Importancia de los obesógenos en la adipogénesis y obesidad

Overweight and obesity incidence and prevalence have increased during the last decades. Although the energy intake/expenditure balance is a key factor in the obesity induction and development, other factors seem clearly implicated. In fact the environmental obesogens hypothesis has gain importance in the last years, as different chemical agents have been found to adipogenics and obesogenics in animal models and humans. In this review we study the role of environmental chemical polluting as endocrine disruptors and their relationship with obesity. Major obesogen types, e.g. diethylstilbestrol, bisphenol A, tin-organic derived compounds, genistein and ftalates are described. Their differential characteristics and action mechanisms are defined. The review ends with some considerations on the need to get knowledge on such abundant compounds.La incidencia y prevalencia de sobrepeso y obesidad ha experimentado un gran incremento en las últimas décadas. Aunque el balance entre ingreso y gasto energético es clave en la inducción y establecimiento de la obesidad, otros factores parecen estar netamente implicados. A este respecto la hipótesis de los obesógenos ambientales, ha ganado credibilidad en los años recientes, al identificarse agentes químicos que promueven la adipogénesis y obesidad en animales y humanos. En esta revisión, se hace un estudio de los disruptores endocrinos que son sustancias químicas contaminantes del medio ambiente y su relación con la obesidad. Se revisan los principales tipos de obesógenos, p.ej. dietilestilbestrol, bisfenol A, los compuestos orgánicos derivados del estaño, la genisteína y los ftalatos y sus características diferenciales y mecanismos de acción. Se ultima con unas reflexiones sobre la necesidad de profundizar en el conocimiento de estos compuestos tan abundantes hoy en día

A molecular model to explain the controlled release from SBA-15 functionalized with APTES

A molecular model with the approximate pore diameter of SBA-15 was constructed for the first time to investigate the effect of functionalize the matrix with 3-aminopropyl-triethoxy-silane (APTES) in the release of Chicago Sky Blue 6B (CSB). It was expected that the positively charged amino groups of APTES could interact with the negatively charged sulphonic groups of CSB allowing controlling the release process. Indeed the experimental study showed that the release kinetics of CSB from SBA-15-APTES is two orders of magnitude smaller than from native SBA-15. However molecular modelling calculations investigating the possible interactions of APTES and SBA-15 yield unexpected results. In the model including only the condensation between the silanol groups of SBA-15 and APTES, the calculated interaction energy of CSB was quite similar than with the model of native SBA-15. However when additional electrostatic interactions of the -NH2 groups of APTES with the mesoporous matrix were modelled the mesoporous channels underwent a considerable deformation. These results point to the structure deformation as the cause of the greater retention of CSB in SBA-15-APTES and warn about the special features of AFTES when used to functionalize mesoporous silica materials. The model built in this paper could be used to construct predictive models in analogous drug delivery systems. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles as a new carrier methodology in the controlled release of the active components in a polypill

Polypill is a medication designed for preventing heart attacks through a combination of drugs. Current formulations contain blood pressure-lowering drugs and others, such statins or acetylsalicylic acid. These drugs exhibit different physical chemical features, and consequently different release kinetics. Therefore, the concentration in plasma of some of them after the release process can be out of the therapeutic range. This paper investigates a new methodology for the control dosage of a polypill recently reported containing hydrochlorothiazide, amlodipine, losartan and simvastatin in a 12.5/2.5/25/40 weight ratio. The procedure is based onmesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN) with MCM-41 structure (MSN-41) used as carrier, aimed to control release of the four drugs included in the polypill. In vitro release data were obtained by HPLC and the curves adjusted with a kinetic model. To explain the release results, a molecular model was built to determine the drug-matrix interactions, and quantum mechanical calculations were performed to obtain the electrostatic properties of each drug. Amlodipine, losartan and simvastatin were released from the polypill-MSN-41 system in a controlled way. This would be a favourable behavior when used clinically because avoid too quick pressure decrease. However, the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide was quickly released from our system in the first minutes, as is needed in hypertensive urgencies. In addition, an increase in the stability of amlodipine and hydrochlorothiazide occurred in the polypill-MSN-41 system. Therefore, the new way of polypill dosage proposed can result in a safer and effective treatment. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Mitocondria y apoptosis

La Mitocondria desempeña un papel clave en la activación de la apoptosis en las células de mamíferos. Los miembros de la familia de proteínas de Bcl-2 regulan la liberación de proteínas como Cit c del espacio situado entre la membrana interna y la membrana externa de la mitocondria. Una vez en el citosol estas proteínas activan a las caspasas, un tipo de proteasas que son capaces de degradar y desmantelar el contenido celular. Dado que la apoptosis es un proceso conservado evolutivamente comparamos y contrastamos los procesos de apoptosis en mamíferos con los de Caenorhabditis elegans y Drosophila melanogaster. Aunque el papel central de la mitocondria en la apoptosis está bien establecida en mamíferos no está tan claro que la mitocondria desempeñe ese mismo papel en nematodos y moscas. También surge la cuestión de cuando, durante la evolución, la mitocondria pasó a desempeñar un papel tan esencial en el proceso de apoptosis. Dada la existencia de conservación funcional entre la proteína de C. elegans, ced-9, y la proteína Bcl- 2 de mamíferos, resulta paradójico que proteínas homólogas de Bcl-2 en Drosophila no desempeñen asimismo un papel esencial en la inducción de apoptosis en la mosca

Aprendizaje autónomo del Laboratorio de Química Inorgánica mediante el uso de TICs

Se ha creado un Entorno Virtual de Enseñanza y Aprendizaje (EVEA) circunscrito a la realización de prácticas en el Laboratorio de Química Inorgánica orientado a incrementar el grado de interacción entre el alumno con algún tipo de dificultad auditiva o dificultad idiomática y el profesor o el resto de sus compañeros mediante el uso conjunto del material elaborado y el uso de sistemas basados en redes sociales, mensajerías

Nanoantibiotics Based in Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: New Formulations for Bacterial Infection Treatment.

This review focuses on the design of mesoporous silica nanoparticles for infection treat‐ment. Written within a general context of contributions in the field, this manuscript highlights the major scientific achievements accomplished by Prof. Vallet‐Regí’s research group in the field of silica‐based mesoporous materials for drug delivery. The aim is to bring out her pivotal role on the envisage of a new era of nanoantibiotics by using a deep knowledge on mesoporous materials as drug delivery systems and applying cutting‐edge technologies to design and engineer advanced nanoweapons to fight infection. This review has been divided in two main sections: the first part overviews the influence of the textural and chemical properties of silica‐based mesoporous materials on the loading and release of antibiotic molecules, depending on the host‐guest interactions.Furthermore, this section also remarks the potential of molecular modelling in the design and comprehension of the performance of these release systems. The second part describes the more recent advances in the use of mesoporous silica nanoparticles as versatile nanoplatforms for the development of novel targeted and stimuli‐responsive antimicrobial nanoformulations for future application in personalized infection therapies