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Of late, many synthesis processes have been studied to develop irregular nano-morphologies of gold nanostructures for biomedical applications in order to increase the efficacy of nanoparticle theranostics, tune the plasmonic absorbance spectra, and increase the sensitivity of biomolecule detection through surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy. Here we report, a novel, non-seed mediated versatile single pot synthesis method capable of producing hyperbranched gold “nano-polyvilli” with more than 50–90 branching nanowires propagating from a single origin within each structure. The technique was capable of achieving precise tuning of the branch propagation where the branching could be controlled by varying the duration of incubation, temperature, and hydrogen ion concentration.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a nuclear receptor that facilitates a wide transcriptional response and causes a variety of adaptive and maladaptive physiological functions. Such functions are entirely dependent on the type of ligand activating it, and therefore, the nuances in the activation of this receptor at the single-cell level have become a research interest for different pharmacological and toxicological applications. Here, we investigate the activation of the AhR by diverse classes of compounds in a Hepa1c1c7-based murine hepatoma cell line. The exogenous compounds analyzed produced different levels of ultrasensitivity in AhR activation as measured by XRE-coupled EGFP production and analyzed by both flow cytometric and computational simulation techniques. Interestingly, simulation experiments reported herein were able to reproduce and quantitate the natural single-cell stochasticity inherent to mammalian cell lines as well as the ligand-specific differences in ultrasensitivity. Classical AhR modulators 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzodioxin (10− 1–105 pM), PCB-126 (10− 1–107 pM), and benzo[a]pyrene (10− 1–107 pM) produced the greatest levels of single-cell ultrasensitivity and most maximal responses, while consumption-based ligands indole-3-carbinol (103–109 pM), 3,3′-diindolylmethane (103–108 pM), and cannabidiol (103–108 pM) caused low-level AhR activation in more purely graded single-cell fashions. All compounds were tested and analyzed over a 24 h period for consistency. The comparative quantitative results for each compound are presented within. This study aids in defining the disparity between different types of AhR modulators that produce distinctly different physiological outcomes. In addition, the simulation tool developed for this study can be used in future studies to predict the quantitative effects of diverse types of AhR ligands in the context of pharmacological therapies or toxicological concerns.

