Abstract The study presents result on the changes in the ecological status of the sandpit lake during first six years after its restoration. The lake is located on the remnants of an extensive ...wetland with high biodiversity and conservation value, which was drained in mid 30s of the 20th century. Later canalization and embankment of the river resulted in the hydrological cut-off and complete drying up of the wetland. Fortunately, the territory was simultaneously exploited for aggregate production, thus retaining water and providing refuge to a number of the original flora and fauna of the wetland. After the exploitation of bottom material was ended, the sandpit lake regained a semi natural appearance, partly due to a series of projects. The most recent and complete restoration took part in the period 2013-2015 with the aim to restore and improve the ecological conditions in the lake. Subsequently (2016-2020), a monitoring program was launched, to assess the effect of the restoration activities on the macrophytes community (hydrophytes and helophytes), part of which are presented here. The results suggest pronounced deterioration of the status after the interventions, but the impacts are overcome in the next two to three years.
Weevils of the genus Smicronyx are gall-forming insects, widely distributed on parasitic flowering plants of the genus Cuscuta. Thus, they are considered epiparasites and potential method for ...biological control of their agriculturally harmful hosts. Although several reports on gall formation in Cuscuta spp. exist, the metabolic and functional changes, occurring in the gall, remained largely unknown. Smicronyx sp. galls, collected from a wild Cuscuta campestris population, were dissected into two distinct regions, inner and outer cortex, defined by the higher chlorophyll content of the inner cortex. Based on hydrolytic and antioxidant enzymes activity and isoenzymatic profiles as analyzed after electrophoretic separation, we suggested that the gall differs in its metabolic activity from the non-infected plant tissue. While the outer cortex serves as a region of nutrient storage and mobilization, the inner cortex is directly involved in larvae nutrition. The increase in metabolic activity resulted in significantly increased superoxide dismutase activity in the gall, while several other antioxidant enzymes diminished. The present research offers new insights into the functionally differing regions of Smicronyx galls and the metabolic changes, induced in C. campestris in result of the gall formation.
To cause pandemics, zoonotic respiratory viruses need to adapt to replication in and spread between humans, either via (indirect or direct) contact or through the air via droplets and aerosols. To ...render influenza A viruses transmissible via air, three phenotypic viral properties must change, of which receptor-binding specificity and polymerase activity have been well studied. However, the third adaptive property, hemagglutinin (HA) acid stability, is less understood. Recent studies show that there may be a correlation between HA acid stability and virus survival in the air, suggesting that a premature conformational change of HA, triggered by low pH in the airways or droplets, may render viruses noninfectious before they can reach a new host. We here summarize available data from (animal) studies on the impact of HA acid stability on airborne transmission and hypothesize that the transmissibility of other respiratory viruses may also be impacted by an acidic environment in the airways.
Novel anthracene-containing aminophosphonates and a new anthracene-derived Schiff base were synthesized and tested for antitumor activity and safety. The compounds could be considered promising as a ...novel class antiproliferative agents.
A new Schiff base, 9-anthrylidene-furfurylamine and three novel anthracene-containing α-aminophosphonates, N-methyl(dimethoxyphosphonyl)-1-(9-anthryl)-p-toluidine, N-methyl(diethoxyphosphonyl)-1-(9-anthryl)-p-toluidine and N-methyl(diethoxyphosphonyl)-1-(9-anthryl)furfurylamine were synthesized. The compounds have been characterized by elemental analysis, TLC, IR, NMR and fluorescent spectra. The aminophosphonates and their synthetic precursors were tested for in vitro antitumor activity on a panel of seven human epithelial cancer cell lines. Safety testing was performed both in vitro (3T3 NRU test) and in vivo on ICR mice for genotoxicity and antiproliferative activity. 9-Anthrylidene-furfurylamine and N-methyl(diethoxyphosphonyl)-1-(9-anthryl)furfurylamine were most potent cytotoxic agents towards colon carcinoma cell line HT-29. The latter compound exhibited also antiproliferative activity to HBL-100, MDA-MB-231 and 647-V cells. The aminophosphonate N-methyl(dimethoxyphosphonyl)-1-(9-anthryl)-p-toluidine and its synthetic precursor 9-anthrylidene-p-toluidine were found to be cytotoxic to HBL-100 and HT-29 tumor cell lines, respectively. Moderate genotoxic and antiproliferative activity in vivo and low toxicity to Balb/c 3T3 (clone 31) mouse embryo cells were observed for all tested compounds. The subcellular distribution of two tested compounds in a tumor cell culture system was also studied.
