Further results on elementary Lie algebras and Lie A-algebras.

A finite-dimensional Lie algebra L over a field F of characteristic zero is called elementary if each of its subalgebras has trivial Frattini ideal; it is an A-algebra if every nilpotent subalgebra is abelian. This paper is a continuation of the study of these algebras initiated by the authors in a previous paper. If we denote by $\mathcal{A}$, $\mathcal{G}$, $\mathcal{E}$, $\mathcal{L}$, $\Phi$ the classes of A-algebras, almost algebraic algebras, E-algebras, elementary algebras and $\phi$-free algebras respectively, then it is shown that: \mathcal{L} \subset \Phi \subset \mathcal{G} \mathcal{L} \subset \mathcal{A} \subset \mathcal{E} \mathcal{G} \cap \mathcal{A} = \mathcal{L}. It is also shown that if L is a semisimple Lie algebra all of whose minimal parabolic subalgebras are $\phi$-free then L is an A-algebra, and hence elementary. This requires a number of quite delicate properties of parabolic subalgebras. Finally characterisations are given of $E$-algebras and of Lie algebras all of whose proper subalgebras are elementary

Geometric morphometrics of rodent sperm head shape

Mammalian spermatozoa, particularly those of rodent species, are extremely complex cells and differ greatly in form and dimensions. Thus, characterization of sperm size and, particularly, sperm shape represents a major challenge. No consensus exists on a method to objectively assess size and shape of spermatozoa. In this study we apply the principles of geometric morphometrics to analyze rodent sperm head morphology and compare them with two traditional morphometry methods, that is, measurements of linear dimensions and dimensions-derived parameters calculated using formulae employed in sperm morphometry assessments. Our results show that geometric morphometrics clearly identifies shape differences among rodent spermatozoa. It is also capable of discriminating between size and shape and to analyze these two variables separately. Thus, it provides an accurate method to assess sperm head shape. Furthermore, it can identify which sperm morphology traits differ between species, such as the protrusion or retraction of the base of the head, the orientation and relative position of the site of flagellum insertion, the degree of curvature of the hook, and other distinct anatomical features and appendices. We envisage that the use of geometric morphometrics may have a major impact on future studies focused on the characterization of sperm head formation, diversity of sperm head shape among species (and underlying evolutionary forces), the effects of reprotoxicants on changes in cell shape, and phenotyping of genetically-modified individuals. © 2013 Varea Sánchez et al.This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness.Peer Reviewe

Spatial patterning in modified Turing systems: Application to pigmentation patterns on marine fish

In this paper we extend the study of Turing models to investigate the rôle of boundary conditions, parameter modulation, domain growth, and coupling of models. Our numerical simulations show that such modifications lead to patterns that cannot be reproduced by the standard model. By comparing our results with pigmentation patterning on marine fish we conclude that such models may have wider application than originally imagined

Correction to the Moliere's formula for multiple scattering

The quasiclassical correction to the Moliere's formula for multiple scattering is derived. The consideration is based on the scattering amplitude, obtained with the first quasiclassical correction taken into account for arbitrary localized but not spherically symmetric potential. Unlike the leading term, the correction to the Moliere's formula contains the target density $n$ and thickness $L$ not only in the combination $nL$ (areal density). Therefore, this correction can be reffered to as the bulk density correction. It turns out that the bulk density correction is small even for high density. This result explains the wide region of applicability of the Moliere's formula.Comment: 6 pages, RevTe

Sexual selection on protamine and transition nuclear protein expression in mouse species

Post-copulatory sexual selection in the form of sperm competition is known to influence the evolution of male reproductive proteins in mammals. The relationship between sperm competition and regulatory evolution, however, remains to be explored. Protamines and transition nuclear proteins are involved in the condensation of sperm chromatin and are expected to affect the shape of the sperm head. A hydrodynamically efficient head allows for fast swimming velocity and, therefore, more competitive sperm. Previous comparative studies in rodents have documented a significant association between the level of sperm competition (as measured by relative testes mass) and DNA sequence evolution in both the coding and promoter sequences of protamine 2. Here,we investigate the influence of sexual selection on protamine and transition nuclear protein mRNA expression in the testes of eight mouse species that differ widely in levels of sperm competition.We also examined the relationship between relative gene expression levels and sperm head shape, assessed using geometric morphometrics. We found that species with higher levels of sperm competition express less protamine 2 in relation to protamine 1 and transition nuclear proteins. Moreover, therewas a significant association between relative protamine 2 expression and sperm head shape. Reduction in the relative abundance of protamine 2 may increase the competitive ability of sperm in mice, possibly by affecting sperm head shape. Changes in gene regulatory sequences thus seem to be the basis of the evolutionary response to sexual selection in these proteins. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (grant no. CGL2011-26341)Peer Reviewe

Polysialic Acid Is Required for Dopamine D2 Receptor-Mediated Plasticity Involving Inhibitory Circuits of the Rat Medial Prefrontal Cortex

