Thermal conductivity and viscosity measurements of ethylene glycol-based Al2O3 nanofluids

The dispersion and stability of nanofluids obtained by dispersing Al2O3 nanoparticles in ethylene glycol have been analyzed at several concentrations up to 25% in mass fraction. The thermal conductivity and viscosity were experimentally determined at temperatures ranging from 283.15 K to 323.15 K using an apparatus based on the hot-wire method and a rotational viscometer, respectively. It has been found that both thermal conductivity and viscosity increase with the concentration of nanoparticles, whereas when the temperature increases the viscosity diminishes and the thermal conductivity rises. Measured enhancements on thermal conductivity (up to 19%) compare well with literature values when available. New viscosity experimental data yield values more than twice larger than the base fluid. The influence of particle size on viscosity has been also studied, finding large differences that must be taken into account for any practical application. These experimental results were compared with some theoretical models, as those of Maxwell-Hamilton and Crosser for thermal conductivity and Krieger and Dougherty for viscosity

Rheological non-Newtonian behaviour of ethylene glycol-based Fe2O3 nanofluids

The rheological behaviour of ethylene glycol-based nanofluids containing hexagonal scalenohedral-shaped α-Fe2O3 (hematite) nanoparticles at 303.15 K and particle weight concentrations up to 25% has been carried out using a cone-plate Physica MCR rheometer. The tests performed show that the studied nanofluids present non-Newtonian shear-thinning behaviour. In addition, the viscosity at a given shear rate is time dependent, i.e. the fluid is thixotropic. Finally, using strain sweep and frequency sweep tests, the storage modulus G', loss modulus G″ and damping factor were determined as a function of the frequency showing viscoelastic behaviour for all samples

Antibacterial activity of silver nitrate on Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria using Calvet calorimetry

This study aimed to use microcalorimetry to analyze the real-time effect that silver nitrate has on one of the most common bacteria involved in severe infections in current medical practice. Using a Calvet microcalorimeter, the heat output produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa was determined when exposed to concentrations of silver nitrate from 0 to 3 mol⋅m−3, and a saturated solution. Under physiological human body temperature, for 46 h, thermographic curves were obtained. The maximum voltage peaks (Vmax) and the total amount of heat exchanged (Q) were determined. The results showed a bactericidal effect, with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of silver nitrate of 0.75 mol⋅m−3, showing a Vmax of 93 μV and Q of 193 kJ. With higher concentrations of this metallic solution, the results highlighted the proportional negative effect that silver nitrate has in Pseudomonas aeruginosa growth.Xunta de Galicia | Ref. ED431C 2020/06 V05

Evaluation of the stability of newborn hospital parenteral nutrition solutions

(1) Background: parenteral nutrition (PN) solutions are an extremely complex mixture. It is composed of a multitude of chemical elements that can give rise to a large number of interactions that condition its stability and safety. The aim of this study was to evaluate the stability of PN solutions for preterm infants. (2) Methods: eight samples were prepared according to the protocol for prescribing PN in preterm infants. Samples PN1–PN7 had the normal progression of macronutrients and standard amounts of micronutrients for a 1 kg preterm infant. The PN8 sample had a high concentration of electrolytes, with the idea of forcing stability limits. Samples were stored both at room temperature and under refrigeration. Measurements of globule size, pH, density, and viscosity were performed in both storage protocols on different days after processing. (3) Results: the changes in the composition of the samples did not affect the evolution of the stability at the different measurement times and temperatures. Viscosity was affected by the compositional changes made in the PN samples, but no alterations due to time or temperature were observed. Density and pH remained stable, without significant changes due to time, storage temperature, or different composition. (4) Conclusion: all samples remained stable during the study period and did not undergo significant alterations due to compositional changes or different experimental conditions

