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In this study, the physicochemical and functional properties of flours obtained from mature cladodes of two nopal species, Opuntia cochenillifera (OC) and Opuntia ficus indica (OF), subjected to different extrusion conditions, varying moisture (20 % and 26 %) and temperature levels (120 °C, 140 °C and 160 °C) were evaluated. The results showed significant differences in chemical composition, physical, functional and phytochemical properties between the two species. OC had a higher ash and ether extract content (29.27 % and 1.28 % respectively), while OF had more protein and carbohydrates (7.83 and 55.31 % respectively). The expansion index was higher (1.06 – 1.27) in OF, especially under high temperature extrusion and low moisture conditions. Bulk density decreased with increasing extrusion temperature, and color was significantly altered by temperature and moisture, with greater changes observed in OF. Functional properties such as oil absorption capacity, water absorption capacity, and water solubility index, were significantly affected by the extrusion process in both species of nopal. In terms of dietary fiber, extrusion increased (4.99 to 10.38 %) the soluble fiber content and decreased (36.91 to 32.30 %) the insoluble fiber content in both species. However, OC had a higher percentage of soluble and total dietary fiber. Phenolic compounds, flavonoids and antioxidant activity were significantly affected by the extrusion process in most treatments, although some maintained or improved these properties. These results highlight the influence of species and extrusion conditions on the properties of nopal flours, providing valuable information for the development of nopal-enriched food products, thereby optimizing their nutritional and technological properties.

For many years, finite differences in hexagonal grids have been developed to solve elliptic problems such as the Poisson and Helmholtz equations. However, these schemes are limited to constant coefficients, which reduces their usefulness in many applications. The main challenge is accurately approximating the diffusive term. This paper presents examples of both successful and unsuccessful attempts to obtain accurate finite differences based on a hexagonal stencil with equilateral triangles to approximate two-dimensional Poisson equations. Local truncation error analysis reveals that a second-order scheme can be achieved if the derivative of the diffusive coefficient is included. Finally, we provide numerical examples to verify the accuracy of the proposed methods.

Urban-natural environments, proximal to rapidly urbanizing cities, provide essential ecosystem functions that benefit both city residents and ecological communities. With escalating urbanization, the resilience of these ecosystems is being progressively challenged, highlighting the need for robust monitoring mechanisms. Acoustic monitoring has emerged as an unobtrusive method to evaluate the status of these environments, capitalizing on indicators that reflect both landscape features and specific acoustic events. Despite potentially offering significant insights, this approach generates a large volume of acoustic data, introducing complexities in subsequent analyses. To mitigate this, we propose integrating artificial neural networks with acoustic indices to enhance data analysis. Our approach emphasizes the usefulness of short-time acoustic indices, computed over finite-duration analysis windows, to enhance polyphonic sound event detection accuracy. Empirical results support the performance of our approach, registering both an F1-Score and an error rate of 0.614. Overall, this study delineates a novel paradigm geared towards enhancing or preserving the biological diversity of urban-natural environments in areas with population growth and urban development.

This article presents a computational numerical model for the simulation and analysis of quantum chemistry and Gibbs free energy theory using static (ANNS), dynamic (DANN), and chaotic neural networks (CANN). The model calculates the physical-surface mechanics of hardness, adhesion, and strength. They resulted in nanostructured metal coatings with electrodeposited chromium nanoparticles on low-carbon steel. The ANNS, DANN, and CANN simulations showed that model-obtained values for analyzed properties presented an approximation of 99 % concerning theoretical matters taken as base. Likewise, model accuracy was verified by comparison with reference data (datasheet). The proposed model is not limited to the analyzed case and provides consistent results for predicting surface physical-mechanical properties of electrodeposited coating-substrate arrangements, with a minimum error percentage of 1–1.5 % over learning.

This paper presents the Synthetic Polyphonic Ambient Sound Source (SPASS) dataset, a publicly available synthetic polyphonic audio dataset. SPASS was designed to train deep neural networks effectively for polyphonic sound event detection (PSED) in urban soundscapes. SPASS contains synthetic recordings from five virtual environments: park, square, street, market, and waterfront. The data collection process consisted of the curation of different monophonic sound sources following a hierarchical class taxonomy, the configuration of the virtual environments with the RAVEN software library, the generation of all stimuli, and the processing of this data to create synthetic recordings of polyphonic sound events with their associated metadata. The dataset contains 5000 audio clips per environment, i.e., 25,000 stimuli of 10 s each, virtually recorded at a sampling rate of 44.1 kHz.This effort is part of the project ``Integrated System for the Analysis of Environmental Sound Sources: FuSA System'' in the city of Valdivia, Chile, which aims to develop a system for detecting and classifying environmental sound sources through deep Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models.

