Control by ATR-FTIR of surface treatment of cork stoppers and its effect on their mechanical performance

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was applied to determine the type of surface treatment and dose used on cork stoppers and to predict the friction between stopper and bottleneck. Agglomerated cork stoppers were finished with two different doses and using two surface treatments: P (paraffin and silicone), 15 and 25 mg/stopper, and S (only silicone), 10 and 15 mg/stopper. FTIR spectra were recorded at five points for each stopper by attenuated total reflectance (ATR). Absorbances at 1,010, 2,916, and 2,963 cm -1 were obtained in each spectrum. Discriminant analysis techniques allowed the treatment, and dose applied to each stopper to be identified from the absorbance values. 91.2% success rates were obtained from individual values and 96.0% from the mean values of each stopper. Spectrometric data also allowed treatment homogeneity to be determined on the stopper surface, and a multiple regression model was used to predict the friction index (If = Fe/Fc) (R 2 = 0.93

Sphingobacterium multivorum: An Atypical Bacterium in an Atypical Place

We present the case of a 75-year-old woman admitted to hospital because of an infected pressure ulcer. Cultures revealed that the responsible bacterium was Sphingobacterium multivorum, which was successfully eradicated with ciprofloxacin. Over the last few years, there have been reports of new cases of infection caused by bacteria previously not thought to be harmful to humans, like S. multivorum. Previous cases were reported mostly in immunosuppressed patients and the present report is, to our knowledge, the first describing a pressure ulcer infected by this bacterium

Lower expression of plasma-derived exosome miR-21 levels in HIV-1 elite controllers with decreasing CD4 T cell count

Exosome-derived miR-21 was independently associated with CD4 T cell decline in HIV-1-infected elite controllers (OR 0.369, 95% CI 0.137-0.994, p = 0.049). Also, a negative correlation between miR-21 expression and MCP-1 level was found (r = −0.649, p = 0.020), while no correlation between soluble biomarkers or cellular immune activation was found

Detección molecular de Toxoplasma gondii en carnes para consumo humano en Ibagué, Colombia

Introduction: Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite with great zoonotic potential. It can infect a broad range of warm-blooded hosts (including livestock) and causes significant losses in the industry. In humans, it has been described as a pathogen in immunosuppressed people, it affects the fetus development in congenital infections, and is associated with various behavioral disorders in healthy people. Humans can acquire T. gondii by consuming undercooked, contaminated meat.Objective: To determine T. gondii positivity (currently unknown) in meat for human consumption (i.e., beef, chicken, and pork) in the city of Ibague, Colombia.Materials and methods: We used conventional nested PCR and the T. gondii B1 gene sequence as amplification target. We collected samples of meat (N=186) sold in the urban area of Ibagué (62 beef, 62 chicken, and 62 pork samples) and determined the T. gondii positivity percentage for each type of meat.Results: The study found an average of 18.8% positivity for all meat samples, pork having the highest percentage (22.5%; 14/62), followed by beef (19.3%; 12/62) and chicken (14.5%; 9/62). The best-amplified products were sequenced by macrogen and aligned with the B1 gene sequences in GenBank, thereby confirming their identity.Conclusions: This is the first study of T. gondii prevalence in meat for human consumption carried out in the city of Ibagué and the department of Tolima. All three types of meat sampled represent a risk for local human infectionIntroducción. Toxoplasma gondii es un parásito con gran potencial zoonótico que puede infectar un amplio rango de huéspedes de sangre caliente, incluidos los animales del sector pecuario, lo que causa pérdidas a la industria. En el humano, es patógeno en personas inmunosuprimidas y afecta el desarrollo del feto en infecciones congénitas. Además, se asocia con diversos trastornos del comportamiento en personas sanas. El humano puede adquirir T. gondii al consumir carnes contaminadas mal cocidas.Objetivo. Determinar la positividad de T. gondii en carnes de consumo humano (res, pollo y cerdo) en Ibagué, Colombia.Materiales y métodos. Se utilizó la PCR convencional anidada y la secuencia del gen B1 de T. gondii como blanco de amplificación. Se tomaron 186 muestras de carne comercializada en la zona urbana de Ibagué (62 de res, 62 de pollo y 62 de cerdo) y se obtuvo el porcentaje de positividad en cada tipo de carne evaluada.Resultados. Se encontró un porcentaje de positividad de 18,8 % en las muestras, siendo la carne de cerdo la del mayor porcentaje (22,5 %; 14/62), seguida por las muestras de carne de res (19,3 %; 12/62) y de pollo (14,5 %; 9/62). Los mejores productos amplificados fueron secuenciados en Macrogen, y alineados con las secuencias del gen B1 depositadas en el GenBank, con lo que se confirmó su identidad.Conclusiones. Este es el primer estudio sobre prevalencia de T. gondii en carnes para consumo humano en Ibagué y el departamento del Tolima. Se demostró que los tres tipos de carne representan un riesgo para la infección en humanos a nivel local

