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Three-dimensional Distribution (three-dimensional + distribution)
Selected AbstractsThree-dimensional distribution of no sources in a primary mechanosensory integration center in the locust and its implications for volume signalingTHE JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE NEUROLOGY, Issue 15 2010Daniel Münch Abstract Nitric oxide (NO) is an evolutionarily conserved mediator of neural plasticity. Because NO is highly diffusible, signals from multiple sources might combine in space and time to affect the same target. Whether such cooperative effects occur will depend on the effective signaling range and on the distances of NO sources to one another and to their targets. These anatomical parameters have been quantified in only few systems. We analyzed the 3D architecture of NO synthase (NOS) expression in a sensory neuropil, the ventral association center (VAC) of the locust. High-resolution confocal microscopy revealed NOS immunoreactive fiber boutons in submicrometer proximity to both the axon terminals of sensory neurons and their postsynaptic target, interneuron A4I1. Pharmacological manipulation of NO signaling affected the response of A4I1 to individual wind-puff stimuli and the response decrement during repetitive stimulation. Mapping NOS immunoreactivity in defined volumes around dendrites of A4I1 revealed NOS-positive fiber boutons within 5 ,m of nearly every surface point. The mean distances between neighboring NOS-boutons and between any point within the VAC and its nearest NOS-bouton were likewise about 5 ,m. For an NO signal to convey the identity of its source, the effective signaling range would therefore have to be less than 5 ,m, and shorter still when multiple boutons release NO simultaneously. The architecture is therefore well suited to support the cooperative generation of volume signals by interaction between the signals from multiple active boutons. J. Comp. Neurol. 518:2903,2916, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Three-dimensional distribution of NO sources in a primary mechanosensory integration center in the locust and its implications for volume signalingTHE JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE NEUROLOGY, Issue 15 2010Daniel Münch Abstract Nitric oxide (NO) is an evolutionarily conserved mediator of neural plasticity. Because NO is highly diffusible, signals from multiple sources might combine in space and time to affect the same target. Whether such cooperative effects occur will depend on the effective signaling range and on the distances of NO sources to one another and to their targets. These anatomical parameters have been quantified in only few systems. We analyzed the 3D architecture of NO synthase (NOS) expression in a sensory neuropil, the ventral association center (VAC) of the locust. High-resolution confocal microscopy revealed NOS immunoreactive fiber boutons in submicrometer proximity to both the axon terminals of sensory neurons and their postsynaptic target, interneuron A4I1. Pharmacological manipulation of NO signaling affected the response of A4I1 to individual wind-puff stimuli and the response decrement during repetitive stimulation. Mapping NOS immunoreactivity in defined volumes around dendrites of A4I1 revealed NOS-positive fiber boutons within 5 ,m of nearly every surface point. The mean distances between neighboring NOS-boutons and between any point within the VAC and its nearest NOS-bouton were likewise about 5 ,m. For an NO signal to convey the identity of its source, the effective signaling range would therefore have to be less than 5 ,m, and shorter still when multiple boutons release NO simultaneously. The architecture is therefore well suited to support the cooperative generation of volume signals by interaction between the signals from multiple active boutons. J. Comp. Neurol. 518:2903,2916, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Large-scale distribution and activity patterns of an extremely low-light-adapted population of green sulfur bacteria in the Black SeaENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 5 2010Evelyn Marschall Summary The Black Sea chemocline represents the largest extant habitat of anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria and harbours a monospecific population of Chlorobium phylotype BS-1. High-sensitivity measurements of underwater irradiance and sulfide revealed that the optical properties of the overlying water column were similar across the Black Sea basin, whereas the vertical profiles of sulfide varied strongly between sampling sites and caused a dome-shaped three-dimensional distribution of the green sulfur bacteria. In the centres of the western and eastern basins the population of BS-1 reached upward to depths of 80 and 95 m, respectively, but were detected only at 145 m depth close to the shelf. Using highly concentrated chemocline samples from the centres of the western and eastern basins, the cells were found to be capable of anoxygenic photosynthesis under in situ light conditions and exhibited a photosynthesis,irradiance curve similar to low-light-adapted