Social organization and mating system of free-ranging, greater white-toothed shrews, Crocidura russula

Indirect evidence from trapping suggests that Crocidura russula is less solitary and territorial than other shrews. To study the social organization and mating system, free-ranging adult and juvenile C. russula were tracked simultaneously throughout the year using a radioactive tracking technique. Coincident rest, coincident activity and home range overlap were measured. During winter, all individuals used the same communal nest and spent on average 84% of their total rest in coincident rest. This led to a large home range overlap (52% on average). Coincident activity was low (2% on average). At the onset of the reproductive season the females became, territorial and shared their nest with only one male. During pair formation, coincident activity and home range overlap were significantly greater between than within sexes. The social organization of C. russula appeared to be strongly influenced by season and differed in this respect from the other species in the genus Sorex which are territorial throughout the year.

Cellular distribution of glucose and monocarboxylate transporters in human brain white matter and multiple sclerosis lesions.

To ensure efficient energy supply to the high demanding brain, nutrients are transported into brain cells via specific glucose (GLUT) and monocarboxylate transporters (MCT). Mitochondrial dysfunction and altered glucose metabolism are thought to play an important role in the progression of neurodegenerative diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS). Here, we investigated the cellular localization of key GLUT and MCT proteins in human brain tissue of non-neurological controls and MS patients. We show that in control brain tissue GLUT and MCT proteins were abundantly expressed in a variety of central nervous system cells, particularly in microglia and endothelial cells. In active MS lesions, GLUTs and MCTs were highly expressed in infiltrating leukocytes and reactive astrocytes. Astrocytes manifest increased MCT1 staining and maintain GLUT expression in inactive lesions, whereas demyelinated axons exhibit significantly reduced GLUT3 and MCT2 immunoreactivity in inactive lesions. Finally, we demonstrated that the co-transcription factor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1-alpha (PGC-1α), an important protein involved in energy metabolism, is highly expressed in reactive astrocytes in active MS lesions. Overexpression of PGC-1α in astrocyte-like cells resulted in increased production of several GLUT and MCT proteins. In conclusion, we provide for the first time a comprehensive overview of key nutrient transporters in white matter brain samples. Moreover, our data demonstrate an altered expression of these nutrient transporters in MS brain tissue, including a marked reduction of axonal GLUT3 and MCT2 expression in chronic lesions, which may impede efficient nutrient supply to the hypoxic demyelinated axons thereby contributing to the ongoing neurodegeneration in MS. GLIA 2014;62:1125-1141.

Descrição de Hephialtes mourei sp. nov. e notas em Hephialtes Thomson e Braderochus mundus (White) (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Prioninae)

Hephialtes mourei sp. nov. é descrita do Brasil (Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo e Paraná). A chave para espécies de Braderochus e a ilustração do holótipo de B. mundus (White, 1853) fornecidas por Bleuzen (1994) são discutidas.

Individual Classification of Mild Cognitive Impairment Subtypes by Support Vector Machine Analysis of White Matter DTI.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: MCI was recently subdivided into sd-aMCI, sd-fMCI, and md-aMCI. The current investigation aimed to discriminate between MCI subtypes by using DTI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-six prospective participants were included: 18 with sd-aMCI, 13 with sd-fMCI, and 35 with md-aMCI. Statistics included group comparisons using TBSS and individual classification using SVMs. RESULTS: The group-level analysis revealed a decrease in FA in md-aMCI versus sd-aMCI in an extensive bilateral, right-dominant network, and a more pronounced reduction of FA in md-aMCI compared with sd-fMCI in right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and inferior longitudinal fasciculus. The comparison between sd-fMCI and sd-aMCI, as well as the analysis of the other diffusion parameters, yielded no significant group differences. The individual-level SVM analysis provided discrimination between the MCI subtypes with accuracies around 97%. The major limitation is the relatively small number of cases of MCI. CONCLUSIONS: Our data show that, at the group level, the md-aMCI subgroup has the most pronounced damage in white matter integrity. Individually, SVM analysis of white matter FA provided highly accurate classification of MCI subtypes.

Trabecular bone score is associated with volumetric bone density and microarchitecture as assessed by central QCT and HRpQCT in Chinese American and white women.

