Energy regulation for a torque-driven vertical inertia wheel pendulum

The utilization of pump as turbines (PATs) within water distribution systems for energy regulation and hydroelectricity generation purposes has increasingly attracted the energy field players’ attention. However, its power production efficiency still faces difficulties due to PAT’s lack of flow control ability in such dynamic systems. This has eventually led to the introduction of the so-called “variable operating strategy” or VOS, where the impeller rotational speed may be controlled to satisfy the system-required flow conditions. Taking from these grounds, this study numerically investigates PAT eventual flow structures formation mechanism, especially when subjected to varying impeller rotational speed. CFD-backed numerical simulations were conducted on PAT flow under four operating conditions (1.00 QBEP, 0.82 QBEP, 0.74 QBEP, and 0.55 QBEP), considering five impeller rotational speeds (110 rpm, 130 rpm, 150 rpm, 170 rpm, and 190 rpm). Study results have shown that both PAT’s flow and pressure fields deteriorate with the machine influx decrease, where the impeller rotational speed increase is found to alleviate PAT pressure pulsation levels under high-flow operating conditions, while it worsens them under part-load conditions. This study’s results add value to a thorough understanding of PAT flow dynamics, which, in a long run, contributes to the solution of the so-far existent technical issues.

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Cocaine induces paradigm-specific changes to the transcriptome within the ventral tegmental area

Neuropsychopharmacology ◽

10.1038/s41386-021-01031-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Rianne R. Campbell ◽

Siwei Chen ◽

Joy H. Beardwood ◽

Alberto J. López ◽

Lilyana V. Pham ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gene Expression ◽

Ventral Tegmental Area ◽

Home Cage ◽

Expression Patterns ◽

Energy Regulation ◽

Biological Processes ◽

Cocaine Exposure ◽

Self Administration ◽

Drug Reinforcement ◽

Ventral Tegmental

AbstractDuring the initial stages of drug use, cocaine-induced neuroadaptations within the ventral tegmental area (VTA) are critical for drug-associated cue learning and drug reinforcement processes. These neuroadaptations occur, in part, from alterations to the transcriptome. Although cocaine-induced transcriptional mechanisms within the VTA have been examined, various regimens and paradigms have been employed to examine candidate target genes. In order to identify key genes and biological processes regulating cocaine-induced processes, we employed genome-wide RNA-sequencing to analyze transcriptional profiles within the VTA from male mice that underwent one of four commonly used paradigms: acute home cage injections of cocaine, chronic home cage injections of cocaine, cocaine-conditioning, or intravenous-self administration of cocaine. We found that cocaine alters distinct sets of VTA genes within each exposure paradigm. Using behavioral measures from cocaine self-administering mice, we also found several genes whose expression patterns corelate with cocaine intake. In addition to overall gene expression levels, we identified several predicted upstream regulators of cocaine-induced transcription shared across all paradigms. Although distinct gene sets were altered across cocaine exposure paradigms, we found, from Gene Ontology (GO) term analysis, that biological processes important for energy regulation and synaptic plasticity were affected across all cocaine paradigms. Coexpression analysis also identified gene networks that are altered by cocaine. These data indicate that cocaine alters networks enriched with glial cell markers of the VTA that are involved in gene regulation and synaptic processes. Our analyses demonstrate that transcriptional changes within the VTA depend on the route, dose and context of cocaine exposure, and highlight several biological processes affected by cocaine. Overall, these findings provide a unique resource of gene expression data for future studies examining novel cocaine gene targets that regulate drug-associated behaviors.

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Adiponectin: Structure, Physiological Functions, Role in Diseases, and Effects of Nutrition

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu13041180 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 1180

Author(s):

Kayvan Khoramipour ◽

Karim Chamari ◽

Amirhosein Ahmadi Hekmatikar ◽

Amirhosein Ziyaiyan ◽

Shima Taherkhani ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Amino Acids ◽

Molecular Weight ◽

Energy Regulation ◽

Treatment Interventions ◽

Adipose Tissues ◽

Physiological Functions ◽

Cellular Events ◽

Healthy Nutrition

Adiponectin (a protein consisting of 244 amino acids and characterized by a molecular weight of 28 kDa) is a cytokine that is secreted from adipose tissues (adipokine). Available evidence suggests that adiponectin is involved in a variety of physiological functions, molecular and cellular events, including lipid metabolism, energy regulation, immune response and inflammation, and insulin sensitivity. It has a protective effect on neurons and neural stem cells. Adiponectin levels have been reported to be negatively correlated with cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, and shown to be affected (i.e., significantly increased) by proper healthy nutrition. The present review comprehensively overviews the role of adiponectin in a range of diseases, showing that it can be used as a biomarker for diagnosing these disorders as well as a target for monitoring the effectiveness of preventive and treatment interventions.

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An Output Feedback Position/Speed Regulator for a Torque—driven Inertia Wheel Pendulum

International Journal of Control Automation and Systems ◽

10.1007/s12555-020-0744-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jesús Sandoval ◽

Rafael Kelly ◽

Víctor Santibáñez

Keyword(s):

Output Feedback ◽

Speed Regulator ◽

Inertia Wheel Pendulum

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High Intakes of [6S]-5-Methyltetrahydrofolic Acid Compared with Folic Acid during Pregnancy Programs Central and Peripheral Mechanisms Favouring Increased Food Intake and Body Weight of Mature Female Offspring

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu13051477 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (5) ◽

pp. 1477

Author(s):

Emanuela Pannia ◽

Rola Hammoud ◽

Ruslan Kubant ◽

Jong Yup Sa ◽

Rebecca Simonian ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Folic Acid ◽

Food Intake ◽

Leptin Receptor ◽

Liver Weight ◽

Female Offspring ◽

Mature Female ◽

Cytokine Signaling ◽

Light Cycle ◽

Energy Regulation

Supplementation with [6S]-5-methyltetrahydrofolic acid (MTHF) is recommended as an alternative to folic acid (FA) in prenatal supplements. This study compared equimolar gestational FA and MTHF diets on energy regulation of female offspring. Wistar rats were fed an AIN-93G diet with recommended (2 mg/kg diet) or 5-fold (5X) intakes of MTHF or FA. At weaning, female offspring were fed a 45% fat diet until 19 weeks. The 5X-MTHF offspring had higher body weight (>15%), food intake (8%), light-cycle energy expenditure, and lower activity compared to 5X-FA offspring (p < 0.05). Both the 5X offspring had higher plasma levels of the anorectic hormone leptin at birth (60%) and at 19 weeks (40%), and lower liver weight and total liver lipids compared to the 1X offspring (p < 0.05). Hypothalamic mRNA expression of leptin receptor (ObRb) was lower, and of suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 (Socs3) was higher in the 5X-MTHF offspring (p < 0.05), suggesting central leptin dysregulation. In contrast, the 5X-FA offspring had higher expression of genes encoding for dopamine and GABA- neurotransmitter receptors (p < 0.01), consistent with their phenotype and reduced food intake. When fed folate diets at the requirement level, no differences were found due to form in the offspring. We conclude that MTHF compared to FA consumed at high levels in the gestational diets program central and peripheral mechanisms to favour increased weight gain in the offspring. These pre-clinical findings caution against high gestational intakes of folates of either form and encourage clinical trials examining their long-term health effects when consumed during pregnancy.

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