Explanatory factors of university student participation in flamenco

The present work offers a study exploring University of Seville students’ cultural participation and how often they attend live flamenco shows. Based on the statistical yearbook of this university, a sample of 452 students from different fields was selected and, by applying a questionnaire, a binomial logit model and an ordered finance model were constructed. Our empirical findings offer descriptive, explanatory and predictive statistical results regarding participation and frequency. For example, the results evidence that 43% of the University of Seville students have never attended a live flamenco show and that one of the main issues influencing attendance is human and cultural capital

Economic and financial viability plan for the enterpreneurship of a lyric theatre low-cost company: The case of Zarzuela in Spain

Taking into account that one of the major handicaps when undertaken in the cultural sector is the problem of cost and demand volatility, this paper aims to implement a viability plan for the entrepreneurship of a lyric theatre low-cost company, dedicated to Zarzuela performance, a type of Spanish music like Opera. Firstly, the cultural sector data are analysed in terms of supply and demand and secondly a viability plan is carried out for three years. According to the results it is concluded that this type of venture is very risky if you do not have grant or other financial resources, due to the variability of demand and the increase in unit costs as the artistic performance has a fixed production technology that cannot absorb the technical progress of the rest of the economy

Charge effects on the behavior of CTAB adsorbed on Au(111) electrodes in aqueous solutions

The behavior of adsorbed CTAB on Au(111) electrodes has been studied using electrochemical and FTIR experiments in different aqueous solutions. The results show that the adsorbed layer is stable in acidic solutions in the whole potential range of study. The observed electrochemical and FTIR behavior is compatible with the formation of a membrane of CTA+ on the electrode surface with the polar amino groups in contact with the surface. When the electrode charge is negative, the polar groups are attracted to the surface, so that the capacitance of the electrode is smaller than that recorded for the unmodified Au(111) electrode. As the charge becomes positive, the membrane detaches from the surface and water molecules permeate through it, changing the capacitance of the electrode and giving rise to characteristic peaks in the voltammetric profile. At potentials higher than these peaks, the behavior of the electrode is comparable to that observed for the unmodified electrode. The stability of the membrane is facilitated by the incorporation of anions of the supporting electrolyte. Those anions remain on the membrane even when the electrode is transferred to a different solution, as the electrochemical behavior shows.Financial support from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Project PID2019-105653GB-100 ) and Generalitat Valenciana (Project PROMETEO/2020/063 ) is acknowledged

Natalizumab-immunogenicity evaluation in patients with infusion related events or disease exacerbations

IntroductionNatalizumab is a biologic drug for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis that may induce the generation of anti-drug antibodies in some patients. Anti-natalizumab antibodies (ANA) increase the risk of adverse events and reduce efficacy, being useful biomarkers for monitoring treatment response.MethodsRetrospective observational study including MS patients treated with natalizumab that experienced infusion-related events (IRE) or disease exacerbations (DE). ANA were tested by Elisa including a screening and a confirmation assay. Patients were further classified as transient (one positive result) or persistent (two or more positive results) ANA.ResultsA total of 1251 MS patients were included and 153 (12.3%) had ANA with at least one single point determination, which were more frequent among patients with IRE compared to those with DE (21,6% vs.10.8%) during the first six infusions. Two or more determinations ANA were performed in 184 patients, being 31.5% permanently positive and 7.1% transiently positive. Interestingly, 26.1% of patients that experienced DE had persistent ANA, while 2.6% were transient. In contrast, 43% of patients with IRE had persistent ANA, and 9.3% had transient antibodies. Patients with persistent antibodies had more frequently high levels at the first sampling compared to patients with transient ANA.ConclusionReal-world evidence shows that the presence of ANA is behind an important percentage of patients treated with natalizumab that experience IRE, as well as DE but in a lower degree. These findings support the need to systematically evaluate ANA towards a personalized management of these patients to avoid undesired complications

Plasma Concentrations of Neurofilament Light Chain Protein and Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor as Consistent Biomarkers of Cognitive Impairment in Alcohol Use Disorder

