Essential role of CFTR in PKA-dependent phosphorylation, alkalinization, and hyperpolarization during human dperm capacitation

Mammalian sperm require to spend a limited period of time in the female reproductive tract to become competent to fertilize in a process called capacitation. It is well established that HCO3 − is essential for capacitation because it activates the atypical soluble adenylate cyclase ADCY10 leading to cAMP production, and promotes alkalinization of cytoplasm, and membrane hyperpolarization. However, how HCO3 − is transported into the sperm is not well understood. There is evidence that CFTR activity is involved in the human sperm capacitation but how this channel is integrated in the complex signaling cascades associated with this process remains largely unknown. In the present work, we have analyzed the extent to which CFTR regulates different events in human sperm capacitation. We observed that inhibition of CFTR affects HCO3 −-entrance dependent events resulting in lower PKA activity. CFTR inhibition also affected cAMP/PKA-downstream events such as the increase in tyrosine phosphorylation, hyperactivated motility, and acrosome reaction. In addition, we demonstrated for the first time, that CFTR and PKA activity are essential for the regulation of intracellular pH, and membrane potential in human sperm. Addition of permeable cAMP partially recovered all the PKA-dependent events altered in the presence of inh-172 which is consistent with a role of CFTR upstream of PKA activation.Fil: Puga Molina, Lis del Carmen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Pinto, Nicolás Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Torres Rodríguez, Paulina. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Romarowski, Ana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Vicens Sanchez, Alberto. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Visconti, Pablo E.. University of Massachussets; Estados UnidosFil: Darszon, Alberto. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Treviño, Claudia L.. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Buffone, Mariano Gabriel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; Argentin

Emotional intelligence in students in the 1st and 5th semesters of a nursing degree.

Introducción. La inteligencia emocional [IE], se relaciona con el éxito académico y quienes la poseen tienen reacciones favorables al control de las emociones, y son conscientes de como éstas pueden afectarles (Quiliano & Quiliano, 2020). Es deseable que los estudiantes de ciencias de la salud aprendan a manejar sus emociones, por las repercusiones durante la interacción con las personas de su entorno personal y laboral (Liébana-Presa, 2017).  Objetivo general: Analizar las diferencias de las dimensiones de Inteligencia emocional, en estudiantes de 1ero y 5to semestres por cada variable sociodemográfica. Metodología: Estudio descriptivo-transversal comparativo, la muestra 175 estudiantes. Instrumento: Autopercepción de inteligencia emocional (Treit Meta-Mood Scale) de Fernández-Berrocal et al. (2004). Se utilizó Shapiro-Wilks y U de Mann-Whitney y Kruskal-Wallis, y la prueba de Ji cuadrada para determinar asociación de la IE. Resultados: Se identificaron diferencias en las dimensiones de inteligencia emocional y los datos sociodemográficos. Conclusiones: Los estudiantes de primer semestre presentan, mayor desarrollo en las dimensiones de atención, claridad y reparación emocional, comparativamente con los estudiantes de quinto semestre.Introduction. Emotional intelligence [EI] is related to academic success and those who possess it have favorable reactions to the control of emotions, and are aware of how these can affect them (Quiliano & Quiliano, 2020). It is desirable that health sciences students learn to manage their emotions, due to the repercussions during interaction with people in their personal and work environment (Liébana-Presa, 2017). General objective: Analyze the differences in the dimensions of emotional intelligence in 1st and 5th semester students for each sociodemographic variable. Methodology: Comparative descriptive-cross-sectional study, sample 175 students. Instrument: Self-perception of emotional intelligence (Treit Meta-Mood Scale) by Fernández-Berrocal et al. (2004). Shapiro-Wilks and Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis, and the Chi-square test were used to determine the association of EI. Results: Differences were identified in the dimensions of emotional intelligence and sociodemographic data. Conclusions: First semester students present greater development in the dimensions of attention, clarity and emotional repair, compared to fifth semester students

Micropropagación del lirio amazónico (Eucharis grandiflora Planch. & Linden) mediante organogénesis directa.

Amazon lily (Eucharis grandiflora) is a species whose characteristics offer enormous potential for ornamental use, so we sought to have an efficient in vitro protocol for both obtaining and multiplying seedlings. We used the inorganic salts of the basic medium of Murashige & Skoog (1962) at 100%, supplemented with 0.40 mg·L-1 thiamine, 100 mg·L-1 inositol, 80 mg·L-1 L-cysteine, and 30 g·L-1 sucrose. In the in vitro multiplication of seedlings, different levels of BAP were evaluated at doses of 0.0, 0.1, 0.3, 1.0, and 3.0 mg·L-1. To promote better shoot development, the best responses were observed in media without the presence of plant growth regulators and by evaluating sucrose content at concentrations from 30 to 70 g·L-1. For seedling rooting, different doses of IAA, IBA, and NAA were used, in intervals of 0.0, 0.3, and 1.0 mg·L-1. For the acclimatization phase of seedlings obtained in vitro, they were placed in 1 L containers with peat moss. The results obtained in the phase of the establishment of explants, percentages of 30% of contamination were obtained. During the multiplication of seedlings, the use of BAP with a dose of 3.0 mg·L-1 produced a maximum of 3.8 shoots per explant. The best development of bulblets was obtained with 50 mg·L-1 of sucrose. During rooting, IAA and IBA did not produce significantly more roots than the control, although a greater length of roots was observed. Also, the addition of NAA promoted the formation of a greater number of roots and less vigor. During acclimatization in the greenhouse, 100% survival of seedlings at 50 days was achieved.El lirio amazónico (Eucharis grandiflora) es una especie cuyas características ofrecen un enorme potencial de uso ornamental, por lo que se buscó contar con un protocolo in vitro eficiente tanto para la obtención y multiplicación de plántulas. Se emplearon las sales inorgánicas del medio básico de Murashige & Skoog (1962) al 100%, suplementadas con 0.40 mg·L-1 de tiamina, 100 mg·L-1 de inositol, 80 mg·L-1 de L-cisteína, y 30 g·L-1 de sacarosa. En la multiplicación in vitro de plántulas, se evaluaron diferentes niveles de BAP en dosis de 0.0, 0.1, 0.3, 1.0 y 3.0 mg·L-1. Para el enraizamiento de plántulas, se emplearon diferentes dosis de AIA, AIB y ANA, en intervalos de 0.0, 0.3 y 1.0 mg·L-1. Para promover un mejor desarrollo de los brotes, las mejores respuestas se observaron en medios sin la presencia de reguladores del crecimiento y evaluando el contenido de sacarosa en concentraciones de 30 a 70 g·L-1. Para la fase de aclimatización de plántulas obtenidas in vitro, fueron colocadas en contenedores de 1 L con turba de musgo. En lo resultados obtenidos en la fase de establecimiento de explantes, se obtuvieron porcentajes del 30% de contaminación. Durante la multiplicación de plántulas, el uso de BAP con una dosis de 3.0 mg·L-1 produjo un máximo de 3.8 brotes por explante. El mejor desarrollo de los bulbillos se obtuvo con 50 g·L-1 de sacarosa. Durante el enraizamiento el AIA y AIB no produjeron significativamente más raíces que el testigo, aunque se observó una mayor longitud de éstas. Además, la adición del ANA promovió la formación de un mayor número de raíces, y un menor vigor. Durante la aclimatización en invernadero, se logró un 100% de sobrevivencia de plántulas producidas a los 50 días

Heterosis y aptitud combinatoria para producción y calidad de forraje en seis poblaciones de maíz

Six corn populations drawn from outstanding forage quality germplasm, and 15 of their direct crosses were assessed in four sites located between 1,117 and 1,932 m asl. The purpose of the present study was to determine general and specific combining ability and mid parent heterosis for whole plant dry matter (TDM), ear dry matter (EDM), stover dry matter (SDM), in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD), neutral detergent fiber content (NDF) and crude protein (CP). Populations showed significant differences for all dry matter yield characteristics, but not for forage quality, while crosses showed differences for EDM and IVDMD. General combining ability effects (GCA) were high and significant only for TDM, while specific combining ability effects (SCA) were significant for IVDMD. Population P3 had the highest GCA for TDM (0.66 t ha-1) and P5F for EDM (0.49 t ha-1). Early cross P1*P2 had the highest heterosis for TDM (17.6 %) and highly significant SCA effects for both TDM and IVDMD (1.48 t ha-1 and 22.6 g kg-1, respectively), while crosses P2*P5F, P1*P4 and P1*P6F had high mid parent heterosis for EDM, with values ranging from 18.6 % to 26.2 %. None of the crosses showed mid parent heterosis for forage traits of importance.Seis poblaciones de maíz derivadas de fuentes de germoplasma sobresalientes por sus cualidades forrajeras y sus 15 cruzas directas se evaluaron en cuatro localidades entre 1,117 y 1,932 m sobre el nivel del mar. El objetivo fue determinar la aptitud combinatoria general y específica, y la heterosis media para variables de producción: materia seca total (MST), de elote (MSEL) y de rastrojo (MSRAS) y variables de calidad del forraje: digestibilidad in vitro de la materia seca (DIVMS), contenido de fibra detergente neutro (FDN) y proteína cruda (PC). Las poblaciones difirieron significativamente en las tres variables de producción, pero no en calidad forrajera, en cambio las cruzas difirieron en producción de MSEL y en DIVMS. Los efectos de aptitud combinatoria general (ACG) fueron significativos sólo para MST y MSEL, mientras que los efectos de aptitud combinatoria específica (ACE), lo fueron adicionalmente para DIVMS. La población P3 tuvo la mayor ACG para MST (0.66 t ha-1), y la población P5F para MSEL (0.49 t ha-1). La cruza precoz P1xP2 presentó la heterosis media más alta para MST con 17.6 % y efectos positivos y significativos de ACE para MST y DIVMS con valores de 1.48 t ha-1 y 22.6 g kg-1. En cambio, las cruzas P2xP5F, P1xP4 y P1xP6F tuvieron los valores de heterosis más altos para MSEL con valores de 18.1 a 26.2 %. Ninguna cruza tuvo heterosis media importante para caracteres de calidad de forraje

HDL cholesterol efflux capacity in rheumatoid arthritis patients: contributing factors and relationship with subclinical atherosclerosis

Background: Lipid profiles appear to be altered in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients because of disease activity and inflammation. Cholesterol efflux capacity (CEC), which is the ability of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol to accept cholesterol from macrophages, has been linked not only to cardiovascular events in the general population but also to being impaired in patients with RA. The aim of this study was to establish whether CEC is related to subclinical carotid atherosclerosis in patients with RA. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study that encompassed 401 individuals, including 178 patients with RA and 223 sex-matched control subjects. CEC, using an in vitro assay, lipoprotein serum concentrations, and standard lipid profile, was assessed in patients and control subjects. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and carotid plaques were assessed in patients with RA. A multivariable analysis was performed to evaluate the relationship of CEC with RA-related data, lipid profile, and subclinical carotid atherosclerosis. Results: Mean (SD) CEC was not significantly different between patients with RA (18.9 ± 9.0%) and control subjects (16.9 ± 10.4%) (p = 0.11). Patients with RA with low (? coefficient ?5.2 [?10.0 to 0.3]%, p = 0.039) and moderate disease activity (? coefficient ?4.6 [?8.5 to 0.7]%, p = 0.020) were associated with lower levels of CEC than patients in remission. Although no association with CIMT was found, higher CEC was independently associated with a lower risk for the presence of carotid plaque in patients with RA (odds ratio 0.94 [95% CI 0.89?0.98], p = 0.015). Conclusions: CEC is independently associated with carotid plaque in patients with RA

Differences in ex-vivo Chemosensitivity to Anthracyclines in First Line Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Induction schedules in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are based on combinations of cytarabine and anthracyclines. The choice of the anthracycline employed has been widely studied in multiple clinical trials showing similar complete remission rates. Using an ex vivo test we have analyzed if a subset of AML patients may respond differently to cytarabine combined with idarubicin, daunorubicin or mitoxantrone. Bone marrow (BM) samples of 198 AML patients were incubated for 48 hours in 96 well plates, each well containing different drugs or drug combinations at different concentrations. Ex vivo drug sensitivity analysis was made using the PharmaFlow platform maintaining the BM microenvironment. Drug response was evaluated as depletion of AML blast cells in each well after incubation. Annexin V-FITC was used to quantify the ability of the drugs to induce apoptosis, and pharmacological responses were calculated using pharmacokinetic population models. Similar dose-respond graphs were generated for the three anthracyclines, with a slight decrease in EC with idarubicin (p=1.462E-06), whereas the interpatient variability of either drug was large. To identify those cases of selective sensitivity to anthracyclines, potency was compared, in terms of area under the curve. Differences in anthracycline monotherapy potency greater than 30% from 3 pairwise comparisons were identified in 28.3% of samples. Furthermore, different sensitivity was detected in 8.2% of patients comparing combinations of cytarabine and anthracyclines. A third of the patients could benefit from the use of this test in the first line induction therapy selection, although it should be confirmed in a clinical trial specifically designed

Right Paraduodenal Hernia in an Adult Patient: Diagnostic Approach and Surgical Management

