Revisiting Swiss temperature trends 1959-2008

Temperature is a key variable for monitoring global climate change. Here we perform a trend analysis of Swiss temperatures from 1959 to 2008, using a new 2 × 2 km gridded data-set based on carefully homogenised ground observations from MeteoSwiss. The aim of this study is twofold: first, to discuss the spatial and altitudinal temperature trend characteristics in detail, and second, to quantify the contribution of changes in atmospheric circulation and local effects to these trends. The seasonal trends are all positive and mostly significant with an annual average warming rate of 0.35 °C/decade (∼1.6 times the northern hemispheric warming rate), ranging from 0.17 in autumn to 0.48 °C/decade in summer. Altitude-dependent trends are found in autumn and early winter where the trends are stronger at low altitudes (<800 m asl), and in spring where slightly stronger trends are found at altitudes close to the snow line. Part of the trends can be explained by changes in atmospheric circulation, but with substantial differences from season to season. In winter, circulation effects account for more than half the trends, while this contribution is much smaller in other seasons. After removing the effect of circulation, the trends still show seasonal variations with higher values in spring and summer. The circulation-corrected trends are closer to the values simulated by a set of ENSEMBLES regional climate models, with the models still tending towards a trend underestimation in spring and summer. Our results suggest that both circulation changes and more local effects are important to explain part of recent warming in spring, summer, and autumn. Snow-albedo feedback effects could be responsible for the stronger spring trends at altitudes close to the snow line, but the overall effect is small. In autumn, the observed decrease in fog frequency might be a key process in explaining the stronger temperature trends at low altitudes.

Snow-albedo feedback and Swiss spring temperature trends

We quantify the effect of the snow-albedo feedback on Swiss spring temperature trends using daily temperature and snow depth measurements from six station pairs for the period 1961–2011. We show that the daily mean 2-m temperature of a spring day without snow cover is on average 0.4 °C warmer than one with snow cover at the same location. This estimate is comparable with estimates from climate modelling studies. Caused by the decreases in snow pack, the snow-albedo feedback amplifies observed temperature trends in spring. The influence is small and confined to areas around the upward-moving snow line in spring and early summer. For the 1961–2011 period, the related temperature trend increases are in the order of 3–7 % of the total observed trend.

Environmental modulation of ethanol-induced locomotor activity: Correlation with neuronal activity in distinct brain regions of adolescent and adult Swiss mice

Drug abuse is a concerning health problem in adults and has been recognized as a major problem in adolescents. induction of immediate-early genes (IEG), such as c-Fos or Egr-1, is used to identify brain areas that become activated in response to various stimuli, including addictive drugs. It is known that the environment can alter the response to drugs of abuse. Accordingly, environmental cues may trigger drug-seeking behavior when the drug is repeatedly administered in a given environment. The goal of this study was first to examine for age differences in context-dependent sensitization and then evaluate IEG expression in different brain regions. For this, groups of mice received i.p. ethanol (2.0 g/kg) or saline in the test apparatus, while other groups received the solutions in the home cage, for 15 days. One week after this treatment phase, mice were challenged with ethanol injection. Acutely, ethanol increased both locomotor activity and IEG expression in different brain regions, indistinctly, in adolescent and adult mice. However, adults exhibited a typical context-dependent behavioral sensitization following repeated ethanol treatment, while adolescent mice presented gradually smaller locomotion across treatment, when ethanol was administered in a paired regimen with environment. Conversely, ethanol-treated adolescents expressed context-independent behavioral sensitization. Overall, repeated ethanol administration desensitized IEG expression in both adolescent and adult mice, but this effect was greatest in the nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex of adolescents treated in the context-dependent paradigm. These results suggest developmental differences in the sensitivity to the conditioned and unconditioned locomotor effects of ethanol. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Plant density and nitrogen fertilization in Swiss chard

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of plant spacing and nitrogen fertilization on Swiss chard's yield, from September to November 2009. The experimental design was of randomized blocks in split plot with four replications. In the plots were allocated the two plant spacings (0.30 and 0.50 m) and in the subplots the five doses of nitrogen (0, 40, 80, 120 and 160 kg ha(-1)). The crop was harvested 90 days after transplanting. The plant spacing of 0.50 m provided increased production of total fresh weight of shoot (961.7 g plant(-1)) and marketable (873.1 g plant(-1)). However, the highest total yield (77.8 t ha(-1)) and marketable (64.5 t ha(-1)) was achieved with the smaller spacing between plants (0.30 m). The N rates applied in coverage until 160 kg ha(-1) increased in a linear form the total and marketable production of fresh mass of shoots, the total and marketable yield, the N content and the N accumulation in the shoots of Swiss chard plants on the evaluated plant spacings.

