All-optical 3D atomic loops generated with Bessel light fields

The propagation invariance of Bessel beams as well as their transversal structure are used to perform a comparative analysis of their effect on cold atoms for four different configurations and combinations thereof. We show that, even at temperatures for which the classical description of the atom center of mass motion is valid, the interchange of momentum, energy and orbital angular momentum between light and atoms yields efficient tools for all-optical trapping, transporting and, in general, manipulating the state of motion of cold atoms.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figure

Filamentous fungi isolated and identified from Antarctic soil (Fildes Bay, Antarctica)

Purpose: Antarctica is a unique place with extreme environmental conditions, including low temperature, high solar radiation, low nutrient availability and strong winds. This different environment represents a gateway to studies on the taxonomy, ecology, and biotechnology of organisms under extreme conditions. Fungi are ubiquitous and diverse organisms in Antarctica and have been described as growing in different substrates such as plants, soil, rocks, ice, snow, and animals. To survive in such extreme conditions fungi might display unusual biochemical pathways able to generate specific or novel compounds with biotechnological relevance. Before accessing the fungal biotechnological potential, knowing the fungal species is mandatory. The main aim of this study was to isolate and identify fungal strains from Antarctic soil (Fildes Bay, Antarctica). Material and methods: Soil samples were collected using a 4x25 m transect at a depth of 0- 20 cm in different geographic areas of Fildes Bay (Antarctica). A total of 13 composed soil samples were collected. Composed soil aqueous suspensions were incubated on Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA), Dichloran Glycerol Agar 18% (DG18) and Dichloran Rose Bengal Chloramphenicol Agar (DRBC) media at 10 ºC for 21 days in the dark. Subsequently, filamentous fungi were isolated and cultured on PDA. The morphological identification of the isolated strains was carried out according to the classic macro- and micromorphological taxonomy. Results: A set of c.a. 1600 fungal strains belonging to the genera Acremonium, Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Mortierella, Mucor, Penicillium, Psudogymnoascus and other four nonidentified fungal genera were isolated. In addition, a relationship between the geographical area of the soil sample and the fungal genera was observed. Conclusions: Despite both the adverse environmental conditions and Antarctic soils that are not completely devoid of life, it was possible to observe a great diversity of filamentous fungi in some assessed soil samples. This indicates the ability of filamentous fungi in adapting to and survive in extreme conditions such as some of those found in Antarctica. This work represents the first report of large-scale fungal isolation in Fildes Bay, Antarctica. Molecular biology identification is being developed for isolated fungal strains.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Real-Time and Low-Cost Sensing Technique Based on Photonic Bandgap Structures

