Quantum entanglement patterns in the structure of atomic nuclei within the nuclear shell model

Quantum entanglement offers a unique perspective into the underlying structure of strongly-correlated systems such as atomic nuclei. In this paper, we use quantum information tools to analyze the structure of light and medium mass berillyum, oxygen, neon and calcium isotopes within the nuclear shell model. We use different entanglement metrics, including single-orbital entanglement, mutual information, and von Neumann entropies for different equipartitions of the shell-model valence space and identify mode/entanglement patterns related to the energy, angular momentum and isospin of the nuclear single-particle orbitals. We observe that the single-orbital entanglement is directly related to the number of valence nucleons and the energy structure of the shell, while the mutual information highlights signatures of proton-proton and neutron-neutron pairing. Proton and neutron orbitals are weakly entangled by all measures, and in fact have the lowest von Neumann entropies among all possible equipartitions of the valence space. In contrast, orbitals with opposite angular momentum projection have relatively large entropies. This analysis provides a guide for designing more efficient quantum algorithms for the noisy intermediate-scale quantum era.Comment: Submitted to EPJA Topical Issue "Quantum computing in low-energy nuclear theory

The SLC7A11: sperm mitochondrial function and non-canonical glutamate metabolism

Spermatozoa are redox-regulated cells, and stallion spermatozoa, in particular, present an intense mitochondrial activity in which large amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced. To maintain the redox potential under physiological conditions, sophisticated mechanisms ought to be present, particularly in the mitochondria. In the present study, we investigated the role of the SLC7A11 antiporter. This antiporter exchanges intracellular glutamate for extracellular cystine. In the spermatozoa, cystine is reduced to cysteine and used for GSH synthesis. The importance of the antiporter for mitochondrial functionality was studied using flow cytometry and UHPLC/MS/MS approaches. Intracellular GSH increased in the presence of cystine, but was reduced in the presence of Buthionine sulphoximine (BSO), a γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase inhibitor (P < 0.001). Inhibition of the SLC7A11 antiporter with sulfasalazine caused a dramatic drop in intracellular GSH (P < 0.001) and in the percentage of spermatozoa showing active mitochondria (P < 0.001). These findings suggest that proper functionality of this antiporter is required for the mitochondrial function of spermatozoa. We also describe that under some conditions, glutamate may be metabolized following non-conventional pathways, also contributing to sperm functionality. We provide evidences, that the stallion spermatozoa have important metabolic plasticity, and also of the relation between redox regulation and metabolic regulation. These findings may have important implications for the understanding of sperm biology and the development of new strategies for sperm conservation and treatment of male factor infertility

Multidataset Incremental Training for Optic Disc Segmentation

When convolutional neural networks are applied to image segmentation results depend greatly on the data sets used to train the networks. Cloud providers support multi GPU and TPU virtual machines making the idea of cloud-based segmentation as service attractive. In this paper we study the problem of building a segmentation service, where images would come from different acquisition instruments, by training a generalized U-Net with images from a single or several datasets. We also study the possibility of training with a single instrument and perform quick retrains when more data is available. As our example we perform segmentation of Optic Disc in fundus images which is useful for glau coma diagnosis. We use two publicly available data sets (RIM-One V3, DRISHTI) for individual, mixed or incremental training. We show that multidataset or incremental training can produce results that are simi lar to those published by researchers who use the same dataset for both training and validation

Morphometric and immunohistochemical study of the reticulum of red deer during prenatal development

Iberian red deer need to be conserved for their economic role and for their genetic importance as an important component of the ecosystem. Modifications currently being made to traditional management systems require a better understanding of the structure, function and development of their alimentary system. Here we describe a histomorphometric and immunohistochemical analysis of the stomach of 25 red deer embryos and fetuses from 30 days of gestation until birth (235 days). Differentiation of the reticular compartment from the primitive gastric tube begins at 67 days, forming a three-layered structure: epithelium, pluripotential blastemal tissue and serosa. The primitive reticular cells are initiated as small epithelial evaginations (primary ribs) at 117 days. At 142 days, lateral growths appear from the primary reticular ribs, forming the corneum papillae. The secondary reticular ribs form at 142 days as growths from the primary ribs. The uneven height of primary and secondary reticular ribs leads to the formation of cells of varying size. Growth of the reticular ribs involves the lamina propria but not the submucosa, so clear separation of these layers is maintained during histodifferentiation. Formation of the tunica muscularis from the pluripotential blastemal tissue begins at 67 days of intrauterine life, as two layers of longitudinally and circularly arranged myoblasts. Differentiation of the muscularis from the mucosa occurs at approximately 205 days, as longitudinal projections of the internal bundles of the tunica muscularis form the musculature of the primary ribs. The secretion of neutral and acid mucopolysaccharides by the reticular epithelial layer begins at 67 days, establishing the gradual adaptation of the mucosa to its protective function in postnatal life. Neuroendocrine (non-neuron enolase) and glial cells (glial fibrillary acidic protein and vimentin) were detected by immunohistochemistry, in a similar localization and intensity to that reported in the rumen. The neuropeptides vasoactive intestinal peptide and neuropeptide Y showed a positive immunoreaction in the reticular epithelium from 142 days of prenatal life, again earlier than reported for the rumen. In comparison with domestic ruminants, deer were shown to be less precocious with regard to development of gastric tube, in their capacity to secrete neutral mucopolysaccharides, and in their neuroendocrine nature, as determined by the detection of positive neuroedocrine and/or glial cells