Evaluation of the in vivo mutagenic potential of hydroalcoholic extracts of the northern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L. Ericales, Ericaceae) on peripheral blood cells of Swiss mice (Mus musculus Rodentia, Muridae)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Lack of clastogenic/genotoxic effects of Baccharis dracunculifolia extract on Swiss mouse peripheral blood cells

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Potential effects of the herbicide Diuron on mammary and urinary bladder two-stage carcinogenesis in a female Swiss mouse model

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Avaliação da mutagenicidade e antimutagenicidade de um biopolímero extraído do microorganismo Agrobacterium radiobacter em camundongos Swiss

A presente pesquisa avaliou a ação mutagênica e antimutagênica de um biopolímero de glucose extraído da Agrobacterium radiobacter (Biopolímero de Agrobacterium radiobacter). O experimento foi realizado com camundongos Swiss machos divididos em oito grupos. O tratamento com o biopolímero foi realizado por gavage em dose única concomitante a uma dose de solução tampão fosfato nos grupos de avaliação da mutagenicidade, ou ao agente indutor de danos no DNA, ciclofosfamida, na concentração de 50 mg/kg (peso corpóreo - p.c.), nos grupos de avaliação da antimutagenicidade. Utilizou-se o teste de micronúcleo em sangue periférico e a coleta de sangue foi realizada 24 e 48 h após a aplicação das substâncias-teste. A análise estatística demonstrou que o biopolímero não possui atividade mutagênica e que é efetivo em prevenir danos no DNA. As porcentagens de redução de danos nos grupos de antimutagenicidade foram de 83,9%, 89,1% e 103,1% em 24 h e 101,24%, 98,14% e 120,64% em 48 h para as doses de 75, 150 e 300mg/kg (p.c.), respectivamente. A alta porcentagem de redução de danos associada à ausência de efeitos mutagênicos indica, além da atividade quimioprotetora, a possibilidade do biopolímero ser um alimento funcional candidato à utilização como co-adjuvante na quimioterapia para prevenir efeitos colaterais.

Effects of intra-PAG infusion of ovine CRF on defensive behaviors in Swiss-Webster mice

The midbrain dorsal periaqueductal gray (DPAG) is part of the brain defensive system involved in active defense reactions to threatening stimuli. Corticotrophin releasing factor (CRF) is a peptidergic neurotransmitter that has been strongly implicated in the control of both behavioral and endocrine responses to threat and stress. We investigated the effect of the nonspecific CRF receptor agonist, ovine CRF (oCRF), injected into the DPAG of mice, in two predator-stress situations, the mouse defense test battery (MDTB), and the rat exposure test (RET). In the MDTB, oCRF weakly modified defensive behaviors in mice confronted by the predator (rat); e.g. it increased avoidance distance when the rat was approached and escape attempts (jump escapes) in forced contact. In the RET, drug infusion enhanced duration in the chamber while reduced tunnel and surface time, and reduced contact with the screen which divides the subject and the predator. oCRF also reduced both frequency and duration of risk assessment (stretch attend posture: SAP) in the tunnel and tended to increase freezing. These findings suggest that patterns of defensiveness in response to low intensity threat (RET) are more sensitive to intra-DPAG oCRF than those triggered by high intensity threats (MDTB). Our data indicate that CRF systems may be functionally involved in unconditioned defenses to a predator, consonant with a role for DPAG CRF systems in the regulation of emotionality. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

High intensity social conflict in the Swiss albino mouse induces analgesia modulated by 5-HT1A receptors

Social conflict between mice produces analgesia in the attacked mouse. Both the magnitude and type (opioid or nonopioid) of this analgesia have been related to attack intensity and strain of mouse. In the present study low intensity social conflict (7 bites) did not produce analgesia, whereas high intensity - 30 and 60 bites interactions produced, respectively, short-lasting (5 min) and very short-lasting (1 min) analgesia in Swiss albino mice, when compared with nonaggressive interaction (0 bite). The 30 bites aggressive interaction induced analgesia (AIIA) was not affected by IP injection of either naloxone (5.0 and 7.5 mg/kg) or diazepam (0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 mg/kg). However, this attack-induced analgesia was reduced after IP administration of the 5-HT1A agonists, gepirone (0.3 and 3.0 mg/kg) and BAY R 1531 (0.01 mg/kg). These results indicate that the analgesia induced by 30 bites social conflict in Swiss albino mice does not involve opioid and GABA-benzodiazepine (GABA-BZD) mechanisms. In addition, they suggest that high-intensity social conflict activates serotonergic pain modulatory systems that act through 5-HT1A receptors. Copyright (C) 1997 Elsevier B.V.

Modelación para ajuste de la curva de lactación usando función lineal, no lineal y polinomios segmentados en ganados con alto grado de sangre Brown Swiss

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Avaliação da resposta humoral e da capacidade de neutralização do soro de camundongos Swiss inoculados com venenos nativo e irradiado com cobalto-60 de serpentes Crotalus durissus terrificus, Bothrops jararaca, Bothrops jararacussu e Bothrops moojeni

Pós-graduação em Doenças Tropicais - FMB