Altered patterns of expression of members of the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein (hnRNP) family in lung cancer

hnRNP A2/B1 has been suggested as a useful early detection marker for lung carcinoma. hnRNP A2/B1 is a member of a large family of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNP proteins) involved in a variety of functions, including regulation of transcription, mRNA metabolism, and translation. In lung cancer, we have evaluated the expression and cellular localization of several members of the hnRNP family, hnRNP A1, A2, B1, C1, C2 and K. 16 cell lines (SCLC and NSCLC) and biopsies from 32 lung cancer patients were analyzed. Our results suggest that, besides hnRNP A2/B1, the expression of other members of the hnRNP family is altered both in SCLC and NSCLC. In the biopsies, negative or low expression of the hnRNP proteins analyzed was observed in normal epithelial cells whereas lung cancer cells showed highly intense nuclear or cytoplasmic immunolocalization. In all the lung cancer cell lines, the mRNA for all the hnRNP proteins was detected. In general, higher levels of hnRNP mRNAs were found in SCLC as compared with NSCLC. Our results also suggest that the expression and processing of each hnRNP protein in lung cancer is independently regulated and is not exclusively related to proliferation status. In SCLC cell lines, hnRNP A1 protein expression correlated with that of Bcl-x(L). In the lung cancer cell lines, hnRNP K protein localization varied with the cellular confluence

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in northwestern Argentina : circulation of Laguna Negra virus associated with Calomys callosus

The purpose of this study was to characterize the hantaviruses circulating in northwestern Argentina. Human and rodent studies were conducted in Yuto, where most cases of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) occur. Partial virus genome sequences were obtained from the blood of 12 cases of HPS, and from the lungs of 4 Calomys callosus and 1 Akodon simulator. Phylogenetic analysis showed that three genotypes associated with HPS circulate in Yuto. Laguna Negra (LN) virus, associated with C. laucha in Paraguay, was identified for the first time in Argentina; it was recovered from human cases and from C. callosus samples. The high sequence identity between human and rodent samples implicated C. callosus as the primary rodent reservoir for LN virus in Yuto. The genetic analysis showed that the Argentinian LN virus variant differed 16.8% at the nucleotide level and 2.9% at the protein level relative to the Paraguayan LN virus. The other two hantavirus lineages identified were the previously known Bermejo and Orán viruses.Fil: Levis, Silvana. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Garcia, Jorge. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Pini, Noemí. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Calderón, Gladys. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Ramírez, Josefina. Hospital San Miguel; Argentina.Fil: Bravo, Daniel. Hospital Oscar Orías; Argentina.Fil: St. Jeor, Stephen. University of Nevada. Department of Microbiology; Estados Unidos.Fil: Ripoll, Carlos. Dirección de Epidemiología. San Salvador de Jujuy, Jujuy; Argentina.Fil: Bego, Mariana. University of Nevada. Department of Microbiology; Estados Unidos.Fil: Lozano, Elena. Hospital San Miguel; Argentina.Fil: Barquez, Rubén. Fundación Miguel Lillo; Argentina.Fil: Ksiazek, Thomas G. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Special Pathogens Branch; Estados Unidos.Fil: Enria, Delia. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina

CONTRIVE-UCM

El proyecto CONTRIVE-UCM se basa en crear una herramienta digital en línea que permita transformar la gestión de la calidad e innovación dentro de la Facultad de Enfermería, Fisioterapia y Podología (FEFyP) hacia un modelo virtual, mediante la captación de ideas por parte de todo el personal del centro involucrando tanto docentes como estudiantes, con el fin de democratizar y mejorar la transparencia de los programas formativos, los procesos de calidad, a través de la participación activa en el uso de la herramienta digital como experiencia innovadora

Elevated levels of the complement activation product c4d in bronchial fluids for the diagnosis of lung cancer

Molecular markers in bronchial fluids may contribute to the diagnosis of lung cancer. We previously observed a significant increase of C4d-containing complement degradation fragments in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) supernatants from lung cancer patients in a cohort of 50 cases and 22 controls (CUN cohort). The present study was designed to determine the diagnostic performance of these complement fragments (hereinafter jointly referred as C4d) in bronchial fluids. C4d levels were determined in BAL supernatants from two independent cohorts: the CU cohort (25 cases and 26 controls) and the HUVR cohort (60 cases and 98 controls). A series of spontaneous sputum samples from 68 patients with lung cancer and 10 controls was also used (LCCCIO cohort). Total protein content, complement C4, complement C5a, and CYFRA 21-1 were also measured in all cohorts. C4d levels were significantly increased in BAL samples from lung cancer patients. The area under the ROC curve was 0.82 (95%CI = 0.71-0.94) and 0.67 (95%CI = 0.58-0.76) for the CU and HUVR cohorts, respectively. In addition, unlike the other markers, C4d levels in BAL samples were highly consistent across the CUN, CU and HUVR cohorts. Interestingly, C4d test markedly increased the sensitivity of bronchoscopy in the two cohorts in which cytological data were available (CUN and HUVR cohorts). Finally, in the LCCCIO cohort, C4d levels were higher in sputum supernatants from patients with lung cancer (area under the ROC curve: 0.7; 95%CI = 0.56-0.83). In conclusion, C4d is consistently elevated in bronchial fluids from lung cancer patients and may be used to improve the diagnosis of the disease

Relationship between olive oil consumption and ankle-brachial pressure index in a population at high cardiovascular risk

The aim of this study was to ascertain the association between the consumption of different categories of edible olive oils (virgin olive oils and olive oil) and olive pomace oil and ankle-brachial pressure index (ABI) in participants in the PREDIMED-Plus study, a trial of lifestyle modification for weight and cardiovascular event reduction in individuals with overweight/obesity harboring the metabolic syndrome. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional analysis of the PREDIMED-Plus trial. Consumption of any category of olive oil and olive pomace oil was assessed through a validated food-frequency questionnaire. Multivariable linear regression models were fitted to assess associations between olive oil consumption and ABI. Additionally, ABI ≤1 was considered as the outcome in logistic models with different categories of olive oil and olive pomace oil as exposure. Results: Among 4330 participants, the highest quintile of total olive oil consumption (sum of all categories of olive oil and olive pomace oil) was associated with higher mean values of ABI (beta coefficient: 0.014, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.002, 0.027) (p for trend = 0.010). Logistic models comparing the consumption of different categories of olive oils, olive pomace oil and ABI ≤1 values revealed an inverse association between virgin olive oils consumption and the likelihood of a low ABI (odds ratio [OR] 0.73, 95% CI [0.56, 0.97]), while consumption of olive pomace oil was positively associated with a low ABI (OR 1.22 95% CI [1.00, 1.48]). Conclusions: In a Mediterranean population at high cardiovascular risk, total olive oil consumption was associated with a higher mean ABI. These results suggest that olive oil consumption may be beneficial for peripheral artery disease prevention, but longitudinal studies are needed

A scenario‐guided strategy for the future management of biological invasions

Future dynamics of biological invasions are highly uncertain because they depend on multiple social–ecological drivers. We used a scenario-based approach to explore potential management options for invasive species in Europe. During two workshops involving a multidisciplinary team of experts, we developed a management strategy arranged into 19 goals relating to policy, research, public awareness, and biosecurity. We conceived solutions for achieving these goals under different plausible future scenarios, and identified four interrelated recommendations around which any long-term strategy for managing invasive species can be structured: (1) a European biosecurity regime, (2) a dedicated communication strategy, (3) data standardization and management tools, and (4) a monitoring and assessment system. Finally, we assessed the feasibility of the management strategy and found substantial differences among scenarios. Collectively, our results indicate that it is time for a new strategy for managing biological invasions in Europe, one that is based on a more integrative approach across socioeconomic sectors and countries

Clonal chromosomal mosaicism and loss of chromosome Y in elderly men increase vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) had an estimated overall case fatality ratio of 1.38% (pre-vaccination), being 53% higher in males and increasing exponentially with age. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, we found 133 cases (1.42%) with detectable clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations (mCA) and 226 males (5.08%) with acquired loss of chromosome Y (LOY). Individuals with clonal mosaic events (mCA and/or LOY) showed a 54% increase in the risk of COVID-19 lethality. LOY is associated with transcriptomic biomarkers of immune dysfunction, pro-coagulation activity and cardiovascular risk. Interferon-induced genes involved in the initial immune response to SARS-CoV-2 are also down-regulated in LOY. Thus, mCA and LOY underlie at least part of the sex-biased severity and mortality of COVID-19 in aging patients. Given its potential therapeutic and prognostic relevance, evaluation of clonal mosaicism should be implemented as biomarker of COVID-19 severity in elderly people. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, individuals with clonal mosaic events (clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations and/or loss of chromosome Y) showed an increased risk of COVID-19 lethality

Sin / Sense

Sexto desafío por la erradicación de la violencia contra las mujeres del Institut Universitari d’Estudis Feministes i de Gènere «Purificación Escribano» de la Universitat Jaume

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BACKGROUND Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. METHODS The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model-a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates-with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality-which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. FINDINGS The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2-100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1-290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1-211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4-48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3-37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7-9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. INTERPRETATION Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere. FUNDING Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in northwestern Argentina : circulation of Laguna Negra virus associated with Calomys callosus

The purpose of this study was to characterize the hantaviruses circulating in northwestern Argentina. Human and rodent studies were conducted in Yuto, where most cases of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) occur. Partial virus genome sequences were obtained from the blood of 12 cases of HPS, and from the lungs of 4 Calomys callosus and 1 Akodon simulator. Phylogenetic analysis showed that three genotypes associated with HPS circulate in Yuto. Laguna Negra (LN) virus, associated with C. laucha in Paraguay, was identified for the first time in Argentina; it was recovered from human cases and from C. callosus samples. The high sequence identity between human and rodent samples implicated C. callosus as the primary rodent reservoir for LN virus in Yuto. The genetic analysis showed that the Argentinian LN virus variant differed 16.8% at the nucleotide level and 2.9% at the protein level relative to the Paraguayan LN virus. The other two hantavirus lineages identified were the previously known Bermejo and Orán viruses.Fil: Levis, Silvana. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Garcia, Jorge. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Pini, Noemí. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Calderón, Gladys. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina.Fil: Ramírez, Josefina. Hospital San Miguel; Argentina.Fil: Bravo, Daniel. Hospital Oscar Orías; Argentina.Fil: St. Jeor, Stephen. University of Nevada. Department of Microbiology; Estados Unidos.Fil: Ripoll, Carlos. Dirección de Epidemiología. San Salvador de Jujuy, Jujuy; Argentina.Fil: Bego, Mariana. University of Nevada. Department of Microbiology; Estados Unidos.Fil: Lozano, Elena. Hospital San Miguel; Argentina.Fil: Barquez, Rubén. Fundación Miguel Lillo; Argentina.Fil: Ksiazek, Thomas G. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Special Pathogens Branch; Estados Unidos.Fil: Enria, Delia. ANLIS Dr.C.G.Malbrán. Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Virales Humanas Dr. Julio Maiztegui; Argentina