In Vivo Biological Behavior of Polymer Scaffolds of Natural Origin in the Bone Repair Process

Autologous bone grafts, used mainly in extensive bone loss, are considered the gold standard treatment in regenerative medicine, but still have limitations mainly in relation to the amount of bone available, donor area, morbidity and creation of additional surgical area. This fact encourages tissue engineering in relation to the need to develop new biomaterials, from sources other than the individual himself. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of an elastin and collagen matrix on the bone repair process in critical size defects in rat calvaria. The animals (Wistar rats, n = 30) were submitted to a surgical procedure to create the bone defect and were divided into three groups: Control Group (CG, n = 10), defects filled with blood clot; E24/37 Group (E24/37, n = 10), defects filled with bovine elastin matrix hydrolyzed for 24 h at 37 °C and C24/25 Group (C24/25, n = 10), defects filled with porcine collagen matrix hydrolyzed for 24 h at 25 °C. Macroscopic and radiographic analyses demonstrated the absence of inflammatory signs and infection. Microtomographical 2D and 3D images showed centripetal bone growth and restricted margins of the bone defect. Histologically, the images confirmed the pattern of bone deposition at the margins of the remaining bone and without complete closure by bone tissue. In the morphometric analysis, the groups E24/37 and C24/25 (13.68 ± 1.44; 53.20 ± 4.47, respectively) showed statistically significant differences in relation to the CG (5.86 ± 2.87). It was concluded that the matrices used as scaffolds are biocompatible and increase the formation of new bone in a critical size defect, with greater formation in the polymer derived from the intestinal serous layer of porcine origin (C24/25).     

Simultaneous Determination of Ascorbic Acid and Uric Acid by Using a PVC/TTF‐TCNQ Composite Electrode as Detector in a FIA System

A PVC/TTF‐TCNQ composite electrode has been employed as detector in a flow injection system. The proposed method allows the simultaneous detection of ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA) in mixtures by using a FIA system in a simple manner, without pre‐treatment or modified electrode. This method is based on the amperometric determination of (a) ascorbic acid at 0.15 V and (b) both analytes at 0.35 V, being the response linear in the range 1×10^?2–4×10^?4 M for both analytes with detection limits (S/N=3) of 1.2×10^?4 M and 8.1×10^?5 M for AA and UA, respectively.     

Random infinite-volume Gibbs states for the Curie-Weiss random field Ising model

An approach to the definition of infinite-volume Gibbs states for the (quenched) random-field Ising model is considered in the case of a Curie-Weiss ferromagnet. It turns out that these states are random quasi-free measures. They are random convex linear combinations of the free product-measures shifted by the corresponding effective mean fields. The conditional self-averaging property of the magnetization related to this randomness is also discussed.This paper is dedicated to Robert A. Minlos on the occasion of his 60th birthday.     

D3R grand challenge 4: blind prediction of protein–ligand poses,affinity rankings,and relative binding free energies

Journal of Computer-Aided Molecular Design - The Drug Design Data Resource (D3R) aims to identify best practice methods for computer aided drug design through blinded ligand pose prediction and...     

What does the free space Lambda Lambda interaction predict for Lambda Lambda hypernuclei?

Data on LambdaLambda hypernuclei provide a unique method to learn details about the strangeness S = -2 sector of the baryon-baryon interaction. From the free space Bonn-Jülich potentials, determined from data on baryon-baryon scattering in the S = 0,-1 channels, we construct an interaction in the S = -2 sector to describe the experimentally known LambdaLambda hypernuclei. After including short-range (Jastrow) and RPA correlations, we find masses for these LambdaLambda hypernuclei in a reasonable agreement with data, taking into account theoretical and experimental uncertainties. Thus, we provide a natural extension, at low energies, of the Bonn-Jülich one-boson exchange potentials to the S = -2 channel.     

Classical Versus Quantum Equivalence Between Sine-Gordon,Liouville and Other Solitons

In this work we present a mapping between the classical solutions of the sine-Gordon, Liouville, ⁴ and other kinks in 1+1 dimensions. This is done by using an invariant quantity which relates the models. It is easily shown that this procedure is equivalent to that used to get the so called deformed solitons, as proposed recently by Bazeia et al. [Phys. Rev. D. 66 (2002) 101701(R)]. The classical equivalence is explored in order to relate the solutions of the corresponding models and, as a consequence, try to get new information about them. We discuss also the difficulties and consequences which appear when one tries to extend the deformation in order to take into account the quantum version of the models.     

Synthesis of tetracyclic hydroxyquinones by cycloaddition reactions with dienols.

Cycloaddition of naphthazarin and derivatives to dienols, generated thermnally from benzocyclobuenol or by irradiation of 2-methylbenzaldehyde or 2-methylacetophenone, leads to tetracyclic systems related to those present in anthracycline and tetracycline antibiotics.