174 research outputs found
Hepatic progenitor cells from adult human livers for cell transplantation.
Objective: Liver regeneration is mainly based on cellular
self-renewal including progenitor cells. Efforts have been
made to harness this potential for cell transplantation, but
shortage of hepatocytes and premature differentiated
progenitor cells from extra-hepatic organs are limiting
factors. Histological studies implied that resident cells in
adult liver can proliferate, have bipotential character and
may be a suitable source for cell transplantation.
Methods: Particular cell populations were isolated after
adequate tissue dissociation. Single cell suspensions were
purified by Thy-1 positivity selection, characterised in vitro
and transplanted in immunodeficient Pfp/Rag2 mice.
Results: Thy-1+ cells that are mainly found in the portal
tract and the surrounding parenchyma, were isolated from
surgical liver tissue with high yields from specimens with
histological signs of regeneration. Thy-1+ cell populations
were positive for progenitor (CD34, c-kit, CK14, M2PK,
OV6), biliary (CK19) and hepatic (HepPar1) markers
revealing their progenitor as well as hepatic and biliary
nature. The potential of Thy-1+ cells for differentiation in
vitro was demonstrated by increased mRNA and protein
expression for hepatic (CK18, HepPar1) and biliary (CK7)
markers during culture while progenitor markers CK14,
chromogranin A and nestin were reduced. After
transplantation of Thy-1+ cells into livers of immunodeficient
mice, engraftment was predominantly seen in the
periportal portion of the liver lobule. Analysis of in situ
material revealed that transplanted cells express human
hepatic markers HepPar1 and albumin, indicating functional
engraftment.
Conclusion: Bipotential progenitor cells from human
adult livers can be isolated using Thy-1 and might be a
potential candidate for cell treatment in liver diseases
The structure of NMB1585, a MarR-family regulator from Neisseria meningitidis
The structure of the MarR-family regulator NMB1585 from N. meningitidis has been solved using data extending to 2.1 Å resolution
Closed-Time Path Integral Formalism and Medium Effects of Non-Equilibrium QCD Matter
We apply the closed-time path integral formalism to study the medium effects
of non-equilibrium gluon matter. We derive the medium modified resummed gluon
propagator to the one loop level in non-equilibrium in the covariant gauge. The
gluon propagator we derive can be used to remove the infrared divergences in
the secondary parton collisions to study thermalization of minijet parton
plasma at RHIC and LHC.Comment: Final version, To appear in Physical Review D, Minor modification,
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Spatiotemporal variability of hydrologic soil properties and the implications for overland flow and land management in a peri-urban Mediterranean catchment
Planning of semi-urban developments is often hindered by a lack of knowledge on how changes in landuse
affect catchment hydrological response. The temporal and spatial patterns of overland flow source
areas and their connectivity in the landscape, particularly in a seasonal climate, remain comparatively
poorly understood. This study investigates seasonal variations in factors influencing runoff response to
rainfall in a peri-urban catchment in Portugal characterized by a mosaic of landscape units and a humid
Mediterranean climate. Variations in surface soil moisture, hydrophobicity and infiltration capacity were
measured in six different landscape units (defined by land-use on either sandstone or limestone) in nine
monitoring campaigns at key times over a one-year period.
Spatiotemporal patterns in overland flow mechanisms were found. Infiltration-excess overland flow
was generated in rainfalls during the dry summer season in woodland on both sandstone and limestone
and on agricultural soils on limestone due probably in large part to soil hydrophobicity. In wet periods,
saturation overland flow occurred on urban and agricultural soils located in valley bottoms and on
shallow soils upslope. Topography, water table rise and soil depth determined the location and extent
of saturated areas. Overland flow generated in upslope source areas potentially can infiltrate in other
landscape units downslope where infiltration capacity exceeds rainfall intensity. Hydrophilic urban
and agricultural-sandstone soils were characterized by increased infiltration capacity during dry periods,
while forest soils provided potential sinks for overland flow when hydrophilic in the winter wet season.
Identifying the spatial and temporal variability of overland flow sources and sinks is an important step in
understanding and modeling flow connectivity and catchment hydrologic response. Such information is
important for land managers in order to improve urban planning to minimize flood risk
For the Progress of “Faustus and Helen”: Crane, Whitman, and the Metropolitan Progress Poem
This essay is meant to invigorate a critical discussion of the progress poem—a genre that, while prevalent in American literature, has been virtually ignored by critics and scholars. In lieu of tackling the genre in its entirety, a project too large for just one article, the author focuses the argument through the well-known alignment between Walt Whitman and Hart Crane on the subject of the modern city. It is through the progress poem genre that Crane and Whitman’s peculiar place in metropolitan poetics can best be understood, and it is through their poetry that scholars can begin to approach the broader issue of the progress poem’s place in American literature.
Cet article vise à soulever un débat critique au sujet de la poésie du progrès, un genre courant dans la littérature étatsunienne, mais pratiquement ignoré par les critiques et les commentateurs. Plutôt que d’aborder le genre dans son entièreté – un projet qui déborde du cadre d’un article –, l’auteur resserre l’argumentation autour du parallèle bien connu entre Walt Whitman et Hart Crane concernant le traitement de la ville moderne. C’est la poésie du progrès en tant que genre qui permet le mieux de comprendre la place particulière qu’occupent ces deux auteurs dans la poésie métropolitaine, et c’est par leurs poèmes que les chercheurs peuvent aborder la question plus vaste de la place du poème sur le progrès dans la littérature étatsunienne
Tides in colliding galaxies
Long tails and streams of stars are the most noticeable upshots of galaxy
collisions. Their origin as gravitational, tidal, disturbances has however been
recognized only less than fifty years ago and more than ten years after their
first observations. This Review describes how the idea of galactic tides
emerged, in particular thanks to the advances in numerical simulations, from
the first ones that included tens of particles to the most sophisticated ones
with tens of millions of them and state-of-the-art hydrodynamical
prescriptions. Theoretical aspects pertaining to the formation of tidal tails
are then presented. The third part of the review turns to observations and
underlines the need for collecting deep multi-wavelength data to tackle the
variety of physical processes exhibited by collisional debris. Tidal tails are
not just stellar structures, but turn out to contain all the components usually
found in galactic disks, in particular atomic / molecular gas and dust. They
host star-forming complexes and are able to form star-clusters or even
second-generation dwarf galaxies. The final part of the review discusses what
tidal tails can tell us (or not) about the structure and content of present-day
galaxies, including their dark components, and explains how tidal tails may be
used to probe the past evolution of galaxies and their mass assembly history.
On-going deep wide-field surveys disclose many new low-surface brightness
structures in the nearby Universe, offering great opportunities for attempting
galactic archeology with tidal tails.Comment: 46 pages, 13 figures, Review to be published in "Tidal effects in
Astronomy and Astrophysics", Lecture Notes in Physics. Comments are most
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