The present study aims to investigate if Cimicifuga racemosa (L.) Nutt extract (CIMI) reduces deleterious effects of dexamethasone (DEXA) in ovaries cultured in vitro. Mouse ovaries were collected ...and cultured in DMEM.sup.+ only or supplemented with 5 ng/mL of CIMI, or 4 ng/mL DEXA, or both CIMI and DEXA. The ovaries were cultured at 37.5degreesC in 5% CO.sub.2 for 6 days. Ovarian morphology, follicular ultrastructure, and the levels of mRNA for Bax, Bcl-2, and Caspase-3 were evaluated. The results showed that DEXA reduced the percentage of morphologically normal follicles, while CIMI prevented the deleterious effects caused by DEXA. In addition, DEXA negatively affected the stromal cellular density, while CIMI prevented these adverse effects. Ovaries cultured with DEXA and CIMI showed similar levels of mRNA for Bax, Bcl-2, and Caspase-3 compared to those cultured in control medium, while ovaries cultured with DEXA had increased expression of the above genes. Additionally, the ultrastructure of the ovaries cultured with CIMI was well preserved. Thus, the extract of CIMI was able to prevent the deleterious effects caused by DEXA on cultured mouse ovaries. Key words: Folliculogenesis; Toxicity; Mice; Glucocorticoid; In vitro culture
The aims of this study were to compare three treatments in the chemical hydrolysis reaction of bleached oil from carp (
Cyprinus carpio
) heads and to obtain polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrates ...by urea complexation. The three treatments were carried out with different oil:ethanol molar ratios. In the treatment with a 1:39 molar ratio, a higher yield of free fatty acids was found. These fatty acids were submitted to urea complexation (−10 °C for 20 h, and urea–fatty acid ratio of 4.5–1). There was a 31.4% increase in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (MUFA and PUFA) content and a 75% decrease in saturated fatty acids (SAF) content. An increase of 85.4% in the EPA + DHA content was found. The non-urea complexing fraction can be considered a rich source of MUFA and PUFA with a total amount of 88.9%.
μ‐1,2‐peroxo‐bridged diiron(III) intermediates P are proposed as reactive intermediates in various biological oxidation reactions. In sMMO, P acts as an electrophile, and performs hydrogen atom and ...oxygen atom transfers to electron‐rich substrates. In cyanobacterial ADO, however, P is postulated to react by nucleophilic attack on electrophilic carbon atoms. In biomimetic studies, the ability of μ‐1,2‐peroxo‐bridged dimetal complexes of Fe, Co, Ni and Cu to act as nucleophiles that effect deformylation of aldehydes is documented. By performing reactivity and theoretical studies on an end‐on μ‐1,2‐peroxodicobalt(III) complex 1 involving a non‐heme ligand system, L1, supported on a Sn6O6 stannoxane core, we now show that a peroxo‐bridged dimetal complex can also be a reactive electrophile. The observed electrophilic chemistry, which is induced by the constraints provided by the Sn6O6 core, represents a new domain for metal−peroxide reactivity.
An end‐on μ‐1,2‐peroxodicobalt(III) complex 1 involving a non‐heme ligand system, L1, supported on a Sn6O6 stannoxane core has been found to be a reactive electrophile that is capable of initiating hydrogen atom and oxygen atom transfer reactions. The electrophilicity of 1 is attributed to the constraints provided by the Sn6O6 core and represents a new domain for metal−peroxo reactivity.
