Caracterizacion morfologica y mecanica de nanofibras agregadas de PVA producidas por el proceso de sol-gel electrohilado

[EN] This work deals with the preparation of poly (vinyl alcohol) solutions composed of a surface active agent, an acid and water. With this solution firstly electrospun nanofiber mats and then nanofiber aggregates were obtained by electrospinning/sol-gel process. The samples were morphologically characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), obtaining superficial roughness values, distribution and average diameter before and after the electrospinning/sol-gel process. The PVA nanofiber aggregate reached a maximum strength and a modulus of 90 MPa and 2.55 GPa, respectively. Experimental results show that these fibers have a potential use as secondary reinforcement materials in cementitious composites.[ES] En esta investigación se prepararon soluciones de Polivinil alcohol (PVA) dopadas con un agente surfactante, un ácido y agua. Con estas soluciones se electrohilaron en primer lugar, esteras de nanofibras y luego nanofibras agregadas a través del proceso de sol-gel electrohilado. Las muestras obtenidas fueron caracterizadas por microscopía electrónica de barrido (SEM) y microscopia de fuerza atómica (AFM), calculando valores de rugosidad superficial en las fibras, su distribución y diámetro promedio antes y después del proceso de solgel electrohilado. Finalmente, se encontró que las nanofibras agregadas de PVA, alcanzaron una resistencia máxima y módulo de 90 MPa y 2,55 GPa, respectivamente. Los resultados experimentales muestran que estas fibras tienen un uso potencial como refuerzo secundario en materiales compuestos cementicios.We appreciate the support of the Center of Excellence for New Materials (CENM) with equipment and supplies as well as the Composite Materials Group, of the School of Materials Engineering at the Universidad del Valle and the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (Spain). Edgar Franco gratefully acknowledges the economic support of COLCIENCIAS through a doctoral fellowship.Franco Medina, E.; Delvasto Arjona, S.; Zuluaga Corrales, F.; Amigó Borrás, V. (2013). Morphological and mechanical response characterization of nanofiber aggregates of pva produced by electrospinning sol-gel process. DYNA.Revista de la Facultad de Minas de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Sede Medellin. 178(180):56-61. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/33978S566117818

Secondary reinforcement of portland cement pastes using nanofibers aggregated based on polyvinyl alcohol

En este artículo se presentan resultados de una investigación sobre la validación de nanofibras agregadas de PVA obtenidas por sol-gel electrohilado, para reducir la retracción y las fisuras por fraguado de pastas de cemento portland ultrafino. La metodología aplicada consistió en variar la longitud de las nanofibras agregadas de PVA en 6 y 12 mm. Este procedimiento permitió evaluar el desempeño de estas nanofibras y compararlas con el de la misma matriz cementicia reforzada con fibras comerciales de polipropileno (PP). Las técnicas de caracterización aplicadas sobre las pastas fibrorreforzadas fueron granulometría láser del cemento, ensayos a la compresión, a la flexión e impacto y observación de falla a través de microscopía electrónica de barrido (SEM). Igualmente se observó la retracción y el fisuración a edades tempranas. Los resultados mostraron que las pastas de cemento con fibras agregadas de PVA presentaron resultados mejorados comparados con las pastas de cemento que contenían fibras de PP. Este tipo de material compuesto podría ser utilizado en la elaboración de túneles, lechadas en la reparación de edificaciones, y en general, en aplicaciones que requieran la inyección o relleno debido a las características fluidas de este tipo de cementos.[EN] This work deals with the behavior of electrospun nanofibers aggregated of poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) as the secondary reinforcement for reducing the drying shrinkage of cement during the curing at early ages; these nanofibers were added as reinforcement to a matrix of ultrafine portland cement paste in two different lengths (6 mm and 12 mm); their behavior was similar to that of polypropylene (PP) fibers embedded in the same matrix. The pastes were characterized by cement laser particle sizer; compression, flexural and impact testing, and failure analysis through scanning electron microscope (SEM). Shrinkage and cracking were measured at early ages. The results showed that the cement pastes with addition of PVA fibers showed improved results compared to cement pastes containing PP fibers. Such composite materials may be useful in making tunnels, grouts for repairing buildings, and in general, in applications that require injection or filling fluid due to characteristics of this type of cement.Franco Medina, E.; Delvasto Arjona, S.; Zuluaga Corrales, HF.; Amigó Borrás, V.; Angarita Moncaleano, II. (2013). Refuerzo secundario de pastas de cemento portland ultrafino con nanofibras agregadas de poli (alcohol vinílico). Revista de la Construcción. 12(3):61-66. doi:10.4067/S0718-915X2013000300007S616612

Multifaceted role of cycling DOF factor 3 (CDF3) in the regulation of flowering time and abiotic stress responses in Arabidopsis

