Chemical and Physical Characterisation of Macroaggregated Human Serum Albumin: Strength and Specificity of Bonds with 99mTc and 68Ga

Background: Macroaggregated human serum albumin (MAA) properties are widely used in nuclear medicine, labelled with 99mTc. The aim of this study is to improve the knowledge about the morphology, size, dimension and physical–chemical characteristics of MAA and their bond with 99mTc and 68Ga. Methods: Commercial kits of MAA (Pulmocis®) were used. Characterisation through experiments based on SEM, DLS and Stokes’ Law were carried out. In vitro experiments for Langmuir isotherms and pH studies on radiolabelling were performed and the stability of the radiometal complex was verified through competition reactions. Results: The study settles the MAA dimension within the range 43–51 μm. The Langmuir isotherm reveals for [99mTc]MAA: Bmax (46.32), h (2.36); for [68Ga]MAA: Bmax (44.54), h (0.893). Dual labelling reveals that MAA does not discriminate different radioisotopes. Experiments on pH placed the optimal pH for labelling with 99mTc at 6. Conclusion: Radiolabelling of MAA is possible with high efficiency. The nondiscriminatory MAA bonds make this drug suitable for radiolabelling with different radioisotopes or for dual labelling. This finding illustrates the need to continue investigating MAA chemical and physical characteristics to allow for secure labelling with different isotopes.

Stress Analysis of HCPB BB under Ex-Vessel LOCA Condition

Helium Cooled Pebble Bed Breeding Blanket (HCPB BB) is a kind of concept for the European demonstration fusion reactor (DEMO). The blanket attachment system plays an important role in the mechanical connection of the BB and vacuum vessel. Typically, the mechanical and thermal loads should meet the requirement to avoid collapse of the system with off-normal conditions, e.g., under ex-vessel Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA. This paper investigates the loading requirement corresponding to the maximum stress that can sustain to avoid the LOCA condition. Firstly, a model of the BB is constructed using SolidWorks. Then, stress analysis is carried out based on the cross section of the blanket. Through simulation, the critical condition for the LOCA case and the maximum stress value for the model are obtained. According to the relevant size dimension from the reference, the blanket’s cross section is drawn, and one can get the stress field under the ex-vessel LOCA through stress analysis. The stress distribution under the ex-vessel LOCA condition is simulated to find out the maximum stress field that the blanket can sustain through this paper. The significance is to predict the possible conditions leading to an accident and find possible methods to avoid them.

Evaluations of An Algorithm for Large Multivariate Optimization

Many simulation-driven engineering and scientific problems require finding an optimum of a function with many variables. Such settings pose a challenge for standard algorithms due to the large search space which in turn can lead to poor final results. Therefore this paper proposes a new simplified approach in which the dimension of the problem is dynamically reduced during the search to formulate a problem of lower size (dimension) which is easier to solve. A main novelty of the algorithm is its simplicity. Numerical experiments show the potential of this approach.

El efecto del tamaño sobre la rentabilidad de las empresas comerciales uruguayas

The objective of this work is to analyze the link between the size and financial economic performance of the Uruguayan trading sector, within the framework of the international contributions of the firm's theory and also considering local background. The database to be used consists of the annual financial statements presented to the General Tax Directorate (DGI) by trading companies belonging to the Special Control Group of Companies (CEDE) and Large Taxpayers of Uruguay in the period 2010-2016. The size dimension of these companies is included in the study through the variables representative of their sales volume or their level of assets. The size of the financial economic performance of the companies is measured through the ROA (Return On Assets) and ROE (Return on Equity) indicators. The methodological strategy consists of the application of dynamic clustering and linear regression tools. The results of the study allow us to characterize the structure of the determinants of the economic and financial performance of commercial companies and their dynamic evolution in the period of analysis, shedding light on the validation of the theories that link it with the size of the companies in Uruguay.

