1,720,999 research outputs found
Cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) as a biomarker to evaluate the environmental quality in Venice lagoon.
No full textThe Cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) induction is widely employed for environmental biomonitoring, especially in marine organisms. In the present study, the levels of CYP1A was evaluated in the fish species Zosterisessor ophiocephalus sampled in three different sites (Porto Marghera, Val di Brenta and Caroman) of the Venice Lagoon. The expression of CYP1A mRNA, evaluated by Real-Time PCR, was significantly higher in both males and females from the Porto Marghera site. By immunohistochemistry, cellular localization of CYP1A was detected in liver, kidney and ovary. In liver, the strongest immunopositivity was found in males from all sites, whereas the detoxified fish exhibited a faint immunoreactivity. By Western blot, the CYP1A antiserum recognized in the liver a band corresponding to the CYP1A protein. The antibody strongly reacted in males from all sites excepted for control group, whereas weakly reacted in females revealing a marked sex differences in response to environmental pollution. In all sites, the CYP1A gene expression and its protein was increased as evidenced by Real-Time PCR results, as well as by Western blotting and IHC. These results indicated that pollutants are bio-available as evidenced by the biological study and may have an harmful effects on aquatic organisms such as Z. ophiocephalus
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Expression of VTG and CYP1A biomarkers in Zosterisessor ophiocephalus sampled in different areas of the Venice Lagoon
No full textThe Venice Lagoon is a transitional environment on the Adriatic
coast influenced by such human activities as agriculture, industry and
tourism. Several studies carried out in the last years have demonstrated
the presence of a wide range of contaminants in the Venice
Lagoon. Biomonitoring in the lagoon environment plays an important
role in strategies and actions to identify, control and reduce the
environmental threats. Biomarkers monitored in this study are VTG
(Vitellogenin) and CYP1A. VTG is produced in the liver of sexually
mature female fish in response to endogenous estrogens. CYP1A
represents the most intensively studied P450 gene in fish and its
expression is induced by a wide variety of lipophilic contaminants. In
the present study we used Western blot and Real Time PCR
techniques to detect the expression of VTG and CYP1A in plasma
and liver of a goby fish, Zosterisessor ophiocephalus, sampled in
different areas of the Venice Lagoon, possibly interested by different
pollution entities. Our results evidenced that VTG expression was
detectable in adult male of Z. ophiocephalus collected from the
different sites evidencing high toxicological risk probably due to
endocrine disrupting chemicals. Moreover, the highest levels of
CYP1A were observed in animals sampled at the Porto Marghera site
showed that this site, which is influenced by the presence of the
industrial area and the city of Venice, is the most highly impacted
area of the lagoon. VTG and CYP1A induction in fish can be useful
biosensors for environmental pollution monitoring
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
PROVE DI PATOGENICITÀ DI CEPPI DI VIBRIO HARVEYI IN BRANZINO
No full textVibrio harveyi è una specie patogena emergente per l’acquacoltura marina a livello globale. In ambito europeo e mediterraneo questa specie sta acquisendo importanza nell’allevamento di pesci piatti (Psetta sp., Solea sp.) e del branzino (Dicentrarchus labrax). In D. labrax V. harveyi è stato isolato in episodi di mortalità, durante le fasi di ingrasso (40-160 gr), caratterizzati da atassia natatoria, anoressia, lesioni cutanee e cheratiti. Lo sviluppo di un vaccino proteggente contro l’infezione da Vibrio harveyi risulta interessante per gli allevatori sia nella fase di grow-out che nella stabulazione in avannotteria. In quest’ottica è stato approntato un protocollo sperimentale per valutare la patogenicità di differenti ceppi di V. harveyi in branzino e successivamente attuare prove di efficacia vaccinale. Tale protocollo è stato valutato ed approvato dal Ministero della Salute (Direzione Generale Sanità Animale e dei Farmaci Veterinari, Ufficio VI) con autorizzazione n° 776/2015-PR. Le prove di infezione sono state condotte presso l’acquario sperimentale IZSVe (Legnaro). I branzini sono stati acquistati ad una taglia di circa 2 g, non vaccinati per V. anguillarum-V. ordalii. Le prove di infezione sono state attuate in vasche tronco-coniche (250 l), dotate di filtro esterno e UV dedicato, ad una temperatura di 24°C e salinità di 33‰. Sono stati inizialmente testati 10 ceppi di V. harveyi, con caratteristiche fenotipiche differenti, isolati in episodi di mortalità in D. labrax, mediante somministrazione intra peritoneale e immersione, per valutarne la virulenza in vivo. I 4 ceppi più patogeni sono stati successivamente testati per determinare la dose in grado di causare mortalità nel 70% degli esemplari (Lethal Dose70), mediante somministrazione i.p. (5 concentrazioni differenti: 3x10^3 - 3x10^7 ufc/soggetto) e per immersione (2 concentrazioni: 1x10^8ufc/ml; 1x10^9ufc/ml) in branzini di 5 g (12 esemplari per prova). Un solo ceppo ha evidenziato mortalità per immersione. In tutti gli esemplari venuti a morte è stato possibile re-isolare V. harveyi da encefalo e rene cefalico. Nelle prove condotte mediante inoculo i.p. la mortalità si è evidenziata a partire dalle 12-16 ore post-infezione concludendosi in 72-96 ore. Gli esemplari presentavano apatia, melanosi, iperventilazione, morendo a poche ore dalla comparsa dei segni clinici, generalmente con facies asfittica (opercoli dilatati). In alcuni casi si osservavano sintomi neurologici con atassia e nuoto a spirale. L’esame autoptico ha evidenziato costantemente grave enterite siero-catarrale con marcata dilatazione del lume intestinale (tratto prossimale) e grave congestione encefalica. L’esame istologico eseguito su soggetti preagonici ha evidenziato setticemia, con presenza di colonie batteriche in tutti gli organi parenchimatosi, ed encefalite. L’intestino prossimale presentava distacco della mucosa e colonie batteriche evidenti nella sottomucosa e nei vasi associati. L’epitelio gastrico e rettale appariva conservato. Negli esemplari infettati per immersione la mortalità compariva a partire dalle 24 ore ed era più dilazionata. Si osservavano lesioni cutanee con desquamazione, ulcere dermiche con esposizione della muscolatura, cheratite ed enterite siero-catarrale. Istologicamente si confermava la presenza di dermatite e miosite batterica con diffusione setticemica ed encefalite. Un protocollo IHC è stato standardizzato applicando un siero policlonale ottenuto mediante l’immunizzazione ripetuta di un coniglio SPF con inoculo di 3 ceppi virulenti di V. harveyi. Il siero è stato applicato ad una diluizione 1:2000, con buoni risultati
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe 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
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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