Tuning of defects in ZnO nanorod arrays used in bulk heterojunction solar cells.

With particular focus on bulk heterojunction solar cells incorporating ZnO nanorods, we study how different annealing environments (air or Zn environment) and temperatures impact on the photoluminescence response. Our work gives new insight into the complex defect landscape in ZnO, and it also shows how the different defect types can be manipulated. We have determined the emission wavelengths for the two main defects which make up the visible band, the oxygen vacancy emission wavelength at approximately 530 nm and the zinc vacancy emission wavelength at approximately 630 nm. The precise nature of the defect landscape in the bulk of the nanorods is found to be unimportant to photovoltaic cell performance although the surface structure is more critical. Annealing of the nanorods is optimum at 300°C as this is a sufficiently high temperature to decompose Zn(OH)2 formed at the surface of the nanorods during electrodeposition and sufficiently low to prevent ITO degradation.RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are

Pores Formed by Baxα5 Relax to a Smaller Size and Keep at Equilibrium

AbstractPores made by amphipathic cationic peptides (e.g., antimicrobials and fragments of pore-forming proteins) are typically studied by examining the kinetics of vesicle leakage after peptide addition or obtaining structural measurements in reconstituted peptide-lipid systems. In the first case, the pores have been considered transient phenomena that allow the relaxation of the peptide-membrane system. In the second, they correspond to equilibrium structures at minimum free energy. Here we reconcile both approaches by investigating the pore activity of the α5 fragment from the proapoptotic protein Bax (Baxα5) before and after equilibrium of peptide/vesicle complexes. Quenching assays on suspensions of large unilamellar vesicles suggest that in the presence of Baxα5, the vesicles maintain a leaky state for hours under equilibrium conditions. We proved and analyzed stable pores on single giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) in detail by monitoring the entrance of dyes added at different times after incubation with the peptide. When the GUVs came in contact with Baxα5, leakage started stochastically, was delayed for various periods of time, and in the majority of cases proceeded rapidly to completion. After hours in the presence of the peptide, the same individual GUVs that refilled completely at first instance maintained a porated state, which could be observed in subsequent leak-in events for serially added dyes. However, these long-term pores were smaller in size than the initial equilibration pores. Stable pores were also detected in GUVs made in the presence of Baxα5. The latter pores can be considered equilibrium states and may correspond to structures measured previously in bilayer stacks. Although pore formation may occur as a kinetic process, equilibrium pores may also be functionally relevant structures, especially in highly regulated systems such as the apoptotic mitochondrial pores induced by Bax

Susceptibilidad in vitro a infección por Leishmania y sensibilidad a medicamentos difiere según tipo de macrófagos

RESUMEN Introducción: Los sistemas in vitro son útiles en la evaluación de compuestos con actividad biológica, permitiendo por ejemplo, determinar el potencial citotóxico y leishmanicida de un compuesto.Objetivo: Identificar el tipo de célula mamífera que permita una óptima infección in vitro por Leishmania y que constituya el sistema adecuado para el tamizaje in vitro de compuestos con actividad anti-Leishmania.Métodos: La susceptibilidad de las células a infección por L. panamensis se evalúo según la Concentración Infectiva 50 determinada por microscopía de luz y citometría de flujo; la supervivencia intracelular de los amastigotes se evaluó por microscopía de fluorescencia y la sensibilidad de las células a anfotericina B y antimoniato de meglumina se evalúo por espectrofotometría.Resultados: Los cultivos primarios son más susceptibles a la infección por L. panamensis in vitro. Sin embargo, la supervivencia intracelular del parásito fue mejor en U-937. Por su parte, la sensibilidad de las células a anfotericina B y antimoniato de meglumina vario según el tipo de célula.Conclusiones: Las células U-937 son las adecuadas para la infección por Leishmania porque: a) presentan crecimiento ilimitado y se les puede inducir transformación a macrófagos. b) la susceptibilidad a la infección por Leishmania es similar a la observada en cultivos primarios de macrófagos y c) permiten mayor supervivencia de los amastigotes luego de la infección. Adicionalmente, las células U-937 son menos sensibles a la acción de los fármacos comúnmente utilizados como control en la detección de compuestos con actividad leishmanicida. Salud UIS 2010; 42:   Palabras clave: Susceptibilidad a infección por Leishmania, células U-937, células THP-1, células Vero, células J774A,1, macrófagos ABSTRACT Introduction: In vitro systems are useful in the evaluation of compounds with biological activity determining the cytotoxic and leishmanicidal activity of the candidates.Objective: To identify the mammalian cell that allows the optimal in vitro infection by Leishmania and therefore, identify the suitable system for the in vitro evaluation of leishmanicidal activity of drugs.Methodology: The susceptibility to the infection by L. panamensis was evaluated according to the Infective Concentration 50 tested by light microscopy and flow citometry; the intracellular survival of amastigotes was determined by fluorescence microscopy and the sensitivity to amphotericine B and meglumine  antimoniate was evaluated by spectrophotometry.Results: The primary culture cells were more susceptible to the in vitro infection by L. panamensis because they did require fewer parasites per cell ratio to achieve the 50% infection rate whereas the intracellular survival of parasites was better in the U-937 cells. All cells showed differential sensitivity to amphotericine B and meglumine antimoniate.Conclusion: The U-937 cells are the most suitable model for the in vitro infection by L. panamensis because: a) they are a cell line with unlimited growth where transformation into macrophages can be induced. b) The susceptibility to infection by L. panamensis is similar to that observed in primary cultures macrophages and, c) They allow the intracellular survival of amastigotes after the infection process. In addition the U-937 cells are less sensitive to the action of the commonly drugs used as a control in the screening of compounds with leishmanicidal activity. Salud UIS 2010; 42:   Keywords: Susceptibility to infection by Leishmania, U-937 cells, THP-1 cells, Vero cells, J774A.1 cells, macrophages

