Selective and highly efficient dye scavenging by a pH-responsive molecular hydrogelator

A structurally simple low molecular weight hydrogelator derived from isophthalic acid forms robust pH-responsive hydrogels capable of highly efficient and selective dye adsorption

Multifunctional device for bicycles

This paper aims at designing a "Multifunctional device composed of load support and anti-theft lock for standard bicycles". A previous study has been developed in order to justify and validate the final design of the unmet needs of people in their daily lives, with an emphasis on satisfying those that imply specific savings, whether economic, energy or time. As a result, the use of bicycles as a means of transport in Spain is promoted taking as a frame of reference countries such as the Netherlands or France. This means economic and energy savings (by replacing the car) and an improvement in people's health and quality of life. Following the steps of the design methodology, once the need was detected, an information search was carried out in order to identify and prioritize the design specifications that meet the demands of potential customers. For this reason, various sources were used, The boost to use bicycles has allowed to establish a set of measurements and specifications in the design of the device with a double functionality, the transport of merchandise and an anti-theft system. In addition to meeting the needs of the client, the design must comply with a set of reference regulations both, at the level of security devices and the transport of merchandise at retail. The result of the work has given rise to patent application with prior examination at a national level, in a first phase, and subsequently, at an international level.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Development of a Common Framework for Analysing Public Transport Smart Card Data

The data generated in public transport systems have proven to be of great importance in improving knowledge of public transport systems, being very valuable in promoting the sustainability of public transport through rational management. However, the analysis of this data involves numerous tasks, so that when the value of analysing the data is finally verified, the effort has already been very great. The management and analysis of the collected data face some difficulties. This is the case of the data collected by the current automated fare collection systems. These systems do not follow any open standards and are not usually designed with a multipurpose nature, so they do not facilitate the data analysis workflow (i.e., acquisition, storage, quality control, integration and quantitative analysis). Intending to reduce this workload, we propose a conceptual framework for analysing data from automated fare collection systems in mobility studies. The main components of this framework are (1) a simple data model, (2) scripts for creating and querying the database and (3) a system for reusing the most useful queries. This framework has been tested in a real public transport consortium in a Spanish region shaped by tourism. The outcomes of this research work could be reused and applied, with a lower initial effort, in other areas that have data recorded by an automated fare collection system but are not sure if it is worth investing in exploiting the data. After this experience, we consider that, even with the legal limitations applicable to the analysis of this type of data, the use of open standards by automated fare collection systems would facilitate the use of this type of data to its full potential. Meanwhile, the use of a common framework may be enough to start analysing the data

Pooled Time Series Modeling Reveals Smoking Habit Memory Pattern

Smoking is a habit that is hard to break because nicotine is highly addictive and smoking behavior is strongly linked to multiple daily activities and routines. Here, we explored the effect of gender, age, day of the week, and previous smoking on the number of cigarettes smoked on any given day. Data consisted of daily records of the number of cigarettes participants smoked over an average period of 84 days. The sample included smokers (36 men and 26 women), aged between 18 and 26 years, who smoked at least five cigarettes a day and had smoked for at least 2 years. A panel data analysis was performed by way of multilevel pooled time series modeling. Smoking on any given day was a function of the number of cigarettes smoked on the previous day, and 2, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42, 49, and 56 days previously, and the day of the week. Neither gender nor age influenced this pattern, with no multilevel effects being detected, thus the behavior of all participants fitted the same smoking model. These novel findings show empirically that smoking behavior is governed by firmly established temporal dependence patterns and inform temporal parameters for the rational design of smoking cessation programs

Analytical model for light modulating impedance spectroscopy (LIMIS) in all-solid-state p-n junction solar cells at open-circuit