Paraduodenal hernia, a rare congenital anomaly which arises from an error of rotation of the midgut, is the most common type of intraabdominal hernia. There are two variants, right and left paraduodenal hernia, the right being less common. We report the case of a 41-year-old patient with a right paraduodenal hernia with a 6-month history of intermittent episodes of intestinal obstruction. Diagnosis was established by CT scan and upper gastrointestinal series with small bowel follow-through. In a planned laparotomy, herniation of the small bowel loops through the fossa of Waldeyer was found. Division of the lateral right attachments of the colon opened the hernia sac widely, replacing the pre- and postarterial segments of the intestine in the positions they would normally occupy at the end of the first stage of rotation during embryonic development. Six months after the surgery, after an uneventful recovery, the patient remains free of symptoms

A genome-wide association study follow-up suggests a possible role for PPARG in systemic sclerosis susceptibility

Introduction: A recent genome-wide association study (GWAS) comprising a French cohort of systemic sclerosis (SSc) reported several non-HLA single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) showing a nominal association in the discovery phase. We aimed to identify previously overlooked susceptibility variants by using a follow-up strategy.<p></p> Methods: Sixty-six non-HLA SNPs showing a P value <10-4 in the discovery phase of the French SSc GWAS were analyzed in the first step of this study, performing a meta-analysis that combined data from the two published SSc GWASs. A total of 2,921 SSc patients and 6,963 healthy controls were included in this first phase. Two SNPs, PPARG rs310746 and CHRNA9 rs6832151, were selected for genotyping in the replication cohort (1,068 SSc patients and 6,762 healthy controls) based on the results of the first step. Genotyping was performed by using TaqMan SNP genotyping assays. Results: We observed nominal associations for both PPARG rs310746 (PMH = 1.90 × 10-6, OR, 1.28) and CHRNA9 rs6832151 (PMH = 4.30 × 10-6, OR, 1.17) genetic variants with SSc in the first step of our study. In the replication phase, we observed a trend of association for PPARG rs310746 (P value = 0.066; OR, 1.17). The combined overall Mantel-Haenszel meta-analysis of all the cohorts included in the present study revealed that PPARG rs310746 remained associated with SSc with a nominal non-genome-wide significant P value (PMH = 5.00 × 10-7; OR, 1.25). No evidence of association was observed for CHRNA9 rs6832151 either in the replication phase or in the overall pooled analysis.<p></p> Conclusion: Our results suggest a role of PPARG gene in the development of SSc

Effectiveness of an intervention for improving drug prescription in primary care patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy:Study protocol of a cluster randomized clinical trial (Multi-PAP project)

This study was funded by the Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias ISCIII (Grant Numbers PI15/00276, PI15/00572, PI15/00996), REDISSEC (Project Numbers RD12/0001/0012, RD16/0001/0005), and the European Regional Development Fund ("A way to build Europe").Background: Multimorbidity is associated with negative effects both on people's health and on healthcare systems. A key problem linked to multimorbidity is polypharmacy, which in turn is associated with increased risk of partly preventable adverse effects, including mortality. The Ariadne principles describe a model of care based on a thorough assessment of diseases, treatments (and potential interactions), clinical status, context and preferences of patients with multimorbidity, with the aim of prioritizing and sharing realistic treatment goals that guide an individualized management. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a complex intervention that implements the Ariadne principles in a population of young-old patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. The intervention seeks to improve the appropriateness of prescribing in primary care (PC), as measured by the medication appropriateness index (MAI) score at 6 and 12months, as compared with usual care. Methods/Design: Design:pragmatic cluster randomized clinical trial. Unit of randomization: family physician (FP). Unit of analysis: patient. Scope: PC health centres in three autonomous communities: Aragon, Madrid, and Andalusia (Spain). Population: patients aged 65-74years with multimorbidity (≥3 chronic diseases) and polypharmacy (≥5 drugs prescribed in ≥3months). Sample size: n=400 (200 per study arm). Intervention: complex intervention based on the implementation of the Ariadne principles with two components: (1) FP training and (2) FP-patient interview. Outcomes: MAI score, health services use, quality of life (Euroqol 5D-5L), pharmacotherapy and adherence to treatment (Morisky-Green, Haynes-Sackett), and clinical and socio-demographic variables. Statistical analysis: primary outcome is the difference in MAI score between T0 and T1 and corresponding 95% confidence interval. Adjustment for confounding factors will be performed by multilevel analysis. All analyses will be carried out in accordance with the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: It is essential to provide evidence concerning interventions on PC patients with polypharmacy and multimorbidity, conducted in the context of routine clinical practice, and involving young-old patients with significant potential for preventing negative health outcomes. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT02866799Publisher PDFPeer reviewe