Recombinant gonadotropins in meagre (Argyrosomus regius): In-vivo effect on sexually undifferentiated fish

Meagre (Argyrosomus regius) is a teleost fish that has experienced an increase in Mediterranean aquaculture production in recent years. To improve productivity, it is necessary to establish a genetic selection program, but the generational interval in meagre is very high (2 and 3 years in males and females respectively). The objective of this survey is to evaluate the effect of specific A. regius single-chain recombinant gonadotropins (rGths) in prepubertal and sexually undifferentiated meagre. For this, 8 treatment groups were established, in which doses of 6, 12 or 18 μg / kg of rFSH or rLH were injected weekly for 3 weeks. Results did not show significant differences in GSI, but they did in plasma E2. Furthermore, early gonadal development was induced with the appearance of oocytes and spermatids in localized regions, while 100% of the fish in the saline group remained sexually undifferentiated. Our results on sexual differentiation show that with rGths therapy 1) males sexually differentiate earlier than females; 2) there is a higher proportion of males; 3) there are intersex fish. This is the first report of the presence of intersex fish and a male skewed ratio in this species. In conclusion, rGths therapy represent a potential solution to reduce the generation interval in prepubertal meagre, but more studies are needed to know how its administration affects during the period of sexual differentiation.Ciencias del Ma

Caffeine: a novel endocrine disruptor in molluscs?

Caffeine is a potent neuroactive drug widely consumed worldwide. It is not completely eliminated in waste water treatment plants (WWTPs), so as a reason it is a pseudo-persistent and ubiquitous contaminant in aquatic environment. Little is known about the effect of relevant environmental caffeine concentrations on marine organisms. Therefore, the objective of this experiment is to assay the effect of a 5-days caffeine exposure at 500 ng/l concentration in the Mediterranean mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis) at transcript level of 1) potentially gene specific biomarkers, 2) reproduction, 3) oxidative stress and 4) immunological related genes. A total of 8 mussels of each group (control and treatment) were randomly sacrificed. Samples of gills, gonad and digestive gland tissue of each bivalve were extracted for RNA extraction, cDNA synthesis and Real-Time quantitative PCR analysis. Our results showed 1) a significant increase in adenosine receptor A2a (arA2a), but not in dopamine receptor D2 (drD2) expression in digestive gland tissue. We also detected 2) a significant downregulation in cyclooxygenase2 (cox2) and vitellogenin (vtg) expression in gonad. No differences were observed in 3) glutathione-s-transferase (gst), heat shock protein 70 (hsp70), 4) myticin B or mytilin B expression. These results suggest that 1) arA2a could be a potentially gene specific biomarker of caffeine contamination; 2) caffeine could be a potentially endocrine disruptor in molluscs 3) caffeine concentration of 500 ng/l (relevant environmental concentration), is not enough to increase gst and hsp70 expression and therefore, to have a negative impact on mussels health status; and 4) does not affect immunological system at myticin B and mytilin B level.La cafeína es una potente droga neuroactiva ampliamente consumida en todo el mundo. No es eliminada completamente en las estaciones depuradoras de aguas residuales (EDARs), así que como consecuencia, es un contaminante pseudo-persistente y ubiquista en el medio acuático. Existe poco conocimiento acerca del efecto de concentraciones relevantes de cafeína del medio en los organismos marinos. Por tanto, el objetivo de este experimento es estudiar el efecto de una exposición de cafeína de 5 días a una concentración de 500 ng/l en la clóchina (Mytilus galloprovincialis) a nivel de transcritos de 1) genes biomarcadores potencialmente específicos, además de genes relacionados con 2) reproducción, 3) estrés oxidativo y 4) sistema inmunológico. Un total de 8 mejillones de cada grupo (control y tratamiento) fueron sacrificados al azar. Se extrajeron muestras de tejido de branquias, gónada y glándula digestiva de cada bivalvo para una posterior extracción de ARN, síntesis de ADNc y análisis de PCR cuantitativa en tiempo real. Nuestros resultados mostraron 1) un incremento significativo en la expresión del receptor de adenosina A2a (arA2a), pero no del receptor de dopamina D2 (drD2) en glándula digestiva. Además, detectamos 2) una disminución significativa en la expresión de ciclooxigenasa2 (cox2) y vitelogenina (vtg) en gónada. No se observaron diferencias en la expresión de 3) glutatión-s-transferasa (gst), proteína de choque térmico 70 (hsp70), 4) miticinaB y mitilinaB. Estos resultados sugieren que 1) arA2a podría ser un gen potencialmente específico de contaminación por cafeína; 2) la cafeína podría ser un disruptor endocrino en moluscos; 3) una concentración de cafeína de 500 ng/l (concentración relevante del medio), no es suficiente para aumentar la expresión de gst y hsp70 y, por tanto, para generar un impacto negativo en el estado de salud de las clóchinas; ni 4) para afectar al sistema inmunológico a nivel de miticinaB y mitilinaB.Biotecnologí

