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The first investigation of chemical composition in seed kernels of Caesalpinia cucullata Roxb. resulted in the separation of four new cassane diterpenes, including three furanoditerpenes (1, 2 and 4) and one tricyclic type (3). It was the first found cassane diterpenoids from this plant. Their gross structures were elucidated by means of comprehensive spectroscopic analysis (UV, IR, NMR, HRESIMS) as well as electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculation. The compound 1 possess a rare isomerized dihydrofuran ring in structure framework. In bioassay, compounds 1-4 exhibited moderate anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting production of NO in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells.

Problem, research strategy, and findings: In this study we analyze plan integration for flood resilience in the city of Nijmegen, the site of the largest Room for the River project in The Netherlan...

Planning for hazard mitigation is frequently detached from other planning activities that influence development patterns in hazardous areas. Consistent integration of mitigation reduces hazard vulnerability for people and the built environment. We apply a plan integration for resilience scorecard in six US coastal cities to evaluate the integration of local networks of plans and the degree to which they target areas most vulnerable to flooding hazards. We find that plan integration scores vary widely across the six cities, and that some plans actually increase vulnerability in hazard zones. Policies also frequently support mitigation in areas with low vulnerability, rather than in areas with high vulnerability. The plan integration for resilience scorecard can generate information to improve hazard planning by allowing planners to identify conflicts between plans, assess whether plans target areas that are most vulnerable, and better inform decision makers about opportunities to mainstream mitigation into multiple sectors of planning.

The larvae of the typical marine-fouling barnacle develop into competent stages to settle on submerged surfaces, metamorphose to juveniles, and finally grow into adults. In this study, the presence of histamine (a neurotransmitter molecule) in both nauplii and cyprids of the barnacle Amphibalanus amphitrite was verified by analysis with High Performance Liquid Chromatography with a fluorescence detector (HPLC-FL) after O-phthalaldehyde derivatization. To clarify the functions of histamine in the larvae, two bioassays were further performed, using the nauplii and cyprids, respectively. In the presence of 5 × 10−9 M histamine, 80% of low-energy-containing cyprids settled and metamorphosed to juveniles after only 48 h of incubation, which was significantly higher than in the absence of additional histamine. Moreover, the presence of 5 × 10−10 M histamine also significantly increased and accelerated the metamorphosis of nauplii to cyprids. An antihistamine compound of triprolidine hydrochloride comple...