Quantum Many-Body Dynamics of Coupled Double-Well Superlattices

We propose a method for controllable generation of non-local entangled pairs using spinor atoms loaded in an optical superlattice. Our scheme iteratively increases the distance between entangled atoms by controlling the coupling between the double wells. When implemented in a finite linear chain of 2N atoms, it creates a triplet valence bond state with large persistency of entanglement (of the order of N). We also study the non-equilibrium dynamics of the one-dimensional ferromagnetic Heisenberg Hamiltonian and show that the time evolution of a state of decoupled triplets on each double well leads to the formation of a highly entangled state where short-distance antiferromagnetic correlations coexist with longer-distance ferromagnetic ones. We present methods for detection and characterization of the various dynamically generated states. These ideas are a step forward towards the use of atoms trapped by light as quantum information processors and quantum simulators.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figures, references adde

Mushroom Biomass: Some Clinical Implications of β-Glucans and Enzymes

Mushrooms have attracted market attention because they are a potential source of bioactive compounds able to perform several functions in organisms with benefits for the health of the consumer. Cultivation processes vary according a) industrial fermentation - in large vats to produce extracted form of mushrooms or b) closed cultivation system - individually grown in jars on an aseptic "substrate" with controlled lighting and irrigation to produce a biomass form of mushrooms. Biomass is the mycelium with primordia (young fruiting body - before the mushroom blooms) containing all the nutrients and active compounds, including β-glucans, enzymes and secondary metabolites. The classification of mushroom biomass varies according to the presentation; the biomass can be classified as a "food" if in powder form or, classified as a "dietary supplement" in tablet form. While tablet mushroom biomass is considered a dietary supplement, mushroom extracts are designated pharmaceutical compounds, pharmanutrients or nutraceuticals. Here we illustrate the difference between mushrooms in the biomass and extract forms, the similarities and differences on its content on enzymes, secondary metabolites and on β-glucans, as a soluble and fermentable fibre. Of particular note is the rich enzyme activity in the biomass form of mushrooms. Such activity includes enzymes that prevent oxidative stress (superoxide dismutase), enzymes that prevent cellular growth (protease, glucoamylase) and enzymes that promote detoxification (cytochrome P-450, peroxidase, glucose-2-oxidase). β-glucans have been proposed to act as "biological response modifiers" based on their effects on the immune system, and its role in the prevention and treatment of various metabolic syndrome-linked diseases. This review focuses also on some described health-promoting potential of mushroom biomass, all through immunomodulation. The role of intestinal microbiota is enhanced

Survey of community pharmacists' perception of electronic cigarettes in London

OBJECTIVES: To seek community pharmacists' perception on use, safety and possible effectiveness of e-cigarettes as quit smoking tools, and their future regulation. SETTING: A survey of a sample of 154 community pharmacies across London, UK. CONTEXT: E-cigarettes have exclusively established themselves in the market through consumers-led demand. To date, e-cigarettes still remain unregulated and can be easily purchased in shops, over the internet, but more controversially also in pharmacies in the UK. Pharmacists find themselves with a shortage of information on their safety and efficacy, and may experience an ethical dilemma when consulted by patients/customers. KEY FINDINGS: Response rate: 60% (n=92). Independent pharmacies accounted for 90% of the sample. The majority of participants (73%) sell e-cigarettes. A minority of participants (20%) have been presented with adverse effects such as cough and dry mouth. As possible reasons for their use, pharmacists ranked ‘aid in stop smoking’ as the most important (56%), with ‘cheaper alternative’ (43%) and ‘social/recreational use’ (31%) being the least important ones. Safety issues were raised as statements such as ‘e-liquid in cartridges may be toxic’ were agreed by 52% of respondents. The majority of pharmacists (97%) were supportive of e-cigarettes being regulated, expressing current concerns regarding excipients (42%) and nicotine content (34%). Participants indicated that they would require training in the form of information packs (88%), online tutorials (67%), continuous professional development (CPD) workshops (43%) to cover safety, counselling, dosage instructions, adverse effects and role in the smoking cessation care pathway in the future. CONCLUSIONS: Pharmacists expressed concerns about the safety of e-cigarettes, especially regarding the amounts of excipients and nicotine as these still remain unregulated. Currently, there are no guidelines for pharmacists regarding e-cigarettes. Community pharmacists look forward to regulations so to conduct their duties in a more confident and legislated fashion

Reliability of the American Knee Society Score (AKSS)

OBJECTIVES: To perform the translation, cultural adaptation, validation and reproducibility of the American Knee Society Score (AKSS) scale into Portuguese, and determine its measurement, in order to make it useful for the evaluation of patients with osteoarthritis or who have undergone total knee arthroplasty. METHODS: In the first interview, the AKSS was applied along with the SF-36 and WOMAC (examiner 1). After thirty minutes the same patients answered only the AKSS. After a two week break, a third additional interview with AKSS was applied (examiner 2). RESULTS: We selected 58 patients with a mean age of 67.4 years. In the analysis of reproducibility, by ICC, there was strong inter-examiner and intra-examiner correlation for two AKSS components. In the individual items analysis there was good correlation for Pain, Range of Motion, Flexion contracture and all items of the AKSS Function component. Validation through the Pearson coefficient showed good correlation between AKSS Pain, WOMAC pain and SF-36 Pain domain, and good correlation between the AKSS and SF-36 Functional Capacity domain. CONCLUSION: The AKSS adapted to Brazilian culture is useful and reliable for the evaluation of individuals with osteoarthritis or those who have undergone TKA.OBJETIVOS: Realizar a análise da reprodutibilidade da escala American Knee Society Score (AKSS), bem como verificar suas propriedades de medida, para avaliação dos pacientes com osteoartrite e/ou submetidos à artroplastia total de joelho. MÉTODOS: Primeiramente, o AKSS foi aplicado em conjunto com os questionários SF-36 e WOMAC (examinador 1). Os pacientes foram reavaliados após trinta minutos e, novamente, após duas semanas, sendo aplicado apenas o AKSS nas duas avaliações (examinador 2). RESULTADOS: Foram selecionados 58 indivíduos com média de idade de 67,4 anos. Na análise da reprodutibilidade, pelo ICC, houve forte correlação inter e intra-examinador para os dois componentes do AKSS. Na análise dos itens individuais houve boa correlação nos itens Dor, Amplitude de Movimento, Contratura em flexão e em todos os itens do AKSS Funcional. Na validação, através do coeficiente de Pearson, houve boa correlação entre os domínios AKSS Clínico Dor, WOMAC Dor e o SF-36 Dor, e boa correlação entre o AKSS Funcional e o domínio Capacidade Funcional do SF-36. CONCLUSÃO: A escala AKSS é útil e confiável para a avaliação dos indivíduos portadores de osteoartrite ou submetidos à ATJ. Tipo de Estudo: Estudos terapêuticos - Investigação dos resultados do tratamento. Nível de Evidência: IVUNIFESP-EPM Departamento de OrtopediaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de OrtopediaSciEL

Comparative Analysis of the Chemical Composition, Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activity of Essential Oils of Spices Used in the Food Industry in Brazil

There are many food-borne pathogens in the wild and they are considered the cause of serious public health problems in both developed and developing countries. The use of natural products, such as antimicrobial compounds, has been increasing, in an attempt to control bacteria present in foods, mainly pathogens resistant to conventional antibiotics. This chapter is intended to provide the antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of essential oils of Cinnamomum zeylanicum (cinnamon), Origanum vulgare (oregano), Zingiber officinale (ginger), Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary), Citrus latifolia (tahiti lemon) and Curcuma longa (saffron) as well as to determinate its chemical composition. The oils had been extracted by hydrodistillation with a Clevenger type apparatus and the antimicrobial activity was performed against standard strains Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. The antioxidant activity was carried out using the ABTS [2,2-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)] method. The essential oils presented a mixture of mono- and sesquiterpenes. The best minimum inhibitory concentration was determined to C. zeylanicum against S. aureus. O. vulgare antioxidant activity presented inhibition of 90.74% and EC50 of 14 μg mL−1. These results demonstrate that the essential oils analyzed presented efficient antibacterial activity and antioxidant action being able to satisfy the demand of use as control of microorganisms in the food

Nitric oxide from inflammatory origin impairs neural stem cell proliferation by inhibiting epidermal growth factor receptor signaling

