Fittonia verschaffeltii Response to Artificial Light Treatments: BIOMASS, Nutrient Concentrations and Physiological Changes

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of different light treatments on biomass, nutrient concentrations and physiological parameters of Fittonia verschaffeltii (Lem) Van Houtte. The aim was to establish a methodology to evaluate the effect of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) emitted by lamps on biomass. The light treatments used were tube luminescent Dunn (TL-D), tube luminescent Dunn + light emitting diodes (LEDs) and Tube luminescent 5 (TL-5). At the end of the experimental period, biomass, nutritional, biochemical, and physiological parameters were assessed. A clear reduction in total plant dry weight under TL-D + LEDs at the end of the experiment was recorded. With respect to nutrient concentration in the different organs assessed, there was no clear response under the different light treatments. The growth under TL-D lamps resulted in the highest concentration of total soluble sugars and starch in leaves, whereas the highest value of indole 3-acetic acid concentration was under TL-5 lamps. Plants grown under TL-D + LEDs showed the lowest values of chlorophyll a, b and a + b. The relationship proposed between integrated use of spectral energy (IUSE) and total dry weight (TDW) showed a good correlation with an R2 value of 0.86, therefore we recommend this methodology to discern the effects of the different spectral qualities on plant biomass

Occupational exposures and distribution of natural radionuclides in phosphoric acid production by the wet process (Spain)

The industries devoted to the production of phosphoric acid use as a raw material large amount of phosphate rock (PR), which– depending on its geological origin –could be enriched in natural radionuclides either from the uranium or thorium series. In addition, and depending of the process used, different by-products also enriched in natural radionuclides are formed. For this reason, these types of industries are considered as one of the most representative examples where NORM and TENORM is handled, and consequently where a detailed radiological study for protection of the workers is needed.In Spain, a quite large industrial complex is located in an estuary in the surroundings of Huelva town (SW of Spain, see Figure 1), with two big factories devoted to the production of phosphoric acid through the so-called “wet-acid process” (see details in Section 2). In these factories, two types of phosphatic ores are processed: a) sedimentary marine origin phosphate ore from Morocco, and b) igneous origin phosphate ore from Kola (Russia). The Moroccan phosphorites are characterised for their high uranium concentrations, ranging 100-150 ppm, while the igneous phosphate rocks from Kola have clearly lower levels of this element. In opposition, the Kola phosphate rocks present concentrations of the 232Th-series in a factor up to 3 to 5 higher than in word average soils, while the Moroccan phosphorites contain clearly lower concentrations from this natural series [1]In both raw materials, both the 238Uand the 232Th are in secular equilibrium with their daughters. Nevertheless, during the application of the industrial process, the aforementioned secular equilibrium is broken, suffering the different radionuclides their redistributions between intermediate products according to their respective chemical characteristics [2]. This fact need to be taken into consideration for a proper radiological study inside the factories

AMELIE: Authoring Multimedia-Enhanced Learning Interactive Environment for e-Health Contents

This paper presents the AMELIE Authoring Tool for e-health applications. AMELIE provides the means for creating video-based contents with a focus on e-learning and telerehabilitation processes. The main core of AMELIE lies in the efficient exploitation of raw multimedia resources, which may be already available at clinical centers or recorded ad hoc for learning purposes by health professionals. Three real use cases scenarios involving different target users are presented: (1) cognitive skills? training of surgeons in minimally invasive surgery (medical professionals), (2) training of informal carers for elderly home assistance and (3) cognitive rehabilitation of patients with acquired brain injury. Preliminary validation in the field of surgery hints at the potential of AMELIE; and its versatility in different medical applications is patent from the use cases described. Regardless, new validation studies are planned in the three main application areas identified in this work

Batch to the future: Analyzing timestamp accuracy of high-performance packet I/O engines

Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works. V. Moreno, P. M. S. Del Rio, J. Ramos, J. J. Garnica, and J. L. Garcia-Dorado, "Batch to the future: Analyzing timestamp accuracy of high-performance packet I/O engines", IEEE Communications Letters, vol. 16, no. 11, pp. 1888 - 1891, November 2012.Novel packet I/O engines allow capturing traffic at multi-10Gb/s using only-software and commodity-hardware systems. This is achieved thanks to the application of techniques such as batch processing. Nevertheless, this feature involves degradation in the timestamp accuracy, which may be relevant for monitoring purposes. We propose two different approaches to mitigate such effect: a simple algorithm to distribute inter-batch time among the packets composing a batch, and a driver modification to poll NIC buffers avoiding batch processing. Experimental results, using both synthetic and real traffic, show that our proposals allow capturing accurately timestamped traffic for monitoring purposes at multi-10Gb/s rates

Volatile and phenolic composition of a Chardonnay wine treated with antimicrobial plant extracts before malolactic fermentation

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.Previous studies have proven the potential of antimicrobial plant extracts to delay malolactic fermentation (MLF) in red wines. With the final end of extending their applicability in oenology, the aim of this study was to investigate whether the addition of antimicrobial extracts (from eucalyptus leaves and almond skins) to white wines (i.e., Chardonnay wine), as a way to control MLF, would affect wine organoleptic properties, in particular those related to their volatile and phenolic composition. Although addition of both extracts led to statistically significant changes (p<0.05) in the concentration of several volatile and phenolic compounds, only few of them showed contents higher than their sensory thresholds, meaning that the changes observed in their concentration could slightly affect the final wine aroma and astringency. However, use of the extracts in the elaboration of white wines needs to be assessed in future experiments at winery scale, including wine sensorial analysis.This work has been funded by the Spanish Ministry for Science and Innovation (AGL2006-04514, AGL2009-13361-C02-00 and CSD2007-00063 Consolider Ingenio 2010 FUN-C-FOOD Projects), and the Comunidad de Madrid (ALIBIRD P2009/AGR-1469 Project). JJRB and AGR are the recipients of a fellowship from the JAE-Doc Program (CSIC) and DANONE Institute, respectively.Peer Reviewe

Estudio comparativo de dos programas de entrenamiento de la memoria en personas mayores con quejas subjetivas de memoria: un análisis preliminar.

Introducción: A pesar del declive cognitivo que se produce con la edad, numerosos estudios han demostrado la eficacia que tienen los programas de entrenamiento de la memoria para mejorar diversas áreas neurocognitivas en las personas mayores. Objetivo: analizar de forma preliminar el efecto diferencial de dos programas de entrenamiento de la memoria en personas mayores sobre diversas funciones cognitivas. Método: 18 sujetos entre 61 y 81 años han participado, o bien en un programa de entrenamiento en estrategias de memoria, o bien en un programa de entrenamiento en olvidos cotidianos. En todos ellos se evaluó la percepción subjetiva de la memoria, así como el desempeño cognitivo antes y después del entrenamiento. Resultados: se encontró una mejoría estadísticamente significativa en el cuestionario de quejas subjetivas de memoria en ambos grupos, y sólo se encontró cierta mejoría en memoria de trabajo visoespacial (test Corsi inverso) y en razonamiento (Analogías) en el grupo que recibió un entrenamiento en olvidos cotidianos. Conclusiones: los programas de entrenamiento de la memoria mejoran la percepción subjetiva que tienen las personas mayores del funcionamiento de la memoria, y ello es independiente de la metodología de entrenamiento utilizada

Antioxidant activity of protein hydrolysates obtained from discarded Mediterranean fish species