Solar protections are often designed as passive strategies in buildings, both for thermal and lighting performance. In this sense, the importance of the balance between these two parameters could be crucial in the early stages of design. The purpose of this research is to compare the variation solar protection strategies (glazing with solar protection, and the length of overhangs) have on energy and lighting, using as reference, the value defined by the Modified Solar Factor (MSF), used in some countries like Spain and Chile, to restrict solar contributions. Simulations were carried out to understand the potential of solar protections with the same MSF and the implications on thermal and lighting performance. The case study is a classroom located in Talca, in central-southern Chile, with a climate of marked seasons, including cold winters and hot summers. The results showed that the use of solar protection strategies with the same and similar MSF values do not provide comparable energy performance. Specifically, the differences in energy consumption are 0.62 kWh (East (E) - MSF 0.14) for heating, in cooling 42.28 kWh (Northeast (NE) - MSF 0.47), in lighting 5.30 kWh (Northwest (NW) - MSF 0.11), and 39.77 kWh in the total consumption (Northeast (NE) - MSF 0.47). According to the results obtained, suitable solar protection requires evaluating different alternatives that allow balancing both performances, while attaining significant energy savings.

Introduction: Control of movement is a complex process within the brain. Although some approaches have been already made in the employment of cannabinoid-related compounds for the treatment of pathologies such as Parkinson's Disease (PD), there is a huge gap in the understanding of the role that the Endocannabinoid System (ES) plays in this process, as well as the etiopathology of movement disorders. Development: On one hand, most common movement disorders are a consequence of an ongoing neurodegenerative illness. Also, most of them involve the dopaminergic circuitry running from the Substantia Nigra (SN) to the Striatum (STR). This review aims to provide a compilation of the evidence, pointing out the circumstances under which the agonism of the cannabinoid receptors, or the enhancement for their biological ligands, could be helpful against those movement disorders, as well as reviewing the pathology of such diseases. Conclusion: Recent evidence suggests that the ES plays a crucial role regarding oxidative stress, neurodegeneration, and neuromodulation. All of these processes are affected in movement disorders, coupled with this, the presence of functional cannabinoid receptors and ligands in the abovementioned regions, encourage the continuous searching for new compounds and therapeutic approaches aiming this system, to diminish, prevent, and treat the symptoms and causes of the movement disorders. Resumen: Introducción: El control del movimiento es un proceso complejo dentro del cerebro. Aunque ya se han realizado algunos acercamientos al empleo de compuestos relacionados con los cannabinoides en el tratamiento de patologías como la Enfermedad de Parkinson (EP), existe un gran vacío en la comprensión del papel que juega el Sistema Endocannabinoide (SE) en este proceso, así como la etiopatología de los trastornos del movimiento. Desarrollo: Por un lado, los trastornos del movimiento más comunes son consecuencia de una enfermedad neurodegenerativa en curso. Además, la mayoría de ellos involucran el circuito dopaminérgico que va desde la sustancia negra (SN) hasta el cuerpo estriado (STR). Esta revisión tiene como objetivo proporcionar una recopilación de la evidencia, señalando las circunstancias en las que el agonismo de los receptores de cannabinoides, o la potenciación de sus ligandos biológicos, podría ser útil contra esos trastornos del movimiento. Conclusión: La evidencia reciente sugiere que el ES juega un papel crucial en relación con el estrés oxidativo, la neurodegeneración y la neuromodulación. Todos estos procesos se ven afectados en los trastornos del movimiento, aunado a esto, la presencia de ligandos y receptores cannabinoides funcionales en las regiones antes mencionadas, fomenta la búsqueda continua de nuevos compuestos y enfoques terapéuticos que tengan como objetivo este sistema, para disminuir, prevenir y tratar los síntomas y causas de los trastornos del movimiento.

Background: Walnut production (Juglans regia) generates a large amount of waste, mainly comprised of husk and shell. The two by-products have several bioactive compounds, mainly phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity. Given the above, this work seeks to establish productive and adequate conditions for the recovery of compounds with antioxidant activity (juglone among them) from such discards to use the extract as a bioherbicide. Results: Temperature and extraction solvent (type of solvent and use of hydroalcoholic mixtures) are relevant factors on phenolic compounds’ (TPC, Folin-Ciocalteu method) recovery and antioxidant activity (AA, DPPH method), observing values from 2 to 17 mg GAE/g shell and 0.5 and 23 mg GAE/g husk, and 3 to 28 mg TE/g shell and 0.2–36 mg TE/g husk for TPC and AA, respectively. Using 50°C and ethanol as extraction solvent, 14,000 µmol TE/100 g of ORAC activity was obtained for both shell and husk. This value increased when a hydroalcoholic mixture was used. Juglone was recovered only from the husk at 166 mg/100 g. The bioherbicidal potential of the extract was evaluated; a phytotoxic effect and a lower plantar density when applying the product to broad-leaf weeds were observed. Conclusions: In conclusion, the walnut process’s residues have a high potential to be used under the circular economy concept in the agri-food sector by obtaining products with high added value.How to cite: Soto-Maldonado C, Caballero-Valdés E, Santis-Bernal J, et al. Potential of solid wastes from the walnut industry: Extraction conditions to evaluate the antioxidant and bioherbicidal activities. Electron J Biotechnol 2022;58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejbt.2022.04.005

