Spark-generated bubble collapse near or inside a circular aperture and the ensuing vortex ring and droplet formation

This paper aims to study the oscillation of a sparkgenerated submerged bubble located near or inside a circular aperture made in a flat plate using high-speed visualization technique. In the case of a bubble oscillating near an aperture the initial free surface of the water was set at the bottom surface of the plate. The effects of aperture size and bubblefree surface distance on the bubble behavior as well as on the ensuing droplet dynamics are investigated. It was found that the direction of the bubble reentrant jet was towards the aperture or away from it respectively when the normalized aperture size was smaller or greater than a certain critical value. In addition, a toroidal vortex ring was observed to form, which rotated inwards as it moved away from the aperture. It was also found that if the bubble was incepted at a distance sufficiently away from a supercritical size aperture a single droplet could be produced. In the case of a bub- ble initiated in the middle of a circular aperture submerged just beneath the water free surface, the bubble was found to take the shape of an ellipsoid during its expansion. Then a reentrant jet was initiated and pierced the bubble from its top side.

Experimental investigation of dynamic mass transfer during droplet formation using micro-LIF in a coaxial microchannel

The mass transfer of Rhodamine 6G from the droplet to the continuous phase in a coaxial micro-channel is studied using micro-LIF(Laser-Induced Fluorescence).The mass distribution inside droplet is measured and visualized.The experimental results affirm that there exists the internal circulation inside the droplet and it could enhance the convective mass transfer.The stagnant center of vortices is also observed.The extraction fraction could reach 40%80%.In order to establish the mass transfer model,different flow rates of the dispersed and continuous phase are adopted.The high continuous phase flow rate and low dispersed phase flow rate are both beneficial to enhance mass transfer by expediting the internal circulation.A modified mass transfer model is found to calculate the extraction fraction.A good agreement between the model and experiment in various conditions demonstrates that the mass transfer model in this work is reliable and feasible.

Effect of injection angle,density ratio,and viscosity on droplet formation in a microfluidic T-junction

The T-junction microchannel device makes available a sharp edge to form micro-droplets from biomaterial solutions. This article investigates the effects of injection angle, flow rate ratio, density ratio,viscosity ratio, contact angle, and slip length in the process of formation of uniform droplets in microfluidic T-junctions. The governing equations were solved by the commercial software. The results show that contact angle, slip length, and injection angles near the perpendicular and parallel conditions have an increasing effect on the diameter of generated droplets, while flow rate, density and viscosity ratios, and other injection angles had a decreasing effect on the diameter.

Droplet Pattern Formation and Translation in New Microfluidic Flow- Focusing Devices

We conducted experiments on specially designed microfluidic chips that generate droplets through a microfluidic ow-focusing approach. The fluid flow in the microfluidic channel produced a shear flow field at low Reynolds numbers. The droplets in the microfluidic system exhibited special droplet pattern formations similar to periodic crystal-like lattices because of the competition between shear forces and surface tension. By adjusting the flow rate ratio of the water （droplet phase） to oil （continuous phase） phases and changing the outlet channel widths, the droplets formed monolayer dispersion to double-layer formation to monolayer squeezing when the outlet channel widths were 250 or 300 μm. We also obtained droplets with monolayer dispersion, three-layer arrangements, double-layer squeezing, and monolayer squeezing when the outlet channel width was 350 μm. The outlet channel width was increased to 400 μm, and four-layer arrangements were observed. We also studied the translation of droplet formation, which resulted in a detailed strategy to control drop size and droplet pattern formation for emulsi cation in microfluidic devices. We expect that our strategy can provide theoretical guidance to synthesize dispersion or polydisperse colloid particles.

