bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Functional Biomaterials Modulate Macrophage in the Tumour Micro-environment
Authors: Wu Tsung-Meng , Wang Kuang-Teng , Tsai Hisang-Lin , Nan Fan-Hua , Wu Yu-Sheng
Published: July 2020

The inflammation response requires the cooperation of macrophages with immune cell function and active factors, such as cytokines and chemokines. Through this response, these factors are involved in the immune response to affect physiological activities. Macrophages can be categorized into two types: ‘M1’ and ‘M2’. M1 macrophages destroy the pathogen through phagocytosis activation, ROS production, and antigen-presenting, among other functions. M2 macrophages release cellular factors for tissue recovery, growth, and angiogenesis. Studies have determined that tumour tissue presents with numerous macrophages, termed tumour-associated macrophages. Tumour cells and peripheral stromal cells stimulate the tumour associated with macrophages (M2) to produce factors that regulate angiogenesis. Modulating the balance of the M1 and M2 function has already gained interest as a potentially valuable immune disease therapy. However, applications of the immunotherapy in clinical treatments are still not clear with regard to the cellular working mechanism. Therefore, we summarized the functions of common biomaterials involved in the modulation of the macrophage.
Lys63-Linked Polyubiquitination of Transforming Growth Factor β Type I Receptor (TβRI) Specifies Oncogenic Signaling
Authors: Song Jie , Landström Maréne
Published: July 2020

Transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) is a multifunctional cytokine with potent regulatory effects on cell fate during embryogenesis, in the normal adult organism, and in cancer cells. In normal cells, the signal from the TGFβ ligand is transduced from the extracellular space to the cell nucleus by transmembrane serine–threonine kinase receptors in a highly specific manner. The dimeric ligand binding to the TGFβ Type II receptor (TβRII) initiates the signal and then recruits the TGFβ Type I receptor (TβRI) into the complex, which activates TβRI. This causes phosphorylation of receptor-activated Smad proteins Smad2 and Smad3 and promotes their nuclear translocation and transcriptional activity in complex with context-dependent transcription factors. In several of our most common forms of cancer, this pathway is instead regulated by polyubiquitination of TβRI by the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRAF6, which is associated with TβRI. The activation of TRAF6 promotes the proteolytic cleavage of TβRI, liberating its intracellular domain (TβRI-ICD). TβRI-ICD enters the cancer cell nucleus in a manner dependent on the endosomal adaptor proteins APPL1/APPL2. Nuclear TβRI-ICD promotes invasion by cancer cells and is recognized as acting distinctly and differently from the canonical TGFβ-Smad signaling pathway occurring in normal cells.
Socio-Economic Dimensions of Adoption of Conservation Practices: What Is Needed to Be Done?
Authors: Sansel Tandogan Nisa , Gedikoglu Haluk
Published: July 2020

Promoting sustainable agricultural production requires farmers to adopt new technologies such as organic farming to increase the agricultural productivity, while conserving the environment. Adoption and diffusion of new technologies need a long process, as experienced in the past. There are social and economic factors, identified in the literature, and those could cause delays in farmers’ use of new technologies. Hence, technology adoption and diffusion are important policy issues in agriculture. For that reason, this paper provides a literature review including factors influencing the adoption and diffusion of technology in agriculture and aims to contribute to the future studies and policies, especially focusing on the social capital or the social aspects, which are proven not to be analyzed by the previous studies comprehensively. The results show that interaction with neighbors and relatives, and membership in a group or organization, which represent the social aspects, has a positive influence on adoption and diffusion of new technologies. Hence, policy-makers should incorporate the social aspects when designing the policies, such as cost sharing programmes, to promote adoption and diffusion of new technologies.
Beyond Homo Laborans
Authors: Vitale Sarah ,   Department of Philosophy, Florida State University
Published: July 2020

This article responds to the critique of productivist essentialism, which is the view that the human is the productive animal, made against Marx. The author argues against this view and holds that Marx introduces a dialectical account of human essence with the notion of species being in the 1844 Manuscripts, which he then develops in The German Idology. This account of essence includes a static and dynamic moment, and in capitalism, the dialectic of essence has resulted in the appearance of the human as the productive animal. Finally, the author argues that Marx’s critique of production and dialectical account of human essence allow us to better think the possibilities for a post-work future.
Recensione a "L’altra metà del Risorgimento. Volti e voci di patriote venete", a c. di Nadia Filippini e Liviana Gazzetta, Verona, Cierre, 2011.
Authors: Brian Giulia
Published: July 2020

Questa recensione intende presentare il volume a cura di Nadia Filippini e Liviana Gazzetta "L’altra metà del Risorgimento. Volti e voci di patriote venete" (Cierre 2011): esso si articola in due sezioni, una galleria di profili di trentatré patriote che, pur avendo fatto la Storia, facilmente sarebbero rimaste nel silenzio, e un prezioso archivio di documenti vergati dalle stesse. Le biografie, le testimonianze e la struttura ‘dinamica’ permettono al lettore e alla lettrice di seguire agevolmente i fili che le storie di queste donne intrecciano e di riconsiderare da un inedito e immediato punto di vista, quello delle loro voci, la storia del Risorgimento.
"Dopo il divorzio" (1902, 1905, 1920) di Grazia Deledda: 'opus in fieri' sul riso del moderno
Authors: Heyer-Caput Margherita
Published: July 2020

