Specific accumulation of docosahexaenoic acid (22∶6n−3) in brain lipids during development of juvenile turbotScophthalmus maximus L.

The changes in the lipid class and the fatty acid compositions of total lipids and individual glycerophospholipids which occur in brain during development of juvenile turbot (Scophthalmus maximus L.) were investigated. Fish were sampled during a 10-week period immediately following weaning from a live feed to a pellet diet. During this period, brain dry weight increased over 6-fold. The percentages of protein, cholesterol and galactolipids increased in brain during development, presumably reflecting increased membrane maturation and myelination processes. The percentages of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22∶6n−3) were low at the beginning of the study period. However, DHA specifically accumulated in juvenile turbot brain during development. The percentages of DHA increased in total lipid, total diradyl glycerophosphocholine (GPC), total diradyl glycerophosphoethanolamine (GPE), phosphatidylserine (PS) and phosphatidylinositol (PI) reaching 26.1%, 25.8%, 40.8%, 47.1% and 17.9% of the total fatty acids, respectively, by the end of the 10-week period. The percentages of other n−3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and n−6 PUFA generally decreased during this period, as did that of monoenes; the percentages of saturated fatty acids remained relatively constant. Non-linear regression analysis showed that the increase in DHA in total lipid, GPC, GPE and PS fitted 1st order rate kinetics (plus offset) allowing maximum values for the percentages of DHA in each lipid class to be estimated.     

On the use of a joint spatial-frequency representation for the fusion of multi-focus images

This paper shows practical examples of the application of a new image fusion paradigm for achieving a 2-D all in-focus image starting from a set of multi-focus images of a 3-D real object. The goal consists in providing an enhanced 2-D image showing the object entirely in focus. The fusion procedure shown here is based on the use of a focusing pixel-level measure. Such measure is defined in the space–frequency domain through a 1-D pseudo-Wigner distribution. The method is illustrated with different sets of images. Evaluation measures applied to artificially blurred cut and pasted regions have shown that the present scheme can provide equally or even better performance than other alternative image fusion algorithms.     

Arg278, but not Lys229 or Lys236, plays an important role in the binding of retinoic acid by retinoic acid receptor gamma

The diverse biological actions of retinoic acid (RA) are mediated by retinoic acid receptors (RARalpha, beta and gamma) and retinoid X receptors (RXR alpha, beta, and gamma). Although the ligand-binding domains of RARs share the same novel folding pattern, many RAR subtype-specific retinoids have been synthesized indicating that the ligand-binding pocket of each RAR subtype has unique features. Previously we have demonstrated the importance for RA binding and RA-dependent transactivation of Arg276 of RARalpha alone and in RARbeta Arg269 in conjunction with Lys220. In this study, we have examined the role of the homologous amino acid residues (Lys229 and Arg278) in RARgamma for these activities. Like RARalpha but dissimilar to RARbeta, Arg278 in RARgamma alone was found to play an important role in RA binding and RA-dependent transactivation. Since Lys236 in RARgamma was suggested from the crystal structure of holo-RARgamma to interact with RA, we also examined its role and that of its homologs in RARalpha and RARbeta. Despite the suggestion from the crystal structure, neither Lys236 nor its homologs in RARalpha and RARbeta play a role in the binding of RA or RA-dependent transactivation. It is likely that Lys236 in RARgamma and its homologs in RARalpha and RARbeta are solvent exposed rather than pointing into the RA-binding pocket.     

The velocity of solidification of highly undercooled nickel

At large undercoolings (τ;10 pctT _M, present theories relating solidification velocity to degree of undercooling do not agree well with reported experimental data for the solidification velocity of nickel as a function of undercooling. The present work shows that this discrepancy is due to two factors. First, the majority of previously reported results overestimate the solidification velocity of nickel at large undercoolings. Second, the scatter in experimental data is so large that a functional relationship between undercooling and velocity is not evident. In this study, the solidification velocity of undercooled nickel was measured using a linear array of 38 photodiodes. The results indicate that the velocity of the thermal field generated by the solid/liquid interface approaches a maximum velocity of 20 m s⁻¹ atΔT} ≈ 10 pctT _M (173 K) and men remains constant with increasing undercooling. This suggests that the velocity of the solid/liquid interface, at undercoolings greater than 10 pctT _M, could be limited by attachment kinetics at the interface. GABRIEL CARRO, formerly Research Associate, Department of Applied and Engineering Sciences, Vanderbilt University     

Microelectromechanical systems

The evolution and maturity of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) in the coming years will be driven less by captive fabrication facilities and process development and more by innovative, aggressive electromechanical systems design. MEMS is poised to take full advantage of advances in information technology and couple them to advances in other disciplines to drive a fundamentally new approach to electromechanical system design and fabrication. By merging sensing and actuation with computation, MEMS will not only invest existing systems with enhanced capabilities and reliability but also will make possible radically new devices and systems designs that will exploit the miniaturization, multiplicity, and microelectronics of MEMS. For the first time, approaches akin to VLSI electronics can be taken to usher in an equally exciting and productive era of VLSI electromechanics     

A randomized trial of an intervention to prevent lawnmower injuries in children

Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus sungorus) undergo photoperiod-induced physiological and behavioral adaptations. These adaptations, including changes in reproductive and metabolic status, are triggered by the pineal gland through the nocturnal secretion of its principal hormone, melatonin. The possible CNS sites of melatonin action determined through radiolabeled melatonin binding include the paraventricular and reuniens nuclei of the thalamus and the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). However, we do not know the mechanisms and circuitry involved in the transmission of melatonin signals. Bilateral electrolytic lesions of the SCN (SCNx) block the responses to short day-like (long duration) melatonin signals delivered daily via the timed infusion paradigm, suggesting that the SCN receives and transmits short-day melatonin signals. The purpose of the present experiment was to answer the following question: are short-day melatonin signals transmitted to other brain structures from the SCN through its dorsomedial/dorsocaudal fiber projections? Pinealectomized adult male hamsters given horizontal knife cuts (kc) just dorsocaudal to the SCN (SCN-kc), sham-kc, or SCNx were given daily subcutaneous short day-like melatonin infusions via the timed infusion paradigm for 6 weeks. Only the hamsters given SCNx exhibited long day-like gonadal, epididymal fat pad, and body masses. Therefore, short day melatonin signals received by the SCN were not transmitted to other areas of the central nervous system through SCN efferents projecting dorsomedially or dorsocaudally.     

Pointage d'une position mémorisée et contexte visuel.

Determined whether a sensorimotor or cognitive encoding is used to encode a target position and save it into iconic memory. The methodology consisted of disrupting a manual aiming movement to a memorized visual target by displacing the visual field containing the target. The target was presented either centrally or in the right periphery. Participants moved their hand from the left to the right of fixation. The visual field was either stationary throughout the trial or was displaced to the right or left at the extinction of the target or at the start of the hand movement. Results showed three major effects: (1) Vision of the hand during the gesture improved the final accuracy; (2) visual field displacement produced an underestimation of the target distance only when the hand was not visible during the gesture and was always in the same direction displacement; and (3) the effect of the stationary structured visual field on aiming precision when the hand was not visible depended on the distance to the target. These results suggest that a stationary structured visual field is used to support the memory of the target position. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of the cathodic intermetallics distribution on the reproducibility of the electrochemical measurements on AA5083 alloy in NaCl solutions

The corrosion behavior of alloy AA5083 in solutions of NaCl at 3.5% is controlled by the density of the cathodic precipitates of Al(Mn,Fe,Cr) present in the alloy. These precipitates are not distributed homogeneously over the surface of the alloy. Further, their presence conditions the electrochemical response of the alloy. For these reasons, in order to guarantee the reproducibility of electrochemical tests on this alloy, it is necessary to determine the minimum surface area exposed to the medium which represents the average behavior of the system. In the present study, a systematic analysis has been conducted on the degree of reproducibility of electrochemical tests as a function of the area of surface exposed, for the alloy AA5083 in solutions of NaCl at 3.5%. A high dependence between the dispersion of the electrochemical data and the exposed area has been established. This behavior contrast with those of other alloys, like AA1050, which is not conditioned by the values of exposed area. This has been related to the much lower cathodic precipitates density in this alloy.