Análisis de los métodos de asignación en sistemas de reciclaje. Aplicación a estudios ACV

A día hoy es conocida la importancia de reducir las emisiones en el ciclo de vida de un producto/ organización, no solo por el cuidado del medio ambiente, sino también por la legislación europea acerca de las emisiones y por la visión pública de la empresa, ya que la sociedad cada día es más consciente del cambio climático y como reducir el impacto ambiental y busca que los productos que utiliza sean de calidad, pero también que sean de bajo impacto ambiental. Muchas empresas recurren al análisis de ciclo de vida para estudiar diferentes impactos ambientales que se pueden generar en cada una de las etapas del ciclo de vida de un producto determinado. Sin embargo, a la hora de realizar un análisis de ciclo de vida hay que tomar numerosas decisiones, como elegir la metodología de asignación de emisiones más correcta, qué metodología utilizar para evaluar los impactos, qué software utilizar, qué indicadores ambientales elegir… Como se puede ver son numerosas decisiones sin apenas haber comenzado a realizar los cálculos, pero el elegir una opción u otra es decisivo para el resultado obtenido. Y esta situación es la que ha dado lugar al objetivo de este proyecto en donde se ha documentado los diferentes métodos de asignación para el reciclaje en normas y documentos de orientación del ciclo de vida de los productos, y se han evaluado tres métodos el Consecuencial, APOS y Cut-off. Se ha buscado comprender, comparar y evaluar los distintos métodos de asignación y así posicionarse sobre qué método sería mejor opción para el cartón ondulado reciclado en distintas situaciones, ya sea la toma de decisiones internas, comunicaciones externas. Para el estudio se ha utilizado la herramienta de SimaPro con la base de datos de Ecoinvent aplicando la metodología para evaluar impactos de la Huella Ambiental 3.1, y se han utilizado las categorías ambientales del cambio climático cuyas unidades de medida son kg de CO2eq y uso del agua que se mide por m3eq de privación de agua. Una vez hecho el estudio se concluye que no se puede decir que un método sea mejor que otro, debido a que todos los métodos estudiados de forma general son difíciles de entender y poco transparentes. Además, tienen opciones de valor, es decir, al procederse de distinta forma se obtienen resultados distintos y en consecuencia distintas conclusiones. Todo va a depender de cuál sea el fin del estudio del análisis de ciclo de vida del producto y los criterios a tener en cuenta, ya que, si se busca que se incentive el reciclaje o utilizar material reciclado, tanto la metodología APOS como Cut-off serían buena opción, aunque en el primero hay que tener en cuenta que se dividen las cargas entre quien produce el residuo y quien lo utiliza como materia prima, dando lugar a que las emisiones del material reciclado sean ligeramente superiores. Por otro lado, si se busca saber cuál sería la mejor opción a nivel ambiental, es decir, tiene menos contribución a las categorías de impacto evaluadas, cambio climático y uso de agua, para este caso estudiado seria la metodología Cut-Off pues es donde se han tenido valores más bajos para las categorías ambientales estudiadas. Sin embargo, si el objetivo es estudiar cómo mejorar el proceso, ver donde se producen más emisiones, la metodología Consecuencial puede resultar mucho más interesante, aunque la recopilación de información es mucho más extensa al tener muchas más etapas. la principal conclusión obtenida es que ninguna opción es mejor o peor, todo depende del objetivo del estudio; no obstante, es importante tener en cuenta que en cualquier metodología que se emplee, por el simple hecho de hacer una toma de decisores distinta a la realizada en el proyecto, el resultado puede cambiar ya que tienen opciones de valor.Nowadays, the importance of reducing emissions in the life cycle of a product / organization is well known, not only for the care of the environment, but also for the European legislation on emissions and for the public vision of the company, since society is increasingly aware of climate change and how to reduce environmental impact and seeks that the products it uses are of quality, but also that they are of low environmental impact- Many companies use life cycle analysis to study different environmental impacts that can be generated at each stage of the life cycle of a given product. However, when carrying out a life cycle analysis, many decisions have to be made, such as choosing the most appropriate methodology for allocating emissions, which methodology to use to evaluate the impacts, which software to use, which environmental indicators to choose... As can be seen, there are many decisions to be made before the calculations have even begun, but the choice of one option or another is decisive for the result obtained. And it is this situation that has given rise to the objective of this project where the different allocation methods for recycling have been documented in standards and product life cycle guidance documents, and three methods have been evaluated: Consequential, APOS and Cut-off. It has sought to understand, compare and evaluate the different allocation methods and thus position itself as to which method would be the best option for recycled corrugated board in different situations, be it internal decision making, external communications. For the study, the SimaPro tool was used with the Ecoinvent database, applying the methodology to evaluate the impacts of the Environmental Footprint 3.0, and the environmental categories of climate change were used, whose units of measurement are kg of CO2eq and water use, which is measured by m3eq of water deprivation. Once the study is done, it is concluded that it cannot be said that one method is better than another, because all the methods studied in general are difficult to understand and not very transparent. In addition, they have value options, i.e., by proceeding in different ways, different results are obtained and consequently different conclusions. Everything will depend on the purpose of the product life cycle analysis study and the criteria to be taken into account, since, if the aim is to encourage recycling or the use of recycled material, both the APOS and Cut-Off methodologies would be good options, although in the former it should be taken into account that the burden is divided between those who produce the waste and those who use it as raw material, resulting in slightly higher emissions from recycled material. On the other hand, if we want to know which option would be the best at the environmental level, i.e., has the least contribution to the impact categories evaluated, climate change and water use, for this case studied it would be the Cut-Off methodology, since it is the one with the lowest values for the environmental categories studied. However, if the objective is to study how to improve the process, to see where more emissions are produced, the Sequential methodology can be much more interesting, although the collection of information is much more extensive as it has many more stages. the main conclusion obtained is that no option is better or worse, it all depends on the objective of the study; however, it is important to bear in mind that in any methodology used, by the simple fact of making a different decision making than the one made in the project, the result may change since they have value options.Universidad de Sevilla. Máster en Ingeniería Ambienta

