Activation analysis and evaluation of the radionuclide inventories, decay heat for European DEMO divertor components.

This work presents neutron flux calculation results and specific decay heat and activity for the European DEMO reactor divertor structure. Two DEMO 2017 models were used in calculations; one with a homogenised WCLL breeder blanket and the other with a homogenised HCPB breeder blanket. The neutron flux calculations were performed using MCNP6 code with JEFF 3.2 nuclear data. Activation and decay heat calculations were performed using the FISPACT-II code with TENDL - 2017 nuclear data library.

Numerical simulation for bioconvectional flow of burger nanofluid with effects of activation energy and exponential heat source/sink over an inclined wall under the swimming microorganisms.

Nanofluids has broad applications such as emulsions, nuclear fuel slurries, molten plastics, extrusion of polymeric fluids, food stuffs, personal care products, shampoos, pharmaceutical industries, soaps, condensed milk, molten plastics. A nanofluid is a combination of a normal liquid component and tiny-solid particles, in which the nanomaterials are immersed in the liquid. The dispersion of solid particles into yet another host fluid will extremely increase the heat capacity of the nanoliquid, and an increase of heat efficiency can play a significant role in boosting the rate of heat transfer of the host liquid. The current article discloses the impact of Arrhenius activation energy in the bioconvective flow of Burger nanofluid by an inclined wall. The heat transfer mechanism of Burger nanofluid is analyzed through the nonlinear thermal radiation effect. The Brownian dispersion and thermophoresis diffusions effects are also scrutinized. A system of partial differential equations are converted into ordinary differential equation ODEs by using similarity transformation. The multi order ordinary differential equations are reduced to first order differential equations by applying well known shooting algorithm then numerical results of ordinary equations are computed with the help of bvp4c built-in function Matlab. Trends with significant parameters via the flow of fluid, thermal, and solutal fields of species and the area of microorganisms are controlled. The numerical results for the current analysis are seen in the tables. The temperature distribution increases by rising the temperature ratio parameter while diminishes for a higher magnitude of Prandtl number. Furthermore temperature-dependent heat source parameter increases the temperature of fluid. Concentration of nanoparticles is an decreasing function of Lewis number. The microorganisms profile decay by an augmentation in the approximation of both parameter Peclet number and bioconvection Lewis number.

Risks, time trends, and mortality of colonoscopy-induced perforation in hospitalized patients.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Colonic perforation is a rare complication of colonoscopy and ranges from 0% to 1% in all patients undergoing colonoscopy. The aim of this study was to assess the time trends, risk factors, and mortality associated with colonoscopy-induced perforation (CIP) in hospitalized patients as the data are limited. METHODS: Data are obtained from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database to identify hospitalized patients between 2005 and 2014 that had CIP. Various factors like age and gender were assessed for association with CIP, followed by univariate and multivariate regression analyses. RESULTS: A total of 2 651 109 patients underwent inpatient colonoscopy between 2005 and 2014, and 4567 (0.2%) of the patients had CIP. Overall, incidence of CIP has increased from 2005 to 2014 (0.1% to 0.3%) (P < 0.001). On multivariate analysis, the adjusted odds ratio (OR) for CIP was highest in Caucasian race (OR: 1.49 [1.09, 2.06]), followed by after polypectomy, history of inflammatory bowel disease, end-stage renal disease, and age > 65 years (OR [95% CI] of 1.35 [1.23, 1.47], 1.34 [1.17, 1.53], 1.28 [1.02, 1.62], and 1.21 [1.11, 1.33], respectively) (all P < 0.05). CIP group had 33% less obesity (OR [95% CI]: 0.77 [0.65-0.9], P = 0.002) and 13-fold higher mortality (0.5% vs 8.1%) (P < 0.001) as compared to patients without CIP. The CIP-associated mortality ranged from 2% to 8% and remained stable throughout the study period. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the risk of CIP was highest in elderly patients, Caucasians, those with inflammatory bowel disease, end-stage renal disease, and after polypectomy. Recognizing the factors associated with CIP may lead to informed discussion about risks and benefits of inpatient colonoscopy.

