Understanding Nanopore Window Distortions in the Reversible Molecular Valve Zeolite RHO

Molecular valves are becoming popular for potential biomedical applications. However, little is known concerning their performance in energy and environmental areas. Zeolite RHO shows unique pore deformations upon changes in hydration, cation siting, cation type, or temperature-pressure conditions. By varying the level of distortion of double eight-rings, it is possible to control the adsorption properties, which confer a molecular valve behavior to this material. We have employed interatomic potentials-based simulations to obtain a detailed atomistic view of the structural distortion mechanisms of zeolite RHO, in contrast with the averaged and space group restricted information provided by diffraction studies. We have modeled four aluminosilicate structures, containing Li$^+$, Na$^+$, K$^+$, Ca$^{2+}$, and Sr$^{2+}$ cations. The distortions of the three different zeolite rings are coupled, and the six- and eight-membered rings are largely flexible. A large dependence on the polarizing power of the extra-framework cations and with the loading of water has been found for the minimum aperture of the eight-membered rings that control the nanovalve effect. The calculated energy barriers for moving the cations across the eight-membered rings are very high, which explains the experimentally observed slow kinetics of the phase transition as well as the appearance of metastable phases

Presence of infotainment in Spain's mainstream DTT channels

Producción CientíficaEl artículo se incluye dentro de las investigaciones empíricas sobre infoentretenimiento y realiza una caracterización de los estilemas del infoentretenimiento televisivo comprobando su presencia dentro de la programación de los canales generalistas de la TDT española. Metodología. Se analizan las parrillas de los seis canales generalistas contabilizando el tiempo dedicado al infoentretenimiento; posteriormente se realiza un análisis de contenido de los espacios en prime time. Resultados. Se observa cómo el infoentretenimiento ocupa una posición privilegiada dentro de la programación aunque con diferencias significativas entre cadenas. Como estilemas dominantes destacan el humorismo, la dramatización y los recursos técnicos para espectacularizar la imagen. Discusión. El infoentretenimiento se consolida como un macrogénero relevante con porcentajes que van del 34,91% (La Sexta) al 8,12% (La 2), siendo el magazine y el debate los formatos dominantes. Sorprendentemente La 1 de TVE con un índice de infoentretenimiento del 18,10% se sitúa por encima de Antena 3 o CuatroThis article is part of the strand of empirical studies on infotainment and presents a characterisation of the infotainment content broadcast by the Spanish mainstream DTT channels. Method. The study is based on the analysis of the infotainment content included in the programming of the six most important mainstream DTT channels in Spain, and the content analysis of the prime time infotainment content. Results. Infotainment occupies a privileged position in the mainstream television channels but there are significant differences across networks. The main distinctive features that characterise infotainment are humour, drama and the use of technical resources to increase the sensationalism of images. Discussion. Infotainment is consolidated as a relevant macro-genre whose presence ranges from 34.91% (in La Sexta) to 8.12% (in La 2), being the magazine and debate shows the dominant formats. Surprisingly, the presence of infotainment in TVE 1 (18.10%) is higher than in the networks Antena 3 and Cuatro.Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (CSO2012-34698

Desarrollo de vídeos doodle como apoyo a la docencia en anestesiología veterinaria

Depto. de Medicina y Cirugía AnimalFac. de VeterinariaFALSEsubmitte

Bitumen modifiers for reduced temperature asphalts: a comparative analysis between three polymeric and non-polymeric additives

This study presents three bitumen modifiers which may find successful application in the fabrication of binders for warm mix asphalt in the paving industry. In that sense, two non-polymeric additives, thiourea and thiourea dioxide, along with a reactive isocyanate-terminated prepolymer have been evaluated. Viscous flow and linear viscoelasticity tests, at 60 ºC, reveal bituminous modified binders which evolve towards highly viscous materials when subjected to ambient curing. However, at 135 ºC, they show lower viscosity than a typical 3 wt.% SBS binder used as reference. These results suggest modified binders with low viscosity which may contribute to reduce the mix asphalt temperature. On the contrary, they are expected to undergo an important increase in viscosity when the asphalt is in service, which would contribute to improve further their performance. Low temperature performance and effects of short-term and long-term aging were not considered in this study.This work is part of a research project sponsored by a MEC-FEDER Programme of references BES-2008-003572 and AP2008-01419, supported by European Social Fund. The authors gratefully acknowledge its financial support

Bioinformatics as a Tool for the Structural and Evolutionary Analysis of Proteins

This chapter deals with the topic of bioinformatics, computational, mathematics, and statistics tools applied to biology, essential for the analysis and characterization of biological molecules, in particular proteins, which play an important role in all cellular and evolutionary processes of the organisms. In recent decades, with the next generation sequencing technologies and bioinformatics, it has facilitated the collection and analysis of a large amount of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic data from different organisms that have allowed predictions on the regulation of expression, transcription, translation, structure, and mechanisms of action of proteins as well as homology, mutations, and evolutionary processes that generate structural and functional changes over time. Although the information in the databases is greater every day, all bioinformatics tools continue to be constantly modified to improve performance that leads to more accurate predictions regarding protein functionality, which is why bioinformatics research remains a great challenge

Las rúbricas analíticas como recurso de evaluación de créditos prácticos en la asignatura de Atención a la Diversidad e Intervención Educativa en NEE

Memoria ID-0172. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2015-2016

Visualization of Agents and Their Interaction within Dynamic Environments

Many new technical systems are distributed systems that involve complex interaction between humans and machines, which notably reduces their usability. The properties of Agent Based Simulation make it especially suitable for simulating this kind of system. However, it is necessary to define new middleware solutions that allow the connection of simulation and visualization software. This paper describes the results achieved from a multiagent-based middleware for the behavior simulation and visualization of agents. The middleware modules presented in this study allow a complete integration of technologies for the development of Multiagent Systems and Agent Based Simulation, the construction of virtual organizations of agents, and the connection to external modules that represent the entities of the agents

Angiotensin II type 2 receptor as a novel activator of brown adipose tissue in obesity

The angiotensin II type 2 receptor (AT2R) exerts vasorelaxant, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. In obesity, its activation counterbalances the adverse cardiovascular effects of angiotensin II mediated by the AT1R. Preliminary results indicate that it also promotes brown adipocyte differentiation in vitro. Our hypothesis is that AT2R activation could increase BAT mass and activity in obesity. Five-week-old male C57BL/6J mice were fed a standard or a high-fat (HF) diet for 6 weeks. Half of the animals were treated with compound 21 (C21), a selective AT2R agonist, (1 mg/kg/day) in the drinking water. Electron transport chain (ETC), oxidative phosphorylation, and UCP1 proteins were measured in the interscapular BAT (iBAT) and thoracic perivascular adipose tissue (tPVAT) as well as inflammatory and oxidative parameters. Differentiation and oxygen consumption rate (OCR) in the presence of C21 was tested in brown preadipocytes. In vitro, C21-differentiated brown adipocytes showed an AT2R-dependent increase of differentiation markers (Ucp1, Cidea, Pparg) and increased basal and H+ leak-linked OCR. In vivo, HF-C21 mice showed increased iBAT mass compared to HF animals. Both their iBAT and tPVAT showed higher protein levels of the ETC protein complexes and UCP1, together with a reduction of inflammatory and oxidative markers. The activation of the AT2R increases BAT mass, mitochondrial activity, and reduces markers of tissue inflammation and oxidative stress in obesity. Therefore, insulin reduction and better vascular responses are achieved. Thus, the activation of the protective arm of the renin–angiotensin system arises as a promising tool in the treatment of obesity15 página