Rapid and simple viral protein detection by functionalized 2D MoS2/graphene electrochemiluminescence aptasensor

In this work we present the development of an electrochemiluminescence aptasensor based on electrografting molybdenum disulphide nanosheets functionalized with diazonium salt (MoS2–N2+) upon screen-printed electrodes of graphene (SPEs GPH) for viral proteins detection. In brief, this aptasensor consists of SPEs GPH electrografted with MoS2–N2+ and modified with a thiolated aptamer, which can specifically recognize the target protein analyte. In this case, we have used SARS-CoV-2 spike protein as model protein. Electrochemiluminescence detection was performed by using the [Ru(bpy)3]2+/TPRA (tripropylamine) system, which allows the specific detection of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein easily and rapidly with a detection limit of 9.74 fg/mL and a linear range from 32.5 fg/mL to 50.0 pg/mL. Moreover, the applicability of the aptasensor has been confirmed by the detection of the protein directly in human saliva samples. Comparing our device with a traditional saliva antigen test, our aptasensor can detect the spike protein even when the saliva antigen test gives a negative resultCEX2020-001039-

Deep Phenotypic Characterisation of CTCs by Combination of Microfluidic Isolation (IsoFlux) and Imaging Flow Cytometry (ImageStream)

Ines Aznar-Peralta holds a "Garantia Juvenil" fellowship (contract number 8040), and M. Carmen Garrido-Navas has a postdoctoral fellowship funded by the Ministry of Economy, Competitiveness, Enterprises and Universities (DOC_01682).The isolation of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) in colorectal cancer (CRC) mostly relies on the expression of epithelial markers such as EpCAM, and phenotypic characterisation is usually performed under fluorescence microscopy with only one or two additional markers. This limits the ability to detect different CTC subpopulations based on multiple markers. The aim of this work was to develop a novel protocol combining two platforms (IsoFluxTM and ImageStream®X) to improve CTC evaluation. Cancer cell lines and peripheral blood from healthy donors were used to evaluate the efficiency of each platform independently and in combination. Peripheral blood was extracted from 16 early CRC patients (before loco-regional surgery) to demonstrate the suitability of the protocol for CTC assessment. Additionally, peripheral blood was extracted from nine patients one month after surgery to validate the utility of our protocol for identifying CTC subpopulation changes over time. Results: Our protocol had a mean recovery efficiency of 69.5% and a limit of detection of at least four cells per millilitre. We developed an analysis method to reduce noise from magnetic beads used for CTC isolation. CTCs were isolated from CRC patients with a median of 37 CTCs (IQ 13.0–85.5) at baseline. CTCs from CRC patients were significantly (p < 0.0001) larger than cytokeratin (CK)-negative cells, and patients were stratified into two groups based on BRAFV600E and PD-L1 expression on CK-positive cells. The changes observed over time included not only the number of CTCs but also their distribution into four different subpopulations defined according to BRAFV600E and PD-L1 positivity. We developed a novel protocol for semi-automatic CTC isolation and phenotypic characterisation by combining two platforms. Assessment of CTCs from early CRC patients using our protocol allowed the identification of two clusters of patients with changing phenotypes over time."Garantia Juvenil" fellowship 8040Ministry of Economy, Competitiveness, Enterprises and Universities DOC_0168

Effect of Ethylene-Insensitive Mutation etr2b on Postharvest Chilling Injury in Zucchini Fruit

Zucchini is a vegetable fruit that is very susceptible to postharvest chilling injury, and fruit ethylene production is correlated with chilling injury sensitivity, such that the more tolerant the cultivar, the lower is its ethylene production. It is expected that zucchini fruit with reduced sensitivity to ethylene would have a higher chilling injury tolerance. In this study, we compared the postharvest fruit quality of wild type and ethylene-insensitive mutant etr2b, in which a mutation was identified in the coding region of the ethylene receptor gene CpETR2B. Flowers from homozygous WT (wt/wt), mutant plants in homozygous (etr2b/etr2b) and heterozygous (wt/etr2b) were hand-pollinated, and all fruits were harvested with the same length, at about 8 days after pollination. After harvesting, fruit of each genotype was randomly divided in 3 batches of 12 fruits each (four replications with three fruits each), and then stored at 4 °C and 95% RH. At 0, 7, and 14 days after cold storage, each batch was used to assess ethylene production, respiration rate, weight and firmness loss, chilling injury, and oxidative stress metabolites. The results showed a lower chilling injury associated with lower cold-induced ethylene production in the mutant fruit, in comparison with the WT fruit. These data demonstrated that the ethylene-insensitive etr2b mutant fruit was more tolerant to chilling injury, confirming that basal ethylene in the still undamaged fruit could function as a modulator of post-harvest chilling injury. Moreover, the higher chilling tolerance of the etr2b mutant fruit was not associated with MDA content, but was concomitant with a reduction in the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide in the refrigerated mutant fruit

Criterios de ordenación temporal de las intervenciones quirúrgicas en patología cardiovascular y endovascular adquirida. Versión 2022

Waiting list management of cardiac surgical procedures is a main concern for all the Spanish autonomic health systems and for our scientific Society. The first statement for optimal timing of patients waiting for cardiac surgery was published in 2000. Since then, after significant changes in the management of some pathologies, new normative frameworks and the current healthcare situation, a review of the timing criteria to offer an adequate and updated standard of care is needed. In this document we aim to review the available literature in the field and stablish a consensus within a working group of the Spanish Society of Cardiovascular and Endovascular Surgery to optimize the priority recommendations in cardiac surgical waiting lists in our country. (c) 2022 Sociedad Espanola de Cirugia Cardiovascular y Endovascular. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/ riccuses/by-nc-nri/4.0/)

Aproximación a la checklist de los gipsófitos ibéricos

Approximation to the Iberian gypsophytes checklist. The close relationship between some kinds of soils and the flora growing on them has been long known. Gypsum soils stand as a prominent example of this relationship, since some plants exclusively grow on gypsum outcrops. Nowadays this close relationship is known as gypsophily and the plant species exhibiting it are called gypsophytes. As Cavanilles already found out in the 18th century, the Iberian flora is rich in gypsophytes. From then on many botanists have considerably enlarged the list of gypsophytes. However we still lack a more or less conclusive catalogue of the Iberian gypsophytes. Only some publications dealing with the gypsum flora or vegetation may serve as references for the drafting of a preliminary catalogue. This idea has recently inspired a preliminary list of gypsophytes which has been later enlarged with the addition of new species recorded now and then in a number of specific Floras and other works of a general scope. On the basis of this list, 12 botanists adept at gypsum flora have been asked to rank the liking of these species for gypsum soils. The gypsophilous character of 140 species have been thus ranked on a scale ranging from 1 to 5 (with 5 representing an absolute liking for gypsum soils). According to the median values, some 50 species can be considered as either absolute or preferent gypsophytes

Implementación de gestores del conocimiento en la escritura académica: alcance y límites

Panorámica sobre la elaboración, escritura y defensa de trabajos académicos con gestores bibliográficos, señalando su alcance, y sobre todo, sus límites

A primary healthcare information intervention for communicating cardiovascular risk to patients with poorly controlled hypertension: The Education and Coronary Risk Evaluation (Educore) study-A pragmatic, cluster-randomized trial

PURPOSE: Uncertainty exists regarding the best way to communicate cardiovascular risk (CVR) to patients, and it is unclear whether the comprehension and perception of CVR varies according to the format used. The aim of the present work was to determine whether a strategy designed for communicating CVR information to patients with poorly controlled high blood pressure (HBP), but with no background of cardiovascular disease, was more effective than usual care in the control of blood pressure (BP) over the course of a year. METHODS: A pragmatic, two-arm, cluster-randomized controlled trial was performed. Consecutive patients aged 40-65 years, all diagnosed with HBP in the last 12 months, and all of whom showed poor control of their condition (systolic BP ≥140 mmHg and/or diastolic BP ≥90 mmHg), were recruited at 22 primary healthcare centres. Eleven centres were randomly assigned to the usual care arm, and 11 to the informative intervention arm (Educore arm). At the start of the study, the Educore arm subjects were shown the "low risk SCORE table", along with impacting images and information pamphlets encouraging the maintenance of good cardiovascular health. The main outcome variable measured was the control of HBP; the secondary outcome variables were SCORE table score, total plasma cholesterol concentration, use of tobacco, adherence to prescribed treatment, and quality of life. RESULTS: The study participants were 411 patients (185 in the Educore arm and 226 in the usual care arm). Multilevel logistic regression showed that, at 12 months, the Educore intervention achieved better control of HBP (OR = 1.57; 1.02 to 2.41). No statistically significant differences were seen between the two arms at 12 months with respect to the secondary outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Compared to usual care, the Educore intervention was associated with better control of HBP after adjusting for age, baseline SBP and plasma cholesterol, at 12 months.This study was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation via the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Subprograma de Proyectos de Investigación en Evaluación de Tecnologías Sanitarias y Servicios de Salud (PI 09/90354), and the Fundación de Investigación e Innovación Biomédica en Atención Primaria (FIIBAP). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscriptS