Three‐dimensional, multifluid, high spatial resolution MHD model studies of the solar wind interaction with Mars

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/95318/1/jgra21138.pd

First Report on the Effect of Aqueous Extracts of Hungarian Organic Mulch Materials on Entomopathogenic and Slug-Parasitic Nematodes

Few researches address the compatibility of organic mulching and entomopathogenic (EPN) and slug-parasitic (SPN) nematodes, although organic mulching may provide favourable conditions for these beneficial organisms. Our aim was to examine the effect of different concentrations (0.1, 0.5, 1 and 5%) of aqueous extracts of green waste compost, the dry leaf litters of the common walnut (Juglans regia) and Norway maple (Acer platanoides) on EPN (Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, Steinernema carpocapsae, Steinernema feltiae, Steinernema kraussei) and SPN (Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita) species. Experiments were set up in 96-well, flat-bottom microplates. After a 24-hour exposure time, the number of dead animals was counted under a transmission microscope. Green waste compost extracts caused quite low or no mortality in case of all examined species. Mortality caused by the 5% Norway maple leaf litter extract was moderate (34.6%) in the case of S. carpocapsae juveniles, while 100% of juveniles of other species died. The highest (5%) concentration of the common walnut leaf litter extract caused 100% mortality in all species. As a conclusion, green waste compost mulch seems to be more compatible with EPN and SPN species than common walnut or Norway maple leaf litter mulch

Environmentally conscious consumption patterns in Hungarian households

This article provides a comprehensive review of the literature on the theoretical aspects of sustainable consumption. The conditions for consumers’ social responsibility and the formation of environmentally conscious behavior patterns will also be discussed, along with possible methods for motivating behavioral changes. The authors have completed a primary research study with the purpose of surveying environmentally conscious consumption patterns in Hungary. They also examined how the provision of appropriate information and the raising of awareness might encourage sustainable consumption. According to their findings, the respondents’ knowledge on environmentally conscious behavior was rather limited, and reinforcement was needed in identifying appropriate activity alternatives. This paper provides a summary of the qualitative research phase which employed in-depth interviews, logging and focus groups. The consecutive application of these methods enabled the authors to keep track of the process and the consequences of raising awareness

Diurnal Fluctuations in the Content and Functional Properties of the Light Harvesting Chlorophyll a/b Complex in Thylakoid Membranes:Correlation with the Diurnal Rhythm of the mRNA Level

Diurnal fluctuations were observed in the content and some structural and functional properties of the light-harvesting chlorophyll (Chl) a/b pigment-protein complex of photosystem II (LHCII) in young developing wheat (Triticum aestivum) leaves grown under 16 hours light/8 hours dark illumination regime. The fluctuations could be correlated with the diurnal oscillation in the level of mRNA for LHCII. The most pronounced changes occurred in the basal segments of the leaves. They were weaker or hardly discernible in the middle and tip segments. As judged from the diurnal variations of the Chl-a/Chl-b molar ratio, the LHCII content of the thylakoid membranes peaked around 2 pm. This can be accounted for by the cumulative effect of the elevated level of mRNA in the morning and early afternoon. In the basal segment, the extent of the fluctuation in the LHCII content was approximately 25%, as determined from gel electrophoresis (“green gels”). The amplitude of the principal bands of the circular dichroism (CD) spectra of isolated chloroplasts paralleled the changes in the LHCII content. Our circular dichroism data suggest that the newly synthesized LHCII complexes are incorporated into the existing helically organized macrodomains of the pigment-protein complexes or themselves form such macrodomains in the thylakoid membranes. Chl-a fluorescence induction kinetics also showed diurnal variations especially in the basal segments of the leaves. This most likely indicates fluctuations in the ability of membranes to undergo “state transitions.” These observations suggest a physiological role of diurnal rhythm of mRNA for LHCII in young developing leaves

Edaravone protects against methylglyoxal-induced barrier damage in human brain endothelial cells

BACKGROUND: Elevated level of reactive carbonyl species, such as methylglyoxal, triggers carbonyl stress and activates a series of inflammatory responses leading to accelerated vascular damage. Edaravone is the active substance of a Japanese medicine, which aids neurological recovery following acute brain ischemia and subsequent cerebral infarction. Our aim was to test whether edaravone can exert a protective effect on the barrier properties of human brain endothelial cells (hCMEC/D3 cell line) treated with methylglyoxal. METHODOLOGY: Cell viability was monitored in real-time by impedance-based cell electronic sensing. The barrier function of the monolayer was characterized by measurement of resistance and flux of permeability markers, and visualized by immunohistochemistry for claudin-5 and β-catenin. Cell morphology was also examined by holographic phase imaging. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Methylglyoxal exerted a time- and dose-dependent toxicity on cultured human brain endothelial cells: a concentration of 600 µM resulted in about 50% toxicity, significantly reduced the integrity and increased the permeability of the barrier. The cell morphology also changed dramatically: the area of cells decreased, their optical height significantly increased. Edaravone (3 mM) provided a complete protection against the toxic effect of methylglyoxal. Co-administration of edaravone restored cell viability, barrier integrity and functions of brain endothelial cells. Similar protection was obtained by the well-known antiglycating molecule, aminoguanidine, our reference compound. CONCLUSION: These results indicate for the first time that edaravone is protective in carbonyl stress induced barrier damage. Our data may contribute to the development of compounds to treat brain endothelial dysfunction in carbonyl stress related diseases

Investigation of the mechanical and chemical characteristics of nanotubular and nano-pitted anodic films on grade 2 titanium dental implant materials

Abstract Objective The objective of this study was to investigate the reproducibility, mechanical integrity, surface characteristics and corrosion behavior of nanotubular (NT) titanium oxide arrays in comparison with a novel nano-pitted (NP) anodic film. Methods Surface treatment processes were developed to grow homogenous NT and NP anodic films on the surface of grade 2 titanium discs and dental implants. The effect of process parameters on the surface characteristics and reproducibility of the anodic films was investigated and optimized. The mechanical integrity of the NT and NP anodic films were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, surface roughness measurement, scratch resistance and screwing tests, while the chemical and physicochemical properties were investigated in corrosion tests, contact angle measurement and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Results and discussion The growth of NT anodic films was highly affected by process parameters, especially by temperature, and they were apt to corrosion and exfoliation. In contrast, the anodic growth of NP film showed high reproducibility even on the surface of 3-dimensional screw dental implants and they did not show signs of corrosion and exfoliation. The underlying reason of the difference in the tendency for exfoliation of the NT and NP anodic films is unclear; however the XPS analysis revealed fluorine dopants in a magnitude larger concentration on NT anodic film than on NP surface, which was identified as a possible causative. Concerning other surface characteristics that are supposed to affect the biological behavior of titanium implants, surface roughness values were found to be similar, whereas considerable differences were revealed in the wettability of the NT and NP anodic films. Conclusion Our findings suggest that the applicability of NT anodic films on the surface of titanium bone implants may be limited because of mechanical considerations. In contrast, it is worth to consider the applicability of nano-pitted anodic films over nanotubular arrays for the enhancement of the biological properties of titanium implants

Plant polysaccharide degrading enzyme system of Thermobifida cellulosilytica TB100^T revealed by de novo genome project data

Thermobifidas are thermophilic, aerobic, lignocellulose decomposing actinomycetes. The Thermobifida genus includes four species: T. fusca, T. alba, T. cellulosilytica, and T. halotolerans. T. fusca YX is the far best characterized strain of this taxon and several cellulases and hemicellulases have been cloned from it for industrial purposes targeting paper industry, biofuel, and feed applications. Unfortunately, sequence data of such enzymes are almost exclusively restricted to this single species; however, we demonstrated earlier by zymography that other T. alba and T. cellulosilytica strains encode the same enzyme sets. Recently, the advances in whole genome sequencing by the use of next generation genomics platforms accelerated the selection process of valuable hydrolases from uncharacterized bacterial species for cloning purposes. For this purpose T. cellulosilytica TB100T type strain was chosen for de novo genome sequencing. We have assembled the genome of T. cellulosilytica strain TB100T into 168 contigs and 19 scaffolds, with reference length of 4 327 869 bps, 3 589 putative coding sequences, 53 tRNAs, and 4 rRNAs. The analysis of the annotated genome revealed the existence of 27 putative hydrolases belonging to 14 different glycoside hydrolase (GH) families. The investigation of identified, cloned, and heterologously multiple cellulases, mannanases, xylanases, and amylases may result in industrial applications beside gaining useful basic research related information

Phase Structure and Compactness

In order to study the influence of compactness on low-energy properties, we compare the phase structures of the compact and non-compact two-dimensional multi-frequency sine-Gordon models. It is shown that the high-energy scaling of the compact and non-compact models coincides, but their low-energy behaviors differ. The critical frequency $\beta^2 = 8\pi$ at which the sine-Gordon model undergoes a topological phase transition is found to be unaffected by the compactness of the field since it is determined by high-energy scaling laws. However, the compact two-frequency sine-Gordon model has first and second order phase transitions determined by the low-energy scaling: we show that these are absent in the non-compact model.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figures, minor changes, final version, accepted for publication in JHE

Evolocumab and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Cardiovascular Disease

Evolocumab is a monoclonal antibody that inhibits proprotein convertase subtilisin-kexin type 9 (PCSK9) and lowers low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels by approximately 60%. Whether it prevents cardiovascular events is uncertain.We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 27,564 patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and LDL cholesterol levels of 70 mg per deciliter (1.8 mmol per liter) or higher who were receiving statin therapy. Patients were randomly assigned to receive evolocumab (either 140 mg every 2 weeks or 420 mg monthly) or matching placebo as subcutaneous injections. The primary efficacy end point was the composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, hospitalization for unstable angina, or coronary revascularization. The key secondary efficacy end point was the composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. The median duration of follow-up was 2.2 years.At 48 weeks, the least-squares mean percentage reduction in LDL cholesterol levels with evolocumab, as compared with placebo, was 59%, from a median baseline value of 92 mg per deciliter (2.4 mmol per liter) to 30 mg per deciliter (0.78 mmol per liter) (P<0.001). Relative to placebo, evolocumab treatment significantly reduced the risk of the primary end point (1344 patients [9.8%] vs. 1563 patients [11.3%]; hazard ratio, 0.85; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.79 to 0.92; P<0.001) and the key secondary end point (816 [5.9%] vs. 1013 [7.4%]; hazard ratio, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.88; P<0.001). The results were consistent across key subgroups, including the subgroup of patients in the lowest quartile for baseline LDL cholesterol levels (median, 74 mg per deciliter [1.9 mmol per liter]). There was no significant difference between the study groups with regard to adverse events (including new-onset diabetes and neurocognitive events), with the exception of injection-site reactions, which were more common with evolocumab (2.1% vs. 1.6%).In our trial, inhibition of PCSK9 with evolocumab on a background of statin therapy lowered LDL cholesterol levels to a median of 30 mg per deciliter (0.78 mmol per liter) and reduced the risk of cardiovascular events. These findings show that patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease benefit from lowering of LDL cholesterol levels below current targets. (Funded by Amgen; FOURIER ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01764633 .)

Recurrent Scedosporium apiospermum mycetoma successfully treated by surgical excision and terbinafine treatment: a case report and review of the literature

Background: Scedosporium apiospermum is an emerging opportunistic filamentous fungus, which is notorious for its high levels of antifungal ‑resistance. It is able to cause localized cutaneous or subcutaneous infections in both immu‑ nocompromised and immunocompetent persons, pulmonary infections in patients with predisposing pulmonary diseases and invasive mycoses in immunocompromised patients. Subcutaneous infections caused by this fungus frequently show chronic mycetomatous manifestation. Case report: We report the case of a 70 ‑year ‑old immunocompromised man, who developed a fungal mycetoma‑ tous infection on his right leg. There was no history of trauma; the aetiological agent was identified by microscopic examination and ITS sequencing. This is the second reported case of S. apiospermum subcutaneous infections in Hungary, which was successfully treated by surgical excision and terbinafine treatment. After 7 months, the patient remained asymptomatic. Considering the antifungal susceptibility and increasing incidence of the fungus, Sce - dosporium related subcutaneous infections reported in the past quarter of century in European countries were also reviewed. Conclusions: Corticosteroid treatment represents a serious risk factor of S. apiospermum infections, especially if the patient get in touch with manure ‑enriched or polluted soil or water. Such infections have emerged several times in European countries in the past decades. The presented data suggest that besides the commonly applied voricona‑ zole, terbinafine may be an alternative for the therapy of mycetomatous Scedosporium infections