The Insular Cortex Controls Food Preferences Independently of Taste Receptor Signaling

The insular cortex (IC) contains the primary sensory cortex for oral chemosensation including gustation, and its integrity is required for appropriate control of feeding behavior. However, it remains unknown whether the role of this brain area in food selection relies on the presence of peripheral taste input. Using multielectrode recordings, we found that the responses of populations of neurons in the IC of freely licking, sweet-blind Trpm5−/− mice are modulated by the rewarding postingestive effects of sucrose. FOS immunoreactivity analyses revealed that these responses are restricted to the dorsal insula. Furthermore, bilateral lesions in this area abolished taste-independent preferences for sucrose that can be conditioned in these Trpm5−/− animals while preserving their ability to detect sucrose. Overall, these findings demonstrate that, even in the absence of peripheral taste input, IC regulates food choices based on postingestive signals

Variation in quality of newly hatched chicks from Japanese breeder quail fed guava extract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of guava extract as a dietary supplement for Japanese quail hens on incubation parameters, intestinal development, and the quality of newly hatched chicks. Six hundred and forty-eight eggs were collected from Japanese quail hens fed diets with 0.0, 3.0, 6.0, and 9.0 g/kg of guava extract. The study consisted of four treatments, six replicates, and 27 eggs per replicate. The guava extract contained 2% ellagic acid. The eggs were incubated at 37.5 °C and 65% relative air humidity. The hatch window, hatchability, embryo development in unhatched eggs, quality of newly hatched quails, and intestinal histomorphometry of a duodenum segment were evaluated. Differences among the treatments in hatchability and the hatch window were not significant. The guava extract did not affect mortality rate, live pecking, dead pecking, and contaminated and inverted eggs. The number of infertile eggs was lower in the groups that received 3.0 and 9.0 g/kg of extract in their diets. Use of up to 3.0 g/kg of guava extract in the diet increased the weight of both eggs and newly hatched chicks. The quality score of newly hatched quail was similar across treatments. The inclusion of 3.0 g/kg of guava extract in the diet of Japanese quail breeder hens increased the hatchling weight of the chicks and improved the villus to crypt ratio of their duodenum. Keywords: embryology, embryo metabolism, hatchery, incubation, breeder nutritio

Controlling a leaky tap

We apply the Ott, Grebogy and Yorke mechanism for the control of chaos to the analytical oscillator model of a leaky tap obtaining good results. We exhibit the robustness of the control against both dynamical noise and measurement noise.A possible way of controlling experimentally a leaky tap using magnetic-field-produced variations in the viscosity of a magnetorheological fluid is suggested.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures. Submitted to Physics Letters

Solid--on--Solid Model for Adsorption on Self--Affine Substrate: A Transfer Matrix Approach

We study a $d=2$ discrete solid--on--solid model of complete wetting of a rough substrate with random self--affine boundary, having roughness exponent $\zeta_s$. A suitable transfer matrix approach allows to discuss adsorption isotherms, as well as geometrical and thermal fluctuations of the interface. For $\zeta_s\leq 1/2$ the same wetting exponent $\psi=1/3$ as for flat substrate is obtained for the dependence of the coverage, $\theta$, on the chemical potential, $h$ ($\theta\sim h^{-\psi}$ for $h\to 0$). The expected existence of a zero temperature fixed point, leading to $\psi=\zeta_s /(2-\zeta_s)$ for $\zeta_s>1/2$, is verified numerically in spite of an unexpected, very slow convergence to asymptotics.Comment: Standard TeX, 13 pages. 5 PostScript figures available on request. Preprint UDPHIR 94/04/G

Biological evaluations of nanocarriers to improve the effectiveness of colorectal cancer treatment