Potentiostatic impedance spectroscopy (IS) is a well-known tool for characterization of materials and electronic devices. It can be complemented by numerical simulation strategies relying on drift-diffusion equations without any equivalent circuit-based assumptions. This implies the time-dependent solutions of the transport equations under small perturbation of the external bias applied as a boundary condition at the electrodes. However, in the case of photosensitive devices, a small light perturbation modulates the generation rate along the absorber bulk. This work then approaches a set of analytical solutions for the signals of IS and intensity modulated photocurrent and photovoltage spectroscopies, intensity modulated photocurrent spectroscopy (IMPS) and intensity modulated photovoltage spectroscopy (IMVS), respectively, from one-sided p-n junction solar cells at the open-circuit. Subsequently, a photoimpedance signal named “light intensity modulated impedance spectroscopy” (LIMIS = IMVS/IMPS) is analytically simulated, and its difference with respect to IS suggests a correlation with the surface charge carrier recombination velocity. This is an illustrative result and the starting point for future more realistic numerical simulations. We acknowledge the funding support from the Ministerio de-Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades of Spain under project (No. MAT2016-76892-C3-1-R). O.A. acknowledges the financial support from the VDI/VD Innovation + Technik GmbH (Project-title: PV-ZUM) and the SAOT funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) in the framework of the German excellence initiative

Selective and highly efficient dye scavenging by a pH-responsive molecular hydrogelator

A structurally simple low molecular weight hydrogelator derived from isophthalic acid forms robust pH-responsive hydrogels capable of highly efficient and selective dye adsorption

Validación de un instrumento de evaluación del comportamiento sexual de personas con discapacidad intelectual para padres (ECS-PA)

The recent normalization of sexuality and sexual rights among people with Intellectual Disability (ID) has led to an increase in the number of initiatives aimed at improving their knowledge and skills through sexual-affective education programs, but these programs require evaluation instruments reliable to identify their needs and may be sensitive to change after the intervention. In this assessment their perceptions must converge, those of the professionals who deal with them and those of their parents to ensure the veracity of the information obtained, but unfortunately we lack valid and reliable psychometric instruments, both self-reported, because in many cases they lack of verbal skills sufficient to express their desires and experiences, as heteroinformed, since the existing ones are fundamentally focused on the study of attitudes towards sexuality of this group. The objective of this work has been to construct and validate a questionnaire to obtain information from parents about the sexuality of people with mild or moderate ID. The instrument consisting of 32 items with different response formats was administered to 118 parents of adults with ID. The Exploratory Factor Analysis and de Confirmatory Factor Analysis offers a structure composed by 3 factors: (F1) Comprehension of the privacy and social rules (13 items), (F2) perception of knowledge about sexuality that your child has (10 items) and (F3) concern for inappropriate sexual behavior (9 items). The model obtained with these four factors presents a good adjustment as shown by the main indicators (Chi2 S-B/df = 1.14, RMSEA = 0.035, CFI = 0.910 y TLI = 0.902). The ECS-PA is shown as an instrument that allows obtaining valid and reliable information about the sexuality of people with mild or moderate ID.La reciente normalización de la sexualidad y de los derechos sexuales entre las personas conDiscapacidad Intelectual (DI) ha hecho que se incremente el número de iniciativas dirigidas a mejorar sus conocimientos y habilidades mediante programas de educación afectivo-sexual pero dichos programas requieren instrumentos de evaluación fiables que permitan identificar sus necesidades y puedan ser sensibles al cambio tras la intervención. En dicha valoración deben confluir sus percepciones, las de los profesionales que se ocupan de ellos y las de sus padres para asegurar la veracidad de la información obtenida, pero lamentablemente carecemos de instrumentos psicométricos válidos y fiables tanto autoinformados, debido a que en muchos casos carecen de habilidades verbales suficientes para expresar sus deseos y vivencias, como heteroinformados, pues los existentes se centran fundamentalmente en el estudio de las actitudes hacia la sexualidad de este colectivo. El objetivo de este trabajo ha sido construir y validar un cuestionario para obtener información de los padres acerca de la sexualidad de las personas con DI leve o moderada. El instrumento fue administrado a 118 padres de personas adultas con DI. Se realizó un Análisis Factorial Exploratorio  seguido de un Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio que ofreció una estructura compuesta de 3 factores: (F1) Comprensión de la privacidad y normas sociales (13 ítems), (F2) percepción de los conocimientos sobre sexualidad que tiene su hijo/a (10 ítems), y (F3) preocupación por un comportamiento sexual inadecuado (9 ítems). El modelo obtenido con estos tres factores presenta un buen ajuste como muestran los principales indicadores (Chi2 S-B/df = 1,14, RMSEA = 0,035, CFI = 0,910 y TLI = 0,902). El ECS-PA se muestra como un instrumento que permite obtener información válida y fiable sobre la sexualidad de las personas con DI leve o moderada.

Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived endothelial cells promote angiogenesis and accelerate wound closure in a murine excisional wound healing model

Chronic wounds are a major complication in patients with cardiovascular diseases. Cell therapies have shown potential to stimulate wound healing, but clinical trials using adult stem cells have been tempered by limited numbers of cells and invasive procurement procedures. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have several advantages of other cell types, for example they can be generated in abundance from patients’ somatic cells (autologous) or those from a matched donor. iPSCs can be efficiently differentiated to functional endothelial cells (iPSC-ECs). Here, we used a murine excisional wound model to test the pro-angiogenic properties of iPSC-ECs in wound healing. Two full-thickness wounds were made on the dorsum of NOD-SCID mice and splinted. iPSC-ECs (5 × 105) were topically applied to one wound, with the other serving as a control. Treatment with iPSC-ECs significantly increased wound perfusion and accelerated wound closure. Expression of endothelial cell (EC) surface marker, platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule (PECAM-1) (CD31), and pro-angiogenic EC receptor, Tie1, mRNA was up-regulated in iPSC-EC treated wounds at 7 days post-wounding. Histological analysis of wound sections showed increased capillary density in iPSC-EC wounds at days 7 and 14 post-wounding, and increased collagen content at day 14. Anti-GFP fluorescence confirmed presence of iPSC-ECs in the wounds. Bioluminescent imaging (BLI) showed progressive decline of iPSC-ECs over time, suggesting that iPSC-ECs are acting primarily through short-term paracrine effects. These results highlight the pro-regenerative effects of iPSC-ECs and demonstrate that they are a promising potential therapy for intractable wounds.Zoë E. Clayton, Richard P. Tan, Maria M. Miravet, Katarina Lennartsson, John P. Cooke, Christina A. Bursill, Steven G. Wise, Sanjay Pate

The role of clonal communication and heterogeneity in breast cancer

Background: Cancer is a rapidly evolving, multifactorial disease that accumulates numerous genetic and epigenetic alterations. This results in molecular and phenotypic heterogeneity within the tumor, the complexity of which is further amplified through specific interactions between cancer cells. We aimed to dissect the molecular mechanisms underlying the cooperation between different clones. Methods: We produced clonal cell lines derived from the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line, using the UbC-StarTrack system, which allowed tracking of multiple clones by color: GFP C3, mKO E10 and Sapphire D7. Characterization of these clones was performed by growth rate, cell metabolic activity, wound healing, invasion assays and genetic and epigenetic arrays. Tumorigenicity was tested by orthotopic and intravenous injections. Clonal cooperation was evaluated by medium complementation, co-culture and co-injection assays. Results: Characterization of these clones in vitro revealed clear genetic and epigenetic differences that affected growth rate, cell metabolic activity, morphology and cytokine expression among cell lines. In vivo, all clonal cell lines were able to form tumors; however, injection of an equal mix of the different clones led to tumors with very few mKO E10 cells. Additionally, the mKO E10 clonal cell line showed a significant inability to form lung metastases. These results confirm that even in stable cell lines heterogeneity is present. In vitro, the complementation of growth medium with medium or exosomes from parental or clonal cell lines increased the growth rate of the other clones. Complementation assays, co-growth and co-injection of mKO E10 and GFP C3 clonal cell lines increased the efficiency of invasion and migration. Conclusions: These findings support a model where interplay between clones confers aggressiveness, and which may allow identification of the factors involved in cellular communication that could play a role in clonal cooperation and thus represent new targets for preventing tumor progression