Collagen from Marine Biological Source and Medical Applications

Collagen is the main fibrous structural protein in the extracellular matrix and connective tissue of animals. It is a primary building block of bones, tendons, skin, hair, cartilage, and all joints in the body. It is also considered a "glue" that holds the body together. Collagen production begins to slow down, and cell structures start losing their strength as we become older. Collagen supplementation is a vital way to help our body revive itself and stay youthful. Recently, collagen-based biomedical materials have developed important and clinically effective materials that have become widely acceptable. However, collagen extraction from land animal sources is complex, time consuming, and expensive. Hence, marine sources have started to be researched and have been found to be the most convenient and safest sources for obtaining collagen. Another reason for favouring these sources is due to concerns over adverse inflammatory and immunologic responses and the prevalence of various diseases among land animals that can cause health complications.Marine sources also have plenty of advantages over land animal sources: (1) a high collagen content; (2) environmentally friendly; (3) the presence of biological contaminants and toxins is almost negligible; (4) a low inflammatory response; (5) greater absorption due to their low molecular weight; (6) less significant religious and ethical constraints; (7) minor regulatory and quality control problems; (8) metabolic compatibility, among others. This huge source of marine collagen is expected to make a great contribution to marine biotechnology products and medical applications

30th International Conference on Condition Monitoring and Diagnostic Engineering Management (COMADEM 2017)

Proceedings of COMADEM 201

Mexican fossil ground sloths - A case study for Late Pleistocene megafaunal turnover in the Mexican Corridor

Diese Dissertation ist Teil eines langjährigen deutsch-mexikanischen Forschungsprojektes über paläontologische und paläoanthropologische Funde aus den Unterwasserhöhlen im Bundesstaat Quintana Roo im Südosten Mexikos. Sie fasst dabei die Ergebnisse über spätpleistozäne Großsäuger, speziell Bodenfaultiere, zusammen. Zwei Arten der neuen Bodenfaultier-Gattung Xibalbaonyx werden im Untersuchungsgebiet neu beschrieben und in den Zeitraum des späten Pleistozän bis frühen Holozän datiert. Darüber hinaus wurden andere Lokalitäten im Nordosten, Westen und Zentralmexikos, sowie in Guatemala besucht und die fossilen Sammlungen der dortigen spätpleistozänen Megafauna dokumentiert und beschrieben, einschließlich einer dritten Art von Xibalbaonyx (X. microcaninus). Sammlungen aus dem Natural History Museum in New York und aus dem Museum of Natural History and University of Florida at Gainesville, USA, sowie die Sammlungen des Naturkundemuseums in Karlsruhe, Deutschland, dienten dem anatomischen Vergleich. Auf Grundlage der osteologischen Beschreibung und paläontologischen Aufarbeitung der assoziierten Fauna aus den Unterwasserhöhlen Quintana Roos wurden Einblicke in die Paläoökologie von Xibalbaonyx und anderen Bodenfaultieren gewonnen. Die funktionsmorphologische Analyse legt nahe, dass Xibalbaonyx oviceps in der Lage war, die steilen Hänge der Dolinen zu erklimmen. Xibalbaonyx nutzte die trockenen Höhlensysteme zur Suche nach Wasser, als Zufluchtsort und zur Aufzucht der Jungen. Angeborene Pathologien wurden wiederholt bei den Bodenfaultieren festgestellt, einschließlich asymmetrischer Wirbelkörper. Diese Pathologien deuten darauf hin, dass es in dem Untersuchungsgebiet zeitweise zu Inzucht kam und vermutlich schlechte Umweltbedingungen vorlagen. Eine neue Gattung und Art von Nabelschwein (Muknalia minima n. gen et sp.) und eine neue Art von Jaguar (Panthera balamoides sp. nov.) waren in Quintana Roo mit diesen Bodenfaultieren assoziiert. Die hohe Zahl an Endemismen in dieser einzigartigen Faunenvergesellschaftung belegen eine partielle paläogeographische und ökologische Isolation der Yukatan Halbinsel vom amerikanischen Kontinent und eine Verinselung des Untersuchungsgebietes. Diese Theorie wird auch durch anthropologische Untersuchungen untermauert, welche deutliche morphologische Unterschiede zwischen den ersten Jägern und Sammlern auf der Yukatan Halbinsel und anderen gleichaltrigen Populationen in Zentralmexiko belegen. Menschliche Interaktionen mit der Megafauna sind durch Schnittspuren und weitere Befunde an Knochen belegt und werden erstmals für die Region beschrieben. Die Klimaveränderungen am Pleistozän-Holozän Übergang könnten die Entwicklung von „Inselpopulationen“ in der nordöstlichen Yukatan-Halbinsel unterstützt haben, die durch die Karstlandschaft zwischen den einzelnen Karstdolinen (Cenotes) voneinander getrennt existierten. Diese kleinen untereinander isolierten Populationen von Bodenfaultieren, insbesondere der Familie der Megalonychidae, diversifizierten schnell, waren aber gegenüber Umweltveränderungen anfällig. Die hiervorgestellte vergleichende Auswertung taxonomischer Datensätze mit Literaturrecherche, Überarbeitung von Museumssammlungen, sowie Feldforschung liefert Hinweise auf das Aussterben der Bodenfaultiere auf der Yukatan Halbinsel zu Beginn des Holozäns

