Demonstration of Single-Barium-Ion Sensitivity for Neutrinoless Double-Beta Decay Using Single-Molecule Fluorescence Imaging.

A new method to tag the barium daughter in the double-beta decay of ^{136}Xe is reported. Using the technique of single molecule fluorescent imaging (SMFI), individual barium dication (Ba^{++}) resolution at a transparent scanning surface is demonstrated. A single-step photobleach confirms the single ion interpretation. Individual ions are localized with superresolution (∼2 nm), and detected with a statistical significance of 12.9σ over backgrounds. This lays the foundation for a new and potentially background-free neutrinoless double-beta decay technology, based on SMFI coupled to high pressure xenon gas time projection chambers.

A Double Chaotic Layer Encryption Algorithm for Clinical Signals in Telemedicine.

Recently, telemedicine offers medical services remotely via telecommunications systems and physiological monitoring devices. This scheme provides healthcare delivery services between physicians and patients conveniently, since some patients can not attend the hospital due to any reason. However, transmission of information over an insecure channel such as internet or private data storing generates a security problem. Therefore, authentication, confidentiality, and privacy are important challenges in telemedicine, where only authorized users should have access to medical or clinical records. On the other hand, chaotic systems have been implemented efficiently in cryptographic systems to provide confidential and privacy. In this work, we propose a novel symmetric encryption algorithm based on logistic map with double chaotic layer encryption (DCLE) in diffusion process and just one round of confusion-diffusion for the confidentiality and privacy of clinical information such as electrocardiograms (ECG), electroencephalograms (EEG), and blood pressure (BP) for applications in telemedicine. The clinical signals are acquired from PhysioBank data base for encryption proposes and analysis. In contrast with recent schemes in literature, we present a secure cryptographic algorithm based on chaos validated with the most complete security analysis until this time. In addition, the cryptograms are validated with the most complete pseudorandomness tests based on National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 800-22 suite. All results are at MATLAB simulations and all them show the effectiveness, security, robustness, and the potential use of the proposed scheme in telemedicine.

Tissue specificity of histone phosphorylation.

The incorporation of (32)P-phosphate into histone fractions isolated from normal, hepatectomized, and Novikoff hepatoma-bearing rats was investigated. Varying degrees of phosphorylation were exhibited by different histone fractions. The phosphorylation of histones is tissue specific and appears to be correlated with metabolic cell functions, that is, it decreases with increasing mitotic activity of the cells.

[Assessment of postural control and balance in persons with temporomandibular disorders: A systematic review]. / Valoración del control postural y del equibrio en personas con trastornos temporomandibulares: revisión sistemática.

The stomatognathic system is the anatomo-functional unit of the cranio-cervico-facial region. Some dysfunctions affect its motor control. The aim of this study was to analyse the clinical usefulness of the various scales and instruments used in the assessment of postural control in people with temporomandibular disorders. A systematic review was carried out by 2independent reviewers in the PubMed, Medline, Ebsco, Science Direct and PEDro databases, selecting observational studies published between January 2006 and March 2017. The risk of bias and methodological quality was analysed following Cochrane indications and the Downs and Black quality scale. Ten studies were included, of which 9used computerised platforms, one added photogrammetry and one used electromyography. Seven studies were classified as moderate quality and 3as low quality. Posturography was the most widely used assessment instrument. Methodological differences did not allow determination of their clinical implications or the relationship between balance and the presence of temporomandibular disorders.

[Efficacy of dry needling in neck pain compared with other physiotherapy techniques: A systematic review]. / Eficacia de la punción seca en la cervicalgia en comparación con otras técnicas de fisioterapia: una revisión sistemática.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of dry needling (DN) in the treatment of myofascial trigger points (MTrP) compared to other methods of physical therapy in the treatment of neck pain. METHOD: A systematic search was carried out in the MEDLINE Complete (EBSCO), Pubmed, PEDro and Scopus databases. The quality of the studies was assessed using the standard of biases of the Cochrane Collaboration. RESULTS: Eleven articles met the eligibility criteria. The characteristics of the participants and the results of the comparison of the application of DN with ultrasound, TENS, manual therapy techniques (passive stretching, strain-counterstrain, ischaemic pressure) and kinesiotape bandage are described. CONCLUSION: DN was a useful technique in reducing neck pain. However, its efficacy in the treatment of cervicalgia could not be determined in comparison with other physiotherapy approaches.

The effects of acrobatic exercise on brain plasticity: a systematic review of animal studies.

