3D Printing Filaments Facilitate the Development of Evanescent Wave Plastic Optical Fiber (POF) Chemosensors

One of the major difficulties in the development of evanescent wave optical fiber sensors (EWOFS) lies in the complexity of the manufacturing of the chemosensitive element, particularly when using plastic optical fibers (POFs). While these fibers are appealing waveguides thanks to their low cost, ease of connectorization and robustness, the need for removing the cladding material complicates the EWOFS fabrication. In this paper we discuss how 3D printing filaments can serve as an alternative to commercially available POF for the development of EWOFS. In the process of replacing the traditional POF, we compared the performance of two EWOFS for monitoring airborne formaldehyde. These sensitive elements were manufactured either from 1.75 mm diameter 3D printing filaments, or from a commercially available POF. After the optimization of their respective fabrication protocols, the analytical performance of the two formaldehyde EWOFS was compared in terms of sensitivity and reproducibility. In this regard, the easy-to-manufacture 3D printing filament-based waveguides provided 5-fold lower detection limits with respect to the commercial POF-based sensors. Although no statistically significant differences were found in terms of reproducibility, the simplification of the sensor manufacturing process together with the increased analytical performance for chemical sensing spur the use of 3D printing filaments for the development of new POF-based EWOFS.Depto. de Química OrgánicaFac. de Ciencias QuímicasTRUEEU-LIFE Programpu

Effectiveness of an mHealth intervention combining a smartphone app and smart band on body composition in an overweight and obese population: Randomized controlled trial (EVIDENT 3 study)

Background: Mobile health (mHealth) is currently among the supporting elements that may contribute to an improvement in health markers by helping people adopt healthier lifestyles. mHealth interventions have been widely reported to achieve greater weight loss than other approaches, but their effect on body composition remains unclear. Objective: This study aimed to assess the short-term (3 months) effectiveness of a mobile app and a smart band for losing weight and changing body composition in sedentary Spanish adults who are overweight or obese. Methods: A randomized controlled, multicenter clinical trial was conducted involving the participation of 440 subjects from primary care centers, with 231 subjects in the intervention group (IG; counselling with smartphone app and smart band) and 209 in the control group (CG; counselling only). Both groups were counselled about healthy diet and physical activity. For the 3-month intervention period, the IG was trained to use a smartphone app that involved self-monitoring and tailored feedback, as well as a smart band that recorded daily physical activity (Mi Band 2, Xiaomi). Body composition was measured using the InBody 230 bioimpedance device (InBody Co., Ltd), and physical activity was measured using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Results: The mHealth intervention produced a greater loss of body weight (–1.97 kg, 95% CI –2.39 to –1.54) relative to standard counselling at 3 months (–1.13 kg, 95% CI –1.56 to –0.69). Comparing groups, the IG achieved a weight loss of 0.84 kg more than the CG at 3 months. The IG showed a decrease in body fat mass (BFM; –1.84 kg, 95% CI –2.48 to –1.20), percentage of body fat (PBF; –1.22%, 95% CI –1.82% to 0.62%), and BMI (–0.77 kg/m2, 95% CI –0.96 to 0.57). No significant changes were observed in any of these parameters in men; among women, there was a significant decrease in BMI in the IG compared with the CG. When subjects were grouped according to baseline BMI, the overweight group experienced a change in BFM of –1.18 kg (95% CI –2.30 to –0.06) and BMI of –0.47 kg/m2 (95% CI –0.80 to –0.13), whereas the obese group only experienced a change in BMI of –0.53 kg/m2 (95% CI –0.86 to –0.19). When the data were analyzed according to physical activity, the moderate-vigorous physical activity group showed significant changes in BFM of –1.03 kg (95% CI –1.74 to –0.33), PBF of –0.76% (95% CI –1.32% to –0.20%), and BMI of –0.5 kg/m2 (95% CI –0.83 to –0.19). Conclusions: The results from this multicenter, randomized controlled clinical trial study show that compared with standard counselling alone, adding a self-reported app and a smart band obtained beneficial results in terms of weight loss and a reduction in BFM and PBF in female subjects with a BMI less than 30 kg/m2 and a moderate-vigorous physical activity level. Nevertheless, further studies are needed to ensure that this profile benefits more than others from this intervention and to investigate modifications of this intervention to achieve a global effect

Despido improcedente (social). Reclamación de responsabilidad patrimonial a la Administración (contencioso-administrativo)

[abstract not available

Bionanocomposites based on fibrous clays and nanofibrillated cellulose

Oral presentation given at the International Conference on Applied Mineralogy & Advanced Materials, held in Castellaneta Marina (Italy) on June 7-12th, 2015

Material composite de nanocelulosa y arcillas fibrosas, procedimiento de fabricación y uso

[EN] The invention relates to a stable composite material comprising defibrated cellulose and particles having a fibrous morphology or fibres of silicates belonging to the family of fibrous clays, interwoven nanometrically. Furthermore, the invention relates to a method for producing said composite material and the uses thereof as adsorbents, absorbents, thickening agents, food additives, catalyst supports, enzyme supports, drug supports, flame retardants and self-extinguishing materials, cement additives, special papers, elements of sensor materials, inter alia.[ES] La invención se refiere a un material composite estable que comprende celulosa desfibrada y partículas de morfología fibrosa o fibras de silicatos pertenecientes a la familia de las arcillas fibrosas, entrelazadas nanométricamente. Además, la invención se refiere a un procedimiento de preparación de dicho material composite y sus usos como adsorbentes, absorbentes agentes espesantes, aditivos en alimentación, soportes de catalizadores, soportes de enzimas, soportes de fármacos, retardantes de llama y materiales autoextinguibles, aditivos de cementos, papeles especiales, elementos de materiales sensores, entre otros.Peer reviewedConsejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (España)A1 Solicitud de patente con informe sobre el estado de la técnic

Bionanocomposites basados en arcillas fibrosas y celulosa desfibrada

Comunicación oral dada en la XXIII Reunión de la Sociedad Española de Arcillas que tuvo lugar en Toledo (España) del 10 al 12 de septiembre de 2014.Los bionanocomposites son materiales híbridos constituidos por polímeros de origen natural asociados con sólidos inorgánicos, como pueden ser las arcillas, a través de interacciones a escala nanométrica entre ambos componentes (Darder y col., 2007). Al igual que los sistemas polímero-arcilla convencionales, estos nanocomposites de naturaleza biohíbrida (bionanocomposites), presentan interesantes propiedades estructurales y funcionales, incorporando además el carácter biocompatible y biodegradable asociado al biopolímero (Darder y col., 2007; Ruiz-Hitzky y col., 2008, 2013).Proyectos MAT2012-31759 (CICYT, España) y MP1202 (COST Action, UE). MMGC agradece al MINECO (España) la ayuda BES-2013-064677

Composite material of nanocellulose and fibrous clays, method of production and use thereof

La invención se refiere a un material composite estable que comprende celulosa desfibrada y partículas de morfología fibrosa o fibras de silicatos pertenecientes a la familia de las arcillas fibrosas, entrelazadas nanométricamente. Además, la invención se refiere a un procedimiento de preparación de dicho material composite y sus usos como adsorbentes, absorbentes agentes espesantes, aditivos en alimentación, soportes de catalizadores, soportes de enzimas, soportes de fármacos, retardantes de llama y materiales autoextinguibles, aditivos de cementos, papeles especiales, elementos de materiales sensores, entre otros.Peer reviewedConsejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (España)A1 Solicitud de patente con informe sobre el estado de la técnic

Cellulose nanofibers-sepiolite biohybrid materials

Oral presentation given at the XVI International Clay Conference, held in Granada (Spain) on July 17-21, 2017.Bionanocomposites are a type of nanostructured biohybrid materials resulting from the assembly of naturally occurring polymers and inorganic solids with particle size in the nanometer scale [1], as for instance diverse clay minerals with layered or fibrous morphology [2,3]. Amongst biopolymers, there is a special interest in the use of polysaccharides for the preparation of bionanocomposites due to their abundancy in nature and their renewable and biodegradable character. In the recent years, many works are focusing on the use of cellulose, the most abundant polysaccharide on Earth, to develop new hybrid materials involving clay minerals [4-7]. Cellulose chains consisting of β(1→4) linked D-glucose units are arranged in crystalline and amorphous regions forming elementary fibrils, which are in turn assembled forming the cellulose fibers present in the cell wall of plants [8]. In this context, the current work explores the development of biohybrids based on the assembly of cellulose nanofibers (CNF) to the fibrous clay sepiolite. For this purpose, Pangel® S9, sepiolite from Vallecas-Vicálvaro of rheological grade commercialized by Tolsa SA, was used together with CNF (dimensions around 0.5-2 μm in length and 4-20 nm in diameter), which was prepared following a reported procedure [9] and gently provided by Prof. P. Mutjé (LEPAMAP group, Univ. of Girona, Spain). Aqueous suspensions of CNF and sepiolite were combined by means of shear force and ultrasounds energy in order to produce homogenous and stable gels, which can be dried by solvent casting or vacuum filtration leading to self-standing films [7]. The sonication treatment seems to be compulsory in order to obtain uniform films with a considerable degree of transparency. The characterization of these materials reveals the good interaction between both types of fibers of biological and inorganic nature. The decrease in intensity of the IR vibration band at 3720 cm-1, related to the O-H stretching vibration of silanol groups in sepiolite, suggests a perturbation due to their hydrogen bonding interaction with hydroxyl groups in CNF. Accordingly, XPS results show a large perturbation in the C1s signal from CNF as a consequence of its interaction with sepiolite. Tensile modulus values of hybrid films show slightly higher values than those of the individual components, reaching a maximum value of 3.4 GPa for the material containing 20% sepiolite. The thermal stability was also improved as the sepiolite content increased, showing a shift in the thermal decomposition temperature towards higher values. The degree of hydrophobicity can be also controlled with the sepiolite content, and thus, water adsorption was reduced in hybrid films containing a small percentage of inorganic fibers in comparison to pristine CNF. The possibility of incorporating other nanoparticles allows the preparation of multifunctional materials [10]. For instance, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) can be included in the CNF-sepiolite hybrids in order to provide them with electrical conductivity, allowing their application as active phase in sensor devices.MINECO (Spain), projects MAT2012-31759 & MAT2015-71117-R, and PhD fellowship BES-2013-064677 (MMGC)

Cardiovascular risk stratification using the globorisk scale in the population of the Czech Republic

[eng] Introduction: The risk of cardiovascular disease can be determined with a multitude of scales. The present study aims to determine the level of cardiovascular risk in population of the Czech Republic by applying the Globorisk scale. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study of 28234 persons aged 40-74 years in whom cardiovascular risk was assessed using the Globorisk scale adapted to the population of the Czech Republic. The influence of sociodemographic variables (age, sex and social class) and tobacco consumption on the values of this scale was assessed. Results: Both the mean values and the prevalence of high values of the Globorisk scale are higher in males, in older people, in people with lower socioeconomic status and in smokers. The variable that most influences the occurrence of high values of the scale is male sex with an odds ratio of 39.71 (95% CI 29.79-52.92). Conclusions: All the sociodemographic variables analyzed, as well as tobacco consumption, influence the values of the Globorisk scale