A description of variant transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv) stage 1 patients and asymptomatic carriers in Spain: the EMPATIa study

Mutation; Amyloid; Asymptomatic carriersMutación; Amiloide; Portadores asintomáticosMutació; Amiloide; Portadors asimptomàticsBackground Variant transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRv) is a rare multisystemic disorder caused by mutations in the transthyretin (TTR) gene. The aim of the present work was to describe the clinical profile of asymptomatic carriers (AC) and Coutinho stage 1 ATTRv patients in Spain. Methods National, multicentre, cross-sectional study that included 86 AC and 19 patients diagnosed in the previous 12 months to enrolment. Clinical and demographical data, TTR gene mutations, red flags anamnesis, neurological and cardiological assessments were collected. Results The mean age of patients was 56.8 years at onset and 58.6 years at diagnosis; 53% of patients and 51% of AC were from non-endemic areas. Val50Met was the most frequent mutation in both groups. Neuropathy impairment score data (mean 17.7 ± 20.5) and small-fibre function in lower limbs assessed with SUDOSCAN revealed that patients were diagnosed at early stages of neurological impairment. Peripheral polyneuropathy (84.2%), autonomic neuropathy (73.7%), cardiac (63.2%) and gastrointestinal (47.4%) alterations were the most common symptoms in patients. Autonomic neuropathy, gastrointestinal impairment, carpal tunnel syndrome, cardiac and ocular alterations were potentially related to ATTRv in the AC group. Conclusions The EMPATIa study provides a detailed description of AC and Coutinho stage 1 ATTRv patients across Spain, confirming the multisystemic clinical profile of the disease. This study reveals a diagnosis delay around 1.8 years, highlighting the importance of a profound disease awareness to reach a diagnose in earlier stages of neurological impairment.This study was sponsored by Pfizer SLU

Identificación de incidentes de tráfico en Panamá por medio del análisis de datos de redes sociales

En Panamá, la gran cantidad de carros en las vías y eventos aleatorios de tráfico producen embotellamientos constantes y extensos. Estos problemas no son solventados aun cuando las autoridades planifican y avanzan con la construcción de más carriles para el flujo vehicular. Se propone desarrollar un sistema que permita visualizar información publicada en las redes sociales acerca de incidentes de tráfico. Para esta tarea, diferentes librerías de Python son utilizadas para la extracción de información de redes sociales (Selenium y Tweepy), análisis (sklearn, Pandas, fuzzy wuzzy, etc), visualización de datos (Plotly, Dash y WordCloud) y un método de geocodificación para obtener la localización aproximada de las publicaciones obtenidas. Los resultados muestran que se han obtenido aproximadamente 180 mil tweets desde 2014. Además, se ha iniciado con la preparación de datos para los modelos de clasificación (detección de tweets correspondientes a incidentes de tráfico) y se ha desarrollado la interfaz gráfica. Este sistema presenta ventajas como la agilización y la rapidez de detección y visualización de incidentes de tráfico, que pueden ser de gran ayuda para las autoridades de tránsito del país

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Les claus del desenvolupament duna economia circular a Amèrica Llatina. Revisió bibliogràfica dels avenços del model en aquesta regió.

[ES] Esta investigación busca abordar el concepto de Economía Circular de forma transversal, desde sus inicios hasta nuestros días, tratando de plasmar sus características principales. Todo ello mostrándolo como una alternativa futura del actual modelo productivo lineal. El artículo, se centra en el estudio de este modelo en América Latina, efectuando una retrospectiva del término y todo lo que éste comprende en el territorio. Se ha buscado mostrar una mirada crítica respecto a lo que se está realizando con referencia a la economía, sociedad y medioambiente. Asimismo, se aportan una serie de propuestas que sería favorable que adoptasen en la región, ateniéndose a las bases de este sistema económico que pretende romper con todo lo establecido y marcar un nuevo rumbo en nuestro futuro a corto y largo plazo.[EN] This research seeks to address the concept of Circular Economy in a transversal way, from its beginnings to the present day, trying to capture its main characteristics. It shows it as a future alternative to the current linear production model. The article focuses on the study of this model in Latin America, taking a retrospective look at the term and all that it encompasses in the territory. The aim is to take a critical look at what is being done in terms of the economy, society and the environment. It also provides a series of proposals that it would be favourable for the region to adopt, in accordance with the bases of this economic system that aims to break with everything that has been established and set a new course for our short and long-term future.Galan Garcia, L. (2022). Las claves del desarrollo de una economía circular en América Latina. Revisión bibliográfica de los avances del modelo en esta región. Universitat Politècnica de València. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/18912

Inteligencia emocional y agresividad en estudiantes del 4to de secundaria de una institución educativa emblemática de Tumbes 2023

La presente investigación tuvo como objetivo determinar la relación entre inteligencia emocional y agresividad en estudiantes del 4to de secundaria de una institución educativa emblemática de Tumbes 2023. El tipo de investigación fue básica, de diseño no experimental con corte transversal, descriptiva y correlacional. Participaron 119 estudiantes, donde se utilizó el cuestionario emocional BarOn ICE:NA versión completa, adaptado por Ugarriza y Pajares (2005) y el cuestionario de agresión (AQ) de Arnold Buss y Mark Perry, adaptado por Matalinares et al. (2012). Los resultados mostraron que existe una relación inversa Rho= -0,186 y estadísticamente significativa entre las variables del estudio con un tamaño de efecto pequeño con r2=0.034. Se concluye que a medida que aumente la inteligencia emocional en estudiantes, disminuirá su tendencia a mostrar comportamientos agresivos

Aplicación de una herramienta digital para la gestión de documentación por entidades ofertantes en una institución prestadora de servicios de salud

This project arises from the need to create a tool that facilitates the document collection processes through a digital application, taking into account different factors such as easy interactivity, alignment with institutional colors, and information storage.Este proyecto surge de la necesidad de crear una herramienta que facilite los procesos de recolección de documentos a través de un aplicativo digital, teniendo en cuenta diferentes factores como la fácil interactividad, el acople con los colores institucionales y el almacenamiento de información.PregradoIngeniero(a) Biomédico(a

Sixty years of transthyretin familial amyloid polyneuropathy (TTR-FAP) in Europe: where are we now? A European network approach to defining the epidemiology and management patterns for TTR-FAP

Purpose of revie

Symbiotic archaea in marine sponges show stability and host specificity in community structure and ammonia oxidation functionality

Archaea associated with marine sponges are active and influence the nitrogen metabolism of sponges. However, we know little about their occurrence, specificity, and persistence. We aimed to elucidate the relative importance of host specificity and biogeographic background in shaping the symbiotic archaeal communities. We investigated these communities in sympatric sponges from the Mediterranean (Ircinia fasciculata and Ircinia oros, sampled in summer and winter) and from the Caribbean (Ircinia strobilina and Mycale laxissima). PCR cloning and sequencing of archaeal 16S rRNA and amoA genes showed that the archaeal community composition and structure were different from that in seawater and varied among sponge species. We found that the communities were dominated by ammonia-oxidizing archaea closely related to Nitrosopumilus. The community in M. laxissima differed from that in Ircinia spp., including the sympatric sponge I. strobilina; yet, geographical clusters within Ircinia spp. were observed. Whereas archaeal phylotypes in Ircinia spp. were persistent and belong to 'sponge-enriched' clusters, archaea in M. laxissima were closely related with those from diverse habitats (i.e. seawater and sediments). For all four sponge species, the expression of the archaeal amoA gene was confirmed. Our results indicate that host-specific processes, such as host ecological strategy and evolutionary history, control the sponge-archaeal communities

Stability of Human Telomeric G-Quadruplexes Complexed with Photosensitive Ligands and Irradiated with Visible Light

International audienceGuanine-rich DNA sequences can fold into non-canonical nucleic acid structures called G-quadruplexes (G4s). These nanostructures have strong implications in many fields, from medical science to bottom-up nanotechnologies. As a result, ligands interacting with G4s have attracted great attention as candidates in medical therapies, molecular probe applications, and biosensing. In recent years, the use of G4-ligand complexes as photopharmacological targets has shown significant promise for developing novel therapeutic strategies and nanodevices. Here, we studied the possibility of manipulating the secondary structure of a human telomeric G4 sequence through the interaction with two photosensitive ligands, DTE and TMPyP4, whose response to visible light is different. The effect of these two ligands on G4 thermal unfolding was also considered, revealing the occurrence of peculiar multi-step melting pathways and the different attitudes of the two molecules on the quadruplex stabilization