Iron-Deficiency Anaemia (IDA): Socio-Cultural Misconceptions Intersect the Health of Vulnerable Populations in Developing Countries

Iron is a mineral that the human body uses to make hemoglobin, a protein that red blood cells need to carry oxygen from the lungs to all parts of the body. The lack of adequate iron in the blood is known as iron deficiency, which if experienced in greater proportions, can lead to anaemia. Iron-deficiency anaemia is generally understood as a nutritional deficiency that can be treated by diets of food rich in iron content or the ingestion of iron supplements; yet lack of information, restricted access to bioavailable iron-rich foods, minimal awareness of anaemia’s detrimental effects on children’s cognitive development, culturally inaccurate understandings of anaemia consequences, and non-compliance for the ingestion of iron pills; illuminates a greater public health issue to overcome in the developing world than simply focusing on the massive distribution of iron supplements. A holistic and culturally-driven perspective of iron-deficiency anaemia is necessary to adjust our current practices of health counseling, distribution of complete information regarding iron supplements, informed and culturally-sensitive diets, as well as ensuring the delivery of substantial programs of prevention and follow-up for iron-deficiency anaemia

Validación de un nuevo método de preconcentración y medición de mercurio en sedimentos utilizando materiales sol-gel dopados con extractantes sulfurados

El mercurio es un metal pesado altamente tóxico presente en el ambiente por causas naturales o antropogénicas. El mercurio contenido en los cuerpos receptores de agua tiende a precipitarse y acumularse en los sedimentos. Por lo tanto, las mediciones de mercurio en sedimentos representan un buen indicativo de la calidad del ecosistema. En este trabajo se presentan las diferentes etapas involucradas en el desarrollo de un nuevo método de separación, preconcentración y medición de mercurio en sedimentos con contenidos naturales de este elemento. La separación y preconcentración se realizó mediante el uso de nuevos materiales sorbentes preparados a través del proceso sol-gel utilizando CYANEX 471X (sulfuro de triisobutilfosfina) y CYANEX 301 (ácido bis (2,4,4-trimetilpentil) ditiofosfínico) como extractantes de mercurio. Se describe la optimización de la etapa de acoplamiento de los materiales empacados en columna, utilizando un sistema automatizado de inyección de flujo, para conectarla en línea con un espectrómetro de absorción atómica donde se realizó la medición de mercurio por generación de vapor frío. Como parte importante en el desarrollo de un nuevo método analítico, se encuentra su validación, la cual es materia de este trabajo. Por lo tanto, una vez optimizado, el método fue validado evaluando los siguientes parámetros: robustez, intervalo lineal y de trabajo, límite de detección y de cuantificación, selectividad, exactitud (repetibilidad y veracidad) e incertidumbre. El método fue aplicado para la medición de mercurio en un sedimento de presa con contenidos naturales de este analito. Los resultados se compararon con los obtenidos mediante espectrometría de masas con plasma inductivamente acoplado (ICP-MS) y espectrometría de fluorescencia atómica con generación de vapor frío (CV-AFS

'Sample-in, answer-out'? Evaluation and comprehensive analysis of the Unyvero P50 pneumonia assay

This study aimed to evaluate the performance of the Unyvero P50 pneumonia assay, the first ‘sample-in, answer-out’ system for rapid identification of pathogens and antibiotic resistance markers directly from clinical specimens. Overall, Unyvero P50 displayed very good sensitivity (>95%); however, specificity was low (33%) mainly because 40% of the specimens were reported as normal flora. Specifically, one or more pathogens were identified in 28 of them. From a detailed analysis of 42 specimens selected at random, 76% of the additionally reported pathogens were confirmed present in primary specimens. Detection of selected resistance markers was compared to routine phenotypic susceptibility testing, supplemented with Checkpoints microarray system, PCR and sequencing. Concordance was mixed, primarily due to issues with panel’s choice of markers and detection of some intrinsic beta-lactamases. Finally, we offer a critical analysis of the assay’s microbial panel and resistance markers and provide suggestions for improvement

Isolation of a New Mexican Strain of Bacillus subtilis with Antifungal and Antibacterial Activities

