Immiscible Displacement of a Wetting Fluid by a Non-wetting One at High Capillary Number in a Micro-model Containing a Single Fracture

Most reservoirs in Iran are heterogeneous fractured carbonate reservoirs. Heterogeneity causes an earlier breakthrough and an unstable front which leads to a lower recovery. A series of experiments were conducted whereby the distilled water displaced n-Decane in strongly oil-wet glass micro-models containing a single fracture. Experimental data from image analysis of immiscible displacement processes are used to modify the Buckley?CLeverett and fractional flow equations by a heterogeneity factor. It is shown that the heterogeneity factor in the modified equations can be expressed as a function of fracture length and orientation.     

Exact classical and quantum solutions for a covariant oscillator near the black hole horizon in Stueckelberg-Horwitz-Piron theory

We found exact solutions for canonical classical and quantum dynamics for general relativity in Horwitz general covariance theory. These solutions can be obtained by solving the generalized geodesic equation and Schrödinger-Stueckelberg-Horwitz-Piron (SHP) wave equation for a simple harmonic oscillator in the background of a two dimensional dilaton black hole spacetime metric. We proved the existence of an orthonormal basis of eigenfunctions for generalized wave equation. This basis functions form an orthogonal and normalized (orthonormal) basis for an appropriate Hilbert space. The energy spectrum has a mixed spectrum with one conserved momentum p according to a quantum number n. To find the ground state energy we used a variational method with appropriate boundary conditions. A set of mode decomposed wave functions and calculated for the Stueckelberg-Schrodinger equation on a general five dimensional blackhole spacetime in Hamilton gauge.     

Noether symmetry in the Nash theory of gravity

This paper deals with the study of Bianchi type-I universe in the context of Nash gravity by using the Noether symmetry approach. We shortly revisit the Nash theory of gravity. We make a short recap of the Noether symmetry approach and consider the geometry for Bianchi-type I model. We obtain the exact general solutions of the theory inherently exhibited by the Noether symmetry. We also examine the cosmological implications of the model by discussing the two cases of viable scenarios. Surprisingly, we find that the predictions are nicely compatible with those of the \(\Lambda \)CDM model.     

An efficient electrochemical method for synthesis of (1h‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐ylthio)benzen‐1,2‐diol derivatives

Electrochemical oxidation of catechols ( 1a–c ) has been studied in the presence of 3‐mercapto‐1,2,4‐triazole ( 3 ) as a nucleophile in water/acetonitrile (90/10) solutions. The results revealed that the quinones derived from catechols ( 1a–c ) participate in the Michael addition reactions with anion of 3‐mercapto‐1,2,4‐triazole ( 3 ) and are converted to the corresponding (1H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐ylthio)benzen‐1,2‐diol derivatives ( 4a–c ). © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 18:644–649, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/hc.20359     

Change in Secondary Metabolites and Expression Pattern of Key Rosmarinic Acid Related Genes in Iranian Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis L.) Ecotypes Using Methyl Jasmonate Treatments

The medicinal herb, lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.), which is high in rosmarinic acid (RA), has well-known therapeutic value. The goals of this study were to investigate the effects of methyl jasmonate (MeJA) on RA content, total phenolic content (TPC), and total flavonoid content (TFC), as well as changes in expression of their biosynthesis-related key genes (MoPAL, Mo4CL, and MoRAS) in Iranian lemon balm ecotypes, as first reported. Our results revealed that MeJA doses significantly increase the RA content, TPC, and TFC in both ecotypes compared with the control samples. Additionally, the higher expression levels of MoPAL, Mo4CL, and MoRAS following treatment were linked to RA accumulation in all treatments for both Iranian lemon balm ecotypes. After 24 h of exposure to 150 µM MeJA concentration, HPLC analysis showed that MeJA significantly increased RA content in Esfahan and Ilam ecotypes, which was about 4.18- and 7.43-fold higher than untreated plants. Our findings suggested that MeJA has a considerable influence on RA, TPC, and TFC accumulation in MeJA-treated Iranian M. officinalis, which might be the result of gene activation from the phenylpropanoid pathway. As a result of our findings, we now have a better understanding of the molecular processes behind RA production in lemon balm plants.     

