Influence of the NICU on the Acoustic Isolation of a Neonatal Incubator

The neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is a very noisy place as compared to the intrauterine environment. To protect the neonate's health, international guidelines suggest avoiding noise levels above 45 dB in NICUs, but this recommendation is not normally met. The incubator acoustic isolation and the acoustic features of the NICU play important roles in determining the noise measured inside the incubator. In this study, the influence of two types of rooms, one with sound-absorbent covering and the other with reverberant surfaces, on the acoustic isolation of a neonatal incubator was evaluated using three acoustic isolation indexes: the level difference, the apparent sound reduction index, and the standardized level difference. Results show that the acoustic isolation of the incubator is very poor, with a level difference below 11 dBA at all frequencies. At 62.5 Hz, the level difference measured in both rooms exhibits a negative value, indicating that the incubator amplifies the noise coming from the NICU. Isolation of the incubator is poor, and the reverberation time (RT) of the containing room influences RT of the incubator, which is consequently higher when the containing room is reverberant; for example, the incubator RT in the reverberant NICU is 0.72 s higher at 500 Hz than that in a room with sound-absorbent covering

The Importance of Reverberation for the Design of Neonatal Incubators

Low frequency noises are predominant in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Some studies affirm that neonates can perceive noises from 113 Hz, and can therefore be affected by sound sources with high spectral content at low frequencies (e.g., incubator engine, air fan). Other studies suggest that reverberation amplifies noise within incubators. In this paper, the reverberation time (T, T-30) within an incubator with standard dimensions was measured in one-third octave bands. To get reliable results, the T was measured in 15 positions at the neonate's ear height, in a room with low T values (to reduce the influence of the room in the results), using an impulsive sound method. Results show a heterogeneous T distribution at the neonate's ear height, with maximum average T differences between positions of 1.07 s. The highest average T of all microphone positions is 2.27 s at 125 Hz, an extremely high mean value for such a small space. As the frequency of electrical devices in America is 60 Hz, some harmonics lay within the one-third octave band of 125 Hz, and therefore may create a very reverberant and inappropriate acoustic environment within the audible spectrum of neonates. As the acoustic environment of the incubator and the room are coupled, it is expected that the results are higher in the NICUs than in the room where the measurements were conducted, as NICUs are more reverberant. Therefore, it is recommended that the T will be limited in the international standards, and that incubator designers take it into account

Random exams using Sweave

The adaptation of the Spanish University to the European Higher Education Area (EEES in Spanish) demands the integration of new tools and skills that would make the teaching- learning process easier. This adaptation involves a change in the evaluation methods, which goes from a system where the student was evaluated with a final exam, to a new system where we include a continuous evaluation in which the final exam may represent at most 50% in the vast majority of the Universities. Devising a new and fair continuous evaluation system is not an easy task to do. That would mean a student’s’ learning process follow-up by the teachers, and as a consequence an additional workload on existing staff resources. Traditionally, the continuous evaluation is associated with the daily work of the student and a collection of the different marks partly or entirely based on the work they do during the academic year. Now, small groups of students and an attendance control are important aspects to take into account in order to get an adequate assessment of the students. However, most of the university degrees have groups with more than 70 students, and the attendance control is a complicated task to perform, mostly because it consumes significant amounts of staff time. Another problem found is that the attendance control would encourage not-interested students to be present at class, which might cause some troubles to their classmates. After a two year experience in the development of a continuous assessment in Statistics subjects in Social Science degrees, we think that individual and periodical tasks are the best way to assess results. These tasks or examinations must be done in classroom during regular lessons, so we need an efficient system to put together different and personal questions in order to prevent students from cheating. In this paper we provide an efficient and effective way to elaborate random examination papers by using Sweave, a tool that generates data, graphics and statistical calculus from the software R and shows results in PDF documents created by Latex. In this way, we will be able to design an exam template which could be compiled in order to generate as many PDF documents as it is required, and at the same time, solutions are provided to easily correct them