Susceptibilidad in vitro a infección por Leishmania y sensibilidad a medicamentos difiere según tipo de macrófagos

RESUMEN Introducción: Los sistemas in vitro son útiles en la evaluación de compuestos con actividad biológica, permitiendo por ejemplo, determinar el potencial citotóxico y leishmanicida de un compuesto.Objetivo: Identificar el tipo de célula mamífera que permita una óptima infección in vitro por Leishmania y que constituya el sistema adecuado para el tamizaje in vitro de compuestos con actividad anti-Leishmania.Métodos: La susceptibilidad de las células a infección por L. panamensis se evalúo según la Concentración Infectiva 50 determinada por microscopía de luz y citometría de flujo; la supervivencia intracelular de los amastigotes se evaluó por microscopía de fluorescencia y la sensibilidad de las células a anfotericina B y antimoniato de meglumina se evalúo por espectrofotometría.Resultados: Los cultivos primarios son más susceptibles a la infección por L. panamensis in vitro. Sin embargo, la supervivencia intracelular del parásito fue mejor en U-937. Por su parte, la sensibilidad de las células a anfotericina B y antimoniato de meglumina vario según el tipo de célula.Conclusiones: Las células U-937 son las adecuadas para la infección por Leishmania porque: a) presentan crecimiento ilimitado y se les puede inducir transformación a macrófagos. b) la susceptibilidad a la infección por Leishmania es similar a la observada en cultivos primarios de macrófagos y c) permiten mayor supervivencia de los amastigotes luego de la infección. Adicionalmente, las células U-937 son menos sensibles a la acción de los fármacos comúnmente utilizados como control en la detección de compuestos con actividad leishmanicida. Salud UIS 2010; 42:   Palabras clave: Susceptibilidad a infección por Leishmania, células U-937, células THP-1, células Vero, células J774A,1, macrófagos ABSTRACT Introduction: In vitro systems are useful in the evaluation of compounds with biological activity determining the cytotoxic and leishmanicidal activity of the candidates.Objective: To identify the mammalian cell that allows the optimal in vitro infection by Leishmania and therefore, identify the suitable system for the in vitro evaluation of leishmanicidal activity of drugs.Methodology: The susceptibility to the infection by L. panamensis was evaluated according to the Infective Concentration 50 tested by light microscopy and flow citometry; the intracellular survival of amastigotes was determined by fluorescence microscopy and the sensitivity to amphotericine B and meglumine  antimoniate was evaluated by spectrophotometry.Results: The primary culture cells were more susceptible to the in vitro infection by L. panamensis because they did require fewer parasites per cell ratio to achieve the 50% infection rate whereas the intracellular survival of parasites was better in the U-937 cells. All cells showed differential sensitivity to amphotericine B and meglumine antimoniate.Conclusion: The U-937 cells are the most suitable model for the in vitro infection by L. panamensis because: a) they are a cell line with unlimited growth where transformation into macrophages can be induced. b) The susceptibility to infection by L. panamensis is similar to that observed in primary cultures macrophages and, c) They allow the intracellular survival of amastigotes after the infection process. In addition the U-937 cells are less sensitive to the action of the commonly drugs used as a control in the screening of compounds with leishmanicidal activity. Salud UIS 2010; 42:   Keywords: Susceptibility to infection by Leishmania, U-937 cells, THP-1 cells, Vero cells, J774A.1 cells, macrophages

