931 resultados para Nature of the science


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Background, aim, and scope The retention of potentially toxic metals in highly weathered soils can follow different pathways that variably affect their mobility and availability in the soil-water-plant system. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of pH, nature of electrolyte, and ionic strength of the solution on nickel (Ni) adsorption by two acric Oxisols and a less weathered Alfisol. Materials and methods The effect of pH on Ni adsorption was evaluated in surface and subsurface samples from a clayey textured Anionic `Rhodic` Acrudox ( RA), a sandy-clayey textured Anionic `Xantic` Acrudox (XA), and a heavy clayey textured Rhodic Kandiudalf (RK). All soil samples were equilibrated with the same concentration of Ni solution (5.0 mg L(-1)) and two electrolyte solutions (CaCl(2) or NaCl) with different ionic strengths (IS) (1.0, 0.1 and 0.01 mol L(-1)). The pH of each sample set varied from 3 to 10 in order to obtain sorption envelopes. Results and discussion Ni adsorption increased as the pH increased, reaching its maximum of nearly pH 6. The adsorption was highest in Alfisol, followed by RA and XA. Competition between Ni(2+) and Ca(2+) was higher than that between Ni(2+) and Na(+) in all soil samples, as shown by the higher percentage of Ni adsorption at pH 5. At pH values below the intersection point of the three ionic strength curves (zero point of salt effect), Ni adsorption was generally higher in the more concentrated solution (highest IS), probably due to the neutralization of positive charges of soil colloids by Cl(-) ions and consequent adsorption of Ni(2+). Above this point, Ni adsorption was higher in the more diluted solution (lowest ionic strength), due to the higher negative potential at the colloid surfaces and the lower ionic competition for exchange sites in soil colloids. Conclusions The effect of ionic strength was lower in the Oxisols than in the Alfisol. The main mechanism that controlled Ni adsorption in the soils was the ionic exchange, since the adsorption of ionic species varied according to the variation of pH values. The ionic competition revealed the importance of electrolyte composition and ionic strength on Ni adsorption in soils from the humid tropics. Recommendations and perspectives The presence of NaCl or CaCl(2) in different ionic strengths affects the availability of heavy metals in contaminated soils. Therefore, the study of heavy metal dynamics in highly weathered soils must consider this behavior, especially in soils with large amounts of acric components.

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Receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa B ligand (RANKL) and osteoprotegerin (OPG) are expressed in apical periodontitis, suggesting a role for these molecules during lesion development. However, the profiles of RANKL/OPG expression in periapical lesions remain unknown. In this study we investigated the patterns of RANKL and OPG mRNA expression by real-time polymerase chain reaction in human periapical granulomas (N = 44) and compared them with sites presenting characteristic bone resorbing activity: healthy (n = 14) and orthodontically stretched and compressed periodontal ligament (n = 26), healthy gingiva (n = 24), chronic gingivitis (n = 32), and chronic periodontitis (n = 34) samples. Both RANKL and OPG mRNA expression was higher in periapical granulomas when compared with healthy periodontal ligament. Distinct patterns of RANKL and OPG expression ratio were found in the granulomas and in different physiologic and pathologic conditions, with characteristic bone resorption activity potentially being indicative of the stable or progressive nature of the lesions. Lesions with radiographic image smaller than 5 mm showed higher RANKL/OPG expression than images greater than 5 mm. Periapical granulomas presented heterogeneous patterns of RANKL and OPG expression, ranging from samples with RANKL/OPG ratio similar to that seen in sites with minimal or absent bone resorption to samples with RANKL/OPG expression pattern comparable with active bone resorption sites.

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We investigate the nature of the ordered phase and the orientational correlations between adjacent layers of the confined three-dimensional self-assembled rigid rod model, on the cubic lattice. We find that the ordered phase at finite temperatures becomes uniaxial in the thermodynamic limit, by contrast to the ground state (partial) order where the orientation of the uncorrelated layers is perpendicular to one of the three lattice directions. The increase of the orientational correlation between layers as the number of layers increases suggests that the unconfined model may also exhibit uniaxial ordering at finite temperatures.

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The nature of the diperiodatocuprate(III) (DPC) species present in aqueous alkaline medium has been investigated by a kinetic and mechanistic study on the oxidation of iodide by DPC. The reaction kinetics were studied over the 1.0 ´ 10)3±0.1 mol dm)3 alkali range. The reaction order with respect to DPC, as well as iodide, was found to be unity when [DPC] [I)]. In the 1.0 ´ 10)3±1.0 ´ 10)2 mol dm)3 alkali region, the rate decreased with increase in the alkali concentration and a plot of the pseudo-®rst order rate constant, k versus 1/[OH)] was linear. Above 5.0 ´ 10)2 mol dm)3, a plot of k versus [OH)] was also linear with a non-zero intercept. An increase in ionic strength of the reaction mixtures showed no e ect on k at low alkali concentrations, whereas at high concentrations an increase in ionic strength leads to an increase in k. A plot of 1/k versus [periodate] was linear with an intercept in both alkali ranges. Iodine was found to accelerate the reaction at the three di erent alkali concentrations employed. The observed results indicated the following equilibria for DPC.

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It has long been suggested that the overall shape of the antigen combining site (ACS) of antibodies is correlated with the nature of the antigen. For example, deep pockets are characteristic of antibodies that bind haptens, grooves indicate peptide binders, while antibodies that bind to proteins have relatively flat combining sites. In. 1996, MacCallum, Martin and Thornton used a fractal shape descriptor and showed a strong correlation of the shape of the binding region with the general nature of the antigen. However, the shape of the ACS is determined primarily by the lengths of the six complementarity-determining regions (CDRs). Here, we make a direct correlation between the lengths of the CDRs and the nature of the antigen. In addition, we show significant differences in the residue composition of the CDRs of antibodies that bind to different antigen classes. As well as helping us to understand the process of antigen recognition, autoimmune disease and cross-reactivity these results are of direct application in the design of antibody phage libraries and modification of affinity. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

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The timing and nature of the penultimate deglaciation, also known as Termination II (T-II), is subject of controversial discussions due to the scarcity of precisely-dated palaeoclimate records. Here we present a new precisely-dated and highly-resolved multi-proxy stalagmite record covering T-II from the high alpine Schafsloch Cave in Switzerland, an area where climate is governed by the North Atlantic. The inception of stalagmite growth at 137.4 ± 1.4 kyr before present (BP) indicates the presence of drip water and cave air temperatures of above 0°C, and is related to a climate-induced change in the thermal state (from cold- to warm-based) of the glacier above the cave. The cessation of stalagmite growth between 133.1 ± 0.7 and 131.9 ± 0.6 kyr BP is most likely related to distinct drop in temperature associated with Heinrich stadial 11. The resumption of stalagmite growth at 131.9 ± 0.6 kyr BP is accompanied by an abrupt increase in temperature and precipitation as indicated by distinct shifts in the oxygen and carbon isotopic composition as well as in trace element concentrations. The mid-point of T-II is around 131.8 ± 0.6 kyr BP in the Schafsloch Cave record is significantly earlier compared to the age of 129.1 ± 0.1 kyr BP in the Sanbao Cave record from China. The different ages between both records can be best explained by the competing effects of insolation and glacial boundary forcing on seasonality and snow cover extent in Eurasia.

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The metastable phase diagram of the BCC-based ordering equilibria in the Fe-Al-Mo system has been calculated via a truncated cluster expansion, through the combination of Full-Potential-Linear augmented Plane Wave (FP-LAPW) electronic structure calculations and of Cluster Variation Method (CVM) thermodynamic calculations in the irregular tetrahedron approximation. Four isothermal sections at 1750 K, 2000 K, 2250 K and 2500 K are calculated and correlated with recently published experimental data on the system. The results confirm that the critical temperature for the order-disorder equilibrium between Fe(3)Al-D0(3) and FeAl-B2 is increased by Mo additions, while the critical temperature for the FeAl-B2/A2 equilibrium is kept approximately invariant with increasing Mo contents. The stabilization of the Al-rich A2 phase in equilibrium with overstoichiometric B2-(Fe,Mo)Al is also consistent with the attribution of the A2 structure to the tau(2) phase, stable at high temperatures in overstoichiometric B2-FeAl. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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

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