En Argentina y en países de la región la falta de información sobre el impacto diferencial de múltiples variables en los resultados económicos de modelos productivos porcinos de pequeña y mediana escala con diferentes tecnologías provoca que en ocasiones se tomen decisiones que desaprovechan recursos disponibles, aumentando la vulnerabilidad de estos sistemas. Con el propósito de generar y difundir información para favorecer la aplicación de tecnologías apropiadas y políticas tendientes a lograr la optimización de recursos, inclusión y calidad de vida de pequeños productores y favorecer las economías locales, este grupo de trabajo determina mensualmente desde agosto de 2016 resultados económicos de modelos productivos, utilizando la metodología de resolución del Sistema de Información Costo de Producción Porcina Simulación (CPPS) del Centro de Información de Actividades Porcinas (CIAP), según valores de precios promedios mensuales de animales, infraestructura, alimentos, personal, comercialización y otras variables económicas tomadas de distintas fuentes. Estos resultados son difundidos a través de los medios de comunicación del CIAP. In Argentina and regional countries the lack of information regarding the differential impact of multiple variables in economic results of swine produc-tion models of small and medium scale with different technologies sometimes lends to take bad decisins regarding available resuorces, increasing vulnerability of this systems. With the porpoise of generating and wide-spreading information to favour the implementation of appropriate technologies and politics that opti-mize resources, and benefit small farmer ́s quality of life, level of inclusion, and support the local economies. Since August, 2016, this work group determines every month the economic results of production models, using the “Sistema de Información Costo de Producción Porcina Simulacion” (CPPS) of the Centro de Información de Actividades Porcinas (CIAP) resolution methodology, according to monthly average animal prices, infrastructure, food, worker’s salary, commercial-ization and other economic variables taken from different sources. This results are widespread thru CIAP communication media. EEA AMBA Fil: Suárez, Rubén. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria. Departamento de Economía Agraria; Argentina Fil: Lomello, Viviana. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria. Departamento de Economía Agraria; Argentina Fil: Giovannini, Fabiana. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Agronomía y Veterinaria. Departamento de Economía Agraria; Argentina Fil: Stoppani, Constanza. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Campo Experimental Villarino. Departamento Socioeconómico. Introducción a los Sistemas de Producción Agropecuarios-Departamento de Producción Animal. Nutrición Animal; Argentina Fil: Silva, Patricia. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Campo Experimental Villarino. Departamento Socioeconómico. Introducción a los Sistemas de Producción Agropecuarios-Departamento de Producción Animal. Nutrición Animal; Argentina Fil: Skejich, Patricia. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Campo Experimental Villarino. Departamento Socioeconómico. Introducción a los Sistemas de Producción Agropecuarios-Departamento de Producción Animal. Nutrición Animal; Argentina Fil: Cogo, Ariel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Área Metropolitana de Buenos Aires. Agencia De Extensión Rural Luján; Argentina Fil: Brunori, Jorge Carlos. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Marcos Juárez; Argentina Fil: Cottura, Germán Andrés. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Marcos Juárez; Argentina Fil: Acerbo, Marcelo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Departamento de Producción Animal; Argentina Fil: Muñoz, Verónica. Universidad Nacional de La Pampa. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Sistemas de Producción Animal no Rumiantes; Argentina Fil: Barlocco, Nelson. Universidad de la República. Facultad de Agronomía. Unidad de Producción de Cerdos; Uruguay Fil: Carballo, Cecilia. Universidad de la República. Facultad de Agronomía. Unidad de Producción de Cerdos; Uruguay Fil: Caramelo, Daniel. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias. Departamento de Producción Animal; Argentina Fil: Mondino, Belen. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias. Departamento de Producción Animal; Argentina Fil: Aronica, Matías. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias. Departamento de Producción Animal; Argentina

El Código Civil y Comercial incorpora la figura de la compensación económica por lo cual me propondré sus diferentes elementos y la forma de cuantificarla a partir del análisis de un fallo proveniente del Juzgado de Familia N° 1 de la ciudad de Paso de los Libres, Provincia de Corrientes, dictado el día 6 de junio del año 2017, conociendo sus diferentes elementos. Figura que, aplicada con perspectiva de género puede contribuir a la igualdad real entre los integrantes de una pareja luego de la ruptura del matrimonio, lo cual ayuda a comprender y desentrañar los códigos culturales de género, tejidos por la costumbre y la tradición., The Civil and Commercial Code incorporates the figure of economic compensation, in that sense I will propose to examine its different elements and the way to quantify based on a sentence of the Family Court No. 1 of the city of Paso de los Libres, Province of Corrientes, dictated the day 6 of June of the year 2017, knowing its different elements. Figure if is used with gender perspective contribute to real equality between the members of a couple after the breakdown of marriage, which helps to understand and unravel the cultural codes of gender woven by custom and tradition., Dossier: Las familias y el derecho de las familias a dos años de vigencia del Código Civil y Comercial., Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales

Thanks to their worldwide extension and speed, online social networks have become a common and effective way of communication throughout emergencies. The messages posted during a disaster may be either crisis-relevant (alerts, help requests, damage descriptions, etc.) or not (feelings, opinions, etc.) In this paper, we propose a machine learning approach for creating a classifier able to distinguish between informative and not informative messages, and to understand common patterns inside these two classes. We also investigate similarities and differences in the words that mostly occur across three different natural disasters: fire, earthquake and floods. The results, obtained with real data extracted from Twitter during past emergency events, demonstrate the viability of our approach in providing a filtering service able to deliver only informative contents to crisis managers in a view of improving the operational picture during emergency situations., © ACM, 2017. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of ACM for your personal use. Not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Flavia Sofia Acerbo and Claudio Rossi. 2017. Filtering Informative Tweets during Emergencies: A Machine Learning Approach. In Proceedings of I-TENDER '17, Incheon, Republic of Korea, December 12, 2017, 6 pages. https://doi.org/10.1145/3152896.3152897

