The detection of the number of extra–compact dimensions contained in some gravitational models is analyzed resorting to the discontinuity of the specific heat at the critical temperature of a ...Bose–Einstein condensate. It is shown that the function relating the number of particles and this discontinuity defines a segment of a straight line whose slope depends upon the number of extra–compact dimensions. The experimental feasibility of the proposal is also considered.
Herein, we report the development of sandwich type Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) immunosensor modified to be zwitterionic for the detection of soluble B7–H6 biomarker in blood serum from ...cervical cancer patients. Anti-fouling capture SERS substrate of biosensor based on gold (Au) thin film was modified with a self-assembled monolayer of zwitterionic l-cysteine to combat serum fouling and was then conjugated with NKp30 receptor protein to capture the B7–H6 biomarker in blood serum. The SERS nanoprobe based on spiky gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) was functionalized with ATP reporter molecule, that is stable at a wide range of pH, making the SERS signal reliable in complex media. Then, it was conjugated with anti-B7-H6 antibody forming the complex anti-B7-H6@ATP@AuNPs (i.e., SERS nanoprobe). The proposed immunosensor demonstrated high reproducibility for the quantitative detection of soluble tumor biomarker B7–H6 within the range of 10−10 M to 10−14 M with limit of detection (LOD) of 10−14 M or 10.8 fg mL−1, in the cancer patient serum, greatly exceeding (100 fold) the LOD of commercially available ELISA kits. Such low LOD is partially the result of zwitterionic modification which reduces the serum fouling by 55% compared to traditionally used BSA blocked capture substrates (i.e., control). Notably, this immunosensors demonstrated higher accuracy for detecting the B7–H6 biomarker in undiluted blood serum samples from cervical cancer patients and outperforms the currently available analytical techniques, making it reliable for point of care (POC) testing.
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•First SERS immunosensor for B7-H6 tumor biomarker detection in undiluted serum.•Zwitterion-modified antifouling sensor with stealth characteristics and pH-stable spiky gold nanoprobes.•B7-H6 LOD 10-14 M or 55 fg mL-1, 100x improvement versus ELISA.
Summary
An HIV‐infected patient was diagnosed with acute hepatitis E infection in our hospital. An epidemiological inquiry was performed to collect demographic, food and animal exposure variables in ...order to identify the potential route of transmission. The patient reported that his family traditionally hunted wild boar for food. All family members were analysed for hepatitis E virus infection. Additionally, route of transmission by wild boar meat consumption and prevalence of HEV infection among wild boar from the same hunting area were investigated. In all‐family members (n = 8), HEV‐RNA was amplified. Two wild boar meat slices consumed was analysed, showing the presence of HEV. The virus isolated was consistent with genotype 3, revealing 100% homology between family members and meat. Additionally, we tested nine wild boar hunted in the same hunting area. All of them were RNA‐HEV positive, isolating the same HEV genotype 3 viral strain. We demonstrated by phylogenetic analysis zoonotic transmission of HEV by wild boar meat consumption. The prevalence of HEV infection among wild boar found in our study suggests that this species is an important route of transmission to human.
Abstract Adjuvant research is being oriented to TLR-agonists, but complement activation has been relatively unexplored. In previous studies it was demonstrated that poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic ...anhydride) nanoparticles (PVMA NPs) used as adjuvant differentially activate dendritic cells through toll like receptors (TLR) stimulation, however, a high dose of these NPs was used. Now, we demonstrated a dose–response effect, with a concentration as low as 20 μg/mL able to stimulate TLR2 and TLR4 transfected dendritic cells. In addition, we investigated whether PVMA NPs are able to exploit also the immunomodulatory benefits of complement activation. Results indicated that the hydroxylated surface of these NPs highly activated the complement cascade, as measured by adsorption studies and a complement fixation bioassay. Stable binding of C3b to NPs was confirmed as indicated by lability to SDS treatment after washing resistance. Complement consumption was confirmed as the lytic capacity of complement exposed to NPs was abolished against antibody-sensitized sheep erythrocytes, with a minimal inhibitory concentration of 50 μg NPs, equivalent to a surface of 1 cm2 . On the contrary, nanoparticles prepared with poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), used as a reference, did not consume complement at a concentration ≥3 mg NPs (≥40 cm2 ). Complement consumption was inhibited when PVMA NPs were cross-linked with diamino groups (1,3-diaminopropane), indicating the role of hydroxyl groups as responsible of the phenomenon. These results favour a model whereby PVMA NPs adjuvant activate complement on site to attract immature antigen presenting cells that are activated through TLR2 and TLR4.