Acrobatic exercise is considered a complex motor activity and may promote motor learning and neuroplasticity. The objective of this systematic review was to verify possible plastic brain changes induced by acrobatic exercise in non-lesioned rat and mouse through the analysis of experimental studies. Manual and electronic searches were conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE and ISI Web of Science databases, without restriction to language or publication date. Synaptogenesis and neurogenesis were selected as the primary outcomes. To evaluate the risk of bias of individual studies, we used the Systematic Review Centre for Laboratory Animal Experimentation (SYRCLE) RoB tool. We found 1780 studies, from which 18 fulfilled the inclusion criteria in this review. Seventeen studies evaluated the cerebellum, six the motor cortex, five the striatum and two evaluated the hippocampus. The results showed that acrobatic exercise promotes plastic changes in brain areas of rats, and such changes are dependent of training frequency and duration. However, studies were heterogeneous regarding the proteins analyzed and the training protocols, which made it difficult to compare and determine ideal acrobatic exercise parameters for neuroplasticity. Concerning the methodological quality of studies, most of them presented high risk of bias with absence of relevant study design information. New research with detailing training protocols and analysis might contribute to clarify the role of acrobatic exercise in neuroplasticity and how it could be used in translational research.

Multiuser communication scheme based on binary phase-shift keying and chaos for telemedicine.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Currently, telemedicine is levered upon the improvement in communication network technology such as Body Area Sensor Networks (BASN) to provided biomedicine solutions. Nevertheless, information security is an important issue since biomedical data is exchanged through insecure channels, which exposes private information that can be intercepted by malicious intruder. Therefore, secure communication protocols for multiuser networks in telemedicine applications are a big challenge. Recent chaos-based encryption works have been conducted in the area of medical secure communications with high security capabilities. However, none of them has considered multiuser network, which is used in several e-health applications. Up to our knowledge, the proposed protocol is the first attempt to consider this service in secure telemedicine. In this paper, we propose a novel scheme based on binary phase-shift key (BPSK) and chaos to provide information security at biosignals in a multiuser network system transmitting data over single channel. METHODS: The proposed scheme uses the two-dimensional Hénon map with enhance pseudorandom sequences and CDMA technique to achieve multiuser encryption process and transmit data over a single channel. We use biosignals such as electrocardiograms (ECG) and blood pressure (PB) signals from PhisioBank ATM data base for simulation results at MatLab software. We evaluate the security and performance by determining the secret key space, secret key sensitivity, resistance against noise attack with quality analysis by using BER, MSE, and PSNR, encryption-decryption time, and throughput. RESULTS: In simulations tests, biosignals of ECG and BP in a BANS network are encrypted and transmitted over shared wireless channels and just authorized medical personal can retrieve such information with corresponding secret key from the cryptogram, that appears as noise to any intruder. The proposed multiuser scheme support high noise and interference attacks efficiently in contrast with classic chaos-based encryption works for telemedicine, where some scenarios are simulated with very low BER, very low MSE, and high PSNR between plain biosignals and recovered biosignals when high AWGN noise is added to encrypted-transmitted signal. In addition, the encryption process presents enough key space and high sensitivity at secret key. A comparative analysis of proposed method and recent existing works was also presented. CONCLUSIONS: Patients can be monitored and diagnosed opportunely remotely and all their medical information is transmitted securely to the correct specialist. Also, it is possible to transmit several electrophysiological signals in a single channel in a secure multiuser network at low cost optimizing the use of available bandwidth for telemedicine applications.

Evaluation of the wound healing properties of Acalypha langiana in diabetic rats.

Acalypha langinia is a well-known plant in the traditional medicine. Based on its traditional use, this plant was selected for evaluation of its wound healing potential. Topical application twice a day for 7 days of 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.4% and 0.5% sterile solution of aqueous extract from leaves of A. langinia significantly increased the healing process.

Evaluation of Anti-inflammatory Activity of Seeds of Phalaris canariensis.

