94 research outputs found
Influence of Gamma-Ray Emission on the Isotopic Composition of Clouds in the Interstellar Medium
We investigate one mechanism of the change in the isotopic composition of
cosmologically distant clouds of interstellar gas whose matter was subjected
only slightly to star formation processes. According to the standard
cosmological model, the isotopic composition of the gas in such clouds was
formed at the epoch of Big Bang nucleosynthesis and is determined only by the
baryon density in the Universe. The dispersion in the available cloud
composition observations exceeds the errors of individual measurements. This
may indicate that there are mechanisms of the change in the composition of
matter in the Universe after the completion of Big Bang nucleosynthesis. We
have calculated the destruction and production rates of light isotopes (D, 3He,
4He) under the influence of photonuclear reactions triggered by the gamma-ray
emission from active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We investigate the destruction and
production of light elements depending on the spectral characteristics of the
gamma-ray emission. We show that in comparison with previous works, taking into
account the influence of spectral hardness on the photonuclear reaction rates
can increase the characteristic radii of influence of the gamma-ray emission
from AGNs by a factor of 2-8. The high gamma-ray luminosities of AGNs observed
in recent years increase the previous estimates of the characteristic radii by
two orders of magnitude. This may suggest that the influence of the emission
from AGNs on the change in the composition of the medium in the immediate
neighborhood (the host galaxy) has been underestimated.Comment: 13 pages, 13 figures, 3 table
Opera and poison : a secret and enjoyable approach to teaching and learning chemistry
The storyline of operas, with historical or fictional characters, often include potions and poisons. This has prompted a study of the chemistry behind some operatic plots. The results were originally presented as a lecture given at the University of Minho in
Portugal, within the context of the International Year of Chemistry.
The same lecture was subsequently repeated at other universities as an invited lecture for science students and in public theaters for wider audiences. The lecture included a multimedia and interactive
content that allowed the audience to listen to arias and to watch video clips with selected scenes extracted from operas. The present article, based on the lecture, demonstrates how chemistry and opera
can be related and may also serve as a source of motivation and inspiration for chemistry teachers looking for alternative pedagogical approaches. Moreover, the lecture constitutes a vehicle that transports chemistry knowledge to wider audiences through examples of everyday molecules, with particular emphasis on natural products.The author is pleased to express his gratitude to Jorge Calado and Michael John Smith for useful discussions. The author also thanks the reviewers of the manuscript for their helpful comments and suggestions. Thanks are due to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT,Portugal), QREN and FEDER/EU for financial support through the research centers, CQ/UM PEst-C/QUI/UI0686/2011. Ciencia Viva, Portugal, is also acknowledged for financial support of the activities organized by the University of Minho during the International Year of Chemistry. The author also expresses his gratitude to Ana Paula Ferreira and Andre Cunha Leal from RTP Antena 2 who contributed immensely to the popularization of the lecture on which this paper is based on
Intoxicação aguda com sementes de Crotalaria spectabilis (Leg. Papilionoideae) em suínos
Iron Behaving Badly: Inappropriate Iron Chelation as a Major Contributor to the Aetiology of Vascular and Other Progressive Inflammatory and Degenerative Diseases
The production of peroxide and superoxide is an inevitable consequence of
aerobic metabolism, and while these particular "reactive oxygen species" (ROSs)
can exhibit a number of biological effects, they are not of themselves
excessively reactive and thus they are not especially damaging at physiological
concentrations. However, their reactions with poorly liganded iron species can
lead to the catalytic production of the very reactive and dangerous hydroxyl
radical, which is exceptionally damaging, and a major cause of chronic
inflammation. We review the considerable and wide-ranging evidence for the
involvement of this combination of (su)peroxide and poorly liganded iron in a
large number of physiological and indeed pathological processes and
inflammatory disorders, especially those involving the progressive degradation
of cellular and organismal performance. These diseases share a great many
similarities and thus might be considered to have a common cause (i.e.
iron-catalysed free radical and especially hydroxyl radical generation). The
studies reviewed include those focused on a series of cardiovascular, metabolic
and neurological diseases, where iron can be found at the sites of plaques and
lesions, as well as studies showing the significance of iron to aging and
longevity. The effective chelation of iron by natural or synthetic ligands is
thus of major physiological (and potentially therapeutic) importance. As
systems properties, we need to recognise that physiological observables have
multiple molecular causes, and studying them in isolation leads to inconsistent
patterns of apparent causality when it is the simultaneous combination of
multiple factors that is responsible. This explains, for instance, the
decidedly mixed effects of antioxidants that have been observed, etc...Comment: 159 pages, including 9 Figs and 2184 reference
Ultramafic vegetation and soils in the circumboreal region of the Northern Hemisphere
The paper summarizes literature on climate, soil chemistry, vegetation and metal accumulation by plants found on ultramafic substrata in the circumboreal zone (sensu Takhtajan, Floristic regions of the world, 1986) of the Northern Hemisphere. We present a list of 50 endemic species and 18 ecotypes obligate to ultramafic soils from the circumboreal region of Holarctic, as well as 30 and 2 species of Ni and Zn hyperaccumulators, respectively. The number of both endemics and hyperaccumulators are markedly lower compared to that of the Mediterranean and tropical regions. The diversity of plant communities on ultramafics soils of the circumboral region is also described. The underlying causes for the differences of ultramafic flora between arctic, cold, cool temperate and Mediterranean and tropical regions are also discussed. © 2018, The Ecological Society of Japan
Field Investigation of Small Animal Toxicoses
An in-depth investigation of a small animal poisoning case resembles a thorough version of the traditional farm call that is provided by large animal clinicians. Goals of such investigations are to diagnose cases, identify responsible toxicants and their sources, and to make recommendations regarding treatment and prevention of further occurrences. The detailed history, interviews, site visit, record keeping, and analysis of findings are discussed
How microscopy techniques help the personal care industry improve antiperspirant products .
