Search

Enterococcus faecalis is an important contributor to the persistence of chronic apical periodontitis. However, the mechanism by which E. faecalis infection in the root canals and dentinal tubules affects periapical tissue remains unclear. Bacterial extracellular vesicles (EVs) act as natural carriers of microbe-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs) and have recently attracted considerable attention. In this study, we investigated the role of EVs derived from E. faecalis in the pathogenesis of apical periodontitis. We observed that E. faecalis EVs can induce inflammatory bone destruction in the periapical areas of mice. Double-labeling immunofluorescence indicated that M1 macrophage infiltration was increased by E. faecalis EVs in apical lesions. Moreover, in vitro experiments demonstrated the internalization of E. faecalis EVs into macrophages. Macrophages tended to polarize toward the M1 profile after treatment with E. faecalis EVs. Pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) can recognize MAMPs of bacterial EVs and, in turn, trigger inflammatory responses. Thus, we performed further mechanistic exploration, which showed that E. faecalis EVs considerably increased the expression of NOD2, a cytoplasmic PRR, and that inhibition of NOD2 markedly reduced macrophage M1 polarization induced by E. faecalis EVs. RIPK2 ubiquitination is a major downstream of NOD2. We also observed increased RIPK2 ubiquitination in macrophages treated with E. faecalis EVs, and E. faecalis EV-induced macrophage M1 polarization was notably alleviated by the RIPK2 ubiquitination inhibitor. Our study revealed the potential for EVs to be considered a virulence factor of E. faecalis and found that E. faecalis EVs can promote macrophage M1 polarization via NOD2/RIPK2 signaling. To our knowledge, this is the first report to investigate apical periodontitis development from the perspective of bacterial vesicles and demonstrate the role and mechanism of E. faecalis EVs in macrophage polarization. This study expands our understanding of the pathogenic mechanism of E. faecalis and provides novel insights into the pathogenesis of apical periodontitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents experimental measurements of the performance of a new film-cooling hole geometry--the converging slot-hole or console. This novel, patented geometry has been designed to improve the heat transfer and aerodynamic loss performance of turbine vane and rotor blade cooling systems. The physical principles embodied in the new hole design are described, and a typical example of the console geometry is presented. The cooling performance of a single row of consoles was compared experimentally with that of typical 35-deg cylindrical and fan-shaped holes and a slot, on a large-scale, flat-plate model at engine representative Reynolds numbers in a low-speed tunnel with ambient temperature main flow. The hole throat area per unit width is matched for all four hole geometries. By independently varying the temperature of the heated coolant and the heat flux from an electrically heated, thermally insulated, constant heat flux surface, both the heat transfer coefficient and the adiabatic cooling effectiveness were deduced from digital photographs of the color play of narrow-band thermochromic liquid crystals on the model surface. A comparative measurement of the aerodynamic losses associated with each of the four film-cooling geometries was made by traversing the boundary layer at the down-stream end of the flat plate. The promising heat transfer and aerodynamic performance of the console geometry have justified further experiments on an engine representative nozzle guide vane in a transonic annular cascade presented in Part 2 of this paper. [DOI: 10.1115/1.1459735]

This paper presents the first experimental measurements on an engine representative nozzle guide vane, of a new film-cooling hole geometry, a converging slot-hole or console. The patented console geometry is designed to improve the heat transfer and aerodynamic performance of turbine vane and rotor blade cooling systems. These experiments follow the successful validation of the console design in low-speed flat-plate tests described in Part 1 of this paper. Stereolithography was used to manufacture a resin model of a transonic, engine representative nozzle guide vane in which seven rows of previously tested fan-shaped film-cooling holes were replaced by four rows of consoles. This vane was mounted in the annular vane ring of the Oxford cold heat transfer tunnel for testing at engine Reynolds numbers, Mach numbers and coolant to mainstream momentum flux ratios using a heavy gas to simulate the correct coolant to mainstream density ratio. Heat transfer data were measured using wide-band thermochromic liquid crystals and a modified analysis technique. Both surface heat transfer coefficient and the adiabatic cooling effectiveness were derived from computer-video records of hue changes during the transient tunnel run. The cooling performance, quantified by the heat flux at engine temperature levels, of the console vane compares favourably with that of the previously tested vane with fan-shaped holes. The new console film-cooling hole geometry offers advantages to the engine designer due to a superior aerodynamic efficiency over the fan-shaped hole geometry. These efficiency measurements are demonstrated by results from midspan traverses of a four-hole pyramid probe downstream of the nozzle guide vane. [DOI: 10.1115/1.1459736]

The local Mach number and heat transfer coefficient over the aerofoil surfaces and endwalls of a transonic gas turbine nozzle guide vane have been calculated. The computations were performed by solving the time-averaged Navier-Stokes equations using a fully three-dimensional computational code (CFDS), which is well established at Rolls-Royce. A model to predict the effects of roughness has been incorporated into CFDS and heat transfer levels have been calculated for both hydraulically smooth and transitionally rough surfaces. The roughness influences the calculations in two ways; first the mixing length at a certain height above the surface is increased; second the wall function used to reconcile the wall condition with the first grid point above the wall is also altered. The first involves a relatively straightforward shift of the origin in the van Driest damping function description, the second requires an integration of the momentum equation across the wall layer. A similar treatment applies to the energy equation. The calculations are compared with experimental contours of heat transfer coefficient obtained using both thin-film gages and the transient liquid crystal technique. Measurements were performed using both hydraulically smooth and roughened surfaces, and at engine-representative Mach and Reynolds numbers. The heat transfer results are discussed and interpreted in terms of surface-shear flow visualization using oil and dye techniques.