A protocol for extraction of yellow mealworm larvae proteins was established, conditions were evaluated and the resulting protein extract was characterised. The freeze-dried yellow mealworm larvae ...contained around 33% fat, 51% crude protein and 43% true protein on a dry matter basis. The true protein content of the protein extract was about 75%, with an extraction rate of 70% under optimised extraction conditions using 0.25 M NaOH, a NaOH solution:ethanol defatted worm ratio of 15:1 mL/g, 40°C for 1 h and extraction twice. The protein extract was a good source of essential amino acids. The lowest protein solubility in distilled water solution was found between pH 4 and 5, and increased with either increasing or decreasing pH. Lower solubility was observed in 0.5 M NaCl solution compared with distilled water. The rheological tests indicated that temperature, sample concentration, addition of salt and enzyme, incubation time and pH alterations influenced the elastic modulus of yellow mealworm protein extract (YMPE). These results demonstrate that the functional properties of YMPE can be modified for different food applications.
Primary cilia (PC) are conserved structures in the adult thyroid gland of different mammals. It was recently described that in humans, PC are usually present as a single copy per follicular cell ...emerging from the follicular cell apex into the follicular lumen.
To understand the role developed by PC in thyroid hormonogenesis better, their changes in different human functional thyroid diseases (diffuse toxic hyperplasia/Graves' disease GD and nodular hyperplasia NH/nodular goiter), in comparison to normal thyroid tissue, were investigated using immunofluorescence, morphometry, and electron microscopy analyses.
Significantly decreased ciliary frequencies were found in both NH (51.16 ± 11.69%) and GD (44.43 ± 23.70%) compared to normal thyroid tissue (76.09 ± 7.31%). Similarly, PC lengths were also significantly decreased in both NH (2.02 ± 0.35 μm) and GD (2.4 ± 0.48 μm) compared to normal glands (3.93 ± 0.90 μm). Moreover, in GD patients, hyperactive-follicle foci always showed diminished ciliary frequency and length compared to any other thyroid follicle pattern, independent of their thyroid status. Finally, in GD, the percentage of thyrocytes exhibiting PC in the "normal-appearance areas" was significantly lower in correspondence with the subsistence of signs of thyroid biosynthetic hyperactivity after long-term antithyroid drug treatment.
The results suggest a direct relationship between ciliogenesis and both follicle activity and tissue heterogeneity in the functional pathology of the thyroid gland.
The development of hybrid plants can increase the production and quality of blue corn, and, thus, satisfy its high demand. For this development, it is essential to understand the heterotic ...relationships of the germplasm. The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of general (GCA) and specific (SCA) combining ability, as well as the reciprocal effects (REs) on the yields of 10 blue corn lines, and to select the outstanding lines. Diallel crosses were generated with 10 lines and evaluated at the Valle de México Experimental Station in Chapingo, Mexico, and Calpulalpan, Tlaxcala, Mexico. There were differences (p ≤ 0.01) in the hybrids, Loc, effects of GCA, SCA, and REs, and in the following interactions: hybrids × Loc, GCA × Loc, SCA × Loc, and RE × Loc. For GCA, lines Ll, L4, L6, and L9 stood out, with significant values of 3.4, 2.9, 2.9, and 3.1, respectively. For SCA, the hybrids featured were L4 × L10, L2 × L10, L1 × L10, L7 × L8, and L2 × L6, with values of 3.0, 2.5, 2.3, 2.3, and 2.2, and yields of 11.2, 10.2, 10.4, 10.4, and 10.5 t ha−l, respectively. There were no significant REs in these lines. Considerable effects of GCA and SCA were detected; therefore, we concluded that native populations had favorable dominance and additive genetic effects that could be used to support the development of high-yielding lines and hybrids.
To determine the incidence of ALK translocations in patients with advanced/metastatic NSCLC in Spain, to describe the clinical characteristics of these patients, and to evaluate the effectiveness and ...safety of treatment with crizotinib in a real-world setting.
This is an observational prospective and retrospective cohort study to determine the incidence of ALK translocations and to analyze the effectiveness and safety of crizotinib in a real-world setting. Patient characteristics, treatment patterns, time to best overall response, duration of treatment, objective response rates (ORR), rates of adverse events (AE), progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated in the ALK study cohort of patients treated with crizotinib (prospective and retrospective). ALK incidence and quality of life (QoL) questionnaires were measured from patients included in the prospective cohort.