For a long time, Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) were not considered a component in the etiology of dementia. The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders introduced substance-induced neurocognitive disorders, incorporating this notion to clinical practice. However, detection and monitoring of neurodegenerative processes in SUD patients remain a major clinical challenge, especially when early diagnosis is required. In the present study, we aimed to investigate new potential biomarkers of neurodegeneration that could predict cognitive impairment in SUD patients: the circulating concentrations of Neurofilament Light chain protein (NfL) and Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF). Sixty SUD patients were compared with twenty-seven dementia patients and forty healthy controls. SUD patients were recruited and assessed using the Psychiatric Research Interview for Substance and Mental (PRISM) and a battery of neuropsychological tests, including the Montreal Cognitive Assessment test for evaluation of cognitive impairment. When compared to healthy control subjects, SUD patients showed increases in plasma NfL concentrations and NfL/BDNF ratio, as well as reduced plasma BDNF levels. These changes were remarkable in SUD patients with moderate–severe cognitive impairment, being comparable to those observed in dementia patients. NfL concentrations correlated with executive function and memory cognition in SUD patients. The parameters “age”, “NfL/BDNF ratio”, “first time alcohol use”, “age of onset of alcohol use disorder”, and “length of alcohol use disorder diagnosis” were able to stratify our SUD sample into patients with cognitive impairment from those without cognitive dysfunction with great specificity and sensibility. In conclusion, we propose the combined use of NfL and BDNF (NfL/BDNF ratio) to monitor substance-induced neurocognitive disorder.Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII], Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación and European Regional Development Funds-European Union (ERDF-EU] grants “Proyectos de Investigación en Salud” PI19/01577, PI19/00886, PI20/01399 and PI22/00427; Grants Programa RICORS RIAPAD (Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria en Adicciones), Programa RETICS Red de Trastornos Adictivos, (RD16/0017/000); Ministerio de Sanidad, Delegación de Gobierno para el Plan Nacional sobre Drogas (PND 2022I020, PND2020/048, PND 2019/040]; Consejería de Salud y Familia, Junta de Andalucía (Neuro-RECA, RIC-0111-2019]. FJP (CPII19/00022] and AS (CPII19/00031] hold “Miguel Servet II” research contracts from the National System of Health, ISCIII, ERDF-EU. FJP also holds a “Nicolas Monardes” contract from Servicio Andaluz de Salud, Consejería de Salud y Familia, Junta de Andalucía (C1-0049-2019]. PA has a research contract (UMA-FEDERJA-076) funded by the Ministry of Economy and Knowledge—Regional Government of Andalucía and ERDF-EU. The funding sources had no further role in the study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in writing of the report; or in the decision to submit the paper for publication

Antiviral, Immunomodulatory and Antiproliferative Activities of Recombinant Soluble IFNAR2 without IFN-beta Mediation

Soluble receptors of cytokines are able to modify cytokine activities and therefore the immune system, and some have intrinsic biological activities without mediation from their cytokines. The soluble interferon beta (IFN-ss) receptor is generated through alternative splicing of IFNAR2 and has both agonist and antagonist properties for IFN-ss, but its role is unknown. We previously demonstrated that a recombinant human soluble IFN-ss receptor showed intrinsic therapeutic efficacy in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis. Here we evaluate the potential biological activities of recombinant sIFNAR2 without the mediation of IFN-ss in human cells. Recombinant sIFNAR2 down-regulated the production of IL-17 and IFN-? and reduced the cell proliferation rate. Moreover, it showed a strong antiviral activity, fully protecting the cell monolayer after being infected by the virus. Specific inhibitors completely abrogated the antiviral activity of IFN-ss, but not that of the recombinant sIFNAR2, and there was no activation of the JAK-STAT signaling pathway. Consequently, r-sIFNAR2 exerts immunomodulatory, antiproliferative and antiviral activities without IFN-ss mediation, and could be a promising treatment against viral infections and immune-mediated diseases

Predictive factors and early biomarkers of response in multiple sclerosis patients treated with natalizumab

There are an increasing number of treatments available for multiple sclerosis (MS). The early identification of optimal responders to individual treatments is important to achieve individualized therapy. With this aim, we performed a multicenter retrospective longitudinal study including 186 MS patients treated with natalizumab who were followed for 2 years. We analyzed the following variables at recruitment: sex, current age, age at disease onset, disease duration, EDSS, number of T2 and Gd + lesions, IgG and IgM oligoclonal bands, HLA class II (DR, DRB, DQA, DQB, and DRB1*15:01), IgG and IgM antibody titers against human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) and the antibody response to Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) through the measurement of the anti-EBNA-1 and anti-VCA IgG titers, in relation to clinical response (no relapses or disability progression), and to NEDA-3 (no evidence of disease activity in terms of clinical response and no changes in MRI scans either) after 2-years follow-up. Baseline EDSS score, baseline EBNA-1 IgG titers and percentage change of HHV6 IgG titers between baseline and 6 month visits were significantly different in clinical responders and in NEDA-3 status (all of them remained significant in the multivariate analysis). We identified three variables for the early identification of natalizumab optimal responders in a rapid and cost-effective approach

Structure and mechanical properties of sodium and calcium caseinate edible active films with carvacrol

Edible active films based on sodium caseinate (SC) and calcium caseinate (CC) plasticized with glycerol (G) at three different concentrations and carvacrol (CRV) as active agent were prepared by solvent casting. Transparent films were obtained and their surfaces were analysed by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The influence of the addition of three different plasticizer concentrations was studied by determining tensile properties, while Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to evaluate the structural and thermal behavior of such films. The addition of glycerol resulted in a reduction in the elastic modulus and tensile strength, while some increase in the elongation at break was observed. In general terms, SC films showed flexibility higher than the corresponding CC counterparts. In addition, the presence of carvacrol caused further improvements in ductile properties suggesting the presence of stronger interactions between the protein matrix and glycerol, as it was also observed in thermal degradation studies. FTIR spectra of all films showed the characteristic bands and peaks corresponding to proteins as well as to primary and secondary alcohols. In summary, the best results regarding mechanical and structural properties for caseinates-based films containing carvacrol were found for the formulations with high glycerol concentrations.Marina Patricia Arrieta thanks Fundacion MAPFRE for "Ignacio Hernando de Larramendi 2009- Medio Ambiente" fellowship (MAPFRE-IHL-01). The Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness is acknowledged by financial support (project Ref. MAT2011-28468-C02-01). Authors thank to Ferrer Alimentacion S.A., for providing caseinates and to Prof. Juan Lopez Martinez (Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain) for his collaboration and useful discussions.Arrieta, MP.; Peltzer, MA.; Garrigós, MDC.; Jimenez, A. (2013). Structure and mechanical properties of sodium and calcium caseinate edible active films with carvacrol. Journal of Food Engineering. 114(4):486-494. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfoodeng.2012.09.002S486494114

TRAIL/TRAIL Receptor System and Susceptibility to Multiple Sclerosis

The TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL)/TRAIL receptor system participates in crucial steps in immune cell activation or differentiation. It is able to inhibit proliferation and activation of T cells and to induce apoptosis of neurons and oligodendrocytes, and seems to be implicated in autoimmune diseases. Thus, TRAIL and TRAIL receptor genes are potential candidates for involvement in susceptibility to multiple sclerosis (MS). To test whether single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the human genes encoding TRAIL, TRAILR-1, TRAILR-2, TRAILR-3 and TRAILR-4 are associated with MS susceptibility, we performed a candidate gene case-control study in the Spanish population. 59 SNPs in the TRAIL and TRAIL receptor genes were analysed in 628 MS patients and 660 controls, and validated in an additional cohort of 295 MS patients and 233 controls. Despite none of the SNPs withstood the highly conservative Bonferroni correction, three SNPs showing uncorrected p values<0.05 were successfully replicated: rs4894559 in TRAIL gene, p = 9.8×10−4, OR = 1.34; rs4872077, in TRAILR-1 gene, p = 0.005, OR = 1.72; and rs1001793 in TRAILR-2 gene, p = 0.012, OR = 0.84. The combination of the alleles G/T/A in these SNPs appears to be associated with a reduced risk of developing MS (p = 2.12×10−5, OR = 0.59). These results suggest that genes of the TRAIL/TRAIL receptor system exerts a genetic influence on MS