Variabilidad en el tamaño de ovocitos y fecundidad parcial de anchoveta (Engraulis ringens, Jenyns 1842) en dos áreas de desove de la costa de Chile

Utilising histological preparations of ovaries from Engraulis ringens females collected in two contrasting spawning habitats along the Chilean coast, we assess the variability in oocyte size and batch fecundity during the peak spawning seasons in three years. The effects of female size (length and weight), batch fecundity and mean sea surface temperature on oocyte size were also examined. Results showed larger oocytes and lower batch fecundity in females from the southern area. Oocyte volume differences persisted inter-annually and were not explained by differences in female sizes. Since ovary weight was similar between areas, the cost of producing larger oocytes in the south population seems to be a fecundity reduction. The latitudinal variations in oocyte number and size seem to be determined by the predominant environmental conditions in each habitat. Hence, female E. ringens seem to adapt their reproductive tactics by producing eggs sizes and quantities that favour survival of their offspring under the environmental conditions in which they are to develop.Utilizando preparaciones histológicas de ovarios de anchovetas (Engraulis ringens) colectadas en dos hábitats contrastantes a lo largo de la costa de Chile, se estudia la variabilidad en tamaño de ovocitos y fecundidad parcial en la estación de máximo desove durante tres años. Los efectos de tamaño de hembra (longitud total y peso total), fecundidad parcial y temperatura superficial del mar sobre el tamaño de los ovocitos, también fueron investigados. Los resultados mostraron ovocitos más grandes y menor fecundidad en hembras de la zona sur. Las diferencias en volumen de ovocitos persistieron inter-anualmente y no fueron explicadas por diferencias en el tamaño de las hembras. Dado que los pesos de los ovarios fueron similares entre zonas, el coste de producir ovocitos más grandes en la población del sur sería la reducción en la fecundidad. Las variaciones latitudinales en número y tamaño de ovocitos parecen ser determinadas por las condiciones ambientales predominantes en cada hábitat de desove. De este modo, las hembras de E. ringens adaptarían sus tácticas reproductivas produciendo tamaño y cantidades de huevos que favorezcan la supervivencia de sus descendientes a las condiciones ambientales en las que se desarrollarán

Structural studies of two Tinuvin® P analogs: 2-(2,4-Dimethylphenyl)- 2H-benzotriazole and 2-phenyl-2H-benzotriazole

2-(2,4-Dimethylphenyl)-2H-benzotriazole (1) has been synthesized in a three step procedure starting from 2,4-dimethyl-N-(2-nitrophenyl)benzamide via a 5-(2,4-dimethylphenyl)-1-(2-nitrophenyl)-1H-tetrazole intermediate. Its structure and those of Tinuvin® P and 2-phenyl-2H-benzotriazole (5) have been studied by multinuclear NMR (1H-, 13C- and 15N-) in solution and in the solid state. X-ray diffraction analysis of 1 and 5 allowed to us establish the molecular conformation around the single bond connecting the two aromatic systems, in agreement with the conclusions drawn from the NMR study. In the case of 1 ab initio geometry optimization was achieved at the Hartree-Fock HF/6-31G** and DFT B3LYP/6-31G ** levels. © 2007 by MDPI.Peer Reviewe

Advanced measurement techniques for the characterization of ReRAM devices

In some Resistive Random Access Memories (ReRAM), which could become the next generation of non-volatile memories [1], the voltage-controlled high and low resistance states (HRS and LRS, respectively) are associated to the creation (Set) and disruption (Reset) of a conductive filament (CF) that locally connects (LRS) or disconnects (HRS) the electrodes [2]. Usually, a current limit (CL) must be fixed during the Set process. Typically, these devices are characterized using source measurement units (SMU) to measure the current through the device. However, most of the SMU have a low sampling rate (around 1sample/1ms) and the current limitation mechanism used by the equipment is not well understood. To overcome these limitations, in this work, a low-cost setup with large sampling rate (larger than 1sample/10μs) is presented which, in addition, includes a well-controlled wide-range current limiting unit, CLCU (Fig. 1). The system is suitable to capture fast transients during the Set/Reset processes (Fig. 2) and to detect HRS Random Telegraph Noise (RTN) unresolvable by SMUs (Fig. 3) [3]. These device-level measurements can be combined with a Conductive Atomic Force Microscope, to get information on CF properties that cannot be directly measured at device level, as, for example, the spatial distribution of current in the CF at LRS and HRS (Fig. 4) [4]. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Fast degenerate double proton transfer in the solid state between two indazolinone tautomers

The neutral dimer formed by 4,6-difluoro-1H,2H-indazolin-3-one and 3-hydroxy-4,6-difluoro-1H-indazole linked by two hydrogen bonds presents a very fast intermolecular double proton transfer in the solid state (ISSPT). The combined use of crystallography, solid state NMR and DFT [B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p)] calculations supports this interesting observation and allows us to estimate a barrier of about 20 kJ mol-1. © 2010 The Royal Society of Chemistry.Peer Reviewe

¿Adelantan el diagnóstico de la diabetes tipo 2 los nuevos criterios de la Asociación Americana de Diabetes?

