Development of a microprocessor controlled energy harvester using a Peltier element

Nowadays it is necessary to research other types of energy alternatives and find the way to supply and save the energy we waste. The aim of the project consist of programming a microprocessor to measure if an oven radiates heat to the exterior, for the measure It is used a Peltier element that generates a voltage depending of the temperature difference between the oven and the air of the place where the oven is situated; The energy generated by the oven will be recollected in a condensor. A sensor will be used to know the exact measure. The second part of the project the main propose, is the development of a harvester. The microprocessor will use the voltage produced by the Peltier element to supply the electricity that it needs to work. A low power circuit and the appropriate software are needed to save the voltage generated.

Development of the femur - Implications for age and sex determination.

Growth of four variables of the femur (diapyseal length, diaphyseal length plus distal epiphysis, maximum length and vertical diameter of the head) was analyzed by polynomial regression for the purpose of evaluating its significance and capacity for age and sex determination throughout the entire life continuum. Materials included in analysis consisted of 346 specimens ranging from birth to 97 years of age from five documented osteological collections of Western European descent. Linear growth was displayed by each of the four variables. Significant sexual dimorphism was identified in two of the femoral measurements, including maximum length and vertical diameter of the head, from age 15 onward. These results indicate that the two variables may be of use in the determination of sex in sex determination from that age onward. Strong correlation coefficients were identified between femoral size and age for each of the four metric variables. These results indicate that any of the femoral measurements is likely to serve as a useful source to estimate sub-adult age in both archaeological and forensic samples.

Some like it hot: temperature and acidification modulate larval development and settlement of the sea urchin Arbacia lixula

We studied the effects of temperature and pH on larval development, settlement and juvenile survival of a Mediterranean population of the sea urchin Arbacia lixula. Three temperatures (16, 17.5 and 19 °C) were tested at present pH conditions (pHT 8.1). At 19 °C, two pH levels were compared to reflect present average (pHT 8.1) and near-future average conditions (pHT 7.7, expected by 2100). Larvae were reared for 52-days to achieve the full larval development and complete the metamorphosis to the settler stage. We analyzed larval survival, growth, morphology and settlement success. We also tested the carry-over effect of acidification on juvenile survival after 3 days. Our results showed that larval survival and size significantly increased with temperature. Acidification resulted in higher survival rates and developmental delay. Larval morphology was significantly altered by low temperatures, which led to narrower larvae with relatively shorter skeletal rods, but larval morphology was only marginally affected by acidification. No carry-over effects between larvae and juveniles were detected in early settler survival, though settlers from larvae reared at pH 7.7 were significantly smaller than their counterparts developed at pH 8.1. These results suggest an overall positive effect of environmental parameters related to global change on the reproduction of A. lixula, and reinforce the concerns about the increasing negative impact on shallow Mediterranean ecosystems of this post-glacial colonizer.

Podocalyxin is a novel polysialylated neural adhesion protein with multiple roles in neural development and synapse formation

Neural development and plasticity are regulated by neural adhesion proteins, including the polysialylated form of NCAM (PSA-NCAM). Podocalyxin (PC) is a renal PSA-containing protein that has been reported to function as an anti-adhesin in kidney podocytes. Here we show that PC is widely expressed in neurons during neural development. Neural PC interacts with the ERM protein family, and with NHERF1/2 and RhoA/G. Experiments in vitro and phenotypic analyses of podxl-deficient mice indicate that PC is involved in neurite growth, branching and axonal fasciculation, and that PC loss-of-function reduces the number of synapses in the CNS and in the neuromuscular system. We also show that whereas some of the brain PC functions require PSA, others depend on PC per se. Our results show that PC, the second highly sialylated neural adhesion protein, plays multiple roles in neural development.

