We finally enumerate some prospects that might improve further differentiation of the progenitor cells into functional beta-cells needed in diabetes cell therapy. Diabetes 59:2094-2101, 2010″
“A fast pesticide multiresidue analysis method using gas chromatography coupled with electron capture detector was investigated for the simultaneous determination of 15 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in American ginseng (Panax quinquefolium L.). Samples were

extracted with acetic acid-water-acetonitrile (1:5:94, selleck chemicals llc v/v) and cleaned up by the Quick Easy Cheap Effective Rugged and Safe multiresidue method (QuEChERS). The linearity for 15 OCPs, in the working standard solutions of seven concentration levels between 1 and 100 ng/ml, varied from 0.9990 to 0.9999. Recoveries at concentrations between 0.1 and 2 mu g/g ranged from 81.4 to 95.2%, with precision, which was expressed as relative standard deviation (RSD), at values lower

Fosbretabulin cell line than 8.0%. The proposed method was applied to the determination of pesticide levels from 60 samples, taken from six different areas. Among a total of 60 samples, 15.0% (9 samples) contained at least one of the 15 pesticides. The 15 OCPs were benzene hexachloride (BHC, including alpha-BHC, beta-BHC, gamma-BHC, delta-BHC), hexachlorobenzene, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, aldrin, p,p’-DDE, p,p’-DDD, o,p’-DDT, p,p’-DDT, mirex, endrin and dieldrin. This study indicates that the proposed method is useful for analyzing OCPs in American ginseng.”
“A new spectrum of human fungal infections is increasing

due to increased cancer, AIDS, and immunocompromised patients. The increased use of antifungal agents also resulted in the development of resistance to the present drugs. It makes necessary to discover new classes of antifungal compounds to cure fungal infections. Autophagy Compound Library Plants are rich source of bioactive secondary metabolites of wide variety such as tannins, terpenoids, saponins, alkaloids, flavonoids, and other compounds, reported to have in vitro antifungal properties. Since the plant kingdom provides a useful source of lead compounds of novel structure, a wide-scale investigation of species from the tropics has been considered. Therefore, the research on natural products and compounds derived from natural products has accelerated in recent years due to their importance in drug discovery. A series of molecules with antifungal activity against different strains of fungus have been found in plants, which are of great importance to humans. These molecules may be used directly or considered as a precursor for developing better molecules. This review attempts to summarize the current status of important antifungal compounds from plants.”
“Background The gene coding for angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) has been reported to be associated with the development of psoriasis. Aim To evaluate the association of psoriasis risk and ACE polymorphisms.

Two parental maps were constructed using a population of 240 clones. Strong correlations were observed between

starch and dry-matter content (r > 0.8, P < 0.0001) in the storage roots, while moderate correlations (r = -0.6, P < 0.0001) were observed for beta-carotene and starch content. In both parental maps, QTL analysis revealed the presence of 13 QTL for storage root dry-matter content, 12 QTL for starch content, and 8 QTL for beta-carotene content. Multiple QTL regression BTSA1 models developed for segregation of alleles in each parent explained 15-24% of the variation in dry-matter content, 17-30% of the starch content, and 17-35% of beta-carotene content. To the best of our knowledge, this research presents the only QTL mapping study published to date for dry-matter, starch, and beta-carotene content in sweetpotato. This work improves our understanding of the inheritance of these important traits in

sweetpotato, and represents a first step toward the long-term goal of developing marker-assisted breeding tools to facilitate sweetpotato breeding efforts.”
“The present study was designed to investigate the protective efficacy MX69 molecular weight of eugenol against skin cancer and probe into the mechanistic aspects. Skin tumors were initiated by applying 160 nmol DMBA and promoted by twice weekly applications of 8.5 nmol

