We propose an online sensorimotor architecture for controlling a low-cost humanoid robot to perform dance movements synchronized with musical stimuli. The proposed architecture attempts to overcome ...the robot’s motor constraints by adjusting the velocity of its actuators and inter-changing the attended beat metrical-level on-the-fly. Moreover, we propose quantitative metrics for measuring the level of beat-synchrony of the generated robot dancing motion and complement them with a qualitative survey about several aspects of the demonstrated robot dance performances. Tests with different dance movements and musical pieces demonstrated satisfactory beat-synchrony results despite the physical limitations of the robot. The comparison against robot dance sequences generated without inter-changing the attended metrical-level validated our sensorimotor approach for controlling beat-synchronous robot dancing motions using different dance movements and facing distinct musical tempo conditions.
This work describes the single adsorption of seven pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, oxazepam, sulfamethoxazole, piroxicam, cetirizine, venlafaxine and paroxetine) from water onto a commercially ...available activated carbon and a non-activated carbon produced by pyrolysis of primary paper mill sludge. Kinetics and equilibrium adsorption studies were performed using a batch experimental approach. For all pharmaceuticals, both carbons presented fast kinetics (equilibrium times varying from less than 5 min to 120 min), mainly described by a pseudo-second order model. Equilibrium data were appropriately described by the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models, the last one giving slightly higher correlation coefficients. The fitted parameters obtained for both models were quite different for the seven pharmaceuticals under study. In order to evaluate the influence of water solubility, log Kow, pKa, polar surface area and number of hydrogen bond acceptors of pharmaceuticals on the adsorption parameters, multiple linear regression analysis was performed. The variability is mainly due to log Kow followed by water solubility, in the case of the waste-based carbon, and due to water solubility in the case of the commercial activated carbon.
•Adsorption of 7 pharmaceuticals onto activated and paper mill sludge carbons was studied.•The activated carbon is highly efficient on the removal of pharmaceuticals from water.•Significant differences in the adsorption affinity were obtained between pharmaceuticals.•The influence of pharmaceuticals properties was evaluated by linear regression analysis.•log Kow and water solubility were the main properties affecting adsorption.
Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NP) were reported to be reprotoxic in humans and fish. However, the effects of these NP on the reproduction of marine bivalves, namely oysters, remain unknown. ...Thus, a short-term (1 h) direct exposure of sperm of the Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) to two TiO2 NP concentrations (1 and 10 mg.L-1) was performed, and sperm motility, antioxidant responses, and DNA integrity were evaluated. Although no changes occurred in sperm motility and the activities of the antioxidants, the genetic damage indicator increased at both concentrations, demonstrating that TiO2 NP affects the DNA integrity of oyster sperm. Although DNA transfer can happen, it does not fulfill its biological mission since the transferred DNA is not intact and may compromise the reproduction and recruitment of the oysters. This vulnerability of C. gigas sperm towards TiO2 NP highlights the importance of studying the effects of NPs exposure to broadcast spawners.
•Spermatozoa exposure to TiO2 NP does not affect motility and antioxidant profile.•DNA damage increased after spermatozoa short-term direct exposure to TiO2 NP.•Unaltered sperm motility ensures DNA delivery, although DNA is damaged.
Marine pollution by nanoparticles (NPs) can be reprotoxic for fish and disturb successful reproduction of wild populations. In gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata), a mild effect on sperm motility was ...observed after exposure to high concentrations of silver NPs. Considering the great heterogeneity traits within a sperm sample, it is possible that NPs affect spermatozoa accordingly, modulating subpopulation profile. Thus, this work aimed to analyse NP effects in sperm motility in general and considering spermatozoa population structure, using a subpopulation approach. Seabream sperm samples from mature males were exposed for 1 h to increasing concentrations of titanium dioxide (1, 10, 100, 1000 and 10,000 μg L
) and silver (0.25, 25 and 250 μg L
) NPs, including Ag NP and Ag
, dissolved in a non-activating medium (0.9 % NaCl). Concentrations chosen include realistic (10-100 and 0.25 μg L
, respectively, for TiO
and Ag) and supra-environmental values. The mean particle diameter was determined as 19.34 ± 6.72 and 21.50 ± 8.27 nm in the stock suspension, respectively, for titanium dioxide and silver. After the ex vivo exposure, sperm motility parameters were determined using computer-assisted sperm analysis, and sperm subpopulations were later identified using a two-step cluster analysis. Results revealed a significant reduction in total motility after exposure to the 2 highest concentrations of titanium dioxide NPs, while curvilinear and straight-line velocities were not altered. Exposure to silver NPs (Ag NP and Ag
) lowered significantly total and progressive motilities at all concentrations, while curvilinear and straight-line velocities were significantly lower only at the highest concentration. Sperm subpopulations were also affected by the exposure to both titanium dioxide and silver NPs. In both cases, the highest levels of NPs triggered a decrease in the percentage of fast sperm subpopulations (38.2% in TiO
1000 μg L
, 34.8.% in Ag NP 250 μg L
, and 45.0% in Ag
250 μg L
vs 53.4% in the control), while an increase on slow sperm subpopulations. A reprotoxic effect was proven for both NPs, but only at supra-environmental concentrations.