Grazia Deledda, insignita del Premio Nobel per la letteratura nel 1926, è stata generalmente considerata una delle voci maggiori della scrittura al femminile di primo Novecento, sospesa tra Verismo e Decadentismo e spesso tacciata di regionalismo. Tuttavia la critica italiana e nordamericana più recente ha cominciato a sottolineare la rilevanza della narrativa deleddiana nel discorso sul moderno. Il romanzo "Dopo il divorzio", generalmente trascurato dalla critica, rappresenta un caso esemplare della riflessione deleddiana sulla crisi del moderno 'sub specie Sardiniae' per la sua tormentata vicenda editoriale. Pubblicato dapprima nel 1902, all’apice di una rovente polemica pluridecennale sull’introduzione del divorzio in Italia, "Dopo il divorzio" appare poi in una traduzione inglese corredata di alcune significative modifiche nel 1905, e infine in una seconda versione italiana nel 1920 con il titolo di "Naufraghi in porto". L’analisi delle varianti di carattere strutturale e semantico alla luce della critique génétique dimostrerà che il percorso seguito dall’autrice nella geografia culturale dell’Italia post-unitaria si snoda lungo la dialettica tra margine e centro che definisce la poliedrica identità del modernismo italiano. Inoltre "Dopo il divorzio", profondamente radicato nel paesaggio sardo dei più noti romanzi deleddiani, emerge come opus in fieri del moderno attraverso un dialogo intertestuale con le maggiori espressioni contemporanee della riflessione sull’umorismo, da "Le rire" (1900) di Bergson, a "Der Witz" di Freud (1905) al "Saggio sull’umorismo" di Pirandello (1908). La lettura di "Dopo il divorzio" quale work in progress a colloquio con le teorie sull’umorismo di primo Novecento sottolinea l’appartenenza di Grazia Deledda al modernismo europeo non a dispetto, bensì grazie al punto d’osservazione privilegiato offertole dalla insularità sarda. L’analisi di "Dopo il divorzio" nel suo percorso testuale e nella sua rilevanza extratestuale rivela dunque come Grazia Deledda, una scrittrice spesso stigmatizzata per le sue radici regionali «minori», abbia aperto la letteratura italiana alla riflessione sui più inquietanti elementi del modernismo europeo.
La narrazione dell’Oriente e la svolta letteraria di Cristina Trivulzio Belgiojoso: il testo-laboratorio dei "Souvenirs dans l’exil"
Authors: Caporuscio Flavia
Published: July 2020

This article analyzes Cristina Trivulzio Belgiojoso’s literary turning-point by considering "Souvenirs dans l’exil" (1850) as the transitional book representing a fundamental shift in the author’s writing process. Actually, this book, which is culled from a collection of letters that the writer sent while in exile to her French friend, Caroline Jaubert, reveals a hybrid writing characterized by a contamination of genres within the formal frame of private letters. In light of this internal architecture, "Souvenirs dans l’exil" can be read as the laboratory-book that manifestly shows to the reader her work-in-progress towards narrative writing. As a result of the analysis of the structure of the book, it becomes evident that, for the writer, the act of narrating itself is subjected to the colloquy with an absent reader who, before being identified with an impersonal readership, should be recognized in the addressees of her private letters. In essence, it is through her epistolary writing that the author becomes accustomed to narrating to someone who, finally, becomes the public readership. This passage from the private dimension of the letter to the public one of the narrative book, which begins with the Oriental exile, is simultaneous to the Eastern re-location of the writer and her narration of the Orient, which plays a relevant part in the literary writing of Cristina Trivulzio. Even though the financial constraints of the exile and the forced distance from political activism likely facilitated the process of the literary writing tout court, it is her encounter with the 'monde nouveau' of the Orient, here analyzed through her first impressions in "Souvenirs dans l’exil", that is most influential. Finally, the newness of this Oriental world, which the writer investigates autonomously and partially beyond the Orientalist canon, brings her to adopt a new expressive register, together with a fresh awareness of her own identity as author.
Wellington 2013 – «There’s no place like home»: The Anxiety of Mobility in the Works of Louise DeSalvo
Authors: Luciano Bernadette
Published: July 2020

The often conflicting emotions associated with home and the tension between mobility and fixity are at the heart of autobiographical works that map Italian American writer Louise DeSalvo’s transition from working class girl to privileged «intellectual nomad» (Bruno 2002, 404). The essay is framed around the theorizing of home as a geographical space and idea and its relationship to widespread and diverse forms of mobility. Migration, exile, transnationalism, tourism, and relocation create a mobile space for home not only as a site of origin, but as a destination and transit zone. Rosi Braidotti’s multiple figurations of mobility, both physical and metaphorical, are particularly useful in an analysis of DeSalvo’s autobiographical texts. This essay concentrates on two of her memoires: "Crazy in the Kitchen" (2004) and "On Moving" (2009). In these works DeSalvo interrogates the layers of meaning of home as well as the interaction between home and geographic and intellectual mobility. In "Crazy in the Kitchen", a work that highlights the interconnectedness between food-writing and life-writing in Italian American culture, the narrator’s search for self relies on the constant reinvention of geographical space, of domestic space, and of textual space. "On Moving" explores the condition of relocation or change of dwellings. Taking as a point of departure her own anxiety about changing homes, DeSalvo resorts to an examination of the relationship between mobility and home through the experiences of other writers and thinkers.
Ortese and the theory of difference in Il porto di Toledo
Authors: Seno Cosetta
Published: July 2020

