Two-phase RTD-CMOS pipelined circuits

MOnostable-BIstable Logic Element (MOBILE) networks can be operated in a gate-level pipelined fashion (nanopipeline) allowing high through output. Resonant tunneling diode (RTD)-based MOBILE nanopipelined circuits have been reported using different clock schemes including a four-phase strategy and a single-phase clock scheme. In particular, significant power advantages of single-phase RTD-CMOS MOBILE circuits over pure CMOS have been shown. This letter compares the RTD-CMOS realizations using a single clock and a novel two-phase clock solution. Significant superior robustness and performance in terms of power and area are obtained for the two-phase implementations

Cognitive reserve mediates the severity of certain neuropsychological deficits related to cocaine use disorder

Introduction: The concept of cognitive reserve (CR) is being considered in the field of substance use disorder (SUD) by observing that there are individuals whose brain alterations are not related to the cognitive symptomatology they present. Aims: Our aims were to characterise the possible neuropsychological deficits in a sample of subjects with SUD compared to a control group and to determine whether the degree of CR is a mediator in the cognitive functioning of these patients. Methods: To perform these objectives, the study involved a sample of subjects with SUD in outpatient treatment and a control group. A CR questionnaire and a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment were administered, and we also collected data related to drug consumption and psychological well-being. Results: The SUD group showed poorer performance compared to the control group in several cognitive domains (attention, declarative memory, executive functions and emotional perception), as well as in psychological comfort. Interestingly, we observed that the deficits found in attention, declarative memory and executive functions were mediated by the CR level of the participants, an effect that we did not observe in the rest of the variables registered. Conclusion: Our results suggest that long-term drug consumption leads to cognitive deficits and affects the psychological well-being of the subjects. Moreover, the CR should be taken into account during the assessment and rehabilitation of patients with SUD due to its protective role against certain neuropsychological deficits.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Patrons moleculars de Legionella

Les torres de refrigeració estan implicades en la majoria de brots comunitaris de legionel·losi. En aquest treball es va estudiar la variabilitat genotípica dels patrons moleculars de Legionella pneumophila en 34 torres de refrigeració. La gran diversitat genotípica de Legionella observada en les torres de refrigeració ajuda a la investigació en els brots de legionel·losi

Complementary tunnel gate topology to reduce crosstalk effects

Tunnel transistors are one of the most attractive steep subthreshold slope devices which are being investigated to overcome power density and energy inefficiency exhibited by CMOS technology. There are design challenges associated to their distinguishing characteristic which are being addressed. In this paper the impact of the non-symmetric conduction of tunnel transistors (TFETs) on the speed of TFETs circuits under crosstalk is analyzed and a novel topology for complementary tunnel transistors gates, which mitigates the observed performance degradation without power penalties, is described and evaluated

Effects of palmitoylethanolamide in cocaine-induced behaviours

Aims. Cocaine addiction is a chronically relapsing disorder characterized by the compulsion to seek and take the drug. Previous investigations have demonstrated that several drugs of abuse, as cocaine, can alter the levels of lipid-based signalling molecules such as the N-acylethanolamines (NAEs). In addition, NAEs levels in the brain are sensitive to cocaine self-administration and extinction training. In this context, this study aimed to investigate the effect of repeated and acute palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), an endogenous NAE, on the behavioural effects of cocaine using mouse models of conditioned reward and psychomotor activation. Methods. Using male C57BL/6J mice, the ability of repeated PEA injections (1 or 10 mg/kg i.p) to modulate the development of a conditioned place preference (CPP) and behavioural sensitization (BS) induced by cocaine (20 mg/kg i.p.) was evaluated. In addition, the expression of cocaine-induced CPP and BS after acute PEA administration was also studied. Results. PEA (1 and 10 mg/kg i.p) significantly reduced the development of cocaine-induced BS, but did not modify the acquisition of cocaine-induced CPP. Furthermore, both doses of PEA were able to reduce the expression of BS and CPP. Conclusions. Altogether, these findings show that exogenous administration of PEA attenuated psychomotor activation and impaired the expression of CPP induced by cocaine. Our results may be relevant in order to understand the role of NAEs in the development and treatment of cocaine addiction.Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech. PSI2013-44901-P, AP2010-2044, FPU13/04819, CD12/0045

Reduction of adult hippocampal neurogenesis modifies brain functional connectivity and enhances cocaine-seeking in mice

Recently, adult hippocampal neurogenesis has been proposed as a putative neuroplastic mechanism involved in those behavioural processes. In this work, we studied the effect of the inhibition of adult hippocampal neurogenesis using the DNA alkylating agent temozolomide (TMZ), in cocaine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) behaviour. In a first experiment, we investigated both CPP acquisition/expression and the functional brain circuits underlying CPP expression in control and neurogenesis-reduced conditions by analysing c-Fos immunoreactivity (c-Fos IR) in hippocampal and extrahippocampal addiction-related areas. A second experiment was designed to study the involvement of adult-born neurons in the extinction and cocaine-induced reinstatement of drug-seeking in the CPP model. We performed two independent studies where adult hippocampal neurogenesis was inhibited either before or after the CPP was acquired. Our results showed that TMZ treatment had no effect on the acquisition of the cocaine-induced CPP, but c-Fos IR associated to the test trial (CPP expression) revealed an increased activity in some of the analysed brain areas in the CPP-TMZ mice. Correlational and multivariate analysis revealed that, under normal conditions, the hippocampus showed widespread functional connectivity with other brain areas and strongly contributed to the functional brain network associated with CPP expression. However, mice with reduced neurogenesis showed an alternative brain circuit. The results of the second experiment revealed that mice acquiring the cocaine-induced CPP under neurogenesis-reduced conditions were delayed in extinguishing their drug seeking behaviour. However, when neurogenesis was inhibited after CPP acquisition, extinction was not affected but an enhanced long-term CPP retention was found, suggesting that the role of the adult-born neurons may differ depending on whether they are generated before or after drug-contextual associations are established. Importantly, cocaine-induced reinstatement of CPP behaviour was increased in the TMZ mice, regardless of the time of neurogenesis inhibition.Universidad de Málaga. Andalucía Tech, Campus de Excelencia Internacional. Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (PSI2013-44901-P to L.J.S.; Subprograma RETICS Red de Trastornos Adictivos RD12/0028/0001, to F.R.F.). Author E.C-O. holds a ‘Sara Borrell’ research contract from the Spanish Carlos III Health Institute, Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiviness (grant number CD12/00455). Author D.L.G-M. holds a ‘FPU’ grant from the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports (grant number FPU13/04819)

Behavioral traits predicting cocaine-conditioned place reference in mice: role of anxiety adn the basolateral amygdala

Aims. The individual susceptibility to cocaine addiction, a factor of interest in the understanding and prevention of this disorder, may be predicted by certain behavioral traits. However, these are not usually taken into account in research, making it difficult to identify whether they are a cause or a consequence of drug use. Methods. Male C57BL/6J mice underwent a battery of behavioral tests (elevated plus maze, hole-board, novelty preference in the Y maze, episodic-like object recognition memory and forced swimming test), followed by a cocaine-conditioned place preference (CPP) training to assess the reinforcing effect of the drug. In a second study, we aimed to determine the existence of neurobiological differences between the mice expressing high or low CPP by studying the number of neurons in certain addiction-related structures: the medial prefrontal cortex, the basolateral amygdala and the ventral tegmental area. Results. Anxiety-like behaviors in the elevated plus maze successfully predicted the cocaine-CPP behavior, so that the most anxious mice were also more likely to search for cocaine in a CPP paradigm. In addition, these mice exhibited an increased number of neurons in the basolateral amygdala, a key structure in emotional response including anxiety expression, without differences in the others regions analyzed. Conclusions. Our results suggest a relevant role of anxiety as a psychological risk factor for cocaine vulnerability, with the basolateral amygdala as potential common neural center for both anxiety and addiction.Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech. PSI2013-44901-P, FPU13/04819, CD12/00455, Red de Trastornos Adictivo

Analysis of transcriptional feedback strategy for reducing interaction in gene expression processes

Advances in genetic manipulation have allowed the overexpression of proteins and insertion of circuits in cells. However, the expected behaviour can be altered by the internal competition for the limited amount of cellular resources. In this work we analyse a feedback strategy based on transcription inhibition that aims to reduce the interaction in a two-protein expression system. The results allow interpreting the effects of negative feedback on the steady-state protein levels and how the realizable protein region is affected by the feedback loop.Fil: Nuñez, Sebastián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Electrónica, Control y Procesamiento de Señales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Electrónica, Control y Procesamiento de Señales; ArgentinaFil: Garelli, Fabricio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Electrónica, Control y Procesamiento de Señales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Electrónica, Control y Procesamiento de Señales; ArgentinaFil: Picó, Jesús. Universidad Politécnica de Valencia. Departamento de Ingeniería de Sistemas y Automática; EspañaFil: de Battista, Hernán. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Electrónica, Control y Procesamiento de Señales. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Electrónica, Control y Procesamiento de Señales; Argentin

El Neuromarketing : Influencia del neuromarketing en el comportamiento del consumidor

En el presente estudio de neuromarketing se delimitará las metodologías aplicadas para identificar el comportamiento de los consumidores, se presentaran figuras que explican factores y procesos de compra que determinan la conducta del consumidor. El presente documento fue elaborado con la finalidad de ser una herramienta útil para los estudiantes de la carrera de mercadotecnia debido al grado de interés que tiene el tema con el perfil de la carrera. El tema de la investigación es el neuromarketing; es el que hace posible analizar y conocer el comportamiento del consumidor y así poder establecer las relaciones de mercado y el sub tema es la influencia del neuromarketing en el comportamiento del consumidor por medio de este podemos conocer el papel que juega el Neuromarketing en la decisión de compra del consumidor ,esto con el objetivo de saber sobre el funcionamiento del cerebro. En el desarrollo del documento se detalla meticulosamente todos y cada uno de los conceptos básicos y de buena fuente que abracan este tema, como lo son el Neuromarketing, el comportamiento del consumidor. El objetivo general de la investigación es analizar las emociones y deseos del consumidor, mediante el funcionamiento del cerebro en las decisiones de compra atraves de un estudio documental. La metodología utilizada en este estudio fue la investigación documental de la cual se consultó cinco autores de libros, donde los dos más influyentes fueron: Philip kotler y Néstor Braidot especialistas en el campo de las neurociencias y mercadotecnia, así mismos se utilizó el formato de normas apa sexta edición para la estructuración del documento Los objetivos planteados en este documento se plantearon puesto que se pudo ratificar que este tema es de mucha importancia para los estudiantes de la carrera de mercadotecnia