Cognitive changes in aging include working memory (WM) decline, which may hamper language comprehension. An increase in WM demands in older adults would probably provoke a poorer sentence processing ...performance in this age group. A way to increase the WM load is to separate two lexical units in an agreement relation (i.e., adjective and noun), in a given sentence. To test this hypothesis, event-related potentials (ERPs) were collected from Spanish speakers (30 older adults, mean age = 66.06 years old; and 30 young adults, mean age = 25.7 years old) who read sentences to detect grammatical errors. The sentences varied with regard to (1) the gender agreement of the noun and adjective, where the gender of the adjective either agreed or disagreed with the noun, and (2) the WM load (i.e., the number of words between the noun and adjective in the sentence). No significant behavioral differences between groups were observed in the accuracy of the response, but older adults showed longer reaction times regardless of WM load condition. Compared with young participants, older adults showed a different pattern of ERP components characterized by smaller amplitudes of LAN, P600a, and P600b effects when the WM load was increased. A smaller LAN effect probably reflects greater difficulties in processing the morpho-syntactic features of the sentence, while smaller P600a and P600b effects could be related to difficulties in recovering and mapping all sentence constituents. We concluded that the ERP pattern in older adults showed subtle problems in syntactic processing when the WM load was increased, which was not sufficient to affect response accuracy but was only observed to result in a longer reaction time.
The projected background for the CUORE experiment Alduino, C.; Avignone, F. T.; Azzolini, O. ...
The European physical journal. C, Particles and fields,
08/2017, Letnik:
77, Številka:
8
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
The Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events (CUORE) is designed to search for neutrinoless double beta decay of
130
Te with an array of 988 TeO
2
bolometers operating at temperatures ...around 10 mK. The experiment is currently being commissioned in Hall A of Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso, Italy. The goal of CUORE is to reach a 90% C.L. exclusion sensitivity on the
130
Te decay half-life of 9
×
10
25
years after 5 years of data taking. The main issue to be addressed to accomplish this aim is the rate of background events in the region of interest, which must not be higher than 10
-
2
counts/keV/kg/year. We developed a detailed Monte Carlo simulation, based on results from a campaign of material screening, radioassays, and bolometric measurements, to evaluate the expected background. This was used over the years to guide the construction strategies of the experiment and we use it here to project a background model for CUORE. In this paper we report the results of our study and our expectations for the background rate in the energy region where the peak signature of neutrinoless double beta decay of
130
Te is expected.
The equine industry is an essential source of job and income worldwide. The use of artificial insemination (AI) with frozen semen is an opportunity to continue disseminating the Colombian Criollo ...horse. Seminal cryopreservation studies in Colombian Criollo horses are limited, and there is no previous knowledge in deleterious changes induced by the cryopreservation process on the chromatin integrity of the spermatic cells. The present study aimed to verify the effect of the modified-INRA 82 and Botucrio® extenders on sperm kinematics, chromatin integrity, and morphology of cryopreserved Colombian Criollo sperm. Five ejaculates of five stallions were obtained, split into two samples, and frozen with two different extenders (modified-INRA 82 and Botucrio) and cooling curves. After freezing, samples were analysed with the CASA system. Sperm morphology, chromatin integrity, hypoosmotic, and thermoresistance tests performed. Data were analysed by MANOVA (parametrical variables) and Kruskal Wallis (non-parametrical variables) with SAS Studio ® software. Statistically significant differences (P≤0.05) were found for the progressive motility (14 ± 5 and 27 ± 13), and chromatin integrity (64 ± 3 and 69 ± 5) for modified-INRA 82 and Botucrio, respectively. Botucrio samples presented higher total motility at 30, 60, 90, 120, and 150 min and progressive motility at 60, 90, 120 min in thermoresistance test than modified-INRA 82. Botucrio and modified-INRA 82, are capable to conserve semen equine effectively from Colombian Criollo horses. However, Botucrio permitted an improved kinematics and higher chromatin integrity than modified-INRA 82.
Highlights • We revisited data from the first known Ebola outbreak in Zaire in 1976. • Using a mathematical model, we estimated transmission rates in different settings. • Analysis suggests the ...person-to-person R0 was 1.34 (95% CI: 0.92–2.11). • Epidemiological conditions in 1976 could have generated a larger outbreak.
Obesity is an energy metabolism disorder that increases susceptibility to the development of metabolic diseases. Recently, it has been described that obese subjects have a phenotype of chronic ...inflammation in organs that are metabolically relevant for glucose homeostasis and energy. Altered expression of immune system molecules such as interleukins IL-1, IL-6, IL-18, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), serum amyloid A (SAA), and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), among others, has been associated with the development of chronic inflammation in obesity. Chronic inflammation modulates the development of metabolic-related comorbidities like metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance, glucose tolerance, hypertension and hyperlipidemia). Recent evidence suggests that microglia activation in the central nervous system (CNS) is a priority in the deregulation of energy homeostasis and promotes increased glucose levels. This review will cover the most significant advances that explore the molecular signals during microglia activation and inflammatory stage in the brain in the context of obesity, and its influence on the development of metabolic syndrome and type two diabetes.
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