Management Solutions for the Restructuring of Laboratories Associated to the Sentinel Services for Syphilis and Other STIs.

This article aims to develop management solutions to accompany the processes of acquiring and distributing equipment and/or materials needed for the restructuring of associated laboratories to the sentinel services (Sentinel Laboratories) for syphilis and other sexually transmitted infection in the scope of the "Syphilis No!" Project. To this end, we have taken steps to create an overview of the restructuring project for the sentinel laboratories, define the stages of project execution, monitor the implementation of the project, and elaborate a standard operating procedure for the delivery of equipment and/or materials to the sentinel laboratories. Among the results, we highlight: the detailed workflow for the process of public procurement through direct purchases or bidding; the workflow for storage of the equipment and materials; the standard operating procedures (SOP) for contact with the laboratories; and the SOP for delivery of items acquired for the sentinel laboratories.

CBFA: phenotype prediction integrating metabolic models with constraints derived from experimental data.

Background: Flux analysis methods lie at the core of Metabolic Engineering (ME), providing methods for phenotype simulation that allow the determination of flux distributions under different conditions. Although many constraint-based modeling software tools have been developed and published, none provides a free user-friendly application that makes available the full portfolio of flux analysis methods.

Results: This work presents Constraint-based Flux Analysis (CBFA), an open-source software application for flux analysis in metabolic models that implements several methods for phenotype prediction, allowing users to define constraints associated with measured fluxes and/or flux ratios, together with environmental conditions (e.

OptFlux: an open-source software platform for in silico metabolic engineering.

Background: Over the last few years a number of methods have been proposed for the phenotype simulation of microorganisms under different environmental and genetic conditions. These have been used as the basis to support the discovery of successful genetic modifications of the microbial metabolism to address industrial goals. However, the use of these methods has been restricted to bioinformaticians or other expert researchers.

Nonsense mutation in TITF1 in a Portuguese family with benign hereditary chorea.

Benign hereditary chorea (BHC) is an autosomaldominant disorder of early onset characterized by a slowly progressing or nonprogressing chorea, without cognitive decline or other progressive neurologic dysfunction, but also by the existence of heterogeneity of the clinical presentation within and among families. The genetic cause of BHC is the presence of either point mutations or deletions in the thyroid transcription factor 1 gene (TITF1). We studied a Portuguese BHC family composed of two probands: a mother and her only son.

[Angio-CT in atheromatous carotid disease].

CT angiography is a diagnostic tool, which is rapidly becoming an important modality for non-invasive evaluation of the neurovasculature. The aim of this article is to review this method, including acquisition and image processing protocols and its application for the evaluation of atherosclerotic stenosis of the carotid artery. Illustrative cases are shown and a revision of the literature is also made.

[Evaluation of cerebral glioma with advanced magnetic resonance techniques].

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is the technique of choice for the radiological evaluation of cerebral gliomas. Determination of its malignant grade is important for therapeutic approach and prognosis. The authors focus on the utility of MRI advanced techniques, namely proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy, perfusion and diffusion.