Phylogeny, Resistome, and Virulome of Escherichia coli Causing Biliary Tract Infections

Escherichia coli is the most frequent Gram-negative bacilli involved in intra-abdominal infections. However, despite high mortality rates associated with biliary tract infections due to E. coli, there is no study focusing on this pathogen. In this study, we have characterized a group of 15 E. coli isolates obtained from 12 patients with biliary tract infections. Demographic and clinical data of the patients were recovered. Phylogeny, resistome, and virulome analysis through whole genome sequencing and biofilm formation were investigated. Among the 15 E. coli isolates, no predominant sequence type (ST) was identified, although 3 of them belonged to unknown STs (20%). Resistance to ampicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, cotrimoxazole, and quinolones was more present in these isolates; whereas, third and fourth generation cephalosporins, carbapenems, amikacin, tigecycline, and colistin were highly active. Moreover, high diversity of virulence factors has been found, with sfa, fimH, and gad the most frequently detected genes. Interestingly, 26.6% of the E. coli isolates were high biofilm-producers. Altogether, our data characterized for the first time E. coli isolates associated with biliary tract infections in terms of genomic relationship, resistome, and virulome.España, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Subdirección General de Redes y Centros de Investigación Cooperativa, Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (CP15/00132)España, Plan Nacional de I+D+i 2013-2016 and Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Subdirección General de Redes y Centros de Investigación Cooperativa, Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Spanish Network for Research in Infectious Diseases (RD16/0016/0009

Q1311X: a novel nonsense mutation of putative ancient origin in the von Willebrand factor gene

[EN] Type 3 von Willebrand disease, a recessive autosomally inherited bleeding disorder, refers to complete deficiency of von Willebrand factor (VWF). The novel Q1311X mutation was detected in the homozygous state in four Spanish patients from two apparently unrelated families of gypsy origin. The lack of specific amplification of platelet VWF cDNA from two of the patients indicates reduced levels of mutated gene expression. The similar haplotype linked to mutated alleles suggests a common origin. On the basis of the two instabilities observed and the estimated mutation rate of the microsatellites of intron 40 of the VWF gene, we can estimate that this mutation could have arisen about 2300 years ago.We wish to thank J.M. Montoro and R. Curats for their technical assistance. This work was supported in part by F1S 99/0633.Casaña, P.; Martínez, F.; Haya, S.; Lorenzo, JI.; Espinós-Armero, CÁ.; Aznar, JA. (2000). Q1311X: a novel nonsense mutation of putative ancient origin in the von Willebrand factor gene. British Journal of Haematology. 111(2):552-555. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2141.2000.02410.x552555111

Search for Mutations in a Segment of the Exon 28 of the Human Von Willebrand Factor Gene. New Mutations, R1315C and R1341W, Associated with Type 2M and 2B Variants

[EN] von Willebrand Disease (vWD) is the most frequently inherited bleeding disorder in humans, and is caused by a qualitative and/or quantitative abnormality of the von Willebrand factor (vWF), A large number of defects that cause qualitative variants have been located in the Al domain of the vWF, which contains sites for interaction with platelet glycoprotein Ib (GPIb). We have developed a new approach to detect mutations based on Ddel digestion and single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis. A segment of 487 nucleotides, extending from intron 27 to codon 1368 of the pre-pro vWF was amplified from genomic DNA, The cleavage with Ddel yields two fragments of appropriate size for this kind of analysis and confirms that the gene, rather than the pseudogene, is being investigated, Six families with type 2B vWD: one type 2M vWD family, and one another type 2A vWD family were studied. After sequencing the fragments with an altered electrophoretic pattern, we found four mutations previously described-R1308C, V1316M, P1337L, and R1306W-in patients with 2B vWD, The last one arose de novo in the patient. In addition, two new candidate mutations were observed: R1315C and R1341W. The first one was associated to type 2M vWD, whereas the one second cosegregated with type 2B vWD. The fact that these new mutations were not found in 100 normal alleles screened further supports their causal relationship with the disease, These mutations, which induce either a gain or a loss of function, further show an important regulatory role of this region in the binding of vWF to GPIb and its implications in causing disease.We wish to thank J.M. Montoro for performing multimeric assays and R. Curats for his technical assistance.Casaña, P.; Martínez, F.; Espinós-Armero, CÁ.; Haya, S.; Lorenzo, JI.; Aznar, JA. (1998). Search for Mutations in a Segment of the Exon 28 of the Human Von Willebrand Factor Gene. New Mutations, R1315C and R1341W, Associated with Type 2M and 2B Variants. American Journal of Hematology. 59(1):57-63. https://doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1096-8652(199809)59:13.0.co;2-z576359

