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ABSTRACT Interest in third-party logistics has been steadily increasing over the last two decades. Recently, increased focus by researchers has produced a solid literature base of academic research. In this article, a meta-analytic approach is employed to provide a quantitative review of the empirical literature and examine relevant constructs. Fifty-four samples across 69 peer-reviewed journal articles, yielding a total of 9,386 observations, were obtained and analyzed. We used transaction cost economics and the resource-based view as lenses to hypothesize a structural model of the relationships among relational governance structure, logistics customer service, and firm performance. Additional relationships were also found and analyzed, helping to clarify the mixed existing findings in the literature. The paper concludes by mapping out future directions for 3PL research, based on the study's findings. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has emerged as a key structure involved in the modulation of fear behavior over the past few decades. Anatomical, functional and electrophysiological studies have begun to shed light on the precise mechanisms by which different prefrontal regions regulate the expression and inhibition of fear behavior. These studies have established a canonical view of mPFC functions during fear behavior with dorsal regions selectively involved in the expression of fear behavior and ventral regions linked to the inhibition of fear behavior. Although numerous reports support this view, recent data have refined this model and suggested that dorsal prefrontal regions might also play an important role in the encoding of fear behavior itself. The recent development of sophisticated approaches such as large scale neuronal recordings, simultaneous multisite recordings of spiking activity and local field potentials (LFPs) along with optogenetic approaches will facilitate the testing of these new hypotheses in the near future. Here we provide an extensive review of the literature on the role of mPFC in fear behavior and propose further directions to dissect the contribution of specific prefrontal neuronal elements and circuits in the regulation of fear behavior.

In order to mimic the surface of parenteral nutrition emulsion droplets, the first molecular dynamics simulation of a palmitoyloleoylphosphatidylcholine (POPC) monolayer at a water/triglyceride (trilinoleoylglycerol, LLL) interface was performed. Triglyceride influence was evaluated by comparing computed phospholipid properties to the ones in a similarly modelled hydrated POPC bilayer. As expected, polar head properties (molecular area, lipid hydration, headgroup orientation) were not affected by triglycerides. In contrast, slight differences were observed on phospholipid alkyl tail region (order parameter, diffusion, Van der Waals interactions). This first approach can reasonably be extended to a further more realistic multicomponent model of clinical nutrition emulsions.

Tungus proprietives, regularly derived from nouns by affixation, demonstrate a mixed behaviour. As adnominal modifiers, they have the full syntactic and morphological distribution of an adjective. Yet, the base noun retains some nominal properties: it can head its own syntactic phrase, control agreement on its modifier, trigger various anaphoric processes, pluralize, and take derivational affixes. These forms present a problem for the traditional view of syntactic categories, as they have the morphosyntactic properties of more than one part of speech. They are also important for the syntax/morphology interface, because the word structure and the phrase structure do not match: although the base noun selects modifiers as if it were an independent phrasal head, it is not an independent word in morphology. The paper shows that syntactic affixation analyses cannot adequately capture the Tungus data. Instead, I propose a constructional analysis based on the idea that relationships among classes of words are expressed in the lexicon by means of cross-cutting hierarchical types, where more specific types inherit information from more general types. The idiosyncratic behaviour of proprietives is lexically specified by the crossclassification of head values. Categorial information is inherited from adjectives and determines the external distribution of the phrase. At the same time, proprietives inherit the underlying noun's semantics (referentiality) and selectional properties. This analysis raises further questions about the nature of the traditional syntactic labels such as nouns or adjectives, namely, whether we are dealing with a new category type in each case of mixed categories.

The article discusses the multiple discrimination, normalization and stigmatization experienced by deaf LGBT youth in Sicily, Italy, on the basis of a study of their everyday life (specifically school years and peer interactions). So far in Italy, very little attention has been paid to multiple discrimination and, specifically, to homophobic violence towards disabled individuals. It is, therefore, impossible to consider any valid sampling of the desired population and very few reports have been produced. The authors, a sociologist and a psychologist, carry out an analysis of the results obtained from interviews with 15 LGBT individuals recruited through social networks, thematic chats, and associations. This preliminary analysis aims at identifying the key arguments which could form the basis for future strategic inclusion programs and further research projects.

Zoothamnium niveum (Hemprich & Ehrenberg, 1831) Ehrenberg, 1838, a colonial, sessile representative of the Peritrichida (Ciliophora, Oligohymenophora) from the mangrove channels of Twin Cays (Belize Barrier Reef, Caribbean Sea), is remarkable for an obligatory association with ectosymbiotic, chemoautotrophic bacteria. The ultrastructure of the host and the symbiont is investigated by means of low-temperature and conventional scanning electron microscopy, thin section and freeze-fracture transmission electron microscopy. The cortex, the main interface between host and symbiont, differs from the general pattern found in other peritrichs only in having special inclusions of unknown nature and function in the pellicular alveoli. The stationary microzooids and the swarming macrozooids have a fully developed oral ciliature, similar to other peritrichs. The cytopharynx in the macrozooids is highly reduced and no food vacuoles have been detected. Two morphotypes of bacteria, different in size and shape, are present on different parts of the colony and are assumed to represent only one species. The ultrastructural features resemble those of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria. The microzooids feed on bacteria whose size, shape, and ultrastructure is similar to their symbionts. This supports the assumption that Z. niveum gains at least part of its nutrition from chemoautotrophic bacteria.

Polyacetylenic natural products are a substantial class of often unstable compounds containing a unique carbon-carbon triple bond functionality, that are intriguing for their wide variety of biochemical and ecological functions, economic potential, and surprising mode of biosynthesis. Isotopic tracer experiments between 1960 and 1990 demonstrated that the majority of these compounds are derived from fatty acid and polyketide precursors. During the past decade, research into the metabolism of polyacetylenes has swiftly advanced, driven by the cloning of the first genes responsible for polyacetylene biosynthesis in plants, moss, fungi, and actinomycetes, and the initial characterization of the gene products.

The photoluminescence properties of synthetic zircon, ZrSiO 4 , doped with REE 3+ (REE = Pr, Sm, Eu, Gd, Dy, Ho, Er) were investigated using combined excitation and emission spectroscopy. All samples showed luminescence characteristics of intra-ion energy transitions, similar to other lanthanide-doped materials. However, the relative intensities were dependent on the energy of excitation and the presence of charge-transfer bands were inferred from excitation spectra. From the data, we conclude that the lanthanides in zircon occur in more than one type of coordination. Energy transfer between diVerent lanthanides was observed in some co-doped samples and emissions that were unassigned in previous studies have been assigned to speciWc lanthanides based on excitation spectroscopy.

Coordination polymers (CPs) are emerging as the next generation of macromolecules for many industrial and technological applications. The highly porous nature of these CPs offers the opportunity to exploit them as very effective adsorbents for gaseous molecules, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Release of VOCs into the environment is highly undesirable as they can be extremely harmful to general public health and environmental quality. Lately, a large volume of the scientific literature has pointed toward the potentially important role of CPs in the monitoring and analysis of VOCs, offering unprecedented detection limits. This review discusses the opportunities and challenges for the use of CP materials in such applications, describing their general working principles, analytical performance, advantages, and limitations. Recent progress in the application of CPs in the detection, monitoring, and analysis of VOCs is critically reviewed. The discussion is further extended to cover future applications and current research activities in this emerging analytical field.

A quick and reliable analytical method for the quantitative assessment of roxithromycin in pharmaceutical formulations was developed using Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) transmission spectroscopy for routine quality control. The sample preparation was avoided except grinding for pellet formation and eliminated the use of toxic solvents. For the determination of roxithromycin, conventional KBr was used in the form of pellets for acquisition of the FT-IR spectra of standards and samples. The calibration model was developed based on simple Beer's law using the FT-IR carbonyl region (C O) from 1765 to 1705 cm −1 . The excellent coefficient of determination (R 2 ) was achieved (0.9992) with 0.01 mg standard error of calibration. This work clearly revealed the capability of the transmission FT-IR spectroscopy and extended its application for determining the exact quantity of roxithromycin to control the processing formulation and quality of finished product with the analysis time of less than 3 min using the neat solid samples.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. This article appeared in a journal published by Elsevier. The attached copy is furnished to the author for internal non-commercial research and education use, including for instruction at the authors institution and sharing with colleagues.

The objective of this work is to utilize the effectiveness of Rice Husk Ash (RHA) material to enhance the properties of natural soil used for subgrade material in pavement. The quality of a flexible pavement depends on the strength of its sub-grade soil. In view of the above the present investigation has been carried out with rice husk ash mixed individually and also in combination with locally available natural soil in different proportions stepped concentration of 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25% and 30% by dry weight of the soil individually are used to stabilized of Natural Soil (CL) and to evaluate its properties like Grain Size Distribution, LL, PL, PI, OMC, MDD, CBR and Swelling Pressure. The test results indicate that the addition of RHA enhances the percentage of grain size distribution, but with addition of RHA till 10% the LL, PL, PI and swelling pressure decreases, while these parameters further increases in this limit beyond i.e. 10% to 30% of RHA while enhancement is observed above 20% to 30%, Specific Gravity and Maximum Dry Density (MDD) decrease with addition of RHA, for all percentage values, whereas OMC increases in each material. The CBR value increases with the addition of RHA till 10%, while it decreases beyond the limit 10% to 30% with addition of RHA.

Croton Codiaeum variegatum (L.) Blume is a popular ornamental foliage plant that displays an anomalous range of variations in its leaf size, shape and color pattern. By fixing such leaf variations, more than 300 cultivars have been produced in the world. Until now, however, only a limited number of studies have been made to describe the leaf phenotypic diversity. Here we investigated the diversity of leaf phenotype in croton cultivars with a numerical taxonomic approach. One-way analysis of variance confirmed significant phenotypic variations in the croton cultivars for 12 quantitative leaf parameters. Among the numerical parameter tested, the leaf index that is the ratio of leaf length to leaf width showed the highest variability. High coefficient of variation values were observed in petiole length, leaf area and leaf down quarter width. In contrast with leaf morphology, the composition of leaf pigments that contribute to leaf coloration did not show diversity. Based on the analyses of the leaf parameters, we clustered the croton cultivars into four major groups. The results of this study provide a numerical basis for classification of croton cultivars. A possible involvement of transposon is discussed in terms of somatic mutation that results in the leaf phenotypic diversity.

a b s t r a c t a r t i c l e i n f o When platelet numbers are low or when their function is disabled, the risk of bleeding is high, which on the one hand indicates that in normal life vascular damage is a rather common event and that hence the role of platelets in maintaining a normal hemostasis is a continuously ongoing physiological process. Upon vascular injury, platelets instantly adhere to the exposed extracellular matrix resulting in platelet activation and aggregation to form a hemostatic plug. This self-amplifying mechanism nevertheless requires a tight control to prevent uncontrolled platelet aggregate formation that eventually would occlude the vessel. Therefore endothelial cells produce inhibitory compounds such as prostacyclin and nitric oxide that limit the growth of the platelet thrombus to the damaged area. With this review, we intend to give an integrated survey of the platelet response to vascular injury in normal hemostasis.

Pyridoxal 5′-phosphate Salvage pathway Pyridoxal kinase Pyridoxine 5′-phosphate oxidase Vitamin B 6 is a generic term referring to pyridoxine, pyridoxamine, pyridoxal and their related phosphorylated forms. Pyridoxal 5′-phosphate is the catalytically active form of vitamin B 6 , and acts as cofactor in more than 140 different enzyme reactions. In animals, pyridoxal 5′-phosphate is recycled from food and from degraded B 6 -enzymes in a "salvage pathway", which essentially involves two ubiquitous enzymes: an ATP-dependent pyridoxal kinase and an FMN-dependent pyridoxine 5′-phosphate oxidase. Once it is made, pyridoxal 5′-phosphate is targeted to the dozens of different apo-B 6 enzymes that are being synthesized in the cell. The mechanism and regulation of the salvage pathway and the mechanism of addition of pyridoxal 5′-phosphate to the apo-B 6 -enzymes are poorly understood and represent a very challenging research field. Pyridoxal kinase and pyridoxine 5′-phosphate oxidase play kinetic roles in regulating the level of pyridoxal 5′-phosphate formation. Deficiency of pyridoxal 5′-phosphate due to inborn defects of these enzymes seems to be involved in several neurological pathologies. In addition, inhibition of pyridoxal kinase activity by several pharmaceutical and natural compounds is known to lead to pyridoxal 5′-phosphate deficiency. Understanding the exact role of vitamin B 6 in these pathologies requires a better knowledge on the metabolism and homeostasis of the vitamin. This article summarizes the current knowledge on structural, kinetic and regulation features of the two enzymes involved in the PLP salvage pathway. We also discuss the proposal that newly formed PLP may be transferred from either enzyme to apo-B 6 -enzymes by direct channeling, an efficient, exclusive, and protected means of delivery of the highly reactive PLP. This new perspective may lead to novel and interesting findings, as well as serve as a model system for the study of macromolecular channeling. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Pyridoxal Phosphate Enzymology. j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r.

