67 research outputs found
Museum and herbarium collections for biodiversity research in Angola
The importance of museum and herbarium collections is especially great
in biodiverse countries such as Angola, an importance as great as the challenges
facing the effective and sustained management of such facilities. The interface that
Angola represents between tropical humid climates and semi-desert and desert
regions creates conditions for diverse habitats with many rare and endemic species.
Museum and herbarium collections are essential foundations for scientific studies,
providing references for identifying the components of this diversity, as well as
serving as repositories of material for future study. In this review we summarise the
history and current status of museum and herbarium collections in Angola and of
information on the specimens from Angola in foreign collections. Finally, we provide
examples of the uses of museum and herbarium collections, as well as a roadmap
towards strengthening the role of collections in biodiversity knowledge
generationinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Interleukin-8 responses of multi-layer gingival epithelia to subgingival biofilms: role of the “red complex” species
Periodontitis is an infectious inflammatory disease that results in the destruction of the tooth-supporting (periodontal) tissues. The Gram-negative anaerobic species Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythia and Treponema denticola, (also known as the “red complex” species) are highly associated with subgingival biofilms at periodontitis-affected sites. A major chemokine produced by the gingival epithelium in response to biofilm challenge, is interleukin (IL)-8. The aim of this in vitro study was to investigate the relative effect of the “red complex” species as constituents of subgingival biofilms, on the regulation of IL-8 by gingival epithelia. Multi-layered organotypic human gingival epithelial cultures were challenged with a 10-species in vitro subgingival biofilm model, or its 7-species variant, excluding the “red complex”. IL-8 gene expression and secretion analyses were performed by qPCR and ELISA, respectively. After 3 h, both biofilms up-regulated IL-8 gene expression, but the presence of the “red complex” resulted in 3-fold greater response. IL-8 secretion was also up-regulated by both biofilms, with no differences between them. After 24 h, the 10-species biofilm reduced IL-8 secretion to 50% of the control, but this was not affected when the “red complex” was absent. In conclusion, as part of biofilms, “red complex” species differentially regulate IL-8 in gingival epithelia, potentially affecting the chemotactic responses of the tissue
Late Quaternary tectonic activity and shortening rate of the Beiluntai fault zone in the South Tianshan, Xinjiang, NW China
Analyzing the formation mechanism of the Xuyong landslide, Sichuan province, China, and emergency monitoring based on multiple remote sensing platform techniques
The Late Quaternary dip–slip characteristics of the left-lateral strike-slip Yuanmou fault, the southwestern margin of the north–south seismic belt of China
Late Quaternary activity characteristics of the strike-slip Dongbielieke Fault in West Junggar, China
Paleoseismic records of large earthquakes on the cross-basin fault in the Ganyanchi pull-apart basin, Haiyuan fault, northeastern Tibetan Plateau
Geochronological and geochemical constraints on the ore-related granites in Huanggang deposit, Southern Great Xing’an Range, NE China and its tectonic significance
A Facile and Low-Cost Method to Enhance the Internal Quantum Yield and External Light-Extraction Efficiency for Flexible Light-Emitting Carbon-Dot Films
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