Quantitative RNA-seq Analysis Unveils Osmotic and Thermal Adaptation Mechanisms Relevant for Ectoine Production in Chromohalobacter salexigens

Quantitative RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and the complementary phenotypic assays were implemented to investigate the transcriptional responses of Chromohalobacter salexigens to osmotic and heat stress. These conditions trigger the synthesis of ectoine and hydroxyectoine, two compatible solutes of biotechnological interest. Our findings revealed that both stresses make a significant impact on C. salexigens global physiology. Apart from compatible solute metabolism, the most relevant adaptation mechanisms were related to “oxidative- and protein-folding- stress responses,” “modulation of respiratory chain and related components,” and “ion homeostasis.” A general salt-dependent induction of genes related to the metabolism of ectoines, as well as repression of ectoine degradation genes by temperature, was observed. Different oxidative stress response mechanisms, secondary or primary, were induced at low and high salinity, respectively, and repressed by temperature. A higher sensitivity to H2O2 was observed at high salinity, regardless of temperature. Low salinity induced genes involved in “protein-folding-stress response,” suggesting disturbance of protein homeostasis. Transcriptional shift of genes encoding three types of respiratory NADH dehydrogenases, ATP synthase, quinone pool, Na+/H+ antiporters, and sodium-solute symporters, was observed depending on salinity and temperature, suggesting modulation of the components of the respiratory chain and additional systems involved in the generation of H+ and/or Na+ gradients. Remarkably, the Na+ intracellular content remained constant regardless of salinity and temperature. Disturbance of Na+- and H+-gradients with specific ionophores suggested that both gradients influence ectoine production, but with differences depending on the solute, salinity, and temperature conditions. Flagellum genes were strongly induced by salinity, and further induced by temperature. However, salt-induced cell motility was reduced at high temperature, possibly caused by an alteration of Na+ permeability by temperature, as dependence of motility on Na+-gradient was observed. The transcriptional induction of genes related to the synthesis and transport of siderophores correlated with a higher siderophore production and intracellular iron content only at low salinity. An excess of iron increased hydroxyectoine accumulation by 20% at high salinity. Conversely, it reduced the intracellular content of ectoines by 50% at high salinity plus high temperature. These findings support the relevance of iron homeostasis for osmoadaptation, thermoadaptation and accumulation of ectoines, in C. salexigens.España Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad BIO2015-63949-RJunta de Andalucía P11-CVI-729

Dietary fatty acids and lipoproteins on progression of age-related macular degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a medical condition of central loss vision and blindness. Numerous studies have revealed that changes on certain dietary fatty acids (FAs) could have useful for AMD management. This review summarizes the effects of dietary omega-3 long-chain PUFAs, MUFAs, and SFAs, and lipoproteins on AMD. Findings are consistent with the beneficial role of dietary omega-3 long-chain PUFAs, while the effects of dietary MUFAs and SFAs appeared to be ambiguous with respect to the possible protection from MUFAs and to the possible adverse impact from SFAs on AMD. Some of the pathological mechanisms associated with lipoproteins on AMD share those observed previously in cardiovascular diseases. It was also noticed that the effects of FAs in the diet and lipoprotein on AMD could be modulated by genetic variants. From a population health perspective, the findings of this review are in favour of omega-3 long-chain FAs recommendations in a preventive and therapeutic regimen to attain lower AMD occurrence and progression rates. Additional long-term and short-term nutrigenomic studies are required to clearly establish the role and the relevance of interaction of dietary FAs, lipoproteins, and genes in the genesis and progression of AMD

