant CbXyn10C on Avicel and filter paper were comparable to those of GH9/CBM3c of the robust CelA expressed in Escherichia coli. Appending one or two cellulose-binding CBM3bs enhanced the activities of CbXyn10C in degrading crystalline celluloses, which were again comparable to those of the GH9/CBM3c-CBM3b-CBM3b truncation mutant of CelA. Since CbXyn10C/Cel48B and CelA have similar domain organizations and high sequence homology, the endocellulase activity observed in CbXyn10C leads us to speculate that CbXyn10C/Cel48B may use the same strategy that CelA uses to hydrolyze crystalline cellulose, thus helping the excellent crystalline cellulose degrader C. bescii acquire energy from the environment. In addition, we also demonstrate that CbXyn10C may be an interesting candidate enzyme for biotechnology due to its versatility in hydrolyzing multiple substrates with different glycosidic linkages.

The role of proteases in pain.

Proteinase-activated receptors (PARs) are a family of G protein-coupled receptor that are activated by extracellular cleavage of the receptor in the N-terminal domain. This slicing of the receptor exposes a tethered ligand which binds to a specific docking point on the receptor surface to initiate intracellular signalling. PARs are expressed by numerous tissues in the body, and they are involved in various physiological and pathological processes such as food digestion, tissue remodelling and blood coagulation. This chapter will summarise how serine proteinases activate PARs leading to the development of pain in several chronic pain conditions. The potential of PARs as a drug target for pain relief is also discussed.

Ideology, Decision Planning and Operational Scenarios and Features in Cross Docking Models

Cross docking warehousing has become an important logistics strategy in the supply chain management for many distributions industries. The idea of cross docking is to eliminate the storage and order picking function in the warehouse while still allowing it to serve its receiving and shipping function. In the current literature, many cross docking models have been proposed and these models vary based on the cross docking setting and problem tackled. This study presents the gap analysis on the existing cross docking models pertaining to the operational scenarios and features addressed in solving short-term cross docking problem. On top of that, the main concept of cross docking and planning decision level are discussed. The contributions of this study are to identify the gap of knowledge of the cross docking short-term planning and point out future research direction in cross docking.