Potential Routes for Thermochemical Biorefineries

This critical review focuses on potential routes for the multi-production of chemicals and fuels in the framework of thermochemical biorefineries. The up-to-date research and development in this field has been limited to BTL/G (biomass-to-liquids/gases) studies, where biomass-derived synthesis gas (syngas) is converted into a single product with/without the co-production of electricity and heat. Simultaneously, the interest on biorefineries is growing but mostly refers to the biochemical processing of biomass. However, thermochemical biorefineries (multi-product plants using thermo-chemical processing of biomass) are still the subject of few studies. This scarcity of studies could be attributed to the limitations of current designs of BTL/G for multi-production and the limited number of considered routes for syngas conversion. The use of a platform chemical (an intermediate) brings new opportunities to the design of process concepts, since unlike BTL/G processes they are not restricted to the conversion of syngas in a single-reaction system. Most of the routes presented here are based on old-fashioned and new routes for the processing of coal- and natural-gas-derived syngas, but they have been re-thought for the use of biomass and the multi-production plants (thermochemical biorefinery). The considered platform chemicals are methanol, DME, and ethanol, which are the common products from syngas in BTL/G studies. Important keys are given for the integration of reviewed routes into the design of thermochemical biorefineries, in particular for the selection of the mix of co-products, as well as for the sustainability (co-feeding, CO2 capture, and negative emissions).Ministerio de Educación FPU Program (AP2010-0119)Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad ENE2012-3159

Metabolic syndrome in an Hispanic population–cardiovascular complications

The metabolic syndrome (MetS) is presently one of the main medical problems in developing countries. This syndrome was studied in Puerto Rico at the Cardiovascular Center of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean with emphasis on understanding the cardiovascular complications. The medical records of patients admitted between 1999 to 2005 were evaluated for three or more MetS diagnostic criteria. One hundred and seventy-three patients met the consensus criteria of metabolic syndrome (MetS). The mean age of those diagnosed with MetS was 60 years of age. Fifty-seven percent were males and 42 percent females. The mean body mass was 30 kg/m. The ejection fraction was found to be subnormal (49±8%) and the end systolic dimension of the left atrium was increased ( 45±10 mm ) in comparison to a group of diabetic patients without MetS used for comparison. The incidence of atrial fibrillation was found to be 16% higher in the MetS group than in the comparison group. The number of cases of metabolic syndrome recorded within the Hispanic population of Puerto Rico showed a higher incidence of atrial fibrillation without ventricular tachycardia. This is thought to be as a result of the abnormal left ventricular and atrial function

Development and application of competitive ELISA assays for rat LH and FSH

Rat LH (rLH) and FSH (rFSH) were measured by sensitive and specific competition ELISAs. The rat LH ELISA used rLH-I-9 coated plates, an antiserum against rLH and an antibody against rabbit IgG labeled with peroxidase. Using rLH-RP-3 as a standard, rat LH was determined by binding of the anti-LH antibody to rLH-I-9 coated plates. The sensitivity of the assay was 0.8 ng/mL. Similarly, the rat FSH-ELISA used rFSH-I-8 coated plates, an antiserum against rFSH and an antibody against rabbit IgG labeled with peroxidase. Using rFSH-RP-3 as a standard, the FSH-ELISA was also determined by binding of the anti-FSH antibody to rFSH-I-8 coated plates. The sensitivity of this assay was 1.25 ng/mL. Both rat LH and FSH ELISA assays are highly specific and provide accurate determination of gonadotrophins in buffers, sera, cell culture media, and anterior pituitary extracts. These assays were used for monitoring the gonadotrophin surge-attenuating factor (GnSAF) and inhibin activities present in human follicular fluid (hFF). The 2 new ELISA procedures have practical advantages (safety, convenience, economy) over the RIA methods, and they perform as well as the RIA techniques at the same range of concentrations. (C) 1999 by Elsevier Science Inc