The Risk of Contracting COVID-19 Is Not Increased in Patients With Celiac Disease

The World Health Organization declared coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) a global pandemic in March 2020. Since then, there are more than 34 million cases of COVID-19 leading to more than 1 million deaths worldwide. Numerous studies suggest that celiac disease (CeD), a chronic immune-mediated gastrointestinal condition triggered by gluten, is associated with an increased risk of respiratory infections.1-3 However, how it relates to the risk of COVID-19 is unknown. To address this gap, we conducted a cross-sectional study to evaluate whether patients with self-reported CeD are at an increased risk of contracting COVID-19

Discovery and Characterization of ZUFSP/ZUP1, a Distinct Deubiquitinase Class Important for Genome Stability

Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) are important regulators of ubiquitin signaling. Here, we report the discovery of deubiquitinating activity in ZUFSP/C6orf113. High-resolution crystal structures of ZUFSP in complex with ubiquitin reveal several distinctive features of ubiquitin recognition and catalysis. Our analyses reveal that ZUFSP is a novel DUB with no homology to any known DUBs, leading us to classify ZUFSP as the seventh DUB family. Intriguingly, the minimal catalytic domain does not cleave polyubiquitin. We identify two ubiquitin binding domains in ZUFSP: a ZHA (ZUFSP helical arm) that binds to the distal ubiquitin and an atypical UBZ domain in ZUFSP that binds to polyubiquitin. Importantly, both domains are essential for ZUFSP to selectively cleave K63-linked polyubiquitin. We show that ZUFSP localizes to DNA lesions, where it plays an important role in genome stability pathways, functioning to prevent spontaneous DNA damage and also promote cellular survival in response to exogenous DNA damage. </p

LSST Science Book, Version 2.0

A survey that can cover the sky in optical bands over wide fields to faint magnitudes with a fast cadence will enable many of the exciting science opportunities of the next decade. The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) will have an effective aperture of 6.7 meters and an imaging camera with field of view of 9.6 deg^2, and will be devoted to a ten-year imaging survey over 20,000 deg^2 south of +15 deg. Each pointing will be imaged 2000 times with fifteen second exposures in six broad bands from 0.35 to 1.1 microns, to a total point-source depth of r~27.5. The LSST Science Book describes the basic parameters of the LSST hardware, software, and observing plans. The book discusses educational and outreach opportunities, then goes on to describe a broad range of science that LSST will revolutionize: mapping the inner and outer Solar System, stellar populations in the Milky Way and nearby galaxies, the structure of the Milky Way disk and halo and other objects in the Local Volume, transient and variable objects both at low and high redshift, and the properties of normal and active galaxies at low and high redshift. It then turns to far-field cosmological topics, exploring properties of supernovae to z~1, strong and weak lensing, the large-scale distribution of galaxies and baryon oscillations, and how these different probes may be combined to constrain cosmological models and the physics of dark energy.Comment: 596 pages. Also available at full resolution at http://www.lsst.org/lsst/sciboo

Coadministration of the Three Antigenic Leishmania infantum Poly (A) Binding Proteins as a DNA Vaccine Induces Protection against Leishmania major Infection in BALB/c Mice

Highly conserved intracellular proteins from Leishmania have been described as antigens in natural and experimental infected mammals. The present study aimed to evaluate the antigenicity and prophylactic properties of the Leishmania infantum Poly (A) binding proteins (LiPABPs). Three different members of the LiPABP family have been described. Recombinant tools based on these proteins were constructed: recombinant proteins and DNA vaccines. The three recombinant proteins were employed for coating ELISA plates. Sera from human and canine patients of visceral leishmaniasis and human patients of mucosal leishmaniasis recognized the three LiPABPs. In addition, the protective efficacy of a DNA vaccine based on the combination of the three Leishmania PABPs has been tested in a model of progressive murine leishmaniasis: BALB/c mice infected with Leishmania major. The induction of a Th1-like response against the LiPABP family by genetic vaccination was able to down-regulate the IL-10 predominant responses elicited by parasite LiPABPs after infection in this murine model. This modulation resulted in a partial protection against L. major infection. LiPABP vaccinated mice showed a reduction on the pathology that was accompanied by a decrease in parasite burdens, in antibody titers against Leishmania antigens and in the IL-4 and IL-10 parasite-specific mediated responses in comparison to control mice groups immunized with saline or with the non-recombinant plasmid. The results presented here demonstrate for the first time the prophylactic properties of a new family of Leishmania antigenic intracellular proteins, the LiPABPs. The redirection of the immune response elicited against the LiPABP family (from IL-10 towards IFN-γ mediated responses) by genetic vaccination was able to induce a partial protection against the development of the disease in a highly susceptible murine model of leishmaniasisThe study was supported in Spain by grants from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación FIS PI11/00095 and FISPI14/00366 from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III within the Network of TropicalDiseases Research (VI P I+D+I 2008-2011, ISCIII -Subdirección General de Redes y Centros de Investigación Cooperativa (RD12/0018/0009)). This work was also supported in Brazil by a grant from CNPq (Ciencia sem Fronteiras-PVE 300174/2014-4). A CBMSO institutional grant from Fundación Ramón Areces is also acknowledged. EAFC is a grant recipient of CNPq. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscrip

Predictive Power of the "Trigger Tool" for the detection of adverse events in general surgery: a multicenter observational validation study

Background In spite of the global implementation of standardized surgical safety checklists and evidence-based practices, general surgery remains associated with a high residual risk of preventable perioperative complications and adverse events. This study was designed to validate the hypothesis that a new “Trigger Tool” represents a sensitive predictor of adverse events in general surgery. Methods An observational multicenter validation study was performed among 31 hospitals in Spain. The previously described “Trigger Tool” based on 40 specific triggers was applied to validate the predictive power of predicting adverse events in the perioperative care of surgical patients. A prediction model was used by means of a binary logistic regression analysis. Results The prevalence of adverse events among a total of 1,132 surgical cases included in this study was 31.53%. The “Trigger Tool” had a sensitivity and specificity of 86.27% and 79.55% respectively for predicting these adverse events. A total of 12 selected triggers of overall 40 triggers were identified for optimizing the predictive power of the “Trigger Tool”. Conclusions The “Trigger Tool” has a high predictive capacity for predicting adverse events in surgical procedures. We recommend a revision of the original 40 triggers to 12 selected triggers to optimize the predictive power of this tool, which will have to be validated in future studies

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

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Trichothecene genotypes and production profiles of Fusarium graminearum isolates obtained from barley cultivated in Argentina

Fusarium graminearumis one of the most important pathogens isolated from small cereal grains with Fusarium Head Blight symptoms. The presence of this fungus is often linked to the occurrence of several mycotoxins in barley and wheat. The aim of our study was to characterize trichothecene genotypes and production profiles ofF.graminearum sensu strictoisolates obtained from barley grains in Argentina. A total of 110F.graminearum s.s. isolates were analyzed by PCR assays to predict deoxynivalenol (DON), 15-acetyldeoxynivalenol (15-ADON), 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol (3-ADON) and nivalenol (NIV) production, and all isolates were found to belong to the same molecular 15-ADON genotype. Trichothecene production in autoclaved rice was analyzed by using gas chromatography (GC) and confirmed by GC–MS. Of the 110 isolates, 95% were able to produce DON, 71% produced 15-ADON, 63% 3-ADON and 52% NIV. With the exception of a single isolate, all isolates that produced NIV, also produced DON. However, the NIV production was very low, ranging from 0.13 to 0.30μg/g. Six different production profiles of DON and its acetyl-derivatives were detected, the predominant being simultaneous production of DON, 3-ADON and 15-ADON, followed by DON production, and DON and 15-ADON co-production. This work is the first attempt to characterize the trichothecene genotypes and production profiles ofF.graminearum s.s. isolates from Argentinean barley

Influence of the time of fungicide application in the production of trichothecenes on field inoculated spikes from wheat grown in Argentina

