Ephrin-A5 or EphA7 stimulation is anti-proliferative for human rhabdomyosarcoma .

Unlabelled: Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a tumor which resembles skeletal muscle. Current treatments are limited to surgery and non-targeted chemotherapy, highlighting the need for alternative therapies. Differentiation therapy uses molecules that act to shift the tumor cells' phenotype from proliferating to differentiated, which in the case of skeletal muscle includes exit from the cell cycle and potentially fusion into myofibers.

Circularly Polarized Luminescence from Pure and Eu-Doped Trigonal TbPO·HO Nanocrystals.

In this contribution, we describe the preparation, by means of a precipitation reaction from aqueous solution at 40 °C, and the structural characterization of nanocrystalline powders of trigonal TbEuPO·HO (with = 0, 0.005, 0.01, 0.

Impact of Cationic Stoichiometry on Physical, Optical and Electrical Properties of SrTiO Thin Films Grown on (001)-Oriented Si Substrates.

In this study, we investigate the changes in the crystalline structure of MBE-deposited SrTiO layers on Si with different deviations from Sr/Ti stoichiometry as deposited but also after annealing at high temperatures (>600 °C). We show that as-grown 15 nm thick non-stochiometric SrTiO layers present surprisingly lower FWHM values of the (002) omega diffraction peak compared to fully stoichiometric layers of similar thickness. This can misleadingly point to superior crystalline quality of such non-stochiometric layers.

Merging C-C σ-bond activation of cyclobutanones with CO fixation Ni-catalysis.

A carboxylative Ni-catalyzed tandem C-C σ-bond activation of cyclobutanones followed by CO-electrophilic trapping is documented as a direct route to synthetically valuable 3-indanone-1-acetic acids. The protocol shows an adequate functional group tolerance and useful chemical outcomes (yield up to 76%) when AlCl is adopted as an additive. Manipulations of the targeted cyclic scaffolds and a mechanistic proposal based on experimental evidence complete the investigation.

Effects of prenatal immune activation on amphetamine-induced addictive behaviors: Contributions from animal models.

Background: Prenatal environmental adversities may affect brain development and are associated with increased risk for schizophrenia, an illness with 50% comorbidity with addiction. Maternal immune activation by poly-inosinic-citidilic acid (Poly(I:C)) exposure can promote behavioral alterations consistent with schizophrenia symptoms in rodents.

Objectives: Considering the vulnerability to addiction in patients with schizophrenia, we evaluated the interactions between prenatal Poly(I:C) administration and addiction in two animal models (behavioral sensitization and conditioned place preference - CPP) in mice repeatedly treated with amphetamine (AMP).

Sleep deprivation impairs the extinction of cocaine-induced environmental conditioning in mice.

Persistence of a drug-environment conditioning induced by repeated psychostimulant treatment is thought to play a key role in the addictive cycle. In addition, sleep disorders are a common feature in patients with addictive disorders. Sleep deprivation shares similar neurobiological effects with psychostimulants.

Food restriction increases long-term memory persistence in adult or aged mice.

Food restriction (FR) seems to be the unique experimental manipulation that leads to a remarkable increase in lifespan in rodents. Evidences have suggested that FR can enhance memory in distinct animal models mainly during aging. However, only few studies systemically evaluated the effects FR on memory formation in both adult (3-month-old) and aged (18-24-month-old) mice.

Short-term social isolation induces depressive-like behaviour and reinstates the retrieval of an aversive task: mood-congruent memory in male mice?

Background: Although mood-congruent memory (MCM), or the tendency to recall information consistent with one's mood, is a robust phenomenon in human depression, to our knowledge, it has never been demonstrated in animals.

Methods: Mice were subjected to social isolation (SI) or crowding for 12 hours and had their depressive-like behaviour (evaluated by the forced swim, tail suspension, sucrose preference and splash tests) or their serum corticosterone concentrations evaluated. In addition, we determined the temporal forgetting curve of the plus-maze discriminative avoidance task (PM-DAT) and examined the effects of SI or crowding on memory retrieval in the PM-DAT.

Determination of cadmium and lead in vegetables by stripping chronopotentiometry.

A method for the determination of cadmium and lead in vegetables by stripping chronopotentiometric analysis, after digestion of the sample with concentrated sulphuric acid and dry-ashing, is described. Metal ions were concentrated as their amalgams on a glassy carbon-working electrode previously coated with a thin mercury film and then stripped by a suitable oxidant. Potential and time data were digitally derived and E was plotted versus dt/dE(-1), thus increasing both the sensitivity of the method and the resolution of the analysis.

Determination of zinc (II) in lubricant oils by stripping chronopotentiometry.

A method for the determination of zinc (II) in lubricant oils by stripping chronopotentiometry is described. The only necessary sample pretreatment was the extraction of zinc (II) from the corresponding alkyl derivatives by hot concentrated hydrochloric acid in a suitable extractor. The metal ions were concentrated as the corresponding metals on a glassy carbon working electrode and then stripped by a suitable oxidant.

Liquid chromatographic determination of simple phenolic compounds in waste waters from olive oil production plants.

A method was developed for the determination of simple phenolic compounds (PCs) in waste waters from olive oil production plants by liquid chromatography (LC). The sample under examination was acidified to pH 2 to precipitate proteins, acetone was added to eliminate the colloidal fraction, and hexane was used for extraction to eliminate lipidic substances. The solution obtained was filtered and injected into the LC system; the wavelength selected for the spectrophotometric detection was specific for PCs, so that carbohydrates, organic acids, and short-chain free fatty acids did not interfere.

High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of 2-furaldehyde and 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde in fruit juices.

A method for the determination of 2-furaldehyde (F) and 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde (HMF) in fruit juices by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is described. The method is based on the formation of the 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazones of carbonyl compounds and subsequent separation of these derivatives. Derivatization is carried out by utilizing an acidic solution of 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine in acetonitrile.

High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of 2-furaldehyde in spirits.

Official methods for the determination of 2-furaldehyde in spirits involve for a spectrophotometric evaluation, which is characterized by poor specificity. Gas chromatographic evaluations have also been proposed, which offer a much higher sensitivity, particularly when capillary columns are used. In this paper a high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method based on the formation of the 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazones of carbonyl compounds and subsequent reversed-phase separation of these derivatives is described.