Decreased expression of dopamine D2 receptors (D2R), dysfunction of inhibitory neurotransmission and impairments in the structure and connectivity of neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) are involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and major depression, but the relationship between these changes remains unclear. The polysialylated form of the neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM), a plasticity-related molecule, may serve as a link. This molecule is expressed in cortical interneurons and dopamine, via D2R, modulates its expression in parallel to that of proteins related to synapses and inhibitory neurotransmission, suggesting that D2R-targeted antipsychotics/antidepressants may act by affecting the plasticity of mPFC inhibitory circuits. To understand the role of PSA-NCAM in this plasticity, rats were chronically treated with a D2R agonist (PPHT) after cortical PSA depletion. PPHT-induced increases in GAD67 and synaptophysin (SYN) neuropil expression were blocked when PSA was previously removed, indicating a role for PSA-NCAM in this plasticity. The number of PSA-NCAM expressing interneuron somata also increased after PPHT treatment, but the percentages of these cells belonging to different interneuronal subpopulations did not change. Cortical pyramidal neurons did not express PSA-NCAM, but puncta co-expressing this molecule and parvalbumin could be found surrounding their somata. PPHT treatment increased the number of PSA-NCAM and parvalbumin expressing perisomatic puncta, but decreased the percentage of parvalbumin puncta that co-expressed SYN. PSA depletion did not block these effects on the perisomatic region, but increased further the number of parvalbumin expressing puncta and increased the percentage of puncta co-expressing SYN and parvalbumin, suggesting that the polysialylation of NCAM may regulate perisomatic inhibition of mPFC principal neurons. Summarizing, the present results indicate that dopamine acting on D2R influences structural plasticity of mPFC interneurons and point to PSA-NCAM as a key player in this remodeling

Some sources of variation in the assessment when introducing unaccounted mortality due to discarding practices. The case of Southern Four spot megrim stock.

Four spot megrim (Lepidorhombus boscii) is widely distributed in Atlantic waters form Iceland to Cape Bojador. In ICES Divisions VIIIc and IXa, Portuguese and Spanish ships captured this species as by-catch mainly in mixed bottom trawl fisheries. Only one exploitation unit of this species is assessed (from Divisions VIIIc and IXa) in the ICES Working Group of Hake, Monk and Megrim. Discard data are not used in the assessment of this species, though they are considered significantly high for younger ages. Discards data are available for Spanish trawlers for 1993, 1994, 1997, and the period from 1999 to 2001. A simulation using discard data was made to avoid the underestimation of mortality and recruitment. Due to the change in January 1990 in the minimum legal size for this species in this area, it was decided not to use historical information previous to this year, as it is supposed that this change could substantially affect the fleet discard pattern. Different options were considered as the way of raising: by effort (number of trips, hour of trawling) or by landings (in weight or in number). Reasons for the final choices are explained for all options considered. The way to introduce discards data in the VPA procedure for assessment was through the catch at age matrix since we considered that no fish of this species survive after being discarded. Differences in yield of Short-term and Mediumterm projections were observed

Development of a GPU-based Monte Carlo dose calculation code for coupled electron-photon transport

Monte Carlo simulation is the most accurate method for absorbed dose calculations in radiotherapy. Its efficiency still requires improvement for routine clinical applications, especially for online adaptive radiotherapy. In this paper, we report our recent development on a GPU-based Monte Carlo dose calculation code for coupled electron-photon transport. We have implemented the Dose Planning Method (DPM) Monte Carlo dose calculation package (Sempau et al, Phys. Med. Biol., 45(2000)2263-2291) on GPU architecture under CUDA platform. The implementation has been tested with respect to the original sequential DPM code on CPU in phantoms with water-lung-water or water-bone-water slab geometry. A 20 MeV mono-energetic electron point source or a 6 MV photon point source is used in our validation. The results demonstrate adequate accuracy of our GPU implementation for both electron and photon beams in radiotherapy energy range. Speed up factors of about 5.0 ~ 6.6 times have been observed, using an NVIDIA Tesla C1060 GPU card against a 2.27GHz Intel Xeon CPU processor.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, and 1 table. Paper revised. Figures update

Performance of rodent spermatozoa over time is enhanced by increased ATP concentrations: The role of sperm competition

© 2015 by the Society for the Study of Reproduction, Inc. Sperm viability, acrosome integrity, motility, and swimming velocity are determinants of male fertility and exhibit an extreme degree of variation among closely related species. Many of these sperm parameters are associated with sperm ATP content, which has led to predictions of trade-offs between ATP content and sperm motility and velocity. Selective pressures imposed by sperm competition have been proposed as evolutionary causes of this pattern of diversity in sperm traits. Here, we examine variation in sperm viability, acrosome integrity, motility, swimming velocity, and ATP content over time, among 18 species of closely related muroid rodents, to address the following questions: (a) Do sperm from closely related species vary in ATP content after a period of incubation? (b) Are these differences in ATP levels related to differences in other sperm traits? (c) Are differences in ATP content and sperm performance over time explained by the levels of sperm competition in these species? Our results revealed a high degree of interspecific variability in changes in sperm ATP content, acrosome integrity, sperm motility and swimming velocity over time. Additionally, species with high sperm competition levels were able to maintain higher levels of sperm motility and faster sperm swimming velocity when they were incubated under conditions that support sperm survival. Furthermore, we show that the maintenance of such levels of sperm performance is correlated with the ability of sperm to sustain high concentrations of intracellular ATP over time. Thus, sperm competition may have an important role maximizing sperm metabolism and performance and, ultimately, the fertilizing capacity of spermatozoa.Peer Reviewe