•Analyses of DNS of incompressible reacting flow (Sc=0.7) in a channel are reported.•The fluctuations of concentration are decomposed into large and small scales.•Flow structures responsible for ...large and small scale fluctuations are reduced.•The head of hairpin vortices is responsible for large scale fluctuations.•A periodic distribution of eddies is responsible for the small-scale fluctuations.
We analyse a database obtained from a direct numerical simulation of the reacting flow in a plane channel at low Reynolds number (Reτ=180). One reactant is released along a line source at the center of the channel and the other near the walls of the channel. This distribution produces two reacting mass transfer mixing layers. The fluctuations of the concentration of the chemical species that react following a second-order chemical reaction (Da=1, Sc=0.7) are processed to determine the contribution of the large-scale and small-scale fluctuations in the reacting mass transfer mixing layers. The analysis is extended to reduce the flow structures responsible for the large and the small fluctuations of concentration in the mixing layers. The conditional sampling technique used reveals that hairpin-shape vortices that convect flow from the walls towards the center of the channel produce the extreme large-scale fluctuations. In the case of the small-scale fluctuations, the conditional sampled flow structure consist in a periodic distribution along the streamwise direction of counter rotating eddies that are located in the central part of the channel and convect flow from one mass transfer mixing layer to the other one.
Two spent mushroom substrates (fresh, F-SMS, and composted in aerobic conditions, C-SMS) were annually applied for 4 yr at two different rates (8 and 25 Mg ha−1 as dry matter) to a vineyard soil ...(Typic Haploxerept) located near Logroño (Ebro Valley, La Rioja, Spain). Soil samples were collected at three depths (0–5, 5–15 and 15–25 cm), and analyzed for soil organic carbon (SOC), water-soluble carbon (WSC), potentially mineralizable nitrogen (PMN), N-NO3− and exchangeable N-NH4+, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), soil CO2 evolution (SR), β-glucosidase activity (GLU) and soil mean weight diameter (MWD) of aggregates and water-stable aggregates (WSA). The highest rate of F-SMS and C-SMS (25 Mg ha−1) increased SOC, total nitrogen ( Total N), and labile organic forms (WSC and PMN) at 0- to 5- and 5- to 15-cm soil depth and microbiological activity (MBC and GLU) at 5- to 15-cm soil depth. There were no differences in soil CO2 emissions between F-SMS and C-SMS amendments. Applications of SMS did not increase the soil aggregation but increased the content of inorganic N in the soil surface (0- to 5-cm depth) layer. Factor analysis showed the positive relationship between labile organic matter fractions and N availability. Finally, application of SMS to semiarid vineyard soils facilities SMS recycling with simultaneous improvement in soil quality indicators related to labile organic matter and microbiologic activity. However, increased PMN and soil N-NO3− indicate a potential risks for N leaching from SMS amendments that should be further evaluated.
Food allergy is an IgE-mediated hypersensitive reaction estimated to affect up to 4% of infants and adults in developed countries. Proteins termed allergens are mostly responsible for food allergic ...reactions, consisting of mild to severe systemic reactions. Proteomics include multi-dimensional separation and protein identification by mass spectrometry, followed by data analysis by bioinformatic tools. Proteomics have increasingly been used in the allergy field to (i) identify the genetic and phenotypic variability of allergens in crops, (ii) obtain well-characterised allergens as reported within the EC-funded Integrated Project EuroPrevall, (iii) detect and quantify allergens, either in their native form or in forms resulting from food processing, in complex foods such as bread, cookies, etc., as considered by the EC-funded MoniQA project. These approaches are helping to improve food allergy diagnosis, therapy, and allergenic risk assessment. In the future, the development of more cost effective and sensitive technologies will further enhance the value of proteomics to the allergy field allowing routine use of this approach. We review the applications of proteomics in the field of food allergy.
