Survey on laboratories and consultants working in the diagnostics of European seabass and gilthead seabream diseases: preliminary results

European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) and gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) are prevailing species in Mediterranean marine finfish aquaculture, and despite an increasing demand of the global markets for high-quality seafood, production and technical performance of these two species in the EU has stagnated over the last few years. Two EU Horizon 2020 projects, MedAID and PerformFISH were launched in 2017 to increase the competitiveness and sustainability of the Mediterranean marine fish aquaculture sector. Since the impact of diseases has been one of the factors attributed to the stagnation, both projects envisaged that the concept of healthy fish was a prerequisite for sustainable and profitable aquaculture. A key element of disease surveillance and health management is the availability of fast, reliable, efficient and validated diagnostic techniques capable of detecting the presence of pathogens and timely diagnosis of diseases in fish stocks. Collaborative activities between both consortia launched specific activities to identify all actors involved in diagnostics and to evaluate their diagnostic capacities. An online “Questionnaire on diagnostic capacities in the Mediterranean basin” was carried out. The results obtained showed disproportionate diagnostic capacity between European and non-European Mediterranean countries. European countries in general showed a high level of diagnostic capacity with many advanced or specialised labs dealing with the main diseases of concern for sea bass and sea bream. There was evidence of lower diagnostic capacities in non-European Mediterranean countries in contrast with their high degree of production, which poses a significant regional risk considering the important movement of juveniles in the region. These findings indicate the necessity to address the health management in the region in a more holistic, cooperative and harmonised way. An important finding was a lack of capacity to diagnose viral diseases although VNN has been identified to be the main health threat.Efforts should be engaged in capacity building in the countries missing particular techniques and improvement and training is a priorty. For this purpose, national focal points should be established to create an international network aimed at improving and harmonising all future activities in the field of diagnostics of Mediterranean fish diseases.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Smaller medial temporal lobe volumes in individuals with subjective cognitive decline and biomarker evidence of Alzheimer's disease—Data from three memory clinic studies

INTRODUCTION: Previous studies showed associations of brain volume differences and biomarker evidence for Alzheimer's disease (AD) in subjective cognitive decline (SCD). The consistency of this finding across SCD studies has not been investigated. METHODS: We studied gray matter volume differences between SCD subjects with and without cerebrospinal fluid biomarker evidence for AD across three European memory clinic samples (DZNE Longitudinal Cognitive Impairment and Dementia study, Amsterdam, Barcelona). Analysis of covariance models with samples and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers as between-subject factors were calculated. RESULTS: A significant main effect for AD biomarker (Aβ42- > Aβ42+) in the left medial temporal lobe (MTL) was found, with the absence of main effects for sample or interaction effects between AD biomarker and sample. This indicates consistent lower left MTL volume across three samples in SCD subjects with abnormal Aβ42 levels. DISCUSSION: Our results support the model that in the presence of AD pathology, SCD corresponds to the late preclinical stage (stage 2 of AD) with smaller MTL volumes

Prevalence of abnormal Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers in patients with subjective cognitive decline: cross-sectional comparison of three European memory clinic samples