The compositional HJ-Biplot—A new approach to identifying the links among bioactive compounds of tomatoes

Tomatoes have been described as a functional food because of their particular composition of different bioactive compounds. In this study, the proximate composition, minerals and trace elements, and antioxidant compounds were determined in two tomato cultivars (Mariana and Dunkan) that were grown in Gran Canaria (Spain) either conventionally or hydroponically. Although compositional data of this type require being subjected to the specific statistical techniques of compositional analysis, this approach has not usually been considered in this context. In the present case, a compositional Mann–Whitney U test of the data showed significant differences for each factor (cultivar and cultivation system) in several of the compositional variables studied. For the differences between cultivars, these parameters were the protein, Mg, lycopene, ascorbic acid, citric acid, and fumaric acid contents. For the differences between cultivation systems, they were mainly those of the mineral and trace elements group. Although one-year data are insufficient to make clear relationship among compounds because more repetitions in several localities and years are necessary, the compositional HJ-biplot (in which the links provide estimates of the linear relationship among variables) results agreed with other scientific results about linear relationship among some compounds analyzed.peerReviewe

Usefulness of FDG PET/CT in the management of tuberculosis

Tuberculosis; Positron emission tomography (PET); FDGTuberculosis; Tomografía por emisión de positrones (PET); FDGTuberculosi; Tomografia per emissió de positrons (PET); FDGBACKGROUND: The aim of our study is to describe the FDG-PET/CT findings in patients with tuberculosis and to correlate them with the patient's prognosis. METHODS: We retrospectively collected data from patients with tuberculosis, who had an FDG-PET/CT performed prior to treatment initiation from 2010 to 2015. RESULTS: Forty-seven out of 504 patients with active tuberculosis diagnosis (9.33%) underwent an FDG-PET/CT. The reasons for performing the FDG-PET/CT were: characterization of a pulmonary nodule (24; 51.1%), study of fever of unknown origin (12; 25.5%), study of lymph node enlargement (5; 10.6%) and others (6; 12.8%). Median age was 64 (IQR 50-74) years and 31 (66%) patients were male. Twenty-six (55.3%) patients had an immunosuppressant condition. According to the FDG-PET/CT, 48.6% of the patients had more than 1 organ affected and 46.8% had lymph node involvement. Median SUVmax of the main lesion was 5 (IQR 0.28-11.85). We found an association between the FDG accumulation and the size of the main lesion with a correlation coefficient of 0.54 (p<0.002). Patients with an unsuccessful outcome had a higher ratio SUVmax main lesion / SUVmean liver (1.92 vs 7.67, p<0.02). CONCLUSIONS: In our cohort, almost half of the patients had more than 1 organ affected and 46.8% of them had lymph node involvement. FDG uptake was associated with the size of the main lesion and seems to be related to the treatment outcome. The extent of its potential to be used as an early predictor of treatment success still needs to be defined

Agrobiodiversidad En La Comunidad Joyagshi, Chunchi-Ecuador

Ecuador is one of the most biologically rich countries in the world. It is considered as a mega diverse country, meaning that it has the most varied life forms expressed in its flora, fauna, microorganisms, genetic diversity and a variety of ecosystems, which are formed thanks to the particular geographical conditions of location, relief and climate. According to the territorial location, Llagos is the last parish of the province of Chimborazo, it belongs to the Chunchi canton and is made up of 11 communities, is based largely on an irregular terrain of extreme slope in certain sectors, is rich in biodiversity of Flora and fauna. Joyagshi is one of the communities of the parish, which is made up of plains, plateaus and few hills. Thus, from the identification of the flora inventory of the Joyagshi community and in addition to the morphological and taxonomic identification of the plants, a study of agrobiodiversity in the community was elaborated. In conclusion, 44 species of flora of the community of Joyagshi were inventoried in a total of 170 hectares, which are destined for diverse purposes like: pastures, fodder, crops, and natural forests

