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Aims. One of the main scientific drivers for ESPRESSO, Échelle SPectrograph, is the detection and characterization of Earth-class exoplanets. With this goal in mind, the ESPRESSO guaranteed time observations (GTO) Catalog identifies the best target stars for a blind search for the radial velocity (RV) signals caused by Earth-class exoplanets. Methods. Using the most complete stellar catalogs available, we screened for the most suitable G, K, and M dwarf stars for the detection of Earth-class exoplanets with ESPRESSO. For most of the stars, we then gathered high-resolution spectra from new observations or from archival data. We used these spectra to spectroscopically investigate the existence of any stellar binaries, both bound or background stars. We derived the activity level using chromospheric activity indexes using log (R′HK) $(R' _{\textrm{HK}})$ (R HK ′) , as well as the projected rotational velocity v sin i. For the cases where planet companions are already known, we also looked at the possibility that additional planets may exist in the host's habitable zone using dynamical arguments. Results. We estimated the spectroscopic contamination level, v sin i, activity, stellar parameters and chemical abundances for 249 of the most promising targets. Using these data, we selected 45 stars that match our criteria for detectability of a planet like Earth. The stars presented and discussed in this paper constitute the ESPRESSO GTO catalog for the RV blind search for Earth-class planets. They can also be used for any other work requiring a detailed spectroscopic characterization of stars in the solar neighborhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the treatment of dental caries that has not penetrated the tooth pulp, maintenance of as much unaffected dentine as possible is a major goal during the physical removal of decayed mineral. Damage to dentine leads to release of fossilized factors (transforming growth factor-β [TGF-β] and bone morphogenic protein [BMP]) in the dentine that are believed to stimulate odontoblasts to secrete new "tertiary" dentine (reactionary dentine). This is formed on the pulpal surface of existing dentine and rethickens the dentine. We have previously shown that activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling is pivotal for tooth repair in exposed pulp injury, and the pathway can be activated by small-molecule GSK-3 antagonists, resulting in enhanced reparative dentine formation. Here, we use a nonexposed pulp injury model to investigate the mechanisms of reactionary dentine formation in vivo, using small molecules to modulate the Wnt/β-catenin, TGF-β, and BMP pathways. We found that a local increase of Wnt activation at the injury site enhances reactionary dentine secretion. In addition, inhibition of TGF-β, BMP, or Wnt pathways does not impede reactionary dentine formation, although inhibition of TGF-β and/or BMP signaling does result in more disorganized, nontubular reactionary dentine. This suggests that Wnt/β-catenin signaling plays no major role in the formation of reactionary dentine, but in common with reparative dentine formation, exogenous elevation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling can enhance tertiary dentine formation. Release of latent TGF-β or BMPs from dentine is not required for the deposition of mineral to form reactionary dentine but does play a role in its organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cu/Al layered double hydroxide (LDH) can be used as a catalyst for important processes such as cross-coupling reactions. This property may be improved by adding palladium by either impregnation or intercalation. Therefore, the LDH matrix and its composites with Pd or [PdCl] have been prepared. By powder X-ray diffraction, FT-infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric and elemental analysis it was determined the LDH formula CuAl(OH)CO.4HO, with malachite as the second phase. The LDH thermal decomposition occurs between 120 and 600 °C, having as intermediates the double oxi-hydroxide and the mixed oxide phases. At 800 °C the residue is composed of CuO and CuAlO. The composites were obtained employing [PdCl] and Pd(dba) as precursors, and the solvent choice for this process was shown to be of significant importance: the materials obtained using DMF had Pd impregnated in the surface, while the usage of water promoted the intercalation of [PdCl] in the LDH matrix. The thermogravimetric analysis was able to distinguish the mode of supporting palladium between the composites being a reliable characterization for such task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malcolm Roy Clarke (1930-2013) was a British teuthologist who made an important contribution to marine science in the Azores archipelago (Portugal). Malcolm started doing research in the Azores from 1980s onward, settling for residency in 2000 after