Introduction: Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) in cognitively unimpaired older individuals has been recognized as an early clinical at-risk state for Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia and as a target population for future dementia prevention trials. Currently, however, SCD is heterogeneously defined across studies, potentially leading to variations in the prevalence of AD pathology. Here, we compared the prevalence and identified common determinants of abnormal AD biomarkers in SCD across three European memory clinics participating in the European initiative on harmonization of SCD in preclinical AD (Euro-SCD). Methods: We included three memory clinic SCD samples with available cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomaterial (IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain, n = 44; Amsterdam Dementia Cohort (ADC), The Netherlands, n = 50; DELCODE multicenter study, Germany, n = 42). CSF biomarkers (amyloid beta (Aβ)42, tau, and phosphorylated tau (ptau181)) were centrally analyzed in Amsterdam using prespecified cutoffs to define prevalence of pathological biomarker concentrations. We used logistic regression analysis in the combined sample across the three centers to investigate center effects with regard to likelihood of biomarker abnormality while taking potential common predictors (e.g., age, sex, apolipoprotein E (APOE) status, subtle cognitive deficits, depressive symptoms) into account. Results: The prevalence of abnormal Aβ42, but not tau or ptau181, levels was different across centers (64% DELCODE, 57% IDIBAPS, 22% ADC; p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the likelihood of abnormal Aβ42 (and also abnormal tau or ptau181) levels was predicted by age and APOE status. For Aβ42 abnormality, we additionally observed a center effect, indicating between-center heterogeneity not explained by age, APOE, or the other included covariates. Conclusions: While heterogeneous frequency of abnormal Aβ42 was partly explained by between-sample differences in age range and APOE status, the additional observation of center effects indicates between-center heterogeneity that may be attributed to different recruitment procedures. These findings highlight the need for the development of harmonized recruitment protocols for SCD case definition in multinational studies to achieve similar enrichment rates of preclinical AD

Glucocorticoid receptor (DlGR1) is expressed in pre-larval and larval stages of the teleost fish Dicentrarchus labrax

Glucocorticoid hormone receptors (GR), members of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily, are ligand-dependent transcription factors expressed in various tissues by binding to specific DNA sequences. Since glucocorticoids have a role in maintaining the homeostatic status in fish, we previously cloned and sequenced a GR (DlGR1) of adult Dicentrarchus labrax; we also showed mRNA expression (in situ hybridization) and tissue immunohistochemical localization of DlGR1 in several organs. This work has now been extended to the examination of the expression, tissue distribution, and cytolocalization of DlGR1 in larval developmental stages by similar methods to those used for the adult organs. The riboprobe included the DlGR1 cDNA transcriptional activation domain (1.0–1,300 nucleotide sequence) showing no significant similarity with a known second GR cDNA sequence of sea bass. The antibody was specific for an opportunely selected peptide sequence of the DlGR1 transcriptional domain. In histological sections of brain, head kidney, gills, liver, anterior intestine, and spleen cells, the riboprobe was mainly located in the cell nucleus. The antibody identified DlGR1 in the head kidney, gills, liver, and anterior intestine, mainly located in the cytosol. These results are in agreement with the receptor location in adult tissues. The greater presence of both the transcript and protein of DlGR1 in the late developmental stages suggests an increasing expression of this receptor. The cytolocalization (nuclear-cytosolic) and presumptive roles of DlGR1-containing tissues are discussed

Prevalence of abnormal Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers in patients with subjective cognitive decline: cross-sectional comparison of three European memory clinic samples

INTRODUCTION: Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) in cognitively unimpaired older individuals has been recognized as an early clinical at-risk state for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) dementia and as a target population for future dementia prevention trials. Currently, however, SCD is heterogeneously defined across studies, potentially leading to variations in the prevalence of AD pathology. Here, we compared the prevalence and identified common determinants of abnormal AD biomarkers in SCD across three European memory clinics participating in the European initiative on harmonization of SCD in preclinical AD (Euro-SCD). METHODS: We included three memory clinic SCD samples with available cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomaterial (IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain, n = 44; Amsterdam Dementia Cohort (ADC), The Netherlands, n = 50; DELCODE multicenter study, Germany, n = 42). CSF biomarkers (amyloid beta (Aβ)42, tau, and phosphorylated tau (ptau181)) were centrally analyzed in Amsterdam using prespecified cutoffs to define prevalence of pathological biomarker concentrations. We used logistic regression analysis in the combined sample across the three centers to investigate center effects with regard to likelihood of biomarker abnormality while taking potential common predictors (e.g., age, sex, apolipoprotein E (APOE) status, subtle cognitive deficits, depressive symptoms) into account. RESULTS: The prevalence of abnormal Aβ42, but not tau or ptau181, levels was different across centers (64% DELCODE, 57% IDIBAPS, 22% ADC; p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the likelihood of abnormal Aβ42 (and also abnormal tau or ptau181) levels was predicted by age and APOE status. For Aβ42 abnormality, we additionally observed a center effect, indicating between-center heterogeneity not explained by age, APOE, or the other included covariates. CONCLUSIONS: While heterogeneous frequency of abnormal Aβ42 was partly explained by between-sample differences in age range and APOE status, the additional observation of center effects indicates between-center heterogeneity that may be attributed to different recruitment procedures. These findings highlight the need for the development of harmonized recruitment protocols for SCD case definition in multinational studies to achieve similar enrichment rates of preclinical AD

