Gender specific early treatment for women with alcohol addiction (EWA): Impact on work related outcomes. A 25-year registry follow-up of a randomized controlled trial (RCT)

Background: Alcohol contributes to substantial economic burden, at both individual and community levels. We investigated the effect of the Early treatment for Women with Alcohol Addiction (EWA) treatment program on sickness leave, income, unemployment and early retirement pension up to 25 years following intake to treatment. Methods: The EWA RCT included 200 women with alcohol use disorder from 1983 to 1984 at the Karolinska University Hospital, Sweden. Participants were randomized to the EWA program, a two-year specialized woman only treatment including psychiatric, interpersonal and family concerns, or treatment as usual (TAU) in a mixed gender setting. We followed the participants in the RCT from 1985 to 2009 through linkage with a national labor market registry and applied latent growth curve modeling to estimate level and change in sickness leave, income, unemployment and early retirement pension. Findings: Relative to TAU, the EWA group had less increase in sickness leave up to 21 years after treatment. Overall, we found no differences in income between treatment groups, yet, a two-year interval analysis showed greater rise in income up to 8 years after treatment for the EWA group. Level and change in unemployment and early retirement pension did not differ between treatment groups. Conclusions: Gender specific treatment emphasizing psychiatric, interpersonal and family issues for women with alcohol addiction had long-term positive effects on sickness leave and income. These findings complement positive clinical outcomes of the EWA treatment program on drinking patterns, mental health and mortality.publishedVersio

Life cycle analysis of hydrothermal carbonization of olive mill waste: Comparison with current management approaches

Significant efforts have been direct towards developing environmentally sustainable and economically beneficial treatment of olive mill wastes. Recently, hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) has been shown to be a potentially beneficial approach for the treatment of olive mill wastes. When considering the use of HTC to treat these wastes, however, it is critical that its environmental implications be evaluated and subsequently compared to other commonly used treatment approaches. In this study, the environmental impacts associated with using HTC to treat olive mill wastes were evaluated and compared to aerobic composting, anaerobic digestion, and incineration using life cycle assessment. Results indicate that HTC coupled with subsequent energy recovery from the combustion of the generated hydrochar results in net environmental benefits and that the energy offsets derived from electricity production from hydrochar combustion are critical to achieving these savings. In addition, results indicate that HTC process water discharge significantly influences system environmental impacts, indicating that research investigating treatment alternatives is needed. Changes in carbonization temperature and hydrochar moisture content also influence system environmental impact, suggesting that both are important when considering possible industrial applications. In comparison with current management approaches, alternatives using HTC are more environmental advantageous than composting and anaerobic digestion. However, the use of HTC is not as environmentally advantageous as incineration with energy recovery because 45-35% of the energy contained in the olive mill waste is lost during HTC. However, if the electricity recovery efficiency from incineration increases to greater than 30%, the environmental impacts associated with HTC and subsequent energy generation are equal to or better than direct TPOWM incineration with energy recovery. It is recommended that future research efforts focus on the evaluation of appropriate and environmentally beneficial HTC process water treatment approaches and methods to improve the energetic retention efficiencies of the hydrochar.Author V. Benavente kindly wishes to thank the Conselleria d’Educació, Cultura i Esport, for a Ph.D. grant (contract grant number ACIF/2014/275) and a pre-doctoral employee stays grant (grant number BEFPI/2015/062)

Hydrothermal Carbonization: Modeling, Final Properties Design and Applications: A Review

Active research on biomass hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) continues to demonstrate its advantages over other thermochemical processes, in particular the interesting benefits that are associated with carbonaceous solid products, called hydrochar (HC). The areas of applications of HC range from biofuel to doped porous material for adsorption, energy storage, and catalysis. At the same time, intensive research has been aimed at better elucidating the process mechanisms and kinetics, and how the experimental variables (temperature, time, biomass load, feedstock composition, as well as their interactions) affect the distribution between phases and their composition. This review provides an analysis of the state of the art on HTC, mainly with regard to the effect of variables on the process, the associated kinetics, and the characteristics of the solid phase (HC), as well as some of the more studied applications so far. The focus is on research made over the last five years on these topics. © 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

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Hydrothermal carbonization: modeling, final properties design and applications: a review

