Ultrastructure of larvae and puparia of the blowfly Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera: Calliphoridae)

Chrysomya megacephala is a forensic important fly, and its immature forms also cause myiasis. The adults are the first insects to reach a carcass and can oviposit just a few hours after arrival. Therefore, the knowledge of immature stages of flies is essential for correct identification of the species found on corpses. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) gives detailed information on the morphological characters that can help identify the immature forms of flies. The aim of this study is to identify larvae and puparia of C. megacephala using SEM. The larval instar body of C. megacephala is similar at all instars. The integument is smooth with small spines located at the limit of all segments. The cephalic region has a group of robust spines with one or two tips. The puparia are very similar to third instar larvae, except for the cephalic structures that are retracted. The integument shows the wrinkles from the third instar larvae and posterior spiracle disc with three spiracular openings localized on the top of an elevation. In conclusion, SEM provides some characteristics to distinguish among Chrysomya species that could help entomologists to identify immature found on corpses.     

Computer science research: more production,less productivity

It is commonly accepted that scientific research or, more precisely, the number of scientific publications, in computer science has greatly increased over the last few years. The reason would appear to be the pressure to publish, coined by the expression ”Publish or perish”, which is, among other things, necessary for promotions and applications for grants or projects. In this paper we have conducted a study that covers computer science publications from 1936 to 2010 in order to quantify this increase in publications regarding computing research. We have considered the computing conferences and journals available in the DBLP computer science bibliography (DBLP 2013) database, including more than 1.5 million papers, and more than 4 million authors (more than 900,000 different people), corresponding to about 1,000 different journals and 3,000 different conferences and workshops. Our study confirms and quantifies these increases with regard to the number of papers, number of authors, number of papers per author, etc. However, it also reaches a surprising conclusion: the real productivity of researchers has decreased throughout history. The reason for this decrease is the average number of authors per paper, which has grown significantly and is currently three.     

Housing Supply and Price Reactions: A Comparison Approach to Spanish and Italian Markets

Italian and Spanish property markets have experienced a sustained period of growth since the mid-1990s until 2008 when both markets fell into rapid decline due to the worldwide Financial Economic Crisis (FEC). Although the economic impact of the FEC was similar, each country experienced different reactions in its respective real estate market, changes on house prices, building constructions or planning regulations. This paper presents a new supply equation for Italian and Spanish regional markets. A pool of EGLS/IV Two-Step GLS methods are used to account for cross-sectional heteroskedasticity with fixed effects in order to control space differences. The analysis has been developed at a regional level, and shows the variation in the responsiveness of the new housing supply to prices by region. The results show long-term price supply elasticity by regions, and the negative impact of exogenous shock. They also suggest that house markets follow similar patterns in several regions with elastics responses in most territories and stronger negative impact of credit crunch in Spanish than Italian housing development.     

A Neuroprotective Bovine Colostrum Attenuates Apoptosis in Dexamethasone-Treated MC3T3-E1 Osteoblastic Cells

Glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO) is one of the most common secondary forms of osteoporosis. GIO is partially due to the apoptosis of osteoblasts and osteocytes. In addition, high doses of dexamethasone (DEX), a synthetic glucocorticoid receptor agonist, induces neurodegeneration by initiating inflammatory processes leading to neural apoptosis. Here, a neuroprotective bovine colostrum against glucocorticoid-induced neuronal damage was investigated for its anti-apoptotic activity in glucocorticoid-treated MC3T3-E1 osteoblastic cells. A model of apoptotic osteoblastic cells was developed by exposing MC3T3-E1 cells to DEX (0–700 μM). Colostrum co-treated with DEX was executed at 0.1–5.0 mg/mL. Cell viability was measured for all treatment schedules. Caspase-3 activation was assessed to determine both osteoblast apoptosis under DEX exposure and its potential prevention by colostrum co-treatment. Glutathione reduced (GSH) was measured to determine whether DEX-mediated oxidative stress-driven apoptosis is alleviated by colostrum co-treatment. Western blot was performed to determine the levels of p-ERK1/2, Bcl-XL, Bax, and Hsp70 proteins upon DEX or DEX plus colostrum exposure. Colostrum prevented the decrease in cell viability and the increase in caspase-3 activation and oxidative stress caused by DEX exposure. Cells, upon colostrum co-treated with DEX, exhibited higher levels of p-ERK1/2 and lower levels of Bcl-XL, Bax, and Hsp70. Our data support the notion that colostrum may be able to reduce DEX-induced apoptosis possibly via the activation of the ERK pathway and modulation of the Hsp70 system. We provided preliminary evidence on how bovine colostrum, as a complex and multi-component dairy product, in addition to its neuroprotective action, may affect osteoblastic cell survival undergoing apoptosis.     

Trimethylamine n-Oxide (TMAO) Modulates the Expression of Cardiovascular Disease-Related microRNAs and Their Targets

Diet is a well-known risk factor of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Some microRNAs (miRNAs) have been described to regulate molecular pathways related to CVDs. Diet can modulate miRNAs and their target genes. Choline, betaine, and l-carnitine, nutrients found in animal products, are metabolized into trimethylamine n-oxide (TMAO), which has been associated with CVD risk. The aim of this study was to investigate TMAO regulation of CVD-related miRNAs and their target genes in cellular models of liver and macrophages. We treated HEPG-2, THP-1, mouse liver organoids, and primary human macrophages with 6 µM TMAO at different timepoints (4, 8, and 24 h for HEPG-2 and mouse liver organoids, 12 and 24 h for THP-1, and 12 h for primary human macrophages) and analyzed the expression of a selected panel of CVD-related miRNAs and their target genes and proteins by real-time PCR and Western blot, respectively. HEPG-2 cells were transfected with anti-miR-30c and syn-miR-30c. TMAO increased the expression of miR-21-5p and miR-30c-5p. PER2, a target gene of both, decreased its expression with TMAO in HEPG-2 and mice liver organoids but increased its mRNA expression with syn-miR-30c. We concluded that TMAO modulates the expression of miRNAs related to CVDs, and that such modulation affects their target genes.     

A Holistic Solution to Icing by Acoustic Waves: De-Icing,Active Anti-Icing,Sensing with Piezoelectric Crystals,and Synergy with Thin Film Passive Anti-Icing Solutions

Icing has become a hot topic both in academia and in the industry given its implications in transport, wind turbines, photovoltaics, and telecommunications. Recently proposed de-icing solutions involving the propagation of acoustic waves (AWs) at suitable substrates may open the path for a sustainable alternative to standard de-icing or anti-icing procedures. Herein, the fundamental interactions are unraveled that contribute to the de-icing and/or hinder the icing on AW-activated substrates. The response toward icing of a reliable model system consisting of a piezoelectric plate activated by extended electrodes is characterized at a laboratory scale and in an icing wind tunnel under realistic conditions. Experiments show that surface modification with anti-icing functionalities provides a synergistic response when activated with AWs. A thoughtful analysis of the resonance frequency dependence on experimental variables such as temperature, ice formation, or wind velocity demonstrates the application of AW devices for real-time monitoring of icing processes.