De los afectos

The ongoing research with choreographer Juan Carlos Garcia and his company, Lanonima Imperial, is based Oil a continual dialogue about the body in space and its dialogue with electronic timebased media. In each iteration or new production we work to extend and advance this relational knowledge set building. Most productions arc shown between 10 and 20 venues across Europe, allowing for further refinement within the production cycle. Projects are extensively workshopped and previewed in small theatres before opening. Innovative ideas, new techniques and combinations of custom software solutions, interactive systems, robotics and new display technologies allow us to create new mediated spaces. Through the refinement and re-Interpretation of existing technologies and a reflective approach to an eleven year collaboration, we have made significant conceptual advances in the use of media on stage and the usc of the body as machine interface. In this work the research focused on the framing of nature through video and technical solutions regarding the kinetic movements of display systems, based on content and spatial location. 5 channels x 80 minutes video

La Mar de Formas

The ongoing research with choreographer Juan Carlos Garcia and his company Lanonima Imperial is based on a continual dialogue about the body in space and its dialogue with electronic time-based media. In each iteration or new production we work to extend and advance this relational knowledge set building. Most productions are shown between 10 and 20 venues across Europe allowing for further refinement within the production cycle. Projects are extensively workshopped and previewed in small theatres before opening. Innovative ideas, new techniques and combinations of custom software solutions, interactive systems, robotics and new display technologies allow us to create new mediated spaces. Through the refinement and re-interpretation of existing technologies and a reflective approach to an eleven-year collaboration, we have made significant conceptual advances in the use of media on stage and the use of the body as machine interface. "The pure forms of knowledge are science, art and revelation, or rather, beliefs. The scientific method is used to deal with ideas but not to have new ideas. That is why the scientist has to be aware of art, of its capacity for intuition." (Prof. Wagensberg) In collaboration with Jorge Wagensberg, Professor for Theory of Irreversible Processes (University of Barcelona), the work engaged in a dialogue between mediated representation, dance and scientific thought in order to both advance and give meaning to the production, but also to provoke new ideas about the science of forms

1-3 Piezocomposite design optimised for high frequency kerfless transducer arrays

Piezocomposites that can operate at frequencies above 30 MHz without spurious modes are required in order to develop sufficiently sensitive high frequency arrays for high resolution imaging. However, scaling down of conventional piezocomposite fabrication techniques becomes increasingly difficult as dimensions decrease with increasing frequency. The approach presented here is to use micro-moulded 1-3 piezocomposites and a distribution of piezoelectric segment size and separation. Innovative approaches to composite pattern design, based on a randomized spatial distribution, are presented. Micro-moulding techniques are shown to be suitable for fabricating composites with dimensions required for high frequency composites. Randomized piezocomposite patterns are modeled and are shown to suppress spurious modes

A Cholinergic Synaptically Triggered Event Participates in the Generation of Persistent Activity Necessary for Eye Fixation

An exciting topic regarding integrative properties of the nervous system is how transient motor commands or brief sensory stimuli are able to evoke persistent neuronal changes, mainly as a sustained, tonic action potential firing. A persisting firing seems to be necessary for postural maintenance after a previous movement. We have studied in vitro and in vivo the generation of the persistent neuronal activity responsible for eye fixation after spontaneous eye movements. Rat sagittal brainstem slices were used for the intracellular recording of prepositus hypoglossi (PH) neurons and their synaptic activation from nearby paramedian pontine reticular formation (PPRF) neurons. Single electrical pulses applied to the PPRF showed a monosynaptic glutamatergic projection on PH neurons, acting on AMPA-kainate receptors. Train stimulation of the PPRF area evoked a sustained depolarization of PH neurons exceeding (by hundreds of milliseconds) stimulus duration. Both duration and amplitude of this sustained depolarization were linearly related to train frequency. The train-evoked sustained depolarization was the result of interaction between glutamatergic excitatory burst neurons and cholinergic mesopontine reticular fibers projecting onto PH neurons, because it was prevented by slice superfusion with cholinergic antagonists and mimicked by cholinergic agonists. As expected, microinjections of cholinergic antagonists in the PH nucleus of alert behaving cats evoked a gaze-holding deficit consisting of a re-centering drift of the eye after each saccade. These findings suggest that a slow, cholinergic, synaptically triggered event participates in the generation of persistent activity characteristic of PH neurons carrying eye position signals

Breaking the Rayleigh-Plateau instability limit using thermocavitation within a droplet

We report on the generation of liquid columns that extend far beyond the traditional Rayleigh-Plateau instability onset. The columns are driven by the acoustic pressure wave emitted after bubble collapse. A high-speed video imaging device, which records images at a rate of up to 105 fps, was employed to follow their dynamics. These bubbles, commonly termed thermocavitation bubbles, are generated by focusing a midpower (275 mW) continuous wavelength laser into a highly absorbing liquid droplet. A simple model of the propagation of the pressure wavefront emitted after the bubble collapse shows that focusing the pressure wave at the liquid-air interface drives the evolution of the liquid columns. Control over the aspect ratio of the liquid column is realized by adjusting the cavitation bubble's size, beam focus position, and droplet volume. © 2013 by Begell House, Inc

Development of a species-specific coproantigen ELISA for human taenia solium taeniasis

Taenia solium causes human neurocysticercosis and is endemic in underdeveloped countries where backyard pig keeping is common. Microscopic fecal diagnostic methods for human T. solium taeniasis are not very sensitive, and Taenia saginata and Taenia solium eggs are indistinguishable under the light microscope. Coproantigen (CoAg) ELISA methods are very sensitive, but currently only genus (Taenia) specific. This paper describes the development of a highly species-specific coproantigen ELISA test to detect T. solium intestinal taeniasis. Sensitivity was maintained using a capture antibody of rabbit IgG against T. solium adult whole worm somatic extract, whereas species specificity was achieved by utilization of an enzyme-conjugated rabbit IgG against T. solium adult excretory-secretory (ES) antigen. A known panel of positive and negative human fecal samples was tested with this hybrid sandwich ELISA. The ELISA test gave 100% specificity and 96.4% sensitivity for T. solium tapeworm carriers (N = 28), with a J index of 0.96. This simple ELISA incorporating anti-adult somatic and anti-adult ES antibodies provides the first potentially species-specific coproantigen test for human T. solium taeniasis

Beta-blockers to prevent gastroesophageal varices in patients with cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND: Nonselective beta-adrenergic blockers decrease portal pressure and prevent variceal hemorrhage. Their effectiveness in preventing varices is unknown. METHODS: We randomly assigned 213 patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension (minimal hepatic venous pressure gradient [HVPG] of 6 mm Hg) to receive timolol, a nonselective beta-blocker (108 patients), or placebo (105 patients). The primary end point was the development of gastroesophageal varices or variceal hemorrhage. Endoscopy and HVPG measurements were repeated yearly. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 54.9 months, the rate of the primary end point did not differ significantly between the timolol group and the placebo group (39 percent and 40 percent, respectively; P=0.89), nor were there significant differences in the rates of ascites, encephalopathy, liver transplantation, or death. Serious adverse events were more common among patients in the timolol group than among those in the placebo group (18 percent vs. 6 percent, P=0.006). Varices developed less frequently among patients with a baseline HVPG of less than 10 mm Hg and among those in whom the HVPG decreased by more than 10 percent at one year and more frequently among those in whom the HVPG increased by more than 10 percent at one year. CONCLUSIONS: Nonselective beta-blockers are ineffective in preventing varices in unselected patients with cirrhosis and portal hypertension and are associated with an increased number of adverse events. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00006398.

Mitochondria and the NLRP3 Inflammasome in Alcoholic and Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis

Alcoholic (ASH) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are advanced stages of fatty liver disease and two of the most prevalent forms of chronic liver disease. ASH and NASH are associated with significant risk of further progression to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common type of liver cancer, and a major cause of cancer-related mortality. Despite extensive research and progress in the last decades to elucidate the mechanisms of the development of ASH and NASH, the pathogenesis of both diseases is still poorly understood. Mitochondrial damage and activation of inflammasome complexes have a role in inducing and sustaining liver damage. Mitochondrial dysfunction produces inflammatory factors that activate the inflammasome complexes. NLRP3 inflammasome (nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein 3) is a multiprotein complex that activates caspase 1 and the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-1? (IL-1?) and interleukin-18 (IL-18), and contributes to inflammatory pyroptotic cell death. The present review, which is part of the issue "Mitochondria in Liver Pathobiology", provides an overview of the role of mitochondrial dysfunction and NLRP3 activation in ASH and NASH

Controllable direction of liquid jets generated by thermocavitation within a droplet.

A high-velocity fluid stream ejected from an orifice or nozzle is a common mechanism to produce liquid jets in inkjet printers or to produce sprays among other applications. In the present research, we show the generation of liquid jets of controllable direction produced within a sessile water droplet by thermocavitation. The jets are driven by an acoustic shock wave emitted by the collapse of a hemispherical vapor bubble at the liquid-solid/substrate interface. The generated shock wave is reflected at the liquid-air interface due to acoustic impedance mismatch generating multiple reflections inside the droplet. During each reflection, a force is exerted on the interface driving the jets. Depending on the position of the generation of the bubble within the droplet, the mechanical energy of the shock wave is focused on different regions at the liquid-air interface, ejecting cylindrical liquid jets at different angles. The ejected jet angle dependence is explained by a simple ray tracing model of the propagation of the acoustic shock wave inside the droplet

Flexible temperature sensor integration into e-textiles using different industrial yarn fabrication processes

Textiles enhanced with thin-film flexible sensors are well-suited for unobtrusive monitoring of skin parameters due to the sensors’ high conformability. These sensors can be damaged if they are attached to the surface of the textile, also affecting the textiles’ aesthetics and feel. We investigate the effect of embedding flexible temperature sensors within textile yarns, which adds a layer of protection to the sensor. Industrial yarn manufacturing techniques including knit braiding, braiding, and double covering were utilised to identify an appropriate incorporation technique. The thermal time constants recorded by all three sensing yarns was <10 s. Simultaneously, effective sensitivity only decreased by a maximum of 14% compared to the uncovered sensor. This is due to the sensor being positioned within the yarn instead of being in direct contact with the measured surface. These sensor yarns were not affected by bending and produced repeatable measurements. The double covering method was observed to have the least impact on the sensors’ performance due to the yarn’s smaller dimensions. Finally, a sensing yarn was incorporated in an armband and used to measure changes in skin temperature. The demonstrated textile integration techniques for flexible sensors using industrial yarn manufacturing processes enable large-scale smart textile fabrication