Increasing soil organic matter content in mine soil through pig manure addition

Mine soils in southeast Spain have scarce vegetation due to very poor properties such as extremely low soil organic matter (SOM) (< 0.6 g carbon kg-1 soil), low pH, high salinity and metal contents. Also in southeast Spain, there is an economically-important pig husbandry faced with challenges to manage the large volumes of industry-generated animal wastes. This study will present the results of a leaching experiment to assess the retention and release of nitrogen and carbon from pig manure added to undisturbed column of mine soil. We excavated three columns (15-cm diameter and 30-cm length) from a representative mined site. The columns were amended with single (7 % by mass) and double doses of pig manure, and leached weekly with distilled water for 10 weeks to simulate annual rainfall events in the study area. Leachates were collected and analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity, redox potential, and contents of selected anions and metals. However, we will limit this presentation to carbon and nitrogen to quantify the potential contribution of pig manure addition to the build up soil organic matter in mine soils. Results showed that after addition of pig manure in the soil surface, soil pH increased from 2.2 to 4.0 after 11 weeks (single dose) and to 5.2 at week 21 (double doses). Significant increased were observed in total nitrogen contents in both single and double doses, 1.14 g kg-1 (900 %) and 1.40 g kg-1 (1100 %), respectively. Total carbon contents increased to 18.6 g kg-1 (3200%) in single dose and to 16.4 g kg-1 (2800%) in double doses. Nitrogen and carbon in soils had weekly rate of increases of 0.1 and 2.0 g kg-1, respectively. Moreover, C/N ratio increased from 5 to 12 at the end of the experiment. Leachates had significantly higher weekly release of NO3- than total dissolved organic carbon (DOC) during the first 6 weeks of leaching. Weekly rate of releases (mg L-1) were 127 (NO3-) and 5.2 (DOC) in single dose, and 35 (NO3-) and 2.8 (DOC) for double doses. Leachates contained NO3- less than the 50 mg L-1 threshold established by FAO. These results suggest that addition of pig manure may significantly accelerate the build up of SOM in mine soils without endangering the release of NO3- into sub-soil or groundwater in semiarid regions. Once there is sufficient SOM, mine soils will have an environment hospitable to various ecosystems including plant colonization and microbial community needed for its physical stability. Pig manure amendment of mine soils can be an ecologically-sound means of managing the large volume of wastes generated by the pig industry in southeast Spain

Localization Bounds for Multiparticle Systems

We consider the spectral and dynamical properties of quantum systems of $n$ particles on the lattice $\Z^d$, of arbitrary dimension, with a Hamiltonian which in addition to the kinetic term includes a random potential with iid values at the lattice sites and a finite-range interaction. Two basic parameters of the model are the strength of the disorder and the strength of the interparticle interaction. It is established here that for all $n$ there are regimes of high disorder, and/or weak enough interactions, for which the system exhibits spectral and dynamical localization. The localization is expressed through bounds on the transition amplitudes, which are uniform in time and decay exponentially in the Hausdorff distance in the configuration space. The results are derived through the analysis of fractional moments of the $n$-particle Green function, and related bounds on the eigenfunction correlators

Cosmeceutical potential of grateloupia turuturu: using low-cost extraction methodologies to obtain added-value extracts

The invasive macroalga Grateloupia turuturu is known to contain a diversity of bioactive compounds with different potentialities. Among them are compounds with relevant bioactivities for cosmetics. Considering this, this study aimed to screen bioactivities with cosmeceutical potential, namely, antioxidant, UV absorbance, anti-enzymatic, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory activities, as well as photoprotection potential. Extractions with higher concentrations of ethanol resulted in extracts with higher antioxidant activities, while for the anti-enzymatic activity, high inhibition percentages were obtained for elastase and hyaluronidase with almost all extracts. Regarding the antimicrobial activity, all extracts showed to be active against E. coli, S. aureus, and C. albicans. Extracts produced with higher percentages of ethanol were more effective against E. coli and with lower percentages against the other two microorganisms. Several concentrations of each extract were found to be safe for fibroblasts, but no photoprotection capacity was observed. However, one of the aqueous extracts was responsible for reducing around 40% of the nitric oxide production on macrophages, showing its anti-inflammatory potential. This work highlights G. turuturu’s potential in the cosmeceutical field, contributing to the further development of natural formulations for skin protection.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Lorentz breaking Effective Field Theory and observational tests

Analogue models of gravity have provided an experimentally realizable test field for our ideas on quantum field theory in curved spacetimes but they have also inspired the investigation of possible departures from exact Lorentz invariance at microscopic scales. In this role they have joined, and sometime anticipated, several quantum gravity models characterized by Lorentz breaking phenomenology. A crucial difference between these speculations and other ones associated to quantum gravity scenarios, is the possibility to carry out observational and experimental tests which have nowadays led to a broad range of constraints on departures from Lorentz invariance. We shall review here the effective field theory approach to Lorentz breaking in the matter sector, present the constraints provided by the available observations and finally discuss the implications of the persisting uncertainty on the composition of the ultra high energy cosmic rays for the constraints on the higher order, analogue gravity inspired, Lorentz violations.Comment: 47 pages, 4 figures. Lecture Notes for the IX SIGRAV School on "Analogue Gravity", Como (Italy), May 2011. V.3. Typo corrected, references adde

