Beneficial Effect of Melatonin Alone or in Combination with Glatiramer Acetate and Interferon ß-1b on Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis.

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is a relevant animal model of multiple sclerosis (MS). Oxidative stress and chronic inflammation play a major role in the pathogenesis of MS and EAE. Melatonin, a neurohormone, has potent anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of our study was to assess the therapeutic properties of melatonin alone or in combination with interferon ß-1b (IFNß-1b) or glatiramer acetate (GA) on EAE. EAE was induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats with an intraperitoneal injection of a homogenate of spinal cord and pig brain. At day 10 post immunization, rats were euthanized, and their brains were immediately excised and processed to measure oxidative stress markers and membrane fluidity. In addition, proinflammatory cytokines were quantified in plasma. Melatonin alone or in combination with GA and IFNß-1b inhibited the disease process of EAE and the synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines, caused a significant decrement in oxidative stress markers, and preserved the membrane fluidity in the motor cortex, midbrain, and spinal cord. The cumulative index score was significantly reduced in EAE rats treated with melatonin alone or in combination with GA and IFNß-1b. In conclusion, our findings provide preclinical evidence for the use of melatonin as an adjuvant therapeutic treatment for MS.

Lamotrigine Extraction and Quantification by UPLC-DAD in Plasma from Patients with Bipolar Disorder.

A sensitive and efficient analytical process for detecting lamotrigine in acidic solution based in ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector (UPLC-DAD) was developed; the stationary phase used was a C8, 150 × 4.6 mm, 2.6 µm. The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile/acidified water (0.01% H3PO4 and 0.005% triethylamine, pH 2.4) (25 : 75 v/v). Limits of detection and quantification were 0.02 µg/mL and 0.05 µg/mL, respectively. The working interval for the evaluation of the method ranged from 0.05 to 12 µg/mL, and the linear fit of the experimental data has a value of r2≥0.98. Before quantifying lamotrigine in plasma of patients with bipolar disorder, lamotrigine was released from plasma proteins with a 0.2 M sodium hydroxide solution, and then proteins were removed by precipitation with acetonitrile. Afterward, the lamotrigine base was dissolved in ethyl acetate. This extract was reconstituted in potassium phosphate solution (pH 2.4) to obtain more than 98% of lamotrigine protonated in N2, which was detected and quantified as indicated above. The absolute percentage of lamotrigine recovery is ≥80% for all tested concentration levels. The accuracy and precision of the method have %CV values <4% for the lamotrigine levels of 3, 6, and 9 µg/mL. The correlation coefficient for the used concentration range is 0.99. The analytical method is precise and sensitive to measure lamotrigine levels expected in plasma of BD patients and these levels were in the therapeutic dose range.

Importance of spontaneous micronucleated erythrocytes in bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) to marine toxicology studies.

The objective of the work was to characterize the presence of spontaneous micronucleated erythrocytes (MNES) from peripheral blood of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) to evaluate the possibility to use this species as potential bioindicator of genotoxic compounds. Forty-eight blood samples from 12 bottlenose dolphins were obtain from three Mexican dolphinariums, and from 10 dolphins was possible to obtain more than one sample at different sampling times. Smears were processed and observed with an epifluorescence microscope. The average of MNES and polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE) from the 48 samples was 24.3 +/- 6.1 MNES/10,000 total erythrocytes (TE), and 9.1 +/- 5.5 PCE/1,000 TE. MNES and PCE number did not show differences between gender and age. No variations in the MNES values of the bottlenose dolphins that were sampled more than one occasion were found. Comparisons among dolphinariums revealed differences in MNES frequency, with the highest significant frequency observed in dolphins from dolphinarium "A" (26.0 +/- 5.9 MNES/10,000 TE) than dolphinarium "B" (19.5 +/- 3.1 MNES/10,000 TE) (p < 0.05) and dolphinarium "C" (18.6 +/- 3.5 MNES/10,000 TE) (p < 0.007). The presence of MNES and PCE in the bottlenose dolphin may provide a useful marine mammal model to detect DNA damage by means of micronuclei test in peripheral blood erythrocytes to evaluate genotoxicity and cytotoxicity expositions.

Applicability of passive compost bioreactors for treatment of extremely acidic and saline waters in semi-arid climates.

Extremely acidic and saline groundwater occurs naturally in south-western Australia. Discharge of this water to surface waters has increased following extensive clearing of native vegetation for agriculture and is likely to have negative environmental impacts. The use of passive treatment systems to manage the acidic discharge and its impacts is complicated by the region's semi-arid climate with hot dry summers and resulting periods of no flow. This study evaluates the performance of a pilot-scale compost bioreactor treating extremely acidic and saline drainage under semi-arid climatic conditions over a period of 2.5 years. The bioreactor's substrate consisted of municipal waste organics (MWO) mixed with 10 wt% recycled limestone. After the start-up phase the compost bioreactor raised the pH from ≤3.7 to ≥7 and produced net alkaline outflow for 126 days. The bioreactor removed up to 28 g/m(2)/d CaCO3 equivalent of acidity and acidity removal was found to be load dependent during the first and third year. Extended drying over summer combined with high salinity caused the formation of a salt-clay surface layer on top of the substrate, which was both beneficial and detrimental for bioreactor performance. The surface layer prevented the dehydration of the substrate and ensured it remained waterlogged when the water level in the bioreactor fell below the substrate surface in summer. However, when flow resumed the salt-clay layer acted as a barrier between the water and substrate decreasing performance efficiency. Performance increased again when the surface layer was broken up indicating that the negative climatic impacts can be managed. Based on substrate analysis after 1.5 years of operation, limestone dissolution was found to be the dominant acidity removal process contributing up to 78-91% of alkalinity generation, while bacterial sulfate reduction produced at least 9-22% of the total alkalinity. The substrate might last up to five years before the limestone is exhausted and would need to be replenished. The MWO substrate was found to release metals (Zn, Cu, Pb, Ni and Cr) and cannot be recommended for use in passive treatment systems unless the risk of metal release is addressed.

