Environmental impact from mountainous olive orchards under different soil-management systems (SE Spain)

Soil erosion, runoff and nutrient-loss patterns over a two-year period (1999-2000) were monitored in erosion plots on a mountainside with olive (Olea europaea cv. Picual) trees under three different types of soil management: (1) non-tillage with barley (Hordeum vulgare) strips of 4 m width (BS); (2) conventional tillage (CT); (3) non-tillage without plant strips (NT). The erosion plots, located in Lanjaron (Alpujarras) on the southern flank of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in south-eastern Spain, had 30% slope at an altitude of 565 m and 192 m(2) (24x8 m) in area. The highest erosion and runoff values, ranging from 10.5 to 40.7 t ha(-1) yr(-1) and from 26.5 to 51.5 mm yr(-1), respectively, over the entire study period, were measured under NT. In CT, erosion ranged from 1.0 to 10.4 t ha(-1) yr(-1) and runoff from 6.7 to 15.2 mm yr(-1), while under BS, erosion ranged from 1.7 to 2.4 t ha(-1) yr(-1) and runoff from 19.6 to 20.0 mm yr(-1). It is concluded that the BS and CT reduced the soil erosion by 92% and 78%, with respect to the NT, and the runoff by 49% and 72%, respectively. The total NPK losses (sediments and runoff) from BS averaged 0.87, 0.07 and 0.72 kg ha(-1), from CT 1.82, 0.11 and 0.97 kg ha(-1) and from NT 3.15, 0.29 and 2.45 kg ha(-1), respectively. In addition, nutrient concentrations in the surface runoff were higher than the recommended level for standard water quality for N-NO(3), N-NH(4) and soluble P, particularly from NT and CT. These results support the recommendation of non-tillage with barley strips for sloped agricultural land in order to reduce erosion and pollution.     

SECURING VEHICULAR COMMUNICATIONS

The road to a successful introduction of vehicular communications has to pass through the analysis of potential security threats and the design of a robust security architecture able to cope with these threats. In this article we undertake this challenge. In addition to providing a survey of related academic and industrial efforts, we also outline several open problems     

Ultra-high field diffusion tensor imaging of articular cartilage correlated with histology and scanning electron microscopy

Object

To investigate the relationship of the different diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) parameters (ADC, FA, and first eigenvector (EV)) to the constituents (proteoglycans and collagen), the zonal arrangement of the collagen network, and mechanical loading of articular cartilage.

Material and methods

DTI of eight cartilage-on-bone samples of healthy human patellar cartilage was performed at 17.6 T. Three samples were additionally imaged under indentation loading. After DTI, samples underwent biomechanical testing, safranin-O staining for semiquantitative proteoglycan estimation, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for depicting collagen architecture.

Results

From the articular surface to the bone–cartilage interface, ADC continuously decreased and FA increased. Cartilage zonal heights calculated from EVs strongly correlated with SEM-derived zonal heights (P r ²=0.87). Compression reduced ADC in the superficial 30% of cartilage and increased FA in the superficial 5% of cartilage. Reorientation of the EVs indicative of collagen fiber reorientation under the indenter was observed. No significant correlation was found between ADC, FA, and compressive stiffness.

Conclusions

Correlating ADC and FA with proteoglycan and collagen content suggests that diffusion is dominated by different depth-dependent mechanisms within cartilage. Knowledge of the spatial distribution of the DTI parameters and their variation contributes to form a database for future analysis of defective cartilage.     

Eviction of Misbehaving and Faulty Nodes in Vehicular Networks

Vehicular networks (VNs) are emerging, among civilian applications, as a convincing instantiation of the mobile networking technology. However, security is a critical factor and a significant challenge to be met. Misbehaving or faulty network nodes have to be detected and prevented from disrupting network operation, a problem particularly hard to address in the life-critical VN environment. Existing networks rely mainly on node certificate revocation for attacker eviction, but the lack of an omnipresent infrastructure in VNs may unacceptably delay the retrieval of the most recent and relevant revocation information; this will especially be the case in the early deployment stages of such a highly volatile and large-scale system. In this paper, we address this specific problem. We propose protocols, as components of a framework, for the identification and local containment of misbehaving or faulty nodes, and then for their eviction from the system. We tailor our design to the VN characteristics and analyze our system. Our results show that the distributed approach to contain nodes and contribute to their eviction is efficiently feasible and achieves a sufficient level of robustness.     

