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Abstract
Background
There are limited data about the influence of stent composition on immune responses after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
Objective
The aim was to compare the effects of PCI with conventional cobalt-chromium bare metal stent (BMS) and drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation on the modulation of humoral and cellular immune responses.
Methods
A randomised, single-centre, open pilot study involving patients with stable coronary artery disease eligible for PCI was performed. Blood samples were collected from the peripheral artery (PA) and the coronary sinus (CS) at baseline and 40 weeks following PCI. IgM and IgG autoantibodies (Abs), anti-oxLDL and anti-ApoB-D, as well as cytokine levels were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
Results
A total of 30 patients of 60 years mean age were included, 68% of whom were men. At the nine-month follow-up, a modulation in the levels of cytokines and autoantibodies was observed in both stent type groups. However, no difference was observed in the modulation of these markers between stents.
Conclusion
The stent type promotes modulations in cellular and humoral immune responses in the long-term, with differences in the magnitude of effects in specific immune responses.
Abstract
This work presents the characterization and the kinetic compensation effect of corn biodiesel obtained by the methanol and ethanol routes. The biodiesel was characterized by physico-chemical analyses, gas chromatography, nuclear magnetic resonance and thermal analysis. The physico-chemical properties indicated that the biodiesel samples meet the specifications of the Brazilian National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) standards. The analyses by IR and 1H NMR spectroscopy indicated the ester formation. Gas chromatography indicated that biodiesel was obtained with an ester content above 97%. The kinetic parameters were determined with three different heating rates, and it was observed that both the methanol and ethanol biodiesel obeyed the kinetic compensation effect.
Abstract
The influence of drying processes in the biodiesel oxidation was investigated by means of the oxidative induction time obtained from differential scanning calorimetry data. For this purpose, corn biodiesel was dried by different methods including: chemical (anhydrous sodium sulfate) and thermal (induction heating, heating under vacuum and with microwave irradiation). The drying efficiency was evaluated by monitoring IR absorption in the 3,500–3,200 cm−1 range and by the AOCS Bc 2-49 method. In general, the oxidative induction times increased inversely to the heating degree, except that of microwave irradiation, which was selective to water evaporation and caused low impact over the unsaturation of biodiesel. The DSC technique was shown to be a powerful tool to evaluate with high level of differentiation the influence of the drying process on the oxidative stability of biodiesel.
We present prototyping of meso- and microfluidic photocatalytic devices, functionalized through incorporation of TiO2 nanoparticles in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and comparison of their efficiencies for the degradation of rhodamine B (10−5 mol/L). The prototyping of the photocatalytic devices involves simple and low-cost procedures, which includes microchannels fabrication on PDMS, deposition and impregnation of TiO2 on PDMS, and, finally, plugging on the individual parts. For the microfluidic device with 13 μL internal volume, photocatalytic TiO2–PDMS composite was sealed by another PDMS component activated by O2 plasma (PDMS–TiO2–PDMS). For the mesofluidic device, a homemade polyetheretherketone (PEEK) flow cell with 800 μL internal volume was screwed on a steel support with a glass slide and the photocatalytic composite. The photocatalytic activities of the devices were evaluated using two different pumping flow systems: a peristaltic pump and a syringe pump, both at 0.05 mL/min under the action of 365 nm ultraviolet (UV) light. The characterization of TiO2–PDMS composite was performed by confocal Raman microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The photocatalytic microreactor was the most efficient, showing high organic dye photodegradation (88.4% at 12.5 mW/cm2).
Abstract
Sediments from the Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Antarctica, were investigated by 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy, X-ray diffractometry, and radiometry. Quartz, feldspar, chlorite, calcite, dolomite, mica, kaolinite, hematite and magnetite were identified as constituent minerals in the sediment samples. The phase composition and the iron distribution among the crystallographic sites of iron-bearing minerals (silicates, magnetite and hematite) of samples from different location have been derived from the complex Mössbauer spectra. At different locations sediments had significant characteristic differences in the mineral composition, in the iron distribution among the crystallographic site of silicates, and in the specific radioactivity of Cs radionuclides. These results indicate differences in the rock formation and alteration by the sediments in this maritime part of Antarctica. There is a much higher amount of iron oxides in the sediments from south part of the geological fault across the Admiralty Bay than in the north part. This can be associated with much more alteration in the rocks in the south part compared to the northern one. This finding can contribute to the question of the history of the formation and alteration of volcanic rocks in the border of Antarctica.
