Connectivity alterations underlying the breakdown of pseudoneglect: New insights from healthy and pathological aging

A right-hemisphere dominance for visuospatial attention has been invoked as the most prominent neural feature of pseudoneglect (i.e., the leftward visuospatial bias exhibited in neurologically healthy individuals) but the neurophysiological underpinnings of such advantage are still controversial. Previous studies investigating visuospatial bias in multiple-objects visual enumeration reported that pseudoneglect is maintained in healthy elderly and amnesic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), but not in Alzheimer's disease (AD). In this study, we aimed at investigating the neurophysiological correlates sustaining the rearrangements of the visuospatial bias along the progression from normal to pathological aging. To this aim, we recorded EEG activity during an enumeration task and analyzed intra-hemispheric fronto-parietal and inter-hemispheric effective connectivity adopting indexes from graph theory in patients with mild AD, patients with aMCI, and healthy elderly controls (HC). Results revealed that HC showed the leftward bias and stronger fronto-parietal effective connectivity in the right as compared to the left hemisphere. A breakdown of pseudoneglect in patients with AD was associated with both the loss of the fronto-parietal asymmetry and the reduction of inter-hemispheric parietal interactions. In aMCI, initial alterations of the attentional bias were associated with a reduction of parietal inter-hemispheric communication, but not with modulations of the right fronto-parietal connectivity advantage, which remained intact. These data provide support to the involvement of fronto-parietal and inter-parietal pathways in the leftward spatial bias, extending these notions to the complex neurophysiological alterations characterizing pathological aging

Nucleophilic stabilization of water-based reactive ink for titania-based thin film inkjet printing

Drop on demand deposition (DoD) of titanium oxide thin films (<500 nm) is performed via a novel titanium-alkoxide-based solution that is tailored as a reactive ink for inkjet printing. The ink is developed as water-based solution by a combined use of titanium isopropoxide and n-methyldiethanolamine (MDEA) used as nucleophilic ligand. The function of the ligand is to control the fast hydrolysis/condensation reactions in water for the metal alkoxide before deposition, leading to formation of the TiO2 only after the jet process. The evolution of the titanium-ligand interactions at increasing amount of MDEA is here elucidated in terms of long term stability. The ink printability parameter (Z) is optimized, resulting in a reactive solution with printability, Z, >1, and chemical stability up to 600 h. Thin titanium oxide films (<500 nm) are proved on different substrates. Pure anatase phase is obtained after annealing at low temperature (ca. 400 °C)

Aqueous metal–organic solutions for YSZ thin film inkjet deposition

Inkjet printing of 8% Y2O3-stabilized ZrO2 (YSZ) thin films is achieved by designing a novel water-based reactive ink for Drop-on-Demand (DoD) inkjet printing. The ink formulation is based on a novel chemical strategy that consists of a combination of metal oxide precursors (zirconium alkoxide and yttrium salt), water and a nucleophilic agent, i.e. n-methyldiethanolamine (MDEA). This chemistry leads to metal–organic complexes with long term ink stability and high precision printability. Ink rheology and chemical reactivity are analyzed and controlled in terms of metal–organic interactions in the solutions. Thin dense nanocrystalline YSZ films below 150 nm are obtained by low temperature calcination treatments (400–500 °C), making the deposition suitable for a large variety of substrates, including silicon, glass and metals. Thin films and printed patterns achieve full densification with no lateral shrinkage and high ionic conductivity

Anti-inflammatory and wound healing properties of polyphenolic extracts from strawberry and blackberry fruits

The polyphenolic profiles by HPLC-TOF-MS of strawberry ‘San Andreas’ and blackberry ‘Black Satin’ crude extracts (CE) were analyzed. Anthocyanin-enriched fractions (AEFs) and proanthocyanidin-enriched fractions (PEFs) were prepared, and all samples were probed for in vitro anti-inflammatory and wound healing effects in a LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophage model and in a skin fibroblast migration and proliferation assay, respectively. Blackberry samples exhibited higher ROS reduction than strawberry's (up to 50% ROS suppression). Berries CEs exhibited 20% inhibition in Cox-2 gene expression, while AEFs and PEFs were inactive at the same concentration. Strawberry AEF and PEF were more active against IL-1β and IL-6 gene expressions than the similar fractions from blackberry, where PEF was more active than AEF (75% suppression by strawberry PEF). Moreover, berry PEFs were the active polyphenol fraction against iNOS gene expression (50% and 65% gen suppression by strawberry and blackberry PEF, respectively), mirroring results of NO synthesis suppression. The cell migration potential of berry polyphenolics was associated with anthocyanins. AEFs showed fibroblast migration around 50% of that registered for the positive control. Results obtained in this work highlight the anti-inflammatory properties of berry polyphenolics, especially due to proanthocyanidins. Moreover, promising results were obtained about the effects of berry anthocyanins on wound healing.Fil: Van de Velde, Franco. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ingeniería Química; ArgentinaFil: Esposito, Debora. North Carolina State University; Estados UnidosFil: Grace, Mary H.. North Carolina State University; Estados UnidosFil: Pirovani, Maria Elida. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ingeniería Química; ArgentinaFil: Lila, Mary Ann. North Carolina State University; Estados Unido

