Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Use of selective antagonists to dissociate the central cardiovascular and behavioural effects of tachykinins on NK1 and NK2 receptors in the rat

1 The effects of intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) pretreatment with selective NK1 ((±)‐CP 96,345), NK2a (MEN 10,207; MEN 10,376) and NK2b (R 396) tachykinin receptor antagonists on the cardiovascular and behavioural responses to i.c. v. substance P (SP) and neurokinin A (NKA) were studied in conscious rats. 2 SP and NKA (25 pmol) induced mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate increases of the same magnitude and duration. The cardiovascular responses to both peptides were accompanied by excessive face washing, sniffing, grooming and wet dog shakes. 3 The cardiovascular responses to SP but not to NKA were attenuated by pretreatment with a NK1 receptor antagonist, (±)‐CP 96,345. Of the behavioural responses, only face washing was significantly inhibited. 4 The cardiovascular and behavioural effects of NKA but not of SP were significantly attenuated by pretreatment with the selective NK2b receptor antagonist, R 396. 5 The selective NK2a receptor antagonists, MEN 10,207 and MEN 10,376, did not affect the cardiovascular and behavioural responses to either SP or NKA. 6 These results suggest, firstly, that the cardiovascular and behavioural effects of i.c. v. SP are mediated by NK1 receptors; secondly, that NKA injected i.c. v. does not interact with NK1 receptors but with another type of tachykinin receptor which may belong to the NK2b subclass. These findings provide pharmacological evidence for the existence of functionally active NK2 receptors in the rat brain.
Synthesis, Characterization, and Reactivity of Layered Inorganic−Organic Nanocomposites Based on 2:1 Trioctahedral Phyllosilicates

A series of layered magnesium organosilicate nanocomposites that contain covalently linked organic functionalities have been prepared by a one-step, direct synthesis procedure. The in situ reactivity of organic moieties (e.g., phenyl, thiol) within the layered inorganic−organic nanocomposites, as well as the potential use of thiol-containing materials as host matrixes for the organized deposition of gold nanoparticles, are described.
Chemical Composition of the Essential Oils Obtained From the Flower, Leaf and Stem of Artemisia campestris L. From Iran

Abstract The composition of the essential oils obtained from the flowers, leaves and stems of Artemisia campestris L. were analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Nineteen compounds representing 95.4% of the oil were identified in the flower oil, 22 compounds making up 90.3% of the oil were characterized in the oil obtained from leaves, and 14 compounds representing 96.7% of the stem oil of A. campestris were identified. α-Pinene (23.9%, 23.0% and 29.2%) and spathulenol (23.9%, 15.8% and 29.2%) were the main constituents in the flower, leaf and stem oils, respectively. The other main component of the flower oil was bicyclogermacrene (12.0%) and of the leaf oil β-pinene (12.6%). No significant difference was observed between compositions of flower, leaf and stem oils.
Electrical model of an atmospheric pressure Townsend-like discharge (APTD)

The aim of this paper is the modeling of a dielectric barrier discharge at atmospheric pressure, in the Townsend regime. This model is based on an equivalent electrical circuit. It takes into account the main physical phenomena of the discharge. This model allows to have a general view of the process and to study the influence of the power supply on the discharge. It is also an interesting tool for the power supply design and the process optimization.
Eulerian–Lagrangian RANS Model Simulations of the NIST Turbulent Methanol Spray Flame

A methanol spray flame in a combustion chamber of the NIST was simulated using an Eulerian–Lagrangian RANS model. Experimental data and previous numerical investigations by other researchers on this flame were analyzed to develop methods for more comprehensive model validation. The inlet boundary conditions of the spray were generated using semi-empirical models representing atomization, collision, coalescence, and secondary breakup. Experimental information on the trajectory of the spray was used to optimize the parameters of the pressure-swirl atomizer model. The standard k-ϵ turbulence model was used with enhanced wall treatment. A detailed reaction mechanism of gaseous combustion of methanol was used in the frame of the steady laminar flamelet model. The radiative transfer equations were solved using the discrete ordinates method. In general, the predicted mean velocity components of the gaseous flow and the droplets, the droplet number density, and the Sauter mean diameter (SMD) of the droplets at various heights in the present study show good agreement with the experimental data. Special attention is paid to the relative merits of the employed method to set inlet boundary conditions compared to the alternative method of using a measured droplet size and velocity distribution.
Crystal and molecular structure of organophosphorus insecticides. 3. Azinphos-methyl

