A precast, prestressed concrete float was designed to serve as the end berth for the new Alaska Class Ferry (ACF) day boats at the Haines Ferry Terminal, Alaska. The ACF day boats are expected to enhance the loading/unloading operations through the use of bow and stern doors. The concrete float will enable loading/unloading of the ACF without the need for complex operations during significant tidal fluctuations up to 30 feet (10 meters). The concrete float designed is 150 feet long (46 meters), 120 feet wide (36.5 meters), and 17.5 feet deep (5.3 meters). The float will be held in position by a guide-pile dolphin system. Access to and from land will be provided by two 140-foot-long (43 meters) transfer bridges. The float will be fabricated at an off-site plant, towed to site, and installed at its designated location. This paper is focused on discussing the design of an entirely precast concrete floating berth.

Background: When combustion and ambustion induce a superficial injury, they are summarized as superficial burns, regardless of the underlying cause. Reflectance‐confocal microscopy (RCM) allows noninvasive imaging of the human skin on morphological features. We hypothesized that combustion and ambustion have different histomorphological effects on the human skin. Methods: Superficial burns caused by combustion (CO‐group, five females, three males; aged 26.8 ± 14.2 years) and caused by ambustion (AM‐group, four females, four males; aged 28.1 ± 13.8 years) were evaluated 24 h after injury. The following parameters were obtained using RCM on injured and noninjured (control) site: horny layer thickness, epidermal thickness, granular cell size, basal layer thickness. Results: Compared with the controls (12.8 ± 2.5 μm), horny layer thickness decreased significantly to 10.6 ± 2.1 μm in the CO‐group, whereas it increased significantly to 17.8 ± 2.8 μm in the AM‐group. The epidermal thickness did not differ significantly in CO‐group (47.9 ± 2.1 μm) and AM‐group (49.0 ± 3.1 μm), however, both increased significantly compared with the controls (42.7 ± 1.6 μm). The basal layer thickness increased more in AM‐group (17.0 ± 1.2 μm) compared to CO‐group (15.4 ± 1.1 μm). Both differed significantly compared with their controls (13.9 ± 0.9 μm). The granular cell size increased significantly in both groups ompared to the controls (721 ± 42 μm), however, a significantly higher increase was observed in CO‐group compared to AM‐group (871 ± 55 μm vs. 831 ± 51 μm). Conclusions: RCM evaluates significant histomorphological differences in superficial burns caused by combustion and ambustion. The term “superficial burn” should consider the underlying cause and thus supplemented by the term “combustion” or “ambustion.” Microsc. Res. Tech., 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Optimum wound healing requires a well-orchestrated interaction of growth factors and keratinocytes (KC). Keratinocyte function is impaired by factors from chronic wound environment. Stimulating factors secreted by adipose-derived stem cells (ASC) may reactivate keratinocyte function. We evaluated the effects of chronic and acute wound fluids on ASC and KC behavior. ASC/KC were harvested and chronic/acute wound fluids were extracted from standardized patient’s wounds. Proliferation, viability and migration in ASC/KC were measured after the cell incubations with either CWF or AWF. Wound-healing competence of KC was measured in an in vitro wound-healing model. Total protein content in CWF and AWF was comparable. Both tested cell types showed changes in proliferation and migration behavior under the influence of AWF/CWF. KCs competence to close a defined defect in vitro was impaired by CWF, which on the other hand stimulated migration rates of ASC and KC. In conclusion: both AWF and CWF affect the behavior of human ASC and KC in vitro. The subsequent decrease of KC migration and proliferation might be responsible for delayed wound healing in chronic wounds. In the future, growth factors expressed by transplanted ASC can possibly re-activate impaired KC function. Einleitung Die kompetente Wundheilung von Hautdefekten setzt ein komplexes Zusammenspiel von Reepithelialisierung, Angiogenese und der Bildung von Bindegewebe voraus. In diesem Zusammenhang kommt Fibroblasten und Keratinozyten (KC) eine besondere Bedeutung zu [1]. Ortsstandige Keratinozyten migrieren aus der Basalmembran der angrenzenden Haut in den Defekt, wo sie differenzieren und die Bestandteile der extrazellularen Matrix exprimieren. Wachstumsfaktoren die in diesem Zusammenhang ein gesteigerte Rolle spielen sind hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), der an den MET-Rezeptor bindet; fibroblast growth factor 7 (FGF7) und FGF10, welche an die IIIb isoform des FGF-receptor 2 (FGFR2-IIIb) binden, und Liganden des epidermal-growth-factor-receptor (EGFR), wie transforming-growth-factor-α (TGF-α) und heparin-binding-epidermal-growth-factor (HBEGF) [1]. Kommt es im Zusammenhang mit der Mediatorausschuttung und der daraus resultierenden Keratinozytenaktivierung zu Unregelmasigkeiten, kann eine physiologische Wundheilung nicht stattfinden. Die Inzidenz chronischer Wunden nimmt mit steigender Lebenserwartung und den damit verbundenen Morbiditaten von Patienten stetig zu und stellt ein groses Problem in der medizinischen Versorgung dieser komplexen Erkrankung dar. Von uber 150 Millionen Diabetispatienten leiden

Characteristics of near-fault ground motions warrant special consideration due to their severe and impulsive effects on structures. These characteristics are unique compared to far-field ground motions, upon which nearly all seismic design criteria are based. The objectives of this study were to explore the shake table response of reinforced concrete, to investigate near-fault ground motion effects on reinforced concrete bridge columns subjected to near-fault ground motions, and to provide a framework for the evaluation of bridge columns near active faults. Two large-scale columns were designed and tested under a near-fault ground motion on a shake table at the University of Nevada, Reno. One column represented the current California Department of Transportation far-field design, and the other was based on the American Association of Highway and Transportation Officials provisions. The most unique measured response characteristic in both columns was the large residual displacements even under moderate motions. A new hysteresis model was developed to capture this effect and was incorporated in an analytical model. Based on this finding, a framework for the evaluation of reinforced concrete bridge columns with respect to the control of residual displacement was proposed.

We report production of a monoclonal antibody against the hRRM2 subunit of ribonucleotide reductase and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining of human cancer tissues available in paraffin block. BALB/c mice were immunized with purified hRRM2 protein, and splenocytes from these mice were fused with mice myeloma cell lines by using standard hybridoma production techniques. Resulting hybridomas producing anti-hRRM2 antibodies were screened by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The specificity was determined by limiting serial dilutions. Clones were chosen for antibody production based on their activities on paraffinembedded human tissues. They were then isotyped and shown to produce immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies against hRRM2. Using these antibodies, we performed Western blot on oropharyngeal KB cancer cell lines and immunohistochemistry staining of available paraffin-embedded cancer tissues. Interestingly, cancer tissues stained positive with the anti-hRRM2 antibody but not normal tissues. Colon, stomach, liver, lung, pancreatic, and breast cancer had the strongest staining. No staining was identified on astrocytoma, mesothelioma, or myeloma. Our findings were validated with data from reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) demonstrating overexpression of hRRM2 in breast cancer tissues compared to matched noncancer tissues. We propose that IHC with this monoclonal anti-hRRM2 antibody may be useful for ribonucleotide reductase research and as a biomarker for tumorgenesis.