Gaudibilidad y consumo abusivo de alcohol en adolescentes

Más de un 5% de las muertes en todo el mundo son causadas por el consumo de alcohol, además se asocia a diferentes enfermedades y a elevados niveles de discapacidad. El consumo excesivo de alcohol en adolescentes es del 11.7% en el mundo (UNODC, 2017), lo cual supone un elevado riesgo de dependencia. Se ha reportado menor nivel de gaudibilidad (o conjunto de moduladores del disfrute) en personas con dependencia a sustancias. Sin embargo no existe ninguno que estudie el nivel de gaudibilidad con el abuso de alcohol en jóvenes. Por ello, se administró la escala CRAFFT que evalúa el abuso de sustancias y la EGP (escala de gaudibilidad de Padrós) que mide los moduladores del disfrute a una muestra de 192 alumnos. Se conformaron dos grupos en función de la puntuación obtenida en la escala CRAFFT (grupo de probable abuso de alcohol, N=43 y el segundo grupo conformado por adolescentes que habían consumido alcohol pero no tenían abuso N=149). El grupo con probable abuso de alcohol mostró una media en el nivel de gaudibilidad significativamente menor a la observada en el grupo con consumo no patológico de alcohol. Los resultados obtenidos sugieren que la evaluación de la gaudibilidad en estudiantes podría ser de utilidad para identificar adolescentes con riesgo, además éstos podrían beneficiarse de la terapia de gaudibilidad para reducir sus riesgos

CuInSe 2 films prepared by three step pulsed electrodeposition. Deposition mechanisms, optical and photoelectrochemical studies

p-Type semiconducting copper indium diselenide thin films have been prepared onto In 2O 3:Sn substrates by a recently developed pulse electrodeposition method that consists in repeated cycles of three potential application steps. The Cu-In-Se electrochemical system and the related single component electrolytes were studied by cyclic voltammetry to identify the electrode processes and study the deposition processes. In situ atomic force microscopy measurements during the first 100 deposition cycles denote a continuous nucleation and growth mechanism. Particles removed by film sonication from some of the films were characterized by transmission electron microscopy and determined to consist in nanoscopic and crystalline CuInSe 2. The remaining film is still crystalline CuInSe 2, as assessed by X-ray diffraction. The chemical characterization by combined X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy, showed that films were Cu-poor and Se-poor. Raman characterization of the as-grown films showed that film composition varies with film thickness; thinner films are Se-rich, while thicker ones have an increased Cu-Se content. Different optical absorption bands were identified by the analysis of the UV-NIR transmittance spectra that were related with the presence of CuInSe 2, ordered vacancy compounds, Se, Cu 2-xSe and In 2Se 3. The photoelectrochemical activity confirmed the p-type character and showed a better response for the films prepared with the pulse method. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Microbial and histopathological study of the vibriosis caused by Vibrio vulnificus serovar E in eels: the metalloprotease Vvp is not an essential lesional factor.

Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2 serovar E (Bt2-serE) is a zoonotic pathogen that causes a haemorrhagic septicaemia in eels, called warm water vibriosis. The main objective of the present work was to study the onset of the eel vibriosis from the microbiological and histopathological viewpoint, as well as to ascertain the role of the protease Vvp as a lesional factor by comparing the histopathological lesions caused by the wild strain and its vvp deficient derivative. The wild-type strain was observed to attach to the gills, where it multiplied following saturation dynamics, subsequently invading the blood stream and reaching the internal organs. Here it reached population sizes that are notably lower than those associated with other fish septicaemia. Parallel to bacterial growth, there was a notable decrease in haematocrit values and haemoglobin concentration in blood as well as extensive haemorrhages in all the analysed organs. The main histopathological lesions were detected in the head kidney in the form of extensive necrosis affecting the haematopoietic tissue. Very few bacteria were visualized in the different organs, most of which were close to blood cells and capillary vessels, which is compatible with the results obtained in the microbiological study. The same lesions were produced when extracellular products (ECPs) were injected instead of bacteria or when the vvp-defective mutant or its ECPs were injected. The overall results suggest that the pathology caused by V. vulnificus in the eel is not caused by massive bacterial growth in the blood and internal organs but, rather, by the effect of potent toxic factors other than the metalloprotease, which have yet to be determined

Multimorbidity as specific disease combinations, an important predictor factor for mortality in octogenarians: the Octabaix study

Assumpta Ferrer,1 Francesc Formiga,2,3 H&eacute;ctor Sanz,4 Jes&uacute;s Almeda,5,6 Gl&ograve;ria Padr&oacute;s7 On behalf of the Octabaix Study Group 1Primary Healthcare Department, Centre &lsquo;El Pl&agrave;&rsquo;, DAP Metropolitana Sud ICS, 2Geriatric Unit, Internal Medicine Service, Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, L&acute;Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, 3Bellvitge Biomedical Research Department Institute, IDIBELL, L&rsquo;Hospitalet de Llobregat, 4ISGlobal, Barcelona Ctr Int Health Res (CRESIB), Hospital Cl&iacute;nic&nbsp;&ndash; Barcelona University, 5Support Unit Research for Primary Care, Primary Health Care Department of Costa Ponent, IDIAP, ICS, 6CIBER Department of Epidemiology Service (CIBERESP), 7Clinical Laboratory Department, L&acute;Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain Background: The population is aging and multimorbidity is becoming a common problem in the elderly.Objective: To explore the effect of multimorbidity patterns on mortality for all causes at 3- and 5-year follow-up periods.Materials and methods: A prospective community-based cohort (2009&ndash;2014) embedded within a randomized clinical trial was conducted in seven primary health care centers, including 328 subjects aged 85 years at baseline. Sociodemographic variables, sensory status, cardiovascular risk factors, comorbidity, and geriatric tests were analyzed. Multimorbidity patterns were defined as combinations of two or three of 16 specific chronic conditions in the same individual.Results: Of the total sample, the median and interquartile range value of conditions was 4 (3&ndash;5). The individual morbidities significantly associated with death were chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD; hazard ratio [HR]: 2.47; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.3; 4.7), atrial fibrillation (AF; HR: 2.41; 95% CI: 1.3; 4.3), and malignancy (HR: 1.9; 95% CI: 1.0; 3.6) at 3-year follow-up; whereas dementia (HR: 2.04; 95% CI: 1.3; 3.2), malignancy (HR: 1.84; 95% CI: 1.2; 2.8), and COPD (HR: 1.77; 95% CI: 1.1; 2.8) were the most associated with mortality at 5-year follow-up, after adjusting using Barthel functional index (BI). The two multimorbidity patterns most associated with death were AF, chronic kidney disease (CKD), and visual impairment (HR: 4.19; 95% CI: 2.2; 8.2) at 3-year follow-up as well as hypertension, CKD, and malignancy (HR: 3.24; 95% CI: 1.8; 5.8) at 5 years, after adjusting using BI.Conclusion: Multimorbidity as specific combinations of chronic conditions showed an effect on mortality, which would be higher than the risk attributable to individual morbidities. The most important predicting pattern for mortality was the combination of AF, CKD, and visual impairment after 3 years. These findings suggest that a new approach is required to target multimorbidity in octogenarians. Keywords: oldest old, multimorbidity, chronic diseases, mortality, atrial fibrillation, malignanc