Carboxymethylcellulose/Hydrotalcite Bionanocomposites as Paraben Sorbents.

In this work, we synthesized several bionanocomposites of hydrotalcites containing carboxymethylcellulose as interlayer anion (HT-CMC) to be used as sorbents for parabens, a family of emergent pollutants (specifically, for 4-methyl-, 4-propyl- and 4-benzylparaben). Bionanocomposites were obtained by ultrasound-assisted coprecipitation and characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis, fourier transform infrared and raman spectroscopies, elemental and thermogravimetric analysis, scanning and transmission electron microscopies and X-ray fluorescence. All materials proved to be efficient sorbents for parabens through a process conforming to a pseudo second-order kinetics. The experimental adsorption data fitted the Freundlich model very closely and were also highly correlated with the Temkin model. The effects of pH, adsorbate concentration, amount of sorbent and temperature on the adsorption process was evaluated, obtaining the best results for methylparaben adsorption at pH 7, 25 mg of adsorbent and 348 K. The sorbent, HT-CMC-3, showed the highest adsorption capacity (>70%) for methylparaben. Furthermore, a reusability study showed that the bionanocomposite is reusable after its regeneration with methanol. The sorbent still retained its adsorption capacity for up to 5 times with a little loss of efficiency (<5%).

Iridium-Complexed Dipyridyl-Pyridazine Organosilica as a Catalyst for Water Oxidation.

The heterogenization of metal-complex catalysts to be applied in water oxidation reactions is a currently growing field of great scientific impact for the development of energy conversion devices simulating the natural photosynthesis process. The attachment of IrCp*Cl complexes to the dipyridyl-pyridazine N-chelating sites on the surface of SBA-15 promotes the formation of metal bipyridine-like complexes, which can act as catalytic sites in the oxidation of water to dioxygen, the key half-reaction of artificial photosynthetic systems. The efficiency of the heterogeneous catalyst, Ir@NdppzSBA, in cerium(IV)-driven water oxidation was thoroughly evaluated, achieving high catalytic activity even at a long reaction time. The reusability and stability were also examined after three reaction cycles, with a slight loss of activity. A comparison with an analogous homogeneous iridium catalyst revealed the enhanced durability and performance of the heterogeneous system based on the Ir@NdppzSBA catalyst due to the stability of the SBA-15 structure as well as the isolated metal active sites. Thereby, this new versatile synthesis route for the preparation of water oxidation catalysts opens a new avenue for the construction of alternative heterogeneous catalytic systems with high surface area, ease of functionalization, and facile separation to improve the efficiency in the water oxidation reaction.

Efficient Removal of Nonylphenol Isomers from Water by Use of Organo-Hydrotalcites.

The presence of potent organic endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in natural aquifers can have adverse impacts on public health and the environment. 4-nonylphenol, one such EDC, can be efficiently removed from water by adsorption onto a clayey material. In this work, we created an effective sorbent for this purpose by using co-precipitation and subsequent ion-exchange to intercalate the organic anion deoxycholate into a Mg/Al hydrotalcite. Intercalating deoxycholate ions increased the organophilicity of the hydrotalcite surface. The solid was used to adsorb 4-nonylphenol at different pollutant concentrations and temperatures. The adsorption process was subjected to a kinetic study. Based on the results, the EDC was adsorbed by chemisorption. In addition, based on the equilibrium isotherms used for the process, the Freundlich model was the most accurate in reproducing the adsorption of 4-nonylphenol onto deoxycholate-intercalated hydrotalcite.

Formation of stable nanolayers of meixnerite via a combined delamination-ion exchange process.

