Cure of malignant ascites and generation of protective immunity by monoclonal antibody-targeted activation of a glucuronide prodrug in rats

We examined the in vivo efficacy of targeting beta-glucuronidase (betaG) to activate a glucuronide prodrug (BHAMG) of p-hydroxyaniline mustard (pHAM) at hepatoma ascites in Sprague-Dawley rats. Injection i.p. of 500 microg RH1-betaG, a conjugate formed between recombinant betaG and monoclonal antibody RH1 with specificity for an antigen expressed on AS-30D rat hepatoma cells, into rats bearing AS-30D ascites resulted in the accumulation of 54 microg conjugate per 10(9) tumor cells after 2 hr. Ascites fluid and serum contained 0.53 and 0 microg/ml, respectively, RH1-betaG 2 hr after injection of the conjugate. Conjugate binding to AS-30D cells was heterogeneous and non-saturated, as determined by flow cytometry. BHAMG was less toxic than pHAM to SD rats based on measures of animal mortality, weight loss and hematological toxicity. Treatment of rats bearing established hepatoma ascites with 500 microg RH1-betaG followed 2 hr later with a single i.p. injection of 30 mg/kg BHAMG or 3 i.p. injections of 10 mg/kg BHAMG 2, 3 and 4 hr later resulted in the cure of 6/8 and 8/8 animals, respectively. Treatment with BHAMG or pHAM alone did not produce cures, whereas treatment with a control antibody-betaG conjugate and BHAMG produced significantly greater hematological toxicity compared to treatment with RH1-betaG and BHAMG. All cured rats were completely protected from rechallenge with 2 x 10(7) AS-30D cells, indicating that successful treatment of animals induced protective immunity.     

Characterization of ultrashort optical pulses with third-harmonic-generation based triple autocorrelation

We present a method to obtain complete information of femtosecond pulses. By measuring triple-optical autocorrelation directly with third-harmonic generation, without spectral information, a temporal pulse shape can be obtained by analytical calculation without direction-of-time ambiguity. Combining the resulting optical pulse shape with its corresponding optical spectrum, the exact phase and color variations in time can all be recovered with a Gerchberg-Saxton algorithm through an iterative calculation with an O(n) complexity.     

General rate equations and their applications for cyclic reaction networks: multi-cycle systems

The network reduction technique and the Bodenstein approximation of quasi-stationary behavior of reaction intermediates were systematically applied to derive general yield ratio and rate equations for multi-cycle reaction networks in homogeneous catalysis. Dual-cycle reaction networks connected by a linear pathway, multi-cycle networks stemming from the same intermediate, and single-cycle with arbitrary number of pathways between two intermediates were considered. The general yield ratio and rate equations derived in this study are applicable for most enzymatic reactions and for homogeneous catalytic reactions. Examples of homogeneous catalysis were used to illustrate the application of the general yield ratio and rate equations for network elucidation.     

Interfacial polyfunctional condensation: Curing reaction

Heat treatment of films obtained by interfacial condensation of 4,4′-methylene dianiline (MDA) or ethylene diamine (EDA) in water and 1,2,4,5-benzenetetra acyl chloride (BTAC) in dichloromethane were studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ¹H-and ¹³C-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry (FABMS), an elemental analyzer, and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The reaction scheme for forming the polyimide is presented. Films were synthesized from the aromatic diamine and from the aliphatic diamine system. Both must go through two-stage thermal treatment to form the structure of the imide. The first stage of this reaction is the imidization of the polyamic acid, and the second is the reaction to imidization of the functional amide group linked to the neighboring carbon on the benzene ring. After thermal treatment, the films will maintain good heat resistance. The difference between the mentioned interfacial synthetic polyimide and the conventional synthetic polyimide is that no isoimide and anhydride groups are found in the former. But the thickness of the film is limited by the nature of interfacial polymerization. In our reaction system, the maximum thickness of the film did not exceed 20 μm.     

