Spectral solution for the air stripping pollutants removal dynamic model with non linear steady state conditions

This work deals with the numerical simulation of air stripping process for the pre-treatment of groundwater used in human consumption. The model established in steady state presents an exponential solution that is used, together with the Tau Method, to get a spectral approach of the solution of the system of partial differential equations associated to the model in transient state

Toxicity abatement of wastewaters from tourism units by constructed wetlands

The present research intended to investigate the toxicity abatement of domestic wastewater after passing a biosystem composed of a constructed wetland (CW) followed by a pond. The wastewater was generated in a tourism house in a rural and mountainous context and passed through a septic tank before being diverted to a CW followed by a pond. A battery of ecotoxicological tests, comprising microalgae (Raphidocelis subcapitata), macrophytes (Lemna minor), cladocerans (Daphnia magna), and bacteria (Aliivibrio fischeri), was used to assess the toxicity of the wastewater collected before and after the CW and the water of the pond. Physicochemical parameters (pH, conductivity, chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, phosphates, ammonium, and nitrate) were also determined. The CW was able to remove carbon and nutrients from the water with a concomitant reduction of its toxicity. This study, reinforced the added value of using toxicity tests as a complement to CW operational monitoring to validate the solution and to analyze possible readjustments that may be required to improve efficiency. This study lends further support to the claim that CWs can be a sustainable solution for treating small volumes of domestic wastewater in a rural context.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Guia Prático para a Utilização dos Inibidores da PCSK9 em Portugal

Reducing low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels is one of the most important strategies for reducing the risk of cardiovascular events. However, in clinical practice, a high proportion of patients do not achieve recommended LDL-C levels through lifestyle and lipid-lowering therapy with statins and ezetimibe. PCSK9 inhibitors (PCSK9i) are a new therapeutic option that significantly (50-60%) reduces LDL-C levels, which in clinical trials translates into an additional reduction in risk for cardiovascular events, and has a good safety profile. However, it is a high-cost therapy, and therefore its use in clinical practice should take its cost-effectiveness into account. Priority should be given to use in patients at higher cardiovascular risk and those in whom high LDL-C levels persist despite optimal lipid-lowering therapy. This consensus document aims to summarize the main data on the clinical use of PCSK9i and to make recommendations for Portugal on the profile of patients who may benefit most from this therapy.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Polypill use for the prevention of cardiovascular disease: a position paper

Cardiovascular (CV) guidelines stress the need for global intervention to manage risk factors and reduce the risk of major vascular events. Growing evidence supports the use of polypill as a strategy to prevent cerebral and cardiovascular disease, however it is still underused in clinical practice. This paper presents an expert consensus aimed to summarize the data regarding polypill use. The authors consider the benefits of polypill and the significant claims for clinical applicability. Potential advantages and disadvantages, data regarding several populations in primary and secondary prevention, and pharmacoeconomic data are also addressed.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Induction of neurotrophin expression via human adult mesenchymal stem cells: implication for cell therapy in neurodegenerative diseases.

In animal models of neurological disorders for cerebral ischemia, Parkinson's disease, and spinal cord lesions, transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) has been reported to improve functional outcome. Three mechanisms have been suggested for the effects of the MSCs: transdifferentiation of the grafted cells with replacement of degenerating neural cells, cell fusion, and neuroprotection of the dying cells. Here we demonstrate that a restricted number of cells with differentiated astroglial features can be obtained from human adult MSCs (hMSCs) both in vitro using different induction protocols and in vivo after transplantation into the developing mouse brain. We then examined the in vitro differentiation capacity of the hMSCs in coculture with slices of neonatal brain cortex. In this condition the hMSCs did not show any neuronal transdifferentiation but expressed neurotrophin low-affinity (NGFRp75) and high-affinity (trkC) receptors and released nerve growth factor (NGF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3). The same neurotrophin's expression was demonstrated 45 days after the intracerebral transplantation of hMSCs into nude mice with surviving astroglial cells. These data further confirm the limited capability of adult hMSC to differentiate into neurons whereas they differentiated in astroglial cells. Moreover, the secretion of neurotrophic factors combined with activation of the specific receptors of transplanted hMSCs demonstrated an alternative mechanism for neuroprotection of degenerating neurons. hMSCs are further defined in their transplantation potential for treating neurological disorders

Effect of human skin-derived stem cells on vessel architecture, tumor growth, and tumor invasion in brain tumor animal models

Glioblastomas represent an important cause of cancer-related mortality with poor survival. Despite many advances, the mean survival time has not significantly improved in the last decades. New experimental approaches have shown tumor regression after the grafting of neural stem cells and human mesenchymal stem cells into experimental intracranial gliomas of adult rodents. However, the cell source seems to be an important limitation for autologous transplantation in glioblastoma. In the present study, we evaluated the tumor targeting and antitumor activity of human skin-derived stem cells (hSDSCs) in human brain tumor models. The hSDSCs exhibit tumor targeting characteristics in vivo when injected into the controlateral hemisphere or into the tail vein of mice. When implanted directly into glioblastomas, hSDSCs distributed themselves extensively throughout the tumor mass, reduced tumor vessel density, and decreased angiogenic sprouts. In addition, transplanted hSDSCs differentiate into pericyte cell and release high amounts of human transforming growth factor-beta1 with low expression of vascular endothelial growth factor, which may contribute to the decreased tumor cell invasion and number of tumor vessels. In long-term experiments, the hSDSCs were also able to significantly inhibit tumor growth and to prolong animal survival. Similar behavior was seen when hSDSCs were implanted into two different tumor models, the chicken embryo experimental glioma model and the transgenic Tyrp1-Tag mice. Taken together, these data validate the use of hSDSCs for targeting human brain tumors. They may represent therapeutically effective cells for the treatment of intracranial tumors after autologous transplantation