MiR-199a-3p Induces Mesenchymal to Epithelial Transition of Keratinocytes by Targeting RAP2B

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) is an epidermal skin cancer that evolves from normal epidermis along several pre-malignant stages. Previously we found specific miRNAs alterations in each step along these stages. miR-199a-3p expression decreases at the transition to later stages. A crucial step for epithelial carcinoma cells to acquire invasive capacity is the disruption of cell–cell contacts and the gain of mesenchymal motile phenotype, a process known as epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). This study aims to study the role of decreased expression of miR-199a-3p in keratinocytes’ EMT towards carcinogenesis. First, we measured miR-199a-3p in different stages of epidermal carcinogenesis. Then, we applied Photoactivatable Ribonucleoside-Enhanced Crosslinking and Immunoprecipitation (PAR-CLIP) assay to search for possible biochemical targets of miR-199a-3p and verified that Ras-associated protein B2 (RAP2B) is a bona-fide target of miR-199a-3p. Next, we analyzed RAP2B expression, in CSCC biopsies. Last, we evaluated possible mechanisms leading to decreased miR-199a-3p expression. miR-199a-3p induces a mesenchymal to epithelial transition (MET) in CSSC cells. Many of the under-expressed genes in CSCC overexpressing miR-199a-3p, are possible targets of miR-199a-3p and play roles in EMT. RAP2B is a biochemical target of miR-199a-3p. Overexpression of miR-199a-3p in CSCC results in decreased phosphorylated focal adhesion kinase (FAK). In addition, inhibiting FAK phosphorylation inhibits EMT marker genes’ expression. In addition, we proved that DNA methylation is part of the mechanism by which miR-199a-3p expression is inhibited. However, it is not by the methylation of miR-199a putative promoter. These findings suggest that miR-199a-3p inhibits the EMT process by targeting RAP2B. Inhibitors of RAP2B or FAK may be effective therapeutic agents for CSCC.     

Triarylphosphine Ligands with Hemilabile Alkoxy Groups: Ligands for Nickel(II)‐Catalyzed Olefin Dimerization Reactions. Hydrovinylation of Vinylarenes, 1,3‐Dienes,and Cycloisomerization of 1,6‐Dienes

Substitution of one of the phenyl groups of triphenylphosphine with a 2‐benzyloxy‐, 2‐benzyloxymethyl‐ or 2‐benzyloxyethyl‐phenyl moiety results in a set of simple ligands, which exhibit strikingly different behaviour in various nickel(II)‐catalyzed olefin dimerization reactions. Complexes of ligands with 2‐benzyloxyphenyl‐ and 2‐benzyloxymethylphenyldiphenylphosphine ( L5 and L6 , respectively) are most active for hydrovinylation (HV) of vinylarenes, with the former leading to extensive isomerization of the primary 3‐aryl‐1‐butenes into the conjugated 2‐aryl‐2‐butenes even at −55 °C. However, 2‐benzyloxymethyl‐substituted ligand L6 is slightly less active, affording up to quantitative yields of the primary products of HV at ambient temperature with no trace of isomerization, thus providing the best option for a practical synthesis of these compounds. In sharp contrast, hydrovinylation of a variety of 1,3‐dienes is best catalyzed by nickel(II) complexes of 2‐benzyloxyphenyldiphenylphosphine, L5 . The other two ligands, 2‐benzyloxymethyl‐ ( L6 ) and 2‐benzyloxyethyldiphenylphosphine ( L7 ) are much less effective in the HV of 1,3‐dienes. Nickel(II)‐catalyzed cycloisomerization of 1,6‐dienes into methylenecyclopentanes, a reaction mechanistically related to the other hydrovinylation reactions, is also uniquely effected by nickel(II) complexes of L5 , but not of L6 or L7 . In an attempt to prepare authentic samples of the methylencyclohexane products, nickel(II) complexes of N‐heterocyclic carbene ligands were examined. In sharp contrast to the phosphines, which give the methylenecyclopentanes, methylenecyclohexanes are the major products in the (N‐heterocyclic carbene)nickel(II)‐mediated reactions.

     

Meat production using four terminal pig lines

The influence of terminal sire (Duroc (D1 and D2), Large White/Pietrain (LW/P) and Large White (LW)) on several meat production and meat quality traits was investigated in 452 male and female offspring of Landrace/Large White dams. Age at slaughter, carcass length, carcass weight and dressing yield were similar for all lines, as was the production of shoulders, chops, and ribs with bacon. D2‐sired pigs produced more noble pieces as a percentage of their carcass weight than the other three lines. LW/P‐ and LW‐sired pigs were generally leaner than Duroc‐sired pigs. LW/P and LW pigs had the highest percentage of cuts (longissimus dorsi and semimembranosus muscle) classified as pale, soft and exudative (PSE) meat. There were no large differences between the lines in the occurrence of dark, firm and dry (DFD) cuts. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry