Report on the Raphitomidae Bellardi, 1875 (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Conoidea) from the China Seas

Li, Baoquan, Li, Xinzheng (2014): Report on the Raphitomidae Bellardi, 1875 (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Conoidea) from the China Seas. Journal of Natural History 48 (17): 999-1025, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2013.86193

DEEP-SEA GASTROPODS OF THE GENUS AFORIA (TURRIDAE) OF THE PACIFIC - SPECIES COMPOSITION, SYSTEMATICS, AND FUNCTIONAL-MORPHOLOGY OF THE DIGESTIVE-SYSTEM

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New insight into the soft anatomy and shell microstructures of early Cambrian orthothecids (Hyolitha)

Hyoliths (hyolithids and orthothecids) were one of the most successful early biomineralizing lophotrochozoans, and were a key component of the Cambrian evolutionary fauna. However, the morphology, skeletogenesis and anatomy of earliest members of this enigmatic clade, as well as its relationship with other lophotrochozoan phyla remain highly contentious. Here we present a new orthothecid, Longxiantheca mira gen. et sp. nov. preserved as part of the secondarily phosphatized Small Shelly Fossil assemblage from the lower Cambrian Xinji Formation of North China. Longxiantheca mira retains some ancestral traits of the clade with an undifferentiated disc-shaped operculum and a simple conical conch with a two-layered microstructure of aragonitic fibrous bundles. The operculum interior exhibits impressions of soft tissues, including muscle attachment scars, mantle epithelial cells and a central kidney-shaped platform in association with its feeding organ. Our study reveals that the muscular system and tentaculate feeding apparatus in orthothecids appear to be similar to that in hyolithids, suggesting a consistent anatomical configuration among the total group of hyoliths. The new finding of shell secreting cells demonstrates a mantle regulating mode of growth for the operculum. Taking all these data into considerations, especially on the basis of shell microstructures, we argue that hyoliths were an extinct sister group of molluscs

Effects of empagliflozin and L-ornithine L-aspartate on behavior, cognitive functions, and physical performance in mice with experimentally induced steatohepatitis

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a chronic condition characterized by disturbed carbohydrate and lipid metabolism and often complicated by psychoneurological symptoms, including anxiety, depression, memory deficit, and asthenia. Most studies of pharmacotherapy candidates for NAFLD focus on the ability of the tested drugs to restore the biochemical functions and morphology of the liver while their potential effects on the co-existing conditions remain overlooked. The aim of this paper was to investigate the effects of empagliflozin and L-ornithine L-aspartate (OA) on behavior, memory, and physical performance in C57BL/6 mice with experimentally induced NAFLD (6 months of a Western diet + weekly carbon tetrachloride injections). The disease affected animal behavior (locomotion speed decreased by 38% and 35%, p &lt; 0.01; rearing increased by 432% and 279%, p &lt; 0.05 etc.), induced long-term memory deficit (latency to find the target box increased by 108% in the Barnes maze, the number of errors increased by 439%, p &lt; 0.05), and compromised physical performance (swimming time in the forced swim test dropped by 50%, p &lt; 0.05 etc.). When administered during the high-calorie diet period, both drugs reduced anxiety (empagliflozin: the number of grooming bouts rose by 160%, p &lt; 0.05 and 2173%, p &lt; 0.01; time spent in the light compartment in the light/dark box test increased by 275%, p &lt; 0.05, etc.; OA: time spent in the open arms of the maze increased by 267%, p &lt; 0.05), and promoted memory retention in mice with NAFLD. OA improved physical performance (swimming time in the forced swimming test improved by 106%, p &lt; 0.05, etc.). Thus, empagliflozin and OA can have a beneficial effect on cognitive functions, as well as behavior, and ameliorate asthenia in NAFLD.</jats:p

High-Throughput Heterogeneous Integration of Diverse Nanomaterials on a Single Chip for Sensing Applications

There is a large variety of nanomaterials each with unique electronic, optical and sensing properties. However, there is currently no paradigm for integration of different nanomaterials on a single chip in a low-cost high-throughput manner. We present a high throughput integration approach based on spatially controlled dielectrophoresis executed sequentially for each nanomaterial type to realize a scalable array of individually addressable assemblies of graphene, carbon nanotubes, metal oxide nanowires and conductive polymers on a single chip. This is a first time where such a diversity of nanomaterials has been assembled on the same layer in a single chip. The resolution of assembly can range from mesoscale to microscale and is limited only by the size and spacing of the underlying electrodes on chip used for assembly. While many applications are possible, the utility of such an array is demonstrated with an example application of a chemical sensor array for detection of volatile organic compounds below parts-per-million sensitivity