Taxonomic and functional responses of bats to habitat flooding by an Amazonian mega-dam

Biodiversity and Conservation - Hydroelectric dams are among the main cause of anthropogenic impacts in tropical environments. Damming interrupts the continuity of the river and produces the...     

Die „Pathologische Realangst“ am Beispiel kardiovaskulärer Erkrankungen

Fears of patients suffering from chronic or life threatening diseases are frequently observed as adjustment reactions. Left untreated they may lead to an unfavorable course of the disease and a generally poor outcome. Difficulties in diagnostic standard procedures arise from the question whether the anxiety symptoms are an expression of physical illness, or an independent anxiety disorder of clinical significance. The concept of Pathological Realistic Fear derives from these considerations, and describes the fear of a real threat, particularly in patients with chronic disease, especially those suffering from life threatening illnesses. Distorted perceptions of the primary disease, caused by subjective ideas about disease mechanisms often lead to misguided assumptions and frequently result in a distorted interpretation of the physical symptoms of illness. As a result a fearful attention focus evolves, which triggers the ultimate development of a Pathological Realistic Fear as. The following article is a first attempt to elaborate on the concept of Pathological Realistic Fear as a pathology and to describe its clinical relevance. The concept contributes to a more precise diagnosis of anxiety and could stimulate an interdisciplinary patient care.     

Lipases obtained from orange wastes: Commercialization potential and biochemical properties of different varieties and fractions

Brazil is the world's leading orange supplier for juice production purposes. However, the production process generates high amount of wastes, which leads to disposal problems. Orange wastes can be used for lipases production, incorporating the biorefinery concept into juice industries. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the wastes of orange production chain as source of lipases based on different varieties (Pera, Hamlin, Valencia, and Natal), as well as on different fractions of wastes. The mass balance of the juice/wastes (2007–2016 crops) was evaluated, and lipases from different varieties and fraction were biochemically characterized. Overall, the wastes corresponded to approximately 43% of the fruit mass. All the fractions of all varieties showed lipase activity in emulsified olive oil and in p-nitrophenyl substrates. The highest lipase activities were obtained by Natal pulp in emulsified olive oil, Natal frit, and Hamlin peel in p-NPB and Hamlin frit in p-NPL and p-NPP. The bagasse, peel, and frit lipases from the different orange varieties showed optimum pH from 6.0 to 8.0 and optimal temperature from 30 °C to 60 °C. Thus, it is possible concluding that the orange processing for juice production purposes generates a large amount of wastes, which can be destined to profitable purposes as lipases production. Lipases produced by different fractions and varieties are biochemically diverse, enabling the application a wide range of processes. © 2018 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 35: e2734, 2019     

Developmental and protein modification defects caused by mutations in the Drosophila gene l(3)c21R

A temperature-sensitive Drosophila mutation, l(3)c21RRW630 (abbreviated RW630), has been previously shown to have biochemical as well as developmental defects. To analyze further the relationship between the biochemical and developmental defects, recombinational mapping, deletion analysis, and complementation studies with other l(3)c21R alleles were performed. These experiments showed that the biochemical and developmental defects in RW630 can be attributed to a single mutation. Four non-temperature-sensitive l(3)c21R alleles were found to have biochemical defects similar to those seen in RW630 at restrictive temperature. In RW630 and in these four other l(3)c21R alleles, the severity of expression of the biochemical and the developmental defects was closely correlated. Temperature-shift studies of the expression of the RW630 maternal lethal effect on embryogenesis in females transheterozygous for RW630 and other l(3)c21R alleles yielded results which indicated that these defects must accumulate over a period of time before the maternal lethal effect can be detected. These data provide further support for the hypothesis that defects in protein modification produce developmental defects in l(3)c21R mutants.