The incidence of ALK translocations was 5.5 % (31 of 559 patients). Compared with ALK-negative patients, ALK-positive patients were significantly younger, predominantly female, and non-smokers. In the crizotinib effectiveness and safety study, 91 patients (42 prospective, 49 retrospective) with ALK-positive NSCLC (43.9 % in first-line, 56.1 % in second or more lines) were included. The ORR was 59.3 % and the median duration of response was 13.5 months (IQR, 5.3–26.2). The median PFS was 15.8 months (95 % CI, 11.8–22.3) and the median OS was 46.5 months, with 53 patients (58.2 %) still alive at data cut-off date. Frequently reported AEs included elevated transaminases, gastrointestinal disorders, and asthenia. Most patients (76.5 %) reported improved or stable scores for global QoL during treatment.
The observed incidence of ALK translocations in NSCLC patients is aligned with published reports. This analysis of the real-world clinical experience in Spain confirms the therapeutic benefit and safety of crizotinib in advanced/metastatic ALK-positive NSCLC. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02679170.
We aimed to describe and compare the complications associated with different percutaneous radiologic gastrostomy (PRG) techniques.
A retrospective and prospective observational study was conducted. ...Patients who underwent a PRG between 1995-2020 were included.
A pigtail catheter was used until 2003, a balloon catheter without pexy was used between 2003-2009 and a balloon catheter with gastropexy was used between 2015-2021. For the comparison of proportions, X
tests or Fisher's test were used when necessary. Univariate analysis was performed to study the risk factors for PRG-associated complications.
= 330 (pigtail = 114, balloon-type without pexy = 28, balloon-type with pexy = 188). The most frequent indication was head and neck cancer. The number of patients with complications was 44 (38.5%), 11 (39.2%) and 54 (28,7%), respectively. There were seven (25%) cases of peritonitis in the balloon-type without-pexy group and 1 (0.5%) in the balloon-type with-pexy group, the latter being the only patient who died in the total number of patients (0.3%). Two (1%) patients of the balloon-type with-pexy group presented with gastrocolic fistula. The rest of the complications were minor.
The most frequent complications associated with the administration of enteral nutrition through PRG were minor and the implementation of the balloon-type technique with pexy has led to a decrease in them.
Low back pain is a common condition that becomes even more prevalent with aging. A non-pharmacological multidisciplinary approach for chronic non-specific low back pain (CNSLBP) has been recommended, ...but integrating different healthcare professionals is challenging. A multidisciplinary group videoconferencing approach (MGVA) can be helpful. Our aim was to provide evidence on MGVA's feasibility in managing CNSLBP and its impact on clinical practice.
We conducted an open-label, randomized, controlled, parallel-group pilot clinical trial with CNSLBP patients irresponsive to conservative treatment. Patients between 18 and 67 years of age were randomly assigned (1:1) to either Standard-of-Care + MGVA (experimental group) or Standard-of-Care alone (control group). MGVA consisted of integrated sessions for physical rehabilitation/physiotherapy, psychology, and social work treatments. The control group received standard clinical practice treatment. The feasibility was assessed by the number of study procedures completed to at least 80% as planned. The impact on clinical practice was evaluated by the number of patients who changed their status from "candidate" to "non-candidate" to low back surgery as the treatment of choice for CNSLBP. The SF-36, Oswestry Disability Index, and TMMS-24 questionnaires were used. We performed a whole population-based descriptive analysis.
We included 20 patients, but only 18 were randomized (2 withdrew consent before randomization). The mean (SD) age was 53.1 (5.9) years, and mostly women (13/18); 7 were actively employed. In the experimental group, 6/9 (67%, 95%CI:35-88%) patients attended at least 80% of the scheduled procedures, while in the control group, 8/9 (89%, 95%CI:57-98%) did. Additionally, 1 out of 4 (25%) patients in the experimental group changed their status from "candidate" for low back surgery to "non-candidate". None of the 2 patients in the control group did so. We found differences between groups in the SF-36 mental health component (p-value:0.061), Oswestry Disability Index (p-value:0.032), and TMMS-24 Repair component (p-value:0.014) at the end of the trial favoring MGVA.
The multidisciplinary group videoconferencing approach to managing chronic non-specific low back pain was feasible, suggesting overall beneficial effects on patients' health and could play a role in changing a patient's status from "candidate" to "non-candidate" for surgery.
NCT05093543 (ClinicalTrials.gov), first registered in 26/10/2021.
Background
Breast cancer has positioned itself worldwide as one of the main public health problems, especially in Latin America. In some countries, several programs for the prevention and control of ...breast cancer in women have been developed and implemented on a permanent basis, but there are no public reports on the policies that originated such programs.
Objective
A scoping review of scientific publications that identify the type, extent, and scope of policies and programs for the prevention and control of breast cancer in Latin American women was performed, and the main results were presented in this paper.