Clinical factors associated with high glycemic variability defined by coefficient of variation in patients with type 2 diabetes

Antecedentes: La Variabilidad Glucémica Alta (VHG) ha convertirse en un predictor más fuerte de hipoglucemia. Sin embargo, aún se desconocen los factores clínicos asociados con el VHG. Objetivo:Determinar las variables clínicas que se asociaron con un coeficiente de variación (CV) superior al 36% evaluado mediante monitorización continua de glucosa (MCG) en un grupo de pacientes con diabetes mellitus. Métodos: Se evaluó una cohorte de pacientes con diabetes tipo 2 (T2D). Se evaluaron variables demográficas, HbA1c, tasa de filtración glomerular (TFG) y régimen de tratamiento. Se realizó un análisis bivariado, para evaluar la asociación entre la variable resultado (CV > 36%) y cada una de las variables independientes. Se construyó un modelo multivariado para evaluar las asociaciones después de controlar las variables de confusión. Resultados:Se analizaron los datos de MCG de 274 pacientes. CV> 36% estuvo presente en 56 pacientes (20,4%). En el análisis bivariado se incluyeron variables demográficas y clínicas, como tiempo desde el diagnóstico, antecedente de hipoglucemia, A1c, FG y tratamiento instaurado. En el análisis multivariante, FG 9% (OR 2,81; IC 1,05,7,51; p:0,04) y antecedentes de hipoglucemia (OR 2,09; IC 1,02, 4,32; p: 0,04) se asociaron con VHG. El tratamiento con iDPP4 (OR 0,39; IC 0,19, 0,82; p: 0,01) y AGLP1 (OR 0,08; IC 0,01, 0,68; p: 0,02) se asoció inversamente con la VG. Conclusión:Variables clínicas como FG 9% y antecedentes de hipoglucemia se asocian a un VG alto. Nuestros datos sugieren que el uso de tecnología y tratamientos capaces de reducir la variabilidad glucémica podría ser útil en esta población para reducir el riesgo de hipoglucemia y mejorar el control glucémico.Q3Background: High glycemic Variability (HGV) has become a stronger predictor of hypoglycemia. However, clinical factors associate with HGV still are unknown. Objective: To determine clinical variables that were associated with a coefficient of variation (CV) above 36% evaluated by continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in a group of patients with diabetes mellitus. Methods: A cohort of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) was evaluated. Demographic variables, HbA1c, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and treatment regimen were assessed. A bivariate analysis was performed, to evaluate the association between the outcome variable (CV> 36%) and each of the independent variables. A multivariate model was constructed to evaluate associations after controlling for confounding variables. Results: CGM data from 274 patients were analyzed. CV> 36% was present in 56 patients (20.4%). In the bivariate analysis, demographic and clinical variables were included, such as time since diagnosis, hypoglycemia history, A1c, GFR and treatment established. In the multivariate analysis, GFR 9% (OR 2.81; CI 1.05,7.51; p:0.04) and hypoglycemia history (OR 2.09; CI 1.02,4.32; p:0.04) were associated with HGV. Treatment with iDPP4 (OR 0.39; CI 0.19,0.82; p:0.01) and AGLP1 (OR 0.08; CI 0.01,0.68; p:0.02) was inversely associated with GV. Conclusion: Clinical variables such as GFR 9% and a history of hypoglycemia are associated with a high GV. Our data suggest that the use of technology and treatments able to reduce glycemic variability could be useful in this population to reduce the risk of hypoglycemia and to improve glycemic control.Revista Internacional - Indexad