Background and importanceLevels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are particularly relevant before treatment with tocilizumab. According to the protocol ...established in our centre, levels of IL-6 above 40 pg/mL are required to start treatment with tocilizumab. Assessing the role of dexamethasone in the evolution of IL-6 during the first hours of the patient’s hospital admission could help prevent premature use of tocilizumab.Aim and objectivesAssessing the evolution of IL-6 after the use of dexamethasone in patients diagnosed with COVID-19 and IL-6 >40 pg/mL.Material and methodsDescriptive, retrospective, observational study carried out between November 2020 and January 2021 in a second-level hospital. All patients with determinations of IL-6 were located. Those with IL-6 levels above 40 pg/mL were selected. Through a review of medical histories, COVID-19 patients who were treated with dexamethasone and with determination of IL-6 levels, both at the admission and within the following 96 hours, were chosen. Exclusion criteria: prescription of dexamethasone at least 24 hours before the first determination and use of tocilizumab before the first determination or between determinations. Data were subjected to Wilcoxon’s test.Results41 patients met the criteria. 28 of them were men (66.7%) with a median age of 64 years (IQR 23). The median time between determinations was 48 hours (IQR 48). The median level of IL-6 at the time of the hospital admission was 85.6 pg/mL (IQR 110.9) and after being treated with dexamethasone it was 24.2 pg/mL (IQR 33.1). The median of differences was –66.1 pg/mL (IQR 67.3) and 87.8% of the patients experienced a decrease, observing a statistical association (p<0.01). 75.6% of the patients showed levels below 40 pg/mL and 21.9% showed levels within the reference range (<7 pg/mL). 12 patients (29.3%) were finally treated with tocilizumab, of which 7 (58.3%) still presented levels of IL-6 >40 pg/mL.Conclusion and relevanceDexamethasone treatment reduced IL-6 levels to below 40 pg/mL in most patients in 48 hours.IL-6 monitoring after dexamethasone treatment could help prevent inadequate use of tocilizumab.It is necessary to research the benefits of tocilizumab for patients with low levels of IL-6.References and/or acknowledgementsConflict of interestNo conflict of interest
This study presents a comparison between two dipoles acting as representatives of ultra-high frequency radio frequency identification (RFID), circularly polarised (CP) and linearly polarised (LP) tag ...antennas, respectively. As the CP dipole is derived from the LP dipole, they have equivalent reflection coefficient and radiation efficiency values, allowing the comparison to be focused on polarisation and radiation pattern. Then, a comparison of RFID angular and read range is investigated. This is conducted by combining the interrogation of CP and LP tags emulators by CP and LP readers with regulated power. The emulators are made up of the CP and LP dipoles embedded onto RFID tags with analog front-ends. A methodology is described for measuring the maximum angular and read ranges, involving maximum power allowed by European regulation. A 17.9% extra range is achieved by the CP tag and the CP reader compared to the LP tag with any kind of reader. Furthermore, null cancellation is observed in the former case in the region of interest.
Ultraflo L, a beta-glucanase preparation from Humicola insolens sold for reducing viscosity problems in the brewing industry, exhibited activity against the methyl esters of ferulic, caffeic, ...p-coumaric and sinapic acids, displaying mainly type-B feruloyl esterase activity. Ultraflo also contained the ability to release 65% of the available ferulic acid (FA) together with three forms of diferulate from brewer's spent grain (BSG). An "esterase-free" Ultraflo preparation greatly enhanced the ability of a feruloyl esterase from Aspergillus niger, AnFAEA, to release FA (from 23 to 47%) and its dimeric forms, especially the 8.5' benzofuran form, from BSG. While total release of these phenolic acids was not observed, this synergistic enhancement of ferulate release demonstrates that FA and its dimeric forms present in BSG require the addition of more than a xylanase. This suggests either that FA is not solely attached to arabinoxylan in the barley cell wall, or that the cell wall polysaccharides in BSG hinder the accessibility of enzymes to the ferulates, due to processing treatments.
AIMTo determine the risk of microbiological contamination with hospital use high- and low-flow bubbling humidifiers. METHODSA systematic literature review was carried out in 6 databases. ...Observational or experimental studies published between 1990 and 2016 were selected, written in English or Spanish, and in which microbiological contamination with hospital use high- and low-flow bubbling humidifiers was investigated. RESULTSA total of 12 articles were included: 4 analyzed the water from reusable humidifiers, 4 analyzed the water from prefilled system humidifiers, and the rest compared samples from both models. Microbial contamination was observed in all studies in which reusable humidifiers were evaluated, usually involving common bacteria from the skin flora, while potential pathogenic species were notified in 2 studies. No microbial contamination was isolated from reusable humidifiers, regardless of whether they had been consecutively used over time by a single patient or by several patients. CONCLUSIONOn one hand, there seems to be a low risk of contamination during the first weeks of use of prefilled humidifiers, which allows multiple use in different patients, without a risk of cross-contamination. On the other hand, it should be underscored that handling reusable humidifiers without correct aseptic measures can increase the risk of contamination; replacing reusable humidifiers with prefilled models therefore could be the safest option.
Summary
Purified allergens are required to detect cross‐contamination with other allergenic foods and to understand allergen interaction with other components of the food matrix. Pure allergens are ...also used for the diagnosis and treatment of food allergies. For example, serological methods are being developed to improve the quality of diagnosis, and to reduce the need for food challenge tests. In addition, recombinant allergens are being evaluated as candidate vaccines for safe and efficacious specific immunotherapy. Pure allergens are indispensable as reference materials for the calibration and standardization of methods between different laboratories and operators for risk assessment in the food industry. Therefore, there is a need for well‐defined purified food allergens. In this context, a panel of 46 food allergens from plant and animal sources has been purified, from either the food sources or as recombinant forms, within the EU‐funded EuroPrevall project. These allergens have been characterized by a battery of diagnostic tests demonstrating that they constitute an authentic, well‐defined library of comparable quality. The review summarizes the applications, potentials and limitations of key techniques used for the characterization and authentication of these allergen preparations, with a special emphasis on protein purity and identity, folding, post‐translational modifications and immunochemical properties. One key area identified is the development of powerful analytical techniques, such as mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance, to improve the authentication of allergens for routine applications in allergy management.
Cite this as: A. I. Sancho, K. Hoffmann‐Sommergruber, S. Alessandri, A. Conti, M. G. Giuffrida, P. Shewry, B. M. Jensen, P. Skov and S. Vieths, Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2010 (40) 973–986.
