Diffractive Phenomena and Shadowing in Deep-Inelastic Scattering

Shadowing effects in deep-inelastic lepton-nucleus scattering probe the mass spectrum of diffractive leptoproduction from individual nucleons. We explore this relationship using current experimental information on both processes. In recent data from the NMC and E665 collaboration, taken at small x << 0.1 and Q^2 < 1 GeV^2, shadowing is dominated by the diffractive excitation and coherent interaction of low mass vector mesons. If shadowing is explored at small x > 1 GeV^2 as discussed at HERA, the situation is different. Here dominant contributions come from the coherent interaction of diffractively produced heavy mass states. Furthermore we observe that the energy dependence of shadowing is directly related to the mass dependence of the diffractive production cross section for free nucleon targets.Comment: 12 pages Latex, 8 figure

Análise comparativa dos cursos de graduação em administração na Alemanha, no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos da América

The development of a country is closely linked to its education system. Thus the aim of this article is to present the methods adopted for selection, evaluation and curriculum of the courses of administration in Germany, Brazil and United States of America (USA). This study was conducted through a literature search, where were consulted websites of the Ministry of Education and universities of these countries that served as a reference for this research. The focus of this article is the comparison of admin s interaction with studied fact, it was used for the case study. It was made a critical analysis of the istration courses in these three countries, which were explored aspects of the environment that ha material collected, with the limitations of geographical character, because was approached the administration course in only three countries. It was observed that the course presents different qualifications as the curricular structure in the studied countries. Thus, it was found that the universities have the challenges related to compliance of the curricular structure with charges of the market, where it seeks to adapt to the needs of the economy and rapid adaptation to changing scenarios.O desenvolvimento de um país está estritamente ligado ao seu sistema de educação. Dessa forma, o objetivo deste artigo é apresentar os métodos adotados para seleção, avaliação e estrutura curricular dos cursos de administração na Alemanha, no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos da América (EUA). Para isso, realizou-se uma pesquisa bibliográfica nos sites do Ministério da Educação e das Universidades desses países. Observou-se que o curso apresenta diferentes habilitações quanto à estrutura curricular nos países estudados. Com isso, verificou-se que os desafios das universidades estão relacionados à conformidade da estrutura curricular com as cobranças do mercado, já que se busca a adaptação às necessidades da economia e a rápida adequação às mudanças constantes dos cenários.

Temporal Pattern of ICAM-I Mediated Regulatory T Cell Recruitment to Sites of Inflammation in Adoptive Transfer Model of Multiple Sclerosis

Migration of immune cells to the target organ plays a key role in autoimmune disorders like multiple sclerosis (MS). However, the exact underlying mechanisms of this active process during autoimmune lesion pathogenesis remain elusive. To test if pro-inflammatory and regulatory T cells migrate via a similar molecular mechanism, we analyzed the expression of different adhesion molecules, as well as the composition of infiltrating T cells in an in vivo model of MS, adoptive transfer experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in rats. We found that the upregulation of ICAM-I and VCAM-I parallels the development of clinical disease onset, but persists on elevated levels also in the phase of clinical remission. However, the composition of infiltrating T cells found in the developing versus resolving lesion phase changed over time, containing increased numbers of regulatory T cells (FoxP3) only in the phase of clinical remission. In order to test the relevance of the expression of cell adhesion molecules, animals were treated with purified antibodies to ICAM-I and VCAM-I either in the phase of active disease or in early remission. Treatment with a blocking ICAM-I antibody in the phase of disease progression led to a milder disease course. However, administration during early clinical remission aggravates clinical symptoms. Treatment with anti-VCAM-I at different timepoints had no significant effect on the disease course. In summary, our results indicate that adhesion molecules are not only important for capture and migration of pro-inflammatory T cells into the central nervous system, but also permit access of anti-inflammatory cells, such as regulatory T cells. Therefore it is likely to assume that intervention at the blood brain barrier is time dependent and could result in different therapeutic outcomes depending on the phase of CNS lesion development

Cortical Plasticity Induced by Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation during Wakefulness Affects Electroencephalogram Activity during Sleep