TPA for 28 wk. All mice developed tumors by 13 wk of promotion. However, in mice pretreated with 30 mu L eugenol, no tumors were detected until 8 wk (following anti-initiation protocol) and until 14 wk (following antipromotion protocol) of tumor promotion. PCNA and TUNEL immunohistochemistry of tumors revealed eugenol to ameliorate cell proliferation and elevate apoptosis respectively. The effect of eugenol was assessed on specific stages of carcinogenesis. Initiation with DMBA led to a significant upregulation of p53 expression with a concomitant increase in p21(WAF1) levels in epidermal cells indicating induction of damage to the DNA. However, pretreatment with eugenol led to overexpression of these genes, which probably Pevonedistat helped stimulate apoptosis of the initiated cells. To ascertain the molecular mechanisms implicated in the antitumor promoting activity of eugenol, its effect was investigated on markers of tumor promotion and inflammation: ODC activity and NOS and COX-2 expression, and on levels of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-alpha, and PGE(2)). Eugenol markedly inhibited all. Eugenol also inhibited the upstream signaling molecule: NF-kappa B, which regulates the expression of these genes. TPA-induced depletion of cutaneous GSH and antioxidant enzymes armory was also precluded by eugenol.

The testosterone level in eggs from experimental females was positively related to the laying order,

whereas control eggs did not show any trend. Our results provided mixed support for the DAH, but nevertheless Selleckchem Bafilomycin A1 revealed that female red-legged partridges may adjust their breeding investment according to male carotenoid-based ornamentation.”
“Identifying patients in a Target Customer Segment (TCS) is important to determine the demand for, and to appropriately allocate resources for, health care services. The purpose of this study is to propose a two-stage clustering-classification model through (1) initially integrating the RFM attribute and K-means algorithm for clustering the TCS patients and (2) then integrating the global discretization method and the rough set theory for classifying hospitalized departments and optimizing health care services. To assess the performance of the proposed model, a dataset was used from a representative hospital (termed Hospital-A) that was extracted from a database from an empirical study in Taiwan comprised of 183,947 samples that were characterized by 44 attributes during 2008.

The proposed model was compared with three techniques, Decision Tree, Naive Bayes, and Multilayer Perceptron, and the empirical results showed significant promise of its accuracy. The generated knowledge-based rules provide useful information to maximize resource utilization and support selleck chemical the development of a strategy for decision-making in hospitals. From the findings, 75 patients in the TCS, three hospital departments, and specific diagnostic LCL161 mouse items were discovered in the data for Hospital-A. A potential determinant for gender differences was found, and the

age attribute was not significant to the hospital departments. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) are a growing family of peptides that have opened a new avenue in drug delivery, allowing various hydrophilic macromolecules to enter cells. In accordance with most other cationic delivery vectors, CPPs seem to rely mostly on endocytosis for internalization. However, due to conflicting results the exact endocytic pathways for CPP uptake have not yet been resolved. Here, we evaluated the ability of seven CPPs, with different chemical properties, to convey peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) inside cells. Assays based on both splice correction, generating biologically active read-out, and on traditional fluorescence measurements were utilized. The same assays were employed to assess different endocytic pathways and the dependence on extracellular heparan sulfates for internalization. Both highly cationic CPPs (M918, penetratin, and Tat) and amphipathic peptides (transportan, TP10, MAP, and pVEC) were investigated in this study. Conjugate uptake relied on endocytosis for all seven peptides but splice-correcting activity varied greatly for the investigated CPPs.

Their ionization is also coupled to subtle structural reorganization. These results illustrate the complex interplay between local polarity, https://www.selleckchem.com/Wnt.html Coulomb interactions, and structural reorganization as determinants of pK(a) values of internal groups in proteins. This study suggests that improvements to computational methods for pK(a) calculations will require explicit treatment of the conformational reorganization that can occur when internal groups ionize. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“The goal of this study was to examine and predict antiviral peptides. Although antiviral peptides

hold great potential in antiviral drug discovery, little is done in antiviral peptide prediction. In this study, we demonstrate that a physicochemical model

using random forests outperform in distinguishing antiviral peptides. Selleckchem AG-881 On the experimental benchmark, our physicochemical model aided with aggregation and secondary structural features reaches 90% accuracy and 0.79 Matthew’s correlation coefficient, which exceeds the previous models. The results suggest that aggregation could be an important feature for identifying antiviral peptides. In addition, our analysis reveals the characteristics of the antiviral peptides such as the importance of lysine and the abundance of alpha-helical secondary structures.”
“Objective: To investigate attitudes toward parenthood, long-term life satisfaction, and health and well-being in men diagnosed as infertile.\n\nDesign: A cross-sectional survey of a cohort of men 5 years after diagnosis of infertility.\n\nSetting:

The andrology clinic at the Royal Women’s Hospital Reproductive Services, Melbourne Australia.\n\nPatient(s): All men diagnosed at this center as infertile in 2001 and 2002.\n\nIntervention(s): None.\n\nMain Outcome Measure(s): Attitudes to parenthood (Meaning selleck kinase inhibitor of Parenthood), quality of intimate relationship (Intimate Bonds Measure), personality characteristics (Vulnerable Personality Style Questionnaire), life satisfaction (Satisfaction with Life Scale), and self-rated physical health (Physical Component Summary of SF-12 [PCS-12]) and relationship with mental health (Mental Component Summary of SF12 [MCS-12]).\n\nResult(s): A total of 112 (41%) of 276 men completed the survey. Of these, 96% had pursued infertility treatment and 87% had become fathers. Only 10% thought that fertility confirmed by fatherhood reflected masculinity, and 84% desired parenthood as much as their partners did. When all other factors were controlled for, men who had not become fathers had poorer mental health (MCS-12 score = 43.9 +/- 9.9) than those who were fathers (MCS-12 score = 49.25 +/- 8.7).

41 (0.21, 0.78)] and bigger than 3-Methyladenine 70-80 years [0.40 (95% CI 0.22, 0.73)] at 2 years and depression [OR 4.58 (95% CI 1.58, 13.18)] at 5 years. Conclusion. Younger age and depression were risk factors for the use of NSAIDs and narcotic pain medications for index TKA pain at 2- and 5-years after revision TKA.”
“Background:\n\nExternal validation of published risk stratification models is essential to determine their generalizability. This study evaluates the performance of the Risk Stratification Indices (RSIs) and 30-day mortality Risk Quantification Index (RQI).\n\nMethods:\n\n108,423 adult hospital admissions with anesthetics were identified (2006-2011). RSIs for mortality

and length-of-stay endpoints were calculated using published methodology. 91,128 adult, noncardiac inpatient surgeries were identified with administrative data required for RQI calculation.\n\nResults:\n\nRSI in-hospital mortality and RQI 30-day mortality Brier scores were 0.308 and 0.017, respectively. RSI discrimination, by area under the receiver operating curves, was excellent at 0.966 (95% CI,

0.963-0.970) for in-hospital mortality, 0.903 (0.896-0.909) for 30-day mortality, 0.866 (0.861-0.870) for 1-yr mortality, and 0.884 (0.882-0.886) for length-of-stay. RSI calibration, however, was poor overall (17% predicted in-hospital mortality vs. 1.5% observed after inclusion of the regression constant) as demonstrated by calibration plots. Removal of self-fulfilling diagnosis and procedure codes (20,001 of 108,423; 20%) yielded similar results. RQIs were calculated for only 62,640 of Wnt inhibitor 91,128 patients

(68.7%) due to unmatched procedure codes. Patients with unmatched codes were younger, had higher American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status and 30-day mortality. The area under the receiver operating curve for 30-day mortality RQI was 0.888 (0.879-0.897). The model also demonstrated good calibration. Performance of a restricted index, Procedure Severity Score + American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status, performed as well as the original RQI model (age + Selleck ZD1839 American Society of Anesthesiologists + Procedure Severity Score).\n\nConclusion:\n\nAlthough the RSIs demonstrated excellent discrimination, poor calibration limits their generalizability. The 30-day mortality RQI performed well with age providing a limited contribution.”
“Forkhead box E1 encodes the transcription factor FOXE1 (or TTF-2), which together with Homeobox protein NKX2-1, PAX8 and HHEX, are pivotal proteins required for thyroid gland formation, differentiation and function. Recently, genome-wide association studies have identified FOXE1 as a thyroid cancer (TC) susceptibility gene in populations of European descent. After that, a number of studies reported that the rs965513, rs1867277, and rs71369530 polymorphism in FOXE1 has been implicated in TC risk.

Seven days after islet transplantation,

insulin expression in the MSC-islets group significantly differed from that of the islets-alone group. We proposed that MSCs could promote anti-apoptotic gene expression by enhancing their resistance to H/R-induced apoptosis and dysfunction. This study provides an experimental basis for therapeutic strategies based on enhancing islet function. Copyright (C) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.”
“Corynebacterium striatum is often dismissed as a contaminant when cultivated from blood samples; indeed, it is a skin saprophyte that may therefore be introduced into the clinical specimen accidentally. Nevertheless, the organism can be responsible for true bacteraemias, and multidrug resistance spread among nosocomial strains is of increasing concern. Specific criteria for testing have not been defined yet, but we however suggest to report clear resistances (i.e. absence of any inhibition zones with ACY-738 purchase the disc test), in order to try to understand this species behaviour under antibiotic exposure. In this context, features of a blood isolate (strain DSM 45711) are here depicted.”
“To select the appropriate patients for treatment with epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs), it is important to gain a better understanding

of the intracellular pathways leading to EGFR-TKI resistance, which is a common problem in patients with lung cancer. We recently reported that mutant KRAS adenocarcinoma is resistant to gefitinib as a result of amphiregulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor overexpression. This resistance leads to inhibition of Ku70 MCC950 concentration acetylation, thus enhancing the BAX/Ku70 interaction and preventing apoptosis. Here, we determined the

intracellular pathways involved in gefitinib resistance in lung cancers and explored the impact of their inhibition. We analyzed the activation of the phosphatidyl inositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT pathway and the mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular-signal regulated kinase (MAPK/ERK) pathway in lung tumors. The activation of AKT was associated with disease progression in tumors with wild-type EGFR from patients treated with gefitinib (phase II clinical trial IFCT0401). The administration of IGF1R-TKI or amphiregulin-directed shRNA decreased AKT signaling and restored gefitinib sensitivity in mutant KRAS cells. The GSK923295 order combination of PI3K/AKT inhibition with gefitinib restored apoptosis via Ku70 downregulation and BAX release from Ku70. Deacetylase inhibitors, which decreased the BAX/Ku70 interaction, inhibited AKT signaling and induced gefitinib-dependent apoptosis. The PI3K/AKT pathway is thus a major pathway contributing to gefitinib resistance in lung tumors with KRAS mutation, through the regulation of the BAX/Ku70 interaction. This finding suggests that combined treatments could improve the outcomes for this subset of lung cancer patients, who have a poor prognosis.

\n\nCONCLUSION In Loss-of-function SCN5A channelopathies, patients carrying T and M(inactive) mutations develop a more severe phenotype than those with M(active) mutations. This is associated with more severe conduction disorders. This is

the first time that genetic data are proposed for risk stratification in BrS.”
“The performance of sera pre-treatment for NSC23766 purchase biomarker searching via combinatorial peptide ligand libraries (CPLL) has recently been challenged (Proteomics 2010, 10, 1416-1425) and stated to allow discovery of only medium to high-abundance proteins. We have thus investigated four elution protocols, as published in recent reports: (i) in 4M urea+1% CHAPS; (ii) in 4M urea11% CHAPS+5% acetic acid; (iii) in 8M urea+ 2% CHAPS+5% acetic acid; (iv) in boiling 4% SDS+25mM DTT. One milliliter of serum, in all cases, was captured with 50 mu L of CPLL beads, which were then eluted

with the four eluants described above. In the first three cases, after the first elution, the beads were re-eluted with cocktail (iv), known to offer maximal release of proteins adsorbed by the CPLL ligands. Eluant (i) released only ca. 20% of the species adsorbed, eluant (ii) ca. 60%, eluant (iii) ca. 80%. Thus, the poor performance AZD8931 of the CPLL methodology, as reported in (i) is not due to any fault of the capture technique, but simply to the adoption of a very poor elution protocol. Even those using eluants (ii) and Ricolinostat molecular weight (iii) should know that a substantial fraction of the captured species still remains bound to the beads and is thus not available to biomarker discovery. Once more, eluant (iv) is recognized as the only one able to offer optimal recovery from the CPLL baits.”
“To evaluate the natural course of end plate marrow (Modic) changes (MC) in the cervical spine on MRI scans of patients with neck pain. A few longitudinal studies have assessed the development of MC over time in the lumbar spine but only two recent studies evaluated MC in the cervical spine

in asymptomatic volunteers and those with whiplash. Thus, this study now reports on the natural course of MC in the cervical spine in symptomatic patients.\n\nFrom the cervical MRI scans of 426 neck pain patients (mean age 61.2 years), 64 patients had follow-up MRI studies. The prevalence and types of MC were retrospectively assessed on the follow-up scans and compared to the original MRI findings.\n\nWith an average of 2.5 years between the two MRI scans, the prevalence of MC type 1 (MC1) noted at baseline (7.4 % or 19 motion segments) slightly increased (8.2 % or 21 segments) but the prevalence of MC2 (14.5 % or 37 segments) increased considerably (22.3 % or 57 segments). In addition, 14 new MC1 segments and 8 new MC2 segments were noted. Twelve segments with MC1 at baseline converted to MC2 at follow-up. No conversion from MC2 to MC1 or reverting to a normal image was observed.

