246 research outputs found
A low-complexity current-mode WTA circuit based on CMOS Quasi-FG inverters
In this paper, a low-complexity current-mode Winner-Take-All circuit (WTA) of O (n) complexity with logical outputs is presented. The proposed approach employs a Quasi-FG Inverter as the key element for current integration and the computing of the winning cell. The design was implemented in a double-poly, three metal layers, 0.5µm CMOS technology. The circuit exhibits a good accuracy-speed tradeoff when compared to other reported WTA architectures
Moringa oleifera Leaf Powder as Functional Additive in Cookies to Protect SH-SY5Y Cells
The aim of this work is the evaluation of the addition of Moringa leaf powder (MLP)
in cookies in terms of antioxidant properties, dough processability and sensorial properties of the
cookies. The total content of biophenols and flavonoids in MLP was detected and the identification of
the bioactive molecules was performed by HPLC-ESI-TOF-MS measurements, before and after oven
treatment at 180 ◦C for 20 min. After a preliminary evaluation of the MLP water soluble fraction
(MLPsf) cytotoxicity, its protective effect against an oxidative injury induced in the SH-SY5Y cells
was assessed. Data evidence that the bioactive molecules present in MLPsf are effective in preventing
ROS production and in protecting neuronal cells against oxidative stress. Prototypes of cookies
containing MLP in different concentrations were then produced and evaluated by a consumer panel.
Selected doughs containing MLP were analysed to determine the total content of biophenols in the
cookies after baking and their enrichment in terms of valuable chemical elements. The influence of
MLP on the viscoelastic behaviour and morphology of the doughs was also assessed. Finally, the
potential role in counteracting the insurgence of not treatable neurodegenerative pathologies of two
main MLP components, glucomoringin and kaempferol derivatives, present also after the thermal
treatment, was discussed
A strategy for scaling up access to comprehensive care in adults with Chagas disease in endemic countries: The Bolivian Chagas Platform
BACKGROUND: Bolivia has the highest prevalence of Chagas disease
(CD) in the world (6.1%), with more than 607,186 people with
Trypanosoma cruzi infection, most of them adults. In Bolivia CD
has been declared a national priority. In 2009, the Chagas
National Program (ChNP) had neither a protocol nor a clear
directive for diagnosis and treatment of adults. Although
programs had been implemented for congenital transmission and
for acute cases, adults remained uncovered. Moreover, health
professionals were not aware of treatment recommendations aimed
at this population, and research on CD was limited; it was
difficult to increase awareness of the disease, understand the
challenges it presented, and adapt strategies to cope with it.
Simultaneously, migratory flows that led Bolivian patients with
CD to Spain and other European countries forced medical staff to
look for solutions to an emerging problem. INTERVENTION: In this
context, thanks to a Spanish international cooperation
collaboration, the Bolivian platform for the comprehensive care
of adults with CD was created in 2009. Based on the
establishment of a vertical care system under the umbrella of
ChNP general guidelines, six centres specialized in CD
management were established in different epidemiological
contexts. A common database, standardized clinical forms, a and
a protocolized attention to adults patients, together with
training activities for health professionals were essential for
the model success. With the collaboration and knowledge transfer
activities between endemic and non-endemic countries, the
platform aims to provide care, train health professionals, and
create the basis for a future expansion to the National Health
System of a proven model of care for adults with CD. RESULTS:
From 2010 to 2015, a total of 26,227 patients were attended by
the Platform, 69% (18,316) were diagnosed with T. cruzi, 8,567
initiated anti-parasitic treatment, more than 1,616 health
professionals were trained, and more than ten research projects
developed. The project helped to increase the number of adults
with CD diagnosed and treated, produce evidence-based clinical
practice guidelines, and bring about changes in policy that will
increase access to comprehensive care among adults with CD. The
ChNP is now studying the Platform's health care model to adapt
and implement it nationwide. CONCLUSIONS: This strategy provides
a solution to unmet demands in the care of patients with CD,
improving access to diagnosis and treatment. Further scaling up
of diagnosis and treatment will be based on the expansion of the
model of care to the NHS structures. Its sustainability will be
ensured as it will build on existing local resources in Bolivia.
Still human trained resources are scarce and the high staff
turnover in Bolivia is a limitation of the model. Nevertheless,
in a preliminary two-years-experience of scaling up this model,
this limitations have been locally solved together with the
health local authorities
Influence of air pollutants on circulating inflammatory cells and microRNA expression in acute myocardial infarction.
Air pollutants increase the risk and mortality of myocardial infarction (MI). The aim of this study was to assess the inflammatory changes in circulating immune cells and microRNAs in MIs related to short-term exposure to air pollutants. We studied 192 patients with acute coronary syndromes and 57 controls with stable angina. For each patient, air pollution exposure in the 24-h before admission, was collected. All patients underwent systematic circulating inflammatory cell analyses. According to PM2.5 exposure, 31 patients were selected for microRNA analyses. STEMI patients exposed to PM2.5 showed a reduction of CD4+ regulatory T cells. Furthermore, in STEMI patients the exposure to PM2.5 was associated with an increase of miR-146a-5p and miR-423-3p. In STEMI and NSTEMI patients PM2.5 exposure was associated with an increase of miR-let-7f-5p. STEMI related to PM2.5 short-term exposure is associated with changes involving regulatory T cells, miR-146a-5p and miR-423-3p.This work was supported by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación [SAF2017-82886-R, to F.S.M] Proyecto de Investigación en Salud [PI21/01583 to H.F.]. Grant from the Sociedad Española de Cardiologia to F.A. Ministerio de
Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Carlos III Institute of Health-Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria [PI19/00545
to P.M.] From the Comunidad de Madrid [S2017/BMD-3671-INFLAMUNE-CM] to FSM and PM. Tis research
has been co-fnanced by Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER).S
Evaluación formativa con feedback rápido mediante mandos interactivos en la docencia de Prótesis III
El objetivo es diseñar y elaborar un sistema de evaluación continuada mediante el empleo de mandos interactivos para la docencia de Prótesis III, que permitan mejorar la enseñanza clínica, y el aprendizaje tanto individual como en equipo
DIA-DB : a database and web server for the prediction of diabetes drugs
The DIA-DB is a web server for the prediction of diabetes drugs that uses two different and complementary approaches: (a) comparison by shape similarity against a curated database of approved antidiabetic drugs and experimental small molecules and (b) inverse virtual screening of the input molecules chosen by the users against a set of therapeutic protein targets identified as key elements in diabetes. As a proof of concept DIA-DB was successfully applied in an integral workflow for the identification of the antidiabetic chemical profile in a complex crude plant extract. To this end, we conducted the extraction and LC-MS based chemical profile analysis of Sclerocarya birrea and subsequently utilized this data as input for our server. The server is open to all users, registration is not necessary, and a detailed report with the results of the prediction is sent to the user by email once calculations are completed. This is a novel public domain database and web server specific for diabetes drugs and can be accessed online through http://bio-hpc.eu/software/dia-db/.http://pubs.acs.org/journal/jcics1/about.htmlhj2021BiochemistryGeneticsMicrobiology and Plant Patholog
Differential effects of the second SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine dose on T cell immunity in naive and COVID-19 recovered individuals
The rapid development of mRNA-based vaccines against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) led to the design of accelerated vaccination schedules that have been extremely effective in naive individuals. While a two-dose immunization regimen with the BNT162b2 vaccine has been demonstrated to provide a 95% efficacy in naive individuals, the effects of the second vaccine dose in individuals who have previously recovered from natural SARS-CoV-2 infection has not been investigated in detail. In this study, we characterize SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific humoral and cellular immunity in naive and previously infected individuals during and after two doses of BNT162b2 vaccination. Our results demonstrate that, while the second dose increases both the humoral and cellular immunity in naive individuals, COVID-19 recovered individuals reach their peak of immunity