Cognitive impairments in Huntington's disease (HD) are attributed to a dysfunction of the cortico-striatal pathway and significantly affect the quality of life of the patients, but this has not been a therapeutic focus in HD to date. We postulated that adenosine A(2A) receptors (A(2A)R), located at pre- and post-synaptic elements of the cortico-striatal pathways, modulate striatal neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity and cognitive behaviors. To critically evaluate the ability of A(2A)R inactivation to prevent cognitive deficits in early HD, we cross-bred A(2A)R knockout (1(0) mice with two R6/2 transgenic lines of HD (CAG120 and CAG240) to generate two double transgenic R6/2-CAG120-A(2A)R KO and R6/2-CAG240-A(2A)R KO mice and their corresponding wild-type (WT) littermates. Genetic inactivation of A(2A)R prevented working memory deficits induced by R6/2-CAG120 at post-natal week 6 and by R6/2-CAG240 at post-natal month 2 and post-natal month 3, without modifying motor deficits. Similarly the A(2A)R antagonist KW6002 selectively reverted working memory deficits in R6/2-CAG240 mice at post-natal month 3. The search for possible mechanisms indicated that the genetic inactivation of A(2A)R did not affect ubiquitin-positive neuronal inclusions, astrogliosis or Thr-75 phosphorylation of DARPP-32 in the striatum. Importantly, A(2A)R blockade preferentially controlled long-term depression at cortico-striatal synapses in R6/2-CAG240 at post-natal week 6. The reported reversal of working memory deficits in R6/2 mice by the genetic and pharmacological inactivation of A(2A)R provides a proof-of-principle for A(2A)R as novel targets to reverse cognitive deficits in HD, likely by controlling LTD deregulation. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier Inc.

This paper focuses on the synthesis of micro scale Poly(methylmethacrylate-acrylic acid-divinylbenzene) iron oxide Janus magnetic submicronic particles and the investigation of their interfacial properties and demulsifying capacity. The surface morphology, polymerization process and magnetic properties of the magnetic Janus submicronic particles were characterized by laser particle size analyzer, transmission electron microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometer. The interfacial activity and high hydrophilic nature of P(MMA-AA-DVB)/Fe3O4 Janus magnetic submicronic particles allowed them to be effectively attached to stable emulsified water droplets in heavy crude oil water emulsion. Janus magnetic submicronic particles tagged water droplets were readily removed by an external magnetic field. Our experimental results showed efficient removal of the water from the heavy crude oil emulsion. It was found that external magnetic field enhances the coalescence of magnetically tagged water droplets in an emulsion. The magnetic property of P(MMA-AA-DVB)/Fe3O4 allowed the used Janus magnetic submicronic particles to be readily recycled by magnetic separation and solvent washing. The recycled P(MMA-AA-DVB)/Fe3O4 was found to retain its interfacial activity and was effective in breaking the heavy crude oil water emulsion. This study demonstrated that Janus magnetic submicronic particles demulsification represented a new route of removing emulsified water from crude oil and water emulsions. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Background: Whether L-NAT, a cytochrome c release inhibitor and an antagonist of NM-1R, provides protection in ALS is not known. Results: L-NAT delays disease onset and mortality in mSOD1(G93A) ALE mice by inhibiting mitochondrial cell death pathways, inflammation, and NM-1R downregulation. Conclusion: L-NAT offers protection in a mouse model of ALS. Significance: Data suggest the potential of L-NAT as a novel therapeutic strategy for ALS and provide insight into its action mechanisms. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive motor neuron loss, while inflammation has been implicated in its pathogenesis. Both inhibitors of cytochrome c release and antagonists of the neurokinin 1 receptor (NK-1R) have been reported to provide neuroprotection in ALS and/or other neurodegenerative diseases by us and other researchers. However, whether N-acetyl-L-tryptophan (L-NAT), an inhibitor of cytochrome c release and an antagonist of NM-1R, provides neuroprotection in ALS remains unknown. Here we demonstrate that the administration of L-NAT delayed disease onset extended survival, and ameliorated deteriorations in motor performance in mSOD1(G93A) ALS transgenic mice. Our data showed that L-NAT reached the spinal cord, skeletal muscle, and brain. In addition, we demonstrate that L-NAT reduced the release of cytochrome c/smac/AIF, increased Bc1-xL levels, and inhibited the activation of caspase-3. L-NAT also ameliorated motor neuron loss and gross atrophy, and suppressed inflammation, as shown by decreased GFAP and Iba1 levels. Furthermore, we found gradually reduced NM-1R levels in the spinal cords of mSOD1(G93A) mice, while L-NAT treatment restored NM-1R levels. We propose the use of L-NAT as a potential therapeutic invention against ALE. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

We consider the interval quadratic programming problems. The aim of this paper is to present a new method to compute the upper bound of the optimal values, under weaker conditions. Moreover, we discuss the relations between the new method and previous results. The features of the proposed methods are illustrated by some examples. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

In this study, As(III) oxidation kinetics by a poorly-crystalline phyllomanganate (delta-MnO2) in the presence and absence of dissolved Fe(II) was investigated using stirred-flow and batch experiments. Chemically synthetic delta-MnO2 was reacted with four influent solutions, containing the same As(III) concentration but different Fe(II) concentrations, at pH 6. The results show an initial rapid As(III) oxidation by delta-MnO2, which is followed by an appreciably slow reaction after 8 h. In the presence of Fe(II), As(III) oxidation is inhibited due to the competitive oxidation of Fe(II) as well as the formation of Fe(III)-(hydr)oxides on the delta-MnO2 surface. However, the sorption of As(III), As(V) and Mn(II) are increased, for the newly formed Fe(III)-(hydr)oxides provide additional sorption sites. This study suggests that the competitive oxidation of Fe(II) and consequently the precipitation of Fe(III) compounds on the delta-MnO2 surface play an important role in As(III) oxidation and As sequestration. Understanding these processes would be helpful in developing in situ strategies for remediation of As-contaminated waters and soils. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

In this paper, the generic intersection theory for difference varieties is presented. Precisely, the intersection of an irreducible difference variety of dimension d > 0 and order h with a generic difference hypersurface of order s is shown to be an irreducible difference variety of dimension d-1 and order h+s. Based on the intersection theory, the difference Chow form for an irreducible difference variety is defined. Furthermore, it is shown that the difference Chow form of an irreducible difference variety V is transformally homogeneous and has the same order as V. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.