Jose Muñoz

Outcome Predictors of Pneumonia in Elderly Patients: Importance of Functional Assessment

Objectives: To evaluate the outcome of elderly patients with community‐acquired pneumonia (CAP) seen at an acute‐care hospital, analyzing the importance of CAP severity, functional status, comorbidity, and frailty.

Carbon-polymer biocomposites for amperometric sensing☆

Abstract New electrochemical sensing biocomposite materials are reported. These materials are based on polymer technology and are prepared mixing graphite powder, a non-conducting polymer resin and a lyophilized enzyme. The resulting biosensing material is inexpensive, robust, polishable and easy to machine. A survey of potentially suitable polymeric matrices was carried out. Epoxy, silicone, methacrylate and polyester polymers have been used to prepare rigid conducting composite materials of the graphite-polymer type. For each material, an optimal graphite content was determined. Amperometric transducers built with these materials were characterized electrochemically using cyclic voltammetry and linear-sweep voltammetry. Their linear response to hydrogen peroxide was evaluated. The applicability of these conducting polymer-graphite composites has been extended to the construction of conventional glucose biosensors. In these devices the conducting composite is bulk-modified with the addition of glucose oxidase. The amperometric detection of hydrogen peroxide serves as the analytical signal. Following the same construction method, it is also possible to obtain other biosensing systems. New biocomposites have been prepared, using a different enzyme in each case, i.e. acetylcholinesterase and peroxidase.

The changing face of HIV/AIDS in treated patients.

The spectrum of complications emerging in successfully treated HIV-infected patients has dramatically changed since the advent of HAART. Typical AIDS-defining illnesses have been substituted by new comorbid conditions that threaten even those patients who maintain virologic suppression. Proper management of cardiovascular risk, and early diagnosis of AIDS-related and, particularly, non-AIDS-related malignancies (including papilomavirus-related neoplasms) must be introduced into the routine of care. Hot areas of investigation include HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders, hepatitis B and C coinfection, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy and tuberculosis. Bone and kidney long-term toxicities and lipoatrophy remain as issues of paramount importance. The identification and early treatment of immune reconstitution disease is also of major interest, specially in those patients starting their antiretroviral treatment with severe CD4 cell depletion. The present review focuses on these twelve areas of increasing interest for physicians currently facing successfully treated HIV+ patients.

Simple green routes for the customized preparation of sensitive carbon nanotubes/epoxy nanocomposite electrodes with functional metal nanoparticles

In this communication, we report novel, simple and effective methodologies for the incorporation of functional metal nanoparticles in carbon nanotubes/epoxy nanocomposite electrodes. The incorporation of nanoparticles was obtained by three different routes: (a) in situ functionalization of carbon nanotube surfaces, (b) incorporation and dispersion into a composite matrix and (c) composite surface modification by drop-attachment. These techniques offer a customized route for the preparation of sensitive amperometric sensors. Independent of the route of noble metal nanoparticle incorporation, the final result is a significant enhancement of the electroanalytical response.

CdS quantum dots as a scattering nanomaterial of carbon nanotubes in polymeric nanocomposite sensors for microelectrode array behavior

This work is focused on evaluating the direct electrochemical effect of semi-conducting nanocrystals when they are integrated in bulky nanocomposite sensors based on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). For this aim, MWCNTs have successfully been functionalized with CdS quantum dots (CdS–QDs@MWCNTs) and then dispersed within an insulating polymeric matrix, as epoxy resin, for electroanalytical sensing purposes. After an accurate voltammetric and impedimetric characterization, some electrochemical parameters were surprisingly enhanced regarding the non-modified sensors, such as peak current height, electroactive area, and emphasizing the double-layer capacitance. These results can be explained since CdS–QDs confer to the nanocomposite sensor a microelectrode array behavior, dispersing the conductive microzones through the polymeric matrix, as revealed by morphological experiments. The feasibility of this approach was amperometrically evaluated for ascorbic acid and hydrogen peroxide, both used as reference analytes. Electroanalytical results demonstrated that this approach provides to the CdS–QDs-modified nanocomposite sensors the capability to determine low concentrations of analytes and improved sensitivities.

Understanding Catalan university dropout from a cross-national approach

The dropout rate is an indicator of complex analysis and there is no consensus on its significance. Universities lack systematized, univocal methods for collecting student dropout data, making measurement problematic. In consequence, the formulas applied to analyze this phenomenon differ between countries and it is therefore an immense challenge to perform comparative studies. The aim of this paper is to provide a general overview of student dropout in Spain and in Catalonia compared to other international university contexts. Compiled data come from several reports produced by national and international organizations as well as by a research project funded by the Catalan University Quality Assurance Agency (AQU). The perspective provided on how this phenomenon is being studied and dealt with in several contexts may help design actions to increase student retention and performance in higher education institutions (HEIs).

