Resistencia a biocidas de diferentes cepas de escherichia coli

Los biocidas son herramientas de gran importancia para controlar la transmisión de microorganismos patógenos a través de la cadena alimentaria. En el presente estudio se ha determinado la resistencia a siete biocidas en una colección de nueve cepas de Escherichia coli, incluyendo cepas verotoxigénicas y cepas portadoras de resistencia a beta-lactámicos. Los biocidas más eficaces fueron triclosan, hexadecilpiridinio y cetrimida, seguido del cloruro de benzalconio. No se encontraron diferencias significativas entre las cepas verotoxigénicas y/o productoras de beta lactamasas de amplio espectro en cuanto a sensibilidad a los biocidas mencionados.Biocides have great relevance in the control of transmission of foodborne microbes through the food chain. In the present study, resistance to seven biocides was investigated among a collection of nine Escherichia coli strains, including verotoxigenic and beta-lactamase producers. The most effective biocides were triclosan, hexadecylpyridinium chloride and cetrimide, followed by benzalkonium chloride. Verotoxigenic and beta-lactamase producing strains did not show significant differences in their sensitivities to biocides compared to the other strains tested

Bioconservación de alimentos cárnicos

Las bacteriocinas, así como las cepas bacterianas que las producen, han sido ampliamente estudiadas para la conservación de los alimentos por métodos naturales (bioconservación). En productos cárnicos (abarcando toda la gama, desde la materia prima hasta productos elaborados) se han desarrollado numerosos estudios empleando bacteriocinas como nisina, pediocinas y otras, bien solas o aplicadas con otros antimicrobianos (como ácidos orgánicos o agentes quelantes) o tratamientos (como el calor, las altas presiones o la luz pulsada) para la inactivación de bacterias patógenas o alterantes. Los resultados de muchos de estos tratamientos son bastante prometedores, como por ejemplo el empleo de bacteriocinas como recubrimientos protectores en salchichas. Las cepas de bacterias lácticas seleccionadas por su capacidad productora de bacteriocinas ofrecen buenas perspectivas como cultivos protectores, pero sobre todo como cultivos iniciadores en la elaboración de productos cárnicos fermentados, mejorando la seguridad microbiológica de los mismos. El empleo de cultivos iniciadores bacteriocinogénicos con propiedades funcionales definidas abre nuevas vías para la innovación y el desarrollo de nuevos productos cárnicos fermentados.Bacteriocins as well as their producer strains have been widely investigated for application in natural food preservation processes (biopreservation). Numerous studies have been carried out on application of bacteriocins such as nisin, pediocin and others in different types of meat products, either singly or in combination with other antimicrobials (such as organic acids or chelating agents) or treatments (such as heat, pulsed light or high hydrostatic pressure). Many of the results reported are highly promising, like for example the application of bacteriocins in edible coatings for sausages. Bacteriocin-producing lactic acid bacteria are also interesting, in view of their possible applications as protective cultures or as starter cultures in fermented meat products, increasing the product safety. Bacteriocin-producing starter cultures with additional functional properties open new possibilities for innovation and development of new fermented meat products

The relationship between social support and self-reported health status in immigrants: an adjusted analysis in the Madrid Cross Sectional Study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Social support is an important factor in the adaptation process of immigrants, helping for their integration in a new environment. The lack of social support may influence on well-being and health status. The aim of this study is to describe the social support of immigrant and native population and study the possible association between immigration and lack social support after adjusting for sociodemographic factors, income, stress and self-reported health status.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cross-sectional population based study of immigrants and national patients without mental disorders of 15 urban primary health centers in the north-eastern area of Madrid. Participants provided information on social support, stress level, perceived health status and socio-economic characteristics. Descriptive and multiple logistic regression were conducted.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The proportion of the global perception of social support among immigrants and natives was 79.2% and 94.2%, respectively. The lack of global social support adjusted prevalence ratio (PR) of immigrant was 2.72 (95% Confidence Interval = 1.81-4.09), showing a significant association with being male (PR = 2.26), having monthly income below 500 euros (PR = 3.81) and suffering stress (PR = 1.94). For the dimensions of lack of social support the higher association was being an immigrant and suffering stress.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We conclude that with regardless of the level of monthly income, stress level, self-reported health status, and gender, immigrant status is directly associated with lack social support. The variable most strongly associated with lack social support has been monthly income below 500 euros.</p

Buttermilk and krill oil phospholipids improve hippocampal insulin resistance and synaptic signaling in aged rats.

