Comparative Efficacy of Nebivolol and Metoprolol to Prevent Tachycardia-Induced Cardiomyopathy in a Porcine Model.

Chronic tachycardia is a well-known cause of nonischemic cardiomyopathy. We hypothesized that nebivolol, a β-blocker with nitric oxide activity, would be superior to a pure β-blocker in preventing tachycardia-induced cardiomyopathy in a porcine model. Fifteen healthy Yucatan pigs were randomly assigned to receive nebivolol, metoprolol, or placebo once a day.

Comparison of the adjuvant activity of emulsions with different physicochemical properties on the antibody response towards the venom of West African carpet viper (Echis ocellatus).

Adjuvant emulsions are widely used to enhance the antibody response of the animals used as immunoglobulin source for producing antivenoms. Usually, the adjuvant activity of emulsions is attributed both to their ability to trigger "danger" signals from cells in which they induce death, and to form depots from which immunogens are slowly released. However, there is contradictory evidence suggesting that adjuvant activity of emulsions is independent of the dispersion type and the rate of immunogen release.

Iron Uptake Analysis in a Set of Clinical Isolates of .

strains are frequent inhabitants of soil and aquatic niches and they are occasionally isolated from hospital environments. As the available iron sources in human tissues, edaphic, and aquatic niches are different, we have analyzed iron-uptake related genes in different strains that were isolated from all these environments. We found that these isolates can be grouped into different clades according to the genetics of siderophore biosynthesis and recycling.

Expanding the neutralization scope of the EchiTAb-plus-ICP antivenom to include venoms of elapids from Southern Africa.

EchiTAb-plus-ICP is an antivenom prepared from plasma of horses hyperimmunized with the venoms of the carpet viper (Echis ocellatus), the puff adder (Bitis arietans) and the black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis). Therefore, the use of this antivenom has been limited to Western Africa. In order to expand the neutralization scope of EchiTAb-plus-ICP, we supplemented the immunogenic mixture with the venoms of B.

[Allergen immunotherapy: Mechanisms of action, and therapeutic and socioeconomic impact Consensus of the Asociación Colombiana de Alergia, Asma e Imunología].

Allergies comprise a set of highly prevalent diseases. When allergic processes are not controlled, they can endanger patients' health and lives, and have an important economic and social impact. The aim of this paper is to present a practical consensus of the scientific evidence on the use of immunotherapy in allergic diseases.

[Trends in pertussis mortality and morbidity in Colombia, 2002-2012].

Whooping cough is a public health problem that mainly affects children under one year of age with highly lethal outcomes. It is a re-emerging disease, which is preventable by immunization. Objective: To analyze mortality and morbidity trends of whooping cough in Colombia between 2002 and 2012.

[Healthcare promotion in primary care: if Hippocrates were alive today…].

This article argues for the need to implement community healthcare promotion initiatives in medical practice. Some of the community initiatives introduced in primary care, as well as scientific evidence and associated implementation factors are described. The need for effective coordination between primary care and public health services, working with the community, is underlined.

[Health reports as the centrepiece of public health services].

The main objective of health reports is to contribute to the health improvement of a specific population. They are an essential support tool for the design and planning of health policies and can also be used for accountability and evaluation. This study assesses various types of health report, including that used by the City of Barcelona (Spain), with a focus on social determinants, as well as an international health report more centred on the impact of health services.

Management of controversial gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumour clinical situations with somatostatin analogues: results of a Delphi questionnaire panel from the NETPraxis program.

Background: There are clinical situations (CS) in which the use of somatostatin analogs (SSAs) in patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NET) is controversial due to lack of evidence. A Delphi study was conducted to develop common treatment guidelines for these CS, based on clinical practice and expert opinion of Spanish oncologists.

Methods: A scientific committee identified 5 CS with a common core (c-c) [non-functioning NET, not susceptible of surgery/locoregional therapy, Ki67 < 10 % (except for CS5: >10 %), ECOG ≤ 2], and controversy regarding use of SSAs, and prepared a Delphi questionnaire of 48 treatment statements.

Development of a new polyspecific antivenom for snakebite envenoming in Sri Lanka: Analysis of its preclinical efficacy as compared to a currently available antivenom.

A new whole IgG, freeze-dried, polyspecific antivenom was prepared from the plasma of horses immunized with the venoms of the snakes Daboia russelii, Echis carinatus, Hypnale hypnale, and Naja naja from Sri Lanka. The preclinical neutralizing ability of this antivenom against several toxic and enzymatic activities of these four venoms was analyzed, and compared with that of a batch of VINS antivenom (India) being currently used in Sri Lanka. The activities tested were: lethality, hemorrhagic, in vitro coagulant, proteinase and phospholipase A.

Proteomics and antivenomics of Papuan black snake (Pseudechis papuanus) venom with analysis of its toxicological profile and the preclinical efficacy of Australian antivenoms.

Unlabelled: The Papuan black snake (Pseudechis papuanus Serpentes: Elapidae) is endemic to Papua New Guinea, Indonesian Papua and Australia's Torres Strait Islands. We have investigated the biological activity and proteomic composition of its venom. The P.

New family of biosensors for monitoring BTX in aquatic and edaphic environments.

Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) contamination is a serious threat to public health and the environment, and therefore, there is an urgent need to detect its presence in nature. The use of whole-cell reporters is an efficient, easy-to-use and low-cost approach to detect and follow contaminants outside specialized laboratories; this is especially important in oil spills that are frequent in marine environments. The aim of this study is the construction of a bioreporter system and its comparison and validation for the specific detection of monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in different host bacteria and environmental samples.

The relationship of salivary testosterone and male sexual dysfunction in opioid-associated androgen deficiency (OPIAD).

