1,128 research outputs found
Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 and the Adaptive Response to Nutritional Challenges.
The Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 (FGF21) is considered an attractive therapeutic target for obesity and obesity-related disorders due to its beneficial effects in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. FGF21 response is essential under stressful conditions and its metabolic effects depend on the inducer factor or stress condition. FGF21 seems to be the key signal which communicates and coordinates the metabolic response to reverse different nutritional stresses and restores the metabolic homeostasis. This review is focused on describing individually the FGF21-dependent metabolic response activated by some of the most common nutritional challenges, the signal pathways triggering this response, and the impact of this response on global homeostasis. We consider that this is essential knowledge to identify the potential role of FGF21 in the onset and progression of some of the most prevalent metabolic pathologies and to understand the potential of FGF21 as a target for these diseases. After this review, we conclude that more research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying the role of FGF21 in macronutrient preference and food intake behavior, but also in β-klotho regulation and the activity of the fibroblast activation protein (FAP) to uncover its therapeutic potential as a way to increase the FGF21 signaling
High prevalence rates of Toxoplasma gondii in cat-hunted small mammals - Evidence for parasite induced behavioural manipulation in the natural environment?
Toxoplasma gondii causes one of the most frequent parasitic infections in vertebrates on earth. The present study aimed to assess the occurrence of T. gondii infection in cat-hunted wild small mammals, and to determine the circulating T. gondii genotypes in cat prey. There is evidence suggesting that T. gondii may manipulate rodents' behaviour enhancing transmission to their definitive feline host by facilitating predation. Given that most studies focusing on rodent behavior have been performed under laboratory conditions, we tested this hypothesis in the natural environment. We analysed 157 cat-hunted wild small mammals of six different species from Switzerland. Brain and skeletal muscle samples from each animal were tested for T. gondii DNA by PCR, and positive samples were genotyped using a multilocus sequence typing approach, including 10 genetic markers. Additionally, to evaluate exposure to cat faeces, the presence of Taenia taeniaeformis metacestodes was investigated at necropsy. The prevalence of T. gondii in cat-hunted Arvicola amphibius s.l. was 11.1% (7/63), 14.6% (7/48) in Apodemus spp., 13.6% (3/22) in Myodes glareolus, 6.7% (1/15) in Crocidura russula, and 0% in Microtus arvalis (0/8) and Sorex sp. (0/1). All completely genotyped T. gondii parasites, exhibited the ToxoDB #3 genotype, a Type II variant. We additionally analysed 48 trap-captured A. amphibius s.l., which all tested negative for T. gondii infection, contrasting with the higher prevalence in cat-hunted A. amphibius s.l. (0% vs. 11.1%; p = 0.0176). Furthermore, T. taeniaeformis was detected in both groups, indicating widespread contamination with cat faeces in the sampled areas. These results provide evidence that T. gondii infected rodents are at higher risk to be predated by cats and therewith support the behaviour manipulation hypothesis
High prevalence rates of Toxoplasma gondii in cat-hunted small mammals - Evidence for parasite induced behavioural manipulation in the natural environment?
Toxoplasma gondii causes one of the most frequent parasitic infections in vertebrates on earth. The present study
aimed to assess the occurrence of T. gondii infection in cat-hunted wild small mammals, and to determine the
circulating T. gondii genotypes in cat prey. There is evidence suggesting that T. gondii may manipulate rodents’
behaviour enhancing transmission to their definitive feline host by facilitating predation. Given that most studies
focusing on rodent behavior have been performed under laboratory conditions, we tested this hypothesis in the
natural environment. We analysed 157 cat-hunted wild small mammals of six different species from Switzerland.
Brain and skeletal muscle samples from each animal were tested for T. gondii DNA by PCR, and positive samples
were genotyped using a multilocus sequence typing approach, including 10 genetic markers. Additionally, to
evaluate exposure to cat faeces, the presence of Taenia taeniaeformis metacestodes was investigated at necropsy.
The prevalence of T. gondii in cat-hunted Arvicola amphibius s.l. was 11.1% (7/63), 14.6% (7/48) in Apodemus
spp., 13.6% (3/22) in Myodes glareolus, 6.7% (1/15) in Crocidura russula, and 0% in Microtus arvalis (0/8) and
Sorex sp. (0/1). All completely genotyped T. gondii parasites, exhibited the ToxoDB #3 genotype, a Type II
variant. We additionally analysed 48 trap-captured A. amphibius s.l., which all tested negative for T. gondii
infection, contrasting with the higher prevalence in cat-hunted A. amphibius s.l. (0% vs. 11.1%; p = 0.0176).