ObjetivoAnalizar el intervalo temporal entre la primera hiperglucemia basal ocasional (HBO) y el diagnóstico de diabetes mellitus tipo 2 (DM2) al aplicar los criterios de la OMS y de la Asociación Americana de Diabetes (ADA).DiseñoEstudio observacional, retrospectivo. Ámbito del estudio. Centro de atención primaria urbano.SujetosUn total de 104 pacientes con DM2, diagnosticados entre 1991 y 1995, con antecedentes de HBO.Mediciones o intervencionesEdad, género y otros factores de riesgo, fechas de la primera HBO (glucemia basal 3 110 mg/dl), del diagnóstico según criterios OMS (2 glucemias basales 3 140 mg/dl o 3 200 mg/dl a las 2 horas de la sobrecarga oral de glucosa [SOG]) y aplicando criterios ADA (2 glucemias basales 3 126 mg/dl) y los intervalos en meses entre ellas.ResultadosDe los 222 pacientes diagnosticados, 104 (47%) presentaban antecedentes de HBO. La edad en el momento del diagnóstico fue 60,8 años (DE, 10,1), siendo un 53% mujeres. En 51 casos (49%) se realizó SOG. La mediana (rango) del intervalo entre la primera HBO y el diagnóstico fue de 16 meses (0–101) en los que se realizó la SOG y de 45 (1–104) en los que no se practicó (p = 0,003). En estos últimos, los criterios ADA lo redujeron a 31 meses (0–97) (p < 0,001) y en 27 de ellos que no cumplían ambos criterios a la vez el intervalo fue de sólo 10 meses (0–93) (p < 0,001). Conclusiones. La no realización de la SOG comporta un retraso en el diagnóstico que puede ser contrarrestado con la aplicación de los criterios de la ADA.ObjectiveTo analyze the period of time between the first occasional fasting hyperglycaemia (OFH) and the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2), using the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria or the American Diabetes Association (ADA) criteria.DesignRetrospective, observational study.SettingUrban primary care centre.Subjects104 patients with DM2 diagnosed between 1991 and 1995 who had a previous OFH.MeasurementsAge, gender and other risk factors, dates of the first OFH (fasting plasma glucose 3 110 mg/dl), the diagnosis according to WHO criteria (2 fasting plasma glucose 3 140 mg/dl or 3 200 mg/dl two hours after the oral glucose test tolerance (OGTT)) or with the ADA criteria (2 fasting plasma glucose 3 126 mg/dl), and the intervals in months between them.ResultsOf the 222 diagnosed patients, 104 (47%) had previous OFH. Age at diagnosis was 60.8 (SD 10.1) and 53% were women. OGTT was performed in 51 cases (49%). The median (range) of the interval between the first OFH and diagnosis was 16 months (0–101) for those who were undertaken an OGTT, and 45 months (1–104) for those who were not (p = 0.003). In these last ones, ADA criteria reduced the interval to 31 months (0–97) (p < 0.001). In 27 of these patients who did not satisfy both criteria at the same time, ADA criteria reduced the interval to 10 months (0–93) (p < 0.001).ConclusionsNot performing the OGTT means a delay in diagnosis which can be countered by applying the ADA criteria

3,5-Dimethyl-1-(4-nitro­phen­yl)-1H-pyrazole

In the title pyrazole derivative, C11H11N3O2, the benzene ring is twisted [dihedral angle = 31.38 (12)°] with respect to the pyrazole ring (r.m.s. deviation = 0.009 Å). The nitro group is effectively coplanar with the benzene ring to which it is attached [O—N—C—C torsion angle = −6.5 (3)°]. Supra­molecular chains along the b axis are formed owing to π–π inter­actions [3.8653 (2) Å] between translationally related mol­ecules involving both the five- and six-membered rings