Object manufacture based on a memorized template: Goffin’s cockatoos attend to different model features

Although several nonhuman animals have the ability to recognize and match templates in computerized tasks, we know little about their ability to recall and then physically manufacture specific features of mental templates. Across three experiments, Goffin cockatoos (Cacatua goffiniana), a species that can use tools in captivity, were exposed to two pre-made template objects, varying in either colour, size (long or short) or shape (I or L-shaped), where only one template was rewarded. Birds were then given the opportunity to manufacture versions of these objects themselves. We found that all birds carved paper strips from the same colour material as the rewarded template, and half were also able to match the size of a template (long and short). This occurred despite the template being absent at test and birds being rewarded at random. However, we found no evidence that cockatoos could carve L-shaped pieces after learning that L-shaped templates were rewarded, though their manufactured strips were wider than in previous tests. Overall, our results show that Goffin cockatoos possess the ability to physically adjust at least the size dimension of manufactured objects relative to a mental template. This ability has previously only been shown in New Caledonian crows, where template matching was suggested as a potential mechanism allowing for the cumulative cultural transmission of tool designs. Our results show that within avian tool users, the ability to recreate a physical template from memory does not seem to be restricted to species that have cumulative tool cultures.

The relationship between the height dimension and numerical processing

It is well documented that the ability to perceive numbers depends on perception of size. However, size consists of two different dimensions: height and width. In previous size-congruency experiments, the changes in the size dimension were confounded by changes in both the height and width dimensions. Hence, it is not clear if two digits that are equal in size but with different width and height produce a congruency effect and if so, which dimension (height or width) will be associated with quantity more prominently. In fact, different theories might predict different outcomes for the association of height versus width with numbers. To resolve this issue, this study included two experiments in which two equal-size digits that differed from each other in the height and width dimensions were presented and participants were asked to decide which digit is numerically larger. The results revealed a novel congruency effect in which larger numbers are associated more prominently with the height dimension when compared with the width dimension. This effect has important implications for understanding the relationship between number processing and the spatial perception system.

Navicula fontana sp. nov., a new freshwater diatom from a limnocrenic spring in Central Poland

A small unidentified species of Navicula was observed in sandy sediments of a Quaternary spring near Lodz in Central Poland. The species was thoroughly analyzed using light (LM) and scanning electron (SEM) microscopy. It was compared to established species of Navicula from available published sources and its assignment to an established taxon was unsuccessful. Hence, we decided to describe it as a species new for science and the name Navicula fontana sp. nov. is proposed. Navicula fontana sp. nov. was compared to several established species, e.g. N. microdigitoradiata, N. meulemansii, in terms of size dimension range, morphology, ultrastructure, and autecology. Firstly, it differs in terms of autecology living in freshwater, whereas the others thrive in brackish water habitats. Although the type habitat of N. fontana sp. nov. is in a spring, we also observed it in headwaters of rivers with high water quality.

Pengukuran Objek 2 Dimensi Dengan Menggunakan Kamera Berbasis LabVIEW

Quality Control (QC) is one of the most important components in the manufacturing process. The aim is to determine whether a product is feasible to market. One aspect of QC is the size / dimension of the object to be made. If the size is still within the range of tolerance, then it has passed the QC in terms of size, but if not then it includes a failed product. The problem encountered is that it takes a long time to take measurements, especially objects in the third dimension where each part is different as microdrill, zipper etc. To overcome this weakness, a CCD camera is used as a sensor to record images and then use LabVIEW software to analyze the size of the recorded image. This is a preliminary study so that it is only done for objects with two dimensions with square and circular shapes. From the research that has been done, the measurement with the camera gives results that are almost the same as the use of calipers where the standard deviation fluctuates from 0.3 to 23.8 for circles and 0.54 to 32.05 for squares. Furthermore, the time needed to do one measurement process with the camera ranges from 201 ms to 338 ms whereas using the calipers takes 3 to 5s