Selective cell response on natural polymer bio-interfaces textured by femtosecond laser

This study reports on the evaluation of laser processed natural polymer-chitosan, which is under consideration as a biointerface used for temporary applications as skin and cartilage substitutes. It is employed for tissue engineering purposes, since it possesses a significant degree of biocompatibility and biodegradability. Chitosan-based thin films were processed by femtosecond laser radiation to enhance the surface properties of the material. Various geometry patterns were produced on polymer surfaces and employed to examine cellular adhesion and orientation. The topography of the modified zones was observed using scanning electron microscopy and confocal microscopy. Test of the material cytotoxicity was performed by evaluating the life/dead cell correlation. The obtained results showed that texturing with femtosecond laser pulses is appropriate method to initiate a predefined cellular response. Formation of surface modifications in the form of foams with an expansion of the material was created under laser irradiation with a number of applied laser pulses from N = 1-5. It is shown that irradiation with N > 5 results in disturbance of microfoam. Material characterization reveals a decrease in water contact angle values after laser irradiation of chitosan films. Consequently, changes in surface roughness of chitosan thin-film surface result in its functionalization. Cultivation of MC3T3 and ATMSC cells show cell orientational migration concerning different surface patterning. The influence of various pulse durations (varying from tau = 30-500 fs) over biofilms surface was examined regarding the evolution of surface morphology. The goal of this study was to define the optimal laser conditions (laser energy, number of applied pulses, and pulse duration) to alter surface wettability properties and porosity to improve material performance. The acquired set of results indicate the way to tune the surface properties to optimize cell-interface interaction

Editorial

Els articles que conformen el present monogràfic són fruit d'unes jornades que es van dur a terme els dies 2, 3 i 4 de novembre del 2011 a la Universitat de Barcelona, titulades “Crítica a la raó sexològica. Etnografies entorn els cossos, els gèneres i les sexualitats”. Aquestes jornades també van servir per presentar una nova línia del Grup de Recerca sobre Exclusió i Control Socials (GRECS) de la UB: la Línia de Recerca i Acció entorn els Cossos, Gèneres i Sexualitats (LIRACGS). Aquesta nova línia té per objecte obrir un espai crític entorn les categories que conformen el nostre univers sexo-lògic, i visibilitzar les subjectivitats, cossos i pràctiques que queden fora de la matriu (hetero)normativa. Les jornades pretenien ser una aportació al coneixement científic de l'antropologia social i cultural i una contribució al debat sobre les diverses formes de gestió social de la sexualitat. En aquest sentit, es van tractar temes com ara les anomenades “pràctiques de risc”, la medicalització de les sexualitats divergents, els usos sexuals de l'espai públic i els mecanismes de control i supervisió, o la (auto)gestió corporal i les pràctiques de resistència entorn les fronteres del gènere. Atesa la participació i l’interès mostrat per les investigadores socials, les professionals de l’àmbit i les militants de col·lectius LGTBQI, es va decidir donar continuïtat a aquesta iniciativa amb l’elaboració d’un monogràfic entorn les temàtiques que allí es van presentar. En el present monogràfic, Alba Barbé i Serra s’aproxima a la performance Drag King a través de la proposta metodològica dels Itineraris Corporals de Mari Luz Esteban. Performances de masculinitat en el context polític dels feminismes, espais de continuïtat que permeten explorar àmbits de la intimitat d’aquelles qui performen. Un trànsit que permet observar les fissures existents en la bidireccionalitat dels processos entre l’experiència particular, i l’ordre sociosexual hegemònic. Fernando Villaamil analitza críticament el discurs dominant relatiu a la prevenció del VIH. Partint d'una recerca etnogràfica amb persones diagnosticades, l'autor explora les estratègies posades en marxa per part d'aquestes persones per viure la seva sexualitat. Per desenvolupar aquesta proposta, es recolza en la noció de “carn” de Rosengarten, aborda les tecnologies de prevenció del VIH com a quelcom històric i té en consideració les determinacions socioculturals que influeixen en la vida dels subjectes entrevistats. A partir del treball de camp realitzat en tres centres de salut ubicats als barris perifèrics de la ciutat de Salta, Argentina, Ana Pérez Declercq analitza les pràctiques i els discursos al voltant dels quals s’organitza la planificació familiar. L’assistència institucional a les persones usuàries destaca, d’una banda, per una construcció de les dones com agents passius i receptius, principals responsables de la cura de la salut i, de l’altra, per identificar la sexualitat masculina com allò in-controlable. La qüestió de la percepció del risc i la seva gestió en el camp de les drogues constitueix l’objecte d’anàlisi d’Oriol Romaní. Al llarg de l'article es destaca la importància de considerar la percepció del risc a l'hora de portar a terme les intervencions professionals. L'autor proposa l'etnografia com a eina per copsar l'experiència de les poblacions objecte d'intervenció i així identificar els “riscos situats”, a fi de reduir possibles efectes negatius del consum, però també maximitzar els plaers que es cerquen amb l'ús de les drogues. Jordi Mas aborda els mecanismes que legitimen la patologització de la transexualitat. És per això que analitza la categoria diagnòstica “trastorn de la identitat de gènere” i estudia el procés diagnòstic de la transexualitat en un hospital públic de l’Estat espanyol, prestant una atenció especial als discursos i representacions tant del personal sanitari com de les persones usuàries. L’autor sosté que el fet que una persona rebutgi el gènere assignat al néixer podria ser vist com una variant en favor de la diversitat humana, però l’hegemonia del model patologitzador situa a aquestes persones en l’àmbit de l’anormalitat, fet que impedeix qualsevol qüestionament del sistema de sexe/gènere. Julieta Vartabedian examina els mecanismes de control del treball sexual als carrers de Barcelona. Es presenta una doble lectura de l'espai en relació al treball sexual. D'una banda es revisen les diverses polítiques públiques destinades a eradicar un “problema” d'ordre públic. De l'altra, centrant-se en el cas de les travestís brasileres treballadores del sexe, s'estudien les estratègies per respondre a aquesta persecució institucional. El treball sexual de les travestís és aquí concebut com un mitjà d'empoderament que possibilita l'exhibició pública de la seva feminitat. Finalment, Jose Antonio Langarita desenvolupa un apropament a la ciutat com a espai de control sexual i de generació d'hegemonies on es dóna una relació d'inclusió i exclusió entre els seus habitants a partir de la lògica sexual dominant. Tanmateix, la ciutat també ha esdevingut un territori de pràctiques sexuals marginals que tenen lloc, precisament, en els mateixos espais públics objectes de control. Aquesta anàlisi es basa en el treball etnogràfic de les pràctiques de sexe anònim entre homes, anomenat cruising, a Barcelona. A banda dels articles que conformen el monogràfic, al número podem trobar també dos textos més. En el primer, Marta Ausona analitza els processos d’alletament quan es prolonguen en el temps, per tal de reflexionar sobre la noció de persona, la corporalitat en la criança i els tabús a Occident en torn als cossos i els seus fluids. Per fer-ho, l’article aborda la lactància des d’entrevistes en profunditat i observació participant, però també introduint una perspectiva històrica i de critica a certs elements establertes en torn a l’escassetat de la llet materna, l’instint i els models familiars i de criança. En el cas de l’article de Claudio Milano, es tracta d’una recerca al nord-est de Brasil, concretament a Ilha Grande de Santa Isabel, que problematitza el fenomen de la turistificació en una comunitat rural. Mitjançant l’observació participant i les fonts orals al Delta de Parnáiba, es tracta d’analitzar els canvis socioeconòmics, ambientals i culturals que suposa l’impacte del turisme. A més, l’article presenta una aproximació a tant l’Antropologia del turisme com als seus vincles amb el mon de la cooperació internacional, passant per reflexions metodològiques sobre el doble rol d’investigador i voluntari. Completen aquest numero dues ressenyes, dels llibres Toacazo. En los Andes equinocciales tras la Reforma Agraria (Bretón 2012) i Kuna Yala, tierra de mar. Ecología y territorio indígena en Panamá (Martínez Mauri 2011) respectivament. El primer, ressenyat per Mònica Martínez Mauri, es centra en els factors que van produir la crisi del model de l’hacienda –que havia funcionat més de 300 anys- a finals dels 60 i la politització de l’etnicitat actual, en l’àmbit geogràfic situat a la Sierra equatoriana. Per fer-ho, es serveix de l’economia moral, en una anàlisi de l’exercici del poder, l’hegemonia i la resistència en un camp de forces socials. Respecte al segon, Kuna Yala, tierra de mar, ressenyat per Maria Eugenia Mellado, aborda la relació societat-natura, mitjançant la descripció del marc físic de la regió i els esquemes de percepció identificació i classificació construïts a partir de dita relació, des d’una perspectiva emic. Es fonamenta, per tant, en una perspectiva etnoecològica, que privilegia l’explicació de les relacions materials i simbòliques dels Kunas amb els ecosistemes terrestres i marins que els envolten. Finalment, el numero acaba amb el comentari de Raúl García Ferrer sobre les jornades Topologia de l’espai urbà contemporani, celebrades a finals de 2012, que connecten els àmbits de l’Antropologia i l’Arquitectura. Des d’una perspectiva de diversitat disciplinar, a la ressenya es resumeixen les principals aportacions de la jornada i s’insisteix en la importància de l’anàlisi de la ciutat i els espais urbans des de l’Antropologia. Com és habitual, tanquem aquesta editorial agraint de nou la col·laboració de totes i tots els que amb el vostre suport (els vostres articles, les vostres avaluacions, els vostres suggeriments i la vostra lectura) feu possible l’existència de la revista i us continuem animant a participar en aquest espai obert de debat de l’Antropologia a Catalunya

Huntington’s Disease protein huntingtin associates with its own mRNA

Background: The Huntington's disease (HD) protein huntingtin (Htt) plays a role in multiple cellular pathways. Deregulation of one or more of these pathways by the mutant Htt protein has been suggested to contribute to the disease pathogenesis. Our recent discovery-based proteomics studies have uncovered RNA binding proteins and translation factors associated with the endogenous Htt protein purified from mouse brains, suggesting a potential new role for Htt in RNA transport and translation. Objective: To investigate how Htt might affect RNA metabolism we set out to purify and analyze RNA associated with Htt. Methods: RNA was extracted from immunopurified Htt-containing protein complexes and analyzed by microarrays and RNA-Seq. Results: Surprisingly, the most enriched mRNA that co-purified with Htt was Htt mRNA itself. The association of Htt protein and Htt mRNA was detected independent of intact ribosomes suggesting that it is not an RNA undergoing translation. Furthermore, we identified the recently reported mis-spliced Htt mRNA encoding a truncated protein comprised of exon 1 and a portion of the downstream intron in the immunoprecipitates containing mutant Htt protein. We show that Htt protein co-localizes with Htt mRNA and that wild-type Htt reduces expression of a reporter construct harboring the Htt 3' UTR. Conclusions: HD protein is found in a complex with its own mRNA and RNA binding proteins and translation factors. Htt may be involved in modulating its expression through post-transcriptional pathways. It is possible that Htt shares mechanistic properties similar to RNA binding proteins such as TDP-43 and FUS implicated in other neurodegenerative diseases

An approach to fulfill art 8 of directive 2009/128: procedure of risk assessment for pesticide application equipment

The EU Directive 2009/128/EC on the sustainable use of pesticides requires that Member States (MS) shall ensure that all Pesticide Application Equipment (PAE) in professional use shall be subject to inspection at regular intervals. Article 8.3 of the Directive allows the MS to derogate from the mandatory inspection at regular intervals or to apply different timetables and inspection intervals for certain types of PAE based on a Risk Assessment (RA) for human health, food safety and environment and an assessment of the scale of use. In order to fulfill Article 8.3, a risk assessment protocol was developed in Belgium within the framework of the SIRA-APESTICON project. Risk is now evaluated for the human health and the environment on all Belgian equipment. It will offer guidelines about the necessity to carry out an inspection of every PAE in use. The protocol is based on technical parameters subject to inspections, their occurrences and severities, but also on national scale of use of the PAE types. Results are expressed at different scale levels: the defect, the machine and the country.The EU Directive 2009/128/EC on the sustainable use of pesticides requires that Member States (MS) shall ensure that all Pesticide Application Equipment (PAE) in professional use shall be subject to inspection at regular intervals. Article 8.3 of the Directive allows the MS to derogate from the mandatory inspection at regular intervals or to apply different timetables and inspection intervals for certain types of PAE based on a Risk Assessment (RA) for human health, food safety and environment and an assessment of the scale of use. In order to fulfill Article 8.3, a risk assessment protocol was developed in Belgium within the framework of the SIRA-APESTICON project. Risk is now evaluated for the human health and the environment on all Belgian equipment. It will offer guidelines about the necessity to carry out an inspection of every PAE in use. The protocol is based on technical parameters subject to inspections, their occurrences and severities, but also on national scale of use of the PAE types. Results are expressed at different scale levels: the defect, the machine and the country

The interRAI Acute Care instrument incorporated in an eHealth system for standardized and web-based geriatric assessment: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in the acute hospital setting

BACKGROUND: The interRAI Acute Care instrument is a multidimensional geriatric assessment system intended to determine a hospitalized older persons’ medical, psychosocial and functional capacity and needs. Its objective is to develop an overall plan for treatment and long-term follow-up based on a common set of standardized items that can be used in various care settings. A Belgian web-based software system (BelRAI-software) was developed to enable clinicians to interpret the output and to communicate the patients’ data across wards and care organizations. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the (dis)advantages of the implementation of the interRAI Acute Care instrument as a comprehensive geriatric assessment instrument in an acute hospital context. METHODS: In a cross-sectional multicenter study on four geriatric wards in three acute hospitals, trained clinical staff (nurses, occupational therapists, social workers, and geriatricians) assessed 410 inpatients in routine clinical practice. The BelRAI-system was evaluated by focus groups, observations, and questionnaires. The Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats were mapped (SWOT-analysis) and validated by the participants. RESULTS: The primary strengths of the BelRAI-system were a structured overview of the patients’ condition early after admission and the promotion of multidisciplinary assessment. Our study was a first attempt to transfer standardized data between home care organizations, nursing homes and hospitals and a way to centralize medical, allied health professionals and nursing data. With the BelRAI-software, privacy of data is guaranteed. Weaknesses are the time-consuming character of the process and the overlap with other assessment instruments or (electronic) registration forms. There is room for improving the user-friendliness and the efficiency of the software, which needs hospital-specific adaptations. Opportunities are a timely and systematic problem detection and continuity of care. An actual shortage of funding of personnel to coordinate the assessment process is the most important threat. CONCLUSION: The BelRAI-software allows standardized transmural information transfer and the centralization of medical, allied health professionals and nursing data. It is strictly secured and follows strict privacy regulations, allowing hospitals to optimize (transmural) communication and interaction. However, weaknesses and threats exist and must be tackled in order to promote large scale implementation

Development of a BelRAI screening instrument for correctional facilities preparatory phase for testing

Commissioned by the Belgian federal government, a BelRAI screening tool for the detention context was developed. The aim of this screening instrument is to collect all information necessary for care providers inside prison to decide whether a penitentiary care trajectory is needed

Improving osteoblasts cells proliferation via femtosecond laser surface modification of 3D-printed poly-ε-caprolactone scaffolds for bone tissue engineering applications

Synthetic polymer biomaterials incorporating cells are a promising technique for treatment of orthopedic injuries. To enhance the integration of biomaterials into the human body, additional functionalization of the scaffold surface should be carried out that would assist one in mimicking the natural cellular environment. In this study, we examined poly-epsilon-caprolactone (PCL) fiber matrices in view of optimizing the porous properties of the constructs. Altering the porosity of a PCL scaffold is expected to improve the material's biocompatibility, thus influencing its osteoconductivity and osteointegration. We produced 3D poly-epsilon-caprolactone (PCL) matrices by a fused deposition modeling method for bone and cartilage tissue engineering and performed femtosecond (fs) laser modification experiments to improve the surface properties of the PCL construct. Femtosecond laser processing is one of the useful tools for creating a vast diversity of surface patterns with reproducibility and precision. The processed surface of the PCL matrix was examined to follow the effect of the laser parameters, namely the laser pulse energy and repetition rate and the number (N) of applied pulses. The modified zones were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), confocal microscopy, X-ray computed tomography and contact angle measurements. The results obtained demonstrated changes in the morphology of the processed surface. A decrease in the water contact angle was also seen after fs laser processing of fiber meshes. Our work demonstrated that a precise control of material surface properties could be achieved by applying a different number of laser pulses at various laser fluence values. We concluded that the structural features of the matrix remain unaffected and can be successfully modified through laser postmodification. The cells tests indicated that the micro-modifications created induced MG63 and MC3T3 osteoblast cellular orientation. The analysis of the MG63 and MC3T3 osteoblast attachment suggested regulation of cells volume migration

Search for MSSM Higgs bosons decaying to μ+μ-in proton-proton collisions at √s=13TeV

A search is performed for neutral non-standard-model Higgs bosons decaying to two muons in the context of the minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM). Proton-proton collision data recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider at a center-of-mass energy of 13TeVwere used, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9fb-1. The search is sensitive to neutral Higgs bosons produced via the gluon fusion process or in association with a bbquark pair. No significant deviations from the standard model expectation are observed. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are set in the context of the mmod+hand phenomenological MSSM scenarios on the parameter tanβas a function of the mass of the pseudoscalar Aboson, in the range from 130 to 600GeV. The results are also used to set a model-independent limit on the product of the branching fraction for the decay into a muon pair and the cross section for the production of a scalar neutral boson, either via gluon fusion, or in association with bquarks, in the mass range from 130 to 1000GeV

Understanding interpersonal relationships and psychopathy

Although psychopathy is widely recognised for its importance in forensic and criminal justice settings, the range of interpersonal relationships that are experienced and engaged in by individuals with psychopathy is understudied. A Rapid Evidence Assessment (Study 1) examined what is known empirically about the nature and quality of relationships for individuals with psychopathy. Affective, Cognitive and Lifestyle Assessment (ACL) interviews and genograms were then analysed in conjunction with Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL:SV) scores to explore the extent, nature, and quality of interpersonal relationships in student and forensic psychiatric samples (Study 2). Quantitative data indicated that total psychopathy score predicted a smaller number of positive interpersonal relationships. Findings regarding Factors 1 and 2 and numbers of positive and negative interpersonal relationships varied between samples. Qualitative analyses demonstrated that psychopathic participants used less positive descriptors than non-psychopathic participants when discussing their interpersonal relationships. Findings are examined with regards to implications for future research