laboratory cultures of Chlorobium BS-1. Application of a highly specific RT-qPCR method which targets the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the rrn operon of BS-1 demonstrated that only cells at the central station are physiologically active in contrast to those at the Black Sea periphery. Based on the detection of ITS-DNA sequences in the flocculent surface layer of deep-sea sediments across the Black Sea, the population of BS-1 has occupied the major part of the basin for the last decade. The continued presence of intact but non-growing BS-1 cells at the periphery of the Black Sea indicates that the cells can survive long-distant transport and exhibit unusually low maintenance energy requirements. According to laboratory measurements, Chlorobium BS-1 has a maintenance energy requirement of ,1.6,4.9·10,15 kJ cell,1 day,1 which is the lowest value determined for any bacterial culture so far. Chlorobium BS-1 thus is particularly well adapted to survival under the extreme low-light conditions of the Black Sea, and can be used as a laboratory model to elucidate general cellular mechanisms of long-term starvation survival. Because of its adaptation to extreme low-light marine environments, Chlorobium BS-1 also represents a suitable indicator for palaeoceanography studies of deep photic zone anoxia in ancient oceans. [source] Heavy metal concentrations during storm events in a rehabilitated industrialized catchmentHYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 10 2003W. H. Blake Abstract Water quality data collected on a fortnightly or monthly basis are inadequate for assessment and modelling of many water quality problems as storm event samples are underrepresented or missed. This paper examines the stormflow dynamics of heavy metals (Pb, Cu, Cd and Zn) in the Nant-y-Fendrod stream, South Wales, which has been affected by 250 years of metal smelting, followed by 35 years of landscape rehabilitation measures. For storm events of contrasting (very dry and very wet) antecedent conditions in May 2000 and February 2001, respectively, temporal changes in streamwater heavy metal concentrations above and below an in-line flood detention lake are analysed. At the upstream site, peaks in total metal concentration were recorded on the rising limb for Pb (0·150 mg l,1) and Cu (0·038 mg l,1) but on the falling limb for Zn (1·660 mg l,1) and Cd (0·006 mg l,1) in the summer 2000 storm event, yielding clockwise and anticlockwise hysteretic loops respectively. In contrast, metal concentrations, although high throughout the winter storm event, were diluted somewhat during the storm peak itself. The Pb and Cu appear to be supplied by quickflow processes and transported in close association with fine sediment, whereas Zn and Cd are delivered to the channel and lake by slower subsurface seepage in dissolved form. In the winter 2001 event, antecedent soil moisture and shallow groundwater levels were anomalously high and seepage sources of dissolved metals dominated. Downstream of the lake, Pb and Cu levels and suspended sediment were high in the summer storm, but low in the winter storm, suggesting retention with deposition of fine sediment in the lake during the latter. In the winter storm, Zn and Cd levels were higher downstream than upstream of the lake, perhaps because of additional seepage inputs from the surrounding slopes, which failed to have an impact during summer. An understanding of the complex interplay of antecedent soil moisture and the dynamics of subsurface seepage pathways in relation to the three-dimensional distribution of sources is important in modelling heavy metal fluxes and levels in contaminated urban catchments. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Modelling of earth and water pressure development during diaphragm wall construction in soft clayINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL AND ANALYTICAL METHODS IN GEOMECHANICS, Issue 13 2004R. Schäfer Abstract The influence of a diaphragm wall construction on the stress field in a soft clayey soil is investigated by the use of a three-dimensional FE-model of seven adjacent wall panels. The installation procedure comprises the excavation and the subsequent pouring of each panel taking into account the increasing stiffness of the placed fresh concrete. The soft clay deposit is described by a visco-hypoplastic constitutive model considering the rheological properties and the small-strain stiffness of the soil. The construction process considerably affects the effective earth and pore water pressures adjacent to the wall. Due to concreting, a high excess pore water pressure arises, which dissipates during the following construction steps. The earth pressure finally shows an oscillating, distinct three-dimensional distribution along the retaining wall which depends on the installation sequence of the panels and the difference between the fresh concrete pressure and the total horizontal earth pressure at rest. In comparison to FE-calculations adopting the earth pressure at rest as initial condition, greater wall deflections and surface ground settlements during the subsequent pit excavation can be expected, as the average stress level especially in the upper half of the wall is increased by the construction procedure of the retaining structure. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Scanning texture analysis of lamellar bone using microbeam synchrotron X-ray radiationJOURNAL OF APPLIED CRYSTALLOGRAPHY, Issue 1 2007Wolfgang Wagermaier Texture analysis with microbeam scanning diffraction enables the local mapping of three-dimensional crystallite orientation in heterogeneous natural and synthetic materials. Cortical (compact) bone is an example of a hierarchically structured biocomposite, which is built mainly of cylindrical osteons, having a lamellar texture at the micrometre level. In this work, a combination of microbeam synchrotron X-ray texture analysis with thin sections of osteonal bone is used to measure the three-dimensional distribution of the c -axis orientation of the mineral apatite in bone with positional resolution of 1,µm. The data reduction procedure needed to go from the stereographic projection of X-ray intensity to the determination of the local orientation of mineralized collagen fibrils is described. The procedure can be applied to other mineralized tissues (such as trabecular bone and chitin) with micrometre scale and biologically controlled fibrillar texture. [source] Confocal full-field X-ray microscope for novel three-dimensional X-ray imagingJOURNAL OF SYNCHROTRON RADIATION, Issue 5 2009Akihisa Takeuchi A confocal full-field X-ray microscope has been developed for use as a novel three-dimensional X-ray imaging method. The system consists of an X-ray illuminating `sheet-beam' whose beam shape is micrified only in one dimension, and an X-ray full-field microscope whose optical axis is normal to the illuminating sheet beam. An arbitral cross-sectional region of the object is irradiated by the sheet-beam, and secondary X-ray emission such as fluorescent X-rays from this region is imaged simultaneously using the full-field microscope. This system enables a virtual sliced image of a specimen to be obtained as a two-dimensional magnified image, and three-dimensional observation is available only by a linear translation of the object along the optical axis of the full-field microscope. A feasibility test has been carried out at beamline 37XU of SPring-8. Observation of the three-dimensional distribution of metallic inclusions in an artificial diamond was performed. [source] Three-dimensional visualization of the inner structure of single crystals by step-scanning white X-ray section topographyJOURNAL OF SYNCHROTRON RADIATION, Issue 6 2006Taihei Mukaide Visualization of the three-dimensional distribution of the crystal defects of large single crystals of calcium fluoride has been demonstrated by white X-ray section topography using sheet-like X-rays (BL28B2 at SPring-8). An image of the three-dimensional distribution of the crystal defects was reconstructed by stacking section topographs, which expressed the images of cross sections of the sample. The section topographs were recorded using a CMOS flat-panel imager or a CCD detector combined with scintillator (Gd2O2S:Tb) and relay lens system. The section topographs were measured by repeating cycles of exposure and sample translation along the direction perpendicular to the top face of the sample. Using high-brilliance and high-energy white X-rays (,60,keV) efficiently, visualization of the three-dimensional structure of subgrains of a sample of up to 60,mm in diameter was achieved. Furthermore, the three-dimensional distribution of the glide plane in the crystal was visualized by reconstructing the linear contrast of the glide plane. [source] Offline, multidetector intensity interferometers , II.MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, Issue 4 2006Implications, applications ABSTRACT Intensity interferometry removes the stringent requirements on mechanical precision and atmospheric corrections that plague all amplitude interferometry techniques at the cost of severely limited sensitivity. A new idea we recently introduced, very high redundancy, alleviates this problem. It enables the relatively simple construction (,1 cm mechanical precision) of a ground-based astronomical facility able to transform a two-dimensional field of point-like sources to a three-dimensional distribution of microarcsec resolved systems, each imaged in several optical bands. Each system will also have its high-resolution residual timing, high-quality (inside each band) spectra and light curve, emergent flux, effective temperature, polarization effects and perhaps some thermodynamic properties, all directly measured. All the above attributes can be measured in a single observation run of such a dedicated facility. We conclude that after three decades of abandonment, optical intensity interferometry deserves another review, also as a ground-based alternative to the science goals of space interferometers. [source] Simulation of the three-dimensional distribution of the red:far-red ratio within crop canopiesNEW PHYTOLOGIST, Issue 1 2007Michaël Chelle Summary ,,It is widely recognized that the red:far-red ratio (,) acts as a signal