after the first dose. These results suggests that a second dose, according to the current standard regimen of vaccination, may be not necessary in individuals previously infected with SARS-CoV-2.Research reported in this publication was supported in part by the National Cancer Institute of the NIH (5R01HD102614-02; R01CA249204 and R01CA248984) and an ISMMS seed fund to E.G. The authors gratefully acknowledge use of the services and facilities of the Tisch Cancer Institute supported by a NCI Cancer Center Support Grant (P30 CA196521). M.S. was supported by a NCI training grant (T32CA078207). This work was supported by an ISMMS seed fund to J.O.; Instituto de Salud Carlos III (COV20-00668) to R.C.R.; the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (COVID-19 research call COV20/00181) co-financed by the European Development Regional Fund “A way to achieve Europe” to E.P.; the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spain (COV20/00170); the Government of Cantabria, Spain (2020UIC22-PUB-0019) to M.L.H.; the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI16CIII/00012) to P.P.; the Fondo Social Europeo e Iniciativa de Empleo Juvenil YEI (Grant PEJ2018-004557-A) to M.P.E.; and by REDInREN 016/009/009 ISCIII. This project has received funding from the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programs VACCELERATE and INsTRuCT under grant agreements 101037867 and 860003.S
Preclinical models for prediction of immunotherapy outcomes and immune evasion mechanisms in genetically heterogeneous multiple myeloma
The historical lack of preclinical models reflecting the genetic heterogeneity of multiple myeloma (MM) hampers the advance of therapeutic discoveries. To circumvent this limitation, we screened mice engineered to carry eight MM lesions (NF-κB, KRAS, MYC, TP53, BCL2, cyclin D1, MMSET/NSD2 and c-MAF) combinatorially activated in B lymphocytes following T cell-driven immunization. Fifteen genetically diverse models developed bone marrow (BM) tumors fulfilling MM pathogenesis. Integrative analyses of ∼500 mice and ∼1,000 patients revealed a common MAPK-MYC genetic pathway that accelerated time to progression from precursor states across genetically heterogeneous MM. MYC-dependent time to progression conditioned immune evasion mechanisms that remodeled the BM microenvironment differently. Rapid MYC-driven progressors exhibited a high number of activated/exhausted CD8+ T cells with reduced immunosuppressive regulatory T (Treg) cells, while late MYC acquisition in slow progressors was associated with lower CD8+ T cell infiltration and more abundant Treg cells. Single-cell transcriptomics and functional assays defined a high ratio of CD8+ T cells versus Treg cells as a predictor of response to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). In clinical series, high CD8+ T/Treg cell ratios underlie early progression in untreated smoldering MM, and correlated with early relapse in newly diagnosed patients with MM under Len/Dex therapy. In ICB-refractory MM models, increasing CD8+ T cell cytotoxicity or depleting Treg cells reversed immunotherapy resistance and yielded prolonged MM control. Our experimental models enable the correlation of MM genetic and immunological traits with preclinical therapy responses, which may inform the next-generation immunotherapy trials
Seguimiento del Máster en Ingeniería de Telecomunicación: medidas para conseguir la calidad y la excelencia
El Máster Universitario en Ingeniería de Telecomunicación en la Universidad de Alicante es el título que se imparte desde la Escuela Politécnica Superior y que habilita para el ejercicio de la profesión regulada de Ingeniero de Telecomunicación. Consta de 90 ECTS y se imparte a lo largo de 2 cursos académicos. El máster está implantado desde el curso 2011-2012 por lo que durante el actual curso 2012-2013 tendremos egresados de la primera promoción. Una vez implantado en su totalidad, es posible realizar un seguimiento del máster con la intención de obtener la excelencia académica mediante todas aquellas medidas y procesos de evaluación internos que sean necesarios. Además también es conveniente evaluar el impacto social, universitario y empresarial del máster evaluando las carencias, lagunas y oportunidades de formación que se detecten y tomando las oportunas medidas correctoras. Será necesario tener en cuenta la relación del título con el mundo empresarial y con la sociedad en general que tiene el sector de las telecomunicaciones en la evaluación de la calidad docente en el aula
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