Morfometria geométrica aplicada aos molares de Pleistoceno Bos e Bison da Europa

ABSTRACT: Bos and bison Bison (Bovinae, Mammalia) are closely related large mammals abundant in Pleistocene fossil assemblages. The determination of osteological elements of these bovines is traditionally based on morphological differences, but new molecular studies suggest the synonymy of both genera. Following recent advances in morphological classifying methods we implemented a two-dimensional geometric morphometric approach to analyse the occlusal surface of molars in Bos and Bison, and secondly on extinct bison species. We have applied this methodology in photographs of upper and lower molars using our new templates proposals to digitise the morphology. The digitalisation of the landmarks and semilandmarks was carried out with Viewbox 4 software and the statistical analysis with Morphologika2 2.5 and MophoJ softwares. Our results show an overlapping distribution regarding the main aspects of shape of the molars, with no discrimination between taxa. This can be due to the small sample size, and/or the different wear stages.RESUMO: Bos e Bison (Bovinae, Mammalia) são mamíferos aparentados de grande porte, abundantes nas associações fossiliferas do Pleistocénico. A determinação dos elementos osteológicos destes bovinos é tradicionalmente baseada em diferenças morfológicas, contudo, novos estudos moleculares sugerem a sinonímia de ambos os géneros. Na sequência dos recentes avanços nos métodos de classificação morfológica, implementámos uma abordagem de morfometria geométrica bidimensional para analisar a superfície oclusal dos molares de Bos e Bison, e posteriormente, de espécies de bisontes extintas. Aplicámos esta metodologia em fotografias de molares superiores e inferiores utilizando os nossos novos protocolos para digitalizar a morfologia. A digitalização dos landmarks e semi-landmarks foi realizada com o software Viewbox 4 e a análise estatística com os softwares Morphologika2 2.5 e MophoJ. Os nossos resultados apresentam uma sobreposição na distribuição dos principais aspectos relativos à forma dos molares, sem qualquer diferenciação entre taxas. Isto poderá dever-se ao pequeno tamanho da amostra, e/ou às diferentes fases de desgaste.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Primeiros hipopótamos europeus do Pleistocénico: uma revisão

RESUMO: A dispersão de hipopótamos de África para a Europa no Pleistocénico inferior tem sido amplamente discutida. A maioria dos autores propõe uma única entrada de formas semelhantes à espécie africana Hippopotamus gorgops, denominada Hip. antiquus ao entrar na Europa. No entanto, outros autores propõem uma primeira entrada de formas semelhantes ao táxon africano Hip. kaisensis, chamado Hip. antiquus ao entrar na Europa, e uma segunda entrada de formas semelhantes ao Hip. gorgops, chamado Hip. tiberinus ao entrar na Europa. Neste trabalho, avaliamos o estado da arte do debate, revisando o registo fóssil de hipopótamos e destacamos os últimos achados em locais da África Central à Europa e suas possíveis passagens.ABSTRACT: The dispersal of the genus Hippopotamus from Africa to Europe in the Early Pleistocene has been widely discussed in the last decades. Most authors propose a single entry of forms similar to the African species Hippopotamus gorgops, named H. antiquus upon entering Europe. However, other authors propose a first entry of forms similar to the African taxon H. kaisensis, named H. antiquus upon entering Europe, and an Early Pleistocene second entry of forms similar to H. gorgops, named H. tiberinus upon entering Europe. In this work we evaluated the current state of the debate reviewing the fossil record of genus Hippopotamus highlighting the last findings in sites from central Africa to Europe and their possible passageways.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Mesencephalic Astrocyte-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (MANF) Is Highly Expressed in Mouse Tissues With Metabolic Function

Peer reviewe

Evolución de la Matemática Educativa ilustrada mediante la enseñanza de funciones logarítmicas

En este trabajo presentamos cuatro planificaciones que pretenden ilustrar, cada una, uno de los momentos presentados por Cantoral y Farfán (2003) en relación a la evolución de la Matemática Educativa. Esperamos con ello contribuir a estrechar un vínculo que pocas veces es atendido: el de la investigación en Matemática Educativa con las prácticas de enseñanz

