Search results for "unity"
showing 10 items of 3852 documents
The rotifer community and its functional role in lakes of a neotropical floodplain
2014
Aquatic communities vary depending on local factors, such as environmental conditions and biological interactions and regional factors, such as the hydrological regime in floodplains. This study analyzed the community structure of rotifers and their secondary production in two lakes of an Upper Parana River floodplain (Brazil) differing in their hydrology: one connected to the river and the other isolated. Integrated samples of the water column were collected daily during 15 days in the low and high water periods. Three statistical methods, ANOVA, MRT, and IndVal were applied to distinguish the structure, biomass, and secondary production of their rotifer communities. The rotifer fauna was …
Collective agency and the concept of ‘public’ in public involvement: A practice-oriented analysis
2016
Background Public involvement activities are promoted as measures for ensuring good governance in challenging fields, such as biomedical research and innovation. Proponents of public involvement activities include individual researchers as well as non-governmental and governmental organizations. However, the concept of ‘public’ in public involvement deserves more attention by researchers because it is not purely theoretical: it has important practical functions in the guidance, evaluation and translation of public involvement activities. Discussion This article focuses on collective agency as one property a public as a small group of participants in a public involvement activity could exhib…
Biosensor Analysis of β2-Glycoprotein I–Reactive Autoantibodies: Evidence for Isotype-Specific Binding and Differentiation of Pathogenic from Infecti…
2007
Abstract Background: For the laboratory diagnosis of the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) we developed a biosensor with the ability to distinguish between disease-relevant anti-β2-glycoprotein I (β2GPI) autoantibodies (anti-β2GPI) and pathogen-specific β2GPI cross-reactive antibodies that occur transiently during infections. Methods: We used a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor device. For the detection of anti-β2GPI in serum samples, affinity-purified human β2GPI was covalently attached to a functionalized n-alkanethiol self-assembling monolayer on the biosensor chip. After verifying the specificity of the biosensor system with a panel of monoclonal antibodies to β2GPI, we analyzed s…
Analisi di processo e dinamica della comunità batterica nel trattamento di sedimenti marini con reattori bioslurry
2020
Nella nota sono riportati i risultati di una sperimentazione condotta mediante la messa in esercizio di un reattore bioslurry per il trattamento di sedimenti marini contaminati da idrocarburi. Sono state valutate le performance di processo in termini di rimozione di TPH (86% con velocità di rimozione massima di 36 mgTPH kg-1 d-1) congiuntamente ad altre tipologie di indagini volte ad ottenere maggiori informazioni sulla natura dei processi che si sono sviluppati nel reattore. Nello specifico, è stato utilizzato un approccio di tipo microbiologico mediante l’adozione di una tecnica di sequenziamento di nuova generazione (NGS - Next Generation Sequencing). Dall’analisi dei dati biologici è st…
Long-term impact of 19 years' farmyard manure or sewage sludge application on the structure, diversity and density of the protocatechuate-degrading b…
2012
International audience; Impact of long-term biosolids application on soil-living micro-organisms key players of ecosystemic services is scarcely reported. Here, the impact of the 19 year-long application of farmyard manure (FM) and sewage sludge (SS) organic fertilisation regimes on the protocatechuate-degrading bacterial (pca) community was estimated by comparison to a mineral fertilisation regime (U). The structure, diversity and density of the pca community were determined using pcaH, a gene encoding the protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase. Ten years after the last application, the structure of the pca community in soils amended with 55100 (100 t/ha/2 years) and to a lesser extent with FM (1…
Spatial patterns of bacterial taxa in nature reflect ecological traits of deep branches of the 16S rRNA bacterial tree
2009
International audience; Whether bacteria display spatial patterns of distribution and at which level of taxonomic organization such patterns can be observed are central questions in microbial ecology. Here we investigated how the total and relative abundances of eight bacterial taxa at the phylum or class level were spatially distributed in a pasture by using quantitative PCR and geostatistical modelling. The distributions of the relative abundance of most taxa varied by a factor of 2.5–6.5 and displayed strong spatial patterns at the field scale. These spatial patterns were taxon-specific and correlated to soil properties, which indicates that members of a bacterial clade defined at high t…
Distribution patterns, floristic structure and habitat requirements of the alpine river plant community Stuckenietum amblyphyllae ass. nova (Potamete…
2012
This paper discusses the floristic structure, distribution and habitat requirements of a new aquatic syntaxon, <em>Stuckenietum a</em><em>m</em><em>b</em><em>l</em><em>y</em><em>p</em><em>h</em><em>ylla</em><em>e </em>ass. nova. Patches of the <em>Stuckenietum amblyphyllae </em>association occur in the Pamir Alai Mountains in Middle Asia (Tajikistan). The biotope of this community represent high mountain rivers and ponds at the bottom of glacial river valleys situ- ated at elevations between 1900 and 3800 m. Patches of the <em>Stuckenietum amblyphyllae </em>ass…
Can grassland plant communities be preserved on road and railway verges?
2000
Semi-natural grasslands are a threatened biotope type in many countries. Typical grassland plant species are adapted to continuous grazing or mowing that keeps the envi- ronment open. With the decline in grassland area, these spe- cies are ever more reliant on alternative habitats such as road verges. To find out whether plant communities comparable to those of semi-natural grasslands can be maintained on modern road and railway sides, the vegetation of 92 grasslands and 90 road and railway verges was studied. These biotope types were compared with each other according to their community structure, total number of species, number of grassland species and restricted-range diversity. Further …
Effects of BDE-47 exposure on immune-related parameters of Mytilus galloprovincialis.
2019
Abstract The persistent pollutants polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been demonstrated to produce several negative effects on marine organisms. Although Mytilus galloprovincialis was extensively studied as model system, the effects of PBDEs on the innate immune system of mussels remains unclear. In this study, except for the control treatment, specimens of M. galloprovincialis were fed with microalgae treated with increasing concentrations of PBDEs (maximum level 100 ng L−1 of BDE-47 per day). BDE-47 treatment was maintained for 15 days and then the animals were fed with the same control diet, without contaminants, for 15 days. Samples of haemolymph (HL) were obtained at T0, T15 a…
Serum Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate and Risk for Type 2 Diabetes in Older Men and Women: The Pro.V.A Study
2016
Objective: A large body of clinical data suggests the importance of endogenous sex hormones in the pathogenesis of diabetes, but very little is known about the possible relationship between dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and diabetes, particularly in the elderly. We aimed, therefore, to examine whether high serum levels of DHEAS have any protective effects on the incidence of type 2 diabetes and to elucidate the possible role of gender in a cohort of older subjects. Methods: We followed 1258 community-dwelling subjects aged ≥65 years without type 2 diabetes who belonged to the Progetto Veneto Anziani (Pro.V.A.) for 4.4±1.2 years. DHEAS were measured at baseline and categorized into …