50 research outputs found

    Gestión del conocimiento de Diseño en la industria del mueble

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    Ponencia presentada en el VIII Congreso Internacional de Ingeniería de Proyectos celebrada en Bilbao en el año 2004The goal of the project was to improve the design process of the products in the furniture industry. It consisted of investigating the definition of a knowledge-based model in order to assist in the design of the industrial products. Firstly, a design process analysis and redesign was made through the process modeling. From the current design process model of the studied company a new design process model was achieved. In the new process, changes and consequences of introducing a new design tool, such as Catia V5, were reflected. Improvements referring to times, workflows, reduction of mistakes and better efficiency in the product design were achieved. Then, an Informal Model was built up and developed with the product knowledge of the company. This model was the necessary way between the information that defines the product related with the company and the Formal Model, which is required for its application in computer programs for products design. Finally, through using the program Catia V5, the prototype of a model was built up. That model allowed the achievement of variations in current designs automatically, taking into account the features and limitations of itself. Those automatic designs were gotten by the user, modifying the defined variables by introducing the searched parameters. In that way, a reduction of the time needed for current design and less mistakes of any type were achieved. As a whole, the project achieved a reduction of times and mistakes, increased flexibility referred to changes in the product design and integration between the design tasks, and achieved a best product knowledge management in the company.El objetivo general de este proyecto era mejorar el proceso de diseño de los productos de la industria del mueble. Consistía en investigar en la definición de un modelo basado en el conocimiento para asistir el diseño de productos industriales. En primer lugar se realizó un análisis y rediseño del proceso de diseño actual de la empresa estudiada mediante el modelado de procesos. A partir del modelo de proceso actual se obtuvo un nuevo modelo, en el cual se analizaban y reflejaban los cambios y consecuencias en el proceso ante la implementación de una nueva herramienta de diseño, como es el Catia. Se obtuvieron mejoras en aspectos de tiempo, flujo de actividades, reducción de fallos y una mayor eficiencia en el diseño. Otro de los puntos del proyecto fue la construcción de un Modelo Informal, desarrollado con el conocimiento de producto de la empresa, el cual constituye el paso necesario entre la información que define el producto en relación con la empresa y la obtención del Modelo Formal, requerido para su aplicación en herramientas informáticas para el diseño de productos. Y por último, mediante la utilización de la aplicación Catia V5 se desarrolló un prototipo de un modelo que permite la obtención de variaciones en diseños desarrollados rutinariamente de manera automática, teniendo en cuenta las características y limitaciones del mismo. Esto se produce, cuando el usuario introduce los parámetros deseados, modificando así las variables definidas, produciendo de esta forma una reducción de tiempos y minimización en cualquier tipo de error. Con todo ello se consigue una minimización de tiempos y errores, aumentar la flexibilidad en cuanto a la introducción de cambios en el diseño, aumentar la integración entre las actividades de producción y las actividades de diseño y una mejor gestión del conocimiento del producto por parte de la organización

    Variabilidad de vibrios planctónicos y epifíticos en un ambiente costero afectado por proliferaciones de Ostreopsis

