Factors influencing late-Holocene vegetation dynamics and biodiversity on Hallands Väderö, SW Sweden: A statistical evaluation

Forest composition characteristic of the Mid-Holocene has survived on Hallands Väderö, an island nature reserve off the south west coast of Sweden. Current veteran Tilia and Quercus trees contribute to a remarkably rich biodiversity of fungi, bryophytes, lichens and insects. Understanding which potential factors influence Holocene vegetation dynamics can support efforts to protect biodiversity, but the role of grazing and browsing has previously been difficult to evaluate because of the lack of long-term datasets. Palaeoecological analyses over the last c. 3000 years from a pond on the island reveal sustained presence of Quercus, Alnus, Tilia, Corylus and Ulmus, alongside increasing Fagus in recent centuries. Changes in grazing pressure have been documented since AD 1665 and a statistical approach was used to calculate the relative importance of grazing pressure, climate variability, and fire activity on the dynamics of selected taxa. Grazing was the main factor reducing population size of Fagus, Alnus, Tilia and Corylus on the island over the period AD 1665–1858, with warm winter temperatures and summer humidity having significant positive influences in the last millennium for Quercus, Alnus, Tilia and Corylus. The survival of large numbers of red-listed species is likely to be due to the continuity of large old trees, ancient forest composition and a distinctive disturbance history in a favourable climate.

Some Quality Properties, Mineral and Heavy Metal Composition of Wild Fruit Traditional Marmalades

In this research, some physicochemical and microbiological characteristics and mineral compositions of marmalades produced by traditional method using Berberis integerrima Bunge (purple barberry), Berberis vulgaris L. (pink barberry), Rosa pimpinellifolia L. (black rosehip), Rosa canina L. (pink rosehip), Malus sylvestris Miller (sour apple), and Vaccinium corymbosum L. (blueberry) wild fruit naturally grown in Bayburt and Trabzon provinces were determined. As a result of the research; pH 2.56-4.18, titration acidity (in terms of citric acid) 0.62-3.40%, dry matter 53.65-64.90%, water soluble dry matter 52.28-64.53%, water activity 0.818-0.894 and HMF (5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural) were detected in the range of 5.81-53.40 mg/kg. As a result of microbiological analysis, total aerobic mesophilic bacteria, coliform group bacteria and yeast-mold were not detected in any of the samples. In the marmalade samples, the macro minerals Ca, K, P and Mg are ranged from 23.56-425.12 mg/kg, 1275.74-5918.10 mg/kg, 21.98-921.26 mg/kg and 125.50-776.23 mg/kg, respectively. Of the micro-minerals Fe 4034.85-22346.74 µg/kg, Mn 531.63-15065.91 µg/kg, Zn 345.40-6250.76 µg/kg, B 2872.99-7300.37 µg/kg, and Ba were found between 689.31-6455.24 µg/kg. The results of heavy metal analysis showed that marmalade samples were within reliable limits. It is concluded that these fruits, which are not usually consumed as table, but have rich mineral composition, characteristic taste and pleasant aroma, can be evaluated in marmalade production. In the years when the yields of wild fruits are high, it can be processed into products with long shelf life such as jam and marmalade and converted into added value can contribute to the regional economy.

Screening of Gunshot Residue in Skin Using Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR FT-IR) Hyperspectral Microscopy

The detection of gunshot residues (GSR) in skin is important in criminal forensic investigations related with firearms. Conventionally, the procedure is based on the detection of metallic or inorganic residues (IGSR). In this work, we propose attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR FT-IR) hyperspectral microscopy as a complementary and nondestructive technique for detection of organic GSR (OGSR). The spectra were acquired from GSR of three ammunition manufacturers, which were collected from shooter’s hands by the tape-lifting method. Before spectroscopic analysis, a Na–Ca bleach solution was added to all GSR samples on the tape for destroying skin debris. Positive detection of OGSR spectra were achieved by ATR FT-IR hyperspectral microscopy. Spectra show characteristic patterns of nitrate ester compounds which agrees with the propellant chemical composition. Characteristic ATR FT-IR spectral patterns of OGSR were measured from visualized GSR particles demonstrating the potential of ATR FT-IR hyperspectral microscopy.