Anna Maria Ortese is considered today as one of the greatest women writers of all times. This essay analyzes her contribution to Italian Women’s Literature within the context of her relationship with two major waves of the Italian Feminist Movement: that of the 1970s, centered mainly on the idea of equality, and that of the 1980s, centered on the idea of sexual difference. While writing her  autobiography Il porto di Toledo Ortese became aware that the very experience of reality, centered on sexual difference, had to be reassessed and, consequently a new feminine language had to to be conceived. The contributions made by Ortese in Toledoproved to be invaluable in the creation of a new feminine language, distant from the Lacanian symbolic order and capable to express the experience of reality in a new and unique way.
Voci di donne per una Italia Unita: «La donna Italiana: giornale politico-letterario»
Authors: Licameli Chiara
Published: July 2020

Il presente contributo propone un’analisi de «La donna italiana: giornale politico-letterario», periodico pubblicato a Roma nel 1848 ad opera di Cesare Bordiga. Il giornale – edito per soli 24 numeri, dal 22 aprile all’11 novembre dello stesso anno – nasce con lo scopo di sottolineare l’importanza delle donne nei moti risorgimentali in atto e si muove su una doppia linea, quella politica e quella letteraria: accanto alla cronaca dei rivolgimenti sono presenti poesie, racconti, biografie e aneddoti volti a sollecitare le cittadine e i cittadini a contribuire alla lotta per l’Unità. Tra le pagine del periodico si ritrovano le voci delle poetesse e patriote più famose del primo Ottocento italiano affiancate a quelle di personalità di rilievo come Filippo Meucci e Mazzini. I pensieri e le vite delle donne che collaborano al giornale formano così un catalogo parlante delle donne illustri viventi in un’epoca in cui i cataloghi biografici hanno una specifica funzione civile e formativa. La rivista mette in evidenza, dunque, come l’esaltazione della donna in questa fase della storia unitaria sia un modo per contribuire a costruire l’Italia e contiene diversi elementi di indagine sul contesto culturale della Roma risorgimentale, nonché sul ruolo dello Stato Pontificio nel processo unitario. I compilatori, infatti, sottolineano più volte la parte attiva che Roma ha nei moti e il fatto che la città debba essere considerata la guida simbolica della nazione in quanto rappresentante della gloria passata della Roma Imperiale.
«Compagna Chiang Ch’ing, le rivoluzioni tradiscono sempre, come i figli...». Mela o Della dialettica del Canone in Dacia Maraini.
Authors: Ghirlanda Elvira Margherita
Published: July 2020

Attraverso il dramma Mela di Dacia Maraini si intende riflettere sul difficile rapporto della scrittrice col canone (in questo caso, teatrale) e sulla funzione dialettica che in termini culturali esso può assumere. La pièce ha diversi livelli di lettura: l’azione in cui le protagoniste (la nonna Mela, la figlia Rosaria e la nipote Carmen) si confrontano; l’allegorizzazione delle loro dinamiche nella biografia di un personaggio, assente sulla scena, ma costante referente – Chiang Ch’ing, moglie di Mao, ricordata da Maraini anche come attrice e drammaturga della Rivoluzione Culturale Cinese – ; infine la ricorrenza nel testo di una riflessione metateatrale/culturale sul rapporto col Canone, fulcro simbolico dell’intero spettacolo.
«Cosa umana non sono»: la Turandot di Puccini tra devianza e addomesticamento
Authors: Riccobono Marta
Published: July 2020

Nel repertorio delle donne pucciniane Turandot rappresenta un unicum. Definita «principessa di morte» dallo stesso Puccini, nell’opera eponima essa si mostra del tutto estranea a quella femminilità appassionata, a tratti patetica, che contraddistingue eroine come Tosca, Mimì o Cio-Cio-San, donne che non temono di sacrificare la propria vita in nome dell’amore. Turandot, dal canto suo, rifiutando il matrimonio e la maternità mette in crisi un sistema basato su rigide distinzioni di genere e rappresenta una minaccia per il mantenimento dell’ordine sociale di matrice patriarcale. Se vista in relazione al personaggio di Liù, schiava dolce e remissiva, Turandot emerge in tutta la sua statura di creatura mostruosa e anti-materna, fredda incarnazione lunare, che il compositore e i suoi librettisti cercano strenuamente di ricondurre entro gli argini di una femminilità “corretta” e socialmente accettabile. Obiettivo del saggio è cogliere nella relazione che si instaura tra autore e personaggio i segni di un disagio che colpisce la società nel momento in cui si trova ad avere a che fare con elementi dalla sessualità non normativa. Il modo in cui il personaggio di Turandot viene codificato nel contesto della produzione pucciniana e i tentativi di normalizzazione cui tanto il Maestro quanto i suoi librettisti lo sottopongono sono sintomatici di una tendenza che, al di là della finzione artistica, stigmatizza quei soggetti che in maniera più o meno consapevole si ribellano al binarismo di genere e all’imposizione di ruoli sociali cui si cerca solitamente di attribuire un fondamento biologico.
Recensione a Anilda Ibrahimi, "Non c'è dolcezza", Torino, Einaudi, 2012.
Authors: Camilotti Silvia
Published: July 2020

