Peripheral Fragments Research Articles

Carbon and nitrogen stock in soils of subtropical urban forests: Isotopic δ13C and δ15N indicators for nature-based solutions in a megacity

Urban forest soils play a pivotal role in enhancing the environmental sustainability of cities, contributing to various natural processes, including plant–microbe interactions, microbial activity, and the decomposition of organic matter. Consequently, urban forest soils emerge as effective NBS, underscoring their potential to mitigate environmental challenges and foster sustainable urban ecosystems. In these sense, this manuscript aimed at evaluating how soil attributes of the urban forests of São Paulo, Brazil, with different adjacent land uses, influence the capacity to store the excess of C and N from anthropogenic emissions, making this ecosystem an important reservoir of urban anthropogenic emissions. Three hundred urban forest soil samples were collected from the surface to a depth of 50 cm. All samples were analyzed for C and N content (and their stable isotopes). In addition, granulometric tests were also carried out to classify the soils. It was found that the most central forest fragment has the highest C and N contents at all analyzed depths, probably due to the association with physical aspects of soil texture. For all layers, the most central fragment soil sample, the only one with a clay soil, presented approximately twice as many elements when compared to the soil samples of the other sites. In general, C and N stocks (and their stable isotopes, δ13C and δ15N, respectively) varied significantly in forests located in the center-periphery direction (%N - F = 24.58, p < 0.05; %C - F = 22.48, p < 0.05; δ15N - F = 4.27, p < 0.05; δ13C - F = 19.8, p < 0.05; C/N - F = 14.56, p < 0.05). This more central forest fragment with higher vehicle emissions showed greater potential to store these atmospheric elements and with greater neutralizing efficiency than the other forest fragments. δ13C and δ15N contents together with the C:N ratio indicated the efficiency of biogeochemical cycling, through decomposition, in different urban forest fragments. More peripheral fragments showed high efficiency in C and N cycling along the analyzed soil profiles, while in the most superficial layer, the most central fragment was highly efficient. These shed light results how integrating NbS principles into strategic urban planning and city-level climate policies can bolster the effectiveness of urban green areas. The integration not only promotes carbon sequestration and efficient nutrient cycling in the soil but also fosters sustainable practices, contributing to a more resilient urban landscape.

The influence of methoxy- group position on thermal stability and properties of novel isomeric 4-[(methoxy)phenoxy] phthalonitriles and phthalocyanine complexes based on them

Isomeric 4-[(methoxy)phenoxy]phthadinitriles were obtained and characterized in this work. The compounds showed high thermal stability, which is directly related to their structure. These features were revealed and described using X-ray diffraction analysis. For m-substituted structures during packing, the largest contribution was found from intermolecular interactions of the π-stacking type between nitrile fragments. In the packing of o-substituted analogs, this type of interaction is not realized due to geometry, and additional stabilization is realized due to the appearance of three-center intermolecular bonds between the bridging oxygen atoms of one nitrile molecule and the hydrogen atom of the nitrile fragment of another molecule. Based on the obtained phthalonitriles, novel metal complexes with tetrakis-4-[4-(o-/m-/p-methoxy)phenoxy]phthalocyanine ligands were synthesized. For the substituted phthalocyaninates obtained the structure was characterized, the spectroscopic and luminescent properties were determined, as well as the influence of the position of the methoxy-group in the peripheral fragments on them. It is shown that, on the one hand, the position of the methoxyl-group has a significant effect on the values of the fluorescence quantum yields of the compounds, and, on the other hand, has almost no effect on their fluorescence lifetimes.

Optimization of hydrogen production in Enterobacter aerogenes by Complex I peripheral fragments destruction and maeA overexpression

As a concentrated energy source with high added value, hydrogen has great development prospects, with special emphasis on sustainable microbial production as a replacement for traditional fossil fuels. In this study, λ-Red recombination was used to alter the activity of Complex I by single and combined knockout of nuoE, nuoF and nuoG. In addition, the conversion of malic to pyruvic acid was promoted by overexpressing the maeA gene, which could increase the content of NADH and formic acid in the bacterial cells. Compared to the original strain, hydrogen production was 65% higher in the optimized strain IAM1183-EFG/M, in which the flux of the formic acid pathway was increased by 257%, the flux of the NADH pathway was increased by 13%, and the content of metabolites also changed significantly. In further bioreactor, the total hydrogen production of the scale-up IAM1183-EFG/M after 44 h of fermentation was 4.76 L, which increased by 18% compared with the starting strain. This study provides a new direction for future exploration of microbial hydrogen production by combinatorial modification of multiple genes.Graphical

