Chemical Composition and Antifungal Properties of Essential Oil of Origanum vulgare Linnaeus (Lamiaceae) against Sporothrix schenckii and Sporothrix brasiliensis

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of the essential oil of Origanum vulgare Linnaeus (Lamiaceae) on the growth of Sporothrix schenckii and Sporothrix brasiliensis.Methods: The chemical composition of the essential oil was investigated by gas chromatography/flame ionization detector (GC-FID). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) were determined by broth micro-dilution method. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was also performed to reveal morphological alterations in Sporothrix spp. cells.Results: The major components of the essential oil were γ-terpinene (30.5%), carvacrol (15.7 %) and 4-terpineol (13.0 %). γ-Terpinene showed potential antifungal activity with MIC ranging from 62.5 to 500.0 μg mL-1 for S. schenckii, and 125.0 to 250.0 μg mL-1 for S. brasiliensis. SEM micrographs revealed morphological alterations in hyphae and reduction of the adhered conidia numbers.Conclusion: Origanum vulgare Linnaeus essential oil possesses potential antifungal activity, and can, therefore, can be developed as an alternative agent for the treatment of sporotrichosis.Keywords: Antifungal Activity, Essential Oil, Gas Chromatography, Origanum vulgare, Sporotrichosi

X-ray emission from the Sombrero galaxy: discrete sources

We present a study of discrete X-ray sources in and around the bulge-dominated, massive Sa galaxy, Sombrero (M104), based on new and archival Chandra observations with a total exposure of ~200 ks. With a detection limit of L_X = 1E37 erg/s and a field of view covering a galactocentric radius of ~30 kpc (11.5 arcminute), 383 sources are detected. Cross-correlation with Spitler et al.'s catalogue of Sombrero globular clusters (GCs) identified from HST/ACS observations reveals 41 X-rays sources in GCs, presumably low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs). We quantify the differential luminosity functions (LFs) for both the detected GC and field LMXBs, whose power-low indices (~1.1 for the GC-LF and ~1.6 for field-LF) are consistent with previous studies for elliptical galaxies. With precise sky positions of the GCs without a detected X-ray source, we further quantify, through a fluctuation analysis, the GC LF at fainter luminosities down to 1E35 erg/s. The derived index rules out a faint-end slope flatter than 1.1 at a 2 sigma significance, contrary to recent findings in several elliptical galaxies and the bulge of M31. On the other hand, the 2-6 keV unresolved emission places a tight constraint on the field LF, implying a flattened index of ~1.0 below 1E37 erg/s. We also detect 101 sources in the halo of Sombrero. The presence of these sources cannot be interpreted as galactic LMXBs whose spatial distribution empirically follows the starlight. Their number is also higher than the expected number of cosmic AGNs (52+/-11 [1 sigma]) whose surface density is constrained by deep X-ray surveys. We suggest that either the cosmic X-ray background is unusually high in the direction of Sombrero, or a distinct population of X-ray sources is present in the halo of Sombrero.Comment: 11 figures, 5 tables, ApJ in pres

Performance of the CMS Cathode Strip Chambers with Cosmic Rays

The Cathode Strip Chambers (CSCs) constitute the primary muon tracking device in the CMS endcaps. Their performance has been evaluated using data taken during a cosmic ray run in fall 2008. Measured noise levels are low, with the number of noisy channels well below 1%. Coordinate resolution was measured for all types of chambers, and fall in the range 47 microns to 243 microns. The efficiencies for local charged track triggers, for hit and for segments reconstruction were measured, and are above 99%. The timing resolution per layer is approximately 5 ns

Gene expression clines reveal local adaptation and associated trade-offs at a continental scale

Local adaptation, where fitness in one environment comes at a cost in another, should lead to spatial variation in trade-offs between life history traits and may be critical for population persistence. Recent studies have sought genomic signals of local adaptation, but often have been limited to laboratory populations representing two environmentally different locations of a species' distribution. We measured gene expression, as a proxy for fitness, in males of Drosophila subobscura, occupying a 20° latitudinal and 11 °C thermal range. Uniquely, we sampled six populations and studied both common garden and semi-natural responses to identify signals of local adaptation. We found contrasting patterns of investment: transcripts with expression positively correlated to latitude were enriched for metabolic processes, expressed across all tissues whereas negatively correlated transcripts were enriched for reproductive processes, expressed primarily in testes. When using only the end populations, to compare our results to previous studies, we found that locally adaptive patterns were obscured. While phenotypic trade-offs between metabolic and reproductive functions across widespread species are well-known, our results identify underlying genetic and tissue responses at a continental scale that may be responsible for this. This may contribute to understanding population persistence under environmental change