ABSTRACT
In the industrial corridor of Boyacá, Colombia, population growth is accompanied by anthropogenic activities such as industrial operations, vehicle exhaust fumes, mining, smelting, atmospheric deposition, and excessive use of chemical products to promote crop growth. These activities are known to have a significant impact on urban and rural soils, contributing significantly to elevated concentrations of potentially hazardous elements in the environment. This industrial corridor is an area of economic and social development that needs to provide reference information that will allow us to know the state of soil quality to preserve and manage the public and geoenvironmental health of this region. Anthropogenic activities have contributed to the accumulation of potentially hazardous elements in the environment, affecting various levels of life and creating risks with economic and social implications. However, igneous activity or detrital deposition also enriches soils and creates geochemical anomalies in specific locations. In these cases, the identification of potentially hazardous elements involves the determination of likely sources of contamination and their relationship to the geological setting. In this study, the concentrations of As, Cd, Pb, Mn, Fe, Zn, Hg, Cu and Ni were determined in eighty-one soil samples from the Boyacá industrial corridor (Colombia). The sequential trend of the concentrations of potentially hazardous elements was as follows: Fe > Mn > Zn > Ni > Cu> Pb > As > Cd > Hg. Furthermore, the application of spatial analysis criteria in GIS software with multivariate statistical tools and geochemical indices allowed the identification of anthropogenic and geogenic sources. Most of the potentially hazardous elements were found in soils exposed to industrial and agricultural activities, except for iron. This element showed low variability in all samples, regardless of the geological formations. Due to the lack of reference values for potentially hazardous elements in Colombia, the concentrations were compared with the environmental standards of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Ecuadorian Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition (MAE). The results demonstrate the complexity of the soil and represent the first exploratory study of potentially hazardous elements in this industrial corridor. These results are the starting point for the establishment of geochemical background lines in Colombia and for inspection policies for areas where productive activities converge.
Subject(s)
Mercury , Metals, Heavy , Soil Pollutants , Soil , Metals, Heavy/analysis , Geographic Information Systems , Colombia , Cadmium/analysis , Lead/analysis , Soil Pollutants/analysis , Environmental Monitoring/methods , Mercury/analysis , Risk Assessment , ChinaABSTRACT
In the last years, the antimicrobial resistance against antibiotics has become a serious health issue, arise as global threat. This has generated a search for new strategies in the progress of new antimicrobial therapies. In this context, different nanosystems with antimicrobial properties have been studied. Specifically, magnetic nanoparticles seem to be very attractive due to their relatively simple synthesis, intrinsic antimicrobial activity, low toxicity and high versatility. Iron oxide NPs (IONPs) was authorized by the World Health Organization for human used in biomedical applications such as in vivo drug delivery systems, magnetic guided therapy and contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging have been widely documented. Furthermore, the antimicrobial activity of different magnetic nanoparticles has recently been demonstrated. This review elucidates the recent progress of IONPs in drug delivery systems and focuses on the treatment of infectious diseases and target the possible detrimental biological effects and associated safety issues.
Subject(s)
Anti-Infective Agents/administration & dosage , Drug Delivery Systems , Magnetite Nanoparticles , Animals , Anti-Infective Agents/pharmacology , Communicable Diseases/drug therapy , Communicable Diseases/microbiology , Drug Resistance, Microbial , Ferric Compounds/chemistry , HumansABSTRACT
Cuatro pacientes de edades comprendidas entre los 3 y 12 años, con diagnóstico de dermatitis atópica severa refractaria a tratamientos convecionales, fueron tratados con CyA por vía oral en dosis de 3 mg/kg/d durante 1 mes. Todos los pacientes obtuvieron mejoría significativa de sus lesiones sobre todo del control del prurito y de las lesiones eczematosas, al concluir el tratamiento, persistiendo en tres de los cuatro pacientes dicha mejoría hasta 6 meses después de finalizado el mismo. No se presentaron efectos colaterales durante la terapia; al finalizar el tratamiento se realizó determinación de los valores de CyA por RIA con resultados dentro de límites normales. Los hallazgos obtenidos de las pruebas inmunológicas no permiten obtener conclusiones, únicamente la persistencia de eosinofilia sérica y altos valores de IgE. Consideramos que la CyA es una excelente alternativa terapéutica en niños con dermatitis atópica severa refractaria a tratamientos convencionales, cuando la utilizamos a dosis de 3 mg/kg/d
Subject(s)
Child, Preschool , Child , Cyclosporine/therapeutic use , Dermatitis, Atopic/drug therapyABSTRACT
Las causas de desnutrición intrauterina son múltiples; enellas intervienen factores maternos, malformaciones fetales exógenas y endógenase infecciones intrauterinas, en tanto los factores placentarios son considerados no como causa sino como consecuencia. Se realizó un estudio en la maternidad "Tamara Bunke", de todos los recién nacidos de bajo peso, en un período de 4 meses (julio-octubre de 1977), en el cual se determinaron las causas más frecuentes que provocaron la dismadurez (AU)