Wireless internet architecture and testbed for wineglass

One of the most challenging issues in the area of mobile communication is the deployment of IPbased wireless multimedia networks in public and business environments. The public branch may involve public mobile networks, like UMTS as 3G system, while the business branch introduces local radio access networks by means of W-LANs. Conventional mobile networks realise mobile specific functionality, e.g. mobility management or authentication and accounting, by implementing appropriate mechanisms in specific switching nodes (e.g. SGSN in GPRS). In order to exploit the full potential of IP networking solutions a replacement of these mechanisms by IP-based solutions might be appropriate. In addition current and innovative future services in mobile environments require at least soft-guaranteed, differentiated QoS. Therefore the WINE GLASS project investigates and implements enhanced IP-based techniques supporting mobility and QoS in a wireless Internet architecture. As a means to verify the applicability of the implemented solutions, location-aware services deploying both IP-mobility and QoS mechanisms will be implemented and demonstratedPeer ReviewedPostprint (published version

A stitch in time saves nine: closing the hole after removal of the aortic root cannula

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>On completion of the surgical procedure the hole in the ascending aorta has to be closed after withdrawal of the aortic root cannula. The aorta is usually pinched by a double transversal stitch or it is crumpled by a purse string suture. Nevertheless, hemostasis is difficult to obtain because closure is done under recovered pressure. Additional stitches buttressed with teflon-felt pledgets are often required. Unfortunately, sensitivity to bacterial implantation and the proximity to the sternotomy line could make the foreign material of the pledgets responsible for chronic infections and fistulas.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Two simple square stitches orthogonal to each other could be a very useful suture combining simplicity with effectiveness. To do this, two 4-0 polypropylene half-threads are put obliquely through the full thickness of the aortic wall, to and fro with inverse obliquities. Each of them draws a cross inside the aortic wall and two sides of a square outside. As a result a little square is drawn by the threads around the hole.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>For years we have never needed to reinforce the closure by supplemental stitches with hundreds of patients.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This type of closure has some advantages. In contrast to common stitches the aortic wall is not bent, crumpled or deformed, bites pass all aortic layers and the crossing of the threads covers the hole from inside rather than outside. Moreover, each thread can be tied with half of the tension required by other sutures because the two stitches act together but in the opposite direction. Finally, the technique is speedy and it requires only two half-threads. Most importantly, there is no need for teflon-felt pledgets. As a result, we have no longer seen any type of chronic infection or fistula.</p

Forensic identification of urine samples: a comparison between nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers

Urine samples from 20 male volunteers of European Caucasian origin were stored at 4°C over a 4-month period in order to compare the identification potential of nuclear DNA (nDNA) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) markers. The amount of nDNA recovered from urines dramatically declined over time. Consequently, nDNA likelihood ratios (LRs) greater than 1,000 were obtained for 100, 70 and 55% of the urines analysed after 6, 60 and 120 days, respectively. For the mtDNA, HVI and HVII sequences were obtained for all samples tested, whatever the period considered. Nevertheless, the highest mtDNA LR of 435 was relatively low compared to its nDNA equivalent. Indeed, LRs obtained with only three nDNA loci could easily exceed this value and are quite easier to obtain. Overall, the joint use of nDNA and mtDNA markers enabled the 20 urine samples to be identified, even after the 4-month perio

Pyomelanin synthesis in alternaria alternata inhibits DHN-Melanin synthesis and decreases cell wall chitin content and thickness

