A case of concomitant pulmonary tuberculosis and mucormycosis in an insulin-dependent diabetic patient

Conditions, where the patient's immune system is compromised are the main risk factor for mucormycosis. Approximately 23% of the world's population is estimated to have a latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and more than 10 million new cases were estimated in 2017. Pulmonary mucormycosis and tuberculosis co-infections are very rare. We present the case of a 56-year-old insulin-dependent diabetic patient with a pulmonary mucormycosis and tuberculosis co-infection. While the patient did not suffer from ketoacidosis, she had poor glycemic control. A chest X-ray and a computed tomography showed nodular and cavitary lesions in both lungs. The patient was diagnosed through a biopsy of the bronchial mucosa and an RT-PCR for M. tuberculosis from bronchoalveolar lavage. The patient was treated with the recommended 4-drug regimen for TB (i.e. isoniazid, rifampin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol); concurrently, amphotericin B deoxycholate was administered to treat the mucormycosis infection. Thirty days after initial hospital admission the patient underwent a lobectomy on the right lung. The case described here is only the sixth case reported in the literature of concomitant pulmonary tuberculosis and mucormycosis and the third case associated with a TB and mucormycosis co-infection involving an uncontrolled DM patient to survive

Trypanosoma rangeli is phylogenetically closer to Old World trypanosomes than to Trypanosoma cruzi.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record.Trypanosoma rangeli and Trypanosoma cruzi are generalist trypanosomes sharing a wide range of mammalian hosts; they are transmitted by triatomine bugs, and are the only trypanosomes infecting humans in the Neotropics. Their origins, phylogenetic relationships, and emergence as human parasites have long been subjects of interest. In the present study, taxon-rich analyses (20 trypanosome species from bats and terrestrial mammals) using ssrRNA, glycosomal glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (gGAPDH), heat shock protein-70 (HSP70) and Spliced Leader RNA sequences, and multilocus phylogenetic analyses using 11 single copy genes from 15 selected trypanosomes, provide increased resolution of relationships between species and clades, strongly supporting two main sister lineages: lineage Schizotrypanum, comprising T. cruzi and bat-restricted trypanosomes, and Tra[Tve-Tco] formed by T. rangeli, Trypanosoma vespertilionis and Trypanosoma conorhini clades. Tve comprises European T. vespertilionis and African T. vespertilionis-like of bats and bat cimicids characterised in the present study and Trypanosoma sp. Hoch reported in monkeys and herein detected in bats. Tco included the triatomine-transmitted tropicopolitan T. conorhini from rats and the African NanDoum1 trypanosome of civet (carnivore). Consistent with their very close relationships, Tra[Tve-Tco] species shared highly similar Spliced Leader RNA structures that were highly divergent from those of Schizotrypanum. In a plausible evolutionary scenario, a bat trypanosome transmitted by cimicids gave origin to the deeply rooted Tra[Tve-Tco] and Schizotrypanum lineages, and bat trypanosomes of diverse genetic backgrounds jumped to new hosts. A long and independent evolutionary history of T. rangeli more related to Old World trypanosomes from bats, rats, monkeys and civets than to Schizotrypanum spp., and the adaptation of these distantly related trypanosomes to different niches of shared mammals and vectors, is consistent with the marked differences in transmission routes, life-cycles and host-parasite interactions, resulting in T. cruzi (but not T. rangeli) being pathogenic to humans.This study was supported by grants awarded to MMGT and EPC from CNPq (National Council for Scientific and Technological Development) PROAFRICA, PROSUL and UNIVERSAL programs, CAPES (Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel) PNIPB, PNPD and PROTAX programs, and FAPESP (São Paulo Research Foundation; process 2016/07487-0). Genome sequencing was supported by the Assembling the Tree of Life (ATOL) Project of the National Science Foundation, USA (NSF DEB-0830056), and TCC-USP (Trypanosomatid Culture Collection of the University of São Paulo) projects. OEA received PhD fellowships from CNPq (PROTAX) and COLCIENCIAS (Administrative Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, Colombia); PAO is a postdoctoral fellow of CAPES (PNPD); LL and AGCM are supported by a postdoctoral fellowship from CAPES (PROTAX)

