Impact of Blood Eosinophil Variability in Asthma:A Real-Life Population Study

RATIONALE: Blood eosinophil count predicts response to inhaled corticosteroids and specific biologic therapies in selected asthma patients. Despite this important role, fundamental aspects of eosinophil behavior in asthma have not been studied. Objectives To investigate the behavior of blood eosinophils in a population comparing their distribution with the general population and studying their intra-individual variability over time in relation to hospital episodes (emergency department visits and hospitalizations) in clinical practice. METHODS: The distribution and variability of 35,703 eosinophil determinations in 10,059 stable asthma patients were investigated in the Majorca Real-Life Investigation in COPD and Asthma cohort (MAJORICA). Eosinophil distribution in the asthma population was compared with a control sample from the general population of 8,557 individuals. Eosinophil variability and hospital episodes were analyzed using correlations, ROC curves and multiple regression analysis. We defined the Eosinophil Variability Index (EVI) as (Eosmax-Eosmin/Eosmax) x 100%. The findings of the asthma population were re-tested in an external well-characterized asthma cohort. RESULTS: The eosinophil count values and variability were higher in the asthma population than in the general population (p-value<0.001). Variability data showed a better association with hospital episodes than the counting values. An EVI≥50% was more strongly associated with hospital episodes than any of the absolute counting values. These results were validated in the external cohort. CONCLUSION: The eosinophil variability in asthma patients better identifies the risk of any hospital episode than the absolute counting values currently used to target specific treatments

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Treballs de l'alumnat del Grau de Comunicació Audiovisual, Facultat d'Informació i Mitjans Audiovisuals, Universitat de Barcelona, Projectes II. Curs: 2019-2020, Tutor: Francesc Llinares. // Director: Guillem Villalonga i Colomé; Aj. Direcció: Ivette Herrero Serrano i Claudia Turmo Margalef; Direcció dárt: Ivette Herrero Serrano; Productor: Bernat Morros González; Aj. Producció: Marta Millán Jiménez, Lorena Sanchiz Rodríguez i Aina Cruz Arcas; Script i claqueta: Marta Millán Jiménez, Lorena Sanchiz Rodríguez i Claudia Turmo Margalef; Guionista: Guillem Villalonga i Colomé; Dir. Fotografia: Gabriel Alonso Díez; Càmera: Walter Luis Altamirano Castillo; Aj. càmera: Guillem Villalonga i Colomé; Il·luminador: Gabriel Alonso Díez; Storyboard: Claudia Turmo Margalef; Direcció de so: Bernat Morros González; Muntatge: Walter Luis Altamirano Castillo; Música: Roger Albet; Postproducció: Gabriel Alonso Díez. Equip artístic: Irieix Freixas, Aina Cruz Arcas, Elies Villalonga, Pau Rumbo, Claudia Turmo Margalef, Lorena Sanchiz Rodríguez, Marta Millán Jiménez, Gabriel Alonso Díez, Ivette Herrero Serrano, Mariona Fortuny i Guillem Villalonga i Colomé.Sato, un jove turmentat psicològicament per l’educació del seu pare, segresta turistes que no es comporten com ell creu correcte. Una noia que acaba d’arribar al poble on viu es fixa amb ell i s’enamoren. El canvi que la relació estava generant en tots dos es veu aturat quan ella descobreix els segrestos

Characteristics of a Lipid Hydrogel and Bigel as Matrices for Ascorbic Acid Stabilization

Ascorbic acid (AA) has many health benefits, including immune and cardiovascular deficiency protection, prenatal problems, and skin diseases. Unfortunately, AA is easily oxidized and has limited bioavailability. Thus, the development of formulations that stabilize and enhance the efficacy of AA is a challenge. In this study, 4% AA was encapsulated in two recently developed gels, a hydrogel and a bigel. The hydrogel was formed exclusively with lipids and water, and the bigel was a combination of the hydrogel with an oleogel formed with olive oil and beeswax. The effect of AA in gel microstructures was determined using X-ray scattering, rheology, and texture analysis. Additionally, the capacity of these materials to protect AA from degradation upon temperature and sunlight was studied. Results showed that the incorporation of AA into both materials did not affect their microstructure. Moreover, hydrogel-protected AA showed only 2% degradation after three months at 8 &deg;C, while in aqueous solution, it degraded by 12%. Regarding sunlight, bigel showed a good shielding effect, exhibiting only 2% AA degradation after 22 h of exposure, whereas in aqueous solution, AA degraded by 10%. These results suggest that both proposed gels could be used in biomedical applications and the field of food

A biocompatible lipid-based bigel for topical applications

The development of biocompatible delivery systems is a necessity for medical and topical applications. Herein, the development of a new bigel for topical application is described. It is composed of 40% colloidal lipid hydrogel and 60% olive oil and beeswax oleogel. Its characterization and the potential of the bigel as a drug carrier through the skin was evaluated in vitro using fluorescence microscopy and two phases of the bigel were labeled with two fluorescent probes: sodium fluorescein (hydrophilic phase) and Nile red (lipophilic phase). The structure of the bigel showed two phases with fluorescence microscopy in which the hydrogel phase was incorporated into a continuous oleogel matrix. Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) presented a combination of vibrations characteristic of the different molecules forming the bigel, and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) showed different transitions attributed to beeswax lipids. Small-angle and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS and WAXS) indicated a predominant lamellar structure with orthorhombic lateral packing that could be related to the arrangement of beeswax crystals. Bigel enables deeper penetration of hydrophilic and lipophilic probes into deeper layers, making it a promising candidate for effective topical carriers in medical and dermatological applications.The authors are grateful to Elena Rebollo from the Molecular Imaging Platform in the IBMB-CSIC for her expert technical assistance. We also thank to University of Barcelona’s Scientific and Technological Centers (CCiTUB), specifically to Manel Bosch from Advanced optic microscopy for technical assistance and Marta Taulés for Cryostat service and technical assistance. Lipoid GmbH and Abaran Materias Primas, provided HSPC and DOTAP and the Veterinary Faculty of Autonomous University of Barcelona through Jose Luis Ruiz de la Torre and Ramon Costa for kindly provided porcine skin tissue. We are also grateful to our colleagues from IQAC-CSIC: Jaume Caelles and Ramon Pons from SAXS-WAXS service, Sonia Pérez from DSC service and Mª José Bleda for the statistical analysis. This work was supported by funds from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation with Ayudas para contratos para la formación de doctores en empresas “Doctorados Industriales”, DIN2019-010777 and BICOSOME S.L.Peer reviewe

Prevalence of pulmonary embolism in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia and high D-dimer values: A prospective study

INTRODUCTION: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia is associated to systemic hyper-inflammation and abnormal coagulation profile. D-dimer elevation is particularly frequent, and values higher than 1μg/mL have been associated with disease severity and in-hospital mortality. Previous retrospective studies found a high pulmonary embolism (PE) prevalence, however, it should be highlighted that diagnoses were only completed when PE was clinically suspected. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Single-center prospective cohort study. Between April 6th and April 17th 2020, consecutive confirmed cases of COVID-19 pneumonia with D-dimer &gt;1 μg/mL underwent computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) to investigate the presence and magnitude of PE. Demographic and laboratory data, comorbidities, CTPA scores, administered treatments, and, clinical outcomes were analysed and compared between patients with and without PE. RESULTS: Thirty consecutive patients (11 women) were included. PE was diagnosed in 15 patients (50%). In patients with PE, emboli were located mainly in segmental arteries (86%) and bilaterally (60%). Patients with PE were significantly older (median age 67.0 (IQR 63.0–73.0) vs. 57.0 (IQR 48.0–69.0) years, p = .048) and did not differ in sex or risk factors for thromboembolic disease from the non-PE group. D-dimer, platelet count, and, C reactive protein values were significantly higher among PE patients. D-dimer values correlated with the radiologic magnitude of PE (p&lt;0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with COVID-19 pneumonia and D-dimer values higher than 1 μg/mL presented a high prevalence of PE, regardless of clinical suspicion. We consider that these findings could contribute to improve the prognosis of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, by initiating anticoagulant therapy when a PE is found