Les noves tecnologies de reproducció i els reptes a la maternitat / paternitat

Noves tecnologies reproductives (NTR) és el nom general donat a les múltiples tècniques creades i desenvolupades en els últims trenta anys en el terreny de la medicina reproductiva. Aquestes tècniques s'adrecen a les diverses fases del procés reproductiu, des de la concepció fins al naixement. Les NTR constitueixen instruments poderosos de visualització i control dels fetus i de les dones que els gesten, creen nous subjectes d'intervenció mèdica i afecten el nucli de la concepció occidental sobre la reproducció i les relacions de parentiu. Així, per exemple, tècniques com l'amniocentesi o els sistemes d'ultrasons introdueixen nocions de qualitat i de viabilitat del fetus en les eleccions reproductives de les persones i modifiquen substancialment conceptes com el de paternitat/maternitat responsable. La fecundació in vitro, adreçada al moment de la concepció, ha generat tot un discurs al voltant de la infertilitat i la necessitat de reproducció biològica de les parelles. En definitiva, les NTR mobilitzen, qüestionen i creen representacions, conceptes, valors i discursos polítics al voltant de la reproducció i de la paternitat/maternitat i constitueixen així un terreny d'estudi per a les ciències socials poc explorat fins ara dins el context de la sociologia feta al nostre país.Bajo el nombre de «Nuevas tecnologías reproductivas» (NTR) se recogen las múltiples técnicas creadas y desarrolladas en los últimos treinta años en el terreno de la medicina reproductiva. Estas técnicas se dirigen a las distintas fases del proceso reproductivo, desde la concepción hasta el nacimiento. Las NTR constituyen instrumentos poderosos de visualización y control de los fetos y de las mujeres que los gestan, crean nuevos sujetos de intervención médica y afectan al núcleo mismo de la concepción prevalente en Occidente sobre reproducción y parentesco. Así, por ejemplo, técnicas tales como la amniocentesis o los sistemas de ultrasonidos introducen nociones de calidad y viabilidad de los fetos en las elecciones reproductivas de las personas, al mismo tiempo que modifican sustancialmente nociones como las de paternidad responsable. La fecundación in vitro, dirigida al momento de la concepción, ha generado multitud de discursos alrededor de la infertilidad y la «necesidad» de reproducción biológica de las parejas (en especial de las mujeres). En definitiva, las NTR mobilizan, cuestionan y crean representaciones, conceptos, valores y discursos políticos alrededor de la reproducción y la paternidad, constituyendo así un terreno de estudio para las ciencias sociales poco explorado hasta el momento en el contexto de la sociología hecha en nuestro país.New Reproductive Technologies (NRT) is the general name given to the multiple technological devices created and developed in the last thirty years in the area of reproductive medicine. They address different aspects of the reproductive process —from conception to birth. These technologies present continuities with some other technologies of reproductive control, but also introduce novelties which have the potential for challenging our understanding of reproduction, motherhood, parenthood and family. The need for the NRT and especially for In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) has been created through complex discursive devices. In this article we will be looking at some elements of how IVF has been legitimised, and how this process has involved (and carries as a consequence) the creation and typification of new subjects (the infertile, among others), of a disease (infertility) and of a need (the need for a biological child)

Additional complexity on human chromosome 15q: identification of a set of newly recognized duplicons (LCR15) on 15q11-q13, 15q24, and 15q26

Several cytogenetic alterations affect the distal part of the long arm of human chromosome 15, including recurrent rearrangements between 12p13 and 15q25, which cause congenital Fibrosarcoma [CFS). We present here the construction of a BAC/PAC contig map that spans 2 Mb from the neurotrophin-3 receptor (NTRK3] gene region on 15q25.3 to the proximal end of the Bloom's syndrome region on 15q26.1, and the identification of a set of new chromosome 15 duplicons. The contig reveals the existence of several regions of sequence similarity with other chromosomes [6q, 7p, and 12p) and with other 15q cytogenetic bands (15q11-q13 and 15q24). One region of similarity maps on 15q11-q13, close to the Prader-Willi/Angelman syndromes (PWS/AS) imprinting center. The 12p similar sequence maps on 12p13, at a distance to the ets variant 6 [ETV6) gene that is equivalent on 15q26.1 to the distance to the NTRK3 gene. These two genes are the targets of the CFS recurrent translocations, suggesting that misalignments between these two chromosomes regions could facilitate recombination. The most striking similarity identified is based on a low copy repeat sequence, mainly present on human chromosome 15 (LCR15), which could be considered a newly recognized duplicon. At least 10 copies of this duplicon are present on chromosome 15, mainly on 15q24 and 15q26. One copy is located close to a HERC2 sequence on the distal end of the PWS/AS region, three around the lysyl oxidase like [LOXl) gene on 15q24, and three on 15q26, one of which close to the IQ motif containing GTPase-activating protein I (IQGAPI) gene on 35q26.1. These LCR15 span between 13 and 22 kb and contain high identities with the golgin-like protein (GIP) and the SH3 domain-containing protein [SH3P18) gene sequences and have the characteristics of duplicons. Because duplicons flank chromosome regions that are rearranged in human genomic disorders, the LCR15 described here could represent new elements of rearrangements affecting different regions of human chromosome 15q

How Many Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Meet the Inclusion Criteria of the Cardiovascular Outcome Trials with SGLT2 Inhibitors? Estimations from a Population Database in a Mediterranean Area

Altres ajuts: This study was funded by the Fundació Institut Universitari per a la recerca a l'Atenció Primària de Salut Jordi Gol i Gurina (IDIAPJGol). CIBER of Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases (CIBERDEM) is an initiative from Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.Objective. Regulatory agencies require the assessment of cardiovascular (CV) safety for new type 2 diabetes (T2D) therapies through CV outcome trials (CVOTs). However, patients included in CVOTs assessing sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) might not be representative of those seen in clinical practice. This study examined the proportion of patients that would have been enrolled into three main SGLT2i CVOTs to determine whether these trials' eligibility criteria can be applied to a real-world Mediterranean T2D population. Methods. Cross-sectional, retrospective, cohort study of T2D patients registered in primary care centres of the Catalan Institute of Health using medical records from a population database (SIDIAP) that includes approximately 74% of the population in Catalonia (Spain). Eligibility criteria were according to those of three SGLT2i CVOTs: EMPA-REG OUTCOME (empagliflozin), CANVAS (canagliflozin), and DECLARE-TIMI 58 (dapagliflozin). Results. By the end of 2016, the database included 373,185 patients with T2D with a mean age of 70±12 years, 54.9% male, with a mean duration of T2D of 9±6 years, and a mean glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) of 7.12%±1.32 (59% with HbA1c<7%). Of these, 86,534 (23%) had established CV disease and 28% chronic renal failure (estimated glomerular filtration<60 ml/min/1.73m2). Among all included patients, only 8.2% would have qualified for enrolment into the EMPA-REG OUTCOME trial, 29.6% into the CANVAS program, and 38% into the DECLARE-TIMI 58 trial. The main limiting factors for inclusion would have been a previous history of CV disease and the baseline HbA1c value. Conclusion. The external validity of the analysed CVOTs is clearly limited when applying the same eligibility criteria to a T2D Mediterranean population

Neuropsychopharmacology of Emerging Drugs of Abuse: meta- and para-Halogen-Ring-Substituted α-PVP (' flakka') Derivatives

Changes in the molecular structure of synthetic cathinones has led to an increase in the number of novel emerging drugs in the illicit drug market at an unprecedented rate. Unfortunately, little is known about the neuropsychopharmacology of recently emerged halogen-substituted -PVP derivatives. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the role of para- and meta-halogen (F-, Cl-, and Br-) substitutions on the in vitro, in silico, and in vivo effects of -pyrrolidinopentiophenone ( - PVP) derivatives. HEK293 cells expressing the human dopamine or serotonin transporter (hDAT and hSERT) were used for the uptake inhibition and transporter affinity assays. Molecular docking was used to model the interaction mechanism against DAT. Swiss CD-1 mice were used for the horizontal locomotor activity, open field test, and conditioned place preference paradigm. All compounds demonstrated potent DA uptake inhibition and higher DAT selectivity than cocaine. Meta-substituted cathinones showed higher DAT/SERT ratios than their para- analogs, which correlates with an increased psychostimulant effect in vivo and with different meta- and para-in silico interactions at DAT. Moreover, all compounds induced rewarding and acute anxiogenic effects in mice. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates the role of meta- and para-halogen substitutions in the mechanism of action and provides the first evidence of the rewarding and anxiety-like properties of halogenated -PVP derivatives

Prediabetes is independently associated with subclinical carotid atherosclerosis : An observational study in a non-urban mediterranean population

This was a prospective, observational study to compare the burden of subclinical atherosclerosis as measured by carotid ultrasonography in a cohort of subjects with prediabetes vs. subjects with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) from a non-urban Mediterranean population. Atherosclerosis was assessed through carotid intima-media thickness (c-IMT), the presence/absence of carotid plaques, and plaque number. Among 550 subjects included, 224 (40.7%) had prediabetes. The mean c-IMT and the prevalence of carotid plaque were significantly higher in the prediabetes group compared to the NGT group (0.72 vs. 0.67 mm, p < 0.001; and 37.9% vs. 19.6%; p < 0.001, respectively). Older age, male gender, and increased systolic blood pressure were positively correlated with c-IMT and were independent predictors of the presence of plaques. In contrast, prediabetes and low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-c were predictors of the presence of plaque (odds ratio [OR] = 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.05-2.57; p = 0.03 and OR = 1.01; 95% CI = 1.00-1.02; p = 0.006, respectively) together with tobacco exposure and the leukocyte count (OR = 1.77; 95% CI = 1.08-2.89; p = 0.023 and OR = 1.20; 95% CI = 1.05-1.38; p = 0.008, respectively). In a non-urban Mediterranean population, prediabetes was associated with established subclinical carotid atherosclerosis. These findings could have implications for the prevention and treatment of CV risk in these subjects before the first symptoms of cardiovascular disease appear

High Incidence of Adverse Outcomes in Haemodialysis Patients with Diabetes with or without Diabetic Foot Syndrome: A 5-Year Observational Study in Lleida, Spain

Background: We evaluated whether, in subjects receiving haemodialysis (HD), the presence of diabetic foot syndrome (DFS) was associated with increased mortality compared with subjects with diabetes mellitus (DM) without DFS and with non-diabetic subjects. Methods: Retrospective, observational study in 220 subjects followed for six years. We calculated and compared the frequency and 5-year cumulative incidence of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular (CV) mortality, CV events, major adverse CV events (MACE), and new foot ulcer (FU) or amputation. We also examined prognostic factors of all-cause and CV mortality based on baseline characteristics. Results: DM patients had a 1.98 times higher probability of all-cause mortality than those without DM (p = 0.001) and 2.42 times higher likelihood of CV mortality and new FU or amputation (p = 0.002 and p = 0.008, respectively). In the DM cohort, only the risk of a new FU or amputation was 2.69 times higher among those with previous DFS (p = 0.021). In patients with DM, older age was the only predictor of all-cause and CV mortality (p = 0.001 and p = 0.014, respectively). Conclusions: Although all-cause and CV mortality were increased on HD subjects with DM, the presence of DFS did not modify the excess risk. Additional studies are warranted to further explore the impact of DFS in subjects with DM undergoing HD

Temps i Ciutat: l'estudi del temps a la ciutat més enllà de la seva dimensió horària

Forma part de la col·lecció: Quaderns del CES

Temps i ciutat : l'estudi del temps a la ciutat més enllà de la seva dimensió horària

L'informe s'ha de veure com un primer pas per sistematitzar una problemàtica, la del temps, que a hores d'ara emergeix com a qüestió que romania latent però gairebé invisible. Per primer cop, la societat actual, que des de la industrialització sempre ha estat organitzada al voltant del temps de treball productiu mostra com aquest temps està deixant de ser pauta de normalitat per esdevenir motiu de tensió. Una tensió que es manifesta en la vida de la ciutat convertida en un escenari plural, on les persones resideixen, treballen, viuen transitòriament i/o quotidianament. Des d'aquesta tesi, l'horari laboral amb el qual les persones organitzen centralment la seva manera de viure es veu sotmès a múltiples variacions que provenen dels més diversos fronts. Sorgeix el fenomen de la desincronització, que hem volgut posar de manifest com a lema principal del nostre estudi. L'objectiu és començar a esbrinar el què i el perquè d'aquesta desincronització, amb la finalitat de trobar indicis que permetin el debat i la reflexió sobre el temps i la seva importància. I, a més, facin possible algunes pautes d'actuació que, a títol de primera experiència, permetin mostrar el temps de la ciutat com a dimensió rellevant

Famílies botàniques de plantes medicinals

Facultat de Farmàcia, Universitat de Barcelona. Ensenyament: Grau de Farmàcia, Assignatura: Botànica Farmacèutica, Curs: 2013-2014, Coordinadors: Joan Simon, Cèsar Blanché i Maria Bosch.Els materials que aquí es presenten són els recull de 175 treballs d’una família botànica d’interès medicinal realitzats de manera individual. Els treballs han estat realitzat per la totalitat dels estudiants dels grups M-2 i M-3 de l’assignatura Botànica Farmacèutica durant els mesos d’abril i maig del curs 2013-14. Tots els treballs s’han dut a terme a través de la plataforma de GoogleDocs i han estat tutoritzats pel professor de l’assignatura i revisats i finalment co-avaluats entre els propis estudiants. L’objectiu principal de l’activitat ha estat fomentar l’aprenentatge autònom i col·laboratiu en Botànica farmacèutica