Si propone una recensione del romanzo "Non c'è dolcezza" (Einaudi 2012) di Anilda Ibrahimi, scrittrice di origine albanese, residente in Italia e autrice in lingua italiana. Nei suoi precedenti romanzi – "Rosso come una sposa" (Einaudi 2008) e "L'amore e gli stracci del tempo" (Einaudi 2009) – l'autrice pone l'attenzione sul conflitto balcanico e sulla storia albanese. Uno dei temi privilegiati nella sua scrittura è la condizione femminile nel suo paese natale: nei suoi romanzi offre un'immagine anticonvenzionale di donne forti che, nonostante la cultura tendenzialmente patriarcale, rappresentano sempre i pilastri della famiglia. Ibrahimi non alimenta una visione stereotipata di donna succube, che troppo spesso i lettori italiani possiedono. L'attenzione alle questioni di genere, ai rapporti tra uomini e donne e ai condizionamenti sociali e culturali è centrale nei suoi testi.
El significado del espacio como herramienta de comunicación en protocolo | The meaning of space as a communication tool in protocol
Authors: Barrera Cañellas Margarita
Published: July 2020

El espacio es una de las herramientas de comunicación no verbal utilizada en protocolo. El conocimiento profundo del entorno a través de su simbología y significado en la memoria colectiva del grupo al que pertenece, ofrece al protocolo un uso comunicativo más eficaz del contexto en el desarrollo de actos y eventos, ya que al mensaje que desea transmitir, se une la identificación que realiza el público objetivo al que va dirigido, basando este reconocimiento en parámetros simbólicos y señas de identidad de grupo que realzan de manera no verbal y en muchos casos inconsciente,  el mensaje emitido.El estudio multidisciplinar del espacio aporta nuevas perspectivas que lo enriquecen en su significación simbólica como contexto, aportando un diálogo entre mensaje y público objetivo que debe ser tenido en cuenta a la hora de elegir el mejor escenario físico para el desarrollo de actos y eventos protocolarios._________________________Space is one of the non-verbal communication tools used in protocol. The deep knowledge of the environment through its symbology and meaning in the collective memory of the group to which it belongs, offers to the protocol a more effective communicative use of the context in the development of acts and events, since to the message it wishes to transmit, is joined the identification made by the target audience to which it is addressed, basing this recognition on symbolic parameters and signs of group identity that enhance the message emitted in a non-verbal way and in many cases unconsciously.The multidisciplinary study of space brings new perspectives that enrich it in its symbolic significance as a context, providing a dialogue between message and target audience that must be taken into account when choosing the best physical scenario for the development of acts and protocol events.
Los símbolos de la Monarquía a través del Protocolo | Symbols of the monarchy through protocol
Authors: Marcos Pardo Rafael , Cortina Riu Carlos
Published: July 2020

En este título aparecen, en forma de tríada conceptual, los términos que son objeto de estudio en este artículo (Monarquía, Protocolo y Símbolos) y que, a su vez, conforman el auténtico universo formal y conceptual de la Corona, como institución, forma de gobierno e identidad de un pueblo, una nación y un Estado.La Monarquía se fundamenta en lo intangible y, al mismo tiempo, precisa de su exteriorización por medio de los símbolos, los signos, el ceremonial, la etiqueta y, evidentemente, el protocolo.Con la Monarquía nada es baladí ni tampoco porqué sí; y todo obedece a un porqué que la define, la justifica y la hace necesaria a través de su halo secular, intangible y perenne que trasciende al propio instante para enraizar en la sincronía atemporal de la esencia de su Pueblo. Cada Corona es distinta y, simultáneamente, muy semejante a las demás porque comparten una misma esencia que sabe adaptarse a la peculiaridad de cada latitud, época y nación; dotándola de unas características singulares, particulares y específicas que la convierten en única y, paralelamente, cercana a las demás siendo parecidas pero sin ser lo mismo. Y en ello participa y contribuye decidida y determinadamente el Protocolo por su cualidad de personalizar de manera propia sin vulgarizar porque obedece, simultáneamente, a la razón, el espíritu y el alma de una Comunidad.
Del paternalismo a la protección de la maternidad: un proceso de inconvenientes | From paternalism to maternity protection: a process of inconvenience
Authors: Díaz Moya Rafael
Published: July 2020

Al exponer la trayectoria de la protección de la maternidad, partiendo de un tipo previsión privada a principios del siglo XX, encontramos una visión del concepto jurídico de la maternidad, inexistente hasta la Ley Dato y su Reglamento en 1900, caracterizado por una condición social de la mujer basada en la crianza de los hijos y el cuidado del hogar, hecho que se trasladaría al mundo laboral mediante la consideración jurídica de un ser inferior.  A través de una menor remuneración y mayor restricción educativa eran las formas patronales, en defecto de protección laboral por las Juntas locales de Reformas Sociales y de protección sindical por las pugnas entre la CNT y la UGT, para desembocar en una gran desigualdad de derechos que revertía en el incumplimiento de la legislación protectora de la acción social que intentaría evitar la II República especialmente con la inclusión de la protección del trabajo de la mujer como derecho constitucional.__________________________By exposing the trajectory of maternity protection, starting from a private provision at the beginning of the twentieth century, we find a vision of the legal concept of maternity, nonexistent until the Dato Law and its Regulations in 1900, characterized by a social condition of the woman based on the someone’s charge of the children and the care of the home, fact that would be transferred to the labor world through the legal consideration of an inferior being. Through lower remuneration and greater educational restriction were the employers' forms, in the absence of labor protection by the local Social Reform Boards and union protection by the disputes between the CNT and the UGT, to agree a great inequality of rights that reversed in the breach of the legislation protecting social action that the Second Republic tried to avoid, especially with the inclusion of the protection of women's work as a constitutional right.
Russell, crítico da ditadura militar brasileira
Authors: Amaral Murilo Garcia de Matos
Published: July 2020