Characterization of CDNF-Secreting ARPE-19 Cell Clones for Encapsulated Cell Therapy

Cerebral Dopamine Neurotrophic Factor (CDNF) shows beneficial effects in rodent models of Parkinson?s and Alzheimer?s disease. The brain is a challenging target for protein therapy due to its exclusive blood?brain barrier. Hence, the therapeutic protein should be delivered directly to the brain parenchyma. Implantation of encapsulated mammalian cells that constantly secrete CDNF is a potential approach for targeted and long-term protein delivery to the brain. In this study, we generated several CDNF-secreting cell clones derived from human retinal pigment epithelial cell line ARPE-19, and studied CDNF secretion from the clones maintained as monolayers and in polymeric microcapsules. The secretion of wild type (wt) CDNF transgene was low and the majority of the produced protein remained intracellular, locating mainly to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). The secretion of wtCDNF decreased to even lower levels when the clones were in a non-dividing state, as in the microcapsules. Both codon optimization and deletion of the putative ER-retrieval signal (four last amino acids: KTEL) improved CDNF secretion. More importantly, the secretion of KTEL-deleted CDNF remained constant in the non-dividing clones. Thus, cells expressing KTEL-deleted CDNF, in contrast to wtCDNF, can be considered for cell encapsulation applications if the KTEL-deleted CDNF is proven to be biologically active in vivo.Peer reviewe

Increased Serum Levels of Mesencephalic Astrocyte-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in Subjects With Parkinson’s Disease

Background: Mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) and cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor (CDNF) promote the survival of midbrain dopamine neurons in animal models of Parkinson's disease (PD). However, little is known about endogenous concentrations of MANF and CDNF in human PD patients, and their relation to PD pathogenesis. Our main objective was to study whether circulating concentrations of MANF and CDNF differ between PD patients and controls, and if they correlate with clinical parameters. Levels of circulating CDNF were studied for the first time. Methods: MANF and CDNF levels were measured from serum samples of 34 PD patients and 35 controls using validated in-lab-designed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISAs). MANF and CDNF mRNA levels in whole blood samples of 60 PD patients and 30 controls were measured by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). MANF concentrations in different blood cell types were measured by ELISA. Results: Circulating MANF concentrations were significantly higher in PD patients compared to controls (P <0.001) and were positively correlated with Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) depression rating. MANF protein was present in blood cells, however, MANF mRNA levels in the blood did not differ between PD patients and controls (P = 0.44). The mean concentration of serum CDNF was 33 pg/ml in the controls. CDNF levels were not altered in PD patients (P = 0.25). Conclusion: MANF but not CDNF level was increased in the blood of PD patients. It would be interesting to examine the blood level of MANF from early stage PD patients in future studies to test whether MANF can be used as a clinical marker of PD.Peer reviewe

Study of organochlorine pesticides in the Tapalqué creek basin

Los plaguicidas organoclorados (POCs) son compuestos prohibidos a nivel mundial y definidos como sustancias orgánicas de características tóxicas, persistentes, ubicuas, bioacumulables, lipofílicas, factibles de transportarse y alcanzar los ecosistemas acuáticos. El arroyo Tapalqué presenta un comportamiento “ganador” o “efluente” durante todo su recorrido. El presente trabajo se enmarca en el proyecto de Observatorio de Calidad de Aguas de la cuenca del arroyo Tapalqué. El objetivo fue estudiar el estado actual de la calidad del agua superficial en lo que respecta a la los niveles de POCs en la misma. Se estudiaron 11 sitios a lo largo de la cuenca. Las mayores concentraciones se observaron para α-endosulfan en todas las muestras analizadas, presentando además menores concentraciones de heptacloros, α- y γ- clordano, dieldrin y DDE. Los niveles de endosulfán encontrados en los sitios 1 y 10, correspondientes a zona agrícola y urbana respectivamente, mostraron valores por encima de los permitidos para la protección de la biota acuática, el resto de los plaguicidas estuvieron por debajo de 5 ng/L. Existe la necesidad de continuar con los monitoreos a largo plazo, incluyendo otras matrices, de manera de poder implementar estrategias de prevención y/o remediación del ambiente acuático.Centro de Investigaciones Geológica