SummaryThe present study aimed to investigate the effect of quercetin as an alternative antioxidant to cysteamine on in vitro maturation. Oocytes were collected from goat ovaries, destined for in ...vitro maturation and distributed into three groups: CIS group, oocytes were immersed in MIV base medium; in Groups Q4 and Q8, oocytes were immersed in the medium of the CIS group, adding 4 μM or 8 μM of quercetin, respectively, and cultured for 24 h at 38.5°C with 5% CO2. The CIS and Q4 groups presented the same percentage of expanded cumulus cells, but the per cent in the Q8 group was significantly lower than that of the other groups (P<0.05). The oocyte retraction rate in the Q8 group was higher (P<0.05) than in the CIS and Q4 groups. Treatment with 8 μM of quercetin presented a lower proportion of expanded oocytes than the CIS group and 4 μM of quercetin (P<0.05). The percentage of MII oocytes was higher in the Q4 group than in the CIS group (P<0.05), but the percentages in the CIS and Q8 groups were similar. The rate of apoptosis was higher in the CIS group than in the other groups (P<0.05). In addition, oocytes matured with 4 μM quercetin showed higher mitochondrial activity than matured oocytes in the CIS and Q8 groups (P<0.05). In conclusion, 4 μM of quercetin can be used as an alternative to cysteamine in the in vitro maturation of goat oocytes.
This study aimed to evaluate the protective effects of four autochthonous bacteria isolated from juvenile sole (Solea senegalensis) intestine as dietary probiotic supplement against bacterial ...pathogen infection and handling/transport stressors. Growth performance and immune responses were evaluated after 85 days of feeding trial. Sole (IBW = 16.07 ± 0.11 g) were fed six experimental diets, a control diet (CTRL, without the dietary probiotic supplementation), and five diets supplemented with probiotic bacteria: PB1 (Shewanella hafniensis), PB2 (Enterococcus raffinosus), PB3 (Shewanella hafniensis + Arthrobacter soli), PB4 (Pseudomonas protegens + Arthrobacter soli) and PB5 (Shewanella hafniensis + Arthrobacter soli + Enterococcus raffinosus). All bacteria were selected based on their in vitro antimicrobial activity. After the growth trial, fish were submitted to a stress factor (transport) and then each dietary group was divided in two additional groups: non-infected (placebo) and infected with Photobacterium damselae subsp. piscicida. Immune and antioxidant responses were evaluated at day 10 post-infection. In infection trial A, fish were infected on the same day of transport, whereas in trial B fish were infected after a 7-day recovery from the transport stress. At the end of the feeding trial, fish fed with PB2 and PB4 showed lower final body weight when compared with the other dietary groups. Respiratory burst activity and nitric oxide production were not affected by probiotic supplementation. Fish fed with PB5 presented lower peroxidase activity compared to CTRL. Lysozyme and alternative complement pathway activity (ACH50) showed no significant differences between treatments. The innate immune responses were significantly affected after handling stress and bacterial infection. In trial A, the ACH50 levels of infected fish were significantly lower than the placebo groups. On the other hand, in trial B fish infected with Pdp demonstrated higher ACH50 levels when compared to placebos. Peroxidase levels were strongly modulated by bacterial infection and handling stress. In trials A and B, infection had a clear downgrade effect in peroxidase levels. Lipid peroxidation, catalase, glutathione S-transferase and glutathione reductase were altered by both bacterial infection and transport.
Overall, dietary probiotic supplementation did not influence growth performance of sole. The immune and oxidative defenses of sole responded differently to infection depending on the probiotic and the synergy between pathogen infection and transport.
•Intestine autochthonous bacteria were used as probiotic in Senegalese sole.•Diets PB2 and PB4 resulted in lower final body weight compared with control.•Respiratory burst and nitric oxide were not affected by probiotic supplementation.•Oxidative stress and innate immunity were altered by handling and infection.