that triggers plant morphogenesis. New insights into photomorphogenesis have been gained through experiments in controlled environments. Extrapolation of such results to field conditions requires characterization of the , signal perceived by plant organs within canopies. This paper presents a modeling approach to characterize this signal. ,,A wheat (Triticum aestivum) architectural model was coupled with a three-dimensional light model estimating the irradiances of virtual sensors. Architectural parameters and , values were measured on two contrasting spring wheat canopies under outdoor conditions. Light simulations were compared with measurements, and an analysis of sensitivity to measurement conditions was carried out. ,,The model results agreed well with measurements and previously published data. The sensitivity analysis showed that , strongly depends on canopy development as well as on sky conditions, sensor orientation, and sensor field of view. ,,This paper shows that modeling enables investigation of , distribution in a canopy over space and time. It also shows that the characterization of light quality strongly depends on measurement conditions, and that any discrepancies in results are likely attributable to different experimental set-ups. The usefulness of this modeling approach for crop photomorphogenesis studies is discussed. [source] Three-dimensional fiber orientation in vibration welded joints of glass fiber reinforced polyamide-6POLYMER COMPOSITES, Issue 9 2008Musa R. Kamal A technique was developed to obtain the three-dimensional distribution of fiber orientation in vibration-welded joints of polyamide-6 (PA-6) reinforced with 30 wt% glass fibers. The heat-affected zone (HAZ) of fiber-reinforced PA-6 was successfully revealed by polishing and etching the vibration welded joints. Examination with the polarized light microscope in the reflection mode showed detailed microstructure domains, including the bulk crystalline zone and the HAZ. Experimental elliptical fiber cross-section images were used to obtain second order orientation tensors, thus providing a quantitative description of the three-dimensional fiber orientation distribution. The fibers in the HAZ were reoriented towards the squeeze flow direction, when compared with the bulk phase. Low welding pressure does not necessarily produce a more favorable fiber orientation in the tensile direction than high welding pressure. High welding pressure and low amplitude promote fiber reorientation in both the squeeze flow and tensile (weld thickness) directions. Overall, it was found that, at 30% fiber content, vibration-welded joints of injection molded fiber-reinforced PA-6 are weaker than vibration-welded joints in unreinforced injection molded samples. The fibers in the former do not undergo sufficient reorientation to influence weld strength in the tensile direction. POLYM. COMPOS., 2008. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers [source] Topographical organization of pathways from somatosensory cortex through the pontine nuclei to tactile regions of the rat cerebellar hemispheresEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 10 2006Trygve B. Leergaard Abstract The granule cell layer of the cerebellar hemispheres contains a patchy and noncontinuous map of the body surface, consisting of a complex mosaic of multiple perioral tactile representations. Previous physiological studies have shown that cerebrocerebellar mossy fibre projections, conveyed through the pontine nuclei, are mapped in registration with peripheral tactile projections to the cerebellum. In contrast to the fractured cerebellar map, the primary somatosensory cortex (SI) is somatotopically organized. To understand better the map transformation occurring in cerebrocerebellar pathways, we injected axonal tracers in electrophysiologically defined locations in Sprague,Dawley rat folium crus IIa, and mapped the distribution of retrogradely labelled neurons within the pontine nuclei using three-dimensional (3-D) reconstructions. Tracer injections within the large central upper lip patch in crus IIa-labelled neurons located centrally in the pontine nuclei, primarily contralateral to the injected side. Larger injections (covering multiple crus IIa perioral representations) resulted in labelling extending only slightly beyond this region, with a higher density and more ipsilaterally labelled neurons. Combined axonal tracer injections in upper lip representations in SI and crus IIa, revealed a close spatial correspondence between the cerebropontine terminal fields and the crus IIa projecting neurons. Finally, comparisons with previously published three-dimensional distributions of pontine neurons labelled following tracer injections in face receiving regions in the paramedian lobule (downloaded from http://www.rbwb.org) revealed similar correspondence. The present data support the coherent topographical organization of cerebro-ponto-cerebellar networks previously suggested from physiological studies. We discuss the present findings in the context of transformations from cerebral somatotopic to cerebellar fractured tactile representations. [source] |