Noradrenaline and sensory preconditioning in the rat.

Two experiments investigated the effect of noradrenaline (NA) depletion following intraperitoneal administration of the neurotoxin N-2-chloroethyl-N-ethyl-2-bromobenzylamine ({dsp4}[50 mg/kg]) on sensory preconditioning in male Sprague-Dawley rats. For sensory preconditioning, a saccharin taste conditioned stimulus (CS?) and a special type of drinking bottle (noisy bottle) were paired during Phase 1. During Phase 2, the noisy bottle (CS?) was paired with lithium chloride, and during Phase 3 the aversion to saccharin (CS?) was tested in saccharin preference tests. {dsp4} treatment disrupted Ss' ability to form sensory preconditioning, and this effect could not be explained on the basis of enhanced neophobia, stimulus generalization, or a deficit in 1st-order conditioning in {dsp4}-treated Ss. Findings are discussed in relation to issues of associative learning such as contextual control of latent inhibition and extinction. Data suggest that NA-depleted rats fail to form associations between the CS? and CS? during sensory preconditioning and are consisitent with other data from compound conditioning experiments on the functional role of NA in learning and memory. (53 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Control of Selective Catalytic Reduction Systems Using Feedback Linearisation

This paper discusses the identification and control of a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system. SCR after‐treatment systems form an important technology for reducing the nitrogen oxides, NO_x, produced by diesel engines. To be able to control the system, i.e. reducing the output NO_x, good models of the after‐treatment system are essential. In this paper a nonlinear black‐box model is identified using a recursive prediction error method. The nonlinear model is applied for design of a controller using feedback linearization techniques including an adaptive strategy. A linear quadratic Gaussian controller is used for the control of the linearized system. A total of 17 parameters were estimated for the nonlinear model. The results indicate that output NO_x control using feedback linearization based on a second order black‐box nonlinear model is feasible, provided that identification or adaptivity is used for model tuning. The latter requirement is a result of a study of the robustness. In summary, the paper indicates that significant improvements as compared to linear control can be obtained with the proposed strategy.     

What It Means to “Eat Well” in France and Sweden 1

ABSTRACT Trichinosis led to a ban on the importation of American cured meats in several European countries, including France, throughout the 1880s. Although members of the scientific community proposed contradictory hypotheses on the stability and reliability of epidemiological knowledge, history shows us that scientific uncertainty concerning food safety is more often the rule than the exception. The result is reinforced by the increasingly common ground between science and economic activity (scientific farming, feeding processes, food conservation, etc.) on the one hand, and between science and state activity on the other (expertise). The trichinosis crisis would have been impossible without the unstable nature of the markets and without the rise of the welfare state in a majority of European countries. This is why the solutions proposed were either a total ban or the establishment of a system of controls.     

Paralinear Oxidation of Chromium in O2 + H2O Environment at 600–700 °C

The oxidation of chromium in dry O₂ and in O₂ + 10%H₂O at 600 and 700 °C is studied. Scale morphology is investigated by several methods, including scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of cross sections prepared by focussed ion beam milling (FIB). In O₂ + H₂O at 600 and 700 °C, chromium forms a duplex scale consisting of an inner barrier oxide and a discontinuous outer oxide made up of blade-shaped crystals. Thermogravimetric (TG) measurements show that water vapour influences chromium oxidation by causing vaporization of the protective oxide, resulting in paralinear oxidation kinetics. An extension of the original treatment by Tedmon is deduced, which allows for the determination of the evaporation rate constant k _s and the parabolic oxidation rate constant k _d from TG data acquired during short exposures. The results show that k _d is the same in dry O₂ and in O₂ + 10%H₂O. Equivalently, the transport properties of chromia are the same in the two environments. The equilibrium constant of CrO₂(OH)₂ formation from chromia is reported. The activation enthalpy of the vaporization reaction is determined.     