Moreover, PGAs rank among

promiscuous enzymes because check details they also catalyze reactions such as trans-esterification, Markovnikov addition or Henry reaction. This particular biocatalytic versatility represents a driving force for the discovery of novel members of this enzyme family and further research into the catalytic potential of PGAs. This review deals with biocatalytic applications exploiting enantioselectivity and promiscuity of prokaryotic PGAs that have been recently reported. Biocatalytic applications are discussed and presented with reaction substrates converted into active compounds useful for the pharmaceutical industry. (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.”
“Protein phosphatases are believed to coordinate with kinases to execute biological functions, but examples of such integrated activities, however, are still missing. In this report, we have identified protein tyrosine

phosphatase H1 (PTPH1) as a specific phosphatase for p38 gamma mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and shown their cooperative oncogenic activity through direct binding. p38 gamma, a Ras effector known to act independent of its phosphorylation, was first shown to require its unique PDZ-binding motif to increase Ras transformation. Yeast two-hybrid screening and in vitro and in vivo analyses further identified PTPH1 as a specific p38 gamma phosphatase VX-770 datasheet through PDZ-mediated binding. Additional experiments showed that PTPH1 itself plays a role in Ras-dependent

malignant growth in vitro and/or in mice by a mechanism depending CA4P in vivo on its p38 gamma-binding activity. Moreover, Ras increases both p38 gamma and PTPH1 protein expression and there is a coupling of increased p38 gamma and PTPH1 protein expression in primary colon cancer tissues. These results reveal a coordinative oncogenic activity of a MAPK with its specific phosphatase and suggest that PDZ-mediated p38 gamma/PTPH1 complex may be a novel target for Ras-dependent malignancies. Cancer Res; 70(7); 2901-10. (C) 2010 AACR.”
“OBJECTIVE: We define magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and clinical criteria that differentiate radiation effect (RE) from tumor progression after stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS).\n\nMETHODS: We correlated postoperative imaging and histopathological data in 68 patients who underwent delayed resection of a brain metastasis after SRS. Surgical resection was required in these patients because of clinical and imaging evidence of lesion progression 0.3 to 27.7 months after SRS. At the time of SRS, the median target volume was 7.1 mL (range, 0.5-26 mL), which increased to 14 mL (range, 1.3-81 mL) at the time of surgery. After initial SRS, routine contrast-enhanced MRI was used to assess tumor response and to detect potential adverse radiation effects. We retrospectively correlated these serial MRIs with the postoperative histopathology to determine if any routine MRI features might differentiate tumor progression from RE.

Echocardiographic

SBE-β-CD molecular weight in of LV size (LV end-diastolic diameter LV end-systolic diameter [LV-ESD]), LV ejection fraction (LVEF), and mitral regurgitation (MR) were obtained at baseline and after 4 weeks of monitoring or pacing in all dogs except one who had lead dislodgement.\n\nResults: In the control group (n = 4), no significant changes in LV dimensions or function were noted. In the paced group (n = 6), LV-EDD and LV-ESD increased from 3.58 +/- 0.65 cm and 2.47 +/- 0.55 cm to 4.15 +/- 0.59 cm and 3.21 +/- 0.47 cm, respectively (P < 0.01). In addition, LVEF decreased from 60 +/- 7% to 46 +/- 9% (P < 0.05). No changes in MR were noted.\n\nConclusion: We have shown that coupled pacing simulating ventricular bigeminy was feasible and resulted in increased LV dimensions and decreased LV function. By controlling the percentage of pacing, the coupling interval and the location of the pacing lead, this new model will allow the assessment of the relative roles of these variables in the development of ectopy-induced cardiomyopathy. (PACE 2011; 34:291-295)”
“Long-term storage of articular cartilage (AC) has excited great interest due to the practical surgical significance of this tissue. The liquidus-tracking (LT) method developed by Pegg et al. (2006) [29] for vitreous preservation of AC achieved reasonable