Nucleation front instability in two-dimensional (2D) nanosheet gadolinium-doped cerium oxide (CGO) formation

Herein we report for the first time the synthesis of ceramic-organic three-dimensional (3D) layered gadolinium-doped cerium oxide (Ce1-XGdXO2-delta,CGO) and its exfoliation into two-dimensional (2D) nano-sheets. We adopt a water-based synthetic route via a homogenous precipitation approach at low temperatures (10-80 degrees C). The reaction conditions are tuned to investigate the effects of thermal energy on the final morphology. A low temperature (40 degrees C) morphological transition from nanoparticles (1D) to two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets is observed and associated with a low thermal energy transition of ca. 2.6 kJ mol(-1). For the 3D-layered material, exfoliation experiments are conducted in water/ethanol solutions. Systems at volume fractions ranging from 0.15 to 0.35 are demonstrated to promote under ultrasonic treatment the delamination into 2D nanosheets

Changes in the bioactive properties of strawberries caused by the storage in oxygen- and carbon dioxide-enriched atmospheres

The changes in the antioxidant capacity, anti‐inflammatory, and wound healing properties of strawberry fruits as a consequence of the storage in atmospheres enriched in oxygen and carbon dioxide were investigated. Berries were exposed to two different gas compositions: 70% O2 + 20% CO2 and 90% O2 + 10% CO2, and stored for up to 20 days at 5°C. The antioxidant capacity, assessed through DPPH and FRAP methods, decreased around 17% in samples exposed to 70% O2 + 20% CO2 at day 20. However, the antioxidant activity of fruits stored in 90% O2 + 10% CO2 was maintained until day 20 and experienced an increase of around 10% on day 10. Moreover, strawberry stored in 90% O2 + 10% CO2 at days 5?10 showed an improved suppression of the pro‐inflammatory genes Cox‐2 and iNOS up to 30% higher than samples at day 0 in an in vitro LPS‐stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophage culture. In addition, berries exposed to 90% O2 + 10% CO2 at day 10 showed a human dermal fibroblast migration 30% higher than samples at day 0 in an in vitro skin‐fibroblast‐migration model. Therefore, evidence suggests that strawberry storage in 90% O2 + 10% CO2 can be a promissory alternative to offer fruits with enhanced bioactivity.Fil: Van de Velde, Franco. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ingeniería Química. Instituto de Tecnología de los Alimentos; ArgentinaFil: Esposito, Debora. North Carolina State University; Estados UnidosFil: Overall, John. North Carolina State University; Estados UnidosFil: Méndez Galarraga, María Paula. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ingeniería Química. Instituto de Tecnología de los Alimentos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Grace, Mary H.. North Carolina State University; Estados UnidosFil: Pirovani, Maria Elida. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Ingeniería Química. Instituto de Tecnología de los Alimentos; ArgentinaFil: Lila, Mary Ann. North Carolina State University; Estados Unido

Editorial : Cosmeceuticals from medicinal plants

The use of the word cosmetics comes from kosmétikos, an Ancient Greek term. This word can be translated as “skilled in adornment,” with the variant kosmein meaning “arrange” or “adorn” and kosmos meaning “order”: Further interpretations include “to make for beauty,” especially of the complexion, or beautifying and “done or made for the sake of appearance,” or “correcting defects especially of the face,” primarily it is “decorative” or “ornamental” (Oumeish, 2001). The concept of beauty is one of the aspects of the Greek word komes, which means harmony, and was used to attain perfection. Gradually its meaning has changed until it became connected with the idea that was more closely related to the masking, concealing and camouflaging, as true beauty originates from the inner being and could not be created externally. Since primeval time, numerous civilisations have been subjected to the use of herbs as cosmetic applications. Even today, the demand and the utilization of phytocosmetics have increased in the personal care system (Mahomoodally and Ramjuttun, 2016). Research into the value and use of plant and mineral resources in cosmetics continued over the centuries evolving into what we consider to be cosmeceuticals. Interestingly, there is a great tendency of consumers to return to the use of herbs/herbal products for various applications to implement a more natural mode of life (Mahomoodally and Ramjuttun, 2016).http://www.frontiersin.org/Pharmacologyam2020PharmacologyPlant Production and Soil Scienc