Evaluation of the Effects of Developmental Trauma on Neurotransmitter Systems Using Functional Molecular Imaging

Early life stress (ELS) is strongly associated with psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia in adulthood. To date, biological, behavioral, and structural aspects of ELS have been studied extensively, but their functional effects remain unclear. Here, we examined NeuroPET studies of dopaminergic, glutamatergic, and serotonergic systems in ELS animal models. Maternal separation and restraint stress were used to generate single or complex developmental trauma. Body weights of animals exposed to single trauma were similar to those of control animals; however, animals exposed to complex trauma exhibited loss of body weight when compared to controls. In behavioral tests, the complex developmental trauma group exhibited a decrease in time spent in the open arm of the elevated plus-maze and an increase in immobility time in the forced swim test when compared to control animals. In NeuroPET studies, the complex trauma group displayed a reduction in brain uptake values when compared to single trauma and control groups. Of neurotransmitter systems analyzed, the rate of decrease in brain uptake was the highest in the serotonergic group. Collectively, our results indicate that developmental trauma events induce behavioral deficits, including anxiety- and depressive-like phenotypes and dysfunction in neurotransmitter systems.     

Design and Synthesis of a Novel PLK1 Inhibitor Scaffold Using a Hybridized 3D-QSAR Model

Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) plays an important role in cell cycle progression and proliferation in cancer cells. PLK1 also contributes to anticancer drug resistance and is a valuable target in anticancer therapeutics. To identify additional effective PLK1 inhibitors, we performed QSAR studies of two series of known PLK1 inhibitors and proposed a new structure based on a hybridized 3D-QSAR model. Given the hybridized 3D-QSAR models, we designed and synthesized 4-benzyloxy-1-(2-arylaminopyridin-4-yl)-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxamides, and we inspected its inhibitory activities to identify novel PLK1 inhibitors with decent potency and selectivity.     

Clinical Significance of Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocytes in Association with Hormone Receptor Expression Patterns in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Hormone receptor expression patterns often correlate with infiltration of specific lymphocytes in tumors. Specifically, the presence of specific tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) with particular hormone receptor expression is reportedly associated with breast cancer, however, this has not been revealed in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Therefore, we investigated the association between hormone receptor expression and TILs in EOC. Here we found that ERα, AR, and GR expression increased in EOC, while PR was significantly reduced and ERβ expression showed a reduced trend compared to normal epithelium. Cluster analysis indicated poor disease-free survival (DFS) in AR+/GR+/PR+ subgroup (triple dominant group); while the Cox proportional-hazards model highlighted the triple dominant group as an independent prognostic factor for DFS. In addition, significant upregulation of FoxP3+ TILs, PD-1, and PD-L1 was observed in the triple dominant group compared to other groups. NanoString analyses further suggested that tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and/or NF-κB signaling pathways were activated with significant upregulation of RELA, MAP3K5, TNFAIP3, BCL2L1, RIPK1, TRAF2, PARP1, and AKT1 in the triple dominant EOC group. The triple dominant subgroup correlates with poor prognosis in EOC. Moreover, the TNF and/or NF-κB signaling pathways may be responsible for hormone-mediated inhibition of the immune microenvironment.     

Synergistic Flame Retardant Effects of Carbon Nanotube-Based Multilayer Nanocoatings

In an effort to develop highly functionalized flame retardant materials, hybrid nanocoatings are prepared by alternately depositing a positively charged polyaniline (PANi) and negatively charged montmorillonite (MMT) using the layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly technique. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are employed in polymer nanocomposites as effective reinforcement, where nanotubes are stabilized in MMT aqueous solution. The 3D structure and high density of CNTs deposited in the PANi/CNTs-MMT multilayers produce thicker and heavier coatings in comparison to the LbL assemblies without CNTs. Vertical and horizontal flame testing show that the incorporation of CNTs improves fire resistance. Additionally, cone calorimetry reveals that stacking two nanomaterials (MMT and CNTs) in a single coating shows a significant reduction in peak heat release rate (up to 51%), total smoke release (up to 47%), and total heat release (up to 37%) for the polyurethane foam. The enhancement of flame retardancy is attributed to a synergistic effect; MMT serves as a physical barrier that retards the diffusion of heat and gas. The addition of CNTs strengthens the thermal stability and high char yield. These results, coupled with the simplicity with which the LbL deposition is applied, present a viable alternative to halogen-free flame retardant nanocoatings to natural and synthetic fibers.     