Impaired glucose metabolism and mitochondrial decay greatly increase with age, when cognitive decline becomes rampant. No pharmacological or dietary intervention has proven effective, but proper diet and lifestyle do postpone the onset of neurodegeneration and some nutrients are being investigated. We studied insulin signaling, mitochondrial activity and biogenesis, and synaptic signaling in the hippocampus and cortex following dietary supplementation with bioactive phospholipid concentrates of krill oil (KOC), buttermilk fat globule membranes (BMFC), and a combination of both in aged rats. After 3 months of supplementation, although all groups of animals showed clear signs of peripheral insulin resistance, the combination of KOC and BMFC was able to improve peripheral insulin sensitivity. We also explored brain energy balance. Interestingly, the hippocampus of supplemented rats-mainly when supplemented with BMFC or the combination of KOC and BMFC-showed an increase in intracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels, whereas no difference was observed in the cerebral cortex. Moreover, we found a significant increase of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the hippocampus of BMFC+KO animals. In summary, dietary supplementation with KOC and/or BMFC improves peripheral and central insulin resistance, suggesting that their administration could delay the onset of these phenomena. Moreover, n-3 fatty acids (FAs) ingested as phospholipids increase BDNF levels favoring an improvement in energy state within neurons and facilitating both mitochondrial and protein synthesis, which are necessary for synaptic plasticity. Thus, dietary supplementation with n-3 FAs could protect local protein synthesis and energy balance within dendrites, favoring neuronal health and delaying cognitive decline associated to age-related disrepair.pre-print769 K

The Chub Mackerel (Scomber Colias) in the Atlantic Spanish Waters (ICES Divisions 8.c and 9.a): Biological, fishery and survey data

Atlantic chub mackerel (Scomber colias , Gmelin, 1978) is a middle-sized pelagic fish distributed in warm and temperate Northeast Atlantic waters. The bulk of the catches takes place in north western waters of Africa, but landing are significantly increased in the most recent years in the Iberian Peninsula, resulting a new target species for both Portuguese and Spanish purse seiner fleets which partially replaces the important drop of sardine landings in both countries. Given this increasing importance and the lack, for the time being, of any scientific assessment, nor management plan and in order to update the available biological and catch information on this specie in Spanish Atlantic waters, this paper working document compile, review and analyze the existing data of biology, fisheries, and surveys to further enhance knowledge on chub mackerel in Atlantic Iberian waters (ICES Subdivisions 9.a South & North and Division 8.c), specifically: (i) stock structure, (ii) spatial distribution (iii) growth and reproduction and (iv) fisheries exploitation. This analysis suggests an increasing trend in Atlantic waters (9a) in both spatial distribution and abundance, mainly due to the strength of the 2015 and 2016 cohorts. This area, besides, could be considered as a nursery area while the Cantabrian Sea (8c) is rather main spawning area. The increase of such availability is also discussed within the frame of the North East Atlantic warming

Quality assessment of a large multi-center flow cytometric dataset of acute myeloid leukemia patients—A EuroFlow study

Flowcytometric analysis allows for detailed identification and characterization of large numbers of cells in blood, bone marrow, and other body fluids and tissue samples and therefore contributes to the diagnostics of hematological malignancies. Novel data analysis tools allow for multidimensional analysis and comparison of patient samples with reference databases of normal, reactive, and/or leukemia/lymphoma patient samples. Building such reference databases requires strict quality assessment (QA) procedures. Here, we compiled a dataset and developed a QA methodology of the EuroFlow Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) database, based on the eight-color EuroFlow AML panel consisting of six different antibody combinations, including four backbone markers. In total, 1142 AML cases and 42 normal bone marrow samples were included in this analysis. QA was performed on 803 AML cases using multidimensional analysis of backbone markers, as well as tube-specific markers, and data were compared using classical analysis employing median and peak expression values. Validation of the QA procedure was performed by re-analysis of >300 cases and by running an independent cohort of 339 AML cases. Initial evaluation of the final cohort confirmed specific immunophenotypic patterns in AML subgroups; the dataset therefore can reliably be used for more detailed exploration of the immunophenotypic variability of AML. Our data show the potential pitfalls and provide possible solutions for constructing large flowcytometric databases. In addition, the provided approach may facilitate the building of other databases and thereby support the development of novel tools for (semi)automated QA and subsequent data analysis.The EuroFlow Consortium received support from the FP6-2004-LIFESCIHEALTH-5 program of the European Commission (grant LSHB-CT-2006-018708) as a Specific Targeted Research Project (STREP). The EuroFlow Consortium is part of the European Scientific Foundation for Hemato Oncology (ESLHO), a Scientific Working Group (SWG) of the European Hematology Association (EHA). S.M. was supported by Acción Estratégica en Salud (AES) (Grant PI21_01115) and the grant of CIBERONC of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Madrid, Spain and FONDOS FEDER (no. CB16/12/00400)