Methods
This scoping review was carried out according to the method by Arksey and O’Malley based on 3 fundamental questions about breast cancer prevention and control policies in Latin America: their type, extent and scope, and reference framework. The search period was from 2000 to 2019, and the search was carried out in the following databases: MEDLINE (PubMed), MEDLINE (EbscoHost), CINAHL (EbscoHost), Academic Search Complete (EbscoHost), ISI Web of Science (Science Citation Index), and Scopus in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, and Scielo, Cochrane, and MEDES-MEDicina in Spanish and Portuguese. Of the 743 studies found, 20 (2.7%) were selected, which were analyzed using descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis.
Results
The selected studies identified several Latin American countries that have generated policies and programs to prevent and control breast cancer in women, focusing mainly on risk communication, prevention and timely detection, effective access to health services, improvement of the screening process, and evaluation of screening programs. Evaluation criteria and greater participation of civil society in policy design and program execution are still lacking. This could undoubtedly help eliminate existing barriers to effective action.
Conclusions
Although several Latin American countries have generated public policies and action programs for the prevention and control of breast cancer, a pending issue is the evaluation of the results to analyze the effectiveness and impact of their implementation given the magnitude of the public health problem it represents and because women and civil society play an important role in its prevention and control.
International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)
RR2-10.2196/12624
This study shows the development of a combustion promoter for the oil-refining process called fluid catalytic cracking (FCC). The investigation of a catalyst prepared for the combustion of CO ...composed of 0.05 wt% Pt supported on SiO2–Al2O3–0.5 wt% W microspheres with high mechanical resistance, promoted with tungsten oxides (WOx) that can inhibit the sintering of Pt, is reported. The addition of WOx in SiO2–Al2O3 inhibited the decrease in the specific area when calcined from 550 °C to 950 °C. SiO2–Al2O3 support in the form of calcined microspheres with average diameters between 70–105 µm were produced by spray drying, using two atomization discs with vanes of different geometry: a straight rectangular blade disc (DAR) and a curved rectangular vanes disc (DAC). The DAR disk produced whole microspheres, while the DAC had hollow and broken microspheres. The microspheres were characterized by XRD, SEM, optical microscopy, N2 physisorption (BET area) and fracture resistance tests. The Pt catalysts were evaluated by TPR, H2 chemisorption and CO combustion. The catalyst of 0.05 wt% Pt/SiO2–Al2O3–0.5 wt% turned out to be the most stable. A thermal stabilization effect was observed at contents lower than 1 wt% W that allowed it to inhibit the sintering of the Pt catalyst.
Introduction: Multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogenic bacteria in seafood, especially shrimp and octopus, are significant public health concerns and are able to be transmitted to humans in foodstuffs, ...particularly when they are of animal origin. The present study was conducted to measure the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and prevalence of Salmonella isolates obtained from octopus and shrimp in San Francisco de Campeche, Mexico.
Methods: Two hundred shrimp and octopus samples (one hundred each) were collected from the municipal market, and each sample consisted of 100 g. The present study used conventional methods to identify and isolate Salmonella, with the disk-diffusion method used to screen all isolates for sensitivity to 12 antibiotics.
Results: The prevalence of Salmonella was found to be 56% and 45% in shrimp and octopus, respectively. The high levels of Salmonella observed in the municipal market sampled by the present study reveal poor sanitary conditions in the processing and transport of the products of interest and those handling them at the point of sale. All the Salmonella strains were resistant to at least three antimicrobial classes. All shrimp isolates (100%) presented susceptibility to chloramphenicol and the majority (88%) presented sensitivity to ciprofloxacin, while the strains isolated in the octopus individuals sampled presented sensitivity to both the foregoing antibiotics (74% and 90%, respectively).
Conclusion: Based on the high prevalence in the samples analyzed, our results suggest that shrimp and octopus could be involved in Salmonella infections in the population.
Shugoshin-2 (SGOL2) is one of the two mammalian orthologs of the Shugoshin/Mei-S322 family of proteins that regulate sister chromatid cohesion by protecting the integrity of the multiprotein cohesin ...complexes. This protective system is essential for faithful chromosome segregation during mitosis and meiosis, which is the physical basis of Mendelian inheritance. Regardless of its evolutionary conservation from yeast to mammals, little is known about the in vivo relevance and specific role that SGOL2 plays in mammals. Here we show that disruption of the gene encoding mouse SGOL2 does not cause any alteration in sister chromatid cohesion in embryonic cultured fibroblasts and adult somatic tissues. Moreover, mutant mice develop normally and survive to adulthood without any apparent alteration. However, both male and female Sgol2-deficient mice are infertile. We demonstrate that SGOL2 is necessary for protecting centromeric cohesion during mammalian meiosis I. In vivo, the loss of SGOL2 promotes a premature release of the meiosis-specific REC8 cohesin complexes from anaphase I centromeres. This molecular alteration is manifested cytologically by the complete loss of centromere cohesion at metaphase II leading to single chromatids and physiologically with the formation of aneuploid gametes that give rise to infertility.
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