The crystal and molecular structure of azinphos-methyl (O,O-dimethyl S-(4-oxo-1,2,3-benzotriazin-3-yl)methyl phosphorodithioate), C/sub 10/H/sub 12/N/sub 3/O/sub 3/PS/sub 2/, has been determined by three-dimensional x-ray analysis. The compound crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2/sub 1//c with a = 12.084 +- 0.007, b = 15.190 +- 0.008, c = 7.856 +- 0.003 A, and . beta. = 98.39 +- 0.03/sup 0/ with Z = 4. Graphite-monochromated Mo K.cap alpha. radiation (lambda = 0.70954 A) was used for measurement of diffraction data at 10/sup 0/C. The structure was solved via direct methods and refined by a full-matrix least-squares procedure to a final discrepancy index of R = 0.080. The phosphorus-(carbonyl carbon) distance corresponding to the anionic-esteratic site separation of acetylcholinesterase is 4.83 (2) A for azinphos-methyl in the solid state. No appreciable intramolecular interactions which might limit the accommodation of a large range of anionic-esteratic separations were observed.
The thermodynamic ladder in geomicrobiology

A tenet of geomicrobiology is that anaerobic life in the subsurface arranges itself into zones, according to a thermodynamic ladder. Iron reducers, given access to ferric minerals, use their energetic advantage to preclude sulfate reduction. Sulfate reducers exclude methanogens in the same way, by this tenet, wherever the environment provides sulfate. Examining usable energy—the energy in excess of a cell's internal stores—in subsurface environments, we find that in groundwater of near neutral pH the three functional groups see roughly equivalent amounts. Iron reducers hold a clear energetic advantage under acidic conditions, but may be unable to grow in alkaline environments. The calculations fail to identify a fixed thermodynamic hierarchy among the groups. In long-term bioreactor experiments, usable energy did not govern microbial activity. Iron reducers and sulfate reducers, instead of competing for energy, entered into a tightly balanced mutualistic relationship. Results of the study show thermodynamics does not invariably favor iron reducers relative to sulfate reducers, which in turn do not necessarily have an energetic advantage over methanogens. The distribution of microbial life in the subsurface is controlled by ecologic and physiologic factors, and cannot be understood in terms of thermodynamics alone.
Influences of the alkoxy group number and treatment condition on the structure of glycidoxy functional silane-treated layer on silica particles analyzed by 1H pulse NMR

The surface treatment of spherical silica particles using a silane coupling agent with a glycidoxy group was conducted and the effect of the alkoxy group number on the molecular mobility of the silane chain was investigated by 1H pulse nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Silanes with di-alkoxy and tri-alkoxy structures were used, and the silica particles were treated with 2-propanol solution and heated at 120 °C for 24 h after solvent evaporation. The surface coverage of the silica surface was in the range from two to three layers. For multilayer coverage, linear chain and network structures were expected to form on the surface by polycondensation reaction using the di- and tri-alkoxy structures, respectively. However, the relaxation times for silane chains with both di- and tri-alkoxy structures measured by pulse NMR were short, which indicates that both silane chains formed rigid network structures. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic analysis revealed that ring opening of the epoxy group occurred, followed by reaction to form the network structure, even with the di-alkoxy structure. Ring opening of the epoxy group could be reduced by setting the heating temperature at 80 °C. There was a significant difference in flexibility between the silane-layers with di- and tri-alkoxy structures after heating at 80 °C, as reflected by the relaxation time.
Light transmittance of continuous fibre-reinforced composites: Analysis, model experiment and parametric study

