El castaño y sus procesos de rizogénesis.

Sin resume

Shell structure at N=28 near the dripline: spectroscopy of 42^{42}Si, 43^{43}P and 44^{44}S

Measurements of the N=28 isotones 42Si, 43P and 44S using one- and two-proton knockout reactions from the radioactive beam nuclei 44S and 46Ar are reported. The knockout reaction cross sections for populating 42Si and 43P and a 184 keV gamma-ray observed in 43P establish that the d_{3/2} and s_{1/2} proton orbits are nearly degenerate in these nuclei and that there is a substantial Z=14 subshell closure separating these two orbits from the d_{5/2} orbit. The increase in the inclusive two-proton knockout cross section from 42Si to 44S demonstrates the importance of the availability of valence protons for determining the cross section. New calculations of the two-proton knockout reactions that include diffractive effects are presented. In addition, it is proposed that a search for the d_{5/2} proton strength in 43P via a higher statistics one-proton knockout experiment could help determine the size of the Z=14 closure.Comment: Phys. Rev. C, in pres

Ultra high performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for cyclosporine a quantification in biological samples and lipid nanosystems

Cyclosporine A (CyA) is an immunosuppressant cyclic undecapeptide used for the prevention of organ transplant rejection and in the treatment of several autoimmune disorders. An ultra high performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method (UHPLC–MS/MS) to quantify CyA in lipid nanosystems and mouse biological matrices (whole blood, kidneys, lungs, spleen, liver, heart, brain, stomach and intestine) was developed and fully validated. Chromatographic separation was performed on an Acquity UPLC® BEH C18 column with a gradient elution consisting of methanol and 2 mM ammonium acetate aqueous solution containing 0.1% formic acid at a flow rate of 0.6 mL/min. Amiodarone was used as internal standard (IS). Retention times of IS and CyA were 0.69 min and 1.09 min, respectively. Mass spectrometer operated in electrospray ionization positive mode (ESI+) and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transitions were detected, m/z 1220.69 → 1203.7 for CyA and m/z 646 → 58 for IS. The extraction method from biological samples consisted of a simple protein precipitation with 10% trichloroacetic acid aqueous solution and acetonitrile and 5 μL of supernatant were directly injected into the UHPLC–MS/MS system. Linearity was observed between 0.001 μg/mL–2.5 μg/mL (r ≥ 0.99) in all matrices. The precision expressed in coefficient of variation (CV) was below 11.44% and accuracy in bias ranged from −12.78% to 7.99% including methanol and biological matrices. Recovery in all cases was above 70.54% and some matrix effect was observed. CyA was found to be stable in post-extraction whole blood and liver homogenate samples exposed for 6 h at room temperature and 72 h at 4 °C. The present method was successfully applied for quality control of lipid nanocarriers as well as in vivo studies in BALB/c mice