retirement (in 1987). He kept publishing on Azorean cephalopods collaborating in 20% of the peer reviewed works focusing on two main areas: dietary studies; and the ecology of cephalopods on seamounts. Since his first visit in 1981, he was involved in the description of the dietary ecology of several cetaceans, seabirds, and large pelagic and deep-water fish. Using his own data, Malcolm revised the association of cephalopods with seamounts, updating and enlarging the different cephalopod groups according to species behaviour and ecology. Malcolm taught several students working in the Azores on cephalopods and beak identification, lecturing the Third International Workshop in Faial (2007). He empowered the recently established research community, by providing important contacts with foreign institutes and informal advice. He collaborated in the regional cetacean stranding network (RACA) and was an active member of the advisory board of the journal Arquipelago--Life and Marine Sciences. But the scientific role of Malcolm Clarke in the Azores went beyond his academic activities. In the last 10 years Malcolm and Dot Clarke dedicated themselves to building and running a museum on Pico Island, showing the biology of the sperm whale and its interaction with squid; a cultural and touristic legacy for future generations to enjoy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. Planetary companions of a fixed mass induce reflex motions with a larger amplitude around lower-mass stars, which adds to making M dwarfs excellent targets for extra-solar planet searches. The most recent velocimeters with a stability of ~1 ms-1 can detect very low-mass planets out to the habitable zone of these stars. Low-mass small planets are abundant around M dwarfs, and most of the known potentially habitable planets orbit one of these cool stars. Aims. Our M-dwarf radial velocity monitoring with HARPS on the ESO 3.6 m telescope at La Silla observatory makes a major contribution to this sample. Methods. We present here dense radial velocity (RV) time series for three M dwarfs observed over ~five years: GJ 3293 (0.42 M⊕), GJ 3341 (0.47 M⊕), and GJ 3543 (0.45 M⊕). We extracted these RVs through minimum χ2-matching of each spectrum against a stack of all observed spectra for the same star that has a high signal-to-noise ratio. We then compared potential orbital signals against several stellar activity indicators to distinguish the Keplerian variations induced by planets from the spurious signals that result from rotational modulation of stellar surface inhomogeneities and from activity cycles. Results. Two Neptune-mass planets - m sin(i) = 1:4 ± 0:1 and 1:3 ± 0:1Mnept - orbit GJ 3293 with periods P = 30:60 ± 0:02 d and P = 123:98 ± 0:38 d, possibly together with a super-Earth - m sin(i) ~ 7:9 ± 1:4 M⊕ - with period P = 48:14 ± 0:12 d. A super-Earth - m sin(i) ~ 6:1 M⊕ - orbits GJ 3341 with P = 14:207 ± 0:007 d. The RV variations of GJ 3543, on the other hand, reflect its stellar activity rather than planetary signals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. GJ 436b is one of the few transiting warm Neptunes for which a detailed characterisation of the atmosphere is possible, whereas its non-negligible orbital eccentricity calls for further investigation. Independent analyses of several individual datasets obtained with Spitzer have led to contradicting results attributed to the different techniques used to treat the instrumental effects. Aims. We aim at investigating these previous controversial results and developing our knowledge of the system based on the full Spitzer photometry dataset combined with new Doppler measurements obtained with the HARPS spectrograph. We also want to search for additional planets. Methods. We optimise aperture photometry techniques and the photometric deconvolution algorithm DECPHOT to improve the data reduction of the Spitzer photometry spanning wavelengths from 3-24 μm. Adding the high-precision HARPS radial velocity data, we undertake a Bayesian global analysis of the system considering both instrumental and stellar e ects on the flux variation. Results. We present a refined radius estimate of RP = 4:10 ± 0:16 R☉, mass MP = 25:4 ± 2:1 M☉, and eccentricity e = 0:162 ± 0:004 for GJ 436b. Our measured transit depths remain constant in time and wavelength, in disagreement with the results of previous studies. In addition, we find that the post-occultation flare-like structure at 3.6 μm that led to divergent results on the occultation depth measurement is spurious. We obtain occultation depths at 3.6, 5.8, and 8.0 μm that are shallower than in previous works, in particular at 3.6 μm. However, these depths still appear consistent with a metal-rich atmosphere depleted in methane and enhanced in CO/CO2, although perhaps less than previously thought. We could not detect a significant orbital modulation in the 8 μm phase curve. We find no evidence of a potential planetary