[EN] DNA-binding with one finger (DOF)-type transcription factors are involved in many fundamental processes in higher plants, from responses to light and phytohormones to flowering time and seed maturation, but their relation with abiotic stress tolerance is largely unknown. Here, we identify the roles of CDF3, an Arabidopsis DOF gene in abiotic stress responses and developmental processes like flowering time. CDF3 is highly induced by drought, extreme temperatures and abscisic acid treatment. The CDF3 T-DNA insertion mutant cdf3-1 is much more sensitive to drought and low temperature stress, whereas CDF3 overexpression enhances the tolerance of transgenic plants to drought, cold and osmotic stress and promotes late flowering. Transcriptome analysis revealed that CDF3 regulates a set of genes involved in cellular osmoprotection and oxidative stress, including the stress tolerance transcription factors CBFs, DREB2A and ZAT12, which involve both gigantea-dependent and independent pathways. Consistently, metabolite profiling disclosed that the total amount of some protective metabolites including -aminobutyric acid, proline, glutamine and sucrose were higher in CDF3-overexpressing plants. Taken together, these results indicate that CDF3 plays a multifaceted role acting on both flowering time and abiotic stress tolerance, in part by controlling the CBF/DREB2A-CRT/DRE and ZAT10/12 modules.We thank Dr Pablo Gonzalez-Melendi and Dr Jan Zouhar for technical handling of the confocal microscope and Dr Rafael Catala for the assistance with the low temperature stress assays. This work was supported by grants from Instituto Nacional de Investigacion y Tecnologia Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA; projects 2009-0004-C01, 2012-0008-C01), Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (projects BIO2010-1487, BFU2013-49665-EXP). A.R.C. and J.D.F. were supported by INIA pre-doctoral fellowshipsCorrales, AR.; Carrillo, L.; Lasierra, P.; Nebauer, SG.; Dominguez-Figueroa, J.; Renau-Morata, B.; Pollmann, S.... (2017). Multifaceted role of cycling DOF factor 3 (CDF3) in the regulation of flowering time and abiotic stress responses in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell & Environment. 40(5):748-764. https://doi.org/10.1111/pce.12894S748764405Achard, P., Gong, F., Cheminant, S., Alioua, M., Hedden, P., & Genschik, P. (2008). The Cold-Inducible CBF1 Factor–Dependent Signaling Pathway Modulates the Accumulation of the Growth-Repressing DELLA Proteins via Its Effect on Gibberellin Metabolism. The Plant Cell, 20(8), 2117-2129. doi:10.1105/tpc.108.058941Ahuja, I., de Vos, R. C. H., Bones, A. 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Cardiac Complications in Patients with Community-Acquired Pneumonia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies

Vicente Corrales-Medina and colleagues report estimates of the risk of cardiac complications among patients with community-acquired pneumonia from a systematic review and meta-analysis

Salinity Assay in Tomato

[EN] Tomato is one of the most important horticultural crops worldwide, and is cultivated in semi-arid regions in which soil and groundwater salinity is an increasing limitation to yield. The assessment of the responses of new cultivars to salt and the comparisons among cultivars and wild species are of great interest in tomato breeding. This assay provides a reproducible and reliable method for screening tomato responses to NaCl salinity under hydroponic conditions in growth chambers. Although NaCl is the most commonly used salt in salinity studies, other salts such as Na2SO4, MgCl2 or MgSO4, usually found in saline soils, can also be assayed (Nebauer et al., 2013). Plants can be maintained for 30-45 days under the described conditions, although significant effects on growth can be observed after 10 days, depending on the salt and concentration used.We gratefully acknowledge funding through grants from the Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA; project numbers: 2009-0004-C01, 2012-0008-C01) and the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project numbers: BIO2010-14871 and ERA-NET GEN2006-27772-C2-2).Renau Morata, B.; Sánchez Perales, M.; Medina, J.; Molina Romero, RV.; Corrales, AR.; Carrillo, L.; Fernández Nohales, P.... (2014). Salinity Assay in Tomato. Bio-protocol. 4:1-8. https://doi.org/10.21769/BioProtoc.1215S18

Randomized elimination and prolongation of ACE inhibitors and ARBs in coronavirus 2019 (REPLACE COVID) Trial Protocol

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS- CoV- 2), the virus responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID- 19), is associated with high incidence of multiorgan dysfunction and death. Angiotensin- converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), which facilitates SARS- CoV- 2 host cell entry, may be impacted by angiotensin- converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), two commonly used antihypertensive classes. In a multicenter, international randomized controlled trial that began enrollment on March 31, 2020, participants are randomized to continuation vs withdrawal of their long- term outpatient ACEI or ARB upon hospitalization with COVID- 19. The primary outcome is a hierarchical global rank score incorporating time to death, duration of mechanical ventilation, duration of renal replacement or vasopressor therapy, and multiorgan dysfunction severity. Approval for the study has been obtained from the Institutional Review Board of each participating institution, and all participants will provide informed consent. A data safety monitoring board has been assembled to provide independent oversight of the project.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163400/2/jch14011_am.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/163400/1/jch14011.pd