Concordance of the risk of neonatal respiratory morbidity assessed by quantitative ultrasound lung texture analysis in fetuses of twin pregnancies

To evaluate the concordance of the risk of neonatal respiratory morbidity (NRM) assessed by quantitative ultrasound lung texture analysis (QuantusFLM) between twin fetuses of the same pregnancy. Prospective study conducted in twin pregnancies. There was good concordance of the risk of NRM between twins 34.0 weeks. From 30.0 to 33.6 weeks 26.5% of the twin pairs had discordant results, with moderate concordance of the risk of NRM

Prospective space model for San Francisco de Sales by 2036

13 páginas : mapasAnte la constante influencia espacial que ejerce la ciudad de Bogotá, capital de Colombia, en los municipios periféricos dentro del departamento de Cundinamarca, se evidencia, principalmente, por factores como su proximidad espacial a la capital y sus condiciones climáticas atractivas a los residentes citadinos para culminar su vejez, que las dinámicas del sistema urbano-rural tradicional están cambiando en el municipio de San Francisco de Sales. Por su localización estratégica provincial y al ser territorio de potencialidades sobre todo a nivel ambiental y para la despensa de alimentos, en este estudio se plantea un modelo prospectivo de ordenamiento territorial al año 2036 con el fin de contrarrestar los efectos perjudiciales del fenómeno desde la perspectiva de la nueva ruralidad.Given the constant spatial influence exerted by the city of Bogotá, capital of Colombia, in the peripheral municipalities within the department of Cundinamarca, it is evidenced, mainly, by factors such as its spatial proximity to the capital and its attractive climatic conditions for city residents to culminate its old age, that the dynamics of the traditional urban-rural system are changing in the municipality of San Francisco de Sales. Due to its provincial strategic location and being a territory of potentialities, especially at the environmental level and for the food pantry, this study proposes a prospective model of territorial planning to the year 2036 in order to counteract the harmful effects of the phenomenon from the perspective of the new rurality

The burden of 14 hr-HPV genotypes in women attending routine cervical cancer screening in 20 states of Mexico: a cross-sectional study

In Mexico, HPV vaccines available immunize against genotypes 16/18 and 16/18/6/11; however, there is limited surveillance about carcinogenic subtypes in different states of the country that allow evaluating the effectiveness of vaccination and cervical cancer screening programs. Here, we report the regional and age-specific prevalence of 14 hr-HPV genotypes as well as their prevalence in abnormal cytology (from ASCUS to cervical cancer) among Mexican women which were undergoing from cervical cancer screening in the Salud Digna clinics in 20 states of the country. This study includes women with social security from the majority of public health institutions (IMSS, ISSSTE, SEMAR, and PEMEX), and women without social security. For cervical cancer screening, we used the SurePath liquid-based cytology and the BD Onclarity HPV Assay. From December 1, 2016, to August 2, 2018, the hr-HPV prevalence among 60,135 women was 24.78%, the most prevalent types were HPV 16 (4.13%), HPV 31 (4.12%) and HPV 51 (3.39%), while HPV 18 (1.70%) was less prevalent among infected women. Interestingly, the genotypes not covered by current vaccines in Mexico were commonly found in precancerous lesions, evidencing their carcinogenic potential, so it is necessary to increase their surveillance and inclusion in cervical cancer screening triage.We gratefully acknowledge to Iromy Meza, Jessica Avitia, and Oswaldo Carrillo for their technical support in obtaining databases during this project. Also, we want to thanks the staff of the Salud Digna clinics and the National Reference Center of Salud Digna for their support during this work. This work was funding by Salud Digna

Reconstitution of the Ataxia-Telangiectasia Cellular Phenotype With Lentiviral Vectors

