72 research outputs found
Expression, purification and osteogenic bioactivity of recombinant human BMP-4, -9, -10, -11 and -14
Bone morphogenetic
proteins
(BMPs) are cytokines
from the TGF-b superfamily,
with important
roles during
embryonic
development
and in the induction
of bone and cartilage
tissue
differentiation
in the adult body.
In this contribution,
we report the expression
of recombinant human BMP-4, BMP-9, BMP-10, BMP-11 (or
growth differentiation
factor-
11, GDF-11) and BMP-14 (GDF-5), using Escherichia
coli pET-25b vector.
BMPs
were overexpressed,
purified
by affinity
his-tag chromatography
and shown to induce the expression
of early
markers
of bone differentiation
(e.g. smad-1, smad-5, runx2/cbfa1, dlx5, osterix,
osteopontin,
bone sialoprotein
and alkaline
phosphatase)
in C2C12 cells and in human adipose
stem cells. The described approach is a
promising
method for producing
large amounts of different
recombinant BMPs that show potential for novel
biomedical
applications.The author wishes to acknowledge the Sanger Institute for kindly offering the bacterial clones for cloning of human BMP-9 to -14. This work was supported by Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (PhD grant SFRH/BD/17049/2004, project ElastM POCI/CTM/57177/2004 funded by FEDER and the Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia; and European STREP Project HIPPOCRATES (NMP3-CT-2003-505758). This work was carried out under the scope of the European NoE EXPERTISSUES (NMP3-CT-2004-500283)
Mood is a key determinant of cognitive performance in community-dwelling older adults: a cross-sectional analysis
First Online: 06 October 2012Identification of predictors of cognitive trajectories through the establishment of composite or single-parameter dimensional categories of cognition and mood may facilitate development of strategies to improve quality of life in the elderly. Participants (nâ=â487, aged 50+ years) were representative of the Portuguese population in terms of age, gender, and educational status. Cognitive and mood profiles were established using a battery of neurocognitive and psychological tests. Data were subjected to principal component analysis to identify core dimensions of cognition and mood, encompassing multiple test variables. Dimensions were correlated with age and with respect to gender, education, and occupational status. Cluster analysis was applied to isolate distinct patterns of cognitive performance and binary logistic regression models to explore interrelationships between aging, cognition, mood, and socio-demographic characteristics. Four main dimensions were identified: memory, executive function, global cognitive status, and mood. Based on these, strong and weak cognitive performers were distinguishable. Cluster analysis revealed further distinction within these two main categories into very good, good, poor, and very poor performers. Mood was the principal factor contributing to the separation between very good and good, as well as poor and very poor, performers. Clustering was also influenced by gender and education, albeit to a lesser extent; notably, however, female gender Ă lower educational background predicted significantly poorer cognitive performance with increasing age. Mood has a significant impact on the rate of cognitive decline in the elderly. Gender and educational level are early determinants of cognitive performance in later life.This work was funded by the European Commission (FP7) âSwitchBoxâ (Contract HEALTH-F2-2010-259772). NCS is supported by a SwitchBox post-doctoral fellowship. We are thankful to all study participants. The authors would like to acknowledge all colleagues who assisted with participant recruitment and evaluation
EM TEMPOS GLOBAIS, UM âNOVOâ LOCAL: a Ford na Bahia
O artigo analisa a dinĂąmica da RegiĂŁo Metropolitana de Salvador (RMS) a partir da implantação da Ford, discutindo a perspectiva do âlugarâ (a periferia metropolitana), dentro de uma relação assimĂ©trica com os negĂłcios globais na era da flexibilidade. O texto caracteriza o complexo Ford de Camaçari a partir da reestruturação produtiva e das mudanças na organização e funcionamento dos territĂłrios e, na segunda parte, seus impactos sobre a periferia metropolitana de Salvador. Na conclusĂŁo demonstra que as mesmas circunstĂąncias que permitiram a vinda da montadora para Camaçari constrangem as ambiçÔes originais de melhor equacionamento entre crescimento econĂŽmico e progresso social: a flexibilidade dos novos arranjos, que tornam os espaços perifĂ©ricos estratĂ©gicos, compromete o âenraizamentoâ do investimento; a âprodução enxutaâ, exĂgua de emprego e diligente na sua precarização, inibe os benefĂcios sociais. PALAVRAS CHAVE: reestruturação produtiva, mercado de trabalho, indĂșstria automobilĂstica, periferia metropolitana, segregação socioespacial. IN GLOBAL TIMES, A âNEWâ PLACE: Ford in Bahia Ăngela Franco This paper makes an analysis of the dynamics of the Metropolitan Area of Salvador (in Portuguese, RMS) starting from the implantation of Ford, discussing the perspective of the âlocalâ (the metropolitan periphery), inside of an asymmetrical relationship with global businesses in the age of flexibility. The Ford Automotive Compound is caracterized in the first part of the paper from its productive