Outsourcing is hiring an external company to do one or more internal activities because these activities are either difficult to achieve, or costly to do in-house. This external hired company is known as Third Party Logistics (3PL). 3PL selection decision inherently is a multi-criterion problem, sometimes with strategic importance to companies. Management science techniques might be helpful tools for these kinds of decision-making problems. Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) techniques are often used to solve 3PL problems. In this paper, different types of MCDM are overviewed, and then a framework for 3PL selection is proposed by using a hybrid two-phase Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) to select the best 3PL company providing the most satisfaction for the criteria determined, and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) to evaluate the performance of 3PLs. This integration provides a good methodology to rank 3PLs.

Wet chemical passivation of n-GaN surface was carried out by dipping GaN samples in ammonium sulphide diluted in aqueous and alcoholic solvent base solutions. Photoluminescence (PL) investigations indicated that sulphide solution effectively led to the reduction of GaN surface states. Increased band edge PL peak showed that S 2À ions are more active in alcohol based solvents. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed reduction in surface oxides by introduction of sulphide species. Ni/n-GaN Schottky barrier diodes were fabricated on passivated surfaces. Remarkable improvement in the Schottky barrier height (0.98 eV for passivated diodes as compared to 0.75 eV for untreated diodes) has been observed.

1 See Narrog (2010) for a comprehensive overview and discussion of diverse conceptualizations of the notions of subjectivity and intersubjectivity. Cuyckens et al. (2010) and the works in are also excellent sources of reference for these notions.

Two analogues of lysophosphatidylinusitol monophosphate (LPIP) occur in fusogenic carrot cells and protoplasts and are distinguished from each other on thin-layer plates by differing R t values. The lower Rf LPIP comigrates with sn-l-palmitoyl LPIP (16:0 LPlP) synthesized from sn-l-palmitoyl lysophosphatidylinositol. The upper R t LPIP is presumed to he sn-2-1inoleoyl LPIP (18:2 LPIP) based on fatty acid analysis of phosphatidylinositol monopbosphate (PIP) and ¢omigration with the upper R I product resulting from the base-catalyzed hydrolysis of PIP. The 18:2 analogue is only a minor component of the LPlP recovered from the fusogenic cells and protoplasts, hut it is the predominant form o| LPIP in nonfusogenic cells and protoplasts. LPIP is found primarily in the plasma membranes of these cells representing from 10 to 20% of the total 13Hlinositol-laheled lipid recovered from isolated plasma membrane. Even though the |usogenle cells lose some of the L,rtP as a result of cell wall digestion, if 2% or more of the total protoplast inusitol lipid is LPIP, the protoplasts fuse spontaneously with a fusion frequency of greater than 60%. As the |usoganl¢ protoplusts lose their fusloa potential, they also lose the relative amount of 16:0 LPlP. Inhibiting the in vivo metabolism of phosplmtidylinositot bispbosphate (PiP z) and PIP in cells and protoplasts with the aminoglycuside, neomycin, does not inhibit fusion. These data indicate that the presence and metabolism of 16:0 LPIP hut not the polyphosphoinositides, PIP and PIPz, correlate positively with protoplast fusion.

Learning a foreign language is a complex process, which must not necessarily be connected with a classroom and a teacher. Most definitions of learning describe it as a conscious process of internalisation of new facts, retention of information or skill, gained ...

While there is a concensus that auxiliary verbs differ in one way or the other from main verbs, linguists do not always agree on what determines the difference. This is especially so in serialising languages where two or more independent verbs can occur in a clause. It is not always clear whether the ability of a verbal form to express a temporal, aspectual or modal notion in such languages is enough for them to be analysed as auxiliary verbs or whether the nature of the form is equally important. This paper argues that a reduction in material integrity of a verbal form is a very important criterion for distinguishing verbs in serialising languages. #

The effects of long time thermal annealing at 200°C on the optical and structural properties of GaAs 1Àx Bi x alloys were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and photoluminescence (PL). FESEM images show that bismuth islands nucleate on the surface and their diameter increases after annealing. It was observed a PL intensity enhancement and a small blue shift in PL peak energy after thermal annealing at 200°C for 3 h of GaAs 1Àx Bi x alloys which was associated to the reduction of the density of defects. However these defects are not completed removed by thermal annealing although an important PL intensity improvement is observed.

The lamellar structure of a symmetric diblock copolymer was studied as a function of temperature. We used dPEP-PDMS with a molecular weight of 8.3 kgrmol as model system. The polymer was dissolved in chloroform and spin-casted on silicon wafers into thin uniform films. The degree and direction of lamellar ordering in the thin films was measured by small angle neutron scattering. Neutron reflectivity was used to measure the detailed lamellar structure in the thin films. For the temperature scans only the first order Bragg peak was measured to determine the lamellar period in the film. Our experimental results are compared to theoretical predictions on the scaling behavior of the lamella period as a function of temperature. The morphology of the surface was investigated by atomic force microscopy. Holes were found around defects in the films. The cross-section of the holes revealed the lamellar structure with a periodicity comparable to what was found by neutron reflectivity. q

Conductive copper patterns were deposited on polyimide PI substrates by using a focused, scanned continuous wave Ž . q cw Ar laser beam at 488 nm wavelength. The deposition process was initiated by a photothermal reaction of a tartarate-complex solution of Cu 2q ions in an alkaline and reducing environment. Deposits were characterised by Field Ž . Ž . Emission Scanning Electron Microscope FESEM , Energy Dispersive X-ray EDX Spectrometry, DEKTAK profilometer and resistance measurements. The dependence of the characteristics of laser direct written patterns on the scanning speed of Ž the laser beam, number of scans and laser power was examined. Uniform copper lines covered with copper-oxide line width . from 30 to 60 mm and height from 2 to 20 mm with high conductivity and adhesion were achieved under optimised conditions. q

Endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines are lipid mediators regulating a wide range of biological functions including food intake. We investigated short-term effects of feeding rats five different dietary fats (palm oil (PO), olive oil (OA), safflower oil (LA), fish oil (FO) and arachidonic acid (AA)) on tissue levels of 2-arachidonoylglycerol, anandamide, oleoylethanolamide, palmitoylethanolamide, stearoylethanolamide, linoleoylethanolamide, eicosapentaenoylethanolamide, docosahexaenoylethanolamide and tissue fatty acid composition. The LA-diet increased linoleoylethanolamide and linoleic acid in brain, jejunum and liver. The OA-diet increased brain levels of anandamide and oleoylethanolamide (not 2arachidonoylglycerol) without changing tissue fatty acid composition. The same diet increased oleoylethanolamide in liver. All five dietary fats decreased oleoylethanolamide in jejunum without changing levels of anandamide, suggesting that dietary fat may have an orexigenic effect. The AA-diet increased anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol in jejunum without effect on liver. The FO-diet decreased liver levels of all Nacylethanolamines (except eicosapentaenoylethanolamide and docosahexaenoylethanolamide) with similar changes in precursor lipids. The AA-diet and FO-diet had no effect on N-acylethanolamines, endocannabinoids or precursor lipids in brain. All N-acylethanolamines activated PPAR-α. In conclusion, short-term feeding of diets resembling human diets (Mediterranean diet high in monounsaturated fat, diet high in saturated fat, or diet high in polyunsaturated fat) can affect tissue levels of endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines.

Preexercise nutritional investigations have recently become a popular avenue of examining the interaction of multiple ingredients on exercise and training methods. The critical velocity (CV) test is used to quantify the relationship between total running distance and time to exhaustion (TTE), yielding aerobic (CV) and anaerobic parameters (anaerobic running capacity [ARC]). The purpose of this study was to examine the hypothesis that a preexercise supplement containing caffeine, creatine, and amino acids (Game Time; Corr-Jen Laboratories Inc, Aurora, CO) would positively impact CV and ARC in college-aged men and women. In a single-blind crossover design, 10 participants consumed the preexercise supplement (ACT) or placebo (PL) before each testing session. Each participant completed runs to exhaustion on a treadmill at 110%, 90% (day 1), and 105% and 100% (day 2) of the peak velocity (PV) determined from a graded exercise test. The ACT elicited a 10.8% higher ARC (P = .02) compared with the PL, whereas no difference was found in CV (0.6%, P = .38). The TTE was greater for the ACT than the PL at 110% (ACT = 125.7 ± 9.6 seconds, PL = 117.3 ± 12.6 seconds), 105% (ACT = 156.9 ± 11.0 seconds, PL = 143.8 ± 12.9 seconds), and 100% PV (ACT = 185.7 ± 10.7 seconds, PL = 169.7 ± 12.8 seconds) (P = .01-.04); but there was no difference for the TTE at 90% PV (ACT = 353.5 ± 52.7 seconds, PL = 332.7 ± 54.0 seconds) (P = .08). These findings suggest that the acute ingestion of this preexercise supplement may be an effective strategy for improving anaerobic performance, but appears to have no effect on aerobic power.