Microbial profile of symptomatic pericoronitis lesions: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: The microbial composition of pericoronitis (Pc) is still controversial; it is not yet clear if the microbial profile of these lesions is similar to the profile observed in periodontitis (Pd). Therefore, the aim of the present study was to describe the microbial profile of Pc lesions and compare it directly with that of subjects with Pd. METHODOLOGY: Subjects with Pc and Pd were selected, and subgingival biofilm samples were collected from (i) third molars with symptomatic Pc (Pc-T), (ii) contralateral third molars without Pc (Pc-C) and (iii) teeth with a probing depth >3 mm from subjects with Pd. Counts and proportions of 40 bacterial species were evaluated using a checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization technique. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients with Pc and 18 with Pd were included in the study. In general, higher levels of microorganisms were observed in Pd. Only Actinomyces oris and Eubacterium nodatum were present in higher mean counts in the Pc-T group in comparison with the Pc-C and Pd-C groups (p<0.05). The microbiota associated with Pc-T was similar to that found in Pc-C. Sites with Pc lesions had lower proportions of red complex in comparison with the Pd sites. CONCLUSION: The microbiota of Pc is very diverse, but these lesions harbour lower levels of periodontal pathogens than Pd.

Microbial profile of symptomatic pericoronitis lesions: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Objective: The microbial composition of pericoronitis (Pc) is still controversial; it is not yet clear if the microbial profile of these lesions is similar to the profile observed in periodontitis (Pd). Therefore, the aim of the present study was to describe the microbial profile of Pc lesions and compare it directly with that of subjects with Pd. Methodology: Subjects with Pc and Pd were selected, and subgingival biofilm samples were collected from (i) third molars with symptomatic Pc (Pc-T), (ii) contralateral third molars without Pc (Pc-C) and (iii) teeth with a probing depth >3 mm from subjects with Pd. Counts and proportions of 40 bacterial species were evaluated using a checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization technique. Results: Twenty-six patients with Pc and 18 with Pd were included in the study. In general, higher levels of microorganisms were observed in Pd. Only Actinomyces oris and Eubacterium nodatum were present in higher mean counts in the Pc-T group in comparison with the Pc-C and Pd-C groups (p<0.05). The microbiota associated with Pc-T was similar to that found in Pc-C. Sites with Pc lesions had lower proportions of red complex in comparison with the Pd sites. Conclusion: The microbiota of Pc is very diverse, but these lesions harbour lower levels of periodontal pathogens than Pd.

Projeto de implantação da gestão da qualidade com base na norma PALC e metodologia ONA em um laboratório de análises clínicas / Project of quality management implementation based on the PALC standard and ONA methodology in a clinical analysis laboratory

O laboratório clínico tem a responsabilidade e compromisso de assegurar que os resultados dos exames reflitam de forma fidedigna a situação clínica apresentada pelos pacientes, por isso é necessário a implantação de um sistema da qualidade e a busca por um certificado de acreditação. O presente trabalho tem como principal objetivo analisar os processos da fase pré-analítica, analítica e pós-analítica em relação aos critérios estabelecidos na metodologia ONA e na norma PALC, identificando as melhores práticas para elaborar um projeto de implantação de um sistema de gestão de qualidade em um laboratório de análises clínicas através de uma análise comparativa com os processos do laboratório clínico. A metodologia usada foram pesquisas em bibliografias especializadas nas plataformas SciELO, PubMed, Lilacs e livros para avaliar a implantação de um sistema de qualidade no laboratório de análises clínicas. Como resultados após comparação das metodologias ONA e PALC, definimos a PALC como a melhor metodologia para o laboratório de análises clínicas, mostrando as ações necessárias para garantir que o processo seja realizado de forma correta.

Análisis de la radiactividad en aguas del Balneario de Villavieja (Castellón) / Radioactivity analysis of Villavieja Spa water

Se ha realizado el estudio radiológico del agua del manantial del Balneario de Villavieja en la provincia de Castellón. Este estudio ha consistido en la determinación cuantitativa de los radionucleidos naturales más importantes desde el punto de vista de la protección radiológica existentes en las aguas del balneario. La medida del contenido radiactivo de las aguas constituye un tema cuyo estudio resulta de gran interés. Las aguas con elementos radiactivos disueltos pueden producir, como consecuencia directa de su consumo, dosis de irradiación interna tanto por ingestión como por inhalación de estos elementos. Debido a esto es necesario, en algunos casos, proceder al análisis y posterior evaluación de la dosis asociada a este consumo (AU)

