Betalains and phenolic compounds of leaves and stems of Alternanthera brasiliana and Alternanthera tenella

Betacyanins and phenolic compounds from acetonitrile:acidified water extracts of Alternanthera brasiliana and Alternanthera tenella were characterized and quantified using a high-performance liquid chromatography system coupled with diode array and electrospray mass spectrometry detection. Four betacyanins (amaranthine, isoamaranthine, betanin and isobetanin) were tentatively identified and quantified. Twenty eight phenolic compounds of four different families (hydroxybenzoic and hydroxycinnamic acids, flavones and flavonols) were separated and characterized on the basis of their accurate MS and MS/MS information out of which ten compounds were confirmed by authentic standards. These plant species could be considered as an especially rich source of natural bioactive compounds and potential food colorants. A. brasiliana showed the highest betacyanin and polyphenols content (89 μg/g and 35,243 μg/g, respectively). Among polyphenols, flavonols were the more abundant (kaempferol-glucoside, kaempferol-rutinoside and kaempferol-rhamnosyl-rhamnosyl-glycoside). Meanwhile, A. tenella showed a different polyphenols profile with flavones as major compounds (glucopyranosil-vitexin and vitexin). As a novelty, pentosyl-vitexin and pentosyl-isovitexin were detected for the first time in Alternanthera plants. Both A. brasiliana and A. tenella leaves showed high total polyphenol content and in vitro antioxidant activity (FRAP). These results provide an analytical base concerning the phenolic and betalains composition and the antioxidant properties of two members of the promising Alternanthera gender, for subsequent applications, such as functional food ingredients.Fil: Deladino, Lorena. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; ArgentinaFil: Alvarez, I.. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnologia de Alimentos y Nutrición; EspañaFil: De Ancos, B.. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnologia de Alimentos y Nutrición; EspañaFil: Sánchez Moreno, C.. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnologia de Alimentos y Nutrición; EspañaFil: Molina García, A. D.. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnologia de Alimentos y Nutrición; EspañaFil: Schneider Teixeira, Aline. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Criotecnología de Alimentos; Argentina. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnologia de Alimentos y Nutrición; Españ

Swift-XRT observation of 34 new INTEGRAL/IBIS AGNs: discovery of Compton thick and other peculiar sources

For a significant number of the sources detected at high energies (>10 keV) by the INTEGRAL/IBIS and Swift/BAT instruments there is either a lack information about them in the 2-10 keV range or they are totally unidentified. Herein, we report on a sample of 34 IBIS AGN or AGN candidate objects for which there is X-ray data in the Swift/XRT archive. Thanks to these X-ray follow up observations, the identification of the gamma ray emitters has been possible and the spectral shape in terms of photon index and absorption has been evaluated for the first time for the majority of our sample sources. The sample, enlarged to include 4 more AGN already discussed in the literature, has been used to provide photon index and column density distribution. We obtain a mean value of 1.88 with a dispersion of 0.12, i.e. typical of an AGN sample. Sixteen objects (47%) have column densities in excess of 10^{22} cm^{-2} and, as expected, a large fraction of the absorbed sources are within the Sey 2 sample. We have provided a new diagnostic tool (NH versus F(2-10)keV/F(20-100)keV softness ratio) to isolate peculiar objects; we find at least one absorbed Sey 1 galaxy, 3 Compton thick AGN candidates; and one secure example of a "true" type 2 AGN. Within the sample of 10 still unidentified objects, 3 are almost certainly AGN of type 2; 3 to 4 have spectral slopes typical of AGN; and two are located high on the galactic plane and are strong enough radio emitters so that can be considered good AGN candidates.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures, ApJ accepte

Ac magnetic susceptibility of a molecular magnet submonolayer directly patterned onto a microSQUID sensor

We report the controlled integration, via Dip Pen Nanolithography, of monolayer dots of ferritin-based CoO nanoparticles (12 Bohr magnetons) into the most sensitive areas of a microSQUID sensor. The nearly optimum flux coupling between these nanomagnets and the microSQUID improves the achievable sensitivity by a factor 100, enabling us to measure the linear susceptibility of the molecular array down to very low temperatures (13 mK). This method opens the possibility of applying ac susceptibility experiments to characterize two-dimensional arrays of single molecule magnets within a wide range of temperatures and frequencies.Comment: 4 pages 3 figure

Specifying and Analysing SOC Applications with COWS

COWS is a recently defined process calculus for specifying and combining service-oriented applications, while modelling their dynamic behaviour. Since its introduction, a number of methods and tools have been devised to analyse COWS specifications, like e.g. a type system to check confidentiality properties, a logic and a model checker to express and check functional properties of services. In this paper, by means of a case study in the area of automotive systems, we demonstrate that COWS, with some mild linguistic additions, can model all the phases of the life cycle of service-oriented applications, such as publication, discovery, negotiation, orchestration, deployment, reconfiguration and execution. We also provide a flavour of the properties that can be analysed by using the tools mentioned above

Caracterização de marcador do tipo EST-SSR associado com resistência ao bicho-mineiro.