A Grouping Differential Evolution Algorithm Boosted by Attraction and Repulsion Strategies for Masi Entropy-Based Multi-Level Image Segmentation

Masi entropy is a popular criterion employed for identifying appropriate threshold values in image thresholding. However, with an increasing number of thresholds, the efficiency of Masi entropy-based multi-level thresholding algorithms becomes problematic. To overcome this, we propose a novel differential evolution (DE) algorithm as an effective population-based metaheuristic for Masi entropy-based multi-level image thresholding. Our ME-GDEAR algorithm benefits from a grouping strategy to enhance the efficacy of the algorithm for which a clustering algorithm is used to partition the current population. Then, an updating strategy is introduced to include the obtained clusters in the current population. We further improve the algorithm using attraction (towards the best individual) and repulsion (from random individuals) strategies. Extensive experiments on a set of benchmark images convincingly show ME-GDEAR to give excellent image thresholding performance, outperforming other metaheuristics in 37 out of 48 cases based on cost function evaluation, 26 of 48 cases based on feature similarity index, and 20 of 32 cases based on Dice similarity. The obtained results demonstrate that population-based metaheuristics can be successfully applied to entropy-based image thresholding and that strengthening both exploitation and exploration strategies, as performed in ME-GDEAR, is crucial for designing such an algorithm.     

Discovery of Leptulipin,a New Anticancer Protein from theIranian Scorpion,Hemiscorpius lepturus

Cancer is one of the leading causes of mortality in the world. Unfortunately, the present anticancer chemotherapeutics display high cytotoxicity. Accordingly, the discovery of new anticancer agents with lower side effects is highly necessitated. This study aimed to discover an anticancer compound from Hemiscorpius lepturus scorpion venom. Bioactivity-guided chromatography was performed to isolate an active compound against colon and breast cancer cell lines. 2D electrophoresis and MALDI-TOF were performed to identify the molecule. A partial protein sequence was obtained by mass spectrometry, while the full-length was deciphered using a cDNA library of the venom gland by bioinformatics analyses and was designated as leptulipin. The gene was cloned in pET-26b, expressed, and purified. The anticancer effect and mechanism action of leptulipin were evaluated by MTT, apoptosis, and cell cycle assays, as well as by gene expression analysis of apoptosis-related genes. The treated cells displayed inhibition of cell proliferation, altered morphology, DNA fragmentation, and cell cycle arrest. Furthermore, the treated cells showed a decrease in BCL-2 expression and an increase in Bax and Caspase 9 genes. In this study, we discovered a new anticancer protein from H. lepturus scorpion venom. Leptulipin showed significant anticancer activity against breast and colon cancer cell lines.     

β-Alanine-functionalized magnetic graphene oxide quantum dots: an efficient and recyclable heterogeneous basic catalyst for the synthesis of 1H-pyrazolo[1,2-b]phthalazine-5,10-dione and 2,3-dihydroquinazolin-4(1H)-one derivatives

In this research, we report a novel synthesis of magnetic β-alanine-functionalized-graphene oxide quantum dots Fe₃O₄@GOQDs-N-(β-alanine) as a recyclable and eco-friendly heterogeneous nanocatalyst. The catalytic efficiency of these nanosheets was explored as a basic catalyst for a one-pot three-component synthesis of various 1H-pyrazolo[1,2-b]phthalazine-5,10-dione and 2,3-dihydroquinazolin-4(1H)-one derivatives. The reactions proceeded smoothly under mild and green conditions to afford the respected products in excellent yields. The structure of this newly fabricated catalyst was successfully confirmed by different analytical techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, field emission-scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry, and thermogravimetric analysis. The stability and recyclability of the catalyst were examined by performing the model reaction in six consecutive runs. The recovered catalyst from the first run was directly used for the next runs with no significant loss of catalytic activity.     

Heat transfer improvement of antifreeze by changing it to hybrid nanofluid: effects of hybrid magnesium oxide–graphene oxide nanopowders

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - Hybrid nanofluids consisting of two or multiple nanoparticles have received much attention in recent decades. In this study, the rheological behavior...