Three-dimensional numerical simulations of free convection in a layered porous enclosure

Three-dimensional numerical simulations are carried out for the study of free convection in a layered porous enclosure heated from below and cooled from the top. The system is defined as a cubic porous enclosure comprising three layers, of which the external ones share constant physical properties and the internal layer is allowed to vary in both permeability and thermal conductivity. The model is based on Darcy's law and the Boussinesq approximation. A parametric study to evaluate the sensitivity of the Nusselt number to a decrease in the permeability of the internal layer shows that strong permeability contrasts are required to observe an appreciable drop in the Nusselt number. If additionally the thickness of the internal layer is increased, a further decrease in the Nusselt number is observed as long as the convective modes remain the same, if the convective modes change the Nusselt number may increase. Decreasing the thermal conductivity of the middle layer causes first an increment in the Nusselt number and then a drop. On the other hand, the Nusselt number decreases in an approximately linear trend when the thermal conductivity of the layer is increased

Biology and use of the Pacific fat sleeper Dormitator latifrons (Richardson, 1844): state of the art review

The present work is a review of the literature on the native Mexican fish Dormitator latifrons. The aim is to contribute to the integration and systematization of current knowledge to make it easier to identify existing knowledge gaps and breakthroghs Moreover, promote the successful cultivation and protection of this species whose consumption is increasing in Latin America. A review of the articles related to D. latifrons published in international and regional databases was carried out. The articles reviewed focus on taxonomy and systematics, phylogenetic, geographic distribution, ecology, physiology, reproduction, development, pathology, health, and the technologies used to cultivate this fish species. The conclusion is that, even though the cultivation of D. latifrons is of commercial interest in some countries, there are still significant gaps in our knowledge of biology and, consequently, the domestication potential of the species. Filling these gaps will require systematic research efforts on protecting natural populations and improving mass cultivation techniques.Fil: Vega Villasante, Fernando. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Ruiz González, Luis E.. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Chong Carrillo, Olimpia. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Basto Rosales, Mao E. R.. Tecnológico Nacional de Bahía de Banderas; MéxicoFil: Palma Cancino, David J.. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Tintos Gómez, Adrián. Universidad Tecnológica de Manzanillo; MéxicoFil: Montoya Martínez, Cynthia E.. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Kelly Gutiérrez, Liza D.. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Guerrero Galván, Saúl R.. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Ponce Palafox, Jesús T.. Universidad Autónoma de Nayarit; MéxicoFil: Zapata, Ana. Universidad de Guadalajara; MéxicoFil: Musin, Gabriela Eliana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Instituto Nacional de Limnología. Universidad Nacional del Litoral. Instituto Nacional de Limnología; ArgentinaFil: Badillo Zapata, Daniel. Universidad de Guadalajara; Méxic