Abstract The light transmittance of unidirectionally aligned continuous fibre-reinforced composites at visible wavelengths were studied. Analysis was made of the light transmittance of a single-fibre composite, and the results were extended to the analysis of a multiple-fibre composite. A model experiment was carried out using a continuous SiO2-fibre-reinforced epoxy matrix composite. The experimentally obtained light transmittance of the composite perpendicular to the fibre axis was compared with the developed theoretical analysis and good agreement was obtained. Numerical simulations were carried out to obtain the higher light transmittance of the composite. The effects of firstly the refractive index mismatch between the fibre and the matrix, secondly the fibre radius and thirdly, the volume fraction on the transmittance are discussed using the developed analytical model. Key guidelines for obtaining high light transmittance of fibre-reinforced composites are discussed using the analytical results.
Essential oil composition of Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume leaves from Little Andaman, India

The leaf oil of Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume grown in Little Andaman was analysed by GC and GC-MS. Forty-seven constituents, representing 99.96% of the oil, were identified. The main constituents of the oil were eugenol (76.60%), linalool (8.5%) and piperitone (3.31%). The composition of the oil is comparable to cinnamon leaf oil produced in Bangalore and Hyderabad (south India) in terms of eugenol and linalool contents.
Water Dynamics in Microemulsion Droplets. A Nuclear Spin Relaxation Study

The state of water in aqueous microemulsion droplets in the system AOT/D2O/isooctane has been investigated by 2H and 17O NMR. Longitudinal relaxation rates are reported as a function of droplet size, droplet volume fraction, temperature, and resonance frequency. We conclude that the surface-induced perturbation of water rotation is of short range (limited to the primary hydration of the AOT head groups) and of modest magnitude (less than a factor of 10 slower rotation than in bulk water).
Factors determining the effect of Co(II) in the ordered double perovskite structure: Sr2CoTeO6

Double perovskites are of interest due to their diverse properties that are of potential use in technological applications. In order to determine the effect of Co(II) in the double perovskite structure in the absence of other paramagnetic species, mixed valency or mis-site disorder, we have studied the ordered perovskite Sr2CoTeO6 synthesised by the freeze-drying method. The room temperature monoclinic P21/n symmetry (a = 5.6437(2) A, b = 5.6096(2) A, c = 7.9271(2) A, β = 90.059(2)°) is maintained down to 4 K with structural transitions to I2/m then Fmm at 373 K (100 °C) and 773 K (500 °C). Below TN = 18 K, the Type I antiferromagnetic structure is observed with magnetic moments of magnitude 2.25(3) μB rotated 58° out of the ab plane. AC magnetic susceptibility and specific heat data show maxima at 19 K, associated with long-range antiferromagnetic order. EPR and diffuse reflectance spectroscopies confirm that Co is in the +2 oxidation state, in highly regular octahedral coordination and is highly ionic. A small magnetic irreversibility, with Hc and Mr of 36 Oe and 0.5 emu mol−1, is observed at low temperature but this is not due to conventional spin glass or cluster glass behaviour. Calculations from specific heat give a magnetic entropy of 4.2 J mol−1 K−1, close to the theoretical value for the S′ = ½ state of the Co2+ cation at low temperature. Distortions of the structure, demonstrated to be primarily rotations of highly regular octahedra, change the geometry of the magnetic exchange pathways but are insufficient to explain the variation in ordering temperatures and magnetic structure types observed, with orbital energies within the exchange pathways having a significant influence on the properties of these and similar technologically important materials.
Microbial deposition in porous media: A surface thermodynamic investigation

