Mass chemotherapy for intestinal Taenia solium infection: effect on prevalence in humans and pigs

Mass treatment of the human population with niclosamide was carried out in 2 villages in rural Guatemala where Taenia solium was endemic, to determine how this would affect the epidemiology of the parasite. Intestinal taeniasis was diagnosed by microscopy and coproantigen testing, and porcine cysticercosis by a specific Western blot. Before mass treatment, the prevalence of human taeniasis was 3.5%; 10 months after treatment it was 1%, a significant decrease (P < 10(-4)). All tapeworms that could be identified to the species level were T. solium. Similarly, the seroprevalence of antibodies to cysticercosis in pigs declined from 55% before treatment to 7% 10 months after treatment, once again a significant decrease (P < 10(-6)). These effects were seen in both villages. The possible use of mass chemotherapy as a tool in the control of T. solium is discussed.     

Microencapsulated Bifidobacterium bifidum and Lactobacillus gasseri in Combination with Quercetin Inhibit Colorectal Cancer Development in ApcMin/+ Mice

Recent studies have suggested that flavonoids such as quercetin and probiotics such as Bifidobacterium bifidum (Bf) and Lactobacillus gasseri (Lg) could play a relevant role in inhibiting colon cancer cell growth. Our study investigated the role of dietary supplementation with microencapsulated probiotics (Bf and Lg) along with quercetin in the development of mouse colorectal cancer (CRC). Methods: Adenomatous polyposis coli/multiple intestinal neoplasia (Apc^Min/+) mice were fed a standard diet or the same diet supplemented with microencapsulated probiotics (Bf and Lg strains, 10⁷ CFU/100 g food) or both probiotics strains plus microencapsulated quercetin (15 mg/100 g food) for 73 days. Changes in body and organ weights, energy metabolism, intestinal microbiota, and colon tissue were determined. The expression of genes related to the Wnt pathway was also analyzed in colon samples. Results: Dietary supplementation with microencapsulated probiotics or microencapsulated probiotics plus quercetin reduced body weight loss and intestinal bleeding in Apc^Min/+ mice. An improvement in energy expenditure was observed after 8 weeks but not after 10 weeks of treatment. A supplemented diet with microencapsulated Bf and Lg reduced the number of aberrant crypt foci (ACF) and adenomas by 45% and 60%, respectively, whereas the supplementation with Bf, Lg and quercetin decreased the number of ACF and adenomas by 57% and 80%, respectively. Microencapsulated Bf and Lg in combination with quercetin could exert inhibition of the canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in the colon of Apc^Min/+ mice Conclusions: The administration of microencapsulated Bf and Lg, individually or in combination with quercetin, inhibits the CRC development in Apc^Min/+ mice.     

Functional properties of a protein product from Caryodendron orinocense (Barinas nut)

The functional properties of Caryodendron orinocense protein product were investigated and compared with those of soybean (Glycina maxima). The product protein content was 24.47 g/100 g (Nx6.25). Solubility increased at both sides of the isoelectric point (pH 4.0) and with increased NaCl concentration up to 0.5M. Compared with soybean flour (50% protein), the protein product exhibited higher water and oil absorption, but lower emulsifying activity, emulsion stability, foaming capacity, and foam stability, the last one increase at higher pH. Emulsifying activity, foaming capacity, and foam stability were ionic strength dependent. C. orinocense protein product increased its emulsifying activity steadily from 0.05M to 0.75M NaCl, while it remained almost constant for soybean flour. Foaming capacity increased drastically at pH 10. The minimum time and concentration to form a gel was 20% in 4 min and 10% in 8 min for the Caryodendron protein product and soybean flour, respectively. The bulk density was 0.5056+/-0.0041 g/mL.     

Digestibility and nutritional value of crude oil from three amaranth species

Oils from a selection ofAmaranthus caudatus, A. hypochondriacus andA. cruentus were extracted with hexane. The crude oils were analyzed for acid value, saponification and iodine number, and were included in basal casein diets for rat studies at 5 and 10% levels to replace equal amounts of refined cottonseed oil. The oils fromA. cruentus andA. hypochondriacus were similar in the oil properties studied and different fromA. caudatus. At either 5 or 10% food intake levels, weight gain and PER were not statistically different from values reported for cottonseed oil. True digestibility of amaranth oil was lower than that of cottonseed oil.A. cruentus oil gave the lowest digestibility. Oil levels induced statistical differences in food intake and digestibility. Oils fromA. caudatus, A. hypochondriacus and cottonseed induced similar serum cholesterol levels, while oil fromA. cruentus gave statistically higher values. Hemoglobin, hematocrit and serum proteins were similar among all groups. Microscopic analysis of the organs of the rats revealed some changes that were also found in cottonseed oil-fed rats. It was concluded that crude amaranth oil has lower digestibility than cottonseed oil, but that it is not responsible for growth-depressing effects when the seed is fed raw as compared to processed materials.     