Sunlight Bleaching of Subporphyrazine Dye Films

Stable subphthalocyanine-type dyes with a high electron affinity attract much attention as potential substitutes for traditional fullerenes in molecular electronics devices. One possible way to enhance the acceptor properties of the subphthalocyanine core is by replacing the peripheral benzene fragments (C6H4) with 1,2,5-thiadiazole fragments (C2N2S1). However, the resistance of these materials to light or atmospheric effect remains an open question, which limits their further application in device manufacturing. In this work, we compare vacuum-deposited films of three derivatives, SubPzS3H0 (all peripheral fragments are 1,2,5-thiadiazoles), SubPzS2H4 (two fragments are 1,2,5-thiadiazoles and one fragment is benzene), and SubPcS0H12 (all benzenes, i.e., parent subphthalocyanine). Practically relevant substrates were used for deposition, namely, bare glass, glass/ITO or FTO, and PET/ITO. Photobleaching of films under continuous 1 sun illumination was studied in laboratory air, synthetic air, and ultrapure argon. It is shown that the exclusion of near-UV photons from the incident light spectrum, which corresponds to the absorption of subphthalocyanines in the Soret-band, strongly inhibits degradation. Absorption in the Q-band range initiates soft annealing rather than photobleaching of films. The stability of the films deposited on glass decreases as SubPzS3H0 &gt; SubPzS2H4 &gt; SubPcS0H12 in air, and vice versa in argon. The substrate adds more complexity to this picture. In argon, the ITO coating reduces degradation of all of the compounds equally, in contrast to the glass samples, while in air, the SubPzS3H0 films discolor completely. The latter reaction proceeds due to the indium-containing species migrating from the conductive coating.

Annulation of a 1,3-dithiole ring to a sterically hindered o-quinone core. Novel ditopic redox-active ligands.

The fused 1,3-dithiole spacer seems to be very suitable for the functionalization of sterically hindered o-quinones with additional groups capable of coordination of metal ions and/or possessing a redox activity. An effective method for the synthesis of sterically hindered o-quinones containing 1,3-diketonate, dinitrile and p-quinone-methide functional groups at the periphery of the ligand has been developed. The novel compounds have rigid and conjugated structures and exhibit properties typical of o-quinones. A study of their monoreduced semiquinone derivatives reveal that the spin density is delocalized across the whole molecule, including peripheral fragments. The first stable o-quinone derivative bearing an annulated thiete heterocycle has been isolated and characterized.

The influence of river training on the location of erosion and accumulation zones (Kłodzko County, South West Poland)

Abstract The channels of the main rivers in the Kłodzko County, South West Poland, have been strongly influenced by human activities since the end of the nineteenth century. The reasons, type, and time frame of these changes are very similar to those which occurred in other European mountain regions but the magnitude is different. Kłodzko County is an area with a well-developed river network. Since the Middle Ages, human activities were noticed in the river valleys of this region. The main cause of the most anthropogenic transformations of the river channels was changes in the volume of sediment supply and, thus, the channel load and its erosive and transport capacities. The ultimate effects of human impact are manifested in the changes of channel pattern, depth and sinuosity, and the location of erosion and accumulation zones. Morphological transformations are most intensive immediately after the regulation works. The influence of channel training is noticeable; however, there is no clear correlation between the occurrence of engineering structures and the development of channel forms. The channel changes are mostly local. The highest efficiency of channel processes is observed in the direct vicinity of the damming objects and in the peripheral fragments of bank-protection structures. Below the damming structures, the rate of channel downcutting increases because of sediment retention in dam and weir reservoirs, and above the transversal structures bed aggradation takes place; lateral erosion intensifies below the bank reinforcements, and sediment shadows are common below the transversal structures. The types of morphological changes observed in the regulated channels of the Kłodzko County are in most cases similar to the effects of training works in other mountain river systems in Poland and around the world; however, the scale of morphological influence is much smaller, which indicates greater stability of the river channels of the Sudetes than the Carpathian and Alpine river channels.

DYNAMICS OF THE ESTATE SUPERTEXT FUNCTIONING&#x0D; IN RUSSIAN LITERATURE:&#x0D; SEMANTICS, SYNTACTICS, PRAGMATICS

The purpose of the article is to study the diachronic aspects of the supertext functioning as a semiosphere on the example of the estate supertext in Russian literature. Each fragment of the estate semiosphere, due to its iconic nature, is organized&#x0D; in accordance with the semiosis levels: semantics (a myth, a system of oppositions, motives and toposes), syntactics (linear connections between semantics&#x0D; components) and pragmatics (a communication system in the text, a subjective structure). In the iconic organization of the supertext, semantics refers to the paradigm&#x0D; level and composes an invariant system of values, which ensures the integrity of the supertext and the meaning continuity. The semantic components are concretized at the syntactic level in different contexts (the context of syntagma,&#x0D; the context of the author’s work, the historical context) and the plots (a consistent connection of motives and images). Out-of-text and in-text communications are reflected at the level of pragmatics (an author’s dialogue with tradition,&#x0D; various forms of quotations, involvement in aesthetic polemics of the era, inter-semiotic translation into different literary languages. Thus, syntactics and pragmatics refer to peripheral fragments that belong to the semiotic field of the estate text and they are primarily subject to changes in the diachronic development of the supertext. This semiotic model can become a universal one for studying the dynamic aspects of large supertext (overtext) formations/

Baltica and the Cadomian orogen in the Ediacaran\u2013Cambrian: a perspective from SE Poland

In the supercontinent of Rodinia, Baltica occurred next to Amazonia, then the two drifted away when Rodinia broke up. By the end of the Neoproterozoic, Baltica became an independent continent. At that time, Timanide orogen developed at its modern northeastern margin. In most paleogeographical reconstructions, the opposite (SW, Tornquist) edge faced the Tornquist Ocean and remained just a passive margin till the arrival of the Gondwana-born East Avalonia in the late Ordovician. However, preliminary isotopic studies of detrital zircons from the Tornquist passive margin succession hinted that rock components of Gondwana derivation reached Baltica already in the early Cambrian. In this paper, we examine 18 drill-cores of Ediacaran-Cambrian and Ordovician siliciclastic rocks from the tectonostratigraphic units along the SW–NE transect from Upper Silesia (USB) via Małopolska (MB) and the Holy Cross Mts (HCM) to the East European Platform (EEP), SE Poland, in terms of the provenance data gained from the LA-ICP-MS and SHRIMP analyses of 32 zircon samples. Rocks from all the units revealed abundant Cadomian 0.7–0.55 Ga detrital zircons (15–50% of the total analyzed grains) and other grains that yielded peaks at 0.9–1.2, 1.4–1.6, 1.8–2.2, 2.7–3.0 Ga assignable to Baltica rather than Amazonia. Such age spectra in the USB, HCM and EEP prove the proximity of peripheral (peri-Gondwanan) fragments of the Cadomian orogen to Baltica. These fragments formed the Teissyere-Tornquist Terrane Assemblage (TTA) that obliquely docked and overrode the thinned southwestern edge of Baltica which earlier accumulated Neoproterozoic rift and passive margin deposits. Our data show that in the late Ediacaran-early Cambrian, parts of the Cadomian orogenic belt became accreted to Baltica.

Synthesis of Water-Soluble Phthalocyanines and Modification of their Peripheral Fragments as a Method of Directed Changes in Lipophilic-Hydrophilic Properties

This article brief by describes results of studies devoted to synthesis of water-soluble phthalocyanines derivatives, which are carried out by the Complexing Agents Chemistry group of IPAC RAS. Metal-free ligands and metallophthalocyanines, containing peripheral substituents with fragments of pyridine, oxybenzoic and hydroxyphenylphosphonic acids are potential photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy of cancer diseases. Methods for the modification of peripheral substituents have been developed that make it possible to synthesize phthalocyanine ligands and complexes soluble in organic solvents, or soluble in aqueous media and also possess amphiphilic properties.

Adverb as an obligatory component of the functional-semantic field of temporality

The proposed theoretical study is a complex analysis of specialized concepts, devoted to the problem of qualification of the temporal functional-semantic field, as well as to the determination of specifics of realization of the adverbial part-of-speech component in this language association. The purpose orientation of the author of the work is to carry out a thorough scientifically weighted review of the heterogeneous differential features of such ambiguous linguistic notion as temporality. The more detailed explanation of the compositional and role aspects of figuring is subjected to such universal language institution, as functionally-semantic field of temporality. The particular attention is paid to the deep characterization of the constituent and content amount of the adverbial lexeme group, nominated as an integral figurant of the mentioned field totality. The result of a thorough analysis of the peculiarity of the functioning of the temporal adverb in the structure of the corresponding linguistic integrity is the ascertaining of several determinant facts, united by the outlined problem. In particular, there is postulated the two-component construction of the temporal functionalsemantic association, constituted by semantic fundamental principle with a clearly defined thematic specialization and by the formal means of actualization of the semantic basis. It is found that in the structure of a hierarchically arranged by the principle of nuclear-peripheral transition monocentric temporal field integrity the central structural positions are occupied by a verbal paradigmatic complex which is the medium of the general deictic time significance. In contrast to this cardinal indicator of temporal relations, lexical concretizers are localized in more distant (peripheral) fragments of the outlined linguistic association, but the underestimation of their functional-semantic status seems completely unfair. The role of lexical markers of time is qualified as “informative expansion”, namely: the detalization of the general time plan expressed by the morphological representatives. The adverbial means of indicating the time parameters of action is nominated as a specific by semantical, grammatical and functional features autonomous part-of-speech figurant of the temporal field. It is emphasized that this abstract by temporal content nuance heterogeneous wordy group is vested with the potency for clarification and tendentious modification of the natural significance of the verb form within a concrete temporal microfield. The realized work has allowed the author to demonstrate the peculiarity of conceptually diverse authors’ interpretive mechanisms focused on the analysis of the adverbial lexeme category in the functional plane of its figuring, as well as to determine the undoubted perspective of the study of adverbial issues.

Multiplex Analysis of the Activation of the Immune System after Transection of the Rat’s Sciatic Nerve

In this study, using the model of sciatic nerve transection in rats, the cytokine profile of peripheral blood serum and rat sciatic nerve fragments was measured 3, 7 and 14 days after the injury. Histological analysis of sciatic nerve longitudinal sections was carried out at the same periods of time. The cytokine profile of peripheral blood serum of an intact rat as well as the cytokine profile of an intact homogenized sciatic nerve of a rat was examined. Comparative study of changes in quantitative measures before and after the injury was carried out. It was shown that in peripheral blood serum after the sciatic nerve transection, there was a change in quantitative measures of IL­1a, Leptin, IL6, MCP1, and MIP­2. In the samples of the rat sciatic nerve, the changes were found in the levels of EGF, Fractalkine, G­CSF, IFNg, IL10, IL17A, IL18, IL2, IL6, IP10, Leptin, LIX, MCP1, MIP­1a, MIP­2, and RANTES.

Kinematics of the bottom of the Eurasia Basin near the Spitsbergen domain

Prior to extension of the lithosphere in the Eurasia Basin, the Yermak Plateau was an element of the Eurasian Arctic margin. Extension of the Barents Sea shelf culminated gradually in rifting of the continental crust with separation of this block from the continent during Chrons C25r‒C26n (57.656‒59.237 Ma ago) and emplacement of numerous basic dikes, which could be responsible for the formation of high-amplitude magnetic anomalies on the Yermak Plateau. The investigation included reconstruction of axes in the breakup zones along peripheral continental fragments of Spitsbergen with determination of the Euler poles and angles of rotation, which describe the kinematics of this process. It is revealed that the difference between depths of conjugate isobaths can be as large as many tens of meters, which reflects the nonuniformly scaled slide of peripheral areas of the continental crust along the plane of the crustal-penetrating fault and, correspondingly, their different subsidence during rifting.

Parquet compounds on the basis of eight- and twelve-membered structure blocks: Quantum-chemical study

Annelated structures of cyclooctatetraene and cyclododecahexene and their expanded lowmolecular derivatives were studied using DFT B3LYP method with 6-311G(d,p), 6-311(df,p), 6-311+G(3df) basis sets. Monomer systems including planar antiaromatic cycles are stable in the singlet state, whereas the corresponding triplet states are significantly destabilized. The stability of nonstandard planar forms with antiaromatic cycles is provided by steric factors and the effects of π-electron interaction between the central and peripheral fragments.

Statistics of Fragment Dispersion by Explosion in a Fragment Generator Warhead

Understanding the dispersion characteristics of fragments is essential for precise planning of the end game and the neutralization of targets using directional fragment generator warheads (FGW). The authors have carried out experiments to study the spatial dispersion of the fragments in two configurations of FGWs having a circular shaped fragment generating surface. In this paper, the dispersion of the fragments is quantified using the mean and standard deviation of the projection angle. Using the Shapiro-Wilk test, it is verified that dispersion in the projection angle follows a normal distribution. The dispersion of the peripheral fragments is higher due to edge effects. A steeper variation in projection angles is observed for fragments placed at a radial distance greater than 0.7 times the explosive charge radius. These observations are in agreement with the results of Held (1988) for a square shaped fragment generating surface.

Structural changes in MII dithione/dithiolato complexes (M = Ni, Pd, Pt) on varying the dithione functionalization

Large differences in the crystal structures of the title triads, induced by interactions exchanged by the peripheral fragments of the ligands, have been found and described through the Hirshfeld surface analysis.

Model of the separation of the Marvin Spur from the Lomonosov Ridge in the Arctic Ocean

The axes of the zones of the separation of the peripheral continental fragments of the Lomonosov Ridge (the Marvin Spur and the local block of the Alpha Ridge) from its main body in the part of the Makarov Basin near Greenland are restored. The Euler poles and the angles of rotation describing the separation process are determined. The depths of the conjugate isobaths are found to be different by hundreds of meters. This circumstance most likely reflects the fact of the different scale sliding of the peripheral areas of the continental crust from the main body of the Lomonosov Ridge down the lithospheric fault plane (and thereby the different scale dip during the separation) according to the modified B. Wernike model presented here. The primary bottom topography that existed before the separation of the sliding fragments from the ridge are restored based on the reconstruction. For the case of the part of the Lomonosov Ridge near Greenland, it is established that the initially peripheral sections from the part of the Lomonosov Ridge near Greenland towered over the main surface of the Lomonosov Ridge approximately by half a kilometer and higher.

Peripheral fragments: Dislocation as ellipsis

Left- and right-dislocation constructions have so far resisted reduction to basic mechanisms of grammar, and in fact pose various theoretically challenging problems. Focusing on Germanic, I argue that "dislocation" is in fact a kind of juxtaposition of two clauses, one of which is reduced by IP-ellipsis (as attested in sluicing and fragment answers). Analyzing dislocated XPs as remnants of clausal ellipsis directly predicts various otherwise puzzling properties of dislocation, such as reconstruction into the main clause, now reanalyzed as reconstruction internally to the reduced clause. I show that the analysis receives independent support from parallels between sluicing/fragment answers and dislocation.

Fundamentals of paracoccidioidomycosis treatment

AbstractParacoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is the most important mycosis in Latin America. The etiological agent is the fungus, Paracoccidioides brasiliensis. Approximately 1 million people are infected with the fungus, 10% of whom will show symptoms of the disease. However, clinical and laboratorial studies addressing the diagnosis for this disease are both scarce and diverse in terms of definition. Nevertheless, two main advances were included in the portfolio of available diagnostic methods for paracoccidioidomycosis during the last decades: the detection of antibodies against P. brasiliensis antigens by serological methods, and the detection of the fungi DNA in peripheral blood and fragments of lesions using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay and species‐specific primers. Normally, the treatment of PCM is quite prolonged because of the immunosuppressed profile of the patients and the ability of P. brasiliensis to survive in the tissues even after long‐term treatment. Case reports indicate that azoles and sulfa compounds can produce positive results in less severe cases of PCM. However, for acute cases of the disease in immunocompromised patients or in cases of neuroparacoccidioidomycosis, there is no standard treatment. Thus, there is a need to establish a standard treatment protocol within the context of the patient clinical profile. Moreover, drug availability to public institutions is an important issue, since new drugs, e.g., second‐generation azoles, the echinocandines and immunomodulatory drugs, are not yet available in public hospitals and clinics. Drug Dev Res 72:528–537, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Synthesis of tetra- and octaphosphoryl-containing phthalocyanines

Phthalonitriles containing diphenylphosphoryl substituents as peripheral fragments were synthesized and characterized for the first time. The method of template assembly on the corresponding metal cation was used to obtain tetra- and octaphosphoryl-containing phthalocyaninates of Mg2+, Cu2+, and Co2+. A description is given of the method of synthesis of tetra(diphenylphosphorylmethoxy)phthalocyanine and octa(diphenylphosphoryl)methylphthalocyanine by demetallization of lithium and magnesium phthalocyaninates. The synthesized compounds were characterized using the methods of UV-, IR-, NMR 1H, NMR 31P spectroscopy and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry.

Plasmacytoma of the Skull

A 42-year-old woman presented with a painless, nickel-sized lump on her scalp that was first noticed by her hairdresser 4 months earlier. Physical examination revealed a firm, nontender, subcutaneous nodule, 6 cm in diameter, and no neurologic deficits. A complete blood count, complete metabolic profile, and urinalysis showed no abnormalities. A computed tomographic scan showed a destructive, well-demarcated, soft-tissue mass, with peripheral bony fragments, emerging from the right frontal calvarium. The mass measured 5 cm by 4 cm and was compressing part of the brain. There was no evidence of a midline shift. The mass was excised, and cranial mesh . . .