Análisis no destructivo del "Cristo Crucificado" de Juan de Espinal

Trabajo presentado al Congreso Nacional: Estudio y Conservación del Patrimonio Cultural (ECPC), celebrado en Málaga del 16 al 19 de noviembre de 2015.Investigadores del Centro Nacional de Aceleradores han analizado con técnicas nucleares el cuadro El Cristo Crucificado, en Sevilla. Los resultados han permitido conocer los daños y modificaciones que ha sufrido esta obra de arte sin deteriorarla, una información que facilita las tareas de restaruración. Lo que de momento no se ha podido confirmar es si el cuadro fue pintado por Juan de Espinal, como afirman la mayoría de los expertos.Los autores agradecen la financiación del Proyecto de Excelencia 205/HUM493 de la Junta de Andalucía, y la financiación del contrato Postdoctoral Juan de la Cierva del Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad de España.Peer Reviewe

Volume-preserving normal forms of Hopf-zero singularity

A practical method is described for computing the unique generator of the algebra of first integrals associated with a large class of Hopf-zero singularity. The set of all volume-preserving classical normal forms of this singularity is introduced via a Lie algebra description. This is a maximal vector space of classical normal forms with first integral; this is whence our approach works. Systems with a non-zero condition on their quadratic parts are considered. The algebra of all first integrals for any such system has a unique (modulo scalar multiplication) generator. The infinite level volume-preserving parametric normal forms of any non-degenerate perturbation within the Lie algebra of any such system is computed, where it can have rich dynamics. The associated unique generator of the algebra of first integrals are derived. The symmetry group of the infinite level normal forms are also discussed. Some necessary formulas are derived and applied to appropriately modified R\"{o}ssler and generalized Kuramoto--Sivashinsky equations to demonstrate the applicability of our theoretical results. An approach (introduced by Iooss and Lombardi) is applied to find an optimal truncation for the first level normal forms of these examples with exponentially small remainders. The numerically suggested radius of convergence (for the first integral) associated with a hypernormalization step is discussed for the truncated first level normal forms of the examples. This is achieved by an efficient implementation of the results using Maple

Differentiation of hematopoietic stem cell and myeloid populations by ATP is modulated by cytokines

Extracellular nucleotides are emerging as important regulators of inflammation, cell proliferation and differentiation in a variety of tissues, including the hematopoietic system. In this study, the role of ATP was investigated during murine hematopoiesis. ATP was able to reduce the percentage of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), common myeloid progenitors and granulocyte–macrophage progenitors (GMPs), whereas differentiation into megakaryocyte–erythroid progenitors was not affected. In addition, in vivo administration of ATP to mice reduced the number of GMPs, but increased the number of Gr-1+Mac-1+ myeloid cells. ATP also induced an increased proliferation rate and reduced Notch expression in HSCs and impaired HSC-mediated bone marrow reconstitution in sublethally irradiated mice. Moreover, the effects elicited by ATP were inhibited by suramin, a P2 receptor antagonist, and BAPTA, an intracellular Ca2+ chelator. We further investigated whether the presence of cytokines might modulate the observed ATP-induced differentiation. Treatment of cells with cytokines (stem cell factor, interleukin-3 and granulocyte–monocyte colony stimulator factor) before ATP stimulation led to reduced ATP-dependent differentiation in long-term bone marrow cultures, thereby restoring the ability of HSCs to reconstitute hematopoiesis. Thus, our data suggest that ATP induces the differentiation of murine HSCs into the myeloid lineage and that this effect can be modulated by cytokines

The probability of detecting erroneously assigned parentage using co-dominant loci

La grande variété de formules proposées pour le calcul des probabilités d’exclusion de filiation erronée est vraiment déconcertante. Le présent travail essaie de donner une formule générale en considérant tous les cas possibles. Le génotype du parent non contesté peut ne pas être connu. En effet, dans certaines études d’exclusion du père, aucune information n’est disponible en ce qui concerne le génotype de la mère. Dans ces cas, l’augmentation du nombre de marqueurs utilisés peut compenser ce manque d’information. Cependant, pour que la connaissance du génotype de la mère soit utile, il faut que l’individu dont la filiation est contestée soit hétérozygote et que son génotype soit différent de celui de sa mère. Par ailleurs, l’absence d’équilibre de Hardy-Weinberg ou de liaison, pour les marqueurs utilisés pour la vérification de la filiation, ne semble pas avoir une solution simple et claire

Estudio de las variables pedagógicas en tareas de enseñanza del fútbol en función de la parte de sesión

The objective of this study was to analyze the pedagogical variables of the tasks designed by the pre-service teachers for the teaching of school soccer based on the parts of the session. 307 tasks designed by 6 teachers in training have been codified through the Integral System for the Analysis of the Training Tasks (SIATE). The pedagogical variables classified by this system were analyzed: game situation, goalkeeper presence, game phase, content type I and II, specific content, teaching medium, level of opposition, type of participation and Feedback. A descriptive and inferential analysis was carried out using the Chi-Square test, Cramer's V test and the Corrected Typified Waste. The results show significant differences (p <.05) in the design of the tasks for each part of the session with respect to the pedagogical variables, except in the variable type of content II.El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar las variables pedagógicas de las tareas diseñadas por los profesores de pre-servicio para la enseñanza del futbol escolar en función de las partes de la sesión. Se han codificado 307 tareas diseñadas por 6 profesores en formación a través del Sistema Integral para el Análisis de las Tareas de Entrenamiento (SIATE). Se analizaron las variables pedagógicas que clasifica este sistema: situación de juego, presencia de portero, fase de juego, tipo de contenido I y II, contenido específico, medio de enseñanza, nivel de oposición, tipo de participación y Feedback. Se realizó un análisis descriptivo e inferencial mediante la prueba Chi-Cuadrado, V de Cramer y los Residuos Tipificados Corregidos. Los resultados muestran diferencias significativas (p<.05) en el diseño de las tareas para cada parte de la sesión con respecto a las variables pedagógicas, excepto en la variable tipo de contenido II

Differential cognitive impairment for diverse forms of multiple sclerosis

BACKGROUND: Cognitive impairment is a common feature in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and occurs in 60% of all cases. Unfortunately, neurological examination does not always agree with the neuropsychological evaluation in determining the cognitive profile of the patient. On the other hand, psychophysiological techniques such as event-related potentials (ERPs) can help in evaluating cognitive impairment in different pathologies. Behavioural responses and EEG signals were recorded during the experiment in three experimental groups: 1) a relapsing-remitting group (RRMS), 2) a benign multiple sclerosis group (BMS) and 3) a Control group. The paradigm employed was a spatial attention task with central cues (Posner experiment). The main aim was to observe the differences in the performance (behavioural variables) and in the latency and amplitude of the ERP components among these groups. RESULTS: Our data indicate that both MS groups showed poorer task performance (longer reaction times and lower percentage of correct responses), a latency delay for the N1 and P300 component, and a different amplitude for the frontal N1. Moreover, the deficit in the BMS group, indexed by behavioural and pyschophysiological variables, was more pronounced compared to the RRMS group. CONCLUSION: The present results suggest a cognitive impairment in the information processing in all of these patients. Comparing both pathological groups, cognitive impairment was more accentuated in the BMS group compared to the RMSS group. This suggests a silent deterioration of cognitive skills for the BMS that is not usually treated with pharmacological or neuropsychological therapy

Crystal Structure of Crataeva tapia Bark Protein (CrataBL) and Its Effect in Human Prostate Cancer Cell Lines

A protein isolated from the bark of Crataeva tapia (CrataBL) is both a Kunitz-type plant protease inhibitor and a lectin. We have determined the amino acid sequence and three-dimensional structure of CrataBL, as well as characterized its selected biochemical and biological properties. We found two different isoforms of CrataBL isolated from the original source, differing in positions 31 (Pro/Leu); 92 (Ser/Leu); 93 (Ile/Thr); 95 (Arg/Gly) and 97 (Leu/Ser). CrataBL showed relatively weak inhibitory activity against trypsin (K-iapp = 43 mu M) and was more potent against Factor Xa (K-iapp = 8.6 mu M), but was not active against a number of other proteases. We have confirmed that CrataBL contains two glycosylation sites and forms a dimer at high concentration. The high-resolution crystal structures of two different crystal forms of isoform II verified the beta-trefoil fold of CrataBL and have shown the presence of dimers consisting of two almost identical molecules making extensive contacts (similar to 645 angstrom(2)). The structure differs from those of the most closely related proteins by the lack of the N-terminal beta-hairpin. In experiments aimed at investigating the biological properties of CrataBL, we have shown that addition of 40 mM of the protein for 48 h caused maximum growth inhibition in MTT assay (47% of DU145 cells and 43% of PC3 cells). The apoptosis of DU145 and PC3 cell lines was confirmed by flow cytometry using Annexin V/FITC and propidium iodide staining. Treatment with CrataBL resulted in the release of mitochondrial cytochrome c and in the activation of caspase-3 in DU145 and PC3 cells

Visualization of Diffusion within Nanoarrays

The direct experimental characterization of diffusion processes at nanoscale remains a challenge that could help elucidate processes in biology, medicine and technology. In this report, two experimental approaches were employed to visualize ion diffusion profiles at the orifices of nanopores (radius (ra) of 86 ± 6 nm) in array format: (1) electrochemically assisted formation of silica deposits based on surfactant ion transfer across nanointerfaces between two immiscible electrolyte solutions (nanoITIES); (2) combined atomic force - scanning electrochemical microscopy (AFM-SECM) imaging of topography and redox species diffusion through the nanopores. The nature of the diffusion zones formed around the pores is directly related to the interpore distance within the array. Nanopore arrays with different ratios of pore center-to-center separation (rc) to pore radius (ra) were fabricated by focused ion beam (FIB) milling of silicon nitride (SiN) membranes, with 100 pores in a hexagonal arrangement. The ion diffusion profiles determined by the two visualization methods indicated the formation of overlapped or independent diffusion profiles at nanopore arrays with rc/ra ratios of 21 ± 2 and 91 ± 7, respectively. In particular, the silica deposition method resulted in formation of a single deposit encompassing the complete array with closer nanopore arrangement, whereas individual silica deposits were formed around each nanopore within the more widely spaced array. The methods reveal direct experimental evidence of diffusion zones at nanopore arrays and provide practical illustration that the pore-pore separation within such arrays has a significant impact on diffusional transport as the pore size is reduced to the nanoscale. These approaches to nanoscale diffusion zone visualization open up possibilities for better understanding of molecular transport processes within miniaturized systems