A microbial transport study of Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseudomonas putida, and Pseudomonas sp. through a model medium of silica gel demonstrated that bacterial deposition in porous media was determined by interfacial interactions between bacteria and the medium as well as interfacial interactions between deposited and suspended bacterial cells. The clean bed collision efficiency, α 0 was an exponential function of ΔG 132 TOT (sum of ΔG 132 LW , free energy of van der Waals interactions and ΔG 132 AB , free energy of Lewis acid/base interactions between bacteria, and the medium matrix at the equilibrium distance). The blocking factor, B, that depicts the ratio of the blocked area to the geometric area of the medium surface, was an exponential function of ΔG 131 TOT (sum of ΔG 131 LW , free energy of van der Waals interactions and ΔG 131 AB , free energy of Lewis acid/base interactions between deposited and suspended bacterial cells at the equilibrium distance). Among the bacterial strains studied, P. aeruginosa had the greatest α 0 (0.151) and the greatest B (606.5) because P. aeruginosa had the smallest ΔG 132 TOT (-11.6 kT) the greatest ΔG 131 TOT (16.0 kT).
Pressure-induced phase transition of lead phosphate Pb3(PO4)2: X-ray diffraction and XANES

Lead phosphate Pb3(PO4)2 was investigated by in situ synchrotron radiation X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) combined with diamond anvil cell technique up to 60.9 GPa. A pressure-induced phase transition of Pb3(PO4)2 was observed from monoclinic (C2/c) to trigonal () phases at about 1.7 GPa at room temperature. The high-pressure annealing experiment indicates that the trigonal phase of Pb3(PO4)2 is stable at least up to 60.9 GPa. Isothermal pressure–volume relationship of trigonal Pb3(PO4)2 is well described by the third-order Birch–Murnaghan equation of state with V0 = 533(1) Å3, K0 = 89(4) GPa and K0′ = 5.8(2). In trigonal Pb3(PO4)2, the a-axis is more compressible than the c-axis, showing an anisotropy elasticity. XANES results reveal the evolution of Pb local environment, i.e. the first-shell coordination number of Pb1 changes from 9 to 12 and the average Pb–O bond length increases at the crossover of C2/c-to- phase transition.
Coordination compounds in nuclear medicine

Radiopharmaceuticals, drugs containing a radionuclide, are used routinely in nuclear medicine departments for the diagnosis of disease and are under investigation for use in the treatment of disease. Nuclear medicine takes advantage of both the nuclear properties of the radionuclide and the pharmacological properties of the radiopharmaceutical. Herein lies the real strength of nuclear medicine, the ability to monitor biochemical and physiological functions in vivo. This review discusses the coordination chemistry that forms the basis for nuclear medicine applications of the FDA-approved radiopharmaceuticals that are in clinical use, and of the most promising diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals that are in various stages of development. 232 refs.
Hong Kong Student Teachers' Responses to Peer Group Process Writing

Although process approaches to the development of writing skills are not new, there is still far from widespread use of such approaches in Hong Kong and in Asia. One reason for this might be teachers' lack of exposure to these approaches during their initial teacher training. This study explores how brief, but hands on, experience of peer group process writing influenced and shaped the way a group of 100 student teachers in Hong Kong subsequently thought and felt about their experience. Although some of the student teachers had reservations after experiencing this approach, the majority saw language and learning benefits resulting from its use, including finding it easier to get help from peers than from the teacher and gaining greater understanding than if they were working alone.
Changes in chemical properties of organic matter with intensified rice cropping in tropical lowland soil

Summary Rice systems in Asia have intensified rapidly in the past 30 years, and significant areas of irrigated lowland rice are now supporting two or three rice crops per year. Our objective was to compare the chemical composition of soil organic matter (SOM) from four fields with different histories of rice cropping intensity and soil submergence: (i) a single-crop rainfed, dryland rice system without soil submergence, (ii) an irrigated rice and soybean rotation, and irrigated (iii) double- or (iv) triple-crop rice systems in which soil remains submerged during much of the year. In all four soils, extracted mobile humic acid (MHA) and calcium humate (CaHA) fractions were of modern age by 14C-dating, and represented about 20% of total N and organic C. The MHA was enriched in N and hydrolysable amino acids (AA) compared with CaHA in all soils. With increased frequency of irrigated rice cropping, however, there was a large increase in phenolic content of SOM. We speculate that slower lignin decomposition caused by deficiency of O2 in submerged soil leads to incorporation of phenolic moieties into young SOM fractions. The increased phenolic character of these fractions may influence N cycling and the N supplying capacity of lowland soils supporting two or three annual crops of irrigated rice.
Albedo da superfície por meio de imagens TM-Landsat 5 e modelo numérico do terreno