Phenology of brown bear breeding season and related geographical cues

© 2020 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited[EN] Knowledge about breeding biology is often incomplete in species with complex reproductive strategies. The brown bear Ursus arctos is a polygamous seasonal breeder inhabiting a wide variety of habitats and environmental conditions. We compiled information about brown bear breeding season dates from 36 study areas across their distribution range in the Palearctic and Nearctic regions and investigated how their breeding phenology relates to geographical factors (latitude, photoperiod, altitude and region). Brown bear matings were observed for 8 months, from April to November, with a peak in May–July. We found a 59-day difference in the onset of bear breeding season among study areas, with an average 2.3 days delay for each degree of latitude northwards. The onset of the breeding season showed a strong relationship with photoperiod and latitude, but not with region (i.e. Palearctic vs Nearctic) and altitude. First observations of bear mating occurred earlier in areas at lower latitudes. Photoperiod ranged between 14 and 18 hours at the beginning of the season for most of the study areas. The duration of the breeding season ranged from 25 to 138 days among study areas. None of the investigated factors was related to the length of the breeding season. Our results support the relevance of photoperiod to the onset of breeding, as found in other ursids, but not a shorter breeding season at higher latitudes, a pattern reported in other mammals. Our findings suggest a marked seasonality of bear reproductive behaviour, but also certain level of plasticity. Systematic field observations of breeding behaviour are needed to increase our knowledge on the factors determining mating behaviour in species with complex systems and how these species may adapt to climate change.SIWe thank Marjan Artnak, Peter Bajc, Matic Brenk, Tomáš Flajs, Uroš Grželj, Robert Hlavica, Aleš Jagodnik, Peter Klančar, Anton Marinčič, Mariusz Nędzyński, Borut Semenič and Vladimir Vician for providing information about their observations of bear mating. Robert Gatzka assisted with data collection in the Biezszcady Mountains. We thank Jon Swenson and Jumpei Tomiyasu for their help in the literature search. AGR and NS were supported by the BearConnect project funded by the National Science Centre in Poland (2016/22/Z/NZ8/00121) through the 2015-2016 BiodivERsA COFUND call for research proposals, with the national funders ANR/DLR-PT/UEFISCDI/NCN/RCN. Additional funding from the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (project NN304- 294037, NS, IEC, KB), the National Science Centre in Poland (project DEC-2013/08/M/NZ9/ 00469, NS), the National Centre for Research and Development (GLOBE, POL-NOR/198352/85/ 2013, NS, TZK, FZ) and Slovenian Research Agency (P4-0059, MK) is acknowledged. AGR and NS conceived the study and wrote a first draft of the paper; AGR and NS compiled the data, AGR analyzed the data; all authors provided data and comments that improved the manuscript. We thank two anonymous reviewers for useful comments on the previous versions of the manuscript

Enthalpies of formation of N-substituted pyrazoles and imidazoles

Accurate experimental enthalpies of formation measured using static bomb combustion calorimetry, the “vacuum sublimation” drop calorimetry method, and the Knudsen-effusion method are reported for the first time for four azoles:  1-methylimidazole (1MeIMI), 1-methylpyrazole (1MePYR), 1-benzylimidazole (1BnIMI), and 1-benzylpyrazole (1BnPYR). These values and those corresponding to imidazole (1HIMI), pyrazole (1HPYR), 1-ethylimidazole (1EtIMI), 1-ethylpyrazole (1EtPYR), 1-phenylimidazole (1PhIMI), and 1-phenylpyrazole (1PhPYR) are compared with theoretical values using the G2(MP2) and the B3LYP/6-311*G(3df,2p)//6-31G(d) approaches. In general, there is a very good agreement between calculated and experimental values for the series of N-substituted imidazoles, while the agreement is less good for the series of the N-substituted pyrazoles. Experimentally, the gap between the enthalpies of formation of imidazoles and pyrazoles decreases significantly upon N-substitution, while the theoretical estimates indicate that this decrease is smaller.This work has been partially supported by the DGES Projects PB 96-0001-C03-03, PB96-0067, and PB96-0927-C02-01. A generous allocation of computational time at the Centro de Computacio´n Cientı´fica de la Facultad de Ciencias (CCCFC) de la UAM is also gratefully acknowledged. Thanks are due to Junta National de Investigac¸a˜o Cientı´fica e Tecnolo´gica (JNICT), Lisbon, Portugal and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientı´ficas (CSIC), Madrid, Spain, for a joint research project CSIC/JNICT. Financial support from the Praxis XXI, Project 2/2.1/qui/54/94, is acknowledged. L.M.P.F.A. thanks Fundac¸aˆo para a Cieˆncia e Tecnologia, Lisbon, Portugal for the award of a postdoctoral fellowship (Praxis XXI/BDP/16319/98). J.F.L. acknowledges funding from “Dow Chemical Company” for partial support of his thermochemical studies