Salinity Assay in Arabidopsis

[EN] Salinity is an important environmental constraint to crop productivity in arid and semiarid regions of the world. The evaluation of the responses to salinity of different Arabidopsis ecotypes or transgenic lines is important to identify and investigate the role of different key genes. These new characterized genes involved in the response to salinity stress are of great interest to be incorporated in crops breeding programs. Here we provide a reproducible method to evaluate the performance of Arabidopsis lines to salinity stress by analysing primary and lateral root growth and fresh weight of plants grown under in vitro conditions in growth chambers. Even though NaCl is the most frequent used salinity tests, other salts (e.g. KCl, MgCl2) can be also evaluated by this method. Arabidopsis plants can be maintained for 15-20 days in these conditions, although effects on growth and biomass can be observed, depending on the used salt and concentration, within the first 10 days.We gratefully acknowledge funding through grants from Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA; project numbers: 2009-0004-C01, 2012-0008-C01) and the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project number: BIO2010-14871 and ERA-NET GEN2006-27772-C2-2). Additionally, we are grateful for the protocol described by Lakhssassi et al. (2012).Corrales, AR.; Carrillo, L.; González Nebauer, S.; Renau Morata, B.; Sánchez Perales, M.; Fernández Nohales, P.; Marques Signes, J.... (2014). Salinity Assay in Arabidopsis. Bio-protocol. 4(16):1-6. https://doi.org/10.21769/BioProtoc.1216S1641

Association Between Hospitalization for Pneumonia and Subsequent Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

The risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) after infection is poorly understood

Characterization of tomato Cycling Dof Factors reveals conserved and new functions in the control of flowering time and abiotic stress responses

[EN] DNA binding with One Finger (DOF) transcription factors are involved in multiple aspects of plant growth and development but their precise roles in abiotic stress tolerance are largely unknown. Here we report a group of five tomato DOF genes, homologous to Arabidopsis Cycling DOF Factors (CDFs), that function as transcriptional regulators involved in responses to drought and salt stress and flowering-time control in a gene-specific manner. SlCDF15 are nuclear proteins that display specific binding with different affinities to canonical DNA target sequences and present diverse transcriptional activation capacities in vivo. SlCDF15 genes exhibited distinct diurnal expression patterns and were differentially induced in response to osmotic, salt, heat, and low-temperature stresses. Arabidopsis plants overexpressing SlCDF1 or SlCDF3 showed increased drought and salt tolerance. In addition, the expression of various stress-responsive genes, such as COR15, RD29A, and RD10, were differentially activated in the overexpressing lines. Interestingly, overexpression in Arabidopsis of SlCDF3 but not SlCDF1 promotes late flowering through modulation of the expression of flowering control genes such as CO and FT. Overall, our data connect SlCDFs to undescribed functions related to abiotic stress tolerance and flowering time through the regulation of specific target genes and an increase in particular metabolites.This work was supported by grants from Instituto Nacional de Investigacion y Tecnologia Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA; project numbers: 2009-0004-C01, 2012-0008-C01), the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project number: BIO2010-14871), and the MERIT Project (FP7 ITN2010-264474). ARC was supported by a pre-doctoral fellowship from the INIA. The authors would like to thank Mar Gonzalez and Victor Carrasco for technical assistance and Dr Pablo Gonzalez-Melendi for technical handling of the confocal microscope. We also thank Eugenio Grau for technical assistance with RT-PCR analyses.Corrales, A.; González Nebauer, S.; Carrillo, L.; Fernández Nohales, P.; Marques Signes, J.; Renau Morata, B.; Granell, A.... (2014). Characterization of tomato Cycling Dof Factors reveals conserved and new functions in the control of flowering time and abiotic stress responses. Journal of Experimental Botany. 65(4):995-1012. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/ert451S9951012654AbuQamar, S., Luo, H., Laluk, K., Mickelbart, M. V., & Mengiste, T. (2009). Crosstalk between biotic and abiotic stress responses in tomato is mediated by theAIM1transcription factor. The Plant Journal, 58(2), 347-360. doi:10.1111/j.1365-313x.2008.03783.xAlonso, R., Oñate-Sánchez, L., Weltmeier, F., Ehlert, A., Diaz, I., Dietrich, K., … Dröge-Laser, W. (2009). 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A Case of Brevibacillus brevis Meningitis and Bacteremia

Brevibacillus species are environmental organisms that are rarely implicated as human pathogens. We present the case of postsurgical Brevibacillus brevis bacterial meningitis and an associated bacteremia after debulking surgery for a newly diagnosed pilocytic astrocytoma in a 19-year-old woman. The patient experienced clinical cure with a 4-week course of vancomycin, but her postinfectious course was complicated by the development of a pseudomeningocele that required surgical repair. To our knowledge, this is the first described case of a central nervous system infection caused by Brevibacillus brevis in the literature