Organometallic anticancer agents that interfere with cellular energy processes: a subtle approach to inducing cancer cell death.

Two hybrid compounds comprising an antimetastatic ruthenium-arene fragment tethered to an indazole-3-carboxylic acid derivative that inhibits aerobic glycolysis in cancer cells have been prepared and evaluated in a variety of cancer cell lines, including highly relevant human glioblastoma cells, with an apparent synergistic action between the two components observed.

The mycorrhizal contribution to plant productivity, plant nutrition and soil structure in experimental grassland.

Previous studies have shown that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can influence plant diversity and ecosystem productivity. However, little is known about the effects of AMF and different AMF taxa on other important community properties such as nutrient acquisition, plant survival and soil structure. We established experimental grassland microcosms and tested the impact of AMF and of different AMF taxa on a number of grassland characteristics. We also tested whether plant species benefited from the same or different AMF taxa in subsequent growing seasons. AMF enhanced phosphorus acquisition, soil aggregation and survival of several plant species, but AMF did not increase total plant productivity. Moreover, AMF increased nitrogen acquisition by some plant species, but AMF had no effect on total N uptake by the plant community. Plant growth responses to AMF were temporally variable and some plant species obtained the highest biomass with different AMF in different years. Hence the results indicate that it may be beneficial for a plant to be colonized by different AMF taxa in different seasons. This study shows that AMF play a key role in grassland by improving plant nutrition and soil structure, and by regulating the make-up of the plant community.

Nutrition in cardiovascular disease: salt in hypertension and heart failure.

There is much evidence for a causal relationship between salt intake and blood pressure (BP). The current salt intake in many countries is between 9 and 12 g/day. A reduction in salt intake to the recommended level of 5-6 g/day lowers BP in both hypertensive and normotensive individuals. A further reduction to 3-4 g/day has a much greater effect. Prospective studies and outcome trials have demonstrated that a lower salt intake is associated with a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. Increasing evidence also suggests that a high salt intake is directly related to left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) independent of BP. Both raised BP and LVH are important risk factors for heart failure. It is therefore possible that a lower salt intake could prevent the development of heart failure. In patients who already have heart failure, a high salt intake aggravates the retention of salt and water, thereby exacerbating heart failure symptoms and progression of the disease. A lower salt intake plays an important role in the management of heart failure. Despite this, currently there is no clear evidence on how far salt intake should be reduced in heart failure. Our personal view is that these patients should reduce their salt intake to <5 g/day, i.e. the maximum intake recommended by the World Health Organisation for all adults. If salt intake is successfully reduced, there may well be a need for a reduction in diuretic dosage.

A comparison of the processes of institutionalisation of political economy in Spain and Italy (1860-1900)

[spa] El estudio de los procesos a través de los cuales la economía política se ha transformado en una disciplina académica es un área de creciente interés en la historia del pensamiento económico. Dicho estudio se ha abordado a través del análisis de la importancia de la economía política en un conjunto de instituciones, consideradas clave en la expansión de la economía en las sociedades occidentales en la segunda mitad del siglo XIX y primeras décadas del XX: universidades, sociedades económicas, publicaciones periódicas de contenido económico y los parlamentos nacionales. Este papel presenta una comparación entre los desarrollos del proceso de institutionalización de la economía política en España e Italia, a través del estudio de la presencia de esta disciplina en las instituciones mencionadas para el periodo 1860-1900. El objetivo es medir la posible existencia de una vía común en la institucionalización de la economía política en ambos países, como un primer paso hacia la elaboración de un modelo supranacional de institucionalización de la economía en este periodo.

Why Italy and not Spain?: comparing two industrialization processes from a dissagregate time-series perspective

This study presents new evidence concerning the uneven processes of industrialization innineteenth century Spain and Italy based on a disaggregate analysis of the productivesectors from which the behaviour of the aggregate indices is comprised. The use of multivariate time-series analysis techniques can aid our understanding and characterization of these two processes of industrialization. The identification of those sectors with key rolesin leading industrial growth provides new evidence concerning the factors that governed thebehaviour of the aggregates in the two economies. In addition, the analysis of the existenceof interindustry linkages reveals the scale of the industrialization process, and wheresignificant differences exist, accounts for many of the divergences recorded in the historiography for the period 1850-1913.

ESPEN Guidelines on Parenteral Nutrition: intensive care.

