Very similar findings have been made using mpkCCDc14 mouse kidney

Very similar findings have been made using mpkCCDc14 mouse kidney cells (Chassin et al., 2007) or MDCK cells (with a dissociation constant in the nanomolar range, too; Dorca-Arévalo et al., 2012). Taken together these observations suggest that ET binds to single receptor type, possibly expressed by both neural and renal cells (but see below). However, since ET can form pores (see §6.3) into artificial membrane bilayers (Nagahama et al., 2006; Petit et al., 2001) that are devoid of specific receptor for ET, ET binding to its receptor is not absolutely indispensable for pore formation. ET binding to isolated membranes Ku-0059436 nmr from rat brain (Nagahama and Sakurai, 1992) or to white matter

mice cerebellum slices (Dorca-Arévalo et al., 2008) is inhibited by treatment with pronase. On the contrary, ET binding to target cells click here is not or weakly affected by phospholipase C, glycosidases, or neuraminidase (Dorca-Arévalo et al., 2008; Nagahama and Sakurai, 1992). Therefore, ET receptor

on neural cells (including certain neurons and oligodendrocytes) is likely to be a protein or a glycoprotein. This corroborates prior deduction on the protein nature of ET receptor on renal cells (Petit et al., 1997). Differences in molecular weight of ET-binding proteins (i.e. receptor candidates) in renal and brain cells suggest that distinct proteins may be implicated into ET binding (reviewed by Popoff, 2011a). Hepatitis-A virus cellular receptor 1 (HAVCR1, also termed KIM-1 for Kidney injury molecule-1) has been shown contributing to ET binding (Ivie and McClain, 2012; Ivie et al., 2011). However no role is known for this protein in the nervous system as yet. Contribution of ganglioside

moiety to ET 17-DMAG (Alvespimycin) HCl binding onto the cell membrane is supported by early observation that treatment with neuraminidase decreases ET-binding on rat brain homogenates or synaptosomal membranes, leading to the proposal that ET-receptor might be a sialoglyprotein (Nagahama and Sakurai, 1992) or an O-glycoprotein (Dorca-Arévalo et al., 2008). Treatment by sialidase can modify the ganglioside content in membrane and has been shown modulating ET binding on MDCK cells (Shimamoto et al., 2005). Inhibition of sphingolipids and glycosphingolipids synthesis increases susceptibility of MDCK cells to ET, whilst inhibition of sphingomyelin decreases it. The presence of GM1 decreases the effects of ET, while GM3 does the contrary (Shimamoto et al., 2005). Above observations are compatible with ET binding to a double receptor comprised of a protein and ganglioside(s), as it has been described for clostridial neurotoxins (reviewed by Binz and Rummel, 2009). After binding to its receptor, ET but not proET oligomerizes (reviewed by Bokori-Brown et al., 2011; Popoff, 2011a) to form a large membrane complex of 155 kDa–200 kDa in rat synaptosomes (Miyata et al., 2002, 2001), mouse brain homogenates (Nagahama et al.

Diabetic patients aged >50 years

who are asymptomatic for

Diabetic patients aged >50 years

who are asymptomatic for PAD should undergo primary prevention using long-term daily aspirin monotherapy (75–100 mg), as in the case of cardiovascular events. In the case of secondary prevention, various stages need to be distinguished: • Symptomatic PAD (intermittent claudication): aspirin (75–100 mg day−1) or clopidogrel (75 mg day−1). Dual anti-platelet and anticoagulant treatment is not advisable. • PAD with intermittent claudication check details and reduced physical exercise capacity (without lesions): cilostazol (100–200 mg day−1) in addition to aspirin (75–100 mg day−1) or clopidogrel (75 mg day−1). Pentoxifylline, heparinoids and prostanoids are not advisable. • Chronic limb ischaemia or symptomatic PAD and critical ischaemia/pain at rest/ischaemic lesions awaiting revascularisation: aspirin (75–100 mg day−1) or clopidogrel (75 mg day−1). The role of the more recent http://www.selleckchem.com/products/cx-4945-silmitasertib.html anticoagulants has yet to be evaluated especially in terms of their cost/efficacy ratio and the risk of bleeding in relation to the obvious advantage of less frequent blood chemistry checks. • There is no evidence concerning the use of PAD treatments other than revascularisation in diabetic patients. Primary amputation is a demolitive

operation that is not preceded by any attempt at revascularisation, and it is considered primary therapy only in some cases of DF. Major amputations (above the ankle) are necessary when there is a life-threatening infection that cannot be controlled by antibiotics. In this context, amputation is indicated on the basis of the patient’s general condition and the fact that any delay could affect patient survival. The next aspect to consider is the residual function of the limb during the post-reparative phase: necrosis extending to most of the foot will surely prevent PAK5 functional recovery and therefore it is unnecessary to proceed to revascularisation. Some patients have a functional deficit that is independent of the foot lesion (sequelae of a stroke, the position of the limb in flexion, etc.) and it effectively

prevents deambulation. In such cases, a major amputation does not alter the patient’s quality of life and may even lead to an improvement because it allows the prompt resolution of a major clinical problem such as infection or pain. The primary aim of an amputation is to heal the leg as distally as possible. The energy spent on deambulation increases with level of the amputation. Preservation of the knee and a significant part of the tibia allows the use of a light prosthesis, as well as the early and independent deambulation of old or debilitated patients. In brief, the ideal level of amputation is the most distal level that has a possibility of healing, which is about 90% in the case of above-the-knee amputation and 80% if the joint is preserved. In clinical practice, healing capacity at a certain level can be predicted on the basis of TcPO2.

The most recent generation of FADs are equipped with echosounders

The most recent generation of FADs are equipped with echosounders that transmit daily or hourly estimates of biomass beneath the buoy, allowing skippers to confirm the presence of a school beneath a FAD before visiting it, and in some oceans (e.g. Atlantic and Indian oceans), auxiliary supply vessels are allied with purse seine skippers and used to deploy and monitor FADs using sonar and other fish-finding technologies [5]. Whilst FADs are evidently useful fishing tools, their use has been associated Staurosporine mw with several potential negative ecosystem impacts, including catch of juvenile tunas and bycatch of vulnerable non-target

species [6], [7] and [8]. Furthermore, there is concern that the highly efficient practice of FAD fishing, if left unchecked, might exacerbate

issues of overcapacity and ultimately lead to the unsustainable exploitation of tuna stocks [2] and [9]. There is currently little control on the use of FADs in purse seine fisheries and there has been increasing discussion within tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (tRFMOs) on managing their use more strictly [9]. So far, this discussion has served mainly to highlight uncertainties in our understanding of the sustainability of catches on FADs and the consequences of modification of the pelagic habitat on tuna biology but has also begun to tentatively explore the impact of potential management Exoribonuclease solutions on purse seine catches [9], [10], [11] and [12]. Consideration of potential management must also consider CTLA-4 inhibitor how fishers will respond to the introduction of management measures [13] and [14]. It is widely recognised

that designing fisheries management with the behaviour of fishers explicitly accounted for can reduce the risk of implementation error, i.e. where management outcomes deviate from those intended [15]. In considering how purse seine fleets will respond to controls on the use of FADs it is necessary to have an understanding of the role FADs play in fleet dynamics, from long term trends in fleet characteristics to how effort is allocated in space. Yet, despite the importance of understanding the role of FADs in driving these dynamics, to date this topic has received much less attention than the ecological issues associated with the use of FADs. This paper characterises the past and present use of FADs in the Indian Ocean tropical tuna purse seine fishery. First, the potential ecological impacts of FADs are summarised (see [5] for a full review). Next, the role of FADs in the development of the Indian Ocean purse seine fishery is discussed, spatio-temporal patterns in their use are characterised, and their influence on effort allocation dynamics is examined.

The value of τa for xenon atoms on glass surfaces at 300 K can be

The value of τa for xenon atoms on glass surfaces at 300 K can be estimated to be ∼10−10 s from the expression τa = τ0exp(−E/kBT), where E = 0.12 eV is the desorption activation energy xenon on borosilicate glasses [34] and assuming τ0 = 10−12 s. Although none of the correlation times associated with these events are long enough to cause biexponential relaxation, it is possible however that strong xenon adsorption sites are present on the Pyrex surface. The prolonged

correlation Verteporfin times at these locations may lead to a violation of the extreme narrowing condition and thus to differential line broadening. An additional hint for surface interactions as the source for the satellite broadening is the differential