Tratamiento de la lipodistrofia en pacientes con infección por el virus de la inmunodeficiencia humana

potencia (higly active antirretroviral, HAART) ha supuesto una disminucion espectacular en la morbimortalidad asociada a la infeccion por el virus de la inmunodeficiencia humana (VIH), a la vez que un incremento significativo en la aparicion de efectos adversos del tratamiento antirretroviral. En el paciente seropositivo, la aparicion de toxicidad medicamentosa puede suponer una adhesion deficiente al tratamiento, la perdida del control antirretroviral y el desarrollo de resistencia a otras opciones terapeuticas, ademas de la propia morbimortalidad asociada a cada reaccion adversa. Por ello, la prevencion y el tratamiento de los efectos adversos farmacologicos han pasado a constituir objetivos principales del manejo clinico de los pacientes VIH. Limitar la toxicidad del tratamiento antirretroviral es un aspecto fundamental para conseguir una supresion viral mantenida. La descripcion creciente de casos de lipodistrofia en pacientes que recibian terapia altamente activa ha puesto en estado de alerta a clinicos y pacientes por las repercusiones esteticas, el impacto metabolico y las importantes implicaciones patogenicas de este sindrome. Sin embargo, las opciones terapeuticas en estos pacientes son limitadas, hasta hoy poco efectivas y, en muchos casos, complejas, debido fundamentalmente a que el conocimiento de la patogenia del sindrome es escaso y a que, a menudo, se debe recurrir a un tratamiento meramente sintomatico y parcial. El proposito de esta revision es introducir ciertos conceptos basicos relacionados con la presentacion clinica, la epidemiologia y la patogenia de la lipodistrofia, a la vez que ofrecer una relacion de las distintas opciones terapeuticas propuestas, analizando su eficacia y su viabilidad en la practica clinica. Se establecen, asimismo, los principios fundamentales que deberan guiar la toma de decisiones en el tratamiento de la lipodistrofia.

Intermatrix synthesis of Ag, AgAu and Au nanoparticles by the galvanic replacement strategy for bactericidal and electrocatalytically active nanocomposites

The intermatrix synthesis (IMS) technique has proven to be an environmentally friendly methodology for the preparation of functional metal nanoparticles (FMNPs) on different reactive matrices. The distribution of these FMNPs is an important feature to control depending on the final application of the nanocomposite: bactericide assays for water treatment, heterogeneous catalysis, electrocatalytic effects and others. IMS offers the feasibility to control the FMNP distribution, taking into account the adequacy of the ion exchange form of the reactive matrix and the chemical nature of the reducing agent used for the synthesis (the Donnan effect). Consequently, AgAu–FMNPs and Au–FMNPs containing nanocomposites have been prepared by coupling a galvanic replacement stage to IMS, with tested bactericide features attributed to the distribution of the nanoparticles on the material. In addition, Ag–FMNPs and Au–FMNPs contained on multiwalled carbon nanotubes have been synthesized and used as conducting nanofillers for the development of amperometric nanocomposite sensors based on epoxy resin. The incorporation of these FMNPs into the nanocomposite sensor has shown significant electrocatalytic effects, obtaining enhanced electrochemical and analytical parameters, such as higher signal-to-noise ratios as well as better detection limits, quantification limits and sensitivities for the oxidation of ascorbic acid in water, which was used as a model analyte.

They have gone, and now what? Understanding re-enrolment patterns in the Catalan public higher education system

ABSTRACT Studies of student re-enrolment patterns in higher education constitute, along with traditional studies of persistence and dropout, a key element for improving the quality of higher education institutions. However, these studies tend to be limited as they are centred on a single institution, due to the lack of national-scale data sets for monitoring students between different institutions. Using a longitudinal population-based data set provided by the Catalan University Assurance Agency (AQU), which includes information records on 21,473 undergraduate students, this paper aims to develop and test an exploratory model of student re-enrolment, specifically in the Catalan public university system. We are not only interested in student re-enrolment, but also in whether they do so during the first year after dropout or in the same area of knowledge. Results from logistic regression analysis revealed that although most students return to the university system in the first year after dropout, many of these change to a different area of knowledge, which is clear evidence of dysfunctional and inefficient guidance systems and university entrance. Findings provide a more accurate and complete picture of student re-enrolment behaviour and suggest the need to develop targeted policies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our university systems.

Chiral magnetic-nanobiofluids for rapid electrochemical screening of enantiomers at a magneto nanocomposite graphene-paste electrode

The development of highly sensitive and selective enantiomeric platforms towards the rapid screening of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) is nowadays a crucial challenge in several fields related to pharmacology, biomedicine, biotechnology and (bio)sensors. Herein, it is presented a novel, facile and generic methodology focused on exploiting the synergistically and electrocatalytic properties of chiral magnetic-nanobiofluids (mNBFs) with electrochemical enantiobiosensing at a magneto nanocomposite graphene paste electrode (mNC-GPE). The feasibility of this approach has been validated by chirally recognizing tryptophan (TRP) enantiomers as a proof-of-concept. For this aim, a specific chiral mNBF based on an aqueous dispersion of cobalt ferrite loaded with gold nanoparticles carrying a thiolated β-cyclodextrin (β-CD-SH/Au/CoFe2O4-NPs) has been synthesized and used towards the supramolecular discrimination of TRP enantiomers at an advanced graphene-paste transducer via cyclic voltammetry. This strategy, which is the first demonstration of applicability of chiral mNBFs for electrochemical enantiorecognition, opens up new approaches into enantio(bio)sensing.