Este documento revela correspondências inéditas do filósofo britânico Bertrand Russell relacionadas à ditadura militar brasileira, num momento em que ele se dedicava ao ativismo em defesa dos direitos humanos a nível internacional.
Editorial: Atualidade da Filosofia de Espinosa: Matéria e potência
Authors: Candiotto Cesar , Peruzzo Júnior Léo , Valverde Antonio , Espinosa Lolas Ricardo , Craia Eladio
Published: July 2020

Pensar é uma espécie de exercício responsável que não pode ser omitido neste momento que vivenciamos e partilhamos. Por isso, cultivar boas reflexões depende, por um lado, da capacidade técnico-acadêmica de pesquisadoras e pesquisadores e, por outro, da maneira como conduzem o seu horizonte filosófico diante de um quadro de perspectivas e desafios. Assim, a produção filosófica não precisa de milagres para compreender a natureza, como afirmará Espinosa, mas de uma aliança entre liberdade e razão.É neste sentido que o presente número da Aurora contempla o dossiê “Atualidade da Filosofia de Espinosa: Matéria e potência”, organizado pelos professores Ricardo Espinosa Lolas e Eladio Craia.O Fluxo Contínuo, por sua vez, dispõe dos artigos “Fantasised alterity, inaudible voices. Notes for a critique of the coloniality of desire”, de Jorge Polo Blanco; “El Estado Intensivo de Gilles Deleuze”, de Julián Ferreyra; “Nietzsche e a mnemotécnica: do sofrimento à afirmação da vida pelo artista da dor”, de Adilson Felicio Feiler; “The role of sense of justice in Rawls’theory”, de Pablo Aguayo Westwood; “Paradigms in Action”, de Paulo Pirozelli e, por último, “É possível filosofar com Heidegger após as confissões nos Cadernos Negros?”, de Luiz Rohden.A Aurora também apresenta, ao final, as resenhas das obras “Aporías de la Democracia”, obra coordenada por Ricardo Espinoza Lolas e Jordi Riba, assinada por Angélica Montes Montoya, e “Hegel and Espinosa: Substance and Negativity”, de Gregor Moder, realizada por Eladio Craia e Arion Keller.
New Approach to Estimating the Saturation Flow Rate of a Shared Lane with Permitted Left Turns
Authors: Radičević Veljko , Krstanoski Nikola , Subotić Marko
Published: July 2020

The estimation of the saturation flow rate is of utmost importance when defining the signal plan at intersections. Because of the numerous influential factors, the values of which are hard to be determined, the subject problem is to be regarded as an extremely complex one. This research deals with the estimation of a saturation flow rate of a shared lane with permitted left turns. The suggested algorithm is based on the application of the artificial neural networks where the data for training are received by simulation. The results obtained by the neural networks are compared with multiple linear regression and the known HCM 2010 approach for determining the saturated flow of a shared lane. The testing data have shown that the approach based on the artificial neural networks foresaw statistically significantly better values than the ones obtained by multiple linear regression, with an error of 27 veh/h against 49 veh/h. The HCM 2010 approach is significantly worse than the two others included in this research. The ways of the future development of the suggested method could include additional factors, such as the grade of the traffic lane, the proximity of the bus stops, and others.
Dynamics of gaze control during prey capture in freely moving mice
Authors: Michaiel Angie M , Abe Elliott TT , Niell Cristopher M
Published: July 2020

Many studies of visual processing are conducted in constrained conditions such as head- and gaze-fixation, and therefore less is known about how animals actively acquire visual information in natural contexts. To determine how mice target their gaze during natural behavior, we measured head and bilateral eye movements in mice performing prey capture, an ethological behavior that engages vision. We found that the majority of eye movements are compensatory for head movements, thereby serving to stabilize the visual scene. During movement, however, periods of stabilization are interspersed with non-compensatory saccades that abruptly shift gaze position. Notably, these saccades do not preferentially target the prey location. Rather, orienting movements are driven by the head, with the eyes following in coordination to sequentially stabilize and recenter the gaze. These findings relate eye movements in the mouse to other species, and provide a foundation for studying active vision during ethological behaviors in the mouse.
Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha: Role in the Development of Obesity and Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Shamansurova Zulaykho M. , Saatov Talat S. , Takhirov Lola Sh.
Published: July 2020

Obesity and Diabetes Mellitus (DM) are defined as worldwide pandemics by the World health organization due to their economic burden and widespread. Although a huge amount of research is being done in the field of obesity and DM today, many questions remain unsolved. Tissue inflammation is the main factor in the development of both obesity and DM, leading towards irreversible changes in the tissue and formation of specific complications. One of the widespread cytokines, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), was shown to be involved with inflammation in the development of metabolic disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. Even though the role of TNF-α in the pathogenesis of these two diseases remains unclear, new ways of treating and preventing diseases based on TNF-α antagonism attracted the attention of scientists. In this review, TNF-α and its receptors’ structures and properties are explored, and their role in disease development, including obesity and type 2 DM (DM2) will be discussed by viewing data from literature.
Energy Use Efficacy of Different Sprayers on Crop Pest Management
Authors: Aneesha V. , Dhalin D. , Kumar K. Ajith , Jacob Xavier K.
Published: July 2020

