Stroboscopic Laser Diagnostics for Detection of Ordering in One-Dimensional Ion beam

A novel diagnostic method for detecting ordering in one-dimensional ion beams is presented. The ions are excited by a pulsed laser at two different positions along the beam and fluorescence is observed by a group of four photomultipliers. Correlation in fluorescence signals is firm indication that the ion beam has an ordered structure.Comment: 7 pages, REVTEX, fig3 uuencoded, figs 1-2 available upon request from [email protected], to appear in Phys. Rev.

Behaviour and Degenerative Changes in the Basal Forebrain Systems of Aged Rats (12 Months Old) after Levo-Acetyl-Carnitine Treatments

One group of six male control rats [12 months old] and one group of six male rats of the same age, singularly maintained in a cage, and treated with acetyl-L-carnitine-HCl [(gamma-trimethyl-beta-acetyl-butyrobetaine-HCl: Sigma-Tau code ST200 or ALCAR: 60 mg/kg/day[7]/po)] for six months were tested in the spatial learning/memory Morris mazewater task and for atrophy and cell loss in seven myelo- and cytostructurally defined basal forebrain (BF) cholinergic regions [Freddi et al., 2009]. Coronal sections 25 ?m thick were cut through the BF regions and processed every 200 ?m for choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) immunohistochemistry. The ALCAR-treated rats had significantly shorter exit times on the Morris maze-water task test than the control rats (average \ub1 SD 28.3 \ub1 12.4 s vs. 61.16 \ub1 4.67 s; t = 6.07, DOF = 10, P = 0.0001). Degenerative morphological changes in the BF ChAT-positive cells were observed in the substantia innominata pars anterior of the control rats but not in the treated animals (P < 0.05). In the BF, the counted and estimated average number of ChAT + cells in the 12-month-old ALCAR-treated rats (ChAT-ALCAR-12+ [Nos. 2,3,4]) was higher but not significantly (15.288 \ub1 3281) than that counted and estimated in the 12-month-old control rats [(ChAT-CT-12 [Nos. 1,2,3]) (11.508 \ub1 3868), t = 1.82, DOF = 10, P = 0.319]. In the substantia innominata pars posterior, the ChAT+ cells were significantly more numerous (P < 0.05) in the 12-month-old ALCAR-treated rats (ChAT-ALCAR-12 + [Nos. 2,3,4]) than in the control rats (ChAT-CT-12 [Nos. 1,2,3]). Above all, these results dem-onstrate that treatment with ALCAR from the age of 6 up to 12 months significantly attenuated spatial learning/memory impairment on the Morris maze-water behavioral task (P < 0.001) and also importantly reduced degeneration in size and number of cholinergic cells in the nucleus basalis magnocellularis of the BF. Accordingly, the surviving cholinergic neurons found in the BF of the ALCAR-treated rats might play an important role in modulating cortical activity and facilitating processes of attention, learning and memory

L-Carnitine counteracts in vitro fructose-induced hepatic steatosis through targeting oxidative stress markers

Purpose: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is defined by excessive lipid accumulation in the liver and involves an ample spectrum of liver diseases, ranging from simple uncomplicated steatosis to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Accumulating evidence demonstrates that high fructose intake enhances NAFLD development and progression promoting inhibition of mitochondrial \u3b2-oxidation of long-chain fatty acids and oxidative damages. l-Carnitine (LC), involved in \u3b2-oxidation, has been used to reduce obesity caused by high-fat diet, which is beneficial to ameliorating fatty liver diseases. Moreover, in the recent years, various studies have established LC anti-oxidative proprieties. The objective of this study was to elucidate primarily the underlying anti-oxidative mechanisms of LC in an in vitro model of fructose-induced liver steatosis. Methods: Human hepatoma HepG2 cells were maintained in medium supplemented with LC (5&nbsp;mM LC) with or without 5&nbsp;mM fructose (F) for 48&nbsp;h and 72&nbsp;h. In control cells, LC or F was not added to medium. Fat deposition, anti-oxidative, and mitochondrial homeostasis were investigated. Results: LC supplementation decreased the intracellular lipid deposition enhancing AMPK activation. However, compound C (AMPK inhibitor-10&nbsp;\u3bcM), significantly abolished LC benefits in F condition. Moreover, LC, increasing PGC1 \u3b1 expression, ameliorates mitochondrial damage-F induced. Above all, LC reduced ROS production and simultaneously increased protein content of antioxidant factors, SOD2 and Nrf2. Conclusion: Our data seemed to show that LC attenuate fructose-mediated lipid accumulation through AMPK activation. Moreover, LC counteracts mitochondrial damages and reactive oxygen species production restoring antioxidant cellular machine. These findings provide new insights into LC role as an AMPK activator and anti-oxidative molecule in NAFLD

FIRI - a Far-Infrared Interferometer

Half of the energy ever emitted by stars and accreting objects comes to us in the FIR waveband and has yet to be properly explored. We propose a powerful Far-InfraRed Interferometer mission, FIRI, to carry out high-resolution imaging spectroscopy in the FIR. This key observational capability is essential to reveal how gas and dust evolve into stars and planets, how the first luminous objects in the Universe ignited, how galaxies formed, and when super-massive black holes grew. FIRI will disentangle the cosmic histories of star formation and accretion onto black holes and will trace the assembly and evolution of quiescent galaxies like our Milky Way. Perhaps most importantly, FIRI will observe all stages of planetary system formation and recognise Earth-like planets that may harbour life, via its ability to image the dust structures in planetary systems. It will thus address directly questions fundamental to our understanding of how the Universe has developed and evolved - the very questions posed by ESA's Cosmic Vision.Comment: Proposal developed by a large team of astronomers from Europe, USA and Canada and submitted to the European Space Agency as part of "Cosmic Vision 2015-2025

Students’ Evolving Meaning About Tangent Line with the Mediation of a Dynamic Geometry Environment and an Instructional Example Space

In this paper I report a lengthy episode from a teaching experiment in which fifteen Year 12 Greek students negotiated their definitions of tangent line to a function graph. The experiment was designed for the purpose of introducing students to the notion of derivative and to the general case of tangent to a function graph. Its design was based on previous research results on students’ perspectives on tangency, especially in their transition from Geometry to Analysis. In this experiment an instructional example space of functions was used in an electronic environment utilising Dynamic Geometry software with Function Grapher tools. Following the Vygotskian approach according to which students’ knowledge develops in specific social and cultural contexts, students’ construction of the meaning of tangent line was observed in the classroom throughout the experiment. The analysis of the classroom data collected during the experiment focused on the evolution of students’ personal meanings about tangent line of function graph in relation to: the electronic environment; the pre-prepared as well as spontaneous examples; students’ engagement in classroom discussion; and, the role of researcher as a teacher. The analysis indicated that the evolution of students’ meanings towards a more sophisticated understanding of tangency was not linear. Also it was interrelated with the evolution of the meaning they had about the inscriptions in the electronic environment; the instructional example space; the classroom discussion; and, the role of the teacher

Serum sE-selectin levels and carcinoembryonic antigen mRNA-expressing cells in peripheral blood as prognostic factors in colorectal cancer patients

This study analyzed the possible prognostic value of presurgical serum soluble (s)E-selectin levels and/or carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) mRNA positivity in predicting the disease-free survival of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients

The challenge of infrared imaging of frescos: Thermal Quasi-Reflectography unveils hidden features of artworks

Thermal Quasi-Reflectography is a new optical technique, based on Mid-IR, which is demonstrated to have a great potential in the diagnostics of frescoes. Here we address the key-points: 1) basic principles and instrumentation to enable operative measurements; 2) main diagnostic results

VGF peptide profiles in Type 2 diabetic patients' plasma and in obese mice

To address the possible involvement of VGF peptides in obesity and diabetes, we studied type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obese patients, and high-fat diet induced obese mice. Two VGF peptides (NAPP-19 and QQET-30) were identified in human plasma by HPLC-ESI-MS. The VGF C-terminus, the above two cleaved peptides, and the TLQP-21 related peptide/s were studied using ELISA and immunohistochemistry. In euglycemic patients, plasma NAPPE and TLQP like peptides were significantly reduced with obesity (74±10 vs. 167±28, and 92±10 vs. 191±19 pmol/ml, mean+SEM, n = 10 and 6, obese vs. normal BMI, respectively, p<0.03). Upon a standard glucose load, a distinct response was shown for VGF C-terminus, TLQP and QQET-like (ERVW immunoreactive) peptides in euglycemic normal BMI patients, but was virtually abolished in euglycemic obese, and in T2D patients independently of BMI. High-fat diet induced obese mice showed reduced plasma VGF C-terminus, NAPPE and QQET-like (ERVW) peptide/s (3±0.2 vs. 4.6±0.3, 22±3.5 vs. 34±1.3, and 48±7 vs. 100±7 pmol/ml, mean+SEM, n = 8/group, obese vs. slim, respectively, p<0.03), with a loss of the response to glucose for all VGF peptides studied. In immunohistochemistry, TLQP and/or VGF C-terminus antibodies labelled VGF containing perikarya in mouse celiac ganglia, pancreatic islet cells and thin beaded nerve fibres in brown adipose tissues, with fewer in white adipose tissue. Upon the glucose load, tyrosine hydroxylase and VGF C-terminus immunoreactive axons became apparent in pancreatic islets of slim animals, but not in obese animals. Alltogether, a significant loss of VGF peptide immunoreactivity and/or their response to glucose was demonstrated in obese patients, with or without T2D, in parallel with a similar loss in high-fat diet induced obese mice. An involvement of VGF in metabolic regulations, including those of brown and/or white adipose tissues is underlined, and may point out specific VGF peptides as potential targets for diagnosis and/or treatment

Avances en la investigación de la relación patogeno-hospedante y de la resistencia genética a enfermedades de la caña de azúcar en Argentina

Esta contribución presenta avances en la investigación de la variabilidad y resistencia genética con relación a “Roya marrón” y “Estría roja” de la caña de azúcar en Argentina. Resultados experimentales de la inoculación con roya en condiciones controladas permitieron postular que tanto la actividad peroxidasa basal como la tasa de su crecimiento con posterioridad a la infección serían mecanismos complementarios que favorecen la expresión de la resistencia a la enfermedad. También se investigó la diversidad molecular en poblaciones de roya con base en 538 marcadores AFLP a partir de muestreos en diferentes variedades y en una amplia faja de distribución de la enfermedad en el NOA. No se detectaron estructuras genéticas diferenciadas según orígenes, comportándose las diferentes poblaciones como una única gran población indiferenciada de uredosporos con alto grado de variabilidad genética intrínseca. Con relación a Estría roja se logró optimizar una técnica efectiva para el aislamiento, identificación y caracterización genética del agente responsable de la enfermedad. Los resultados obtenidos permitieron confirmar que Acidovorax avenae es el agente responsable de estría roja de la caña de azúcar en Argentina, siendo ésta la primera caracterización realizada en la región cañera para esta patología. Por otra parte el análisis de perfiles de REP-PCR y RAPD confirmó la presencia de al menos cuatro biotipos de la enfermedad en aislados de Salta y Tucumán. La existencia de diversidad genética entre aislamientos permite diseñar estrategias de control mediante el uso de variedades resistentes.The paper presents recent progress in the investigation of variability and genetic resistance in relation to Rust and Red stripe diseases of sugar cane in Argentina. Experimental results for rust innoculation under controlled conditions served to postulate that both basal peroxidase activity and its rate of increase after innoculation with the disease could be complementary mechanisms in the expression of resistance in different cultivars. Molecular diversity of rust populations collected in the field in North West Argentina were also investigated based on 538 AFLP markers. Samples collected in different varieties and sites indicated that rust uredospores populations correspond with a single mixed undifferentiated population with a high degree of intrinsic genetic variability. In regard to Red stripe it was possible to optimize an effective procedure for the isolation, identification and genetic characterization of the disease agent. Results permitted for the first time the identification of Acidovorax avenae as the agent responsible for the disease in Argentina. The profile analysis for REP-PC and RAPD indicated the presence of at least four different biotypes of the disease in Salta and Tucumán. The occurrence of genetic diversity among isolates permits the design of strategies for the control of the disease by means of resistant varieties.Fil: Mariotti, Jorge Alberto. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Machado Assefh, Cristina Renata. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Salta; ArgentinaFil: Rech, G.. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Fontana, P. D.. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria; ArgentinaFil: Collavino, N. G.. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Pocoví, M. I.. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Rago, A. M.. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria; ArgentinaFil: Daz, Mirta Elizabeth. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Salta; Argentin