reestructuring and changes in the organization and work of territories, and, in the second part, from its impact on the the metropolitan periphery from Salvador. In its conclusion it demonstrates that the same circumstances that allowed the arrival of the automotive maker in Camaçari constrain the original ambitions of better ratio between economical growth and social progress: the flexibility of the new automotive production methods, making peripheric spaces strategic, compromises on the permanence of the investments; and the âstreamlined productionâ, easy on job production and hard on job flexibilization inhibit social benefits. KEYWORDS: productive restructuring, job market, automobile industry, metropolitan periphery, socioespatial segregation. EN PERIODE DE MONDIALISATION, UN âNOUVEAUâ LOCAL: Ford Ă Bahia Ăngela Franco Cet article traite de lâanalyse de la dynamique de la RĂ©gion MĂ©tropolitaine de Salvador (RMS), Ă partir de lâimplantation de lâusine Ford. On y discute de la perspective du âlieuâ (la pĂ©riphĂ©rie mĂ©tropolitaine), dans une relation asymĂ©trique avec les affaires globales Ă une Ă©poque de flexibilitĂ©. On y caractĂ©rise le complexe Ford de Camaçari Ă partir de la restructuration productive et des changements dans lâorganisation et le fonctionnement des territoires. Ses impacts sur la pĂ©riphĂ©rie mĂ©tropolitaine de Salvador sont prĂ©sentĂ©s dans la deuxiĂšme partie. En conclusion, on y dĂ©montre que ce sont les mĂȘmes circonstances qui ont permis lâarrivĂ©e de lâusine de montage Ă Camaçari qui reprĂ©sentent une contrainte pour les ambitions qui, Ă lâorigine, voulaient atteindre une meilleure Ă©quation entre la croissance Ă©conomique et le progrĂšs social. La flexibilitĂ© de ces nouveaux arrangements, qui rendent les espaces pĂ©riphĂ©riques stratĂ©giques, compromet âlâenracinementâ des investissements, la âproduction exiguĂ«â, lâexiguĂŻtĂ© des emplois et la diligence dans leur prĂ©carisation, elle inhibe les avantages sociaux. MOTS-CLĂS: restructuration productive, marchĂ© du travail, industrie automobile, pĂ©riphĂ©rie mĂ©tropolitaine, sĂ©grĂ©gation sociale et spatiale. Publicação Online do Caderno CRH: http://www.cadernocrh.ufba.b
Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research
Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4
While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge
of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5â7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8â11 In
the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the worldâs most diverse rainforest and the primary source of
Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13â15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazonâs biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus
crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced
environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian
Amazonia, while identifying the regionâs vulnerability to environmental change. 15%â18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by
2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status,
much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Goodbye Hartmann trial: a prospective, international, multicenter, observational study on the current use of a surgical procedure developed a century ago
Background: Literature suggests colonic resection and primary anastomosis (RPA) instead of Hartmann's procedure (HP) for the treatment of left-sided colonic emergencies. We aim to evaluate the surgical options globally used to treat patients with acute left-sided colonic emergencies and the factors that leading to the choice of treatment, comparing HP and RPA. Methods: This is a prospective, international, multicenter, observational study registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. A total 1215 patients with left-sided colonic emergencies who required surgery were included from 204 centers during the period of March 1, 2020, to May 31, 2020. with a 1-year follow-up. Results: 564 patients (43.1%) were females. The mean age was 65.9 ± 15.6 years. HP was performed in 697 (57.3%) patients and RPA in 384 (31.6%) cases. Complicated acute diverticulitis was the most common cause of left-sided colonic emergencies (40.2%), followed by colorectal malignancy (36.6%). Severe complications (Clavien-Dindo ℠3b) were higher in the HP group (P < 0.001). 30-day mortality was higher in HP patients (13.7%), especially in case of bowel perforation and diffused peritonitis. 1-year follow-up showed no differences on ostomy reversal rate between HP and RPA. (P = 0.127). A backward likelihood logistic regression model showed that RPA was preferred in younger patients, having low ASA score (†3), in case of large bowel obstruction, absence of colonic ischemia, longer time from admission to surgery, operating early at the day working hours, by a surgeon who performed more than 50 colorectal resections. Conclusions: After 100 years since the first Hartmann's procedure, HP remains the most common treatment for left-sided colorectal emergencies. Treatment's choice depends on patient characteristics, the time of surgery and the experience of the surgeon. RPA should be considered as the gold standard for surgery, with HP being an exception
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