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Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) feature ideal structural properties and surface chemistry for use as nanocarriers of molecules, polymers and biomolecules in cutting-edge ...applications. One important challenge remaining in their preparation is the ability to tune their diameter in the range of a few tens of nanometers, with narrow size dispersity, preferably using a simple, sustainable and scalable synthetic process. This work presents a fully controllable low-temperature and purely aqueous sol-gel method to prepare MSNs with user-defined diameters from 15 nm to 80 nm and narrow size dispersity. The method also allows modification of the pore structure and offers the possibility of incorporating a luminescent species in the silica network for optical traceability. Control was achieved by tuning the colloidal stability of the assembly of cylindrical micelles that template the MSN synthesis. Using CTAB cylindrical micelles as template and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) as catalyst, precise diameter control was achieved either by changing the pH (that controls micelle surface charge) or by adding salt at constant pH (to tune the ionic strength and charge screening). This new sustainable MSN synthesis method provides full control over the nanoparticle diameters and can be used as a platform for the application of MSNs with user-defined sizes in different fields.
We examined the interaction between adatoms and graphene for Ag, Cd, In and Hg by density functional theory. We establish a relation between the binding energy and the electric-field gradient tensor ...(EFG) for each atom, which indicates that hyperfine interactions can be used to probe the binding and stability of adatoms on graphene. The EFG is also shown to be a fingerprint for the local configuration, even at the sub-Angstrom scale. This work demonstrates how suitable hyperfine methods, such as perturbed angular correlation spectroscopy, can be used to experimentally unravel details of atomic adsorption on graphene, and by extension on two-dimensional materials in general.
Oryzalin is a dinitroaniline drug that has attracted recent interest for the treatment of leishmaniasis. Its use as an antiparasitic therapeutic agent is limited by the low water solubility ...associated with an in vivo rapid clearance, leading to the administration of larger and possibly toxic doses in in vivo studies, and the use of solvents that may lead to undesirable side effects. In the present work oryzalin-containing lipid nanoparticles were produced by a emulsion–solvent evaporation technique using a composition suitable for parenteral administration, i.e., tripalmitin (solid lipid) and a complex mixture of three emulsifying agents (soya lecithin, Tween® 20 and sodium deoxycholate). Physicochemical characterization included the determination of mean particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, encapsulation efficiency and DSC studies. Final formulations revealed values of <140nm (PI<0.2) and zeta potential of ≈−35mV, as well as encapsulation efficiency >75%. The effects of various processing parameters, such as lipid and surfactant and composition and concentration, as well as the stability during the harsh procedures of autoclaving (121°C/15min) and freeze-drying were also evaluated. Formulations revealed to be stable throughout freeze-drying and moist-heath sterilization without significant variations on physicochemical properties and no significant oryzalin losses. The use of a complex surfactant mixture proved crucial for preserving formulation stability. Particularly, lecithin appears as a key component in the stabilization of tripalmitin-based oryzalin-containing lipid nanoparticles. Finally, cell viability studies demonstrated that the incorporation of oryzalin in nanoparticles decreases cytotoxicity, thus suggesting this strategy may improve tolerability and therapeutic index of dinitroanilines.
•N-doped reduced graphene oxide materials prepared by using melamine and urea.•Metal-free graphene-based materials as catalysts in advanced oxidation processes.•Melamine treated sample is the most ...active in catalytic wet air oxidation.•Melamine treated sample is also the most active in catalytic ozonation.•N-groups and surface area available play a significant beneficial role.
Nitrogen-doped graphene-based materials were prepared by the modified Hummers method using natural graphite as primary precursor, followed by chemical and thermal reduction processes, and finally ball milled with urea or melamine. The graphene-based materials were characterized at different stages of their synthesis by different techniques (including temperature programmed desorption and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) and then tested as metal-free catalysts in the degradation of oxalic acid and phenol by two different oxidation processes: catalytic wet air oxidation (temperature between 413 and 433K, and 7bar of O2) and catalytic ozonation (room temperature and atmospheric pressure). The melamine treated sample was always found to be more active due to the presence of nitrogen groups and adequate surface area available.
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) require effective indicators to assess their performance, in compliance with the goals of relevant national and international commitments. Achieving and prioritizing ...shortlists of multidisciplinary indicators demands a significant effort from specialists to depict the multiple conservation and socioeconomic interests, and the large complexity of natural systems. The present paper describes a structured expert-based methodology (process and outputs) to co-define a list of multidisciplinary MPA performance indicators. This work was promoted by the management authority of coastal MPAs in mainland Portugal to gather a consensual and feasible list of indicators that would guide the design of a future national monitoring program. Hence, Portuguese coastal MPAs served as a case study to develop such a process between 2019 and 2020. In the end, participants (1) agreed on a shortlist of prioritized indicators (
i.e.
