Despite the significant progress achieved in recent years, the physical mechanisms underlying the origin of solar energetic particles (SEPs) are still a matter of debate. The complex nature of both ...particle acceleration and transport poses challenges to developing a universal picture of SEP events that encompasses both the low-energy (from tens of keV to a few hundreds of MeV) observations made by space-based instruments and the GeV particles detected by the worldwide network of neutron monitors in ground-level enhancements (GLEs). The high-precision data collected by the Payload for Antimatter Matter Exploration and Light-nuclei Astrophysics (PAMELA) satellite experiment offer a unique opportunity to study the SEP fluxes between ∼80 MeV and a few GeV, significantly improving the characterization of the most energetic events. In particular, PAMELA can measure for the first time with good accuracy the spectral features at moderate and high energies, providing important constraints for current SEP models. In addition, the PAMELA observations allow the relationship between low- and high-energy particles to be investigated, enabling a clearer view of the SEP origin. No qualitative distinction between the spectral shapes of GLE, sub-GLE and non-GLE events is observed, suggesting that GLEs are not a separate class, but are the subset of a continuous distribution of SEP events that are more intense at high energies. While the spectral forms found are to be consistent with diffusive shock acceleration theory, which predicts spectral rollovers at high energies that are attributed to particles escaping the shock region during acceleration, further work is required to explore the relative influences of acceleration and transport processes on SEP spectra.
Gene or genome duplication is a fundamental evolutionary mechanism leading towards the origin of new genes, or gene functions. Myostatin (MSTN) is a negative regulator of muscle growth that in ...teleost fish, as a result of genome duplication, is present in double copy. This study provides evidence of differentiation of MSTN paralogs in fish by comparatively exploring their tissue-regulation in the Asian sea bass (Lates calcarifer) when subjected to fasting stress. Results showed differential regulation as well as specific tissue-responses in the muscle, liver, gill and brain of L. calcarifer after nutritional deprivation. In particular, the LcMstn-1 expression increased in liver (∼4 fold) and muscle (∼3 fold) and diminished in brain (∼0.5 fold) and gill (∼0.5 fold) while that of LcMstn-2 remained stable in brain and muscle and was up regulated in gill (∼2.5 fold) and liver (∼2 fold). Differential regulation of Mstn paralogs was supported by in silico analyses of regulatory motifs that revealed, at least in the immediate region upstream the genes, a differentiation between Mstn-1 and Mstn-2. The Mstn-1 in particular showed a significantly higher conservation of regulatory sites among teleost species compared to its paralog indicating that this gene might have a highly conserved function in the taxon.
The cosmic ray (CR) lithium and beryllium (6Li, 7Li, 7Be, 9Be, 10Be) isotopic composition has been measured with the satellite-borne experiment PAMELA, which was launched into low-Earth orbit on ...board the Resurs-DK1 satellite on 2006 June 15. The rare lithium and beryllium isotopes in CRs are believed to originate mainly from the interaction of high-energy carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen nuclei with the interstellar medium (ISM), but also on "tertiary" interactions in the ISM (i.e., produced by further fragmentation of secondary beryllium and boron). In this paper, the isotopic ratios 7Li/6Li and 7Be/(9Be + 10Be), measured between 150 and 1100 MeV n−1 using two different detector systems from 2006 July to 2014 September, will be presented.
Precise measurements of the time-dependent intensity of the low-energy (<50 GeV) galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) are fundamental to test and improve the models that describe their propagation inside the ...heliosphere. In particular, data spanning different solar activity periods, i.e., from minimum to maximum, are needed to achieve comprehensive understanding of such physical phenomena. The minimum phase between solar cycles 23 and 24 was peculiarly long, extending up to the beginning of 2010 and followed by the maximum phase, reached during early 2014. In this Letter, we present proton differential spectra measured from 2010 January to 2014 February by the PAMELA experiment. For the first time the GCR proton intensity was studied over a wide energy range (0.08-50 GeV) by a single apparatus from a minimum to a maximum period of solar activity. The large statistics allowed the time variation to be investigated on a nearly monthly basis. Data were compared and interpreted in the context of a state-of-the-art three-dimensional model describing the GCRs propagation through the heliosphere.
Legumes such as soybean, peas and lupin have attracted considerable interest as potential sources of protein to replace finite and limiting supplies of marine fishmeal (FM) as major ingredients for ...aquafeeds. In this respect, faba beans (Vicia faba) represent a widespread and relatively unexploited legume crop in Europe with potentially favourable characteristics. However, for carnivorous species such as Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), protein levels in legumes are generally too low and require to be concentrated to be direct replacements for FM. Previously we showed that a faba bean protein concentrate, produced by air classification, containing 55% protein could partially replace FM and/or soy protein concentrate (SPC) in feeds for parr and post-smolt salmon. In the present study, a faba bean protein isolate (BPI), produced by a wet process, with almost ~80% crude protein was investigated in feeds for Atlantic salmon in seawater. Four dietary treatments were tested including one with high inclusion of FM (400gkg−1) and three with low FM (216gkg−1) and increasing inclusions of BPI (0, 70 and 140gkg−1) substituting for SPC (236, 125 and 45gkg−1). Growth performance in fish was unaffected with the lower level of dietary BPI, but was reduced in fish fed the higher level, mainly due to feed intake being reduced initially. Histological analysis of the distal intestine showed inflammation in fish fed both diets containing BPI, but especially at 140gkg−1. The high dietary level of BPI affected the transcriptome of pyloric caeca with almost 2000 differentially expressed genes (DEG) compared to fish fed FM, whereas fish fed SPC or the lower level of BPI showed no DEG compared to fish fed FM. In contrast, the liver transcriptome was generally affected similarly by both BPI and SPC. The combined data suggested that the BPI utilised contained a factor that was detrimental above a certain threshold and, although this factor could be an artefact of the protein isolation method, an effect of a known ANF could not be excluded with saponin the most likely candidate. Overall, however, the results of the present study confirmed that protein concentrates or isolates derived from faba beans can replace FM and/or SPC up to a certain level in feeds for Atlantic salmon.
A study testing novel raw materials for fish feed.
•Performance of Atlantic salmon fed wet-processed faba bean protein isolate (BPI) was tested.•At lower inclusions, BPI can be a good protein source for Atlantic salmon.•Liver and pyloric intestine transcriptomes were altered.•Intestinal inflammation was found in fish fed the highest inclusion of BPI.
Abstract
We present a study of the solar-cycle variations of >80 MeV proton flux intensities in the lower edge of the inner radiation belt, based on the measurements of the Payload for Antimatter ...Matter Exploration and Light-nuclei Astrophysics (PAMELA) mission. The analyzed data sample covers an ∼8 yr interval from 2006 July to 2014 September, thus spanning from the decaying phase of the 23rd solar cycle to the maximum of the 24th cycle. We explored the intensity temporal variations as a function of drift shell and proton energy, also providing an explicit investigation of the solar modulation effects at different equatorial pitch angles. PAMELA observations offer new important constraints for the modeling of low-altitude particle radiation environment at the highest trapping energies.
Faba bean (Vicia faba) is a legume with good potential that has previously been tested in fish species with some promising results. The present study aimed to determine whether an air-classified faba ...bean protein concentrate (BPC, 615gkg−1 crude protein content) could offer improved or favourable growth performance, body composition and gut health compared to commercially used protein sources such as FM and soy protein concentrate (SPC) in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). The trial investigated the performance of 16 feeds formulated with varying FM/SPC/BPC proportions using a mixture design approach. Salmon parr of average weight of 1.47g were used as a model. The trial lasted eight weeks and also included high FM (560gkg−1) and high defatted soybean meal (SBM, 360gkg−1) feeds as negative and positive controls respectively, for the assessment of enteritis in the distal intestine. The effects on growth performance, body nutrient composition, survival and fish health, specifically gut histology, were determined. The results demonstrated conclusively that total inclusion levels of BPC ranging from 50 to 200gkg−1, partially replacing SPC and/or FM, displayed the greatest potential to be beneficial in terms of fish performance and nutrient composition with increased growth, protein content, fat content and ash. In addition to favourable whole-body composition parameters, it was found that inclusions of BPC below 340gkg−1 of feed did not cause detrimental effects such as the enteritis observed in fish fed the high soybean meal control. High inclusion level (447.2gkg−1) of BPC caused a mild inflammation that was not as severe as that caused by the feed with high SBM. The results of this screening study indicate that BPC derived from faba beans can be a valuable alternative protein source in Atlantic salmon feeds. The data provided a platform to model the optimum range of BPC inclusion levels in combination with FM and SPC for further investigation in commercially relevant fish and conditions.
•Performance of Atlantic salmon fed air-classified faba bean protein concentrates was tested.•Optimum range of inclusion with potential commercial application was identified.•High inclusion of air-classified faba beans caused mild gut inflammation.•Gut inflammation caused by faba bean was not as severe as that caused by soybean.
The diagnostic value of calcitonin measurement in fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) wash-out fluid (Ct-FNAB) for medullary thyroid cancer (MTC) remains to be determined. This prospective study ...aimed to assess the diagnostic value of Ct-FNAB in thyroid nodules in comparison with basal serum calcitonin (Ct), pentagastrin-stimulated Ct (Pg-sCt), and cytology.
Among patients with goiter addressed with US-FNAB who had an initial clinical suggestion for thyroidectomy, 27 patients with thyroid nodule/s (n = 60) and normal, borderline, or increased Ct fulfilled the criteria for thyroidectomy. All 27 patients (enrolled according to exclusion/inclusion criteria) underwent ultrasonography (US), Ct, Pg-sCt, US-assisted FNAB of each patient's nodule for both cytology, and Ct-FNAB before thyroidectomy.
Ct-FNAB always resulted in >1,000 pg/mL in MTC nodules at histology. For values between 36 and 1,000 pg/mL, MTCs and nodular or micronodular C-cell hyperplasia (CCH) results overlapped. Most of the nodules without MTC and/or CCH had Ct-FNAB ≤ 17 pg/mL. Ct-FNAB diagnostic power was superior to and similar to other diagnostic procedures (Ct, Pg-sCt, and cytology) in identifying both MTC and CCH, and MTC alone, respectively.
The diagnostic power of Ct-FNAB is valuable compared with other routine procedures. Ct-FNAB is highly reliable for the early detection and accurate localization of MTC in thyroid nodules, but it does not differentiate between MTC and CCH. Ct-FNAB is an extremely valuable diagnostic tool, especially considering that other diagnostic procedures do not provide a definitive diagnosis, and it can be included in the clinical work-up of thyroid nodules when MTC is suspected.
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