This paper was published in OPTICS LETTERS and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1364/OL.36.002707. Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law[EN] A technique for the development of low-cost and high-sensitivity photonic biosensing devices is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. In this technique, a photonic bandgap structure is used as transducer, but its readout is performed by simply using a broadband source, an optical filter, and a power meter, without the need of obtaining the transmission spectrum of the structure; thus, a really low-cost system and real-time results are achieved. Experimental results show that it is possible to detect very low refractive index variations, achieving a detection limit below 2 x 10(-6) refractive index units using this low-cost measuring technique. (C) 2011 Optical Society of America[This work was funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (MICINN) under contracts TEC2008-06333, JCI-009-5805, and TEC2008-05490. Support by the Universidad Politecnica de Valencia through program PAID-06-09 and the Conselleria d'Educacio through program GV-2010-031 is acknowledged.García Castelló, J.; Toccafondo, V.; Pérez Millán, P.; Sánchez Losilla, N.; Cruz, JL.; Andres, MV.; García-Rupérez, J. (2011). Real-Time and Low-Cost Sensing Technique Based on Photonic Bandgap Structures. Optics Letters. 36(14):2707-2709. https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.36.002707S270727093614Fan, X., White, I. M., Shopova, S. I., Zhu, H., Suter, J. D., & Sun, Y. (2008). Sensitive optical biosensors for unlabeled targets: A review. Analytica Chimica Acta, 620(1-2), 8-26. doi:10.1016/j.aca.2008.05.022Homola, J., Yee, S. S., & Gauglitz, G. (1999). Surface plasmon resonance sensors: review. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 54(1-2), 3-15. doi:10.1016/s0925-4005(98)00321-9Kersey, A. D., Davis, M. A., Patrick, H. J., LeBlanc, M., Koo, K. P., Askins, C. G., … Friebele, E. J. (1997). Fiber grating sensors. Journal of Lightwave Technology, 15(8), 1442-1463. doi:10.1109/50.618377De Vos, K., Bartolozzi, I., Schacht, E., Bienstman, P., & Baets, R. (2007). Silicon-on-Insulator microring resonator for sensitive and label-free biosensing. Optics Express, 15(12), 7610. doi:10.1364/oe.15.007610Iqbal, M., Gleeson, M. A., Spaugh, B., Tybor, F., Gunn, W. G., Hochberg, M., … Gunn, L. C. (2010). Label-Free Biosensor Arrays Based on Silicon Ring Resonators and High-Speed Optical Scanning Instrumentation. IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics, 16(3), 654-661. doi:10.1109/jstqe.2009.2032510Xu, D.-X., Vachon, M., Densmore, A., Ma, R., Delâge, A., Janz, S., … Schmid, J. H. (2010). Label-free biosensor array based on silicon-on-insulator ring resonators addressed using a WDM approach. Optics Letters, 35(16), 2771. doi:10.1364/ol.35.002771Skivesen, N., Têtu, A., Kristensen, M., Kjems, J., Frandsen, L. H., & Borel, P. I. (2007). Photonic-crystal waveguide biosensor. Optics Express, 15(6), 3169. doi:10.1364/oe.15.003169Lee, M. R., & Fauchet, P. M. (2007). Nanoscale microcavity sensor for single particle detection. Optics Letters, 32(22), 3284. doi:10.1364/ol.32.003284García-Rupérez, J., Toccafondo, V., Bañuls, M. J., Castelló, J. G., Griol, A., Peransi-Llopis, S., & Maquieira, Á. (2010). Label-free antibody detection using band edge fringes in SOI planar photonic crystal waveguides in the slow-light regime. Optics Express, 18(23), 24276. doi:10.1364/oe.18.024276Toccafondo, V., García-Rupérez, J., Bañuls, M. J., Griol, A., Castelló, J. G., Peransi-Llopis, S., & Maquieira, A. (2010). Single-strand DNA detection using a planar photonic-crystal-waveguide-based sensor. Optics Letters, 35(21), 3673. doi:10.1364/ol.35.003673Luff, B. J., Wilson, R., Schiffrin, D. J., Harris, R. D., & Wilkinson, J. S. (1996). Integrated-optical directional coupler biosensor. Optics Letters, 21(8), 618. doi:10.1364/ol.21.000618Sepúlveda, B., Río, J. S. del, Moreno, M., Blanco, F. J., Mayora, K., Domínguez, C., & Lechuga, L. M. (2006). Optical biosensor microsystems based on the integration of highly sensitive Mach–Zehnder interferometer devices. Journal of Optics A: Pure and Applied Optics, 8(7), S561-S566. doi:10.1088/1464-4258/8/7/s41Densmore, A., Vachon, M., Xu, D.-X., Janz, S., Ma, R., Li, Y.-H., … Schmid, J. H. (2009). Silicon photonic wire biosensor array for multiplexed real-time and label-free molecular detection. Optics Letters, 34(23), 3598. doi:10.1364/ol.34.003598Povinelli, M. L., Johnson, S. G., & Joannopoulos, J. D. (2005). Slow-light, band-edge waveguides for tunable time delays. Optics Express, 13(18), 7145. doi:10.1364/opex.13.007145Garcia, J., Sanchis, P., Martinez, A., & Marti, J. (2008). 1D periodic structures for slow-wave induced non-linearity enhancement. Optics Express, 16(5), 3146. doi:10.1364/oe.16.003146Pérez-Millán, P., Torres-Peiró, S., Cruz, J. L., & Andrés, M. V. (2008). Fabrication of chirped fiber Bragg gratings by simple combination of stretching movements. Optical Fiber Technology, 14(1), 49-53. doi:10.1016/j.yofte.2007.07.00

Capsicum spp. and the antifungal potential of capsaicinoids as safeguards for agri-food production

In recent years, cases of pathogenic fungi in agricultural crops and in animals, including humans, are growing (Paziani et al., 2020; Costa et al., 2022). Many of these pathogenic fungi are resistant to the commonly used antifungals. This scenario has created a need for new effective antifungals, particularly those based on eco-friendly approaches, such as plant secondary metabolites (e.g. capsaicinoids from Capsicum species) (Costa et al., 2022). The American Phytopathological Society recognises a biofungicide as a naturally based biochemical product that must contain naturally-occurring substances (McGrath, 2004). The use of pepper pod extracts for the production of biofungicide has been proposed in the literature (Costa et al., 2022). As a natural compound, capsaicinoids and their analogues are much less dangerous than commercial synthetic fungicides. Biofungicides present a low risk for environmental health. They could be applied in different stages of agricultural production without putting workers and the environment at health risk. In addition, since biofungicides are based on non-recalcitrant molecules, there is expected no risk of contaminating soil and groundwater. In this context, the use of natural compounds is directly related with the One Health approach, which tries to find a balance among people, animals and the environments health (World Health Organization, 2023). In fact, capsaicinoids compounds has been characterised as antifungal molecules. Capsaicinoids-based biofungicides could have the potential to improve food safety, nutritional value and overcome antimicrobial resistance, with less associated health risk. Beneficial characteristics of capsaicinoids include the demonstrated fungicidal and fungistatic activities of pure Capsicum extracts and purified capsaicinoids (Soumya and Nair, 2012; Costa et al., 2022). These molecules can be used to control the growth of pathogenic fungi in plant crops and as ecological alternatives for pest management. This work aims to review the use of pepper pod extracts, rich in capsaicinoid compounds, as a strategy for safeguarding of agrifood production. The advantages and limitations, for environmental health, of using capsaicinoids-based biofungicides will be presented and discussed in this work.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A new class of semiclassical wave function uniformizations

We present a new semiclassical technique which relies on replacing complicated classical manifold structure with simpler manifolds, which are then evaluated by the usual semiclassical rules. Under circumstances where the original manifold structure gives poor or useless results semiclassically the replacement manifolds can yield remarkable accuracy. We give several working examples to illustrate the theory presented here.Comment: 12 pages (incl. 12 figures

Cirugía percutánea de la litiasis renal en la era de la litotripsia extracorpórea: Experiencia en 301 pacientes

Indexación: ScieloIntroduction: Percutaneous renal surgery was introduced more than 20 years ago in urological practice. Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy (ESWL) enter the urological scene shortly after. Our objective is to show our experience in percutaneous renal surgery after the introduction of the ESWL in our institution. Material and Methods: Surgical outcomes of 301 patients who underwent percutaneous renal surgery as treatment of renal stones were analyzed. This series begins just before the introduction of ESWL in our unit. Results: Renal pelvis was the most frequent localization with 142 cases (47.2%). There were 51 patients with straghorn calculi. 255 (84.7%) were stone free after one single procedure. Residual fragments were managed with many methods, until only 16 patients (5.4%) had residual fragments. Complications occurred in 26 patients (8.9%). There was no mortality. Conclusions: Percutaneous surgery is an important tool in the management of renal stones. In general, renal stones managed with this procedure, are more complex, however the achievement of good results is possible.La cirugía percutánea (CP) de la litiasis renal fue introducida en la urología hace más de 20 años. Poco después lo hizo la litotripsia extracorpórea (LEC). Nuestro objetivo es mostrar la experiencia en CP luego de la introducción de la LEC en nuestro servicio. Material y Métodos: Se analizan en forma retrospectiva los resultados de 301 pacientes operados por CP por litiasis renal. La serie comienza con la adquisición de un litotriptor extracorpóreo en nuestro servicio. Resultados: La localización más frecuente fue la pelvis renal con 142 casos (47,2%). Se observó litiasis coraliforme en 51 pacientes. Doscientos cincuenta y cinco (84,7%), quedaron libres de litiasis con un procedimiento. La litiasis residual fue tratada con diversos métodos, para un total final de 16 pacientes con fragmentos residuales (5,4%). Ocurrieron complicaciones en 26 pacientes (8,9%). No hubo mortalidad. Conclusiones: La cirugía percutánea de la litiasis renal es un procedimiento que debe formar parte importante en la resolución de la litiasis renal. En general las litiasis tratadas son más complejas, sin embargo, los resultados son excelentes.http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0718-40262010000500013&nrm=is

