Amino acid metabolism conflicts with protein diversity

The twenty protein coding amino acids are found in proteomes with different relative abundances. The most abundant amino acid, leucine, is nearly an order of magnitude more prevalent than the least abundant amino acid, cysteine. Amino acid metabolic costs differ similarly, constraining their incorporation into proteins. On the other hand, sequence diversity is necessary for protein folding, function and evolution. Here we present a simple model for a cost-diversity trade-off postulating that natural proteomes minimize amino acid metabolic flux while maximizing sequence entropy. The model explains the relative abundances of amino acids across a diverse set of proteomes. We found that the data is remarkably well explained when the cost function accounts for amino acid chemical decay. More than one hundred proteomes reach comparable solutions to the trade-off by different combinations of cost and diversity. Quantifying the interplay between proteome size and entropy shows that proteomes can get optimally large and diverse

Incidencia, características clínicas y factores asociados a bronquiolitis en niños menores de 2 años en el Hospital Regional Manuel Nuñez Butron de Puno en el año 2019

Objetivo: determinar la prevalencia, las características clínicas, y los factores asociados a Bronquiolitis, en niños menores de 2 años, en el hospital Regional Manuel Núñez Butron de Puno, en el año 2019. Metodología: El estudio será transversal, observacional, analítico y retrospectivo. El diseño de investigación será casos y controles, los casos serán los niños con Bronquiolitis y los controles serán los niños sin Bronquiolitis; se calculará el tamaño de muestra según el muestreo aleatorio simple para estimar proporciones en población finita, con un nivel de confianza de 95% y error máximo permisible de 5%, y una proporción de 0.5; se considerará un control por cada caso. La selección de los casos y controles será probabilística, por muestreo aleatorio sistemático. Los método para el diagnóstico de Bronquiolitis, fueron los que normalmente se utilizan en el Hospital Manuel Núñez Butron de Puno. Se usará una ficha de recolección de datos preelaborada, validada por juicio de expertos. Para el análisis estadístico, se ingresará las fichas a una base de datos en el Soft ware Excel 2010; se calculará la prevalencia de Bronquiolitis, para el análisis descriptivo, se utilizará, para datos cualitativos, frecuencias absolutas y relativas, y para datos cuantitativos promedios y desviación estándar; para evaluar la asociación de los factores en estudio con la Bronquiolitis, se calculará el odss ratio (OR) y el intervalo de confianza (IC 95%), la significación estadística se definirá con una p<0,05, para lo cual se calculará la p de Fisher; se utilizara el Soft ware SPSS Versión 21.Trabajo académic

Understanding the Logics of Pheromone Processing in the Honeybee Brain: From Labeled-Lines to Across-Fiber Patterns

Honeybees employ a very rich repertoire of pheromones to ensure intraspecific communication in a wide range of behavioral contexts. This communication can be complex, since the same compounds can have a variety of physiological and behavioral effects depending on the receiver. Honeybees constitute an ideal model to study the neurobiological basis of pheromonal processing, as they are already one of the most influential animal models for the study of general odor processing and learning at behavioral, cellular and molecular levels. Accordingly, the anatomy of the bee brain is well characterized and electro- and opto-physiological recording techniques at different stages of the olfactory circuit are possible in the laboratory. Here we review pheromone communication in honeybees and analyze the different stages of olfactory processing in the honeybee brain, focusing on available data on pheromone detection, processing and representation at these different stages. In particular, we argue that the traditional distinction between labeled-line and across-fiber pattern processing, attributed to pheromone and general odors respectively, may not be so clear in the case of honeybees, especially for social-pheromones. We propose new research avenues for stimulating future work in this area

ACE I/D (Rs1799752), MTHFR C677T (Rs1801133), and CCR5 D32 (Rs333) Genes and their Association with Hypertension and Diabetic Nephropathy in Urban Areas of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Mexico

Aim: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a procoagulant state because it is associated with increased risk of atherosclerosis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence in thrombotic markers that lead to hypercoagulability and its association with hypertension and diabetic nephropathy (DN)

Eliminating Amylase Testing from the Evaluation of Pancreatitis in the Emergency Department

Background: Alterations in serum biomarkers have been used to evaluate for pancreatitis in the emergency department (ED). Studies have shown lipase to be as sensitive and more specific than amylase in diagnosing pancreatitis and that amylase plus lipase does not improve accuracy over lipase alone.Objective: To determine effects of interventions to decrease ordering of amylase in the evaluation of pancreatitis.Methods: We conducted a pre- and post-cohort study. The number of amylase and lipase tests ordered in the ED was recorded prior to intervention to establish a baseline. We introduced an educational intervention to order lipase without amylase. A second intervention involved removing amylase from bedside order entry forms. We introduced a third intervention that included deleting amylase from trauma order forms, and decoupling amylase and lipase in the computer ordering system. We recorded the number of lipase and amylase tests in weekly aggregates for comparison to the baseline. Data analysis using students t-test, standard deviation and p values are reported.Results: Before interventions 93% of patients had both tests ordered. Educational interventions resulted in a decrease to 91% (p=0.06) of co-ordering. Further interventions decreased the percentage of patients evaluated with both tests to 14.3%. This translates into a decrease in patient charges of approximately $350,000 a year.Conclusion: Using simple structured interventions in the ED can reduce amylase ordering. Educational programming alone was not effective in significantly decreasing amylase ordering; however, education plus system-based interventions decreased amylase ordering. [West J Emerg Med. 2010; 11(4):344-347.

Las políticas tributarias en el crecimiento económico de Ecuador, 2000-2015

&nbsp;La política tributaria cobra especial relevancia en el crecimiento económico de los países. En 1997 en Ecuador nace el Servicio de Rentas Internas (SRI) basado en principios de justicia y equidad, como respuesta a la alta evasión tributaria, alimentada por la ausencia de una cultura tributaria. La presente investigación pretende determinar la incidencia de las políticas tributarias en el crecimiento económico de Ecuador en el periodo 2000-2015. Contempla datos de serie de tiempo de recaudación tributaria a partir del 2000, año en que toma mayor relevancia las políticas tributarias. El análisis se realiza a través de la aplicación de un modelo econométrico de regresión lineal. Los resultados establecen una correlación significativa entre las políticas tributarias y el crecimiento económico de Ecuador. Palabras clave: políticas tributarias, ingresos, rentas, crecimiento económicoe Ecuador

The effects of short-stature-for-age on cardiovascular and metabolic health in children: a systematic review.

Short stature has been associated with coronary heart disease in adults (Paajanen et al, 2010), but similar effects have not been established in children. We aim to identify cardiovascular and metabolic health indicators that are associated with height-for-age in children. These consist of any measures of cardiovascular health and metabolic syndrome such as, but not limited to: abdominal obesity; atherogenic dyslipidaemia; hypertension; hyperglycaemia; insulin resistance; body-mass-index, height-adjusted fat mass, pulse rate, insulin-resistance, triglycerides, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, and structural and electrical cardiac dysfunction

Early Environmental Exposures and Intracellular Th1/Th2 Cytokine Profiles in 24-Month-Old Children Living in an Agricultural Area

BACKGROUND: Children who reside in agricultural settings are potentially exposed to higher levels of organophosphate (OP) pesticides, endotoxin, and allergens than their urban counterparts. Endotoxin and allergens stimulate maturation of the immune response in early childhood, but little is known about the effect of exposures to OPs or to the three combined. OBJECTIVES: In this study, we investigated the relationships between these exposures and T-helper 1 (Th1) and T-helper 2 (Th2) cytokines, biomarkers of allergic asthma, in the subjects of CHAMA-COS (Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas), a longitudinal birth cohort in Salinas Valley, California. Exposures were ascertained by interviewer-administered questionnaires and by home visits, and clinical diagnoses were abstracted from medical records. Blood samples were collected at 12 and 24 months of age and analyzed for Th1/Th2 status by flow cytometric detection of intracellular interferon-γ/interleukin-4 cytokine expression. FINDINGS: Mean Th2 levels were significantly higher in children with doctor-diagnosed asthma and children with wheezing at 2 years of age. In a multiple linear regression model, exclusive breast-feeding at 1 month and pet ownership were associated with 35.3% (p < 0.01) and 34.5% (p = 0.01) increases in Th1, respectively. Maternal agricultural work and presence of gas stove in the home were associated with a 25.9% increase (p = 0.04) and 46.5% increase (p < 0.01) in Th2, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Asthma and wheeze outcomes in children at 24 months of age are associated with elevated Th2 status in children at an early age. Our data further suggest that early exposures to an agricultural environment, breast-feeding, pets, and gas stoves affect the development of children’s Th1/Th2 immune response