Numerical resolution of Emden's equation using Adomian polynomials

Purpose: In this paper the authors aim to show the advantages of using the decomposition method introduced by Adomian to solve Emden's equation, a classical non‐linear equation that appears in the study of the thermal behaviour of a spherical cloud and of the gravitational potential of a polytropic fluid at hydrostatic equilibrium. Design/methodology/approach: In their work, the authors first review Emden's equation and its possible solutions using the Frobenius and power series methods; then, Adomian polynomials are introduced. Afterwards, Emden's equation is solved using Adomian's decomposition method and, finally, they conclude with a comparison of the solution given by Adomian's method with the solution obtained by the other methods, for certain cases where the exact solution is known. Findings: Solving Emden's equation for n in the interval [0, 5] is very interesting for several scientific applications, such as astronomy. However, the exact solution is known only for n=0, n=1 and n=5. The experiments show that Adomian's method achieves an approximate solution which overlaps with the exact solution when n=0, and that coincides with the Taylor expansion of the exact solutions for n=1 and n=5. As a result, the authors obtained quite satisfactory results from their proposal. Originality/value: The main classical methods for obtaining approximate solutions of Emden's equation have serious computational drawbacks. The authors make a new, efficient numerical implementation for solving this equation, constructing iteratively the Adomian polynomials, which leads to a solution of Emden's equation that extends the range of variation of parameter n compared to the solutions given by both the Frobenius and the power series methods.This work has been supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, project TIN2009-10581

Learning Probabilistic Features for Robotic Navigation Using Laser Sensors

SLAM is a popular task used by robots and autonomous vehicles to build a map of an unknown environment and, at the same time, to determine their location within the map. This paper describes a SLAM-based, probabilistic robotic system able to learn the essential features of different parts of its environment. Some previous SLAM implementations had computational complexities ranging from O(Nlog(N)) to O(N2), where N is the number of map features. Unlike these methods, our approach reduces the computational complexity to O(N) by using a model to fuse the information from the sensors after applying the Bayesian paradigm. Once the training process is completed, the robot identifies and locates those areas that potentially match the sections that have been previously learned. After the training, the robot navigates and extracts a three-dimensional map of the environment using a single laser sensor. Thus, it perceives different sections of its world. In addition, in order to make our system able to be used in a low-cost robot, low-complexity algorithms that can be easily implemented on embedded processors or microcontrollers are used.This work has been supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (www.micinn.es), project TIN2009-10581

Determining factors of microcredit impact on Senegalese women’s empowerment

Los microcréditos son un instrumento financiero concebido para contribuir a dar una oportunidad a los pobres y, fundamentalmente, a las mujeres. Con su ayuda, las mujeres pueden iniciar o ampliar una actividad económica que tiene un impacto positivo en diferentes ámbitos socioeconómicos y en su nivel de empoderamiento. No obstante, este empoderamiento viene condicionado por el entorno en el que la mujer desarrolla su actividad económica, social y vital. En este trabajo se analiza el impacto que la concesión de los microcréditos ha tenido en el nivel de empoderamiento de las mujeres senegalesas. A partir de los discursos obtenidos de los principales implicados mediante la realización de entrevistas en profundidad y grupos de discusión en la ciudad de Saint Louis, se evalúan los factores que condicionan su impacto.Microfinance is thought of as an economic instrument which can open an opportunity to poor people, especially women. Thanks to microcredits, women can set up or follow an economic activity with a positive impact on diverse socioeconomic aspects and on their empowerment. However, such empowerment is invariably conditioned by the environment in which women carry out their economic and social activities, as well as their lives. This study analyses the microcredit impact on women's empowerment in Senegal. Based on the in-depth interviews with the main actors involved and discussion groups in Saint Louis, the determining factors of the microcredit impact are assessed.- Grupo de investigación Antropología y Filosofía (SEJ-126). Universidad de Granada. Departamento de Antropología, Geografía e Historia. Universidad de Jaén. - Departamento de Filosofía II. Universidad de Granada

Distance perception in a natural outdoor setting: is there a developmental trend to overconstancy?