Apomorphine (apo), an unspecific direct dopamine agonist, elicits an intense and lasting pecking bout in pigeons. Apo yielded orderly dose–response functions, and repeated administrations led to sensitization. Strain and individual differences in sensitivity to apo were at least partly due to genetic factors. However, a strong cage-context dependency of the sensitization, which is indicative of conditioning, occurred in both pigeon strains studied. Apo-induced pecking and sensitization also occurred in total darkness. Pigeons could be conditioned to discriminate between an apo state and a non-apo state. A small dose of apo was effective as a conditioned stimulus when paired with a high dose as an unconditioned stimulus. The conditioned response (CR) was strongly specific to the context in which the sensitization to apo took place. The resistance to extinction of the CR could be increased through an oversensitization treatment. The incremental responses arising during the sensitization treatment and the CRs shown afterward by individual pigeons correlated significantly. The sensitization to apo in pigeons is well accounted for by a conditioning schema in which an interoceptive drug state is a conditional conditioned stimulus for the full expression of the incremental response. Variants of the scheme might also account for the sensitization of rodents to psychostimulants. A neural model that embodies the characteristics of the conditioning scheme has been proposed.

Figure-ground segregation is a fundamental visual ability that allows an organism to separate an object from its background. Our earlier research has shown that nucleus rotundus (Rt), a thalamic nucleus processing visual information in pigeons, together with its inhibitory complex, nucleus subpretectalis/interstitio-pretecto-subpretectalis (SP/IPS), are critically involved in figure-ground discrimination (Acerbo et al., 2012; Scully et al., 2014). Here, we further investigated the role of SP/IPS by conducting bilateral microinjections of GABAergic receptor antagonist and agonists (bicuculline and muscimol, respectively) and non-NMDA glutamate receptor antagonist (CNQX) after the pigeons mastered figure-ground discrimination task. We used two doses of each drug (bicuculline: 0.1 mM and 0.05 mM; muscimol: 4.4 mM and 8.8 mM; CNQX: 2.15 mM and 4.6 mM) in a within-subject design, and alternated drug injections with baseline (ACSF). The order of injections was randomized across birds to reduce potential carryover effects. We found that a low dose of bicuculline produced a decrement on figure trials but not on background trials, whereas a high dose impaired performance on background trials but not on figure trials. Muscimol produced an equivalent, dose-dependent impairment on both types of trials. Finally, CNQX had no consistent effect at either dose. Together, these results further confirm our earlier hypothesis that inhibitory projections from SP to Rt modulate figure-ground discrimination, and suggest that the Rt and the SP/IPS provide a plausible substrate that could perform figure-ground segregation in avian brain.

A typical nonverbal transitive inference task (TI) consists of several overlapping discriminations (A+ B−, B+ C−, C+ D−, D+ E−, where letters indicate stimuli and pluses and minuses denote reinforcement and nonreinforcement). A choice of stimulus B in a novel pair BD is interpreted as indicative of a TI (if B > C and C > D, then B > D). Although hippocampus has been implicated in nonverbal TI, it is not clear whether it simply maintains memory of associative values or stores an ordered representation of stimuli. We investigated the effect of hippocampal lesion on TI in pigeons while controlling reinforcement history so that reliance on associative values would lead to a choice of a stimulus D in the pair BD instead of a choice of a stimulus B expected by inferential mechanisms. Prior to the lesion, some of the pigeons (relational group; n = 4) have selected B over D indicating TI, while other birds (associative group; n = 6) chose D over B suggesting reliance on associative values. Hippocampal lesion had no effect on postlesion performance in associative group. In contrast, the relational group that preferred stimulus B in a pair BD before lesion showed a near-chance performance after the lesion. Our results demonstrate that hippocampus may be involved in creating a representation of an ordered series of the stimuli instead of maintaining reinforcement history of each stimulus. In addition, we provide a behavioral procedure suitable for dissociating different behavioral strategies used to solving TI task. Finally, we show for the first time the involvement of avian hippocampus in the task that is not explicitly spatial in nature. These results further confirm the notion that avian hippocampus is functionally analogous to mammalian hippocampus despite the significant differences in their anatomy. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The international user base of the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) gathered in Ithaca, NY, from June 10–11, 2014, for the annual CHESS Users' Meeting and affiliated workshops. This year drew a record crowd of 174 participants from diverse disciplines in academia and industry to celebrate the outstanding achievements of CHESS users over the past year and to discuss the ongoing upgrades of the facility and the new science that they will enable. As per tradition, the first day of the meeting was a plenary session, which began with a morning briefing from the CHESS directors on the state of the laboratory. This was followed by a series of invited talks in user science, with subject matter spanning the multidisciplinary spectrum of CHESS research, from virology to superconductivity to art conservation. These plenary sessions preceded a well-attended poster session and wine-and-cheese reception, where more than 50 user posters were up for discussion. The evening was capped off with a banquet dinn...

