Prevalence of Cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) Subclinical Infection in Patients with Acute Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP).

Background: Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) defined as a bleeding disorder in which the number and production of platelets reduced by the immune system; however, the destruction of peripheral blood platelets also occurs. Although its exact etiology and pathogenesis not already know, several studies have shown that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) known as possible causative agents of ITP. This investigation aims to evaluate the presence of CMV and EBV in two groups of case and control by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Materials and Methods: we considered the presence of CMV and EBV in 48 acute ITP patients and 48 healthy people. Study participants were recruited from Ahvaz Shafa Hospital between 2017 and 2018 and the presence of two viruses was investigated by (PCR). Results: Out of 48 acute ITP patients, the CMV DNA was detected from the blood of 12 (25%) patients and the EBV DNA from the blood of 2 (4.2%) other patients. In addition, only one patient was (2.1%) co-infected with CMV and EBV. In contrast, in 48 healthy subjects, 3 (6.6%) had CMV and none of the control group was infected with EBV. Conclusion: Due to the presence of both EBV and CMV in the acute ITP patients in Ahvaz, they can be considered as factors in the progression of this disease. Therefore, consideration of the methods of elimination and treatment of these two viruses in these patients may be used as a treatment strategy in ITP patients in the future.

Substitutive Press-Bolster and Press-Ram Models for the Virtual Estimation of Stamping-Tool Cambering.

Today's stamping simulations are realized by ignoring the elastic deformation of the press and tooling system through the assumption of a rigid behavior and a perfect press stroke. However, in reality, the press and tool components deform elastically and are one of the major error sources for the final adjustment and blue-spotting of the dies. In order to tackle this issue, a new approach is proposed in this study that substitutes the press stiffness by means of a substitutive model composed of cost-effective shell and beam elements. The substitute model was calibrated using full-scale measurements, in which a 20,000 kN trial press was experimentally characterized by measuring its deformation under static loads. To examine the robustness of the substitute model, a medium-size tool and a large-size tool were simulated together with the substitutive model. To this end, a B-pillar tool was re-machined based on the substitute-model results and a new cambering procedure was proposed and validated throughout the blue-painting procedure. The newly developed substitute model was able to replicate the global stiffness of the press with a high accuracy and affordable calculation time. The implementation of the findings can aid toolmakers in eliminating most of the reworking and home-line trials.

On the Role of Contact and System Stiffness in the Measurement of Principal Variables in Fretting Wear Testing.

In this work, the role of the contact stiffness in the measurement of principal variables in fretting wear tests is assessed. Several fretting wear tribometers found in the literature, including one developed by the authors, are analysed and modelled using numerical methods. The results show the importance of the tribosystem stiffness and tangential contact stiffness in the displacement sensor calibration and in the correct numerical modelling of fretting wear tests, especially for flat-to-flat contact configuration. The study highlights that, in most cases, direct comparisons between fretting results with severe wear obtained with different tribometers cannot be performed if the contact stiffness is not properly considered during the development of the experiments.

An Efficient Templating Approach for the Synthesis of Redispersible Size-Controllable Carbon Quantum Dots from Graphitic Polymeric Micelles.

Access to high-quality, easily dispersible carbon quantum dots (CQDs) is essential in order to fully exploit their desirable properties. Copolymers based on N-acryloyl-D-glucosamine and acrylic acid prepared by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization are self-assembled into micelle-like nanoreactors. After a facile graphitization process (170 °C, atmospheric pressure), each micellar template is transformed into a CQD through a 1:1 copy process. These high-quality CQDs (quantum yield=22 %) with tunable sizes (2-5 nm) are decorated by carboxylic acid moieties and can be spontaneously redispersed in water and polar organic solvents. This preparation method renders the mass production of multifunctional CQDs possible. To demonstrate the versatility of this approach, CQDs hybridized TiO2 nanoparticles with enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible-light have been prepared.