Life cycle assessment of aluminium cans and glass bottles

In this work, we present a simplified LCA on two commom products: an aluminum can and a glass bottle, both containing the same amoung of beverage (1/3 L of beer). The work presented here seeks to find out which option would be less harmful to the environment by studying the CO2 emissions produced by each container using a combined the cradle-to-cradle and cradle-to-grave approach, based on the current recycling rates in Spain. The functional unit is set to 1 m3 of beer, and the target consumer is someone purchasing beer at a supermarket. Therefore, according to the current waste management system in Spain, glass bottles are considered not reusable: This means that they are either disposed to landfill or deposited to the glass container for recycling. Recycling of glass would involve using the glass as raw material to produced new bottles. The free to use database IDEMAT has been used in the work presented here to obtain the data necessary for the Life Cycle Inventory. The results indicate that purchasing beer in aluminiun cans have a lower environmental impact than non-reusable glass bottles. The main reason related to this results are the lower transport emissions related to the cans due to the lower weight. This means that, for the same amount of beer, the energy required to transport the bottles is higher than the cans, and therefore the CO2 emissions are also higher. Additionally, aluminium is 100% and infinitely recyclable, while glass bottles made of recycled glass still need a certain intake of new raw material (of around 40%). The results presented here do not contemplate the posiblity to clean and reuse the bottles, which is expected to have a lower environmental footprint that the two scenarios discussed here.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Cocaine modulates both glutaminase gene expression and glutaminase activity in the brain of cocaine-sensitized mice

Glutaminase is considered the main Glutamate (Glu) producing enzyme. Two isoforms, liver (LGA) and kidney (KGA) type glutaminases have been identified in neurons. The role of both enzymes in psychopharmacological responses to cocaine remains unknown. We examined both mRNA and protein expression of KGA and LGA in the brain of mice sensitized to cocaine. Additionally, total glutaminase activity was also measured. Total glutaminase activity and mRNA and protein expression of KGA and LGA were measured on the dorsal striatum, prefrontal cortex, hippocampus and cerebellum of cocaine-sensitized mice. Cocaine-sensitized animals (20 mg/kg x 5 days, followed of 5 drug-free days) exhibited a decrease of total glutaminase activity in both the dorsal striatum and the prefrontal cortex. This was associated with an increase in KGA mRNA expression in both brain areas,that was not observed when protein KGA levels were measured by western blot. LGA mRNA expression was increased as results of acute cocaine administration in sensitized animals, although protein levels were only enhanced in the prefrontal cortex of sensitized mice. These findings suggest that chronic cocaine administration modulates glutamate production through the regulation of glutaminase expression and activity. These actions are mainly observed in the prefrontal cortexdorsal striatum circuit, the neuroanatomical target for the psychostimulant sensitization properties of cocaine

Cocaine-induced behavioral sensitization is associated with changes in the expression of endocannabinoid and glutamatergic signaling systems in the mouse prefrontal cortex

Abstract Background: Endocannabinoids modulate the glutamatergic excitatory transmission by acting as retrograde messengers. A growing body of studies has reported that both signaling systems in the mesocorticolimbic neural circuitry are involved in the neurobiological mechanisms underlying drug addiction. Methods: We investigated whether the expression of both endocannabinoid and glutamatergic systems in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) were altered by an acute and/or repeated cocaine administration schedule that resulted in behavioral sensitization. We measured the protein and mRNA expression of the main endocannabinoid metabolic enzymes and the cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1). We also analyzed the mRNA expression of relevant components of the glutamatesignaling system, including glutamate-synthesizing enzymes, metabotropic receptors, and ionotropic receptors. Results: Although acute cocaine (10 mg/kg) produced no significant changes in the endocannabinoid-related proteins, repeated cocaine administration (20 mg/kg daily) induced a pronounced increase in the CB1 receptor expression. In addition, acute cocaine administration (10 mg/kg) in cocaine-sensitized mice (referred to as cocaine priming) induced a selective increase in the endocannabinoid-degrading enzymes fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) and monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL). These protein changes were accompanied by an overall decrease in the ratios of endocannabinoid synthesis/degradation, especially the N-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine phospholipase D/FAAH and diacylglycerol lipase alpha/MAGL ratios.Regarding mRNA expression, while acute cocaine administration produced a decrease in CB1 receptors and N-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine phospholipase D, repeated cocaine treatment enhanced CB1 receptor expression. Cocaine sensitized mice that were administered priming injections of cocaine mainly displayed an increased FAAH expression. These endocannabinoid changes were associated with modifications in glutamatergic transmission-related genes. An overall decrease was observed in the mRNA expression of the glutamate-synthesizing gene kidney-type glutaminase (KGA), the metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR3 and GluR), and subunits of NMDA ionotropic receptors (NR1, NR2A, NR2B and NR2C) after acute cocaine administration, while mice repeatedly exposed to cocaine only displayed an increase in NR2C. However, in cocaine-sensitized mice primed with cocaine, this inhibition was reversed and a strong increase was detected in the mGluR5, NR2 subunits, and both GluR1 and GluR3. Conclusions: These findings indicate that cocaine sensitization is associated with an endocannabinoid downregulation and a hyperglutamatergic state in the PFC that, overall, contribute to an enhanced glutamatergic input into PFC-projecting areasThis work was supported by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (PI13/02261 and SAF 2010–20521), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Red de Trastornos Adictivos (RD12/0028/0001), Plan Nacional Sobre Drogas, Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo (PNSD2013/049), Consejería de Economía, Innovación y Ciencia, Junta de Andalucía, UE/ERDF (CTS-433 and P-11-CVI-07637), Consejería de Salud, and Junta de Andalucía (PI0232/2008, PI0029/2008 and SAS111224). Dr Suárez is the recipient of a Miguel Servet research contract from ISCIII (CP12/03109). We thank Mariam Vázquez for English language assistance

How oral probiotics affect the severity of an experimental model of progressive multiple sclerosis? Bringing commensal bacteria into the neurodegenerative process

A growing number of studies support that the bidirectional interactions between the gut microbiota, the immune system and the CNS are relevant for the pathophysiology of MS. Several studies have reported alterations in the gut microbiome of MS patients. In addition, a variety of studies in animal models of MS have suggested that specific members of the gut commensal microbiota can exacerbate or ameliorate neuroinflammation. Probiotics represent oral nontoxic immunomodulatory agents that would exert benefits when using in combination with current MS therapy. Here we investigate the effect of Vivomixx on the gut microbiome and central and peripheral immune responses in a murine model of primary progressive MS. Vivomixx administration was associated with increased abundance of many taxa such as Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Tenericutes and TM7. This was accompanied by a clear improvement of the motor disability of Theiler's virus infected mice; in the CNS Vivomixx reduced microgliosis, astrogliosis and leukocyte infiltration. Notably, the presence of Breg cells (CD19 + CD5 + CD1d high) in the CNS was enhanced by Vivomixx, and while spinal cord gene expression of IL-1β and IL-6 was diminished, the probiotic promoted IL-10 gene expression. One of the most significant findings was the increased plasma levels of butyrate and acetate levels in TMEV-mice that received Vivomixx. Peripheral immunological changes were subtle but interestingly, the probiotic restricted IL-17 production by Th17-polarized CD4 + T-cells purified from the mesenteric lymph nodes of Theiler's virus infected mice. Our data reinforce the beneficial effects of oral probiotics that would be coadjuvant treatments to current MS therapies

Mucosal Immune Defence Gene Polymorphisms as Relevant Players in the Pathogenesis of IgA Vasculitis?

ITGAM–ITGAX (rs11150612, rs11574637), VAV3 rs17019602, CARD9 rs4077515, DEFA (rs2738048, rs10086568), and HORMAD2 rs2412971 are mucosal immune defence polymorphisms, that have an impact on IgA production, described as risk loci for IgA nephropathy (IgAN). Since IgAN and Immunoglobulin-A vasculitis (IgAV) share molecular mechanisms, with the aberrant deposit of IgA1 being the main pathophysiologic feature of both entities, we assessed the potential influence of the seven abovementioned polymorphisms on IgAV pathogenesis. These seven variants were genotyped in 381 Caucasian IgAV patients and 997 matched healthy controls. No statistically significant differences were observed in the genotype and allele frequencies of these seven polymorphisms when the whole cohort of IgAV patients and those with nephritis were compared to controls. Similar genotype and allele frequencies of all polymorphisms were disclosed when IgAV patients were stratified according to the age at disease onset or the presence/absence of gastrointestinal or renal manifestations. Likewise, no ITGAM–ITGAX and DEFA haplotype differences were observed when the whole cohort of IgAV patients, along with those with nephritis and controls, as well as IgAV patients, stratified according to the abovementioned clinical characteristics, were compared. Our results suggest that mucosal immune defence polymorphisms do not represent novel genetic risk factors for IgAV pathogenesis

Association of HLA-B*41:02 with Henoch-Schönlein Purpura (IgA Vasculitis) in Spanish individuals irrespective of the HLA-DRB1 status

INTRODUCTION: A study was conducted to determine whether the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) B alleles are implicated in the susceptibility to Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP) in the largest series of Caucasian HSP patients ever assessed for genetic studies. METHODS: The study population was composed of 349 Spanish patients diagnosed with HSP fulfilling the American College of Rheumatology and the Michel et al. classification criteria, and 335 sex and ethnically matched controls. HLA-B phenotypes were determined by sequencing-based typing (SBT) and analyzed by chi-square or Fisher exact test. RESULTS: A statistically significant increase of HLA-B*41:02 allele in HSP patients when compared with controls was found (8.3% versus 1.5% respectively; P = 0.0001; OR (odds ratio) =5.76 [2.15-19.3]). These results remained statistically significant after adjusting for Bonferroni correction (P = 0.0028). An internal validation also confirmed the susceptibility effect on HSP associated with HLA-B*41:02 (OR = 5.70 [1.98-16.44]). Since a former study described an association between HLA-DRB1*01:03 and HSP susceptibility, we also evaluated the implication of HLA-B*41:02 independently of HLA-DRB1*01:03. Interestingly, the association remained statistically significant (P = 0.0004, OR = 4.97 [1.8-16.9]). No HLA-B association with specific HSP clinical features was found. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates that HLA-B*41:02 is associated with the susceptibility to HSP in Spanish patients irrespective of HLA-DRB1 status.This study was supported by a grant from ‘Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias’ PI12/00193 (Spain). RLM is a recipient of a Sara Borrell postdoctoral fellowship from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III at the Spanish Ministry of Health (Spain) (CD12/00425). FG and BU are supported by funds from the RETICS Program (RIER) (RD12/0009/0013).Ye

Metabolic and mitochondria alterations induced by SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins ORF3a, ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10

1 p.Antiviral signaling, immune response and cell metabolism in human body are dysregulated by SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19. However, the impacts of individual accessory proteins on host cell metabolic pathways are unknown.Here, SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins ORF3a, ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10 were individually transduced into A549 lung carcinoma cells. Furthermore, by combining transcriptomic analysis with functional and metabolic data in accessory protein-specific GSMMs, several alterations were identified that may point to a putative target for investigating novel therapies. In this study, we showed that these accessory proteins induced a significant mitochondrial and metabolic reprogramming in A549 lung epithelial cells. ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10 induced largely overlapping transcriptomes. In contrast, ORF3a induced a distinct transcriptome, including the downregulation of numerous genes with critical role in mitochondria function and morphology. On the other hand, while all four ORFs altered mitochondrial dynamics and function, only ORF3a and ORF9c induced a marked structural alteration in mitochondrial cristae. Genome-Scale Metabolic Models identified both metabolic flux reprogramming features shared across all accessory proteins and specific ones for each accessory protein. Notably, a downregulated amino acid metabolism was observed in ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10, while an upregulated lipid metabolism was distinctly induced by ORF3a. Next, qMTA identified gene knock downs (KDs) that would have the potential to revert the metabolic reprogramming induced by each individual accessory protein, especially in ORF3a and ORF10. These findings reveal metabolic dependencies and vulnerabilities prompted by SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins that may be exploited to identify new targets for intervention.Peer reviewe

Role of age and comorbidities in mortality of patients with infective endocarditis

[Purpose]: The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of patients with IE in three groups of age and to assess the ability of age and the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) to predict mortality. [Methods]: Prospective cohort study of all patients with IE included in the GAMES Spanish database between 2008 and 2015.Patients were stratified into three age groups:<65 years,65 to 80 years,and ≥ 80 years.The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (AUROC) curve was calculated to quantify the diagnostic accuracy of the CCI to predict mortality risk. [Results]: A total of 3120 patients with IE (1327 < 65 years;1291 65-80 years;502 ≥ 80 years) were enrolled.Fever and heart failure were the most common presentations of IE, with no differences among age groups.Patients ≥80 years who underwent surgery were significantly lower compared with other age groups (14.3%,65 years; 20.5%,65-79 years; 31.3%,≥80 years). In-hospital mortality was lower in the <65-year group (20.3%,<65 years;30.1%,65-79 years;34.7%,≥80 years;p < 0.001) as well as 1-year mortality (3.2%, <65 years; 5.5%, 65-80 years;7.6%,≥80 years; p = 0.003).Independent predictors of mortality were age ≥ 80 years (hazard ratio [HR]:2.78;95% confidence interval [CI]:2.32–3.34), CCI ≥ 3 (HR:1.62; 95% CI:1.39–1.88),and non-performed surgery (HR:1.64;95% CI:11.16–1.58).When the three age groups were compared,the AUROC curve for CCI was significantly larger for patients aged <65 years(p < 0.001) for both in-hospital and 1-year mortality. [Conclusion]: There were no differences in the clinical presentation of IE between the groups. Age ≥ 80 years, high comorbidity (measured by CCI),and non-performance of surgery were independent predictors of mortality in patients with IE.CCI could help to identify those patients with IE and surgical indication who present a lower risk of in-hospital and 1-year mortality after surgery, especially in the <65-year group