Sclerostin antibody (Scl-Ab) is a novel bone-forming agent that is currently undergoing preclinical and clinical testing. Scl-Ab treatment is known to dramatically increase bone mass, but little is known about the quality of the bone formed during treatment. In the current study, global mineralization of bone matrix in rats and nonhuman primates treated with vehicle or Scl-Ab was assayed by backscattered scanning electron microscopy (bSEM) to quantify the bone mineral density distribution (BMDD). Additionally, fluorochrome labeling allowed tissue age–specific measurements to be made in the primate model with Fourier-transform infrared microspectroscopy to determine the kinetics of mineralization, carbonate substitution, crystallinity, and collagen cross-linking. Despite up to 54% increases in the bone volume after Scl-Ab treatment, the mean global mineralization of trabecular and cortical bone was unaffected in both animal models investigated. However, there were two subtle changes in the BMDD after Scl-Ab treatment in the primate trabecular bone, including an increase in the number of pixels with a low mineralization value (Z5) and a decrease in the standard deviation of the distribution. Tissue age–specific measurements in the primate model showed that Scl-Ab treatment did not affect the mineral-to-matrix ratio, crystallinity, or collagen cross-linking in the endocortical, intracortical, or trabecular compartments. Scl-Ab treatment was associated with a nonsignificant trend toward accelerated mineralization intracortically and a nearly 10% increase in carbonate substitution for tissue older than 2 weeks in the trabecular compartment (p

Earlier, we reported that nucleus rotundus (Rt) together with its inhibitory complex, nucleus subpretectalis/interstitio-pretecto-subpretectalis (SP/IPS), had significantly higher activity in pigeons performing figure–ground discrimination than in the control group that did not perform any visual discriminations. In contrast, color discrimination produced significantly higher activity than control in the Rt but not in the SP/IPS. Finally, shape discrimination produced significantly lower activity than control in both the Rt and the SP/IPS. In this study, we trained pigeons to simultaneously perform three visual discriminations (figure–ground, color, and shape) using the same stimulus displays. When birds learned to perform all three tasks concurrently at high levels of accuracy, we conducted bilateral chemical lesions of the SP/IPS. After a period of recovery, the birds were retrained on the same tasks to evaluate the effect of lesions on maintenance of these discriminations. We found that the lesions of the SP/IPS had no effect on color or shape discrimination and that they significantly impaired figure–ground discrimination. Together with our earlier data, these results suggest that the nucleus Rt and the SP/IPS are the key structures involved in figure–ground discrimination. These results also imply that thalamic processing is critical for figure–ground segregation in avian brain.

