New high-pressure phase of HfTiO4 and ZrTiO4 ceramics

We studied the high-pressure effects on the crystalline structure of monoclinic HfTiO4 and ZrTiO4. We found that the compressibility of these ceramics is highly non-isotropic, being the b-axis the most compressible one. In addition, the a-axis is found to have a small and negative compressibility. At 2.7 GPa (10.7 GPa) we discovered the onset of an structural phase transition in HfTiO4 (ZrTiO4), coexisting the low- and high-pressure phases in a broad pressure range. The new high-pressure phase has a monoclinic structure which involves an increase in the Ti-O coordination and a collapse of the cell volume. The equation of state for the low-pressure phase is also determined.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures, 26 references, Article in Pres

Rationale and design of the school-based SI! Program to face obesity and promote health among Spanish adolescents: A cluster-randomized controlled trial

Unhealthy habits in adolescents are increasing at an alarming rate. The school offers a promising environment in which to implement effective preventive strategies to improve adolescents' lifestyle behaviors. The SI! Program is a multilevel multicomponent school-based health-promotion intervention aimed at all stages of compulsory education in Spain. We present the study design of the SI! Program for Secondary Schools, targeting adolescents aged 12 to 16 years. Aim: The main goal of this study is to evaluate the impact of the SI! Program educational intervention on adolescent lifestyle behaviors and health parameters. Methods: The study was designed as a cluster-randomized controlled intervention trial and enrolled 1326 adolescents from 24 public secondary schools in Spain, together with their parents/caregivers. Schools and their students were randomly assigned to the intervention group (the SI! curriculum-based educational program over 2 or 4 academic years) or to the control group (usual curriculum). The primary endpoint will be the change from baseline at 2-year and 4-year follow-up in the composite Ideal Cardiovascular Health (ICH) score, consisting of four health behaviors (body mass index, dietary habits, physical activity, and smoking) and three health factors (blood pressure, total cholesterol, and glucose). Secondary endpoints will include 2-year and 4-year changes from baseline in ICH score subcomponents, the Fuster-BEWAT health scale, adiposity markers (waist circumference and body composition), polyphenol and carotenoid intake, and emotion management. Discussion: The overarching goal of the SI! Program is to instill healthy behaviors in children and adolescents that can be sustained into adulthood. The SI! Program for Secondary School is a comprehensive health-promotion intervention targeting 12-16-year-old adolescents and their immediate environment. The present study addresses the optimal timing and impact of the educational intervention on health in adolescence

A fluidic device for the controlled formation and real-time monitoring of soft membranes self-assembled at liquid interfaces

The work was supported by the European Research Council Starting Grant (STROFUNSCAFF) and the Marie Curie Career Integration Grant (BIOMORPH). L.B. acknowledges fnancial support from the European Community through grant no. 618335 ‘FlowMat: Flow and Capillarity in Materials Science’ and ERC Starting Grant FLEXNANOFLOW no. 715475. Te authors thank Karla E. Inostroza-Brito for the constructive support in this work

Tuning the electrocaloric enhancement near the morphotropic phase boundary in lead-free ceramics

This project was funded by EPSRC (EP/G060940/1 and EP/P505674/1) and the Grant Agency of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (2/0057/14)

Elimination of onchocerciasis in Ecuador: findings of post-treatment surveillance.

BACKGROUND: The Esmeraldas focus of onchocerciasis in Ecuador expanded geographically during the 1980s and was associated with severe ocular and skin disease. Mass drug administration (MDA) with ivermectin started in 1991, initially once but later twice a year, in the principle endemic focus followed by all satellite foci. Treatment was stopped in 2009 when entomological assessments determined that transmission of Onchocerca volvulus had been interrupted. METHODS: Three years after the cessation of ivermectin treatment in 2012, as defined by the WHO guidelines for onchocerciasis elimination, blackfly collections were done in four sentinel sites in former hyperendemic areas. The presence of infective larvae in local vectors, Simulium exiguum and Simulum quadrivittatum, was assessed by detection of O. volvulus DNA by PCR. Additional flies captured in four extra-sentinel sites located in former hyper- and mesoendemic dispersed isolated areas were also assessed. RESULTS: The results from 68,310 captured blackflies, 40,114 from four sentinel villages in the previously hyperendemic areas (Corriente Grande, El Tigre, San Miguel on Río Cayapas and Naranjal on Río Canandé) and 28,197 from extra-sentinel locations, were all negative for the presence of O. volvulus. These extra-sentinel sites (Hualpí on Río Hoja Blanca, Capulí on Río Onzole, La Ceiba on Río Tululví and Medianía on Río Verde) were included to provide additional evidence of the impact of MDA on the transmission of O. volvulus in isolated endemic areas. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that transmission of O. volvulus has been stopped in all endemic areas in Ecuador, including all satellite foci outside the main focus. These findings indicate that a strategy of ivermectin distribution twice a year to over 85% of the treatment-eligible population was effective in eliminating the infection from Ecuador in a focus with a highly competent primary vector, S. exiguum, and where the infection rates were equal to or greater than observed in many onchocerciasis foci in Africa

Viral Evolution and Cytotoxic T Cell Restricted Selection in Acute Infant HIV-1 Infection

Antiretroviral therapy-naive HIV-1 infected infants experience poor viral containment and rapid disease progression compared to adults. Viral factors (e.g. transmitted cytotoxic T- lymphocyte (CTL) escape mutations) or infant factors (e.g. reduced CTL functional capacity) may explain this observation. We assessed CTL functionality by analysing selection in CTL-targeted HIV-1 epitopes following perinatal infection. HIV-1 gag, pol and nef sequences were generated from a historical repository of longitudinal specimens from 19 vertically infected infants. Evolutionary rate and selection were estimated for each gene and in CTL-restricted and non-restricted epitopes. Evolutionary rate was higher in nef and gag vs. pol, and lower in infants with non-severe immunosuppression vs. severe immunosuppression across gag and nef. Selection pressure was stronger in infants with non-severe immunosuppression vs. severe immunosuppression across gag. The analysis also showed that infants with non-severe immunosuppression had stronger selection in CTL-restricted vs. non-restricted epitopes in gag and nef. Evidence of stronger CTL selection was absent in infants with severe immunosuppression. These data indicate that infant CTLs can exert selection pressure on gag and nef epitopes in early infection and that stronger selection across CTL epitopes is associated with favourable clinical outcomes. These results have implications for the development of paediatric HIV-1 vaccines

Essential Role of TGF-β/Smad Pathway on Statin Dependent Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Regulation

BACKGROUND: The 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase inhibitors (also called statins) exert proven beneficial effects on cardiovascular diseases. Recent data suggest a protective role for Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGF-beta) in atherosclerosis by regulating the balance between inflammation and extracellular matrix accumulation. However, there are no studies about the effect of statins on TGF-beta/Smad pathway in atherosclerosis and vascular cells. METHODOLOGY: In cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) statins enhanced Smad pathway activation caused by TGF-beta. In addition, statins upregulated TGF-beta receptor type II (TRII), and increased TGF-beta synthesis and TGF-beta/Smad-dependent actions. In this sense, statins, through Smad activation, render VSMCs more susceptible to TGF-beta induced apoptosis and increased TGF-beta-mediated ECM production. It is well documented that high doses of statins induce apoptosis in cultured VSMC in the presence of serum; however the precise mechanism of this effect remains to be elucidated. We have found that statins-induced apoptosis was mediated by TGF-beta/Smad pathway. Finally, we have described that RhoA inhibition is a common intracellular mechanisms involved in statins effects. The in vivo relevance of these findings was assessed in an experimental model of atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E deficient mice: Treatment with Atorvastatin increased Smad3 phosphorylation and TRII overexpression, associated to elevated ECM deposition in the VSMCs within atheroma plaques, while apoptosis was not detected. CONCLUSIONS: Statins enhance TGF-beta/Smad pathway, regulating ligand levels, receptor, main signaling pathway and cellular responses of VSMC, including apoptosis and ECM accumulation. Our findings show that TGF-beta/Smad pathway is essential for statins-dependent actions in VSMCs