Large-scale restoration programmes in the tropics require large volumes of high quality, genetically diverse and locally adapted seeds from a large number of species. However, scarcity of native ...seeds is a critical restriction to achieve restoration targets. In this paper, we analyse three successful community-based networks that supply native seeds and seedlings for Brazilian Amazon and Cerrado restoration projects. In addition, we propose directions to promote local participation, legal, technical and commercialisation issues for up-scaling the market of native seeds for restoration with high quality and social justice. We argue that effective community-based restoration arrangements should follow some principles: (i) seed production must be based on real market demand; (ii) non-governmental and governmental organisations have a key role in supporting local organisation, legal requirements and selling processes; (iii) local ecological knowledge and labour should be valued, enabling local communities to promote large-scale seed production; (iv) applied research can help develop appropriate techniques and solve technical issues. The case studies from Brazil and principles presented here can be useful for the up-scaling restoration ecology efforts in many other parts of the world and especially in tropical countries where improving rural community income is a strategy for biodiversity conservation and restoration.
We present a catalog of emissive point sources detected in the SPT-SZ survey, a contiguous 2530 square degree area surveyed with the South Pole Telescope (SPT) from 2008-2011 in three bands centered ...at 95, 150, and 220 GHz. The catalog contains 4845 sources measured at a significance of 4.5 or greater in at least one band, corresponding to detections above approximately 9.8, 5.8, and 20.4 mJy in 95, 150, and 220 GHz, respectively. The spectral behavior in the SPT bands is used for source classification into two populations based on the underlying physical mechanisms of compact, emissive sources that are bright at millimeter wavelengths: synchrotron radiation from active galactic nuclei and thermal emission from dust. The latter population includes a component of high-redshift sources often referred to as submillimeter galaxies (SMGs). In the relatively bright flux ranges probed by the survey, these sources are expected to be magnified by strong gravitational lensing. The survey also contains sources consistent with protoclusters, groups of dusty galaxies at high redshift undergoing collapse. We cross-match the SPT-SZ catalog with external catalogs at radio, infrared, and X-ray wavelengths and identify available redshift information. The catalog splits into 3980 synchrotron-dominated and 865 dust-dominated sources, and we determine a list of 506 SMGs. Ten sources in the catalog are identified as stars. We calculate number counts for the full catalog, and synchrotron and dusty components, using a bootstrap method and compare our measured counts with models. This paper represents the third and final catalog of point sources in the SPT-SZ survey.
Gravitational lensing of the cosmic microwave background generates a curl pattern in the observed polarization. This "B-mode" signal provides a measure of the projected mass distribution over the ...entire observable Universe and also acts as a contaminant for the measurement of primordial gravity-wave signals. In this Letter we present the first detection of gravitational lensing B modes, using first-season data from the polarization-sensitive receiver on the South Pole Telescope (SPTpol). We construct a template for the lensing B-mode signal by combining E-mode polarization measured by SPTpol with estimates of the lensing potential from a Herschel-SPIRE map of the cosmic infrared background. We compare this template to the B modes measured directly by SPTpol, finding a nonzero correlation at 7.7σ significance. The correlation has an amplitude and scale dependence consistent with theoretical expectations, is robust with respect to analysis choices, and constitutes the first measurement of a powerful cosmological observable.
Background and Objective
The potential benefits of statins in modulating periodontal disease is supported by in vitro and clinical studies showing statins can induce a lower expression of ...proinflammatory cytokines and matrix metalloproteinases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of rosuvastatin (ST) on ligature‐induced periodontitis in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR).
Material and Methods
Fifty‐four adult male rats were divided into three groups: SHR‐C, SHR‐L and SHR‐L‐ST (C, control; L, ligature groups). In the SHR‐L‐ST group, animals were treated with daily 2 mg/kg ST administration. In L groups, a ligature remained around mandibular first molars for 10 d. Each group was divided for killing at 10 or 21 d postoperatively. Microtomographic and histometric analyses were performed. Osteoclastogenesis was evaluated by tartrate‐resistant acid phosphatase assay and gene expression of 84 proinflammatory mediators by polymerase chain reaction array.
Results
The SHR‐L‐ST group showed reduced bone loss and attachment loss in comparison with the SHR‐L group at both 10 and 21 d postoperatively (p < 0.05). ST decreased the amount of tartrate‐resistant acid phosphatase‐positive cells compared with the SHR‐L group at both 10 and 21 d (p < 0.05). The SHR‐L‐ST group presented 14 genes differentially expressed when compared with SHR‐L group, featuring a downregulated gene profile at 10 d.
Conclusion
Statin therapy may promote a protective effect against alveolar bone and connective tissue attachment losses attributable to periodontitis in hypertensive rats through inflammatory gene profile modulation.
Abstract
We report new measurements of millimeter-wave power spectra in the angular multipole range 2000 ≤
ℓ
≤ 11,000 (angular scales
). By adding 95 and 150 GHz data from the low-noise 500 deg
2
...SPTpol survey to the SPT-SZ three-frequency 2540 deg
2
survey, we substantially reduce the uncertainties in these bands. These power spectra include contributions from the primary cosmic microwave background, cosmic infrared background, radio galaxies, and thermal and kinematic Sunyaev–Zel’dovich (SZ) effects. The data favor a thermal SZ (tSZ) power at 143 GHz of
and a kinematic SZ (kSZ) power of
. This is the first measurement of kSZ power at ≥3
σ
. However, different assumptions about the CIB or SZ models can reduce the significance down to 2.4
σ
in the worst case. We study the implications of the measured kSZ power for the epoch of reionization under the Calabrese et al. model for the kSZ power spectrum and find the duration of reionization to be
(
at 95% confidence), when combined with our previously published tSZ bispectrum measurement. The upper limit tightens to
if the assumed homogeneous kSZ power is increased by 25% (∼0.5
μ
K
2
) and relaxes to
if the homogeneous kSZ power is decreased by the same amount.
The monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1) belongs to the CC chemokine family and acts in the recruitment of C–C motif chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2)-positive immune cell types to inflammation ...sites. In testis, the MCP-1/CCR2 axis has been associated with the macrophage population’s functional regulation, which presents significant functions supporting germ cell development. In this context, herein, we aimed to investigate the role of the chemokine receptor CCR2 in mice testicular environment and its impact on male sperm production. Using adult transgenic mice strain that had the CCR2 gene replaced by a red fluorescent protein gene, we showed a stage-dependent expression of CCR2 in type B spermatogonia and early primary spermatocytes. Several parameters related to sperm production were reduced in the absence of CCR2 protein, such as Sertoli cell efficiency, meiotic index, and overall yield of spermatogenesis. Daily sperm production decreased by almost 40%, and several damages in the seminiferous tubules were observed. Significant reduction in the expression of important genes related to the Sertoli cell function (Cnx43, Vim, Ocln, Spna2) and meiosis initiation (Stra8, Pcna, Prdm9, Msh5) occurred in comparison to controls. Also, the number of macrophages significantly decreased in the absence of CCR2 protein, along with a disturbance in Leydig cell steroidogenic activity. In summary, our results show that the non-activation of the MCP-1/CCR2 axis disturbs the testicular homeostasis, interfering in macrophage population, meiosis initiation, blood–testis barrier function, and androgen synthesis, leading to the malfunction of seminiferous tubules, decreased testosterone levels, defective sperm production, and lower fertility index.
The Planck cosmic microwave background temperature data are best fit with a ΛCDM model that mildly contradicts constraints from other cosmological probes. The South Pole Telescope (SPT) 2540 SPT-SZ ...survey offers measurements on sub-degree angular scales (multipoles ) with sufficient precision to use as an independent check of the Planck data. Here we build on the recent joint analysis of the SPT-SZ and Planck data in Hou et al. by comparing ΛCDM parameter estimates using the temperature power spectrum from both data sets in the SPT-SZ survey region. We also restrict the multipole range used in parameter fitting to focus on modes measured well by both SPT and Planck, thereby greatly reducing sample variance as a driver of parameter differences and creating a stringent test for systematic errors. We find no evidence of systematic errors from these tests. When we expand the maximum multipole of SPT data used, we see low-significance shifts in the angular scale of the sound horizon and the physical baryon and cold dark matter densities, with a resulting trend to higher Hubble constant. When we compare SPT and Planck data on the SPT-SZ sky patch to Planck full-sky data but keep the multipole range restricted, we find differences in the parameters ns and . We perform further checks, investigating instrumental effects and modeling assumptions, and we find no evidence that the effects investigated are responsible for any of the parameter shifts. Taken together, these tests reveal no evidence for systematic errors in SPT or Planck data in the overlapping sky coverage and multipole range and at most weak evidence for a breakdown of ΛCDM or systematic errors influencing either the Planck data outside the SPT-SZ survey area or the SPT data at .
Nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) are key molecules in resistance to pathogens. Little is known about their role in pathogenesis of periapical lesions. To address this issue, we ...induced periapical lesions in mice lacking nitric oxide synthase (iNOS-/-) or phagocyte oxidase (PHOX-/-). iNOS-/- mice expressed higher levels of IL-1β, TNF-α, RANK, RANKL, and MCP-1 than C57BL/6 and PHOX-/-. Apical thickening of the periodontal ligament was also greater in iNOS-/- compared with other groups. Interestingly, ROS production did not interfere in periapical lesion progression, but seemed to be essential for the appearance of multinucleated TRAP-positive cells. Thus, periapical lesion progression in iNOS-/- was associated with an imbalance of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β and TNF-α), bone-resorptive modulators (RANK and RANKL), and MCP-1. We conclude that NO, but not ROS, controls progression of bone resorption in a murine experimental model of apical periodontitis.
ABSTRACT We present the results of an X-ray spectral analysis of 153 galaxy clusters observed with the Chandra, XMM-Newton, and Suzaku space telescopes. These clusters, which span 0 < z < 1.5, were ...drawn from a larger, mass-selected sample of galaxy clusters discovered in the 2500 square degree South Pole Telescope Sunyaev Zel'dovich (SPT-SZ) survey. With a total combined exposure time of 9.1 Ms, these data yield the strongest constraints to date on the evolution of the metal content of the intracluster medium (ICM). We find no evidence for strong evolution in the global (r < R500) ICM metallicity (dZ/dz = −0.06 0.04 Z ), with a mean value at z = 0.6 of 〈 Z 〉 = 0.23 0.01 Z and a scatter of Z = 0.08 0.01 Z . These results imply that the emission-weighted metallicity has not changed by more than 40% since z = 1 (at 95% confidence), consistent with the picture of an early (z > 1) enrichment. We find, in agreement with previous works, a significantly higher mean value for the metallicity in the centers of cool core clusters versus non-cool core clusters. We find weak evidence for evolution in the central metallicity of cool core clusters (dZ/dz = −0.21 0.11 Z ), which is sufficient to account for this enhanced central metallicity over the past ∼10 Gyr. We find no evidence for metallicity evolution outside of the core (dZ/dz = −0.03 0.06 Z ), and no significant difference in the core-excised metallicity between cool core and non-cool core clusters. This suggests that strong radio-mode active galactic nucleus feedback does not significantly alter the distribution of metals at r > 0.15 R 500 . Given the limitations of current-generation X-ray telescopes in constraining the ICM metallicity at z > 1, significant improvements on this work will likely require next-generation X-ray missions.
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