Chloroform extract (ALC) from the seeds of Phalaris canariensis were assayed for antiinflammatory activity by carrageenan-induced oedema, cotton pellets-induced granuloma, histamine-induced inflammation, croton oil-induced oedema, activity of myeloperoxidase (MPO), adjuvant-induced arthritis, quantification of TNFα, IL-1ß, PGE2 and LTB4 and nitric oxide (NO) assay. ALC exhibited significant anti-inflammatory activity in different chemically-induced edemas in a dose dependent manner. In the chronic model cotton pellets-induced granuloma showed decreased formation of granuloma tissue. Also caused inhibition of ear inflammation edema and influx of polymorphonuclear cells, as evidence by a decrease in ear thickness and reduced myeloperoxidase activity and inhibit mediators of inflammation as TNFα, IL-1ß, PGE2 and LTB4. When RAW 264.7 macrophages were treated with ALC together with LPS a significant inhibition of NO production was detected. These data provide evidence for antiinflammatory effect of P. canariensis by mechanisms that involve a reduced neutrophil influx and decreased production of inflammatory cytokines.

Cytotoxic Constituents from Daphnia pulex.

Activity-guided fractionation of the methanol extract of Daphnia pulex. (Leydig) using the MTT assay and P-388, A549, KB, and HT-29 cell lines permitted the isolation of four known glyceroglycolipid compounds: (2S.)-1-O.-(7Z.,10Z.,13Z.)-hexadecatrienoyl-2-O.-(7Z.,10Z.)-hexadecadienoyl-3-O.-ß.-D-galactopyranosyl-sn.-glycerol, (2S.)-1-O.-(7Z.,10Z.)-hexadecadienoyl-2-O.-(7Z.,10Z.)-hexadecadienoyl-3-O.-ß.-D-galactopyranosyl-sn.-glycerol, (2S.)-1-O.-(7Z.,10Z.)-hexadecadienolyl-2-O.-linolenoyl-3-O.-ß.-D-galactopyranosyl-sn.-glycerol, and (2S.)-1-O.-(9Z., 12Z.)-octadecadienoyl-2-O.-(7Z.,10Z.)-hexadecadienoyl-3-O.-(α.-D-galactopyranosyl(1-6)-ß.-D-galactopyranosyl-sn.-glycerol. All the isolates were found to be moderately cytotoxic (ED50 < 4 µg/ml) toward P-388, A549, KB, and HT-29 cell lines.

Inhibition of tumor growth by peptide specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes in a three-dimensional collagen matrix.

Tumor associated, MHC I restricted antigenic peptides have been identified in both human and mouse tumors. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) which recognize these tumor associated antigenic peptides are potential anti-cancer effectors. The anti-tumor activity of CTL is usually measured in vitro by the 51Cr release assay and in mice by tumor growth inhibition which is the most direct assessment of anti-tumor effect. In clinical studies, an in vivo tumor growth inhibition assay is not an option and an in vitro assay which corroborates with in vivo tumor growth is needed to assess the long-term outcome of CTL activity. Here, a three-dimensional (3-D) collagen gel assay was developed to measure in vitro the inhibition of mouse mammary tumor growth by anti-tumor CTL. BALB/c mouse CTL were induced with peptide E474 SFAVATTAL which was expressed by mouse mammary tumor cells D2F2. To measure D2F2 tumor growth inhibition in vitro, a mixture of tumor cells and anti-E474 CTL in a 1 microl cell bolus was embedded in the collagen gel. Complete eradication of tumor growth was observed at E:T ratio of or greater than 1:1. rIL-2 supplementation was necessary to achieve long-term tumor growth inhibition. Even spontaneous D2 tumor explant could be grown in the collagen gel and addition of anti-E474 to this culture reduced tumor growth. This assay system provides a realistic and sensitive alternative to the in vivo tumor growth inhibition assay and allows easy adaptation to test additional therapeutic reagents.

Short-term effects of a hypocaloric diet on nitrogen excretion in morbid obese women.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the daily pattern of urine excretion of N wastes is affected by obesity and very low-calorie diets (VLCD). DESIGN: The plasma amino acid, urea and other energy parameters, as well as the urinary excretion of total nitrogen, urea and creatinine were studied in obese and normal-weight women. The obese women's data were obtained under hospital basal controlled conditions (8.1 MJ/day) and after 3 days of VLCD diet (1.9 MJ/day) controls were studied only once (5.8 MJ/day). The hourly excretion patterns of total N, urea and creatinine were determined from the composition of each bladder voiding. SUBJECTS: Twenty morbidly obese and 10 age-matched normal-weight control women. RESULTS: Plasma amino acid levels were higher in obese women, which showed a limited ability to metabolize amino acid hydrocarbon skeletons. Neither differences in the patterns between groups nor total 24 h values for urine volume were found. Total N and urea excretion diminished under VLCD diet. Hourly creatinine excretion showed a flat pattern and was higher in obese women than in the controls, VLCD diet diminished the amount of creatinine excreted in 24 h. CONCLUSIONS: The early change in energy availability that the creatinine excretion figures reflect may result from the energy conservation mechanisms induced in response to energy restriction. The early onset of this effect (3 days, and the extent of decrease (approximately 19%) also suggest that the impact of VLCD on the muscle energy budget of the obese is more marked than usually assumed.