Nutritional support in the intensive care setting represents a challenge but it is fortunate that its delivery and monitoring can be followed closely. Enteral feeding guidelines have shown the evidence in favor of early delivery and the efficacy of use of the gastrointestinal tract. Parenteral nutrition (PN) represents an alternative or additional approach when other routes are not succeeding (not necessarily having failed completely) or when it is not possible or would be unsafe to use other routes. The main goal of PN is to deliver a nutrient mixture closely related to requirements safely and to avoid complications. This nutritional approach has been a subject of debate over the past decades. PN carries the considerable risk of overfeeding which can be as deleterious as underfeeding. Therefore the authors will present not only the evidence available regarding the indications for PN, its implementation, the energy required, its possible complementary use with enteral nutrition, but also the relative importance of the macro- and micronutrients in the formula proposed for the critically ill patient. Data on long-term survival (expressed as 6 month survival) will also be considered a relevant outcome measure. Since there is a wide range of interpretations regarding the content of PN and great diversity in its practice, our guidance will necessarily reflect these different views. The papers available are very heterogeneous in quality and methodology (amount of calories, nutrients, proportion of nutrients, patients, etc.) and the different meta-analyses have not always taken this into account. Use of exclusive PN or complementary PN can lead to confusion, calorie targets are rarely achieved, and different nutrients continue to be used in different proportions. The present guidelines are the result of the analysis of the available literature, and acknowledging these limitations, our recommendations are intentionally largely expressed as expert opinions.

Flank stability and processes off the western Canary Islands: a review from El Hierro and La Palma

The morphological characterisation of the western submarine island flanks of El Hierro and La Palma differentiates four type-zones that may give new insights into the evolution of oceanic island slopes. The different type-zones result from the interplay between constructive volcanic processes, hemipelagic settling and volcano collapses. The latter results in massive debris avalanche deposits, which form large volcaniclastic aprons. In most cases, the headwall scarps are clearly exposed on the emerged part of the islands. The events that occurred in the youngest and westernmost islands of El Hierro and La Palma have vertical runouts exceeding 6,000 m and volumes that can reach several hundred km3. The landslide frequency for the entire Canaries is one major event per 90 ka. Triggering mechanisms are closely related to magmatic processes. The increase in the shear stress is directly linked with the forceful intrusion of magma along ridge-rift systems, while in the western Canary Islands it seems that the main process reducing shear resistance may be related to the rise in pore pressure due to hydrothermal circulation.

Monitoring nitrogen nutrition in cotton

Both N excess and deficiency may affect cotton yield and quality. It would therefore be useful to base the N management fertilization on the monitoring of the nutritional status. This study investigated the correlations among the following determination methods of the N nutritional status of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L., var. Latifolia): chlorophyll readings (SPAD-502®, Minolta), specific-ion nitrate meter (Nitrate Meter C-141, Horiba-Cardy®), and laboratory analysis (conventional foliar diagnosis). Samples were taken weekly from two weeks before flowering to the fifth week after the first flower. The experiment was conducted on the Fazenda Santa Tereza, Itapeva, State of São Paulo, Brazil. The crop was fertilized with 40 kg ha-1 N at planting and 0, 30, 60, 90, and 120 kg ha-1 of side-dressed N. The range of leaf N contents reported as adequate for samples taken 80-90 days after plant emergence (traditional foliar diagnosis) may be used as reference from the beginning of flowering when the plant is not stressed. Specific-ion nitrate meter readings can be used as a nutritional indicator of cotton nutrition from one week after pinhead until the third week of flowering. In this case, plants are well-nourished when readings exceed 8,000 mg L-1 NO3-. The chlorophyll meter can also be used to estimate the nutritional status of cotton from the third week of flowering. In this case the readings should be above 48 in well-nourished plants.

Orchid growth and nutrition in response to mineral and organic fertilizers

Orchid fertilization is fundamental for a satisfactory plant growth and development for commercial orchid production as well as in collections. Mineral and/or organic sources can be used for fertilization. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the use of organic and/or mineral fertilizers on the nutrition and growth of orchid (Laelia purpurata 'werkhanserii' x L. lobata 'Jeni') seedlings in greenhouse. The following fertilizers were tested: an NPK fertilizer + micronutrients; a Ca source in the form of calcium nitrate; two organic fertilizers, one prepared with a mixture of bone meal, castor meal and ash, and a similar commercial fertilizer. The organic fertilizers were distributed on the surface of the pots every two months and the minerals were applied weekly to the substrate in 25 mL aliquots of a solution containing 1 g L-1 of the respective fertilizer. The plant response to the application of mineral together with organic fertilizer was better, with higher dry matter production than by the isolated application of each fertilizer (organic or mineral). The treatments with calcium nitrate + NPK fertilizer did not differ significantly from the use of NPK fertilizer, probably due to the S deficiency detected in a mineral analysis of the tissues. Commercial organic fertilizer had a very elevated B level, leading to toxicity symptoms, reduced growth and necrotized tips of the older leaves in all fertilized treatments.

Relaxation times of non-Markovian processes

We consider a general class of non-Markovian processes defined by stochastic differential equations with Ornstein-Uhlenbeck noise. We present a general formalism to evaluate relaxation times associated with correlation functions in the steady state. This formalism is a generalization of a previous approach for Markovian processes. The theoretical results are shown to be in satisfactory agreement both with experimental data for a cubic bistable system and also with a computer simulation of the Stratonovich model. We comment on the dynamical role of the non-Markovianicity in different situations.