Does thermal control improve visual satisfaction? Interactions between occupants’ self-perceived control,visual, thermal,and overall satisfaction

Occupants’ satisfaction had been researched independently related to thermal and visual stimuli for many decades showing among others the influence of self-perceived control. Few studies revealed interactions between thermal and visual stimuli affecting occupant satisfaction. In addition, studies including interactions between thermal and visual stimuli are lacking different control scenarios. This study focused on the effects of thermal and visual factors, their interaction, seasonal influences, and the degree of self-perceived control on overall, thermal, and visual satisfaction. A repeated-measures laboratory study with 61 participants running over two years and a total of 986 participant sessions was conducted. Mixed model analyses with overall satisfaction as outcome variable revealed that thermal satisfaction and visual satisfaction are the most important predictors for overall satisfaction with the indoor environment. Self-perceived thermal control served as moderator between thermal satisfaction and overall satisfaction. Season had slight influence on overall satisfaction. Random effects explained the highest amount of variance, indicating that intra- and interindividual differences in the ratings of satisfaction are more prevalent than study condition. Future building design and operation plans aiming at a high level of occupant satisfaction should consider personal control opportunities and take into account the moderating effect of control opportunities in multimodal interactions.     

Intergenerational Metabolomic Analysis of Mothers with a History of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Their Offspring

Shared metabolomic patterns at delivery have been suggested to underlie the mother-to-child transmission of adverse metabolic health. This study aimed to investigate whether mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and their offspring show similar metabolomic patterns several years postpartum. Targeted metabolomics (including 137 metabolites) was performed in plasma samples obtained during an oral glucose tolerance test from 48 mothers with GDM and their offspring at a cross-sectional study visit 8 years after delivery. Partial Pearson’s correlations between the area under the curve (AUC) of maternal and offspring metabolites were calculated, yielding so-called Gaussian graphical models. Spearman’s correlations were applied to investigate correlations of body mass index (BMI), Matsuda insulin sensitivity index (ISI-M), dietary intake, and physical activity between generations, and correlations of metabolite AUCs with lifestyle variables. This study revealed that BMI, ISI-M, and the AUC of six metabolites (carnitine, taurine, proline, SM(-OH) C14:1, creatinine, and PC ae C34:3) were significantly correlated between mothers and offspring several years postpartum. Intergenerational metabolite correlations were independent of shared BMI, ISI-M, age, sex, and all other metabolites. Furthermore, creatinine was correlated with physical activity in mothers. This study suggests that there is long-term metabolic programming in the offspring of mothers with GDM and informs us about targets that could be addressed by future intervention studies.     

Optimized protocol for the biocompatibility testing of compression stockings and similar products with close skin contact in vitro

Biocompatibility of six different compression stockings and cytotoxic effects were determined using HaCaT keratinocytes, L929 mouse fibroblasts, primary adult and juvenile keratinocytes Cells were quantified using a luminometric ATP assay and the photometric BCA test. Cytotoxic effects were determined by LDH release. An area-based extraction ratio of 1.25 cm²:mL could be shown to be superior to the weight-based extraction of test material. Extraction medium should be an acidic sweat solution as this helps to recreate in vivo conditions. Monolayer cultures of HaCaT keratinocytes or L929 mouse fibroblasts should be used for testing. Primary adult keratinocytes or primary juvenile keratinocytes can also be used. For the latter, testing under DMEM with FCS is recommended to achieve comparable results. It was found that the compression stockings tested exhibited no negative influence on cell viability in vitro and no direct cytotoxic effects measured as release of LDH. Hence, good biocompatibility could be asserted.     

The Fifth WS/DGAT Enzyme of the Bacterium Marinobacter aquaeolei VT8

Wax esters (WE) belong to the class of neutral lipids. They are formed by an esterification of a fatty alcohol and an activated fatty acid. Dependent on the chain length and desaturation degree of the fatty acid and the fatty alcohol moiety, WE can have diverse physicochemical properties. WE derived from monounsaturated long-chain acyl moieties are of industrial interest due to their very good lubrication properties. Whereas WE were obtained in the past from spermaceti organs of the sperm whale, industrial WE are nowadays mostly produced chemically from fossil fuels. In order to produce WE more sustainably, attempts to produce industrial WE in transgenic plants are steadily increasing. To achieve this, different combinations of WE producing enzymes are expressed in developing Arabidopsis thaliana or Camelina sativa seeds. Here we report the identification and characterization of a fifth wax synthase from the organism Marinobacter aquaeolei VT8, MaWSD5. It belongs to the class of bifunctional wax synthase/acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol O-acyltransferases (WSD). The protein was purified to homogeneity. In vivo and in vitro substrate analyses revealed that MaWSD5 is able to synthesize WE but no triacylglycerols. The protein produces WE from saturated and monounsaturated mid- and long-chain substrates. Arabidopsis thaliana seeds expressing a fatty acid reductase from Marinobacter aquaeolei VT8 and MaWSD5 produce WE. Main WE synthesized are 20:1/18:1 and 20:1/20:1. This makes MaWSD5 a suitable candidate for industrial WE production in planta.     