Novel polyphosphoesters containing anthracene-derived aminophosphonate units were synthesized and tested for antitumor activity and safety. The polymers are promising as new antiproliferative agents ...for treatment of breast and liver neoplasms.
Novel polyphosphoesters containing anthracene-derived aminophosphonate units, poly(oxyethylene aminophosphonate)s (4 and 5) and polyoxyethylene(aminophosphonate-co-H-phosphonate)s (6 and 7), were synthesized via an addition of poly(oxyethylene H-phosphonate)s to 9-anthrylidene-p-toluidine. The IR, NMR (1H, 13C and 31P) and fluorescence emission spectral data of the polymers are presented. The copolymers 6 and 7 were tested for in vitro antitumor activity on a panel of seven human epithelial cancer cell lines. Safety testing was performed both in vitro (3T3 NRU test) and in vivo on ICR mice for genotoxicity and antiproliferative activity. The copolymer 7 showed excellent antiproliferative activity to HBL-100, MDA-MB-231, MCF-7 and HepG2 cell lines. However, the in vitro safety testing revealed significant toxicity to Balb/c 3T3 mouse embryo cells. In contrast, the copolymer 6 showed complete absence of cytotoxicity to Balb/c 3T3 cells, but inhibited the growth of breast cancer cells, cervical carcinoma cells (HeLa) and hepatocellular carcinoma cell cultures after prolonged (72h) exposure. The polymers (4–6) exhibited low (4 and 6) to moderate (5) clastogenicity in vivo and slightly inhibited bone marrow cell division, compared to Mitomycin C. The subcellular distribution of the copolymers 6 and 7 were studied in model cell culture systems. The tested polyphosphoesters are expected to act in vivo as prodrugs of aminophosphonates and could be valuable as a new class of biodegradable polymer drug carriers.
The results for blood flow in the carotid artery bifurcation on the basis of numerical simulation of Navier-Stokes equations are presented in this study. Four cases of carotid bifurcation are ...considered: common carotid artery (CCA) bifurcation without stenoses and cases with one, two and three stenoses are also presented. The results are obtained by performing numerical simulations considering one pulse wave period based on the finite volume discretization of Navier-Stokes equations. The structures of the flow around the bifurcation are obtained and the deformation of the pulse wave from common carotid artery (CCA) to the internal carotid artery (ICA) and external carotid artery (ECA) is traced. The axial velocity and wall shear stress (WSS) distribution and contours are presented considering the characteristic time points. The results of the WSS distribution around the bifurcation allow a prediction of the probable sites of stenosis growth.
The time-varying blood flow in the common carotid artery (CCA) bifurcation is numerically studied on the basis of Navier-Stokes equations for four different cases, including cases with stenoses at ...different sites in the vicinity of the bifurcation. The cases studied were: (a) without stenoses, (b) with one stenosis upstream the bifurcation, (c) with two opposite stenoses upstream the bifurcation and (d) with an additional stenosis on the apex of the bifurcation. The mesh was generated via a geometry reconstruction and imported into a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solver. The numerical results of the blood flow in the CCA bifurcation gave a detailed picture of the axial velocity and presented as velocity and vorticity magnitudes. More specifically, it was observed that the appearance of stenotic regions upstream the bifurcation affect both the velocity and vorticity characteristics, whereas a stenoses on the apex of the bifurcation seems to have a small effect on the vorticity characteristics downstream the flow.
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