broadening between the two satellite transitions. Such differential broadening may be the result of paramagnetic – quadrupolar cross correlation that was observed recently by Jerschow and co-workers by 23Na NMR in the presence of paramagnetic contrast agents [74]. The only source for paramagnetism in the sample used for the spectra in Fig. 2 was on the Pyrex surface [75]. Other causes for differential line broadening may be CSA-quadrupolar cross-correlation effects during prolonged surface adsorption. learn more Alternatively, the lineshape may be inhomogeneously broadened by differences in EFG experienced by the xenon atoms in various parts of the container that were not averaged by gas diffusion at the gas pressures used. Although the precise mechanism of the satellite broadening remains speculative thus far, it likely originated from interactions with the Pyrex surface that were scaled down by exchange with the gas phase where the NMR signal was observed. A ‘scaling down’ of

surface effects also takes place for quadrupolar splitting that is on the order of 6 MHz on a Pyrex surface [35] but that is observed as a few Hz splitting Celastrol in the gas phase. Another distinctive feature shown in Fig. 2 is that thermally polarized 131Xe and hyperpolarized 131Xe signals were 180° out of phase with respect to each other while both 129Xe spectra possessed the same phase. This observation warrants a more detailed explanation. 131Xe is unique among the stable (i.e., non-radioactive) noble gas isotopes because it is the only isotope with a positive gyromagnetic ratio γ  . Therefore, according to Em   = −γmz  ℏB  0, the energy level Em   with the highest possible positive z-  quantum number, mz   = +3/2, constitutes the ground state for 131Xe. Vice versa, 3He, 21Ne, 83Kr and 129Xe have negative gyromagnetic ratios, and the respective ground state is the one with the most negative mz   quantum number. The sign of γ   determines the sign of the coherence generated by a 90° pulse ( H^rf-pulse,x=-γB0I^x) and thus can be important in magnetization transfer or coherence transfer NMR experiments.

The evolutionary development of additional mouths over the upper

The evolutionary development of additional mouths over the upper surface in mushroom corals has resulted in the growth of larger coralla but also in a greater chance of survival during sedimentation—if one mouth is blocked by sediments, others remain intact (Hoeksema, 1991a and Gittenberger et al., 2011). In free-living mushroom corals, budding or fragmentation in combination with regeneration

and mobility facilitates continuous growth and may result in large and dense accumulations of specimens on sandy surfaces (Pichon, 1974, Littler et al., 1997, Hoeksema, Panobinostat molecular weight 2004, Hoeksema and Gittenberger, 2010 and Hoeksema and Waheed, 2011). Sedimentation and turbidity not only influence the survival of adult corals, but also their reproductive success and probability of recruitment, as well as the survival and settlement of coral larvae (Babcock and Smith, 2000 and Birrell et al., 2005). Sedimentation at a level that only partially covers the substrate and that is not directly harmful to

adult colonies, and even suspended sediment, can significantly reduce larval recruitment by inhibiting settlement and reducing larval survival in the water column (Gilmour, 1999, Babcock and Smith, 2000, Birrell et al., 2005 and Goh and Lee, 2008) although this is not always detectable Dasatinib cost in field studies (Fisk and Harriott, 1989). Settlement rates are near-zero on sediment-covered surfaces, and sedimentation tolerance in coral recruits is at least one order of magnitude lower than for adult corals (Fabricius, 2005). Babcock and Davies (1991) evaluated effects on settlement

rates of Acropora millepora larvae in aquaria under 0.5–325 mg cm−2 d−1 sedimentation. Higher sedimentation rates reduced the number of larvae settling on upper surfaces, but total numbers of settled larvae were not significantly affected by sedimentary regime. This was, however, likely an artefact since, in the field, accumulation of sediment on upward-facing surfaces would indeed greatly reduce the overall amount of suitable substratum Ibrutinib research buy available. Hodgson (1990b) investigated the larval settlement rate of Pocillopora damicornis on bare glass and on glass covered with measured amounts and area of fine sediment finding significant reduction due to sediment. Sediment cover of 95% completely prevented settlement. There was no increase in settlement when sediment cover was reduced from 90% to 50% of the glass surface area. In highly turbid conditions (>100 mg L−1, which would not be unusual at sites in close proximity to a dredging operation), significant numbers of settled planulae of Pocillopora damicornis underwent reversed metamorphosis (“polyp bail-out”), indicating conditions were not appropriate for continued growth and development ( Te, 1992).

