Review: recent advances and future development of metal complexes as anticancer agents

Since the initial discovery of applications of platinum complexes in the clinical treatment of many kinds of cancers, the efficiency of platinum complexes in inhibiting the proliferation of various types of tumors surprised researchers working on the development of anticancer drugs. Meanwhile, despite the potent clinical treatment patients get from platinum complexes, there are also disadvantages including limited solubility in aqueous media and side effects like ototoxicity, myelosuppression, nephrotoxicity, and poor selectivity toward healthy cells. For this reason, efforts have been made to search for novel solutions. Non-platinum complexes (like Fe, Pd, Ru, Cu, Bi, Zn, etc.) were found with potential anticancer activities. We here review the properties of five metal complexes as anticancer agents and make comparisons among them in biological features and cytotoxic activity. Seeking the interrelation between microstructure and mechanism of anticancer, we hope this review provides distinct insights into future study of anticancer agents.     

Experimental characterization of dynamic behaviour of gelatin-based material using DIC

In this paper, the dynamic response of gelatin-based soft material under impact loading is investigated. The dynamic tests are principally performed by the classical SHPB (Split Hopkinson Pressure Bars) technique. However, due to the very low mechanical impedance of the specimen compared with the Hopkinson bars, the feeble impact forces are measured by highly sensitive piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) pressure sensors instead of SHPB measurement system. The PVDF pressure sensors are placed on the interfaces between the specimen and the bars. During the impact test, the non-equilibrium stress state and inhomogeneous strain fields are developed in the specimen; a digital image correlation (DIC) technique is proposed to identify the inhomogeneous displacement fields using high speed photography. A non-parametric approach based on the DIC technique is developed to deduce the transient stress fields in the longitudinal and transverse directions from the displacement fields measured by DIC. The validation of the calculated stress fields is performed by comparing them with the stress measurements from the PVDF pressure sensor at the bottom end of the specimen. Furthermore, stress-strain response is carried out using this approach throughout the specimen. It is clearly shown that the average highest strain rate varies with position in the specimen. This lead to multiple stress-strain relations determined at different strain rates by only one impact test. The significant strain rate sensitivity is observed at the tested rate range from 81/s to 269/s. Under compression loading, the axial stress state is developed as a simple compression only in the central part of the specimen due to the friction at the interfaces between the specimen and the bars. According to the calculated results based on movement of “long waves”, the region of the simple compression stress state in the central part of the specimen is localized. It is observed that the axial stress is much more important than the transverse stress in the central part and this confirms the assumption of uni-axial compression stress state in the specimen.     

Pseudo‐spherical normal Darboux images of curves on a lightlike surface

We introduce the notions of the pseudospherical normal Darboux images for the curve on a lightlike surface in Minkowski 3‐space and study these Darboux images by using technics of the singularity theory. Furthermore, we give a relation between these Darboux images and Darboux frame from the viewpoint of Legendrian dualities.     

Immobilization of Eversa® Transform via CLEA Technology Converts It in a Suitable Biocatalyst for Biolubricant Production Using Waste Cooking Oil

The performance of the previously optimized magnetic cross-linked enzyme aggregate of Eversa (Eversa-mCLEA) in the enzymatic synthesis of biolubricants by transesterification of waste cooking oil (WCO) with different alcohols has been evaluated. Eversa-mCLEA showed good activities using these alcohols, reaching a transesterification activity with isoamyl alcohol around 10-fold higher than with methanol. Yields of isoamyl fatty acid ester synthesis were similar using WCO or refined oil, confirming that this biocatalyst could be utilized to transform this residue into a valuable product. The effects of WCO/isoamyl alcohol molar ratio and enzyme load on the synthesis of biolubricant were also investigated. A maximum yield of around 90 wt.% was reached after 72 h of reaction using an enzyme load of 12 esterification units/g oil and a WCO/alcohol molar ratio of 1:6 in a solvent-free system. At the same conditions, the liquid Eversa yielded a maximum ester yield of only 34%. This study demonstrated the great changes in the enzyme properties that can be derived from a proper immobilization system. Moreover, it also shows the potential of WCO as a feedstock for the production of isoamyl fatty acid esters, which are potential candidates as biolubricants.     

A Metabolomic Approach to Beer Characterization

The consumers’ interest towards beer consumption has been on the rise during the past decade: new approaches and ingredients get tested, expanding the traditional recipe for brewing beer. As a consequence, the field of “beeromics” has also been constantly growing, as well as the demand for quick and exhaustive analytical methods. In this study, we propose a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and chemometrics to characterize beer. ¹H-NMR spectra were collected and then analyzed using chemometric tools. An interval-based approach was applied to extract chemical features from the spectra to build a dataset of resolved relative concentrations. One aim of this work was to compare the results obtained using the full spectrum and the resolved approach: with a reasonable amount of time needed to obtain the resolved dataset, we show that the resolved information is comparable with the full spectrum information, but interpretability is greatly improved.     