A combination of delamination and ion exchange allowed us to obtain new solids consisting of nanolayers of double hydroxides containing hydroxyl as charge balancing ion (i.e., meixnerite monolayers). The solids were prepared from Mg/Al HLCs containing dodecylbenzenesulphonate (DBS) anion in the interlayer region, using a procedure involving sonication and swelling of the interlayer region in the presence of 1-butanol as solvent. This treatment converts the initial, milky dispersion, into a translucent dispersion suggesting that the solid is completely exfoliated. Then, the translucent dispersion is treated with an NaOH solution in 1-butanol in order to exchange DBS- ions with OH- ions and simultaneously precipitate the DBS sodium salt while offsetting charge deficiencies in the solid layers. The exchange process results in no relamination of the structure, which allows a new material consisting of individual nanolayers of meixnerite to be prepared.

Oleate Epoxidation in a Confined Matrix of Hydrotalcite.

Oleate ion was intercalated into a hydrotalcite obtained using a conventional precipitation method and an alternative, novel method involving microwave-assisted ion exchange. The latter method gave a more crystalline hydrotalcite with better textural properties than the former. The spacing between layers in the hydrotalcites was used to epoxidize the double bond in oleate ion. X-ray diffraction patterns revealed that the layered structure of the hydrotalcites was not altered by the reaction. The epoxidation of oleate ion with m-chloroperbenzoic acid (mCPBA) was monitored using Raman spectroscopy. The results of this work testify to the high potential of hydrotalcites as molecular reactors for reactions in confined spaces.

A multi-analytical study of a wall painting in the Satyr domus in Córdoba, Spain.

In this work, we conducted a careful study of the mortar and paint in the Roman wall painting housed by the triclinium of the so-called Domus in the Road Safety Education Park of Córdoba, Spain. A combination of X-ray diffraction, Raman and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopies allowed the different substances used to obtain the pigments present in the painting to be identified. The painting was found to contain five different colours (red, yellow, blue, green and white) in various hues. The red pigment was obtained from hematite and the yellow pigment from goethite. The blue pigment, which was the least abundant, was prepared from Egyptian blue, and the green pigment from green earths. Finally, the white pigment came from lime. The binders used were identified by infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography with mass spectrometry detection. The painting fragments studied contained vestiges of bee wax or its decomposition products, which suggests that the paint was applied encaustically.

Identification of pigments in the Annunciation sculptural group (Cordoba, Spain) by micro-Raman spectroscopy.

A highly flexible method based on micro-Raman spectroscopy was used to examine pigment traces on an Annunciation sculpture group dating from the late Middle Ages. The group comprises a statue of the Archangel Gabriel and another of the Virgin Mary. Both are currently housed in the Archaeological Museum of Cordoba, southern Spain. Information about the pigment palette used by the artists of the time to decorate religious limestone sculptures was for the first time obtained. The pigments found included vermilion (HgS), hematite (α-Fe2O3), azurite [Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2], cerussite (PbCO3) and anatase (TiO2). None was directly applied to the sculptures; rather, the limestone was coated with a primer containing calcium carbonate (possibly chalk or half-chalk). The polychromy on both sculptures, which was originally applied in the XV century and seriously damaged in the XVIII, had been treated with an ochre-coloured priming layer of gypsum to make it more uniform and optically similar to the underlying stone.

Fast ultrasound-assisted synthesis of highly crystalline MIL-88A particles and their application as ethylene adsorbents.

Highly crystalline MIL-88A particles have been successfully synthesized via fast ultrasound-assisted processes. The influence of the sonication generator and synthesis time on the structure, crystallinity, morphology and surface area of the materials were studied in detail. Under this modified ultrasonic method, X-ray diffraction patterns of MIL-88A particles showed highly crystalline structures in contrast to those reported in literature. Significant differences on surface areas and microporosity were appreciated under ultrasound conditions employed. Specific surface areas in the range between 179 and 359 m2 g-1 were obtained. That material synthesized under ultrasound batch conditions during 1 h had the highest surface area and microporous character. Different particle sizes and morphologies were obtained depending on the synthesis procedure. In general, probe sonicators led to smaller particle sizes. Moreover, a comparative study of the ethylene adsorption of the MIL-88A particles and several common MOFs in the ethylene adsorption was investigated. The results suggest that the modified ultrasound-assisted procedure for the synthesis of MIL-88A is effective to obtain highly crystalline particles, which are very efficient to adsorb ethylene molecules.