Spray Coating of 2- and 3-D Solid Substrates Using a Sulfated Polysaccharide for Marine Antifouling Applications

Marine antifouling coating using functional polymers has emerged as an important tool to combat marine fouling. Owing to their natural abundance, polysaccharides represent a more sustainable option than synthetic polymers and carrageenan, a sulfated polysaccharide, is identified as a promising candidate for further research based on its excellent marine antifouling properties. However, existing research has only explored the application of carrageenan-based coatings for 2D objects, using techniques such as spin-coating. Here, a spray-coating method is proposed to apply carrageenan-based coatings to the surfaces of 2- and 3-D objects. The coated surfaces exhibit high stability under various chemical/physical stresses and high resistance to protein adsorption and marine diatom adhesion.     

A study of the corrosion properties of plasma nitrocarburized and oxidized AISI 1020 steels

Plasma nitrocarburized AISI 1020 steels were oxidized for 15, 30 and 60 min to evaluate their corrosion and microstructural properties. After plasma nitrocarburizing for 3 h at 570°C in a gas mixture comprising 85 vol.% N₂, 12vol.% H₂ and 3 vol.% CH₄, the compound layer composed of ɛ-Fe_2–3(N,C) and γ’-Fe₄(N,C) phases and the diffusion layer above the matrix were observed. The top oxide layer, consisting mainly of magnetite (Fe₂O₄) and hematite (Fe₂O₃) phases, forms after post-oxidation treatment at 500°C. However, the oxide layer was severely degraded by spallation as a result of increases in post-oxidizing time. The difference in corrosion resistance should be attributed to the thickness of the top oxide layer, which was governed by post-oxidizing time.     

Numerically optimal design for the system with coupled complex transport phenomena-application to the Submerged Entry<Emphasis Type="Italic">Nozzle</Emphasis> in continuous slab caster

This study presents a simple and robust algorithm for the optimal design of the system with coupled complex transport phenomena: the transport phenomena comprise fluid flow, heat and mass transfer. The (1+1)-Evolution Strategy method is adopted as the optimization method. In order to analyze the transport phenomena in the complex geometry generated during the optimization procedure, thefinite volume method with a boundary fitted curvilinear coordinate system is used. To confirm the validity of the present method, the optimal design for the inner shape of the simplified two-dimensionalSubmerged Entry Nozzle in the continuous slab caster is conducted. It is shown that the resulting design of the nozzle is consistent with the purpose and constraints of the design.     

Morphological Forms of α-Alumina Particles Synthesized in 1,4-Butanediol Solution

Phase-pure, monodispersed, hexagonal plates of single-crystal α-alumina (∼ 2 μm wide and ∼0.5 μm thick) have been prepared via precipitation by treating an aluminum hydrous oxide precursor in 1,4-butanediol at 300°C under autogenous vapor pressure. Present work shows that KOH is the only reagent that precipitates an aluminum hydrous oxide precursor suitable to synthesize α-alumina in 1,4-butanediol solution. In contrast, the use of NaOH or NH₄OH as the precipitating reagent for the precursor material does not yield the alpha phase. The solution pH at which the precursor materials are precipitated is also a critical factor for the formation of α-Al₂O₃. Phase-pure α-alumina powders were also only synthesized from the aluminum hydrous oxide precursors precipitated in the pH range from 10 to 10.5. The results of X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy indicate that longer reaction times promote the phase transformation from the intermediate boehmite phase to α-alumina. The complete transformation from boehmite to α-alumina requires reaction times of about 12 h.