Innovative Educational Approach in Healthcare-Associated Infection Prevention and Control. Results of a European Study

Prevent and control healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) is a priority in healthcare assistance, not only due to present COVID-19 pandemic. Annually, around 3.2 million patients are affected by one of these infections and it is estimated that without controlling them, by 2050, 10 million more people could die every year, with especial relevance among elderly with infectious situations representing a third of mortality in people over 65 years old. Higher Education Institutions (HEI) in healthcare area have an important role in this panorama, by preparing students to be future professionals, stimulating them to have an innovative and entrepreneurial approach to today’s real-life challenges. A mixed-methods research was conducted, at European level (in Portugal, Finland, Poland and Spain), to facilitate learning of good practices on HAIs prevention and control while developing innovative solutions. 1475 participants were enrolled, from all partner HEI: 79 professors and mentors were interviewed (individual or focus group), 1326 final year nursing students made a self-report inventory (application of InovSafeCare Scale) and 70 students participated on focus group (agile piloting of the Model). The result of this research is a pedagogical model that mixes dimensions and methods that take nursing students closer to the demands of HAIs prevention and control and capacitates them to transfer knowledge to work settings with an innovative and entrepreneurial perspective – the InovSafeCare Model.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Dechlorane plus and possible degradation products in white stork eggs from Spain

The occurrence of the emerging chlorinated flame retardant Dechlorane Plus (DP) and three of its possible degradation products was investigated in white stork eggs from two colonies in Spain. The average DP concentrations were 401 pg/g wet weight (w.w.) for the urban/industrial colony and 105 pg/g w.w. for the rural colony. One possible degradation product, anti-[DP-1Cl], was found in approximately 10% of the samples. No significant stereoisomer enrichments were detected in any colony based on the average anti-DP fractional abundances found which agrees with previous studies in herring gulls. The relationship between DP and PBDE contents in both colonies was explored leading to different scenarios, i.e. no correlation was found in the urban colony but they were statistically correlated in the rural colony. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report DP in a species from a terrestrial food web, and also to report a DP degradation product in biotaPeer reviewe

Predominance of BDE-209 and other higher brominated diphenyl ethers in eggs of white stork (Ciconia ciconia) colonies from Spain

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are ubiquitous pollutants for which there is still a lack of knowledge about the environmental behavior and fate of the higher brominated congeners (octa- to deca-BDEs). In this study, the PBDE content and congener profiles in failed eggs from two colonies of white stork (Ciconia ciconia) in Spain were studied. The average total PBDE concentration was 1.64 ng/g (wet weight, w.w.) for the rural colony and 9.08 ng/g (w.w.) for the urban colony. Higher brominated BDEs dominated the congener profiles of both colonies. Of particular interest was the determination of BDE-209 as the dominant congener accounting for 44.1% and 38.6% of the total PBDE content in the rural and urban colonies, respectively. BDE-202, considered an indicator of BDE 209 debromination, was detected in 83% and all of the samples from rural and urban colonies, respectively. The observed congener profile in which BDE-207 N BDE-208 N BDE-206 does not correspond to any known technical PBDE mixture and is evidence for possible BDE-209 degradation.Peer reviewe

[TTK] A new bipodal carboxy-bis(hydroxypyridinonate) ligand.: Synthesis and complexation with copper(II), nickel(II) and zinc(II) in aqueous solution

A new tetradentate ligand having two 3-hydroxy-4-pyridinonate moieties and one carboxylate group appended to a cyclohexane backbone is reported, together with the corresponding bidentate hydroxypyridinonate pendant arm. The synthesis and characterization of these ligands, as well as their complexation properties towards the first transition series of metal ions M(II) (M=Cu, Ni, Zn) in aqueous solution, are described and discussed herein. The tetradentate ligand forms quite stable complexes with this series of metal ions and in solution, it is proved to be a much more effective chelator than the corresponding bidentate derivative. The stability constants of the complexes formed with this set of bivalent ions follow the Irving–Williams order NiZn. The carboxylic group has no interaction with the metal centre, thus remaining free for potential interaction with biological ligands (e.g. proteins)

Structural redox control in a 7Fe ferredoxin isolated from Desulfovibrio alaskensis

The redox behaviour of a ferredoxin (Fd) from Desulfovibrio alaskensis was characterized by electrochemistry. The protein was isolated and purified, and showed to be a tetramer containing one [3Fe–4S] and one [4Fe–4S] centre. This ferredoxin has high homology with FdI from Desulfovibrio vulgaris Miyazaki and Hildenborough and FdIII from Desulfovibrio africanus. From differential pulse voltammetry the following signals were identified: [3Fe-4S]+ 1/0 (E0′ = − 158 ± 5 mV); [4Fe–4S]+ 2/+1 (E0′ = − 474 ± 5 mV) and [3Fe–4S]0/− 2 (E0′ = − 660 ± 5 mV). The effect of pH on these signals showed that the reduced [3Fe–4S]0 cluster has a pKʹred′ = 5.1 ± 0.1, the [4Fe–4S]+ 2/+1 centre is pH independent, and the [3Fe–4S]0/−2 reduction is accompanied by the binding of two protons. The ability of the [3Fe–4S]0 cluster to be converted into a new [4Fe–4S] cluster was proven. The redox potential of the original [4Fe–4S] centre showed to be dependent on the formation of the new [4Fe-4S] centre, which results in a positive shift (ca. 70 mV) of the redox potential of the original centre. Being most [Fe–S] proteins involved in electron transport processes, the electrochemical characterization of their clusters is essential to understand their biological function. Complementary EPR studies were performed.Fil: Grazina, Raquel. Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia. Departamento de Química. REQUIMTE/CQFB; PortugalFil: Sousa, Patrícia M. Paes de. Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia. Departamento de Química. REQUIMTE/CQFB; PortugalFil: Brondino, Carlos Dante. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Facultad de Bioquímica y Ciencias Biológicas. Departamento de Física; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Santa Fe; ArgentinaFil: Carepo, Marta S. P.. Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia. Departamento de Química. REQUIMTE/CQFB; PortugalFil: Moura, Isabel. Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia. Departamento de Química. REQUIMTE/CQFB; PortugalFil: Moura, José J. G.. Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia. Departamento de Química. REQUIMTE/CQFB; Portuga

Factors Affecting Consumer Food Preferences: Food Taste and Depression-Based Evoked Emotional Expressions with the Use of Face Reading Technology

In this study, several factors (social status, age, gender, education, knowledge about healthy eating, and attitude to food) affecting consumer food choices (FC), including the relationship between the taste of food, FC, and depression, were analysed by using sensory traits and face reading technology. The first stage of the experimental scheme was the analysis of factors affecting consumer food preferences by using a questionnaire, while the second stage was evaluation of emotional expressions evoked by different food tastes in individuals with and without depressive disorders (DD), using the FaceReader 6 software. We show that gender is a significant factor for most emotional motivations, with a higher effect in females where there was an indication of increased cravings for sweets when feeling depressed. Age was a significant factor in the motivation to eat for positive feelings, while education had a significant influence on perceptions regarding healthy eating. Face reading technology was found to be sufficiently accurate to detect differences in facial expressions induced by different tastes of food, for groups with and without DD. In conclusion, many factors are of high importance in the analysis of food choices, and the results obtained using the FaceReader 6 technique are very promising for food-mood relation analysis. We suggest that mood has a strong link with the choice of food

Factors influencing consumers motivations for healthy eating and food-mood relation of people's with and without depressive disorder

The aim of this study was to evaluate relation between the consumers gender, age, education, civil state, profession and its field with their perception, emotional motivations and selection of information sources about a healthy eating. In addition, to evaluate possible relation of the food choice and people‘s mood, the initial study about the emotions induced by the different tastes of food for people's with and without depressive disorder was performed. It was established that the gender is significant factor on the most of the emotional motivations. Also, participants age have a significant influence on motivation “food makes me feel good“, as well as education have a significant influence on perceptions about a healthy eating. Most of the analysed perceptions were significantly influenced by civil state, profession and professional field of the participants. The results obtained by using FaceReader technic showed higher sensibility, than the evaluation by using hedonic scale, which can be influenced by participants previous emotions, which were induced by memory about food uses in the past, and it was established that the mood has a link with the choice of food. Finally, FaceReader is very promising technique to detect differences in facial emotion expressions induced by different taste of food for different mood people's groups, but more research is needed to see how this technology performs in more complex testing procedures, simulated or ‘‘real life’’ environments.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Orange protein from Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20: insights into the Mo-Cu cluster protein-assisted synthesis

International audienceA novel metalloprotein containing a unique [S2MoS2CuS2MoS2](3-) cluster, designated as Orange Protein (ORP), was isolated for the first time from Desulfovibrio gigas, a sulphate reducer. The orp operon is conserved in almost all sequenced Desulfovibrio genomes and in other anaerobic bacteria, however, so far D. gigas ORP had been the only ORP characterized in the literature. In this work, the purification of another ORP isolated form Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20 is reported. The native protein is monomeric (12443.8 +/- A 0.1 Da by ESI-MS) and contains also a MoCu cluster with characteristic absorption bands at 337 and 480 nm, assigned to S-Mo charge transfer bands. Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20 recombinant protein was obtained in the apo-form from E. coli. Cluster reconstitution studies and UV-visible titrations with tetrathiomolybdate of the apo-ORP incubated with Cu ions indicate that the cluster is incorporated in a protein metal-assisted synthetic mode and the protein favors the 2Mo:1Cu stoichiometry. In Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20, the orp genes are encoded by a polycistronic unit composed of six genes whereas in Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough the same genes are organized into two divergent operons, although the composition in genes is similar. The gene expression of ORP (Dde\₃198) increased 6.6 +/- A 0.5 times when molybdate was added to the growth medium but was not affected by Cu(II) addition, suggesting an involvement in molybdenum metabolism directly or indirectly in these anaerobic bacteria