Diuretic activity of Mexican equisetum.

Chloroform extracts of Equisetum fluviatile, E. hiemale var. affine, E. giganteum and E. myriochaetum were studied to determine diuretic activity in CD1 strain mice using hydrochlorothiazide, spironolactone and furosemide as standard drugs for comparison. It was found that the most active plant was E. hiemale var. affine, followed by E. fluviatile, E. giganteum and E. myriochaetum, producing an effect similar to that of hydrochlorothiazide in relation to the excretion of sodium, potassium and chloride.

Litorine: a new macrolide antimicrobial isolated from Littorina aspera.

A new macrolide, namely litorine, has been isolated from Littorina aspera. The structure of the new macrolide was determined by spectrometric methods. Litorine is active in vitro against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Microsporum canis.

Compounds derived from endophytes: a review of phytochemistry and pharmacology.

OBJECTIVE: Endophytes, microorganisms that reside in the tissues of living plants, are a promising source of novel compounds with biological activity, or an alternative source of compounds originally isolated from higher plants. The intent of this review is to provide insights into their occurrence in nature, the products that they make, and how some of these organisms are beginning to show some potential for human use. METHODS: Information for analysis of endophytic microorganisms was obtained from libraries and Internet scientific databases such as Scirus, Google Scholar, CAB-Abstracts, MedlinePlus, PubMed, SciFinder, Scopus and Web of Science. RESULTS: Many of the compounds reported here were isolated exclusively from endophytes in culture, while other compounds had been previously reported as chemical constituents of higher plants. A survey of the literature shows endophytic microorganisms are mainly known for their alkaloids with cytotoxic, chemopreventive, anti-metastatic and antitumor properties used in the treatment of several types of cancer. The studies of these alkaloids highlight the existence of various potential leads for the development of novel anti-cancer agents. Modern pharmacology studies demonstrated that their crude extracts and active compounds possess wide pharmacological actions, especially for anti-microbial drug discovery, with neuroprotective, antioxidant, nematicidal, antiplasmodium, anti-inflammatory activities. AIM OF THE REVIEW: This review summarizes the up-to-date and comprehensive information on compounds from endophytes fungi from 1995 to 2011 that relates to 313 compounds isolated from endophytic microorganisms, together with the botany, phytochemistry, pharmacology and toxicology, and discusses possible trends and the scope for future research of endophytes.

Effect of Cirsium pascuarense on blood glucose levels of normoglycaemic and alloxan-diabetic mice.

Blood glucose levels of normal and alloxan-treated diabetic mice were determined after i.p. administration of various doses of the hexane, chloroform and methanol extracts of Cirsium pascuarense. From the data obtained, it is concluded that the i.p. administration of 100, 150 and 200 mg/kg of hexane extract of this plant produced a significant hypoglycaemic effect in normal as well as in diabetic mice. In addition, the extracts altered glucose tolerance in alloxan induced diabetic rats. Chloroform and methanol extracts did not produce any significant change in blood glucose levels.

Identification of benzophenanthridine alkaloids from Bocconia arborea by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

A methanol extract of the bark of Bocconia arborea was fractionated on silica gel and the fractions analysed using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Several benzophenanthridine alkaloids were identified including dihydrosanguinarine, oxysanguinarine, 11-acetonyldihydrochelerythrine, dihydrochelerythrine, chelerythrine, chelerythridimerine and angoline as the principal constituents. The results show that the direct GC-MS analysis of these alkaloids is possible with a clear distinction between the compounds. The technique is shown to be a valuable tool and an alternative technique to classical phytochemical procedures permitting the fast analysis of alkaloids mixtures.

Parasympathomimetic activity of salpantiol. A new cyclitol from Salpianthus arenarius.

A new cyclitol was isolated using the flowers of the Salpianthus arenarius, and its chemical structure was determined (2-methoxy-5hydroxymethyl cyclopentane-1,3,4-triol). The contractile effects of acetylcholine (Ach), Atropine, Pilocarpine, Adrenaline and Cyclitol were studied in rat ileum. Such cyclitol proves to have parasympathomimetic activity.