Thermal behaviour of succinic acid, sodium succinate and its compounds with some bivalent transitions metal ions in dynamic N 2 and CO 2 atmospheres

Thermal stability and thermal decomposition of succinic acid, sodium succinate and its compounds with Mn(II), Fe(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) were investigated employing simultaneous thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) in nitrogen and carbon dioxide atmospheres and TG-FTIR in nitrogen atmosphere. On heating, in both atmospheres the succinic acid melt and evaporate, while for the sodium succinate the thermal decomposition occurs with the formation of sodium carbonate. For the transition metal succinates the final residue up to 1180 °C in N 2 atmosphere was a mixture of metal and metal oxide in no simple stoichiometric relation, except for Zn compound, where the residue was a small quantity of carbonaceous residue. For the CO 2 atmosphere the final residue up to 980 °C was: MnO, Fe 3O 4, CoO, ZnO and mixtures of Ni, NiO and Cu, Cu 2O.

Homeobox gene expression profile indicates HOXA5 as a candidate prognostic marker in oral squamous cell carcinoma

The search for molecular markers to improve diagnosis, individualize treatment and predict behavior of tumors has been the focus of several studies. This study aimed to analyze homeobox gene expression profile in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) as well as to investigate whether some of these genes are relevant molecular markers of prognosis and/or tumor aggressiveness. Homeobox gene expression levels were assessed by microarrays and qRT-PCR in OSCC tissues and adjacent non-cancerous matched tissues (margin), as well as in OSCC cell lines. Analysis of microarray data revealed the expression of 147 homeobox genes, including one set of six at least 2-fold up-regulated, and another set of 34 at least 2-fold down-regulated homeobox genes in OSCC. After qRT-PCR assays, the three most up-regulated homeobox genes (HOXA5, HOXD10 and HOXD11) revealed higher and statistically significant expression levels in OSCC samples when compared to margins. Patients presenting lower expression of HOXA5 had poorer prognosis compared to those with higher expression (P=0.03). Additionally, the status of HOXA5, HOXD10 and HOXD11 expression levels in OSCC cell lines also showed a significant up-regulation when compared to normal oral keratinocytes. Results confirm the presence of three significantly upregulated (>4-fold) homeobox genes (HOXA5, HOXD10 and HOXD11) in OSCC that may play a significant role in the pathogenesis of these tumors. Moreover, since lower levels of HOXA5 predict poor prognosis, this gene may be a novel candidate for development of therapeutic strategies in OSCC.

Field-induced length changes in the spin-liquid candidate κ-(BEDT-TTF) 2Cu 2(CN) 3

Measurements of the coefficient of thermal expansion on the spin-liquid candidate κ-(BEDT-TTF) 2Cu 2(CN) 3 have revealed distinct and strongly anisotropic lattice effects around 6 K - a possible spin liquid instability. In order to study the effects of a magnetic field on the low-temperature spin-liquid state, dilatometric measurements have been conducted both as a function of temperature at B = const. and as a function of field at T = const. While the 6 K anomaly is found to be insensitive to magnetic fields B ≤ 10 T, the maximum field applied, surprisingly strong B -induced effects are observed for magnetic fields applied along the in-plane b-axis. Above a threshold field of 0.5 T < B c ≤ 1 T, a jump-like anomaly is observed in the b-axis lattice parameter. This anomaly, which is located at 8.7 K at B = 1 T, grows in size and shifts to lower temperatures with increasing the magnetic field. Although the anomaly bears resemblance to a first-order phase transition, the lack of hysteresis suggests otherwise. © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

High-voltage electrophoretic deposition of preferentially oriented films from multiferroic YMn2O5 nanopowders

Processing of the YMn2O5 powder is very challenging, since it decomposes to YMnO3 and Mn3O4 at temperatures close to 1180 °C, while samples consolidation commonly demands high temperatures. The main goal of this work is to investigate a possibility to prepare thick films of YMn2O5, since their deposition generally requires significantly lower temperatures. Multiferroic YMn 2O5 was synthesized by the hydrothermal method from Y(CH3COO)3·xH2O, Mn(CH 3COO)2·4H2O and KMnO4 precursors. XRD, FE-SEM and TEM analysis showed that the obtained powder was monophasic, with orthorhombic crystal structure and columnar particle shape with mean diameter and length of around 20 and 50 nm, respectively. The obtained powder was suspended in isopropyl alcohol with addition of appropriate binder and deflocculant. This suspension was used for electrophoretic deposition of YMn2O5 thick films under the high-voltage conditions and electric fields ranging from 250 to 2125 V/cm. The films obtained at 1000 V/cm and higher electric fields showed good adhesion, particle packing, homogeneity and very low porosity. It was shown that the deposition in extremely high electric fields (KC=2125 V/cm) can influence the crystal orientation of the films, resulting in formation of preferentially oriented films. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l.

Informe del Secretario Ejecutivo al Decimonoveno Período de Sesiones de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe

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The solid solution between platinum and palladium in nature

Chemical and structural data are reported for platinum-palladium intermediates from two nuggets found at Corrego Bom Sucesso, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Three grains with simple stoichiometries (i.e. PtxPd1 -x with x ∼0.67, ∼0.5 and ∼0.33, which correspond to Pt2Pd, PtPd and PtPd2, respectively) were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and electron-probe microanalysis. In the absence of single-crystal data it might be tempting to hypothesize that such simple stoichiometries represent distinct mineral species, however structural analyses show that all of the phases are cubic and crystallize in space group Fm3̄m. They are, therefore, natural intermediates in the palladium-platinum solid solution. Reflectance and micro-hardness values are reported for the samples and a comparison with the pure metallic elements made. On the basis of information gained from the chemical and structural characterization it can be concluded that there is a complete solid solution between Pt and Pd in nature. These findings corroborate results from experiments on synthetic compounds. © 2013 The Mineralogical Society.

Tendencias actuales de la gestión del agua en América Latina y el Caribe: avances en la implementación de las recomendaciones contenidas en el Capítulo 18 del Programa 21

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Informe de la reunión de expertos sobre inversión extranjera directa centroamericana (México, D.F., 7 de abril de 2015)

La reunión de expertos sobre inversión extranjera directa (lED) centroamericana se enmarcó en una solicitud de cooperación técnica del Ministerio de Comercio Exterior de Costa Rica (COMEX) a la Sede Subregional de la CEPAL en México. El objeto de esta cooperación técnica fue profundizar en el análisis de la lED realizada por empresas de capital costarricense, examinando sus principales estrategias y los efectos en términos de empleo, competitividad e innovación tecnológica.

Estudo da paisagem e o planejamento estratégico como bases da gestão da oferta hídrica no estado do Pará: discussão teórica e metodológica

Este artigo discute o gerenciamento da oferta hídrica, enfocando a gestão preventiva das águas e as ferramentas metodológicas necessárias à sua aplicação, neste caso o estudo da paisagem associado à análise prospectiva estratégica. Como área de enfoque optou-se pelo estado do Pará (bacia do rio Capim) drenado pelas principais regiões hidrográficas do país: a Amazônica e o Tocantins-Araguaia. O resultado da aplicação do método na bacia hidrográfica do rio Capim - PA mostrou que a definição de mecanismos de planejamento, voltados à gestão preventiva das águas, necessita de formas de modelamento apoiadas em processos que contemplem os diversos elementos da paisagem, seus indicadores de sensibilidade e atores envolvidos.

