CXCR2 in Acute Lung Injury

In pulmonary inflammation, recruitment of circulating polymorphonuclear leukocytes is essential for host defense and initiates the following specific immune response. One pathological hallmark of acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome is the uncontrolled transmigration of neutrophils into the lung interstitium and alveolar space. Thereby, the extravasation of leukocytes from the vascular system into the tissue is induced by chemokines that are released from the site of inflammation. The most relevant chemokine receptors of neutrophils are CXC chemokine receptor (CXCR) 1 and CXCR2. CXCR2 is of particular interest since several studies implicate a pivotal role of this receptor in development and promotion of numerous inflammatory disorders. CXCR2 gets activated by ELR+ chemokines, including MIP-2, KC (rodents) and IL-8 (human). Since multiple ELR+ CXC chemokines act on both receptors—CXCR1 and CXCR2—a pharmacologic agent blocking both receptors seems to be advantageous. So far, several CXCR1/2 antagonists have been developed and have been tested successfully in experimental studies. A newly designed CXCR1 and CXCR2 antagonist can be orally administered and was for the first time found efficient in humans. This review highlights the role of CXCR2 in acute lung injury and discusses its potential as a therapeutic target

Conduction Channels of One-Atom Zinc Contacts

We have determined the transmission coefficients of atomic-sized Zn contacts using a new type of breakjunction which contains a whisker as a central bridge. We find that in the last conductance plateau the transport is unexpectedly dominated by a well-transmitting single conduction channel. We explain the experimental findings with the help of a tight-binding model which shows that in an one-atom Zn contact the current proceeds through the 4s and 4p orbitals of the central atom.Comment: revtex4, 5 pages, 5 figure

Wikis in scholarly publishing

Scientific research is a process concerned with the creation, collective accumulation, contextualization, updating and maintenance of knowledge. Wikis provide an environment that allows to collectively accumulate, contextualize, update and maintain knowledge in a coherent and transparent fashion. Here, we examine the potential of wikis as platforms for scholarly publishing. In the hope to stimulate further discussion, the article itself was drafted on "Species-ID":http://species-id.net/w/index.php?title=Wikis_in_scholarly_publishing&oldid=3815 - a wiki that hosts a prototype for wiki-based scholarly publishing - where it can be updated, expanded or otherwise improved

Book Reviews: Raptors in Your Pocket: A Guide to Great Plains Birds of Prey; Dakota Flora: A Seasonal Sampler; The National Grasslands

Reviews of: Raptors in Your Pocket: A Guide to Great Plains Birds of Prey, Dana Gardner, 2006, University of Iowa Press, 16 pages (laminated). Dakota Flora: A Seasonal Sampler, David J. Ode, 2006, South Dakota State Historical Society Press, Pierre, South Dakota, 260 pages. The National Grasslands, Francis Moul, 2006, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, Nebraska, 153 pages

Mountain Pygmies of Western New Guinea: A Morphological and Molecular Approach

The presence of pygmy or pygmoid groups among New Guinea populations has been the object of scientific interest since the end of the nineteenth century. Morphological and molecular data are used here to study western New Guinea population variability, focusing in particular on two pygmoid groups living in the eastern fringe highlands of Papua: the Una and the Ketengban. Various kinds of anthropometric data are examined, as well as height, weight, and body mass index, to carry out comparisons with nearby ethnic groups living in the highland and lowland regions. The Ketengban data were also compared with other data recorded 20 years before. The results of previous research on the sequencing of the mitochondrial DNA hypervariable segment 1 region and nuclear DNA nonrecombining Y-chromosome polymorphisms are presented. Both morphological and molecular studies involve adult subjects of both genders, representative of the same ethnic groups and/ or geographic regions. The pygmoid groups turn out to be significantly different from all other study groups, due to their small size, as confirmed by analysis of variance, although significant height and weight increments are observed with respect to those previously recorded. However, putative neutral genetic variation estimated from mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome markers support a recent shared common history between these pygmoid populations and the other central Papua groups (except for the Dani-Lani). These findings suggest that the short-stature phenotype is an independent secondary adaptation, possibly driven by an iodine-deficient environment, which leaves the potential for further investigations

Efeito dos sistemas de manejo e plantio sobre a densidade de grupos funcionais de microrganismos, em solo de cerrado.

O crescimento da agricultura e pecuária, que pode resultar em abertura de novas áreas de plantio, tem motivado pesquisas que buscam sistemas de produção mais sustentáveis, cujo manejo causa menor impacto e degradação do solo. O manejo do solo e a cobertura vegetal alteram suas propriedades, principalmente, as microbiológicas, provocando mudanças na densidade de microrganismos funcionais. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito dos sistemas de manejo e dos diferentes sistemas de plantio, sobre a densidade de grupos funcionais de microrganismos em solos de Cerrado. As coletas de solo foram feitas em duas profundidades (0-5 cm e 5-20 cm) e dois períodos (seco e chuvoso), nos seguintes tratamentos: plantio direto (PD), plantio direto com rotação (PDR), plantio convencional (PC), plantio convencional com rotação (PCR) e Cerrado nativo (Mata mesofítica). A vegetação nativa apresentou as maiores densidades microbianas, nos períodos seco e chuvoso, em ambas as profundidades analisadas. Em geral, os tratamentos PDR e PD apresentaram maiores densidades microbianas nas camadas mais superficiais. Os dados de correlação linear (r) entre os grupos totais e funcionais de microrganismos e os atributos químicos do solo variaram entre os sistemas de preparo do solo. A correlação entre grupos funcionais de microrganismos e os atributos químicos do solo foram variáveis nos diferentes sistemas de manejo. Concluiu-se que o solo de cerrado apresentou maior densidade microbiana, não houve diferença na densidade microbiana entre os sistemas de preparo no período seco

Clay fine fissuring monitoring using miniature geo-electrical resistivity arrays

Abstract This article describes a miniaturised electrical imaging (resistivity tomography) technique to map the cracking pattern of a clay model. The clay used was taken from a scaled flood embankment built to study the fine fissuring due to desiccation and breaching process in flooding conditions. The potential of using a miniature array of electrodes to follow the evolution of the vertical cracks and number them during the drying process was explored. The imaging technique generated two-dimensional contoured plots of the resistivity distribution within the model before and at different stages of the desiccation process. The change in resistivity associated with the widening of the cracks were monitored as a function of time. Experiments were also carried out using a selected conductive gel to slow down the transport process into the cracks to improve the scanning capabilities of the equipment. The main vertical clay fissuring network was obtained after inversion of the experimental resistivity measurements and validated by direct observations