Spectroscopic analysis of corrosion products in a bronze cauldron from the Late Iberian Iron Age.

Selected bronze fragments unearthed at Cerro de la Cruz (Almedinilla, southern Spain) were analyzed to determine the chemical composition of the corrosion products formed on their surface. The fragments came from a large bronze cauldron used in an Iberian village that was devastated in the mid II century BCE - possibly around 141 BCE. The fragments were analyzed by using various instrumental techniques including electron scanning microscopy coupled to energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, and also by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and micro-Raman spectroscopy. Based on the results, being buried for a long time caused the main elements in the alloy to mineralize and form stratified layers consisting of various mineral phases including cuprite (Cu2O), malachite [Cu2CO3(OH)2] and cassiterite (Sn2O). The fragments also contained chloride and trihydroxychloride compounds such as nantokite (CuCl) and atacamite [Cu2Cl(OH)3], respectively, which make conservation of archaeological objects troublesome. These results testify to a strong interaction of the alloy elements with soil components. Also, the results obtained suggest a Type I of corrosion structure. Using the SEM-EDS, XRD and XRF and micro-Raman spectroscopies allowed corrosion products in the fragments to be successfully characterized in microchemical and structural.

Raman microspectroscopic analysis of decorative pigments from the Roman villa of El Ruedo (Almedinilla, Spain).

In this work, we analysed the preparatory layer and paintings in the hypocaustum of the Roman villa of El Ruedo (Almedinilla, southern Spain). The specimens studied were from the III and IV centuries. Raman microscopy was for the first time used here to examine Roman pictures in the south of the Iberian peninsula. The results obtained allowed us to establish the chemical nature of the different pigments used by the Roman artists. All were applied over a preparatory layer consisting of limewash. The different colours used (black, white, red, yellow, green and blue) were obtained by using carbon, calcite, gypsum, hematite, goethite, green earth and Egyptian blue. Some exhibited various hues that were obtained by mixing the previous compounds. Worth special note is the incipient presence of blue pigments, which were rarely used in Roman Hispania owing to their scarcity and high price.

La Economía y su relación con la salud de la población cubana / Economy and its relation to the health of the Cuban population

Se realizó una investigación observacional y descriptiva para mostrar las derivaciones de la relación economía/salud mediante datos demográficos, epidemiológicos y socioeconómicos, vinculados al proceso salud-enfermedad, sobre todo en la provincia de Santiago de Cuba durante el bienio 2010-2011. Entre los principales resultados sobresalieron, además del incremento de la población cubana en 2011, de la tasa anual de crecimiento, del grado de envejecimiento y de los gastos en salud y asistencia, que 62,4 % de la población económicamente activa de Cuba estaba compuesta por hombres y 37,6% por mujeres, con mayor porcentaje de desocupación de estas últimas en comparación con los primeros (3,5 y 3,0, respectivamente). De los valores obtenidos se concluyó que la provincia mostró diferencias en el estado de salud respecto a otras regiones del país, vinculadas con el grado de desarrollo social y el ambiente circundante, así como también que el aumento de los indicadores ya señalados y de las enfermedades crónicas no trasmisibles constituyeron en esa etapa un desafío para el financiamiento de la atención y los programas sanitarios.

An observational and descriptive investigation was carried out to show the derivations of the relation economy/health by means of demographic, epidemiological, social and economic data, linked to the process health-disease, mainly in Santiago de Cuba province during the biennium 2010-2011. Among the main results there were, besides the Cuban population increment in 2011, the annual growth rate, the aging level and the expenses in health and care, that from the economically active population in Cuba, 62.4% was composed by men and 37.6% by women, with higher percentage of unemployment of the last ones in comparison with the first ones (3.5 and 3.0, respectively). From the obtained values it is concluded that the province showed differences in the health condition regarding other domestic regions, linked to the level of social development and the surrounding atmosphere, as well as that the increase of the indicators already mentioned and of the non-communicable chronic diseases constituted in that stage a challenge for the financing of care and sanitary programs.

Funciones esenciales de la salud pública y su relación con la economía de la salud / Essential functions of public health and their relation to health economics

Se expone que actualmente la mayoría de los países se encuentran inmersos en reformas sectoriales ante un mundo globalizado, donde el tema de los gastos sanitarios preocupa a los gobiernos y profesionales de la salud. El balance óptimo entre la especificidad de cada función y la integración eficaz de los aspectos comunes constituye una regla para la administración de las funciones esenciales de la salud pública. Asimismo, cada función tiene identidad funcional propia y procesos específicos, los cuales generan productos y resultados particulares que comparten recursos económicos comunes; además, se complementan entre sí con el fin de tomar decisiones para ganar en complejidad.

It is stated that currently most of the countries are absorbed in sector reforms in a globalized world, where the issue of public health costs is of concern for governments and health professionals. The optimal balance between the specificity of each function and the effective integration of the common aspects is a rule for the administration of the essential functions of public health. Also, each function has its own functional identity and specific processes, which generate specific products and results that share common economic resources. Also, they complement each other with the purpose of making decisions to become more complex.

Satisfacción por los servicios brindados en la sala de Fisioterapia del Hospital General "Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas Alfonso" de Santiago de Cuba / Satisfaction at the services provided in the Physiotherapy Department of "Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas Alfonso" Hospital in Santiago de Cuba

Se realizó una investigación en sistemas y servicios de salud para evaluar los servicios de los prestadores y la satisfacción de los usuarios en la sala de Fisioterapia del Hospital General Docente "Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas Alfonso" de Santiago de Cuba, de julio a septiembre del 2010, cuyo universo estuvo constituido por 63 trabajadores que laboraban en este departamento. Como instrumento de medición se utilizó la matriz de Fisher, con la consideración de las dimensiones operacionales (equipos, tecnología y procedimientos) y relacionales (correlación entre los integrantes del personal respecto a la asistencia), y como medida de resumen estadístico se empleó el porcentaje. En la serie se determinó que los servicios ofrecidos a los pacientes eran muy cálidos, pero poco técnicos; sin embargo, los usuarios estuvieron satisfechos con estos. Finalmente se recomendó realizar una evaluación de la calidad de los servicios, que incluyera estructura, proceso y resultados.

A research in health systems and services was conducted to evaluate the services of providers and the satisfaction of users at the Physiotherapy Department of "Dr. Juan Bruno Zayas Alfonso" General Teaching Hospital of Santiago de Cuba, from July to September 2010. The sample was formed by 63 persons that worked in this department. As measuring tool the Fisher matrix was used, considering the operational (devices, technology and procedures) and relational (correlation between the staff members regarding assistance) dimensions, and as statistical summary measure the percentage was used. In the series it was determined that the services provided to the patients were very warm, but little technical; however, users were satisfied with them. Finally, it was recommended to evaluate the quality of the services, including structure, process and results.

Evidencias de un programa educativo sobre el uso de inhaladores antiasmáticos por adolescentes / Evidences of an educational program on the use of asthma inhalers by adolescents

Se efectuó una intervención educativa en 41 adolescentes que padecían asma bronquial, pertenecientes al Policlínico Docente Carlos Juan Finlay de Santiago de Cuba, con el objetivo de aumentar el nivel de conocimientos sobre el uso de los inhaladores en ese grupo poblacional. Con esta intervención se mejoró considerablemente el conocimiento de los integrantes de la serie, lo cual mostró la efectividad del programa aplicado al lograr su propósito inicial

Educational intervention was performed in 41 adolescents who suffered from bronchial asthma, belonging to Carlos Juan Finlay Teaching Polyclinic of Santiago de Cuba, with the purpose of increasing the knowledge of the inhalers use in that population group. With this intervention the knowledge of patients of the series improved significantly, showing the effectiveness of the program implemented when achieving its initial purpose