Asistencia médica en festejos taurinos populares

Los festejos taurinos forman parte esencial de las tradiciones en las festividades de muchas de las localidades de Castilla y León. El papel de los equipos médicos es evidente dado el riesgo de lesiones potencialmente graves que pueden sufrirse y se encuentra regulado tanto por una normativa autonómica como estatal.Diferenciamos festejos populares, aquellos en los que participan aficionados no profesionales y festejos serios, en los que participan exclusivamente profesionales.Esta diferencia afecta a la legislación a aplicar y a los recursos asistenciales que deben movilizarse. Si bien la crisis económica de los últimos años puede hacer creer que se ha producido un descenso en el número de festejos, este descenso no es homogéneo y afecta preferentemente a los festejos serios, con una reducción del 30% mientras que apenas afecta a los populares.Las pautas asistenciales son las mismas que podemos aplicar a cualquier otro politraumátizado, basado en el ALTS. Las heridas por asta de toro presentan características especiales y la experiencia en este tipo de lesiones por parte de los miembros del equipo es fundamental. Se requieren equipos multidisciplinarios, bien formados, que se desplazan al lugar del festejo y cuya remuneración y reconocimiento no siempre son acordes con el trabajo realizado.The bullfights are an essential part of the traditions in several of the towns of Castilla y León. The role of the medical equipment is evident given the risk of potentially serious injuries that may be suffered and is regulated by both autonomic and state regulations.We differentiate the festivals, those in whichamateur are involved and serious festivities, which only professional involved. This difference affects the legislation to implement and health care resources to be mobilized. While the economic crisis of recent years may give the impression that there has been a decline in the number of celebrations, this decline is not homogeneous and preferentially affects the serious celebrations, with a reduction of 30% while only affects Popular.The guidelines are the same care that we can apply to any other politrauma injuries, basedin the ALTS atention. The bull horn wounds have special characteristics and experience in this type of injury by team members is essential.Shapely, multididciplinary teams traveling to the place of celebration and whose remuneration and recognition are not always commensurate with the work required

The EMIF-AD Multimodal Biomarker Discovery study: design, methods and cohort characteristics.

There is an urgent need for novel, noninvasive biomarkers to diagnose Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the predementia stages and to predict the rate of decline. Therefore, we set up the European Medical Information Framework for Alzheimer's Disease Multimodal Biomarker Discovery (EMIF-AD MBD) study. In this report we describe the design of the study, the methods used and the characteristics of the participants. Participants were selected from existing prospective multicenter and single-center European studies. Inclusion criteria were having normal cognition (NC) or a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or AD-type dementia at baseline, age above 50 years, known amyloid-beta (Aβ) status, availability of cognitive test results and at least two of the following materials: plasma, DNA, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Targeted and untargeted metabolomic and proteomic analyses were performed in plasma, and targeted and untargeted proteomics were performed in CSF. Genome-wide SNP genotyping, next-generation sequencing and methylation profiling were conducted in DNA. Visual rating and volumetric measures were assessed on MRI. Baseline characteristics were analyzed using ANOVA or chi-square, rate of decline analyzed by linear mixed modeling. We included 1221 individuals (NC n = 492, MCI n = 527, AD-type dementia n = 202) with a mean age of 67.9 (SD 8.3) years. The percentage Aβ+ was 26% in the NC, 58% in the MCI, and 87% in the AD-type dementia groups. Plasma samples were available for 1189 (97%) subjects, DNA samples for 929 (76%) subjects, MRI scans for 862 (71%) subjects and CSF samples for 767 (63%) subjects. For 759 (62%) individuals, clinical follow-up data were available. In each diagnostic group, the APOE ε4 allele was more frequent amongst Aβ+ individuals (p < 0.001). Only in MCI was there a difference in baseline Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score between the A groups (p < 0.001). Aβ+ had a faster rate of decline on the MMSE during follow-up in the NC (p < 0.001) and MCI (p < 0.001) groups. The characteristics of this large cohort of elderly subjects at various cognitive stages confirm the central roles of Aβ and APOE ε4 in AD pathogenesis. The results of the multimodal analyses will provide new insights into underlying mechanisms and facilitate the discovery of new diagnostic and prognostic AD biomarkers. All researchers can apply for access to the EMIF-AD MBD data by submitting a research proposal via the EMIF-AD Catalog

Combining MRI and clinical data to detect high relapse risk after the first episode of psychosis

Detecting patients at high relapse risk after the first episode of psychosis (HRR-FEP) could help the clinician adjust the preventive treatment. To develop a tool to detect patients at HRR using their baseline clinical and structural MRI, we followed 227 patients with FEP for 18–24 months and applied MRIPredict. We previously optimized the MRI-based machine-learning parameters (combining unmodulated and modulated gray and white matter and using voxel-based ensemble) in two independent datasets. Patients estimated to be at HRR-FEP showed a substantially increased risk of relapse (hazard ratio = 4.58, P < 0.05). Accuracy was poorer when we only used clinical or MRI data. We thus show the potential of combining clinical and MRI data to detect which individuals are more likely to relapse, who may benefit from increased frequency of visits, and which are unlikely, who may be currently receiving unnecessary prophylactic treatments. We also provide an updated version of the MRIPredict software

Inflammatory biomarkers in Alzheimer's disease plasma.

INTRODUCTION: Plasma biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease (AD) diagnosis/stratification are a "Holy Grail" of AD research and intensively sought; however, there are no well-established plasma markers. METHODS: A hypothesis-led plasma biomarker search was conducted in the context of international multicenter studies. The discovery phase measured 53 inflammatory proteins in elderly control (CTL; 259), mild cognitive impairment (MCI; 199), and AD (262) subjects from AddNeuroMed. RESULTS: Ten analytes showed significant intergroup differences. Logistic regression identified five (FB, FH, sCR1, MCP-1, eotaxin-1) that, age/APOε4 adjusted, optimally differentiated AD and CTL (AUC: 0.79), and three (sCR1, MCP-1, eotaxin-1) that optimally differentiated AD and MCI (AUC: 0.74). These models replicated in an independent cohort (EMIF; AUC 0.81 and 0.67). Two analytes (FB, FH) plus age predicted MCI progression to AD (AUC: 0.71). DISCUSSION: Plasma markers of inflammation and complement dysregulation support diagnosis and outcome prediction in AD and MCI. Further replication is needed before clinical translation

The outcome of boosting mitochondrial activity in alcohol-associated liver disease is organ-dependent.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) accounts for 70% of liver-related deaths in Europe, with no effective approved therapies. Although mitochondrial dysfunction is one of the earliest manifestations of alcohol-induced injury, restoring mitochondrial activity remains a problematic strategy due to oxidative stress. Here, we identify methylation-controlled J protein (MCJ) as a mediator for ALD progression and hypothesize that targeting MCJ may help in recovering mitochondrial fitness without collateral oxidative damage. APPROACH AND RESULTS C57BL/6 mice [wild-type (Wt)] Mcj knockout and Mcj liver-specific silencing (MCJ-LSS) underwent the NIAAA dietary protocol (Lieber-DeCarli diet containing 5% (vol/vol) ethanol for 10 days, plus a single binge ethanol feeding at day 11). To evaluate the impact of a restored mitochondrial activity in ALD, the liver, gut, and pancreas were characterized, focusing on lipid metabolism, glucose homeostasis, intestinal permeability, and microbiota composition. MCJ, a protein acting as an endogenous negative regulator of mitochondrial respiration, is downregulated in the early stages of ALD and increases with the severity of the disease. Whole-body deficiency of MCJ is detrimental during ALD because it exacerbates the systemic effects of alcohol abuse through altered intestinal permeability, increased endotoxemia, and dysregulation of pancreatic function, which overall worsens liver injury. On the other hand, liver-specific Mcj silencing prevents main ALD hallmarks, that is, mitochondrial dysfunction, steatosis, inflammation, and oxidative stress, as it restores the NAD + /NADH ratio and SIRT1 function, hence preventing de novo lipogenesis and improving lipid oxidation. CONCLUSIONS Improving mitochondrial respiration by liver-specific Mcj silencing might become a novel therapeutic approach for treating ALD.This work was supported by grants from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Programa Retos-Colaboración RTC2019-007125-1 (for Jorge Simon and Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar); Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad, Retos a la Sociedad AGL2017- 86927R (for F.M.); Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Proyectos de Investigación en Salud DTS20/00138 and DTS21/00094 (for Jorge Simon and Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar, and Asis Palazon. respectively); Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias co-founded by European Regional Development Fund/European Social Fund, “Investing in your future” PI19/00819, “Una manera de hacer Europa” FIS PI20/00765, and PI21/01067 (for Jose J. G. Marin., Pau Sancho-Bru,. and Mario F. Fraga respectively); Departamento de Industria del Gobierno Vasco (for Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar); Asturias Government (PCTI) co-funding 2018-2023/ FEDER IDI/2021/000077 (for Mario F. Fraga.); Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades MICINN: PID2020-117116RB-I00, CEX2021-001136-S PID2020-117941RB-I00, PID2020-11827RB-I00 and PID2019-107956RA-100 integrado en el Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y Innovación, cofinanciado con Fondos FEDER (for Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar, Francisco J Cubero., Yulia A Nevzorova and Asis Palazon); Ayudas Ramón y Cajal de la Agencia Estatal de Investigación RY2013-13666 and RYC2018- 024183-I (for Leticia Abecia and Asis Palazon); European Research Council Starting Grant 804236 NEXTGEN-IO (for Asis Palazon); The German Research Foundation SFB/TRR57/P04, SFB1382-403224013/ A02 and DFG NE 2128/2-1 (for Francisco J Cubero and Yulia A Nevzorova); National Institute of Health (NIH)/National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) 1U01AA026972-01 (For Pau Sancho-Bru); Junta de Castilla y León SA074P20 (for Jose J. G. Marin); Junta de Andalucía, Grupo PAIDI BIO311 (for Franz Martin); CIBERER Acciones Cooperativas y Complementarias Intramurales ACCI20-35 (for Mario F. Fraga); Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte FPU17/04992 (for Silvia Ariño); Fundació Marato TV3 201916-31 (for Jose J. G. Marin.); Ainize Pena-Cearra is a fellow of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/ EHU); BIOEF (Basque Foundation for Innovation and Health Research); Asociación Española contra el Cáncer (Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar and Teresa C. Delgado.); Fundación Científica de la Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (AECC Scientific Foundation) Rare Tumor Calls 2017 (for Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar); La Caixa Foundation Program (for Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar); Proyecto Desarrollo Tecnologico CIBERehd (for Maria Luz Martinez-Chantar); Ciberehd_ISCIII_MINECO is funded by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III.S

Validation of plasma proteomic biomarkers relating to brain amyloid burden in the EMIF-Alzheimer's disease multimodal biomarker discovery cohort

We have previously investigated, discovered, and replicated plasma protein biomarkers for use to triage potential trials participants for PET or cerebrospinal fluid measures of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. This study sought to undertake validation of these candidate plasma biomarkers in a large, multi-center sample collection. Targeted plasma analyses of 34 proteins with prior evidence for prediction of in vivo pathology were conducted in up to 1,000 samples from cognitively healthy elderly individuals, people with mild cognitive impairment, and in patients with AD-type dementia, selected from the EMIF-AD catalogue. Proteins were measured using Luminex xMAP, ELISA, and Meso Scale Discovery assays. Seven proteins replicated in their ability to predict in vivo amyloid pathology. These proteins form a biomarker panel that, along with age, could significantly discriminate between individuals with high and low amyloid pathology with an area under the curve of 0.74. The performance of this biomarker panel remained consistent when tested in apolipoprotein E ϵ4 non-carrier individuals only. This blood-based panel is biologically relevant, measurable using practical immunocapture arrays, and could significantly reduce the cost incurred to clinical trials through screen failure