Algae are a complex, polyphyletic group of organisms, affordable and naturally rich in nutrients, but also valuable sources of structurally diverse bioactive substances such as natural pigments. The ...aim of this work was to evaluate the polar and non-polar pigment contents of different commercial dried algae (brown: Himanthalia elongata, Undaria pinnatifida, Laminaria ochroleuca; red: Porphyra spp.; and a blue-green microalga: Spirulina spp.). The pigment extraction was carried out using different solvents (100% methanol, 100% methanol acid free, 100% ethanol, 90% acetone, N,N-dimethylformamide, dimethyl sulfoxide-water (4:1, v/v) and pH 6.8 phosphate buffer), selected according to their affinity for each class of pigments. Acetone proved to be an efficient solvent to extract chlorophylls from brown and red algae, but not from Spirulina spp. Porphyra spp. presented considerably higher levels of all pigments compared to brown algae, although Spirulina spp. presented significantly higher (p < 0.05) levels of chlorophylls, carotenoids and phycobiliproteins, compared to all macroalgae. The content of fucoxanthin extracted from the three brown algae was highly correlated to the carotenoid content. Within this group, Himanthalia elongata presented the highest fucoxanthin/total carotenoids ratio. Although the yield of extraction depended on the solvent used, the algae studied herein are an interesting source of pigments of great value for a wide range of applications.
Abstract Spectra of young benchmark brown dwarfs with well-known ages are vital to characterize other brown dwarfs, for which ages are in general not known. These spectra are also crucial to test ...atmospheric models, which have the potential to provide detailed information about the atmospheres of these objects. However, to test atmospheric models optimally, medium-resolution, long-wavelength-coverage spectra with well-understood uncertainties are ideal, such as the spectra provided by the NIRSpec instrument on board the James Webb Space Telescope. In this paper, we present medium-resolution JWST/NIRSpec spectra of two young brown dwarfs, TWA 28 (M9.0) and TWA 27A (M9.0), and one planetary-mass object, TWA 27B (L6.0), members of the TW Hydrae Association (age ∼ 10 Myr). We show the richness of the atomic lines and molecular bands present in the spectra. All objects show signs of a circumstellar disk, via a near-infrared excess and/or via emission lines. We matched a set of cloudless atmospheric spectra ( ATMO ), and cloudy atmospheric spectra ( BT-Settl ) to our NIRSpec spectra, and analyzed which wavelength ranges and spectral features both models reproduce best. Both models derive consistent parameters for the three sources, and predict the existence of CH 4 at 3.35 μ m in TWA 27B. Nonetheless, in contrast to other slightly older objects with similar spectral type, like PSO 318.5–22 and VHS 1256b, this feature is not present in the spectrum of TWA 27B. The lack of the CH 4 feature might suggest that the L–T transition of very young dwarfs starts at later spectral types than for older brown dwarfs.
The present study aimed to evaluate the reprotoxicity of environmental (0.25 μg.L−1) and supra-environmental (25 μg.L−1 and 250 μg.L−1) levels of silver nanoparticles (Ag NP) on the Pacific oyster ...(Magallana gigas), by determining sperm quality. For that, we evaluated sperm motility, mitochondrial function and oxidative stress. To determine whether the Ag toxicity was related to the NP or its dissociation into Ag ions (Ag+), we tested the same concentrations of Ag+. We observed no dose-dependent responses for Ag NP and Ag+, and both impaired sperm motility indistinctly without affecting mitochondrial function or inducing membrane damage. We hypothesize that the toxicity of Ag NP is mainly due to adhesion to the sperm membrane. Blockade of membrane ion channels may also be a mechanism by which Ag NP and Ag+ induce toxicity. The presence of Ag in the marine ecosystem is of environmental concern as it may affect reproduction in oysters.
•Sperm motility decreases after short-term direct exposure to Ag NP and Ag ion.•Sperm mitochondrial function and membrane damage unaltered by Ag NP and ion.•Ag NP and ion environmental levels are spermiotoxic to the Pacific oyster.