Um dos fatores que limitam o desenvolvimento de novas cultivares de cafeeiro por Programas de Melhoramento é a dificuldade de seleção precoce para características agronômicas superiores. Atualmente, marcadores moleculares são utilizados, em diferentes espécies de plantas, como uma ferramenta alternativa e eficiente para seleção de tais características. Portanto, a identificação de marcadores moleculares do tipo microsatélite (ssr) que co-segreguem com a resistência ao bicho-mineiro representa um avanço para seleção assistida. Neste estudo, foram identificados marcadores ssr expressos, através de buscas dirigidas aos bancos de ESTs de cafeeiro. Para caracterização dos marcadores EST-SSR, foi avaliada a expressão destes em genótipos resistentes e suscetíveis infestados com bicho-mineiro, através da metodologia de RT-PCR. Dentre os locos EST-SSR investigados um deles apresentou padrão diferencial, uma vez que folhas suscetíveis não apresentaram expressão do loco. O loco foi clonado e seqüenciado, a partir de genótipos resistentes e suscetíveis. Análises das sequências permitiram a identificação de 11 alelos, contendo vários polimorfismos de tamanho da repetição e do tipo SNPs. No entanto, nenhum destes polimorfismos apresentou co-relação com a característica de resistência. Análises em andamento visam a caracterização deste loco expresso

CASA-Mot technology: how results are affected by the frame rate and counting chamber

For over 30 years, CASA-Mot technology has been used for kinematic analysis of sperm motility in different mammalian species, but insufficient attention has been paid to the technical limitations of commercial computer-aided sperm analysis (CASA) systems. Counting chamber type and frame rate are two of the most important aspects to be taken into account. Counting chambers can be disposable or reusable, with different depths. In human semen analysis, reusable chambers with a depth of 10 mm are the most frequently used, whereas for most farm animal species it is more common to use disposable chambers with a depth of 20 mm. The frame rate was previously limited by the hardware, although changes in the number of images collected could lead to significant variations in some kinematic parameters, mainly in curvilinear velocity (VCL). A frame rate of 60 frames s(-1) is widely considered to be the minimum necessary for satisfactory results. However, the frame rate is species specific and must be defined in each experimental condition. In conclusion, we show that the optimal combination of frame rate and counting chamber type and depth should be defined for each species and experimental condition in order to obtain reliable results

Analysis of Visible/SWIR surface reflectance ratios for aerosol retrievals from satellite in Mexico City urban area

International audienceThe surface reflectance ratio between the visible (VIS) and shortwave infrared (SWIR) radiation is an important quantity for the retrieval of the aerosol optical depth (?a) from the MODIS sensor data. Based on empirically determined VIS/SWIR ratios, MODIS ?a retrieval uses the surface reflectance in the SWIR band (2.1 µm), where the interaction between solar radiation and the aerosol layer is small, to predict the visible reflectances in the blue (0.47 µm) and red (0.66 µm) bands. Therefore, accurate knowledge of the VIS/SWIR ratio is essential for achieving accurate retrieval of aerosol optical depth from MODIS. We analyzed the surface reflectance over some distinct surface covers in and around the Mexico City metropolitan area (MCMA) using MODIS radiances at 0.66 µm and 2.1 µm. The analysis was performed at 1.5 km×1.5 km spatial resolution. Also, ground-based AERONET sun-photometer data acquired in Mexico City from 2002 to 2005 were analyzed for aerosol depth and other aerosol optical properties. In addition, a network of hand-held sun-photometers deployed in Mexico City, as part of the MCMA-2006 Study during the MILAGRO Campaign, provided an unprecedented measurement of ?a in 5 different sites well distributed in the city. We found that the average RED/SWIR ratio representative of the urbanized sites analyzed is 0.73±0.06 for scattering angles a averaged from sun-photometer measurements. The use of the new RED/SWIR ratio of 0.73 in the MODIS retrieval over Mexico City led to a significant improvement in the agreement between the MODIS and sun-photometer AOD results; with the slope, offset, and the correlation coefficient of the linear regression changing from (?aMODIS=0.91?a sun-photometer+0.33, R2=0.66) to (?aMODIS=0.96 ?a sun-photometer?0.006, R2=0.87). Indeed, an underestimation of this ratio in urban areas lead to a significant overestimation of the AOD retrieved from satellite. Therefore, we strongly encourage similar analyses in other urban areas to enhance the development of a parameterization of the surface ratios accounting for urban heterogeneities

