Diaqua­(6-bromo­picolinato-κ2 N,O)(nitrato-κ2 O,O)copper(II)

In the monomeric title complex, [Cu(C6H3BrNO2)(NO3)(H2O)2], the CuII ion is coordinated by a bidentate 6-bromo­picolinate ion, one nitrate ion and two water mol­ecules in a geometry inter­mediate between five- and six-coordinate. Conventional O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the complex mol­ecules, forming layers parallel to the ab plane

Multifunctionality of the [C2mim][Ln(fod)4] series (Ln = Nd-Tm except Pm):magnetic, luminescent and thermochemical studies

A series of nine tetrakis lanthanide β-diketonate complexes of the type [C2mim][Ln(fod)4] (C2mim = 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium, fod = 6,6,7,7,8,8,8-heptafluoro-2,2-dimethyl-3,5-octanedionate) were prepared, with yields above 80%, and their thermochemical, photophysical and magnetic susceptibilities were evaluated. Thermochemical studies presented a rare and reversible conversion between two solid phases (polymorphism), characteristic of the [Ln(fod)4]− anion. Photophysical and magnetic studies revealed that Dy and Er presented the multifunctionality of being simultaneously SMMs and visible (Dy) or near infra-red (Er) emitters. The Nd, Ho and Tm analogues present characteristic emission bands in the NIR region (800–1200 nm), while Sm, Eu, Tb and Dy present emissions in the visible range. Magnetic susceptibility of Tb, Dy, Ho, Er and Tm salts were measured in the temperature range of 2–300 K, showing paramagnetic behaviour, although with different regimes, with AC susceptibility measurements, at different frequencies in the range of 10–10 000 Hz, providing evidence of slow magnetic relaxation processes for Gd, Dy and Er analogues with SMM behavior.publishe

Hexokinase II dissociation alone cannot account for changes in heart mitochondrial function, morphology and sensitivity to permeability transition pore opening following ischemia

We previously demonstrated that hexokinase II (HK2) dissociation from mitochondria during cardiac ischemia correlates with cytochrome c (cyt-c) loss, oxidative stress and subsequent reperfusion injury. However, whether HK2 release is the primary signal mediating this ischemia-induced mitochondrial dysfunction was not established. To investigate this, we studied the effects of dissociating HK2 from isolated heart mitochondria. Mitochondria isolated from Langendorff-perfused rat hearts before and after 30 min global ischemia ± ischemic preconditioning (IPC) were subject to in vitro dissociation of HK2 by incubation with glucose-6-phosphate at pH 6.3. Prior HK2 dissociation from pre- or end-ischemic heart mitochondria had no effect on their cyt-c release, respiration (± ADP) or mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) opening. Inner mitochondrial membrane morphology was assessed indirectly by monitoring changes in light scattering (LS) and confirmed by transmission electron microscopy. Although no major ultrastructure differences were detected between pre- and end-ischemia mitochondria, the amplitude of changes in LS was reduced in the latter. This was prevented by IPC but not mimicked in vitro by HK2 dissociation. We also observed more Drp1, a mitochondrial fission protein, in end-ischemia mitochondria. IPC failed to prevent this increase but did decrease mitochondrial-associated dynamin 2. In vitro HK2 dissociation alone cannot replicate ischemia-induced effects on mitochondrial function implying that in vivo dissociation of HK2 modulates end-ischemia mitochondrial function indirectly perhaps involving interaction with mitochondrial fission proteins. The resulting changes in mitochondrial morphology and cristae structure would destabilize outer / inner membrane interactions, increase cyt-c release and enhance mPTP sensitivity to [Ca2+]

Program for Climate Smart Livestock Systems (PCSL): Futures workshop, Uganda, March 2021

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) is implementing the Program for Climate Smart Livestock (PCSL) in Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia. PCSL is designed to build the capacity of governments, the private sector, and livestock keepers towards improving livestock productivity, reducing greenhouse gas emissions while adapting to climate change. In March 2021, ILRI held a workshop with relevant stakeholders to discuss potential transformative pathways for the livestock sector in Uganda

Innovation and access to technologies for sustainable development: diagnosing weaknesses and identifying interventions in the Transnational Arena

Sustainable development – improving human well-being across present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs – is a central challenge for the 21st century. Technological innovation can play an important role in moving society toward sustainable development. However, poor, marginalized, and future populations often do not fully benefit from innovation due to their lack of market or political power to influence innovation processes. As a result, current innovation systems fail to contribute as much as they might to meeting sustainable development goals. This paper focuses on how actors and institutions operating in the transnational arena can mitigate such shortfalls. To identify the most important transnational functions required to meet sustainable development needs our analysis undertook three main steps. First, we developed a framework to diagnose blockages in the global innovation system for particular technologies. This framework was built on existing theory and new empirical analysis. On the theory side, we drew from the literatures of systems dynamics; technology and sectoral innovation systems, science and technology studies, the economics of innovation, and global governance. On the empirical front, we conducted eighteen detailed case studies of technology innovation in multiple sectors relevant to sustainable development: water, energy, health, food, and manufactured goods. We use the framework to analyze our case studies in the common language of (1) technology stocks, (2) non-linear flows between stocks substantiated by specific mechanisms, and (3) characteristics of actors and socio-technical conditions (STCs) which mediate the flows between stocks . We identify blockages in the innovation system for each of the cases, diagnosing where in the innovation system flows were hindered and which specific sets of STCs and actor characteristics were associated with these blockages. Figure E.1 displays the components of our framework and how they relate

Identifying A Risk Profile For Thyroid Cancer.

