1,721,089 research outputs found
Experimental co-culture of low food-chain organisms, Sabella spallanzanii (Polychaeta, Sabellidae) and Cladophora prolifera (Chlorophyta, Cladophorales), in Porto Cesareo area (Mediterranean Sea)
No full textThe filter feeder polychaete Sabella spallanzanii (Gmelin) was co-cultured with the green seaweed Cladophora prolifera (Roth.) Kunz, in an off-shore experimental system. Both species have previously been experimented as bioremediator organisms for waste treatment deriving from aquaculture farms and can have a high economic value as a byproduct of polyculture. The present experiment has been conducted in an area 2 miles off the coast of Porto Cesareo (Ionian sea, Southern Italy). The growth was followed in some modules anchored to the bottom at two different depths (15 and 25 m depth). The results indicate differences among replicates located at different depths. Both organisms show a faster growth at the shallower levels. Within this level, polychaetes reached a mean biomass of 860 ± 74 mg dw (average ± SE) per worm, 30 times larger than that of the starting point, after a standstill in the first period, probably due to the manipulation activities. The major growth has been recorded during the winter. Algae have shown an increase of 34 g ww month-1 (average ± SE) in the shallower levels vs. only 11 g ww month -1 (average ± SE) in the deeper levels. The RGR calculated after 60 days was 115% in the shallower levels vs. about 60% in the deeper ones. A considerable decrease in growth rate was observed during the last period; this was probably due to the presence of increasing fouling community on the rearing cages surely affecting the light intensity. © 2006 The Authors
Sweet as honey, bitter as bile: Mitochondriotoxic peptides and other therapeutic proteins isolated from animal tissues, for dealing with mitochondrial apoptosis
No full textMitochondria are subcellular organelles involved in cell metabolism and cell life-cycle. Their role in apoptosis regulation makes them an interesting target of new drugs for dealing with cancer or rare diseases. Several peptides and proteins isolated from animal and plant sources are known for their therapeutic properties and have been tested on cancer cell-lines and xenograft murine models, highlighting their ability in inducing cell-death by triggering mitochondrial apoptosis. Some of those molecules have been even approved as drugs. Conversely, many other bioactive compounds are still under investigation for their proapoptotic properties. In this review we report about a group of peptides, isolated from animal venoms, with potential therapeutic properties related to their ability in triggering mitochondrial apoptosis. This class of compounds is known with different names, such as mitochondriotoxins or mitocans
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
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
Tecniche Biometriche Combinate nei Processi di eLearning e eVoting
No full textNel presente lavoro viene introdotta e descritta una piattaforma ICT in grado di offrire formazione a distanza (FAD) previo riconoscimento dell'allievo attraverso una combinazione di tecniche biometriche, consistenti nel riconoscimento facciale, nel riconoscimento vocale e nella keystroke dynamics. La combinazione di queste tecniche biometriche garantisce una maggiore affidabilità del riconoscimento. La prospettiva del sistema è il suo impiego per l'e-voting, in cui è fondamentale garantire l’identità del candidato
Settlement and population dynamics of the alien invasive Branchiomma bairdi (Annelida: Sabellidae) in the Mediterranean Sea: two years of observations in the Gulf of Taranto (Italy)
No full textSince the first discovery along the Italian coasts in 2004 of the polychaete Branchiomma bairdi, it has spread very quickly, reaching some localities in very high densities. In order to monitor its colonization, recruitment was investigated by means of PVC panels immersed in the Mar Grande of Taranto (Ionian Sea). Panels were monitored every three months from April 2013 to January 2015. The species showed the ability to settle on bare panels as well as on panels with a developed fouling community. Two years of monitoring identified two different cohorts, with recruits appearing in both years on panels submersed from July to October. Based on these observations B. bairdi is a short-lived species (no more than one year), reproducing at a temperature ranging from 20 to 29°C and reaching sexual maturity three months after recruitment. Oocytes were found in the coelom only in the warmest months and oogenesis was not synchronous either within each individual or within the population. Total annual secondary production was estimated at 43.42 g m−2 year−1. Annual mean biomass was 20.03 g m−2. The corresponding P/B ratio was 2.1678. This study may explain the invasiveness of B. bairdi; indeed, a rapid generation turnover coupled with a short lifespan, rapid growth and early maturity are common traits in most invasive species
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