BACKGROUND:Sleep electroencephalogram (EEG) brain oscillations in the low-frequency range show local signs of homeostatic regulation after learning. Such increases and decreases of slow wave activity are limited to the cortical regions involved in specific task performance during wakefulness. Here, we test the hypothesis that reorganization of motor cortex produced by long-term potentiation (LTP) affects EEG activity of this brain area during subsequent sleep. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:By pairing median nerve stimulation with transcranial magnetic stimulation over the contralateral motor cortex, one can potentiate the motor output, which is presumed to reflect plasticity of the neural circuitry. This paired associative stimulation increases M1 cortical excitability at interstimulus intervals of 25 ms. We compared the scalp distribution of sleep EEG power following paired associative stimulation at 25 ms to that following a control paradigm with 50 ms intervals. It is shown that the experimental manipulation by paired associative stimulation at 25 ms induces a 48% increase in amplitude of motor evoked potentials. This LTP-like potentiation, induced during waking, affects delta and theta EEG power in both REM and non-REM sleep, measured during the following night. Slow-wave activity increases in some frontal and prefrontal derivations and decreases at sites neighboring and contralateral to the stimulated motor cortex. The magnitude of increased amplitudes of motor evoked potentials by the paired associative stimulation at 25 ms predicts enhancements of slow-wave activity in prefrontal regions. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:An LTP-like paradigm, presumably inducing increased synaptic strength, leads to changes in local sleep regulation, as indexed by EEG slow-wave activity. Enhancement and depression of slow-wave activity are interpreted in terms of a simultaneous activation of both excitatory and inhibitory circuits consequent to the paired associative stimulation at 25 ms

Pneumoproteins and biomarkers of inflammation and coagulation do not predict rapid lung function decline in people living with HIV

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is among the leading causes of death worldwide and HIV is an independent risk factor for the development of COPD. However, the etiology of this increased risk and means to identify persons with HIV (PWH) at highest risk for COPD have remained elusive. Biomarkers may reveal etiologic pathways and allow better COPD risk stratification. We performed a matched case:control study of PWH in the Strategic Timing of Antiretoviral Treatment (START) pulmonary substudy. Cases had rapid lung function decline (> 40 mL/year FEV1 decline) and controls had stable lung function (+ 20 to − 20 mL/year). The analysis was performed in two distinct groups: (1) those who were virally suppressed for at least 6 months and (2) those with untreated HIV (from the START deferred treatment arm). We used linear mixed effects models to test the relationship between case:control status and blood concentrations of pneumoproteins (surfactant protein-D and club cell secretory protein), and biomarkers of inflammation (IL-6 and hsCRP) and coagulation (d-dimer and fibrinogen); concentrations were measured within ± 6 months of first included spirometry. We included an interaction with treatment group (untreated HIV vs viral suppression) to test if associations varied by treatment group. This analysis included 77 matched case:control pairs in the virally suppressed batch, and 42 matched case:control pairs in the untreated HIV batch (n = 238 total) who were followed for a median of 3 years. Median (IQR) CD4 + count was lowest in the controls with untreated HIV at 674 (580, 838). We found no significant associations between case:control status and pneumoprotein or biomarker concentrations in either virally suppressed or untreated PWH. In this cohort of relatively young, recently diagnosed PWH, concentrations of pneumoproteins and biomarkers of inflammation and coagulation were not associated with subsequent rapid lung function decline. Trial registration: NCT00867048 and NCT01797367

Induction of regulatory T cells: A role for probiotics and prebiotics to suppress autoimmunity.

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are comprised of a heterogeneous population of cells that play a vital role in suppressing inflammation and maintaining immune tolerance. Given the crucial role of Tregs in maintaining immune homeostasis, it is probably not surprising that many microbial species and their metabolites have the potential to induce Tregs. There is now great interest in the therapeutic potential of probiotics and prebiotics based strategies for a range of autoimmune disorders. This review will summarise recent findings concerning the role of probiotics and prebiotics in induction of Tregs to ameliorate the autoimmune conditions. In addition, the article is focused to explain the different mechanisms of Treg induction and function by these probiotics and prebiotics, based on the available studies till date. The article further proposes that induction of Tregs by probiotics and prebiotics could lead to the development of new therapeutic approach towards curbing the autoimmune response and as an alternative to detrimental immunosuppressive drugs

Delayed treatment with intravenous basic fibroblast growth factor reduces infarct size following permanent focal cerebral ischemia in rats

Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is a polypeptide that supports the survival of brain cells (including neurons, glia, and endothelia) and protects neurons against a number of toxins and insults in vitro. This factor is also a potent dilator of cerebral pial arterioles in vivo. In previous studies, we found that intraventricularly administered bFGF reduced infarct volume in a model of focal cerebral ischemia in rats. In the current study, bFGF (45 micrograms/kg/h) in vehicle, or vehicle alone, was infused intravenously for 3 h, beginning at 30 min after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion by intraluminal suture in mature Sprague-Dawley rats. After 24 h, neurological deficit (as assessed by a 0- to 5-point scale, with 5 = most severe) was 2.6 +/- 1.0 in vehicle-treated and 1.5 +/- 1.3 in bFGF-treated rats (mean +/- SD; N = 12 vs. 11; p = 0.009). Infarct volume was 297 +/- 65 mm3 in vehicle- and 143 +/- 135 mm3 in bFGF-treated animals (p = 0.002). During infusion, there was a modest decrease in mean arterial blood pressure but no changes in arterial blood gases or core or brain temperature in bFGF-treated rats. Autoradiography following intravenous administration of 111In-labeled bFGF showed that labeled bFGF crossed the damaged blood-brain barrier to enter the ischemic (but not the nonischemic) hemisphere. Whether the infarct-reducing effects of bFGF depend on intraparenchymal or intravascular mechanisms requires further study

Avaliação dos riscos do trabalho em altura na construção civil

The construction presents alarming statistics when it comes to the risks that these workers are subject. Higher risks still present work at a height where the fall is the biggest causal factor of fatal accidents. Thus the managements of companies who seek to reduce these risks and this has going for technical evaluation of operational risks. Three of these techniques are discussed in this article: PHA, FTA and CIT. The goal is to determine which one is most effective in assessing the risks of working at height in construction. The methodology used was case study of three works on three different construction of Santa Maria, RS. For a better understanding of the phenomenon suggests that the techniques are used together, but the CIT has provided a better quantitative analysis of incidents and the PHA contributes towards already establish the possible effects that each risk may have.A construção civil apresenta dados alarmantes em se tratando dos riscos que seus trabalhadores estão submetidos. Riscos maiores ainda apresentam os trabalhos realizados em altura, onde a queda é o maior fator causal de acidentes fatais. Dessa forma as gestões, das empresas responsáveis procuram minimizar esses riscos e para isso tem a seu favor técnicas de avaliação dos riscos operacionais. Nesse artigo, são abordadas três dessas técnicas, a Análise Preliminar de Riscos (APR), Análise da Árvore de Falhas (AAF) e a Técnica de Incidentes Críticos (TIC). O objetivo é determinar qual delas é mais eficiente na avaliação dos riscos de trabalhos em altura na construção civil. A Metodologia usada foi o estudo de caso de três obras em três diferentes construtoras de Santa Maria, RS. Para uma melhor compreensão do fenômeno sugere-se que as técnicas sejam utilizadas em conjunto, porém a TIC propiciou uma melhor análise qualitativa dos incidentes e a APR contribuiu no sentido de já estabelecer os efeitos possíveis que cada risco pode apresentar

Análise comparativa dos cursos de graduação em administração na Alemanha, no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos da América

The development of a country is closely linked to its education system. Thus the aim of this article is to present the methods adopted for selection, evaluation and curriculum of the courses of administration in Germany, Brazil and United States of America (USA). This study was conducted through a literature search, where were consulted websites of the Ministry of Education and universities of these countries that served as a reference for this research. The focus of this article is the comparison of admin s interaction with studied fact, it was used for the case study. It was made a critical analysis of the istration courses in these three countries, which were explored aspects of the environment that ha material collected, with the limitations of geographical character, because was approached the administration course in only three countries. It was observed that the course presents different qualifications as the curricular structure in the studied countries. Thus, it was found that the universities have the challenges related to compliance of the curricular structure with charges of the market, where it seeks to adapt to the needs of the economy and rapid adaptation to changing scenarios.O desenvolvimento de um país está estritamente ligado ao seu sistema de educação. Dessa forma, o objetivo deste artigo é apresentar os métodos adotados para seleção, avaliação e estrutura curricular dos cursos de administração na Alemanha, no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos da América (EUA). Para isso, realizou-se uma pesquisa bibliográfica nos sites do Ministério da Educação e das Universidades desses países. Observou-se que o curso apresenta diferentes habilitações quanto à estrutura curricular nos países estudados. Com isso, verificou-se que os desafios das universidades estão relacionados à conformidade da estrutura curricular com as cobranças do mercado, já que se busca a adaptação às necessidades da economia e a rápida adequação às mudanças constantes dos cenários.