Demon-like Algorithmic Quantum Cooling and its Realization with Quantum Optics

The simulation of low-temperature properties of many-body systems remains one of the major challenges in theoretical and experimental quantum information science. We present, and demonstrate experimentally, a universal cooling method which is applicable to any physical system that can be simulated by a quantum computer. This method allows us to distill and eliminate hot components of quantum states, i.e., a quantum Maxwell's demon. The experimental implementation is realized with a quantum-optical network, and the results are in full agreement with theoretical predictions (with fidelity higher than 0.978). These results open a new path for simulating low-temperature properties of physical and chemical systems that are intractable with classical methods.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, plus supplementarity material

Neural Network Parameterizations of Electromagnetic Nucleon Form Factors

The electromagnetic nucleon form-factors data are studied with artificial feed forward neural networks. As a result the unbiased model-independent form-factor parametrizations are evaluated together with uncertainties. The Bayesian approach for the neural networks is adapted for chi2 error-like function and applied to the data analysis. The sequence of the feed forward neural networks with one hidden layer of units is considered. The given neural network represents a particular form-factor parametrization. The so-called evidence (the measure of how much the data favor given statistical model) is computed with the Bayesian framework and it is used to determine the best form factor parametrization.Comment: The revised version is divided into 4 sections. The discussion of the prior assumptions is added. The manuscript contains 4 new figures and 2 new tables (32 pages, 15 figures, 2 tables

Superposition operators between weighted Banach spaces of analytic functions of controlled growth

The final publication is available at Springer via: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00605-012-0441-6[EN] We characterize the entire functions which transform a weighted Banach space of holomorphic functions on the disc of type H∞ into another such space by superposition. We also show that all the superposition operators induced by such entire functions map bounded sets into bounded sets and are continuous. Superposition operators that map bounded sets into relatively compact sets are also considered. © 2012 Springer-Verlag Wien.The research of Bonet was partially supported by MICINN and FEDER Project MTM2010-15200, by GV project Prometeo/2008/101, and by ACOMP/2012/090. The research of Vukotic was partially supported by MICINN grant MTM2009-14694-C02-01, Spain and by the European ESF Network HCAA ("Harmonic and Complex Analysis and Its Applications").Bonet Solves, JA.; Vukotić, D. (2013). Superposition operators between weighted Banach spaces of analytic functions of controlled growth. Monatshefte für Mathematik. 170(3-4):311-323. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00605-012-0441-6S3113231703-4Álvarez, V., Márquez, M.A., Vukotić, D.: Superposition operators between the Bloch space and Bergman spaces. Ark. Mat. 42, 205–216 (2004)Appell, J., Zabrejko, P.P.: Nonlinear Superposition Operators, Cambridge Tracts in Mathematics 95. Cambridge University Press, London (1990)Appell, J., Zabrejko, P.P.: Remarks on the superposition operator problem in various function spaces. Complex Var. Elliptic Equ. 55(8–10), 727–737 (2010)Bierstedt, K.D., Bonet, J., Galbis, A.: Weighted spaces of holomorphic functions on bounded domains. Michigan Math. J. 40, 271–297 (1993)Bierstedt, K.D., Bonet, J., Taskinen, J.: Associated weights and spaces of holomorphic functions. Studia Math. 127, 137–168 (1998)Bonet, J., Domański, P., Lindström, M.: Essential norm and weak compactness of composition operators on weighted Banach spaces of analytic functions. Can. Math. Bull. 42(2), 139–148 (1999)Bonet, J., Domański, P., Lindström, M., Taskinen, J.: Composition operators between weighted Banach spaces of analytic functions. J. Aust. Math. Soc. (Ser. A) 64, 101–118 (1998)Boyd, C., Rueda, P.: Holomorphic superposition operators between Banach function spaces. Preprint (2011)Boyd, C., Rueda, P.: Superposition operators between weighted spaces of analytic functions. Preprint (2011)Buckley, S.M., Fernández, J.L., Vukotić, D.: Superposition operators on Dirichlet type spaces. In: Papers on Analysis: A Volume dedicaed to Olli Martio on the occasion of his 60th birthday. Rep. Univ. Jyväskyla Dept. Math. Stat, vol. 83, pp. 41–61. Univ. Jyväskyla, Jyväskyla (2001)Buckley, S.M., Vukotić, D.: Univalent interpolation in Besov spaces and superposition into Bergman spaces. Potential Anal. 29(1), 1–16 (2008)Cámera, G.A.: Nonlinear superposition on spaces of analytic functions. In: Harmonic Analysis and Operator Theory (Carácas, 1994), Contemp. Math, vol. 189, pp. 103–116. Am. Math. Soc, Providence (1995)Cámera, G.A., Giménez, J.: The nonlinear superposition operators acting on Bergman spaces. Compositio Math. 93, 23–35 (1994)Castillo, R.E., Ramos Fernández, J.C., Salazar, M.: Bounded superposition operators between Bloch-Orlicz and $$\alpha$$ -Bloch spaces. Appl. Math. Comp. 218, 3441–3450 (2011)Dineen, S.: Complex Analysis in Locally Convex Spaces, vol. 57. North-Holland Math. Studies, Amsterdam (1981)Girela, D., Márquez, M.A.: Superposition operators between $$Q_p$$ spaces and Hardy spaces. J. Math. Anal. Appl. 364, 463–472 (2010)Grosse-Erdmann, K.-G.: A weak criterion for vector-valued holomorphic functions. Math. Proc. Camb. Publ. Soc. 136, 399–41 (2004)Harutyunyan, A., Lusky, W.: On the boundedness of the differentiation operator between weighted spaces of holomorphic functions. Studia Math. 184, 233–247 (2008)Langenbruch, M.: Continuation of Gevrey regularity for solutions of partial differential operators. In: Functional Analysis (Trier, 1994), pp. 249–280. de Gruyter, Berlin (1996)Levin, B.Ya.: Lectures on Entire Functions. Translations of Mathematical Monographs, vol. 150, Amer. Math. Soc., Providence (1996).Lusky, W.: On weighted spaces of harmonic and holomorphic functions. J. Lond. Math. Soc. 51, 309–320 (1995)Lusky, W.: On the isomorphism classes of weighted spaces of harmonic and holomorphic functions. Studia Math. 175, 19–45 (2006)Pommerenke, Ch.: Boundary Behaviour of Conformal Maps. Springer, Berlin (1992)Ramos Fernández, J.C.: Bounded superposition operators between weighted Banach spaces of analytic functions. Preprint, Available from http://arxiv.org/abs/1203.5857Shields, A.L., Williams, D.L.: Bounded projections, duality and multipliers in spaces of analytic functions. Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 162, 287–302 (1971)Vukotić, D.: Integrability, growth of conformal maps, and superposition operators, Technical Report 10. 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Light Converts Endosymbiotic Fungus to Pathogen, Influencing Seedling Survival and Niche-Space Filling of a Common Tropical Tree, Iriartea deltoidea

Pathogens are hypothesized to play an important role in the maintenance of tropical forest plant species richness. Notably, species richness may be promoted by incomplete filling of niche space due interactions of host populations with their pathogens. A potentially important group of pathogens are endophytic fungi, which asymptomatically colonize plants and are diverse and abundant in tropical ecosystems. Endophytes may alter competitive abilities of host individuals and improve host fitness under stress, but may also become pathogenic. Little is known of the impacts of endophytes on niche-space filling of their hosts

El cómic es cosa seria. El cómic como mediación para la enseñanza en la educación superior Caso Universidad Nacional, Universidad de Medellín y Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana

El problema planteado en esta investigación es estudiar el posible uso del cómiccomo mediación para la enseñanza en la educación superior. Su objetivo es establecerlas condiciones y características que debe tener el cómic para enseñar. El trabajoconsidera una muestra referenciada de informantes, y se desarrolla por medio deobservaciones, entrevistas en profundidad, redacción de diarios de campo y estudio defuentes documentales. Las principales conclusiones son que el cómic tiene potencialdidáctico, que ha sido poco utilizado para enseñar, y que las instituciones de educaciónsuperior deben propiciar su uso, e investigar para validar este potencial. Se plantea unapropuesta didáctica para fomentar la utilización del cómic en la educación superior.Los tres proponentes de esta investigación son docentes y utilizan la imagen en suslabores educativas

Quality of life in patients with hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT)

Background: There are very few studies about general quality of life parameters, standards for the description of health status and comparison with general population data on patients with Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), a rare disease in which epistaxis is a cardinal symptom. Purpose: To assess the quality of life in a population of Spanish patients with HHT and compare it with the general population. Design and methods: Between January 1st 2005 and December 31st 2013, 187 adult patients diagnosed with HHT who were admitted to the HHT Unit of the Hospital Sierrallana, completed on their first visit, the EuroQol 5D-3L (five dimensions and three levels) quality of life descriptive test and the visual analog scale (VAS). The numerical social index value was also determined and the subjective effect of the nasal epistaxis on their quality of life was estimated classified as mild, moderate or severe. Results: Patients with HHT had greater problems than the general population in the five dimensions of the EuroQol 5D-3L, particularly considering pain/discomfort and anxiety/depression. In the VAS and the social index value, patients with HHT also scored lower than the general population, particularly older patients, males, and patients with HHT2. They also had values similar to those of populations with chronic illnesses. The subjective perception of the severity of epistaxis correlated strongly with the VAS and social index values. Conclusions: The quality of life of patients with HHT, estimated using the EuroQol 5D-3L scale, is affected across all dimensions. The scores are similar to those seen in cases of other chronic diseases. Older patients, males and the carriers of the ACVRL1 mutation generally have worse scores on these scales. The VAS and the social index value are index that correlate well with the severity of the clinical symptoms associated mainly with epistaxis

Yeasts associated with the production of distilled alcoholic beverages

Distilled alcoholic beverages are produced firstly by fermenting sugars emanating from cereal starches (in the case of whiskies), sucrose-rich plants (in the case of rums), fructooligosaccharide-rich plants (in the case of tequila) or from fruits (in the case of brandies). Traditionally, such fermentations were conducted in a spontaneous fashion, relying on indigenous microbiota, including wild yeasts. In modern practices, selected strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae are employed to produce high levels of ethanol together with numerous secondary metabolites (eg. higher alcohols, esters, carbonyls etc.) which greatly influence the final flavour and aroma characteristics of spirits following distillation of the fermented wash. Therefore, distillers, like winemakers, must carefully choose their yeast strain which will be very important in providing the alcohol content and the sensory profiles of spirit beverages. This Chapter discusses yeast and fermentation aspects associated with the production of selected distilled spirits and highlights similarities and differences with the production of wine

Growth Hormone Improves Growth Retardation Induced by Rapamycin without Blocking Its Antiproliferative and Antiangiogenic Effects on Rat Growth Plate

Rapamycin, an immunosuppressant agent used in renal transplantation with antitumoral properties, has been reported to impair longitudinal growth in young individuals. As growth hormone (GH) can be used to treat growth retardation in transplanted children, we aimed this study to find out the effect of GH therapy in a model of young rat with growth retardation induced by rapamycin administration. Three groups of 4-week-old rats treated with vehicle (C), daily injections of rapamycin alone (RAPA) or in combination with GH (RGH) at pharmacological doses for 1 week were compared. GH treatment caused a 20% increase in both growth velocity and body length in RGH animals when compared with RAPA group. GH treatment did not increase circulating levels of insulin-like growth factor I, a systemic mediator of GH actions. Instead, GH promoted the maturation and hypertrophy of growth plate chondrocytes, an effect likely related to AKT and ERK1/2 mediated inactivation of GSK3β, increase of glycogen deposits and stabilization of β-catenin. Interestingly, GH did not interfere with the antiproliferative and antiangiogenic activities of rapamycin in the growth plate and did not cause changes in chondrocyte autophagy markers. In summary, these findings indicate that GH administration improves longitudinal growth in rapamycin-treated rats by specifically acting on the process of growth plate chondrocyte hypertrophy but not by counteracting the effects of rapamycin on proliferation and angiogenesis