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Resumen Aunque en la actualidad la lesión renal aguda en mujeres embarazadas es una complicación poco común, esta se correlaciona con peores desenlaces maternos y fetales. Sus causas son múltiples y varían según el trimestre de presentación. Los cambios fisiológicos renales durante el embarazo hacen que los criterios diagnósticos de lesión renal aguda en la población general no sean fácilmente extrapolables a las pacientes obstétricas, por lo que la sospecha temprana y el tratamiento oportuno son fundamentales para evitar la progresión del daño renal y sus complicaciones sistémicas asociadas, incluidas las metabólicas, urémicas e hidroelectrolíticas.
Abstract Acute kidney injury in pregnant women is currently an uncommon complication, but it is correlated with worse maternal and fetal outcomes. Its causes are multiple and vary according to the quarter of presentation. Renal physiological changes during pregnancy mean that the diagnostic criteria for acute kidney injury in the general population are not easily extrapolated to obstetric patients. For this reason, early suspicion and prompt treatment is essential to avoid the progression of kidney damage and its associated systemic complications, including metabolic, uremic, and electrolyte complications.
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Three-dimensional (3D) printing is an emerging technology for the fabrication of scaffolds to repair/replace damaged tissue/organs in tissue engineering. This paper presents our study on 3D printed alginate scaffolds treated with phosphate buffered saline (PBS) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) coating and their impacts on the surface morphology and cellular response of the printed scaffolds. In our study, sterile alginate was prepared by means of the freeze-drying method and then, used to prepare the hydrogel for 3D printing into calcium chloride, forming 3D scaffolds. Scaffolds were treated with PBS for a time period of two days and seven days, respectively, and PEI coating; then they were seeded with Schwann cells (RSC96) for the examination of cellular response (proliferation and differentiation). In addition, swelling and stiffness (Young's modulus) of the treated scaffolds was evaluated, while their surface morphology was assessed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). SEM images revealed significant changes in scaffold surface morphology due to degradation caused by the PBS treatment over time. Our cell proliferation assessment over seven days showed that a two-day PBS treatment could be more effective than seven-day PBS treatment for improving cell attachment and elongation. While PEI coating of alginate scaffolds seemed to contribute to cell growth, Schwann cells stayed round on the surface of alginate over the period of cell culture. In conclusion, PBS-treatment may offer the potential to induce surface physical cues due to degradation of alginate, which could improve cell attachment post cell-seeding of 3D-printed alginate scaffolds.
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In the present study, bioaccumulation of lead, cadmium and zinc in liver, kidney and muscle of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) from Galicia (NW Spain) was quantified. Metal analysis was performed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). In general the quantified concentrations were associated with background environmental levels, except for Pb, where some markedly elevated concentrations were obtained, but with no toxicological relevance. The effect of sex on Cd, Pb and Zn levels was considered, females showing a general trend to accumulate higher concentrations of these metals, with the exception of the hepatic content of Cd (which was significantly higher in males, P < 0.05) and Pb levels, which did not differ according to sex. The effect of age was analysed only in male animals and was clearly observed for Pb levels, with concentrations significantly higher in adult animals (liver: P < 0.01, kidney: P < 0.05 and muscle: P < 0.001) and for Cd levels in kidney samples (P < 0.001). This study provides the first data on heavy metal content in roe deer from the area of study and suggests that this species could be a good bioindicator of metal pollution, even though both factors, sex and age, could represent an important source of variation in the bioaccumulation of these metals in wild populations.
