Search results for "Bioengineering"

Retinal Microcirculation in Type 1 Diabetic Patients With and Without Peripheral Sensory Neuropathy

2014

In patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), early retinal microvascular alterations can be observed even before the clinical diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy. This study aimed to investigate morphological and functional changes in retinal microvascular blood flow in type 1 diabetic patients with and without peripheral neuropathy (PNP) as compared to nondiabetic controls. Retinal microvascular blood flow (RBF) was assessed using scanning laser Doppler flowmetry (Heidelberg Retina Flowmeter, Heidelberg Engineering, Germany) before and after stimulation with flicker light. PNP was assessed using the neuropathy disability score (NDS) and by the evaluation of the vibration perception threshold (V…

Potential of an Exploitation of Acid-Tolerant Antimicrobial Microorganisms Evolving Enzyme Systems for the Utilization of Dairy By-products and Ligno…

2016

Testing the shape-similarity hypothesis between particle-size distribution and water retention for Sicilian soils

2012

Application of the Arya and Paris (AP) model to estimate the soil water retention curve requires a detailed description of the particlesize distribution (PSD) but limited experimental PSD data are generally determined by the conventional sieve-hydrometer (SH) method. Detailed PSDs can be obtained by fitting a continuous model to SH data or performing measurements by the laser diffraction (LD) method. The AP model was applied to 40 Sicilian soils for which the PSD was measured by both the SH and LD methods. The scale factor was set equal to 1.38 (procedure AP1) or estimated by a logistical model with parameters gathered from literature (procedure AP2). For both SH and LD data, procedure AP2 …

TESTING THE GRAIN-SIZE DISTRIBUTION DETERMINED BY LASER DIFFRACTOMETRY FOR SICILIAN SOILS

2012

In this paper the soil grain-size distribution determined by Laser Diffraction method (LDM) is tested using the Sieve-Hydrometer method (SHM) applied for 747 soil samples representing a different texture classification, sampled in Sicily. 005_Di_Stefano(599)_39 28-12-2011 15:01 Pagina 45 The analysis showed that the sand content measured by SHM can be assumed equal to the one determined by LDM. An underestimation of the clay fraction measured by LDM was obtained with respect to the SHM and a set of equations useful to refer laser diffraction measurements to SHM was calibrated using the measurements carried out for 635 soil samples. Finally, the proposed equations were tested using independe…

Sequent depth ratio of B-jumps on smooth and rough beds

2013

A hydraulic B-jump has the toe section located on a positively sloping upstream channel and the roller end on a downstream horizontal channel. This paper analyses the B-jump on a rough bed, such as at the transition from a block ramp to the stilling basin. Laboratory measurements of the sequent depth were carried out using three different channel slopes for the rough bed and a single slope for the smooth bed. A solution useful for estimating the sequent depth ratio in a rectangular channel for different relative roughness and bed slope is proposed and positively tested by the present measurements. This solution can also be used to estimate the sequent depth ratio of classical hydraulic jump…

Extremophilic microbial communities on photovoltaic panel surfaces: a two‐year study

2020

Solar panel surfaces can be colonized by microorganisms adapted to desiccation, temperature fluctuations and solar radiation. Although the taxonomic and functional composition of these communities has been studied, the microbial colonization process remains unclear. In the present work, we have monitored this microbial colonization process during 24 months by performing weekly measurements of the photovoltaic efficiency, carrying out 16S rRNA gene high‐throughput sequencing, and studying the effect of antimicrobial compounds on the composition of the microbial biocenosis. This is the first time a long‐term study of the colonization process of solar panels has been performed, and our results…

The rose and the name: the unresolved debate on biotechnological terms

2020

The largest survey on the perception of synthetic biology‐related disciplines (Porcar et al., 2019,EMBO Rep 20) recently revealed that the Spanish society does not have a very positive perception of the term synthetic biology. On the other hand, the terms biotechnology and even genetic engineering received relatively higher scores. The issue of nomenclature and perception is a classical one in science perception studies. Synthetic biologists have been debating their neologism (Synthetic Biology, from now on SB) for years. Even in a 2006 blog, Rob Carlson discussed the various labels for the new field, such as intentional biology, constructive biology, natural engineering, synthetic genomics…

Diversity and mineral substrate preference in endolithic microbial communities from marine intertidal outcrops (Isla de Mona, Puerto Rico)

2017

14 pages; International audience; Endolithic microbial communities are prominent features of intertidal marine habitats, where they colonize a variety of substrates, contributing to their erosion. Almost 2 centuries worth of naturalistic studies focused on a few true-boring (euendolithic) phototrophs, but substrate preference has received little attention. The Isla de Mona (Puerto Rico) intertidal zone offers a unique setting to investigate substrate specificity of endolithic communities since various phosphate rock, limestone and dolostone outcrops occur there. High-throughput 16S rDNA genetic sampling, enhanced by targeted cultivation, revealed that, while euendolithic cyanobacteria were …

Tips and Tricks: Biopsies and Drainages

2018

Structural characterization of site-modified nanocapsid with monodispersed gold clusters

2017

AbstractHepatitis E Virus-like particles self-assemble in to noninfectious nanocapsids that are resistant to proteolytic/acidic mucosal delivery conditions. Previously, the nanocapsid was engineered to specifically bind and enter breast cancer cells, where successful tumor targeting was demonstrated in animal models. In the present study, the nanocapsid surface was modified with a solvent-exposed cysteine to conjugate monolayer protected gold nanoclusters (AuNC). Unlike commercially available gold nanoparticles, AuNCs monodisperse in water and are composed of a discrete number of gold atoms, forming a crystalline gold core. Au102pMBA44 (Au102) was an ideal conjugate given its small 2.5 nm s…