Pesticide application plays a major role in environmental hazards associated with over application and off-target movement of toxic pesticides from inefficient spray application. The introduction of electrically charged sprays for agricultural application can provide greater control of droplet transport with impending reduction of wastage. The study aims to compare the efficacy of electrostatic sprayer on pest control in comparison with mist blower (air assisted sprayer) and air compression sprayer (hydraulic sprayer). Six pests were viz. pumpkin beetle, cowpea aphid, cucurbit fruit fly, brinjal mealy bug, caterpillar and chilli mite were selected based on specific characteristics viz. integumental, movement and ecological niche. Energy use efficiency in production and application of pesticides used by different sprayers for the control of selected pests were quantified based on application efficiency of sprayers, Pre and Post pest count and the reoccurrence of pest infestation after spray. The energy use efficiency of electrostatic sprayer was found to be 1.5 times more than that of mist blower and 2 times more than that of air compression sprayers. In the chemical usage by electrostatic sprayer was reduced by 65 per cent and that of knapsack mist blower was 35 per cent with air compression sprayers. The post pest count was almost nil in all the categories of pest while applying with electrostatic sprayer and the reoccurrence of the pest to the threshold level was minimum. This contributed a significant increase in energy use efficiency of electrostatic sprayer, when it considered globally.
Evaluation of Serum Uric Acid, Serum Magnesium and Lipid Profiles in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients for the Risk Factor of Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Sogani Sonal , Gupta Navendru Kumar , Jain Suman
Published: July 2020

Background and Objective: Dyslipidemia is one of the common disorders which are seen in most of the diabetes patients, which causes cardio vascular diseases. However, serum uric acid and lipid profiles are considered as the potential risk factor for developing diabetes, hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular diseases. Also the direct association of trace elements such as serum magnesium and hs-CRP in type 2 diabetes has been observed. The aim of the present study is to evaluate serum uric acid, serum magnesium and lipid profiles in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients for the risk factor of cardiovascular disease and its comparison with non diabetic subjects.

Materials and Methods: This case-control study was conducted in the Department of Biochemistry, PIMS, Udaipur. The study included 100 patients with type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (both males and females) who were recruited from the institute’s medicine OPD and wards and 100 healthy controls (both males and females) with normal plasma glucose and with no symptoms suggestive of DM were included in the study. All the Biochemical parameters analysis was done on fully automated analyzer-ERBA 360 EM.

Results:  The mean values of serum lipid profiles (serum cholesterol, serum triglycerides, VLDL, LDL) were compared between healthy controls and patients with type 2 DM, showed highly significant difference in patients with type 2 DM as compared with healthy controls (p<0.001). However, on comparing HDL between healthy controls and patients with type 2 DM, the difference seems to be significant (p<0.05). The mean values of RBS, HbA1c, uric acid and hs-CRP were highly significant in patients with type 2 DM as compared with healthy controls (p<0.001). The mean values of serum magnesium showed significant difference between healthy controls and patients with type 2 DM p<0.05).

Interpretation and Conclusion: The common lipid abnormalities seen during diabetes induce dyslipidemia causing the development of CVD’s among diabetic patients. Also elevated levels of hs-CRP, hyperuricemia, hypomagnesium suggest that it could be a better prognosis for CVD’s and stroke in diabetic patients.
Effectiveness of Community Based Interventions in Reducing Maternal Mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review
Authors: Orjingene O. , Morgan J.
Published: July 2020

Background & Aim: Maternal mortality ratio for sub- Saharan Africa in 2010 was estimated to be about 600 per 100,000 live births, which is approximately higher than what is obtainable in advanced countries. To this end, several community-based interventions have been put in place by governments and developmental partners in the region to address the situation. This review aimed to seek evidence from existing literature on the level of effectiveness of these interventions in improving maternal health outcomes in the region. The literature search process resulted in retrieval of six full text studies that were written in English, published between 2000 and 2019 and were focused on intervention based at the community level which resulted in the reduction of maternal deaths in some sub-Saharan African countries. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) tool was used to critically review retrieved literature.

Findings: Findings from the articles reviewed show that community based interventions with direct reduction on maternal mortality were implemented in Ethiopia and Nigeria and were effective since maternal mortality declined by 64% and 43.5% respectively. Other community based interventions did not directly address reduction in maternal mortality but rather addressed leading causes of maternal mortality such as home and unskilled birth attendance, low Ante-Natal Care (ANC) & Post-Natal Care (PNC) services utilization, Eclampsia, delay in accessing care  and Postpartum Hemorrhage (PPH). Such interventions were implemented in Nigeria, Zambia, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo and were proved to be effective in reducing maternal mortality.

Conclusions and Recommendations: Based on the literatures reviewed, it was concluded that community based interventions were effective in reducing maternal mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa. The following recommendations were made based on gaps observed in the implementation of some interventions. Introduction of emergency transport scheme in countries where they do not exist as despite the existence of maternity waiting homes and dedicated maternity ambulances in Zambia, many expectant mothers still had difficulty reaching the health facilities in time to deliver, Engagement and training of more health workers so as to avoid human resources challenges that may be associated with increased demand for health facility deliveries.
Pregnancy Malaria: Predisposing Factors, Burden and Management in Agrarian Settlements Southeast Nigeria
Authors: Nnamonu Emmanuel Ikechukwu , Ejilibe Obiageli Constance , Ani Pamela Amarachi Ndukwe- , Nwosu Godwin Chigozie , Imakwu Cyril Ali , Ezugwu Kingsley Chukwujindu , Ekwueme Casmir Chiebuka
Published: July 2020

Aim: To evaluate predisposing factors, burden and management of malaria amongst pregnant women in some agrarian settlements southeast Nigeria.

