Technical Note: Multispectral lidar time series of pine canopy chlorophyll content

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Time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay for bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein

Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI) is a cationic antimicrobial protein produced by polymorphonuclear leukocytes, that specifically interacts with and kills Gram-negative bacteria. BPl competes with lipopolysaccharide-binding protein (LBP) secreted by liver cells into blood plasma for binding to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and thus reduces the proinflammatory effects of LPS. We have developed a time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay for BPI and measured the concentration of BPI in human serum and plasma samples. The assay is based on a rabbit antibody against recombinant BPI. This antibody specifically adheres to polymorphonuclear leukocytes in immunostained human tissues. The difference in the serum concentration of BPI between unselected hospitalized patients with and without an infection was statistically significant. The mean concentration of BPI in serum samples was 28.3 μg/l (range 1.64–132, S.D. 26.8, n = 83). In contrast, there was no difference between the two groups in the BPI levels in plasma samples. For all individuals tested, BPI levels were consistently higher in plasma samples compared to the matched serum samples. The mean concentration of BPI in plasma samples was 52.3 μg/l (range 0.9–403, S.D. 60.6, n = 90). There was a positive correlation between the concentration of BPI and the white blood cell count as well as between the BPI concentration and C-reactive protein (CRP) in serum samples. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that BPI can be quantified reliably by time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay in human serum samples

A Conscious Porcine Model for Sudden Cardiac Death

No abstract availabl

Synthesis, in vitro and in vivo evaluation of 1,3,5-triazines as cannabinoid CB2 receptor agonists

The cannabinoid receptors type 2 (CBR2) are attractive therapeutic targets of the endocannabinoid signaling system (ECS) as they are not displaying the undesired psychotropic and cardiovascular side-effects seen with cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R) agonists. In continuation of our previous work on 2,4,6-trisubstituted 1,3,5-triazines as potent CB2 agonists, we synthesized an additional series of more polar analogues (1-10), which were found to possess high CB2R agonist activity with enhanced water solubility. The most potent compound in the series was N-(adamantan-1-yl)-4-ethoxy-6-(4-(2-fluoroethyl)piperazin-1-yl)-1,3,5-triazin-2-amine (9) with EC50 value of 0.60nM. To further evaluate the biological effects of the compounds, the selected compounds were tested in vitro against four different cell lines. A human retinal pigment epithelial cell line (ARPE-19) was used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of the compounds whereas an androgen-sensitive human prostate adenocarcinoma cell line (LNCaP), a Jurkat leukemia cell line and a C8161 melanoma cell line were used to assess the antiproliferative activity of the compounds. The most interesting results were obtained for N-(adamantan-1-yl)-4-ethoxy-6-(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)-1,3,5-triazin-2-amine (6), which induced cell viability decrease in prostate and leukemia cell lines, and diminished proliferation of C8161 melanoma cells. The results could be reversed in leukemia cells with the selective CB2R antagonist AM630, whereas in prostate cells the AM630 induced a significant cell viability decrease with a mechanism probably unlinked to CB2 cannabinoid receptor. The antiproliferative effect of 6 on the melanoma cells seemed not to be mediated via the CB1R or CB2R. No cytotoxicity was detected against ARPE-19 cell line at concentrations of 1 and 10μM for compound 6. However, at 30μM concentration the compound 6 decreased the cell viability. Finally, in order to estimate in vivo behavior of these compounds, (18)F labeled PET ligand, N-cyclopentyl-4-ethoxy-6-(4-(2-fluoro-18-ethyl)piperazin-1-yl)-1,3,5-triazin-2-amine ([(18)F]5), was synthesized and its biodistribution was determined in healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats. As a result, the tracer showed a rapid (<15min) elimination in urine accompanied by a slower excretion via the hepatobiliary route. In conclusion, we further demonstrated that 1,3,5-triazine scaffold serves as a suitable template for the design of highly potent CB2R agonists with reasonable water solubility properties. The compounds may be useful when studying the role of the endocannabinoid system in different diseases. The triazine scaffold is also a promising candidate for the development of new CB2R PET ligands

Identification of Tree Species in Japanese Forests based on Aerial Photography and Deep Learning