The main purpose of the present study was to investigate whether in natural environment, using very large physical distances, there is a trend to overconstancy for distance estimates during development. One hundred and twenty-nine children aged 5 to 13 years old and twenty-one adults (in a control group), participated as observers. The observer’s task was to bisect egocentric distances, ranging from 1.0 to 296.0 m, presented in a large open field. The analyses focused on two parameters, constant errors and variable errors, such as measuring accuracy and precision, respectively. A third analysis focused on the developmental pattern of shifts in constancy as a function of age and range of distances. Constant error analysis showed that there are two relevant parameters for accuracy, age, and range of distances. For short distances, there are three developmental stages: 5-7 years, when children have unstable responses, 7-11, underconstancy, and 13 to adulthood, when accuracy is reached. For large distances, there is a two-stage development: 5-11 years, with severe underconstancy, and beyond this age, with mild underconstancy. Variable errors analyses indicate that precision is noted for 7 year-old children, independently of the range of distances. The constancy analyses indicated that there is a shift from constancy (or slightly overconstancy) to underconstancy as a function of physical distance for all age groups. The age difference is noted in the magnitude of underconstancy that occurs in larger distances, where adults presented lower levels of underconstancy than children. The present data were interpreted as due to a developmental change in cognitive processing rather than to changes in visual space perception.El principal objetivo de este estudio fue investigar si en un medio natural, empleando distancias físicas muy grandes, hay una tendencia a sobre-constancia para las estimaciones de distancias durante el desarrollo evolutivo. Participaron como observadores 129 niños de edades entre 5 y 13 años y 21 adultos (en un grupo control). La tarea de los observadores consistió en biseccionar unas distancias egocéntricas, que variaban entre 1,0 y 296,0 m, presentadas en un gran campo abierto. El análisis se centró en dos parámetros, error constante y error variable, de la exactitud y precisión de medida, respectivamente. Un tercer análisis se centró en el patrón evolutivo de cambios en la constancia en función de la edad y el rango de distancias. El análisis de los errores constantes mostró que hay dos parámetros relevantes para la precisión, edad y rango de distancias. Para distancias cortas, hay tres fases evolutivas: 5-7 años, cuando los niños dan respuestas inestables, 7-11, infra-constancia, y 13 años hasta la adultez, cuando alcanzan la exactitud (constancia). Para las distancias largas, hay un desarrollo de dos fases: 5-11 años, con infra-constancia severa, y más allá de esta edad, con ligera infraconstancia. El análisis del error variable indica que se alcanza precisión a partir de 7 años, con independencia del rango de distancias. En análisis de la constancia indica que existe un cambio desde la constancia (o una ligera sobre-constancia) a infra-constancia en función de la distancia física para todos los grupos de edad. La diferencia de edad se nota en la magnitud de la infra-constancia que ocurre en las distancias más largas, donde los adultos presentaban niveles menores de infra-constancia que los niños. Estos datos se interpretan como debidos a un cambio evolutivo en el procesamiento cognitivo más que a cambios en la percepción visual del espacio

One-Dimensional and Multi-Dimensional Studies of the Exocentric Distance Estimates in Frontoparallel Plane, Virtual Space, and Outdoor Open Field

Sin resumenSin resume

Significant linkage and non-linkage of type 1 von Willebrand Disease to the von Willebrand factor gene

[EN] Significant linkage of types 2A and 2B von Willebrand disease (VWD) to the von Willebrand factor (VWF) gene have been reported, as well as mutations in the VWF gene. However, data for the partial quantitative variant are less consistent. An inconsistency of association between the type 1 VWD phenotype and genotype has been reported recently. We undertook linkage analysis of 12 families with definite or possible type 1 VWD patients. One family with classic type 1 VWD had a high lod score (Z = 5.28, theta = 0.00). A total lod score of 10.68 was obtained for the four families with fully penetrant disease. In two families linkage was rejected, while three families did not show conclusive evidence of linkage. This study corroborates ABO blood group influence, especially in patients with mild deficiencies and/or incomplete penetrance, Indirect genetic analysis may be an option for diagnosing asymptomatic or presymptomatic type 1 VWD carriers, particularly in families showing higher penetrance. The study indicates defects of the VWF locus are to be expected in more than half of the families studied. However, as defects at different loci may be the cause of this phenotype, the results of the segregation analyses should be interpreted with caution, especially in studies involving small families, or mild expressions of the disorder or incomplete penetrance.This work was partly supported by F1S grant # 99/0633 (Spain). We wish to thank J. M. Montoro for the multimeric structure analyses, R. Curats for his help in the segregation analyses, all the staff of the `Unidad de CoagulopatõÂas CongeÂnitas de la Comunidad 5alenciana' for their technical and clinical assistance, and Mr Peter Blair for the linguistic advice given in writing this paper.Casaña-Gargallo, MP.; Martínez, F.; Haya, S.; Espinós-Armero, CÁ.; Aznar, JA. (2001). Significant linkage and non-linkage of type 1 von Willebrand Disease to the von Willebrand factor gene. British Journal of Haematology. 115(3):692-700. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2141.2001.03132.x692700115

Nosocomial outbreak of Pseudomonas aeruginosa endophthalmitis

We describe an outbreak of nosocomial endophthalmitis due to a common source, which was determined to be trypan blue solution prepared in the hospital's pharmacy service. We assume that viable bacteria probably gained access to the trypan blue stock solution during cooling after autoclaving. The temporal cluster of Pseudomonas aeruginosa endophthalmitis was readily perceived on the basis of clinical and microbiological findings, and an exogenous source of contamination was unequivocally identified by means of DNA fingerprinting. © 2006 by The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. All rights reserved