Fast-timing measurements in neutron-rich odd-mass zirconium isotopes using LaBr3:Ce detectors coupled with Gammasphere

A fast-timing experiment was performed at the Argonne National Laboratory to measure the lifetimes of the lowest lying states of nuclei belonging to the deformed regions around mass number A 110 and A 150. These regions were populated via spontaneous fission of 252 Cf and the gamma radiation following the decay of excited states in the fission fragments was measured using 51 Gammasphere detectors coupled with 25 LaBr 3 :Ce detectors. A brief description of the acquisition system and some preliminary results from the fast-timing analysis of the fission fragment 100Zr are presented. The lifetime value of \u3c4 = 840(65) ps was found for the 2 + state in 100 Zr consistent within one standard deviation of the adopted value with 791 +26 -35 ps. This is associated with a quadrupole deformation parameter of 0.36(2) which is within one standard deviation of the literature value of 0.3556 +82 -57

Vector-like leptons: Higgs decays and collider phenomenology

Peer reviewe

The dynamic DNA methylomes of double-stranded DNA viruses associated with human cancer

The natural history of cancers associated with virus exposure is intriguing, since only a minority of human tissues infected with these viruses inevitably progress to cancer. However, the molecular reasons why the infection is controlled or instead progresses to subsequent stages of tumorigenesis are largely unknown. In this article, we provide the first complete DNA methylomes of double-stranded DNA viruses associated with human cancer that might provide important clues to help us understand the described process. Using bisulfite genomic sequencing of multiple clones, we have obtained the DNA methylation status of every CpG dinucleotide in the genome of the Human Papilloma Viruses 16 and 18 and Human Hepatitis B Virus, and in all the transcription start sites of the Epstein-Barr Virus. These viruses are associated with infectious diseases (such as hepatitis B and infectious mononucleosis) and the development of human tumors (cervical, hepatic, and nasopharyngeal cancers, and lymphoma), and are responsible for 1 million deaths worldwide every year. The DNA methylomes presented provide evidence of the dynamic nature of the epigenome in contrast to the genome. We observed that the DNA methylome of these viruses evolves from an unmethylated to a highly methylated genome in association with the progression of the disease, from asymptomatic healthy carriers, through chronically infected tissues and pre-malignant lesions, to the full-blown invasive tumor. The observed DNA methylation changes have a major functional impact on the biological behavior of the viruses

Quantum gravity phenomenology at the dawn of the multi-messenger era—A review

The exploration of the universe has recently entered a new era thanks to the multi-messenger paradigm, characterized by a continuous increase in the quantity and quality of experimental data that is obtained by the detection of the various cosmic messengers (photons, neutrinos, cosmic rays and gravitational waves) from numerous origins. They give us information about their sources in the universe and the properties of the intergalactic medium. Moreover, multi-messenger astronomy opens up the possibility to search for phenomenological signatures of quantum gravity. On the one hand, the most energetic events allow us to test our physical theories at energy regimes which are not directly accessible in accelerators; on the other hand, tiny effects in the propagation of very high energy particles could be amplified by cosmological distances. After decades of merely theoretical investigations, the possibility of obtaining phenomenological indications of Planck-scale effects is a revolutionary step in the quest for a quantum theory of gravity, but it requires cooperation between different communities of physicists (both theoretical and experimental). This review, prepared within the COST Action CA18108 “Quantum gravity phenomenology in the multi-messenger approach”, is aimed at promoting this cooperation by giving a state-of-the art account of the interdisciplinary expertise that is needed in the effective search of quantum gravity footprints in the production, propagation and detection of cosmic messengers.publishedVersio

Virtual Ontogeny of Cortical Growth Preceding Mental Illness

Background: Morphology of the human cerebral cortex differs across psychiatric disorders, with neurobiology and developmental origins mostly undetermined. Deviations in the tangential growth of the cerebral cortex during pre/perinatal periods may be reflected in individual variations in cortical surface area later in life. Methods: Interregional profiles of group differences in surface area between cases and controls were generated using T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging from 27,359 individuals including those with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, schizophrenia, and high general psychopathology (through the Child Behavior Checklist). Similarity of interregional profiles of group differences in surface area and prenatal cell-specific gene expression was assessed. Results: Across the 11 cortical regions, group differences in cortical area for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, schizophrenia, and Child Behavior Checklist were dominant in multimodal association cortices. The same interregional profiles were also associated with interregional profiles of (prenatal) gene expression specific to proliferative cells, namely radial glia and intermediate progenitor cells (greater expression, larger difference), as well as differentiated cells, namely excitatory neurons and endothelial and mural cells (greater expression, smaller difference). Finally, these cell types were implicated in known pre/perinatal risk factors for psychosis. Genes coexpressed with radial glia were enriched with genes implicated in congenital abnormalities, birth weight, hypoxia, and starvation. Genes coexpressed with endothelial and mural genes were enriched with genes associated with maternal hypertension and preterm birth. Conclusions: Our findings support a neurodevelopmental model of vulnerability to mental illness whereby prenatal risk factors acting through cell-specific processes lead to deviations from typical brain development during pregnancy