The general goal of the present paper is to demonstrate how cross-linguistic (contrastive) data can broaden the perspective in cognitive linguistic research on metonymy, which may raise a host of questions calling for a revision of some widely accepted views. A more specific, methodological goal is to show how the introspection-driven research and the authentic-data driven research in cognitive linguistics can feed into each other in a cyclic way (cf. Kertész and Rákosi, 2008b, p. 214ff). We highlight the role of contrastive research in the interaction between the introspection-driven and the authentic-data driven research in cognitive linguistics on two case studies. The first study is on the referential metonymy of the CAPITAL-FOR-GOVERNMENT type. The second case study deals with the illocutionary metonymy motivating a range of constructions that realize the instructional speech act in cooking recipes. The two case studies have a number of things in common. In both of them the starting point is the question about the universality of a given metonymy. Similarly, in both studies we look for the motivation for the observed differences in the (non-)application of a given metonymy in a cross-linguistic perspective. After the analysis is extended to include a number of languages, the apparent impression in both studies is that the contrastive facts are ultimately motivated by some structural factors. Pursuing the analysis further, asking ourselves about the functional-cognitive background of the structural facts, we arrive at a deeper sort of motivation.

ABSTRACT: Image segmentation plays a vital role in image processing over the last few years. The goal of image segmentation is to cluster the pixels into salient image regions ie, regions corresponding to individual surfaces, objects, or natural parts of objects. In this ...

Globalisation of national economies and increasing competition as well as permanent changes in the modern economic environment and political determinants are affecting the search for solutions that will improve the implementation of logistics processes in today's global supply chains. Providers of logistics services strengthen their competences, broaden the range of their services and adapt to the requirements of stakeholders, by offering among others: adaptation and development of their logistics infrastructure, modern IT systems that improve the implementation and monitoring of logistic processes. Contemporary trends and developments on the market of logistic and forwarding services are still defining new quality. Traditional forwarding service models are replaced by a wide spectrum of logistic services for contemporary supply chains. It is assumed that the market of logistic services is the next stage of development of the transport and forwarding market. Logistic services ar...

The present work reviews the significance of lipids at different early stages of marine fish larvae. Lipids in broodstock nutrition are considered to be important for the quality of the larvae. Lipids affect the spawning and the egg quality of many fish species and a deficiency in (n-3) highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) in broodstock negatively affects fecundity, fertilization rate and hatching rate of the species studied. Lipids as a source of energy at the embryonic and larval stage (before first-feeding) are evaluated in relation to other sources of energy such as protein and carbohydrates. After hatching and prior to first-feeding, some marine species show a preference in catabolizing phosphatidylcholine, whereas phosphatidylethanolamine tends to be synthesized. The effect of long-term (LT) and short-term (ST) enrichment techniques on the lipid composition of rotifers has been documented using various marine oils/emulsions. The quantitative and qualitative lipid class and fatty acid composition of diets influenced the lipid and fatty acid composition of both LT-or ST-enriched rotifers. The nutritional improvement of Artemia is also important and may follow the general methods used for rotifers. The functions of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) during early stages of marine fish larvae are apparently different. High amounts of EPA in relation to DHA may create an imbalance in the structural composition of the phospholipids, which could affect the normal growth and the quality of the larvae. Turbot larvae tended to exhibit lower pigmentation success with lower DHA:EPA ratio in the total lipid fraction of the larvae, especially when the absolute amounts of EPA were high compared to those of DHA (in the total lipid and phospholipid fraction of the larvae). Considerable research is

Background. Unfavorable cardiac mechanics in children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) when compared with other single-ventricle defects may affect long-term morbidity and outcome. Using noninvasive phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC MRI), we examined cardiac mechanics in children with HLHS and compared the results to other single-ventricle defects.

Perceptual learning is a special type of non-declarative learning that involves experience-dependent plasticity in sensory cortices. The cholinergic system is known to modulate declarative learning. In particular, reduced levels or efficacy of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine were found to facilitate declarative memory consolidation. However, little is known about the role of the cholinergic system in memory consolidation of non-declarative learning. Here we compared two groups of non-smoking men who learned a visual texture discrimination task (TDT). One group received chewing tobacco containing nicotine for 1 h directly following the TDT training. The other group received a similar tasting control substance without nicotine. Electroencephalographic recordings during substance consumption showed reduced alpha activity and P300 latencies in the nicotine group compared to the control group. When retested on the TDT the following day, both groups responded more accurately and more rapidly than during training. These improvements were specific to the retinal location and orientation of the texture elements of the TDT suggesting that learning involved early visual cortex. A group comparison showed that learning effects were more pronounced in the nicotine group than in the control group. These findings suggest that oral consumption of nicotine enhances the efficacy of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Our findings further suggest that enhanced efficacy of the cholinergic system facilitates memory consolidation in perceptual learning (and possibly other types of non-declarative learning). In that regard acetylcholine seems to affect consolidation processes in perceptual learning in a different manner than in declarative learning. Alternatively, our findings might reflect dose-dependent cholinergic modulation of memory consolidation.