Radio activity analysis of Villavieja Spa water was carried out by the CIEMAT Laboratory of Environmental Radioactivity. With this aim the most important natural radionuclides were determined in water from spring water. The measurement and knowledge of radioactivity level in water is an interesting and convenient topic. The consumption of water which has dissolved some radionuclides could lead to internal irradiation both by ingestion and by inhalation. Therefore it is necessary, in some cases, to determine the water radioactivity level in order to assess the dose (AU)

Análise comparativa da reatividade anti-LID-1, NDO-LID, NDO-HSA e PGL-1 em hanseníase / Comparative analysis of the reactivity anti-LID-1, NDO-LID, NDO-HSA and PGL-1 in leprosy

A infecção subclínica pode ser avaliada por meio de teste sorológico, que determina imunoglobulinas circulantes. O objetivo do presente estudo foi analisar a reatividade de diferentes antígenos em casos novos de hanseníase, contatos domiciliares de casos e em população de área endêmica, com o intuito de identificar o melhor antígeno para o diagnóstico sorológico da hanseníase e detecção de indivíduos infectados pelo Mycobacterium leprae.Trata-se de um estudo transversal de natureza exploratória e analítica. A reatividade anti-LID-1, NDO-LID, NDO-HSA e PGL-1 foi avaliada por meio do enzyme-linked immunosorbentassay. Foram analisadas amostras de sangue total em papel de filtro Whatman de 2494indivíduos da população de sete municípios da microrregião de Almenara e de soro de 94casos novos de hanseníase e 104 contatos domiciliares de casos residentes no município de Uberlândia. O Banco de Dados foi criado no Software Epi Info versão 3.5.1 e análise realizada no software Statistical Package for the Social Sciences for Windows 18 e no GraphPad Prism versão 5. Para análise estatística foram utilizados os seguintes testes: Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Kruskal-Wallis one-way (H), Mann-Whitney (U) com correção de Bonferroni, kappa, Spearman (rho), teste Qui-quadrado de Pearson e regressão logística binária. Foi observado maior soropositividade no grupo de casos multibacilares (MB), em contatos domiciliares de casos MB e nos indivíduos residentes nos municípios de Almenara e Jequitinhonha. Obteve-se correlação positiva entre a sorologia e o índice baciloscópico,concordância substancial e significativa no grupo de casos novos de hanseníase e correlação positiva para todos os antígenos testados. Os testes anti-LID-1 e anti-NDO-LID apresentaram melhor performance para identificar os contatos domiciliares e ou indivíduos da população...

The subclinical infection can be evaluated by serologic test which determine circulating immunoglobulins. The aim of this study was to analyze the reactivity of different antigens inleprosy cases, household contacts of index cases and the population of the endemic area toidentify the best antigen for the diagnosis of leprosy and detection of individuals infected with Mycobacterium leprae. It is a cross-sectional study of exploratory and analytical nature. There activity anti-LID-1, NDO-LID, NDO-HAS e PGL-1 were evaluated using the enzyme linke dimmunosorbent assay. The whole blood in What man filter paper of 2494 individuals from the general population of seven municipalities in the micro-Almenara and serum of 94 patients with leprosy and 104 household contacts of patients residing in Uberlândia were analyzed. The database was created in Epi Info software version 3.5.1 and analysis in the software Statistical Package for Social Sciences for Windows 18 and GraphPad Prism version5. For statistical analysis the following tests were used: Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Kruskal Wallisone-way (H), Mann-Whitney (U) with Bonferroni correction, kappa, Spearman (rho), chisquaretest of Pearson and binary logistic regression. Identied higher seropositivity in the group of MB patients, household contacts of MB patients and in individuals living in the municipalities of Almenara and Jequitinhonha. Observed positive correlation between serology test and bacterial index, substantial agreement and significant in patients positive and positive correlation for all antigens. The LID-1 and NDO-LID antigens showed greater ability to identify household contacts or the general population infected with M. leprae, but the performance of the NDO-LID was better. The native PGL-1 had higher seropositivity than the NDO-HSA for all clinical forms of leprosy and household contacts. The seropositivity prevalence in the general population was higher than the detection rate of leprosy...

