Light has profoundly influenced the evolution of life on earth. As widely appreciated, light enables us to generate images of our environment. However, light - through intrinsically photosensitive ...retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) - also influences behaviours that are essential for our health and quality of life but are independent of image formation. These include the synchronization of the circadian clock to the solar day, tracking of seasonal changes and the regulation of sleep. Irregular light environments lead to problems in circadian rhythms and sleep, which eventually cause mood and learning deficits. Recently, it was found that irregular light can also directly affect mood and learning without producing major disruptions in circadian rhythms and sleep. In this Review, we discuss the indirect and direct influence of light on mood and learning, and provide a model for how light, the circadian clock and sleep interact to influence mood and cognitive functions.
The biogeographic border between the Eastern and the Atlantic subregions of the Lusitanian Province situated on the west coast of Asturias (N. of Spain) has moved westwards in recent years. A ...comparative study, consisting in a resurvey of 20 shores sampled in 1977, covering 200 km showed a large-scale change affecting the mid and low eulittoral. Cold-temperate canopy species such as kelps (Laminaria hyperborea, Laminaria. ochroleuca and Saccorhiza polyschides), fucoids (Fucus serratus, Fucus vesiculosus and Himanthalia elongata) and Chondrus crispus have almost disappeared and replaced by warm-temperate species such as Cystoseira baccata, Cystoseira tamariscifolia, Bifurcaria bifurcata and coralline algae (Ellisolandia elongata, Lithophyllum incrustans and Mesophyllum lichenoides). The loss of canopy-species can have consequences for the assemblage, especially in the case of fucoid-dominated assemblages.
•Changes in the patterns of zonation over three decades.•Displacement of the biogeographic border on the North coast of Spain.•The retreat of cold-temperate seaweeds.•Changes in the structure of communities dominated by seaweeds.
We have explored the simultaneous degradation of cyanides and thiocyanate present in wastewaters from a cokemaking factory using photoassisted methods under varied illumination conditions (from ...simulated solar light to UV light). Overall, the photochemical degradation of cyanides was more efficient than that of thiocyanates, regardless of the illumination conditions, the effect being more pronounced in the absence of a photocatalyst. This is due to their different degradation mechanism that in the case of thiocyanates is dominated by fast recombination reactions and/or charge transfer reactions to electron scavengers. In all cases, cyanate, ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites were formed at different amounts depending on the illumination conditions. The conversion yield under simulated solar light was almost complete for cyanides and quite high for thiocyanates after 6 h of illumination. Regarding toxicity, photochemical oxidation at 254 nm and under simulated solar light decreased significantly the toxicity of the pristine wastewater, showing a correlation with the intensity of the irradiation source. This indicate that simulated light can be effectively used to reduce the toxicity of industrial effluents, opening an interesting perspective for optimizing cyanide detoxification systems based on natural light.
Ship emissions degrade air quality and affect human health, and are increasingly becoming a matter of concern. Sulfur emission control areas (ECA), specific coastal regions where only low-sulfur ...fuels may be consumed by ocean-going ships, have proven to be useful tools to reduce ship-sourced air pollution along the North American, Canadian, and European North and Baltic Sea coastlines. The present work assesses the environmental and health benefits which would derive from designating an ECA in the Marmara Sea and the Turkish Straits (50 000 ships/year; 23 million inhabitants). Results show evidence that implementing an ECA would be technically viable and that it would reduce ship-sourced PM10 and PM2.5 ambient concentrations in Istanbul by 67%, and SO2 by 90%. The reduction of the air pollution burden on health was quantified as 210 hospital admissions from exposure to PM10, 290 hospital admissions from exposure to SO2, and up to 30 premature deaths annually due to ECA emission controls. Consequently, the designation of an ECA in the Marmara Sea and the Turkish Straits is evaluated as a positive, technically viable and real-world measure to reduce air pollution from ships in Turkey.
A comprehensive map of the structural connectome in the human brain has been a coveted resource for understanding macroscopic brain networks. Here we report an expert-vetted, population-averaged ...atlas of the structural connectome derived from diffusion MRI data (N = 842). This was achieved by creating a high-resolution template of diffusion patterns averaged across individual subjects and using tractography to generate 550,000 trajectories of representative white matter fascicles annotated by 80 anatomical labels. The trajectories were subsequently clustered and labeled by a team of experienced neuroanatomists in order to conform to prior neuroanatomical knowledge. A multi-level network topology was then described using whole-brain connectograms, with subdivisions of the association pathways showing small-worldness in intra-hemisphere connections, projection pathways showing hub structures at thalamus, putamen, and brainstem, and commissural pathways showing bridges connecting cerebral hemispheres to provide global efficiency. This atlas of the structural connectome provides representative organization of human brain white matter, complementary to traditional histologically-derived and voxel-based white matter atlases, allowing for better modeling and simulation of brain connectivity for future connectome studies.
► Ultrasound and thermal treatments improved CH4 production of Scenedesmus ecosystem. ► Low energies applied led to floc formation while higher ones caused cell disruption. ► Different organic matter ...was released depending on the pretreatment used. ► CH4 production improved only when supplying high ultrasound energy and temperature.