companion, stellar activity, or a stellar spin-orbit misalignment. Conclusions. Recent theoretical models invoking high-metallicity atmospheres for warm Neptunes are a reasonable match to our results, but we encourage new modelling efforts based on our revised data. Future observations covering a wide wavelength range of GJ 436b and other Neptune-class exoplanets will further illuminate their atmosphere properties, whilst future accurate radial velocity measurements might explain the eccentricity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The atmospheric composition of super-Earths and Neptunes is the object of intense observational and theoretical investigations. Transmission spectra recently obtained for such exoplanets are featureless in the near infrared. This flat signature is attributed to the presence of optically-thick clouds or translucent hazes. The planet GJ 3470b is a warm Neptune (or Uranus) detected in transit across a bright late-type star. The transit of this planet has already been observed in several band passes from the ground and space, allowing observers to draw an intriguing yet incomplete transmission spectrum of the planet atmospheric limb. In particular, published data in the visible suggest the existence of a Rayleigh scattering slope - making GJ 3470b a unique case among the known Neptunes, while data obtained beyond 2 μm are consistent with a flat infrared spectrum. The unexplored near-infrared spectral region between 1 μm and 2 μm, is thus the key to understanding the atmospheric nature of GJ 3470b. Here, we report on the first space-borne spectrum of GJ 3470, obtained during one transit of the planet with the Wide Field Camera-3 (WFC3) on board the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), operated in stare mode. The spectrum covers the 1.1-1.7 μm region with a resolution of ∼300 (Δλ ∼ 4 nm). We retrieve the transmission spectrum of GJ 3470b with a chromatic planet-to-star radius ratio precision of 0.09% (about half a scale height) per 40 nm bins. At this precision, the spectrum appears featureless, in good agreement with ground-based and Spitzer infrared data at longer wavelengths, pointing to a flat transmission spectrum from 1 μm to 5 μm. We present new simulations of possible theoretical transmission spectra for GJ 3470b, which allow us to show that the HST/WFC3 observations rule out cloudless hydrogenrich atmospheres (>10σ) as well as hydrogen-rich atmospheres with tholin haze (>5σ). Adding our near-infrared measurements to the full set of previously published data from 0.3 μm to 5 μm, we find that a cloudy, hydrogen-rich atmosphere can explain the full transmission spectrum: the tentative Rayleigh slope in the visible and the flat near-infrared spectrum can be both reproduced if the water volume mixing ratio is lower at the terminator than predicted by equilibrium thermochemistry models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. In this work we develop a technique to obtain high precision determinations of both metallicity and effective temperature of M dwarfs in the optical. Methods. A new method is presented that makes use of the information of 4104 lines in the 530-690 nm spectral region. It consists in the measurement of pseudo equivalent widths and their correlation with established scales of [Fe/H] and eff. Results. Our technique achieves a rms of 0.08 ± 0.01 for [Fe/H], 91 ± 13 K for Teff, and is valid in the (-0.85, 0.26 dex), (2800, 4100 K), and (M0.0, M5.0) intervals for [Fe/H], eff and spectral type respectively. We also calculated the RMSEV which estimates uncertainties of the order of 0.12 dex for the metallicity and of 293 K for the effective temperature. The technique has an activity limit and should only be used for stars with log LHα/Lbol < -4.0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. Thanks to the importance that the star-planet relation has to our understanding of the planet formation process, the precise determination of stellar parameters for the ever increasing number of discovered extra-solar planets is of great relevance. Furthermore, precise stellar parameters are needed to fully characterize the planet properties. It is thus important to continue the efforts to determine, in the most uniform way possible, the parameters for stars with planets as new discoveries are announced. Aims. In this paper we present new precise atmospheric parameters for a sample of 48 stars with planets.We then take the opportunity to present a new catalogue of stellar parameters for FGK and M stars with planets detected by radial velocity, transit, and astrometry programs. Methods. Stellar atmospheric parameters and masses for the 48 stars were derived assuming local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) and using high-resolution and high signal-to-noise spectra. The methodology used is based on the measurement of equivalent widths for a list of iron lines and making use of iron ionization