Tumor heterogeneity favors tumor tissue to survive and resist drugs, leading to the failure of chemotherapeutic agents to induce a therapeutic response. In addition, the absorption mechanisms, metabolism and excretion of chemotherapeutic drugs, which are commonly used for cancer patients and the lack of specific targeting of these drugs can cause adverse effects on treated patients. Thus, the general objective of this thesis is to investigate the biological activity of targeted poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) as a drug delivery system (DDS) for carvedilol (CVDL) or oxaliplatin (OXA), in vitro and in vivo, to treat colorectal cancer (CRC). DDSs were formulated to achieve this goal. In chapters 2, 3 and 4, our studies were discussed in detail on the formulations and characterizations of NPs as DDSs with ideal characteristics to increase the therapeutic range of drugs at the tumor site. As well as the biological evaluation of these DDS when its anti-inflammatory activity (Chapter 2) and its antitumor activity in vitro (Chapters 2, 3 and 4) and in vivo (Chapters 3 and 4). Taken together, all the DDSs studied in this thesis were able to improve the chemotherapeutic efficiency of the drugs studied in Chapters 2, 3 and 4.Chipsoft B.V.; Percuros B.VLUMC / Geneeskund

Giant Effective G -factor In Pbx Eu1-x Te Epitaxial Films

We investigated Pbx Eu1-x Te films with x≤0.2 by magneto-optical measurements. For x∼0.01, the optical emission is similar to high quality EuTe films with two narrow lines attributed to excitonic recombinations associated with magnetic polarons. For increasing x, the emission becomes dominated by a broader lower energy band, which is very efficient as compared to the binary emission. The magneto-optical properties of the ternary films show various similarities with EuTe results, such as quenchings at similar temperatures and magnetic fields. Most remarkably, they also present a giant effective g -factor that makes this material a strong candidate for spintronic applications. © 2008 American Institute of Physics.933Mauger, A., Godart, C., (1986) Phys. Rep., 141, p. 51Masset, F., (1971) Phys. Rev. B, 3, p. 2364Akimoto, R., Kobayashi, M., Suzuki, T., (1994) J. Phys. Soc. Jpn., 63, p. 4616Heiss, W., Kirchschlager, R., Springholz, G., Chen, Z., Debnath, M., Oka, Y., (2004) Phys. Rev. B, 70, p. 035209Heiss, W., Prechtl, G., Springholz, G., (2001) Phys. Rev. B, 63, p. 165323Heiss, W., Prechtl, G., Springholz, G., (2001) Appl. Phys. Lett., 78, p. 3484Krenn, H., Herbst, W., Pascher, H., Ueta, Y., Springholz, G., Bauer, G., (1999) Phys. Rev. B, 60, p. 8117Springholz, G., Schwarzi, T., Aigle, M., Pascher, H., Heiss, W., (2000) Appl. Phys. Lett., 76, p. 1807Nolting, W., Mathi Jaya, S., Rex, S., (1996) Phys. Rev. B, 54, p. 14455Umehara, M., (2003) Phys. Rev. B, 68, p. 19320

In situ crosslinked electrospun gelatin nanofibers for skin regeneration

Due to its intrinsic similarity to the extracellular matrix, gelatin electrospun nanofibrous meshes are promising scaffold structures for wound dressings and tissue engineering applications. However, gelatin is water soluble and presents poor mechanical properties, which generally constitute relevant limitations to its applicability. In this work, gelatin was in situ crosslinked with 1,4-butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDDGE) at different concentrations (2, 4 and 6 wt%) and incubation time-points (24, 48 and 72 h) at 37 °C. The physico-chemical and biological properties of BDDGE-crosslinked electrospun gelatin meshes were investigated. Results show that by changing the BDDGE concentration it is possible to produce nanofibers crosslinked in situ with well-defined morphology and modulate fiber size and mechanical properties. Crosslinked gelatin meshes show no toxicity towards fibroblasts, stimulating their adhesion, proliferation and synthesis of new extracellular matrix, thereby indicating the potential of this strategy for skin tissue engineering.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Causal explanation for observed superluminal behavior of microwave propagation in free space

In this paper we present a theoretical analysis of an experiment by Mugnai and collaborators where superluminal behavior was observed in the propagation of microwaves. We suggest that what was observed can be well approximated by the motion of a superluminal X wave. Furthermore the experimental results are also explained by the so called scissor effect which occurs with the convergence of pairs of signals coming from opposite points of an annular region of the mirror and forming an interference peak on the intersection axis traveling at superluminal speed. We clarify some misunderstandings concerning this kind of electromagnetic wave propagation in vacuum.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Physics Letters