Análisis de la radiactividad en aguas del balneario / Radioactivity analysis of spa water

Se ha realizado el estudio radiológico del agua del manantial del Balneario de Olmedo en la provincia de Valladolid. Este estudio ha consistido en la determinación cuantitativa de los radionucleidos naturales más importantes desde el punto de vista de la protección radiológica existentes en las aguas del balneario. La medida del contenido radiactivo de las aguas constituye un tema cuyo estudio resulta de gran interés. Las aguas con elementos radiactivos disueltos pueden producir, como consecuencia directa de su consumo, dosis de irradiación interna tanto por ingestión como por inhalación de estos elementos. Debido a esto es necesario, en algunos casos, proceder al análisis y posterior evaluación de la dosis asociada a este consumo

Radioactivity analysis of Olmedo Spa water was carried out by the CIEMAT Laboratory of Environmental Radioactivity. With this aim the most important natural radionuclides were determined in water from spring water. The measurement and knowledge of radioactivity level in water is an interesting and convenient topic. The consumption of water which has dissolved some radionuclides could lead to internal irradiation both by ingestion and by inhalation. Therefore it is necessary, in some cases, to determine the water radioactivity level in order to assess the dose

Clouds, airplanes, trucks and people: carrying radioisotopes to and across Mexico

The aim of this paper is to describe the early stages of Mexican nuclearization that took place in contact with radioisotopes. This history requires a multilayered narrative with an emphasis in North-South asymmetric relations, and in the value of education and training in the creation of international asymmetrical networks. Radioisotopes were involved in exchanges with the United States since the late 1940s, but also with Canada. We also describe the context of implementation of Eisenhower´s Atoms for Peace initiative in Mexico that opened the door to training programs at both the Comisión Nacional de Energía Nuclear and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Radioisotopes became the best example of the peaceful applications of atomic energy, and as such they fitted the Mexican nuclearization process that was and still is defined by its commitment to pacifism. In 1955 Mexico became one of the 16 members of the atomic fallout network established by the United Nations. As part of this network, the first generation of Mexican (women) radio-chemists was trained. By the end of the 1960s, radioisotopes and biological markers were being produced in a research reactor, prepared and distributed by the CNEN within Mexico. We end up this paper with a brief reflection on North-South nuclear exchanges and the particularities of the Mexican case (AU)

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Uso de yodo radiactivo I-131 y monitorización de radiactividad en pacientes con enfermedad renal crónica en hemodiálisis / Use of radioactive iodine I-131 and monitoring of radioactivity in patients with chronic kidney disease on haemodialysis

El carcinoma tiroideo es una neoplasia que tiene una incidencia más alta en pacientes con enfermedad renal crónica. Durante los últimos años se ha avanzado en las pruebas diagnósticas y terapéuticas. Los pacientes de diálisis son un grupo particular, al ser detectado el cáncer de forma indirecta en el estudio del hiperparatiroidismo secundario y durante el estudio previo al trasplante renal. La tiroidectomía es el tratamiento definitivo, pero en pacientes con riesgo de recidiva es necesaria la terapia ablativa con yodo radioactivo I-131, que es predominantemente excretado por vía renal, por lo que su uso en pacientes en diálisis supone un problema de dosificación. Se presentan dos casos de pacientes en hemodiálisis sometidos a radioablación con yodo radiactivo I-131, que con un manejo multidisplinar produjo los resultados esperados en los pacientes (AU)

Thyroid carcinoma is a neoplasia with a higher incidence in patients with chronic kidney disease. In recent years advances have been made in diagnostic and therapeutic trials. Dialysis patients are a particular group, their cancer being detected indirectly in the study of secondary hyperparathyroidism and during the study prior to renal transplantation. Thyroidectomy is the definitive treatment, but in patients with risk of recurrence, ablative therapy is required using radioactive iodine I-131, which is predominantly eliminated by renal excretion, therefore its use in patients on dialysis poses a problem in terms of dosage. Two cases are presented of patients on haemodialysis undergoing radioablation with radioactive iodine I-131, which with multidisciplinary treatment had the expected results in the patients (AU)