and excitation equilibrium principles. For the catalogue, and whenever possible, we used parameters derived in previous works published by our team, using well-defined methodologies for the derivation of stellar atmospheric parameters. This set of parameters amounts to over 65% of all planet host stars known, including more than 90% of all stars with planets discovered through radial velocity surveys. For the remaining targets, stellar parameters were collected from the literature. Results. The stellar parameters for the 48 stars are presented and compared with previously determined literature values. For the catalogue, we compile values for the effective temperature, surface gravity, metallicity, and stellar mass for almost all the planet host stars listed in the Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia. This data will be updated on a continuous basis. The compiled catalogue is available online. The data can be used for statistical studies of the star-planet correlation, as well as for the derivation of consistent properties for known planets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The meter-per-second precision achieved by today's velocimeters enables us to search for 1-10 M⊕ planets in the habitable zone of cool stars. This paper reports on the detection of three planets orbiting GJ 163 (HIP 19394), a M3 dwarf monitored by our ESO/HARPS search for planets. We made use of the HARPS spectrograph to collect 150 radial velocities of GJ 163 over a period of eight years. We searched the radial-velocity time series for coherent signals and found five distinct periodic variabilities. We investigated the stellar activity and called into question the planetary interpretation for two signals. Before more data can be acquired we concluded that at least three planets are orbiting GJ 163. They have orbital periods of Pb = 8:632 ± 0:002, Pc = 25:63 ± 0:03, and Pd = 604 ± 8 days and minimum masses m sin i = 10:6 ± 0:6, 6:8 ± 0:9, and 29 ± 3 M⊕, respectively. We hold our interpretations for the two additional signals with periods P(e) = 19:4 and P(f) = 108 days. The inner pair presents an orbital period ratio of 2:97, but a dynamical analysis of the system shows that it lays outside the 3:1 mean motion resonance. The planet GJ 163c, in particular, is a super-Earth with an equilibrium temperature of Teq = (302 ± 10)(1 - A)1/4 K and may lie in the so-called habitable zone for albedo values (A = 0:34-0:89) moderately higher than that of Earth (A⊕ = 0:2-0:3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. The aim of this work is the study of the planet-metallicity and the planet-stellar mass correlations for M dwarfs from the HARPS GTO M dwarf subsample. Methods. We use a new method that takes advantage of the HARPS high-resolution spectra to increase the precision of metallicity, using previous photometric calibrations of [Fe/H] and effective temperature as starting values. Results. In this work we use our new calibration (rms = 0.08 dex) to study the planet-metallicity relation of our sample. The wellknown correlation for giant planet FGKM hosts with metallicity is present. Regarding Neptunians and smaller hosts no correlation is found but there is a hint that an anti-correlation with [Fe/H] may exist. We combined our sample with the California Planet Survey late-K and M-type dwarf sample to increase our statistics but found no new trends. We fitted a power law to the frequency histogram of the Jovian hosts for our sample and for the combined sample, fp = C10α[Fe/H], using two different approaches: a direct bin fitting and a Bayesian fitting procedure. We obtained a value for C between 0.02 and 0.04 and for α between 1.26 and 2.94. Regarding stellar mass, an hypothetical correlation with planets was discovered, but was found to be the result of a detection bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on the discovery of GJ 3470 b, a transiting hot Uranus of mass mp = 14.0 ± 1.8 M⊕, radius Rp = 4.2 ± 0.6 R⊕ and period P = 3.3371 ± 0.0002 day. Its host star is a nearby (d = 25.2 ± 2.9 pc) M1.5 dwarf of mass M⋆ = 0.54 ± 0.07 M⊙ and radius R⋆ = 0.50 ± 0.06 R⊙. The detection was made during a radial-velocity campaign with Harps that focused on the search for short-period planets orbiting M dwarfs. Once the planet was discovered and the transit-search window narrowed to about 10% of an orbital period, a photometric search started with Trappist and quickly detected the ingress of the planet. Additional observations with Trappist, EulerCam and Nites definitely confirmed the transiting nature of GJ 3470b and allowed the determination of its true mass and radius. The star’s visible or infrared brightness (Vmag = 12.3, Kmag = 8.0), together with a large eclipse depth D = 0.57 ± 0.05%, ranks GJ 3470 b among the most suitable planets for follow-up characterizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate vascular and metabolic effects of chronic mild