Coconut Shells As Filling Material For Anaerobic Filters

In rural areas of developing countries, there is a lack of sanitation services and the installation of such infrastructure is hampered by the high investment costs for initial implementation and by the limited availability of qualified personnel. An alternative to traditional sanitation services include an anaerobic filter, but the high cost of appropriate filling material can be an obstacle to its wide-spread implementation. To decrease this construction cost, the objective of this work was to study the use of coconut shells as filling material for anaerobic filters. Anaerobic filters were built and filled with the studied material and operated with up flow and hydraulic retention time of 9 hours. The reactors provided a removal of 79 ± 16% in BOD terms, indicating that the coconut shell filling had efficiency consistent with the literature data. In addition, the husks were found to retain their tensile strength following use in the reactors. Coconut husks have more empty bed volume than other low cost materials, such as crushed stone, nearing properties of traditional materials. The results of this study indicate that coconut husks may prove to be a low cost alternative to traditional fillers for anaerobic treatment in rural communities. © 2013 Cruz et al.; licensee Springer.2116Alexiou, G.E., Mara, D.D., Anaerobic waste stabilization ponds (2003) Appl Biochem Biotechnol, 109, pp. 241-252Baek, S.H., Pagilla, K.R., Kim, H., Lab-scale study of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) for dilute municipal wastewater treatment (2010) Biotechnol Bioprocess Eng, 15, pp. 704-708Barros, A.R., Adorno, M.A.T., Sakamoto, I.K., Maintinguer, S.I., Varesche, M.B.A., Silva, E.S., Performance evaluation and phylogenetic characterization of anaerobic fluidized bed reactors using ground tire and pet as support materials for biohydrogen production (2011) Bioresour Technol, 102, pp. 3840-3847Camargo, S.A.R., Nour, E.A.A., Bamboo as an anaerobic medium: Effect of filter column height (2001) Water Sci Technol, 44, pp. 63-70Chernicharo, C.A.L., Post-treatment options for the anaerobic treatment of domestic wastewater (2006) Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol, 5, pp. 73-92Chernicharo, C., (2007) Reatores Anaeróbios, p. 379. , 1st edn. 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Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, BrazilRosa, A.P., Lobato, L.C.S., Chernicharo, C.A.L., Martins, D.C.R.B., Maciel, F.M., Borges, J.M., Improving performance and operational control of UASB reactors via proper sludge and scum discharge routines (2012) Water Pract Tech, 7 (3), pp. 1-11Show, K.Y., Tay, J.H., Influence of support media on biomass growth and retention in anaerobic filters (1999) Water Res, 33 (6), pp. 1471-1481(2012) Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, , 22nd edn American Public Health Association/American Water Works Association/Water Environment Federation, Washington DC, USATonetti, A.L., Coraucci Filho, B., Guimarães, J.R., Cruz, M.O.C., Nakamura, M.S., Avaliação da partida e operação de filtros anaeróbios tendo bambu como material de recheio (2011) Revista Engenharia Sanitária e Ambiental, 16 (1), pp. 11-16Tonetti, A.L., Coraucci Filho, B., Nicolau, C.E., Barbosa, M., Tonon, D., Tratamento de esgoto e produção de água de reúso com o emprego de filtros de areia (2012) Revista Engenharia Sanitária e Ambiental, 17 (1), pp. 287-294Van Haandel, A., Kato, M.T., Cavalcanti, P.F.F., Florencio, L., Anaerobic reactor design concepts for thetreatment of domestic wastewater (2006) Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol, 5, pp. 21-38Wilderer, P.A., Schreff, D., Decentralized and centralized wastewater management: A challenge for technology developers (2000) Water Sci Technol, 41 (1), pp. 1-8Yang, Y., Tada, C., Miah, M.S., Tsukahara, K., Yagishita, T., Sawayama, S., Influence of bed materials on methanogenic characteristics and immobilized microbes in anaerobic digester (2004) Mater Sci Eng, 24, pp. 413-41