Histomorphometric and immunohistochemical study of the goat abomasum during prenatal development

This study sought to chart the morphological changes taking place in the goat abomasum during prenatal development, using histomorphometric and immunohistochemical techniques. A total of 140 goat embryos and fetuses, from the first stages of prenatal life until birth. Differentiation of the abomasum as a separate compartment of the primitive gastric tube was observed at 35 days of prenatal life (CRL 3 cm, 23% gestation). Primitive abomasal folds were first observed at 38 days (CRL 4.3 cm, 25% gestation). The muscularis mucosae was visible by 64 days (CRL 13.5 cm, 43% gestation). Transformation of pseudostratified epithelium to simple cylindrical epithelium was also observed at this stage. Differentiation of gastric pits and glands first became apparent at 75 days (CRL 17.5 cm, 50% gestation) and 84 days (CRL 20 cm, 55% gestation), respectively. Neuroendocrine cells were detected by synaptophysin (SYP) at 64 days (CRL 13.5 cm, 43% gestation), while glial cell markers (glial fibrillary acidic protein - GFAP, and vimentin-VIM) were observed at 64 days (CRL 13.5 cm, 43% gestation) and 38 days (CRL 4.3 cm, 25% gestation), respectively. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) were detected at 75 days (CRL 17.5 cm, 50% gestation). Gastrinimmunoreactive cells first appeared in the abomasum at 76 days (CRL 18 cm, 50% gestation). In conclusion, prenatal development of the abomasum appears to take place somewhat earlier in goats than in sheep or cattle, but at a similar rate to that reported in wild ruminants such as deer

Pathological study of experimentally induced bovine respiratory syncytial viral infection in lambs

An experimental model was designed to characterize lesions in the lung of limbs inoculated with bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV). Twenty-five Merino lambs of both sexes, with a live weight of 17 ± 3 kg, received an intratracheal inoculation of 20 ml saline solution containing 1.26 × 106 TCID50 BRSV (strain NMK-7) per ml. Lambs were slaughtered 1, 3, 7, 11 and 15 days postinoculation (DPI), and samples were taken for analysis using light-microscopic and immunohistochemical techniques. The results reflected the effect of the virus on airway epithelia. The presence of BRSV in ciliated bronchial and bronchiolar epithelial cells gave rise to cytopathological changes, including loss of cilia and cell necrosis; these changes might be expected to decrease the efficiency of mucociliary clearance, favouring the development of secondary bacterial bronchopneumonia. These results suggest a reduction in BRSV tropism for alveolar epithelia compared to bronchial and bronchiolar epithelia. Light-microscopic analysis revealed a narrowing of alveolar and airway lumina and a considerable interstitial inflammatory reaction

Prenatal histomorphological development of the rumen in Dama dama

This work studies the morphological changes taking place in the Dama dama rumen during prenatal development using histomorphometrics, surface microstructure and immunohistochemistry analysis as well as carrying out a comparative analysis of this species with other wild (red deer) and domestic-type ruminants. A total of 25 fallow deer embryos and fetuses were used, from the first stage of prenatal life until birth. The appearance of the rumen from the primitive gastric tube was observed at 51 days of prenatal life (CRL 3 cm, 21% gestation). By 57 days (CRL 4.3 cm, 24% gestation) the ruminal wall comprised three layers: an internal epithelial layer, a middle layer of pluripotential blastemic tissue and an external layer or serosa. Ruminal pillars were visible at 72 days (CRL 6 cm, 30% gestation), and by 85 days (CRL 7.2 cm, 35% gestation) ruminal papillae were starting to appear. Under scanning electron microscopy, by 80 days (CRL 7 cm, 33% gestation) small ruminal papillae were observed protruding from the surface. Morphometric results showed accelerated growth of the epithelial layer and the tunica muscularis at 180 days (75% gestation). By contrast, the growth-rate of the lamina propria and submucosa declined from the early embryonic stages until birth. The serosa maintained a steady rate of growth until birth. Neuroendocrine cells (synaptophysin) were detected at 85 days (CRL 7.2 cm CRL, 35% gestation), while glial cell markers (glial fibrillary acidic protein and vimentin) were found at 108 days (CRL 31 cm, 45% gestation) and 63 days (CRL 4.4 cm, 26% gestation) respectively. Neuropeptide Y and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide were detected immunohistochemically at 180 days (CRL 33 cm, 75% gestation) and 192 days (CRL 35 cm, 80% gestation) respectively. In comparison to other wild and domestic-type ruminants, histomorphogenesis of the rumen in Dama dama was similar to that reported in red deer and goats, but rather slower than that observed for sheep or cattle