Rendimiento de trébol rojo (Trifolium pratense L.) a diferente edad de cosecha

Objective: The objective of this research was to obtain the optimum cutting moment of the red clover by varying the cutting frequency in the spring season. Design/methodology/approach: The treatments were cuts at different ages (eight weeks) in the spring season. The variables studied were: forage accumulation, botanical and morphological composition, foliar area per stem and photosynthesis. The statistical analysis of the data obtained was performed with the GLM procedure of the SAS statistical package. The results obtained in yield of dry matter showed an increase as the age of regrowth advanced, in week 8, 5013 kg MS ha-1 total were obtained, resulting in the maximum value registered. There was a direct positive relationship between the mass of green leaves, rate of photosynthesis, leaf area per stem and leaf: stem ratio, with the best values ??recorded at the fourth week of regrowth. The morphological component that contributes most to forage yield was the stem with an average of 55% in all the weeks except the fourth. Limitations on study/implications: After the fourth week the unwanted structural characteristics increase. Findings/conclusions: It is concluded that the yield increases as the evaluation time passes and it is recommended to harvest the red clover in the fourth week of regrowth.Objetivo: El objetivo de esta investigación fue obtener el momento óptimo de corte del trébol rojo variando la frecuencia de corte en la estación de primavera. Diseño/metodología/aproximación: Los tratamientos fueron los cortes a diferente edad (ocho semanas) en la estación primavera. Las variables estudiadas fueron: acumulación de forraje, composición botánica y morfológica, área foliar por tallo y fotosíntesis. El análisis estadístico de los datos obtenidos se realizó con el procedimiento GLM del paquete estadístico SAS. Resultados: Los resultados obtenidos en rendimiento de materia seca mostraron un aumento conforme avanzo la edad de rebrote, en la semana 8 se obtuvieron 5,013 kg MS ha-1 total que resulto el máximo valor registrado. Existió una relación positiva directa entre la masa de hojas verdes, tasa de fotosíntesis, área foliar por tallo y relación hoja:tallo, registrándose los mejores valores a la cuarta semana de rebrote. El componente morfológico que más contribuye al rendimiento de forraje fue el tallo con un promedio de 55 % en todas las semanas excepto la cuarta. Limitaciones del estudio/implicaciones: Después de la cuarta semana aumentan características estructurales no deseadas. Hallazgos/conclusiones: Se concluye que el rendimiento se incrementa conforme pasa el tiempo de evaluación y se recomienda cosechar el trébol rojo en la cuarta semana de rebrote

Impact of a pharmaceutical care programme on health-related quality of life among women with epilepsy: a randomised controlled trial (IPHIWWE study)

This paper was presented in part at the II Congreso Colombiano de Atención Farmacéutica, Medellín, Colombia, September 27, 2013.Background: Epilepsy is a complex chronic disorder which affects health-related quality of life (HRQOL), especially in women. Pharmaceutical care (PC) allows direct intervention between the pharmacist, the patient and the other healthcare team members to optimise treatments in order to reduce negative outcomes related to medication and contribute to improving HRQOL. The aim of the study was to establish the impact of the application of a pharmaceutical care programme on the HRQOL of women with epilepsy.Methods: This study is a pragmatic randomised controlled trial involving women with epilepsy (WWE) over 18 years of age. The intervention group (IG) received a pharmaceutical care programme consisting of medication review follow-up according to Dáder’s method, health education and therapeutic drug monitoring of anticonvulsants. The impact was assessed by changes in seizure frequency, in the self-administered questionnaires (the QOLIE-31, Liverpool AEP, CES-D, Haynes-Sackett test and Moriski-Green test) and between the first interview and the one at the end of six months of follow-up. A Student’s t-test was performed to compare the final QOLIE-31 score between groups and a paired Student’s t-test was used to determine the change in each group between the start and the end of follow-up.Results: One hundred eighty-two WWE entered the study and 144 (79.1%) completed it. The t-test for comparing the final QOLIE-31 scores between groups yielded a t = −2.166 and confidence interval (CI) (95%): −10.125; −0.4625, p-value =0.0319. The change (Δ) in the QOLIE-31 score for the IG was 12.45 points (p-value <0.001) and for the control group it was 2.61 (p-value =0.072). With 10.7 as the minimally important change we found a relative risk of 2.17 (CI: 1.37; 3.43) and a number needed to treat (NNT) of 3.5.Conclusions: The study demonstrated that the application of a pharmaceutical care programme significantly improves HRQOL in WWE. The NNT we found allows a recommendation to implement the PC programme for the additional benefit that would be obtained in patients’ HRQOL.This study was funded by a competitive investigator grant award from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (Colombia) - Research Division of Bogotá (ref: 202010011419 Quipu Code)

SEPAR Recommendations for COVID-19 Vaccination in Patients With Respiratory Diseases