Natural Killer Cell and Cancer Immunotherapy / 한양의대학술지

Cancer remains the leading cause of death worldwide despite intense efforts in developing innovative treatments. Current approaches in cancer therapy are mainly directed to a selective targeting of cancer cells to avoid potential side effects associated with conventional therapy. In this respect, Natural killer (NK) cells have gained growing attention and are now being considered as promising therapeutic tools for cancer therapy owing to their intrinsic ability to rapidly recognize and kill cancer cells, while sparing normal healthy cells. NK cells play a key role in the first line of defense against transformed and virus-infected cells. NK cells sense their target through a whole array of receptors, both activating and inhibitory. Functional outcome of NK cell against target cells is determined by the balance of signals transmitted from diverse activating and inhibiting receptors. Despite significant progress made in the role of NK cells attack as a pivotal sentinel in tumor surveillance, the molecular has been that regulate NK cell responses remain unclear, which restricts the use of NK cells as a therapeutic measure. Accordingly, current efforts for NK cell-based cancer therapy have largely relied on the strategies that are based on the manipulation of inhibitory receptor function. However, if we better understand the mechanisms governing NK cell activation, including those mediated by diverse activating receptors, this knowledge can be applied to the development of optimal design for cancer immunotherapy by targeting NK cells.

Intercomparison of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, quantitative neutron capture radiography, and prompt gamma activation analysis for the determination of boron in biological samples.

Boron determination in blood and tissue samples is a crucial task especially for treatment planning, preclinical research, and clinical application of boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT). Comparison of clinical findings remains difficult due to a variety of analytical methods, protocols, and standard reference materials in use. This paper addresses the comparability of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, quantitative neutron capture radiography, and prompt gamma activation analysis for the determination of boron in biological samples. It was possible to demonstrate that three different methods relying on three different principles of sample preparation and boron detection can be validated against each other and yield consistent results for both blood and tissue samples. The samples were obtained during a clinical study for the application of BNCT for liver malignancies and therefore represent a realistic situation for boron analysis.

A compact neutron beam generator system designed for prompt gamma nuclear activation analysis.

In this work a compact system was designed for bulk sample analysis using the technique of PGNAA. The system consists of (252)Cf fission neutron source, a moderator/reflector/filter assembly, and a suitable enclosure to delimit the resulting neutron beam. The moderator/reflector/filter arrangement has been optimised to maximise the thermal neutron component useful for samples analysis with a suitably low level of beam contamination. The neutron beam delivered by this compact system is used to irradiate the sample and the prompt gamma rays produced by neutron reactions within the sample elements are detected by appropriate gamma rays detector. Neutron and gamma rays transport calculations have been performed using the Monte Carlo N-Particle transport code (MCNP5).

Comparison of performance of INAA, RNAA and ion chromatography for the determination of individual lanthanides.

Lanthanides represent an interesting group of elements which are steadily gaining importance in science and in industry. Literature data suggest that they may have a role in regulating cellular processes and also in agriculture enhancing plant growth. Only few instrumental methods like NAA, ICP-OES and ICP-MS have potential for the determination of low levels of all lanthanides, but in practice they often have to be combined with suitable separation/preconcentration methods to achieve maximum number of elements being determined and to assure good accuracy and precision. In this work an attempt has been made to compare the performance of both variants of NAA: purely instrumental activation analysis (INAA) and radiochemical mode (RNAA) with pre- and post-irradiation group separation for the determination of individual lanthanides with the special emphasis on rarely determined elements (Gd, Ho, Er, Tm, Lu). This has been done by the analysis of two reference materials with different matrices viz. biological (CTA-OTL-1) and mineral (CTA-FFA-1). The results are compared with those obtained by ion chromatography (IC) employing the same lanthanide group preseparation scheme as in the case of RNAA.

Formacion del inmunocomplejo radiactivo en un ria de doble anticuerpo / Radioactive immunocomplex formation in a double antibody ria

Se ha elaborado un modelo para el estudio de la cinética y equilibrio de las reacciones antígeno-anticuerpo implicadas en el radioinmunoanálisis (RIA) de doble anticuerpo correspondiente al Péptido C. Se pretende caracterizar la influencia de las concentraciones iniciales de antígeno marcado (M) y no marcado (Q) sobre la formación del inmunocomplejo (PM) al segundo anticuerpo (J) inmovilizado sobre una bola. Se realizan 30 experiencias para el estudio del efecto de las variables antes mencionadas. Los resultados obtenidos son concordantes con el modelo propuesto(AU)