Abstracts of manuscripts submitted in 1991 for publication

This volume contains the abstracts of manuscripts submitted for publication during calendar year 1991 by the staff and students of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. We identify the journal of those manuscripts which are in press or have been published. The volume is intended to be informative, but not a bibliography. The abstracts are listed by title in the Table of Contents and are grouped into one of our five departents, Marine Policy Center, Coastal Research Center, or the student category. An author index is presented in the back to facilitate locating specific papers

The politics of invasion: defining and defending the natural, native and legal in the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador

This dissertation analyzes contemporary politics and practices designed to manage species invasions and human population impacts in the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. Due to the high connectivity and movement of people around the world, non-native species are often introduced into protected areas, where human activity is also viewed as an invasion into nature. In the Galápagos, population growth and more recently, tourism, have been linked to an increase in invasive species that pose threats to the local biodiversity. As a result, in 2007 Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa declared an ecological crisis in the islands, which continues to intensify with record tourist numbers (over 180,000 in 2009), a population growth rate of 6%, and new species introductions via air and sea. Through the lens of political ecology, this research uses case studies to describe how invasion, writ large, is understood and experienced differently across stakeholder groups and the landscape. Remote sensing analysis of vegetation cover in an area of the Galápagos National Park that was invaded by feral goats shows landscape-level vegetation decline during the invasion, and regrowth following eradication, but not necessarily in areas where goats were heavily concentrated. The long-term environmental effects of large-scale eradication programs also call into question claims of ecosystem restoration, and naturalness itself. Interviews among highland landowners and participation in land management practices show that the recent agricultural decline found on Isabela and Santa Cruz Islands is the result of interrelated environmental, economic and political factors, including species invasions, market instability, park-only policies and labor shortages. Participatory remote sensing further illustrates that different highland user groups have divergent perceptions of landscape productivity and degradation due to invasive species. Since the late 1990s, legislation has been implemented to control unlawful environmental behavior and illegal migration, but economic disparities perpetuate old tensions between residents of the islands and the Ecuadorian mainland. Cluster analysis of survey data finds that Galápagos residents have diverse stakes in island conservation and economic growth related to the booming tourism industry, while interviews among temporary and illegal migrants characterize the everyday vulnerability associated with migrant legal status in their own country

Laboratory for Atmospheres 2007 Technical Highlights

The 2007 Technical Highlights describes the efforts of all members of the Laboratory for Atmospheres. Their dedication to advancing Earth Science through conducting research, developing and running models, designing instruments, managing projects, running field campaigns, and numerous other activities, is highlighted in this report

Sustainable Agriculture and Advances of Remote Sensing (Volume 2)

Agriculture, as the main source of alimentation and the most important economic activity globally, is being affected by the impacts of climate change. To maintain and increase our global food system production, to reduce biodiversity loss and preserve our natural ecosystem, new practices and technologies are required. This book focuses on the latest advances in remote sensing technology and agricultural engineering leading to the sustainable agriculture practices. Earth observation data, in situ and proxy-remote sensing data are the main source of information for monitoring and analyzing agriculture activities. Particular attention is given to earth observation satellites and the Internet of Things for data collection, to multispectral and hyperspectral data analysis using machine learning and deep learning, to WebGIS and the Internet of Things for sharing and publication of the results, among others

Current Studies in the Sociology of Religion

The study of religion as an academic discipline is a rather recent development in colleges anduniversities in the United States and abroad. Although French sociologist Émile Durkheim wrote extensively about the role of religion in public life in the early 1900s, it was not until the 1960s that researchers from social science backgrounds, predominately sociology, began the formal, empirical study of religion as a social force that may impact a wide range of individual and societal outcomes. This special issue of Religions brings together scholars from around the world who use diverse methodologies to study the impact of religion on a broad range of outcomes. The issue thus provides a unique snapshot of current work being done in the sociology of religion. In these 18 articles, readers will find a great mix of data-driven studies (both quantitative and qualitative) and conceptual/review papers. The articles also reflect a diversity of authors, locations, topics, and faith traditions. I am pleased that many of the papers include undergraduate and graduate students as co-authors. These collaborations are important for maintaining the continuity of high-quality research over time

City of Pocatello v. Idaho Clerk\u27s Record v. 8 Dckt. 37723

https://digitalcommons.law.uidaho.edu/idaho_supreme_court_record_briefs/3719/thumbnail.jp