Serpulidae (Annelida: Polychaeta) from the Suez Canal: from a Lessepsian migration perspective (a monograph).

Data on Serpulidae collected in the Suez Canal were assembled and analyzed. Five serpulid taxa are reported from the canal for the first time bringing the number of serpulids to at least 16. The Systematic Section compiles revised literature records, confirmed synonymies of the taxa, redescriptions where necessary, photographic studies of taxa and remarks on the populations studied. The possible Indo-West-Pacific or Mediterranean origins of the taxa in the Suez Canal are considered and their chronological records and distributions tracked within the Red Sea, the Gulfs of Aqaba and Suez, the Suez Canal and the Levant Basin based on the compiled literature and our extensive databases. Two Lessepsian migrants, Hydroides heterocerus and H. homoceros, show evidence of morphological variability along their migration route; the last also provides an example of a founder effect. Problems of identifying Protula and Salmacina taxa are addressed, along with remarks on the "cosmopolitan" designations of some taxa. Various hypotheses concerning Lessepsian migration are discussed, and attributes making Lessepsian migrant serpulid tubeworms successful invasive species are evaluated

Laser-Induced Dissociation of an Energetic Polymer: A Spectroscopic Study of the Gaseous Products

Previous studies of GAP (glycidyl azido polymer) laser-induced decomposition (Propellants, ExplosiVes, Pyrotechnics 1996, 21, 258), revealed that the shock wave produced from a diluted polymer is more energetic than from the neat polymer. In this paper, direct measurement of the energy disposal into molecular products is reported using spectroscopic methods. Chemiluminescence probes electronically excited species, and laserinduced fluorescence, ground-state radicals. It is found that the initial velocity and internal energy content of small diatomic molecules is larger in some diluted polymers than in the neat one. This finding is in line with a simple model based on the assumption of a self-sustained reaction following initial laser excitation

Male Oxidative Stress Infertility (MOSI): Proposed Terminology and Clinical Practice Guidelines for Management of Idiopathic Male Infertility

Despite advances in the field of male reproductive health, idiopathic male infertility, in which a man has altered semen characteristics without an identifiable cause and there is no female factor infertility, remains a challenging condition to diagnose and manage. Increasing evidence suggests that oxidative stress (OS) plays an independent role in the etiology of male infertility, with 30% to 80% of infertile men having elevated seminal reactive oxygen species levels. OS can negatively affect fertility via a number of pathways, including interference with capacitation and possible damage to sperm membrane and DNA, which may impair the sperm’s potential to fertilize an egg and develop into a healthy embryo. Adequate evaluation of male reproductive potential should therefore include an assessment of sperm OS. We propose the term Male Oxidative Stress Infertility, or MOSI, as a novel descriptor for infertile men with abnormal semen characteristics and OS, including many patients who were previously classified as having idiopathic male infertility. Oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) can be a useful clinical biomarker for the classification of MOSI, as it takes into account the levels of both oxidants and reductants (antioxidants). Current treatment protocols for OS, including the use of antioxidants, are not evidence-based and have the potential for complications and increased healthcare-related expenditures. Utilizing an easy, reproducible, and cost-effective test to measure ORP may provide a more targeted, reliable approach for administering antioxidant therapy while minimizing the risk of antioxidant overdose. With the increasing awareness and understanding of MOSI as a distinct male infertility diagnosis, future research endeavors can facilitate the development of evidence-based treatments that target its underlying cause

Leggett–Garg-like Inequalities from a Correlation Matrix Construction

The Leggett–Garg Inequality (LGI) constrains, under certain fundamental assumptions, the correlations between measurements of a quantity Q at different times. Here, we analyze the LGI and propose similar but somewhat more elaborate inequalities, employing a technique that utilizes the mathematical properties of correlation matrices, which was recently proposed in the context of nonlocal correlations. We also find that this technique can be applied to inequalities that combine correlations between different times (as in LGI) and correlations between different locations (as in Bell inequalities). All the proposed bounds include additional correlations compared to the original ones and also lead to a particular form of complementarity. A possible experimental realization and some applications are briefly discussed