Conocimientos y prácticas del personal de Odontología y auxiliar, que laboran en las Unidades Móviles de FOSALUD, de los Lineamientos Técnicos sobre Bioseguridad durante el desarrollo de las jornadas médico-odontológicas en el período de febrero-marzo 2019 / Knowledge and practices of Dental and auxiliary staff, who work in the Mobile Units of FOSALUD, of the Technical Guidelines on Biosafety during the development of medical-dental conferences in the period of February-March 2019

OBJETIVO: Determinar conocimientos y prácticas del personal de Odontología y auxiliar de las Unidades Móviles de FOSALUD, sobre los Lineamientos Técnicos sobre Bioseguridad durante el desarrollo de las jornadas médico-odontológicas en el período de febrero-marzo 2019. DISEÑO: El estudio incluyó a 32 personas del personal de Odontología y Auxiliar de las Unidades Móviles del FOSALUD. Se utilizó una encuesta para evaluar los conocimientos y una Guía de Observación para determinar las prácticas del personal sobre lo normado en los Lineamientos. La recolección de datos, llenado y tabulación fueron realizados por la Investigadora, durante los meses de febrero y marzo de 2019. RESULTADOS: El 90.63% del personal tenía conocimiento sobre el contenido de los Lineamientos Técnicos sobre Bioseguridad. En cuanto las prácticas de los Lineamientos, se determinó que el 100% tenía accesibilidad y disponibilidad de las barreras de bioseguridad que brinda la Institución y en su mayoría, las utilizaban durante el desarrollo de las jornadas. CONCLUSIONES: El personal del área de Odontología operativo y auxiliar de las Unidades Móviles del FOSALUD, en su mayoría, tiene conocimiento de los Lineamientos Técnicos sobre Bioseguridad, y utiliza las barreras de protección en la atención de pacientes y recolección de desechos bioinfecciosos, sin embargo, es fundamental el mantener la educación continua para reforzar dichos conocimientos y evitar que dejen de utilizarlas

Caracterización clínica del paciente con pancreatitis aguda, ingresados en unidad de cuidados críticos, de Hospital Nacional Rosales, de 1° de enero de 2012 a 31 de diciembre de 2017 / Clinical characterization of the patient with acute pancreatitis, admitted to the critical care unit, Rosales Nacional Hospital, from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2017

La pancreatitis aguda, es una patología compleja que puede llevar a una alta morbimortalidad, la cual ha ido en aumento en el paso de los últimos años. El objetivo principal de este trabajo de investigación es conocer la caracterización clínica de los pacientes con pancreatitis aguda, a través de la descripción de variables sociodemográficas, gravedad, etiología, estancia hospitalaria, necesidad de intervención quirúrgica y fallecidos. Se realizó un estudio transversal retrospectivo siendo la población estudiada pacientes con diagnóstico de pancreatitis aguda ingresados en la unidad de cuidados intensivos de enero de 2012 a diciembre de 2017. La obtención de los datos se realizó por medio de la revisión de expedientes clínicos. Se llevó a cabo la revisión de 38 expedientes clínicos que cumplían con los criterios de inclusión, encontrando principalmente en la población estudiada: la edad promedio fue de 44 años a predominio de sexo femenino y área geográfica urbana. La principal causa identificada fue la pancreatitis de origen biliar, en segundo lugar, no identificada, y en tercer lugar la alcohólica. La mayoría de los pacientes cursaron con un cuadro de pancreatitis aguda severa, y los días de estancia promedio fueron de 18 días y el 34% de los pacientes ingresados a unidad de cuidados intensivos fallecieron

Efectos de las instrucciones audiovisuales no explícitas sobre el comportamiento alimentario / Effects of non-explicit audiovisual instructions on feeding behavior

Este estudio evaluó los efectos de las instrucciones no explícitas sobre la conducta alimentaria. Participaron cinco jóvenes entre los 19 y 24 años, a quienes se les observó durante dos fases experimentales a dos tipos de alimento nutricional (fruta y agua) y no nutricional (papas fritas y refresco). Los participantes fueron f lmados en dos programas de video. En la primera fase se grabaron videos musicales y en la segunda, un documental sobre hábitos alimentarios saludables. Los resultados mostraron que las instrucciones no explícitas modificaron la conducta alimentaria. Sin embargo, es necesario evaluar si estas modificaciones persisten a largo plazo.

This study evaluated the effects of non-explicit audiovisual instructions on feeding behaviour. Five adults between 19 and 24 years-old participated as subjects, which were exposed at nutritional (fruit and water) or no nutritional (chips and soda) foods during two experimental phases. Subjects were videotaped and exposed to two video programs in different phases. In the first phase, subjects were exposed to a musical video, in the second phase subjects were exposed to a program about health eating habits. The results showed that non-explicit audiovisual instructions modified feeding behaviour. However, will be necessary evaluate if these modification could persist for longer time.