Although high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HRpQCT) and central quantitative computed tomography (QCT) studies have shown bone structural differences between Chinese American (CH) and white (WH) women, these techniques are not readily available in the clinical setting. The trabecular bone score (TBS) estimates trabecular microarchitecture from dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry spine images. We assessed TBS in CH and WH women and investigated whether TBS is associated with QCT and HRpQCT indices. Areal bone mineral density (aBMD) by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, lumbar spine (LS) TBS, QCT of the LS and hip, and HRpQCT of the radius and tibia were performed in 71 pre- (37 WH and 34 CH) and 44 postmenopausal (21 WH and 23 CH) women. TBS did not differ by race in either pre- or postmenopausal women. In the entire cohort, TBS positively correlated with LS trabecular volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD) (r = 0.664), femoral neck integral (r = 0.651), trabecular (r = 0.641) and cortical vBMD (r = 0.346), and cortical thickness (C/I; r = 0.540) by QCT (p < 0.001 for all). TBS also correlated with integral (r = 0.643), trabecular (r = 0.574) and cortical vBMD (r = 0.491), and C/I (r = 0.541) at the total hip (p < 0.001 for all). The combination of TBS and LS aBMD predicted more of the variance in QCT measures than aBMD alone. TBS was associated with all HRpQCT indices (r = 0.20-0.52) except radial cortical thickness and tibial trabecular thickness. Significant associations between TBS and measures of HRpQCT and QCT in WH and CH pre- and postmenopausal women demonstrated here suggest that TBS may be a useful adjunct to aBMD for assessing bone quality.

Combined analysis of grey matter voxel-based morphometry and white matter tract-based spatial statistics in late-life bipolar disorder.

Background: Previous magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies in young patients with bipolar disorder indicated the presence of grey matter concentration changes as well as microstructural alterations in white matter in various neocortical areas and the corpus callosum. Whether these structural changes are also present in elderly patients with bipolar disorder with long-lasting clinical evolution remains unclear. Methods: We performed a prospective MRI study of consecutive elderly, euthymic patients with bipolar disorder and healthy, elderly controls. We conducted a voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis and a tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) analysis to assess fractional anisotropy and longitudinal, radial and mean diffusivity derived by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Results: We included 19 patients with bipolar disorder and 47 controls in our study. Fractional anisotropy was the most sensitive DTI marker and decreased significantly in the ventral part of the corpus callosum in patients with bipolar disorder. Longitudinal, radial and mean diffusivity showed no significant between-group differences. Grey matter concentration was reduced in patients with bipolar disorder in the right anterior insula, head of the caudate nucleus, nucleus accumbens, ventral putamen and frontal orbital cortex. Conversely, there was no grey matter concentration or fractional anisotropy increase in any brain region in patients with bipolar disorder compared with controls. Limitations: The major limitation of our study is the small number of patients with bipolar disorder. Conclusion: Our data document the concomitant presence of grey matter concentration decreases in the anterior limbic areas and the reduced fibre tract coherence in the corpus callosum of elderly patients with long-lasting bipolar disorder.

A generalization of Hull and White formula and applications to option pricing approximation

By means of Malliavin Calculus we see that the classical Hull and White formulafor option pricing can be extended to the case where the noise driving thevolatility process is correlated with the noise driving the stock prices. Thisextension will allow us to construct option pricing approximation formulas.Numerical examples are presented.

Efeitos da correcção do resultado contabilístico na determinação da matéria colectável: O caso só construções, S.A.