Bacillus extracellular matrix modulates Botrytis metabolism and growth

In nature, bacteria often form communities known as biofilms, where cells are embedded in a self-produced extracellular matrix (ECM) that provides protection against external aggressions or facilitates efficient use of resources. Interactions with other microbes can significantly alter the structure of the community and thus the type of relationship with the environment. Here, we study the role of different components of Bacillus ECM in the adhesion to Botrytis hyphae, which could facilitate the efficient release of antifungal metabolites. We also describe how the different purified components of the ECM and certain Bacillus secondary metabolites (TasA, TapA, EPS, Fengycin) modulate the chemical communication between Bacillus and Botrytis, altering the physiology and ultrastructure of Botrytis.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Mechanistic Studies on the Synthesis of Pyrrolidines and Piperidines via Copper-Catalyzed Intramolecular C–H Amination

We have recently developed a method for the synthesis of pyrrolidines and piperidines via intramolecular C–H amination of N-fluoride amides using [TpxCuL] complexes as precatalysts [Tpx = tris(pyrazolyl)borate ligand and L = THF or CH3CN]. Herein, we report mechanistic studies on this transformation, which includes the isolation and structural characterization of a fluorinated copper(II) complex, [(TpiPr2OH)CuF] [TpiPr = hydrotris(3,5-diisopropylpyrazolyl)borate], pertinent to the mechanistic pathway. The effects of the nature of the Tpx ligand in the copper catalyst as well as of the halide in the N–X amides employed as reactants have been investigated both from experimental and computational perspectives.We thank the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (PID2020- 113797RB-C21, PID2020-112825RB-I00, CTQ2017-88496-R, and CEX2019-000925-S), COST Action CA15106 “C−H Activation in Organic Synthesis (CHAOS)”and Red Intecat (CTQ2016-81923-REDC), and Universidad de Huelva (P.O.Feder 2014-2020 UHU-1254043). We thank Universidad de Huelva/CBUA for funding for open access charge

Los componentes de la matriz extracelular de Bacillus subtilis son necesarios para proteger la colonia de la invasión de Pseudomonas y para la co-colonización en plantas

Las plantas son colonizadas por una gran variedad de microorganismos, y entre ellas las bacterias son las más predominantes dada su capacidad para adaptarse a cambios ambientales y comunicarse con otros organismos. La formación de comunidades de células de una misma especie en estructuras conocidas como biofilms les permite un mayor éxito en este escenario competitivo. La matriz extracelular que recubre a las bacterias es una estructura que confiere protección, modula el flujo de señales y controla la diferenciación celular, por lo que es importante conocer no solo su composición sino además la funcionalidad de los componentes. En este trabajo estudiamos la interacción de dos bacterias beneficiosas para plantas, Bacillus subtilis 3610 y Pseudomonas chlororaphis PCL1606. Mediante un abordaje pluridisciplinar, demostramos el papel de la matriz extracelular, y específicamente del EPS en la protección de colonias de B. subtilis frente a la colonización por Pseudomonas. La utilización de microscopía confocal nos ha permitido realizar un estudio completo del comportamiento de las bacterias y nos ha permitido medir velocidades de expansión de las colonias en distintas situaciones. El estudio transcriptómico de la interacción nos ha permitido destacar al sistema de secreción tipo VI (T6SS) de Pseudomonas como uno de los elementos clave en el contacto directo célula-célula frente a células de Bacillus desprovistas de su matriz extracelular. En respuesta a la infiltración por Pseudomonas, demostramos que B. subtilis activa la esporulación como un mecanismo de defensa secundario. Finalmente, análisis microbiológicos y microscopía confocal de las interacciones en distintos órganos de plantas de melón demuestran la importancia funcional de las distintas estrategias para la co-existencia estable de estas bacterias en comunidades bacterianas. Nuestros descubrimientos amplían la comprensión del papel funcional jugado por los biofilms durante las interacciones bacterianas.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec