Towards In-Vitro Point of Care devices for in-situ diagnosis

Electronic and optoelectronic systems and subsystems play an important role to develop In-Vitro Diagnostics (IVDs) systems for healthcare, clinical, agro-food, environmental, pharmaceutical research or drug control, among many other applications. Although significant advantages have been described for label-free biosensing technology, still a limitednumber of compact devices for monitoring IVD in-situ have been already developed. In this paper a discussion about the current trends for developing Point-of-Care devices will be analyzed, as well as the future challenges for in-situ In-vitro diagnostic systems

Evolution of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 over seven months: experience of the Nationwide Seroprevalence ENE-COVID Study in Spain [preprint]

Objectives To analyse temporal trends in SARS-CoV-2 anti-nucleocapsid IgG throughout the four rounds of the nationwide seroepidemiologic study ENE-COVID (April-November 2020), and to compare the fourth-round results of two immunoassays detecting antibodies against nucleocapsid and to S protein receptor-binding domain (RBD). Methods A chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay (CMIA) was offered to all participants in the first three rounds (Abbott; anti-nucleocapsid IgG). In the fourth round we offered this test and a chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) (Beckman; anti-RBD IgG) to i) a randomly selected sub-cohort, ii) participants who were IgG-positive in any of the three first rounds; and iii) participants who were IgG-positive in the fourth round by point-of-care immunochromatography. Results Immunoassays involving 10,153 participants (82.2% of people invited to donate samples) were performed in the fourth round. A total of 2595 participants (35.1% of participants with immunoassay results in the four rounds) were positive for anti-nucleocapsid IgG in at least one round. Anti-nucleocapsid IgG became undetectable in 43.3% of participants with positive first-round results. Pneumonia was more frequent in participants with anti-nucleocapsid IgG in all four rounds (11.2%) than those in which IgG became undetectable (2.4%). In fourth round, anti-nucleocapsid and anti-RBD IgG were detected in 5.5% and 5.4% participants of the randomly selected sub-cohort, and in 26.6% and 25.9% participants with at least one previous positive result, respectively. Agreement between techniques was 90.3% (kappa: 0.72). Conclusions The response of IgG to SARS-CoV-2 is heterogeneous and conditioned by infection severity. A substantial proportion of the SARS-CoV-2 infected population may have negative serologic results in the post-infection months.N

ENE-COVID nationwide serosurvey served to characterize asymptomatic infections and to develop a symptom-based risk score to predict COVID-19

Objectives: To characterize asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections and develop a symptom-based risk score useful in primary healthcare. Study design and setting: Sixty-one thousand ninty-two community-dwelling participants in a nationwide population-based serosurvey completed a questionnaire on COVID-19 symptoms and received an immunoassay for SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies between April 27 and June 22, 2020. Standardized prevalence ratios for asymptomatic infection were estimated across participant characteristics. We constructed a symptom-based risk score and evaluated its ability to predict SARS-CoV-2 infection. Results: Of all, 28.7% of infections were asymptomatic (95% CI 26.1-31.4%). Standardized asymptomatic prevalence ratios were 1.19 (1.02-1.40) for men vs. women, 1.82 (1.33-2.50) and 1.45 (0.96-2.18) for individuals <20 and ≥80 years vs. those aged 40-59, 1.27 (1.03-1.55) for smokers vs. nonsmokers, and 1.91 (1.59-2.29) for individuals without vs. with case contact. In symptomatic population, a symptom-based score (weights: severe tiredness = 1; absence of sore throat = 1; fever = 2; anosmia/ageusia = 5) reached standardized seroprevalence ratio of 8.71 (7.37-10.3), discrimination index of 0.79 (0.77-0.81), and sensitivity and specificity of 71.4% (68.1-74.4%) and 74.2% (73.1-75.2%) for a score ≥3. Conclusion: The presence of anosmia/ageusia, fever with severe tiredness, or fever without sore throat should serve to suspect COVID-19 in areas with active viral circulation. The proportion of asymptomatics in children and adolescents challenges infection control.The ENE-COVID study was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Health, the Institute of Health Carlos III, and the Spanish National Health System. The funders were in- volved in the study logistics, but they had no role in study design or in the collection, analysis, interpretation of data, or the decision to submit the article for publicationS

Socio-geographical disparities of obesity and excess weight in adults in Spain: insights from the ENE-COVID study

Background: In Spain, differences in the prevalence of obesity and excess weight according to sex and sociodemographic factors have been described at the national level, although current data do not allow to delve into geographical differences for these conditions. The aim was to estimate national and regional prevalences of adult obesity and excess weight in Spain by sex and sociodemographic characteristics, and to explore difference sources of inequalities in its distribution, as well as its geographical pattern. Method: ENE-COVID study was a nationwide representative seroepidemiological survey with 57,131 participants. Residents in 35,893 households were selected from municipal rolls using a two-stage random sampling stratified by province and municipality size (April-June 2020). Participants (77.0% of contacted individuals) answered a questionnaire which collected self-reported weight and height, as well as different socioeconomic variables, that allowed estimating crude and standardized prevalences of adult obesity and excess weight. Results: Crude prevalences of obesity and excess weight were higher in men (obesity: 19.3% vs. 18.0%; excess weight: 63.7% vs. 48.4%), while severe obesity was more prevalent in women (4.5% vs. 5.3%). These prevalences increased with age and disability, and decreased with education, census tract income and municipality size. Differences by educational level, relative census income, nationality or disability were clearly higher among women. Obesity by province ranged 13.3-27.4% in men and 11.4-28.1% in women; excess weight ranged 57.2-76.0% in men and 38.9-59.5% in women. The highest prevalences were located in the southern half of the country and some north-western provinces. Sociodemographic characteristics only explained a small part of the observed geographical variability (25.2% obesity). Conclusion: Obesity and overweight have a high prevalence in Spain, with notable geographical and sex differences. Socioeconomic inequalities are stronger among women. The observed geographical variability suggests the need to implement regional and local interventions to effectively address this public health problem.This study was supported by Spanish Ministry of Health, Institute of Health Carlos III, and Spanish National Health System.S

Clinical and Sociodemographic Determinants of Adherence to World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (WCRF/AICR) Recommendations in Breast Cancer Survivors-Health-EpiGEICAM Study

Breast cancer (BC) survivors are advised to follow the WCRF/AICR cancer prevention recommendations, given their high risk of developing a second tumour. We aimed to explore compliance with these recommendations in BC survivors and to identify potentially associated clinical and sociodemographic factors. A total of 420 BC survivors, aged 31-80, was recruited from 16 Spanish hospitals. Epidemiological, dietary and physical activity information was collected through questionnaires. A 7-item score to measure compliance with the recommendations was built according to the 2018 WCRF/AICR scoring criteria. Standardized prevalences and standardized prevalence ratios of moderate and high compliance across participant characteristics were estimated using multinomial and binary logistic regression models. The mean score was 3.9 (SD: 1.0) out of 7 points. Recommendations with the worst adherence were those of limiting consumption of red/processed meats (12% of compliance, 95% CI: 8.2-15.0) and high fibre intake (22% of compliance, 95% CI: 17.6-27.0), while the best compliance was observed for the consumption of fruits and vegetables (73% of compliance, 95% CI: 69.2-77.7). Overall, adherence was worse in women with university education and in those with first-degree relatives with BC. This information may be of interest to design and implement personalized preventive measures adapted to the characteristics of these patients.This research was funded by the Fundación Científica Asociación Española Contra el Cancer (AECC) (Scientific Foundation of the Spanish Association against Cancer 2016). This article presents independent research. The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Carlos III Institute of Health.S

Dietary Inflammatory Index, Dietary Non-Enzymatic Antioxidant Capacity, and Colorectal and Breast Cancer Risk (MCC-Spain Study)

Inflammation and antioxidant capacity have been associated with colorectal and breast cancer. We computed the dietary inflammatory index (DII®), and the total dietary non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity (NEAC) and associated them with colorectal and breast cancer risk in the population-based multi case-control study in Spain (MCC-Spain). We included 1852 colorectal cancer and 1567 breast cancer cases, and 3447 and 1486 population controls, respectively. DII score and NEAC were derived using data from a semi-quantitative validated food frequency questionnaire. Unconditional logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) for energy-adjusted DII (E-DII), and a score combining E-DII and NEAC. E-DII was associated with colorectal cancer risk (OR = 1.93, highest quartile versus lowest, 95%CI:1.60-2.32; p-trend: 0.10). The combined score of high E-DII scores and low antioxidant values were associated with colorectal cancer risk (OR = 1.48, highest quartile versus lowest, 95%CI: 1.26-1.74; p-trend: <0.001), but not breast cancer. This study provides evidence that a pro-inflammatory diet is associated with increased colorectal cancer risk while findings for breast cancer were less consistent.This research was partially funded by the public grants from the Catalan Government (2014SGR756, 2017SGR1085, 2017SGR733, SLT006/17/76), and European Regional Development Fund-ERDF, by the “Acción Transversal del Cancer”, approved on the Spanish Ministry Council on the 11th October 2007, by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III-FEDER (PI08/1770, PI08/0533, PI08/1359, PS09/00773-Cantabria, PS09/01286-León, PS09/01903-Valencia, PS09/02078-Huelva, PS09/ 01662-Granada, PI11/01403, PI11/01889-FEDER, PI11/00226, PI11/01810, PI11/02213, PI12/00488, PI12/00265, PI12/01270, PI12/00715, PI12/00150, PI14/01219, PI14/0613, PI15/00069, PI15/00914, PI15/01032, PI11/01810, PI14/01219, PI11/02213, PIE16/00049, PI17/01179, PI17-00092), by the Fundación Marqués de Valdecilla (API 10/09), by the Red Temática de Investigación del Cáncer (RTICC) del ISCIII(RD12/0036/0036), by the Junta de Castilla y León (LE22A10-2), by the Consejería de Salud of the Junta de Andalucía (PI-0571-2009, PI-0306-2011, salud201200057018tra), by the Conselleria de Sanitat of the Generalitat Valenciana (AP_061/10), by the Recercaixa (2010ACUP00310), by the Regional Government of the Basque Country, by the Consejería de Sanidad de la Región de Murcia, by the European Commission grants FOOD-CT-2006-036224-HIWATE, by the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC) Scientific Foundation – grant GCTRA18022MORE, by the Catalan Government-Agency for Management of University and Research Grants (AGAUR) grants 2014SGR647, 2014SGR850 and 2017SGR723. Sample collection of this work was supported by the Xarxa de Bancs de Tumors de Catalunya sponsored by Pla Director d’Oncología de Catalunya (XBTC)”, Plataforma Biobancos PT13/0010/0013" and ICOBIOBANC, sponsored by the Catalan Institute of Oncology. We thank CERCA Program, Generalitat de Catalunya for institutional support. Mireia Obón-Santacana received a post-doctoral fellow from “Fundación Científica de la Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (AECC)”

Famílies botàniques de plantes medicinals

Facultat de Farmàcia, Universitat de Barcelona. Ensenyament: Grau de Farmàcia, Assignatura: Botànica Farmacèutica, Curs: 2013-2014, Coordinadors: Joan Simon, Cèsar Blanché i Maria Bosch.Els materials que aquí es presenten són els recull de 175 treballs d’una família botànica d’interès medicinal realitzats de manera individual. Els treballs han estat realitzat per la totalitat dels estudiants dels grups M-2 i M-3 de l’assignatura Botànica Farmacèutica durant els mesos d’abril i maig del curs 2013-14. Tots els treballs s’han dut a terme a través de la plataforma de GoogleDocs i han estat tutoritzats pel professor de l’assignatura i revisats i finalment co-avaluats entre els propis estudiants. L’objectiu principal de l’activitat ha estat fomentar l’aprenentatge autònom i col·laboratiu en Botànica farmacèutica

