Phase diagram of a 2D Ising model within a nonextensive approach

In this work we report Monte Carlo simulations of a 2D Ising model, in which the statistics of the Metropolis algorithm is replaced by the nonextensive one. We compute the magnetization and show that phase transitions are present for $q\neq 1$. A $q -$ phase diagram (critical temperature vs. the entropic parameter $q$) is built and exhibits some interesting features, such as phases which are governed by the value of the entropic index $q$. It is shown that such phases favors some energy levels of magnetization states. It is also showed that the contribution of the Tsallis cutoff is essential to the existence of phase transitions

Differences in the Prevalence of Non-Communicable Disease between Slum Dwellers and the General Population in a Large Urban Area in Brazil.

Residents of urban slums are at greater risk for disease than their non-slum dwelling urban counterparts. We sought to contrast the prevalences of selected non-communicable diseases (NCDs) between Brazilian adults living in a slum and the general population of the same city, by comparing the age and sex-standardized prevalences of selected NCDs from a 2010 survey in Pau da Lima, Salvador Brazil, with a 2010 national population-based telephone survey. NCD prevalences in both populations were similar for hypertension (23.6% (95% CI 20.9⁻26.4) and 22.9% (21.2⁻24.6), respectively) and for dyslipidemia (22.7% (19.8⁻25.5) and 21.5% (19.7⁻23.4)). Slum residents had higher prevalences of diabetes mellitus (10.1% (7.9⁻12.3)) and of overweight/obesity (46.5% (43.1⁻49.9)), compared to 5.2% (4.2⁻6.1) and 40.6% (38.5⁻42.8) of the general population in Salvador. Fourteen percent (14.5% (12.1⁻17.0)) of slum residents smoked cigarettes compared to 8.3% (7.1⁻9.5) of the general population in Salvador. The national telephone survey underestimated the prevalence of diabetes mellitus, overweight/obesity, and smoking in the slum population, likely in part due to differential sampling inside and outside of slums. Further research and targeted policies are needed to mitigate these inequalities, which could have significant economic and social impacts on slum residents and their communities

The effect of magnetic stimulation on the osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation of human stem cells derived from the adipose tissue (hASCs)

The use of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) towards the musculoskeletal tissues has been the focus of many studies, regarding MNPs ability to promote and direct cellular stimulation and orient tissue responses. This is thought to be mainly achieved by mechano-responsive pathways, which can induce changes in cell behavior, including the processes of proliferation and differentiation, in response to external mechanical stimuli. Thus, the application of MNP-based strategies in tissue engineering may hold potential to propose novel solutions for cell therapy on bone and cartilage strategies to accomplish tissue regeneration. The present work aims at studying the influence of MNPs on the osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation of human adipose derived stem cells (hASCs). MNPs were incorporated in hASCs and cultured in medium supplemented for osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation. Cultures were maintained up to 28 days with/without an external magnetic stimulus provided by a magnetic bioreactor, to determine if the MNPs alone could affect the osteogenic or chondrogenic phenotype of the hASCs. Results indicate that the incorporation of MNPs does not negatively affect the viability nor the proliferation of hASCs. Furthermore, Alizarin Red staining evidences an enhancement in extracellular (ECM) mineralization under the influence of an external magnetic field. Although not as evident as for osteogenic differentiation, Toluidine blue and Safranin-O stainings also suggest the presence of a cartilage-like ECM with glycosaminoglycans and proteoglycans under the magnetic stimulus provided. Thus, MNPs incorporated in hASCs under the influence of an external magnetic field have the potential to induce differentiation towards the osteogenic and chondrogenic lineages.This research was supported by Project PEst-C/SAU/LA0026/2013/; NORTE-01-0124-FEDER-000020 under ON.2SR&TD Integrated Program; 7th Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. REGPOT-CT2012-316331-POLARIS

Resting-state connectivity reveals a role for sensorimotor systems in vocal emotional processing in children

Voices are a primary source of emotional information in everyday interactions. Being able to process non-verbal vocal emotional cues, namely those embedded in speech prosody, impacts on our behaviour and communication. Extant research has delineated the role of temporal and inferior frontal brain regions for vocal emotional processing. A growing number of studies also suggest the involvement of the motor system, but little is known about such potential involvement. Using resting-state fMRI, we ask if the patterns of motor system intrinsic connectivity play a role in emotional prosody recognition in children. Fifty-five 8-year-old children completed an emotional prosody recognition task and a resting-state scan. Better performance in emotion recognition was predicted by a stronger connectivity between the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and motor regions including primary motor, lateral premotor and supplementary motor sites. This is mostly driven by the IFG pars triangularis and cannot be explained by differences in domain-general cognitive abilities. These findings indicate that individual differences in the engagement of sensorimotor systems, and in its coupling with inferior frontal regions, underpin variation in children’s emotional speech perception skills. They suggest that sensorimotor and higher-order evaluative processes interact to aid emotion recognition, and have implications for models of vocal emotional communication.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Micro-bead injection spectroscopy for label-free automated determination of immunoglobulin G in human serum