O desmantelamento das barreiras ao comércio mundial traduziu-se no aumento das operações comerciais e financeiras, na crescente necessidade de capitais, na utilização de novos instrumentos financeiros e no consequente desenvolvimento dos mercados de capitais com empresas cotadas em diversos mercados. Este fenómeno contribuiu ainda para a globalização da informação financeira que, para suprir as exigências de um mercado abrangente, teve de encontrar novas formas de difusão, sem contudo descurar as suas qualidades, nomeadamente a compreensibilidade, a comparabilidade e a fiabilidade. O interesse do desenvolvimento deste tema ressalta-se pela importância que a contabilidade nas organizações, recomenda-se ser organizada de forma a possibilitar o conhecimento claro e inequívoco dos elementos necessários ao cálculo do imposto, bem como a permitir o seu controlo, comportando todos os dados necessários ao preenchimento das declarações periódicas dos impostos. A parte prática do trabalho, em resumo, demonstra que, o ponto de partida para o apuramento do lucro tributável é o resultado contabilístico determinado com base nas suas regras próprias. Em Cabo Verde, a lei fiscal, apesar de desactualizada com o SNCRF, estabelece algumas regras próprias para ajustar o resultado contabilístico ao resultado fiscal. Em conclusão, a aplicação do novo normativo contabilístico cabo-verdiano (SNCRF) na correcção e determinação da matéria colectável em sede do IUR veio dar e construir uma base contabilística comum como ponto de partida para o estabelecimento de uma matéria colectável comum, e se concluir neste TFC, que tem todo o sentido. Sendo as demonstrações financeiras elaboradas com base nas NRF e subsidiariamente às NIC´s constituem o ponto de partida neutro para qualquer discussão sobre uma matéria colectável comum. The dismantling of barriers to world trade has resulted in increased commercial and financial transactions, the growing need for capital, and the use of new financial instruments and the consequent development of capital markets with listed companies in various markets. This phenomenon has also contributed for the globalization of financial information to meet the requirements of a comprehensive market had to find new ways of making, without neglecting their qualities, namely understandability, comparability and reliability. The interest of the development of this theme it emphasizes the importance of accounting in organizations, it is recommended to be organized in order to enable the clear and unambiguous understanding of the elements necessary for calculating the tax, as well as to allow its control, behaving all data needed to fill in of the periodic declarations of taxes. The practical part of the work, in short, shows that the starting point to determining taxable income is the accounting income determined based on its own rules. In Cape Verde, the tax law, although outdated with SNCRF establishes some rules themselves to adjust accounting income to taxable income. In conclusion, the application of new accounting standards Cape Verde (SNCRF) in the correction and determination of the tax base in the headquarters of the IUR to come and build a common basis of accounting as a starting point for the establishment of a common tax base, and conclude TFC this, which makes sense. Being the financial statements prepared in accordance with NRF 'and secondarily to NIC's are the neutral starting points for any discussion about a common tax base.

Inbreeding in the greater white-toothed shrew, Crocidura russula.

We combined mark-and-recapture studies with genetic techniques of parentage assignment to evaluate the interactions between mating, dispersal, and inbreeding, in a free-ranging population of Crocidura russula. We found a pattern of limited and female-biased dispersal, followed by random mating within individual neighborhoods. This results in significant inbreeding at the population level: mating among relatives occurs more often than random, and F(IT) analyses reveal significant deficits in heterozygotes. However, related mating partners were not less fecund, and inbred offspring had no lower lifetime reproductive output. Power analyses show these negative results to be quite robust. Absence of phenotypic evidence of inbreeding depression might result from a history of purging: local populations are small and undergo disequilibrium gene dynamics. Dispersal is likely caused by local saturation and (re)colonization of empty breeding sites, rather than inbreeding avoidance.

Tratamento do erro na produção escrita: análise das estratégias de correcção dos erros

Sabemos que no dia-a-dia, um dos trabalhos do professor consiste em corrigir os textos produzidos pelos alunos com vista a detectar os erros cometidos. É evidente, que esta função envolve o conhecimento de princípios orientadores, razão pela qual, entendemos ser importante que o professor tenha uma visão de como processar esta tarefa. Deste modo, reveste-se de particular importância a atenção sobre o assunto de correcção dos erros na produção escrita, para que seja possível por parte do professor também uma reflexão sobre metodologias a adoptar para obtenção de melhores resultados na gestão dos erros. Focalizamos o nosso estudo nesta temática, pela importância que pode assumir na formação inicial e contínua dos professores de Língua Portuguesa em Cabo Verde. Uma das questões que colocamos e que atravessa toda a tese é a seguinte: que estratégias utilizam para corrigir os textos produzidos? Concretamente, constitui nossa intenção, olhar um pouco para o contexto da população alvo (alguns professores de Língua Portuguesa), em Cabo Verde, com o intuito de por um lado, conhecer as estratégias que utilizam para corrigir os textos produzidos pelos seus alunos e, por outro lado, verificar se as estratégias são ou não eficazes de modo a ajudar o aluno a compreender e a corrigir o seu erro. O corpus analisado é constituído por 40 (quarenta) composições produzidas por alunos do 7º ano de escolaridade, pertencentes a 4 (quatro) escolas secundárias, localizadas na ilha de Santiago – Praia - Cabo Verde

White Cane Update, Summer 2006

The White Cane Update newsletter includes information about the latest happenings at the Iowa Department for the Blind.

White Cane Update, Winter 2007

The White Cane Update newsletter includes information about the latest happenings at the Iowa Department for the Blind.

White Cane Update, Summer 2007

The White Cane Update newsletter includes information about the latest happenings at the Iowa Department for the Blind.

White Cane Update, Fall 2007

The White Cane Update newsletter includes information about the latest happenings at the Iowa Department for the Blind.

White Cane Update, Winter 2008

The White Cane Update newsletter includes information about the latest happenings at the Iowa Department for the Blind.