Hydrocephalic hyh mutant mice undergo a programmed loss of the neuroepithelium/ependyma followed by a reaction of periventricular astrocytes, which form a new cell layer covering the denuded ...ventricular surface. We present a comparative morphological and functional study of the newly formed layer of astrocytes and the multiciliated ependyma of hyh mice. Transmission electron microscopy, immunocytochemistry for junction proteins (N-cadherin, connexin 43) and proteins involved in permeability (aquaporin 4) and endocytosis (caveolin-1, EEA1) were used. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and lanthanum nitrate were used to trace the intracellular and paracellular transport routes. The astrocyte layer shares several cytological features with the normal multiciliated ependyma, such as numerous microvilli projected into the ventricle, extensive cell–cell interdigitations and connexin 43-based gap junctions, suggesting that these astrocytes are coupled to play an unknown function as a cell layer. The ependyma and the astrocyte layers also share transport properties: (1) high expression of aquaporin 4, caveolin-1 and the endosome marker EEA1; (2) internalization into endocytic vesicles and early endosomes of HRP injected into the ventricle; (3) and a similar paracellular route of molecules moving between CSF, the subependymal neuropile and the pericapillary space, as shown by lanthanum nitrate and HRP. A parallel analysis performed in human hydrocephalic foetuses indicated that a similar phenomenon would occur in humans. We suggest that in foetal-onset hydrocephalus, the astrocyte assembly at the denuded ventricular walls functions as a CSF–brain barrier involved in water and solute transport, thus contributing to re-establish lost functions at the brain parenchyma–CSF interphase.
Aquaporin-4 (AQP4) plays a crucial role in brain water circulation and is considered a therapeutic target in hydrocephalus. Congenital hydrocephalus is associated with a reaction of astrocytes in the ...periventricular white matter both in experimental models and human cases. A previous report showed that bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) transplanted into the lateral ventricles of hyh mice exhibiting severe congenital hydrocephalus are attracted by the periventricular astrocyte reaction, and the cerebral tissue displays recovery. The present investigation aimed to test the effect of BM-MSC treatment on astrocyte reaction formation. BM-MSCs were injected into the lateral ventricles of four-day-old hyh mice, and the periventricular reaction was detected two weeks later. A protein expression analysis of the cerebral tissue differentiated the BM-MSC-treated mice from the controls and revealed effects on neural development. In in vivo and in vitro experiments, BM-MSCs stimulated the generation of periventricular reactive astrocytes overexpressing AQP4 and its regulatory protein kinase D-interacting substrate of 220 kDa (Kidins220). In the cerebral tissue, mRNA overexpression of nerve growth factor (NGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF1α), and transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFβ1) could be related to the regulation of the astrocyte reaction and AQP4 expression. In conclusion, BM-MSC treatment in hydrocephalus can stimulate a key developmental process such as the periventricular astrocyte reaction, where AQP4 overexpression could be implicated in tissue recovery.
Protected urban green spaces (PUGS) are exposed to numerous disturbances and threats since they are immersed in highly dynamic socio-ecological systems. PUGS in highly urbanized cities require ...particular conservation strategies. Here, we propose an approach for PUGS management which integrates three components: i) scientific knowledge (monitoring/restoration), ii) community interaction with the environment, and iii) management decision. Our hypothesis asserts that the intersection of these components should produce a solid management program, provided that the obtained multidisciplinary knowledge meets the needs of information required by the community and decision makers. We tested this hypothesis for a small PUGS located within Mexico City at the National Autonomous University of Mexico campus that holds the Ecological Reserve of Pedregal de San Ángel. Through a participatory approach we built a mental model to understand the perceptions of different campus actors (students, academics and administrators), and their social and ecological relationships with this PUGS. Our findings provide insight into the actors’ perceptions and concerns and suggest that the interactions among the three components, although important, are not self-generated and must be constructed. The findings also suggest that one of the management problems is the mismatch between scientific knowledge and conservation programs. It is paramount to include generated knowledge into management and monitoring programs. The complexity of the PUGS requires an active collaboration among actors and monitoring the development of management strategies using the three components while taking the conservation goals into account.
The aim of this study is to evaluate risk factors for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in patients with immune-mediated rheumatic diseases, stratified by systemic autoimmune conditions and ...chronic inflammatory arthritis.
An observational, cross-sectional multicentre study was performed. Patients from 10 rheumatology departments in Madrid who presented with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection between February 2020 and May 2021 were included. The main outcome was COVID-19 severity (hospital admission or mortality). Risk factors for severity were estimated, adjusting for covariates (socio-demographic, clinical, and treatments), using logistic regression analyses.
