Strong screening in the plum pudding model

We study a generalized Thomson problem that appears in several condensed matter settings: identical point-charge particles can penetrate inside a homogeneously charged sphere, with global electro-neutrality. The emphasis is on scaling laws at large Coulombic couplings, and deviations from mean-field behaviour, by a combination of Monte Carlo simulations and an analytical treatment within a quasi-localized charge approximation, which provides reliable predictions. We also uncover a local overcharging phenomenon driven by ionic correlations alone

La elaboración y coordinación por el Gobierno de la política europea: apuntes para negociar mejor la maraña post-Lisboa

Se analiza la conveniencia de que la estructura político-administrativa encargada de gestionar la posición española en los asuntos relativos a la UE sea suficientemente robusta para poder abordar de forma más eficaz y democrática el nuevo escenario introducido por el Tratado de Lisboa. En algunos países de la UE, entre los que se encuentra España, se está comenzando a plantear un debate sobre cómo reorganizar la forma en que los gobiernos nacionales abordan las cuestiones relativas al proceso de integración. En este análisis, en primer lugar, se presenta evidencia sobre la doble tendencia observada en la mayor parte de los 27 que supone, por un lado, la consolidación de importantes estructuras gubernamentales especializadas en asuntos europeos y, por el otro, la distinción entre la elaboración o coordinación de la política relativa a la UE y la dimensión europea de la política exterior general. En segundo lugar, y teniendo en cuenta las recientes novedades institucionales post-Lisboa, algunas buenas prácticas comparadas o las propias particularidades nacionales, este análisis sugiere que el departamento y el mecanismo colegiado que se encarga de gestionar en España los temas relativos a la UE debe tener suficiente peso político. Al fin y al cabo, sus funciones incluyen asegurar la coherencia de la posición española integrando al resto de ministerios, relacionarse con las Cortes Generales y las Comunidades Autónomas, dotar de visibilidad a los asuntos relativos a la UE ante los ciudadanos y, finalmente, insertarse en una red crucial que incluye al Parlamento Europeo, la Comisión y los demás Estados miembros reunidos en el Consejo de Asuntos Generales

Interplay of internal stresses, electric stresses and surface diffusion in polymer films

We investigate two destabilization mechanisms for elastic polymer films and put them into a general framework: first, instabilities due to in-plane stress and second due to an externally applied electric field normal to the film's free surface. As shown recently, polymer films are often stressed due to out-of-equilibrium fabrication processes as e.g. spin coating. Via an Asaro-Tiller-Grinfeld mechanism as known from solids, the system can decrease its energy by undulating its surface by surface diffusion of polymers and thereby relaxing stresses. On the other hand, application of an electric field is widely used experimentally to structure thin films: when the electric Maxwell surface stress overcomes surface tension and elastic restoring forces, the system undulates with a wavelength determined by the film thickness. We develop a theory taking into account both mechanisms simultaneously and discuss their interplay and the effects of the boundary conditions both at the substrate and the free surface.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl

Desarrollo de una Escala de valoración radiológica del grado de Osteoartrosis para las articulaciones de la rodilla y el codo en el perro. ESCALA "BIOARTH"

La Escala Biorth es una herramienta práctica para el veterinario clínico que sirve para cuantificar los signos radiol'goicos de osteoartrosis en las articulaciones de la rodilla y el codo canino, y de esta manera

Fluorescent PLGA Nanocarriers for Pulmonary Administration: Influence of the Surface Charge

Nearly four million yearly deaths can be attributed to respiratory diseases, prompting a huge worldwide health emergency. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic’s death toll has surpassed six million, significantly increasing respiratory disease morbidity and mortality rates. Despite recent advances, it is still challenging for many drugs to be homogeneously distributed throughout the lungs, and specifically to reach the lower respiratory tract with an accurate sustained dose and minimal systemic side effects. Engineered nanocarriers can provide increased therapeutic efficacy while lessening potential biochemical adverse reactions. Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), a biodegradable polymer, has attracted significant interest as an inhalable drug delivery system. However, the influence of the nanocarrier surface charge and its intratracheal instillation has not been addressed so far. In this study, we fabricated red fluorescent PLGA nanocapsules (NCs)—Cy5/PLGA—with either positive (Cy5/PLGA+) or negative surface charge (Cy5/PLGA-). We report here on their excellent colloidal stability in culture and biological media, and after cryo-storage. Their lack of cytotoxicity in two relevant lung cell types, even for concentrations as high as 10 mg/mL, is also reported. More importantly, differences in the NCs’ cell uptake rates and internalization capacity were identified. The uptake of the anionic system was faster and in much higher amounts—10-fold and 2.5-fold in macrophages and epithelial alveolar cells, respectively. The in vivo study demonstrated that anionic PLGA NCs were retained in all lung lobules after 1 h of being intratracheally instilled, and were found to accumulate in lung macrophages after 24 h, making those nanocarriers especially suitable as a pulmonary immunomodulatory delivery system with a marked translational character. © 2022 by the authors

Calificación y validación de las prestaciones del instrumento SAR de PAZ

Revista oficial de la Asociación Española de Teledetección[EN] PAZ is a satellite with a highly flexible X band SAR as primary instrument. The radar is capable of generating high quality SAR images with sizes ranging from 5 km to 200 km and resolutions from 30 m for products with high coverage to values around 1m or even in the order of several cm in the case of very high resolution products. This paper describes the validation activities and the expected quality performances based on the tests performed on-ground.[ES] PAZ es un satélite con un sensor SAR en banda X como instrumento principal. Altamente flexible, el radar es capaz de proporcionar imágenes SAR de alta calidad con una gran diversidad de tamaños, desde los 5 km hasta los 200 km, con resoluciones desde unos 30 m para productos con una alta cobertura hasta valores alrededor del metro e incluso del orden de varios centímetros en el caso de muy alta resolución. Este artículo describe las activi-dades de validación y las prestaciones esperadas de PAZ a partir de los ensayos en tierraClosa-Soteras, J.; Zurita, A.; Sánchez, J.; Labriola, M.; Solana, A. (2016). Qualification and Validation of the performances of the SAR instrument on board PAZ. Revista de Teledetección. (47):75-84. doi:10.4995/raet.2016.5692.SWORD75844

Citizenship:Contrasting Dynamics at the Interface of Integration and Constitutionalism

EUDO Citizenship ObservatoryThis paper explores the different ways in which citizenship has played a role in polity formation in the context of the European Union. It focuses on both the ‘integration’ and the ‘constitution’ dimensions. The paper thus has two substantive sections. The first addresses the role of citizenship of the Union, examining the dynamic relationship between this concept, the role of the Court of Justice, and the free movement dynamic of EU law. The second turns to citizenship in the Union, looking at some recent political developments under which concepts of citizenship, and democratic membership as a key dimension of citizenship, have been given greater prominence. One key finding of the paper is that there is a tension between citizenship of the Union, as part of the EU's ‘old’ incremental constitutionalism based on the constitutionalisation of the existing Treaties, and citizenship in the Union, where the possibilities of a ‘new’ constitutionalism based on renewed constitutional documents have yet to be fully realise

Mobilization of xanthine oxidase from the gastrointestinal tract in acute pancreatitis

BACKGROUND: Xanthine oxidoreductase has been proposed to play a role in the development of local and systemic effects of acute pancreatitis. Under physiologic conditions, the enzyme exists mainly as xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) but can be converted by proteolytic cleavage to its superoxide-generating form xanthine oxidase (XOD). In addition to its intracellular location XDH/XOD is also associated to the polysaccharide chains of proteoglycans on the external endothelial cell membrane. In the early stages of acute pancreatitis, this enzyme seems to be arising from its mobilization from the gastrointestinal endothelial cell surface. Taking into account the ability of α-amylase to hydrolyze the internal α-1,4 linkages of polysaccharides, we wanted to elucidate the involvement of α-amylase in XDH/XOD mobilization from the gastrointestinal endothelial cell surface and the relevance of the ascitic fluid (AF) as the source of α-amylase in experimental acute pancreatitis. METHODS: Acute pancreatitis was induced in male Wistar rats by intraductal administration of 5% sodium taurocholate. In another experimental group 3000 U/Kg α-amylase was i.v. administered. The concentrations of XDH, XOD and α-amylase in plasma and AF and myeloperoxidase (MPO) in lung have been evaluated. In additional experiments, the effect of peritoneal lavage and the absorption of α-amylase present in the AF by an isolated intestine have been determined. RESULTS: Similar increase in XDH+XOD activity in plasma was observed after induction of acute pancreatitis and after i.v. administration of α-amylase. Nevertheless, the conversion from XDH to XOD was only observed in the pancreatitis group. Lung inflammation measured as MPO activity was observed only in the pancreatitis group. In addition peritoneal lavage prevented the increase in α-amylase and XDH+XOD in plasma after induction of pancreatitis. Finally, it was observed that α-amylase is absorbed from the AF by the intestine. CONCLUSIONS: During the early stages of acute pancreatitis, α-amylase absorbed from AF through the gastrointestinal tract could interfere with the binding of XDH/XOD attached to glycoproteins of the endothelial cells. Proteolytic enzymes convert XDH into its oxidase form promoting an increase in circulating XOD that has been reported to be one of the mechanisms involved in the triggering of the systemic inflammatory process