Residual safety for flexural bending of slabs with corrosion in the joists

[EN] A large number of slabs with severe corrosion problems at the precast joists have appeared in Spain, often increased by the use of aluminous cement. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the residual safety for the bending mechanisms in the most common cases of damaged slabs, to decide the magnitude of the needed intervention. The damaged slabs have been evaluated as a part of an entire building, since the boundary conditions are essential for obtaining actual behavior, taking into account the different phases of the construction process and deterioration over time. A major cracking in the constructive elements are not frequently observed in inspections, and it is found that there is a sufficient residual safety to undertake the rehabilitation works without exceptional measures.[ES] A nivel nacional han aparecido un gran número de forjados de viguetas prefabricadas con graves problemas de corrosión, potenciada en muchas ocasiones por el empleo del cemento aluminoso. El propósito de este trabajo es evaluar la seguridad residual de los mecanismos de flexión en los casos más habituales de forjados dañados, para decidir la magnitud de la intervención necesaria. Los forjados dañados se han evaluado formando parte de un edificio completo, ya que las condiciones de contorno son fundamentales para la obtención del Comportamiento real, teniendo en cuenta las distintas fases del proceso constructivo y de deterioro en el tiempo. En bastantes ocasiones en la inspección no se observa una fisuración importante en los elementos constructivos, como solados o tabiquería, y hemos comprobado que existe una seguridad residual suficiente para acometer las obras de rehabilitación sin necesidad de adoptar medidas excepcionales.Gil Benso, E.; Vercher Sanchis, JM.; Mas Tomas, MDLA.; Fenollosa Forner, EJ. (2015). Seguridad remanente a flexión en forjados con corrosión en las viguetas. Informes de la Construcción. 67(537):1-10. doi:10.3989/ic.13.084S11067537Morán Cabré, F. (1994). Estimación de la seguridad residual en estructuras de hormigón con problemas patológicos. Informes de la Construcción, 46(434), 39-51. doi:10.3989/ic.1994.v46.i434.1107(2) Giménez, E. (2007). Estudio experimental y numérico de soportes de hormigón armado reforzados con perfiles metálicos sometidos a esfuerzos de compresión simple (Tesis Doctoral). Valencia: Universidad Politécnica de Valencia.(3) Vieitez, J.A., Ramírez, J.L. (1984). Patología de la Construcción en Espa-a: Aproximación Estadística. Resumen de Tesis Doctoral. Informes de la Construcción, 36(364): 5-15.(4) Instituto Valenciano de la Edificación (IVE). (2008). Guía para la Inspección y Evaluación Preliminar de estructuras de hormigón en edificios existentes. Serie guías de la calidad. Valencia: Generalitat Valenciana - Conselleria de Medi Ambient, Aigua, Urbanisme i Habitatge.(5) Instituto Valenciano de la Edificación (IVE). (2008). Experiencia en Inspección de estructuras en edificios. Comunidad Valenciana 1991-2008. Serie guías de la calidad. Valencia: Generalitat Valenciana - Conselleria de Medi Ambient, Aigua, Urbanisme i Habitatge.(6) Grupo Espa-ol del Hormigón (GEHO). (1994). Reparación y refuerzo de estructuras hormigón. Guía FIP de buena práctica. Boletín GEHO, 14. Madrid.Evangelista, A. D., Leonardis, A. D., Valente, C., & Zuccarino, L. (2011). Design and testing of corrosion damaged prestressed concrete joists: the Pescara Benchmark. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 305, 012081. doi:10.1088/1742-6596/305/1/012081Coronelli, D., & Gambarova, P. (2004). Structural Assessment of Corroded Reinforced Concrete Beams: Modeling Guidelines. Journal of Structural Engineering, 130(8), 1214-1224. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9445(2004)130:8(1214)Foster, S. ., Bailey, C. ., Burgess, I. ., & Plank, R. . (2004). Experimental behaviour of concrete floor slabs at large displacements. Engineering Structures, 26(9), 1231-1247. doi:10.1016/j.engstruct.2004.04.002(11) Ministerio de Vivienda. (2006, 28 de marzo). Código Técnico de la Edificación (CTE). Boletín Oficial del Estado, nº 74: 11816-11831. Madrid, Espa-a.(12) Bangash, M.Y.H. (1989). Concrete and concrete structures: Numerical modeling and applications. London - New York: Elsevier Applied Science.(13) Willam, K.J., Warnke, E.D. (1975). Constitutive model for the triaxial behavior of concrete. En Proceedings of the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering, ISMES, 19: 1-30. Bergamo, Italy.(14) Vercher, J. (2013). Seguridad residual en los forjados con corrosión severa (Tesis Doctoral). Valencia: Universidat Politècnica de València.Cubel, F., Mas, A., Vercher, J., & Gil, E. (2012). Design and construction recommendations for brick enclosures with continuous air chamber. Construction and Building Materials, 36, 151-164. doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2012.04.128Brencich, A., & Felice, G. de. (2009). Brickwork under eccentric compression: Experimental results and macroscopic models. Construction and Building Materials, 23(5), 1935-1946. doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2008.09.004Dilrukshi, K. G. S., Dias, W. P. S., & Rajapakse, R. K. N. D. (2010). Numerical modelling of cracks in masonry walls due to thermal movements in an overlying slab. Engineering Structures, 32(5), 1411-1422. doi:10.1016/j.engstruct.2010.01.019(18) Fanning, P. (2001). Nonlinear models of reinforced and post-tensioned concrete beams. Electronic Journal of Structural Engineering, 2: 111-119.(19) Tavio, T., Tata, A. (2009). Predicting nonlinear behavior and stress-strain relationship of rectangular confined reinforced concrete columns with Ansys. Civil Engineering Dimension, 11(1): 23-31.Rodriguez, J., Ortega, L., & Casal, J. (1997). Load carrying capacity of concrete structures with corroded reinforcement. Construction and Building Materials, 11(4), 239-248. doi:10.1016/s0950-0618(97)00043-

First-line single-agent regorafenib in frail patients with metastatic colorectal cancer: a pilot phase II study of the Spanish Cooperative Group for the Treatment of Digestive Tumours (TTD)

BackgroundTreatment of frail patients with advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) is controversial. This pilot phase II trial aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of regorafenib when administered in first-line to frail patients with advanced CRC.MethodsFrail patients without prior advanced colorectal cancer treatment were included in the study. Definition of frailty was defined per protocol based on dependency criteria, presence of chronic comorbid pathologies and/or geriatric features. Main objective: to assess progression-free survival (PFS) rate at 6months. Treatment consisted of 28-daycycles of orally administered regorafenib 160mg/day (3 weeks followed by 1 week rest).ResultsForty-seven patients were included in the study. Median age was 81years (range 63-89). Frailty criteria: dependency was observed in 26 patients (55%), comorbidities in 27 (57%) and geriatric features in 18 (38%). PFS rate at 6months was 45% (95% confidence interval [CI] 30-60]. Median PFS was 5.6months (95%CI 2.7-8.4). Median overall survival (OS) was 16months (95%CI 7.8-24). Complete response, partial response and stable disease were observed in one, two and 21 patients respectively (objective response rate 6.4%; disease control rate 51%). Thirty-nine patients (83%) experienced grade 3-4 adverse events (AEs). The most common grade 3-4 AEs were hypertension (15 patients; 32%), asthenia (14; 30%), hypophosphatemia (6; 13%); diarrhea (4; 8%), hand-foot-skin reaction (4; 8%). There were two toxic deaths (4.2%) (grade 5 rectal bleeding and death not further specified). Dose reduction was required in 26 patients (55%) and dose-delays in 13 patients (28%).ConclusionsThe study did not meet the pre-specified boundary of 55% PFS rate at 6months. Toxicity observed (83% patients experienced grade 3 and 4 AEs) preclude its current use in clinical practice on this setting. Disease control rate and overall survival results are interesting and might warrant further investigation to identify those who benefit from this approach.Trial registrationThis trial was prospectively registered at EudraCT (2013-000236-94). Date of trial registration: April 9th, 2013

Lipid nanoparticles for cyclosporine A administration: development, characterization, and in vitro evaluation of their immunosuppression activity

Cyclosporine A (CsA) is an immunosuppressant commonly used in transplantation for prevention of organ rejection as well as in the treatment of several autoimmune disorders. Although commercial formulations are available, they have some stability, bioavailability, and toxicity related problems. Some of these issues are associated with the drug or excipients and others with the dosage forms. With the aim of overcoming these drawbacks, lipid nanoparticles (LN) have been proposed as an alternative, since excipients are biocompatible and also a large amount of surfactants and organic solvents can be avoided. CsA was successfully incorporated into LN using the method of hot homogenization followed by ultrasonication. Three different formulations were optimized for CsA oral administration, using different surfactants: Tween® 80, phosphatidylcholine, taurocholate and Pluronic® F127 (either alone or mixtures). Freshly prepared Precirol nanoparticles showed mean sizes with a narrow size distribution ranging from 121 to 202 nm, and after freeze-drying were between 163 and 270 nm, depending on the stabilizer used. Surface charge was negative in all LN developed. High CsA entrapment efficiency of approximately 100% was achieved. Transmission electron microscopy was used to study the morphology of the optimized LN. Also, the crystallinity of the nanoparticles was studied by X-ray powder diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry. The presence of the drug in LN surfaces was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The CsA LN developed preserved their physicochemical properties for 3 months when stored at 4°C. Moreover, when the stabilizer system was composed of two surfactants, the LN formulations were also stable at room temperature. Finally, the new CsA formulations showed in vitro dose-dependent immunosuppressive effects caused by the inhibition of IL-2 levels secreted from stimulated Jurkat cells. The findings obtained in this paper suggest that new lipid nanosystems are a good alternative to produce physicochemically stable CsA formulations for oral administration

Deducing the \u3csup\u3e237\u3c/sup\u3eU(\u3cem\u3en,f\u3c/em\u3e) Cross Section Using the Surrogate Ratio Method

We have deduced the cross section for 237U(n, f) over an equivalent neutron energy range from 0 to 20 MeV using the surrogate ratio method. A 55 MeV4He beam from the 88 inch cyclotron at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory was used to induce fission in the following reactions: 238U(α, αf) and 236U(α, αf). The 238U reaction was a surrogate for 237U(n, f), and the 236U reaction was used as a surrogate for 235U(n, f). Scattered α particles were detected in a fully depleted segmented silicon telescope array over an angle range of 35° to 60° with respect to the beam axis. The fission fragments were detected in a third independent silicon detector located at backward angles between 106° and 131°

Statistical \u3cem\u3eγ\u3c/em\u3e Rays in the Analysis of Surrogate Nuclear Reactions

The surrogate nuclear reaction method is being applied in many efforts to indirectly determine neutron-induced reaction cross sections on short-lived isotopes. This technique aims to extract accurate (n,γ) cross sections from measured decay properties of the compound nucleus of interest (created using a different reaction). The advantages and limitations of a method that identifies the γ-ray decay channel by detecting any high-energy (“statistical”) γ ray emitted during the relaxation of the compound nucleus were investigated. Data collected using the Silicon Telescope Array for Reaction Studies and Livermore-Berkeley Array for Collaborative Experiments silicon and germanium detector arrays were used to study the decay of excited gadolinium nuclei following inelastic proton scattering. In many cases, this method of identifying the γ-ray decay channel can simplify the experimental data collection and greatly improve the detection efficiency for γ-ray cascades. The results show sensitivity to angular-momentum differences between the surrogate reaction and the desired (n,γ) reaction similar to an analysis performed using low-lying discrete transitions even when ratios of cross sections are considered