Preliminary analysis of the potential of LANDSAT imagery to study desertification

The use of LANDSAT imagery to define and delimit areas under process of desertification was investigated. Imagery for two different years (1973 and 1978) and two different seasons (dry and rainy seasons in 1976), were used to identify terrain morphology and vegetation cover. The analysis of LANDSAT interpretation, combined with geological and soil information obtained from published literature, allowed the identification of eleven ecological units which were classified corresponding to the degree of the Xique Xique region of Rio Sao Francisco

Integrated surveys of the natural resources in the Amazonia National Park (Topajos) based on LANDSAT images

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

The Buffer Gas Beam: An Intense, Cold, and Slow Source for Atoms and Molecules

Beams of atoms and molecules are stalwart tools for spectroscopy and studies of collisional processes. The supersonic expansion technique can create cold beams of many species of atoms and molecules. However, the resulting beam is typically moving at a speed of 300-600 m/s in the lab frame, and for a large class of species has insufficient flux (i.e. brightness) for important applications. In contrast, buffer gas beams can be a superior method in many cases, producing cold and relatively slow molecules in the lab frame with high brightness and great versatility. There are basic differences between supersonic and buffer gas cooled beams regarding particular technological advantages and constraints. At present, it is clear that not all of the possible variations on the buffer gas method have been studied. In this review, we will present a survey of the current state of the art in buffer gas beams, and explore some of the possible future directions that these new methods might take

Non-protein coding RNA biomarkers and differential expression in cancers: a review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In these years a huge number of human transcripts has been found that do not code for proteins, named non-protein coding RNAs. In most cases, small (miRNAs, snoRNAs) and long RNAs (antisense RNA, dsRNA, and long RNA species) have many roles, functioning as regulators of other mRNAs, at transcriptional and post-transcriptional level, and controlling protein ubiquitination and degradation. Various species of npcRNAs have been found differentially expressed in different types of cancer. This review discusses the published data and new results on the expression of a subset of npcRNAs.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results underscore the complexity of the RNA world and provide further evidence on the involvement of functional RNAs in cancer cell growth control.</p

A novel natural product compound enhances cAMP-regulated chloride conductance of cells expressing CFTRΔf508

Background: Cystic fibrosis (CF) results from mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene, which encodes a chloride channel localized at the plasma membrane of diverse epithelia. The most common mutation leading to CF, ΔF508, occurs in the first nucleotide-binding domain (NBD1) of CFTR. The ΔF50