Mineral composition of bee pollen and its relationship with botanical origin and harvesting period

Producción CientíficaIn the present study, the mineral composition of seventy-one bee pollen samples from four different apiaries was determined by means of inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry. The results showed that there were no significant differences in relation to the overall mineral content per sample in terms of the apiary of origin or the harvesting period; the most common elements were phosphorus and potassium with concentrations ranging from 2.3 to 5.1 g/kg (dry weight). Moreover, the mineral content of the samples analyzed was similar to or higher than the recommended as well-balanced food for bees. Regarding the nutritional value for humans, bee pollen samples could be considered as a food rich in copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, and phosphorus. Finally, a canonical discriminant analysis was performed, and it was found that the apiary of origin could be distinguished by using the first three canonical functions; furthermore, over 90% of the samples could be correctly assigned to their corresponding apiary. The results were even better as regards the harvesting period, as only the first two canonical functions were sufficient to make a distinction between the different harvesting periods, resulting in a perfect match (100% of success rate).Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (RTI2018-096268-B-100)Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (RTA 2015-00013-C03-01 and 03)FEDER and FSE (project AGRISOST-CM S2018/BAA-4330

Influencia del nivel educativo de los padres, el tipo de escuela y el sexo en el desarrollo de la atención y la memoria

La información sobre el efecto que ejercen las variables medioambientales en el desarrollo de la atención y la memoria es limitada. En este estudio se analizó la relación entre el nivel educativo de los padres, el tipo de escuela y el sexo en el desarrollo de la atención y la memoria. Participaron 476 niños (5 a 16 años) de escuelas públicas (EPu) y privadas (EPr) divididos en dos grupos de edad (G1 = 5 a 8 años y G2 = 9 a 16 años). Se analizaron las 15 sub-pruebas de la Evaluación Neuropsicológica Infantil-ENI que evalúan atención y memoria. Se encontró un efecto significativo de la edad en todas las pruebas: a mayor edad, mejor ejecución. También hubo un efecto significativo del sexo y el tipo de escuela en algunas tareas, donde las niñas superan a los varones y los estudiantes de EPr superan a los de EPu. Hubo una interacción significativa entre el tipo de escuela y el sexo: las niñas de EPr muestran mayor ejecución que el resto de los grupos en algunas tareas de atención y memoria, especialmente las que implican información verbal. Además hubo una correlación significativa entre el nivel educativo de los padres y la ejecución (9 a 16 años). Los hijos de padres con mayor escolaridad muestran mayor ejecución que aquéllos con padres de menor escolaridad. Los resultados se discuten en términos del impacto que ejercen las variables medioambientales en el desarrollo neuropsicológico

Estudio mediante Radioinmunoanálisis (RIA) y análisis inmunorradiométrico (IRMA) del equilibrio de la reacción antígeno-anticuerpo de algunas sustancias

It has been studied the binding to their specific antibodies, of the following substances: insulin and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAs) by means of solid-state RIA, osteocalcin and c-terminal fraction parathormone (PTHc) by means of RIA of the corresponding solutions, and neuronal specific enolase (NSE), tiroglobuline (Tg) and the tumoral marker CA549 by means of IRMA. It has been assayed a theoretical model to explain, in a general way, the antigen-antibody reactions, as well as to evaluate the influence on the binding of several factors: temperature, kind of antibody, kind of reaction (in solid state or in solution), antigen features. The obtained results at the steady-state did not allowed and adequate fit of a model with binding sites identical and independents. However, a good fit was obtained with the Hill’s equation. The studied reactions presented a low value of entalpy, according to the nature of the antigen-antibody binding.Se ha estudiado el equilibrio de la unión, a sus anticuerpos específicos, de las siguientes sustancias: Insulina y dehidroepiandrosterona sulfato (DHEAs), mediante RIA en fase sólida, osteocalcina y fracción c-terminal de la parathormona (PTHc), mediante RIA en disolución y enolasa específica neuronal (NSE), tiroglobulina (Tg) y el marcador tumoral CA549, mediante IRMA. Se pretende determinar un modelo que explique, de manera general, dichas reacciones antígeno-anticuerpo, así como establecer la influencia de algunos factores: temperatura, clase de anticuerpo, reacción en fase sólida o en disolución, características del antígeno,... sobre esta unión. Los resultados obtenidos en el estudio del equilibrio no se ajustan al modelo de sitios idénticos e independientes, sin embargo, proporcionan un excelente ajuste a la ecuación de Hill. Las reacciones estudiadas presentan un valor bajo de la entalpía de reacción concordante con la naturaleza de la unión antígeno-anticuerpo

Influence of high‐pressure processing on nutritional composition and bioactive compounds of Phaseolus coccineus L

The influence of high-pressure processing (HPP) prior to cooking on nutritional composition and bioactive compounds content of four varieties of Phaseolus coccineus L. was studied. Cooking and HPP+C increased the protein content. However, minerals, total carbohydrates, ciceritol and α-galactosides were reduced. Fat was not affected by cooking but decreased after HPP+C. For dietary fiber, the behavior observed was different depending on the sample and the treatment applied. HPP+C could be considered a good processing technology to retain the advantageous lower myo-inositol phosphates isoforms and supply prebiotic oligosaccharides. The trypsin inhibitors activity was lower in the cooked and HPP+C samples; however, there were no significant differences between both thermal treatments. Thus, HPP+C reduced cooking time and preserving or improving the nutritional composition of the beans and their bioactive compounds content

Estrategias metodológicas enfocadas a la mejora del aprendizaje en estudiantes con diversidad

Diseño y desarrollo de estrategias metodológicas que faciliten el aprendizaje de los estudiantes en general y que permitan a los estudiantes con diversidad funcional la integración y participación en el proceso de aprendizaje, que refuercen su inclusión y que favorezcan la adquisición de competencias

El uso de la infografía como herramienta pedagógica en el aula: aportaciones para el desarrollo de proyectos de investigación y la difusión de resultados en el ámbito del Trabajo Social

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Effectiveness of a strategy that uses educational games to implement clinical practice guidelines among Spanish residents of family and community medicine (e-EDUCAGUIA project):A clinical trial by clusters

This study was funded by the Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias FIS Grant Number PI11/0477 ISCIII.-REDISSEC Proyecto RD12/0001/0012 AND FEDER Funding.Background: Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) have been developed with the aim of helping health professionals, patients, and caregivers make decisions about their health care, using the best available evidence. In many cases, incorporation of these recommendations into clinical practice also implies a need for changes in routine clinical practice. Using educational games as a strategy for implementing recommendations among health professionals has been demonstrated to be effective in some studies; however, evidence is still scarce. The primary objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a teaching strategy for the implementation of CPGs using educational games (e-learning EDUCAGUIA) to improve knowledge and skills related to clinical decision-making by residents in family medicine. The primary objective will be evaluated at 1 and 6months after the intervention. The secondary objectives are to identify barriers and facilitators for the use of guidelines by residents of family medicine and to describe the educational strategies used by Spanish teaching units of family and community medicine to encourage implementation of CPGs. Methods/design: We propose a multicenter clinical trial with randomized allocation by clusters of family and community medicine teaching units in Spain. The sample size will be 394 residents (197 in each group), with the teaching units as the randomization unit and the residents comprising the analysis unit. For the intervention, both groups will receive an initial 1-h session on clinical practice guideline use and the usual dissemination strategy by e-mail. The intervention group (e-learning EDUCAGUIA) strategy will consist of educational games with hypothetical clinical scenarios in a virtual environment. The primary outcome will be the score obtained by the residents on evaluation questionnaires for each clinical practice guideline. Other included variables will be the sociodemographic and training variables of the residents and the teaching unit characteristics. The statistical analysis will consist of a descriptive analysis of variables and a baseline comparison of both groups. For the primary outcome analysis, an average score comparison of hypothetical scenario questionnaires between the EDUCAGUIA intervention group and the control group will be performed at 1 and 6months post-intervention, using 95% confidence intervals. A linear multilevel regression will be used to adjust the model. Discussion: The identification of effective teaching strategies will facilitate the incorporation of available knowledge into clinical practice that could eventually improve patient outcomes. The inclusion of information technologies as teaching tools permits greater learning autonomy and allows deeper instructor participation in the monitoring and supervision of residents. The long-term impact of this strategy is unknown; however, because it is aimed at professionals undergoing training and it addresses prevalent health problems, a small effect can be of great relevance. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02210442.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Treatment with tocilizumab or corticosteroids for COVID-19 patients with hyperinflammatory state: a multicentre cohort study (SAM-COVID-19)

Objectives: The objective of this study was to estimate the association between tocilizumab or corticosteroids and the risk of intubation or death in patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) with a hyperinflammatory state according to clinical and laboratory parameters. Methods: A cohort study was performed in 60 Spanish hospitals including 778 patients with COVID-19 and clinical and laboratory data indicative of a hyperinflammatory state. Treatment was mainly with tocilizumab, an intermediate-high dose of corticosteroids (IHDC), a pulse dose of corticosteroids (PDC), combination therapy, or no treatment. Primary outcome was intubation or death; follow-up was 21 days. Propensity score-adjusted estimations using Cox regression (logistic regression if needed) were calculated. Propensity scores were used as confounders, matching variables and for the inverse probability of treatment weights (IPTWs). Results: In all, 88, 117, 78 and 151 patients treated with tocilizumab, IHDC, PDC, and combination therapy, respectively, were compared with 344 untreated patients. The primary endpoint occurred in 10 (11.4%), 27 (23.1%), 12 (15.4%), 40 (25.6%) and 69 (21.1%), respectively. The IPTW-based hazard ratios (odds ratio for combination therapy) for the primary endpoint were 0.32 (95%CI 0.22-0.47; p < 0.001) for tocilizumab, 0.82 (0.71-1.30; p 0.82) for IHDC, 0.61 (0.43-0.86; p 0.006) for PDC, and 1.17 (0.86-1.58; p 0.30) for combination therapy. Other applications of the propensity score provided similar results, but were not significant for PDC. Tocilizumab was also associated with lower hazard of death alone in IPTW analysis (0.07; 0.02-0.17; p < 0.001). Conclusions: Tocilizumab might be useful in COVID-19 patients with a hyperinflammatory state and should be prioritized for randomized trials in this situatio

Role of age and comorbidities in mortality of patients with infective endocarditis

[Purpose]: The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of patients with IE in three groups of age and to assess the ability of age and the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) to predict mortality. [Methods]: Prospective cohort study of all patients with IE included in the GAMES Spanish database between 2008 and 2015.Patients were stratified into three age groups:<65 years,65 to 80 years,and ≥ 80 years.The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (AUROC) curve was calculated to quantify the diagnostic accuracy of the CCI to predict mortality risk. [Results]: A total of 3120 patients with IE (1327 < 65 years;1291 65-80 years;502 ≥ 80 years) were enrolled.Fever and heart failure were the most common presentations of IE, with no differences among age groups.Patients ≥80 years who underwent surgery were significantly lower compared with other age groups (14.3%,65 years; 20.5%,65-79 years; 31.3%,≥80 years). In-hospital mortality was lower in the <65-year group (20.3%,<65 years;30.1%,65-79 years;34.7%,≥80 years;p < 0.001) as well as 1-year mortality (3.2%, <65 years; 5.5%, 65-80 years;7.6%,≥80 years; p = 0.003).Independent predictors of mortality were age ≥ 80 years (hazard ratio [HR]:2.78;95% confidence interval [CI]:2.32–3.34), CCI ≥ 3 (HR:1.62; 95% CI:1.39–1.88),and non-performed surgery (HR:1.64;95% CI:11.16–1.58).When the three age groups were compared,the AUROC curve for CCI was significantly larger for patients aged <65 years(p < 0.001) for both in-hospital and 1-year mortality. [Conclusion]: There were no differences in the clinical presentation of IE between the groups. Age ≥ 80 years, high comorbidity (measured by CCI),and non-performance of surgery were independent predictors of mortality in patients with IE.CCI could help to identify those patients with IE and surgical indication who present a lower risk of in-hospital and 1-year mortality after surgery, especially in the <65-year group

Spatiotemporal Characteristics of the Largest HIV-1 CRF02_AG Outbreak in Spain: Evidence for Onward Transmissions

Background and Aim: The circulating recombinant form 02_AG (CRF02_AG) is the predominant clade among the human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) non-Bs with a prevalence of 5.97% (95% Confidence Interval-CI: 5.41–6.57%) across Spain. Our aim was to estimate the levels of regional clustering for CRF02_AG and the spatiotemporal characteristics of the largest CRF02_AG subepidemic in Spain.Methods: We studied 396 CRF02_AG sequences obtained from HIV-1 diagnosed patients during 2000–2014 from 10 autonomous communities of Spain. Phylogenetic analysis was performed on the 391 CRF02_AG sequences along with all globally sampled CRF02_AG sequences (N = 3,302) as references. Phylodynamic and phylogeographic analysis was performed to the largest CRF02_AG monophyletic cluster by a Bayesian method in BEAST v1.8.0 and by reconstructing ancestral states using the criterion of parsimony in Mesquite v3.4, respectively.Results: The HIV-1 CRF02_AG prevalence differed across Spanish autonomous communities we sampled from (p &lt; 0.001). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that 52.7% of the CRF02_AG sequences formed 56 monophyletic clusters, with a range of 2–79 sequences. The CRF02_AG regional dispersal differed across Spain (p = 0.003), as suggested by monophyletic clustering. For the largest monophyletic cluster (subepidemic) (N = 79), 49.4% of the clustered sequences originated from Madrid, while most sequences (51.9%) had been obtained from men having sex with men (MSM). Molecular clock analysis suggested that the origin (tMRCA) of the CRF02_AG subepidemic was in 2002 (median estimate; 95% Highest Posterior Density-HPD interval: 1999–2004). Additionally, we found significant clustering within the CRF02_AG subepidemic according to the ethnic origin.Conclusion: CRF02_AG has been introduced as a result of multiple introductions in Spain, following regional dispersal in several cases. We showed that CRF02_AG transmissions were mostly due to regional dispersal in Spain. The hot-spot for the largest CRF02_AG regional subepidemic in Spain was in Madrid associated with MSM transmission risk group. The existence of subepidemics suggest that several spillovers occurred from Madrid to other areas. CRF02_AG sequences from Hispanics were clustered in a separate subclade suggesting no linkage between the local and Hispanic subepidemics