Marker-assisted introgression of the salinity tolerance locus Saltol in temperate japonica rice

Background Rice is one of the most salt sensitive crops at seedling, early vegetative and reproductive stages. Varieties with salinity tolerance at seedling stage promote an efficient growth at early stages in salt affected soils, leading to healthy vegetative growth that protects crop yield. Saltol major QTL confers capacity to young rice plants growing under salt condition by maintaining a low Na+/ K+ molar ratio in the shoots. Results Marker-assisted backcross (MABC) procedure was adopted to transfer Saltol locus conferring salt tolerance at seedling stage from donor indica IR64-Saltol to two temperate japonica varieties, Vialone Nano and Onice. Forward and background selections were accomplished using polymorphic KASP markers and a final evaluation of genetic background recovery of the selected lines was conducted using 15,580 SNP markers obtained from Genotyping by Sequencing. Three MABC generations followed by two selfing, allowed the identification of introgression lines achieving a recovery of the recurrent parent (RP) genome up to 100% (based on KASP markers) or 98.97% (based on GBS). Lines with highest RP genome recovery (RPGR) were evaluated for agronomical-phenological traits in field under nonsalinized conditions. VN1, VN4, O1 lines were selected considering the agronomic evaluations and the RPGR% results as the most interesting for commercial exploitation. A physiological characterization was conducted by evaluating salt tolerance under hydroponic conditions. The selected lines showed lower standard evaluation system (SES) scores: 62% of VN4, and 57% of O1 plants reaching SES 3 or SES 5 respectively, while only 40% of Vialone Nano and 25% of Onice plants recorded scores from 3 to 5, respectively. VN1, VN4 and O1 showed a reduced electrolyte leakage values, and limited negative effects on relative water content and shoot/root fresh weight ratio. Conclusion The Saltol locus was successfully transferred to two elite varieties by MABC in a time frame of three years. The application of background selection until BC3F3 allowed the selection of lines with a RPGR up to 98.97%. Physiological evaluations for the selected lines indicate an improved salinity tolerance at seedling stage. The results supported the effectiveness of the Saltol locus in temperate japonica and of the MABC procedure for recovering of the RP favorable traits

Correlation of circulating CD133+ progenitor subclasses with a mild phenotype in Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients.

Various prognostic serum and cellular markers have been identified for many diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases and tumor pathologies. Here we assessed whether the levels of certain stem cells may predict the progression of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD)

Diabetes mellitus worsens diastolic left ventricular dysfunction in aortic stenosis through altered myocardial structure and cardiomyocyte stiffness.

BACKGROUND: Aortic stenosis (AS) and diabetes mellitus (DM) are frequent comorbidities in aging populations. In heart failure, DM worsens diastolic left ventricular (LV) dysfunction, thereby adversely affecting symptoms and prognosis. Effects of DM on diastolic LV function were therefore assessed in aortic stenosis, and underlying myocardial mechanisms were identified. METHODS AND RESULTS: Patients referred for aortic valve replacement were subdivided into patients with AS and no DM (AS; n=46) and patients with AS and DM (AS-DM; n=16). Preoperative Doppler echocardiography and hemodynamics were implemented with perioperative LV biopsies. Histomorphometry and immunohistochemistry quantified myocardial collagen volume fraction and myocardial advanced glycation end product deposition. Isolated cardiomyocytes were stretched to 2.2-μm sarcomere length to measure resting tension (F(passive)). Expression and phosphorylation of titin isoforms were analyzed with gel electrophoresis with ProQ Diamond and SYPRO Ruby stains. Reduced LV end-diastolic distensibility in AS-DM was evident from higher LV end-diastolic pressure (21±1 mm Hg for AS versus 28±4 mm Hg for AS-DM; P=0.04) at comparable LV end-diastolic volume index and attributed to higher myocardial collagen volume fraction (AS, 12.9±1.1% versus AS-DM, 18.2±2.6%; P<0.001), more advanced glycation end product deposition in arterioles, venules, and capillaries (AS, 14.4±2.1 score per 1 mm(2) versus AS-DM, 31.4±6.1 score per 1 mm2; P=0.03), and higher F(passive) (AS, 3.5±1.7 kN/m2 versus AS-DM, 5.1±0.7 kN/m2; P=0.04). Significant hypophosphorylation of the stiff N2B titin isoform in AS-DM explained the higher F(passive) and normalization of F(passive) after in vitro treatment with protein kinase A. CONCLUSIONS: Worse diastolic LV dysfunction in AS-DM predisposes to heart failure and results from more myocardial fibrosis, more intramyocardial vascular advanced glycation end product deposition, and higher cardiomyocyte F(passive), which was related to hypophosphorylation of the N2B titin isoform