A nonlocal 1-Laplacian problem and median values

In this paper, we study solutions to a nonlocal 1-Laplacian equation. We introduce two notions of solution and prove that the weaker of the two concepts is equivalent to a nonlocal median value property, where the median is determined by a measure related to J. We also show that solutions in the stronger sense are nonlocal analogues of local least gradient functions, in the sense that they minimize a nonlocal functional. In addition, we prove that solutions in the stronger sense converge to least gradient solutions when the kernel J is appropriately rescaled

Analysis of tooth mark patterns on bone remains caused by wolves (Canis lupus) and domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) for taxonomic identification: A scoping review focused on their value as a forensic tool.

The interaction between canids and humans is not free of conflicts. In Europe, wolves and dogs' attacks on domestic animals cause social and financial damages. The governments spend significant sums in compensation payments. Some of the allegations of wolf attacks on livestock may be false or difficult to prove. The insufficient expertise and unreliable methods used during the investigations often make it difficult to achieve a successful perpetrator identification, which leads to the stigmatization of this species and wrong paid compensations. Comparative studies of wolf and dog bite marks and tooth marks, to identify a potential aggressor agent, are very limited. In our study, 12,120 records were reviewed and only 16 of them fulfilled the search criteria set by the authors. Only one article carried out, exclusively, a comparison of wolf and dog bite mark patterns. These studies are commonly used in archaeological, paleontological and taphonomic contexts, but not in forensics. Despite the notable advances in bite mark analysis, most studies were carried out comparing bite marks from wolves and/or dogs and taxa belonging to other families. Currently, in forensic context, there is inconclusive evidence to certainly distinguish if the cause of death was created by wolves or domestic dogs using the forensic analysis of tooth/bite marks patterns from both canids (beyond any reasonable doubt). New and complementary forensic tools must be developed to differentiate between these two subspecies with a higher degree of certainty. Forensic veterinary odontology could play an important role in fulfilling this goal. The aim of the present work is to review and evaluate the studies on the identification of tooth marks on bone remains caused by two subspecies belonging to the same genus, wolves and domestic dogs

Ruddlesden–Popper hybrid lead bromide perovskite nanosheets of phase pure n=2: Stabilized colloids stored in the solid state

Ruddlesden-Popper lead halide perovskite (RP-LHP) nano-nanostructures can be regarded as self-assembled quantum wells or superlattices of 3D perovskites with an intrinsic quantum well thickness of a single or a few (n=2-4) lead halide layers; the quantum wells are separated by organic layers. They can be scaled down to a single quantum well dimension. Here, the preparation of highly (photo)chemical and colloidal stable hybrid LHP nanosheets (NSs) of ca. 7.4 µm lateral size and 2.5 nm quantum well height (thereby presenting a deep blue emission at ca. 440 nm), is reported for the first time. The NSs are close-lying and they even interconnect when deposited on a substrate. Their synthesis is based on the use of the p-toluenesulfonic acid/dodecylamine (pTS/DDA) ligand pair and their (photo)chemical stability and photoluminescence is enhanced by adding EuBr2 nanodots (EuNDs). Strikingly, they can be preserved as a solid and stored for at least one year. The blue emissive colloid can be recovered from the solid as needed by simply dispersing the powder in toluene and then using it to prepare solid films, making them very promising candidates for manufacturing devices. © 2021 The Authors. Angewandte Chemie International Edition published by Wiley-VCH GmbH

Enolase in the intestinal helminth infections: the case of the echinostoma caproni-mice model

Comunicaciones a congreso

Lianas Suppress Seedling Growth and Survival of 14 Tree Species in a Panamanian Tropical Forest

Lianas are a common plant growth form in tropical forests, where they compete intensely with trees, decreasing tree recruitment, growth, and survival. If the detrimental effects of lianas vary significantly with tree species identity, as is often assumed, then lianas may influence tree species diversity and community composition. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that liana abundance and biomass are increasing relative to trees in neotropical forests, which will likely magnify the detrimental effects of lianas and may ultimately alter tree species diversity, relative abundances, and community composition. Few studies, however, have tested the responses of multiple tree species to the presence of lianas in robust, well‐replicated experiments. We tested the hypotheses that lianas reduce tree seedling growth and survival, and that the effect of lianas varies with tree species identity. We used a large‐scale liana removal experiment in Central Panama in which we planted 14 replicate seedlings of 14 different tree species that varied in shade tolerance in each of 16 80 × 80 m plots (eight liana‐removal and eight unmanipulated controls; 3136 total seedlings). Over a nearly two‐yr period, we found that tree seedlings survived 75% more, grew 300% taller, and had twice the aboveground biomass in liana‐removal plots than seedlings in control plots, consistent with strong competition between lianas and tree seedlings. There were no significant differences in the response of tree species to liana competition (i.e., there was no species by treatment interaction), indicating that lianas had a similar negative effect on all 14 tree species. Furthermore, the effect of lianas did not vary with tree species shade tolerance classification, suggesting that the liana effect was not solely based on light. Based on these findings, recently observed increases in liana abundance in neotropical forests will substantially reduce tree regeneration, but will not significantly alter tropical tree species diversity, relative abundance, or community composition