This study aimed at to estimate the surface albedo in the Corumbatai River Basin, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil, using TM-Landsat 5 images, together with the Digital Terrain Model (DTM), in order to take into account the terrain slope, as well as the Mapping Evapotranspiration at High Resolution and with Internalized Calibration (METRIC) model. Available ancillary data from a meteorological station located in the study area, and ten images from 01/02/2009, 04/02/2010, 22/04/2009, 24/05/2009, 12/06/2010, 08/07/2008, 30/07/2010, 31/08/2010, 13/09/2009 and 31/10/2009, were also used. The use of TM-LANDSAT 5 images with the METRIC model and the DTM, allowed to identify the spatial and temporal variations of different coverages on the mapping of surface albedo of the Corumbatai River Basin. The data were consistent with those presented in the literature for sugarcane, water, pasture and eucalypt, for satellite images of clear-sky days.
Mechanism and kinetics of ordering in diblock copolymer thin films on chemically nanopatterned substrates

Lamellae forming diblock copolymer domains can be directed to assemble without defects and in registration with chemically nanopatterned substrates. Initially, thin films of the lamellar poly(styrene-b-methyl methacrylate) block copolymer form hexagonally close-packed styrene domains when annealed on chemical nanopatterned striped surfaces. These styrene domains then coalesce to form linear styrene domains that are not fully registered with the underlying chemical surface pattern. Defects coarsen, until defect-free directed assembly is obtained, by breaking linear styrene domains and reforming new structures until registered lamellae have been formed. At all stages in the process, two factors play an important role in the observed degree of registration of the block copolymer domains as a function of annealing time: the interfacial energy between the blocks of the copolymer and the chemically nanopatterned substrate and the commensurability of the bulk repeat period of the block copolymer and the substrate pattern period. Insight into the time-dependent three-dimensional behavior of the block copolymer structures is gained from single chain in mean field simulations. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 3444–3459, 2005
Hepatoprotective effect of the aqueous extract of leaves of Acalypha racemosa in carbon tetrachloride treated rats

The effects of simultaneous treatment of CCl4 (i.p) with 60 mg/kg (p.o) of aqueous extract of leaves of Acalypha racemosa on rat liver was evaluated. Analysis of serum ALT and AST activities with those of the concentrations of albumin, total protein, unconjugated and total bilirubin were carried out. The malondialdehyde (MDA) content of liver was determined to investigate a probable mechanism of action of the extract. Administration of CCl4 alone to rats significantly increased total bilirubin concentration and the activities of ALT and AST (p < 0.05) in the serum while it significantly reduced (p < 0.05) serum total protein and albumin concentrations when compared with controls which received distilled water (p.o). Also it significantly increased (p < 0.05) liver MDA content when compared with control. However, simultaneous treatment of CCl4 with 60 mg/kg of the aqueous extract significantly reversed (p < 0.05) these changes. Results of MDA content of liver homogenates suggest that a probable mechanism of action of the extract is antioxidation. Histopathological studies were carried out on the liver to confirm the observed changes Key words: Acalypha racemosa, aqueous extract, hepatoprotective property, antioxidant effect, carbon tetrachloride, liver.
Comparison study of semi-crystalline and highly crystalline multiwalled carbon nanotubes

Very different types of straight and long multiwalled carbon nanotubes, ranging from semi-crystalline to highly crystalline, are obtained using a floating reactant method, by merely changing the flow rate of the carrier gas. Graphitization behaviors of these nanotubes are studied comparatively in terms of their microstructure and morphology, showing a large change in structure for the semi-crystalline nanotubes, but little change in the highly crystalline nanotubes with heat treatment.