Abstract only
Platelet‐activating factor (PAF) increases endothelial permeability (hyperpermeability) via endothelial NOS (eNOS), which stimulates cGMP production to enhance permeability. We explored ...the complementary hypothesis that PAF‐stimulated hyperpermeability involves eNOS‐derived NO induced S‐nitrosylation of adherens junction proteins. We measured PAF‐stimulated S‐nitrosylation of β‐catenin and p120‐catenin (p120) in 3 cell lines: ECV‐eNOSGFP, EAhy926 and CVEC. S‐nitrosylation reduced expression of β‐catenin and p120 at the adherens junction and enhanced permeability. To ascertain the significance of eNOS location, we used ECV‐304 cells transfected with constructs that target eNOS to the cytosol (G2AeNOSGFP) and plasma membrane (CAAXeNOSGFP). We detected S‐nitrosylation of β‐catenin and p120 only in ECV‐GFPeNOS‐G2A, i.e., in cells with cytosolic eNOS. PAF‐stimulated S‐nitrosylation decreased the association between β‐catenin and p‐120. PAF significantly decreased the association between β‐catenin and p‐120 only in ECV‐GFPeNOS‐G2A. Inhibitors of NO production and of S‐nitrosylation blocked PAF‐induced S‐nitrosylation and hyperpermeability. Our results demonstrate that agonist‐induced S‐nitrosylation contributes to junctional membrane protein changes that enhance endothelial permeability.
•Auctions are perceived as fair and satisfactory at the individual level.•At the community level more social impacts are perceived by participants.•Information quality is key for improving ...perceptions.•Ensuring procedural equity may have wider impacts on contextual equity.
Conservation auctions are used in Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) scheme implementation as they are an efficient way to identify participants. Ensuring a fair implementation process is important when considering an equitable PES scheme. Currently the implications, such as impacts on social dynamics and participant perceptions, of auctions at both the individual and community level are poorly understood. Using a case study a long-standing and well-established PES scheme in Sumberjaya, Indonesia, we aim to explore the relationship between farmer characteristics and their perceived auction fairness/satisfaction and impacts on the community social dynamics. We find that a fair auction process allowing all to participate leads to perceived fairness at the individual level. However, at the community level, we find that individuals perceive more social impacts. Our results also find that information quality is the main factor in increasing fairness and reducing community impacts. Our results suggest that while it is possible to have an equitable implementation process, ensuring procedural equity may potentially compromise contextual equity. These results can aid in the implementation of PES schemes and shed some light into which characteristics to identify within potential participants and communities to avoid social disruptions.
Super star clusters in Hii galaxies Lagos, Patricio; Telles, Eduardo; Carrasco, E. R.
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union,
08/2009, Letnik:
5, Številka:
S266
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
We summarize our results based on observations with the NIRI camera on the Gemini North telescope of three Hii galaxies (Mrk 36, UM 408 and UM 461), obtained to identify and determine the ages and ...masses of the elementary components (the star cluster population) of the starburst regions in compact Hii galaxies. Our preliminary results indicate that the masses of the stellar clusters in these galaxies range from ~104 to ~106 M⊙, with associated ages of a few Myr. The most massive star clusters fall in the so-called super star cluster category. The identification of these clusters suggests that the formation and evolution of massive star clusters is the dominant mode of star formation in these galaxies. Their spatial distribution and ages seem to indicate that star formation is simultaneous over these timescales in some of our objects. We also review our recent description of the spatial distribution of physical conditions in the Hii galaxy UM 408 using the GMOS integral-field unit on Gemini South. The spatial distribution of the oxygen abundance does not show any significant variation or gradient across the galaxy on scales of hundreds of parsecs, within our observational uncertainties, confirming that this compact Hii galaxy, like other previously studied dwarf irregular galaxies, is chemically homogeneous.
This work presents a set of laboratory practices that can be carried out by students of Digital Design courses required in engineering programs like Electronics, Communications, Mechatronics, etc. ...The purpose of these lab is that the students develop their skills and confidence in the design of arithmetic hardware blocks by presenting them specific problems. In this sense, this paper shows a design methodology to be performed in a laboratory for the design of arithmetic blocks which can be implemented in microcontrollers and FPGAs. More specifically, we present the block design of a number's multiplicative inverse (), its square root () and the square root of its inverse (). The completion of these exercises requires the application of the Newton-Raphson algorithm, polynomial approximations of functions, difference equations and digital design. Students of our institution completed the lab practices and after analyzing the results of student surveys and classroom observations, we found out that completing these tasks significantly contributed to the students' training in the hardware design field.
We measured antlers of 484 red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus) aged between 1.5 and 13.5 years, from Sierra Morena (Southeast Spain) between 1992 and 1998. We determined the effect of year of birth, ...season of hunting, age group and farm size on the number of tips, the length, the width and the quality of the antlers. The number of harvested animals, an indicator of population density, was included as a covariable. Highest antler quality is obtained in animals at least seven years old. The lowest quality animals were obtained during the hunting season from October 1995 to February 1996, which coincided with the end of an extended period of drought. The best trophies were harvested during the 1996-1997 season, the period of highest rainfall during the study. Thus environmental conditions have a major influence on antler size. However, animal density had a strong negative effect on certain types of farms, emphasizing the importance of population management.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
Proper selection of a signal-to-noise ratio threshold largely determines the tightness of an approximation to the frame error rate of a system over a quasistatic fading channel. It is demonstrated ...that the expression for the optimal threshold value, which has been established for single-input single-output (SISO) channels, remains unchanged for the general case of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) channels.
The NBI control system for the TJ-II Carrasco, R.; Liniers, M.; Pacios, L. ...
Fusion engineering and design,
07/2006, Letnik:
81, Številka:
15
Journal Article, Conference Proceeding
Recenzirano
A description of the control system software and hardware architecture for the TJ-II Neutral Beam Injectors is given. The platform chosen is VMEbus, with controller boards running OS9 (Microware) ...real-time operating system. Three VME crates house several boards for performing analogue signal acquisition, signal conditioning, analogue voltage generation, digital input detection and digital output generation. A specific timing system for the injectors has been developed. At present, a user interface for monitoring and programming purposes is provided by html pages, using a web server running under the OS9 operating system. A few subsystems are now using a graphical user interface built using the Java programming language.
PDF