[ES] La Sociedad Española de Neumología y Cirugía Torácica (SEPAR) ha elaborado este documento de recomendaciones sobre la vacuna para la COVID-19 en las enfermedades respiratorias, con el objetivo de ayudar al personal sanitario en la toma de decisiones sobre cómo actuar en la vacunación de estos pacientes. Las recomendaciones han sido elaboradas por un grupo de expertos en la materia, tras la revisión de la literatura recopilada hasta el 7 de marzo del 2021, y de la información aportada por distintas sociedades científicas, agencias del medicamento y estrategias de organismos gubernamentales hasta esa fecha. Podemos concluir que las vacunas para la COVID-19 no solo son seguras y eficaces, sino que, en aquellos pacientes vulnerables con enfermedades respiratorias crónicas, son prioritarias. Además, la implicación activa de los profesionales sanitarios que manejan estas patologías en la estrategia de vacunación es clave para lograr una buena adherencia y coberturas vacunales elevadas.[EN] The Spanish Society of Pneumonology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR) has elaborated this document of recommendations for COVID-19 vaccination in patients with respiratory diseases aimed to help healthcare personnel make decisions about how to act in case of COVID-19 vaccination in these patients. The recommendations have been developed by a group of experts in this field after reviewing the materials published up to March 7, 2021, the information provided by different scientific societies, drug agencies and the strategies of the governmental bodies up to this date. We can conclude that COVID-19 vaccines are not only safe and effective, but also prior in vulnerable patients with chronic respiratory diseases. In addition, an active involvement of healthcare professionals, who manage these diseases, in the vaccination strategy is the key to achieve good adherence and high vaccination coverage

Negative symptoms and sex differences in first episode schizophrenia: What's their role in the functional outcome? A longitudinal study

Introduction: Negative symptoms (NS) include asociality, avolition, anhedonia, alogia, and blunted affect and are linked to poor prognosis. It has been suggested that they reflect two different factors: diminished expression (EXP) (blunted affect and alogia) and amotivation/pleasure (MAP) (anhedonia, avolition, asociality). The aim of this article was to examine potential sex differences among first-episode schizophrenia (FES) patients and analyze sex-related predictors of two NS symptoms factors (EXP and MAP) and functional outcome. Material and methods: Two hundred and twenty-three FES (71 females and 152 males) were included and evaluated at baseline, six-months and one-year. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to examine the effects of time and sex on NS and a multiple linear regression backward elimination was performed to predict NS factors (MAP-EXP) and functioning. Results: Females showed fewer NS (p = 0.031; Cohen's d = −0.312), especially those related to EXP (p = 0.024; Cohen's d = −0.326) rather than MAP (p = 0.086), than males. In both male and female group, worse premorbid adjustment and higher depressive symptoms made a significant contribution to the presence of higher deficits in EXP at one-year follow-up, while positive and depressive symptoms predicted alterations in MAP. Finally, in females, lower deficits in MAP and better premorbid adjustment predicted better functioning at one-year follow-up (R2 = 0.494; p < 0.001), while only higher deficits in MAP predicted worse functioning in males (R2 = 0.088; p = 0.012). Conclusions: Slightly sex differences have been found in this study. Our results lead us to consider that early interventions of NS, especially those focusing on motivation and pleasure symptoms, could improve functional outcomes

Expression of Interest: The Canfranc Axion Detection Experiment (CADEx)

Trabajo presentado al 29th Meeting of the LSC Scientific Committee, celebrado online del 30 de noviembre al 1 de diciembre de 2021.Peer reviewe

Dendritic cell deficiencies persist seven months after SARS-CoV-2 infection

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-2 infection induces an exacerbated inflammation driven by innate immunity components. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a key role in the defense against viral infections, for instance plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs), have the capacity to produce vast amounts of interferon-alpha (IFN-α). In COVID-19 there is a deficit in DC numbers and IFN-α production, which has been associated with disease severity. In this work, we described that in addition to the DC deficiency, several DC activation and homing markers were altered in acute COVID-19 patients, which were associated with multiple inflammatory markers. Remarkably, previously hospitalized and nonhospitalized patients remained with decreased numbers of CD1c+ myeloid DCs and pDCs seven months after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, the expression of DC markers such as CD86 and CD4 were only restored in previously nonhospitalized patients, while no restoration of integrin β7 and indoleamine 2,3-dyoxigenase (IDO) levels were observed. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the immunological sequelae of COVID-19