In total, 523 patients with COVID-19 were included, among whom 192 (35.6%) patients required hospital admission and 38 (7.3%) died. Male gender, older age, and comorbidities such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and obesity were associated with severe COVID-19. Corticosteroid doses >10 mg/day, rituximab, sulfasalazine, and mycophenolate use, were independently associated with worse outcomes. COVID-19 severity decreased over the different pandemic waves. Mortality was higher in the systemic autoimmune conditions (univariate analysis, P < .001), although there were no differences in the overall severity in the multivariate analysis.
This study confirms and provides new insights regarding the harmful effects of corticosteroids, rituximab, and other therapies (mycophenolate and sulfasalazine) in COVID-19. Methotrexate and anti-tumour necrosis factor therapy were not associated with worse outcomes.
As cities overgrow, the need for ecological restoration is becoming increasingly urgent, especially in densely populated areas. Urban ecological restoration represents the best approach to undertake ...damages to restore native ecosystem remnants fulfilling biodiversity but also social goals in dense urban settings such as Mexico City. The feasibility of restoring unique xerophytic scrub vegetation in lava field remnants was evaluated in a portion of a university campus in Mexico City. Here we present an index (Need and Feasibility of Restoration Index, NFRI) for such purpose. The NFRI was designed through multicriteria analysis and considered ecological, economic, and social indicators. Cluster and principal components analysis were carried out to identify different groups of lava field remnants with similar characteristics and to point out critical variables that in turn would support management strategies. The outcomes made evident the necessity of restoring native vegetation for all of the evaluated remnants; however, the group containing the largest ones obtained the highest values for restoration feasibility and NFRI. The recovery of the rest of the remnants is critical to support the ecological restoration of the area as this may provide connectivity with better-preserved ecosystem remnants. When the restoration is unaffordable due to financial constraints, it is highly recommended to direct efforts towards ecological rehabilitation actions. The establishment of native xerophytic gardens is promoted when remnants cannot support a self-sustainable plant community. It is crucial to include the diversity of views and values of the community and the economic and ecological aspects to guarantee the sustainability of the landscape, especially in the urban context. The latter can provide better planning and design processes, ensuring benefits for humans and nature.
Abstract
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a silent and poorly known killer. The current concept of CKD is relatively young and uptake by the public, physicians and health authorities is not ...widespread. Physicians still confuse CKD with chronic kidney insufficiency or failure. For the wider public and health authorities, CKD evokes kidney replacement therapy (KRT). In Spain, the prevalence of KRT is 0.13%. Thus health authorities may consider CKD a non-issue: very few persons eventually need KRT and, for those in whom kidneys fail, the problem is ‘solved’ by dialysis or kidney transplantation. However, KRT is the tip of the iceberg in the burden of CKD. The main burden of CKD is accelerated ageing and premature death. The cut-off points for kidney function and kidney damage indexes that define CKD also mark an increased risk for all-cause premature death. CKD is the most prevalent risk factor for lethal coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the factor that most increases the risk of death in COVID-19, after old age. Men and women undergoing KRT still have an annual mortality that is 10- to 100-fold higher than similar-age peers, and life expectancy is shortened by ~40 years for young persons on dialysis and by 15 years for young persons with a functioning kidney graft. CKD is expected to become the fifth greatest global cause of death by 2040 and the second greatest cause of death in Spain before the end of the century, a time when one in four Spaniards will have CKD. However, by 2022, CKD will become the only top-15 global predicted cause of death that is not supported by a dedicated well-funded Centres for Biomedical Research (CIBER) network structure in Spain. Realizing the underestimation of the CKD burden of disease by health authorities, the Decade of the Kidney initiative for 2020–2030 was launched by the American Association of Kidney Patients and the European Kidney Health Alliance. Leading Spanish kidney researchers grouped in the kidney collaborative research network Red de Investigación Renal have now applied for the Redes de Investigación Cooperativa Orientadas a Resultados en Salud (RICORS) call for collaborative research in Spain with the support of the Spanish Society of Nephrology, Federación Nacional de Asociaciones para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades del Riñón and ONT: RICORS2040 aims to prevent the dire predictions for the global 2040 burden of CKD from becoming true.
Bonilla-Rodríguez M., Garduño-Solórzano G., Martínez-García M., Campos J.E., Monsalvo-Reyes A.C. and Quintanar-Zúñiga R.E. 2013. Vaucheria zapotecana (Xanthophyceae), a new species from Oaxaca, ...Mexico. Phycologia 52: 550-556. DOI: 10.2216/13-162.1
A new species of Vaucheria was isolated from the Santa Gertrudis River in Oaxaca, Mexico. This taxon was distinguished from the other six species in the Pseudogeminata group of section Racemosae by wider siphonous filaments and antheridia of a larger diameter, lack of septa in the gametophore, broader oogonial beak, erect oogonia and oospores that lacked yellowish spots. This species was named Vaucheria zapotecana sp. nov. The phylogenetic relationship of this species was investigated by analyzing a 2022-base-pair sequence that included the rbcL gene; results revealed a close relationship among this species, V. pseudogeminata and other species of the section Racemosae; although, the sequence for V. zaptecana is distinct.