MATHEMATICAL MODELING OF THROUGH-HOLE-PLATING IN ELECTROCHEMICAL MICROFABRICATION II. AXISYMMETRIC TWO-DIMENSIONAL CONVECTIVE MASS TRANSFER

Axisymmetrical, two dimensional mass transfer in a tube and a through-hole was studied. The elliptic convective-diffusion equation was solved numerically by taking into account both the axial and radial diffusion in the entrance region of an infinite tube. The whole mass-transfer region in a tube of finite length was also studied by dividing the domain into several regions according to different mass-transfer mechanisms. A similar analysis is then conducted for a through-hole geometry by assuming a modified Hagen-Poiseuille fluid pattern. Results show that mass-transfer rate in a through-hole is larger than that in a tube by approximately 10%. This is due primarily to faster fluid flow within the concentration boundary layer in a through-hole.     

Mechanical properties of concrete containing phase-change material

This study aimed to investigate the mechanical properties of concrete containing solid–liquid phase-change material (PCM) and focused on two key factors. First, a systematic study on the mechanical performance of PCM-modified concretes was conducted, including compressive, elastic modulus, and shrinkage tests. Second, because PCM provides high latent heat during the solid–liquid phase change, the effects of the solid phase and liquid phase on the mechanical properties of concrete were also explored. Results of this study showed that the solid–liquid phase of PCM affected the mechanical properties of concrete. For example, the compressive strength of 10% PCM concrete in solid phase (23 °C) and liquid phase (40 °C) at 28 days was 29.30 and 19.57 MPa, respectively. In addition, with increasing PCM content, the mechanical properties were degraded. For example, 10, 20, and 30% of PCM content lowered the compressive strength by 35.4, 58.4, and 74.3%, respectively. Therefore, concrete with PCM may not be suitable for structural elements. However, PCM is an important solution for optimizing energy consumption in modern buildings. It can absorb or emit large amounts of heat to store or release thermal energy. These properties can be used to control building temperatures resulting in energy saving and carbon reduction.     

How does Internet information seeking help academic performance? – The moderating and mediating roles of academic self-efficacy

Although researchers tend to agree that Internet is a good source for learning and research, little empirical data has substantiated this claim by specifically linking time and effort spent on the Internet for school related information seeking to academic performances. This research investigates the relationship between vocational high school students’ information seeking activities on the Internet, academic self-efficacy, and academic performance. We propose that academic self-efficacy both mediates and moderates the relationship between Internet information seeking and academic performance. Using survey data from 295 vocational high school students in Taiwan, we found that the positive effect of Internet information seeking to students’ academic performance is mediated through academic self-efficacy. Academic self-efficacy, at the same time, moderates the relationship between Internet information seeking to academic performance such that students’ with low academic self-efficacy benefit more from Internet information seeking in regard to their academic performance. We discussed the implications of our findings and provided future directions for research.     

The high‐speed measurement of a partial area imaging system applied to photoresist development processing

Abstract

Among the parameters that affect photolithography, the most important are exposure and development time which affect the coating photoresist characteristics. This study further researches the relationship between the exposure and development time using a high speed image inspection system, and the relationship between the development time and photoresist depth using a Scanning Probe Microscope (SPM). A partial scan CCD camera and high speed frame capture card were used to obtain the photoresist development processing parameters. The experimental results verified that this imaging system provides an economical and effective method for producing a micro‐photo‐etched product. It is expected that these experiments can also offer some good references useful in the micro electro mechanical industrial field.     

Assessing the efficiency of supply chain scheduling algorithms using data envelopment analysis

Where different supply chain planning algorithms are used, generally similar results may pose some challenges on the differentiating powers of evaluating different production schedules because of the increasing complexity of a supply chain network structure. For the comparison purpose, performance evaluation of different supply chain planning algorithms aims to use different supply chains models with different demands, capacities, and commonality through efficiency perspective by using a modified network rational data envelopment analysis (DEA) model. The proposed DEA model has the abilities: (1) to treat only undesirable outputs that exist without normal output, and the situation where input and output are both zero by introducing two new parameters to denote the maximum inventory and amount of delayed demands of a given node in a given time period; and (2) to evaluate the effect of the undesirable outputs/inputs on efficiency with assumption that they leave the system at the end of the current time period and re-enter the system at the beginning of the next time period. To prove the effectiveness of this DEA model, eighteen scenarios with different demands, capacities, and multiple periods are compared. In addition, this study tests the DEA model on a wafer testing/probing operation of a leading global semiconductor manufacturing and testing company in Taiwan by internal supply chain perspective. Results show that the DEA model proposed in this study can be used to assess the efficiency of a real-world operation with undesirable outputs/inputs, such as inventory and delayed demands.