Atazanavir-Based Therapy Is Associated with Higher Hepatitis C Viral Load in HIV Type 1-Infected Subjects with Untreated Hepatitis C

Comunicación cortaWe assessed the relationship between atazanavir (ATV)-based antiretroviral treatment (ART) and plasma hepatitis C virus (HCV) viral load in a population of HIV/HCV-coinfected patients. HIV/HCV-coinfected patients who received ART based on a protease inhibitor (PI) or nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) were included. Patients were stratified by ART drug [ATV/rtv, lopinavir (LPV/rtv), efavirenz (EFV), nevirapine (NVP), and other PIs], HCV genotype (1/4 and 2/3), and IL28B genotype (CC and non-CC). The Kruskal-Wallis test and chi-squared test were used to compare continuous and categorical variables, respectively. Multivariate analysis consisted of a stepwise linear regression analysis. Six hundred and forty-nine HIV/HCV-coinfected patients were included. HCV genotype 1/4 patients who received ATV had higher HCV RNA levels [6.57 (5.9-6.8) log IU/ml] than those who received LPV [6.1 (5.5-6.5) log IU/ml], EFV [6.1 (5.6-6.4) log IU/ml], NVP [5.8 (5.5-5.9) log IU/ml], or other PIs [6.1 (5.7-6.4) log IU/ml] (p=0.014). This association held for the IL28B genotype (CC versus non-CC). The association was not found in patients carrying HCV genotypes 2/3. The linear regression model identified the IL28B genotype and ATV use as independent factors associated with HCV RNA levels. ATV-based therapy may be associated with a higher HCV RNA viral load in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients

Effect of structural modifications on the drying kinetics of foods: changes in volume, surface area and product shape

Macro and micro-structural changes take place during food dehydration. Macro-structural changes encompass modifications in shape, area and volume. Studies of such changes are important because dehydration kinetics (essential for calculating industrial dryers) may be highly influenced by changes in food shape and dimensions. The overall changes in volume, surface area (“shrinkage”) and shape (Heywood factor, with provides a close description of food shape) were determined experimentally, and the results were correlated with simple expressions. Hence, although dehydration kinetics can be modeled with simplified overall shrinkage expressions, the possibility of selecting a suitable geometry and predicting the characteristics dimensions will provide higher accuracy. An additional unresolved problem is the lack of a general model that predicts macro-structural changes for various foods and diverse geometries. In this work, based on experimental data of sweet and sour cherries, and rose hip fruits, a simplified general model to predict changes in volume and surface area are proposed. To estimate how the changes in characteristic dimensions affect the kinetic studies, experimental drying curves for the three fruits by means of a diffusional model considered the following variants for the characteristic dimensions: (i) The radius of the fresh food, assumed constant; (ii) The radius of the partially dehydrated product; (iii) The radius predicted by the correlation for structural changes, especially volume, obtained in this work and generalized for the three fruits, and (iv) to demonstrate the need to study the macro-structural changes for all dehydrated foods, also be present the case of a restructured food.Facultad de Ciencias Exacta

Fe-Containing MOFs as Seeds for the Preparation of Highly Active Fe/Al-SBA-15 Catalysts in the N-Alkylation of Aniline

We have successfully incorporated iron species into mesoporous aluminosilicates (AlSBA15) using a simple mechanochemical milling method. The catalysts were characterized by nitrogen physisorption, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), pyridine (PY) and 2,6-dimethylpyridine (DMPY) pulse chromatography titration, powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX). The catalysts were tested in the N-alkylation reaction of aniline with benzyl alcohol for imine production. According to the results, the iron sources, acidity of catalyst and reaction conditions were important factors influencing the reaction. The catalyst showed excellent catalytic performance, achieving 97% of aniline conversion and 96% of imine selectivity under optimized conditions

Evolution of the microstructure, chemical composition and magnetic behaviour during the synthesis of alkanethiol-capped gold nanoparticles

In the present paper, we show an exhaustive microstructural characterization of thiol-capped gold nanoparticles (NPs) with two different average particle sizes. These samples are compared with the polymer-like Au(I) phase formed as a precursor during the synthesis of the thiol-capped gold NPs. The set of analysed samples shows different microstructures at the nanoscale with different proportions of Au atoms bonded either to S or to Au atoms. It has been experimentally shown that the presence of a ferromagnetic-like behaviour is associated to the formation of NPs with simultaneous presence of Au–Au and Au–S bonds. In order to explain such magnetic behaviour a possible model is proposed based on the spin–orbit coupling so that localized charges and/or spins (Au–S bonds) can trap conduction electrons (Au–Au bonds) in orbits.XAS facilities at BM29 in ESRF and the technical support from G.L. Ciatto are acknowledged. Financial support from the Spanish MEC (NAN2004-09125-C07) and “Junta de Andalucía” is also acknowledged. E. Guerrero thanks the Spanish MEC for financial support.Peer reviewe

Molecular line emission in NGC 1068 imaged with ALMA: I. An AGN-driven outflow in the dense molecular gas

Based on observations carried out with ALMA in Cycle 0.-- et al.[Aims]: We investigate the fueling and the feedback of star formation and nuclear activity in NGC 1068, a nearby (D = 14 Mpc) Seyfert 2 barred galaxy, by analyzing the distribution and kinematics of the molecular gas in the disk. We aim to understand if and how gas accretion can self-regulate. [Methods]: We have used the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) to map the emission of a set of dense molecular gas (n(H2) ' 1056 cm3) tracers (CO(3-2), CO(6-5), HCN(4-3), HCO+(4-3), and CS(7-6)) and their underlying continuum emission in the central r ∼ 2 kpc of NGC 1068 with spatial resolutions ∼0:3000:500 (∼20-35 pc for the assumed distance of D = 14 Mpc). [Results]: The sensitivity and spatial resolution of ALMA give an unprecedented detailed view of the distribution and kinematics of the dense molecular gas (n(H2) ≈ 1056cm3) in NGC 1068. Molecular line and dust continuum emissions are detected from a r ∼ 200 pc off-centered circumnuclear disk (CND), from the 2.6 kpc-diameter bar region, and from the r ∼ 1:3 kpc starburst (SB) ring. Most of the emission in HCO+, HCN, and CS stems from the CND. Molecular line ratios show dramatic order-of-magnitude changes inside the CND that are correlated with the UV/X-ray illumination by the active galactic nucleus (AGN), betraying ongoing feedback. We used the dust continuum fluxes measured by ALMA together with NIR/MIR data to constrain the properties of the putative torus using CLUMPY models and found a torus radius of 20+6 10 pc. The Fourier decomposition of the gas velocity field indicates that rotation is perturbed by an inward radial flow in the SB ring and the bar region. However, the gas kinematics from r ∼ 50 pc out to r ∼ 400 pc reveal a massive (Mmol ∼ 2:7+0:9 1:2 × 107 M) outflow in all molecular tracers. The tight correlation between the ionized gas outflow, the radio jet, and the occurrence of outward motions in the disk suggests that the outflow is AGN driven. [Conclusions]: The molecular outflow is likely launched when the ionization cone of the narrow line region sweeps the nuclear disk. The outflow rate estimated in the CND, dM=dt ∼ 63+21 37 M yr1, is an order of magnitude higher than the star formation rate at these radii, confirming that the outflow is AGN driven. The power of the AGN is able to account for the estimated momentum and kinetic luminosity of the outflow. The CND mass load rate of the CND outflow implies a very short gas depletion timescale of ≤1 Myr. The CND gas reservoir is likely replenished on longer timescales by efficient gas inflow from the outer disk. © ESO 2014.S.G.B. and I.M. acknowledge support from Spanish grants AYA2010-15169 and from the Junta de Andalucia through TIC-114 and the Excellence Project P08-TIC-03531. S.G.B., A.L., and A.F. acknowledge support from MICIN within program CONSOLIDER INGENIO 2010, under grant “Molecular Astrophysics: The Herschel and ALMA Era–ASTROMOL” (ref CSD2009-00038). S.G.B., A.U., L.C., and P.P. acknowledge support from Spanish grant AYA2012-32295. FC acknowledges the European Research Council for the Advanced Grant Program Num. 267399-Momentum. A.A.H. acknowledges support from the Universidad de Cantabria through the Augusto G. Linares programme and from the Spanish Plan Nacional grants AYA2009-05705-E and AYA2012-31447. C.R.A. is supported by a Marie Curie Intra European Fellowship within the 7th European Community Framework Programme (PIEF-GA-2012-327934). C.R.A. also ackowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN) through project PN AYA2010-21887-C04.04 (Estallidos).Peer Reviewe

Effect of a DC Electric field on the melting temperature, nucleation and ice growth rate of the TIP4P/ICE water model

Understanding the effect of electric fields on the thermal stability and phase transitions of water could have potential applications in the food industry, cryopreservation, and environmental science. In this work, we investigate the effect of a static electric field on the melting temperature (Tm), ice nucleation and ice growth rate of two phases of ice, hexagonal ice (Ih) and ferroelectric cubic ice (Icf), for the TIP4P/ICE water model. By means of direct coexistence simulations, we establish that Tm of Ice Ih is shifted toward lower values, whereas Tm of Ice Icf grows, becoming the most stable ice phase for sufficiently largevalues of the applied electric field. We also investigate ice nucleation for both ice phases under an external electric field and find that, for a given supercooling with respect to Tm, while the field slows down the nucleation rate of ice Ih significantly, it barely affects that of ice Icf, due to the enhanced ability of water molecules to orient favorably along the direction of the field in the latter phase. In terms of absolute temperature, overall ice formation is promoted by the electric field because it increases the melting point of ice Icf. Finally, we show how the electric field slows down the crystal growth of Ice Ih and increases that of Ice Icf by a factor of about two

Mechanochemically Synthesized Supported Magnetic Fe-Nanoparticles as Catalysts for Efficient Vanillin Production

Magnetically separable nanocatalysts were synthesized by incorporating iron nanoparticles on a mesoporous aluminosilicate (Al-SBA-15) through a mechanochemical grinding pathway in a single step. Noticeably, magnetic features were achieved by employing biomass waste as a carbon source, which additionally may confer high oxygen functionalities to the resulting material. The resulting catalysts were characterized using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, porosimetry, and magnetic susceptibility. The magnetic nanocatalysts were tested in the selective oxidative cleavage reaction of isoeugenol and vanillyl alcohol to vanillin. As a result, the magnetic nanocatalysts demonstrated high catalytic activity, chemical stability, and enormous separation/reusability qualities. The origin of catalytic properties and its relationship with the iron oxide precursor were analyzed in terms of the chemical, morphological, and structural properties of the samples. Such analysis allows, thus, to highlight the superficial concentration of the iron entities and the interaction with Al as key factors to obtain a good catalytic response

Metodología de diseño de un sensor de corriente no invasivo para medir la corriente del condensador de salida de un reductor

La combinación del control no-lineal, lineal y lazo de frecuencia propuesto en [2] tiene una rápida respuesta dinámica y frecuencia de conmutación constante (escalón en la tensión de referencia de 1,5 V a 2,5 V en 2 μs). Para alcanzar esta rápida respuesta dinámica el esquema del lazo no-lineal se basa en la medida de corriente del condensador de salida del convertidor reductor. El diseño del sensor de corriente es complejo debido a efectos parásitos como las tolerancias en los componentes (ancho de banda y la ganancia en continua del amplificador operacional), el envejecimiento, la variación de la temperatura, etc. En este artículo se propone una metodología de diseño del sensor de corriente considerando todos estos efectos. El sensor de corriente está diseñado para reproducir la corriente del condensador de salida mediante una red espejo RLC. Para la implementación física del sensor de corriente se usa un amplificador de trans-impedancia. La red espejo se diseña escalando las impedancias, igualando las fases y las mismas constantes de tiempo que las de la impedancia del COUT (C, ESR y ESL del condensador de salida). La metodología de diseño propuesta ha sido validada experimentalmente. El sensor de corriente presenta un buen funcionamiento ante escalones de carga y escalones en la referencia de tensión

Papular-purpuric gloves-and-socks syndrome : presentation of a clinical case

Papular-Purpuric Glove-and-Sock Syndrome is a rare, infectious disease, of viral etiology, characterized by the presence of pruritus, edema and symmetrical erythema, very well defined at the wrists and ankles with a gloves-and-socks distribution. Other areas can be affected, with a moderate erythema appearing in cheeks, elbows, knees, armpits, abdomen, groin, external genitalia, internal face of the thighs and the buttocks. Erosions, small ulcers, enanthema and blisters can be observed in the oral cavity and lips, and less frequently in other mucous membranes. Complications are rare, although they can be severe, 50% of the published cases are related with the Parvovirus B19. Due to its oral involvement stomatologists should be aware of this syndrome in order to carry out a correct diagnosis of the disease

Design methodology of a non-invasive sensor to measure the current of the output capacitor for a very fast non-linear control

The combination of non-linear control and linear control proposed in [1] has a very fast transient response (voltage step from 1 V to 1.5 V in 2 mus). In order to achieve this fast transient response the non-linear scheme is based on measuring the current of the output capacitor of a Buck converter. The design of this current sensor is complex due to parasitic effects such as component tolerances (bandwidth and dc gain of the Op-Amp), aging, temperature variation, etc. A design methodology for this current sensor is proposed regarding all these effects. The sensing circuit is designed to mirror the actual capacitor current with a trans-impedance amplifier by matching phase and scaling impedances of the RLC network (C, ESR and ESL of the output capacitor). The proposed methodology has been validated by means of a buck converter switching at 5 MHz. Experimental results validate that the current sensor behaves appropriately under voltage and load step