Natural forests are complex ecosystems whose tree species distribution and their ecosystem functions are still not well understood. Sustainable management of these forests is of high importance because of their significant role in climate regulation, biodiversity, soil erosion and disaster prevention among many other ecosystem services they provide. In Japan particularly, natural forests are mainly located in steep mountains, hence the use of aerial imagery in combination with computer vision are important modern tools that can be applied to forest research. Thus, this study constitutes a preliminary research in this field, aiming at classifying tree species in Japanese mixed forests using UAV images and deep learning in two different mixed forest types: a black pine (Pinus thunbergii)-black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) and a larch (Larix kaempferi)-oak (Quercus mongolica) mixed forest. Our results indicate that it is possible to identify black locust trees with 62.6 % True Positives (TP) and 98.1% True Negatives (TN), while lower precision was reached for larch trees (37.4% TP and 97.7% TN).Comment: Proc. of EnviroInfo 2020, Nicosia, Cyprus, September 202

Carbon dioxide fluxes and carbon balance of an agricultural grassland in southern Finland

A significant proportion of the global carbon emissions to the atmosphere originate from agriculture. Therefore, continuous long-term monitoring of CO2 fluxes is essential to understand the carbon dynamics and balances of different agricultural sites. Here we present results from a new eddy covariance flux measurement site located in southern Finland. We measured CO2 and H2O fluxes at this agricultural grassland site for 2 years, from May 2018 to May 2020. In particular the first summer experienced prolonged dry periods, which affected the CO2 fluxes, and substantially larger fluxes were observed in the second summer. During the dry summer, leaf area index (LAI) was notably lower than in the second summer. Water use efficiency increased with LAI in a similar manner in both years, but photosynthetic capacity per leaf area was lower during the dry summer. The annual carbon balance was calculated based on the CO2 fluxes and management measures, which included input of carbon as organic fertilizers and output as yield. The carbon balance of the field was -57 +/- 10 and -86 +/- 12 g C m(-2) yr(-1) in the first and second study years, respectively.Peer reviewe

Static Pressure of Hot Gas: Its Effect on the Gas Disks of Galaxies

The static pressure of the hot gas that fills clusters and groups of galaxies can affect significantly the volume density and thickness of the gas disks in galaxies. In combination with the dynamic pressure, the static pressure allows several observed peculiarities of spiral galaxies surrounded by a hot medium to be explained.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures. This is a slightly modified version of the paper published in Astronomy Letters 2008, Vol. 34, No 11, p. 73

Dark Matter Annihilation around Intermediate Mass Black Holes: an update

The formation and evolution of Black Holes inevitably affects the distribution of dark and baryonic matter in the neighborhood of the Black Hole. These effects may be particularly relevant around Supermassive and Intermediate Mass Black Holes (IMBHs), the formation of which can lead to large Dark Matter overdensities, called {\em spikes} and {\em mini-spikes} respectively. Despite being larger and more dense, spikes evolve at the very centers of galactic halos, in regions where numerous dynamical effects tend to destroy them. Mini-spikes may be more likely to survive, and they have been proposed as worthwhile targets for indirect Dark Matter searches. We review here the formation scenarios and the prospects for detection of mini-spikes, and we present new estimates for the abundances of mini-spikes to illustrate the sensitivity of such predictions to cosmological parameters and uncertainties regarding the astrophysics of Black Hole formation at high redshift. We also connect the IMBHs scenario to the recent measurements of cosmic-ray electron and positron spectra by the PAMELA, ATIC, H.E.S.S., and Fermi collaborations.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures. Invited contribution to NJP Focus Issue on "Dark Matter and Particle Physics

Changing climate and outbreaks of forest pest insects in a cold northern country, Finland

201

Outlining multi-purpose forest inventories to assess the ecosystem approach in forestry

A summary and discussion of selected published results on the current and potential role of forest inventories (with particular reference to the national ones) are presented in the light of the challenges posed by society and policy decisions in the environmental sector. The analysis concentrates mainly on the ecological and socio-economic aspects of the question and on forest inventories’ potential contribution to achieving sustainable forest management.L'articolo è diponibile sul sito dell'editore wwww.tandf.co.uk/journals