Effect of chitosan/type I collagen/gelatin composites in biocompatibility and nerve repair

Chitosan, collagen I and gelatin were mixed in appropriate quantities to develop a new nerve repair material, with good arrangement and structure, as well as even aperture size. The composite material was sterilized by 60Co irradiation for 24 hours prior to implantation in the right thigh of rats following sciatic nerve damage. Results showed that the material was nontoxic to the kidneys and the liver, and did not induce an inflammatory response in the muscles. The composite material enhanced the recovery of sciatic nerve damage in rats. These experimental findings indicate that the composite material offers good biocompatibility and has a positive effect on injured nerve rehabilitation.

Metropolis-Hastings Algorithm with Delayed Acceptance and Rejection

Metropolis-Hastings algorithms are slowed down by the computation of complex target distributions. To solve this problem, one can use the delayed acceptance Metropolis-Hastings algorithm (MHDA) of Christen and Fox (2005). However, the acceptance rate of a proposed value will always be less than in the standard Metropolis-Hastings. We can fix this problem by using the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm with delayed rejection (MHDR) proposed by Tierney and Mira (1999). In this paper, we combine the ideas of MHDA and MHDR to propose a new MH algorithm, named the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm with delayed acceptance and rejection (MHDAR). The new algorithm reduces the computational cost by division of the prior or likelihood functions and increase the acceptance probability by delay rejection of the second stage. We illustrate those accelerating features by a realistic example.

SIMULATION OF O_(2)-BLOWN CO-GASIFICATION OF WOOD CHIP AND POTATO PEEL FOR PRODUCING SYNGAS

Potato is the fifth largest agricultural crop in Canada and contributes to the generation of an abundant amount of potato peel.However,disposal/recycling this peel remains a challenge due to the stringent environmental regulations.Consequently,there is a lack of an appropriate recycling and valorization methods of potato peel.Gasification is an effective technology for producing syngas and an ecofriendly waste disposal approach.Syngas is an important industrial intermediate to produce synthetic fuels and chemicals.To develop an ecofriendly and cost-effective valorization approach for potato peel,this study used a mixture of woody biomass(i.e.,wood chips)and potato peel to produce syngas by co-gasification using O_(2) as the gasifying agent at a constant equivalence ratio of 0.3 using Aspen Plus simulation software.The influences of gasification temperature and wood chip/potato peel weight ratio on the carbon conversion efficiency(CCE),and product gas composition(molar fraction)and lower heating value(LHV)of product gas were investigated.This simulation indicated that a positive synergistic interaction occurs between wood chips and potato peel in co-gasification process in terms of an increase in CCE by comparing the arithmetic value and real value at all simulated wood chip to potato peel weight ratios(44.9%to 85.8%,46.5%to 76.2%,and 48.1%to 78.6%at ratios of 25:75,50:50,and 75:25,respectively,for wood chips to potato peel).While the molar fraction of H_(2) and CO decreased continuously with increase in the weight percentage of wood chips in the wood chip-potato peel mixture from 0 wt%to 100 wt%(H_(2),at 42.1 mol%to 41.4 mol%;and CO at 44.0 mol%to 40.4 mol%),accompanied by a decrease of the LHV of the product gas(10.3 to 9.78 MJ·Nm^(−3)).The study concluded that co-gasification for producing syngas is feasible and environmental-friendly option to recycle and valorize potato peel.

Structures of SdrD from Staphylococcus aureus reveal the molecular mechanism of how the cell surface receptors recognize their ligands

Staphylococcus aureus is the most important Gram-positive colonizer of human skin and nasal passage,causing high morbidity and mortality.SD-repeat containing protein D(SdrD),an MSCRAMM(Microbial Surface Components Recognizing Adhesive Matrix Molecules)family surface protein,plays an important role in S.aureus adhesion and pathogenesis,while its binding target and molecular mechanism remain largely unknown.Here we solved the crystal structures of SdrD N2-N3 domain and N2-N3-B1 domain.Through structural analysis and comparisons,we characterized the ligand binding site of SdrD,and proposed a featured sequence motif of its potential ligands.In addition,the structures revealed for the first time the interactions between B1 domain and N2-N3 domain among B domain-containing MSCRAMMs.Our results may help in understanding the roles SdrD plays in S.aureus adhesion and shed light on the development of novel antibiotics.

Trade Credit and Buyer Financing

This study investigates trade credit and early payment financing in a three-party supply chain consisting of a manufacturer,a capital-constrained distributor,and a retail platform.The manufacturer or the platform provides the financing service to the distributor.Two different leadership structures are investigated,namely,platform and manufacturer leadership Stackelberg game,where the platform or manufacturer first makes the decision,respectively.Under trade credit financing,the manufacturer and the whole supply chain face loss when the commission rate increases.However,under buyer financing,they benefit from the high commission rate.Under platform leadership,the distributor,the manufacturer,and the supply chain perform better with trade credit if and only if the commission rate is small or the production cost is high,while the platform always prefers buyer financing.Under manufacturer leadership,the distributor,manufacturer,and supply chain perform better with trade credit under low production cost and commission rate.The platform prefers trade credit when production cost is in the intermediate range.By further analyzing the case that both financing channels are available and the distributor decides which one to choose,we find that the financing services competition hurts only the platform's profits.And under certain conditions,trade credit and early payment can achieve the same performance for every supply chain member.These findings enhance our understanding of the supply chain risk allocation efficiency of trade credit and early payment financing under different leadership structures.Neither risk allocation form outperforms the other,and the relative efficiency depends on supply chain characteristics.