Compartmentalized structures obtained in all‐aqueous settings have shown promising properties as cell encapsulation devices, as well as reactors for trans‐membrane chemical reactions. While most ...approaches focus on the preparation of spherical devices, advances on the production of complex architectures have been enabled by the interfacial stability conferred by emulsion systems, namely mild aqueous two‐phase systems (ATPS), or non‐equilibrated analogues. However, the application of non‐spherical structures has mostly been reported while keeping the fabricated materials at a stable interface, limiting the free‐standing character, mobility and transposition of the obtained structures to different setups. Here, the fabrication of self‐standing, malleable and perfusable tubular systems through all‐aqueous interfacial assembly is shown, culminating in the preparation of independent objects with stability and homogeneity after disruption of the polymer‐based aqueous separating system. Those hollow structures can be fabricated with a variety of widths, and rapidly printed as long structures at flow rates of 15 mm s−1. The materials are used as compartments for cell culture, showcasing high cytocompatibility, and can be tailored to promote cell adhesion. Such structures may find application in fields that benefit from freeform tubular structures, including the biomedical field with, for example, cell encapsulation, and benchtop preparation of microfluidic devices.
A straightforward method based on the interfacial complexation of oppositely charged natural polyelectrolytes is proposed to directly fabricate fiber‐shaped structures, stable in all‐aqueous physiological‐relevant conditions. Perfusable and size‐controllable materials can be obtained, with adequate permeability and improved biofunctionality, enabling cell adhesion and growth. Outside the separating interface of two‐phase systems, self‐standing entities can be easily handled, broadening the range of applications.
Display omitted
Methacrylated gellan-gum (GG-MA) alone and combined with collagen type I (Coll) is suggested here for the first time as a cell-laden injectable biomaterial for bone regeneration. ...On-chip high-throughput studies allowed rapidly assessing the suitability of 15 biomaterials/media combinations for the osteodifferentiation of human adipose stem cells (hASCs). Hydrogels composed solely of GG-MA (GG100:0Coll) led hASCs from three different donors into the osteogenic lineage after 21days of cell culture, in the absence of any osteogenic or osteoconductive factors. Hydrogels containing more than 30% of Coll promoted increased cellular proliferation and led hASCs into osteogenic differentiation under basal conditions. Studies using isolated individual hydrogels – excluding eventual on-chip crosstalk – and standard biochemical assays corroborated such findings. The formation of focal adhesions of hASCs on GG100:0Coll hydrogels was verified. We hypothesize that the hydrogels osteogenic effect could be guided by mechanotransduction phenomena. Indeed, the hydrogels showed elastic modulus in ranges previously reported as osteoinductive and the inhibition of the actin-myosin contractility pathway impaired hASCs’ osteodifferentiation. GG-MA hydrogels also did not promote hASCs’ adipogenesis while used in basal conditions. Overall, GG-MA showed promising properties as an innovative and off-the shelf self-inducing osteogenic injectable biomaterial.
Methacrylated gellan gum (GG-MA) is here suggested for the first time as a widely available polysaccharide to easily prepare hydrogels with cell adhesion properties and capability of inducing the autonomous osteogenic differentiation of human adipose-derived stem cells (hASCs). GG-MA was processed as stand-alone hydrogels or in different combinations with collage type I. All hydrogel formulations elicited the osteogenic differentiation of hASCs, independently of the addition of any osteoconductive or osteogenic stimuli, i.e. in basal/growth medium. Effective cellular adhesion to methacrylated gellan gum hydrogels in the absence of any cell-ligand peptide/protein was here proved for the first time. Moreover, we showed that the encapsulated hASCs underwent osteogenic differentiation due to a mechanotransduction phenomenon dependent on the actin-myosin contractility pathway.
Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has recently emerged as a minimally invasive "liquid biopsy" tool in precision medicine. ctDNA-genomic DNA fragments that are released into the bloodstream after the ...active secretion of microvesicles or tumor cell lysis reflects tumor evolution and the genomic alterations present in primary and/or metastatic tumors. Notably, ctDNA analysis might allow the stratification of patients, the monitoring of the therapeutic response, and the establishment of an opportunity for early intervention independent of detection by imaging modalities or clinical symptoms. As oncology moves towards precision medicine, the information in ctDNA provides a means for the individual management of the patient based on their tumor's genetic profile. This review presents current evidence on the potential role for ctDNA in helping to guide individualized clinical treatment decisions for patients with melanoma, castration-resistant prostate cancer, breast cancer, metastatic colorectal cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer.
PDF