Evaluation of lipid extraction methods from Antarctic filamentous fungi

Purpose: The benefits of natural compounds have been studied for decades for the development of new technologies to answer the global change challenges. In order to develop these new technologies, lipids represent a great class of bioactive molecules. However, the research on lipids and their applications still present gaps about new sources as well as on the extraction methods. Filamentous fungi found in Antarctic territory could represent a new source of novel bioactive lipids. Currently Folch, Bligh & Dyer and Lewis methods are the most widely employed for extraction of lipid from different sample types. Nonetheless, choosing a single extraction method as the gold standard could represent a limitation, especially when the microorganism has not been studied yet. Taking the above into consideration, the main objective of the present study was to evaluate the best extraction method to obtain lipids from different Antarctic filamentous fungal genera. Material and methods: Three isolates of Antarctic fungi belonging to each genus: Mucor, Mortierella, Cladosporium, Penicillium and Pseudogymnoascus isolates from Fildes Bay, Antarctica, were evaluated. A total of 15 isolates were assessed. Folch, Bligh & Dyer and Lewis extraction method were performed. Extraction was monitored by recording spectra of FT-IR spectroscopy of the biomass before and after lipid extraction. Results: Folch was the best method to obtain lipids from filamentous Antarctic fungi, followed by Lewis extraction. Among the three extraction methods evaluated, Bligh & Dyer was the method that presented the lowest yield, compared to Folch and Lewis for each genus and strain. Strains of the genera Mortierella and Mucor were the ones that showed the best performance for the Folch and Lewis methods. The three Penicillium isolates were the third group with the best lipids yield for the Folch method. The strains of genera Cladosporium and Pseudogymnoascus showed better yields for the Lewis method. Conclusions: In this study it was observed that the lipids yield varies according to the extraction methods, as well as both the fungal isolate and fungal genus. Depending on the purpose and fungi taxa, to obtain lipids from Antarctic fungi Folch or Lewis extraction methods are recommended.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Nefrectomía simple laparoscópica NOTES y LESS con el uso de instrumentos laparoscópicos estándar: Experiencia inicial en 3 casos

Indexación: ScieloIntroduction: Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) and Laparoendoscopic Single Site Surgery (LESS) are emerging technologies, which allows to performed surgical procedures avoiding any surgical scars. However there are some problems due to the lack of equipment available for these procedures. The aim of these study is to present our initial experience with the transvaginal nephrectomy NOTES and LESS using standard laparoscopic instruments. Material and Methods: Two female patients (23 and 26 years old) with diagnosis of recurrent urinary tract infection and renal atrophy. A laparoscopic simple nephrectomy with transvaginal NOTES assistance was performed, using one access port for the camera and two abdominal work ports of 10 and 3mm. In a third patient (15 years old) a transumbilical LESS nephrectomy was preformed with the use of standard laparoscopic instruments. Results: Average operative time was 110 min (40-200), with an estimated blood loss of 200 cc. There were no perioperative complications and all patients were discharged 36 hours after surgery. Conclusion: Laparoscopic simple nephrectomy with transvaginal NOTES assistance and LESS are technically feasible with the use of standard laparoscopic instruments. Special access trocars and instruments development for this procedure will allow to performed a pure technique without the use of abdominal incisions.http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0718-40262010000300016&nrm=is

Chaos and Quantum Thermalization

We show that a bounded, isolated quantum system of many particles in a specific initial state will approach thermal equilibrium if the energy eigenfunctions which are superposed to form that state obey {\it Berry's conjecture}. Berry's conjecture is expected to hold only if the corresponding classical system is chaotic, and essentially states that the energy eigenfunctions behave as if they were gaussian random variables. We review the existing evidence, and show that previously neglected effects substantially strengthen the case for Berry's conjecture. We study a rarefied hard-sphere gas as an explicit example of a many-body system which is known to be classically chaotic, and show that an energy eigenstate which obeys Berry's conjecture predicts a Maxwell--Boltzmann, Bose--Einstein, or Fermi--Dirac distribution for the momentum of each constituent particle, depending on whether the wave functions are taken to be nonsymmetric, completely symmetric, or completely antisymmetric functions of the positions of the particles. We call this phenomenon {\it eigenstate thermalization}. We show that a generic initial state will approach thermal equilibrium at least as fast as $O(\hbar/\Delta)t^{-1}$, where $\Delta$ is the uncertainty in the total energy of the gas. This result holds for an individual initial state; in contrast to the classical theory, no averaging over an ensemble of initial states is needed. We argue that these results constitute a new foundation for quantum statistical mechanics.Comment: 28 pages in Plain TeX plus 2 uuencoded PS figures (included); minor corrections only, this version will be published in Phys. Rev. E; UCSB-TH-94-1

Magnetoplasmonic design rules for active magneto-optics

Light polarization rotators and non-reciprocal optical isolators are essential building blocks in photonics technology. These macroscopic passive devices are commonly based on magneto-optical Faraday and Kerr polarization rotation. Magnetoplasmonics - the combination of magnetism and plasmonics - is a promising route to bring these devices to the nanoscale. We introduce design rules for highly tunable active magnetoplasmonic elements in which we can tailor the amplitude and sign of the Kerr response over a broad spectral range