Pseudoparticle approach to 1D integrable quantum models

Over the last three decades a large number of experimental studies on several quasi one-dimensional (1D) metals and quasi 1D Mott–Hubbard insulators have produced evidence for distinct spectral features identified with charge-only and spin-only fractionalized particles. They can be also observed in ultra-cold atomic 1D optical lattices and quantum wires. 1D exactly solvable models provide nontrivial tests of the approaches for these systems relying on field theories. Different schemes such as the pseudofermion dynamical theory (PDT) and the mobile quantum impurity model (MQIM) have revealed that the 1D correlated models high-energy physics is qualitatively different from that of a low-energy Tomonaga–Luttinger liquid (TLL). This includes the momentum dependence of the exponents that control the one- and two-particle dynamical correlation functions near their spectra edges and in the vicinity of one-particle singular spectral features. On the one hand, the low-energy charge-only and spin-only fractionalized particles are usually identified with holons and spinons, respectively. On the other hand, “particle-like” representations in terms of pseudoparticles, related PDT pseudofermions, and MQIM particles are suitable for the description of both the low-energy TLL physics and high-energy spectral and dynamical properties of 1D correlated systems. The main goal of this review is to revisit the usefulness of pseudoparticle and PDT pseudofermion representations for the study of both static and high-energy spectral and dynamical properties of the 1D Lieb–Liniger Bose gas, spin-1∕2 isotropic Heisenberg chain, and 1D Hubbard model. Moreover, the relation between the PDT and the MQIM is clarified. The fractionalized particles and related composite pseudoparticles/pseudofermions emerging within such non-perturbative 1D correlated systems are qualitatively different from the Fermi-liquid quasiparticles. In contrast to the holons and spinons, the relation to the electron creation and annihilation operators of the operators assWe thank M. A. N. Araujo, D. Baeriswyl, P.-A. Bares, D. Bozi, D. K. Campbell, A. H. Castro Neto, T. Cadez, R. G. Dias, J. M. E. Guerra, F. Guinea, P. Horsch, H. Q. Lin, A. Luther, L. M. Martelo, A. Moreno, S. Ostlund, K. Penc, R. G. Pereira, N. M. R. Peres, T. Prosen, J. M. Roman, M. J. Sampaio, and J. M. P. L. Santos for illuminating discussions and their contributions to common collaborations that led to some of the results on the issues being reviewed. We also thank N. Andrei, E. Castro, and H. Johannesson for illuminating discussions, and M. Belsley for the critical reading of a preliminary version of the review manuscript and useful discussions. We acknowledge our former collaborator, the late S.-J.Gu, for his important contributions to the success of our common research related to the topics reviewed here. Over the long course of his study of this problem, J. M. P. C. has benefited from discussions with P. W. Anderson, M. C. Asensio, M. Batzill, L. Carlos, Y.-H. Chen, R. Claessen, F. Essler, J. Ferrer, X.-W. Guan, E. Jeckelmann, S.-i. Kimura, V. E. Korepin, P. A. Lee, R. Micnas, S. Nemati, Y. Ohtsubo, T. Ribeiro, A. W. Sandvik, M. Sing, A. L. L. Videira, J. Voit, X.-G. Wen, S. R. White, and X. Zotos. He especially wishes to acknowledge his former collaborators, the late K. Maki, A. Muramatsu, and A. A. Ovchinnikov, for illuminating discussions on 1D correlated systems and their contributions to his understanding of the Hubbard model. He also acknowledges the late A. Imambekov for discussions that were helpful in writing this review. P. D. S. thanks K. -J. -B. Lee, J. W. Rasul, and P. Schlottmann for discussions on integrable systems. We thank the FEDER through the COMPETE Program and the Portuguese FCT in the framework of the Strategic Projects UID/FIS/04650/2013 and UID/CTM/04540/2013 and the support of the Beijing Computational Science Research Center where part of this review was written

Sound production in the Meagre, Argyrosomus regius (Asso, 1801): intraspecific variability associated with size, sex and context

Many fish taxa produce sound in voluntary and in disturbance contexts but information on the full acoustic repertoire is lacking for most species. Yet, this knowledge is critical to enable monitoring fish populations in nature through acoustic monitoring.Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology: PTDC/BIA-BMA/30517/2017; SFRH/BD/115562/2016; UID/MAR/04292/2019; UID/BIA/00329/2019; PTDC/BIA-BMA/29662/2017.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The role of bacteria in pine wilt disease: insights from microbiome analysis.