The genus Alternaria includes several of fungi that are darkly pigmented by DHNmelanin. These are pathogenic to plants but are also associated with human respiratory allergic diseases and with serious infections in immunocompromised individuals. The present work focuses on the alterations of the composition and structure of the hyphal cell wall of Alternaria alternata occuring under the catabolism of L-tyrosine and L-phenylalanine when cultured in minimal salt medium (MM). Under these growing conditions, we observed the released of a brown pigment into the culture medium. FTIR analysis demonstrates that the produced pigment is chemically identical to the pigment released when the fungus is grown in MM with homogentisate acid (HGA), the intermediate of pyomelanin, confirming that this pigment is pyomelanin. In contrast to other fungi that also synthesize pyomelanin under tyrosine metabolism, A. alternata inhibits DHN-melanin cell wall accumulation when pyomelanin is produced, and this is associated with reduced chitin cell wall content. When A. alternata is grown in MM containing L-phenylalanine, a L-tyrosine percursor, pyomelanin is synthesized but only at trace concentrations and A. alternata mycelia display an albino-like phenotype since DHN-melanin accumulation is inhibited. CmrA, the transcription regulator for the genes coding for the DHN-melanin pathway, is involved in the down-regulation of DHN-melanin synthesis when pyomelanin is being synthetized, since the CMRA gene and genes of the enzymes involved in DHN-melanin synthesis pathway showed a decreased expression. Other amino acids do not trigger pyomelanin synthesis and DHN-melanin accumulation in the cell wall is not affected. Transmission and scanning electron microscopy show that the cell wall structure and surface decorations are altered in L-tyrosine- and L-phenylalanine-grown fungi, depending on the pigment produced. In summary, growth in presence of L-tyrosine and L-phenylalanine leads to pigmentation and cell wall changes, which could be relevant to infection conditions where these amino acids are expected to be available.This study was partly supported by the FEDER funds through the Operational Programme Competitiveness Factors-COMPETE and national funds by FCT-Foundation for Science and Technology under the strategic projects UIDB/00285/2020 and UID/NEU/04539/2013 the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the Centro 2020 Regional Operational Programme under project CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER-000012 and project CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER-022095:ViraVector, and through the COMPETE 2020—Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation and Portuguese national funds via FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, under project UIDB/04539/2020, and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the Centro 2020 Regional Operational Programme: project CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER- 000012-HealthyAging 2020, the COMPETE 2020—Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalisation, and the Portuguese national funds via FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P.: project POCI-01-0145-FEDER- 007440. IF thank the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) and FEDER under Program PT2020 for financial support to CIMO (UID/AGR/00690/2013), LB (SFRH/BPD/107855/2015) and MD (SFRH/BD/84485/2012) grants. To POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006984 (LA LSRE-LCM), funded by ERDF, through POCI-COMPETE2020 and FCT. AC was supported in part by 5R01HL059842, 5R01AI033774, 5R37AI033142, and 5R01AI052733.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Monitoring SO2 emission at the Soufriere Hills Volcano: implications for changes in erruptive conditions

FLWINinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Cryptococcus neoformans melanization incorporates multiple catecholamines to produce polytypic melanin

Melanin is a major virulence factor in pathogenic fungi that enhances the ability of fungal cells to resist immune clearance. Cryptococcus neoformans is an important human pathogenic fungus that synthesizes melanin from exogenous tissue catecholamine precursors during infection, but the type of melanin made in cryptococcal meningoencephalitis is unknown. We analyzed the efficacy of various catecholamines found in brain tissue in supporting melanization using animal brain tissue and synthetic catecholamine mixtures reflecting brain tissue proportions. Solid-state NMR spectra of the melanin pigment produced from such mixtures yielded more melanin than expected if only the preferred constituent dopamine had been incorporated, suggesting uptake of additional catecholamines. Probing the biosynthesis of melanin using radiolabeled catecholamines revealed that C. neoformans melanization simultaneously incorporated more than one catecholamine, implying that the pigment was polytypic in nature. Nonetheless, melanin derived from individual or mixed catecholamines had comparable ability to protect C. neoformans against ultraviolet light and oxidants. Our results indicate that melanin produced during infection differs depending on the catecholamine composition of tissue and that melanin pigment synthesized in vivo is likely to accrue from the polymerization of a mixture of precursors. From a practical standpoint, our results strongly suggest that using dopamine as a polymerization precursor is capable of producing melanin pigment comparable to that produced during infection. On a more fundamental level, our findings uncover additional structural complexity for natural cryptococcal melanin by demonstrating that pigment produced during human infection is likely to be composed of polymerized moieties derived from chemically different precursors

Chitin-Like Molecules Associate with Cryptococcus neoformans Glucuronoxylomannan To Form a Glycan Complex with Previously Unknown Properties

