Species survival and scaling laws in hostile and disordered environments

In this work we study the likelihood of survival of single-species in the context of hostile and disordered environments. Population dynamics in this environment, as modeled by the Fisher equation, is characterized by negative average growth rate, except in some random spatially distributed patches that may support life. In particular, we are interested in the phase diagram of the survival probability and in the critical size problem, i.e., the minimum patch size required for surviving in the long time dynamics. We propose a measure for the critical patch size as being proportional to the participation ratio (PR) of the eigenvector corresponding to the largest eigenvalue of the linearized Fisher dynamics. We obtain the (extinction-survival) phase diagram and the probability distribution function (PDF) of the critical patch sizes for two topologies, namely, the one-dimensional system and the fractal Peano basin. We show that both topologies share the same qualitative features, but the fractal topology requires higher spatial fluctuations to guarantee species survival. We perform a finite-size scaling and we obtain the associated scaling exponents. In addition, we show that the PDF of the critical patch sizes has an universal shape for the 1D case in terms of the model parameters (diffusion, growth rate, etc.). In contrast, the diffusion coefficient has a drastic effect on the PDF of the critical patch sizes of the fractal Peano basin, and it does not obey the same scaling law of the 1D case.Comment: 20 pages, 5 Figure

Innovation in Manufacturing Industries and The Use of Industrial Property in Brazil

Innovation is a key issue for business and in the current scenario of even more fierce competition, industries need to accelerate more and more the introduction of innovative knowledge and practices in order to stay in the market. In view of this environment, it is imperative that the Brazilian manufacturing industries improve their innovative processes, and it is also necessary to strengthen the use of industrial property. This study aims to know the context of innovation in the Brazilian manufacturing industries and the use of industrial property in Brazil. In the initial part, a theoretical research (discussion by theory) was carried out and then the descriptive and exploratory methodology was used, using a set of information and data collected from research and studies provided by institutions of national and international relevance . Based on the study, it was possible to draw a detailed profile of the innovative environment of the Brazilian manufacturing industries, whose main challenge is the high costs of innovation and the most important impact is the maintenance of the companies\u27 participation in the market. It was also verified the low use of industrial property by the business segment

Dendrimer Conjugation Enhances Tumor Penetration and Cell Kill of Doxorubicin in 3D Coculture Lung Cancer Models

Background: Doxorubicin (DOX) is a potent chemotherapeutic widely used for solid tumors (1). Despite high efficacy in 2D cell culture, DOX efficacy does not translate to in vivo lung cancer models (2). Major side effects such as cardiotoxicity may be alleviated with nano-based drug delivery systems (nanoDDS). However, tumor penetration of DOX and DOX-nanoDDS is largely unknown and is an additional barrier to effective clinical therapy (3). Here we describe a nanoDDS capable of enhancing the penetration of DOX. Methods: DOX was conjugated to generation 4 poly(amido-amine) dendrimers through (GFLG) tumor- liable bond. G4SA-GFLG-DOX was synthesized/characterized. spheroids were formed of (A549) lung adenocarcinoma cells and (3T3) fibroblasts. Spheroids were characterized for ECM components with immunohistochemistry. Confocal microscopy was used to evaluate the penetration, internalization, and colocalization of DOX and G4SA-GFLG-DOX. MTT assay and Caspase 3/7 to assess 2D and 3D cytotoxicity. Flow cytometry to determine cells uptake. Results: DOX conjugation to dendrimer resulted in G4SA-GFLG-DOX with ~5.5 DOX, 10±1 nm hydrodynamic diameter, and a -17±3 mV zeta-potential. Spheroids of (A549:3T3) were ECM- rich, developed ECM containing collagen-I, hyaluronan, laminin, and fibronectin. While DOX and G4SA-GFLG-DOX had similar toxicities in 2D model, G4SA-GFLG-DOX demonstrated a 3.1-fold greater penetration into spheroids compared to DOX and correlated to a greater efficacy as measured by caspase 3/7 activity. Also, flow cytometry showed higher uptake of G4SA- GFLG-DOX in cancer cells compared to fibroblasts. Conclusion: The work demonstrates enhanced penetration of DOX, via dendrimer conjugation, into an ECM- rich 3D lung cancer model. The enhanced penetration of G4SA-GFLG-DOX correlated with greater antitumor efficacy. Acknowledgements: We acknowledge partial financial support from the Center for Pharmaceutical Engineering and Sciences - School of Pharmacy at VCU. This study was supported by VCU Quest for Distinction and NSF (DRM #1508363). Microscopy was performed at the VCU Microscopy Facility, supported, in part, by funding from NIH-NCI Cancer Center Support Grant P30 CA016059. RA would like to acknowledge King Faisal University (KFU) and Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission (SACM) for a scholarship.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/gradposters/1091/thumbnail.jp

A customizable game-inspired application for memory stimulation

Demographic changes are leading to a growing older population (>65 years), with repercussions on age-related conditions. From a Computer Science perspective, this also means that there will soon be a significant number of users with changes in perceptual and motor skill capacities. The goal of this work is to develop an environment to support the preservation of memory and functional capacities of the elderly. Health professionals will be able to set up and personalize immersive and realistic scenarios with high ecological validity composed of visual, auditory, and physical stimuli. Patients will navigate through and interact with these scenarios and stimulate memory functions by later recalling distinct aspects of the different exercises of the tool. The long-term goal is to build a behavioral model of how older users interact with technology.- (undefined

Steps to build a DIY low-cost fixed-wing drone for biodiversity conservation

Despite the proved usefulness of drones in biodiversity studies, acquisition costs and difficulties in operating, maintaining and repairing these systems constrain their integration in conservation projects, particularly for low-income countries. Here we present the steps necessary to build a low-cost fixed-wing drone for environmental applications in large areas, along with instructions to increase the reliability of the system and testing its performance. Inspired by DIY (Do It Yourself) and open source models, this work prioritizes simplicity and accounts for cost-benefit for the researcher. The DIY fixed-wing drone developed has electric propulsion, can perform pre-programmed flight, can carry up to 500 g payload capacity with 65 minutes flight duration and flies at a maximum distance of 20 km. It is equipped with a RGB (Red, Green and Blue) sensor capable of obtaining 2.8 cm per pixel Ground Sample Distance (GSD) resolution at a constant altitude of 100 m above ground level (AGL). The total cost was $995 which is substantially less than the average value of similar commercial drones used in biodiversity studies. We performed 12 flight tests in auto mode using the developed model in protected areas in Brazil, obtaining RGB images that allowed us to identify deforestation spots smaller than 5 m2 and medium-sized animals. Building DIY drones requires some technical knowledge and demands more time than buying a commercial ready-to-fly system, but as proved here, it can be less expensive, which is often crucial in conservation project

An SOS-regulated operon involved in damage-inducible mutagenesis in Caulobacter crescentus

DNA polymerases of the Y-family, such as Escherichia coli UmuC and DinB, are specialized enzymes induced by the SOS response, which bypass lesions allowing the continuation of DNA replication. umuDC orthologs are absent in Caulobacter crescentus and other bacteria, raising the question about the existence of SOS mutagenesis in these organisms. Here, we report that the C.crescentus dinB ortholog is not involved in damage-induced mutagenesis. However, an operon composed of two hypothetical genes and dnaE2, encoding a second copy of the catalytic subunit of Pol III, is damage inducible in a recA-dependent manner, and is responsible for most ultraviolet (UV) and mitomycin C-induced mutations in C.crescentus. The results demonstrate that the three genes are required for the error-prone processing of DNA lesions. The two hypothetical genes were named imuA and imuB, after inducible mutagenesis. ImuB is similar to proteins of the Y-family of polymerases, and possibly cooperates with DnaE2 in lesion bypass. The mutations arising as a consequence of the activity of the imuAB dnaE2 operon are rather unusual for UV irradiation, including G:C to C:G transversions