Pine Wilt Disease (PWD) has a significant impact on Eurasia pine forests. The microbiome of the nematode (the primary cause of the disease), its insect vector, and the host tree may be relevant for the disease mechanism. The aim of this study was to characterize these microbiomes, from three PWD-affected areas in Portugal, using Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis, 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing, and a functional inference-based approach (PICRUSt). The bacterial community structure of the nematode was significantly different from the infected trees but closely related to the insect vector, supporting the hypothesis that the nematode microbiome might be in part inherited from the insect. Sampling location influenced mostly the tree microbiome (P < 0.05). Genes related both with plant growth promotion and phytopathogenicity were predicted for the tree microbiome. Xenobiotic degradation functions were predicted in the nematode and insect microbiomes. Phytotoxin biosynthesis was also predicted for the nematode microbiome, supporting the theory of a direct contribution of the microbiome to tree-wilting. This is the first study that simultaneously characterized the nematode, tree and insect-vector microbiomes from the same affected areas, and overall the results support the hypothesis that the PWD microbiome plays an important role in the disease's development

Structure determination of Split-soret Cytochrome from a Desulfovibrio species isolated from a human abdominal abcess

The determined structure of the split-soret cytochrome (SSC) isolated from Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ATCC 27774 (D.d.) revealed a new Heme arrangement, which suggests that this protein constitutes a new cytochrome class.. SSC is a 52.6kDa homodimer containing four hemes at one end of the molecule. In each monomer the two hemes have their edges overlapped within van der Waals contacts. The polypeptide chain of each monomer supplies the sixth ligand to the heme-iron of the other monomer. A similar protein was recently purified from a homologous Desulfovibrio clinical strain isolated from an abdominal wall abscess in human patient2. Crystals of this SSC were grown using vapour diffusion method in the presence of agarose gel. Diffraction data were collected using X-ray synchrotron radiation at the ESRF, beamline, ID 14-1. The structure will be solved by molecular replacement using the structure of the D.d. as a starting model

Blood pressure control and antihypertensive pharmacotherapy patterns in a hypertensive population of Eastern Central Region of Portugal

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Interventions to improve blood pressure control in hypertension have had limited success in clinical practice despite evidence of cardiovascular disease prevention in randomised controlled trials.</p> <p>The objectives of this study were to evaluate blood pressure control and antihypertensive pharmacotherapy patterns in a population of Eastern Central Region of Portugal, attending a hospital outpatient clinic (ambulatory setting) for routine follow-up.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Medical data of all patients that attended at least two medical appointments of hypertension/dyslipidemia in a university hospital over a one and a half year period (from January 2008 to June 2009) were retrospectively analysed. Demographic variables, clinical data and blood pressure values of hypertensive patients included in the study, as well as prescribing metrics were examined on a descriptive basis and expressed as the mean ± SD, frequency and percentages. Student's test and Mann-Whitney rank sum test were used to compare continuous variables and χ²test and Fisher exact probability test were used to test for differences between categorical variables.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In all, 37% of hypertensive patients (n = 76) had their blood pressure controlled according to international guidelines. About 45.5% of patients with a target blood pressure <140/90 mmHg (n = 156) were controlled, whereas in patients with diabetes or chronic kidney disease (n = 49) the corresponding figure was only 10.2% (<it>P </it>< 0.001). Among patients initiating hypertension/dyslipidemia consultation within the study period 32.1% had stage 2 hypertension in the first appointment, but this figure decreased to 3.6% in the last consultation (<it>P </it>= 0.012). Thiazide-type diuretics were the most prescribed antihypertensive drugs (67%) followed by angiotensin receptor blockers (60%) and beta-blockers (43%). About 95.9% patients with comorbid diabetes were treated with an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Clinically important blood pressure decreases can be achieved soon after hypertension medical appointment initiation. However, many hypertensive patients prescribed with antihypertensive therapy fail to achieve blood pressure control in clinical practice, this control being worse among patients with diabetes or chronic kidney disease. As pharmacotherapy patterns seem to coincide with international guidelines, further research is needed to identify the causes of poor blood pressure control.</p

Hypericum androsaemum water extract inhibits proliferation in human colorectal cancer cells through effects on MAP kinases and PI3K/Akt pathway

MAP kinase and PI3K/Akt signalling pathways are commonly altered in colorectal carcinoma (CRC) leading to tumor growth due to increased cell proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis. Several species of the genus Hypericum are used in Portugal to prepare herbal teas to which digestive tract effects are attributed. In the present study, the antiproliferative and proapoptotic effects of the water extracts of H. androsaemum (HA) and H. perforatum (HP) were investigated in two human colon carcinoma-derived cell lines, HCT15 and CO115, which harbour activating mutations of KRAS and BRAF, respectively. Contrarily to HP, HA significantly inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in both cell lines. HA decreased BRAF and phospho-ERK expressions in CO115, but not in HCT15. HA also decreased Akt phosphorylation in CO115 and induced p38 and JNK in both cell lines. HA induced cell cycle arrest at S and G2/M phases as well as caspase-dependent apoptosis in both cell lines. Chlorogenic acid (CA), the main phenolic compound present in the HA extract and less represented in the HP water extract, did, however, not show any of those effects when used individually. In conclusion, water extract of HA, but not of HP, controlled CRC proliferation and specifically acted on mutant and not wild-type BRAF. The effect of HA was, however, not due to CA alone.CPRX was supported by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Portugal, through the grant SFRH/BD/27524/2006 and the work was supported by the FCT research grants PTDC/AGR-AAM/70418/2006 (HypericumBiotech) and PEst-C/BIA/UI4050/2011. All projects are co-funded by the program COMPETE from QREN with co-participation from the European Community fund FEDER

