Influence of natural polyphenolic fractions on cellular respiration

We have studied the influence of two polyphenolic fractions – methanolic (PMF) and ethanolic (PEF) – extracted from the leaves of the medicinal plant Asclepias syriaca upon cellular respiration. Experiments were performed in vitro on the cells from liver, sartorius striated muscle and stomach smooth muscle of frog (Rana ridibunda, Pall.), determining the cellular oxygen consumption by the Warburg micromanometric method. Polyphenol effects were different, depending on the nature of used fraction and cellular type. Therefore, after 90 minutes of experiencing on liver, the both polyphenolic fractions stimulated cellular respiration, compared to the untreated control. The striated muscle PMF has inhibited and PEF has stimulated respiratory processes. In stomach muscle, reverse effects were noticed: PMF has stimulated and PEF has slightly inhibited cellular respiration. The results pointed out the specific action of these polyphenolic agents on cellular respiration and energetic metabolism processes, also allowing the estimate of their useful pharmacological properties

Measurement of the cosmic ray spectrum above 4×10184{\times}10^{18} eV using inclined events detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory

A measurement of the cosmic-ray spectrum for energies exceeding $4{\times}10^{18}$ eV is presented, which is based on the analysis of showers with zenith angles greater than $60^{\circ}$ detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. The measured spectrum confirms a flux suppression at the highest energies. Above $5.3{\times}10^{18}$ eV, the "ankle", the flux can be described by a power law $E^{-\gamma}$ with index $\gamma=2.70 \pm 0.02 \,\text{(stat)} \pm 0.1\,\text{(sys)}$ followed by a smooth suppression region. For the energy ($E_\text{s}$) at which the spectral flux has fallen to one-half of its extrapolated value in the absence of suppression, we find $E_\text{s}=(5.12\pm0.25\,\text{(stat)}^{+1.0}_{-1.2}\,\text{(sys)}){\times}10^{19}$ eV.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers. These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30 to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components. The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy -- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at least five radio stations with signal.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy

We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of 15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DOI. Supplemental material in the ancillary file

Multiple Scenario Generation of Subsurface Models:Consistent Integration of Information from Geophysical and Geological Data throuh Combination of Probabilistic Inverse Problem Theory and Geostatistics

Neutrinos with energies above 1017 eV are detectable with the Surface Detector Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory. The identification is efficiently performed for neutrinos of all flavors interacting in the atmosphere at large zenith angles, as well as for Earth-skimming \u3c4 neutrinos with nearly tangential trajectories relative to the Earth. No neutrino candidates were found in 3c 14.7 years of data taken up to 31 August 2018. This leads to restrictive upper bounds on their flux. The 90% C.L. single-flavor limit to the diffuse flux of ultra-high-energy neutrinos with an E\u3bd-2 spectrum in the energy range 1.0 7 1017 eV -2.5 7 1019 eV is E2 dN\u3bd/dE\u3bd < 4.4 7 10-9 GeV cm-2 s-1 sr-1, placing strong constraints on several models of neutrino production at EeV energies and on the properties of the sources of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays

Cellular effects of some bioactive principles from red wines and must

The in vitro action of some samples of red wine and concentrated must on the liver and striated muscle of frog (Rana ridibunda, Pall) was studied, following the intensity of cellular respiration, and the redox potential (rH). Both wine (1 mL/100mL physiological solution normal Ringer – NR) and must (2 mg dry matter/100mL NR) stimulate aerobe cellular respiration (mm3 O2/g wet tissue) and diminish the redox potential values, comparatively with the non-treated reference sample. Also, on treating liver and muscle cells with ethanol (1 mL/100mL NR) an evident depression of cellular respiration and increase of redox potential values may be noticed, alongwith perturbation of cellular metabolic processes. The obtained results evidence possible energizing, hepatoprotecting and redox modulating properties of the bioactive principles from red wine and must

Zinc-Induced Genotoxic Effects in Root Meristems of Barley Seedlings

The pollution increase, as a result of the release into environment of genotoxic chemicals, including heavy metals, largely affects the ecosystems and the health of living organisms. Although zinc is not considered highly phytotoxic, its excess becomes noxious. In literature, the reports on zinc genotoxicity are equivocal. Therefore, the objective of this work was to evaluate the amplitude of cytogenetic damage induced in Hordeum vulgare L. cv. ‘Madalin’ after seed treatment with different concentrations (10, 100, 250, 500 μM) of Zn+2, provided as zinc sulphate and zinc acetate. The mitostimulatory effect was present at all concentrations of both zinc compounds. The rate of ana-telophase aberrations exceeded by 2 - 3 times the control, and the frequency of metaphase disturbances was 5.0-10.0 times higher than the control. The results indicate the clastogenic and aneugenic potential of zinc in barley and constitute a signal about the risks of its increasing presence into the environment, with repercussions on living systems, even on human health, due to the extensive use of zinc compounds including as pesticides.</p