Multiple Sclerosis (MS) results in color vision impairment regardless of optic neuritis (ON). The exact location of injury remains undefined. The objective of this study is to identify the region ...leading to dyschromatopsia in MS patients’ NON-eyes. We evaluated Spearman correlations between color vision and measures of different regions in the afferent visual pathway in 106 MS patients. Regions with significant correlations were included in logistic regression models to assess their independent role in dyschromatopsia. We evaluated color vision with Hardy–Rand–Rittler plates and retinal damage using Optical Coherence Tomography. We ran SIENAX to measure Normalized Brain Parenchymal Volume (NBPV), FIRST for thalamus volume and Freesurfer for visual cortex areas. We found moderate, significant correlations between color vision and macular retinal nerve fiber layer (rho = 0.289,
p
= 0.003), ganglion cell complex (GCC = GCIP) (rho = 0.353,
p
< 0.001), thalamus (rho = 0.361,
p
< 0.001), and lesion volume within the optic radiations (rho = –0.230,
p
= 0.030). Only GCC thickness remained significant (
p
= 0.023) in the logistic regression model. In the final model including lesion load and NBPV as markers of diffuse neuroaxonal damage, GCC remained associated with dyschromatopsia OR = 0.88 95 % CI (0.80–0.97)
p
= 0.016. This association remained significant when we also added sex, age, and disease duration as covariates in the regression model. Dyschromatopsia in NON-eyes is due to damage of retinal ganglion cells (RGC) in MS. Color vision can serve as a marker of RGC damage in MS.
Abstract Combining the results of behavioral, neuronal immediate early gene activation, lesion and neuroanatomical experiments, we have presently investigated the role of the superior colliculus (SC) ...in predatory hunting. First, we have shown that insect hunting is associated with a characteristic large increase in Fos expression in the lateral part of the intermediate gray layer of the SC (SCig). Next, we have shown that animals with bilateral NMDA lesions of the lateral parts of the SC presented a significant delay in starting to chase the prey and longer periods engaged in other activities than predatory hunting. They also showed a clear deficit to orient themselves toward the moving prey and lost the stereotyped sequence of actions seen for capturing, holding and killing the prey. Our Phaseolus vulgaris -leucoagglutinin analysis revealed that the lateral SCig, besides providing the well-documented descending crossed pathway to premotor sites in brainstem and spinal cord, projects to a number of midbrain and diencephalic sites likely to influence key functions in the context of the predatory behavior, such as general levels of arousal, motivational level to hunt or forage, behavioral planning, appropriate selection of the basal ganglia motor plan to hunt, and motor output of the primary motor cortex. In contrast to the lateral SC lesions, medial SC lesions produced a small deficit in predatory hunting, and compared to what we have seen for the lateral SCig, the medial SCig has a very limited set of projections to thalamic sites related to the control of motor planning or motor output, and provides conspicuous inputs to brainstem sites involved in organizing a wide range of anti-predatory defensive responses. Overall, the present results served to clarify how the different functional domains in the SC may mediate the decision to pursue and hunt a prey or escape from a predator.
In 2000, transgenes were detected in local maize varieties (landraces) in the mountains of Oaxaca, Mexico Quist, D. & Chapela, I. H. (2001) Nature 414, 541-543. This region is part of the ...Mesoamerican center of origin for maize (Zea mays L.), and the genetic diversity that is maintained in open-pollinated landraces is recognized as an important genetic resource of great cultural value. The presence of transgenes in landraces was significant because transgenic maize has never been approved for cultivation in Mexico. Here we provide a systematic survey of the frequency of transgenes in currently grown landraces. We sampled maize seeds from 870 plants in 125 fields and 18 localities in the state of Oaxaca during 2003 and 2004. We then screened 153,746 sampled seeds for the presence of two transgene elements from the 35S promoter of the cauliflower mosaic virus and the nopaline synthase gene (nopaline synthase terminator) from Agrobacterium tumefaciens. One or both of these transgene elements are present in all transgenic commercial varieties of maize. No transgenic sequences were detected with highly sensitive PCR-based markers, appropriate positive and negative controls, and duplicate samples for DNA extraction. We conclude that transgenic maize seeds were absent or extremely rare in the sampled fields. This study provides a much-needed preliminary baseline for understanding the biological, socioeconomic, and ethical implications of the inadvertent dispersal of transgenes from the United States and elsewhere to local landraces of maize in Mexico.
In order to evaluate risk factors related to the presence of extrinsic dental black stain, a total of 94 orally healthy volunteers (47 individuals with dental black stain and 47 individuals without ...dental black stain) were recruited from ten different dental clinics in Valencia and Castellón (Spain). Data regarding their oral hygiene, dietary habits, and oral health status were gathered by questionnaire. Samples of dental plaque, saliva and drinking water were collected for chemical analysis. Three factors were found to be statistically significantly associated with dental black stain, (i) consuming water with high iron content, (ii) consuming water with high pH, and (iii) having a high salivary pH. Other factors such as smoking, taking iron supplements or consuming caffeinated drinks were not found to be risk factors for the presence of black stain. A multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that drinking tap or osmosis-purified water and lower levels of salivary iron increase the risk of having dental black stain. Overall, several risk factors for the presence of dental black stain have been identified. The main modifiable risk factor identified in this study was the consumption of tap or osmosis drinking water.
Many different types of purinergic receptors are present in the hypothalamic‐neurohypophysial system (HNS), which synthesises and releases vasopressin and oxytocin. The specific location of ...purinergic receptor subtypes has important functional repercussions for neuronal activity and synaptic output. Yet, until the advent of receptor knockouts, this had been hindered by the low selectivity of the available pharmacological tools. The HNS offers an excellent opportunity to differentiate the functional properties of these purinergic receptors in cell bodies vs terminals of the same physiological system. P2X2, P2X3, P2X4 and P2X7 receptors are present in vasopressin terminals, whereas oxytocin terminals exclusively express the P2X7 subtype. The latter is not functional in the cell bodies of the HNS. These purinergic receptor subtypes are permeable to sodium vs calcium in varying amounts and this could play an important role in the release of vasopressin vs oxytocin during bursting activity. Endogenous ATP and its metabolite, adenosine, have autocrine and paracrine modulatory effects on the release of these neuropeptides during physiological stimulation. Finally, we hypothesise that, during such action potential bursts, ATP potentiates the release of vasopressin but not of oxytocin, and that adenosine, via A1 receptors, inhibits the release of both neuropeptides.
A complete succession of lower bathyal–upper abyssal sediments was deposited across the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) at Alamedilla (Betic Cordillera, Southern Spain), where the benthic ...foraminiferal turnover and extinction event associated with the negative carbon isotope excursion (CIE) across the PETM have been investigated. Detailed quantitative analyses of benthic foraminifera allowed us to distinguish assemblages with paleoecological and paleoenvironmental significance: pre-extinction fauna, extinction fauna, survival fauna (including disaster and opportunistic fauna) and recovery fauna. These assemblages have been associated with significant parts of the
δ
13C curve for which a relative chronology has been established. The correlation between the benthic turnover, the
δ
13C curve, the calcite and silicate mineral content, and sedimentation rates, allowed us to establish the sequence of events across the PETM.
At Alamedilla, the benthic extinction event (BEE) affected ~
37% of the species and it has been recorded over a 30-cm-thick interval that was deposited in c.a. 10 ky, suggesting a gradual but rapid pattern of extinction. The beginning of the BEE coincides with the onset of the CIE (+
0 ky) and with an interval with abundant calcite, and it has been recorded under oxic conditions at the seafloor (as inferred from the benthic foraminiferal assemblages and the reddish colour of the sediments). We conclude that dissolution and dysoxia were not the cause of the extinctions, which were probably related to intense warming that occurred before the onset of the CIE.
The BEE is immediately overlain by a survival interval dominated by agglutinated species (the
Glomospira Acme). The low calcite content recorded within the survival interval may result from the interaction between dilution of the carbonate compounds by silicicate minerals (as inferred from the increased sedimentation rates), and the effects of carbonate dissolution triggered by the shoaling of the CCD. We suggest that
Glomospira species (disaster fauna) may have bloomed opportunistically in areas with methane dissociation, in and around the North Atlantic. The disaster fauna was rapidly replaced by opportunistic taxa, which point to oxic and, possibly, oligotrophic conditions at the seafloor. The CCD gradually dropped during this interval, and calcite preservation improved towards the recovery interval, during which the
δ
13C values and the calcite content recovered (c.a. +
71.25 to 94.23 ky) and stabilized (>
94.23 ky), coeval with a sharp decrease in sedimentation rates.
The soft stadium's classical dynamics Espinoza Ortiz, J. S.; Lagos, R. E.
Journal of physics. Conference series,
11/2019, Letnik:
1391, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Billiards are physical models employed to probe experiments that measure the conductivity of quantum dots. In this context, the stadium billiard have been adopted as an standard model for ...realizations. We study the effect of softening in a classical mechanics context, pursuing a more realistic model. This classical approach is a first step towards the truly quantum or semiclassical case. We define the soft stadium as a monomial potential with an exponent α ∈ ℜ as a parameter, such that for α = 1 the system is integrable and the α → ∞ limit converges to the hard billiard. Then, and for computational simplicity, we set up the construction of the classical Poincare map in such a way that it only depends on the partial separability of the system which holds for all α's. We present numerical results describing the classical transition from the integrable regime towards the chaotic regime.
The teaching–learning process developed was based on the effective integration of the Hardware in the Loop (HIL) technique to control a brewing process. This required programming the autonomous ...control of the system and uploading it to a physical controller consisting of a PLC S7-1200, which communicates in real time with a virtual brewing environment, in addition to a SCADA system, providing engineering students with a unique practical experience. The system allows the emission of input signals from sensors and the reception of output signals in actuators, which is reflected accurately and in real time in the virtual environment. Students cannot only observe but also control and manipulate the system using specifically developed programs. This methodology enriched the understanding of industrial processes and fostered the acquisition of control skills. This research work reveals that the combination of the physical and the virtual through the HIL technique offers an effective approach for the training of engineers, improving their understanding of industrial control processes and their ability to intervene practically in real industrial situations.
Near-field communication (NFC) is a new wireless technology that could unite various standards and proprietary technologies found in the millions of standalone contactless cards. Contactless ...technology lets users pay for transactions by simply holding cards close to, rather than swiping them through, a reader. NFC is a short-range wireless technology that lets devices communicate when in close proximity. The technology allows for the development of devices, including mobile phones, that can be used like contactless cards. A shorter transmission range and slower data rates distinguish NFC from other short-range wireless technologies such as Bluetooth, radio-frequency identification (RFID), and Wi-Fi. NFC could be used in many ways, including merchandise and service payments, event ticketing, and facility- and computer-access control. The technology could even enter information from a buyer's NFC phone to a suitably equipped PC for e-commerce transactions.
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