, environmental, governance, and socioeconomic indicators) and (2) defined minimum monitoring frequencies for the indicators in this list, compatible with the potential replicability of the associated survey methods. The present approach recommends that management plans incorporate monitoring procedures and survey methods, with a validated list of indicators and associated monitoring periodicity, agreed among researchers, MPA managers and governance experts. The proposed methodology, and the lessons learned from it, can support future processes aiming to define and prioritize MPA performance indicators.
Nitrogen fertilization increased largely over the last decade in tropical eucalypt plantations but the behaviour of belowground tree components has received little attention. Sequential soil coring ...and ingrowth core methods were used in a randomized block experiment, from 18 to 32 months after planting
Eucalyptus grandis, in Brazil, in order to estimate annual fine root production and turnover under contrasting N fertilization regimes (120
kg
N
ha
−1 vs. 0
kg
N
ha
−1). The response of growth in tree height and basal area to N fertilizer application decreased with stand age and was no longer significant at 36 months of age. The ingrowth core method provided only qualitative information about the seasonal course of fine root production and turnover. Mean fine root biomasses (diameter <2
mm) in the 0–30
cm layer measured by monthly coring amounted to 0.91 and 0.84
t
ha
−1 in the 0 N and the 120 N treatments, respectively. Fine root production was significantly higher in the 0 N treatment (1.66
t
ha
−1
year
−1) than in the 120 N treatment (1.12
t
ha
−1
year
−1), probably as a result of the greater tree growth in the control treatment throughout the sampling period. Fine root turnover was 1.8 and 1.3
year
−1 in the 0 N and the 120 N treatments, respectively. However, large fine root biomass (diameter <1
mm) was found down to a depth of 3
m one year after planting: 1.67 and 1.61
t
ha
−1 in the 0 N and the 120 N treatments, respectively. Fine root turnover might not be insubstantial in deep soil layers where large changes in soil water content were observed.
Infection with
and
may lead to diffuse cutaneous leishmaniasis. The cure is exceptional, especially for the strange case of this lady. Case report: The patient acquired the disease in childhood and ...remained with lesions for over 30 years, albeit several treatments. She worsened after a pregnancy, developing disseminated lesions. Miltefosine with amphotericin B and pentamidine resulted in remission. Lesions reappeared after one year, accompanied by intra-nasal infiltration of the disease. The nasal spraying of a single ampoule of pentavalent antimoniate resulted in the sustained disappearance of the nasal symptoms and all the cutaneous lesions. After over eight years, she remains disease-free, albeit under renal replacement therapy. The high nasal mucosal antimonial concentration may explain the long-lasting cure via new MHC class I epitope-specific CD8+ cell clones against
present in the nasal mucosa.
Observational meteorological data from the field
experiment GoAmazon 2014/15 and data from numerical simulations with the
cloud-resolving model (CRM) called the System for Atmospheric Modeling (SAM) ...are
used to study the interaction between the cloudiness–radiation as well as the
atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics variables for a site located in the
central Amazon region (−3.2∘ S, −60.6∘ W) during the wet
and dry periods. The main aims are to (a) analyze the temporal series of the
integrated cloud fraction, precipitation rate and downward shortwave flux
as well as (b) to determine the relationship between the integrated cloud fraction,
radiative fluxes and large-scale variable anomalies as a function of the
previous day's average. The temporal series of the integrated cloud
fraction, precipitation rate and downward shortwave flux from SAM
simulations showed physical consistency with the observations from GoAmazon
2014/15. Shallow and deep convection clouds show to have a meaningful impact
on radiation fluxes in the Amazon region during wet and dry periods.
Anomalies of large-scale variables (relative to the previous day's average)
are physically associated with cloud formation, evolution and dissipation.
SAM consistently simulated these results, where the cloud fraction vertical
profile shows a pattern very close to the observed data (cloud type).
Additionally, the integrated cloud fraction and large-scale variable
anomalies, as a function of the previous day's average, have a good
correlation. These results suggest that the memory of the large-scale
dynamics from the previous day can be used to estimate the cloud fraction as
well as the water content, which is a variable of the cloud itself. In
general, the SAM satisfactorily simulated the interaction between
cloud–radiation as well as dynamic and thermodynamic variables of the atmosphere
during the periods of this study, being able to obtain atmospheric
variables that are impossible to obtain in an observational way.
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