Study Design: Cross-sectional survey conducted in 4 randomly selected agrarian communities was conducted.

Place and Duration of Study: Isi-Uzo Local Government Area (Eha-Amufu, Ikem, Mbu, Neke and Umualor). The study lasted six months.

Methodology: A total of 385 respondents participated. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 4 randomly selected agrarian communities was conducted. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire.

Results: Obstetric and socio-demographic characteristics of the participants showed that majority were age-bracket 25-34 (42.6%), 1st trimester (56.4%) and multigravidae (52.8%), primary education group (32.2%), secondary education group (55.6%), farmers (73.1%) and Christians (93.5%). All the respondents (100%) agreed to the presence of overgrown bushes in their environs, many farming activities which is the main source of income and staying out late at night for relaxation. A high percentage of the women experienced fever (57.9), headache (61.6), cough & catarrh (54.5) and anorexia (53.8) monthly reflecting high malaria frequency in the locale. 20.3% had experienced stillbirth, 82.6% neonatal death and 65.5% infant mortality once, twice or more. And according to (58.7%) and (38.7%) of respondents, malaria moderately and highly affects their productivity during pregnancy respectively. Respondents that seek health/treatment in hospitals (50.9) differ insignificantly from those that seek health through traditional remedies (49.1). Cost of treatment was reported to be high and moderate by 31.9% and 65.5% respondents respectively. Poor health care delivery was implicated as major dissatisfaction with treatment by 76.4% of respondents.

Conclusion: Malaria is a major health problem encountered by pregnant women in agrarian locales. Hence, girls should be exposed to malaria awareness programs an earlier stage of life.
Effects of Graded Dietary Protein on Growth and Laying Performance of Pearl Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagris)
Authors: Okyere Korankye , Agyemang James Kwame Kagya- , Annor Serekye Yaw , Ameyaw Akwasi Asabere- , Kyere Clement Gyeabour , Fiashide Noel , Setsiwah Wisdom
Published: July 2020

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary crude protein (CP) on growth and laying performance of indigenous Guinea fowls (Numida meleagris) in Ghana. A total of Sixty (60) grower pearl Guinea fowl made up of twelve (12) males and forty-eight (48) females were randomly selected and grouped into four made up of (4) females and one (1) male. The groups were each subjected to four experimental diets containing 16%, 18%, 20% and 22% crude protein (CP). A completely randomized design (CRD) was used for the experiment. The data collected were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using GenStat version 11.1 (2008). Least significant difference (LSD) at 5% was used to separate the means. The result showed that birds fed with diets containing 22% crude protein (CP) had the heaviest (P= .05) body weight and body weight gain and reached age at first egg earlier followed by birds fed with diets containing 18% CP, 20% CP and 16% CP respectively. Feed consumption increased with an increase in dietary crude protein. Body weight at first egg was highest (P= .05) among birds fed with diets containing 22% crude protein (CP) and lowest in 16% crude protein (CP). Birds fed with diets containing 20% and 22% crude protein (CP) had the highest (P= .05) hen-day and hen- house egg production, whiles 16% crude protein (CP) diet recorded the lowest. It was concluded that body weight, body weight gain and total feed intake of indigenous Guinea fowls increased with increasing dietary crude protein. It is recommended to farmers that, diets containing 22% crude protein (CP) is ideal for optimum productivity of indigenous Guinea fowls.
Growth and Yield of Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] as Influenced by Organic Manures and Superabsorbent Polymers
Authors: Ryan Qasimullah , Geetha K. N. , Hashimi Rahmatullah , Atif Rafiq , Habimana Sylvestre
Published: July 2020

Aims: The study aimed to assess soybean response to organic manures and superabsorbent polymers along with recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF: 25-60-25 kg N-P2O5-K2O ha-1).

Study Design: The experiment was tested with a randomized complete block design (RCBD).

Place and Duration of Study: The field experiment was carried out during 2017-2018 at Zonal Agricultural Research Station (ZARS), All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on soybean, University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), GKVK, Bengaluru-560065, Karnataka, India.

Methodology: The field experiment was having eight treatments with three replications. The treatments comprised RDF in combination with farmyard manure (FYM) at the rate of 3.0 t ha-1, potassium polyacrylate at the rate of 5.0, 7.5, and 10.0 kg ha-1, pusa hydrogel, humic acid and vermicompost at the rate of 7.5 kg ha-1, 3.0 kg ha-1 and 3.0 t ha-1, respectively.