survival of post-warming chondrocytes in situ, but the design of the entire procedure was more dependent on trial and error. Mathematical modeling would help to better understand the LT process, and thereby make selleck chemicals possible improvements to attain higher cell survival. Mass transfer plays a dominant role in the LT Selleckchem AS1842856 process. In the present study, a diffusion model

based on the free-volume theory and the Flory-Huggins thermodynamics theory was developed to predict the permeation of dimethyl sulfoxide (Me2SO) into AC. A comparison between the predicted mean concentration of Me2SO in the AC disc and the experimental data over wide temperature and concentration ranges [-30 to 37 degrees C, 10 to 64.5% (w/w)] shows that the developed model can accurately describe the permeation of Me-2-SO into AC [coefficient of determination (R-2): 0.951-1.000, mean relative error (MRE): 0.8-12.8%]. With this model, the spatial and temporal distribution of Me2SO in the AC disc during a loading/unloading process can be obtained. Application of the model to Pegg et al.’s LT procedure revealed that the liquidus line is virtually not followed for the center part of the AC disc. The presently developed model will be a useful tool in the analysis and design of the LT method for vitreous preservation of AC. (C) 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.”
“Purpose of reviewOptic pathway gliomas (OPGs) and orbitofacial plexiform neurofibromas are two of the more common ophthalmic manifestations of neurofibromatosis type 1.

\n\nData collection and analysis\n\nTwo authors independently assessed trial quality and extracted data from the original publications while the third author cross checked the data.\n\nMain results\n\nTwenty-four trials involving 4422 participants were reviewed. Most examined symptomatic women only. Only seven trials analysed results by intention to treat; we re-analysed the remainder. Compared with placebo, clindamycin showed a lower rate of treatment failure (relative risk (RR) 0.25, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.16 to 0.37). Clindamycin and metronidazole showed identical rates of treatment failure, irrespective of regimen type, at two and four-week follow up (RR 1.01,

95% CI 0.69 to 1.46; RR 0.91, 95% CI 0.70 to 1.18, respectively). Clindamycin

tended to cause a lower rate of adverse events (RR 0.75, 95% CI 0.56 to 1.02); metallic taste, and nausea and vomiting were more AZD2014 common in the metronidazole group (RR 0.08, 95% CI 0.1 to 0.59; RR 0.23, 95% CI 0.10 to 0.51, respectively). Given intravaginally as gelatin tablets, lactobacillus was more effective than oral metronidazole (RR 0.20, 95% CI 0.05 to 0.08). Similarly, oral lactobacillus combined with metronidazole was more effective than metronidazole alone (RR 0.33, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.77). Clindamycin showed a lower rate of clinical failure than triple sulfonamide cream (RR 0.46, 95% CI 0.29 to 0.72). Hydrogen peroxide douche AZD7762 cell line showed a higher rate of clinical failure (RR 1.75, 95% CI 1.02 to 3.00) and adverse events (RR 2.33, 95% CI 1.21 to 4.52) than a single 2 g dose of metronidazole.\n\nAuthors’ conclusions\n\nClindamycin preparations, oral metronidazole, and oral and intravaginal tablets of lactobacillus were effective for bacterial vaginosis. Hydrogen

peroxide douche and triple Tariquidar clinical trial sulphonamide cream were ineffective. Metronidazole caused metallic taste, nausea and vomiting. We need better-designed trials with larger sample sizes to test the effectiveness of promising drugs.”
“Hybrid power plants consisting of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) and a gas turbine show high electrical efficiencies, however require pressurisation of the SOFC to several bar. This paper presents a theoretical investigation of the pressure influence on SOFC performance and durability. A two-dimensional elementary kinetic model is used to predict the performance of a single cell in the pressure range of 1-20 bar. The influence of pressure on thermodynamics, reaction kinetics, porous electrode diffusion, channel transport and efficiency is assessed. It was found that polarisation resistance decreases with increasing pressure due to increased diffusion through porous electrodes and a higher electrode surface coverage with reactant species. Furthermore, open-circuit voltage increases slightly with pressure.