The drying process of Sarcocornia perennis: impact on nutritional and physico-chemical properties.

The Sarcocornia genus is an extreme salt-tolerant plant that can be cultivated in saline habitats almost worldwide. To preserve Sarcocornia perennis, convective drying experiments were conducted and their effects on the physico-chemical properties and phenolic content of the plant were studied using conventional and vibrational spectroscopy techniques. The drying process of Sarcocornia perennis at temperatures of 40 °C, 50 °C, 60 °C and 70 °C revealed three periods of convective drying process with drying times ranging between 4.5 and 24.9 h, respectively to higher and lower temperatures. The heating-up period can be neglected as compared with the drying process, and the duration of constant rate period, as a percentage of the total drying time, ranged between 34 and 20% respectively at 40 °C and 70 °C. The Modified Page model was proposed to describe the drying process at the different temperatures. From a nutritional point of view, this halophyte plant may be considered as a good source of fibres, phenolic compounds and natural minerals, such as sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium. The convective drying, in the temperature range currently used, was found to preserve the colour, nutritional characteristics and phytochemical value of Sarcocornia perennis. These results were confirmed by FTIR-ATR and highlight the potential use of the dried plant in novel food products.

Global CO2 emissions from dry inland waters share common drivers across ecosystems.

Many inland waters exhibit complete or partial desiccation, or have vanished due to global change, exposing sediments to the atmosphere. Yet, data on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from these sediments are too scarce to upscale emissions for global estimates or to understand their fundamental drivers. Here, we present the results of a global survey covering 196 dry inland waters across diverse ecosystem types and climate zones. We show that their CO2 emissions share fundamental drivers and constitute a substantial fraction of the carbon cycled by inland waters. CO2 emissions were consistent across ecosystem types and climate zones, with local characteristics explaining much of the variability. Accounting for such emissions increases global estimates of carbon emissions from inland waters by 6% (~0.12 Pg C y-1). Our results indicate that emissions from dry inland waters represent a significant and likely increasing component of the inland waters carbon cycle.

Value of intraoperative ultrasound with conventional probes and its usefulness in surgical and therapeutic management of patients. / Valor de la ecografía intraoperatoria realizada con sondas convencionales y su utilidad en el manejo quirúrgico y terapéutico de los pacientes.

OBJECTIVE: To prove both the reliability and the applications presented by intraoperative ultrasonography (IOUS) in surgical and therapeutic management of diverse pathologies and the possibility of doing it by using conventional equipment. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Single-center retrospective study of 145 IOUS performed by using conventional equipment in 135 patients between January 2011 and June 2016. We assessed the organs studied by ultrasound, underlying conditions of patients, preoperative imaging and the degree of matching them with the histological findings. The functions of the intraoperative ultrasound were assessed in each case. RESULTS: 91,7% of the scans performed were hepatic, being other locations varied but less common. They had a high concordance with the histological results of the lesions analyzed (95.4%) and in 24% of the cases their results did not coincide with those of the preoperative imaging tests, being decisive for the management of the patients. CONCLUSION: Despite the limitations of our study, IOUS has proven to be a reliable and safe diagnostic test with advantages over conventional imaging techniques. It contributes to get a correct diagnosis in those lesions not characterized by the preoperative imaging tests, to locate and delimit the extension of a lesion within an organ and facilitate the performance of diagnostic procedures (intraoperative biopsy) even in centers where we do not have specific probes.

Conformational study and reassessment of the vibrational assignments for Norspermidine.

The present study presents and discusses the conformational preferences of Norspermidine (NSpd). The effects of varying the dielectric constant on the conformational preferences are discussed, with a view to infer which conformation will correspond to the most stable in the pure condensed liquid phase. Within the same context, a set of NSpd-NH3 molecular adducts were simulated in order to determine the relevance of intermolecular hydrogen bonding on the overall stability and relative positioning of the respective vibrational frequencies. The calculations presently performed allowed a reassessment of the vibrational assignments for NSpd. A full assignment of the NSpd vibrational spectra is presented, with special emphasis being given to the vibrational modes that proved to be most affected by hydrogen bonding. The various inconsistencies of a prior study found in the literature were identified and rectified.

On the correction of calculated vibrational frequencies for the effects of the counterions - α,ω-diamine dihydrochlorides.

The present work provides sets of correction factors to adjust the calculated vibrational frequencies of a series of α,ω-diamines hydrochloride salts to account for the intermolecular interactions with the counterion. The study was performed using different theory levels for predicting the vibrational data of isolated dicationic α,ω-diamines and their hydrochloride forms, with and without the explicit account of the interactions with the chloride counterions. Different sets of correction factors were determined for each theory level considering the four smallest elements for the α,ω-diamines series, while their transferability and reliability was evaluated considering the larger elements of the series. The theory level simplification was also evaluated and was found to neither compromise the vibrational frequencies estimates nor the magnitude and accuracy of the pre-defined scaling factors. This suggests that transferability of the correction factors is possible not only for different diamines but also between different levels of theory with the averaged group correction factor, ζ g (a) , being the best choice to account for the effects of the N-H · · · Cl interactions. The possibility of simplifying the theory level without compromising efficiency and accuracy is additionally of utmost importance. This computational approach can constitute a valuable tool in the future for studying the hydrochloride forms of larger and more complex diamine systems. Graphical Abstract A computational approach that may constitute a valuable tool for studying the hydrochloride forms of large and complex diamine systems. Correction factors to adjust the vibrational frequencies calculated for isolated dicationic primary diamines for the effects of the interactions with chloride counterions, without their explicit account in the calculations, are presented and evaluated for eficiency.

Climate change in Brazil: perspective on the biogeochemistry of inland waters.

Although only a small amount of the Earth's water exists as continental surface water bodies, this compartment plays an important role in the biogeochemical cycles connecting the land to the atmosphere. The territory of Brazil encompasses a dense river net and enormous number of shallow lakes. Human actions have been heavily influenced by the inland waters across the country. Both biodiversity and processes in the water are strongly driven by seasonal fluvial forces and/or precipitation. These macro drivers are sensitive to climate changes. In addition to their crucial importance to humans, inland waters are extremely rich ecosystems, harboring high biodiversity, promoting landscape equilibrium (connecting ecosystems, maintaining animal and plant flows in the landscape, and transferring mass, nutrients and inocula), and controlling regional climates through hydrological-cycle feedback. In this contribution, we describe the aquatic ecological responses to climate change in a conceptual perspective, and we then analyze the possible climate-change scenarios in different regions in Brazil. We also indentify some potential biogeochemical signals in running waters, natural lakes and man-made impoundments. The possible future changes in climate and aquatic ecosystems in Brazil are highly uncertain. Inland waters are pressured by local environmental changes because of land uses, landscape fragmentation, damming and diversion of water bodies, urbanization, wastewater load, and level of pollutants can alter biogeochemical patterns in inland waters over a shorter term than can climate changes. In fact, many intense environmental changes may enhance the effects of changes in climate. Therefore, the maintenance of key elements within the landscape and avoiding extreme perturbation in the systems are urgent to maintain the sustainability of Brazilian inland waters, in order to prevent more catastrophic future events.

RuII complexes incorporating tetrathiamacrocycles: synthesis and conformational analysis.

The synthesis of a series of RuII complexes incorporating thiacrown ligands ([12]ane-S4, [14]ane-S4, [16]ane-S4), as well as 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) or pyridine, is reported. Structural studies on these complexes have been carried out using a variety of techniques. Detailed 1H NMR spectroscopic studies on the previously reported [Ru([12]ane-S4)(bpy)]2+ (1) reveal that-contrary to earlier reports-the observed fluxional 1H NMR behavior is not due to chemical exchange involving cleavage of the bpy Ru--N bond but is, in fact, due to lone-pair inversion of coordinated macrocyclic sulfur donor atoms. This phenomenon is also observed for the [14]ane-S4 and [16]ane-S4 analogues of 1. For the first time, using a combination of X-ray crystallography, more detailed 1H NMR experiments, and computational methods, an in-depth study on the energetics and dynamics of invertomer formation and conversion for macrocyclic coordination complexes has been carried out. These studies reveal that the steric constraints of assembling each sulfur macrocycle and bpy ligand around the octahedral Ru(II) center lead to close intramolecular contacts. These contacts are largely dependent on the orientation of the electron lone pairs of equatorial sulfur donor atoms and correlate with the comparative stability of the different invertomeric forms. Thus, the conformational preferences of the three macrocyles in [Ru([n]ane-S4)(bpy)]2+ complexes are determined by steric rather than electronic effects.