Vacuole membrane protein 1 is an endoplasmic reticulum protein required for organelle biogenesis, protein secretion, and development

Vacuole membrane protein 1 (Vmp1) is membrane protein of unknown molecular function that has been associated with pancreatitis and cancer. The social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum has a vmp1-related gene that we identified previously in a functional genomic study. Loss-of-function of this gene leads to a severe phenotype that compromises Dictyostelium growth and development. The expression of mammalian Vmp1 in a vmp1 Dictyostelium mutant complemented the phenotype, suggesting a functional conservation of the protein among evolutionarily distant species and highlights Dictyostelium as a valid experimental system to address the function of this gene. Dictyostelium Vmp1 is an endoplasmic reticulum protein necessary for the integrity of this organelle. Cells deficient in Vmp1 display pleiotropic defects in the secretory pathway and organelle biogenesis. The contractile vacuole, which is necessary to survive under hypoosmotic conditions, is not functional in the mutant. The structure of the Golgi apparatus, the function of the endocytic pathway and conventional protein secretion are also affected in these cells. Transmission electron microscopy of vmp1 cells showed the accumulation of autophagic features that suggests a role of Vmp1 in macroautophagy. In addition to these defects observed at the vegetative stage, the onset of multicellular development and early developmental gene expression are also compromised.

Temporal changes in the expression and distribution of adhesion molecules during liver development and regeneration

We have compared by immunocytochemistry and immunoblotting the expression and distribution of adhesion molecules participating in cell-matrix and cell-cell interactions during embryonic development and regeneration of rat liver. Fibronectin and the fibronectin receptor, integrin alpha 5 beta 1, were distributed pericellularly and expressed at a steady level during development from the 16th day of gestation and in neonate and adult liver. AGp110, a nonintegrin fibronectin receptor was first detected on the 17th day of gestation in a similar, nonpolarized distribution on parenchymal cell surfaces. At that stage of development haemopoiesis is at a peak in rat liver and fibronectin and receptors alpha 5 beta 1 and AGp110 were prominent on the surface of blood cell precursors. During the last 2 d of gestation (20th and 21st day) hepatocytes assembled around lumina. AGp110 was initially depolarized on the surface of these acinar cells but then confined to the lumen and to newly-formed bile canaliculi. At birth, a marked increase occurred in the canalicular expression of AGp110 and in the branching of the canalicular network. Simultaneously, there was enhanced expression of ZO-1, a protein component of tight junctions. On the second day postpartum, presence of AGp110 and of protein constituents of desmosomes and intermediate junctions, DGI and E-cadherin, respectively, was notably enhanced in cellular fractions insoluble in nonionic detergents, presumably signifying linkage of AGp110 with the cytoskeleton and assembly of desmosomal and intermediate junctions. During liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy, AGp110 remained confined to apical surfaces, indicating a preservation of basic polarity in parenchymal cells. A decrease in the extent and continuity of the canalicular network occurred in proliferating parenchyma, starting 24 h after resection in areas close to the terminal afferent blood supply of portal veins and spreading to the rest of the liver within the next 24 h. Distinct acinar structures, similar to the ones in prenatal liver, appeared at 72 h after hepatectomy. Restoration of the normal branching of the biliary tree commenced at 72 h. At 7 d postoperatively acinar formation declined and one-cell-thick hepatic plates, as in normal liver, were observed.

Is football an indicator of development at the international level?

[spa] El objetivo de este trabajo es examinar si el fútbol puede ser considerado como un indicador de desarrollo a nivel internacional. Se ha diseñado un modelo econométrico empírico con el fin de analizar el desarrollo en términos de niveles de PIB per cápita y del crecimiento del PIB. Se utiliza información transversal y temporal. Los resultados sugieren que la clasificación FIFA de las selecciones nacionales se puede utilizar para complementar nuestra comprensión del desarrollo multidimensional en aquellos países donde la disponibilidad de la información no es tan buena como los investigadores quisieran.

Is football an indicator of development at the international level?

[spa] El objetivo de este trabajo es examinar si el fútbol puede ser considerado como un indicador de desarrollo a nivel internacional. Se ha diseñado un modelo econométrico empírico con el fin de analizar el desarrollo en términos de niveles de PIB per cápita y del crecimiento del PIB. Se utiliza información transversal y temporal. Los resultados sugieren que la clasificación FIFA de las selecciones nacionales se puede utilizar para complementar nuestra comprensión del desarrollo multidimensional en aquellos países donde la disponibilidad de la información no es tan buena como los investigadores quisieran.

