Plasma lipid profiles discriminate bacterial from viral infection in febrile children

Fever is the most common reason that children present to Emergency Departments. Clinical signs and symptoms suggestive of bacterial infection are often non-specific, and there is no definitive test for the accurate diagnosis of infection. The 'omics' approaches to identifying biomarkers from the host-response to bacterial infection are promising. In this study, lipidomic analysis was carried out with plasma samples obtained from febrile children with confirmed bacterial infection (n = 20) and confirmed viral infection (n = 20). We show for the first time that bacterial and viral infection produces distinct profile in the host lipidome. Some species of glycerophosphoinositol, sphingomyelin, lysophosphatidylcholine and cholesterol sulfate were higher in the confirmed virus infected group, while some species of fatty acids, glycerophosphocholine, glycerophosphoserine, lactosylceramide and bilirubin were lower in the confirmed virus infected group when compared with confirmed bacterial infected group. A combination of three lipids achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.911 (95% CI 0.81 to 0.98). This pilot study demonstrates the potential of metabolic biomarkers to assist clinicians in distinguishing bacterial from viral infection in febrile children, to facilitate effective clinical management and to the limit inappropriate use of antibiotics

Hydrocarbon remediation by Patagonian microbial consortia

Among the technologies for recovering hydrocarbon-polluted sites, bioremediation is particularly interesting for wastewater and residue treatment. In this chapter, we first introduce hydrocarbon bioremediation focusing on the hydrocarbon biodegradation capabilities of microorganisms of the marine environment. Then, the context of petroleum hydrocarbons in the Argentinean Patagonia coast is depicted, and recent advances in bioprospection of hydrocarbon-degrading microorganisms from polluted sediments are reviewed. Finally, we discuss bilge waste bioremediation by Patagonian autochthonous microbial consortium as a treatment alternative. In particular focusing on the extent of hydrocarbon biodegradation, bioremediation trials at different experimental scales and bilge waste microbial community members are reviewed.Fil: Nievas El Makte, Marina Lucrecia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; Argentina. Universidad Tecnológica Nacional. Facultad Regional Chubut; ArgentinaFil: Polifroni, Rosana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; ArgentinaFil: del Brio, Federico Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; ArgentinaFil: Sepúlveda, Marcela Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; Argentin

Distribution and bioaccumulation of butyltins in the edible gastropod Odontocymbiola magellanica

Butyltins (BTs) were found in sediments and body tissues of the edible gastropod Odontocymbiola magellanica, in which imposex has been recorded since 2000. BTs in sediments ranged from < MDL to 174.8 ng (Sn) g−1 for TBT, < MDL to 19.2 ng (Sn) g−1 for DBT, and < MDL to 71.8 ng (Sn) g−1 for MBT. In body tissues BTs varied from < MDL to 147.1, < MDL to 77.0 and < MDL to 345.3 ng (Sn) g−1 for TBT, DBT and MBT, respectively. BT concentrations were higher in gonads and digestive glands than in the albumen gland and foot (edible). The highest concentrations of BTs in both sediments and gastropods were found in the harbour area, decreasing with distance to the harbour and areas with less maritime traffic. The Biota-Sediment Accumulation Factor (BSAF) in the different organs was between 0.02–0.42, 0.09–0.35 and 0.08–5.25 for TBT, DBT and MBT, respectively. There were positive correlations between concentrations of BTs in sediments and gastropod body tissues, suggesting that xenobiotic accumulation in O. magellanica occurs mainly through contaminated sediments, rather than water or the food chain. Considering current sediment quality guidelines, our results indicate that acute toxic effects would be expected from TBT exposure, which represents a serious environmental threat for the benthic community. Although the levels of BTs found in the foot of this edible gastropod did not exceed the recommended Tolerable Daily Intake in polluted areas, they should be monitored to ensure the safety of seafood consumers. The alternative antifouling biocides Irgarol and Diuron were not detected in sediments.Fil: del Brio, Federico Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Commendatore, Marta Graciela. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Castro, Italo B.. Universidade Federal Do Rio Grande; BrasilFil: Gomes Costa, Patricia. Universidade Federal Do Rio Grande; BrasilFil: Fillmann, Gilberto. Universidade Federal Do Rio Grande; BrasilFil: Bigatti, Gregorio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia; Argentin

Situación de contaminación en las costas del sur de Brasil, Uruguay y Argentina luego de la prohibición mundial de TBT

Existen numerosos grupos de compuestos químicos que representan actualmente un potencial impacto para el ambiente. Schwarzenbach et al. (1994) estimaron que más de 70.000 compuestos orgánicos sintéticos eran utilizados con los más diversos fines; en la actualidad, se estima que exis-ten registrados más de 10 millones de compuestos sintéticos orgánicos. Entre los contaminantes orgánicos más peligrosos para el ecosistema, los biocidas usados como principio activo en las pinturas anti-incrustantes han sido motivo de preocupación en las últimas décadas (Readman 2006a). La utilización de es-tas pinturas es necesaria para proteger las embarcaciones y otras estructuras expuestas al contacto directo y prolongado con el agua de mar; sin las mismas, los procesos de corrosión se aceleran y se produce la fijación de organismos en el casco, por lo cual aumenta necesariamente la frecuencia de actividades de mantenimiento. La fijación de organismos deriva en un incremento en el consu-mo de combustible, en función de la mayor fricción entre el casco de la embar-cación y el agua. Como consecuencia, se genera un marcado aumento en los costos del transporte marítimo (Kotrikla 2009).Fil: Bigatti, Gregorio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto de Biología de Organismos Marinos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; ArgentinaFil: Averbuj, Andres. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto de Biología de Organismos Marinos; ArgentinaFil: Braga Castro, Ítalo. No especifíca;Fil: Primost, Monica Angelina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto de Biología de Organismos Marinos; ArgentinaFil: Carranza, Álvar. No especifíca;Fil: Commendatore, Marta Graciela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Fillmann, Gilberto. No especifíca;Fil: Delgado, Estela. No especifíca;Fil: Scarabino, Fabrizio. No especifíca;Fil: del Brio, Federico Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Franco, Marcos Antonio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; ArgentinaFil: Letamendía, Maite. No especifíca;Fil: Martinez, Gastón. No especifíca;Fil: Sauco, Sebastián. No especifíca;Fil: Penchaszadeh, Pablo Enrique. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentin

Il capolavoro sconosciuto

Dai modelli ad una nuova architettura. Le intenzioni contenute in vecchi plastici consunti dal tempo non muoiono con la loro simulazione didattica. E' il prodotto di un architettura collettiva sul tema del "guardare attraverso" ricomponendo, rigenerando, reimpostando, tagliando, incollando e dipingendo l'opera

First Measurement of the Total Inelastic Cross-Section of Positively-Charged Kaons on Argon at Energies Between 5.0 and 7.5 GeV

International audienceProtoDUNE Single-Phase (ProtoDUNE-SP) is a 770-ton liquid argon time projection chamber that operated in a hadron test beam at the CERN Neutrino Platform in 2018. We present a measurement of the total inelastic cross section of charged kaons on argon as a function of kaon energy using 6 and 7 GeV/$c$ beam momentum settings. The flux-weighted average of the extracted inelastic cross section at each beam momentum setting was measured to be 380$\pm$26 mbarns for the 6 GeV/$c$ setting and 379$\pm$35 mbarns for the 7 GeV/$c$ setting

Supernova Pointing Capabilities of DUNE

International audienceThe determination of the direction of a stellar core collapse via its neutrino emission is crucial for the identification of the progenitor for a multimessenger follow-up. A highly effective method of reconstructing supernova directions within the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is introduced. The supernova neutrino pointing resolution is studied by simulating and reconstructing electron-neutrino charged-current absorption on $^{40}$Ar and elastic scattering of neutrinos on electrons. Procedures to reconstruct individual interactions, including a newly developed technique called ``brems flipping'', as well as the burst direction from an ensemble of interactions are described. Performance of the burst direction reconstruction is evaluated for supernovae happening at a distance of 10 kpc for a specific supernova burst flux model. The pointing resolution is found to be 3.4 degrees at 68% coverage for a perfect interaction-channel classification and a fiducial mass of 40 kton, and 6.6 degrees for a 10 kton fiducial mass respectively. Assuming a 4% rate of charged-current interactions being misidentified as elastic scattering, DUNE's burst pointing resolution is found to be 4.3 degrees (8.7 degrees) at 68% coverage