Evaluation of integrated care services in Catalonia: population-based and service-based real-life deployment protocols

Background: Comprehensive assessment of integrated care deployment constitutes a major challenge to ensure quality, sustainability and transferability of both healthcare policies and services in the transition toward a coordinated service delivery scenario. To this end, the manuscript articulates four different protocols aiming at assessing large-scale implementation of integrated care, which are being developed within the umbrella of the regional project Nextcare (2016–2019), undertaken to foster innovation in technologically-supported services for chronic multimorbid patients in Catalonia (ES) (7.5 M inhabitants). Whereas one of the assessment protocols is designed to evaluate population-based deployment of care coordination at regional level during the period 2011–2017, the other three are service-based protocols addressing: i) Home hospitalization; ii) Prehabilitation for major surgery; and, iii) Community-based interventions for frail elderly chronic patients. All three services have demonstrated efficacy and potential for health value generation. They reflect different implementation maturity levels. While full coverage of the entire urban health district of Barcelona-Esquerra (520 k inhabitants) is the main aim of home hospitalization, demonstration of sustainability at Hospital Clinic of Barcelona constitutes the core goal of the prehabilitation service. Likewise, full coverage of integrated care services addressed to frail chronic patients is aimed at the city of Badalona (216 k inhabitants). Methods: The population-based analysis, as well as the three service-based protocols, follow observational and experimental study designs using a non-randomized intervention group (integrated care) compared with a control group (usual care) with a propensity score matching method. Evaluation of cost-effectiveness of the interventions using a Quadruple aim approach is a central outcome in all protocols. Moreover, multi-criteria decision analysis is explored as an innovative method for health delivery assessment. The following additional dimensions will also be addressed: i) Determinants of sustainability and scalability of the services; ii) Assessment of the technological support; iii) Enhanced health risk assessment; and, iv) Factors modulating service transferability. Discussion: The current study offers a unique opportunity to undertake a comprehensive assessment of integrated care fostering deployment of services at regional level. The study outcomes will contribute refining service workflows, improving health risk assessment and generating recommendations for service selection.publishedVersio

Four weeks versus six weeks of ampicillin plus ceftriaxone in Enterococcus faecalis native valve endocarditis: A prospective cohort study

Enterococcus faecalis infective endocarditis (EFIE) is a severe disease of increasing incidence. The objective was to analyze whether the outcome of patients with native valve EFIE (NVEFIE) treated with a short course of ampicillin plus ceftriaxone (4wAC) was similar to patients treated according to international guidelines (6wAC). Between January 2008 and June 2018, 1,978 consecutive patients with definite native valve IE were prospectively included in a national registry. Outcomes of patients with NVEFIE treated with 4wAC were compared to those of patients who received 6wAC. Three hundred and twenty-two patients (16.3%) had NVEFIE. One hundred and eighty-three (56.8%) received AC. Thirty-nine patients (21.3%) were treated with 4wAC for four weeks and 70 patients (38.3%) with 6wAC. There were no differences in age or comorbidity. Patients treated 6wAC presented a longer duration of symptoms before diagnosis (21 days, IQR 7-60 days vs. 7 days, IQR 1-22 days; p = 0.002). Six patients presented perivalvular abscess and all of these received 6wAC. Surgery was performed on 14 patients (35.9%) 4wAC and 34 patients (48.6%) 6wAC (p = 0.201). In-hospital mortality, one-year mortality and relapses among 4wAC and 6wAC patients were 10.3% vs. 11.4% (p = 0.851); 17.9% vs. 21.4% (p = 0.682) and 5.1% vs. 4.3% (p = 0.833), respectively. In conclusion, a four-week course of AC may be considered as an alternative regimen in NVEFIE, notably in patients with shorter duration of symptoms and those without perivalvular abscess. These results support the performance of a randomized clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of this short regimen.This work was supported in part by the “Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias” (FIS) grant 17/01251 from the “Instituto de Salud Carlos III”, Madrid, Spain awarded to JMM. JMM received a personal 80:20 research grant from the Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain, during 2017–19. JMP was member of the Endocarditis Team of the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, Spain when this project was approved by the GAMES Steering Committee.