CIBERER : Spanish national network for research on rare diseases: A highly productive collaborative initiative

Altres ajuts: Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII); Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación.CIBER (Center for Biomedical Network Research; Centro de Investigación Biomédica En Red) is a public national consortium created in 2006 under the umbrella of the Spanish National Institute of Health Carlos III (ISCIII). This innovative research structure comprises 11 different specific areas dedicated to the main public health priorities in the National Health System. CIBERER, the thematic area of CIBER focused on rare diseases (RDs) currently consists of 75 research groups belonging to universities, research centers, and hospitals of the entire country. CIBERER's mission is to be a center prioritizing and favoring collaboration and cooperation between biomedical and clinical research groups, with special emphasis on the aspects of genetic, molecular, biochemical, and cellular research of RDs. This research is the basis for providing new tools for the diagnosis and therapy of low-prevalence diseases, in line with the International Rare Diseases Research Consortium (IRDiRC) objectives, thus favoring translational research between the scientific environment of the laboratory and the clinical setting of health centers. In this article, we intend to review CIBERER's 15-year journey and summarize the main results obtained in terms of internationalization, scientific production, contributions toward the discovery of new therapies and novel genes associated to diseases, cooperation with patients' associations and many other topics related to RD research

Resonant nanopillars as label-free optical biosensors

In recent works, it has been demonstrated the suitability of using resonant nanopillars (R-NPs) as biochemical. In this work, it has been shown the capability of the R-NPs to behave as label-free multiplexed biological sensors. Each R-NP is formed by silicon oxide (SiO2) and silicon nitride (Si3N4) Bragg reflectors and a central cavity of SiO2, and they are grouped into eight arrays called BICELLs, which are distributed on a single chip of quartz substrate for multiplexing measurements. For the biological sensing assessment, it was developed an immunoassay on the eight single BICELLs. The biofunctionalization process was performed by a silanization protocol based on 3-aminopropyltrymethoxysilane (APTMS) and glutaradheyde (GA) as a linker between APTMS and the IgG which acted as bioreceptor for the anti-IgG recognition. In this work, there were compared two forms of immobilization: on one hand by incubating the R-NPs under static drop of 50 ?g/mL and on the second hand by introducing the sensing chip in a flow cell with a continuous flow of the same concentration of IgG. The eight arrays of R-NPs or BICELLs were independently optically interrogated by a bundle of fiber connected to a spectrometer. The multiplexing analysis showed reproducibility among the BICELLs, suggesting the potentially of using R-NPs for multiplexed biosensors. Performance in the immobilization process apparently does not have a signification effect. However, the election of one method or another should be a commitment between time and resources

A Proof-of-Concept of Label-Free Biosensing System for Food Allergy Diagnostics in Biophotonic Sensing Cells: Performance Comparison with ImmunoCAP

Food allergy is a common disease worldwide with over 6% of the population (200&ndash;250 million people) suffering from any food allergy nowadays. The most dramatic increase seems to be happening in children and young people. Therefore, improvements in the diagnosis efficiency of these diseases are needed. Immunoglobulin type E (IgE) biomarker determination in human serum is a typical in vitro test for allergy identification. In this work, we used a novel biosensor based on label-free photonic transducers called BICELLs (Biophotonic Sensing Cells) for IgE detection. These BICELLs have a thin film of nitrocellulose over the sensing surface, they can be vertical optically interrogated, and are suitable for being integrated on a chip. The BICELLs sensing surface sizes used were 100 and 800 &micro;m in diameter. We obtained calibration curves with IgE standards by immobilizating anti-IgE antibodies and identified with standard IgE calibrators in minute sample amounts (3 &micro;L). The results, in similar assay format, were compared with commercially available ImmunoCAP&reg;. The versatility of the interferometric nitrocellulose-based sensing surface was demonstrated since the limit of detections for BICELLs and ImmunoCAP&reg; were 0.7 and 0.35 kU/L, respectively