Xenodiagnosis of Leishmania infection in hares (Lepus granatensis) from a focus of human leishmaniasis in Fuenlabrada at southwestern Madrid region (Spain) proved that they are infective to ...Phlebotomus perniciosus. Molecular characterization of isolates obtained from sand flies infected after xenodiagnosis demonstrates that hares were infected by Leishmania infantum. This is the first evidence of the transmission of L. infantum from hares to sand flies. Moreover the results confirm the role that these animals can play as wild reservoirs of leishmaniasis for the recent outbreak of visceral leishmaniasis in Madrid.
Since July 2009, there has been a community outbreak of leishmaniasis in the south-west area of the Madrid autonomous community, Spain, affecting residents from four towns that are geographically ...close together and share extensive park areas. As of December 2012, 446 cases were reported (6 in 2009, 97 in 2010, 196 in 2011 and 147 in 2012), a mean incidence rate of 22.2 per 100,000 inhabitants during July 2009 and December 2012. The mean age was 44 years (range: 2 months to 95 years); 61.0% were male. A total of 68 (15.2%) had immunosuppressive conditions; 160 (35.9%) had visceral leishmaniasis and 286 (64.1%) cutaneous. A total of 421 (94.4%) cases were confirmed. Leishmania infantum was identified as the agent. Monitoring revealed high densities of the vector Phlebotomus perniciosus. The surveillance system for canine leishmaniasis did not detect any increase in prevalence during the period. Environmental control measures have been taken, such as improvements in sanitation and disinsection in the risk areas and control of the overpopulation of Leporidae, as xenodiagnosis studies have shown that hares play a role as active reservoirs. This is the largest reported community outbreak of leishmaniasis in Europe. The discovery of the new reservoir stands out in the multifactorial aetiology of the outbreak. Epidemiological research and environmental intervention measures are continuing.
The study aimed to determine the effectiveness of Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon) topical cream on induced second-degree burns in male albino mice by utilizing a randomized controlled trial ...experimental research design. The research subjects were assigned randomly into three (3) groups and each containing six (6) mice. Silver sulfadiazine was applied on Group 1 while Base cream was applied on Group 2, and five percent (5%) Bermuda grass topical cream was applied on the Group 3. All treatments were applied every twenty-four (24) hours thereafter while measurement of wound contraction began twenty-four (24) hours after the induction of the burn and every forty-eight (48) hours thereafter until the seventeenth day where complete wound contraction was observed. The study supported the potential of Bermuda grass as a possible alternative for Silver sulfadiazine in the treatment of burn injuries. This was demonstrated by a higher mean (%) wound contraction - 93.14±4.59, effect of five percent (5%) Bermuda grass topical cream against the mean percent (%) wound contraction effect of Silver sulfadiazine and Base cream - 78.77±8.98 and 89.38±4.24 respectively.
RESUMEN Introducción: El NutriScore es una herramienta diseñada con el objetivo de simplificar la información que aporta el etiquetado nutricional de los alimentos. Clasifica los alimentos en cinco ...colores que van desde el verde (más saludable) hasta el rojo (menos saludable). Estos colores están asociados a cinco letras (A/B/C/D/E). Los estudiantes universitarios pasan muchas horas en las facultades y tienen un consumo elevado de snacks y refrescos Objetivos: Calcular el NutriScore de los alimentos y bebidas disponibles en las máquinas expendedoras de las facultades de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid y obtener datos de los hábitos de consumo de los estudiantes de dicha universidad. Material y Métodos: El estudio ha sido realizado en 16 facultades y la biblioteca universitaria analizando los alimentos y bebidas de las máquinas expendedoras de dichas facultades en marzo de 2019. Se calculó la puntuación de cada uno y según la puntuación obtenida se clasificaron en una de las cinco categorías. 146 estudiante rellenaron una encuesta sobre la frecuencia de consumo y tipo de productos preferidos de las máquinas expendedoras. Resultados: Se clasificaron 143 alimentos y 53 bebidas que estaban disponibles en máquinas expendedoras. Los alimentos se distribuyeron: A 4,2%, B 4,2%, C 21,6%, D 53% y E 47% y las bebidas: A 1,9%, B 9,4%, C 13,2%, D 35,9% y E 39,6%. Los estudiantes consumen algún producto de las maquinas expendedoras fundamentalmente cuando tienen hambre, en momentos entre horas y eligiendo agua como primera opción seguido de refrescos azucarados como bebidas y bollería industrial seguido de patatas fritas como snacks más consumidos Conclusión: Aunque la universidad debería desarrollar una función en la promoción de un estado de vida saludable, las máquinas expendedoras de las facultades ofrecen un número muy elevado de productos con baja calidad nutricional.
ZIF-8 is a zeolitic imidazolate framework with very good thermal and chemical stability that opens up many applications that are not feasible by other metal–organic frameowrks (MOFs) and zeolites. ...Several works report the adsorption properties of ZIF-8 for strategic gases. However, despite the vast experimental corpus of data reported, there seems yet to be a dearth in the understanding of the gas adsorption properties. In this work we provide insights at a molecular level on the mechanisms governing the ZIF-8 structural deformation during molecular adsorption. We demonstrate that the ZIF-8 structural deformation during the adsorption of different molecules at cryogenic temperature goes beyond the gas-induced rotation of the imidazolate linkers. We combine experimental and simulation studies to demonstrate that this deformation is governed by the polarizability and molecular size and shape of the gases, and that the stepped adsorption behavior is defined by the packing arrangement of the guest inside the host.
We provide transferable force fields for oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon monoxide that are able to reproduce experimental adsorption in both pure silica and alumino-substituted zeolites at cryogenic and ...high temperatures. The force field parameters can be combined with those previously reported for carbon dioxide, methane, and argon, opening the possibility for studying mixtures of interest containing the six components. Using these force field parameters we obtained some adsorption isotherms at cryogenic temperatures that at first sight were in discrepancies with experimental values for certain molecules and structures. We attribute these discrepancies to the sensitiveness of the equipment and to kinetic impedimenta that can lead to erratic results. Additional problems can be found during simulations when extra-framework cations are present in the system as their lack of mobility at low temperatures could lead to kinetic effects that hinder experimental adsorption.
We used a combination of experiments and molecular simulations to investigate at the molecular level the effects of zeolite structure on the adsorption and diffusion of sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide ...and carbon monoxide as well as separation processes of their mixtures. Our study involved different zeolite topologies and revealed numerous structure-property trends depending on the temperature and pressure conditions. Sulfur dioxide, which has the strongest interactions with zeolites due to its size and polarity, showed the largest adsorption across investigated temperatures and pressures. Our results indicate that structures with channel-type pore topology and low pore volume are the most promising for selective adsorption of sulfur dioxide over carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide under room conditions, while structures with higher pore volume exhibit better storage capacity at higher pressure. Our results emphasize the need for considering both adsorption and diffusion processes in the selection of the optimal structure for a given separation process. Our findings help to identify the best materials for effective separation processes under realistic operating conditions.
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•Integrated experimental and computational study.•Accurate prediction of the adsorption mechanisms of α-olefins in aluminosilicates.•Influence of geometrical optimization in ...adsorption.•High separation performance in commercial zeolites with Ca2+ content.
The purification of the α-olefins though challenging, is mandatory step for their use in the chemical industry. Since adsorptive separation using zeolites is one of the most promising alternatives for olefin/paraffin separation in terms of energy efficiency, we use a combination of experiments and molecular simulations to study the effect that the topology and chemical composition of the zeolite exert on the purification of olefins. To this aim we developed an effective potential for the cations with the double bond of the olefins. The potential parameters were validated with our experimental adsorption isotherms and isobars of propylene and 1-hexene. We performed an extensive study of propane/propylene separation in more than 200 all silica zeolites and several aluminosilicates. We also performed DFT and classical optimization of the structures, obtaining the minimum energy of a given chemical composition and topology, which is key factor for the adsorption mechanisms. DFT calculations also allowed the analysis of binding energies and binding geometries of propane and propylene in NaY and LTA5A. We discussed the effect exerted by the cations on the separation performance of the zeolites. Our study shows that aluminosilicates with calcium cations are the best candidates to separate olefins from paraffins, due to the stronger interaction of the double bond of olefins with these divalent cations.
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