Caracterización de los sistemas de producción de leche en la cuenca noreste de la Provincia de Córdoba, Argentina

91-97La cuenca lechera noreste es una de las principales regiones de mayor producción e industrialización de leche en la provincia de Córdoba. Sin embargo, no se dispone de una correcta caracterización de los sistemas de producción. Para ello se analizaron las diferencias en la composición de las dietas, la superficie de los establecimientos, la distancia al pavimento, el nivel de equipamiento, las mejoras de capital y la composición del rodeo en tambos con distinto nivel de producción. El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar las características de los tambos en la cuenca noreste de Córdoba a través de la estructura de producción, la base forrajera y la composición del rodeo. Se trabajó con una base de datos de 2070 tambos de los 3253 existentes en la provincia. Se establecieron dos categorías M1 y M2 que representan tambos de menor y mayor escala. A su vez, se subdividieron en alta y baja producción, resultando en cuatro modelos productivos. Esta cuenca se asienta en establecimientos con sistemas productivos con una alta heterogeneidad entre ellos que confiere una gran variabilidad en la zona. El modelo de tambos pequeños y de menor producción presenta una base forrajera compuesta principalmente por forraje alfalfa. El modelo de tambos pequeños y de alta producción presenta una estructura productiva con mayores mejoras y un alto porcentaje de alfalfa y silo. El modelo de tambos grandes y de baja producción se caracteriza por utilizar una dieta con baja participación de forraje silo y concentrados

Caracterización de los sistemas de producción de leche en la cuenca noreste de la Provincia de Córdoba, Argentina

91-97La cuenca lechera noreste es una de las principales regiones de mayor producción e industrialización de leche en la provincia de Córdoba. Sin embargo, no se dispone de una correcta caracterización de los sistemas de producción. Para ello se analizaron las diferencias en la composición de las dietas, la superficie de los establecimientos, la distancia al pavimento, el nivel de equipamiento, las mejoras de capital y la composición del rodeo en tambos con distinto nivel de producción. El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar las características de los tambos en la cuenca noreste de Córdoba a través de la estructura de producción, la base forrajera y la composición del rodeo. Se trabajó con una base de datos de 2070 tambos de los 3253 existentes en la provincia. Se establecieron dos categorías M1 y M2 que representan tambos de menor y mayor escala. A su vez, se subdividieron en alta y baja producción, resultando en cuatro modelos productivos. Esta cuenca se asienta en establecimientos con sistemas productivos con una alta heterogeneidad entre ellos que confiere una gran variabilidad en la zona. El modelo de tambos pequeños y de menor producción presenta una base forrajera compuesta principalmente por forraje alfalfa. El modelo de tambos pequeños y de alta producción presenta una estructura productiva con mayores mejoras y un alto porcentaje de alfalfa y silo. El modelo de tambos grandes y de baja producción se caracteriza por utilizar una dieta con baja participación de forraje silo y concentrados

Nitric oxide produces HLA-G nitration and induces metalloprotease-dependent shedding creating a tolerogenic milieu

Human leucocyte antigen G (HLA-G) is a tolerogenic molecule that protects the fetus from maternal immune attack, may favour tumoral immunoescape and is up-regulated in viral and inflammatory diseases. The aim of this work was to discover if nitric oxide (NO) could affect HLA-G expression or function because NO is an important modulator of innate and adaptive immunity. For this purpose HLA-G expression and function were analysed following treatment with a NO donor or a peroxynitrite donor in various cell lines expressing HLA-G either spontaneously or upon transfection. Results showed NO-dependent nitration of both cellular and soluble HLA-G protein, but not all HLA-G moieties underwent nitration. Endogenous biosynthesis of NO by both U-937-HLA-G1 and M8-HLA-G5 stable transfectants also caused HLA-G nitration. The NO decreased total HLA-G cellular protein content and expression on the cell surface, while increasing HLA-G shedding into the culture medium. This effect was post-transcriptional and the result of metalloprotease activity. By contrast, NO pretreatment did not affect HLA-G capability to suppress NK cytotoxicity and lymphocyte proliferation. Our studies show that NO regulates the availability of HLA-G molecules without modifying their biological activities

Size Matters: Microservices Research and Applications

In this chapter we offer an overview of microservices providing the introductory information that a reader should know before continuing reading this book. We introduce the idea of microservices and we discuss some of the current research challenges and real-life software applications where the microservice paradigm play a key role. We have identified a set of areas where both researcher and developer can propose new ideas and technical solutions.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1706.0735