A model has been produced for the kinetic and equilibrium study of antigen-antibody reactions in the radioimmunoassay (RIA) of C-Peptide double antibody. The aim is (1) to characterise the influence of initial concentrations of labelled (M) and unlabelled (Q) antigen and that of the initial concentration of the antibody in solution (P), and (2) to study the binding of the immunocomplex (PM) to the second antibody (J) immobilised on a bead, and the replacement of M by Q in the PMJ immunocomplex. In order to study the effect of such variables, 44 experiments were conducted. The results are in line with the model proposed(AU)

Formacion del inmunocomplejo radiactivo en un ria de doble anticuerpo / Radioactive immunocomplex formation in a double antibody ria

Se ha elaborado un modelo para el estudio de la cinética y equilibrio de las reacciones antígeno-anticuerpo implicadas en el radioinmunoanálisis (RIA) de doble anticuerpo correspondiente al Péptido C. Se pretende caracterizar la influencia de las concentraciones iniciales de antígeno marcado (M) y no marcado (Q) sobre la formación del inmunocomplejo (PM) al segundo anticuerpo (J) inmovilizado sobre una bola. Se realizan 30 experiencias para el estudio del efecto de las variables antes mencionadas. Los resultados obtenidos son concordantes con el modelo propuesto(AU)

A model has been produced for the kinetic and equilibrium study of antigen-antibody reactions in the radioimmunoassay (RIA) of C-Peptide double antibody. The aim is (1) to characterise the influence of initial concentrations of labelled (M) and unlabelled (Q) antigen and that of the initial concentration of the antibody in solution (P), and (2) to study the binding of the immunocomplex (PM) to the second antibody (J) immobilised on a bead, and the replacement of M by Q in the PMJ immunocomplex. In order to study the effect of such variables, 44 experiments were conducted. The results are in line with the model proposed(AU)

Effects of spectral smearing and temporal fine structure degradation on speech masking release.

This study assessed the effects of spectral smearing and temporal fine structure (TFS) degradation on masking release (MR) (the improvement in speech identification in amplitude-modulated compared to steady noise observed for normal-hearing listeners). Syllables and noise stimuli were processed using either a spectral-smearing algorithm or a tone-excited vocoder. The two processing schemes simulated broadening of the auditory filters by factors of 2 and 4. Simulations of the early stages of auditory processing showed that the two schemes produced comparable excitation patterns; however, fundamental frequency (F0) information conveyed by TFS was degraded more severely by the vocoder than by the spectral-smearing algorithm. Both schemes reduced MR but, for each amount of spectral smearing, the vocoder produced a greater reduction in MR than the spectral-smearing algorithm, consistent with the effects of each scheme on F0 representation. Moreover, the effects of spectral smearing on MR produced by the two schemes were different for manner and voicing. Finally, MR data for listeners with moderate hearing loss were well matched by MR data obtained for normal-hearing listeners with vocoded stimuli, suggesting that impaired frequency selectivity alone may not be sufficient to account for the reduced MR observed for hearing-impaired listeners.

Influence of energy density of different light sources on knoop hardness of a dual-cured resin cement

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Knoop hardness of a dual-cured resin-based luting cement irradiated with different light sources as well energy density through a ceramic sample. Three light-curing unit (LCUs) were tested: tungsten halogen light (HAL), light-emitting diode (LED) and xenon plasma-arc (PAC) lamp. Disc-shaped specimens were fabricated from a resin-based cement (Enforce). Three energy doses were used by modifying the irradiance (I) of each LCU and the irradiation time (T): 24 Jcm-2 (I/2x2T), 24 Jcm-2 (IxT) and 48 Jcm-2 (Ix2T). Energy doses were applied through a 2.0-mm-thick ceramic sample (Duceram Plus). Three groups underwent direct irradiation over the resin cement with the different LCUs and a chemically-activated group served as a control. Thirteen groups were tested (n=10). Knoop hardness number (KHN) means were obtained from cross-sectional areas. Two-way ANOVA and the Holm-Sidak method were used for statistical comparisons of activation mode and energy doses (á=5%). Application of 48 J.cm-2 energy dose through the ceramic using LED (50.5±2.8) and HAL (50.9±3.7) produced significantly higher KHN means (p<0.05) than the control (44.7±3.8). LED showed statistically similar performance to HAL. Only HAL showed a relationship between the increase of LCU energy dose and hardness increase.