The G171V mutation in the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 5 (LRP5) leads to a high bone mass (HBM) phenotype. Studies using HBM transgenic mouse models have consistently found increased bone mass and whole-bone strength, but little attention has been paid to the composition of the bone matrix. The current study sought to determine if the cortical bone matrix composition differs in HBM and wild-type mice and to determine how much of the variance in bone material properties is explained by variance in matrix composition. Consistent with previous studies, HBM mice had greater cortical area, moment of inertia, ultimate force, bending stiffness, and energy to failure than wild-type animals. The increased energy to failure was primarily caused by a large increase in post-yield behavior, with no difference in pre-yield behavior. The HBM mice had increased mineral-to-matrix and collagen cross-link ratios, and decreased crystallinity, carbonate, and acid phosphate substitution as measured by Fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy, but no differences in crystal length, intra-fibular strains, and mineral spacing compared to wild-type controls, as measured by X-ray scattering. The largest between genotype difference in material properties was a twofold increase in the modulus of toughness in HBM mice. Step-wise regression analyses showed that the specific matrix compositional parameters most closely associated with material properties varied between the wild-type and HBM genotypes. Although the mechanisms controlling the paradoxical combination of more mineralized yet tougher bone in HBM mice remain to be fully explained, the findings suggest that LRP5 represents a target to not only build bone mass but also to improve bone quality.

In primates, neurons sensitive to figure–ground status are located in striate cortex (area V1) and extrastriate cortex (area V2). Although much is known about the anatomical structure and connectivity of the avian visual pathway, the functional organization of the avian brain remains largely unexplored. To pinpoint the areas associated with figure–ground segregation in the avian brain, we used a radioactively labeled glucose analog to compare differences in glucose uptake after figure–ground, color, and shape discriminations. We also included a control group that received food on a variable-interval schedule, but was not required to learn a visual discrimination. Although the discrimination task depended on group assignment, the stimulus displays were identical for all three experimental groups, ensuring that all animals were exposed to the same visual input. Our analysis concentrated on the primary thalamic nucleus associated with visual processing, the nucleus rotundus (Rt), and two nuclei providing regulatory feedback, the pretectum (PT) and the nucleus subpretectalis/interstitio-pretecto-subpretectalis complex (SP/IPS). We found that figure–ground discrimination was associated with strong and nonlateralized activity of Rt and SP/IPS, whereas color discrimination produced strong and lateralized activation in Rt alone. Shape discrimination was associated with lower activity of Rt than in the control group. Taken together, our results suggest that figure–ground discrimination is associated with Rt and that SP/IPS may be a main source of inhibitory control. Thus, figure–ground segregation in the avian brain may occur earlier than in the primate brain.

Fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy (FTIRM) is a widely used method for mapping the material properties of bone and other mineralized tissues, including mineralization, crystallinity, carbonate substitution, and collagen cross-linking. This technique is traditionally performed in a transmission-based geometry, which requires the preparation of plastic-embedded thin sections, limiting its functionality. Here, we theoretically and empirically demonstrate the development of reflection-based FTIRM as an alternative to the widely adopted transmission-based FTIRM, which reduces specimen preparation time and broadens the range of specimens that can be imaged. In this study, mature mouse femurs were plastic-embedded and longitudinal sections were cut at a thickness of 4 μm for transmission-based FTIRM measurements. The remaining bone blocks were polished for specular reflectance-based FTIRM measurements on regions immediately adjacent to the transmission sections. Kramers-Kronig analysis of the reflectance data yielded the dielectric response from which the absorption coefficients were directly determined. The reflectance-derived absorbance was validated empirically using the transmission spectra from the thin sections. The spectral assignments for mineralization, carbonate substitution, and collagen cross-linking were indistinguishable in transmission and reflection geometries, while the stoichiometric/nonstoichiometric apatite crystallinity parameter shifted from 1032/1021 cm(-1) in transmission-based to 1035/1025 cm(-1) in reflection-based data. This theoretical demonstration and empirical validation of reflection-based FTIRM eliminates the need for thin sections of bone and more readily facilitates direct correlations with other methods such as nanoindentation and quantitative backscatter electron imaging (qBSE) from the same specimen. It provides a unique framework for correlating bone's material and mechanical properties.

