Carga microbiológica del aire interior en una universidad española (Universidad de Murcia, España)

The control of indoor air is related to the guarantee of quality for in- ternal environments. The air of representative areas within the Fac- ulty of Biology of the University of Murcia (Spain) was analyzed to determine the level of microbial types most frequently found in suspension. Samples were collected by an impaction method and viable counts (bacteria and fungi) determined both in absence or presence of human activities to evaluate the human contribution to the microbial contamination. Also, a comparison between indoor and outdoor microbial population densities showed that the bacterial concentration was higher inside than in the outside. Most bacteria identified were gram-positive cocci belonging to Micrococcus, Staphylococcus and Streptococcus species, whereas Cladosporium was the predominant genus isolated among fungi. The microbi- al concentration of indoor air was within a range which indicates a low-intermediate level of contamination according to the guidelines established in 1993 by the European Community Commission.El control del aire es parte de la garantía de calidad de ambientes interiores. Se ha realizado un análisis microbiológico del aire en zonas de la Facultad de Biología de la Universidad de Murcia (España) determinando niveles y tipos de microorganismos en suspensión. Las muestras se recogieron por un método de impacto, analizando viables (bacterias y hongos) en presencia o ausencia de personal para valorar la contaminación que introduce la actividad humana. Además, la comparación de la densidad microbiana del interior con la del aire exterior indicó una concentración bacteriana más elevada en el interior. La mayoría de bacterias identificadas fueron cocos gram-positivos de los géneros Micrococcus, Staphylococcus y Streptococcus. Entre los hongos, el aislado más frecuente fue Cladosporium. Los resultados revelan una concentración microbiana aérea que corresponde a un nivel de contaminación bajo-intermedio según las pautas establecidas por la Comisión de las Comunidades Europeas en 1993

Estudio epidemiológico en una muestra clínica de mujeres a través del dis

La investigación epidemiológica llevada a cabo en las últimas décadas en nuestro país ha demostrado, de manera inequívoca, la existencia de marcadas diferencias en la morbilidad psicopatológica y en el patrón de conducta de enfermedad desarrollados según el sexo (Vázquez-Barquero, Diez Manrique, Peña, Quintanal y Labrador López, 1986; Herrera, Antonell, Espagnolo, Domenech y Martín, 1987; Herrera, Antonell, Spagnolo y Gispert, 1990). Este hecho, unido a la constatación de que la prevalencia psicopatológica en la mujer es mucho mayor que en el hombre y que el riesgo de padecer un trastorno mental puede ser casi del doble en el sexo femenino (Muñoz, 1979; Herrera et al., 1987; Vázquez-Barquero, Diez Manrique y Peña, 1987), nos hacen plantear la presente investigación con el objetivo de conocer el tipo de desórdenes psicológicos que afectan de forma preferente a la población femenina, objetivo éste enmarcado en un planteamiento metodológico de tipo epidemiológico descriptivo

Retos de la investigación psicológica en salud mental

The magnitude and impact of mental disorders does not correspond to the resources devoted to research and attention. Although we have made significant progress in their understanding and the efficacy of the psychological treatments, we are still far from an optimal situation. This paper focuses on one of the major issues which we consider fundamental challenges and needs in this area, the increase in research focusing on psychopathology, especially on the mechanisms and processes that explain and maintain mental disorders, as a key point for the design and development of new psychological interventions for the prevention, treatment, and promotion of mental health. The aim is to promote discussion among all stakeholders and debate on those lines we think as a priority.La magnitud y el impacto que suponen los trastornos mentales no se corresponden con los recursos que se dedican a su investigación y atención. Aunque hemos avanzado notablemente en su comprensión y en la eficacia de los tratamientos psicológicos que intentan paliarlos, estamos aún lejos de la situación óptima. Este trabajo se centra en uno de los retos y una de las necesidades que consideramos fundamentales, el incremento de la investigación focalizada en psicopatología, especialmente sobre los mecanismos y procesos que explican y mantienen estos problemas, como eje básico para el desarrollo de nuevas intervenciones psicológicas, tanto para la prevención como para el tratamiento y promoción de la salud mental. El objetivo es promover la discusión entre los agentes implicados y reflexionar sobre las líneas de trabajo que creemos prioritarias.Este trabajo ha sido financiado por el Ministerio Español de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO), a través de la Red de Excelencia PROMOSAM financiada por el MINECO (PSI2014-56303-REDT)

Teaching linguistic politeness: a methodological proposal

The aim of this article is to explore theoretical and methodological aspects of the teaching of pragmatics in a second language. Taking as point of departure the pragmatic continuum, which includes pragmalinguistics and sociopragmatics, we focus on the promotion of sociopragmatic knowledge in classroom contexts. More specifically, it is argued that a revised contextual and interactional view of Brown and Levinson¿s (1987) model of linguistic politeness, related to such notions as genre and politeness systems, offers suitable tools of pragmatic description for use in teaching and learning second languages. We start with a brief overview of linguistic politeness from a socio-cognitive framework. Then, we revise the main methodological approaches to the teaching of pragmatic knowledge in general and the specific teaching of linguistic politeness in particular. Finally, we make a methodological proposal for use in foreign language instruction

Molecular Characterization of Clinical Isolates of Aeromonas Species from Malaysia

Background: Aeromonas species are common inhabitants of aquatic environments giving rise to infections in both fish and humans. Identification of aeromonads to the species level is problematic and complex due to their phenotypic and genotypic heterogeneity. Methodology/Principal Findings: Aeromonas hydrophila or Aeromonas sp were genetically re-identified using a combination of previously published methods targeting GCAT, 16S rDNA and rpoD genes. Characterization based on the genus specific GCAT-PCR showed that 94 (96%) of the 98 strains belonged to the genus Aeromonas. Considering the patterns obtained for the 94 isolates with the 16S rDNA-RFLP identification method, 3 clusters were recognised, i.e. A. caviae (61%), A. hydrophila (17%) and an unknown group (22%) with atypical RFLP restriction patterns. However, the phylogenetic tree constructed with the obtained rpoD sequences showed that 47 strains (50%) clustered with the sequence of the type strain of A. aquariorum, 18 (19%) with A. caviae, 16 (17%) with A. hydrophila, 12 (13%) with A. veronii and one strain (1%) with the type strain of A. trota. PCR investigation revealed the presence of 10 virulence genes in the 94 isolates as: lip (91%), exu (87%), ela (86%), alt (79%), ser (77%), fla (74%), aer (72%), act (43%), aexT (24%) and ast (23%). Conclusions/Significance: This study emphasizes the importance of using more than one method for the correct identification of Aeromonas strains. The sequences of the rpoD gene enabled the unambiguous identication of the 9

Anti-infectives in Drug Delivery-Overcoming the Gram-Negative Bacterial Cell Envelope.

Infectious diseases are becoming a major menace to the state of health worldwide, with difficulties in effective treatment especially of nosocomial infections caused by Gram-negative bacteria being increasingly reported. Inadequate permeation of anti-infectives into or across the Gram-negative bacterial cell envelope, due to its intrinsic barrier function as well as barrier enhancement mediated by resistance mechanisms, can be identified as one of the major reasons for insufficient therapeutic effects. Several in vitro, in silico, and in cellulo models are currently employed to increase the knowledge of anti-infective transport processes into or across the bacterial cell envelope; however, all such models exhibit drawbacks or have limitations with respect to the information they are able to provide. Thus, new approaches which allow for more comprehensive characterization of anti-infective permeation processes (and as such, would be usable as screening methods in early drug discovery and development) are desperately needed. Furthermore, delivery methods or technologies capable of enhancing anti-infective permeation into or across the bacterial cell envelope are required. In this respect, particle-based carrier systems have already been shown to provide the opportunity to overcome compound-related difficulties and allow for targeted delivery. In addition, formulations combining efflux pump inhibitors or antimicrobial peptides with anti-infectives show promise in the restoration of antibiotic activity in resistant bacterial strains. Despite considerable progress in this field however, the design of carriers to specifically enhance transport across the bacterial envelope or to target difficult-to-treat (e.g., intracellular) infections remains an urgently needed area of improvement. What follows is a summary and evaluation of the state of the art of both bacterial permeation models and advanced anti-infective formulation strategies, together with an outlook for future directions in these fields

Molecular phylogenetics and temporal diversification in the genus Aeromonas based on the sequences of five housekeeping genes

Several approaches have been developed to estimate both the relative and absolute rates of speciation and extinction within clades based on molecular phylogenetic reconstructions of evolutionary relationships, according to an underlying model of diversification. However, the macroevolutionary models established for eukaryotes have scarcely been used with prokaryotes. We have investigated the rate and pattern of cladogenesis in the genus Aeromonas (γ-Proteobacteria, Proteobacteria, Bacteria) using the sequences of five housekeeping genes and an uncorrelated relaxed-clock approach. To our knowledge, until now this analysis has never been applied to all the species described in a bacterial genus and thus opens up the possibility of establishing models of speciation from sequence data commonly used in phylogenetic studies of prokaryotes. Our results suggest that the genus Aeromonas began to diverge between 248 and 266 million years ago, exhibiting a constant divergence rate through the Phanerozoic, which could be described as a pure birth process

Complex Evolutionary History of the Aeromonas veronii Group Revealed by Host Interaction and DNA Sequence Data

Aeromonas veronii biovar sobria, Aeromonas veronii biovar veronii, and Aeromonas allosaccharophila are a closely related group of organisms, the Aeromonas veronii Group, that inhabit a wide range of host animals as a symbiont or pathogen. In this study, the ability of various strains to colonize the medicinal leech as a model for beneficial symbiosis and to kill wax worm larvae as a model for virulence was determined. Isolates cultured from the leech out-competed other strains in the leech model, while most strains were virulent in the wax worms. Three housekeeping genes, recA, dnaJ and gyrB, the gene encoding chitinase, chiA, and four loci associated with the type three secretion system, ascV, ascFG, aexT, and aexU were sequenced. The phylogenetic reconstruction failed to produce one consensus tree that was compatible with most of the individual genes. The Approximately Unbiased test and the Genetic Algorithm for Recombination Detection both provided further support for differing evolutionary histories among this group of genes. Two contrasting tests detected recombination within aexU, ascFG, ascV, dnaJ, and gyrB but not in aexT or chiA. Quartet decomposition analysis indicated a complex recent evolutionary history for these strains with a high frequency of horizontal gene transfer between several but not among all strains. In this study we demonstrate that at least for some strains, horizontal gene transfer occurs at a sufficient frequency to blur the signal from vertically inherited genes, despite strains being adapted to distinct niches. Simply increasing the number of genes included in the analysis is unlikely to overcome this challenge in organisms that occupy multiple niches and can exchange DNA between strains specialized to different niches. Instead, the detection of genes critical in the adaptation to specific niches may help to reveal the physiological specialization of these strains

Dissecting the Shared Genetic Architecture of Suicide Attempt, Psychiatric Disorders, and Known Risk Factors

BACKGROUND: Suicide is a leading cause of death worldwide, and nonfatal suicide attempts, which occur far more frequently, are a major source of disability and social and economic burden. Both have substantial genetic etiology, which is partially shared and partially distinct from that of related psychiatric disorders. METHODS: We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 29,782 suicide attempt (SA) cases and 519,961 controls in the International Suicide Genetics Consortium (ISGC). The GWAS of SA was conditioned on psychiatric disorders using GWAS summary statistics via multitrait-based conditional and joint analysis, to remove genetic effects on SA mediated by psychiatric disorders. We investigated the shared and divergent genetic architectures of SA, psychiatric disorders, and other known risk factors. RESULTS: Two loci reached genome-wide significance for SA: the major histocompatibility complex and an intergenic locus on chromosome 7, the latter of which remained associated with SA after conditioning on psychiatric disorders and replicated in an independent cohort from the Million Veteran Program. This locus has been implicated in risk-taking behavior, smoking, and insomnia. SA showed strong genetic correlation with psychiatric disorders, particularly major depression, and also with smoking, pain, risk-taking behavior, sleep disturbances, lower educational attainment, reproductive traits, lower socioeconomic status, and poorer general health. After conditioning on psychiatric disorders, the genetic correlations between SA and psychiatric disorders decreased, whereas those with nonpsychiatric traits remained largely unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: Our results identify a risk locus that contributes more strongly to SA than other phenotypes and suggest a shared underlying biology between SA and known risk factors that is not mediated by psychiatric disorders