Efecto ansiogénico del disulfiram en animales tratados con alcohol: Relevancia en la terapia farmacológica antialcohólica

Dotzenes Jornades de Foment de la Investigació de la FCHS (Any 2006-2007)El alcohol etílico, a dosis moderadas, produce efectos ansiolíticos, tanto en humanos como en roedores. Sin embargo, la acumulación de acetaldehído (primer metabolito del alcohol) en el organismo, está considerada aversiva y en humanos produce una respuesta vegetativa conocida como “sensibilidad al alcohol”. Este efecto aversivo, es la base de los tratamientos en alcohólicos mediante el disulfiram, un inhibidor de la Aldehído Deshidrogenada (ALDH), enzima que metaboliza el acetaldehído. La respuesta autonómica comparte muchos de los síntomas vegetativos que caracterizan a un episodio de ansiedad. En este trabajo estudiamos los posibles efectos ansiogénicos de la acumulación periférica de acetaldehído en ratones, utilizando el laberinto elevado en cruz, paradigma clásico para la evaluación de ansiedad en roedores. Como ha sido observado previamente, el alcohol aumentó el porcentaje de entradas en los brazos abiertos del laberinto elevado en cruz. Sin embargo, el pretratamiento con disulfiram produjo una reducción de estos efectos ansiolíticos del etanol a las dosis que fueron efectivas en inhibir la ALDH. Así mismo, el acetaldehído administrado periféricamente demostró reducir el porcentaje de exploración de los animales en los brazos abiertos. La locomoción no se vio modificada significativamente por estas dosis de acetaldehído, lo cual indica que los efectos ansiogénicos no son debidos a un cambio motor inespecífico

Shift invariant wavelet processing of ultrasonic traces

Ponencia presentada en el XIX Congreso Internacional de Acústica (ICA2007), Madrid, 2-7 Sep 2007.-- PACS: 43.60.Hj.Wavelet processing has become a popular and well-established technique that offers good results and great flexibility for noise reduction. The basic wavelet de-noising scheme consists of a thresholding of the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) coefficients. Nevertheless, some improvements over this basic non-linear scheme can be obtained by the use of Undecimated Wavelet Transforms (UWT), also known as redundant, shift-invariant or stationary wavelet transforms, because they provide redundant and translation invariant representations. The introduction of redundancy produces less efficient signal representations but it can be useful in de-noising. Ultrasonic traces are frequently contaminated with structural or grain noise, which can not be removed by classical time averaging or band-pass filtering. An analysis of wavelet de-noising of some individual traces is presented. In addition, a significant number of synthetic ultrasonic signals are also processed for a statistical study and comparison of UWT and DWT de-noising in terms of the signal-to-noise ratio of the resulting traces.This work has been supported by the Spanish MEC, R&D Project CICYT Ref. DPI2005-00124 of the I+D National Plan and grant FPI BES-2004-5296.Peer reviewe

Vocalizaciones ultrasónicas: Nuevo paradigma para el registro de respuestas emocionales no aprendidas en animales.

Dotzenes Jornades de Foment de la Investigació de la FCHS (Any 2006-2007)El registro de la respuesta emocional en animales posee obvias limitaciones. Los paradigmas utilizados hasta la fecha se basan en el registro de respuestas indirectas en las cuales el componente motor tiene una gran implicación. Así por ejemplo en roedores, en las respuestas de miedo o aversión innata a las alturas o a espacios iluminados y abiertos se emplean laberintos elevados con zonas protegidas o abiertas y se registra el desplazamiento del animal a esos compartimentos controlando que los efectos motores sean mínimos o corrigiendo el efecto. Por esta razón el registro de una respuesta innata no limitada a la conducta motora general del animal resulta de gran relevancia en el estudio de la emoción. En ratas, se ha observado que en condiciones consideradas aversivas se genera un elevado nivel de vocalizaciones de baja frecuencia (20kHz), mientras que en las consideradas apetitivas aumentan las vocalizaciones de alta frecuencia (75kHz). En nuestro estudio, aplicamos estos parámetros a los efectos de una droga ansiolítica como el alcohol y a las vías de administración de la misma. Demostramos que una inyección periférica genera más vocalizaciones aversivas que la administración intracerebral. Así mismo comprobamos que los animales vocalizan menos en el rango de baja frecuencia cuando se les administra alcohol en relación a cuando se les administra el vehículo lo cual apunta a un efecto de reducción de efectos aversivos de esta dosis de alcohol

Energy audit of irrigation networks

The relationship between water and energy in water distribution systems (WDS) has been a growing concern among energy and water experts. Among the different strategies to improve water¿energy efficiency in water distribution networks, energy audits are of paramount importance as they quantify water flow requirements, the amount of energy consumed to meet demand and leakage and friction losses. Previous work has presented the energy audit process for urban WDS and this energy audit is extended to irrigation networks here. This work analyses the most common types of irrigation emitters (sprinklers and pressure compensating and non-pressure compensating drippers), hydrant specifications, irrigation management systems (on-demand or rigid scheduled), and energy losses due to friction in pipes, control valves and irrigation hydrants. The energy audit does not assess whether management of the network is optimal, but analyses the energy consumption. Some of the performance indicators have already been defined for agricultural water networks, some are identical to those of urban WDS, but in addition, a new one is presented that disaggregates the energy dissipated into three terms, energy losses in pipelines, in hydraulic valves and in irrigation hydrants. These indicators show information necessary to better understand the performance of the irrigation network under study, to carry out a deep analysis of energy consumption and to allow for comparison with similar systems. The paper presents the analysis of a real case study conducted on the irrigation network of the garden of the Universidad Politécnica de ValenciaPardo, MA.; Manzano Juarez, J.; Cabrera Marcet, E.; García Serra, J. (2013). Energy audit of irrigation networks. Biosystems Engineering. 115(1):89-101. doi:10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2013.02.005S89101115

Contactless Rotor Ground Fault Detection Method for Brushless Synchronous Machines Based on an AC/DC Rotating Current Sensor

Brushless synchronous machines (BSMs) are replacing conventional synchronous machines with static excitation in generation facilities due to the absence of sparking and lower maintenance. However, this excitation system makes measuring electric parameters in the rotor challenging. It is highly difficult to detect ground faults, which are the most common type of electrical fault in electric machines. In this paper, a ground fault detection method for BSMs is proposed. It is based on an inductive AC/DC rotating current sensor installed in the shaft. In the case of a ground fault in the rotating parts of the BSM, a fault current will flow through the rotor’s sensor, inducing voltage in its stator. By analyzing the frequency components of the induced voltage, the detection of a ground fault in the rotating elements is possible. The ground faults detection method proposed covers the whole rotor and discerns between DC and AC sides. This method does not need any additional power source, slip ring, or brush, which is an important advantage in comparison with the existing methods. To corroborate the detection method, experimental tests have been performed using a prototype of this sensor connected to laboratory synchronous machines, achieving satisfactory results.This research was funded by Universidad Politécnica de Madrid under grant number RP2304330031

Genetic divergence detected by ISSR markers and characterization of microsatellite regions in "Mytilus" mussels

[Abstract] The wide distribution of microsatellites in mussels of the Mytilus edulis complex (Mytilidae) enables the analysis of inter-simple-sequence repeat (ISSR) markers. The aim of this investigation was to assess genetic differentiation in six sampling localities distributed along the European Atlantic coast to expose the potential of these markers in genetic studies requiring the detection of low polymorphism and as a source of sequences for developing microsatellite markers. We detected low genetic structuring within each member of the Mytilus edulis complex. Nei and Li distances and AMOVA clustered the individuals studied into two groups. On the basis of these results two sampling localities coming from the M. edulis × M. galloprovincialis mosaic hybrid zone in Western Europe were assigned to one species. On the other hand, mussels of a sampling locality in the Baltic Sea were not significantly different from a pure M. edulis locality supporting an extensive introgression of M. edulis in these individuals. Finally, 148 microsatellites were found in the sequences of 51 ISSR markers, and two polymorphic microsatellite markers were developed.Xunta de Galicia; PGIDT10PX110304P