Scientific research recognises Chagos/BIOT as a globally signific

Scientific research recognises Chagos/BIOT as a globally significant, uncontaminated reference site and one of the few tropical locations where global climate change effects can be separated from those of pollution and exploitation. Research in Chagos/BIOT is already providing vital information for monitoring and managing coral reefs elsewhere, in particular the design of interventions to restore reefs to a healthier condition (Sheppard et al., 2008). Considering

the paucity of empirical information on the effects of MPAs on pelagic species, there is a clear need for further work and a research agenda is under development. Delivery of this research programme will improve management and conservation GSK126 mw actions for pelagic species both within the Chagos/BIOT MPA and in the wider context of global marine conservation planning. The implementation ICG-001 price of a no-take marine reserve in Chagos/BIOT has therefore provided a highly unique scientific reference site of global importance for studies on both pelagic and benthic marine ecosystems and the effects of climate change upon them. We would like to thank the many people who

provided comments and contributions to the consultation report from which we developed this paper, including Stephen Akester, MacAlister Elliott and Partners Ltd (UK); Dr Charles Anderson, IOTC Working Party on Ecosystems and Bycatch (Maldives); Dr Natalie Ban, James Cook University (Australia); Andrés Domingo Balestra, IUCN Shark Specialist Group Co-chair (Uruguay); Dr Joao Correia; Flying Sharks (Portugal); Dr Nick Dulvy, Simon Fraser University & IUCN Shark Specialist Group Co-chair (Canada); Alistair Gammell, Pew Environment Group (UK); Dr Nicholas Graham, James Cook University (Australia); Ali Hood, Shark Trust (UK); Simon Hughes, Protirelin Chagos Conservation Trust (UK); Dr. Heike Lotze, Dalhousie University (Canada); Rachel Jones, Zoological

Society of London (UK); William Marsden, Chagos Conservation Trust (UK); Professor Peter Mumby, University of Queensland (Australia); Jay Nelson, Pew Environment Group (USA); Felipe Pereira (Portugal); Professor Callum Roberts, University of York (UK); Dr Alex Rogers, ZSL (UK); Dr Paul Shaw, Royal Holloway University of London (UK); Professor Charles Sheppard, Warwick University (UK); Rebecca Short, ZSL (UK); Dr Mark Spalding, The Nature Conservancy (UK); Dr. Derek Tittensor, Dalhousie University (Canada); Phil Williamson, University of East Anglia (UK); Dr Boris Worm, Dalhousie University (Canada) and all members of the Chagos Environment Network and IUCN Shark Specialist Group. Many thanks to Chris Mees, John Pearce, Robert Arthur and Graeme Parkes at MRAG for providing relevant reports and data. Thanks to Dr Nick Dulvy, Catherine Head and Rachel Jones for commenting on drafts of this manuscript.

, 2012 and Scott et al , 2010) The commercial aims of in vitro t

, 2012 and Scott et al., 2010). The commercial aims of in vitro testing are to be faster and cheaper, although currently, the costs are roughly on par CYC202 solubility dmso with Draize testing. It is preferable that the testing procedures can be performed without the need for specialist training or expensive equipment ( Dholakiya and Barile,

2013). From a corporate standpoint in vitro tests require the same level of investment as they are currently making using in vivo tests, so they either don’t care, or fail to see the benefits in switching. A large factor that affects the decision making of corporate companies is that they are selling to a local market, not just countries within the EU. For developing or newly industrialized countries, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the underlying challenge is getting them to understand the roles of in vitro tests, which is a continuing educational challenge. In order to overcome these issues, a re-evaluation of currently used Roxadustat in vitro tests may be required ( Nóbrega et al., 2012). In vitro assays and models provide useful data that complement in vivo studies allowing for significant reductions in the numbers of animals used. In order realize this, it must be ensured that clear endpoints correlate

between in vivo and in vitro tests ( Maurer et al., 2002). In general, in vitro tests are validated against the Draize test ( Lenoir et al., 2011), with few actually investigating their predictability compared to humans. Despite the lack of formal validation, in vitro tests still are commonly used by industry. For example, industrial toxicologists often use in vitro protocols for prioritizing products and ingredients for further development ( Curren and Harbell, 2002).

