The molecular basis of RH system and its applications in obstetrics and transfusion medicine

The Rh system is the most polymorphic and immunogenic for all blood group systems. Currently more than 49 antigens were identified with five major antigens D, C, c, E, e. Knowledge of the Rh system's molecular basis, since its first cloning 17 years ago, allowed to understand the mechanism of Rh-negative phenotype and the variants of antigens as RHD and RHCE. Deletions, gene rearrangements and insertions are the main mutations. In Caucasians the primary mechanism of Rh-negative phenotype is the complete RHD gene deletion, while in African descendants it is the presence of pseudogene and gene RHDψ hybrid RHD-CE (4-7)-D. The authors analyze the structure of the Rh complex in red cells, molecular basis of the Rh system, mechanisms of Negativity RHD and weak and incomplete expression of RHD.O sistema Rh é o mais polimórfico e imunogênico de todos os sistemas de grupos sanguíneos. Atualmente mais de 49 antígenos foram identificados sendo cinco principais os antígenos D, C, c, E, e. O conhecimento das bases moleculares do sistema Rh desde a sua primeira clonagem há 17 anos possibilitou o entendimento tanto do mecanismo do fenótipo Rh negativo quanto das variantes dos antígenos RHD e RHCE. As deleções, rearranjos gênicos e as inserções são as principais mutações encontradas. Nos caucasianos, o mecanismo principal do fenótipo Rh negativo é a completa deleção do gene RHD, enquanto nos afrodescendentes é a presença do pseudogene RHDψ e do gene híbrido RHD-CE (4-7)-D. Os autores analisam a estrutura do complexo Rh nas hemácias, as bases moleculares do Sistema Rh, os mecanismos de negatividade RHD, além da Expressão fraca e parcial de D.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) departamento de ObstetríciaCOLSANUNIFESP, Depto. de ObstetríciaSciEL

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in public school pupils according to three anthropometric diagnostic criteria

To compare the prevalence of child obesity according to three criteria, a cross-sectional study was performed with 6-to-11-year-old children in eight elementary public schools in the city of São Paulo. Z scores for weight-for-height (W/H) and body mass index (BMI) were calculated from the weight and height variables. Prevalence rates for overweight in males, according to Must, Cole, and WHO criteria, were 10.92%, 10.29%, and 11.94%, respectively, and for obesity 8.17%, 13.67%, and 10.29%. For females, prevalence rates for overweight according to Must, Cole, and WHO criteria were 13.51%, 13.83%, and 13.67%, respectively, and for obesity 8.25%, 16.50%, and 11.73%. The study analyzes the variations in obesity estimates based on different criteria, highlighting the need for clinical and population studies to support the development of a single criterion. Such studies, in addition to identifying individuals with a higher probability of excess body fat, could also correlate body fat to risk of illness and death (similar to the 25 and 30 BMI cutoff points in adults).Com objetivo de comparar a prevalência de obesidade infantil segundo três critérios antropométricos, foi realizado estudo transversal em oito escolas públicas estaduais na cidade de São Paulo, com crianças entre 6 e 11 anos de idade. Com base nas variáveis peso e altura, calculou-se o escore Z de P/E e o IMC. As prevalências de sobrepeso para o sexo masculino pelos critérios de Cole, Must e OMS foram de 10,92%, 10,29% e 11,94%, respectivamente, e para obesidade 8,17%, 13,67% e 10,29%. Para o sexo feminino, as prevalências de sobrepeso pelos critérios de Cole, Must e OMS foram de 13,51%, 13,83% e 13,67%, respectivamente, e para obesidade 8,25%, 16,50% e 11,73%. As variações nas estimativas de obesidade, se considerarmos os diferentes critérios, ressalta a necessidade de estudos populacionais e clínicos que orientem critério único, que além de identificar os indivíduos com maior probabilidade de excesso de gordura corporal, correlacione isto ao risco de adoecer e morrer, como ocorre com os pontos de corte 25 e 30 do IMC em adultos.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de MedicinaUNIFESP, EPMSciEL

Reprocessability of PHB in extrusion: ATR-FTIR, tensile tests and thermal studies

Mechanical recycling of biodegradable plastics has to be encouraged, since the consumption of energy and raw materials can be reduced towards a sustainable development in plastics materials. In this study, the evolution of thermal and mechanical properties, as well as structural changes of poly(hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) up to three extrusion cycles were investigated. Results indicated a significant reduction in mechanical properties already at the second extrusion cycle, with a reduction above 50% in the third cycle. An increase in the crystallinity index was observed due to chemicrystallization process during degradation by chain scission. On the other hand, significant changes in the chemical structure or in thermal stability of PHB cannot be detected by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analyses (TGA), respectively.National Foundation for Science and Technology Development (CNPq)Univ Fed Rio Grande Norte UFRN, Dept Mat Engn DEMat, Natal, RN, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Carlos UFSCar, Dept Mat Engn DEMa, Sao Carlos, SP, BrazilUniv Fed Paraiba UFPB, Dept Mat Engn DEMAT, Joao Pessoa, Paraiba, BrazilUniv Fed Rio Grande Norte UFRN, Dept Chem DQ, Natal, RN, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, Inst Sci & Technol ICT, Sao Jose Dos Campos, SP, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo UNIFESP, Inst Sci & Technol ICT, Sao Jose Dos Campos, SP, BrazilWeb of Scienc

Predictors of in-hospital mortality in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction undergoing pharmacoinvasive treatment

OBJECTIVES: To identify predictors of in-hospital mortality in patients with acute myocardial infarction undergoing pharmacoinvasive treatment. METHODS: This was an observational, prospective study that included 398 patients admitted to a tertiary center for percutaneous coronary intervention within 3 to 24 hours after thrombolysis with tenecteplase. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01791764 RESULTS: The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 5.8%. Compared with patients who survived, patients who died were more likely to be older, have higher rates of diabetes and chronic renal failure, have a lower left ventricular ejection fraction, and demonstrate more evidence of heart failure (Killip class III or IV). Patients who died had significantly lower rates of successful thrombolysis (39% vs. 68%; p = 0.005) and final myocardial blush grade 3 (13.0% vs. 61.9%; p<0.0001). Based on the multivariate analysis, the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events score (odds ratio 1.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-1.09; p = 0.001), left ventricular ejection fraction (odds ratio 0.9, 95% CI 0.89-0.97; p = 0.001), and final myocardial blush grade of 0-2 (odds ratio 8.85, 95% CI 1.34-58.57; p = 0.02) were independent predictors of mortality. CONCLUSIONS: In this prospective study that evaluated patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction treated by a pharmacoinvasive strategy, the in-hospital mortality rate was 5.8%. The Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events score, left ventricular ejection fraction, and myocardial blush were independent predictors of mortality in this high-risk group of acute coronary syndrome patients.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Department of CardiologySecretaria de Saude do Municipio de São PauloHospital Municipal TatuapeUNIFESP, Department of CardiologySciEL

TAO Conceptual Design Report: A Precision Measurement of the Reactor Antineutrino Spectrum with Sub-percent Energy Resolution

The Taishan Antineutrino Observatory (TAO, also known as JUNO-TAO) is a satellite experiment of the Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO). A ton-level liquid scintillator detector will be placed at about 30 m from a core of the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant. The reactor antineutrino spectrum will be measured with sub-percent energy resolution, to provide a reference spectrum for future reactor neutrino experiments, and to provide a benchmark measurement to test nuclear databases. A spherical acrylic vessel containing 2.8 ton gadolinium-doped liquid scintillator will be viewed by 10 m^2 Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs) of &gt;50% photon detection efficiency with almost full coverage. The photoelectron yield is about 4500 per MeV, an order higher than any existing large-scale liquid scintillator detectors. The detector operates at -50 degree C to lower the dark noise of SiPMs to an acceptable level. The detector will measure about 2000 reactor antineutrinos per day, and is designed to be well shielded from cosmogenic backgrounds and ambient radioactivities to have about 10% background-to-signal ratio. The experiment is expected to start operation in 2022

Potential of Core-Collapse Supernova Neutrino Detection at JUNO

JUNO is an underground neutrino observatory under construction in Jiangmen, China. It uses 20kton liquid scintillator as target, which enables it to detect supernova burst neutrinos of a large statistics for the next galactic core-collapse supernova (CCSN) and also pre-supernova neutrinos from the nearby CCSN progenitors. All flavors of supernova burst neutrinos can be detected by JUNO via several interaction channels, including inverse beta decay, elastic scattering on electron and proton, interactions on C12 nuclei, etc. This retains the possibility for JUNO to reconstruct the energy spectra of supernova burst neutrinos of all flavors. The real time monitoring systems based on FPGA and DAQ are under development in JUNO, which allow prompt alert and trigger-less data acquisition of CCSN events. The alert performances of both monitoring systems have been thoroughly studied using simulations. Moreover, once a CCSN is tagged, the system can give fast characterizations, such as directionality and light curve

Detection of the Diffuse Supernova Neutrino Background with JUNO

As an underground multi-purpose neutrino detector with 20 kton liquid scintillator, Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO) is competitive with and complementary to the water-Cherenkov detectors on the search for the diffuse supernova neutrino background (DSNB). Typical supernova models predict 2-4 events per year within the optimal observation window in the JUNO detector. The dominant background is from the neutral-current (NC) interaction of atmospheric neutrinos with 12C nuclei, which surpasses the DSNB by more than one order of magnitude. We evaluated the systematic uncertainty of NC background from the spread of a variety of data-driven models and further developed a method to determine NC background within 15\% with {\it{in}} {\it{situ}} measurements after ten years of running. Besides, the NC-like backgrounds can be effectively suppressed by the intrinsic pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) capabilities of liquid scintillators. In this talk, I will present in detail the improvements on NC background uncertainty evaluation, PSD discriminator development, and finally, the potential of DSNB sensitivity in JUNO

Real-time Monitoring for the Next Core-Collapse Supernova in JUNO

Core-collapse supernova (CCSN) is one of the most energetic astrophysical events in the Universe. The early and prompt detection of neutrinos before (pre-SN) and during the SN burst is a unique opportunity to realize the multi-messenger observation of the CCSN events. In this work, we describe the monitoring concept and present the sensitivity of the system to the pre-SN and SN neutrinos at the Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory (JUNO), which is a 20 kton liquid scintillator detector under construction in South China. The real-time monitoring system is designed with both the prompt monitors on the electronic board and online monitors at the data acquisition stage, in order to ensure both the alert speed and alert coverage of progenitor stars. By assuming a false alert rate of 1 per year, this monitoring system can be sensitive to the pre-SN neutrinos up to the distance of about 1.6 (0.9) kpc and SN neutrinos up to about 370 (360) kpc for a progenitor mass of 30$M_{\odot}$ for the case of normal (inverted) mass ordering. The pointing ability of the CCSN is evaluated by using the accumulated event anisotropy of the inverse beta decay interactions from pre-SN or SN neutrinos, which, along with the early alert, can play important roles for the followup multi-messenger observations of the next Galactic or nearby extragalactic CCSN.Comment: 24 pages, 9 figure