Primers resultats del Passaport a la Professió a Farmàcia

Podeu consultar la Vuitena trobada de professorat de Ciències de la Salut completa a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/66524En el curs 2012/13, el deganat de la Facultat de Farmàcia va iniciar una activitat d’orientació professionalanomenada Seminari “Passaport a la Professió” dissenyada conjuntament amb el Servei d’Atenció al’Estudiant de la Universitat de Barcelona i dirigida especialment a l’alumnat interessat en realitzar l’assignatura“Pràctiques en empreses”. Aquesta activitat es va aprovar com a Projecte de Millora i Innovació Docent al’any 2013.En el curs 2012/13, el deganat de la Facultat de Farmàcia va iniciar una activitat d’orientació professional dirigida especialment a l’alumnat interessat en realitzar pràctiques en empreses i anomenada Seminari “Passaport a la Professió-Farmàcia. És un projecte dissenyat amb la implicació de tres agents: la Facultat de Farmàcia, les companyies farmacèutiques i el Servei d’Atenció a l’Estudiant (SAE). Aquesta activitat va gaudir d’un Projecte de Millora i Innovació Docent a l’any 2013. La present comunicació pretén analitzar el grau de participació i satisfacció dels alumnes al llarg d’aquests tres cursos acadèmics. El nombre d'estudiants inscrits al llarg d'aquests anys ha estat de 207 alumnes i en algunes sessions s'ha aconseguit omplir l’Aula Magna el 100% amb alumnes sense inscripció prèvia i interessats en la temàtica. Al llarg d’aquests anys, l’activitat s’ha consolidat a la Facultat de Farmàcia considerant que l’alumne la percep com una oportunitat anual per conèixer la realitat professional de la farmàcia així com els requisits d’accés al món laboral. A més, el nombre d’alumnes que ha sol·licitat participar en el programa de pràctiques en empreses dins de l’assignatura optativa ha incrementat al llarg dels cursos, així com el nombre d’empreses participants, consolidant-se algunes de les tradicionalment ja hi participaven. Per altra banda, aquesta activitat ha afavorit un millor coneixement entre l’alumnat de Farmàcia sobre les altres accions d’orientació universitàries del SAE (Club de Feina, Monogràfics del Club de Feina, cursos de Formació en Competències, Entrevistes d’Orientació, Simulacions personalitzades d’entrevistes de feina). L’avaluació del programa es basa per una banda, amb els qüestionaris al finalitzar el període de pràctiques en indústries farmacèutiques i per l’altra, dels qüestionaris de satisfacció a cada una de les sessions del seminari Passaport a la Professió

Niacin and olive oil promote skewing to the M2 phenotype in bone marrow-derived macrophages of mice with metabolic syndrome

21 Páginas; 3 Figuras; 2 TablasMetabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with obesity, dyslipemia, type 2 diabetes and chronic low-grade inflammation. The aim of this study was to determine the role of high-fat low-cholesterol diets (HFLCDs) rich in SFAs (HFLCD-SFAs), MUFAs (HFLCD-MUFAs) or MUFAs plus omega-3 long-chain PUFAs (HFLCD-PUFAs) on polarisation and inflammatory potential in bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) from niacin (NA)-treated Lepob/obLDLR−/− mice. Animals fed with HFLCD-SFAs had increased weight and serum triglycerides, and their BMDMs accumulated triglycerides over the animals fed with HFLCD-MUFAs or -PUFAs. Furthermore, BMDMs from animals fed with HFLCD-SFAs were polarised towards the M1 phenotype with functional competence to produce pro-inflammatory cytokines, whereas BMDMs from animals fed with HFLCD-MUFAs or -PUFAs were skewed to the anti-inflammatory M2 phenotype. These findings open opportunities for developing novel nutritional strategies with olive oil as the most important dietary source of MUFAs (notably oleic acid) to prevent development and progression of metabolic complications in the NA-treated MetS.This study was supported by research Grant AGL2011-29008 (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, MICINN). S. M. has the benefit of an FPI fellowship (BES-2012-056104) of MICINN. B. B. and S. L. acknowledge financial support from “V Own Research Plan” (University of Seville) and the Spanish Research Council (CSIC)/Juan de la Cierva, respectively.Peer reviewe

El passaport a la professió al Grau de Psicologia: indicador de qualitat del procés d'ensenyament-aprenentatge

Podeu consultar la Vuitena trobada de professorat de Ciències de la Salut completa a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/66524Des del curs 2012-13, al llarg del Grau de Psicologia s’ofereix un programa d’orientació professional, de caràcter voluntari i personalitzat, que respon a les directrius de l’Estratègia Europa 2020, del Pla marc Horitzó 2020, i de l’Espai Europeu d’Educació Superior. Després de tres anys, ja es poden analitzar uns primers resultats a través del nombre d’inscripcions, qüestionaris de satisfacció i els exercicis realitzats d’autoconeixement i d’exploració del món professional

The effects of exogenous fatty acids and niacin on human monocyte-macrophage plasticity

Scope: Macrophage plasticity allows adapting to different environments, having a dual activity in inflammatory-related diseases. Our hypothesis is that the type of dietary fatty acids into human postprandial triglyceride-rich lipoproteins (TRLs), alone or in combination with niacin (vitamin B3), could modulate the plasticity of monocytes-macrophages. Methods and results: We isolated TRLs at the postprandial peak from blood samples of healthy volunteers after the ingestion of a meal rich in saturated fatty acids (SFAs), monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) or MUFAs plus omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs). Autologous monocytes isolated at fasting were first induced to differentiate into naïve macrophages. We observed that postprandial TRL-MUFAs, particularly in combination with niacin, enhance competence to monocytes to differentiate and polarise into M2 macrophages. Postprandial TRL-SFAs made polarised macrophages prone to an M1 phenotype. In contrast to dietary SFAs, dietary MUFAs in the meals plus immediate-release niacin primed circulating monocytes for a reduced postprandial pro-inflammatory profile. Conclusion: Our study underlines a role of postprandial TRLs as a metabolic entity in regulating the plasticity of the monocyte-macrophage lineage and also brings an understanding of the mechanisms by which dietary fatty acids are environmental factors fostering the innate immune responsiveness in humans.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación AGL2011- 2900

Género y espacio público: nueve ensayos

I. PERFILES: CAPÍTULO 1. Rocío Orsi Portalo (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid): Vírgenes y mártires. Dos escenarios premodernos.- CAPÍTULO 2. Cinta Canterla (Universidad Pablo de Olavide): La filosofía y la ciencia en el s. XVIII, a propósito de la biopolítica y la categorización de lo público y lo privado.- CAPÍTULO 3. Carmen González Marín (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid): La ansiedad de la diferencia.- CAPÍTULO 4. Laura Calvo Valdivieso (Editorial Impedimenta): Mujeres renacentistas en la “res publica litterarum”.- CAPÍTULO 5. María Jesús Fuente (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid): Cruzando el umbral. Mujeres en el proceso de paso del espacio privado al público -- II. HACIA LA CONTEMPORANEIDAD: CAPÍTULO 6. Laura Branciforte (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid): El “singular” recorrido de las mujeres en los espacios públicos contemporáneos.- CAPÍTULO 7. Montserrat Huguet Santos (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid): Espacios de papel: vidas domésticas y escrituras burguesas.- CAPÍTULO 8. Leticia Naranjo Gálvez (Universidad del Rosario): Opresión y representación de lo femenino. Apuntes sobre la capacidad de agencia y la fortuna moral.- CAPÍTULO 9. Rocío Navarro (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid): Mujeres españolas en el siglo XX: asociacionismo y activismo político (Estado de la cuestión

Efecto de los ácidos grasos y lipoproteínas de la dieta sobre la progresión de la degeneración macular relacionada con la edad

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a medical condition of central loss vision and blindness. Numerous studies have revealed that changes on certain dietary fatty acids (FAs) could have useful for AMD management. This review summarizes the effects of dietary omega-3 long-chain PUFAs, MUFAs, and SFAs, and lipoproteins on AMD. Findings are consistent with the beneficial role of dietary omega-3 long-chain PUFAs, while the effects of dietary MUFAs and SFAs appeared to be ambiguous with respect to the possible protection from MUFAs and to the possible adverse impact from SFAs on AMD. Some of the pathological mechanisms associated with lipoproteins on AMD share those observed previously in cardiovascular diseases. It was also noticed that the effects of FAs in the diet and lipoprotein on AMD could be modulated by genetic variants. From a population health perspective, the findings of this review are in favour of omega-3 long-chain FAs recommendations in a preventive and therapeutic regimen to attain lower AMD occurrence and progression rates. Additional long-term and short-term nutrigenomic studies are required to clearly establish the role and the relevance of interaction of dietary FAs, lipoproteins, and genes in the genesis and progression of AMD.La degeneración macular asociada a la edad (DMAE) es una condición patológica caracterizada por pérdida de visión central y ceguera. Numerosos estudios han revelado que ciertos cambios en los ácidos grasos de la dieta podrían tener efectos beneficiosos en el manejo de la DMAE. En esta revisión se recogen los efectos de los ácidos grasos de la dieta poliinsaturados omega-3, monoinsaturados y saturados, y de las lipoproteínas en la DMAE. La literatura es consistente en el papel beneficioso de los ácidos grasos polinsaturados omega-3 de cadena larga, mientras que se muestra ambigua con los efectos de los ácidos grasos monoinsaturados y saturados de la dieta, respecto al posible papel protector de los ácidos grasos monoinsaturados como al posible efecto adverso de los ácidos grasos saturados en la DMAE. Además algunos mecanismos patológicos que asocian las lipoproteínas con la DMAE son los mismos observados previamente en las enfermedades cardiovasculares. Hacen falta estudios nutrigenómicos a corto y largo plazo para establecer el papel y la importancia de los ácidos grasos de la dieta, y las lipoproteínas en la aparición y progresión de la DMAE

Minor compounds from virgin olive oil attenuate LPS-induced inflammation via visfatin-related gene modulation on primary human monocytes

We have analyzed the effects of minor compounds found in the unsaponifiable fraction (UF) and in the phenolic fraction (PF) of virgin olive oil (VOO) on LPS-induced inflammatory response via visfatin modulation in human monocytes. For this purpose, monocytes were incubated with UF and PF at different concentrations and the pro-inflammatory stimulus LPS for 24 hr; squalene (SQ) and hydroxytyrosol (HTyr), the main components in UF and PF, respectively, were also used. The relative expression of both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory genes, as well as other genes related to the NAD+-biosynthetic pathway was evaluated by RT-qPCR; and the secretion of some of these markers was assessed by ELISA procedures. We found that UF, SQ, PF, and HTyr prevented from LPS-induced dysfunctional gene expression and secretion via visfatin-related gene modulation in human monocytes. These findings unveil a potential beneficial role for minor compounds of VOO in the prevention of inflammatory-disorders. Practical application: In this project, potential health benefits of VOO micronutrients (unsaponifiable and phenolic compounds) were confirmed through anti-inflammatory assays. Our results reveal new interesting researching goals concerning nutrition by considering the role of bioactive VOO compounds in the prevention and progress of diseases related to inflammation

Portal EduQTech sobre aplicación de normativa de calidad en las aulas universitarias

Como venimos señalando en diferentes trabajos previos desarrollados por nuestro grupo, la normativa que en los últimos años está configurando el entorno universitario apunta a la importancia de la calidad en la Educación Superior. Para conseguir esta calidad es necesario motivar, formar e implicar a los docentes en la utilización de los conceptos clave de esta filosofía, si bien su aplicación en la labor diaria puede resultar un poco ambigua o complicada. En respuesta a esta necesidad, desde el grupo EduQTech, se ha desarrollado un proyecto destinado a crear una red interdisciplinar sobre la aplicación de normativa sobre calidad en el aula, cuyo principal objetivo es dar a conocer, debatir y adaptar a la realidad universitaria diferentes estándares sobre calidad propios del entorno social. Se busca acercar la Universidad a la Sociedad, aprender de la experiencia de esta última y mejorar de forma continua nuestro trabajo como docentes, lo que repercutirá en beneficios para los alumnos – egresados y finalmente en la propia Sociedad. La concreción del trabajo se ha realizado a través de un portal en Internet basado en software libre.Postprint (author's final draft