La investigación activa sobre la carbonización hidrotermal de la biomasa (HTC) sigue demostrando sus ventajas sobre otros procesos termoquímicos, en particular los interesantes beneficios que se asocian a los productos sólidos carbonosos, llamados hidrocarburos (HC). Las esferas de aplicación del HC van desde el biocombustible hasta el material poroso dopado para la adsorción, el almacenamiento de energía y la catálisis. Al mismo tiempo, se han realizado intensas investigaciones para dilucidar mejor los mecanismos y la cinética del proceso, y la forma en que las variables experimentales (temperatura, tiempo, carga de biomasa, composición de la materia prima, así como sus interacciones) afectan a la distribución entre las fases y a su composición. En este examen se analiza el estado de la técnica en materia de HTC, principalmente en lo que respecta al efecto de las variables en el proceso, la cinética asociada y las características de la fase sólida (HC), así como algunas de las aplicaciones más estudiadas hasta ahora. El foco de atención se centra en las investigaciones realizadas en los últimos cinco años sobre estos temas.Active research on biomass hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) continues to demonstrate its advantages over other thermochemical processes, in particular the interesting benefits that are associated with carbonaceous solid products, called hydrochar (HC). The areas of applications of HC range from biofuel to doped porous material for adsorption, energy storage, and catalysis. At the same time, intensive research has been aimed at better elucidating the process mechanisms and kinetics, and how the experimental variables (temperature, time, biomass load, feedstock composition, as well as their interactions) affect the distribution between phases and their composition. This review provides an analysis of the state of the art on HTC, mainly with regard to the effect of variables on the process, the associated kinetics, and the characteristics of the solid phase (HC), as well as some of the more studied applications so far. The focus is on research made over the last five years on these topics.• Junta de Extremadura. Proyecto GR15034 • Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Proyectos CTM2014-55998-R (I+D+i), CTM2016-75937-R • USDA-Agricultural Research Service National Program 212peerReviewe

Recellularization of auricular cartilage via elastase-generated channels

Decellularized tissue matrices are promising substrates for tissue generation by stem cells to replace poorly regenerating tissues such as cartilage. However, the dense matrix of decellularized cartilage impedes colonisation by stem cells. Here, we show that digestion of elastin fibre bundles traversing auricular cartilage creates channels through which cells can migrate into the matrix. Human chondrocytes and bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells efficiently colonise elastin-treated scaffolds through these channels, restoring a glycosaminoglycan-rich matrix and improving mechanical properties while maintaining size and shape of the restored tiss

Mating type specific transcriptomic response to sex inducing pheromone in the pennate diatom Seminavis robusta

Sexual reproduction is a fundamental phase in the life cycle of most diatoms. Despite its role as a source of genetic variation, it is rarely reported in natural circumstances and its molecular foundations remain largely unknown. Here, we integrate independent transcriptomic datasets to prioritize genes responding to sex inducing pheromones (SIPs) in the pennate diatomSeminavis robusta. We observe marked gene expression changes associated with SIP treatment in both mating types, including an inhibition of S phase progression, chloroplast division, mitosis, and cell wall formation. Meanwhile, meiotic genes are upregulated in response to SIP, including a sexually induced diatom specific cyclin. Our data further suggest an important role for reactive oxygen species, energy metabolism, and cGMP signaling during the early stages of sexual reproduction. In addition, we identify several genes with a mating type specific response to SIP, and link their expression pattern with physiological specialization, such as the production of the attraction pheromone diproline in mating type - (MT-) and mate-searching behavior in mating type + (MT+). Combined, our results provide a model for early sexual reproduction in pennate diatoms and significantly expand the suite of target genes to detect sexual reproduction events in natural diatom populations

Elastin-derived peptides potentiate atherosclerosis through the immune Neu1-PI3Kγ pathway

Aims Elastin is degraded during vascular ageing and its products, elastin-derived peptides (EP), are present in the human blood circulation. EP binds to the elastin receptor complex (ERC) at the cell surface, composed of elastin-binding protein (EBP), a cathepsin A and a neuraminidase 1. Some in vitro functions have clearly been attributed to this binding, but the in vivo implications for arterial diseases have never been clearly investigated. Methods and results Here, we demonstrate that chronic doses of EP injected into mouse models of atherosclerosis increase atherosclerotic plaque size formation. Similar effects were observed following an injection of a VGVAPG peptide, suggesting that the ERC mediates these effects. The absence of phosphoinositide 3-kinase γ (PI3Kγ) in bone marrow-derived cells prevented EP-induced atherosclerosis development, demonstrating that PI3Kγ drive EP-induced arterial lesions. Accordingly, in vitro studies showed that PI3Kγ was required for EP-induced monocyte migration and ROS production and that this effect was dependent upon neuraminidase activity. Finally, we showed that degradation of elastic lamellae in LDLR−/− mice fed an atherogenic diet correlated with atherosclerotic plaque formation. At the same time, the absence of the cathepsin A-neuraminidase 1 complex in cells of the haematopoietic lineage abolished atheroma plaque size progression and decreased leucocytes infiltration, clearly demonstrating the role of this complex in atherogenesis and suggesting the involvement of endogenous EP. Conclusion Altogether, this work identifies EP as an enhancer of atherogenesis and defines the Neuraminidase 1/PI3Kγ signalling pathway as a key mediator of this function in vitro and in viv