Spinal cord injury-induced cognitive impairment: a narrative review

Spinal cord injury is a serious damage to the spinal cord that can lead to life-long disability. Based on its etiology, spinal cord injury can be classified as traumatic or non-traumatic spinal cord injury. Furthermore, the pathology of spinal cord injury can be divided into two phases, a primary injury phase, and a secondary injury phase. The primary spinal cord injury phase involves the initial mechanical injury in which the physical force of impact is directly imparted to the spinal cord, disrupting blood vessels, axons, and neural cell membranes. After the primary injury, a cascade of secondary events begins, expanding the zone of neural tissue damage, and exacerbating neurological deficits. Secondary injury is a progressive condition characterized by pro-inflammatory cytokines, reactive oxygen species, oxidative damage, excitatory amino acids such as glutamate, loss of ionic homeostasis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cell death. This secondary phase lasts for several weeks or months and can be further subdivided into acute, subacute, and chronic. One of the most frequent and devastating complications developed among the spinal cord injury population is cognitive impairment. The risk of cognitive decline after spinal cord injury has been reported to be 13 times higher than in healthy individuals. The exact etiology of this neurological complication remains unclear, however, many factors have been proposed as potential contributors to the development of this disorder, such as concomitant traumatic brain injury, hypoxia, anoxia, autonomic dysfunction, sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea, body temperature dysregulation, alcohol abuse, and certain drugs. This review focuses on a deep understanding of the pathophysiology of spinal cord injury and its relationship to cognitive impairment. We highlight the main mechanisms that lead to the development of this neurological complication in patients with spinal cord injury

El ácido salicílico aumenta la acumulación de macroy micronutrientes en chile habanero

Abstract The results of the effect of salicylic acid (AS) on the nutritional absorption of Capsicum chinense are presented. 1 μM of AS was sprayed on the canopy of habanero pepper seedlings and distilled water as control. The results obtained show that aspersions of 1μM of salicylic acid (SA) significantly increase the length, weight, weight and dry weight of roots, stems, leaves and fruits of this species, as well as the levels of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) ) and potassium (K) in the different organs of the plants at the time of harvest. The accumulation of N, P and K was higher in fruits (116, 110 and 97%), leaves (45.5, 39.4 and 29.1%), root (52.6, 17.0 and 29.4%) and in stem (5, 39.4 and 28.3%) on the values of the control plant. The levels of copper, zinc, manganese, iron, boron, calcium and magnesium were also increased in most tissues by the effect of AS. It is proposed that the positive effect of the AS of increasing the size of the roots favors the absorption and accumulation of macro and micronutrients in the tissues of the plant.Resumen Se presentan los resultados del efecto del ácido salicílico (AS) en la absorción nutrimental de Capsicum chinense. Se asperjó 1 µM de AS, al dosel de plántulas de chile habanero y agua destilada como control. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran que aspersiones de 1µM de ácido salicílico(AS) incrementa significativamente la longitud, peso freso y peso seco de raíces, tallos, hojas y frutos de esta especie, al igual que los niveles de nitrógeno (N), fósforo (P) y potasio (K) en los diferentes órganos de las plantas al momento de la cosecha. La acumulación de N, P y K fue superior en frutos (116, 110 y 97%), hojas (45.5, 39.4 y 29.1%) raíz (52.6, 17 y 29.4%) y en tallo (5, 39.4 y 28.3%) sobre los valores de la planta control. Los niveles de cobre, zinc, manganeso, hierro, boro, calcio y magnesio también fueron incrementados en la mayoría de los tejidos por el efecto del AS. Se propone que el efecto positivo del AS de incrementar el tamaño de las raíces favorece la absorción y acumulación de macro y micronutrientes en los tejidos de la planta

Structural Diversity and Argentophilic Interactions in Small Phosphine Silver(I) Thiolate Clusters

10 pags., 5 figs., 4 tabs.Silver(I) coordination compounds display an interesting geometrical diversity, the possibility of having distinct coordination numbers (typically from 2 to 4) and the capability of forming argentophilic (Ag⋅⋅⋅Ag) interactions. These properties complicate the accurate prediction of structures of silver complexes under certain experimental conditions. In this work, we show how subtle modifications in thiolate and phosphine ligands exert important effects on the nuclearity and geometry of phosphine caped clusters [Ag(SR)] (n=4, 6 and 8). We rationalize these effects in terms of the electronic environment of silver centers by analyzing the electronic density of the single-crystal X-ray structures via the Quantum Theory of Atoms in Molecules (QTAIM) and the Non-Covalent Interaction (NCI)-Index. Furthermore, we characterized attractive and repulsive argentophilic contacts by means of the Interacting Quantum Atoms (IQA) energy partition. Our results provide insights on the effects of ancillary ligands in controlling the structure of silver-thiolate clusters. Such control is relevant towards a bottom-up approach to the atomic precise construction of higher nuclearity clusters.We acknowledge fundingby DGAPA-UNAM project IN210818,andby CONACYT-Mexico through the postdoctoral grant 740732. We are also thankful for the instrumental support of the Unit for Industryand Research Support (USAII)at the School of Chemistry at UNAM, Mexico and for the computer time provided by DGTIC/UNAMproject LANCAD-DGTIC-UNAM-250.G.M.-A acknowledges the RSC-Chemists’CommunityFund suppor

Yield and fruit quality of industrial tomato under saline irrigation Rendimento e qualidade de fruto do tomate tipo industrial sob irrigação salina

Industrial tomato is the most important vegetable crop of the Brazilian agribusiness. Few researches have evaluated the tolerance of this crop to saline stress. In this study, the effects of five levels of salinity of the irrigation water (1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 dS m-1) and two equivalent proportions of Na:Ca:Mg (1:1:0.5 and 7:1:0.5) were tested on yield and quality of fruits of industrial tomato, cultivar IPA 6. Seedlings were transplanted in rhizotrons and grown under plastic covering until fruit ripening. Volume of water for daily irrigations was determined by the difference between the applied and drained volume in the previous irrigation. Unitary increase of water salinity above 1 dS m-1 reduced the commercial and total yield by 11.9 and 11.0%, respectively, and increased the concentration of soluble solids and the titratable acidity of the fruits by 13.9 and 9.4%, respectively. The increase of the proportion of sodium reduced the total and marketable yield, the number of marketable fruits and pulp yield. Water of moderate salinity, with low concentration of sodium, can be used in the irrigation of the industrial tomato, without significant yield losses.<br>O tomate para processamento industrial é a hortaliça mais importante da agroindústria brasileira. Poucas pesquisas têm sido desenvolvidas para avaliar a tolerância da cultura ao estresse salino. Neste estudo, foram testados os efeitos de cinco níveis de salinidade da água de irrigação (1, 2, 3, 4 e 5 dS m-1) e duas proporções equivalentes de Na:Ca:Mg (1:1:0,5 e 7:1:0,5) sobre a produção e a qualidade dos frutos de tomateiro tipo industrial, cultivar IPA 6. As mudas foram transplantadas em rhizotrons e o cultivo foi conduzido sob cobertura plástica até a maturação dos frutos. O volume de água necessário para irrigações diárias foi determinado pela diferença entre o volume aplicado e o drenado na irrigação anterior. O aumento unitário da salinidade da água acima de 1 dS m-1 reduziu a produção comercial e total em 11,9 e 11,0%, respectivamente, e aumentou a concentração de sólidos solúveis e a acidez titulável dos frutos em 13,9 e 9,4%, respectivamente. O aumento da proporção de sódio resultou em redução da produção total e comercial, do número de frutos comerciais e do rendimento de polpa. Águas de salinidade moderada, com baixa concentração de sódio, podem ser utilizadas na irrigação do tomateiro industrial, sem perdas de rendimento no processamento