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is a complex disease arising from mutations in the ATM gene (Ataxia-Telangiectasia Mutated), which plays crucial roles in repairing double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs). Heterogeneous immunodeficiency, extreme radiosensitivity, frequent appearance of tumors and neurological degeneration are hallmarks of the disease, which carries high morbidity and mortality because only palliative treatments are currently available. Gene therapy was effective in animal models of the disease, but the large size of the ATM cDNA required the use of HSV-1 or HSV/AAV hybrid amplicon vectors, whose characteristics make them unlikely tools for treating A-T patients. Due to recent advances in vector packaging, production and biosafety, we developed a lentiviral vector containing the ATM cDNA and tested whether or not it could rescue cellular defects of A-T human mutant fibroblasts. Although the cargo capacity of lentiviral vectors is an inherent limitation in their use, and despite the large size of the transgene, we successfully transduced around 20% of ATM-mutant cells. ATM expression and phosphorylation assays indicated that the neoprotein was functional in transduced cells, further reinforced by their restored capacity to phosphorylate direct ATM substrates such as p53 and their capability to repair radiation-induced DSBs. In addition, transduced cells also restored cellular radiosensitivity and cell cycle abnormalities. Our results demonstrate that lentiviral vectors can be used to rescue the intrinsic cellular defects of ATM-mutant cells, which represent, in spite of their limitations, a proof-of-concept for A-T gene therapy

Trypanosoma cruzi loop-mediated isothermal amplification (Trypanosoma cruzi loopamp) kit for detection of congenital, acute and chagas disease reactivation

A Trypanosoma cruzi Loopamp kit was recently developed as a ready-to-use diagnostic method requiring minimal laboratory facilities. We evaluated its diagnostic accuracy for detection of acute Chagas disease (CD) in different epidemiological and clinical scenarios. In this retrospective study, a convenience series of clinical samples (venous blood treated with EDTA or different stabilizer agents, heel-prick blood in filter paper or cerebrospinal fluid samples (CSF)) from 30 infants born to seropositive mothers (13 with congenital CD and 17 noninfected), four recipients of organs from CD donors, six orally–infected cases after consumption of contaminated guava juice and six CD patients coinfected with HIV at risk of CD reactivation (N = 46 patients, 46 blood samples and 1 CSF sample) were tested by T. cruzi Loopamp kit (Tc LAMP) and standardized quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). T. cruzi Loopamp accuracy was estimated using the case definition in the different groups as a reference. Cohen’s kappa coefficient (κ) was applied to measure the agreement between Tc LAMP (index test) and qPCR (reference test). Sensitivity and specificity of T. cruzi Loopamp kit in blood samples from the pooled clinical groups was 93% (95% CI: 77–99) and 100% (95% CI: 80–100) respectively. The agreement between Tc LAMP and qPCR was almost perfect (κ = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.62–1.00). The T. cruzi Loopamp kit was sensitive and specific for detection of T. cruzi infection. It was carried out from DNA extracted from peripheral blood samples (via frozen EDTA blood, guanidine hydrochloride-EDTA blood, DNAgard blood and dried blood spots), as well as in CSF specimens infected with TcI or TcII/V/VI parasite.Fil: Besuschio, Susana Alicia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Picado, Albert. Foundation For Innovative New Diagnostics; SuizaFil: Muñoz Calderon, Arturo Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Wehrendt, Diana Patricia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Fernández, Marisa. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; Argentina. Dirección Nacional de Instituto de Investigación. Administración Nacional de Laboratorio e Instituto de Salud "Dr. C. G. Malbrán". Instituto Nacional de Parasitología "Dr. Mario Fatala Chaben"; ArgentinaFil: Benatar, Alejandro Francisco. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Diaz Bello, Zoraida. Universidad Central de Venezuela; VenezuelaFil: Irurtia, Cecilia. Hospital Nacional Profesor Alejandro Posadas; ArgentinaFil: Cruz Mata, Israel. Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics; SuizaFil: Ndungu, Joseph M.. Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics; SuizaFil: Cafferata, María L.. Instituto de Efectividad Clínica y Sanitaria; ArgentinaFil: Montenegro, Graciela. Hospital Nacional Profesor Alejandro Posadas; ArgentinaFil: Sosa-Estani, Sergio Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Centro de Investigaciones en Epidemiología y Salud Pública. Instituto de Efectividad Clínica y Sanitaria. Centro de Investigaciones en Epidemiología y Salud Pública; Argentina. Dirección Nacional de Instituto de Investigación. Administración Nacional de Laboratorio e Instituto de Salud "Dr. C. G. Malbrán". Instituto Nacional de Parasitología "Dr. Mario Fatala Chaben"; ArgentinaFil: Lucero, Raúl H.. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Instituto de Medicina Regional; ArgentinaFil: Alarcón de Noya, Belkisyole. Universidad Central de Venezuela; VenezuelaFil: Longhi, Silvia Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Schijman, Alejandro Gabriel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentin