Engineering models for the design of long-lasting, sustainable, cost-efficient and climate-responsive pavements for Ashghal road projects in the State of Qatar

The planning, design, construction and management of modern transportation infrastructures is based on the use of continuously updated methodologies that consider, among others, the concept of sustainability. In such a context, for the specific case of road pavements, it is of crucial importance to carry out quantitative analyses based on the use of optimized engineering models. These models explicitly consider environment-pavement interactions, environmental impacts generated by all the components involved in the supply chain, and financial flows associated to pavement construction and maintenance. Such an approach is being adopted by the Public Works Authority (Ashghal) of the State of Qatar, that is developing and implementing models tailored for its infrastructure projects and local environmental conditions. This paper provides an overview of some of the employed models and methodologies that are based on the physics of pavement structures and on the assessment of environmental and economic indicators. It is shown that such an approach leads to significant improvements to current practice and to the enhanced use of recycled materials, while still guaranteeing required pavement performance

An Insight Into the Intestinal Web of Mucosal Immunity, Microbiota, and Diet in Inflammation

The rising global incidence of autoimmune and inflammatory conditions can be attributed to changes in the large portion of the immune system that belongs to our gastrointestinal tract (GI). The intestinal immune system serves as a gatekeeper to prevent pathogenic invasions and to preserve a healthier gut microbiota. The gut microbiota has been increasingly studied as a fundamental contributor to the state of health and disease. From food fermentation, the gut microbiota releases metabolites or short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which have anti-inflammatory properties and preserve gut homeostasis. Immune responses against food and microbial antigens can cause inflammatory disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and celiac disease. As such, many autoimmune and inflammatory diseases also have a “gut origin”. A large body of evidence in recent years by ourselves and others has uncovered the link between the immune system and the SCFAs in specific diseases such as autoimmune type 1 diabetes (T1D), obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D), cardiovascular disease, infections, allergies, asthma, and IBD. Thus, the power of these three gut dynamic components—the mucosal immunity, the microbiota, and diet—can be harnessed in tandem for the prevention and treatment of many inflammatory and infectious diseases