Search results for "Aggregate"

The use of lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA) as sorbent for PAHs removal from water.

2012

Author's version of an article in the journal: Journal of Hazardous Materials. Also available from the publisher at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2012.03.038 Lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA) has been explored as a sorbent for the removal of PAHs (phenanthrene, fluoranthene and pyrene) from water. The efficacy of LECA as a sorbent for PAHs was assessed using contact time, mass of sorbent and sorption isotherms in a series of batch experiments. Maximum (optimum) sorption was reached at 21 h after which the amount of PAHs sorbed remained almost constant. Batch experiments were conducted by shaking a 100 ml solution mixture of individual PAHs (containing 0.02 mg/L) with LECA. T…

Contribution of raindrop impact to the change of soil physical properties and water erosion under semi-arid rainfalls

2017

Soil erosion by water is a three-phase process that consists of detachment of soil particles from the soil mass, transportation of detached particles either by raindrop impact or surface water flow, and sedimentation. Detachment by raindrops is a key component of the soil erosion process. However, little information is available on the role of raindrop impact on soil losses in the semi-arid regions where vegetation cover is often poor and does not protect the soil from rainfall. The objective of this study is to determine the contribution of raindrop impact to changes in soil physical properties and soil losses in a semiarid weakly-aggregated agricultural soil. Soil losses were measured und…

The way forward : Can connectivity be useful to design better measuring and modelling schemes for water and sediment dynamics?

2018

For many years, scientists have tried to understand, describe and quantify water and sediment fluxes, with associated substances like pollutants, at multiple scales. In the past two decades, a new concept called connectivity has been used by Earth Scientists as a means to describe and quantify the influences on the fluxes of water and sediment on different scales: aggregate, pedon, location on the slope, slope, watershed, and basin. A better understanding of connectivity can enhance our comprehension of landscape processes and provide a basis for the development of better measurement and modelling approaches, further leading to a better potential for implementing this concept as a managemen…

The dark side of foetal bovine serum in extracellular vesicle studies

2022

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been shown to be involved in cell-cell communication and to take part in both physiological and pathological processes. Thanks to their exclusive cargo, which includes proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids from the originating cells, they are gaining interest as potential biomarkers of disease. In recent years, their appealing features have been fascinating researchers from all over the world, thus increasing the number of in vitro studies focused on EV release, content, and biological activities. Cultured cell lines are the most-used source of EVs; however, the EVs released in cell cultures are influenced by the cell culture conditions, such as the use of fo…

Phasor FLIM analysis of Thioflavin T fluorescence in protein amyloid aggregates: Mapping molecular interactions.

Thioflavin T (ThT) is a worldwide used dye to monitor protein aggregation as it stains with a certain specificity amyloid structures. The interactions between ThT and its hosts are largely studied suggesting that fluorescence properties of this dye critically depend both on the environment rigidity, electrostatic and hydrophobic properties as well as on molecular details binding site structure. Here FLIM and phasor approach analysis are used to exploit ThT amyloid interactions and, in turn, to address polymorphism and structural heterogeneity of amyloid species mapping aggregate-to-aggregate structural differences and revealing details of molecular architecture within the same aggregate.

Analysis of the Aggregate Financial Behaviour of Customers Using the Transtheoretical Model of Change

2014

Abstract The authors addressed the problem of aggregate financial behaviour of customers by using the transtheoretical model of change. Aggregate financial behaviour of customers was studied by analyzing payment cards, private pension savings and mortgage loans. The transheoretical model of change was chosen as a theoretical framework for the analysis. Conclusions are based on results of regression analysis of empirical evidence of customers’ financial behaviour relation to the given products during the time period 2001-2013 in Latvia and further logical inferences by authors, which are consistent with the chosen theoretical framework of the transtheoretical model of change

Probing ensemble polymorphism and single aggregate structural heterogeneity in insulin amyloid self-assembly.

2020

Ensembles of protein aggregates are characterized by a nano- and micro-scale heterogeneity of the species. This diversity translates into a variety of effects that protein aggregates may have in biological systems, both in connection to neurodegenerative diseases and immunogenic risk of protein drug products. Moreover, this naturally occurring variety offers unique opportunities in the field of protein-based biomaterials. In the above-mentioned fields, the isolation and structural analysis of the different amyloid types within the same ensemble remain a priority, still representing a significant experimental challenge. Here we address such complexity in the case of insulin for its relevance…

Comparing air quality indices aggregated by pollutant

2011

In this paper a new aggregate Air Quality Index (AQI) useful for describing the global air pollution situation for a given area is proposed. The index, unlike most of currently used AQIs, takes into account the combined effects of all the considered pollutants to human health. Its good performance, tested by means of a simulation plan, is confirmed by a comparison with two other indices proposed in the literature, one of which is based on the Relative Risk of daily mortality, considering an application to real data.

Histopathology of Skeletal Muscle in a Distal Motor Neuropathy Associated with a Mutant CCT5 Subunit: Clues for Future Developments to Improve Differ…

2023

Genetic chaperonopathies are rare but, because of misdiagnosis, there are probably more cases than those that are recorded in the literature and databases. This occurs because practitioners are generally unaware of the existence and/or the symptoms and signs of chaperonopathies. It is necessary to educate the medical community about these diseases and, with research, to unveil their mechanisms. The structure and functions of various chaperones in vitro have been studied, but information on the impact of mutant chaperones in humans, in vivo, is scarce. Here, we present a succinct review of the most salient abnormalities of skeletal muscle, based on our earlier report of a patient who carried…

Model to Assess the Quality of Magmatic Rocks for Reliable and Sustainable Constructions

2017

Geomechanical assessment of rocks requires knowledge of phenomena that occur under the influence of internal and external factors at a macroscopic or microscopic scale, when rocks are submitted to different actions. To elucidate the quantitative and qualitative geomechanical behavior of rocks, knowing their geological and physical–mechanical characteristics becomes an imperative. Mineralogical, petrographical and chemical analyses provided an opportunity to identify 15 types of igneous rocks (gabbro, diabases, granites, diorites, rhyolites, andesites, and basalts), divided into plutonic and volcanic rocks. In turn, these have been grouped into acidic, neutral (intermediate) and basic magmat…