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    Vibrios include several pathogenic bacteria that occur in aquatic environments. The presence of Vibrio has been assessed in many ecosystems by culture-based techniques. However, little is known on the contribution of Vibrios in the sea, especially in areas subject to harmful algal blooms. A preliminary study in Sant Andreu de Llavaneres beach (NW Mediterranean) showed the presence of some Vibrio species during a recurrent bloom of the harmful benthic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis cf. ovata. In order to establish the importance of Vibrios in a coastal area of the NW Mediterranean and to study the association with the dinoflagellate, we conducted a sampling monitoring for one year to quantify the concentration of Vibrios both in the water (free-living and attached to particles) and in the epiphytic community of macroalgae. The aims were 1) to evaluate the relative abundance of Vibrio in the epiphytic and in the planktonic bacterial community, 2) to assess the percentage of free-living and attached Vibrios in the planktonic community, and 3) to determine whether the presence of Vibrios is associated with the blooms of the toxic dinoflagellate Ostreopsis or with other environmental parameters. For this purpose, a CARD-FISH molecular probe was applied for the specific detection of bacteria belonging to the genus Vibrio. Cells were quantified and the abundance of both particles and bacteria attached to particles were assessed. The maximum Vibrio concentration (1.3x104 cells ml–1 and 1.4x106 cells g–1 FW, for planktonic and epiphytic samples, respectively) was detected in September. Free-living Vibrios contributed 0.38±0.24% to the total free-living planktonic community and 1.12±0.28% to the epiphytic bacterial community. However, their contribution was particularly high in the planktonic community attached to particles (17.37±20.49%). Although in the planktonic community Vibrio was found preferentially free-living (82.63±20.01%), particles are a niche for Vibrios, since in particles Vibrios may represent up to 72% of the total attached bacterial community. Abundance of planktonic Vibrio was correlated with Ostreopsis concentration and it is likely that they play a role in the wound infections suffered by beach users during the bloom.El género Vibrio incluye a varias bacterias patogénicas que se encuentran en ecosistemas acuáticos. La presencia de Vibrio se ha estimado en muchos ecosistemas mediante técnicas basadas en cultivos. Sin embargo, se conoce poco sobre la contribución de Vibrios en el mar, especialmente en áreas afectadas por proliferaciones algales nocivas. Un estudio preliminar en la playa de Sant Andreu de Llavaneres (Mediterráneo NO) mostró la presencia de algunas especies de Vibrio durante una proliferación recurrente del dinoflagelado béntico nocivo Ostreopsis cf. ovata. Para poder establecer la relevancia de los Vibrios en un área costera del Mediterráneo NO y estudiar su asociación con el dinoflagelado, realizamos un muestreo de monitoreo durante un año para cuantificar la concentración de Vibrios tanto en el agua (de vida libre y adheridos a partículas) y en la comunidad epifítica de macroalgas con los objetivos de 1) evaluar la abundancia relativa de Vibrio en la comunidad bacteriana tanto planctónica como epifítica, 2) estimar el porcentaje de Vibrios de vida libre y adheridos a partículas en la comunidad bacteriana planctónica y 3) determinar si la presencia de Vibrios está relacionada con las proliferaciones del dinoflagelado Ostreopsis o con otros parámetros ambientales. Para este propósito, se aplicó una sonda molecular de CARD-FISH para la detección específica de bacterias pertenecientes al género Vibrio. Se cuantificaron las células y también la abundancia de partículas y de las bacterias adheridas a estas partículas. La máxima concentración de Vibrio (1.3x104 cels ml–1 y 1.4x106 cels g–1 PF, para muestras planctónicas y epifíticas, respectivamente) fue detectada en Septiembre. Los Vibrios de vida libre contribuyeron un 0.38±0.24% al total de la comunidad bacteriana de vida libre y un 1.12±0.28% a la comunidad bacteriana epifítica. Sin embargo, su contribución fue especialmente elevada en la comunidad bacteriana adherida a partículas (17.37±20.49%). Aunque en la comunidad planctónica Vibrio se encontraba preferentemente no adheridos a partículas (82.63±20.01%), las partículas constituyen un nicho para Vibrios, ya que pueden llegar a representar hasta un 72% de la comunidad bacteriana adherida a partículas. La abundancia de Vibrio en el plancton se correlacionó con la concentración de Ostreopsis, y es posible que éstos jueguen un papel en las infecciones de heridas que sufren los bañistas durante las proliferaciones algales

    Distinctive physiological and molecular responses to cold stress among cold-tolerant and cold-sensitive Pinus halepensis seed sources