Abstract
Palladium(II) coordination compounds of general formula trans-[PdX2(isn)2], X = Cl− (1), N3 − (2), SCN− (3), NCO− (4), isn = isonicotinamide; were synthesized and characterized in solid state by elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy, and simultaneous TG–DTA. TG experiments reveal that the compounds 1–4 undergo thermal decomposition in three or four stages, yielding Pd0 as final residue, according to calculus and identification by X-ray powder diffraction.
Abstract
Searching for other alternative sources, which are not part of the food chain, and which are able to supply the biofuel market is a promising option. In this context, it has been searched to investigate the oiticica oil, approaching its availability to the biodiesel synthesis, as well as its thermal stability. Few works retreat parameters such as: the optimization of the biodiesel synthesis, its physical–chemical properties, and thermal parameters etc. The characterization results revealed that the oil showed very high kinematic viscosity, and acidity value around 13 mg KOH/g, requiring a pre-treatment. To reduce the acid in the oil, it has been done the esterification of oil, which was studied in different molar ratios oiticica oil/ethanol (1:9) and 2.0% catalyst, in order to get the best reduction the index of acidity. The lowest level of acidity of the oil obtained after the esterification was 4.4 mg KOH/g. The reaction rate for the synthesis of biodiesel, compared to the initial mass of oiticica oil ester was 85%. This income can be overcome by pursuing an even smaller reduction of acid value of biodiesel oiticica. The acid value of biodiesel was 1.8 mg KOH/g. The results have revealed that the oiticica oil and biodiesel are stable at 224 and 179 °C, respectively.
Abstract
Biodiesel has the advantage of being renewable and clean and for these reasons has been studied recently both academically and in industry. Research in this area is focused on developing new synthetic routes to obtain a purer product or to find new alternative sources of food to replace conventional oils. Papaya biodiesel is obtained from oily residues with a fatty acid composition similar to olive oil. It is generally discarded by the ton, considering that Brazil is the world’s largest producer of papaya with an annual output of 1,811 million tons, productivity of 52 t/hectare and domestic consumption at 86.5%. This study was designed by means of thermal analysis (TG, DSC, P-DSC, and MT-DSC), to verify the possibility of achieving high quality biodiesel, with oxidative stability and flow properties previously indicated by composition analysis of its fatty esters, physical–chemical properties (including oxidative stability) using classical methodology, recommended by ASTM D 6756.
Abstract
The standard molar enthalpies of formation of crystalline dialkyldithiocarbamates chelates, [Pd(S2CNR2)2], with R=C2H5, n-C3H7, n-C4H9 and i-C4H9, were determined through reaction-solution calorimetry in acetone, at 298.15 K. From the standard molar enthalpies of formation of the gaseous chelates, the homolytic (172.43.8, 182.53.2,150.93.1 and 162.63.1 kJ mol−1) and heterolytic (745.03.8, 803.73.3,834.33.1 and 735.23.0 kJ mol−1) mean palladium-sulphur bond-dissociation enthalpies were calculated.
Abstract
Thermoanalytical, kinetic and rheological parameters of commercial edible oils were evaluated. The thermal decomposition of the oils occurred in three steps, due to polyunsaturated, monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids decomposition, respectively. According to the temperature of the beginning of the decomposition, the following stability order was observed: corn (A)>corn>sunflower (A)>rice>soybean>rapeseed (A)>olive>rapeseed>sunflower (A - artificial antioxidants). Kinetic parameters were obtained using Coats-Redfern and Madhusudanan methods and presented good correlation. According to the activation energy of the first thermal decomposition event, obtained of Coats-Redfern' method, the following stability order is proposed: sunflower>corn>rice>soybean>rapeseed>olive. In relation to rheological properties, a Newtonian behavior was observed and no degradation occurred in the temperature range studied.