Lo social en el género: reflexiones para un debate / The social aspect in gender: meditation for a debate

Se analizan sintética y críticamente los principales argumentos sobre la posición social en relación con el género, así como también sobre la formación de desigualdades al respecto. Se concluye con el planteamiento de que las diferencias de morbilidad por sexo se derivan de condiciones no solo biológicas, sino también sociales, donde sobresale, entre otros factores, la valoración que la sociedad realiza acerca de ser hombre o mujer en el desarrollo humano.

The main arguments on the social position in relation to gender are synthetically and critically analyzed, as well as on the inequalities in this respect. It is concluded that the morbidity differences by sex are derived from conditions not only biological, but also social, where the evaluation that the society makes about being a man or a woman in the human development stands out among other factors.

La investigación en las políticas de salud pública / Investigation in the public health policies

Se expuso lo relacionado con el desarrollo y la ejecución de investigaciones sobre políticas sanitarias en las maestrías semipresenciales de Atención Primaria y Salud Pública, realizadas en la provincia de Santiago de Cuba, así como su influencia en la toma de decisiones por las autoridades pertinentes del Sector para contribuir a solucionar los principales problemas de salud en el territorio. El desconocimiento de los decidores acerca de dichas investigaciones, limita la posibilidad introducirlas y generalizarlas en la práctica social.

Aspects related to the development and conducting of investigations on health policies in the semipresential masters' degree of Primary Care and Public Health carried out in Santiago de Cuba province are exposed, as well as their influence in decision-making by the sector relevant authorities contributing to solve the main health problems in the territory. The ignorance of decision-makers about these investigations limits the possibility to introduce and generalize them in the social practice.

Capacitación a personas cuidadoras de pacientes con demencia / Training for care givers of patients with dementia

Se realizó un estudio experimental, del tipo intervención comunitaria, que incluyó a 12 cuidadoras de pacientes con demencia que pertenecían al Policlínico Armando García de Santiago de Cuba, en el periodo del 1 de septiembre del 2005 al 30 de igual mes del 2006. Los cuidadores fueron seleccionados por un muestreo no probabilístico intencional por juicio en el que se incluyeron aquellos que vivían más próximos al local donde se realizó la instrucción (consultorio 12), que tuvieran otro familiar o cuidador para quedarse con el paciente en el horario de la intervención, que no tuvieran limitaciones físicas o mentales que dificultaran su asistencia o aprendizaje y que estuvieran dispuestos a participar en el estudio una vez explicadas las características del mismo y los beneficios que reportarían para él y su paciente, así como que se mantuvieran sin ausencias durante la intervención. Se utilizó la prueba de Mc Nemar como método estadístico y el porcentaje como medida de resumen. Entre los resultados más relevantes puede decirse que predominaban los viejos-viejos en el cuidado de sus familiares, mujeres con nivel escolar medio y alto que conocían bastante bien qué es la demencia y sus síntomas, pero desconocían algunas complicaciones y medidas contra el estrés y cuidado del enfermo.

An experimental study of the community intervention type, including 12 care givers of patients with dementia that belonged to Armando García Polyclinic, was carried out from September 1st, 2005 to September 30th, 2006. Care givers were selected by a judgment intentional non probabilistic sampling that included those living next to the place where the instruction was given (doctor's office 12), those having another relative or caregiver to stay with the patient during the intervention, those not having physical or mental limitations that hindered their attendance or learning and who were willing to participate in the study once its characteristics were explained and benefits to them and their patients were reported, as well as they were present during the intervention. The Mc Nemar test was used as a statistical method, and the percent as a summary measure. Among the most outstanding results the elderly prevailed in caring their relatives, women with middle and higher school level that knew well about dementia and its symptoms, but they ignored some complications and measures against the stress and care of the patient.