Niveles de fósforo disponible aparente en pollas Leghorn blanca durante las etapas de iniciación, crecimiento, desarrollo e inicio de postura

Phosphorus (P) is important for the growth and metabolism of pullets and young laying hens, although the requeriments of this mineral could be overvalued. An experiment was conducted with 750 Hy-line W-36 pullets to evaluate the effects of apparent available phosphorus (aaP) levels during starter (1 d to 6 wk), growing (7 to 12 wk), development (13 to 18 wk), and initial laying period. The analyzed variables were: body weight (BW), feed intake (FI), percentage of P in excreta (PPE) and tibia bone (TBP), tibia breaking strength (TBS), egg mass (EM), and specific gravity (SG). The evaluated aaP levels had no effect (P>0.05) on FI, FP, TBP, RB, or EM in the stages under study. There was a difference (P0.05) in the starter period, the optimum biological levels for growing and finishing stages were 0.28 and 0.26 % of aaP, respectively. It was concluded that the requirements of apparent available phosphorus could be lower than the value suggested by NRC (1994) for the growth stages and the variables measured, without affecting the body condition and bone mineralization of pullets.El fósforo es importante en el metabolismo y desarrollo de las pollitas de reemplazo, aunque las necesidades de este mineral pueden estar sobrevaloradas. Se realizó un experimento con 750 pollas de la lí­nea Hy-line W-36, para evaluar los efectos de niveles de fósforo disponible aparente (Pda) durante las etapas de iniciación (1 dí­a a 6 semanas), crecimiento (7 a 12 semanas), desarrollo (13 a 18 semanas) y de inicio a pico de postura. Las caracterí­sticas estudiadas fueron: peso vivo (PV), consumo de alimento (CA), porcentaje de fósforo total en excretas y tibias (PTE y PT), resistencia a ruptura de tibias (RR), masa de huevo (MH) y gravedad especí­fica (GE). El nivel de Pda no afectó (P>0.05) el CA, PTE, PT, RR y MH en las etapas estudiadas. Hubo diferencias (P0.05), mientras que los niveles óptimos biológicos para PV en crecimiento fueron con 0.28 % y desarrollo 0.26 %. Se concluye que las necesidades de fósforo disponible aparente pueden ser menores a lo sugerido por el NRC (1994), durante las etapas y caracterí­sticas medidas, sin afectar la condición corporal y mineralización ósea de las aves

A nonlocal 1-Laplacian problem and median values

In this paper, we study solutions to a nonlocal 1-Laplacian equation. We introduce two notions of solution and prove that the weaker of the two concepts is equivalent to a nonlocal median value property, where the median is determined by a measure related to J. We also show that solutions in the stronger sense are nonlocal analogues of local least gradient functions, in the sense that they minimize a nonlocal functional. In addition, we prove that solutions in the stronger sense converge to least gradient solutions when the kernel J is appropriately rescaled

Aging in Male Wistar Rats Associates with Changes in Intestinal Microbiota, Gut Structure, and Cholecystokinin-Mediated Gut-Brain Axis Function