An information architecture for a performance management framework by collaborating SMEs

Recently, much attention has been given to performance management within collaborative environments resulting in a wide variety of performance measurement/management frameworks. However, practically all of these frameworks present a common gap regarding the information treatment needs that support these frameworks. This issue is even more important in the case of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) due to their special characteristics. For that purpose, this paper presents an approach called Global Performance Management (GPM) Framework composed of a methodology, an information architecture and a technological solution, focusing mainly on the information architecture. The methodology guides SMEs when defining, developing, deploying and operating the GPM framework. The information architecture consists of a set of elements that support the tasks of collection, treatment and analysis of the used information, which complement the methodology to build a real model for the GPM framework. Finally, the technological solution bridges the engineering and conceptual environment, with the real-world operational and executable environment, following the path defined by the methodology. The information architecture was applied to two European pilots, achieving satisfactory results, which are highlighted in the paper as well as the main barriers encountered and solutions provided.     

Robust tuning of Two-Degree-of-Freedom (2-DoF) PI/PID based cascade control systems

A design approach for Two-Degree-of-Freedom (2-DoF) PID controllers within a cascade control configuration that guarantees robust and smooth control is presented in this paper. The use of a cascade control configuration comes into place when the use of an additional (intermediate) sensor provides the possibility for a compensation of a load-disturbance before it affects the output variable. The rationale of operation associated to both the inner and outer controllers determines the need of good performance for disturbance attenuation (regulation) as well as set-point following (tracking). Therefore, the use of 2-DoF controllers is introduced. However, the use of 2-DoF controllers, introduces additional parameters that need to be tuned appropriately. Specially for the case of PI/PID controllers there are not known clear auto-tuning guidelines for such situation. The approach undertaken in this paper provides the complete set of tuning parameters for the inner (2-DoF PI) controller and the outer (2-DoF PID) controller. The trade-off among control system performance (measured in terms of closed-loop response speed) and robustness allows to derive a recommendation for the design-parameter lower limit. The design equations are formulated in such a way that a non-oscillatory response is specified for both the inner and outer loop. A side advantage of providing the complete set of parameters is that it avoids the need for the usual identification experiment for the tuning of the outer controller.     

Simple robust autotuning rules for 2-DoF PI controllers

This paper addresses the problem of providing simple tuning rules for a Two-Degree-of-Freedom (2-DoF) PI controller (PI(2)) with robustness considerations. The introduction of robustness as a matter of primary concern is by now well established among the control community. Among the different ways of introducing a robustness constraint into the design stage, the purpose of this paper is to use the maximum sensitivity value as the design parameter. In order to deal with the well known performance/robustness tradeoff, an analysis is conducted first that allows the determination of the lowest closed-loop time constant that guarantees a desired robustness. From that point, an analytical design is conducted for the assignment of the load-disturbance dynamics followed by the tuning of the set-point weight factor in order to match, as much as possible, the set-point-to-output dynamics according to a first-order-plus-dead-time dynamics. Simple tuning rules are generated by considering specific values for the maximum sensitivity value. These tuning rules, provide all the controller parameters parameterized in terms of the open-loop normalized dead-time allowing the user to select a high/medium/low robust closed-loop control system. The proposed autotuning expressions are therefore compared with other well known tuning rules also conceived by using the same robustness measure, showing that the proposed approach is able to guarantee the same robustness level and improve the system time performance.     

Capturing the changes in the knowledge base underlying drug discovery and development in the 20th century and the adjustment of Bayer, Hoechst, Schering AG and E. Merck to the advent of modern biotechnology

Summary The so-called biotechnology revolution has changed the institutional and knowledge environment of the pharmaceutical industry. The industry incumbents have faced the challenge of adjusting to the new conditions for innovation in drug discovery and development. Drawing on the theoretical framework of the organizational capabilities of the firm, this contribution aims at capturing the changes in the knowledge environment and exploring the adjustment of 4 German corporations (2 companies rooted in the coal tar dyestuff industry and 2 traditional pharmaceutical companies) to the advent of modern biotechnology. Despite the firm-specific capabilities in organic chemical synthesis, the representatives of the coal tar dyestuff industry seem to have been better able to adjust to the external discontinuity in their knowledge environment.The existence of research and development activities, the science-based research tradition together with interactions to access the extramural knowledge base of the firms seem to have been crucial in the perception and adoption of the new technological possibilities of biotechnology after the 1970s, rather than prior competence in biotechnology or the employees with the skills to develop the capabilities to exploit it.     

Optimization of Green Multiple Emulsions Processing to Improve Their Physical Stability

The effect of processing protocol on physical stability and the microstructure of water‐in‐oil‐in‐water multiple emulsions containing a mixture of two amphiphilic copolymers with opposed hydrophilic‐lipophilic balance as emulsifiers and a green solvent, 2‐ethylhexyl lactate, as the dispersed phase, has been assessed. Emulsions were obtained in at least two steps: a homogenization step by using a rotor‐stator device, followed by one or two homogenization steps carried out in a high‐pressure device that used microfluidizer technology. To study the microstructure and physical stability of these emulsions, a combination of different techniques, such as transmitted‐light optical microscopy, globule size distribution, viscous flow tests, and multiple light scattering measurements, were performed.     

Transit Time Enhanced Bandwidth in Nanostructured Terahertz Emitters

Monte-Carlo simulations are used to show that the transit time in ～100 nm gap photoconductive emitters of terahertz radiation is short enough to produce broad-bandwidth pulses. Furthermore, with these calculations we demonstrate that nanostructured contacts remove the need for low-temperature-grown or ion-implanted materials for broad-band terahertz devices.