The human microbiome in Barrett’s esophagus is hard to stomach

The incidence of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) has increased nearly five-fold over the last four decades in the United States. Barrett's esophagus, the replacement of the normal squamous epithelial lining with a mucus-secreting columnar epithelium, is the only known precursor to EAC. Like other parts of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, the esophagus hosts a variety of bacteria and comparisons among published studies suggest bacterial communities in the stomach and esophagus differ. Chronic infection with Helicobacter pylori in the stomach has been inversely associated with development of EAC, but the mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear.The bacterial composition in the upper GI tract was characterized in a subset of participants (n=12) of the Seattle Barrett's Esophagus Research cohort using broad-range 16S PCR and pyrosequencing of biopsy and brush samples collected from squamous esophagus, Barrett's esophagus, stomach corpus and stomach antrum. Three of the individuals were sampled at two separate time points. Prevalence of H. pylori infection and subsequent development of aneuploidy (n=339) and EAC (n=433) was examined in a larger subset of this cohort.Within individuals, bacterial communities of the stomach and esophagus showed overlapping community membership. Despite closer proximity, the stomach antrum and corpus communities were less similar than the antrum and esophageal samples. Re-sampling of study participants revealed similar upper GI community membership in two of three cases. In this Barrett's esophagus cohort, Streptococcus and Prevotella species dominate the upper GI and the ratio of these two species is associated with waist-to-hip ratio and hiatal hernia length, two known EAC risk factors in Barrett's esophagus. H. pylori-positive individuals had a significantly decreased incidence of aneuploidy and a non-significant trend toward lower incidence of EAC

Development and validation of a Spanish translation of the Yale activity questionnaire

Background: Valid measures of physical activity are critical research tools. The objective of this study was to develop a Spanish translation of the Yale Physical Activity Survey, and to provide preliminary evidence of its validity in a population of Dominican patients with lower extremity arthritis. Methods: A Dominican bilingual health care professional translated the Yale Physical Activity Survey (YPAS) from English to Spanish. Several Dominican adults reviewed the translation to ensure it was linguistically and culturally appropriate. The questionnaire was back-translated to English by a North American researcher who is fluent in Spanish. Discrepancies between the original and back-translated versions were resolved by the translator and back-translator. The Spanish translation was administered to 108 Dominican subjects with advanced hip or knee arthritis prior to (N = 44) or one to four years following (N = 64) total joint replacement. We assessed construct validity by examining the association of YPAS scores and measures of functional status and pain (WOMAC), quality of life (EQ-5D) and the number of painful lower extremity joints. Results: A higher YPAS Part II Activity Dimensions Summary Index score had weak to modest correlations with worse function and quality of life as measured with the WOMAC function scale (r = 0.21, p = 0.03), SF-36 Physical Activity Scale (r = 0.29, p = 0.004) and EQ-5D (r = 0.34, p = 0.0007). Total minutes of vigorous activity and walking had weak to modest correlation with these measures (WOMAC Function Scale (r = 0.15, p = 0.15), SF-36 Physical Activity Scale (r = 0.21, p = 0.04) and EQ-5D utility (r = 0.24, p = 0.02)). Correlations between the YPAS Part I energy expenditure score and these measures were lower (WOMAC Function Scale (r = 0.07, p = 0.49), SF-36 Physical Activity Scale (r = 0.03, p = 0.74) and EQ-5D utility (r = 0.18, p = 0.07)). Conclusions: We have developed a new Spanish translation of the Yale Physical Activity Survey and provided evidence of convergent validity in a sample of Dominican patients prior to or 1–4 years following total joint replacement