Facial transplantation: a concise update

Objectives: Update on clinical results obtained by the first worldwide facial transplantation teams as well as review of the literature concerning the main surgical, immunological, ethical, and follow-up aspects described on facial transplanted patients. Study design: MEDLINE search of articles published on "face transplantation" until March 2012. Results: Eighteen clinical cases were studied. The mean patient age was 37.5 years, with a higher prevalence of men. Main surgical indication was gunshot injuries (6 patients). All patients had previously undergone multiple conventional surgical reconstructive procedures which had failed. Altogether 8 transplant teams belonging to 4 countries participated. Thirteen partial face transplantations and 5 full face transplantations have been performed. Allografts are varied according to face anatomical components and the amount of skin, muscle, bone, and other tissues included, though all were grafted successfully and remained viable without significant postoperative surgical complications. The patient with the longest follow-up was 5 years. Two patients died 2 and 27 months after transplantation. Conclusions: Clinical experience has demonstrated the feasibility of facial transplantation as a valuable reconstructive option, but it still remains considered as an experimental procedure with unresolved issues to settle down. Results show that from a clinical, technical, and immunological standpoint, facial transplantation has achieved functional, aesthetic, and social rehabilitation in severely facial disfigured patients

Spin-sensitive shape asymmetry of adatoms on noncollinear magnetic substrates

The spin-resolved density of states of Co atoms on a noncollinear magnetic support displays a distinct shape contrast, which is superimposed on the regular height contrast in spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy. The apparent atom height follows the well-known cosine dependence on the angle formed by the tip and adatom local magnetization directions, whereas the shape contrast exhibits a sine dependence. We explain this effect in terms of a noncollinear spin density induced by the substrate, which in our case is the spin spiral of the Mn monolayer on W(110). The two independent contrast channels, apparent height and shape, are identified with the Co magnetization projections onto two orthogonal axes. As a result, all components of the overall atom magnetic moment vector can be determined with a single spin-sensitive tip in the absence of an external magnetic field. This result should be general for any atom deposited on noncollinear magnetic layers

UC-177 Day Easy Phone Application

DayEasy is a phone application that is designed to promote clean eating and workout habits by providing services such as a calendar, workout planner, hydration and calorie journal, pedometer, fasting timer, and a meal planner. The application will have the functions to: • The user will be able to create an account. • The user will be able to change their password when they forget it. This will be done by sending an email. • The user will be able to save their sign in credentials. • The user will be able to view their daily schedule. • The user will be able to create new tasks. • These tasks are repeatable. • The user will be able to add how much water they drink in oz/ml • The user can set a daily drinking goal. • The user will be able to see how many steps they have taken. • The user can set a daily step goal. • The user will be able to plan their workout by selecting various customized movements. • The user will be able to select a movement (possibly a GIF) and see information about it. • The user will be able to go to muscle option and select a muscle part they want to work on and plan their workout. • The user will be able to plan their meals by keeping a journal. This journal will include calories. • The user will be able to pick a customized meal plan based on dietary selections. • The user will be able to add up their calories. • The user will be able to set a daily calorie goal

Validation of a small-animal PET simulation using GAMOS: a Geant4-based framework

onte Carlo-based modelling is a powerful tool to help in the design and optimization of positron emission tomography (PET) systems. The performance of these systems depends on several parameters, such as detector physical characteristics, shielding or electronics, whose effects can be studied on the basis of realistic simulated data. The aim of this paper is to validate a comprehensive study of the Raytest ClearPET small-animal PET scanner using a new Monte Carlo simulation platform which has been developed at CIEMAT (Madrid, Spain), called GAMOS (GEANT4-based Architecture for Medicine-Oriented Simulations). This toolkit, based on the GEANT4 code, was originally designed to cover multiple applications in the field of medical physics from radiotherapy to nuclear medicine, but has since been applied by some of its users in other fields of physics, such as neutron shielding, space physics, high energy physics, etc. Our simulation model includes the relevant characteristics of the ClearPET system, namely, the double layer of scintillator crystals in phoswich configuration, the rotating gantry, the presence of intrinsic radioactivity in the crystals or the storage of single events for an off-line coincidence sorting. Simulated results are contrasted with experimental acquisitions including studies of spatial resolution, sensitivity, scatter fraction and count rates in accordance with the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) NU 4-2008 protocol. Spatial resolution results showed a discrepancy between simulated and measured values equal to 8.4% (with a maximum FWHM difference over all measurement directions of 0.5 mm). Sensitivity results differ less than 1% for a 250–750 keV energy window. Simulated and measured count rates agree well within a wide range of activities, including under electronic saturation of the system (the measured peak of total coincidences, for the mouse-sized phantom, was 250.8 kcps reached at 0.95 MBq mL−1 and the simulated peak was 247.1 kcps at 0.87 MBq mL−1). Agreement better than 3% was obtained in the scatter fraction comparison study. We also measured and simulated a mini-Derenzo phantom obtaining images with similar quality using iterative reconstruction methods. We concluded that the overall performance of the simulation showed good agreement with the measured results and validates the GAMOS package for PET applications. Furthermore, its ease of use and flexibility recommends it as an excellent tool to optimize design features or image reconstruction techniques