Although several strains of B. subtilis with antifungal activity have been isolated worldwide, to date there are no published reports regarding the isolation of a native B. subtilis strain from strawberry plants in Mexico. A native bacterium (Bacillus subtilis 21) demonstrated in vitro antagonistic activity against different plant pathogenic fungi. Under greenhouse conditions, it was shown that plants infected with Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium verticillioides and treated with B. subtilis 21 produced augment in the number of leaves per plant and an increment in the length of healthy leaves in comparison with untreated plants. In addition, B. subtilis 21 showed activity against pathogenic bacteria. Secreted proteins by B. subtilis 21 were studied, detecting the presence of proteases and bacteriocin-like inhibitor substances that could be implicated in its antagonistic activity. Chitinases and zwittermicin production could not be detected. Then, B. subtilis 21 could potentially be used to control phytopathogenic fungi that infect strawberry plants

A Whole Cell Assay to Measure Caspase-6 Activity by Detecting Cleavage of Lamin A/C

Caspase-6 is a cysteinyl protease implicated in neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease making it an attractive target for therapeutic intervention. A greater understanding of the role of caspase-6 in disease has been hampered by a lack of suitable cellular assays capable of specifically detecting caspase-6 activity in an intact cell environment. This is mainly due to the use of commercially available peptide substrates and inhibitors which lack the required specificity to facilitate development of this type of assay. We report here a 384-well whole-cell chemiluminescent ELISA assay that monitors the proteolytic degradation of endogenously expressed lamin A/C during the early stages of caspase-dependent apoptosis. The specificity of lamin A/C proteolysis by caspase-6 was demonstrated against recombinant caspase family members and further confirmed in genetic deletion studies. In the assay, plasma membrane integrity remained intact as assessed by release of lactate dehydrogenase from the intracellular environment and the exclusion of cell impermeable peptide inhibitors, despite the induction of an apoptotic state. The method described here is a robust tool to support drug discovery efforts targeting caspase-6 and is the first reported to specifically monitor endogenous caspase-6 activity in a cellular context

Chemical Defense by the Native Winter Ant (Prenolepis imparis) against the Invasive Argentine Ant (Linepithema humile)

The invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile) is established worldwide and displaces native ant species. In northern California, however, the native winter ant (Prenolepis imparis) persists in invaded areas. We found that in aggressive interactions between the two species, P. imparis employs a potent defensive secretion. Field observations were conducted at P. imparis nest sites both in the presence and absence of L. humile. These observations suggested and laboratory assays confirmed that P. imparis workers are more likely to secrete when outnumbered by L. humile. Workers of P. imparis were also more likely to secrete near their nest entrances than when foraging on trees. One-on-one laboratory trials showed that the P. imparis secretion is highly lethal to L. humile, causing 79% mortality. The nonpolar fraction of the secretion was chemically analyzed with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and found to be composed of long-chain and cyclic hydrocarbons. Chemical analysis of dissected P. imparis workers showed that the nonpolar fraction is derived from the Dufour's gland. Based on these conclusions, we hypothesize that this chemical defense may help P. imparis to resist displacement by L. humile

Caspase activation precedes and leads to tangles

Studies of post-mortem tissue have shown that the location of fibrillar tau deposits, called neurofibrillary tangles (NFT), matches closely with regions of massive neuronal death(1,2), severe cytological abnormalities(3), and markers of caspase activation and apoptosis(4–6), leading to the idea that tangles cause neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease and tau-related frontotemporal dementia. However, using in vivo multiphoton imaging to observe tangles and activation of executioner caspases in living tau transgenic mice (Tg4510 strain), we find the opposite: caspase activation occurs first, and precedes tangle formation by hours to days. New tangles form within a day. After a new tangle forms, the neuron remains alive and caspase activity seems to be suppressed. Similarly, introduction of wild-type 4-repeat tau (Tau-4R) into wild-type animals triggered caspase activation, tau truncation and tau aggregation. Adeno-associated virus-mediated expression of a construct mimicking caspase-cleaved tau into wild-type mice led to the appearance of intracellular aggregates, tangle-related conformational- and phospho-epitopes, and the recruitment of full-length endogenous tau to the aggregates. On the basis of these data, we propose a new model in which caspase activation cleaves tau to initiate tangle formation, then truncated tau recruits normal tau to misfold and form tangles. Because tangle-bearing neurons are long-lived, we suggest that tangles are ‘off pathway’ to acute neuronal death. Soluble tau species, rather than fibrillar tau, may be the critical toxic moiety underlying neurodegeneration