Seroprevalence of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Blood Donors from Nuevo Leon State, Mexico, during 2020: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Evaluation.

The progression and distribution of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic are continuously changing over time and can be traced by blood donors' serological survey. Here, we investigated the seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in blood donors in Nuevo Leon, Mexico during 2020 as a strategy for the rapid evaluation of the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and asymptomatic case detection. We collected residual plasma samples from blood donors who attended two regional donation centers from January to December of 2020 to identify changes in anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG prevalence.

Using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) to study the molecular conformation of parchment artifacts in different macroscopic states.

Maintaining appropriate temperatures and relative humidity is considered essential to extending the useful life of parchment artifacts. Although the relationship between environmental factors and changes to the physical state of artifacts is reasonably understood, an improved understanding of the relationship between the molecular conformation and changes to the macroscopic condition of parchment is needed to optimize environmental conditions. Using Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) analysis, the conformation of the molecular structure in selected parchment samples with specific macroscopic conditions, typically discoloration and planar deformations (e.

Ovarian follicular development in the hawksbill turtle (Cheloniidae: Eretmochelys imbricata L.).

Ovarian follicular development is an essential process in the determination of maturation stages associated with size. This association acquires importance when managing populations of threatened species. We histologically processed 11 prepubescent ovaries, four pubescent ovaries, and one breeding adult ovary with vitellogenic follicles using specific staining techniques to identify the follicular stages of Eretmochelys imbricata.

Effects of isopropanol on collagen fibrils in new parchment.

Background: Isopropanol is widely used by conservators to relax the creases and folds of parchment artefacts. At present, little is known of the possible side effects of the chemical on parchments main structural component- collagen. This study uses X-ray Diffraction to investigate the effects of a range of isopropanol concentrations on the dimensions of the nanostructure of the collagen component of new parchment.

A study of degradation of historic parchment using small-angle X-ray scattering, synchrotron-IR and multivariate data analysis.

Parchment has been in use for thousands of years and has been used as the writing or drawing support for many important historic works. A variety of analytical techniques is currently used for routine assessment of the degree of denaturation of historic parchment; however, because parchment has a heterogeneous nature, analytical methods with high spatial resolution are desirable. In this work, the use of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and synchrotron-IR (SR-IR) was examined in conjunction with multivariate data analysis to study degradation of an extended set of historic parchment samples, and particularly to investigate the effect of lipids and the presence of iron gall ink on the degradation processes.

Enhanced tissue integration during cartilage repair in vitro can be achieved by inhibiting chondrocyte death at the wound edge.

Objective: Experimental wounding of articular cartilage results in cell death at the lesion edge. The objective of this study was to investigate whether inhibition of this cell death results in enhanced integrative cartilage repair.

Methods: Bovine articular cartilage discs (6 mm) were incubated in media containing inhibitors of necrosis (Necrostatin-1, Nec-1) or apoptosis (Z-VAD-FMK, ZVF) before cutting a 3 mm inner core.

Use of attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to measure collagen degradation in historical parchments.

Developing a noninvasive method to assess the degraded state of historical parchments is essential to providing the best possible care for these documents. The conformational changes observed when collagen molecules, the primary constituent of parchment, unfold have been analyzed using attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FT-IR) spectroscopy and the nanoscopic structural changes have been analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD). The relationship between the results obtained from these techniques was studied using principal component analysis, where correlation was found.