Anterior-segment optical coherence tomography for the detection and therapeutic monitoring of corneal disorders

Background: Over recent years a revolutionary trend happened on imaging technologies to diagnose and monitor treatment of a varied group of ophthalmic pathologies. Recent reports have analyzed the microstructural changes of various ocular surface and corneal disorders, particularly ocular surface squamous neoplasia (OSSN) and keratoconus using anterior-segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). Aim of this short communication is to elaborate on clinical applications AS-OCT for the detection and therapeutic monitoring of corneal disorders. Methods: We performed an English literature search without a time limit and intending to identify articles related to the AS-OCT applications in the detection and therapeutic monitoring of corneal disorders. The most relevant articles were selected.  practical points of selected papers and advantages and disadvantages of AS-OCT were retrieved from them and summarized. Results:.Many records reported the AS-OCT applications for diagnosing many ocular surface disorders, the microstructural changes of different inflammatory, infectious, degenerative, and dystrophic corneal disorders. Its applications in identifying disease activity and therapeutic monitoring of various corneal pathologies, including stromal edema associated with angle-closure glaucoma, Fuchs endothelial dystrophy, infectious keratitis, and bullous keratopathy, are promising. The percentage of diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of artificial intelligence methodologies applied to AS-OCT imaging analysis today has reached 94% to 100%. Moreover, AS-OCT is very useful for analyzing the extension of scar and leukoma depth for surgical planning of partial or total corneal transplantation. Conclusions: There is a clear prospect for expanding application of corneal OCT imaging technology, a rapid, non-invasive, and now a promising lower-cost device, which is becoming an in-office standard-of-care tool for the assessment of different corneal and ocular surface pathologies. KEYWORDS anterior-segment optical coherence tomography, AS-OCT, ocular surface disorders, corneal disorders, ocular surface squamous neoplasia, OSSN, keratoconu

In Vivo Corneal Microstructural Changes in Herpetic Stromal Keratitis: A Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography Analysis

Purpose: To describe and analyze the microstructural changes in herpetic stromal keratitis (HSK) observed in vivo by spectral-domain ocular coherence tomography (SD-OCT) at different stages of the disease. Methods: A prospective, cross-sectional, observational, and comparative SD-OCT analysis of corneas with active and inactive keratitis was performed, and the pathologic differences between the necrotizing and non-necrotizing forms of the disease were analyzed. Results: Fifty-three corneas belonging to 43 (81.1%) women and 10 (18.8%) men with a mean age of 41.0 years were included for analysis. Twenty-four (45.3%) eyes had active keratitis, and 29 (54.7%) had inactive keratitis; the majority (83.0%) had the non-necrotizing form. Most corneas (79.1%) with active keratitis showed stromal edema and inflammatory infiltrates. Almost half of the active lesions affected the visual axis, were found at mid-stromal depth, and had a medium density. By contrast, corneas with inactive keratitis were characterized by stromal scarring (89.6%), epithelial remodeling (72.4%), and stromal thinning (68.9%). In contrast to non-necrotizing corneas, those with necrotizing HSK showed severe stromal scarring, inflammatory infiltration, and thinning. Additionally, most necrotizing lesions (77.7%) affected the visual axis and had a higher density (P = 0.010). Conclusion: Active HSK is characterized by significant epithelial and stromal thickening and the inactive disease manifests epithelial remodeling at sites of stromal thinning due to scarring. Necrotizing keratitis is characterized by distorted corneal architecture, substantial stromal inflammatory infiltration, and thinning. In vivo SD-OCT analysis permitted a better understanding of the inflammatory and repair mechanisms occurring in this blinding corneal disease

Unconventional OFF–ON Response of a Mono(calix[4]arene)-Substituted BODIPY Sensor for Hg2+ through Dimerization Reversion

A new selective fluorogenic chemosensor for Hg2+, which combines a calixarene derivative with a BODIPY core as a fluorescent reporter, is described. The remarkable change in its fluorogenic properties in DMSO and CHCl3 has been analyzed. A study of its spectral properties on dilution, along with molecular modeling studies, allowed us to explain that this behavior involves the formation of a J-dimer, as well as how the sensing mechanism of Hg2+ proceeds

Flavivirus Receptors: Diversity, Identity, and Cell Entry

Flaviviruses are emerging and re-emerging arthropod-borne pathogens responsible for significant mortality and morbidity worldwide. The genus comprises more than seventy small, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA viruses, which are responsible for a spectrum of human and animal diseases ranging in symptoms from mild, influenza-like infection to fatal encephalitis and haemorrhagic fever. Despite genomic and structural similarities across the genus, infections by different flaviviruses result in disparate clinical presentations. This review focusses on two haemorrhagic flaviviruses, dengue virus and yellow fever virus, and two neurotropic flaviviruses, Japanese encephalitis virus and Zika virus. We review current knowledge on host-pathogen interactions, virus entry strategies and tropism

Diseño de infraestructura para la protección de la erosión costera en el litoral argentino: Caso de Mar del Plata

El frente costero urbano al sur de Punta Mogotes (Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires) padece desde hace años un fenómeno de erosión progresiva debido a factores naturales y de origen antrópico. En este trabajo se ha realizado un anteproyecto de una infraestructura de protección costera. El diseño prevé la construcción de una serie de diques exentos paralelos a la costa. Para ello se ha estudiado la hidrodinámica y la dinámica sedimentaria, para la situación de diseño final y también para la situación actual. El análisis se realizó a diferentes escalas espacio-temporales: a corto plazo (horas) y a largo plazo (meses y años). Los resultados indican que el esquema propuesto funcionaría adecuadamente protegiendo la costa, sin la formación de tómbolos

Identification of energetically critical processes for cocoa production in Santander, Colombia

The intensification of industrial activities in post-harvest cocoa processes has generated a disproportionate increase in energy consumption. The objective of this work is to describe those energetically critical ones that are used in the cocoa production line in Santander so that further research can evaluate the implementation of alternative or renewable energy systems. Through the collection of information and data management, it is seeking to promote the efficient use of energy based on the NTC ISO 500001. For this end, a description of the processes involved in the production of cocoa was made considering the technical data. Then, the energy consumed by the equipment used in the different processes was determined for 30 days, operating 24 hours a day, assuming power factors of 0.75 and 0.9. Finally, through analysis, calculations, and the application of the Pareto methodology, it was possible to identify that the process with the highest energy consumption is the cocoa refining step, since the equipment used in this process consumes more than 30% of energy from the total energy used for cocoa production

Analysis of a piezoelectric energy harvester system from footsteps of passersby

Piezoelectric materials can be used in applications designed to handle a wide range of input frequencies and forces to enable energy harvesting. Although several studies have been carried out on piezoelectric energy harvesting systems, this application is still under development. The purpose of this work is to analyze the behavior and the ability to generate electrical energy through the elements in piezoelectric tiles or platforms, specifically, piezoelectric disc elements with a diameter of 27 mm. To do this, a platform of about 130 x 75 cm was designed to capture the footsteps of people and transmit the impact force to sensors to determine the power generation capacity of the piezoelectric elements. Tests were carried out with people weighing between 75 kg and 85 kg and the measurements obtained made possible to identify the behavior of the system and to develop a mathematical model to estimate the energy generated through the platform. The piezoelectric elements used here proved to be fragile despite the different types of shock absorbers used to avoid their rupture. Therefore, it is recommended to delve into the design of protection mechanisms to extend the life of piezoelectric elements in energy collection systems

Bean yellow mosaic virus infecting broad bean in the green belt of Córdoba, Argentina

Broad bean (Vicia faba L) is the fourth most important pulse crop in the world. In Argentina, broad bean production was of 1,841 hectares and 16,500 tons during the 2017 growing season. Broad bean is commonly used in rotations; especially by farmers located in “green belts” that are peri-urban areas surrounding large cities that include horticultural family farms. Plants showing marked foliar mosaic symptoms, typical of viral infection, were collected during the 2015 growing season in the green belt of Córdoba city, Argentina. Preparations of symptomatic tissues were mechanically inoculated onto healthy broad bean plants in the greenhouse, which developed symptoms similar to those observed in the field. In addition, symptomatic samples were positive when tested by indirect ELISA with the anti-potyvirus group monoclonal antibody. Further, flexuous filamentous particles typical of potyviruses were observed under the electronic microscope on dip preparations. Lastly, total RNA was extracted from a symptomatic leaf and high-throughput sequenced, which allowed the assembly of a single virus sequence corresponding to a new highly divergent strain of Bean yellow mosaic virus (BYMV). Phylogenetic insights clustered this Argentinean broad bean isolate (BYMV-ARGbb) within group IX of BYMV. Given the economical importance of this virus and its associated disease, the results presented here are a pivotal first step oriented to explore the eventual incidence and epidemiological parameters of BYMV in broad bean in Argentina.Instituto de Patología VegetalFil: Rodriguez Pardina, Patricia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Nome Docampo, Claudia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Reyna, Pablo Gastón. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); ArgentinaFil: Reyna, Pablo Gastón. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Muñoz, Nacira Belén. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales; ArgentinaFil: Muñoz, Nacira Belén. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (UNC). Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales (FCEFyN).Cátedra de Fisiología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Arguello Caro, Evangelina Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Arguello Caro, Evangelina Beatriz. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (UNC). Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias (FCA). Cátedra de Zoología Agrícola,; ArgentinaFil: Luque, Andres Vicente. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET); ArgentinaFil: Luque, Andres Vicente. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Debat, Humberto Julio. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Patología Vegetal; Argentin

Plan de responsabilidad social empresarial grupo empresarial Activos S.A.S.

Plan de responsabilidad social empresarial grupo empresarial Activos S.A.S.En el presente escrito se consolida la elaboración del plan de responsabilidad social empresarial del grupo empresarial Activos S.A.S, compañía dedicada a la prestación de servicios temporales que específicamente realiza la administración de recurso humano de sus clientes. El respectivo plan de RSE está desarrollado a partir de diferentes fases, inicialmente se realizó una evaluación de desempeño de la empresa, donde se define la necesidad de realizar un programa de RSE, bajo una serie de estrategias que impacten al grupo empresarial Activos S.A.S., la segunda fase consolida código de conducta empresarial, donde se genera las políticas y responsabilidades que cada actor de la organización debe tener en cuenta para articularse dentro del plan estratégico de la empresa, se tuvo como guía en esta fase las iniciativas mundiales para su elaboración. En la tercera fase se realiza el mapa de Stakeholders y la matriz de influencia, definiendo los diferentes grupos de interés y su nivel de impacto, de ahí, se elabora el plan RSE, bajo los objetivos, estrategias y sus respectivos indicadores, los cuales relacionan el resultado esperado durante su implementación, permitiendo así verificar si las actividades propuestas cumplen con los resultados esperados y de esta manera enfocar a la organización desde su contribución activa y voluntaria a una mejor sociedad colombiana.This text consolidates the development of the Corporate Social Responsibility plan of the Activos S.A.S. business group, a company dedicated to the provision of temporary services that specifically performs the administration of human resources of its customers. The respective CSR plan is developed from different phases, initially a performance evaluation of the company was carried out, which defines the need to carry out a program of CSR, under a series of strategies that impact the Activos S.A.S. business group, the second phase consolidates the code of business conduct, where the policies and responsibilities that each actor of the organization must take into account to articulate within the companys strategic plan, the global initiatives for the development of global. In the third phase the stakeholder map and the influence matrix are carried out, defining the different stakeholders and their level of impact, hence the CSR plan is developed, under the objectives, strategies and their respective indicators, which relate the expected result during its implementation, this allowing to verify whether the proposed activities meet the expected results and thus focus the organization from its active and voluntary contribution to a better Colombian society

Eradication of bovine tuberculosis at a herd-level in Madrid, Spain: study of within-herd transmission dynamics over a 12 year period

BACKGROUND Eradication of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) through the application of test-and-cull programs is a declared goal of developed countries in which the disease is still endemic. Here, longitudinal data from more than 1,700 cattle herds tested during a 12 year-period in the eradication program in the region of Madrid, Spain, were analyzed to quantify the within-herd transmission coefficient (β) depending on the herd-type (beef/dairy/bullfighting). In addition, the probability to recover the officially bTB free (OTF) status in infected herds depending on the type of herd and the diagnostic strategy implemented was assessed using Cox proportional hazard models. RESULTS Overall, dairy herds showed higher β (median 4.7) than beef or bullfighting herds (2.3 and 2.2 respectively). Introduction of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) as an ancillary test produced an apparent increase in the β coefficient regardless of production type, likely due to an increase in diagnostic sensitivity. Time to recover OTF status was also significantly lower in dairy herds, and length of bTB episodes was significantly reduced when the IFN-γ was implemented to manage the outbreak. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that bTB spreads more rapidly in dairy herds compared to other herd types, a likely cause being management and demographic-related factors. However, outbreaks in dairy herds can be controlled more rapidly than in typically extensive herd types. Finally, IFN-γ proved its usefulness to rapidly eradicate bTB at a herd-level