This data article presents a simulation model based on quantum mechanics and energy potentials for obtaining simulation data that allows, from the perspective of materials informatics, the prediction of the electrodeposition mechanism for forming nanostructured metallic coatings. The development of the research is divided into two parts i) the formulation (Quantum mechanical model and Corrected model for electron prediction; using a modified Schrödinger equation) and ii) the implementation of the theoretical prediction model (Discretization of the model). For the simulation process, the finite element method (FEM) was used considering the equation of electric potential and electroneutrality with and without the inclusion of quantum leap. We also provide the code to perform QM simulations in CUDA®, and COMSOL® software, the simulation parameters, and data for two metallic arrangements of chromium nanoparticles (CrNPs) electrodeposited on commercial steel substrate. (CrNPs-AISI 1020 steel and CrNPs-A618 steel). Data collection shows the direct relationship between applied potential (VDC), current (A), concentration (ppm), and time (s) for the homogeneous formation of the coating during the electrodeposition process, as estimated by the theoretical model developed. Their potential reuse data is done to establish the precision of the theoretical model in predicting the formation and growth of nanostructured surface coatings with metallic nanoparticles to give surface-mechanical properties.

Introduction: Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive deterioration of superior brain functions especially memory which generally affects older adults. Animal models of Alzheimer's are partially representative of the disease conditions under study since there is no model that fully incorporates all the characteristics that are present in humans, so similar conditions to AD in animal models should not be actually called Alzheimer's disease; however, these models are very useful for the study of several alterations involved in the pathophysiology of AD, including mainly the deterioration of memory capacity. The objective of this article is to determine the diversity of animal models of Alzheimer's disease, biological plausibility and the main affective disorders and behavior studied. Method: The keywords “animal models of Alzheimer's disease + mood/affective disorders” were placed in the Google scholar and NCBI databases, the first 5 pages of the search were considered. Results: 7 animal models were found that are used to model the disease and 5 for affective disorders. Conclusion: Among the animal models found, the rat model has been the most studied in terms of mood/affective disorders. We believe that more studies are needed where molecular changes are correlated with animal behavior of AD. The mood disorders studied are depression, anxiety, dysthymia, bipolar disorder, and drug-induced affective disorders. Resumen: Introducción: La enfermedad de Alzheimer es una enfermedad neurodegenerativa caracterizada por el deterioro progresivo de las funciones cerebrales superiores, especialmente la memoria, que generalmente afecta a los adultos mayores. Los modelos animales de la enfermedad de Alzheimer son parcialmente representativos de las condiciones de la enfermedad en estudio, ya que no existe un modelo que incorpore completamente todas las características que están presentes en los humanos, por lo que condiciones similares a la EA en modelos animales no deberían llamarse enfermedad de Alzheimer; sin embargo, estos modelos son de gran utilidad para el estudio de diversas alteraciones involucradas en la fisiopatología de la EA, incluyendo principalmente el deterioro de la capacidad de memoria. El objetivo de este artículo es determinar la diversidad de modelos animales de la enfermedad de Alzheimer, la plausibilidad biológica y los principales trastornos afectivos y de conducta estudiados. Método: Las palabras clave “modelos animales de la enfermedad de Alzheimer + trastornos del estado de ánimo/afectivo” se colocaron en las bases de datos de Google academic y NCBI, se consideraron las primeras 5 páginas de la búsqueda. Resultados: Se encontraron 7 modelos animales que sirven para modelar la enfermedad y 5 para los trastornos afectivos. Conclusión: Entre los modelos animales encontrados, el modelo de rata ha sido el más estudiado en términos de trastornos del estado de ánimo/afectivo. Creemos que se necesitan más estudios donde los cambios moleculares se correlacionen con el comportamiento animal de la EA. Los trastornos del estado de ánimo estudiados son la depresión, la ansiedad, la distimia, el trastorno bipolar y los trastornos afectivos inducidos por fármacos.

Biodegradable materials such as WE43 magnesium are of great interest for bone tissue engineering applications. This research paper presents a novel manufacturing methodology (i.e., Joining Stacking based Laser Micro-Spot Welding (JS-LMSW)) for produce tubular WE43 Magnesium scaffolds. The proposed methodology consists of laser-cut tailored geometries joined and stacked using laser micro-spot welding to form a porous structure (scaffold). The relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties of the manufactured WE43 magnesium scaffolds is summarized in this paper. Additionally, the manufactured scaffolds were dimensionally and morphologically characterized, and the obtained results are close to the designed values (relative errors of ∼ 1.04%, 0.93%, 0.83%, and 1.53% for length, width, height, and interconnected porosity, respectively). Compressive testing was conducted on the scaffolds for axial and transversal loading conditions and, micro-hardness was evaluated in the micro spot welds. The obtained results indicated that the developed WE43 magnesium scaffold features bone-like mechanical properties. The elastic modulus range of cancellous bone is between 0.01 and 0.90 GPa compared to WE43 magnesium scaffold́s elastic modulus between 0.07 and 0.41 GPa for transversal and axial conditions, respectively. Hardness results showed values between 74 HV and 80 HV in the fusion zone and heat-affected zone, respectively. This novel methodology opens a new path for the construction of complex geometries such as scaffolds.

Objectives: This study investigated the correlations between the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) reservoir and immune activation levels in chronic patients under fully suppressive antiretroviral therapy (ART). Methods: We quantified the HIV-1 proviral DNA and 2-long terminal repeat (2-LTR) circle loads from peripheral blood mononuclear cells, the levels of CD38+ and Ki-67+ T-cells, and the levels of interleukin 7 (IL-7) in a cohort of patients with more than 5 years of ART at enrollment and after 1 year. Results: Among 29 participants with a median of 8 years (inter-quartile range, 6.9–9.4) under suppressive ART, we found higher levels of CD8+ CD38+ T-cells after 1 year (P = .000). We determined weak and statistically non-significant correlations between the levels of immune activation and the proviral DNA loads in CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells. Ki-67+ T-cells declined but not significantly and there was no significant correlation with the proportion of CD38+. Plasmatic IL-7 did not consistently correlated with the CD38+ and Ki-67+ T-cells. Conclusions: We found weak but statistically non-significant correlations between the levels of T-cell activation and the proviral DNA and 2-LTR circle loads. These results suggest that mechanisms other than viral replication drive chronic versus early immune activation in the long term.

Cashew nut production generates large amounts of cashew apple as residue. In Colombia, cashew cultivation is increasing together with the concerns on residue management. The objective of this study was to provide the first chemical, physical and thermal decomposition characterization of cashew apple from Colombian varieties harvested in Vichada, Colombia. This characterization was focused to identify the important bioactive and natural compounds that can be further valorized in the formulation of food, nutraceuticals, and pharmacological products. The results obtained in this study are helpful to portray the cashew apple as a potential by-product due to its renewable nature and valuable composition, instead of seeing it just as an agricultural residue. For that, cashew apples of Regional 8315 and Mapiria varieties were studied. The natural juice (cashew apple juice) that was extracted from the cashew apples and the remanent solids (cashew apple bagasse) were separately analyzed. The HPLC analytical technique was used to determine the concentration of bioactive compounds, structural carbohydrates, and soluble sugars that constitute this biomass. Spectrophotometric techniques were used to determine the concentration of tannins, carotenoids, and total polyphenols. Mineral content and antioxidant activity (DPPH and ABTS assays) were determined in the biomass. Also, the thermal decomposition under an inert atmosphere or pyrolysis was performed on cashew apple bagasse. The varieties of cashew apple studied in this work showed similar content of bioactive compounds, total phenolic content, and structural carbohydrates. However, the Mapiria variety showed values slightly higher than the Regional 8315. Regarding cashew apple juice, it is rich in tannins and ascorbic acid with values of 191 mg/100 mL and 70 mg/100 mL, respectively, for Mapiria variety. Additionally, the principal reservoir of bioactive compounds and constitutive carbohydrates was the cashew apple bagasse. About 50 wt.% of it was composed of cellulose and hemicellulose. Also, in the bagasse, the ascorbic acid content was in a range of 180–200 mg/100 g, which is higher than other fruits and vegetables. Moreover, alkaloids were identified in cashew apples. The maximum value of antioxidant activity (DPPH assay: 405 TEs/g) was observed in the bagasse of Mapiria variety. The bagasse thermal decomposition started around 150 °C when the structural carbohydrates and other constitutive substances started to degrade. After thermogravimetric analysis, a remanent of 20% of the initial weight suggested the formation of a rich-carbon solid, which could correspond to biochar. Therefore, the cashew apple harvested in Vichada is a valuable reservoir of a wide range of biomolecules that potentially could be valorized into energy, foods, and pharmacologic applications. Nevertheless, future work is necessary to describe the complex compounds of this residual biomass that are still unknown.

This paper presents the Clarity Speech Corpus, a publicly available, forty speaker British English speech dataset. The corpus was created for the purpose of running listening tests to gauge speech intelligibility and quality in the Clarity Project, which has the goal of advancing speech signal processing by hearing aids through a series of challenges. The dataset is suitable for machine learning and other uses in speech and hearing technology, acoustics and psychoacoustics. The data comprises recordings of approximately 10,000 sentences drawn from the British National Corpus (BNC) with suitable length, words and grammatical construction for speech intelligibility testing. The collection process involved the selection of a subset of BNC sentences, the recording of these produced by 40 British English speakers, and the processing of these recordings to create individual sentence recordings with associated transcripts and metadata.

Ultrasound is one of the most promising non-thermal an emerging technique in food technology. The objective of the present work was to evaluate the effect of different ultrasonic treatments on the most important wine microbiota (Saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces yeasts and lactic acid bacteria). Two stages were carried out: the assessment step, where six different ultrasonic treatments (with varying power, time, and pulses) were used on Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Brettanomyces spp., and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum; and the validation step, where two chosen ultrasonic treatments were used on Zigosaccharomyces bailli, Brettanomyces spp., Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Saccharomyces bayanus, Pichia membranifaciens, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, and Hanseniaspora osmophila. The most sensitive microorganism was Brettanomyces spp., and the most resistant was Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. Ultrasonic treatments had varying effects on vitality (delay of growth or maximum OD reduction) and on viability (reduction of microbial growth).

Grape skin is a source of polyphenols with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Little information is available regarding its application in animal feeding. The present study investigated the effect of inclusion of fermented (FS) and unfermented (UFS) grape skin at two different doses (30 g/kg, FS30 and UFS30, and 60 g/kg, FS60 and UFS60) and 200 mg/kg vitamin E (α-tocopheryl acetate) in a corn–soybean diet on growth performance, ileal protein digestibility, ileal and excreta total extractable polyphenols content and digestibility, intestinal microbiota and thigh meat oxidation in broiler chickens. Growth performance was depressed in chickens fed UFS and FS diets. A reduction in ileal protein digestibility was also observed in birds fed UFS, being this effect more pronounced in those fed 60 g/kg. The dietary inclusion of grape skin increased both ileal and excreta polyphenols contents, being higher in birds fed UFS than in those fed FS. Excreta moisture content increased in birds fed UFS and FS diets. No effect of dietary inclusion of grape skin was observed on ileal counts of lactic-acid bacteria and Clostridium, but UFS inclusion in the diet reduced ileal count of Escherichia coli as compared with FS dietary inclusion. After 7 days of refrigerated storage, values of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were lower in chicken meat when grape skin was added in the diet at 60 g/kg instead of 30 g/kg, and meat from birds fed 60 g/kg of grape skin reached TBARS values similar to those of birds supplemented with vitamin E. In conclusion, high doses of grape skin polyphenols depressed growth performance and protein digestibility, and increased excreta moisture content. Unfermented grape skin contained more polyphenols than FS, and its inclusion in the diet led to higher ileal and excreta polyphenols contents and to a lower ileal count of E. coli. Furthermore, the antioxidant potential of the polyphenols present in grape skin was observed after 7 days of meat storage, with the dose of 60 g/kg of grape skin being as effective as vitamin E supplementation in maintaining oxidative stability of meat.

Background: Zika (ZIKV) is a mosquito-borne virus that has caused multiple outbreaks in Americas. The early and accurate diagnosis of ZIKV is the key to minimize the health burden imposed on the infected patients. Many commercial ZIKV diagnosis kit are available based on ZIKV envelope antigen with varying sensitivity and specificity. Objective: The aim of this study was to develop sensitive ELISA methodology based on recombinant ZIKV NS1 and NS1 β-ladder antigens for seroprevalence detection in a cohort of patients in an arbovirus endemic Mexican region in comparison to a commercial kit. Study design: We obtained serum samples from 60 patients presenting with febrile illness and from 10 healthy donors in Michoacán state in 2016–2017. These samples were screened for ZIKV by RT-PCR and used to develop NS1 based ELISA and compared to a commercial kit. Results: Our results indicate that both ZIKV sNS1 and β-ladder-based ELISA can reliably detect anti-ZIKV NS1 antibodies in infected patients, relevant for the serodiagnosis of ZIKV. Determination of antibody titers showed that it offered higher sensitivity than a commercially available ZIKV ELISA. Over 90% seropositivity against ZIKV for the febrile patients was detected in Lázaro Cárdenas which is an arbovirus endemic region while lower seropositivity was observed in the healthy volunteers in Morelia (non-endemic area). Conclusion: We conclude that our simple and sensitive in-house NS1 based ELISA used in this study has excellent sensitivity, is easy to use and can provide fast results suitable for larger population-based seroprevalence studies in the future.

Background Coronary heart disease has multiple risk factors, including air pollution. Numerous pathophysiological mechanisms have been identified with increasing levels of air pollution, mainly with ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), particulate matter (PM10), fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and carbon monoxide (CO). In Mexico, the pollution level is reported using an air quality index called IMECA. Methods All patients with STEMI admitted at Hospital Español were collected between 2012 and 2019 (N = 348). We conducted a retrospective analysis using the air pollution exposure at the time of each event (lag0), the previous 24 h (lag1), 48 h (lag2), 72 h (lag3) and 5-day cumulative lag. The level of air pollution was analyzed independently using IMECA and particle concentrations. The data was divided in two groups: days with one of more STEMI’s (MI group) and days free of events (Control group), using ANCOVA to evaluate the difference between means of both groups taking into account confounders. Results: For days with one or more cardiovascular event, a significant increase in SO2 was observed at lag1; similar increase was found in CO, PM2.5, SO2 at lag2. For the 5-day cumulative lag, SO2 and PM2.5 showed a significant increase. No differences were found using the IMECA levels in both groups. Conclusions: The elevated concentrations levels of CO, SO2 and PM2.5 showed significant association with STEMI at different time points before the event. Ozone, PM10 and NO2 showed no difference between groups. IMECA levels showed no association with STEMI in our study.

Introduction: Low levels of thyroid hormones, total triiodothyronine (T3) and free triiodothyronine (FT3) in haemodialysis patients are a marker of malnutrition and inflammation and are predictors of mortality. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of malnutrition-inflammation complex syndrome in haemodialysis and its relationship with the thyroid hormones thyrotropin, T3, FT3 and free thyroxine (FT4), as well as to evaluate the prevalence of low FT3 syndrome and its correlation with nutritional and inflammatory markers. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional, analytical and comparative study that enrolled 128 haemodialysis patients: 50.8% females; mean age 45.05 ± 17.01 years; mean time on haemodialysis 45.4 ± 38.8 months; 29.7% diabetics; 79.7% with hypertension. Serum thyroidhormones thyrotropin, T3, FT3 and FT4 concentrations were measured and Malnutrition-Inflammation Score (MIS) was applied to diagnostic. Results: Mean thyroid hormone values were: thyroid hormones thyrotropin 2.48 ± 1.8 mIU/ml (range: 0.015–9.5), T3 1.18 ± 0.39 ng/ml (range 0.67–2.64), FT3 5.21 ± 0.96 pmol/l (range: 3.47–9.75); FT4 1.35 ± 0.4 ng/ml (range: 0.52–2.57). Malnutrition-inflammation complex syndrome prevalence was 53.9%; 11.7% presented low FT3 levels. Serum T3 and FT3 concentrations inversely correlated with Malnutrition-Inflammation Score (MIS), while FT4 correlated positively with Malnutrition-Inflammation Score. In the linear regression analysis, low FT3 was associated with IL-6 (β = 0.265, p = .031), C-reactive protein (CRP) (β = −0.313, p = .018) and albumin (β = 0.276, p = .002). Conclusion: Low T3 and FT3 levels are correlated with malnutrition and inflammation parameters. Malnutrition-inflammation complex syndrome can affect serum concentrations of thyroid hormones.

Introducción: La reducción de las hormonas tiroideas, triyodotironina total (T3) y triyodotironina libre (T3L) en pacientes en hemodiálisis, es un marcador de malnutrición e inflamación y son predictores de mortalidad. El objetivo del estudio fue determinar la prevalencia del síndrome complejo de malnutrición e inflamación en hemodiálisis y su asociación con las hormonas tiroideas: tirotropina, T3, T3L y tiroxina libre (T4L); además de evaluar la incidencia del síndrome de T3L y su correlación con marcadores nutricionales e inflamatorios. Materiales y métodos: Estudio transversal, analítico y comparativo, incluyó 128 pacientes en HD, 50,8% mujeres, edad 45,05 ± 17,01 años, 45,4 ± 38,8 meses en hemodiálisis, 29,7% diabéticos y 79,7% hipertensos. Se determinó en suero la concentración de tirotropina, T3, T3L y T4L, se aplicó la encuesta Malnutrition-Inflammation Score para diagnosticar malnutrición e inflamación. Resultados: La media de valores de las hormonas tiroideas fueron: tirotropina 2,48 ± 1,8 mUI/mL (rango 0,015-9,5), T3 1,18 ± 0,39ng/mL (0,67-2,64), T3L 5,21 ± 0,96 pmol/l (3,47-9,75), T4L 1,35 ± 0,4ng/mL (0,52-2,57). La prevalencia de síndrome complejo de malnutrición e inflamación es 53,9%; un 11,7% mostró T3L baja. Las concentraciones séricas de T3 y T3L correlacionan negativamente con Malnutrition-Inflammation Score y T4L correlaciona positivamente con Malnutrition-Inflammation Score. El análisis de regresión lineal de T3L baja fue asociado con IL-6 (β=0,265 p = 0,031), proteína C reactiva (β=-0,313 p = 0,018) y albúmina (β=0,276 p = 0,002). Conclusiones: Bajos niveles de T3 y T3L correlacionan con parámetros de inflamación y nutrición. El síndrome complejo de malnutrición e inflamación puede afectar la concentración sérica de hormonas tiroideas.

Introducción: La estadística médica es considerada un elemento importante de la medicina basada en la evidencia. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar el conocimiento de métodos básicos de estadística, epidemiología e investigación en médicos residentes de la Universidad Nacional de Asunción, y evaluar el efecto de las características individuales sobre el nivel de conocimientos. Materiales y métodos: Estudio observacional, analítico de corte transverso y muestreo no probabilístico, en el que se incluyeron 50 médicos residentes. Se utilizó una versión adaptada del cuestionario de Novack et al. sobre conocimientos de epidemiología y estadística. Para establecer asociaciones se usaron las pruebas de correlación de Pearson, «t» de Student y ANOVA, estableciendo una significación de p

The Zika virus (ZIKV) was first isolated in 1947 in Uganda. While it took 60 years for this virus to cause major outbreaks, an important shift in its ability to cause epidemics took place in the first and second decades of the this century: in 2007 in Yap Island, Micronesia, followed by French Polynesia in 2013 and, finally in 2015 and 2016, when ZIKV infections occurred throughout South America, Central America and the Caribbean, spreading rapidly to reach North America in just a single year. No licensed prophylactic vaccine is yet available but recent efforts towards the development of a vaccine have been remarkable from both the private and public sectors and include new candidate vaccines ranging from the classical live-attenuated or inactivated vaccines to more sophisticated approaches such as mRNA or genetically engineered viral platforms. Previous successes with licensed flavivirus vaccines indicate that a protective ZIKV vaccine should be an achievable goal. Nevertheless, numerous pre- and post-licensure challenges need to be taken into account, such as the interaction of vaccine-induced immune responses with other flaviviruses, in particular with dengue, where antibody-dependent enhancement could become an issue, and the importance of a rapid induction of protective responses during pregnancy.

Summary: The central circadian pacemaker, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), encodes day length information by mechanisms that are not well understood. Here, we report that genetic ablation of miR-132/212 alters entrainment to different day lengths and non-24 hr day-night cycles, as well as photoperiodic regulation of Period2 expression in the SCN. SCN neurons from miR-132/212-deficient mice have significantly reduced dendritic spine density, along with altered methyl CpG-binding protein (MeCP2) rhythms. In Syrian hamsters, a model seasonal rodent, day length regulates spine density on SCN neurons in a melatonin-independent manner, as well as expression of miR-132, miR-212, and their direct target, MeCP2. Genetic disruption of Mecp2 fully restores the level of dendritic spines of miR-132/212-deficient SCN neurons. Our results reveal that, by regulating the dendritic structure of SCN neurons through a MeCP2-dependent mechanism, miR-132/212 affects the capacity of the SCN to encode seasonal time. : Seasonal adaptation is believed to require plasticity in the SCN, although the mechanisms are unclear. Mendoza-Viveros et al. report that miR-132/212 modulates dendritic protrusion density and photoperiodic adaptation in mice and hamsters, by regulating the expression of MeCP2, and downstream BDNF and mTOR signaling. Keywords: circadian rhythms, seasonal timekeeping, suprachiasmatic nucleus, microRNA, miR-132/212, entrainment, MeCP2, dendritic morphology, structural plasticity, spinogenesis

An animal model, suitable for resembling Parkinson's disease (PD) progress, should show both, motor and non-motor alterations. However, these features have been scarcely evaluated or developed in parkinsonian models induced by neurotoxins. This protocol provides modifications to original methods, allowing six different motor and non-motor behavior tests, which adequately and timely emulate the main parkinsonian sensorimotor alterations in the rat or mouse: (1) bilateral sensorimotor alterations, examined by the vibrissae test; (2) balance and motor coordination, evaluated by the uncoordinated gait test; (3) locomotor asymmetry, analyzed by the cylinder test; (4) bradykinesia, as a locomotor alteration evidenced by the open field test; (5) depressive-like behavior, judged by the forced swimming test; and (6) hyposmia, assessed by the olfactory asymmetry test. Some advantages of using these behavioral tests over others include: • No sophisticated materials or equipment are required for their application and evaluation. • They are used in rodent models for parkinsonian research, but they can also be helpful for studying other movement disorders. • These tests can accurately discriminate the affected side from the healthy one, after unilateral injury of one hemisphere, resulting in sensorimotor, olfactory or locomotor asymmetry.