Complexation of copper(ll) in organic soils and in dissolved organic matter--EXAFS evidence for chelate ring structures

Associations with functional groups of natural organic matter (NOM) are of great importance for bioavailability, toxicity, and mobility of trace metals in soils and waters. In this study, the coordination chemistry of copper, Cu(ll), in organic soils and dissolved organic matter (DOM) from soils and streams was investigated by extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy. In both soil organic matter (SOM) and DOM (990-11 000 microg Cu g(-1) dryweight, pH 2.8-6.3), Cu(ll) was coordinated by 4 oxygen/ nitrogen (O/N) atoms at a distance of 1.92-1.95 angstroms in the first coordination shell. These four atoms are positioned in the equatorial plane of a Jahn-Teller distorted octahedron. In samples with a pH of 4.8-6.3, a second coordination shell with 2.0-3.8 C atoms was located at a distance of 2.76-2.86 angstroms. A significant improvement (19-39%) of the fit was obtained by including a third coordination shell with 2.0-3.8 O/C atoms involved in single scattering at an average distance of 3.69 angstroms and multiple scattering at an average distance of 4.19 angstroms. Our results provide evidence for inner-sphere complexation of Cu(ll) in NOM and suggest that Cu(ll) is complexed by either one or two five-membered chelate rings involving possible combinations of amino, carboxyl, or carbonyl functional groups. Ion activity measurements showed that less than 0.2% of total Cu was in the form of free Cu2+ in our samples at pH 4.8-6.3.     

Injection-salting of pre rigor fillets of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

ABSTRACT:  The effects of temperature (−1, 4, and 10 °C), brine concentration (12% and 25% NaCl), injection volumes, and needle densities were investigated on fillet weight gain (%), salt content (%), fillet contraction (%), and muscle gaping in pre rigor brine-injected fillets of Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ). Increased brine concentration (12% to 25%) significantly increased the initial (< 5 min after injection) and final contraction (24 h after injection) of pre rigor fillets. Increased brine concentration significantly reduced weight gain and increased salt content but had no significant effect on muscle gaping. The temperatures tested did not significantly affect weight gain, fillet contraction, or gaping score. Significant regressions ( P < 0.01) between the injection volume and weight gain (range: 2.5% to 15.5%) and salt content (range: 1.7% to 6.5%) were observed for injections of pre rigor fillets. Double injections significantly increased the weight gain and salt content compared to single injections. Initial fillet contraction measured 30 min after brine injection increased significantly ( P < 0.01) with increasing brine injection volume but no significant difference in the fillet contraction was observed 12 h after brine injection (range: 7.9% to 8.9%). Brine-injected post rigor control fillets obtained higher weight gain, higher salt content, more muscle gaping, and significantly lower fillet contraction compared to the pre rigor injected fillets.
Injection-salting is an applicable technology as a means to obtain satisfactory salt contents and homogenously distribute the salt into the muscle of pre rigor fillets of Atlantic salmon before further processing steps such as drying and smoking.     

Synthesis and characterization of surface-active compounds derived from cholesterol derivatives and glucose

The synthesis and characterization of surface-active compounds based on various steroid derivatives and glucose are presented. The hydrophobic and hydrophilic parts of the compounds were linked via glucosidic bonds. All compounds were found to have very low water solubility and only limited solubility in various organic solvents. The compounds were investigated according to their ability to interact with an anionic surfactant, sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS), in order to induce a decrease in the critical micelle concentration (CMC) of the surfactants. This synergistic effect was pronounced for cholestanol-6-on-β-D-glucopyranoside and for cholestan-3,6-diol-β-D-glucopyranoside. These two compounds lowered the CMC from 8 to 6 and 0.6 mM, respectively, for water solutions of SDS/glucoside with a molar ratio of 92∶8. Furthermore, the ability of the compounds to stabilize lipid membranes, in liposomes, at varying concentrations of Ca²⁺, was studied. The compounds were, as expected, found to induced stabilization similar to that of cholesterol.     

Structures,absolute configurations,and syntheses of volatile signals from three sympatric ant-lion species,Euroleon nostras,Grocus bore,andMyrmeleon formicarius (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae)

The thoracic gland of the ant-lionEuroleon nostras was found to contain nerol oxide (1a) and (Z)-6-undecen-2-ol (nostrenol,3) while the speciesGrocus bore contained 10-homonerol oxide (1b) and nostrenol (3). Nerol (2a) and 10-homonerol (2b) were found in a third species,Myrmeleon formicarius. 10-Homonerol, racemic 10-homonerol oxide, and racemic as well as (R)- and (S)-nostrenol were synthesized. The nerol oxide ofE. nostras and the 10-homonerol oxide ofG. bore were found to be racemic, while both species contained optically pure (R)-nostrenol (28).Visiting research scientists from Institute of Photographic Chemistry, Academia Sinica, Beijing, China (H. H.-Z.) and Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Academia Sinica, 345 Ling Lu, Shanghai, China (L. G.-Q.).