We have recently detected that the lipase from Streptomyces rimosus belongs to a large but poorly characterised family of SGNH hydrolases having the αβα-fold. Our biochemical characterisation relates to the specific inhibition of an extracellular lipase from Streptomyces rimosus (SRL, 24.2 kDa, Q93MW7) by the preincubation method with tetrahydrolipstatin (THL). In high molar excess (THL/SRL = 590 at 25°C, pH = 7.0) and after 2 h of incubation in an aqueous system, 56% of the enzyme inhibition was reached. Under the same conditions and in the presence of 50% (v/v) 2-propanol/water, 71% enzyme inhibition was obtained. Kinetic measurements are in agreement with pseudo-first-order kinetics. The nucleophilic attack of the catalytic serine residue 10 of SRL occurs via an opening of the β-lactone ring of tetrahydrolipstatin and formation of a covalent ester bond. The intact covalent complex of SRL-inhibitor was analysed by ESI and vacuum MALDI mass spectrometry and, furthermore, the exact covalent THL linkage was determined by vacuum MALDI high-energy collision-induced dissociation tandem mass spectrometry.

Objective: To examine the variations and the anatomical characteristics of the tendinous arch of pelvic fascia (TAPF), the tendinous arch of levator ani (TALA) and the obturator fascia (Ofa) that are important structures in paravaginal defect repair and their relations with ...

Positive surgical margins are an independent predictive factor for biochemical recurrence after radical prostatectomy. We analyzed the incidence of and associative factors for positive surgical margins in a multi-institutional series of 8,418 robotic assisted radical prostatectomies.

A linguistic spatial task, conducted with five dyads of Sumu-Mayangna speakers, provides evidence that while speakers have diffuse access to spatial Frames of Reference (FoRs), the direct was most preferred. Further, the absolute FoR is found to be restricted to the lateral/ east-west axis, with older generations displaying a greater proportion of use than younger ones. In addition, the possible exploitation of a meronymy system is discussed. A nonlinguistic spatial memory task indicates a bias toward an absolute solution type, and this partly mirrors observed trends in the linguistic task, providing some evidence for alignment between language and cognition.

In many languages there are words that behave like lexical verbs and on the one hand and like functional categories expressing distinctions of tense, aspect, modality, etc. on the other. The grammatical status of such words is frequently controversial; while some authors treat them as belonging to one and the same grammatical category, others assign them to different categories. The present paper is concerned with such a case of ''doublets'': Looking in more detail at the German item drohen 'to threaten', it attempts to offer an account of the differences in the lexical and functional structure of this item by using grammaticalization theory as a framework. As the data presented in the paper suggest, this model in fact accounts for most though not for all of the properties characterizing the structure of the item. It is argued that in addition to synchronic analysis, a diachronic and comparative perspective is required in order to arrive at a more comprehensive understanding of the interface between lexical and functional structures.

Lonomia obliqua caterpillar bristle extract induces hemolysis in vitro on washed human and rat erythrocytes, in either the absence or presence of exogenous lecithin. In the former condition, phospholipases A 2 are key enzymes involved in hemolysis. However, the mechanism whereby this extract causes direct hemolysis is not known. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the hemolytic mechanism of the crude extract of the caterpillar L. obliqua on human erythrocytes in the absence of lecithin. The extract significantly increased the erythrocyte osmotic fragility and promoted the removal of glycophorins A and C, and band 3 from the erythrocyte membrane. The use of Ca 2þ and Mg 2þ ions significantly potentiated glycoprotein removal, remarkably of erythrocyte band 3. The composition of fatty acids was analyzed by HPLC in both L. obliqua caterpillar bristle extract and human erythrocyte membranes incubated with the extract. The levels of unsaturated fatty acids were remarkably augmented in erythrocytes incubated with the extract than in control erythrocytes, modifying thereby the saturated/unsaturated fatty acid ratio. Altogether, evidence is provided here that the interplay of at least three mechanisms of action accounts for the direct activity of the bristle extract on erythrocyte membrane, leading to hemolysis: the removal of glycoproteins and band 3; the insertion of fatty acids; and the action of phospholipases. Such mechanisms might affect erythrocyte flexibility and deformability, which may induce hemolysis by increasing erythrocyte fragility. However, whether the direct hemolytic activity of L. obliqua caterpillar is the major cause of intravascular hemolysis during envenomation still needs further investigation.

