Analysis of a two-party supply chain with random disruptions

We study a continuous-review inventory problem of a two-echelon supply chain with random disruptions, identify properties of the optimal cost function, compare the optimal order quantity with the classical economic order quantity, analyze the sensitivity of the optimal solution, and explore the conditions under which zero-inventory ordering policy is preferred.     

Constituents of Salvia microphylla

A new phenolic ester 2-( p-hydroxyphenyl)ethyl eicosaheptanoic acid ester (1) and a known one hexacosylferulate (2) were isolated from the acetone extract of Salvia microphylla. In addition, two sesquiterpenes beta-eudesmol (3) and 8alpha-hydroxy-beta-eudesmol (4), a diterpene carnosic acid 12-methyl ether (12-methoxycarnosic acid) (5), three triterpenes erithrodiol 3-acetate, oleanolic acid, lupeol and beta-sitosterol were obtained as known compounds from this plant extract. The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated by spectroscopic methods, including one- and two- dimensional 1H- and 13C-NMR and MS spectroscopies. The selected compounds were tested for antimicrobial activity against standard bacterial strains, and only carnosic acid 12-methyl ether showed antimicrobial activity against S. aureus at 78 microg mL(-1).     

Crystallography and magnetism of two 1-(4-nitroxylphenyl)pyrroles

Stable radicals 1-(4-(N-tert-butyl-N-aminoxyl)phenyl)pyrrole (BNPP) and 1-(4-(N-[para-methoxyphenyl]-N-aminoxyl)phenyl)pyrrole (MNPP) were synthesized and characterized by crystallography and magnetism. BNPP crystals exhibit 1-D chains of intermolecular nitroxide NO to nitroxide CH3 contacts, but polycrystalline magnetic susceptibility measurements show quite small antiferromagnetic (AFM) exchange interactions. MNPP shows stronger AFM exchange interactions that appear to be associated with a 2-D planar mesh of crystallographic nitroxide to nitroxide (N)O...N(O) contacts of 4.0-4.2 A. The AFM behavior of MNPP can be fitted to a 2-D square planar Heisenberg antiferromagnetic exchange model with J/k = (-)0.78 +/- 0.04 K and mean field constant theta = (-)0.77 +/- 0.12 K.     

Antimicrobial Properties of Zeolite-X and Zeolite-A Ion-Exchanged with Silver,Copper, and Zinc Against a Broad Range of Microorganisms

Zeolites are nanoporous alumina silicates composed of silicon, aluminum, and oxygen in a framework with cations, water within pores. Their cation contents can be exchanged with monovalent or divalent ions. In the present study, the antimicrobial (antibacterial, anticandidal, and antifungal) properties of zeolite type X and A, with different Al/Si ratio, ion exchanged with Ag⁺, Zn²⁺, and Cu²⁺ ions were investigated individually. The study presents the synthesis and manufacture of four different zeolite types characterized by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The ion loading capacity of the zeolites was examined and compared with the antimicrobial characteristics against a broad range of microorganisms including bacteria, yeast, and mold. It was observed that Ag⁺ ion-loaded zeolites exhibited more antibacterial activity with respect to other metal ion-embedded zeolite samples. The results clearly support that various synthetic zeolites can be ion exchanged with Ag⁺, Zn²⁺, and Cu²⁺ ions to acquire antimicrobial properties or ion-releasing characteristics to provide prolonged or stronger activity. The current study suggested that zeolite formulations could be combined with various materials used in manufacturing medical devices, surfaces, textiles, or household items where antimicrobial properties are required.     

A green synthesis of new 3-aryl-4-phenylsulfonyl-5-aminoisoxazoles

The present work describes a new protocol for the synthesis of 5-aminoisoxazoles using α-chlorooximes and 2-phenylsulfonyl acetonitrile via green chemistry routes. The titled 5-aminoisoxazoles 3 were further reacted with 4-nitrobenzoyl chloride to obtain 5-amidoisoxazoles with moderate yields. These heterocyclic compounds were tested in vitro MTT study to investigate inhibitive abilities to some cancer cell lines (C3a, L929, T98g and Mcf-7) and compounds 3a, 3c, 3e and 3h showed noticeable cytotoxic property against four cancer cell lines.     