Immunoglobulin G (IgG) represents the major fraction of antibodies in healthy adult human serum, and deviations from physiological levels are a generic marker of disease corresponding to different pathologies. Therefore, screening methods for IgG evaluation are a valuable aid to diagnostics. The present work proposes a rapid, automatic, and miniaturized method based on UV-vis micro-bead injection spectroscopy (μ-BIS) for the real-time determination of human serum IgG with label-free detection. Relying on attachment of IgG in rec-protein G immobilized in Sepharose 4B, a bioaffinity column is automatically assembled, where IgG is selectively retained and determined by on-column optical density measurement. A "dilution-and-shoot" approach (50 to 200 times) was implemented without further sample treatment because interferences were flushed out of the column upon sample loading, with minimization of carryover and cross-contamination by automatically discarding the sorbent (0.2 mg) after each determination. No interference from human serum albumin at 60 mg mL-1 in undiluted sample was found. The method allowed IgG determination in the range 100-300 μg mL-1 (corresponding to 5.0-60 mg mL-1 in undiluted samples), with a detection limit of 33 μg mL-1 (1.7 mg mL-1 for samples, dilution factor of 50). RSD values were < 9.4 and < 11.7%, for intra and inter-assay precision, respectively, while recovery values for human serum spiked with IgG at high pathological levels were 97.8-101.4%. Comparison to commercial ELISA kit showed no significant difference for tested samples (n = 8). Moreover, time-to-result decreased from several hours to < 5 min and analysis cost decreased 10 times, showing the potential of the proposed approach as a point-of-care method. Graphical abstract Micro-Bead Injection Spectroscopy method for real time, automated and label-free determination of total serum human Immunoglobulin G (IgG). The method was designed for Lab-on-Valve (LOV) platforms using a miniaturised protein G bioaffinity separative approach. IgG are separated from serum matrix components upon quantification with low non-specific binding in less than 5 min.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Ocorrência de injurias mecânicas durante as operações pós-colheita e sua influência na qualidade de manga Tommy Atkins destinada ao mercado europeu.

O objetivo deste estudo foi reconhecer e caracterizar os principais danos na manga Tommy Atkins, identificar os pontos ou etapas do processo no packing house que favorecem sua ocorrência e avaliar sua influência na qualidade do fruto

Genotypic and phenotypic diversity of Bacillus spp. isolated from steel plant waste

Background: Molecular studies of Bacillus diversity in various environments have been reported. However, there have been few investigations concerning Bacillus in steel plant environments. In this study, genotypic and phenotypic diversity and phylogenetic relationships among 40 bacterial isolates recovered from steel plant waste were investigated using classical and molecular methods. Results: 16S rDNA partial sequencing assigned all the isolates to the Bacillus genus, with close genetic relatedness to the Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus groups, and to the species Bacillus sphaericus. tDNA-intergenic spacer length polymorphisms and the 16S–23S intergenic transcribed spacer region failed to identify the isolates at the species level. Genomic diversity was investigatedby molecular typing with rep (repetitive sequence) based PCR using the primer sets ERIC2 (enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus), (GTG)5, and BOXAIR. Genotypic fingerprinting of the isolates reflected high intraspecies and interspecies diversity. Clustering of the isolates using ERIC-PCR fingerprinting was similar to that obtained from the 16S rRNA gene phylogenetic tree, indicating the potential of the former technique as a simple and useful tool for examining relationships among unknown Bacillus spp. Physiological, biochemical and heavy metal susceptibility profiles also indicated considerable phenotypic diversity. Among the heavy metal compounds tested Zn, Pb and Cu were least toxic to the bacterial isolates, whereas Ag inhibited all isolates at 0.001 mM. Conclusion: Isolates with identical 16S rRNA gene sequences had different genomic fingerprints and differed considerably in their physiological capabilities, so the high levels of phenotypic diversity found in this study are likely to have ecological relevance

Considerations and strategies in L2 vocabulary acquisition among Japanese 1st year university students.

This article proposes a framework of strategies1） for L2 vocabulary acquisition among low-to-mid level L2 learners in their first year at Kansai University. The framework relies upon considerations posited by Kudo (1999), as well as, Hunt and Beglar’s (2005) model for developing EFL reading vocabulary, although the objective for our target learners is tofacilitate vocabulary acquisition in a learner-centered communicative context, where possible. This paper firstly underlines the critical role of vocabulary in second language acquisition, while raising awareness of the surrounding pedagogic climate in Japanese secondary education.研究ノー