Results: The results revealed that RDF with potassium polyacrylate at the rate of 7.5 kg ha-1 recorded significantly higher with respect to growth parameters viz., plant height (74.6 cm), number of branches plant-1 (14.2), leaf area (2394 cm2 plant-1) and total dry matter (57.3 g plant-1) and yield attributes like number of pods plant-1 (58.4), seed weight plant-1 (28.62 g), seed yield (2707 kg ha-1), stalk yield (4370 kg ha-1) and harvest index (0.38). The net returns (Rs. 68255 ha-1) and B:C ratio (3.58) were also recorded higher in the treatment having potassium polyacrylate at the rate of 7.5 kg ha-1 and RDF.
Synthesis of CeOx‐Decorated Pd/C Catalysts by Controlled Surface Reactions for Hydrogen Oxidation in Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Authors: Singh Ramesh K. , Davydova Elena S. , Douglin John , Godoy Andres O. , Tan Haiyan , Bellini Marco , Allen Bryan J. , Jankovic Jasna , Miller Hamish A. , Alba‐Rubio Ana C. , Dekel Dario R.
Published: July 2020

Due to the sluggish kinetics of the hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) in alkaline electrolytes, the development of more efficient HOR catalysts is essential for the next generation of anion‐exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs). In this work, CeOx is selectively deposited onto carbon‐supported Pd nanoparticles by controlled surface reactions, aiming to enhance the homogenous distribution of CeOx and its preferential attachment to Pd nanoparticles, to achieve highly active CeOx‐Pd/C catalysts. The catalysts are characterized by inductively coupled plasma–atomic emission spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), electron energy loss spectroscopy, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy to confirm the bulk composition, phases present, morphology, elemental mapping, local oxidation, and surface chemical states, respectively. The intimate contact between Pd and CeOx is shown through high‐resolution STEM maps. The oxophilic nature of CeOx and its effect on Pd are probed by CO stripping. The interfacial contact area between CeOx and Pd nanoparticles is calculated for the first time and correlated to the electrochemical performance of the CeOx‐Pd/C catalysts. Highest recorded HOR specific exchange current (51.5 mA mg−1Pd) and H2–O2 AEMFC performance (peak power density of 1,169 mW cm−2 mgPd−1) are obtained with a CeOx‐Pd/C catalyst with Ce0.38/Pd bulk atomic ratio.
Multifunctional Visible‐Light Powered Micromotors Based on Semiconducting Sulfur‐ and Nitrogen‐Containing Donor–Acceptor Polymer
Authors: Kochergin Yaroslav S. , Villa Katherine , Novotný Filip , Plutnar Jan , Bojdys Michael J. , Pumera Martin
Published: July 2020

Photosensitive micromotors that can be remotely controlled by visible light irradiation demonstrate great potential in biomedical and environmental applications. To date, a vast number of light‐driven micromotors are mainly composed from costly heavy and precious metal‐containing multicomponent systems, that limit the modularity of chemical and physical properties of these materials. Herein, a highly efficient photocatalytic micromotors based exclusively on a purely organic polymer framework—semiconducting sulfur‐ and nitrogen‐containing donor–acceptor polymer, is presented. Thanks to precisely tuned molecular architecture, this material has the ability to absorb visible light due to a conveniently situated energy gap. In addition, the donor‐acceptor dyads within the polymer backbone ensure efficient photoexcited charge separation. Hence, these polymer‐based micromotors can move in aqueous solutions under visible light illumination via a self‐diffusiophoresis mechanism. Moreover, these micromachines can degrade toxic organic pollutants and respond to an increase in acidity of aqueous environments by instantaneous colour change. The combination of autonomous motility and intrinsic fluorescence enables these organic micromotors to be used as colorimetric and optical sensors for monitoring of the environmental aqueous acidity. The current findings open new pathways toward the design of organic polymer‐based micromotors with tuneable band gap architecture for fabrication of self‐propelled microsensors for environmental control and remediation applications.
Concepts of Spin Seebeck Effect in Ferromagnetic Metals
Authors: Yi LiZhi , Yang Dongchao , Liu Min , Fu Hua‐Hua , Ding Linjie , Xu Yunli , Zhang Bingbing , Pan Liqing , Xiao John Q.
Published: July 2020

Spin Seebeck effect (SSE) and related spin caloritronics have attracted great interest recently. However, the definition of the SSE coefficient remains to be established, let alone a clean experiment to measure the SSE coefficient in ferromagnetic metals. The concept through a model based on the semi‐classical Botlzmann transport equation has been clarified. The model includes the vital spin‐flip process, which is frequent in metals, and points out that the length scale of SSE is much larger than the spin diffusion length. The model reveals how the spin‐flip process influences the transport equations and provides the simple relationship between the different spin‐flip relaxation times for spin‐up and ‐down electrons, which is very useful to understand the spin transport properties. This understanding allows to redefine the expression of the spin Seebeck coefficient.
Coherent Perfect Diffraction in Metagratings
Authors: Zhang Ziying , Kang Ming , Zhang Xueqian , Feng Xi , Xu Yuehong , Chen Xieyu , Zhang Huifang , Xu Quan , Tian Zhen , Zhang Weili , Krasnok Alex , Han Jiaguang , Alù Andrea
Published: July 2020

Metasurfaces are 2D engineered structures with subwavelength granularity, offering a wide range of opportunities to tailor the impinging wavefront. However, fundamental limitations on their efficiency in wave transformation, associated with their deeply subwavelength thickness, challenge their implementation in practical application scenarios. Here, it is shown how the coherent control of metagratings through multiple wave excitations can provide new opportunities to achieve highly reconfigurable broadband metasurfaces with large diffraction efficiency, beyond the limitations of conventional approaches. Remarkably, energy distribution between the 0th and higher diffraction orders can be continuously tuned by changing the relative phase difference between two excitation waves, enabling coherent control, with added benefits of enhanced efficiency and bandwidth. This concept is demonstrated for a thin electric metagrating operating at terahertz frequencies, showing that coherent control can overcome several of the limitations of single‐layer ultrathin metastructures, and extend their feasibility in various practical scenarios.