Effect of varying crude protein levels on spawning frequency and growth of Sarotherodon niloticus breeders

Four-month-old S. niloticus breeders were fed with dry pellets containing 20-50% crude protein and the frequency of spawning involving removal of egg from the mouthbrooding females and growth were determined. When the diets contain high quality proteins from fish meal and soybean oil meal and the amounts of daily food allowance are at satiation level, the influence of increasing dietary crude protein on spawning frequency involving egg removal from the brooder and growth may not be significant

Production of bioactive lichen compounds by alginate-immobilized bionts isolated from Cladonia verticillaris: an in vitro study

Bionts isolated from thalli of Cladonia verticillaris, immobilized in calcium alginate, produce two depsidones, fumarprotocetraric and protocetraric acids, and the depside atranorin, that exhibit antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Organic lichen extract (acetone/ether/chloroform) shows the highest antimicrobial activity due to a possible synergism between these substances. Antioxidant capacity of soluble metabolites secreted from the immobilisates to the bath medium of incubation during the first 12 days of immobilization has been found (˃80% oxidation inhibition). The concentration of soluble phenolic substances depends on the immobilization time (during 32 days), exogenous supply of acetate (1.0m mM sodium or calcium acetate) and on the type of isolated biont (phycobionts, mycobionts, whole thallus or immobilized phycobionts co-incubated with the mycobionts ones). The role of phycobionts in phenol production has been interpreted as a possible modification of the polymalonyl pathway; for example, atranorin is actively produced and secreted during immobilization while it is not detected in thallus in natura. Co-incubated bionts secrete higher amounts of atranorin to the media during the first 12 days of immobilization. Immobilization of isolated bionts could be used as a biotechnological technique to obtain a potential source of biological active compounds. On the other hand, the physiological state detected of C. verticillaris in the Cerrado is much better for experimentation than that of the specimens collected in Caatinga since, in this case, the thalli showed the fragility that the extreme environmental conditions of the semi-arid region of NE Brazil impose on this lichen species. To date, no priority has been defined for lichen conservation in Brazilian ecosystems. It is therefore suggested that it imust important to include lichen ecophysiology studies in public conservation policies

Biologically-active compounds from Brazilian lichens and their affinity with ether

It can be obtained from lichens biologically-active extracts and pure substances, many of them of phenolic nature. They are usually obtained by using organic solvents, such as diethyl ether. In this paper the usefulness of ether for the obtainment of crude extracts and the subsequent purification of pure substances from Brazilian lichen is reviewed, as well as alternatives to their production through cells or thallus immobilization in bioreactors and their entrapment in inert matrix

A computational method for the identification of dengue, zika and chikungunya virus species and genotypes

In recent years, an increasing number of outbreaks of Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika viruses have been reported in Asia and the Americas. Monitoring virus genotype diversity is crucial to understand the emergence and spread of outbreaks, both aspects that are vital to develop effective prevention and treatment strategies. Hence, we developed an efficient method to classify virus sequences with respect to their species and sub-species (i.e. serotype and/or genotype). This tool provides an easy-to-use software implementation of this new method and was validated on a large dataset assessing the classification performance with respect to whole-genome sequences and partial-genome sequences.publishersversionpublishe

Association between diet-quality scores, adiposity, total cholesterol and markers of nutritional status in European adults: findings from the Food4Me study

Diet-quality scores (DQS), which are developed across the globe, are used to define adherence to specific eating patterns and have been associated with risk of coronary heart disease and type-II diabetes. We explored the association between five diet-quality scores (Healthy Eating Index, HEI; Alternate Healthy Eating Index, AHEI; MedDietScore, MDS; PREDIMED Mediterranean Diet Score, P-MDS; Dutch Healthy Diet-Index, DHDI) and markers of metabolic health (anthropometry, objective physical activity levels (PAL), and dried blood spot total cholesterol (TC), total carotenoids, and omega-3 index) in the Food4Me cohort, using regression analysis. Dietary intake was assessed using a validated Food Frequency Questionnaire. Participants (n = 1480) were adults recruited from seven European Union (EU) countries. Overall, women had higher HEI and AHEI than men (p < 0.05), and scores varied significantly between countries. For all DQS, higher scores were associated with lower body mass index, lower waist-to-height ratio and waist circumference, and higher total carotenoids and omega-3-index (p trends < 0.05). Higher HEI, AHEI, DHDI, and P-MDS scores were associated with increased daily PAL, moderate and vigorous activity, and reduced sedentary behaviour (p trend < 0.05). We observed no association between DQS and TC. To conclude, higher DQS, which reflect better dietary patterns, were associated with markers of better nutritional status and metabolic health

DES13S2cmm: the first superluminous supernova from the Dark Energy Survey

We present DES13S2cmm, the first spectroscopically-confirmed superluminous supernova (SLSN) from the Dark Energy Survey (DES). We briefly discuss the data and search algorithm used to find this event in the first year of DES operations, and outline the spectroscopic data obtained from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope to confirm its redshift (z = 0.663 +/- 0.001 based on the host-galaxy emission lines) and likely spectral type (type I). Using this redshift, we find M_U_peak = -21.05 +0.10 -0.09 for the peak, rest-frame U-band absolute magnitude, and find DES13S2cmm to be located in a faint, low metallicity (sub-solar), low stellar-mass host galaxy (log(M/M_sun) = 9.3 +/- 0.3); consistent with what is seen for other SLSNe-I. We compare the bolometric light curve of DES13S2cmm to fourteen similarly well-observed SLSNe-I in the literature and find it possesses one of the slowest declining tails (beyond +30 days rest frame past peak), and is the faintest at peak. Moreover, we find the bolometric light curves of all SLSNe-I studied herein possess a dispersion of only 0.2-0.3 magnitudes between +25 and +30 days after peak (rest frame) depending on redshift range studied; this could be important for 'standardising' such supernovae, as is done with the more common type Ia. We fit the bolometric light curve of DES13S2cmm with two competing models for SLSNe-I - the radioactive decay of 56Ni, and a magnetar - and find that while the magnetar is formally a better fit, neither model provides a compelling match to the data. Although we are unable to conclusively differentiate between these two physical models for this particular SLSN-I, further DES observations of more SLSNe-I should break this degeneracy, especially if the light curves of SLSNe-I can be observed beyond 100 days in the rest frame of the supernova.Comment: Accepted by MNRAS (2015 January 23), 13 pages, 6 figures, 2 table

First cosmology results using SNe Ia from the dark energy survey: analysis, systematic uncertainties, and validation

International audienceWe present the analysis underpinning the measurement of cosmological parameters from 207 spectroscopically classified type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) from the first three years of the Dark Energy Survey Supernova Program (DES-SN), spanning a redshift range of 0.01

Plasma glial fibrillary acidic protein is raised in progranulin-associated frontotemporal dementia

Background There are few validated fluid biomarkers in frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is a measure of astrogliosis, a known pathological process of FTD, but has yet to be explored as potential biomarker. Methods Plasma GFAP and neurofilament light chain (NfL) concentration were measured in 469 individuals enrolled in the Genetic FTD Initiative: 114 C9orf72 expansion carriers (74 presymptomatic, 40 symptomatic), 119 GRN mutation carriers (88 presymptomatic, 31 symptomatic), 53 MAPT mutation carriers (34 presymptomatic, 19 symptomatic) and 183 non-carrier controls. Biomarker measures were compared between groups using linear regression models adjusted for age and sex with family membership included as random effect. Participants underwent standardised clinical assessments including the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration-C linical Dementia Rating scale and MRI. Spearman's correlation coefficient was used to investigate the relationship of plasma GFAP to clinical and imaging measures. Results Plasma GFAP concentration was significantly increased in symptomatic GRN mutation carriers (adjusted mean difference from controls 192.3 pg/mL, 95% CI 126.5 to 445.6), but not in those with C9orf72 expansions (9.0, -61.3 to 54.6), MAPT mutations (12.7, -33.3 to 90.4) or the presymptomatic groups. GFAP concentration was significantly positively correlated with age in both controls and the majority of the disease groups, as well as with NfL concentration. In the presymptomatic period, higher GFAP concentrations were correlated with a lower cognitive score (MMSE) and lower brain volume, while in the symptomatic period, higher concentrations were associated with faster rates of atrophy in the temporal lobe. Conclusions Raised GFAP concentrations appear to be unique to GRN-related FTD, with levels potentially increasing just prior to symptom onset, suggesting that GFAP may be an important marker of proximity to onset, and helpful for forthcoming therapeutic prevention trials