OCORRÊNCIA DE PATÓGENOS EM CARNÍVOROS SELVAGENS BRASILEIROS E SUAS IMPLICAÇÕES PARA A CONSERVAÇÃO E SAÚDE PÚBLICA

OCCURRENCE OF PATHOGENS IN BRAZILIAN WILD CARNIVORES AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR CONSERVATION AND PUBLIC HEALTH.  Several outbreaks caused by pathogens caused declines in wild carnivore populations in the last decades. In addition to the negative impact to wild populations, there is a concern about the transmission of some of these agents to humans and domestic  animals. In fact, environmental alterations have resulted in changes in the pathogen-host relation. Therefore, monitoring health of wild animals is considered an important component in programs for control or eradication of diseases and in the public and animal health politics and for the management and conservation of wild species. Considering the role of mammals of the order Carnivora in the trophic chain, they might be used as “sentinels”, working as strategic targets in programs of surveillance of important pathogens for public and animal health. We review in this paper case-studies of the main pathogens that occur in wild carnivores, emphasizing species of the Brazilian fauna. We also discuss laboratorial methods used in studies of exposure of Brazilian wild carnivores to pathogens, as well as strategies to minimize the impacts in these populations caused by that exposure, and methods for controlling the occurrence of zoonotic pathogens in wild carnivores. Key-words: Order Carnivora; conservation medicine; zoonosis; epidemiology; fauna management.OCURRENCIA DE PATÓGENOS EN CARNÍVOROS SALVAJES BRASILEÑOS Y SUS IMPLICACIONES PARA LA CONSERVACIÓN Y LA SALUD PÚBLICA. Diversos brotes epidémicos causados por agentes patógenos han provocado una severa reducción de las poblaciones de carnívoros salvajes en las últimas décadas. Además de este impacto sobre las poblaciones silvestres, existe la preocupación de que haya transmisión de algunos de estos agentes a la población humana y de animales domésticos. De hecho, las alteraciones ambientales han provocado cambios en la relación patógeno-hospedero. De esta forma, el monitoreo de la salud de animales silvestres es un componente importante en el establecimiento de programas de control y erradicación de enfermedades y en la elaboración de políticas de salud pública y animal y de manejo y conservación de especies salvajes. Considerando el papel de los mamíferos del orden Carnivora en la cadena trófica, éstos pueden ser usados como “centinelas”, siendo objetivos estratégicos en programas de vigilancia para detección de patógenos. Siendo así, en este artículo serán revisados estudios de caso de los principales patógenos que afectan a carnívoros salvajes, con énfasis en las especies de la fauna brasileña. Los métodos de laboratorio utilizados en los estudios de exposición de los carnívoros brasileños a patógenos serán discutidos así como consideraciones sobre estrategias para minimizar sus impactos sobre la fauna silvestre y los posibles métodos para el control de patógenos causantes de zoonosis en carnívoros. Palabras clave: Orden Carnivora; medicina de la conservación; zoonosis; epidemiología; manejo de fauna.Diversos surtos epidêmicos, causados por agentes patogênicos, provocaram severo declínio em populações de carnívoros selvagens. Além deste impacto às populações silvestres, há a preocupação da transmissão de alguns destes agentes à população humana e de animais domésticos. De fato, as alterações ambientais têm provocado mudanças na relação patógeno-hospedeiro. Desta forma, o monitoramento da saúde de animais silvestres é importante componente no estabelecimento de programas de controle e erradicação de doenças e na elaboração de políticas de saúde pública e animal e de manejo e conservação de espécies selvagens. Considerando o papel dos mamíferos da ordem Carnivora na cadeia trófica, estes podem ser usados como “sentinelas”, sendo alvos estratégicos em programas de vigilância para detecção de patógenos. Sendo assim, neste artigo revisamos estudos de caso dos principais patógenos que acometem carnívoros selvagens, com ênfase nas espécies da fauna brasileira. Discutimos ainda os métodos laboratoriais utilizados nos estudos de exposição dos carnívoros brasileiros e fazemos considerações sobre estratégias para minimizar os impactos da exposição à patógenos, bem como os possíveis métodos para controle de patógenos causadores de zoonoses em carnívoros

Empirical analysis on OpenAPI topic exploration and discovery to support the developer community

OpenAPI has become a dominant standard for documentation in the service-oriented software industry. OpenAPI is used in many analysis and reengineering approaches for RESTful service and microservice-based systems. An OpenAPI document has several components that are usually filled by humans using natural language (e.g. description of a certain functionality). Thus, subjectivity may lead to inconsistencies and ambiguities. Understanding what an API does is a challenging question. As a consequence, this issue could hinder developers from identifying the functionality of APIs, after reading all its components. Along this line, we argue that developers will be provided with supportive tools to find those APIs that better suit their needs. In this paper, we propose a step towards creating these kinds of tools by empirically analyzing a set of 2,000 OpenAPI documents with the goal of extracting the main topics of an API using three topic modeling algorithms. To address this issue, we focus on three tasks: i) determine which component of an OpenAPI document provides the most meaningful information, ii) compare three state-of-the-art topic modeling algorithms, and iii) determine the optimal number of topics to represent an API. Our findings show that the best results could be obtained from the Description component by using the Non-negative Matrix Factorization (NMF) or Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) algorithms. To help developers find services in the OpenAPI directory, we also propose a prototype tool to explore the OpenAPI documents and analyze extracted topics to assess if the APIs meet developer’s needs.Sociedad Argentina de Informática e Investigación Operativ

The modulation of the symbiont/host interaction between wolbachia pipientis and aedes fluviatilis embryos by glycogen metabolism

Wolbachia pipientis, a maternally transmitted bacterium that colonizes arthropods, may affect the general aspects of insect physiology, particularly reproduction. Wolbachia is a natural endosymbiont of Aedes fluviatilis, whose effects in embryogenesis and reproduction have not been addressed so far. In this context, we investigated the correlation between glucose metabolism and morphological alterations during A. fluviatilis embryo development in Wolbachia-positive (W+) and Wolbachia-negative (W2) mosquito strains. While both strains do not display significant morphological and larval hatching differences, larger differences were observed in hexokinase activity and glycogen contents during early and mid-stages of embryogenesis, respectively. To investigate if glycogen would be required for parasite-host interaction, we reduced Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3 (GSK-3) levels in adult females and their eggs by RNAi. GSK-3 knock-down leads to embryonic lethality, lower levels of glycogen and total protein and Wolbachia reduction. Therefore, our results suggest that the relationship between A. fluviatilis and Wolbachia may be modulated by glycogen metabolism