In this work, we recreate the history and connections of the Basel problem, that is, the finding of the sum ∑ 1 ??2 ∞ ??=1 . In addition, we offer a different view of the problem and its relation to ...number theory and probability, which could avoid frequent mistakes related to independence in probability. Furthermore, we give a new elementary proof that the sum of the reciprocal of the squares of the natural numbers is ??2⁄6. This new approach to the problem paves the road for reaching more students, even at middle school level.
En el presente trabajo, además de recrear la historia y conexiones del problema de Basilea, esto es, del hallazgo de la suma ∑ 1 ??2 ∞ ??=1 , se ofrece una visión diferente del problema, en su relación con la teoría de números y las probabilidades, que podría evitar frecuentes errores relacionados con la independencia en
probabilidad. Además, damos una nueva demostración elemental de que la suma de los inversos de los cuadrados de los números naturales es ??2⁄6. Los resultados anteriores permiten un acercamiento a estudiantes, incluso, de nivel medio.
Aims
Here, we tested the hypothesis that glial responses via the production of cytokines such as transforming growth factor‐beta 1 (TGFβ1) and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), which play ...important roles in neurodegenerative diseases, are correlated with the severity of congenital hydrocephalus in the hyh mouse model. We also searched for evidence of this association in human cases of primary hydrocephalus.
Methods
Hyh mice, which exhibit either severe or compensated long‐lasting forms of hydrocephalus, were examined and compared with wild‐type mice. TGFβ1, TNFα and TNFαR1 mRNA levels were quantified using real‐time PCR. TNFα and TNFαR1 were immunolocalized in the brain tissues of hyh mice and four hydrocephalic human foetuses relative to astroglial and microglial reactions.
Results
The TGFβ1 mRNA levels were not significantly different between hyh mice exhibiting severe or compensated hydrocephalus and normal mice. In contrast, severely hydrocephalic mice exhibited four‐ and two‐fold increases in the mean levels of TNFα and TNFαR1, respectively, compared with normal mice. In the hyh mouse, TNFα and TNFαR1 immunoreactivity was preferentially detected in astrocytes that form a particular periventricular reaction characteristic of hydrocephalus. However, these proteins were rarely detected in microglia, which did not appear to be activated. TNFα immunoreactivity was also detected in the glial reaction in the small group of human foetuses exhibiting hydrocephalus that were examined.
Conclusions
In the hyh mouse model of congenital hydrocephalus, TNFα and TNFαR1 appear to be associated with the severity of the disease, probably mediating the astrocyte reaction, neurodegenerative processes and ischaemia.
Introducción: Se ha podido evidenciar que los maestros en la actualidad no están capacitados para trabajar en sus aulas educativas con estudiantes con problemas de aprendizaje y sobre todo con ...discapacidades temporales y permanentes, en la actualidad las normas legales son claras y contundentes al exigir la inclusión educativa, No solo la constitución y la ley de educación intercultural bilingüe, manifiestan que las Instituciones educativas están obligadas a formar, educar y promocionar a niños y jóvenes con capacidades diferentes, sino que los deben incluir en sus programas de educación regular.
Objetivo: Presentar un proyecto alternativo e innovador en el sistema educativo actual para Capacitación docente en el tratamiento pedagógico de estudiantes con discapacidades temporales y permanentes
Métodos: Se utilizó una investigación de tipo descriptiva y experimental ya que se manipuló variables, de igual forma se aplicó un pre test y un post test antes y después de la capacitación docentes sobre el tema discapacidades temporales y permanentes y se realizó una comparación de los dos resultados utilizando el estadístico t de student
Resultados: se comprobó que hubo un mejoramiento en los conocimientos de los maestros sobre el tratamiento pedagógico a estudiantes que presentan discapacidades
Conclusiones: La capacitación de los docentes de la unidad educativa Leonardo Da Vinci de la ciudad de Riobamba en materia de atención pedagógica a estudiantes que presentan discapacidades permanentes y temporales, fue efectiva por lo cual se espera que este proyecto sirva de “experimento piloto” para que pueda ser implementada en todos los colegios de la ciudad y provincia logrando de esta manera ayudar a este colectivo tan desprotegido y desamparado en los últimos tiempos como son los estudiantes con capacidades diferentes, pudiendo así tener mejores oportunidades de desarrollo y progreso en sus vidas.
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