Ultrasound at 20Hz was applied at different energy levels (Es) to treat Scenedesmus biomass, and organic matter solubilization, particle size distribution, cell disruption and biochemical methane potential were evaluated. An Es of 35.5 and 47.2MJ/kg resulted in floc deagglomeration but no improvement in methane production compared to untreated biomass. At an Es of 128.9, cell wall disruption was observed together with a 3.1-fold organic matter solubilization and an approximately 2-fold methane production in comparison with untreated biomass. Thermal pretreatment at 80°C caused cell wall disruption and improved anaerobic biodegradability 1.6-fold compared to untreated biomass. Since sonication caused a temperature increase in samples to as high as 85°C, it is likely that thermal effects accounted for much of the observed changes in the biomass. Given that ultrasound treatment at the highest Es studied only increased methane production by 1.2-fold over thermal treatment at 80°C, the higher energy requirement of sonication might not justify the use of this approach over thermal treatment.
Extreme weight conditions (EWC) groups along a continuum may share some biological risk factors and intermediate neurocognitive phenotypes. A core cognitive trait in EWC appears to be executive ...dysfunction, with a focus on decision making, response inhibition and cognitive flexibility. Differences between individuals in these areas are likely to contribute to the differences in vulnerability to EWC. The aim of the study was to investigate whether there is a common pattern of executive dysfunction in EWC while comparing anorexia nervosa patients (AN), obese subjects (OB) and healthy eating/weight controls (HC).
Thirty five AN patients, fifty two OB and one hundred thirty seven HC were compared using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST); Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT); and Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). All participants were female, aged between 18 and 60 years.
There was a significant difference in IGT score (F(1.79); p<.001), with AN and OB groups showing the poorest performance compared to HC. On the WCST, AN and OB made significantly more errors than controls (F(25.73); p<.001), and had significantly fewer correct responses (F(2.71); p<.001). Post hoc analysis revealed that the two clinical groups were not significantly different from each other. Finally, OB showed a significant reduced performance in the inhibition response measured with the Stroop test (F(5.11); p<.001) compared with both AN and HC.
These findings suggest that EWC subjects (namely AN and OB) have similar dysfunctional executive profile that may play a role in the development and maintenance of such disorders.
Research into the development of renewable and sustainable fuels has been a major concern during last decades. Microalgae, as a potential resource, have gained great attention for energy purposes. In ...this context, anaerobic digestion seems to be the most direct energy generation process. Nevertheless, the efficiency of this process is hampered due to the hard cell wall of some microalgae. In order to enhance its anaerobic biodegradability, the present research investigated the effect of thermal pretreatment at two temperatures (70 and 90 °C) applied to Scenedesmus biomass. No differences were detected in terms of organic matter or ammonium release upon the two tested temperatures. Nevertheless, a different fact was observed for their anaerobic biodegradability. While raw and pretreated at 70 °C microalgae attained 22–24% anaerobic biodegradability, microalgae pretreated at 90 °C achieved anaerobic biodegradability of 48%. Even though similar profiles were obtained for both temperatures along the pretreatment period, the damage caused in the cell wall at 90 °C seemed to be greater and rendered this substrate readily degradable for anaerobic digestion.
► Efficiency of anaerobic digestion is hampered due to microalgae cell wall. ► Pretreatment temperature dependency was observed on Scenedesmus biomass. ► Sytox green dye is a helpful tool to identify cell wall disruption. ► Thermal pretreatment at 90 °C was successful for increasing methane production.
Oxidative stress is a major factor involved in the pathogenesis of renal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R). Exogenous zinc (Zn) was suggested as a potent antioxidant; however, the mechanism by which it ...strengthens the organ resistance against the effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is not yet investigated. The present study aims to determine whether acute zinc chloride (ZnCl2) administration could attenuate endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, autophagy, and inflammation after renal I/R. Rats were subjected to either sham operation (Sham group, n = 6), or 1 hr of bilateral ischemia followed by 2 hr of reperfusion (I/R groups, n = 6), or they received ZnCl2 orally 24 hr and 30 min before ischemia (ZnCl2 group, n = 6). Rats were subjected to 1 hr of bilateral renal ischemia followed by 2 hr of reperfusion (I/R group, n = 6). Our results showed that ZnCl2 enhances renal function and reduces cytolysis (p < 0,05). In addition, it increased significantly the activities of antioxidant enzymes (SOD, CAT, and GPX) and the level of GSH in comparison to I/R (p < 0,05). Interestingly, ZnCl2 treatment resulted in significant decreased ER stress, as reflected by GRP78, ATF‐6,p‐eIF‐2α, XPB‐1, and CHOP downregulaion. Rats undergoing ZnCl2 treatment demonstrated a low expression of autophagy parameters (Beclin‐1 and LAMP‐2), which was correlated with low induction of apoptosis (caspase‐9, caspase‐3, and p‐JNK), and reduction of inflammation (IL‐1ß, IL‐6, and MCP‐1) (p < 0,05). In conclusion, we demonstrated the potential effect of Zn supplementation to modulate ER pathway and autophagic process after I/R.
Zinc mitigates kidney's ischemia reperfusion injury through oxidative stress prevention. The molecular mechanism implicates the inhibtion of endoplasmic reticulum stress pathway, the autophagic process, mitochondrial dysfunction and inflammation which resulted in apoptosis inhibition.