QTL detection for Aeromonas salmonicida resistance related traits in turbot (Scophthalmus maximus)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Interactions between fish and pathogens, that may be harmless under natural conditions, often result in serious diseases in aquaculture systems. This is especially important due to the fact that the strains used in aquaculture are derived from wild strains that may not have had enough time to adapt to new disease pressures. The turbot is one of the most promising European aquaculture species. Furunculosis, caused by the bacterium <it>Aeromonas salmonicida</it>, produces important losses to turbot industry. An appealing solution is to achieve more robust broodstock, which can prevent or diminish the devastating effects of epizooties. Genomics strategies have been developed in turbot to look for candidate genes for resistance to furunculosis and a genetic map with appropriate density to screen for genomic associations has been also constructed. In the present study, a genome scan for QTL affecting resistance and survival to <it>A. salmonicida </it>in four turbot families was carried out. The objectives were to identify consistent QTL using different statistical approaches (linear regression and maximum likelihood) and to locate the tightest associated markers for their application in genetic breeding strategies.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Significant QTL for resistance were identified by the linear regression method in three linkage groups (LGs 4, 6 and 9) and for survival in two LGs (6 and 9). The maximum likelihood methodology identified QTL in three LGs (5, 6 and 9) for both traits. Significant association between disease traits and genotypes was detected for several markers, some of them explaining up to 17% of the phenotypic variance. We also identified candidate genes located in the detected QTL using data from previously mapped markers.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Several regions controlling resistance to <it>A. salmonicida </it>in turbot have been detected. The observed concordance between different statistical methods at particular linkage groups gives consistency to our results. The detected associated markers could be useful for genetic breeding strategies. A finer mapping will be necessary at the detected QTL intervals to narrow associations and around the closely associated markers to look for candidate genes through comparative genomics or positional cloning strategies. The identification of associated variants at specific genes will be essential, together with the QTL associations detected in this study, for future marker assisted selection programs.</p

Detection of growth-related QTL in turbot (Scophthalmus maximus)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The turbot (<it>Scophthalmus maximus</it>) is a highly appreciated European aquaculture species. Growth related traits constitute the main goal of the ongoing genetic breeding programs of this species. The recent construction of a consensus linkage map in this species has allowed the selection of a panel of 100 homogeneously distributed markers covering the 26 linkage groups (LG) suitable for QTL search. In this study we addressed the detection of QTL with effect on body weight, length and Fulton's condition factor.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Eight families from two genetic breeding programs comprising 814 individuals were used to search for growth related QTL using the panel of microsatellites available for QTL screening. Two different approaches, maximum likelihood and regression interval mapping, were used in order to search for QTL. Up to eleven significant QTL were detected with both methods in at least one family: four for weight on LGs 5, 14, 15 and 16; five for length on LGs 5, 6, 12, 14 and 15; and two for Fulton's condition factor on LGs 3 and 16. In these LGs an association analysis was performed to ascertain the microsatellite marker with the highest apparent effect on the trait, in order to test the possibility of using them for marker assisted selection.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The use of regression interval mapping and maximum likelihood methods for QTL detection provided consistent results in many cases, although the high variation observed for traits mean among families made it difficult to evaluate QTL effects. Finer mapping of detected QTL, looking for tightly linked markers to the causative mutation, and comparative genomics are suggested to deepen in the analysis of QTL in turbot so they can be applied in marker assisted selection programs.</p

Enrichment of neural-related genes in human mesenchymal stem cells from neuroblastoma patients.

Neuroblastoma (NB) is one of the most common pediatric solid tumors and, like most human cancers, is char-acterized by a broad variety of genomic alterations. Although mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are known to interact with cancer cells, the relationship between MSCs and metastatic NB cancer cells in bone marrow (BM) is unknown. To obtain genetic evidence about this interaction, we isolated ΒΜ-derived MSCs from children with NB and compared their global expression patterns with MSCs obtained from normal pediatric donors, using the Agilent 44K microarrays. Significance analysis of microarray results with a false discovery rate (FDR) <5% identified 496 differentially expressed genes showing either a 2-fold upregulation or downregulation between both groups of samples. Comparison of gene ontology categories of differ-entially expressed genes revealed the upregulation of genes categorized as ‘neurological system process’, ‘cell adhesion’, ‘apoptosis’, ‘cell surface receptor linked signal transduction’, ‘intrinsic to membrane’ and ‘extracellular region’. Among the downregulated genes, several immunology-related terms were the most abundant. These findings provide preliminary genetic evidence of the interaction between MSCs and NB cancer cells in ΒΜ as well as identify relevant biological processes potentially altered in MSCs in response to NBThis study was supported by grants from the Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias (FIS; PI05/2217 and PI08/0029 to J.G.C.), MICINN (PLE2009-0115) and the Madrid Regional Government (S-BIO-0204-2006 and P2010/BMD-2420) in Spain. The experiments were approved by the appropriate committees.S