A graphene–silicon field-effect transistor (GFET) structure is demonstrated as a detector of single-stranded 13-mer DNA simultaneously at DC and 101 GHz at three different molarities: 0.01, 1.0 and 100 nM. The mechanism for detection at DC is the DNA-induced change in lateral sheet conductance, whereas at 101 GHz it is the change in RF sheet conductance and the resulting effect on the perpendicular beam transmittance through the GFET acting as an optical etalon. For example, after application and drying of the DNA on a GFET film biased to a DC sheet conductance of 2.22 mS, the 1.0 nM solution is found to reduce this by 1.24 mS with a post-detection signal-to-noise ratio of 43 dB, and to increase the transmitted 101-GHz signal from 0.828 to 0.907 mV (arbitrary units) with a post-detection signal-to-noise ratio of 36 dB. The increase in transmittance is consistent with a drop of the 101-GHz sheet conductance, but not as much drop as the DC value. Excellent sensitivity is also achieved with the 0.01-nm solution, yielding a DC SNR of 41 dB and a 101-GHz SNR of 23 dB. Keywords: Graphene, DNA, THz, DC, Detection

The pacemaker properties of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) circadian clock are shaped by mechanisms that influence the expression and behavior of clock proteins. Here, we reveal that G-protein-coupled receptor kinase 2 (GRK2) modulates the period, amplitude, and entrainment characteristics of the SCN. Grk2-deficient mice show phase-dependent alterations in light-induced entrainment, slower recovery from jetlag, and longer behavioral rhythms. Grk2 ablation perturbs intrinsic rhythmic properties of the SCN, increasing amplitude and decreasing period. At the cellular level, GRK2 suppresses the transcription of the mPeriod1 gene and the trafficking of PERIOD1 and PERIOD2 proteins to the nucleus. Moreover, GRK2 can physically interact with PERIOD1/2 and promote PERIOD2 phosphorylation at Ser545, effects that may underlie its ability to regulate PERIOD1/2 trafficking. Together, our findings identify GRK2 as an important modulator of circadian clock speed, amplitude, and entrainment by controlling PERIOD at the transcriptional and post-translational levels.

The subgranular zone (SGZ) of the adult hippocampus contains a pool of quiescent neural progenitor cells (QNPs) that are capable of entering the cell cycle and producing newborn neurons. The mechanisms that control the timing and extent of adult neurogenesis are not well understood. Here, we show that QNPs of the adult SGZ express molecular-clock components and proliferate in a rhythmic fashion. The clock proteins PERIOD2 and BMAL1 are critical for proper control of neurogenesis. The absence of PERIOD2 abolishes the gating of cell-cycle entrance of QNPs, whereas genetic ablation of bmal1 results in constitutively high levels of proliferation and delayed cell-cycle exit. We use mathematical model simulations to show that these observations may arise from clock-driven expression of a cell-cycle inhibitor that targets the cyclin D/Cdk4-6 complex. Our findings may have broad implications for the circadian clock in timing cell-cycle events of other stem cell populations throughout the body.

Polyphenols are chemically and biologically active compounds. Grape seed extracts (GSEs) have been widely used as a human food supplement for health promotion and disease prevention. However, there is little information regarding its application in animal feeds. An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of inclusion of GSE at 0.025, 0.25, 2.5 and 5.0 g/kg in a wheat soya bean control diet on growth performance, protein and amino acid (AA) digestibility and plasma lipid and mineral concentrations in broiler chickens at 21 days of age. Performance was not affected by dietary treatment except in the case of birds fed the diet with the highest GSE concentration, which showed a worsening of weight gain and feed conversion. Apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of protein was significantly reduced in the birds fed the highest concentration of GSE, which also had a reduction on the AID of arginine, histidine, phenylalanine, cystine, glutamic acid and proline compared with those fed control diet. The inclusion of graded concentration of GSE in the chicken diets caused a significant linear decrease in the concentrations of plasma copper, iron and zinc. Plasma cholesterol, triglycerides and lipoproteins (high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein and very-low-density lipoprotein) concentrations were not affected by dietary GSE. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that incorporation of GSE in chicken diets up to 2.5 g/kg had no adverse effect on growth performance or protein and AA digestibility. Feed conversion was reduced and growth rate was retarded, when chickens were fed 5 g/kg of GSE. This study also indicated that grape polyphenols reduce the free plasma minerals.