Critical Behavior and Axis Defining Symmetry Breaking in Hydra Embryonic Development

The formation of a hollow cellular sphere is often one of the first steps of multicellular embryonic development. In the case of Hydra, the sphere breaks its initial symmetry to form a foot-head axis. During this process a gene, ks1, is increasingly expressed in localized cell domains whose size distribution becomes scale-free at the axis-locking moment. We show that a physical model based solely on the production and exchange of ks1-promoting factors among neighboring cells robustly reproduces the scaling behavior as well as the experimentally observed spontaneous and temperature-directed symmetry breaking.

Development of laser-fired contacts for amorphous silicon layers obtained by Hot-Wire CVD

In this work we study aluminium laser-fired contacts for intrinsic amorphous silicon layers deposited by Hot-Wire CVD. This structure could be used as an alternative low temperature back contact for rear passivated heterojunction solar cells. An infrared Nd:YAG laser (1064 nm) has been used to locally fire the aluminium through the thin amorphous silicon layers. Under optimized laser firing parameters, very low specific contact resistances (ρc ∼ 10 mΩ cm2) have been obtained on 2.8 Ω cm p-type c-Si wafers. This investigation focuses on maintaining the passivation quality of the interface without an excessive increase in the series resistance of the device.

Bacterial translocation in cirrhotic rats. Its role in the development of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis

Bacterial translocation occurs in ascitic cirrhotic rats, but its association with ascites infection is unknown. The aim of this study was to assess the relation between bacterial translocation and ascites infection in cirrhotic rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were induced to cirrhosis with intragastric CCl4. Ascitic fluid, portal and peripheral blood, mesenteric lymph nodes, liver and spleen samples were cultured before death in those cirrhotic rats with less (group A) or more (group B) than 250 polymorphonuclear neutrophils/mm3 in ascitic fluid, as well as in healthy control rats. Histological examination of jejunum, ileum, and caecum was also performed. Bacterial translocation occurred in 45% of ascitic rats (without differences between groups A and B), but in 0% controls (p = 0.01). Bacterial translocation was associated with positive ascitic fluid culture in 60% of the cases. In all of them the same bacterial species was isolated in both mesenteric lymph node and ascitic fluid. Submucosal caecal oedema (100%), ileal lymphangiectasia (41%), and caecal inflammatory infiltrate (41%) occurred in ascitic rats, the last being associated with ascitic fluid positive culture (p = 0.04). These results suggests that bacterial translocation occurs frequently in ascitic cirrhotic rats, and may play a permissive, but not unique, part in a number of ascites infections. Whether histological changes seen in cirrhotic ascitic rats favour bacterial translocation remains to be elucidated.

NAD(P)H oxidase modulates angiogenesis and the development of portosystemic collaterals and splanchnic hyperaemia in portal hypertensive rats.

Then, the expression of angiogenesis markers (western blotting), the formation of portosystemic collaterals (radioactive microspheres) and the production of superoxide anion (lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence) were determined. Mean arterial pressure, portal pressure, and superior mesenteric arterial blood flow and resistance were also measured.Results: In portal hypertensive rats, NAD(P)H oxidase blockade significantly decreased portosystemic collateral formation, and superior mesenteric arterial flow. It also reduced the splanchnic expression of VEGF, VEGF receptor-2 and CD31, and attenuated the increased production of superoxide, compared with vehicle.Conclusions: NAD(P)H oxidase plays an important role in experimental portal hypertension, modulating splanchnic angiogenesis, the formation of portosystemic collaterals and the development of splanchnic hyperdynamic circulation. These results suggest that NAD(P)H oxidase may represent a new target in the treatment of portal hypertension.

European guidelines for the development of mechanisms/tools supporting the individual demand for training through use of training Vouchers

El projecte de TAV es basa en la transferència d'un sistema de vals de capacitació, i en com aquest sistema de vals és adaptable a altres països o regions. En el document s'analitzen diferents conceptes teòrics sobre la conveniència o no de la implantació d'aquest sistema. A més a més, aquest document és una guia per a les organitzacions interessades en l'adaptació del sistema de vals formatius al seu territori, mostrant els passos a seguir i oferint eines útils per aconseguir-ho.