laboratory and industrial scale experiments are made on the application of sponge iron pellets and briquettes for the production of cast iron and steel in different melting systems, such as electric induction furnace, electric resistance furnace and fuel-fired crucible furnace. effect of various variables such as specifications of sponge iron, temperature of the molten metal and the method of f...

Cold-water coral reefs are known to locally enhance the diversity of deep-sea fauna as well as of microbes. Sponges are among the most diverse faunal groups in these ecosystems, and many of them host large abundances of microbes in their tissues. In this study, twelve sponge species from three cold-water coral reefs off Norway were investigated for the relationship between sponge phylogenetic c...

Urea is one of the dominant organic nitrogenous compounds in the oligotrophic oceans. Compared to the knowledge of nitrogen transformation of nitrogen fixation, ammonia oxidization, nitrate and nitrite reduction mediated by sponge-associated microbes, our knowledge of urea utilization in sponges and the phylogenetic diversity of sponge-associated microbes with urea utilization potential is very...

Sponges, porous filter-feeding organisms consisting of vast canal systems, provide unique substrates for diverse symbiotic organisms. The Spongia (Spongia) sp. massive sponge is obligately inhabited by the host-specific endosymbiotic bivalve Vulsella vulsella, which benefits from this symbiosis by receiving protection from predators. However, whether the host sponge gains any benefit from this ...

Many bioactive molecules like recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rhBMP-2) have been developed for mineralized bone grafts, for which proper scaffolds are necessary to successfully apply the bioactive molecules. In this study, we tested the osteogenic efficacy of rhBMP-2 produced in-house in combination with gelatin sponge as the scaffold carrier in a rabbit radial defect model. The...

Sponges are important components of reef communities worldwide, fulfilling a number of important functional roles. Habitat degradation caused by the loss of hard corals has the potential to cause increases in sponge abundance and percentage cover as they gain access to resources such as space and food. In this study we compared sponge densities and percentage cover at sites with varying hard co...

Localization of maternally provided RNAs during oogenesis is required for formation of the antero-posterior axis of the Drosophila embryo. Here we describe a subcellular structure in nurse cells and oocytes which may function as an intracellular compartment for assembly and transport of maternal products involved in RNA localization. This structure, which we have termed "sponge body," consists ...

In the course of investigating the cytology of clathriid sponges a new species from the San Juan Archipelago, Washington, has been found. On the basis of skeletal and field characteristics this form appears to be identical to chela-containing sponges described by de Laubenfels (1927) from California as variants of Ophlitaspongia pennata (Lambe, 1894). Cytological evidence reviewed here (see Sim...

Operators of agricultural machinery are exposed to an extensive range of indirect vibrations through the seats, which gradually causes chronic damages. One of the ways to reduce the vibrations imposed on the operators is to use appropriate materials in tractor seat cushion. The present study was carried out in order to select appropriate foam or sponge and investigate different factors in reduc...

The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of sponge as an active mobile carrier for attached-growth biomass in three typical types of aerobic bioreactors to treat a high strength synthetic wastewater. The results show that sponge thickness deteriorated the organic and nutrient removal and 1cm is the optimum thickness for fixed-bed sponge biofilter (SBF). The sponge volume had sig...