Nonprotein Structures from Mycobacteria: Emerging Actors for Tuberculosis Control

Immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causal agent of tuberculosis, is critical for protection. For many decades, consistent to classical biochemistry, most studies regarding immunity to the tubercle bacilli focused mainly on protein structures. But the atypical, highly impermeable and waxy coat of mycobacteria captured the interest of structural biologists very early, allowing the description of amazing molecules, such as previously unknown carbohydrates or fatty acids of astonishing lengths. From their discovery, cell wall components were identified as important structural pillars, but also as molecular motifs able to alter the human immune response. Recently, as new developments have emerged, classical conceptions of mycobacterial immune modulators have been giving place to unexpected discoveries that, at the turn of the last century, completely changed our perception of immunity vis-à-vis fat compounds. In this paper, current knowledge about chemical and ultrastructural features of mycobacterial cell-wall is overviewed, with an emphasis on the relationships between cell-wall nonpeptide molecules and immune response. Remarks regarding the potential of these molecules for the development of new tools against tuberculosis are finally discussed

SDN-AAA: Towards the standard management of AAA infrastructures

Software Defined Networking (SDN) is a widely deployed technology enabling the agile and flexible management of networks and services. This paradigm represents an appropriate candidate to address the dynamic and secure management of large and complex Authentication, Authorization and Accounting (AAA) infrastructures. In those infrastructures, there are several nodes which must exchange information securely to interconnect different realms. This article describes a novel SDN-based framework with a data model-driven approach following the standard YANG, named SDN-AAA, which can be used to dynamically manage routing and security configuration in AAA scenarios.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

A Comparison of Procedures to Test for Moderators in Mixed-Effects Meta-Regression Models

Several alternative methods are available when testing for moderators in mixed-effects meta-regression models. A simulation study was carried out to compare different methods in terms of their Type I error and statistical power rates. We included the standard (Wald-type) test, the method proposed by Knapp and Hartung (2003) in 2 different versions, the Huber-White method, the likelihood ratio test, and the permutation test in the simulation study. These methods were combined with 7 estimators for the amount of residual heterogeneity in the effect sizes. Our results show that the standard method, applied in most meta-analyses up to date, does not control the Type I error rate adequately, sometimes leading to overly conservative, but usually to inflated, Type I error rates. Of the different methods evaluated, only the Knapp and Hartung method and the permutation test provide adequate control of the Type I error rate across all conditions. Due to its computational simplicity, the Knapp and Hartung method is recommended as a suitable option for most meta-analyses

Dental Treatment under General Anesthesia in Healthy and Medically Compromised/Developmentally Disabled Children: A Comparative Study

Aim: To compare the type, number of procedures and working time of dental treatment provided under dental general anesthesia (DGA) in healthy and medically compromised/developmentally disabled children (MCDD children). Design: This cross-sectional prospective study involved 80 children divided into two groups of 40 children each. Group 1 consisted of healthy and Group 2 consisted of MCDD children. Results: Healthy children needed more working time than MCDD children, the means being 161±7.9 and 84±5.7 minutes, respectively (P= 0.0001). Operative dentistry and endodontic treatments showed a significant statistical difference (P= 0.0001). The means of procedures were 17±5.0 for healthy children and 11±4.8 for MCDD children (P= 0.0001). Conclusions: Healthy children needed more extensive dental treatment than MCDD children under DGA. The information from this sample of Mexican children could be used as reference for determining trends both within a facility as well as in comparing facilities in cross-population studies

All-angle negative refraction of highly squeezed plasmon and phonon polaritons in graphene-boron nitride heterostructures

A fundamental building block for nanophotonics is the ability to achieve negative refraction of polaritons, because this could enable the demonstration of many unique nanoscale applications such as deep-subwavelength imaging, superlens, and novel guiding. However, to achieve negative refraction of highly squeezed polaritons, such as plasmon polaritons in graphene and phonon polaritons in boron nitride (BN) with their wavelengths squeezed by a factor over 100, requires the ability to flip the sign of their group velocity at will, which is challenging. Here we reveal that the strong coupling between plasmon and phonon polaritons in graphene-BN heterostructures can be used to flip the sign of the group velocity of the resulting hybrid (plasmon-phonon-polariton) modes. We predict all-angle negative refraction between plasmon and phonon polaritons, and even more surprisingly, between hybrid graphene plasmons, and between hybrid phonon polaritons. Graphene-BN heterostructures thus provide a versatile platform for the design of nano-metasurfaces and nano-imaging elements.Comment: 16 pages; 3 figure

El “nuevo” concepto de consumidor y empresario tras la Ley 3/2014, de reforma del TRLGDCU.

La Ley 3/2014 introduce cambios importantes en el TRLGDCU. En particular, da una nueva redacción a los artículos 3 y 4, relativos al concepto de consumidor y de empresario. En este trabajo se examina la nueva definición de consumidor y de empresario, comparándola con la existente antes de la reforma y con la contenida en la Directiva 2011/83/UE, de 25 de octubre, sobre los derechos de los consumidores

Imposibilidad de recalcular los intereses moratorios en los préstamos hipotecarios, fijándolos en tres veces el interés legal del dinero, cuando la cláusula que los impone es abusiva (STJUE de 21 de enero de 2015)

La STJUE 21.1.2015 establece que el límite máximo de los intereses moratorios previsto en la Disposición Transitoria 2ª de la Ley 1/2013 no vulnera la Directiva 93/13/CEE, de cláusulas abusivas, si la cláusula de intereses moratorios no es abusiva. Pero si la cláusula es abusiva, el juez tendrá que declararlo así, y no podrá modificar su contenido, ni reducir su cuantía a tres veces el interés legal del dinero, como prevé la citada Disposición Transitoria; pues la cláusula abusiva se tiene por no puesta y no vincula al consumidor. La STJUE también establece que si la cláusula es abusiva, el juez no podrá aplicar una disposición supletoria del derecho nacional que establezca la cuantía del interés de demora o permita al juez fijar su importe. De ello parece deducirse que tras la nulidad de la cláusula por abusiva no cabe aplicar el art. 1108 CC

Recogida y traslado de cadáveres por mandato judicial: ¿está el consumidor obligado a abonar el precio de este servicio?

En los casos de muerte violencia o con indicios de criminalidad, el juez ordenará la práctica de la autopsia (art. 343 LECrim). Para ello el cadáver tiene que ser recogido y trasladado al lugar idóneo para su práctica. ¿Quién debe abonar ese servicio de recogida y traslado del cadáver? ¿Los familiares del fallecido o la Administración de Justicia? La situación se complica cuando, como en el caso de la provincia de Albacete, ese servicio únicamente puede realizarlo una empresa funeraria, que es la que ha contratado con la Administración de Justicia la prestación de ese servicio en exclusiva