This paper presents an end-to-end learning framework for performing 6-DOF odometry by using only inertial data obtained from a low-cost IMU. The proposed inertial odometry method allows leveraging ...inertial sensors that are widely available on mobile platforms for estimating their 3D trajectories. For this purpose, neural networks based on convolutional layers combined with a two-layer stacked bidirectional LSTM are explored from the following three aspects. First, two 6-DOF relative pose representations are investigated: one based on a vector in the spherical coordinate system, and the other based on both a translation vector and an unit quaternion. Second, the loss function in the network is designed with the combination of several 6-DOF pose distance metrics: mean squared error, translation mean absolute error, quaternion multiplicative error and quaternion inner product. Third, a multi-task learning framework is integrated to automatically balance the weights of multiple metrics. In the evaluation, qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted with publicly-available inertial odometry datasets. The best combination of the relative pose representation and the loss function was the translation and quaternion together with the translation mean absolute error and quaternion multiplicative error, which obtained more accurate results with respect to state-of-the-art inertial odometry techniques.
International lineages, such as Salmonella Typhimurium sequence type (ST) 19, are most often associated with foodborne diseases and deaths in humans. In this study, we compared the whole-genome ...sequences of five S. Typhimurium strains belonging to ST19 recovered from clinical human stool samples in North Carolina, United States. Overall, S. Typhimurium strains displayed multidrug-resistant profile, being resistance to critically and highly important antimicrobials including ampicillin, ticarcillin/clavulanic acid, streptomycin and sulfisoxazole, chloramphenicol, tetracycline, respectively. Interestingly, all S. Typhimurium strains carried class 1 integron (intl1) and we were able to describe two genomic regions surrounding blaCARB-2 gene, size 4,062 bp and 4,422 bp for S. Typhimurium strains (HS5344, HS5437, and HS5478) and (HS5302 and HS5368), respectively. Genomic analysis for antimicrobial resistome confirmed the presence of clinically important genes, including blaCARB-2, aac(6')-Iaa, aadA2b, sul1, tetG, floR, and biocide resistance genes (qacEΔ1). S. Typhimurium strains harbored IncFIB plasmid containing spvRABCD operon, as well as rck and pef virulence genes, which constitute an important apparatus for spreading the virulence plasmid. In addition, we identified several virulence genes, chromosomally located, while the phylogenetic analysis revealed clonal relatedness among these strains with S. enterica isolated from human and non-human sources obtained in European and Asian countries. Our results provide new insights into this unusual class 1 integron in virulent S. Typhimurium strains that harbors a pool of genes acting as potential hotspots for horizontal gene transfer providing readily adaptation to new surrounds, as well as being crucially required for virulence in vivo. Therefore, continuous genomic surveillance is an important tool for safeguarding human health.
Abstract The prelimbic (PL) subregion of medial prefrontal cortex has been implicated in anxiety regulation. It is unknown, however, whether PL cortex also serves to fine-tuning the level of ...anxiety-related behavior exhibited on the next exposure to the same potentially threatening situation. To address this, we infused cobalt (1.0 mM) to temporarily inactivate the PL cortex during testing, post-testing or retesting in the elevated plus-maze (EPM). This protocol was chosen because it allowed us to concurrently investigate anxiety and the process of aversive learning and memory. PL cortex inactivation during the EPM testing increased the exploration of open-arms, substantiating its role in anxiety. PL cortex inactivation during the EPM retesting counteracted the further avoidance to open-arms exhibited by rats. Interestingly, as evidenced by min-by-min analysis, the cobalt-treated group behaved on EPM retesting as did the vehicle-treated group on EPM testing. This result may imply that activity in PL cortex is necessary for retrieving previously learned information that adjusts the anxiety response level on EPM retesting. Alternatively, a simple reduction in anxiety could explain the cobalt-induced increase in retest open-arms exploration. Neither test nor post-test PL cortex inactivation affected the further avoidance to open-arms observed on EPM retesting. To extend the investigation of PL cortex role in the regulation of open-arms avoidance, we infused other drugs prior to testing or retesting in the EPM. Antagonism of PL cortex adrenergic beta-1 receptors with atenolol (10 nmol), cholinergic muscarinic receptors with scopolamine (20 nmol) or glutamatergic N-methyl- d -aspartic acid (NMDA) receptors with AP5 (6.0 nmol) interfered with the level of open-arms exploration on testing, but not on retesting.
The recycled paper and board industry needs to improve the quality of their products to meet customer demands. The refining process and strength additives are commonly used to increase mechanical ...properties. Interfiber bonding can also be improved using cellulose nanofibers (CNF). A circular economy approach in the industrial implementation of CNF can be addressed through the in situ production of CNF using side cellulose streams of the process as raw material, avoiding transportation costs and reducing industrial wastes. Furthermore, CNF fit for use can be produced for specific industrial applications.This study evaluates the feasibility of using two types of recycled fibers, simulating the broke streams of two paper machines producing newsprint and liner for cartonboard, to produce in situ CNF for direct application on the original pulps, old newsprint (ONP), and old corrugated container (OCC), and to reinforce the final products. The CNF were obtained by 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy (TEMPO)-mediated oxidation and homogenization at 600 bar. Handsheets were prepared with disintegrated recycled pulp and different amounts of CNF using a conventional three-component retention system. Results show that 3 wt.% of CNF produced with 10 mmol of NaClO per gram of dry pulp improve tensile index of ONP ~30%. For OCC, the same treatment and CNF dose increase tensile index above 60%. In both cases, CNF cause a deterioration of drainage, but this effect is effectively counteracted by optimising the retention system.
This article distinguishes the concept of text enunciator from that of author: whereas the author’s position results from his/her work but also from the discourses he/she holds and those that ...circulate about him/her in the media space, the text enunciator is the first speaker/enunciator who produces the text and establishes a different relationship with the diegesis according to the enunciative situation chosen by the author. The article compares these different situations and studies the relations that the text enunciator maintains with the second - speakers, focusing on its marks in the case of theatre texts or first-person novels from which it seems to be absent. The article argues that this concept, rooted in Ducrot’s and Rabatel’s polyphony, can account for the functioning of literary works independently of their genres.
What happened in Kirven, Texas, in May 1922, has been forgotten by the outside world. It was a coworker's whispered words, "Kirven is where they burned the Negroes," that set Monte Akers to work at ...discovering the true story behind a young white woman's brutal murder and the burning alive of three black men who were almost certainly innocent of it. This was followed by a month-long reign of terror as white men killed blacks while local authorities concealed the real identity of the white probable murderers and allowed them to go free. Writing nonfiction with the skill of a novelist, Akers paints a vivid portrait of a community desolated by race hatred and its own refusal to face hard truths. He sets this tragedy within the story of a region prospering from an oil boom but plagued by lawlessness, and traces the lynching's repercussions down the decades to the present day. In the new epilogue, Akers adds details that have come to light as a result of the book's publication, including an eyewitness account of the burnings from an elderly man who claimed to have castrated two of the men before they were lynched.
Alzheimer disease (AD), characterized by deterioration of cognitive capabilities, is prevalent among 44 million people worldwide. Beyond memory deficits, the most common AD co-morbidities include ...swallowing defects (muscle), fractures (bone, muscle), and heart failure. The underlying causes of these co-morbidities and their role in AD pathophysiology are currently unknown. This review is the first to summarize the emerging picture of the cardiac and musculoskeletal deficits in human AD. We present the involvement of the heart, characterized by diastolic heart failure, the presence of amyloid deposits, and electrophysiological changes compared to age-matched controls. The characteristic musculoskeletal defects in AD come from recent clinical studies and include potential underlying mechanisms (bone) in animal models. These studies detail a primary muscle weakness (without a loss of muscle mass) in patients with mild cognitive impairment, with progression of cognitive impairment to AD associating with ongoing muscle weakness AND the onset of muscle atrophy. We conclude by reviewing the loss of bone density in AD patients, paralleling their increase in fracture and fall risk is specific populations. These studies paint broad AD as a systemic disease in broad strokes, which may help elucidate AD pathophysiology and to allow new ways to think about therapeutic intervention, diagnostic biomarkers, and the pathogenesis of this multi-disciplinary disease.
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