Terahertz Heterodyne Array Receivers for Astronomy

Journal of Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves - We review the development of multi-pixel heterodyne receivers for astronomical research in the submillimeter and terahertz spectral domains....     

Tropfenseparation aus der Gasphase in kleinskaligen Ringkammerzentrifugen

Here, the laminar fluid flow in small‐scale ring chamber centrifuges is investigated to describe the separation behavior of oil aerosols by means of models and laws of similitude. The key objective is the determination of the separation efficiency dependent on the centrifugal geometry, the material properties of the continuous and disperse phases as well as operational parameters such as angular velocity and volume flow. Experimental investigations were conducted to assess the range of validity, the usability and the accuracy of the models.     

Manganese ferrite-polyaniline hybrid materials: Electrical and magnetic properties

Magnetic MnFe₂O₄ nanopowders were synthesized by an original solvothermal method in the absence and in the presence of tetra-n-butylammonium bromide (TBAB) and Tween 80 (TW) as surfactants. Manganese ferrite/polyaniline (PANI) hybrid materials were synthesized by in situ polymerization of aniline on the surface of MnFe₂O₄ using ammonium persulfate as oxidant. The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of the two surfactants on the properties of the MnFe₂O₄ powders and of their composites with PANI. The specific surface area, the cumulative surface area of pores and the cumulative volume of pores are influenced by the nature of surfactant in case of MnFe₂O₄ powders and are higher by comparison to those of the MnFe₂O₄/PANI hybrid materials. The values of saturation magnetization in case of MnFe₂O₄ powders are higher than those of the hybrid materials and are not influenced by the surfactant nature. These features revealed that MnFe₂O₄ powders can be efficiently used as adsorbents for the purification of wastewaters. The values of the electrical conductivity of the composites exhibit a significant increase in comparison to the MnFe₂O₄ powders and depend on the surfactant nature. The highest value of electrical conductivity was achieved by the composite obtained using Tween 80 as surfactant (σ_DC = 54.5·10^?5S?m^?1) which was close to that of PANI (σ_DC = 61.2·10^?5 S?m^?1). The fact that the magnetic and electric properties of the synthesized MnFe₂O₄/PANI composites can be changed by design, demonstrate the high potential of these materials to be used in magneto-electric applications.     

Heuristic Methods for Minimum-Cost Pipeline Network Design – a Node Valency Transfer Metaheuristic

Designing low-cost network layouts is an essential step in planning linked infrastructure. For the case of capacitated trees, such as oil or gas pipeline networks, the cost is usually a function of both pipeline diameter (i.e. ability to carry flow or transferred capacity) and pipeline length. Even for the case of incompressible, steady flow, minimizing cost becomes particularly difficult as network topology itself dictates local flow material balances, rendering the optimization space non-linear. The combinatorial nature of potential trees requires the use of graph optimization heuristics to achieve good solutions in reasonable time. In this work we perform a comparison of known literature network optimization heuristics and metaheuristics for finding minimum-cost capacitated trees without Steiner nodes, and propose novel algorithms, including a metaheuristic based on transferring edges of high valency nodes. Our metaheuristic achieves performance above similar algorithms studied, especially for larger graphs, usually producing a significantly higher proportion of optimal solutions, while remaining in line with time-complexity of algorithms found in the literature. Data points for graph node positions and capacities are first randomly generated, and secondly obtained from the German emissions trading CO₂ source registry. As political will for applications and storage for hard-to-abate industry CO₂ emissions is growing, efficient network design methods become relevant for new large-scale CO₂ pipeline networks.

     

miR-16-5p Is a Stably-Expressed Housekeeping MicroRNA in Breast Cancer Tissues from Primary Tumors and from Metastatic Sites

For quantitative microRNA analyses in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue, expression levels have to be normalized to endogenous controls. To investigate the most stably-expressed microRNAs in breast cancer and its surrounding tissue, we used tumor samples from primary tumors and from metastatic sites. MiRNA profiling using TaqMan^® Array Human MicroRNA Cards, enabling quantification of 754 unique human miRNAs, was performed in FFPE specimens from 58 patients with metastatic breast cancer. Forty-two (72%) samples were collected from primary tumors and 16 (28%) from metastases. In a cross-platform analysis of a validation cohort of 32 FFPE samples from patients with early breast cancer genome-wide microRNA expression analysis using SurePrintG3 miRNA (8 × 60 K)^® microarrays from Agilent^® was performed. Eleven microRNAs could be detected in all samples analyzed. Based on NormFinder and geNorm stability values and the high correlation (rho ≥ 0.8) with the median of all measured microRNAs, miR-16-5p, miR-29a-3p, miR-126-3p, and miR-222-3p are suitable single gene housekeeper candidates. In the cross-platform validation, 29 human microRNAs were strongly expressed (mean log2-intensity > 10) and 21 of these microRNAs including miR-16-5p and miR-29a-3p were also stably expressed (CV < 5%). Thus, miR-16-5p and miR-29a-3p are both strong housekeeper candidates. Their Normfinder stability values calculated across the primary tumor and metastases subgroup indicate that miR-29a-3p can be considered as the strongest housekeeper in a cohort with mainly samples from primary tumors, whereas miR-16-5p might perform better in a metastatic sample enriched cohort.