Lightning impulses can lead to accelerated ageing of extruded cables. Electrical behaviour of a dielectric material when experiencing a lightning impulse is different to that for DC or power frequency applied voltages. Pre-designed shaped HDPE material samples have been manufactured using a mould tool. The samples then have been electrically aged using an impulse generator. A real-time software...

This paper reports novel methods for accelerated ageing tests, with comparative reliability between them for stresses applied on power RF LDMOS: Thermal Shock Tests (TST), Thermal Cycling Tests (TCT), High Voltage Drain (HVD) and coupling thermal and electrical effects under various conditions. The investigation findings obtained after various ageing tests show the degradation and the device’s ...

Among the agents of deterioration considered particularly damaging to cultural heritage objects are light, ultraviolet (UV) and infrared. The high-energy UV is most three, as it can cause irreversible visual, chemical structural changes in cellulose-based materials. Known for its photocatalytic properties, TiO2 absorb thermally chemically stable. In this study, we propose an innovative bilayer ...

STUDY QUESTION Is type 1 diabetes a determinant of advanced ovarian ageing, resulting in an early age at natural menopause? SUMMARY ANSWER No clear evidence was provided that type 1 diabetes is a determinant of accelerated ovarian ageing resulting in an early menopause. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY The association between type 1 diabetes and early menopause has been examined previously with incons...

Damage and degradation of cellular proteins is observed during age-induced seed deterioration, LIsoaspartyl protein methyltransferase (EC 2.1.1.77) is an enzyme hypothesized to play a role in limiting and repairing age-induced damage to proteins. Tomato {Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. 'New Yorker') seeds were assayed for changes in L-isoaspartyl methyltransferase activity during accelerated agei...

Aprataxin (APTX) deficiency causes progressive cerebellar degeneration, ataxia and oculomotor apraxia in man. Cell free assays and crystal structure studies demonstrate a role for APTX in resolving 5'-adenylated nucleic acid breaks, however, APTX function in vertebrates remains unclear due to the lack of an appropriate model system. Here, we generated a murine model in which a pathogenic mutant...

Early-life adversity is associated with accelerated cellular ageing during development and increased inflammation during adulthood. However, human studies can only establish correlation, not causation, and existing experimental animal approaches alter multiple components of early-life adversity simultaneously. We developed a novel hand-rearing paradigm in European starling nestlings (Sturnus vu...

Low intelligence has been associated with poor health and mortality, but underlying mechanisms remain obscure. We hypothesized that low intelligence is associated with accelerated biological ageing as reflected by telomere length; we suggested potential mediation of this association by unhealthy behaviors and low socioeconomic position. The study was performed in a longitudinal population-based...

Exposure to an adverse early-life environment leads to long-term health problems, many of which are recapitulated in subsequent generations. The female reproductive tract is particularly sensitive to early-life influences, and plays a pivotal role in programming the conceptus. We examine the influence of suboptimal grandmaternal diet on reproductive potential of granddaughters in the absence of...

An in-depth study of the physical and electrical properties of Si-nanocrystal-based MOSLEDs is presented. The active layers were fabricated with different concentrations of Si by both ion implantation and plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition. Devices fabricated by ion implantation exhibit a combination of direct current and field-effect luminescence under a bipolar pulsed excitation. The ...