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    Background: Forest species ranges are confined by environmental limitations such as cold stress. The natural range shifts of pine forests due to climate change and proactive-assisted population migration may each be constrained by the ability of pine species to tolerate low temperatures, especially in northern latitudes or in high altitudes. The aim of this study is to characterize the response of cold-tolerant versus cold-sensitive Pinus halepensis (P. halepensis) seedlings at the physiological and the molecular level under controlled cold conditions to identify distinctive features which allow us to explain the phenotypic difference. With this objective gas-exchange and water potential was determined and the photosynthetic pigments, soluble sugars, glutathione and free amino acids content were measured in seedlings of different provenances under control and cold stress conditions. Results: Glucose and fructose content can be highlighted as a potential distinctive trait for cold-tolerant P. halepensis seedlings. At the amino acid level, there was a significant increase and accumulation of glutathione, proline, glutamic acid, histidine, arginine and tryptophan along with a significant decrease of glycine. Conclusion: Our results established that the main difference between cold-tolerant and cold-sensitive seedlings of P. halepensis is the ability to accumulate the antioxidant glutathione and osmolytes such as glucose and fructose, proline and arginine.This study is a part of the research project: “Application of molecular biology techniques in forest restoration in Mediterranean environments, PAID-05-11” funded by the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), program for supporting R&D of new multidisciplinary research lines. The authors are grateful to the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad AGL2014–57431-P and BIO2016–77776-P. AV was supported by project Survive-2 (CGL2015–69773-C2–2-P MINECO/FEDER) by the Spanish Government and Prometeo program (DESESTRES Generalitat Valenciana). CEAM is funded by Generalitat Valenciana

    Diversity and relationships in key traits for functional and apparent quality in a collection of eggplant: fruit phenolics content, antioxidant activity, polyphenol oxidase activity, and browning

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    This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, copyright © American Chemical Society after peer review and technical editing by the publisher. To access the final edited and published work seehttp://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jf402429kEggplant (Solanum melongena) varieties with increased levels of phenolics in the fruit present enhanced functional quality, but may display greater fruit flesh browning. We evaluated 18 eggplant accessions for fruit total phenolics content, chlorogenic acid content, DPPH scavenging activity, polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity, liquid extract browning, and fruit flesh browning. For all the traits we found a high diversity, with differences among accessions of up to 3.36-fold for fruit flesh browning. Variation in total content in phenolics and in chlorogenic acid content accounted only for 18.9% and 6.0% in the variation in fruit flesh browning, and PPO activity was not significantly correlated with fruit flesh browning. Liquid extract browning was highly correlated with chlorogenic acid content (r = 0.852). Principal components analysis (PCA) identified four groups of accessions with different profiles for the traits studied. Results suggest that it is possible to develop new eggplant varieties with improved functional and apparent quality.This project has been funded by Universitat Politecnica de Valencia through the grants SP20120681 and PAID-06-11 Nr. 2082, and by Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad Grant AGL2012-34213 (jointly funded by FEDER).Plazas Ávila, MDLO.; López Gresa, MP.; Vilanova Navarro, S.; Torres Vidal, C.; Hurtado Ricart, M.; Gramazio, P.; Andújar Pérez, I.... (2013). Diversity and relationships in key traits for functional and apparent quality in a collection of eggplant: fruit phenolics content, antioxidant activity, polyphenol oxidase activity, and browning. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 61(37):8871-8879. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf402429kS88718879613

    Impact of a Primary Care Antimicrobial Stewardship Program on Bacterial Resistance Control and Ecological Imprint in Urinary Tract Infections

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    Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are a central component in reducing the overprescription of unnecessary antibiotics, with multiple studies showing benefits in the reduction of bacterial resistance. Less commonly, ASPs have been performed in outpatient settings, but there is a lack of available data in these settings. We implemented an ASP in a large regional outpatient setting to assess its feasibility and effectiveness. Over a 5-year post-implementation period, compared to the pre-intervention period, a significant reduction in antibiotic prescription occurred, with a reduction in resistance in E. coli urinary isolates. ASP activities also were found to be cost-effective, with a reduction in medication prescription

    Metabolic engineering to simultaneously activate anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin biosynthetic pathways in Nicotiana spp

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    [EN] Proanthocyanidins (PAs), or condensed tannins, are powerful antioxidants that remove harmful free oxygen radicals from cells. To engineer the anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin biosynthetic pathways to de novo produce PAs in two Nicotiana species, we incorporated four transgenes to the plant chassis. We opted to perform a simultaneous transformation of the genes linked in a multigenic construct rather than classical breeding or retransformation approaches. We generated a GoldenBraid 2.0 multigenic construct containing two Antirrhinum majus transcription factors (AmRosea1 and AmDelila) to upregulate the anthocyanin pathway in combination with two Medicago truncatula genes (MtLAR and MtANR) to produce the enzymes that will derivate the biosynthetic pathway to PAs production. Transient and stable transformation of Nicotiana benthamiana and Nicotiana tabacum with the multigenic construct were respectively performed. Transient expression experiments in N. benthamiana showed the activation of the anthocyanin pathway producing a purple color in the agroinfiltrated leaves and also the effective production of 208.5 nmol (-) catechin/g FW and 228.5 nmol (-) epicatechin/g FW measured by the p-dimethylaminocinnamaldehyde (DMACA) method. The integration capacity of the four transgenes, their respective expression levels and their heritability in the second generation were analyzed in stably transformed N. tabacum plants. DMACA and phoroglucinolysis/HPLC-MS analyses corroborated the activation of both pathways and the effective production of PAs in T0 and T1 transgenic tobacco plants up to a maximum of 3.48 mg/g DW. The possible biotechnological applications of the GB2.0 multigenic approach in forage legumes to produce "bloatsafe" plants and to improve the efficiency of conversion of plant protein into animal protein (ruminal protein bypass) are discussed.This work was supported by grants BIO2012-39849-C02-01 and BIO2016-75485-R from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) (http://www.idi.mineco.gob.es/portal/site/MICINN) to LAC and a fellowship of the JAE-CSIC program to SF. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Fresquet-Corrales, S.; Roque Mesa, EM.; Sarrión-Perdigones, A.; Rochina, M.; López-Gresa, MP.; Díaz-Mula, HM.; Belles Albert, JM.... (2017). Metabolic engineering to simultaneously activate anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin biosynthetic pathways in Nicotiana spp. PLoS ONE. 12(9). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0184839Se018483912

    Functional genomics of the horn fly, Haematobia irritans (Linnaeus, 1758)

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    <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The horn fly, <it>Haematobia irritans </it>(Linnaeus, 1758) (Diptera: Muscidae) is one of the most important ectoparasites of pastured cattle. Horn flies infestations reduce cattle weight gain and milk production. Additionally, horn flies are mechanical vectors of different pathogens that cause disease in cattle. The aim of this study was to conduct a functional genomics study in female horn flies using Expressed Sequence Tags (EST) analysis and RNA interference (RNAi).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A cDNA library was made from whole abdominal tissues collected from partially fed adult female horn flies. High quality horn fly ESTs (2,160) were sequenced and assembled into 992 unigenes (178 contigs and 814 singlets) representing molecular functions such as serine proteases, cell metabolism, mitochondrial function, transcription and translation, transport, chromatin structure, vitellogenesis, cytoskeleton, DNA replication, cell response to stress and infection, cell proliferation and cell-cell interactions, intracellular trafficking and secretion, and development. Functional analyses were conducted using RNAi for the first time in horn flies. Gene knockdown by RNAi resulted in higher horn fly mortality (protease inhibitor functional group), reduced oviposition (vitellogenin, ferritin and vATPase groups) or both (immune response and 5'-NUC groups) when compared to controls. Silencing of ubiquitination ESTs did not affect horn fly mortality and ovisposition while gene knockdown in the ferritin and vATPse functional groups reduced mortality when compared to controls.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results advanced the molecular characterization of this important ectoparasite and suggested candidate protective antigens for the development of vaccines for the control of horn fly infestations.</p

    Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

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    Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries
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