Advancement of Lipid-Based Nanocarriers and Combination Application with Physical Penetration Technique

On account of the advantages of transdermal delivery and the application situation of transcutaneous technology in transdermal delivery, the article critically comments on nanosystems as permeation enhancement model. Nanosystems possess great potential for transcutaneous drug delivery. This review focuses on recent advances in lipid-based nanocarriers, including liposome, transfersomes, ethosomes, nanoemulsions, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carriers and combination application of the lipid-based nanocarriers with microneedle, iontophoresis, electroporation and sonophoresis in the field for the development of the transdermal drug delivery system. We attempted to give an overview of lipid-based nanocarriers with the aim to improve transdermal and dermal drug delivery. A special focus is given to the nanocarrier composition, characteristic and interaction mechanisms through the skin. Recent combination applications of lipid-based nanocarriers with the physical penetration technology demonstrate the superiority of the combined use of nanocarriers and physical methods in drug penetration enhancement compared to their single use. In the future, lipidbased nanocarriers will play a greater role in the field of transdermal and dermal drug delivery.

Studies of the Compositional Characteristics of Commercial Roasted Beet Root Chips Snacks

Beta vulgaris L. (beetroot) contains high amounts of active substances. The amounts of various compounds sucrose, glucose, fructose, micronutrients and physical properties were found in roasted beet root chips of two varieties cultivated in Jessore (BRJS) and Kustia (BRKS), Bangladesh. Large differences were found between the varieties for some nutrients (such as sucrose), whereas others showed only minor variation (physical properties and acceptability). The study aims to estimate the composition characteristic of commercial roasted beet root chips snacks. The total sucrose content was found to range between 73.6 g/kg and 82.6 g/ kg of roasted chips samples. Other detected glucose, which accounted for up to 4.1% to 3.2% and fructose 1.31% to 1.21%. The % CV of sucrose, glucose and fructose were 14.5%, 43.3% and 52.6% respectively. Physicochemical properties of beet root Chips was studied and is shown in Table 4 for accepted sample BRTJS. The average weight of one piece of beetroot chips was 2.22 gm, diameter 5.15 cm, thickness 0.35 cm, height 0.7 cm and bulk density was 0.35g/cm3. The average apparent moisture diffusivity was calculated as 5.35X10-9 m 2s -1 with standard deviation 2.43X10-9 m 2s -1. The highest value of moisture diffusivity recorded as 1.9X10-9 of the MHSDT method and lowest value of 2.25X10-9. Proximate values was 2.2% moisture, 0.7% ash, 17% protein, 1.25% fat, 1.7% crude fiber and 74.02% carbohydrate respectively. Sensory evaluation for acceptances of the sample-RBJS got a highest sensorial score (9.0) for all parameters like the color (9.2), taste (9.25), texture (8.5), after taste (7.0) and overall acceptability (9.0) than other BRKS sample.

Inter-residue interactions in alpha-helical transmembrane proteins

Motivation The number of available membrane protein structures has markedly increased in the last years and, in parallel, the reliability of the methods to detect transmembrane (TM) segments. In the present report, we characterized inter-residue interactions in α-helical membrane proteins using a dataset of 3462 TM helices from 430 proteins. This is by far the largest analysis published to date. Results Our analysis of residue–residue interactions in TM segments of membrane proteins shows that almost all interactions involve aliphatic residues and Phe. There is lack of polar–polar, polar–charged and charged–charged interactions except for those between Thr or Ser sidechains and the backbone carbonyl of aliphatic and Phe residues. The results are discussed in the context of the preferences of amino acids to be in the protein core or exposed to the lipid bilayer and to occupy specific positions along the TM segment. Comparison to datasets of β-barrel membrane proteins and of α-helical globular proteins unveils the specific patterns of interactions and residue composition characteristic of α-helical membrane proteins that are the clue to understanding their structure. Availability and implementation Results data and datasets used are available at http://lmc.uab.cat/TMalphaDB/interactions.php. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Figure Pointing in the Humanist Schoolroom

Early modern teachers routinely compared dialectic to the clenched fist because it was the art with which you sock your listener in his or her face; rhetoric, by contrast, was like the open palm because it was the art with which you gently caressed your listener. Chapter two considers a variant on this commonplace image in Philip Sidney’s Old Arcadia: the empty glove. Drawing on grammar school exercises in reading and writing that treated figures as formulas for composition, it describes the art for which the empty glove was an emblem, the paradigm of composition characteristic of this art, and the social consequences of practicing this art. Against the social and aesthetic imperatives of sprezzatura, it argues for the value of a clumsy, klutzy, awkward poetics, an indecorous art dedicated to sheer or mere style. Early modern theorists tended to justify the existence of poetry’s imaginative worlds on either moral or metaphysical grounds that always insisted on a return to the actual world. Chapter Two considers the indecorous thinking of poetry that refuses to translate the poet’s pleasure into the audience’s profit.