Furthermore, T. taeniaeformis was detected in both groups, indicating widespread contamination with cat faeces
in the sampled areas. These results provide evidence that T. gondii infected rodents are at higher risk to be
predated by cats and therewith support the behaviour manipulation hypothesis
Transverse depinning and melting of a moving vortex lattice in driven periodic Josephson junction arrays
We study the effect of thermal fluctuations in a vortex lattice driven in the
periodic pinning of a Josephson junction array. The phase diagram current ()
vs. temperature () is studied. Above the critical current we find a
moving vortex lattice (MVL) with anisotropic Bragg peaks. For large currents
, there is a melting transition of the MVL at . When
applying a small transverse current to the MVL, there is no dissipation at low
. We find an onset of transverse vortex motion at a transverse depinning
temperature .Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, Figure 2 changed, added new reference
A high resolution line survey of IRC+10216 with Herschel. First results: Detection of warm silicon dicarbide SiC2
We present the first results of a high-spectral-resolution survey of the
carbon-rich evolved star IRC+10216 that was carried out with the HIFI
spectrometer onboard Herschel. This survey covers all HIFI bands, with a
spectral range from 488 to 1901GHz. In this letter we focus on the band-1b
spectrum, in a spectral range 554.5-636.5GHz, where we identified 130 spectral
features with intensities above 0.03 K and a signal-to-noise ratio >5. Detected
lines arise from HCN, SiO, SiS, CS, CO, metal-bearing species and,
surprisingly, silicon dicarbide (SiC2). We identified 55 SiC2 transitions
involving energy levels between 300 and 900 K. By analysing these rotational
lines, we conclude that SiC2 is produced in the inner dust formation zone, with
an abundance of ~2x10^-7 relative to molecular hydrogen. These SiC2 lines have
been observed for the first time in space and have been used to derive an SiC2
rotational temperature of ~204 K and a source-averaged column density of
~6.4x10^15 cm^-2. Furthermore, the high quality of the HIFI data set was used
to improve the spectroscopic rotational constants of SiC2.Comment: A&A HIFI Special Issue, 201
Dynamic transition in vortex flow in strongly disordered Josephson junction arrays and superconducting thin films
We study the dynamics of vortices in strongly disordered Josephson
junction arrays and superconducting films driven by a current. We find a
dynamic phase transition in vortex flow at a current . Below
there is plastic flow characterized by an average-velocity correlation length
scale in the direction of motion, which diverges when approaching
. Above we find a moving vortex phase with homogeneous flow and
short range smectic order. A finite size analysis shows that this phase becomes
asymptotically a liquid for large length scales.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Non-equilibrium transitions in fully frustrated Josephson junction arrays
We study the effect of thermal fluctuations in a fully frustrated Josephson
junction array driven by a current I larger than the apparent critical current
I_c(T). We calculate numerically the behavior of the chiral order parameter of
Z_2 symmetry and the transverse helicity modulus (related to the U(1) symmetry)
as a function of temperature. We find that the Z_2 transition occurs at a
temperature T_{Z_2}(I) which is lower than the temperature T_{U(1)}(I) for the
U(1) transition. Both transitions could be observed experimentally from
measurements of the longitudinal and transverse voltages.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Driven vortices in 3D layered superconductors: Dynamical ordering along the c-axis
We study a 3D model of driven vortices in weakly coupled layered
superconductors with strong pinning. Above the critical force , we find a
plastic flow regime in which pancakes in different layers are uncoupled,
corresponding to a pancake gas. At a higher , there is an ``smectic flow''
regime with short-range interlayer order, corresponding to an entangled line
liquid. Later, the transverse displacements freeze and vortices become
correlated along the c-axis, resulting in a transverse solid. Finally, at a
force the longitudinal displacements freeze and we find a coherent solid
of rigid lines.Comment: 4 pages, 3 postscript figure
Hall noise and transverse freezing in driven vortex lattices
We study driven vortices lattices in superconducting thin films. Above the
critical force we find two dynamical phase transitions at and
, which could be observed in simultaneous noise measurements of the
longitudinal and the Hall voltage. At there is a transition from plastic
flow to smectic flow where the voltage noise is isotropic (Hall noise =
longitudinal noise) and there is a peak in the differential resistance. At
there is a sharp transition to a frozen transverse solid where the Hall
noise falls down abruptly and vortex motion is localized in the transverse
direction.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Melting and transverse depinning of driven vortex lattices in the periodic pinning of Josephson junction arrays
We study the non-equilibrium dynamical regimes of a moving vortex lattice in
the periodic pinning of a Josephson junction array (JJA) for {\it finite
temperatures} in the case of a fractional or submatching field. We obtain a
phase diagram for the current driven JJA as a function of the driving current I
and temperature T. We find that when the vortex lattice is driven by a current,
the depinning transition at and the melting transition at
become separated even for a field for which they coincide in equilibrium. We
also distinguish between the depinning of the vortex lattice in the direction
of the current drive, and the {\it transverse depinning} in the direction
perpendicular to the drive. The transverse depinning corresponds to the onset
of transverse resistance in a moving vortex lattice at a given temperature
. For driving currents above the critical current we find that the
moving vortex lattice has first a transverse depinning transition at low T, and
later a melting transition at a higher temperature, .Comment: 17 pages, 19 figure
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