The large use of simple and effective diagnostic tools has significantly contributed to the increase in diagnosis of thyroid cancer over the past years. However, there is compelling evidence that most micropapillary carcinomas have an indolent behavior and may never evolve into clinical cancers. Therefore, there is an urgent need for new tools able to predict which thyroid cancers will remain silent, and which thyroid cancers will present an aggressive behavior. There are a number of well-established clinical predictors of malignancy and recent studies have suggested that some of the patients laboratory data and image methods may be useful. Molecular markers have also been increasingly tested and some of them appear to be very promising, such as BRAF, a few GST genes and p53 polymorphisms. In addition, modern tools, such as immunocytochemical markers, and the measure of the fractal nature of chromatin organization may increase the specificity of the pathological diagnosis of malignancy and help ascertain the prognosis. Guidelines designed to select nodules for further evaluation, as well as new methods aimed at distinguishing carcinomas of higher aggressiveness among the usually indolent thyroid tumors are an utmost necessity.51713-2

Absence of R-Ras1 and R-Ras2 causes mitochondrial alterations that trigger axonal degeneration in a hypomyelinating disease model

Fast synaptic transmission in vertebrates is critically dependent on myelin for insulation and metabolic support. Myelin is produced by oligodendrocytes (OLs) that maintain multilayered membrane compartments that wrap around axonal fibers. Alterations in myelination can therefore lead to severe pathologies such as multiple sclerosis. Given that hypomyelination disorders have complex etiologies, reproducing clinical symptoms of myelin diseases from a neurological perspective in animal models has been difficult. We recently reported that R-Ras1 and/or R-Ras2 mice, which lack GTPases essential for OL survival and differentiation processes, present different degrees of hypomyelination in the central nervous system with a compounded hypomyelination in double knockout (DKO) mice. Here, we discovered that the loss of R-Ras1 and/or R-Ras2 function is associated with aberrant myelinated axons with increased numbers of mitochondria, and a disrupted mitochondrial respiration that leads to increased reactive oxygen species levels. Consequently, aberrant myelinated axons are thinner with cytoskeletal phosphorylation patterns typical of axonal degeneration processes, characteristic of myelin diseases. Although we observed different levels of hypomyelination in a single mutant mouse, the combined loss of function in DKO mice lead to a compromised axonal integrity, triggering the loss of visual function. Our findings demonstrate that the loss of R-Ras function reproduces several characteristics of hypomyelinating diseases, and we therefore propose that R-Ras1 and R-Ras2 neurological models are valuable approaches for the study of these myelin pathologies.Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (RTI2018-096303B-C33) to B. C., (RTI2018-096303B-C31) to F. W., and RTI2018-095166B-I00 to C. G. R. and P. L. and Instituto de Salud Carlos III and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) within the “Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2017–2020” (RD16/0008/0020; FIS/PI 18-00754

NGC 6124: A young open cluster with anomalous- And fast-rotating giant stars

We present the results of a chemical analysis of fast and anomalous rotator giants members of the young open cluster NGC 6124. For this purpose, we carried out abundances of the mixing sensitive species such as Li, C, N, Na, and 12C/13C isotopic ratio, as well as other chemical species for a sample of four giants among the seven observed ones. This study is based on standard spectral analysis technique using high-resolution spectroscopic data. We also performed an investigation of the rotational velocity ($v\, \sin \, i$) once this sample exhibits abnormal values - giant stars commonly present rotational velocities of few km s-1. In parallel, we have performed a membership study, making use of the third data release from ESA Gaia mission. Based on these data, we estimated a distance of d = 630 pc and an age of 178 Myr through isochrone fitting. After that procedure, we matched all the information raised and investigated the evolutionary stages and thermohaline mixing model through of spectroscopic Teff and $\log \, g$ and mixing tracers, such as 12C/13C and Na, of the studied stars. We derived a low mean metallicity of [Fe/H] = -0.13 ± 0.05 and a modest enhancement of the elements created by the s-process, such as Y, Zr, La, Ce, and Nd, which is in agreement with what has already been reported in the literature for young clusters. The giants analysed have homogeneous abundances, except for lithium abundance [$\log \, \epsilon$(Li)NLTE = 1.08 ± 0.42] and this may be associated with a combination of mechanisms that act increasing or decreasing lithium abundances in stellar atmospheres