Sustainable food production with greenhouse technologies

The greenhouse fruit and vegetable production is one important area which supports sustainability. To achievesustainable economy and growth, the given natural resources have to be used in a smarter, renewable way in order to avoiddepleting them. New technologies and new methods are developed and implemented to utilize resources in more optimized way.Sustainable food supply is essential globally for the world, however it has to be managed and achieved on local levels. We presentthe greenhouse production market restructuring with new players. What kind of difficulties arise in the open field vegetableproduction and what benefits can be realized by the customers and producers from the covered greenhouse technology in thecontinental and desert climate? What are the technical boundary conditions to establish and operate greenhouse production indifferent regions and what are the benefits realized from local food production? As an example, we analyse Qatar’s energetics,climate conditions and food resources, Qatar’s food supply process and its barriers. We will show how the sustainability andfood safety appear in Qatar’s National Strategy Plan

Sustainable food production with greenhouse technologies

The greenhouse fruit and vegetable production is one important area which supports sustainability. To achievesustainable economy and growth, the given natural resources have to be used in a smarter, renewable way in order to avoiddepleting them. New technologies and new methods are developed and implemented to utilize resources in more optimized way.Sustainable food supply is essential globally for the world, however it has to be managed and achieved on local levels. We presentthe greenhouse production market restructuring with new players. What kind of difficulties arise in the open field vegetableproduction and what benefits can be realized by the customers and producers from the covered greenhouse technology in thecontinental and desert climate? What are the technical boundary conditions to establish and operate greenhouse production indifferent regions and what are the benefits realized from local food production? As an example, we analyse Qatar’s energetics,climate conditions and food resources, Qatar’s food supply process and its barriers. We will show how the sustainability andfood safety appear in Qatar’s National Strategy Plan

High selenium levels associate with reduced risk of mortality and new onset heart failure:data from PREVEND

AIM: To elucidate the relationship between serum selenium levels and the risk of mortality and new onset heart failure in the general adult population. METHODS AND RESULTS: Selenium was measured in a Dutch cohort and a retrospective analysis of prospectively assessed data was performed. Main outcome measures were all-cause mortality and incidence of new-onset heart failure (HF) separately, and combined as a composite endpoint. Serum selenium was measured in 5973 subjects and mean selenium concentration was 84.6 (±19.5) μg/L. Mean age was 53.6 (±12.1) years and 3103 subjects (52%) were females. Median follow-up period was 8.4 years. Selenium levels associated positively with female sex, higher total cholesterol and glucose concentrations, and associated negatively with incidence of anemia, iron deficiency, current smoking, increasing C-reactive protein levels, and higher body mass index. Univariate analysis on all subjects showed no association of continuous selenium concentrations, per 10 μg/L increase, with the composite endpoint (Hazard Ratio [HR]=0.96, 95% Confidence interval [CI]: 0.87 to 1.06, p = 0.407). However, significant interaction with smoking status was observed. In non-smoking subjects (N=4288), continuous selenium concentrations were independently associated with reduced mortality risk (HR=0.87, 95% CI: 0.79 to 0.96, p = 0.005), lower risk of new-onset HF (HR=0.82, 95% CI: 0.69 to 0.96, p = 0.017), as well as reduced risk of the composite endpoint (HR= 0.86, 95% CI: 0.79 to 0.94, p = 0.001). In smoking subjects, no associations were found. CONCLUSION: Serum selenium was independently associated with multiple indicators of the metabolic syndrome. In addition, high selenium levels were independently associated with reduced mortality and new-onset HF in non-smokers. Well-powered interventional studies are necessary to evaluate the potential benefit of repleting selenium, especially in non-smoking subjects

A comprehensive introduction to the genetic basis of non-syndromic hearing loss in the Saudi Arabian population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hearing loss is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorder. Mutations in the <it>DFNB1 </it>locus have been reported to be the most common cause of autosomal recessive non-syndromic hearing loss worldwide. Apart from <it>DFNB1</it>, many other loci and their underlying genes have also been identified and the basis of our study was to provide a comprehensive introduction to the delineation of the molecular basis of non-syndromic hearing loss in the Saudi Arabian population. This was performed by screening <it>DFNB1 </it>and to initiate prioritized linkage analysis or homozygosity mapping for a pilot number of families in which <it>DFNB1 </it>has been excluded.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Individuals from 130 families of Saudi Arabian tribal origin diagnosed with an autosomal recessive non-syndromic sensorineural hearing loss were screened for mutations at the <it>DFNB1 </it>locus by direct sequencing. If negative, genome wide linkage analysis or homozygosity mapping were performed using Affymetrix GeneChip^®Human Mapping 250K/6.0 Arrays to identify regions containing any known-deafness causing genes that were subsequently sequenced.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our results strongly indicate that <it>DFNB1 </it>only accounts for 3% of non-syndromic hearing loss in the Saudi Arabian population of ethnic ancestry. Prioritized linkage analysis or homozygosity mapping in five separate families established that their hearing loss was caused by five different known-deafness causing genes thus confirming the genetic heterogeneity of this disorder in the kingdom.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The overall results of this study are highly suggestive that underlying molecular basis of autosomal recessive non-syndromic deafness in Saudi Arabia is very genetically heterogeneous. In addition, we report that the preliminary results indicate that there does not seem to be any common or more prevalent loci, genes or mutations in patients with autosomal recessive non-syndromic hearing loss in patients of Saudi Arabian tribal origin.</p

Inhibition of TXNIP expression in vivo blocks early pathologies of diabetic retinopathy

Evidence is mounting that proinflammatory and proapoptotic thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP) has a causative role in the development of diabetes. However, there are no studies investigating the role of TXNIP in diabetic retinopathy (DR). Here, we show that, in diabetic rats, TXNIP expression and hexosamine biosynthesis pathway (HBP) flux, which regulates TXNIP, are elevated in the retina and correlates well with the induction of inflammatory cyclooxygenase 2 (Cox-2) and sclerotic fibronectin (FN). We blocked the expression of TXNIP in diabetic rat retinas by: (i) inhibiting HBP flux; (ii) inducing post-transcriptional gene silencing (PTGS) for TXNIP mRNA; and (iii) performing an in vivo transcriptional gene silencing (TGS) approach for TXNIP knockdown by promoter-targeted small interfering RNAs and cell-penetrating peptides as RNA interference (RNAi) transducers. Each of these methods is efficient in downregulating TXNIP expression, resulting in blockade of its target genes, Cox-2 and FN, demonstrating that TXNIP has a causative role in aberrant gene induction in early DR. RNAi TGS of TXNIP abolishes diabetes-induced retinal gliosis and ganglion injury. Thus, TXNIP has a critical role in inflammation and retinal injury in early stages of DR. The successful employment of TXNIP TGS and amelioration of its pathological effects open the way for novel therapeutic strategies aimed to block disease onset and progression of DR

Serum Metabolomics Reveals Higher Levels of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Lepromatous Leprosy: Potential Markers for Susceptibility and Pathogenesis

Leprosy is an infectious disease caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium Mycobacterium leprae. M. leprae infects the skin and nerves, leading to disfigurement and nerve damage, with the severity of the disease varying widely. We believe there are multiple factors (genetic, bacterial, nutritional and environmental), which may explain the differences in clinical manifestations of the disease. We studied the metabolites in the serum of infected patients to search for specific molecules that may contribute to variations in the severity of disease seen in leprosy. We found that there were variations in levels of certain lipids in the patients with different bacterial loads. In particular, we found that three polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) involved in the inhibition of inflammation were more abundant in the serum of patients with higher bacterial loads. However, we do not know whether these PUFAs originated from the host or the bacteria. The variations in the metabolite profile that we observed provide a foundation for future research into the explanations of how leprosy causes disease

Serum Metabolome and Lipidome Changes in Adult Patients with Primary Dengue Infection

10.1371/journal.pntd.0002373PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases78

Fabrication and in vitro deployment of a laser-activated shape memory polymer vascular stent

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Vascular stents are small tubular scaffolds used in the treatment of arterial stenosis (narrowing of the vessel). Most vascular stents are metallic and are deployed either by balloon expansion or by self-expansion. A shape memory polymer (SMP) stent may enhance flexibility, compliance, and drug elution compared to its current metallic counterparts. The purpose of this study was to describe the fabrication of a laser-activated SMP stent and demonstrate photothermal expansion of the stent in an <it>in vitro </it>artery model.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A novel SMP stent was fabricated from thermoplastic polyurethane. A solid SMP tube formed by dip coating a stainless steel pin was laser-etched to create the mesh pattern of the finished stent. The stent was crimped over a fiber-optic cylindrical light diffuser coupled to an infrared diode laser. Photothermal actuation of the stent was performed in a water-filled mock artery.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At a physiological flow rate, the stent did not fully expand at the maximum laser power (8.6 W) due to convective cooling. However, under zero flow, simulating the technique of endovascular flow occlusion, complete laser actuation was achieved in the mock artery at a laser power of ~8 W.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We have shown the design and fabrication of an SMP stent and a means of light delivery for photothermal actuation. Though further studies are required to optimize the device and assess thermal tissue damage, photothermal actuation of the SMP stent was demonstrated.</p