Bone’s microporosities play important biologic and mechanical roles. Here, we quantified 3D changes in cortical osteocyte-lacunae and other small porosities induced by estrogen withdrawal and two different osteoporosis treatments. Unlike 2D measurements, these data collected via synchrotron radiation-based μCT describe the size and 3D spatial distribution of a large number of porous structures. Six-month old female Sprague-Dawley rats were separated into four groups of age-matched controls, untreated OVX, OVX treated with PTH, and OVX treated with Alendronate (ALN). Intracortical microporosity of the medial quadrant of the femoral diaphysis was quantified at endosteal, intracortical, and periosteal regions of the samples, allowing the quantification of osteocyte lacunae that were formed primarily before versus after the start of treatment. Across the overall thickness of the medial cortex, lacunar volume fraction (Lc.V/TV) was significantly lower in ALN treated rats compared to PTH. In the endosteal region, average osteocyte lacunar volume () of untreated OVX rats was significantly lower than in age-matched controls, indicating a decrease in osteocyte lacunar size in bone formed on the endosteal surface after estrogen withdrawal. The effect of treatment (OVX, ALN, PTH) on the number of lacunae per tissue volume (Lc.N/TV) was dependent on the specific location within the cortex (endosteal, intracortical, periosteal). In both the endosteal and intracortical regions, Lc.N/TV was significantly lower in ALN than in untreated OVX, suggesting a site-specific effect in osteocyte lacuna density with ALN treatment. There also were a significantly greater number of small pores (5–100 μm3 in volume) in the endosteal region for PTH compared to ALN. The mechanical impact of this altered microporosity structure is unknown, but might serve to enhance, rather than deteriorate bone strength with PTH treatment, as smaller osteocyte lacunae may be better able to absorb shear forces than larger lacunae. Together, these data demonstrate that current treatments of osteoporosis can alter the number, size, and distribution of microporosities in cortical rat lamellar bone.

Behavioral sensitization involves increases in the magnitude of a response to a stimulus after repeated exposures to the same response initiator. Administration of psychomotor stimulants and the induction of appetitive motivational states associated with natural reinforcers like sugar and salt are among experimental manipulations producing behavioral sensitization. In rats, repeated administration of the mineralocorticoid agonist deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA) initially induces incremental increases in daily hypertonic saline consumption (i.e., sensitization of sodium appetite) in spite of the retention of sodium. The present studies investigated whether sodium appetite sensitization induced by DOCA shares mechanisms similar to those of psychomotor stimulant-induced sensitization, and whether there is evidence for reciprocal cross-sensitization. In Experiments 1 and 3, rats received control or cocaine treatments to induce locomotor sensitization. A week later DOCA (or vehicle) was administered to generate a sodium appetite. Animals pretreated with cocaine showed a greater sodium appetite. In Experiment 2, the order of the putative sensitizing treatments was reversed. Rats first received either a series of DOCA or vehicle treatments either with or without access to saline and were later tested for sensitization of the locomotor response to cocaine. Animals pretreated with DOCA without access to saline showed greater locomotor responses to cocaine than animals receiving vehicle treatments. Together these experiments indicate that treatments generating a sustained salt appetite and producing cocaine-induced psychomotor responses show reciprocal behavioral cross-sensitization. The underlying mechanisms accounting for this relationship may be the fact that psychostimulants and an unresolved craving for sodium can act as potent stressors.

X-ray scattering of biological macromolecules in solution is an increasingly popular tool for structural biology and benefits greatly from modern high-brightness synchrotron sources. The upgraded MacCHESS BioSAXS station is now located at the 49-pole wiggler beamline G1. The 20-fold improved flux over the previous beamline F2 provides higher sample throughput and autonomous X-ray scattering data collection using a unique SAXS/WAXS dual detectors configuration. This setup achieves a combinedq-range from 0.007 to 0.7 Å−1, enabling better characterization of smaller molecules, while opening opportunities for emerging wide-angle scattering methods. In addition, a facility upgrade of the positron storage ring to continuous top-up mode has improved beam stability and eliminated beam drift over the course of typical BioSAXS experiments. Single exposure times have been reduced to 2 s for 3.560 mg ml−1lysozyme with an average quality factorI/σ of 20 in the Guinier region. A novel disposable plastic sample cell design that incorporates lower background X-ray window material provides users with a more pristine sample environment than previously available. Systematic comparisons of common X-ray window materials bonded to the cell have also been extended to the wide-angle regime, offering new insight into best choices for variousq-space ranges. In addition, a quantitative assessment of signal-to-noise levels has been performed on the station to allow users to estimate necessary exposure times for obtaining usable signals in the Guinier regime. Users also have access to a new BioSAXS sample preparation laboratory which houses essential wet-chemistry equipment and biophysical instrumentation. User experiments at the upgraded BioSAXS station have been on-going since commissioning of the beamline in Summer 2013. A planned upgrade of the G1 insertion device to an undulator for the Winter 2014 cycle is expected to further improve flux by an order of magnitude.