Background: Phospholipid scramblases are a group of four homologous proteins conserved from C. elegans to human. In human, two members of the scramblase family, hPLSCR1 and hPLSCR3 are known to bring about Ca 2+ dependent translocation of phosphatidylserine and cardiolipin respectively during apoptotic processes. However, affinities of Ca 2+ /Mg 2+ binding to human scramblases and conformational changes taking place in them remains unknown. Methods: In the present study, we analyzed the Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ binding to the calcium binding motifs of hPLSCR1-4 and hPLSCR1 by spectroscopic methods and isothermal titration calorimetry. Results: The results in this study show that (i) affinities of the peptides are in the order hPLSCR1 N hPLSCR3 N hPLSCR2 N hPLSCR4 for Ca 2+ and in the order hPLSCR1 N hPLSCR2 N hPLSCR3 N hPLSCR4 for Mg 2+ , (ii) binding of ions brings about conformational change in the secondary structure of the peptides. The affinity of Ca 2+ and Mg 2+ binding to protein hPLSCR1 was similar to that of the peptide I. A sequence comparison shows the existence of scramblase-like motifs among other protein families. Conclusions: Based on the above results, we hypothesize that the Ca 2+ binding motif of hPLSCR1 is a novel type of Ca 2+ binding motif. General significance: Our findings will be relevant in understanding the calcium dependent scrambling activity of hPLSCRs and their biological function.

The Order Phasmatodea (stick and leaf insects) includes many well-known species of cryptic phytophagous insects. In this work, we sequenced the almost complete mitochondrial genomes of two stick insect species of the genus Bacillus. Phasmatodea pertain to the Polyneoptera, and represent one of the major clades of heterometabolous insects. Orthopteroid insect lineages arose through rapid evolutionary radiation events, which likely blurred the phylogenetic reconstructions obtained so far; we therefore performed a phylogenetic analysis to resolve and date all major splits of orthopteroid phylogeny, including the relationships between Phasmatodea and other polyneopterans. We explored several molecular models, with special reference to data partitioning, to correctly detect any phylogenetic signal lying in rough data. Phylogenetic Informativeness analysis showed that the maximum resolving power on the orthopteroid mtDNA dataset is expected for the Upper Cretaceous, about 80 million years ago (Mya), but at least 70% of the maximum informativeness is also expected for the 150-200 Mya timespan, which makes mtDNA a suitable marker to study orthopteroid splits. A complete chronological calibration has also been computed following a Penalized Likelihood method. In summary, our analysis confirmed the monophyly of Phasmatodea, Dictyoptera and Orthoptera, and retrieved Mantophasmatodea as sister group of Phasmatodea. The origin of orthopteroid insects was also estimated to be in the Middle Triassic, while the order Phasmatodea seems to appear in the Upper Jurassic. The obtained results evidenced that mtDNA is a suitable marker to unravel the ancient splits leading to the orthopteroid orders, given a proper methodological approach.

Changes in lipid content and fatty acid composition were determined in leaves of two halophytes: Sesuvium portulacastrum and Mesembryanthemum crystallinum exposed to cadmium (Cd). Experiments were carried out using young small-sized plants grown hydroponically (S. portulacastrum) or aseptically germinated seeds (M. crystallinum). Cd treatment was applied at different concentrations (0, 50, 100 and 200 mM) for 30 days. At high cadmium doses (200 mM), contents of total lipids (TL) and lipid fractions including galactolipids (GL), phospholipids (PL) and neutral lipids (NL) decreased more in M. crystallinum leaves than in S. portulacastrum leaves. Moreover, there were no significant changes in the total fatty acid composition of S. portulacastrum leaves during metal treatment. In contrast, M. crystallinum leaves showed a decrease in the percentage of the tri-unsaturated fatty acid (C18:3), and a corresponding increase in the percentage of di-unsaturated fatty acid (C18:2). These different responses suggested that S. portulacastrum seems to be more feasible for phytoremediation.