Urban Visible/SWIR surface reflectance ratios from satellite and sun photometer measurements in Mexico City

International audienceThe surface reflectance ratio between the visible (VIS) and shortwave infrared (SWIR) radiation is an important quantity for the retrieval of the aerosol optical depth (?a) from the MODIS sensor data. Based on empirically determined VIS/SWIR ratios, MODIS ?a retrieval uses the surface reflectance in the SWIR band (2.1 ?m), where the interaction between solar radiation and the aerosol layer is small, to predict the visible reflectances in the blue (0.47 ?m) and red (0.66 ?m) bands. Therefore, accurate knowledge of the VIS/SWIR ratio is essential for achieving accurate retrieval of aerosol optical depth from MODIS. The heterogeneity of the surface cover in an urban environment increases the uncertainties in the estimation of the surface reflectance and, consequently, ?a. We analyzed the surface reflectance over some distinct surface covers in and around the Mexico City metropolitan area (MCMA) using MODIS radiances at 0.66 ?m and 2.1 ?m. The analysis was performed at 1.5 km×1.5 km spatial resolution. Also, ground-based AERONET sun-photometer data acquired in Mexico City from 2002 to 2005 were analyzed for aerosol optical thickness and other aerosol optical properties. In addition, a network of hand-held sun-photometers deployed in Mexico City, as part of the MCMA-2006 Study during the MILAGRO Campaign, provided an unprecedented measurement of ?a in 5 different sites well distributed in the city. We found that the average RED/SWIR ratio representative of the urbanized sites analyzed is 0.73±0.06. This average ratio was significantly different for non-urban sites, which was approximately 0.55. The aerosol optical thickness retrieved from MODIS radiances at a spatial resolution of 1.5 km×1.5 km and averaged within 10 x 10 km boxes were compared with collocated 1-h ?a averaged from sun-photometer measurements. The use of the new RED/SWIR ratio of 0.73 in the MODIS retrieval led to a significant improvement in the agreement between the MODIS and sun-photometer results; with the slope, offset, and the correlation coefficient of the linear regression changing from (?aMODIS = 0.91 ?a sun-photometer + 0.33 ,R2=0.66) to (?aMODIS = 0.96 ?a sun-photometer ?0.006, R2=0.87)

Differential Role of Human Choline Kinase α and β Enzymes in Lipid Metabolism: Implications in Cancer Onset and Treatment

11 pages, 6 figures, 1 table.Background The Kennedy pathway generates phosphocoline and phosphoethanolamine through its two branches. Choline Kinase (ChoK) is the first enzyme of the Kennedy branch of synthesis of 1phosphocholine, the major component of the plasma membrane. ChoK family of proteins is composed by ChoKα and ChoKβ isoforms, the first one with two different variants of splicing. Recently ChoKα has been implicated in the carcinogenic process, since it is over-expressed in a variety of human cancers. However, no evidence for a role of ChoKβ in carcinogenesis has been reported. Methodology/Principal Findings Here we compare the in vitro and in vivo properties of ChoKα1 and ChoKβ in lipid metabolism, and their potential role in carcinogenesis. Both ChoKα1 and ChoKβ showed choline and ethanolamine kinase activities when assayed in cell extracts, though with different affinity for their substrates. However, they behave differentially when overexpressed in whole cells. Whereas ChoKβ display an ethanolamine kinase role, ChoKα1 present a dual choline/ethanolamine kinase role, suggesting the involvement of each ChoK isoform in distinct biochemical pathways under in vivo conditions. In addition, while overexpression of ChoKα1 is oncogenic when overexpressed in HEK293T or MDCK cells, ChoKβ overexpression is not sufficient to induce in vitro cell transformation nor in vivo tumor growth. Furthermore, a significant upregulation of ChoKα1 mRNA levels in a panel of breast and lung cancer cell lines was found, but no changes in ChoKβ mRNA levels were observed. Finally, MN58b, a previously described potent inhibitor of ChoK with in vivo antitumoral activity, shows more than 20-fold higher efficiency towards ChoKα1 than ChoKβ. Conclusion/Significance This study represents the first evidence of the distinct metabolic role of ChoKα and ChoKβ isoforms, suggesting different physiological roles and implications in human carcinogenesis. These findings constitute a step forward in the design of an antitumoral strategy based on ChoK inhibition.This work has been supported by grants to JCL from Comunidad de Madrid (GR-SAL-0821-2004), Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (SAF2008-03750, RD06/0020/0016), Fundación Mutua Madrileña, and by a grant to ARM from Fundación Mutua Madrileña.Peer reviewe