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The density and structure of liquid Fe-C alloys have been measured up to 58 GPa and 3,200 K by in situ X-ray diffraction using a Paris-Edinburgh press and laser-heated diamond anvil cell. Study of the pressure evolution of the local structure inferred by X-ray diffraction measurements is important to understand the compression mechanism of the liquid. Obtained data show that the degree of compression is greater for the first coordination sphere than the second and third coordination spheres. The extrapolation of the measured density suggests that carbon cannot be the only light element alloyed to iron in the Earth's core, as 8-16 at % C (1.8-3.7 wt % C) would be necessary to explain the density deficit of the outer core relative to pure Fe. This concentration is too high to account for outer core velocity. The presence of other light elements (e.g., O, Si, S, and H) is thus required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We designed a set of procedures for first-line local health services to detect and treat the congenital transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi at a province-wide scale, and field-tested the programme in the province of Tucumán, northwestern Argentina, from 1992 to 1994. The programme consists of routine screening of pregnant women for seroreactivity to T. cruzi, serological and parasitological follow-up of the newborn at least twice during the first year of age, treatment of the infected infants, and evaluation of the outcome. 927 (5.5%) of 16 842 pregnant women were seroreactive to T. cruzi by indirect haemagglutination assay and ELISA. Twenty-one (6.7%) of 315 newborns to seroreactive mothers were diagnosed as infected with T. cruzi parasites microhaematocrit concentration before 30 days of age. Five newborns who initially tested negative had a T. cruzi infection detected by microhaematocrit and/or serological techniques at 3 or 6 months of age. Thus, congenital infection was diagnosed in 26 (7.1%) infants born to seroreactive women and residing in houses free of triatomine bugs. Four of 6 infants born to seroreactive mothers died during the first year of age and had some evidence of T. cruzi infection; one of the deaths was attributed to T. cruzi based on clinical evidence. After specific treatment with nifurtimox or benznidazole, 30 of 32 infants remained parasitologically and serologically negative. This study shows the feasibility of controlling the incidence of congenitally acquired T. cruzi infections at a province-wide scale by means of a specific screening programme at first-line health services level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this didactic video (Video S1) is to show how we perform totally laparoscopic resection of splenic flexure colon cancer, focusing on the key vascular steps but most of all on the lymph node dissection and feasibility of intracorporeal anastomosis. In their recent study, Watanabe and colleagues [2] proposed a lymph flow pattern evaluation in splenic flexure colon cancer using real-time indocyanine green fluorescence imaging. They concluded that in the case of the distal third of the transverse colon cancer a lymph node dissection of the left branch of the middle colic artery and the root of the inferior mesenteric vein should be performed; in the case of the first part of the descending colon cancer, one should perform lymph node dissection along the left colic artery and the root of the inferior mesenteric vein. [Extracted from the article]

The article focuses on the branching patterns of the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) after the Latarjet's classification of 1949 while using volume-rendered 3-dimensionsal (3D)-computed tomography (CT). It discusses the origin of left colic artery (LCA), sigmoid arteries (SAs), didactic video proving the management of left colic vessels with laparoscopic colonic resections.

Gibbs energy representations for ices II, III, V, and VI are reported. These were constructed using new measurements of volumes at high pressure over a range of low temperatures combined with calculated vibrational energies grounded in statistical physics. The collection of representations are released within the open source SeaFreeze program, together with the Gibbs representation already known for ice Ih and water. This program allows accurate determination of thermodynamics properties (phase boundaries, density, specific heat, bulk modulus, thermal expansivity, chemical potentials) and seismic wave velocities over the entire range of conditions encountered in hydrospheres in our solar system (130–500 K to 2,300 MPa). These comprehensive representations allow exploration of the rich spectrum of thermodynamic behavior in the H2O system. Although these results are broadly applicable in science and engineering, their use is particularly relevant to habitability analysis, interior modeling, and future geophysical sounding of water‐rich planetary bodies of our solar system and beyond. Key Points: New X‐Ray diffraction measurements covering the entire range of ice II, III, V and VI using state of the art high pressure techniquesThe first Gibbs energy equations of states for ice II, III, V and VI (and first equations of state for ice II, III and V)New open‐source code SeaFreeze allows to explore water and ices thermodynamic at all conditions found in solar system planetary hydrospheres [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Information: The rod outer segment (OS) is the specialised organelle where phototransduction takes place. Our previous proteomic and biochemical analyses on purified rod disks showed the functional expression of the respiratory chain complexes I-IV and F1 Fo -ATP synthase in OS disks, as well as active soluble tricarboxylic acid cycle enzymes. Here, we focussed our study on the whole OS that contains the cytosol and plasma membrane and disks as native flattened saccules, unlike spherical osmotically intact disks., Results: OS were purified from bovine retinas and characterised for purity. Oximetry, ATP synthesis and cytochrome c oxidase (COX) assays were performed. The presence of COX and F₁F₀-ATP synthase (ATP synthase) was assessed by semi-quantitative Western blotting, immunofluorescence or confocal laser scanning microscopy on whole bovine retinas and bovine retinal sections and by immunogold transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of purified OS or bovine retinal sections. Both ATP synthase and COX are catalytically active in OS. These are able to consume oxygen (O₂) in the presence of pyruvate and malate. CLSM analyses showed that rhodopsin autofluorescence and MitoTracker Deep Red 633 fluorescence co-localise on rod OS. Data are confirmed by co-localisation studies of ATP synthase with Rh in rod OS by immunofluorescence and TEM in bovine retinal sections., Conclusions: Our data confirm the expression and activity of COX and ATP synthase in OS, suggestive of the presence of an extra-mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation in rod OS, meant to supply ATP for the visual transduction. In this respect, the membrane rich OS environment would be meant to absorb both light and O₂. The ability of OS to manipulate O₂ may shed light on the pathogenesis of many retinal degenerative diseases ascribed to oxidative stress, as well as on the efficacy of the treatment with dietary supplements, presently utilised as supporting therapies., (© 2013 Société Française des Microscopies and Société de Biologie Cellulaire de France. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)