Modalities for soil preparation and gypsum application in ultisol: stem productivity of sugarcane

O trabalho foi conduzido em área de expansão de cana-de-açúcar da Usina Vale do Paraná, no município de Suzanápolis - SP, na região do noroeste paulista. Foi utilizada a variedade de cana RB92-5345, espaçamento de 1,5 m entre linhas, em ARGISSOLO VERMELHO. O trabalho objetivou avaliar a produtividade em cana-planta e 1ª cana-soca e alguns atributos químicos de solo, em função dos métodos de preparo do solo e aplicação ou não de gesso. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos ao acaso, com seis tratamentos, fatorial 3x2, e seis repetições. Os tratamentos principais foram preparos de solo com três equipamentos: arado de aivecas, escarificador e grade pesada, e dois tratamentos secundários com aplicação de 1 t ha-1 de gesso e sem gesso. Após cada colheita da cana, o solo foi caracterizado quanto aos indicadores de fertilidade nas camadas de 0,0-0,15; 0,15-0,30 e 0,30-0,45 m. As diferenças dos atributos químicos do solo, devido aos métodos de preparo ocorridas na cana-planta, não perduraram até a colheita da 1ª cana-soca e também não influenciaram na produtividade da cultura. A gessagem proporcionou maiores valores de ATR e produtividade de TCH, para cana-planta e 1ª cana-soca, respectivamente, confirmando a hipótese inicial.

Parâmetros oftálmicos em cães adultos da raça Shih Tzu

Pós-graduação em Cirurgia Veterinária - FCAV

Implantação iônica por imersão em plasma e deposição de filmes finos poliméricos provenientes da mistura hexametildisilazano/argônio

Thin polymeric films deposited by plasma are very atractive for many industrial and scientific applications, in areas such as electronics, mechanics, coatings, biomaterials, among others, due to its favorable properties such as good adhesion to the substrate, high crosslinking, nanomectric thickness, homogeneity, etc. In this work, thin films were deposited by plasma immersion ion implantation and deposition technique from a hexamethyldisilazane/argon mixture at different proportions. These films were subjected to several characterizations, such as, contact angle, which presented values near to 100 degrees, surface energy, with values near to 31 mJ/m2, hardness with values between 0.7 and 2.6 GPa, thickness from 100 to 200 nm, refractive index from 1.56 to 1.64, molecular structure presenting the following functional groups in the infrared spectra region: CHx from 2960 to 2900 cm-1; Si-H around 2130 cm-1; CH3 in Si-(CH3)x around 1410 cm-1; CH3 in Si-(CH3)x in 1260 cm-1; N-H around 1180 cm-1; CH2 in Si-CH2-Si bonds around 1025 cm-1; Si-O in Si-O-Si from 1020 to 1100 cm-1; Si-N in Si-H-Si bonds around 940 cm-1; CH3 in Si-(CH3)3 in 850 cm-1; Si-C bonds in Si-(CH3)2 around 800 cm-1; and Si-H in 680 cm-1 . From these characterizations, it was possible to conclude that the concentration of argon or hexamethyldisilazane in the mixture changed the resulting polymer

Transpiração e eficiência de uso da água em plantios puros e mistos de eucalyptus grandis e acacia mangium

Pós-graduação em Ciência Florestal - FCA

Cariogenicidade do leite materno: mito ou evidência científica

Introduction: Breast-feeding has stood out as health care measure and is part of the Government’s National Health Policy, involving dental professionals. However, it has been suggested that breast milk could be a risk factor for the development of early childhood caries. Objective: The purpose of this report was to search for scientific evidence that would support or refute the statement that breastfeeding is associated with the development of early childhood caries. Method: Medline and SciELO databases were consulted to retrieve studies, ranging from laboratory investigations to epidemiological surveys, which relate breastfeeding to dental caries. The key words ‘breast-feeding’ and ‘dental caries’ were used on the reference search. There was no scientific evidence that could demonstrate a clear relationship between breast milk and cariogenicity. This is attributed to fact that dental caries is a multifactorial disease that is susceptible to multiple confusing factors, among which the early introduction of sucrose to the infant’s diet and late introduction of oral hygiene habits. The dentist should encourage exclusive breast-feeding because, in addition to the undeniable benefits to the child’s physical and psychological health, it contributes to a harmonic facial growth and prevents the development of atypical deglutition and malocclusions, in combination with early introduction of oral hygiene habits and noncariogenic diet. Conclusion: There is no scientific evidence to demonstrate an association between breast-feeding and early childhood caries.