Background: Opioids are an effective treatment for chronic non-malignant pain (CNP). Long-term use risks and side effects such as opioid-induced androgen deficiency (OPIAD) exist. This could be measured by saliva testosterone (Sal-T).

Microbial alkane production for jet fuel industry: motivation, state of the art and perspectives.

Bio-jet fuel has attracted a lot of interest in recent years and has become a focus for aircraft and engine manufacturers, oil companies, governments and researchers. Given the global concern about environmental issues and the instability of oil market, bio-jet fuel has been identified as a promising way to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from the aviation industry, while also promoting energy security. Although a number of bio-jet fuel sources have been approved for manufacture, their commercialization and entry into the market is still a far way away.

Degradation of phenanthrene by Novosphingobium sp. HS2a improved plant growth in PAHs-contaminated environments.

At the same time that the European Union (EU) policy recommend to direct efforts towards reductions of heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and mining residues, there is the need to increase the cultivable areas within Europe to cope with the increasing demands for food and energy crops. Bioremediation is a good technique for the restoration of contaminated soils; however, it has not been used extensively because of the variability of the outcome. This variability is frequently due to a bad establishment of foreign degrading populations in soil.

Carbon Monoxide and the Potential for Prebiotic Chemistry on Habitable Planets around Main Sequence M Stars.

Lifeless planets with CO atmospheres produce CO by CO photolysis. On planets around M dwarfs, CO is a long-lived atmospheric compound, as long as UV emission due to the star's chromospheric activity lasts, and the sink of CO and O in seawater is small compared to its atmospheric production. Atmospheres containing reduced compounds, like CO, may undergo further energetic and chemical processing to give rise to organic compounds of potential importance for the origin of life.

Translational research in neuroendocrine tumors: pitfalls and opportunities.

Interest in research on neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) has grown in the past 10 years, coinciding with improvements in our understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of NETs. In addition, NETs have become one of the most exciting settings for drug development. Two targeted agents for the management of advanced pancreatic NETs have been approved, but the development of targeted agents for NETs is limited by problems with both patient selection and demonstration of activity.

Opioids Increase Sexual Dysfunction in Patients With Non-Cancer Pain.

Introduction: Long-term opioid therapy has been found to have a strong impact on the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis that can be manifested clinically by sexual dysfunction (SD). This event is rarely reported and thus unnoticed and undertreated.

Aim: To analyze the presence of SD in a large group of patients receiving long-term opioids.

Risk of Cause-Specific Death in Individuals With Diabetes: A Competing Risks Analysis.

Objective: Diabetes is a common cause of shortened life expectancy. We aimed to assess the association between diabetes and cause-specific death.

Research Design And Methods: We used the pooled analysis of individual data from 12 Spanish population cohorts with 10-year follow-up.

Pseudomonas putida as a platform for the synthesis of aromatic compounds.

Aromatic compounds such as l-phenylalanine, 2-phenylethanol and trans-cinnamate are aromatic compounds of industrial interest. Current trends support replacement of chemical synthesis of these compounds by 'green' alternatives produced in microbial cell factories. The solvent-tolerant Pseudomonas putida DOT-T1E strain was genetically modified to produce up to 1 g l-1 of l-phenylalanine.

Structural Metastability and Quantum Confinement in Zn1-xCoxO Nanoparticles.

This paper investigates the electronic structure of wurtzite (W) and rock-salt (RS) Zn1-xCoxO nanoparticles (NPs) by means of optical measurements under pressure (up to 25 GPa), X-ray absorption, and transmission electron microscopy. W-NPs were chemically synthesized at ambient conditions and RS-NPs were obtained by pressure-induced transformation of W-NPs. In contrast to the abrupt phase transition in W-Zn1-xCoxO as thin film or single crystal, occurring sharply at about 9 GPa, spectroscopic signatures of tetrahedral Co(2+) are observed in NPs from ambient pressure to about 17 GPa.

Development of a chicken-derived antivenom against the taipan snake (Oxyuranus scutellatus) venom and comparison with an equine antivenom.

A chicken-derived antivenom (ChDAv) towards taipan snake (Oxyuranus scutellatus) venom was produced by purifying anti-taipan IgY from egg yolks of hens immunized with taipan venom. The productivity, antivenomic profile, neutralization ability, pharmacokinetic properties and immunogenicity of the ChDAv were compared with those of an antivenom produced in horses (EDAv). We found that 382 eggs are required to produce the mass of anti-taipan antibodies contained in one liter of equine hyperimmune plasma, and that 63 chickens would be needed to generate the amount of anti-taipan antibodies annually produced by one horse.

Characterization of a polyhydroxyalkanoate obtained from pineapple peel waste using Ralsthonia eutropha.

Agro-industrial waste can be the production source of biopolymers such as polyhydroxyalkanoates. The aim of this study was to produce and characterize Polyhydroxyalkanoates produced from pineapple peel waste fermentation processes. The methodology includes different pineapple peel waste fermentation conditions.

Pathogenesis of dermonecrosis induced by venom of the spitting cobra, Naja nigricollis: An experimental study in mice.

The pathogenesis of dermonecrosis induced by the venom of the African spitting cobra Naja nigricollis was investigated in a mouse model. Intradermal injection of venom induced a macroscopic necrotic lesion. Histological examination revealed early edema of the dermis, followed by blistering, loss of skin appendages and reduction in cellularity.

Exceptional body sizes but typical trophic structure in a Pleistocene food web.

In this study, we focused on the exceptionally large mammals inhabiting the Americas during the Quaternary period and the paramount role of body size in species ecology. We evaluated two main features of Pleistocene food webs: the relationship between body size and (i) trophic position and (ii) vulnerability to predation. Despite the large range of species sizes, we found a hump-shaped relationship between trophic position and body size.