Caracterització del recurs geotèrmic per al Centre Esportiu Municipal de Can Caralleu

L'energia geotèrmica de molt baixa entalpia és un recurs energètic renovable poc aprofitat actualment. En aquest treball es mostra l'aprofitament d'aquest recurs per a fer-ne ús al Centre Esportiu Municipal de Can Caralleu, al barri de Sarrià, Barcelona. A partir de les característiques del subsòl i de les necessitats tèrmiques del centre es realitza un estudi de com hauria de ser la instal·lació geotèrmica. S'ha determinat una instal·lació de circuit tancat, amb bomba de calor geotèrmica, de la qual s'han calculat les potències i la longitud. També s'ha realitzat el dimensionat de la instal·lació, amb el disseny de varis models que representen les diferents opcions de col·locació dels sondejos i les seves profunditats. Finalment, s'ha calculat el consum anual de la bomba i el seu cost, també s'ha calculat el cost de la instal·lació. Dels tres models realitzats, només n'hi ha un que es podria aplicar actualment per a la realització de la instal·lació d'energia geotèrmica, els altres resultarien impossibles per la situació dels sondejos sota zones ja edificades. Tot i que el cost de la instal·lació resultaria car, sortiria a compte realitzar-la ja que el consum i els costos anuals serien considerablement menors que els actuals.La energía geotérmica de muy baja entalpia es un recurso energético renovable poco aprovechado actualmente. En este trabajo se muestra el aprovechamiento de este recurso para su uso en el Centre Esportiu Municipal de Can Caralleu, en el barrio de Sarrià, Barcelona. A partir de las características del subsuelo y de las necesidades térmicas del centro se realiza un estudio de cómo debería ser la instalación geotérmica. Se ha determinado una instalación de circuito cerrado, con bomba de calor geotérmica, de la cual se han calculado las potencias y la longitud. También se ha realizado el dimensionado de la instalación, con el diseño de varios modelos que representan las diferentes opciones de colocación de los sondeos y sus profundidades. Finalmente, se ha calculado el consumo anual de la bomba y su coste, también se ha calculado el coste de la instalación. De los tres modelos realizados, sólo hay uno que se podría aplicar actualmente para la realización de la instalación de energía geotérmica, los otros resultarían imposible por la situación de los sondeos bajo zonas ya edificadas. Aunque el coste de la instalación resultaría caro, saldría a cuenta realizarla ya que el consumo y los costes anuales serian considerablemente menores que los actuales.At the moment, the very low enthalpy geothermal energy is used as a short renewable energetic resource. This work will illustrate the use of this energy source by its application at the Centre Esportiu Municipal de Can Caralleu, in Sarrià's district, Barcelona. From the subsurface features and the thermal requirements of the center, a study has been conducted of how the geothermal installation should be performed. A closed-loop system installation has been determined, with a geothermal heat pump, and its powers and length has been calculated as well. Furthermore, the dimensioned of the installation has been premeditated with the design of some models that represent the different options of the borehole placement and its depths. Finally, the annual consumption of the pump and its costs have been calculated, the installation costs have been calculated too. From the three models done, only one could be applied at present to do the geothermal energy installation, the others would be impossible to do as the situation of the boreholes under already built areas. Although the installation costs would be expensive, it would be a beneficial project to do as the consumption and the annual costs would turn out to be considerably less than the present ones

CD5L promotes M2 macrophage polarization through autophagy-mediated upregulation of ID3

CD5L (CD5 molecule-like) is a secreted glycoprotein that controls key mechanisms in inflammatory responses, with involvement in processes such as infection, atherosclerosis, and cancer. In macrophages, CD5L promotes an anti-inflammatory cytokine profile in response to TLR activation. In the present study, we questioned whether CD5L is able to influence human macrophage plasticity, and drive its polarization toward any specific phenotype. We compared CD5L-induced phenotypic and functional changes to those caused by IFN/LPS, IL4, and IL10 in human monocytes. Phenotypic markers were quantified by RT-qPCR and flow cytometry, and a mathematical algorithm was built for their analysis. Moreover, we compared ROS production, phagocytic capacity, and inflammatory responses to LPS. CD5L drove cells toward a polarization similar to that induced by IL10. Furthermore, IL10- and CD5L-treated macrophages showed increased LC3-II content and colocalization with acidic compartments, thereby pointing to the enhancement of autophagy-dependent processes. Accordingly, siRNA targeting ATG7 in THP1 cells blocked CD5L-induced CD163 and Mer tyrosine kinase mRNA and efferocytosis. In these cells, gene expression profiling and validation indicated the upregulation of the transcription factor ID3 by CD5L through ATG7. In agreement, ID3 silencing reversed polarization by CD5L. Our data point to a significant contribution of CD5L-mediated autophagy to the induction of ID3 and provide the first evidence that CD5L drives macrophage polarization.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Enhanced emissions of floral volatiles by Diplotaxis erucoides (L.) in response to folivory and florivory by Pieris brassicae (L.)