Regenerating gene 4 promotes chemoresistance of colorectal cancer by affecting lipid droplet synthesis and assembly

BACKGROUND Regenerating gene 4(REG4)has been proved to be carcinogenic in some cancers,but its manifestation and possible carcinogenic mechanisms in colorectal cancer(CRC)have not yet been elucidated.Our previous study found that the drug resistance of CRC cells may be closely linked to their fat metabolism.AIM To explore the role of REG4 in CRC and its association with lipid droplet formation and chemoresistance.METHODS We conducted a meta-analysis and bioinformatics and pathological analyses of REG4 expression in CRC.The effects of REG4 on the phenotypes and related protein expression were also investigated in CRC cells.We detected the impacts of REG4 on the chemoresistance and lipid droplet formation in CRC cells.Finally,we analyzed how REG4 regulated the transcription and proteasomal degradation of lipogenic enzymes in CRC cells.RESULTS Compared to normal mucosa,REG4 mRNA expression was high in CRC(P<0.05)but protein expression was low.An inverse correlation existed between lymph node and distant metastases,tumor-node-metastasis staging or short overall survival and REG4 mRNA overexpression(P<0.05),but vice versa for REG4 protein expression.REG4-related genes included:Chemokine activity;taste receptors;protein-DNA and DNA packing complexes;nucleosomes and chromatin;generation of second messenger molecules;programmed cell death signals;epigenetic regulation and DNA methylation;transcription repression and activation by DNA binding;insulin signaling pathway;sugar metabolism and transfer;and neurotransmitter receptors(P<0.05).REG4 exposure or overexpression promoted proliferation,antiapoptosis,migration,and invasion of DLD-1 cells in an autocrine or paracrine manner by activating the epidermal growth factor receptor-phosphoinositide 3-kinase-Akt-nuclear factor-κB pathway.REG4 was involved in chemoresistance not through de novo lipogenesis,but lipid droplet assembly.REG4 inhibited the transcription of acetyl-CoA carboxylase 1(ACC1)and ATP-citrate lyase(ACLY)by disassociating the complex formation of anti-acetyl(AC)-acetyl-histone 3-AC-histone 4-inhibitor of growth protein-5-si histone deacetylase;-sterol-regulatory element binding protein 1 in their promoters and induced proteasomal degradation of ACC1 or ACLY.CONCLUSION REG4 may be involved in chemoresistance through lipid droplet assembly.REG4 reduces expression of de novo lipid synthesis key enzymes by inhibiting transcription and promoting ubiquitination-mediated proteasomal degradation.

The novel ER stress inducer Sec C triggers apoptosis by sulfating ER cysteine residues and degrading YAP via ER stress in pancreatic cancer cells

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma(PAAD) is one of the most lethal malignancies. Although gemcitabine(GEM) is a standard treatment for PAAD, resistance limits its application and therapy. Secoemestrin C(Sec C) is a natural compound from the endophytic fungus Emericella, and its anticancer activity has not been investigated since it was isolated. Our research is the first to indicate that Sec C is a broad-spectrum anticancer agent and could exhibit potently similar anticancer activity both in GEM-resistant and GEM-sensitive PAAD cells. Interestingly, Sec C exerted a rapid growth-inhibiting effect(80% death at 6 h), which might be beneficial for patients who need rapid tumor shrinkage before surgery. Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry and N-acetyl-L-cysteine(NAC) reverse assays show that Sec C sulfates cysteines to disrupt disulfide-bonds formation in endoplasmic reticulum(ER) proteins to cause protein misfolding, leading to ER stress and disorder of lipid biosynthesis. Microarray data and subsequent assays show that ER stress-mediated ER-associated degradation(ERAD) ubiquitinates anddownregulates YAP to enhance ER stress via destruction complex(YAP-Axin-GSK-βTr CP), which also elucidates a unique degrading style for YAP. Potent anticancer activity in GEM-resistant cells and low toxicity make Sec C a promising anti-PAAD candidate.

Inkjet printing of viscoelastic polymer inks

Inkjet printing is a new fabricating method that can realize the precise film deposition. For polymer inks, the coil-stretch transition of polymer chains always impacts the ink droplet formation and a beads-on-a string structure filament is formed, thus generating unwanted satellite droplets. This review provides a short introduction of the dynamic process of the droplet formation. Then fluid theological requirements for a printable polymer ink are summarized. Finally the strain hardening phenomenon of polymer chains in the filament formation and its impact on polymer ink-jetting are discussed. The research of viscoelastic polymer inks shows that rheological parameters and viscoelasticity are two key factors that determine the printability of polymer inks.