Selenium elimination in pigs after an outbreak of selenium toxicosis
abstract: In May 1996, 150 grower pigs in 5 California counties were given a selenium-contaminated feed distributed by a single feed company. Feed samples from 20 herds had a mean selenium concentration of 121.7 ppm dry weight (range, 22.1-531 ppm). In San Luis Obispo County, 52 pigs in 24 herds were exposed to the feed, and 8 pigs died with signs of paralysis. Bilateral symmetrical poliomyelomalacia involving the ventral horns of the cervical and lumbar intumescence was detected histologically in spinal cord from affected pigs. Of 44 surviving exposed pigs, 33 (75%) showed signs of selenosis, including anorexia, alopecia, and hoof lesions. 39 (88.6%) of 44 pigs had increased (>1 ppm) blood selenium concentrations. Surviving exposed pigs were changed to a standard commercial ration containing approximately 0.5 ppm (dry weight) selenium. Blood selenium concentrations were measured weekly for 46 days following removal of the contaminated feed and were compared with values of 20 control pigs fed a standard commercial ration. Mean (±SD) blood selenium concentrations of exposed pigs were 3.2±2.6 ppm at the initial sampling and 0.4±0.1 ppm after 46 days. Mean blood selenium concentrations of ≤0.3 ppm for control pigs at all samplings were significantly lower (P<0.001) than concentrations for exposed pigs. Muscle and liver samples of 22 of the 44 exposed pigs were collected at slaughter approximately 72 days after withdrawal of the selenium-contaminated feed. Muscle samples had a mean selenium concentration of 0.36 ppm (wet weight). Liver samples had a mean selenium concentration of 1.26 ppm (wet weight). One liver sample had a selenium value in the toxic range for pigs (3.3 ppm wet weight; reference range, 0.4-1.2 ppm). A one-compartment pharmacokinetic model of selenium elimination in exposed pigs was generated, and the geometric mean blood selenium elimination half-life was estimated to be 12 days. The 60-day withdrawal time recommended by the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Database was considered sufficient to allow safe human consumption of tissues from exposed pigs
Selenium elimination in pigs after an outbreak of selenium toxicosis
abstract: In May 1996, 150 grower pigs in 5 California counties were given a selenium-contaminated feed distributed by a single feed company. Feed samples from 20 herds had a mean selenium concentration of 121.7 ppm dry weight (range, 22.1-531 ppm). In San Luis Obispo County, 52 pigs in 24 herds were exposed to the feed, and 8 pigs died with signs of paralysis. Bilateral symmetrical poliomyelomalacia involving the ventral horns of the cervical and lumbar intumescence was detected histologically in spinal cord from affected pigs. Of 44 surviving exposed pigs, 33 (75%) showed signs of selenosis, including anorexia, alopecia, and hoof lesions. 39 (88.6%) of 44 pigs had increased (>1 ppm) blood selenium concentrations. Surviving exposed pigs were changed to a standard commercial ration containing approximately 0.5 ppm (dry weight) selenium. Blood selenium concentrations were measured weekly for 46 days following removal of the contaminated feed and were compared with values of 20 control pigs fed a standard commercial ration. Mean (±SD) blood selenium concentrations of exposed pigs were 3.2±2.6 ppm at the initial sampling and 0.4±0.1 ppm after 46 days. Mean blood selenium concentrations of ≤0.3 ppm for control pigs at all samplings were significantly lower (P<0.001) than concentrations for exposed pigs. Muscle and liver samples of 22 of the 44 exposed pigs were collected at slaughter approximately 72 days after withdrawal of the selenium-contaminated feed. Muscle samples had a mean selenium concentration of 0.36 ppm (wet weight). Liver samples had a mean selenium concentration of 1.26 ppm (wet weight). One liver sample had a selenium value in the toxic range for pigs (3.3 ppm wet weight; reference range, 0.4-1.2 ppm). A one-compartment pharmacokinetic model of selenium elimination in exposed pigs was generated, and the geometric mean blood selenium elimination half-life was estimated to be 12 days. The 60-day withdrawal time recommended by the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Database was considered sufficient to allow safe human consumption of tissues from exposed pigs
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