The silicon stable isotope distribution along the GEOVIDE section (GEOTRACES GA-01) of the North Atlantic Ocean

The stable isotope composition of dissolved silicon in seawater (δ30SiDSi) was examined at 10 stations along the GEOVIDE section (GEOTRACES GA-01), spanning the North Atlantic Ocean (40–60∘ N) and Labrador Sea. Variations in δ30SiDSi below 500 m were closely tied to the distribution of water masses. Higher δ30SiDSi values are associated with intermediate and deep water masses of northern Atlantic or Arctic Ocean origin, whilst lower δ30SiDSi values are associated with DSi-rich waters sourced ultimately from the Southern Ocean. Correspondingly, the lowest δ30SiDSi values were observed in the deep and abyssal eastern North Atlantic, where dense southern-sourced waters dominate. The extent to which the spreading of water masses influences the δ30SiDSi distribution is marked clearly by Labrador Sea Water (LSW), whose high δ30SiDSi signature is visible not only within its region of formation within the Labrador and Irminger seas, but also throughout the mid-depth western and eastern North Atlantic Ocean. Both δ30SiDSi and hydrographic parameters document the circulation of LSW into the eastern North Atlantic, where it overlies southern-sourced Lower Deep Water. The GEOVIDE δ30SiDSi distribution thus provides a clear view of the direct interaction between subpolar/polar water masses of northern and southern origin, and allow examination of the extent to which these far-field signals influence the local δ30SiDSi distribution

Role of SOX family of transcription factors in central nervous system tumors

SOX genes are developmental regulators with functions in the instruction of cell fate and maintenance of progenitor’s identity during embryogenesis. They play additional roles during tissue homeostasis and regeneration in adults particularly in the Central Nervous System (CNS). In the last years a growing number of evidences has shown that mutations and dysfunction of SOX factors are implicated in several human diseases, including a variety of cancers. In this review, we will summarize the current knowledge about SOX family in CNS tumors and their role in the origin and maintenance of the subpopulation of cancer stem cells in these tumors

Response of Spiking Neurons to Correlated Inputs

The effect of a temporally correlated afferent current on the firing rate of a leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) neuron is studied. This current is characterized in terms of rates, auto and cross-correlations, and correlation time scale $\tau_c$ of excitatory and inhibitory inputs. The output rate $\nu_{out}$ is calculated in the Fokker-Planck (FP) formalism in the limit of both small and large $\tau_c$ compared to the membrane time constant $\tau$ of the neuron. By simulations we check the analytical results, provide an interpolation valid for all $\tau_c$ and study the neuron's response to rapid changes in the correlation magnitude.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Use of Silver Nanoparticles as Tougheners of Alumina Ceramics

In this work, alumina/silver composites were produced through powder techniques, which involve the combination of high energy mechanical milling combined with sintering in the presence of a liquid phase and with the idea of having ceramics with good toughness values. From mechanical characterizations, it was found that increases of the silver content in the alumina origins decrease the elastic’s modulus and flexural strength of the final composite. The fracture toughness of alumina increases from 4.2 MPam−0.5 for monolithic alumina to 10 MPam−0.5 for alumina with 2 wt% silver additions. It was determined that the reinforcement mechanism of these materials is due to the deflection of cracks owing to metallic bridges formed by the silver used as toughener material

Evidence for a major change in silicon cycling in the Subarctic North Pacific at 2.73 Ma

The initiation of Northern Hemisphere glaciation in the subarctic North Pacific at ∼2.73 Ma was marked by an abrupt cessation of high opaline accumulation, considered to result from an increased stratification of the water column that should have led to higher utilization of nutrients in the surface ocean. We present a new stable Si isotope-based record of Si utilization that is hard to reconcile with this model. A drop in 30Si/28Si by 0.4‰ at 2.73 Ma is coincident with an increase in bulk N isotope composition. The contrasting utilization records cannot have been both caused by a hydrographic change alone. Excluding a change in the Si:N export ratio, these results either imply a relative increase in silicic acid supplied to the surface waters or a change in its Si isotope composition. While it is impossible to distinguish between these two possibilities, both imply a regional or global change in the Si biogeochemical cycle, potentially caused by an enhanced storage of Si in the underlying deep waters of the Pacific

A Fokker-Planck formalism for diffusion with finite increments and absorbing boundaries

Gaussian white noise is frequently used to model fluctuations in physical systems. In Fokker-Planck theory, this leads to a vanishing probability density near the absorbing boundary of threshold models. Here we derive the boundary condition for the stationary density of a first-order stochastic differential equation for additive finite-grained Poisson noise and show that the response properties of threshold units are qualitatively altered. Applied to the integrate-and-fire neuron model, the response turns out to be instantaneous rather than exhibiting low-pass characteristics, highly non-linear, and asymmetric for excitation and inhibition. The novel mechanism is exhibited on the network level and is a generic property of pulse-coupled systems of threshold units.Comment: Consists of two parts: main article (3 figures) plus supplementary text (3 extra figures

LEGaTO: first steps towards energy-efficient toolset for heterogeneous computing

LEGaTO is a three-year EU H2020 project which started in December 2017. The LEGaTO project will leverage task-based programming models to provide a software ecosystem for Made-in-Europe heterogeneous hardware composed of CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs and dataflow engines. The aim is to attain one order of magnitude energy savings from the edge to the converged cloud/HPC.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

[Memorias de la Escuela General de Agricultura]

Contiene: Memoria correspondiente al curso académico de 1886 á 1887 / Instituto Agrícola de Alfonso XII, Escuela General de Agricultura, por el director del establecimiento José de Arce. -- Madrid : [s.n.], 1892 (Tip. de Manuel Ginés Hernández), 1892. -- 183 p., [1] p. pleg. -- Memoria correspondiente al curso académico de 1889-90 / Instituto Agrícola de Alfonso XII, Escuela General de Agricultura, por el director del establecimiento José de Arce. -- Madrid : [s.n.], 1892 (Tip. de Manuel Ginés Hernández). -- 84 p., [1] p. pleg. -- Indice. -- Real decreto creando la Escuela Central de Agricultura : reglamentos orgánicos de la misma... -- Madrid: Imprenta Nacional, 1856. -- 28 p., [1] h. de lám. -- Memoria sobre el estado actual de la agricultura, industria rural y ganadería en la provincia de Córdoba / por Juan de Dios de la Puente y Rocha... -- Córdoba : Imp., lib. y litog. del Diario de Córdoba, 1875. -- 58 p. -- Memoria sobre el estado actual de la agricultura, artes é industrias agrícolas y mejoras que pueden introducirse : provincia de Burgos / escrita por Marcial Prieto Ramos. -- Burgos : Imp. y estereotipia de Polo, 1876. -- 47 p. -- Informe sobre el estado actual de la agricultura en la provincia de Burgos / por Marcial Prieto Ramos.-- Burgos : Imp. de la Viuda E Hijo de T. Santamaría, 1878. -- 81 p. -- Memoria sobre la causa que impide a las provincias centrales crecer en riqueza y población / por Crisanto Herrero Alegre. -- Palencia : Imp. de Peralta y Menéndez, 1876. -- 34 p. -- Reseña de la agricultura en Inglaterra y en varios países / por Francisco de Reynoso. -- Madrid : [s.n.], 1897 (Tip. de Tomás Minuesa de los Ríos). -- 34 p.Dedicatoria ms. del autor José de Arce a Julio OteroEnc. carton?Enc. varias obras formando un vol. facticioSello en guarda : Encuadernador Cayetano Fernández, ZaragozaTít. tomado del lom

Predictive Models for the Diagnostic of Human Visceral Leishmaniasis in Brazil

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a neglected tropical disease endemic to 65 countries, including Brazil, where the disease frequently occurs in remote locations and treatment is often performed on the basis of clinical suspicion. Predictive models based on scoring systems could be a helpful tool for the clinical management of VL. Based on clinical signs and symptoms, and five different serological tests of 213 patients with parasitologically confirmed (cases) and 119 with clinical suspicion of VL but with another confirmed etiology (non-cases), twelve prediction models using logistic regression and classification and regression trees (CART) for VL diagnosis were developed. The model composed of the clinical-laboratory variables and the rk39 rapid test showed the best performance in both logistic regression and CART (Sensitivity of 90.1% and specificity ranging from 97.2–97.4%). The scoring system is simple and based on the clinical-laboratory findings that are easily available in most clinical settings. The results suggest that those models might be useful in locations where access to available diagnostic methods is difficult, contributing to more efficient and more rational allocation of healthcare resources

Endocytosis as a biological response in receptor pharmacology: evaluation by fluorescence microscopy

The activation of G-protein coupled receptors by agonist compounds results in diverse biological responses in cells, such as the endocytosis process consisting in the translocation of receptors from the plasma membrane to the cytoplasm within internalizing vesicles or endosomes. In order to functionally evaluate endocytosis events resulted from pharmacological responses, we have developed an image analysis method -the Q-Endosomes algorithm- that specifically discriminates the fluorescent signal originated at endosomes from that one observed at the plasma membrane in images obtained from living cells by fluorescence microscopy. Mu opioid (MOP) receptor tagged at the carboxy-terminus with yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) and permanently expressed in HEK293 cells was used as experimental model to validate this methodology. Time-course experiments performed with several agonists resulted in different sigmoid curves depending on the drug used to initiate MOP receptor endocytosis. Thus, endocytosis resulting from the simultaneous activation of co-expressed MOP and serotonin 5-HT2C receptors by morphine plus serotonin was significantly different, in kinetics as well as in maximal response parameters, from the one caused by DAMGO, sufentanyl or methadone. Therefore, this analytical tool permits the pharmacological characterization of receptor endocytosis in living cells with functional and temporal resolution