unpredictable stress (CMS) and hypercaloric diet (HD) without carbohydrate supplementation in rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to four groups: Control, HD, CMS, and HD plus CMS. CMS consisted of the application of different stressors for 3 weeks. The rats were killed 15 days after CMS exposure. The HD group presented higher plasma lipid concentrations, without changes in fasting glucose concentration, glucose tolerance test, and vascular function and morphology, in comparison with the control group. Stressed rats presented higher fasting blood concentration of insulin, higher homeostasis model assessment index values and area under the curve in an oral glucose tolerance test, in comparison with non-stressed rats. CMS increased the plasma concentrations of corticosterone and lipids, and the atherogenic index values, without change in high-density lipoprotein level. CMS increased intima-media thickness and induced endothelium-dependent supersensitivity to phenylephrine, and lowered the relaxation response to acetylcholine in the thoracic aorta isolated from rats fed with control or HD, in comparison with non-stressed groups. CMS effects were independent of diet. In non-stressed rats, the HD induced dyslipidemia, but did not change glucose metabolism, vascular function, or morphology. The data from this study indicate that CMS promotes a set of events which together can contribute to impair function of the thoracic aorta. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stellar parameters are not easily derived from M dwarf spectra, which are dominated by complex bands of diatomic and triatomic molecules and do not agree well with the individual line predictions of atmospheric models. M dwarf metallicities are therefore most commonly derived through less direct techniques. Several recent publications propose calibrations that provide the metallicity of an M dwarf from its Ks band absolute magnitude and its V - Ks color, but disagree at the ±0.1 dex level. We compared these calibrations using a sample of 23 M dwarfs, which we selected as wide (>5 arcsec) companions of F-, G-, or K-dwarfs with metallicities measured on a homogeneous scale and which we require to have V band photometry measured to better than ∼0.03 mag. We find that the Schlaufman & Laughlin (2010, A&A, 519, A105) calibration has the lowest offsets and residuals against our sample, and used our improved statistics to marginally refine that calibration. With more strictly selected photometry than in previous studies, the dispersion around the calibration is well in excess of the [Fe/H] and photometric uncertainties. This suggests that the origin of the remaining dispersion is astrophysical rather than observational. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a uniformization of Reeken’s macroscopic differentiability (see []), discuss its relations to uniform differentiability (see []) and classical continuous differentiability, prove the corresponding chain rule, Taylor’s theorem, mean value theorem, and inverse mapping theorem. An attempt to compare it with the observability (see [, ]) is made too. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of chronic mild unpredictable stress (CMS) on the vasoconstrictor response and morphology of the thoracic aorta and serum lipid profiles in rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were submitted to CMS, which consisted of the application of different stressors for 7 days per week across 3 weeks. The rats were sacrificed 15 days after CMS expsoure. CMS induced supersensitivity to the vasoconstrictor effect of phenylephrine in endothelium-intact thoracic aortic rings without changes in aortic rings without endothelium, or pre-incubated with nitric oxide (NO) synthesis inhibitor. Rats submitted to CMS showed hypertrophy of the intima and tunica media of thoracic aorta, increased serum levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol, very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and atherogenic index, without changes in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, when compared with control rats. These data indicate that CMS induces physiological and morphological changes that may contribute to the development of atherosclerosis by mechanisms related to deficiency in NO production and dyslipidemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glutelin, the major protein fraction from guava seed, was obtained by fractioning as described by Osborne. The total proteins were extracted and the isolates obtained by isoelectric precipitation presented similar DSC curves, concordant with the results obtained by gel filtration chromatography and electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gel (PAGE-SDS). However, the DSC curves showed a higher enthalpy with regard to the denaturing protein isolate (PI) extracted at pH 10.0 when compared to a PI at pH 11.5. Such results are in accordance with those