Salvia fruticosa, salvia officinalis and rosmarinic acid induce apoptosis and inhibit proliferation of human colorectal cell lines: the role in MAPK/ERK pathway

Epidemiologic studies have shown that nutrition is a key factor in modulating sporadic colorectal carcinoma (CRC) risk. Aromatic plants of the genus Salvia (sage) have been attributed many medicinal properties, which include anticancer activity. In the present study, the antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of water extracts of Salvia fruticosa (SF) and Salvia officinalis (SO) and of their main phenolic compound rosmarinic acid (RA) were evaluated in two human colon carcinoma-derived cell lines, HCT15 and CO115, which have different mutations in the MAPK/ERK and PI3K/Akt signalling pathways. These pathways are commonly altered in CRC leading to increased proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis. Our results show that SF, SO and RA induce apoptosis in both cell lines, whereas cell proliferation was inhibited by the two sage extracts only in HCT15. SO, SF and RA inhibited ERK phosphorylation in HCT15 and had no effects on Akt phosphorylation in CO115 cells. The activity of sage extracts seems to be due, at least in part, to the inhibition of MAPK/ERK pathway.POCI/AGR/62040/2004. CPRX and CFLSFRH/BD/27524/2006 and SFRH/BPD/26316/2006Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT

Behavioral aspects of Caracu and Red Angus cattle breeds in a pasture with shade and water immersion

The shade is an important resource in the extensive production systems in tropical regions. The aim of this study is to understand through behavioral analysis, the preferences of animals for resources for environmental protection. The experiment was conducted in the Biometeorology and Ethology Laboratory of FZEA-USP. Six male of Caracu and Red Angus cattle breeds were used. The animals were submitted to 2 different treatments: availability of artificial shade and water for immersion and availability of water for immersion. The observations of the behavioral patterns were recorded using the focal sampling method every 15 minutes (12h/day). The observed positions were: in the sun, under the shade and in the water. The posture observed were: standing, lying down and behavioural activities were grazing, ruminating and rest. The data concerning to the time spent in different behaviors and different positions were analyzed by the multifactorial variance (ANOVA-GLM). The fixed factors used were the breed and treatment. The results had shown that grazing activity was the behavior in which both breeds had spending more time (especially in the cooler periods), followed by ruminating in the Caracu and by resting in the Red Angus. The results also had shown that shade can be used as a shelter against solar radiation as well against rain. The Caracu had presented a clear preference for the shade, particularly in the hottest hours. However this was not always observed in Red Angus, who sometimes chose to remain in the water. In hot climates, resources for defense against heat load, as shade and water for immersion can really improve the welfare of the cattle

Gut microbiota, diet, and chronic diseases: the role played by oxidative stress

The authors gratefully acknowledge the Espirito Santo Research Foundation (FAPES) (Grant CNPq/FAPES No. 24/2018; Termo Outorga 569/2018) and the Brazilian National Council for Research and Development (CNPq) (CNPq Grant Bolsa Produtividade 2015-2019) for the financial support to our research projectS

Development of new active packaging films coated with natural phenolic compounds to improve the oxidative stability of bee

The aim is to develop active packaging films containing natural antioxidants and to evaluate their capacity to enhance the oxidative stability of beef during refrigeration. The antioxidant activity of a natural extract obtained from a brewery residual waste was evaluated and compared with that of a commercial rosemary extract and two synthetic antioxidants (BHT and propyl gallate). Different concentrations of each antioxidant were also added directly to beef samples, resulting in a reduction in lipid oxidation of up to 70–80% relative to the control. Active antioxidant films coated with PVPP-WS extract reduced lipid oxidation by up to 80%, relative to the control, during cold storage. The use of active packaging films containing natural extracts could improve the oxidative stability of meat products and should therefore be of great interest in the food industryThe authors are grateful to the Mahou-San Miguel Group and FUTURAL project (Ingenio Program – CDTI). The authors express their sincere thanks to Ms. Patricia Blanco Carro, Ms. Cristina Casal Romero and Mr. Gonzalo Hermelo Vidal for their excellent technical assistanceS