Ferromagnetic to spin glass cross over in (La,Tb)_{2/3}Ca_{1/3}MnO_{3}

In the series La_{2/3-x}Tb_{x}Ca_{1/3}MnO_{3}, it is known that the compositions are ferromagnetic for smaller values of x and show spin glass characteristics at larger values of x. Our studies on the magnetic properties of various compositions in the La_{2/3-x}Tb_{x}Ca_{1/3}MnO_{3} series show that the cross over from ferromagnetic to spin glass region takes place above x ~ 1/8. Also, a low temperature anomaly at 30 K, observed in the ac susceptibility curves, disappears for compositions above this critical value of x. A mixed phase region coexists in the narrow compositional range 0.1 <= x <= 0.125, indicating that the ferromagnetic to spin glass cross over is not abrupt.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure

Exploratory landscape metrics for agricultural sustainability

Socioeconomic growth and urban change have been an increasing concern for decision makers in recent decades. The monitoring, mapping, and analysis of agricultural land use change, especially in areas where urban change has been high, is crucial. The collision between traditional economic activities related to agriculture in tourist areas such as the Algarve and current demand for tourism infrastructures in urban regions is also leading to loss of economic activity. This article uses a combined geographical information system approach with CORINE land cover datasets to perform a Shannon’s diversity index quantifying changes in agricultural areas. The article then expands on the nature of the agricultural changes observed, and offers a multi-temporal assessment by means of landscape metrics in order to understand the shifting land use patterns for the Algarve in land use planning and regional economic equilibrium: a) forest regions become transformed into agricultural areas and agricultural areas become urban; b) areas that are initially agricultural become scattered residential regions created by economic investors; and c) agricultural land use changes have a cyclical nature in which—in the course of the economic recession—such dynamic effects brought about a decrease in tourism and focus on traditional sectors

Uncertainty in Spanish Organic Products: A Global Analysis from Consumer to Entrepreneurs

The organic market is a very particular one. Starting from the premise that organic products are confidence and credibility products which cannot be easily differentiated from the rest, we find that consumers face a risk when purchasing them. In Spain, the marketing chain does not follow the conventional stages in most of the cases, so there is always some uncertainty about how the products will be sold. In addition, the great majority of the Spanish organic production is marketed abroad. In this paper we show some of the results of an investigation project in this topic.Organic, risk, chain, producer, consumer, Agribusiness, Risk and Uncertainty,

Economic Policies and Bankruptcy Institutions: Brazil in a Period of Transition from Colony to Independent Nation

This paper studies the legislation on bankruptcy introduced into Brazil by D.João VI (1808-1821) and shows how this legislation was used in this period as an instrument of protection for certain specific economic activities. On one hand, this work deliberately seeks to incorporate institutions into the study of Brazilian economic history, based on the assumption that the lack of interest in the role played by these institutions has hindered a better understanding of the country’s economic development during the Nineteenth Century. On the other hand, this paper introduces new material for the purpose of re-assessing the economic policies enforced in this period. In fact the study of the bankruptcy legislation suggests that one of the Government’s main concern at the time was to promote the development of activities directly related to gold and sugar exports. Therefore the general and popular acceptance of the revolutionary character of the economic policy in this period is challenged.Institutions, Bankruptcy, D. João VI, Legislation

Multi-drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria: antibiotic-resistance and new treatment strategies

In this editorial, we treat the multi-drug-resistance of microorganisms such as Klebsiella pneumonia (Kp) and Acinetobacter baumanii and the issues concerning the management of these infections. Diseases caused by carbapenemase-resistant Kp (CR-Kp) represent an emerging threat worldwide due to high mortality rate and limited therapeutic options. Consequently innovative therapies have been suggested for their treatment. Colistin- based combinations are considered the milestone of the therapy for CR-Kp. They include meropenem+colistin, meropenem +colistin+tigecycline, the double carbapenem+colistin, tigecycline+colistin, colistin+gentamicin and even colistin +vancomycin. However, colistin use might be limited by its potential nephrotoxicity and resistance. Other antibiotic combinations concern the tigecycline with gentamicin, fosfomycin with aminoglycoside and ertapenem with meropenem. Thus, the double carbapenem-regimen might be considered as a suitable therapy in those subjects in whom previous antimicrobial combinations failed. New antibiotics such as ceftazidime-avibactam effective on CR-Kp and ceftolozane-tazobactam active against XDR (Extensively Drug Resistant) Pseudomonas aeruginosa are now being used in many countries. The mortality results to be lower in patients treated with antibiotic combinations than in those who underwent monotherapy. Efforts should be made by the clinicians in order to limit the widespread of these resistant microorganisms all over the world. Encouraging new solutions as bacteriophage therapy or biocides currently does not seem the right choice

A novel method to titrate Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) using laser-based scanning of near-infrared fluorophores conjugated antibodies

Among several strategies used for Herpes simplex virus (HSV) detection in biological specimens, standard plaque assay (SPA) remains the most reliable method to evaluate virus infectivity and quantify viral replication. However, it is a manual procedure, thereby affected by operator subjectivity, and it may be particularly laborious for multiple sample analysis. Here we describe an innovative method to perform the titration of HSV type 1 (HSV-1) in different samples, using the “In-Cell WesternTM” Assay (ICW) from LI-COR, a quantitative immunofluorescence assay that exploits laser-based scanning of near infrared (NIR). In particular, we employed NIR-immunodetection of viral proteins to monitor foci of HSV-1 infection in cell monolayers, and exploited an automated detection of their fluorescence intensity to evaluate virus titre. This innovative method produced similar and superimposable values compared to SPA, but it is faster and can be performed in 96 well plate, thus allowing to easily and quickly analyze and quantify many samples in parallel. These features make our method particularly suitable for the screening and characterization of antiviral compounds, as we demonstrated by testing acyclovir (ACV), the main anti-HSV-1 drug. Moreover, we developed a new data analysis system that allowed to overcome potential bias due to unspecific florescence signals, thus improving data reproducibility. Overall, our method may represents a useful tool for both clinical and research purposes

The fourth dimension in landscape analysis: changing of heritage and ecological values in the Évora cultural landscapes.

Time is one of the most important driving forces in Landscape Ecology. Time along with geosystem, biosystem and socialsystem determines landscape heterogeneity which reveals itself in different patterns and functions. Cultural Landscapes are the result of the interactions between man and environment along time