196,016 research outputs found
Involvement of seminal leukocytes, reactive oxygen species, and sperm mitochondrial membrane potential in the DNA damage of the human spermatozoa
No full textMeasurement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) producing leukocytes in semen has been a standard component of the semen analysis, but its true significance remains still unknown. In this study, we have correlated the number of seminal leukocytes to various semen parameters. We found a negative correlation between the leukocyte number and sperm concentration (rs = −0.22; p = 0.01) and motility (rs = −0.20; p = 0.02). In contrast, a positive correlation between the number of leukocytes and both seminal ROS (rs = 0.70, p < 0.001; n = 125) and the number of spermatozoa with DNA fragmentation (rs = 0.43, p = 0.032; n = 25) was found. However, only a trend of positive correlation between ROS and the number of spermatozoa with TUNEL-detected DNA fragmentation was observed. Moreover, this latter was not correlated with loss of sperm mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) (10% vs 35%, rs = 0.25, p = 0.08; n = 50). Overall these results indicate that the presence of high number of leukocytes in the ejaculate negatively affects key semen parameters, as sperm concentration and motility, associated with infertility conditions. Moreover, they suggest that leukocytes are the major source of the seminal ROS and cause of sperm DNA fragmentation. However, the absence of a clear correlation between ROS and sperm DNA fragmentation, and spermatozoa with damaged DNA and MMP loss, suggest that ROS produced by leukocytes might be not the only cause of DNA damage in spermatozoa and that intrinsic mitochondrial-dependent apoptotic pathways might not have a major impact on sperm DNA fragmentation
Tassonomia integrata morfologica e molecolare di leptocefali del mare Adriatico.
No full textLa campagna scientifica di pesca profonda svolta dalla m/n Andrea dell’Università di Bologna nel 2010 nell’Adriatico meridionale ha permesso di collezionare un elevato numero di leptocefali di Anguilliformi. Il “leptocefalo” è una peculiare forma larvale dei Teleostei del superordine Elopomorpha, la cui caratterizzazione bio-ecologica risulta ancora oggi incompleta (Miller 2009). In particolare, la mancanza di chiavi dicotomiche esaustive limita la conoscenza tassonomica specifica dei leptocefali del Mediterraneo.
Questo lavoro ha l’obiettivo di aggiornare la descrizione tassonomica di leptocefali pescati in Adriatico integrando la tradizionale analisi morfologica con quella genetica eseguita mediante DNA barcoding.
Il DNA barcoding è una metodica molecolare basata sull’analisi della variabilità di un marcatore di sequenza universale (COI) che consente di ottenere una identificazione tassonomica a livello specifico in modo univoco (Hebert 2003 a,b; Ward 2005)
Spatio-temporal patterns of whiting (Merlangius merlangus) in the Adriatic Sea under environmental forcing
No full textUnderstanding how environmental factors affect species distribution is crucial for the conservation and management of marine organisms, especially in the face of global changes. Whiting (Merlangius merlangus) is a demersal cold-temperate fish, considered a 'relict species' in the Adriatic Sea. Despite its significance to commercial fisheries in the region, the specific drivers behind its spatial and temporal patterns have not been thoroughly examined. Here, we fitted a set of Generalized Linear Mixed Effects Models to data collected in the Northern and Central Adriatic from 1999 to 2019 during the Mediterranean International Trawl Survey to investigate the potential influence of depth, seafloor temperature and seafloor dissolved oxygen on the annual biomass density and spatial distribution of whiting in the spring-summer season. Our results showed that depth, and to a lesser degree temperature and oxygen, are important predictors of whiting distribution in this period, with preferences for depths of ~ 45 m, temperature of ~ 15.4°C and dissolved oxygen > 5.5 ml L-1. We predicted a persistent core area of distribution in front of the Po River Delta, in the Northern Adriatic Sea, while the density progressively declined towards the Central and Southern Adriatic Sea along the Italian coast. Additionally, the temporal trend exhibited high fluctuations over the years, occurring in cycles of 3 to 4 years. Finally, by comparing the biomass density estimates obtained under optimal conditions with those derived from the actual values for each variable, our analysis revealed that temperature had a pronounced and general impact on biomass density in the northern survey area (predictions revealed a density reduction of approximately two-thirds), while oxygen displayed a minor and more localized influence. This work deepens the current knowledge about the ecology of whiting in the Adriatic Sea and provides support for the conservation and management of this species
Prime indagini sulle abitudini alimentari di Trigloporus lastoviza (Scorpaeniformes: triglidae) in Adriatico.
No full textTrigloporus lastoviza (Bonnaterre, 1788), volgarmente nota come “gallinella o capone ubriaco”, in
Adriatico è distribuita principalmente a nord, nella zona centro-orientale e nell’area compresa tra
Spalato e Dubrovnik, fino a 100 m di profondità, in acque poco profonde, potendo quindi disporre
di una maggiore diversità di prede rispetto ad altri triglidi (per es. Aspitrigla cuculus) che vivono a
profondità maggiori. E’ stato analizzato il contenuto stomacale di 138 esemplari adulti di T.
lastoviza prelevati in Adriatico durante 4 campagne di pesca a strascico, 2 invernali e 2 estive
condotte tra il 2007 e il 2012. Su tutti gli esemplari sono stati registrati i parametri biometrici (LT,
mm), peso corporeo (P, g), sesso (valutato sulla base dell’analisi macroscopica delle gonadi), sono
state identificate le prede fino al livello tassonomico più basso possibile, successivamente pesate,
contate, fotografate, mediante sistema computerizzato di immagini. I dati sono stati informatizzati
con database relazionale “Microsoft Access” e analizzati mediante pacchetto statistico “R ver.
3.0.1”. Sono stati calcolati i principali indici alimentari, al fine d’individuare la tipologia qualiquantitativa
del regime alimentare di T. lastoviza. I risultati ottenuti mostrano che la dieta verte
essenzialmente su crostacei (IRI%=95,8%), per lo più decapodi. Galathea intermedia e Liocarcinus
sp. rappresentano le specie prevalenti. Nonostante il fatto che la popolazione bentonica costiera del
Mediterraneo nord-orientale sia caratterizzata da elevata diversità specifica, questa non si riflette nel
contenuto stomacale di T. lastoviza, indicando con queste indagini preliminari, che la specie tende a
comportarsi da “predatore selettivo”, nutrendosi preferibilmente di pochi organismi specifici, in
accordo con la letteratura relativa ad altre aree geografiche. Concludendo, si conferma l’importanza
degli studi relativi alla biologia trofica ed ai rapporti preda-predatore, essenziali per quantificare i
ruoli ecologici dei diversi componenti delle comunità marine
Dr. Duane M. Jackson, Morehouse College, July 2011
No full textThis video is a conversation with Dr. Duane M. Jackson. Dr. Jackson talks about his paper, "Recall and the Serial Position Effect: The Role of Primacy and Recency on Accounting Students' Performance." Jackie Daniel, AUC Woodruff Library, is the interviewer
Management decisions of an Academic Radiology Department during COVID-19 pandemic: the important support of a business analytics software
No full textObjectives: To analyze the response in the management of both radiological emergencies and continuity of care in oncologic/fragile patients of a radiology department of Sant’Andrea Academic Hospital in Rome supported by a dedicated business analytics software during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Imaging volumes and workflows for 2019 and 2020 were analyzed. Information was collected from the hospital data warehouse and evaluated using a business analytics software, aggregated both per week and per quarter, stratified by patient service location (emergency department, inpatients, outpatients) and imaging modality. For emergency radiology subunit, radiologist workload, machine workload, and turnaround times (TATs) were also analyzed. Results: Total imaging volume in 2020 decreased by 21.5% compared to that in 2019 (p <.001); CT in outpatients increased by 11.7% (p <.005). Median global TAT and median code-blue global TAT were not statistically significantly different between 2019 and 2020 and between the first and the second pandemic waves in 2020 (all p >.09). Radiologist workload decreased by 24.7% (p <.001) during the first pandemic wave in 2020 compared with the same weeks of 2019 and showed no statistically significant difference during the second pandemic wave, compared with the same weeks of 2019 (p = 0.19). Conclusions: Despite the reduction of total imaging volume due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 compared to 2019, management decisions supported by a dedicated business analytics software allowed to increase the number of CT in fragile/oncologic outpatients without significantly affecting emergency radiology TATs, and emergency radiologist workload. Key Points: • During the COVID-19 pandemic, management decisions supported by business analytics software guaranteed efficiency of emergency and preservation of fragile/oncologic patient continuity of care. • Real-time data monitoring using business analytics software is essential for appropriate management decisions in a department of radiology. • Business analytics should be gradually introduced in all healthcare institutions to identify strong and weak points in workflow taking correct decisions
"Reflections on the subject of Emigration from Europe with a view to Settlement in the United States" By M. Carey.
No full text"Reflections on the subject of Emigration from Europe with a view to Settlement in the United States: containing bried sketches of the moral and political character of those states.
By M. Carey, member of the American philosophical, and of the American Antiquarian Society, and author of The Olive Branch, Cindiciae Hibernicae, essays on banking, on political economy, and on internal improvement.
To which are now added the English editor's comments on the subject; together with Important Advice to Emigrants, and Cautions Against Impositions Practiced in the Outports
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Dr. Glendon Swarthout
No full textHosted by Roger M. Busfield, MSU Assistant Professor of Speech and Theater, Meet the Author is designed to introduce a general audience to a contemporary author and their work through in-depth interviews. This episode features a conversation between Dr. Glendon Swarthout, prolific author and English professor at MSU, and assistant professors Sam S. Baskett and Theodore B. Strandness
Phylogenetic reconstruction of the evolutionary relationships among gurnard species of the Adriatic sea.
No full textA phylogenetic analysis of seven gurnard species inhabiting the Adriatic Sea was performed by using the mitochondrial 16S marker. Three different methods were employed to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships: all supported the monophyly of the genus. Two clades were identified: one clade included Trigla and Lepidotrigla species, the other one included Eutrigla gurnardus, Aspitrigla cuculus and Chelidonichthys lucerna. The Bayesian analysis provided the best estimate of the phylogenetic relationships of the included taxa
- …
