[Implementing a strategy to manage frequent emergency room visits in a district of Barcelona].

Visits to hospital emergency departments by patients with multimorbidity, complex chronic conditions, and frailty are becoming an increasing challenge. A territorial strategy has been developed, based on automated preselection lists, a nurse case manager with specialized experience, and a multi-level territorial referral consensus. The feasibility of this approach has been demonstrated, with 368 alerts detected, 85% of which were well-selected.

The Current State of Realistic Heart Models for Disease Modelling and Cardiotoxicity.

One of the many unresolved obstacles in the field of cardiovascular research is an uncompromising in vitro cardiac model. While primary cell sources from animal models offer both advantages and disadvantages, efforts over the past half-century have aimed to reduce their use. Additionally, obtaining a sufficient quantity of human primary cardiomyocytes faces ethical and legal challenges.

Identifying potential predictable indicators for the management of tertiary hospitals.

Background: The European University Hospitals Alliance (EUHA) recognises the need to move from the classical approach of measuring key performance indicators (KPIs) to an anticipative approach based on predictable indicators to take decisions (Key Decision Indicators, KDIs). It might help managers to anticipate poor results before they occur to prevent or correct them early.

Objective: This paper aims to identify potential KDIs and to prioritize those most relevant for high complexity hospitals.

Expression of Huntingtin and TDP-43 Derivatives in Fission Yeast Can Cause Both Beneficial and Toxic Effects.

Many neurodegenerative disorders display protein aggregation as a hallmark, Huntingtin and TDP-43 aggregates being characteristic of Huntington disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, respectively. However, whether these aggregates cause the diseases, are secondary by-products, or even have protective effects, is a matter of debate. Mutations in both human proteins can modulate the structure, number and type of aggregates, as well as their toxicity.

Epigallocatechin-3-gallate preconditioned Adipose-derived Stem Cells confer Neuroprotection in aging rat brain.

Aging is the most important current issue and is usually accompanied by complications, such as cardiovascular disorders and neurodegenerative diseases, which are the leading causes of death worldwide and the second major cause of death in Taiwan. In this study, we have investigated the protective effect of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) and the role of epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) in enhancing this effect in aging cerebral cortex of rats. Further, we attempted to elucidate the molecular mechanism through which EGCG influences the protective effects of ADSC.

Chaperone-Facilitated Aggregation of Thermo-Sensitive Proteins Shields Them from Degradation during Heat Stress.

Cells have developed protein quality-control strategies to manage the accumulation of misfolded substrates during heat stress. Using a soluble reporter of misfolding in fission yeast, Rho1.C17R-GFP, we demonstrate that upon mild heat shock, the reporter collapses in protein aggregate centers (PACs).

Viscoelastic solutions formed by worm-like micelles of amine oxide surfactant.

Formation and properties of viscoelastic wormlike aqueous micellar solutions of the zwitterionic surfactant p-dodecyloxybenzyldimethylamine oxide (pDoAO) were studied. Semi-dilute aqueous solutions of pDoAO show a sharp increase in viscosity, which exceeds 160 cST for concentrations >50 mM, leading to viscoelastic solutions. Viscoelasticity relates to the surfactant charge type.

Near-infrared reflectance models for the rapid prediction of quality of brewing raw materials.

Calibration models for quickly and reliably predicting moisture content and total nitrogen, both "as is" and "dry matter" on malt, as well as moisture content and total lipids, both "as is" and "dry matter", on maize by means of near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy were developed. The FT-NIR spectra recorded on the finely ground cereals were correlated to the analytical data by means of the multivariate PLS algorithm. In particular, these models were developed on the raw materials, which are used by the main Italian brewing industries.

Specific anion binding to sulfobetaine micelles and kinetics of nucleophilic reactions.

With fully micellar bound substrates reactions of OH- with benzoic anhydride, Bz(2)O, and of Br- with methyl naphthalene-2-sulfonate, MeONs, in micellized sulfobetaines are strongly inhibited by NaClO4 which displaces the nucleophilic anions from the micellar pseudophases. Micellar incorporations of ClO4- and Br- are estimated with an ion-selective electrode and by electrophoresis, and partitioning of Br- between water and micelles is related to changes in NMR spectral (79)Br- line widths. Extents of inhibition by ClO4- of these nucleophilic reactions in the micellar pseudophase are related to quantitative displacement of the reactive anions from the micelles by ClO4-.

Decarboxylation of 6-nitrobenzisoxazole-3-carboxylate in aqueous cationic micelles: kinetic evidence of microinterface property changes.

We studied decarboxylation of 6-nitrobenzisoxazole-3-carboxylate, 1, as a kinetic probe to investigate microinterface properties of aqueous micelles formed by cationic surfactants of increasing head group bulk, i.e., cetyltrialkylammonium bromide, with alkyl=Me (CTABr), Et (CTEABr), n-Pr (CTPABr), n-Bu (CTBABr) and p-octyloxybenzyltrialkylammonium bromide surfactants with alkyl=Me (pOOTABr), n-Pr (pOOTPABr), and n-Bu (pOOTBABr), and the longer p-dodecyloxybenzyltrimethylammonium bromide (pDoTABr) at concentrations higher than 0.

Activation and stabilization of alpha-chymotrypsin by cationic additives.

alpha-Chymotrypsin activity was tested with N-glutaryl-l-phenylalanine p-nitroanilide (GPNA) in aqueous media in the presence of synthetic surfactants, which differ in the flexibility of their bulky head groups. Superactivity can be ascribed to the presence of the tributylammonium residue on the surfactant head group, as in p-octyloxybenzyltributylammonium bromide (pOOTBABr), while in the presence of a more rigid moiety, i.e.

Effects of beta-alanine treatment on the taurine and DNA content of the rat heart and retina.

Experimental evidence has suggested that the high endogenous levels of taurine found in the rat heart and retina are maintained to a large extent by transport processes out of the blood, rather than by endogenous biosynthesis. When these high levels are depleted, dysfunction ensues. In vitro studies have shown that beta-alanine is a good antagonist of these transport processes.

Taurine depletion leads to loss of rat optic nerve axons.

The number of axons in the optic nerve have been examined in rat pups raised by control or taurine-depleted mothers, at 21, 28 and 40 days after birth. Optic nerves from the mother rats were also studied. Taurine depletion of dams and some litters after weaning was achieved by in vivo treatment with guanidinoethyl sulfonate, an inhibitor of taurine transport.