Case Study of Large Three-Dimensional-Printed Slider with Conformal Cooling for High-Pressure Die Casting.

Metal three-dimensional (3D) printing technology brings several benefits to the field of high-pressure die casting of aluminum, which enhances its development. The associated conformal cooling application is already commonly used where there is a need to improve the quality of castings, increase tool life, or reduce the production cycle. However, will this technology withstand the production of a large part (∼270 × 270 × 200 mm), which will be used directly in the serial production of engine blocks? This article describes a slider with a conformal cooling case study, which was redesigned and manufactured using the laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) method.

Repetitive Detection of Aromatic Hydrocarbon Contaminants with Bioluminescent Bioreporters Attached on Tapered Optical Fiber Elements.

In this study, we show the repetitive detection of toluene on a tapered optical fiber element (OFE) with an attached layer of TVA8 bioluminescent bioreporters. The bioluminescent cell layer was attached on polished quartz modified with (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES). The repeatability of the preparation of the optical probe and its use was demonstrated with five differently shaped OFEs.

Hyaluronate-iodine complex: a new adjunct for the management of complex sternal wounds after a cardiac operation.

A wound-healing agent developed in the European Union is based on the combination of organic hyaluronan with inorganic iodine. The aim of this pilot study was to assess the efficacy and safety of hyaluronate-iodine in the treatment of sternal wounds. Eight patients with sternal wound dehiscence were entered into the study.

Elevated serum soluble endoglin (sCD105) decreased during extracorporeal elimination therapy for familial hypercholesterolemia.

Extracorporeal elimination is a method of LDL-lowering therapy that is used in severe familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) after other therapeutic approaches have failed. There are currently no universally accepted biomarkers that would allow determining necessary intensity of therapy and frequency of future therapeutic interventions. An ideal tool for immediate evaluation would be a readily measurable serum marker.

Optimization of therapeutic procedure during LDL-apheresis - verification of the computerized model in clinical practice.

Unlabelled: LDL-apheresis is a very effective method in the treatment of resistant hypercholesterolemia when other therapies fail. To maximize the efficacy of the use of LDL-absorbers, we created a computerized model. The aim of this study is to verify it in clinical use.

[Successful indirect cardiac massage as a cause of thoracic wall instability and respiratory insufficiency].

The authors in their two cases describe unusual complication after successful indirect cardiac massage which was carried out in terrain. Both patients were then transferred to Dept. of gerontology and metabolic care.

Autoantibodies to asialoglycoprotein receptor in chronic hepatitis C patients.

The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of autoantibodies to asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR, anti-ASGPR) in chronic hepatitis C patients and to characterize the anti-ASGPR-positive and anti-ASGPR-negative patients in more detail. A total of 79 chronic hepatitis C patients were screened for the presence anti-ASGPR by ELISA. Anti-ASGPR were detected in 11 (13.

[Cross-sectional study of choice of drug therapy in the acute phase of treatment in acute myocardial infarct--part 1].

Introduction: Treatment of acute myocardial infarction is undergoing changes. In the treatment of acute myocardial infarction in particular the following proved useful: thrombolysis, administration of anti-aggregating drugs, beta-blockers and inhibitors of angiotensin converting enzyme. An decisive part is played by the interval between the onset of symptoms and the beginning of hospital treatment.

Oral contraceptive failure rates and oral antibiotics.

Background: Despite anecdotal evidence of a possibility of decreased effectiveness of oral contraceptives (OCs) with some antibiotics, it is not known whether antibiotic use in dermatologic practices engenders any increased risk of accidental pregnancy.

Objective: Our purpose was to examine the effect of commonly prescribed oral antibiotics (tetracyclines, penicillins, cephalosporins) on the failure rate of OCs.

Methods: The records from three dermatology practices were reviewed, and 356 patients with a history of combined oral antibiotic/OC use were surveyed retrospectively.

[Osteomyelitis of the ilium and traumatic rupture of a hydronephrotic right kidney imitating acute appendicitis].

The author describes two case-histories of profoundly different diseases which imitated in a similar way the symptoms of acute appendicitis. In both instances the authors had to operate under pressure of the local finding, although in the case of osteomyelitis of the ilium this diagnosis was contemplated before operation. The author draws attention to some specific features of work in developing countries.

Intrabronchial brachytherapy using 226-radium source.

Present work reports on results of manual brachytherapy in lung cancer using intrabronchial catheter and 226-radium source. Expected dosage was 18 Gy at 1 cm from the source. This therapy was combined with external radiotherapy by 60-cobalt till the dosage about 65 Gy.

Radio-chemotherapy in the treatment of advanced cancer.

Tests in vitro and first clinical studies proved a radiosensitizing effect of cisplatin. In our study 40 patients with advanced resistant cancer of head, neck, lungs and rectum were treated by conventional radiotherapy and cisplatin. The drug was administrated in 10 mg after each irradiation.

[Half-body irradiation in the palliative treatment of multiple bone metastases].

The authors used as palliative analgetic treatment half-body irradiation in 13 patients with dissemination of a malignant tumour into bones. In six patients both halves of the body were irradiated. A long-term analgetic effect was observed in five patients (in one female patient more than 400 days, four patients 100-150 days), a short-term effect up to 100 days was recorded in six patients.

Factors governing adherence of Candida species to plastic surfaces.

The ability of Candida albicans and Candida spp. to adhere to inert polymeric surfaces may allow these organisms direct ingress into the human host. Biophysical characterization of this adherence shows that the forces responsible for such adherence are attractive London-van der Waals forces (or hydrophobic forces) and electrostatic forces.

The surface activity of Acinetobacter calcoaceticus sp. 2CA2.

The hydrocarbon metabolizing Acinetobacter calcoaceticus sp. 2CA2 reduces the surface tension of the culture broth during growth on liquid hydrocarbons. This activity, which is not evident during growth on soluble substrates, is associated with the whole cells.

Characterization of Nocardia amarae as a Potent Biological Coalescing Agent of Water-Oil Emulsions.

Nocardia amarae grown in a liquid medium induced coalescence of emulsions which differed in type, composition of the organic phase, and structure of stabilizing emulsifiers. De-emulsifying activity varied with the type of growth medium, culture age, and postharvest treatment. Based on extraction and degradation studies, it was concluded that de-emulsifying properties are due to the bacterial cell surface.

Surface-Active Lipids from Nocardia erythropolis Grown on Hydrocarbons.

Nocardia erythropolis (ATCC 4277) was grown in a 28-liter fermentor on mineral salts medium and 4% hydrocarbon. Extraction of the neutral lipids with pentane removed approximately 90% of the surface activity of the culture medium. The residual surface activity of the culture medium was attributed to the polar lipid fraction which was not extracted with pentane.

The effect of substrate on inhibition of Corynebacterium lepus by isonicotinic acid hydrazide (Isoniazid).

Isonicotinic acid hydrazide (INH) inhibits the growth of Corynebacterium lepus on hexadecane but has no effect on its growth on fructose. INH also inhibits the production of the mycolic acid containing lipopeptide bioemulsifier normally produced by C. lepus in response to an insoluble substate.

Anaerobic co-oxidation of acetate and glucose by citrobacter intermedius and a species of Pseudomonas.

Analysis of gases evolved when Citrobacter intermedius and a Pseudomonas species are co-cultured on an acetate or glucose - nitrate - mineral salts medium indicates that acetate is anaerobically oxidized by CO2.

New Method of Producing Protoplasts of Aureobasidium pullulans.

A rapid and relatively inexpensive method for producing protoplasts of the black yeast Aureobasidium pullulans is described. The procedure involves anaerobic incubation with the lytic preparation Driselase.

Cell surface measurements in hydrocarbon and carbohydrate fermentations.

Acinetobacter calcoaceticus was grown in 11-liter batch fermentations with hexadecane or sodium citrate as the sole source of carbon. Surface and interfacial tension measurements of the microbial broth indicated that surface-active compounds were being produced only during growth on the hydrocarbon substrate. Contact angle measurements of an aqueous drop on a smooth lawn of cells in a hexadecane bath indicated a highly hydrophobic surface of the cells in the initial stages of the hydrocarbon fermentation (120 degrees contact angle).

Lipase synthesis in hydrocarbon fermentation.

A study was undertaken to establish conditions and relationships for the production of lipases during hydrocarbon fermentation. A culture of Candida lipolytica was isolated by a kerosene enrichment technique from oil-soaked soil and this microbe was used to study the production of lipase on a kerosene-mineral salts medium. The optimum pH, medium, and temperature for lipase synthesis were established and the properties of the isolated enzyme in terms of its activity and lipid specificity were studied.

Analysis of corynomycolic acids and other fatty acids produced by Corynebacterium lepus grown on kerosene.

The saponifiable carboxylic acids of the extracellular product of Corynebacterium lepus grown on kerosene have been isolated and characterized. About 25% of these acids were a mixture of simple, saturated fatty acids ranging from C13 to C24 and including both even and odd homologues. The distribution of these acids was bimodal, with maxima at C15 and C21.