In prior studies, we demonstrated that glucuronoxylomannan (GXM), the major capsular polysaccharide of the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, interacts with chitin oligomers at the cell wall-capsule interface. the structural determinants regulating these carbohydrate-carbohydrate interactions, as well as the functions of these structures, have remained unknown. in this study, we demonstrate that glycan complexes composed of chitooligomers and GXM are formed during fungal growth and macrophage infection by C. neoformans. To investigate the required determinants for the assembly of chitin-GXM complexes, we developed a quantitative scanning electron microscopy-based method using different polysaccharide samples as inhibitors of the interaction of chitin with GXM. This assay revealed that chitin-GXM association involves noncovalent bonds and large GXM fibers and depends on the N-acetyl amino group of chitin. Carboxyl and O-acetyl groups of GXM are not required for polysaccharide-polysaccharide interactions. Glycan complex structures composed of cryptococcal GXM and chitin-derived oligomers were tested for their ability to induce pulmonary cytokines in mice. They were significantly more efficient than either GXM or chitin oligomers alone in inducing the production of lung interleukin 10 (IL-10), IL-17, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). These results indicate that association of chitin-derived structures with GXM through their N-acetyl amino groups generates glycan complexes with previously unknown properties.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ)NIHCenter for AIDS Research at EinsteinUniv Fed Rio de Janeiro, Inst Microbiol Prof Paulo de Goes, Rio de Janeiro, BrazilUniv Fed Rio de Janeiro, Inst Biofis Carlos Chagas Filho, Lab Ultraestrutura Celular Hertha Meyer, BR-21941 Rio de Janeiro, BrazilAlbert Einstein Coll Med, Dept Microbiol & Immunol, Bronx, NY 10467 USAAlbert Einstein Coll Med, Div Infect Dis, Dept Med, Bronx, NY 10467 USAUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Disciplina Biol Celular, São Paulo, BrazilFiocruz MS, Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz, Ctr Desenvolvimento Tecnol, BR-21045900 Rio de Janeiro, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Disciplina Biol Celular, São Paulo, BrazilNIH: AI033142NIH: AI033774NIH: AI052733NIH: HL059842Web of Scienc

Sulfur dioxide and particles in quiescent volcanic plumes from Poás, Arenal, and Colima Volcanos, Costa Rica and Mexico

Measurements of SO2 emission rates and concentrations and of particle distribution, size, shape, and composition were made in quiescent volcanic plumes emitted into the troposphere from Poás and Arenal volcanos, Costa Rica, and Colima volcano, Mexico. SO2 emission rates were 700±180 metric tons per day (t/d) for Poás, 210±30 t/d for Arenal, and 320±50 t/d for Colima. The concentrations of SO2 calculated from the COSPEC/lidar data were 5–380 ppb. Concentrations of SO2measured directly by flame photometry were 10–250 ppb. Particles collected in the plumes with a quartz crystal microbalance impactor were mostly less than 3 μm in diameter and consisted of droplets of dilute sulfur-bearing solutions and minor amounts of larger silicate particles coated with a sulfur-bearing film or crust. Total particle concentrations were 4.7 μg/m3 for Poás and 18.8 μg/m3for Colima. Comparison of concentrations of SO2 in the plumes with gas samples collected at fumaroles on the ground suggests that the plumes are diluted by the atmosphere by factors of up to 105

Validation of the Tetracycline Regulatable Gene Expression System for the Study of the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease

Understanding the pathogenesis of infectious disease requires the examination and successful integration of parameters related to both microbial virulence and host responses. As a practical and powerful method to control microbial gene expression, including in vivo, the tetracycline-regulatable system has recently gained the favor of many investigative groups. However, some immunomodulatory effects of the tetracyclines, including doxycycline, could potentially limit its use to evaluate host responses during infection. Here we have used a well-established murine model of disseminated candidiasis, which is highly dependent on both the virulence displayed by the fungal cells and on the host immune status, to validate the use of this system. We demonstrate that the pathogenesis of the wild type C. albicans CAF2-1 strain, which does not contain any tet-regulatable element, is not affected by the presence of doxycycline. Moreover levels of key cytokines, chemokines and many other biomarkers, as determined by multi-analyte profiling, remain essentially unaltered by the presence of the antibiotic during infection. Our results indicate that the levels of doxycycline needed to control the tetracycline regulatable promoter gene expression system have no detectable effect on global host responses during candidiasis. Because tet-regulatable systems are now being increasingly used in a variety of pathogenic microorganisms, these observations have wide implications in the field of infectious diseases