Fusarium graminearum is considered the main causative agent of Fusarium Head Blight in wheat. The fungus produces mycotoxins of the trichothecene family that pose a significant threat to the health of animals and humans. The objective of this work was to analyze the effect of the time of fungicide application on the trichothecene production in 8 inoculated wheat varieties. The fungicide Tebuconazole was applied in two independent stages: immediately after inoculation and after 72 h of the inoculation (infective event derived from 72 h of wetting). The detection of mycotoxins was performed by gas chromatography with electron capture detector and the results were confirmed by gas chromatography coupled to a mass spectrometer. Significant levels of deoxynivalenol were found in all samples and in almost all of them 15 acetyldeoxynivalenol was found in low concentration. Less frequently, 3 acetyldeoxynivalenol was found in higher values. There were not significant differences (p > 0.05) between the time of fungicide application (immediately after inoculation in anthesis and after 72 h) in all wheat varieties studied. The expansion of the fungicide application window for effective control of trichothecenes for 72 h represents an economic advantage for the producer avoiding the use of agrochemicals by preventive applications and minimizing the risk on human health and the environment.Instituto de Investigación de Tecnología de Alimentos (ITA)Fil: Pesquero, Natalia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación Tecnología de Alimentos; Argentina.Fil: Ramirez Albuquerque, Diana. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Y Naturales. Instituto de Micología Y Botánica. Laboratorio de Microbiología de Alimentos; Argentina.Fil: Rojas, Dante Emanuel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación Tecnología de Alimentos; Argentina.Fil: Alberione, Enrique Javier. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Marcos Juarez; Argentina.Fil: Rodriguez, Anabel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación Tecnología de Alimentos; Argentina.Fil: Moschini, Ricardo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación de Clima y Agua; Argentina.Fil: Fernandez Pinto, Virginia. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Y Naturales. Instituto de Micología Y Botánica. Laboratorio de Microbiología de Alimentos; Argentina

Hyperspectral remote sensing monitoring of cyanobacteria blooms in a large South American reservoir: High-and medium-spatial resolution satellite algorithm simulation

We used hyperspectral remote sensing with the aim of establishing a monitoring program for cyanobacteria in South American reservoir. We sampled at a wide temporal (2012-2016, 10 seasons) and spatial (30km) gradient, and retrieved 111 field hyperspectral signatures, chlorophyll-a, cyanobacteria densities, and total suspended solids. The hyperspectral signatures at cyanobacteria dominated situations (n=75) were used for selecting the most suitable spectral bands in 7 high and medium spatial resolution satellites (Sentinel-2, Landsat 5, 7 and8, Spot 4/5 and6/7, WorldView 2), and for the development of chlorophyll and cyanobacteria cell abundance algorithms. The best performing chlorophyll algorithm was Sentinel 2 ((λ_560- λ_660+ λ_703)/(λ_560+ λ_660+ λ_703)) (R2 0.80), followed by WorldView 2 ((λ_550- λ_660+ λ_720)/(λ_550+ λ_660+ λ_720)) (R20.78), Landsat and SPOT series(λ_550- λ_650+ λ_800)/(λ_550+ λ_650+ λ_800) (R2 0.67-0.74). When these models were run for cyanobacteria abundance, the coefficient of determination remained rather similar, but the root mean square increased. This could affect the cyanobacteria cell abundance estimation in about 20%, yet it still allowed assessing the alert level categories for risk assessment. Our results highlight the importance of the red and near infrared region in identifying cyanobacteria in hypereutrophic waters, showed coherence with field cyanobacteria abundance, and allowed assessing bloom distribution in this ecosystem.Fil: Drozd, Andrea Alejandra. Comision Administradora del Rio Uruguay; ArgentinaFil: de Tezanos Pinto, Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Academia Nacional de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez, Virginia. Comision Administradora del Rio Uruguay; ArgentinaFil: Bazzalo, Mariel. Comision Administradora del Rio Uruguay; ArgentinaFil: Bordet, Hugo Facundo. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Internacional y Culto. Comisión Técnica Mixta de Salto Grande; ArgentinaFil: Gómez Santibáñez, Guillermo del Carmen. Comision Nacional de Actividades Espaciales; Argentin