Asian Hornet,Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836 (Hym.: Vespidae), Venom Obtention Based on an Electric Stimulation Protocol

The yellow-legged Asian hornet (Vespa velutina Lepeletier 1836 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae)) is naturally distributed in China, Southeast Asia, and India; however, recently it has been detected outside of its native area, confirmed as being established in South Korea, Europe, and Japan. Health risks and deaths caused by the invasive Vespa velutina stings have become a public health concern, being the most common cause of anaphylaxis due to hymenopterans in some European regions. This in turn has led to increased demand from medical practitioners and researchers for Vespa velutina venom for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. In this study, a straightforward, quick, and inexpensive method for obtaining Vespa velutina venom by electric stimulation is described. The venom extracts were analyzed by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H-NMR). The availability of Vespa velutina venom will lead to improved diagnostic and therapeutic methods, mainly by venom immunotherapy (VIT), in patients allergic to this invasive species.     

Neural correlates of semantic and syntactic processes in the comprehension of case marked pronouns: Evidence from German and Dutch

Background  

It is well known that both semantic and syntactic information play a role in pronoun resolution in sentences. However, it is unclear what the relative contribution of these sources of information is for the establishment of a coreferential relationship between the pronoun and the antecedent in combination with a local structural case constraint on the pronoun (i.e. case assignment of a pronoun under preposition governing). In a prepositional phrase in German and Dutch, it is the preposition that assigns case to the pronoun. Furthermore, in these languages different overtly case-marked pronouns are used to refer to male and female persons. Thus, one can manipulate biological/syntactic gender features separately from case marking features.     

A Humanized In Vitro Model of Innervated Skin for Transdermal Analgesic Testing

Sensory innervation of the skin is essential for its function, homeostasis, and wound healing mechanisms. Thus, to adequately model the cellular microenvironment and function of native skin, in vitro human skin equivalents (hSE) containing a sensory neuron population began to be researched. In this work, a fully human 3D platform of hSE innervated by induced pluripotent stem cell-derived nociceptor neurospheres (hNNs), mimicking the native mode of innervation, is established. Both the hSE and nociceptor population exhibit morphological and phenotypical characteristics resembling their native counterparts, such as epidermal and dermal layer formation and nociceptor marker exhibition, respectively. In the co-culture platform, neurites develop from the hNNs and navigate in 3D to innervate the hSE from a distance. To probe both skin and nociceptor functionality, a clinically available capsaicin patch (Qutenza) is applied directly over the hSE section and neuron reaction is analyzed. Application of the patch causes an exposure time-dependent neurite regression and degeneration. In platforms absent of hSE, axonal degeneration is further increased, highlighting the role of the skin construct as a barrier. In sum, an in vitro tool of functional innervated skin with high interest for preclinical research is established.     

Comprehensive study of honey with protected denomination of origin and contribution to the enhancement of legal specifications

In this study the characterization of a total of 60 honey samples with Protected Denomination of Origin (PDO) collected over three harvests (2009-2011, inclusive), from the Northeast of Portugal was carried out based on the presence of pollen, physicochemical and microbiological characteristics. All samples were found to meet the European Legislation, but some didn't meet the requirements of the PDO specifications. Concerning the floral origin of honey, our results showed the prevalence of rosemary (Lavandula pedunculata) pollen. The microbiological quality of all the analyzed samples was satisfactory, since fecal coliforms, sulfite-reducing clostridia and Salmonella were absent, and molds and yeasts were detected in low counts. Significant differences between the results were studied using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by Tukey's HSD test. The samples were submitted to discriminant function analysis, in order to determine which variables differentiate between two or more naturally occurring groups (Forward Stepwise Analysis). The variables selected were in this order: diastase activity, pH, reducing sugars, free acidity and HMF. The pollen spectrum has perfect discriminatory power. This is the first study in which a honey with PDO was tested, in order to assess its compliance with the PDO book of specifications.     

ICP-AES法测定色漆可溶性金属含量

用ICP-AES法测定了色漆中的“可溶性”金属铬、镉、铅元素，考察了不同酸度对分析结果的影响，优化了测试条件。进行了回收率和精密度试验。并用原子吸收光谱国标方法进行对照，结果一致。     

Effect of counterion on thermodynamic micellar properties of tetradecylpyridinium in aqueous solutions

Electrical conductivity of aqueous solutions of tetradecylpyridinium bromide and chloride has been measured as a function of surfactant molal concentration and temperature. From the molal dependence of conductivity, the critical micelle concentration and the micellar ionization degree were estimated. The temperature dependence of these parameters has been used for calculating the thermodynamic parameters related with the micellization process by using the classical charged pseudophase separation model. The effect of the counterion on the conventional thermodynamic potentials of micellization such as standard Gibbs free energy, enthalpy and entropy has also been a matter of study. Finally, the occurrence of the enthalpy–entropy compensation phenomenon was verified and the relevant parameters discussed.     

(2S)‐1‐Carbamoylpyrrolidine‐2‐carboxylic acid

In the title compound, also known as N‐carbamoyl‐l ‐proline, C₆H₁₀N₂O₃, the pyrrolidine ring adopts a half‐chair conformation, whereas the carboxyl group and the mean plane of the ureide group form an angle of 80.1 (2)°. Molecules are joined by N—H...O and O—H...O hydrogen bonds into cyclic structures with graph‐set R²₂(8), forming chains in the b‐axis direction that are further connected via N—H...O hydrogen bonds into a three‐dimensional network.