Making real progress toward more sustainable societies using decision support models and tools: Introduction to the special volume

Academics, politicians, professionals and the general public are aware that without stewarding our planet’s natural resources, man is on the pathway towards a global collapse. Over the next three decades mankind is expected to consume an estimated 140 billion tons of minerals, ores, fossil fuels and biomass per year – three times current consumption. Social welfare and human wellbeing are threatened with the scarcity of natural resources; consequently, nations and their societies are also at risk of collapse. The readers of this special volume will find a compilation of scholarly research papers with real-life applications that take the challenge of proposing decision-making models and tools to address sustainability challenges in integrative ways. The main focus of this special volume is integration of sustainability dimensions (economic, social, environmental, ethical and time) into decision-support models and to identify pathways to achieve more sustainable societies. The majority of the research in this special volume, 74 percent, focuses on environmental and economic dimensions. Only 26 percent integrated social dimensions with them. Methodologically, a range of mathematical models and tools are presented to support prescriptive decision-making, with some descriptive models integrated, to support decision-makers in solving practical problems across a variety of industries and scenarios. The breadth and complexity of issues facing organizations and society requires innovative applications of these methodologies. The concerns cover a spectrum ranging from energy to solid waste management. A multitude of levels from broad-based policy concerns to strategic inter-organizational sustainable supply chain management and significantly, shop floor operational issues are also covered. The variety of problems and solutions exemplifies the potential for modelling and operations research for addressing some of our world’s most pressing concerns

Comparative analysis of the impact of geological activity on astronomical sites of the Canary Islands, Hawaii and Chile

An analysis of the impact of seismic and volcanic activity was carried out at selected astronomical sites, namely the observatories of El Teide (Tenerife, Canary Islands), Roque de los Muchachos (La Palma, Canary Islands), Mauna Kea (Hawaii) and Paranal (Chile) and the candidate site of Cerro Ventarrones (Chile). Hazard associated to volcanic activity is low or negligible at all sites, whereas seismic hazard is very high in Chile and Hawaii. The lowest geological hazard in both seismic and volcanic activity was found at Roque de los Muchachos observatory, in the island of La Palma.Comment: 12 pages and 11 figure

Genomic selection for growth traits in Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas): Potential of low-density marker panels for breeding value prediction

<p>Pacific oysters are a key aquaculture species globally, and genetic improvement via selective breeding is a major target. Genomic selection has the potential to expedite genetic gain for key target traits of a breeding program, but has not yet been evaluated in oyster. The recent development of SNP arrays for Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas) raises the opportunity to test genomic selection strategies for polygenic traits. In this study, a population of 820 oysters (comprising 23 full-sibling families) were genotyped using a medium density SNP array (23 K informative SNPs), and the genetic architecture of growth-related traits [shell height (SH), shell length (SL), and wet weight (WW)] was evaluated. Heritability was estimated to be moderate for the three traits (0.26 ± 0.06 for SH, 0.23 ± 0.06 for SL and 0.35 ± 0.05 for WW), and results of a GWAS indicated that the underlying genetic architecture was polygenic. Genomic prediction approaches were used to estimate breeding values for growth, and compared to pedigree based approaches. The accuracy of the genomic prediction models (GBLUP) outperformed the traditional pedigree approach (PBLUP) by ∼25% for SL and WW, and ∼30% for SH. Further, reduction in SNP marker density had little impact on prediction accuracy, even when density was reduced to a few hundred SNPs. These results suggest that the use of genomic selection in oyster breeding could offer benefits for the selection of breeding candidates to improve complex economic traits at relatively modest cost.</p

Risk factors and outcome of COVID-19 in patients with hematological malignancies

Background: Prognostic factors of poor outcome in patients with hematological malignancies and COVID-19 are poorly defned. Patients and methods: This was a Spanish transplant group and cell therapy (GETH) multicenter retrospective observational study, which included a large cohort of blood cancer patients with laboratory-confrmed SARS-CoV-2 infection through PCR assays from March 1st 2020 to May 15th 2020. Results: We included 367 pediatric and adult patients with hematological malignancies, including recipients of autologous (ASCT) (n=58) or allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) (n=65) from 41 hospitals in Spain. Median age of patients was 64 years (range 1-93.8). Recipients of ASCT and allo-SCT showed lower mortality rates (17% and 18%, respectively) compared to non-SCT patients (31%) (p=0.02). Prognostic factors identifed for day 45 overall mortality (OM) by logistic regression multivariate analysis included age>70 years [odds ratio (OR) 2.1, 95% con‑ fdence interval (CI) 1.2-3.8, p=0.011]; uncontrolled hematological malignancy (OR 2.9, 95% CI 1.6-5.2, p20 mg/dL (OR 3.3, 95% CI 1.7-6.4, p<0.0001). In multivariate analysis of 216 patients with very severe COVID-19, treatment with azithromycin or low dose corticosteroids was associated with lower OM (OR 0.42, 95% CI 0.2-0.89 and OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.11-0.87, respectively, p=0.02) whereas the use of hidroxycloroquine did not show signifcant improvement in OM (OR 0.64, 95% CI 0.37-1.1, P=0.1). Conclusions: In most patients with hematological malignancies COVID-19 mortality was directly driven by older age, disease status, performance status, as well as by immune (neutropenia) parameters and level of infammation (high CRP). Use of azithromycin and low dose corticosteroids may be of value in very severe COVID-19

Current status and potential of genomic selection to improve selective breeding in the main aquaculture species of International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) member countries

Selective breeding has been successfully applied to improve profitability and sustainability in numerous aquatic species. Recent developments of high throughput genotyping technology now enable the implementation of genomic selection, a method aiming to predict the breeding value of candidates based on their genotype at genome-wide markers. In this review article, we review the state of the arts, challenges and prospects for the application of genomic selection in aquaculture species. The particular focus is on the status of genomic selection in several major aquaculture species of International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) member countries: Atlantic salmon, rainbow trout, Atlantic cod, American catfish, Pacific oyster, European sea bass and gilthead sea bream. While the potential of genomic selection is clear, tailored species-specific applications will be needed to maximise its benefit for the aquaculture sector

Role of the small intestine, colon and microbiota in determining the metabolic fate of polyphenols

(Poly)phenols are a large group of compounds, found in food, beverages, dietary supplements and herbal medicines. Owing to their biological activities, absorption and metabolism of the most abundant compounds in humans are well understood. Both the chemical structure of the phenolic moiety and any attached chemical groups define whether the polyphenol is absorbed in the small intestine, or reaches the colon and is subject to extensive catabolism by colonic microbiota. Untransformed substrates may be absorbed, appearing in plasma primarily as methylated, sulfated and glucuronidated derivatives, with in some cases the unchanged substrate. Many of the catabolites are well absorbed from the colon and appear in the plasma either similarly conjugated, or as glycine conjugates, or in some cases unchanged. Although many (poly)phenol catabolites have been identified in human plasma and / or urine, the pathways from substrate to final catabolite, and the species of bacteria and enzymes involved, are still scarcely reported. While it is clear that the composition of the human gut microbiota can be modulated in vivo by supplementation with some (poly)phenol-rich commodities, such modulation is definitely not an inevitable consequence of supplementation, it depends on the treatment, length of time and on the individual metabotype, and it is not clear whether the modulation is sustained when supplementation ceases. Some catabolites have been recorded in plasma of volunteers at concentrations similar to those shown to be effective in in vitro studies suggesting that some benefit may be achieved in vivo by diets yielding such catabolites