obtained for PI extracted at pH 10.0 using chromatography, this one being present in the form of molecular aggregates of greater molecular mass. The glutelin fraction, however, did not present a denaturation peak in the DSC curve, showing that the process for obtaining the same significantly altered its conformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European starlings ( Sturnus vulgaris) are responsible for high rates of egg predation at one of the main colonies of the endangered roseate tern ( Sterna dougallii) in the Azores archipelago. Control taste aversion has been effective in controlling raven predation in a colony of California least tern ( Sterna antillarum browni), but there is little quantitative information about its efficacy on other species of predators taking eggs. We conducted a control taste aversion experiment on yellow-legged gulls ( Larus michahellis) and European starlings eating eggs of terns in a mixed colony of common ( Sterna hirundo) and roseate terns in the Azores. We treated quail ( Coturnix coturnix) eggs with methiocarb and deployed them in artificial nests in the tern colony. On the first experiment, conducted before the terns laid eggs, predation rates on quail eggs by yellow-legged gulls showed significant and rapid decrease after deployment of treated eggs. During the second experiment, after the terns had started laying, results were mixed. Although predation rates by European starlings on treated quail eggs decreased, predation rates on tern eggs did not. We conclude that control taste aversion using methiocarb-treated eggs is likely to reduce depredation by gulls but not starlings because of the need to pre-train the birds and the tendency of starlings to be attracted by the movement of adults, not the presence of nests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We review approaches to the calculus of variations and optimal control by methods of nonstandard analysis. We present Young's generalized curves, relaxed controls, versions of Ekeland's variational principle and of the maximum principle, and nonstandard discretizations of the Euler-Lagrange equations within the Robinson model-theoretic framework (RA) and the Nelson internal set theory (1ST). The reader can find a nonstandard treatment of the so-called stochastic calculus of variations in [10]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we analyze a set of 34 exoplanets with different eccentricities. Starting from the Weyl cylindric metric, we calculate the geodesic equations and propose a model with only one parameter that depends on eccentricity. We study each case and confront them to obtain a reliable control on the β 0 parameter provided by the model obtaining in some cases a numerical refinement in the expected values as compared to the parameterized post-newtonian approximation. Conversely, we find that the model increases precision for apsidal precession of objects with eccentricities larger than 0.1 up to 0.8. In addition, we verify that the model is sensitive to the variation of the semimajor axis and orbital periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The determination of the stellar parameters of M dwarfs is of prime importance in the fields of galactic, stellar and planetary astronomy. M stars are the least studied galactic component regarding their fundamental parameters. Yet, they are the most numerous stars in the galaxy and contribute to most of its total (baryonic) mass. In particular, we are interested in their metallicity in order to study the star-planet connection and to refine the planetary parameters. As a preliminary result we present a test of the metallicity calibrations of Bonfils et al. (2005), Johnson & Apps (2009), and Schlaufman & Laughlin (2010) using a new sample of 17 binaries with precise V band photometry. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWNTs) prepared by catalytic chemical vapour deposition were functionalized in such a way that they were optimally designed as a nano-vector for the delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA), which is of great interest for biomedical research and drug development. DWNTs were initially oxidized and coated with a polypeptide (Poly(Lys:Phe)), which was then conjugated to thiol-modified siRNA using a heterobifunctional cross-linker. The obtained oxDWNT–siRNA was characterized by Raman spectroscopy inside and outside a biological environment (mammalian cells). Uptake of the custom-designed nanotubes was not associated with detectable biochemical perturbations in cultured cells, but transfection of cells with DWNTs loaded with siRNA targeting the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene, serving as a model system, as well as with therapeutic siRNA targeting the survivin gene, led to a significant gene silencing effect, and in the latter case a resulting apoptotic effect in cancer cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]