In this study, five discarded species in the Mediterranean Sea, namely sardine, horse mackerel, axillary seabream, bogue and small-spotted catshark, were evaluated as raw material for obtaining fish protein hydrolysates exhibiting antioxidant activity. The DH of the hydrolysates ranged from 13.2 to 21.0%, with a protein content varying from 60.7 to 89.5%. The peptide profile of all hydrolysates was very similar, except for the hydrolysate of small-spotted catshark. Their lipid content was found to be between 4.6 and 25.3%. The highest DPPH scavenging activity was found for the hydrolysates of sardine and horse mackerel with EC50 values varying from 0.91 to 1.78 mg protein/mL. Sardine and small-spotted catshark hydrolysates exhibited the highest ferrous chelating activity with an EC50 value of 0.32 mg protein/mL. Moreover, sardine and bogue hydrolysates presented the highest reducing power. Finally, a total of six antioxidant peptides were theoretically identified within the structure of myosin and actin proteins from sardine and small-spotted catshark. The potential antioxidant activity exhibited by the hydrolysates suggests that it is feasible to obtain added-value products such as natural antioxidants from these discarded species.This work was supported by the Spanish National Plan I + D + i (projects CTQ2008-02978 and CTQ2011-23009) and by Santander Bank (grant for young researchers

Improving construction processes of concrete building structures using load limiters on shores

This paper analyses the redistribution of maximum loads using a system of load limiters on shores in which the limiters yield at a given load and thus reduce the maximum load absorbed by the shores. For this analysis a finite element modelling (FEM) of an experimental building was developed in which load limiters had been fitted to the shores to restrict their maximum load to a given value. This was designed to: (a) optimise slab construction costs by using shores of lower load-bearing capacities, (b) improve safety during the construction of consecutive concrete slab floors by reducing maximum loads and redistributing loads amongst the shores; and (c) increase structural efficiency by more efficient use of the materials employed due to load redistribution. It has been estimated that using load limiters in this way can reduce total shoring costs in a building project by between 30% and 40%.The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia for funding this research project (PAID-06-11) and also to the Encofrados J. Alsina Company for their invaluable cooperation.Buitrago Moreno, M.; Alvarado Vargas, YA.; Adam Martínez, JM.; Calderón García, PA.; Gasch, I.; Moragues, JJ. (2015). Improving construction processes of concrete building structures using load limiters on shores. Engineering Structures. 100:104-115. doi:10.1016/j.engstruct.2015.06.007S10411510

Síntesis y aplicación de nuevas nanopartículas de plata biocompatibles para el control del crecimiento de bacterias lácticas y acéticas en vinos

Este libro recoge el amplio y significativo elenco de estudios (microbiología) recientemente realizados por los grupos de investigación de la red GIENOL (Grupos de investigación enológica).-- et al.Es bien conocido que la plata tiene propiedades antimicrobianas muy potentes. Actualmente, la nanoplata es el nanomaterial más utilizado, representando aproximadamente la cuarta parte de todos los nanomateriales comercializados en el mercado. El presente trabajo tiene por objetivo explorar la potencial utilización de nuevas nanopartículas de plata como agentes antimicrobianos en enología, como una alternativa al empleo de los sulfitos. En primer lugar, se ha llevado a cabo la síntesis y caracterización de dos materiales de plata: PEG‐Ag NPs 1, nanopartículas sólidas soportadas sobre polietilenglicol, y GSH‐Ag NPs 2, nanopartículas en solución soportadas sobre glutatión. A continuación, se ha evaluado su actividad antimicrobiana frente a un total de 11 especies, que incluyen bacterias lácticas y bacterias acéticas. Se han establecido los parámetros de inhibición bacteriana, comprobándose que los nanomateriales con recubrimientos a base de ambos polímeros solubles (polietilenglicol y glutatión), son capaces de inhibir el crecimiento de ambos tipos de bacterias, y en concreto, el efecto inhibidor sobre las bacterias acéticas, fue superior al del metabisulfito potásico. También se ha estudiado el mecanismo de acción antimicrobiano de las nanopartículas de plata, en el que parece que están implicados cambios en la membrana plasmática de la célula bacteriana con pérdida de la viabilidad celular y de las funciones vitales de la célula.Los autores agradecen la financiación recibida del Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO) a través de los proyectos PRI‐PIBAR‐2011‐1358 y AGL2012‐40172‐C02‐01.Peer Reviewe