On topological properties of Fréchet locally convex spaces

[EN] We describe the topology of any cosmic space and any N-o-space in terms of special bases defined by partially ordered sets. Using this description we show that a Baire cosmic group is metrizable. Next, we study those locally convex spaces (lcs) E which under the weak topology sigma(E, E') are N-o-spaces. For a metrizable and complete lcs E not containing (an isomorphic copy of) l(1) and satisfying the Heinrich density condition we prove that (E, sigma(E,E')) is an N-o-space if and only if the strong dual of E is separable. In particular, if a Banach space E does not contain l(1), then (E, sigma(E, E')) is an N-o-space if and only if E' is separable. The last part of the paper studies the question: Which spaces (E, sigma(E, E')) are N-o-spaces? We extend, among the others, Michael's results by showing: If E is a metrizable lcs or a (DF)-space whose strong dual E' is separable, then (E, sigma(E, E')) is an N-o-space. Supplementing an old result of Corson we show that, for a Cech-complete Lindelof space X the following are equivalent: (a) X is Polish, (b) C-c(X) is cosmic in the weak topology, (c) the weak*-dual of C-c(X) is an N-o-space.The second and fourth named authors were supported by Generalitat Valenciana, Conselleria d'Educacio, Cultura i Esport, Spain, Grant PROMETEO/2013/058.Gabriyelyan, S.; Kakol, JM.; Kubzdela, A.; López Pellicer, M. (2015). On topological properties of Fréchet locally convex spaces. Topology and its Applications. 192(1):123-137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.topol.2015.05.075S123137192

The stb Operon Balances the Requirements for Vegetative Stability and Conjugative Transfer of Plasmid R388

The conjugative plasmid R388 and a number of other plasmids carry an operon, stbABC, adjacent to the origin of conjugative transfer. We investigated the role of the stbA, stbB, and stbC genes. Deletion of stbA affected both conjugation and stability. It led to a 50-fold increase in R388 transfer frequency, as well as to high plasmid loss. In contrast, deletion of stbB abolished conjugation but provoked no change in plasmid stability. Deletion of stbC showed no effect, neither in conjugation nor in stability. Deletion of the entire stb operon had no effect on conjugation, which remained as in the wild-type plasmid, but led to a plasmid loss phenotype similar to that of the R388ΔstbA mutant. We concluded that StbA is required for plasmid stability and that StbA and StbB control conjugation. We next observed the intracellular positioning of R388 DNA molecules and showed that they localize as discrete foci evenly distributed in live Escherichia coli cells. Plasmid instability of the R388ΔΔstbA mutant correlated with aberrant localization of the plasmid DNA molecules as clusters, either at one cell pole, at both poles, or at the cell center. In contrast, plasmid molecules in the R388ΔΔstbB mutant were mostly excluded from the cell poles. Thus, results indicate that defects in both plasmid maintenance and transfer are a consequence of variations in the intracellular positioning of plasmid DNA. We propose that StbA and StbB constitute an atypical plasmid stabilization system that reconciles two modes of plasmid R388 physiology: a maintenance mode (replication and segregation) and a propagation mode (conjugation). The consequences of this novel concept in plasmid physiology will be discussed

Global overview of the management of acute cholecystitis during the COVID-19 pandemic (CHOLECOVID study)

Background: This study provides a global overview of the management of patients with acute cholecystitis during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: CHOLECOVID is an international, multicentre, observational comparative study of patients admitted to hospital with acute cholecystitis during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data on management were collected for a 2-month study interval coincident with the WHO declaration of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and compared with an equivalent pre-pandemic time interval. Mediation analysis examined the influence of SARS-COV-2 infection on 30-day mortality. Results: This study collected data on 9783 patients with acute cholecystitis admitted to 247 hospitals across the world. The pandemic was associated with reduced availability of surgical workforce and operating facilities globally, a significant shift to worse severity of disease, and increased use of conservative management. There was a reduction (both absolute and proportionate) in the number of patients undergoing cholecystectomy from 3095 patients (56.2 per cent) pre-pandemic to 1998 patients (46.2 per cent) during the pandemic but there was no difference in 30-day all-cause mortality after cholecystectomy comparing the pre-pandemic interval with the pandemic (13 patients (0.4 per cent) pre-pandemic to 13 patients (0.6 per cent) pandemic; P = 0.355). In mediation analysis, an admission with acute cholecystitis during the pandemic was associated with a non-significant increased risk of death (OR 1.29, 95 per cent c.i. 0.93 to 1.79, P = 0.121). Conclusion: CHOLECOVID provides a unique overview of the treatment of patients with cholecystitis across the globe during the first months of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The study highlights the need for system resilience in retention of elective surgical activity. Cholecystectomy was associated with a low risk of mortality and deferral of treatment results in an increase in avoidable morbidity that represents the non-COVID cost of this pandemic

Applicability of probabilistic graphical models for early detection of SARS-CoV-2 reactive antibodies after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in hematological patients

Prior studies of antibody response after full SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in hematological patients have confirmed lower antibody levels compared to the general population. Serological response in hematological patients varies widely according to the disease type and its status, and the treatment given and its timing with respect to vaccination. Through probabilistic machine learning graphical models, we estimated the conditional probabilities of having detectable anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at 3–6 weeks after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in a large cohort of patients with several hematological diseases (n= 1166). Most patients received mRNA-based vaccines (97%), mainly Moderna® mRNA-1273 (74%) followed by Pfizer-BioNTech® BNT162b2 (23%). The overall antibody detection rate at 3 to 6 weeks after full vaccination for the entire cohort was 79%. Variables such as type of disease, timing of anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody therapy, age, corticosteroids therapy, vaccine type, disease status, or prior infection with SARS-CoV-2 are among the most relevant conditions influencing SARS-CoV-2-IgG-reactive antibody detection. A lower probability of having detectable antibodies was observed in patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treated with anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies within 6 months before vaccination (29.32%), whereas the highest probability was observed in younger patients with chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms (99.53%). The Moderna® mRNA-1273 compound provided higher probabilities of antibody detection in all scenarios. This study depicts conditional probabilities of having detectable antibodies in the whole cohort and in specific scenarios such as B cell NHL, CLL, MM, and cMPN that may impact humoral responses. These results could be useful to focus on additional preventive and/or monitoring interventions in these highly immunosuppressed hematological patients.REDCap is developed and supported by Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research. We thank the Spanish Society of Hematology (SEHH) for its support on the study. We sincerely want to thanks the invaluable aid of microbiology services for their commitment in SARS-CoV-2-reactive IgG antibody monitoring in these highly immunosuppressed patients from all participating centers. Finally, we also want to thank the patients, nurses, and study coordinators for their foremost contributions in this study.Peer reviewe

A criterion to identify the equilibration time in lipid bilayer simulations

With the aim of establishing a criterion for identifying when a lipid bilayer has reached steady state using the molecular dynamics simulation technique, lipid bilayers of different composition in their liquid crystalline phase were simulated in aqueous solution in presence of CaCl$_2$ as electrolyte, at different concentration levels. In this regard, we used two different lipid bilayer systems: one composed by 288 DPPC (DiPalmitoylPhosphatidylCholine) and another constituted by 288 DPPS (DiPalmitoylPhosphatidylSerine). In this sense, for both type of lipid bilayers, we have studied the temporal evolution of some lipids properties, such as the surface area per lipid, the deuterium order parameter, the lipid hydration and the lipid-calcium coordination. From their analysis, it became evident how each property has a different time to achieve equilibrium. The following order was found, from faster property to slower property: coordination of ions $\approx$ deuterium order parameter $>$ area per lipid $\approx$ hydration. Consequently, when the hydration of lipids or the mean area per lipid are stable, we can ensure that the lipid membrane has reached the steady state.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figure

The dynamic action mechanism of small cationic antimicrobial peptides

Antimicrobial peptides form part of the immune system as protection against the action of external pathogens. The differences that exist between mammalian and microbial cell membrane architecturesare key aspects of the ability of these peptides to discriminate between pathogens and host cells. Given that the pathogen membrane is the non-specific target of these cationic peptides, different molecularmechanisms have been suggested to describe the rules that permit them to distinguish between pathogens and mammalian cells. In this context, and setting aside the old fashion idea that cationic peptides act through one mechanism alone, this work will provide insight into the molecular action mechanism of small antimicrobial peptides, based on molecular dynamics simulations of phospholipid bilayers that mimic different cell membrane architectures. After measuring different properties of theselipid bilayers, in the absence and presence of peptides, a four-step action mechanism was suggested on the basis of the formation of phospholipid rafts induced by the presence of these cationic peptides. Thus, this work shows how differences in the bending modulus (k b ) of these lipid rafts and differences in the free energy profiles (DG(z)) associated with the insertion of these peptides into these lipid rafts are key aspects for explaining the action mechanism of these cationic peptides at the molecular level.Fil: Lopez Cascales, J. J.. Universidad Politecnica de Cartagena; EspañaFil: Garro, Adriana. Universidad Politecnica de Cartagena; España. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico San Luis. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis; ArgentinaFil: Porasso, Rodolfo Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico San Luis. Instituto de Matemática Aplicada de San Luis; ArgentinaFil: Enriz, Ricardo Daniel. Universidad Politecnica de Cartagena; España. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico San Luis. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigaciones Biológicas de San Luis; Argentin

HYDRO: a computer program for the prediction of hydrodynamic properties of macromolecules.

HYDRO is a program for the calculation of sedimentation and diffusion coefficients, rotational relaxation times, and intrinsic viscosities of rigid macromolecules of arbitrary shape that are represented by bead models. Actually, HYDRO contains various FORTRAN callable subroutines that can be linked to the user's own programs to account for variability of shape or flexibility. Some hints are given for the use of HYDRO in various situations

Simulation of heat transfer enhancement in flat plate solar panel with wire coil inserts using trnsys

Paper presented at the 7th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Turkey, 19-21 July, 2010.ej201

Effect of winemaking techniques on polysaccharide composition of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Monastrell red wines

Background and Aims: Several authors have demonstrated the interesting properties of wine polysaccharides. These compounds act as protective colloids and are able to interact with tannins and anthocyanins in wines, reducing their reactivity and increasing colour stability. Little, however, is known about the release of polysaccharides by winemaking technologies. We examine the effect of several winemaking techniques - cold prefermentative maceration, dry ice addition and grape skin freezing, and addition of two maceration enzymes - on the quantity and composition of polysaccharides extracted from the three red wine cultivars - Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Monastrell. Methods and Results: The molecular mass distribution and composition of polysaccharides were determined, respectively, by high-performance size-exclusion chromatography and by gas chromatography. The amount of some polysaccharide fractions extracted depended on the grape cultivar. The addition of commercial pectic enzyme preparations released a greater quantity of polysaccharides in all three cultivars studied and altered the polysaccharide composition of the Cabernet Sauvignon wine. The effect of the other treatments on the amount of polysaccharides depended on the cultivar. Conclusion: This study confirms that grape cultivar and winemaking technique have a significant impact on the quantity and composition of polysaccharides extracted from grapes into wine. The concentration of polysaccharides rich in arabinose and galactose, and in rhamnogalacturonan II was greater in the Syrah wine than that in the Cabernet Sauvignon and Monastrell wines. Both enzymatic treatments and also dry ice addition had a significant influence on the polysaccharide concentration and composition of the wines made from a given cultivar, whereas cold prefermentative maceration or grape skin freezing had no effect. Significance of the Study: This is the first report that shows that the polysaccharide composition of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Monastrell wines is affected by winemaking technique