However, use of the Draize test is still permitted worldwide, with the exception of the cosmetics section within Europe. Although in vitro alternatives tests are available, whether they are actually being used in practice is questionable. Every country has its own regulations and data requirements. The EU may be consolidated, but everywhere else is not and regulations have to be negotiated one by one – this is a very slow process, with Molecular motor no one country worse than the other. Regulations are aimed at protecting humans, and regulators focus on this, the culture of animal welfare is different in every country. In silico models are computer generated models that can play a useful role in predicting the ocular toxicity of a substance. In silico models utilize repositories of existing in vitro and in vivo toxicology data to predict the toxicity of samples. Quantitative structure–activity relationships (QSAR) are used to quantify the relationship between a sample’s chemical structure and the biological effects that result from the same chemical ( Simon-Hettich et al., 2006).

7 μg/L and 33 8 μg/L, respectively) However, the median saliva l

7 μg/L and 33.8 μg/L, respectively). However, the median saliva lead values for smokers and non-smokers were very similar (17.0 μg/L and 17.8 μg/L,respectively), and variability was only very slightly higher click here (not statistically significant) in smokers than non-smokers (57.1 μg/L and 55.3 μg/L, respectively). Fig. 2 shows log(saliva lead) plotted against log(blood lead) for all of the 105 paired samples. A Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) of 0.457 (95% C.I. 0.113–0.723; p = 0.0128) was observed between the two datasets. The correlations between log(saliva lead) and log(blood lead) for the various history categories are shown in

Table 3. Only the “no history” category showed any substantial difference in the r-value, with a much lower Pearson’s r (0.159, C.I. −0.161 to 0.448) than the other categories. The correlations for all other history categories were very similar, with no significant differences in Pearson’s r from one another, or from that of the whole dataset. Regression of log(saliva lead) and log(blood lead) on smoking showed no evidence of any significant effect due to smoking (coefficient 0.0446, selleck compound p = 0.598 and coefficient 0.0713, p = 0.108 respectively). Regression of log(saliva lead) on age showed no evidence of a significant effect due to age (coefficient

−0.00577, p = 0.099); however there was evidence of an inverse relationship between age and log(blood lead) (coefficient −0.0128, p = 0.000). The correlations between log(saliva lead) and log(blood lead), unadjusted and adjusted for smoking or for age (see Table 4a) Selleckchem Decitabine indicate that neither smoking nor age has a significant effect on the correlation between log(saliva lead) and log(blood lead). The Pearson’s r values when adjusted for smoking status (r = 0.445 among smokers; r = 0.476 among non-smokers) or for age (r = 0.474) all remain very similar to the unadjusted value

(r = 0.457). Regression of log(saliva lead) on log(blood lead), adjusted for smoking status or for age (see Table 4b) confirms this – the coefficients for smokers compared to non-smokers and for age are both small and with high p-values, indicating that they are not statistically significant (coefficient = 0.036, p = 0.632; and coefficient = −0.004, p = 0.153 respectively). The mean lead concentration and its standard deviation were calculated for each blank saliva sample type. Sample types A (refrigerated blank saliva, directly analysed) and B (frozen and thawed blank saliva, directly analysed) both showed very low blank results (0.238 ± 0.063 μg/L and 0.376 ± 0.130 μg/L respectively), with the frozen saliva producing slightly higher results. This difference was found to be significant using a Student’s t-test (95% confidence), and may have occurred due to the extra preparation step in freezing and thawing the blank saliva.

, 1997) Moore et al (1994) have shown that cecropins are active

, 1997). Moore et al. (1994) have shown that cecropins are active against several mammalian lymphomas and leukemias in vitro, and a preliminary in vivo study showed that cecropin B increases the survival time of mice bearing murine ascitic colon adenocarcinoma cells. Chen et al. (1997) synthesized cecropin B-1 (CB-1) by replacing the C-terminal segment of CB (positions 26 to 35, the hydrophobic BMN 673 in vitro a-helix) with the sequence of CB from positions 1 to 10 (part of the amphipathic α-helix). In addition, cecropin B-2 (CB-2) was generated with the same sequence as CB-1 but including

an extra inserted residue pair of Gly–Pro immediately after Pro 24. These two novel synthesized cecropins exhibited a cytotoxicity that was

shown to be 2–3 times higher than the natural molecule on a leukemia cell line. The role of CB-1 as an antitumoral agent was also reported by Wu et al. (2009), who showed that CB-1 displays low in vivo hemolytic Atezolizumab molecular weight activity. Results suggest that CB-1 may be administered intravenously for anti-tumor treatment in the future. Besides, that same study showed that CB-1 has low toxicity on non-tumor cells, as opposed to its activity on cells from leukemia, stomach carcinoma and lung cancer, on which the peptide displayed high toxicity. Suttmann et al. (2008) showed that cecropin A and B inhibit the viability and proliferation of bladder cancer cells, but with no effect on fibroblasts. The selective anti-tumor action mechanism of these peptides depends on disruption of target cell membranes resulting in irreversible cytolysis and cell destruction. Both peptides may offer novel therapeutic strategies Ribose-5-phosphate isomerase for the treatment of bladder cancer with limited cytotoxic effects on benign cells. Our research group has been studying the venom of the caterpillar Lonomia obliqua (Lepidoptera, Saturniidae), also known as taturana

or fire caterpillar ( Veiga et al., 2001). L. obliqua is responsible for causing a hemorrhagic syndrome in humans that accidentally get in touch with its urticating spines. Besides local pain and dermatitis, this hemorrhagic syndrome includes a severe bleeding disorder, renal complications, intracerebral hemorrhage and eventually death ( Duarte et al., 1996 and Kelen et al., 1995). Many active principles from the venom of L. obliqua have been isolated and characterized, including fibrinogenases ( Pinto et al., 2006 and Veiga et al., 2003), hyaluronidases ( Gouveia et al., 2005), a phospholipase A2 ( Seibert et al., 2006), a factor X activator ( Alvarez Flores et al., 2006), a prothrombin activator ( Reis et al., 2001) and an antiapoptotic protein ( Souza et al., 2005). Using another approach, Veiga et al. (2005) studied the proteome and the transcriptome of L.

Once death was confirmed the pulmonary system was flushed with a

Once death was confirmed the pulmonary system was flushed with a heparin-solution (Wockhardt UK Ltd., Wrexham, UK) via catheter inserted into

the right ventricle or caudal vena cava. This was followed by Dublecco’s phosphate buffer solution (D-PBS, Sigma–Aldrich click here Ltd., Gillingham, UK) to remove remaining blood from circulation. The lungs were inflated with around 3 ml of air and the trachea clamped; then the lungs, heart, and connective tissue were extracted en bloc. After extraction the lung’s trachea was cannulated and a syringe was used to breathe the lungs to ensure that they did not leak. Lungs were stored in glucose solution (5% glucose in water, Baxter Healthcare Ltd., Thetford, UK), chilled learn more to approximately 280 K until needed. Excised rat lungs were inserted into a custom-made, sealable, ventilation chamber that filled the entire coil region. The ventilation chamber and its operating procedures are described in detail in previous work [15]. Briefly, the trachea of the rat lung was cannulated with an adaptor that was attached to the top of the ventilation chamber. The ventilation chamber was filled to about 2/3 of its total volume with a 5% glucose solution (Baxter Healthcare Ltd., Thetford, UK). Hp gas was delivered to the storage volume VB after compression using one of the two Extraction

Schemes described in this work. When a volume was pulled on the inhalation syringe pressure equalization forces the lungs to expand ( Fig. 8). This acts in a similar fashion to the thoracic diaphragm, as the expansion of the lungs causes it to inhale Fludarabine solubility dmso gas from the volume VB. Rubidium filters were made from 60 mm

of Teflon tubing (outer-diameter = 9.4 mm, inner-diameter = 6.4 mm; Swagelok, Warrington, UK) with 100 g of glass wool (Corning glass works, Corning, NY, USA) loosely packed inside. Chemical indicator paper (Whatman plc, Maidstone, UK) was used to check the pH value of the 1.0 ml of distilled water used to wash the glass wool. The resulting pH of the rubidium wash was pH 5.0. After SEOP at 220 kPa, a transfer of 5 s in duration resulted in a pressure of approximately 11 kPa of hp gas in Vext. Valves A + B ( Fig. 3a) were closed and the connecting lines were evacuated. A selected pressure of O2 gas was then added to Vext and the connecting lines were evacuated again. After a 5 s time delay that allowed for mixing of the O2 with the hp gas, the mixture was delivered for the MR measurements performed using Extraction Scheme 2. All T  1 data were obtained at ambient temperature using a pulse sequence comprising of sixteen medium (θ=12°)(θ=12°) flip angle r.f. pulses evenly separated by time increment τ. T1 relaxation values were determined from the nonlinear least-square analysis of the time dependence of the NMR signal intensity f(t) in the presence of spin-destruction due to the r.f.