S.6.1 β-catenin is a central mediator in SSc

Background. β-catenin is the central integrator of canonical Wnt signalling. Since recent evidence suggests a central role of Wnts in fibrosis, we examined the β-catenin/Wnt pathway in SSc and focused on the role of β-catenin in fibroblast activation. Methods. We performed qPCR for several Wnt ligands and axin-2 to examine Wnt expression in SSc skin. We further studied protein levels of Wnt-1, -4, -10b and β-catenin by IHC. To establish the effects of β-catenin/Wnt signalling on collagen release, we created mice with fibroblast-specific stabilization of β-catenin (dEx3 β-catenin (wt/fl) × Col1a2; Cre-ER) as well as mice carrying fibroblast-specific deletion of β-catenin [Ctnnb1(fl/fl) × Col1a2; Cre-ER]. Summary of the results. We could demonstrate mRNA overexpression of Wnt-1, -2, -9a, -9b, -10a, -10b and -16 in SSc skin. Wnt-1, -4 and -10b consistently showed strong expression in SSc skin when compared with healthy skin. On protein level, however, Wnt-4 was indistinguishable between SSc patients and healthy controls, whereas Wnt-1 and Wnt-10b protein levels were increased in SSc skin. The overexpression of Wnt-1 and Wnt-10b resulted in a prominent nuclear accumulation of β-catenin in fibroblasts. Finally, increased mRNA levels of the target gene axin-2 confirmed the activation of canonical Wnt signalling. In dEx3 β-catenin (wt/ex) mice, we addressed the consequences of enhanced Wnt signalling and increased accumulation of β-catenin in SSc. We selectively targeted β-catenin in fibroblasts. Cre-activated dEx3 β-catenin (wt/fl) × Col1a2; Cre-ER mice showed massive and spontaneous dermal thickening even 2 weeks after Cre activation. Eight weeks after Cre-activation, skin thickening cumulated at 102.6% (P < 0.001). In line with the dermal thickening, hydroxyproline content and myofibroblast counts showed strong increases. To test the therapeutic potential of targeting β-catenin/Wnt signaling, we created Ctnnb1(fl/fl) x Col1a2;Cre-ER mice to specifically delete β-catenin in fibroblasts. After Cre activation and β-catenin deletion in fibroblasts, mice were challenged with bleomycin subcutaneously for 4 weeks. We found that Cre-activated Ctnnb1(fl/fl) × Col1a2; Cre-ER mice were protected from bleomycin-induced dermal with a reduction of skin thickening by 71% (P < 0.05). Conclusions. We demonstrated a prominent activation of canonical Wnt signalling in SSc with nuclear accumulation of β-catenin in fibroblasts and activation of the target gene axin-2. Our results showed that fibroblast-specific stabilization of β-catenin resulted in enhanced collagen release, whereas deletion of β-catenin potently reduced collagen production. Together, our findings highlight a key role of β-catenin in fibroblast activation and fibrosis. Thus, β-catenin may be promising molecular target for anti-fibrotic therapie

Quantifying the leading role of the surface state in the Kondo effect of Co/Ag(111)

Using a combination of scanning tunneling spectroscopy and atomic lateral manipulation, we obtained a systematic variation of the Kondo temperature TK of Co atoms on Ag(111) as a function of the surface-state contribution to the total density of states at the atom adsorption site ρs. By sampling the TK of a Co atom on positions where ρs was spatially resolved beforehand, we obtain a nearly linear relationship between the magnitudes. We interpret the data on the basis of an Anderson model including orbital and spin degrees of freedom [SU(4)] in good agreement with the experimental findings. The fact that the onset of the surface band is near the Fermi level is crucial to finding the observed linear behavior. In light of this model, the quantitative analysis of the experimental data evidences that at least a quarter of the coupling of Co impurities with extended states takes place through the hybridization to surface states. This result is of fundamental relevance in the understanding of Kondo screening of magnetic impurities on noble-metal surfaces, where bulk and surface electronic states coexist.Fil: Moro Lagares, M.. Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; República Checa. Palacky University; República Checa. Universidad de Zaragoza. Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón; EspañaFil: Fernández, Joaquín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia del Área de Energía Nuclear. Instituto Balseiro; ArgentinaFil: Roura Bas, Pablo Gines. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia del Área de Energía Nuclear. Instituto Balseiro; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; ArgentinaFil: Ibarra, M.R.. Universidad de Zaragoza; EspañaFil: Aligia, Armando Ángel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte; Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Gerencia del Área de Energía Nuclear. Instituto Balseiro; ArgentinaFil: Serrate, D.. Universidad de Zaragoza; Españ