Aging in mammals is characterized by failure of the homeostatic mechanisms that regulate energy balance. Several mechanisms have been proposed such as the presence of a low-grade chronic inflammation in different tissues, as well as leptin and insulin resistance, but the primary alteration is not fully elucidated. The gut microbiota has recently emerged as a key player in a variety of metabolic and neurological disorders. A main concept in this context is the gut–brain axis that refers to alterations in the gut that mediate effects in the central nervous system, including those related with the control of energy balance. Using 16S rRNA analysis, we demonstrate that aged male Wistar rats have increased presence of mucin-degrading and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-producing bacteria. In addition, old animals exhibit a lower number of neutral mucin secreting goblet cells, and a decrease of tight junctions and adherens junctions marker proteins, zonula occludens protein-1 (ZO-1) and β-catenin, respectively. These data are compatible with a thinner mucus layer and a weaker gut barrier in older animals that likely facilitate LPS leakage. Our data also show that cholecystokinin (CCK) satiating effect is impaired in aged rats, one of the expected effects of increased LPS leakage. In contrast, no overt signs of gut or systemic inflammation are observed. Changes in microbiota in old male Wistar rats present features of situations of increased adiposity, but different from those of obese animals. These could partly explain the increased adiposity and fat deposition in liver and heart as observed here.Spanish Government (grants BFU2008-04901-C03-01/BFI to J.M.C., BIO2016-76601-C3-2-R to M.F.-L., and RTI2018-094052-B-100 [MCI/AEI/FEDER, UE to A.M.V.] and Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabólicas (Instituto de Salud Carlos III) and Comunidad de Madrid, Spain (grants S2010/BMD-2423 to J.M.C., F.E., L.G.G., and A.M.V. and S2017/BMD-3684 to F.E. and A.M.V.). C.R. was supported by a predoctoral aid from Spanish Government. The Centro de Biología Molecular is recipient of institutional aids from Banco de Santander and Ramón Areces Foundation

Papel de la eminencia talámica, el sistema olfativo principal y el sistema olfativo accesorio en la maduración sexual del encéfalo y las manifestaciones clínico-morfológicas del síndrome de Kallmann

El desarrollo de sistema olfativo y la diferenciación sexual del encéfalo, tanto en el hombre como en los animales, están estrechamente relacionados. Actualmente, se describe la imbricación entre la formación del sistema olfativo principal y la migración de las neuronas que sintetizan la hormona liberadora de gonadotrofinas (GnRF). Estas neuronas GnRF se desplazan por los nervios olfatorios, desde la parte medial del epitelio nasal al bulbo olfatorio, continúan por el encéfalo rostral hasta alcanzar el hipotálamo anterior. Por otro lado, el síndrome de Kallmann es un trastorno genético en el cual se combina el hipogonadismo hipogonadotrópico y la anosmia. El hipogonadismo se caracteriza por la ausencia o reducción de los niveles de hormona liberadora de gonadotrofinas y la anosmia la aplasia del bulbo olfatorio. En esta revisión se analizan las estructuras responsables de la maduración del sistema olfativo principal y accesorio, la diferenciación sexual del encéfalo y su relación con todas las manifestaciones clínicas y morfológicas del síndrome Kallmann. The olfactory system development and brain sexual maturation, in man and animals, are closely related. Currently the overlap between the formation of the olfactory system and the migration of neurons that synthesize gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRF) are described. The GnRF neurons migrate from the medial portion of the nasal epithelium through the olfactory nerves and the main olfactory bulb to the anterior hypothalamus. Furthermore, Kallmann syndrome (KS) is a genetic disorder in which combines hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and anosmia. Hypogonadism is characterized by the absence or reduced levels of gonadotropin-releasing hormone and anosmia is due to aplasia of the olfactory bulb. The basic clinical manifestations of KS are: anosmia and the absence of puberty. The structures responsible for the maturation of the main and accessory olfactory systems, the sexual differentiation of the brain and its relationship with all the clinical manifestations of Kallmann syndrome are analyzed in this revie

Radon and material radiopurity assessment for the NEXT double beta decay experiment

The Neutrino Experiment with a Xenon TPC (NEXT), intended to investigate the neutrinoless double beta decay using a high-pressure xenon gas TPC filled with Xe enriched in 136Xe at the Canfranc Underground Laboratory in Spain, requires ultra-low background conditions demanding an exhaustive control of material radiopurity and environmental radon levels. An extensive material screening process is underway for several years based mainly on gamma-ray spectroscopy using ultra-low background germanium detectors in Canfranc but also on mass spectrometry techniques like GDMS and ICPMS. Components from shielding, pressure vessel, electroluminescence and high voltage elements and energy and tracking readout planes have been analyzed, helping in the final design of the experiment and in the construction of the background model. The latest measurements carried out will be presented and the implication on NEXT of their results will be discussed. The commissioning of the NEW detector, as a first step towards NEXT, has started in Canfranc; in-situ measurements of airborne radon levels were taken there to optimize the system for radon mitigation and will be shown too.Comment: Proceedings of the Low Radioactivity Techniques 2015 workshop (LRT2015), Seattle, March 201