Dynamic Visualization of Free Radicals at Single Oxygen Bubbles using Chemiluminescence

The generation of free radicals is a key process in the formation and the collapse of the bubbles in water, however, the direct and dynamic observation of the radicals in this process at single bubbles has never been achieved. Here, the hydroxyl (OH^.) and oxygen (O₂^.−) radicals at single oxygen bubbles are continuously traced using chemiluminescence (CL), in which these radicals at the bubble react with the surrounding luminol in the solution emitting the light. Varied increase trends of luminescence are observed in the generation of a bubble, floating, short parking at the water/air interface and the final explosion, revealing the complexity in the distribution of radicals at the bubble unprecedentedly. Despite more radicals are observed at the bubble generated at a deep position under the water for the stabilization, almost the same amount of radicals are included in the bubbles that is independent on the water pressure during the production of the bubble. This rich information collected from the dynamic study of bubbles illustrates the complicated generation and distribution process of radicals at the bubbles, and will facilitate the understanding of the function about the bubbles.     

肿瘤乏氧靶向响应的罗丹明荧光探针及其成像介导手术治疗

基于罗丹明的良好荧光性能, 经化学偶联反应制备并表征了一个偶氮乏氧特异响应的“Off-On”型荧光成像探针(FY-4). 从分子层面证实了其荧光“Off-On”性能和响应机制; 在L02正常细胞及4T1, HeLa和A549肿瘤细胞层面考察了其对受试细胞株的毒性和不同乏氧时间的荧光成像性能; 再利用4T1肿瘤模型, 分别以肿瘤原位注射和尾静脉注射的方式考察了其荧光成像性能, 并探究了其荧光成像介导切除肿瘤性能, 最后还考察了FY-4的生物安全性. 结果表明, FY-4有高的肿瘤乏氧靶向特异“关-开”响应的荧光成像差异显影及荧光成像介导切除肿瘤的潜能, 结合其良好的光物理性能、 生物安全性和明晰的给药时间等特性, 有望为生物医学荧光成像介导肿瘤切除提供新的研究工具.     

呼吸声分类技术研究及检测系统设计*

患有呼吸问题的病人由于呼吸道腺体不受意识控制、异物或者其本身肺部病变等原因会出现呼吸异常。医护人员通过病人的呼吸状况可以找寻和分析病人出现这种呼吸状况的原因。而以往呼吸声的诊断方式是专业的医护人员通过使用听诊器对病人进行肺部听诊。但是听诊的结果取决于医护人员的经验与相关参数。在初级诊断治疗阶段,初级医生识别听诊声的效率以及准确率很低,一般从20%到80%不等。因此会存在10%到20%的高误诊率（漏诊、错诊和延误）。本文提出了一种利用PVDF薄膜传感器提取语声特征的检测系统,该检测系统根据病人发出声音的不同,提取呼吸声特征值判断病人的呼吸状况。通过PVDF传感器采集的微弱呼吸声再经过KNN算法分类之后其识别率可达90.6%,对于细分种较类多的湿罗声,其识别率在80.2%左右。综上表明相比于传统听诊方式通过PVDF传感器采集识别的结果具有更高的准确性和可靠性,其判断呼吸状况的结果可以为医护人员提供参考,更好的为患有呼吸疾病的病人提供监测。     

The low Reynolds number turbulent flow and mixing in a confined impinging jet reactor

Turbulent mixing takes an important role in chemical engineering, especially when the chemical reaction is fast compared to the mixing time. In this context a detailed knowledge of the flow field, the distribution of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) and its dissipation rate is important, as these quantities are used for many mixing models. For this reason we conduct a direct numerical simulation (DNS) of a confined impinging jet reactor (CIJR) at Re = 500 and Sc = 1. The data is compared with particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements and the basic flow features match between simulation and experiment. The DNS data is analysed and it is shown that the flow is dominated by a stable vortex in the main mixing duct. High intensities of turbulent kinetic energy and dissipation are found in the impingement zone which decrease rapidly towards the exit of the CIJR. In the whole CIJR the turbulence is not in equilibrium. The strong mixing in the impingement zone leads to a rapid development of a monomodal PDF. Due to the special properties of the flow field, a bimodal PDF is generated in cross-sections downstream the impingement zone, that slowly relaxes under relaminarising conditions. The time required for meso-mixing is dominating the overall mixing performance.     

一种舰船变形测量方法的研究与应用

以舰船船体结构、惯性导航系统、被试导航设备以及天文经纬仪为物理对象，提出了一套利用光学系统原理和计算机图像处理技术对联合基座进行水平变形测量的方法，解决了各设备因安装位置的不同所造成的安装基座间产生的水平变形量问题。