Exploring the potential of slaughterhouse waste valorization: Development and scale-up of a new bioprocess for medium-chain length polyhydroxyalkanoates production.

The progressive increase of slaughterhouse waste production requires actions for both addressing an environmental issue and creating additional value within a biorefinery concept. In this regard, some of these animal by-products exhibit a significant content of fatty acids that could be efficiently converted into bioplastics such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) by adequately performing substrate screening with producing bacterial strains and applying affordable pretreatments. One of the main challenges also relies on the difficulty to emulsify these fat-rich substrates within culture broth and make the fatty acids accessible for the producing bacteria.

[The transnationalization of normal childbirth in Brazil: a study of the last five decades].

In recent years, changes have taken place in Brazilian obstetrics in response to the distance between the national scenario and World Health Organization recommendations and the work of organized civil society. This indicates the need for the national and international contexts to be considered. As such, the aim here is to understand the influence of transnationalism on normal childbirth in Brazil.

Bloodstains on Leather: Examination of False Negatives in Presumptive Test and Human Hemoglobin Test.

Presumptive tests for blood are very simple and sensitive tests used in the search for evidence. They also provide initial information on the nature of stains. A second test can confirm their nature.

Association between Opioid Receptor mu 1 (OPRM1) Gene Polymorphisms and Tobacco and Alcohol Consumption in a Spanish Population.

Evidence gained from animals and humans suggests that the encephalic opioid system might be involved in the development of drug addiction through its role in reward. Our aim is to assess the influence of genetic variations in the opioid receptor mu 1 on alcohol and tobacco consumption in a Spanish population. 763 unrelated individuals (465 women, 298 men) aged 18-85 years were recruited between October 2011 and April 2012.

Viability of anastomoses with coupler in extra-intracranial bypass: cadaveric study.

Background: The time required to perform an anastomosis in extra-intracranial bypass is approximately 20 to 60 minutes. The search for alternative methods to reduce the ischemic time remains vital.

Objective: To evaluate Coupler anastomosis for extra-intracranial bypass in cadavers.

Solving underwater crimes: development of latent prints made on submerged objects.

Underwater crime scenes always present a challenge for forensic researchers, as the destructive effect of water considerably complicates the chances of recovering material of evidential value. The aim of this study is to tackle the problem of developing marks that have been left on submerged objects. Fingermark deposition was randomly made on two surfaces - glass and plastic whilst the material was submerged under tap water and then left for one to fifteen days before drying and development.

Chemistry in crime investigation: sodium percarbonate effects on bloodstains detection.

Chemistry plays a leading role in crime investigation. In the study of bloodstains, chemical reactions provide the means for the detection. All these procedures have been thoroughly studied.

An alternative to the human hemoglobin test in the investigation of bloodstains treated with active oxygen: the human glycophorin A test.

In criminal investigations, there are three stages involved when studying bloodstains: search and orientation, confirmation, and individualization. Confirmatory tests have two aims: to show that the stain contains a human biological fluid and to confirm the type of biological fluid. The need to determine the nature of the evidence is reflected in the latest bibliography, where the possibility of employing mRNA and miRNA markers for this purpose is proposed.

The 1258 G>A polymorphism in the neuropeptide Y gene is associated with greater alcohol consumption in a Mediterranean population.

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is a neurotransmitter widely distributed in the central nervous system. Several studies have demonstrated that increases of NPY are associated with reduced alcohol intake and anxiety manifestations. The Leu7Pro polymorphism in the NPY has been associated with alcohol consumption, but evidence is scarce.

DNA evidence uncompromised by active oxygen.

Currently, forensic sciences can make use of the potential of instrumental analysis techniques to obtain information from the smallest, even invisible, samples. However, as laboratory techniques improve, so too should the procedures applied in the search for and initial testing of clues in order to be equally effective. This requires continuous revision so that those procedures may resolve the problems that samples present.

Learning ethics through everyday problems: informed consent.

The teaching of bioethics and its importance in clinical relationships is to a certain extent complicated when we address students of medicine, young people who are more used to dealing with and solving strictly clinical problems. Informed Consent is one of the aspects of professional practice that is generally and widely accepted in Western societies, although difficulties are still encountered in explaining it from a purely theoretical model. This situation led us to design an educational strategy to make the Informed Consent concept more understandable.

Bleach interference in forensic luminol tests on porous surfaces: more about the drying time effect.

As criminals try to avoid leaving clues at the scene of a crime, bloodstains are often washed away, but fortunately for investigators, they are difficult to eliminate completely. Porous surfaces easily retain blood traces, which are sometimes invisible to the naked eye. The reagent of choice for detecting latent blood traces on all types of surfaces is luminol, but its main disadvantage is a high degree of sensitivity to oxidising contaminants in the blood sample.

Active oxygen doctors the evidence.

Investigation at the scene of a crime begins with the search for clues. In the case of bloodstains, the most frequently used reagents are luminol and reduced phenolphthalein (or phenolphthalin that is also known as the Kastle-Meyer colour test). The limitations of these reagents have been studied and are well known.

PPAR-alpha L162V and PGC-1 G482S gene polymorphisms, but not PPAR-gamma P12A, are associated with alcohol consumption in a Spanish Mediterranean population.

Background: Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors (PPARs) and its co-activators are regulatory elements of the cellular lipid homeostasis and have been associated with feeding behavior modulation. Animal models suggest that these genes may be involved in alcohol consumption regulation. However, no studies in humans exist.

Amelogenin test: From forensics to quality control in clinical and biochemical genomics.

Background: The increasing number of samples from the biomedical genetic studies and the number of centers participating in the same involves increasing risk of mistakes in the different sample handling stages. We have evaluated the usefulness of the amelogenin test for quality control in sample identification.

Methods: Amelogenin test (frequently used in forensics) was undertaken on 1224 individuals participating in a biomedical study.

More about the developing of invisible lipstick-contaminated lipmarks on human skin: the usefulness of fluorescent dyes.

At the present time fingerprints are one of the simplest, and most reliable means of identification. Increasingly, crime scene investigators look for palm, foot, ear or lip prints. With regard to lip prints, the use, very common today, of protective or permanent lipsticks allow the production an invisible lipmark (or invisible lipstick-contaminated lipmark) which is possible to develop.