Fuentes de información para el estudio de la fotografía en Castilla y León

Actas de las Segundas Jornadas Imagen, Cultura y Tecnología celebradas entre el 1 y el 3 de julio de 2003 en la Universidad Carlos III de MadridPublicad

La reproducción fotográfica como fuente para la investigación histórico-artística

Actas de las Primeras Jornadas Imagen, Cultura y Tecnología celebradas del 1 al 5 de julio de 2002 en la Universidad Carlos III de Madri

A Rate Control Algorthm for Low-Delay H.264 Video Coding with Stored-B Pictures

A rate control (RC) algorithm for H.264 video coding with stored-B (SB) pictures is proposed for low-delay applications. Different models for P and SB pictures are defined for a better QP and MAD estimation. Furthermore, a novel saw-tooth shaped model of target buffer level has also been introduced for a proper bit allocation in GOP structures with SB pictures. Our experimental results show that this proposal outperforms the reference software RC in terms of buffer occupancy and target bit rate adjustment at the expense of slight quality reduction.Publicad

Prótesis total de cadera con poropatita: Resultados a 12 años

El trabajo analiza 150 prótesis totales de cadera, con un seguimiento de 12 años. En todos los pacientes se implantaron los componentes de Poropatita fabricados con aleación de Titanio y recubiertos de Poropatita. La edad de los pacientes oscilo entre los 25 y 85 años, con una media de 61 años, y en las revisiones posteriores realizadas, tanto clínica como radiográficamente, se observó una rápida integración de los implantes con áreas de osteoconducción y osteointegración evidentes.We reviewed 150 hip arthroplasties with a follow-up of 12 years. In all patients we used the components made of a titanium alloy with poropatita. The average age of the patients was 85 years (range 25-85 years). The follow-up period showed good clinical outcome, and radiographic parameters disclosed excellent integration of the implants with areas of osteoconduction and osteointegration

Tratamiento de la pseudoartrosis con P15

La reconstrucción de los defectos óseos, es un problema que se plantea con frecuencia en Cirugía Traumatológica. El objetivo de este trabajo esa evaluar la regeneración ósea en paciente con retardo de consolidación de fracturas de húmero y tibia, utilizando un factor de crecimiento (P15 combinado con Hidroxiapatita) y observar la respuesta osteoinductiva de la regeneración ósea. Se intervinieron quirúrgicamente 12 pacientes, con un seguimiento mínimo de 2 años. Describimos la metodología en cuanto a técnica y control post-operatorio y valoramos el estado clínico, radiológico e histológico. Los resultados fueron muy buenos en 10 casos. El P15 combinado con la Hidroxiapatita, ha permitido ver una respuesta osteoconductiva y osteoinductiva en los defectos óseos, con un futuro presumiblemente prometedor en Cirugía Ortopédica.The reconstruction of bone defects is a problem in the current orthopaedic surgery practice. The object of this study is to evaluate the regeneration in bones defects under the influence of a growth factor (P15 combined with hidroxyapatite), recording the evidence of osteo-inductive activity. Twelve patients with bone defects were operated with a minimal follow up of two years, we detailed the technique and postoperative management of the patients. Clinical, radiology and histology results were assessed, with excellent outcome in 10 cases. The P15 combined with Hidroxyapatite has allowed for a bone conductive and inductive response in bones defects

The CaT strength in Seyfert nuclei revisited: analyzing young stars and non-stellar light contributions to the spectra

In a former paper (Garcia-Rissmann et al. 2005; hereafter Paper I), we have presented spectra of 64 active, 9 normal and 5 Starburst galaxies in the region around the near-IR Calcium triplet absorption lines and the [SIII]9069 line. In the present paper we analyze the CaT strength (WCaT), and kinematical products derived in that study, namely stellar and ionized gas velocity dispersions. Our main results may be summarized as follows: (1) Seyfert 2s show no sign of dilution in WCaT with respect to the values spanned by normal galaxies, even when optical absorption lines such as the CaII K band at 3933 A are much weaker than in old, bulge-like stellar populations. (2) The location of Seyfert 2s in the WCaT-WCaK plane is consistent with evolutionary synthesis models. The implication is that the source responsible for the dilution of optical lines in these AGN is a young stellar population, rather than an AGN featureless continuum, confirming the conclusion of the pioneer study of Terlevich, Diaz & Terlevich. (3) In Seyfert 1s, both W[SIII] and WCaT tend to be diluted due to the presence of a non-stellar component, in agreement with the unification paradigm. (4) A comparison of stellar and gas velocity dispersions confirms the existence of a correlation between the typical velocities of stars and clouds of the Narrow Line Region. The strength and scatter around this correlation are similar to those previously obtained from the [OIII]5007 line width.Comment: 14 pages, 15 figures. Paper accepted for publication in MNRA

Flow cytometric analysis of the encystment process induced by paraquat exposure in Haematococcus pluvialis (Chlorophyceae)

The freshwater microalga Haematococcus pluvialis exhibits a unique morphological response to environmental stress, accumulating carotenoid pigment during encystment. The complexity of characterizing the different cell stages and monitoring the pigment cell content during the life cycle of this microalga is one of the main problems reported when assessing astaxanthin accumulation and degradation. Therefore, with the aim of studying the potential encystment response in this microalga by means of flow cytometry (FCM), we induced oxidative stress in cultures of vegetative growing cells by treating them with paraquat, a known generator of superoxide anion radicals. Two flow cytometric approaches were successfully used to monitor the effect of oxidative stress on morphological changes and genesis of carotenoids in H. pluvialis: (1) a cytometric characterization of different cell types based on analysis of the fluorescence of chlorophyll a vs the fluorescence of astaxanthin, and (2) staining with the fluorochromes hydroethidium (HE) and dihydrorhodamine 123 (DHR), in order to measure the in vivo intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). FCM data showed that astaxanthin accumulation during encystment hampers the production of ROS. Furthermore, the cell content of astaxanthin seems to be a good indicator of the extent to which H. pluvialis cells undergo oxidative stress, and also of how the cells defend themselves under stress conditions.Xunta de Galicia; INCITE08ENA103032E

Removal of triazine herbicides from freshwater systems using photosynthetic microorganisms

[Abstract]The uptake of the triazine herbicides, atrazine and terbutryn, was determined for two freshwater photosynthetic microorganisms, the green microalga Chlorella vulgaris and the cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus. An extremely rapid uptake of both pesticides was recorded, although uptake rate was lower for the cyanobacterium, mainly for atrazine. Other parameters related to the herbicide bioconcentration capacity of these microorganisms were also studied. Growth rate, biomass, and cell viability in cultures containing herbicide were clearly affected by herbicide uptake. Herbicide toxicity and microalgae sensitivity were used to determine the effectiveness of the bioconcentration process and the stability of herbicide removal. C. vulgaris showed higher bioconcentration capability for these two triazine herbicides than S. elongatus, especially with regard to terbutryn. This study supports the usefulness of such microorganisms, as a bioremediation technique in freshwater systems polluted with triazine herbicides.Xunta de Galicia; PGIDIT04RFO103946P