Additive manufacturing and biomechanical validation of a patient‐specific diabetic insole

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported that lower extremity amputation (LEA) rate of per 1000 diabetic patients is 18.4 because of the complications that first appeared in the foot. A second amputation is also required for 9% to 17% of these patients within the same year although LEA may be preventable. Most of the diabetic foot conditions may be prevented and treated by a therapeutic footwear or a medical device such as an insole or an orthotic shoe. Traditional insole manufacturing is a laborious work that requires specific skills. Moreover, traditional approaches contain harmful material particles that may cause respiratory failure. Unfortunately, manufactured insoles may not be suitable for any mass‐produced footwear in all cases. Therefore, patient requires to get insole‐specific footwear. In this study, a diabetic insole was manufactured by means of a fused deposition modeling‐(FDM) based system and a thermoplastic polymer. Biomechanical functionality was determined according to the applied polymer analysis on each produced sample and foam material. Subsequently, finite element analysis (FEA) was performed to target insole geometry to ensure the quality of the final medical product. Additive and traditional manufactured insoles are compared according to the cost and function. As a result, fabrication of an insole, based on the FDM method, was improved down to 8 h and 9 m. The weight of an insole prototype was 74.74 g, and the material cost was $3.44 while total cost of the traditional foam casting was determined as $35.37 and weight of the insole was 72.6 g for this study. Consequently, benefits of the applied method are evaluated.     

Examination of the dielectrophoretic spectra of MCF7 breast cancer cells and leukocytes

The detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in blood is crucial to assess metastatic progression and to guide therapy. Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a powerful cell surface marker-free method that allows intrinsic dielectric properties of suspended cells to be exploited for CTC enrichment/isolation from blood. Design of a successful DEP-based CTC enrichment/isolation system requires that the DEP response of the targeted particles should accurately be known. This paper presents a DEP spectrum method to investigate the DEP spectra of cells without directly analyzing their membrane and cytoplasmic properties in contrast to the methods in literature, which employ theoretical assumptions and complex modeling. Integrating electric field simulations based on DEP theory with the experimental data enables determination of the DEP spectra of leukocyte subpopulations, polymorphonuclear and mononuclear leukocytes, and MCF7 breast cancer cells as a model of CTC due to their metastatic origin over the frequency range 100 kHz–50 MHz at 10 V_pp. In agreement with earlier findings, differential DEP responses were detected for mononuclear and polymorphonuclear leukocytes due to the richness of the cell surface features and morphologies of the different leukocyte types. The data reveal that the strength of the DEP force exerted on MCF7 cells was particularly high between 850 kHz and 20 MHz. These results illustrate that the proposed technique has the potential to provide a generic platform to identify DEP responses of different biological particles.     

Polarographic determination of herbicide thifensulfuron methyl/application to agrochemical pesticide,soil, and fruit juice

A novel, sensitive, simple, fast, and fully validated differential pulse polarographic (DPP) method for the determination of trace amounts of thifensulfuron-methyl in pesticide formulation, soil, and orange juice is reported. This procedure was based on a highly sensitive peak formed due to the reduction of thifensulfuron-methyl on a dropping mercury electrode over the pH range 1.00–10.00 in Britton–Robinson buffer. The polarographic reduction exhibits only a single peak in the pH ranges pH?≥?3.0 and pH?≤?6.0 and pH?=?10.0 located at potential values of ?1.010, ?1.350, and ?1.610?V (vs. SCE), respectively. The single peak appeared as a maximum at pH 3.0 (?1.010?V) was well resolved and suitable to be investigated for analytical use. This peak showed quantitative increments with the additions of standard thifensulfuron-methyl solution under the optimal conditions, and the cathodic peak current was linearity proportional to the thifensulfuron-methyl concentration in the range of 2?×?10^?7–5?×?10^?5?M. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were obtained as 1.05?×?10^?7 and 3.50?×?10^?7?M, respectively, according to the relation k ?×?SD/b (where k?=?3 for LOD, k?=?10 for LOQ, SD is the standard deviation of the blank, and b is the slope of the calibration curve). The proposed method was applied to pesticide formulation (Harmony® Extra), and the average percentage recovery was in agreement with that obtained by the spectrophotometric comparison method, 97.82 and 102.6%, respectively. The method was extended to determination of thifensulfuron-methy in spiked soil and orange juice, showing a good reproducibility and accuracy with a relative standard deviation of 4.55 and 1.40%, and relative errors of +2.80 and +1.90%, respectively.