Neuroinflammation is characterized by activation of microglial cells, followed by production of nitric oxide (NO), which may have different outcomes on neurogenesis, favoring or inhibiting this process. In the present study, we investigated how the inflammatory mediator NO can affect proliferation of neural stem cells (NSCs), and explored possible mechanisms underlying this effect. We investigated which mechanisms are involved in the regulation of NSC proliferation following treatment with an inflammatory stimulus (lipopolysaccharide plus IFN-gamma), using a culture system of subventricular zone (SVZ)-derived NSCs mixed with microglia cells obtained from wild-type mice (iNOS(+/+)) or from iNOS knockout mice (iNOS(-/-)). We found an impairment of NSC cell proliferation in iNOS(+/+) mixed cultures, which was not observed in iNOS(-/-) mixed cultures. Furthermore, the increased release of NO by activated iNOS(+/+) microglial cells decreased the activation of the ERK/MAPK signaling pathway, which was concomitant with an enhanced nitration of the EGF receptor. Preventing nitrogen reactive species formation with MnTBAP, a scavenger of peroxynitrite (ONOO-), or using the ONOO- degradation catalyst FeTMPyP cell proliferation and ERK signaling were restored to basal levels in iNOS(+/+) mixed cultures. Moreover, exposure to the NO donor NOC-18 (100 mu M), for 48 h, inhibited SVZ-derived NSC proliferation. Regarding the antiproliferative effect of NO, we found that NOC-18 caused the impairment of signaling through the ERK/MAPK pathway, which may be related to increased nitration of the EGF receptor in NSC. Using MnTBAP nitration was prevented, maintaining ERK signaling, rescuing NSC proliferation. We show that NO from inflammatory origin leads to a decreased function of the EGF receptor, which compromised proliferation of NSC. We also demonstrated that NO-mediated nitration of the EGF receptor caused a decrease in its phosphorylation, thus preventing regular proliferation signaling through the ERK/MAPK pathway.Foundation for Science and Technology, (FCT, Portugal); COMPETE; FEDER [PEst-C/SAU/LA0001/2013-2014, PEst-OE/EQB/LA0023/2013-2014, PTDC/SAU-NEU/102612/2008, PTDC/NEU-OSD/0473/2012]; FCT, Portugal [SERH/BPD/78901/2011, SERH/BD/38127/2007, SFRH/BD/77903/2011, SFRH/BD/79308/2011]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Ginger (<em>Zingiber officinale</em>) Antimicrobial Potential: A Review

Zingiber officinale Roscoe, commonly known as gengibre, ajengibre, jengibre dulce (Brazil, Argentina, and Spain), ginger (United States and England), and gingembre (France), is a perennial herbaceous plant that produces a fleshy and articulated rhizome, with rough brownish epidermis. As a medicinal plant, ginger is one of the oldest and most popular in the world. Several properties of the ginger have been verified in scientific experiments, with emphasis to the antimicrobial activity. Ginger essence oil has been investigated by several in vitro microbiological techniques, in which most of its essential oils presented antimicrobial activity against all selected bacteria. The antimicrobial effect is attributed mainly to several phytochemicals, such as camphene, phellandrene, zingiberene, and zingerone. This review provides an overview of the experimental evidence for the antimicrobial potential of Z. officinale

Coriolus versicolor biomass increases dendritic arborization of newly-generated neurons in mouse hippocampal dentate gyrus

Brain cognitive reserve refers to the ability of the brain to manage different challenges that arise throughout life, making it resilient to neuropathology. Hippocampal adult neurogenesis has been considered to be a relevant contributor for brain cognitive reserve and brain plasticity. Coriolus versicolor (CV), a common healthful mushroom, has been receiving increasing attention by its antitumoral, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, and immunomodulatory properties, including in the hippocampus. Herein, we evaluated whether CV biomass oral administration for 2.5 months enhances hippocampal neurogenic reserve under normal/physiological conditions, by quantifying hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) granular cell layer (GCL) and subgranular zone (SGZ) volumes, proliferation, number and dendritic complexity features of hippocampal newly-generated neurons. We also analyzed β-catenin levels in DG newly-generated immature neurons, because it plays a major role in neurogenesis. Although no differences were observed in the volume of GCL and SGZ layers, in proliferation and in the number of newly-generated neurons of controls and CV-administered mice, we found that CV administration promotes a significant increase in dendritic length and branching and total dendritic volume of immature neurons, suggesting a positive effect of oral CV administration in the hippocampal neurogenic reserve. We also observed that β-catenin levels are increased both in the nucleus and cytoplasm of DG immature neurons, suggesting that Wnt/β-catenin signalling may play an important role in the CV positive effect on the differentiation of these cells. These data unveil a so far unexplored neurogenic potential of CV supplementation, which emerges as a possible preventive strategy for different neurological conditions.This work was supported by Mycology Research Laboratories, Ltd. This work was financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the Centro 2020 Regional Operational Programme under projects CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER-000012-HealthyAging2020 and CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER-000008 - BrainHealth 2020, and through the COMPETE 2020 - Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation and Portuguese national funds via FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, under project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007440 and Strategic Project 2015- UID/NEU/04539/2013. EF and SIM are holders of FCT postdoctoral grant (SFRH/BPD/86551/2012 and SFRH/BPD/99219/2013, respectively). J.V. salary was supported by an Ikerbasque Research Fellow grant