The main function of floral emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in entomophilous plants is to attract pollinators. Floral blends, however, can also contain volatile compounds with defensive functions. These defensive volatiles are specifically emitted when plants are attacked by pathogens or herbivores. We characterized the changes in the floral emissions of Diplotaxis erucoides induced by folivory and florivory by Pieris brassicae. Plants were continually subjected to folivory, florivory and folivory + florivory treatments for two days. We measured floral emissions with proton transfer reaction/mass spectroscopy (PTR-MS) at different times during the application of the treatments. The emissions of methanol, ethyl acetate and another compound, likely 3-butenenitrile, increased significantly in response to florivory. Methanol and 3-butenenitrile increased 2.4- and 26-fold, respectively, in response to the florivory treatment. Methanol, 3-butenenitrile and ethyl acetate increased 3-, 100- and 9-fold, respectively, in response to the folivory + florivory treatment. Folivory alone had no detectable effect on floral emissions. All VOC emissions began immediately after attack, with no evidence of delayed induction in any of the treatments. Folivory and florivory had a synergistic effect when applied together, which strengthened the defensive response when the attack was extended to the entire plant

Clinical utility of chromosomal microarray analysis in invasive prenatal diagnosis

Novel methodologies for detection of chromosomal abnormalities have been made available in the recent years but their clinical utility in prenatal settings is still unknown. We have conducted a comparative study of currently available methodologies for detection of chromosomal abnormalities after invasive prenatal sampling. A multicentric collection of a 1-year series of fetal samples with indication for prenatal invasive sampling was simultaneously evaluated using three screening methodologies: (1) karyotype and quantitative fluorescent polymerase chain reaction (QF-PCR), (2) two panels of multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA), and (3) chromosomal microarray-based analysis (CMA) with a targeted BAC microarray. A total of 900 pregnant women provided informed consent to participate (94% acceptance rate). Technical performance was excellent for karyotype, QF-PCR, and CMA (~1% failure rate), but relatively poor for MLPA (10% failure). Mean turn-around time (TAT) was 7 days for CMA or MLPA, 25 for karyotype, and two for QF-PCR, with similar combined costs for the different approaches. A total of 57 clinically significant chromosomal aberrations were found (6.3%), with CMA yielding the highest detection rate (32% above other methods). The identification of variants of uncertain clinical significance by CMA (17, 1.9%) tripled that of karyotype and MLPA, but most alterations could be classified as likely benign after proving they all were inherited. High acceptability, significantly higher detection rate and lower TAT, could justify the higher cost of CMA and favor targeted CMA as the best method for detection of chromosomal abnormalities in at-risk pregnancies after invasive prenatal sampling

Impure Public Goods and Technological Interdependencies

Impure public goods represent an important group of goods. Almost every public good exerts not only effects which are public to all but also effects which are private to the producer of this good. What is often omitted in the analysis of impure public goods is the fact that – regularly – these private effects can also be generated independently of the public good. In our analysis we focus on the effects alternative technologies – independently generating the private effects of the public good – may have on the provision of impure public goods. After the investigation in an analytical impure public good model, we numerically simulate the effects of alternative technologies in a parameterized model for climate policy in Germany

Jardins per a la salut

Facultat de Farmàcia, Universitat de Barcelona. Ensenyament: Grau de Farmàcia. Assignatura: Botànica farmacèutica. Curs: 2014-2015. Coordinadors: Joan Simon, Cèsar Blanché i Maria Bosch.Els materials que aquí es presenten són el recull de les fitxes botàniques de 128 espècies presents en el Jardí Ferran Soldevila de l’Edifici Històric de la UB. Els treballs han estat realitzats manera individual per part dels estudiants dels grups M-3 i T-1 de l’assignatura Botànica Farmacèutica durant els mesos de febrer a maig del curs 2014-15 com a resultat final del Projecte d’Innovació Docent «Jardins per a la salut: aprenentatge servei a Botànica farmacèutica» (codi 2014PID-UB/054). Tots els treballs s’han dut a terme a través de la plataforma de GoogleDocs i han estat tutoritzats pels professors de l’assignatura. L’objectiu principal de l’activitat ha estat fomentar l’aprenentatge autònom i col·laboratiu en Botànica farmacèutica. També s’ha pretès motivar els estudiants a través del retorn de part del seu esforç a la societat a través d’una experiència d’Aprenentatge-Servei, deixant disponible finalment el treball dels estudiants per a poder ser consultable a través d’una Web pública amb la possibilitat de poder-ho fer in-situ en el propi jardí mitjançant codis QR amb un smartphone