These supplementary notes pertain to the Delius, Acerbo, Krug, Lee, and Leydel (2015) paper and summarize some earlier findings about the influence of the environment on the apomorphine (apo) effect, describe the variability of apo effects, the effects of apo infusion, the individual occurrence of apo insensitivity, its indifference with regard to reward conditioning, the hysteresis due to treatment shifts, an extension to the state discrimination account, the effect of a pecking response restraint, a supplement to the conditioning model, some additional remarks regarding the generality of this model and a possible addition to it, a characterization of the response stereotypy, the difficulties with peck type conversions, the relation displacement activities, the occurrence of individual response idiosyncracies, the “mystery” of apo specificity, and a summary of the pharmacological support for the neural model.

A partir de estudios previos realizados sobre la anatomía del musculo bíceps femoral en el perro y con el objetivo de avanzar en la caracterización inmunohistoquímica y nerviosa de este musculo, estudiamos la existencia de subvolúmenes musculares. Utilizamos la disección roma en piezas musculares aisladas fijadas y tratadas con ácido nítrico al 25%. Las divisiones de las ramas del nervio isquiático involucradas fueron utilizadas como guía en la disección. Se determinaron tres subvolúmenes, uno involucrando a la cabeza caudal y dos en el vientre correspondiente a la cabeza craneal que fueron denominados caudal, proximal y distal respectivamente. Realizamos mediciones del largo de las fibras musculares, dirección, dirección y densidad macroscópica de las mismas para caracterizar los compartimientos. Estos subvolúmenes deberán tenerse en cuanta al realizar estudios electromiográficos del musculo bíceps femoral y al evaluar las alteraciones en la locomoción producto de las alteraciones nerviosas y musculares en el nervio pelviano del canino. From previous studies on the anatomy of the femoral biceps muscle in the dog and with the aim of advancing in immunohistochemical and nervous characterization of this muscle, we studied the existence of subvolumes in muscle structure. We used blunt dissection in isolated muscle pieces fixed and treated with 25% nitric acid. The divisions of the sciatic nerve branches involved were used to guide the dissection. Three subvolumes were identified; one, involving the caudal head, and two in the cranial head belly; they were called caudal, proximal and distal respectively. We measured muscle fiber length, orientation, and macroscopic density to characterize these compartments. These subvolumes must be considered when muscle electromyography research is carried out, and for locomotion changes evaluation due to lesions in nerve and muscle structure of the canine pelvic limb.

Il lavoro riporta i risultati e relative carte di rischio di una indagine sulla radioattività dell'area urbana di Portici alle falde del Vesuvio

When pigeons are repeatedly administered a dose of apomorphine they show an increasing behavioral response, much as rodents do. In birds this expresses itself in an augmented pecking response. This sensitization is assumed to be largely due to a conditioning process. Here we present evidence that sensitization is accompanied by an alteration of the D(1) to D(2) dopamine receptor densities. An experimental group of pigeons was repeatedly injected with apomorphine, and a control group with saline. The basal forebrain tissue, known to be rich in dopamine receptors, was subjected to binding assays using tritiated specific D(1) and D(2) dopamine receptor antagonists. There was a trend towards an increase in D(1) and a significant decrease in D(2) receptor densities in apomorphine-treated birds compared to the saline-treated controls. We conclude that extended apomorphine treatment modifies the D(1) dopamine receptor density in the opposite manner to the D(2) dopamine receptor density.