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This work describes a novel approach to detoxify lignocellulosic hydrolysates and facilitate the analysis of inhibitory compounds, namely supercritical fluid extraction (SFE). The efficiency of the fermentation of lignocellulosic dilute-acid hydrolysates depends upon the composition of the hydrolysate and the organism used. Furthermore, it has been shown that inhibitors in the hydrolysate reduce t
Adverse and analgesic effects of acupuncture during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy were studied retrospectively in an observational study including 167 consecutive patients with lower back pain, pelvic pain, or both. In each patient acupuncture was given on at least two different occasions by three manual stimulations of two or more acupuncture or tender points, mainly LR-3 and LI-4
The plasma membrane H+-ATPase is activated by binding of 14-3-3 protein to the phosphorylated C terminus. Considering the large number of 14-3-3 and H+-ATPase isoforms in Arabidopsis (13 and 11 expressed genes, respectively), specificity in binding may exist between 14-3-3 and H+-ATPase isoforms. We now show that the H'-ATPase is the main target for 14-3-3 binding at the plasma membrane, and that
The effectiveness of extracting p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE from aged contaminated soil samples by means of pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) was evaluated. Two soil samples, which were contaminated more than 10 years ago, were used in the investigation. The static extraction time was optimised and then validated against the total sum of target analytes obtained from multiple sequential extractions. T
Mucosal Toll-like receptors (TLRs) respond to pathogens, but remain inert to the indigenous flora, suggesting that the TLRs can receive pathogen-specific signals. For example, TLR4 signalling is activated in CD14-negative epithelial cells by P-fimbriated, uropathogenic Escherichia coli, but not by lipopolysaccharide. The fimbriae use glycosphingolipids as recognition receptors and there is release
The main concern about the technology for the production of hydrogen and transport fuels by biomass gasification is the presence of contaminants (H2S, tars, fly ash, alkali, and heavy metals, ammonia) that are poisonous for the catalysts used for upgrading the biomass-generated gas. The impact of the main contaminants on a Ni/MgAl(O) reforming catalyst was studied in a laboratory environment, by e
We compare different procedures for combining fixed-order tree-level matrix-element generators with parton showers. We use the case of W-production at the Tevatron and the LHC to compare different implementations of the so-called CKKW and MLM schemes using different matrix-element generators and different parton cascades. We find that although similar results are obtained in all cases, there are i
Mining, seen as a source of revenue in most developing countries, threatens seriously the environment. Mining impacts the water quality and one of the main problems of mining is acid mine drainage. Low pH and high concentration of heavy metals characterize acid mine drainage. When a stream is impacted by acid mine drainage both human activities and the ecological system are seriously affected. In
The impact of climate variability on water demand and availability in drylands is substantial. Establishing methods to analyse precipitation (P) and evapotranspiration data sets may generate useful tools that assist in drought recognition and regional variations therein. The authors developed an index that simultaneous integrates both these variables in climate variability analysis. This study pro
Flying insects frequently navigate through environments of different complexity. In this study, buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris L.) were trained to fly along tunnels of different widths, from 60 to 240 cm. In tunnel widths of 60 and 120 cm, bumblebees control their lateral position by balancing the magnitude of translational optic flow experienced in the lateral visual field of each eye.
A negative educational gradient has been found for many causes of death. This association may be partly explained by confounding factors that affect both educational attainment and mortality. We correct the cause-specific educational gradient for observed individual background and unobserved family factors using an innovative method based on months lost due to a specific cause of death re-weighted
Background and objectives: Arterial stiffness plays a significant role in the development and progression of adverse cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality. This observational study aims to explore the relationship between six acute phase proteins namely, ceruloplasmin, alpha-1-antitrypsin, orosomucoid, haptoglobin, complement C3 and C-reactive protein (CRP), and carotid-femoral pulse wave
Cell entry of Simian Virus 40 (SV40) involves caveolar/lipid raft-mediated endocytosis, vesicular transport to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), translocation into the cytosol, and import into the nucleus. We analyzed the effects of ER-associated processes and factors on infection and on isolated viruses and found that SV40 makes use of the thiol-disulfide oxidoreductases, ERp57 and PDI, as well as
Cellobiose dehydrogenase (CDH) is a versatile bioelectrocatalyst lately at focus due to its sugar oxidising properties in combination with its inherent ability for direct electron transfer communication with electrodes making it possible to be used in bioanodes in the enzymatic fuel cells (EFCs), self-powered biosensors, and biosupercapacitors. During the last 20 years, many new nanomaterials and
Empirical software engineering research aims to generate prescriptive knowledge that can help software engineers improve their work and overcome their challenges, but deriving these insights from real-world problems can be challenging. In this paper, we promote design science as an effective way to produce and communicate prescriptive knowledge. We propose using a visual abstract template to commu
The financial position of the medical insurance system of Japanese government has been worsened recently, and thus the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has prompted the medical reforms to reconstruct the financial balance of the medical insurance system. As one of these efforts, a fixed payment system for medical services based on “DPC” (Diagnosis Procedure Combination) was introduced to a nu
