RESUMO

This study aimed to investigate the immunomodulatory behavior of soluble immune checkpoints (sICPs) and other biomarkers in the pathophysiology of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The study included 59 adult participants, 43 of whom tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Patients were divided into three cohorts: those with moderate disease (n = 16), recovered patients with severe disease (n = 13), and deceased patients with severe disease (n = 16). In addition, 16 participants were pre-pandemic subjects negative for SARS-CoV-2. The relative activity of neutralizing antibodies (rNAbs) against SARS-CoV-2 and the values of 14 sICPs in peripheral blood were compared between the four groups. Because the increase of markers values of inflammation [NLR > 12; CRP > 150 mg/L] and venous thromboembolism [D-dimer > 0.5 mg/L] has been associated with mortality from COVID-19, the total and differential leukocyte counts, the NLR, and CRP and D-dimer values were obtained in patients with severe disease. No differences in rNAbs were observed between the cohorts. Only the levels of five sICPs, sCD27, sHVEM sTIM-3, sPD-1, and sPDL-1, were significantly higher in patients with severe rather than moderate disease. The sPDL-2 level and NLR were higher in deceased patients than in recovered patients. However, there was no difference in CRP and D-dimer values between the two groups. Of the five soluble biomarkers compared among patients with severe disease, only sPDL-2 was higher in deceased patients than in recovered patients. This suggests that immuno-inhibitory sICPs might be used as indicators for severe COVID-19, with sPDL-2 used to assess individual risk for fatality.IMPORTANCECOVID-19, the disease caused by a SARS-CoV-2 infection, generates a broad spectrum of clinical symptoms, progressing to multiorgan failure in the most severe cases. As activation of the immune system is pivotal to eradicating the virus, future research should focus on identifying reliable biomarkers to efficiently predict the outcome in severe COVID-19 cases. Soluble immune checkpoints represent the function of the immune system and are easily determined in peripheral blood. This research could lead to implementing more effective severity biomarkers for COVID-19, which could increase patients' survival rate and quality of life.

Assuntos

RESUMO

Las tasa de trasplantes en Chile es baja en comparación con otros países. Si bien se han hecho importantes avances para aumentar este número, existe poca claridad en cuanto a protocolos de seguridad de los equipos de procuramiento de órganos. A nivel internacional existen diferentes tragedias que han marcado este trabajo, la más conocida es la ocurrida en Michigan, donde un equipo médico perdió la vida al caer sobre el lago en un transporte por un trasplante de pulmón. Años después de la tragedia se conocieron los reiterados reclamos por parte del personal médico en relación a la falta de seguridad durante los traslados. Si bien el procuramiento de órganos tiene un riesgo asociado inherente, este se debe mantener al mínimo. Para avanzar en esto se confeccionó una guía de seguridad donde participaron las organizaciones de trasplante más importantes de Estados Unidos. Se emitieron recomendaciones, donde se regula el transporte aéreo, terrestre, seguros y el futuro de esta actividad. En Chile la orientación técnica que regula el procuramiento, no especifica ninguno de estos puntos y no existe información pública disponible, dejando la seguridad a disposición de las instituciones locales. Si bien es importante reconocer el esfuerzo nacional por mejorar el número de trasplantes año a año, es necesario avanzar en mejorar la seguridad de los equipos de procuramiento, y no esperar que ocurra una tragedia, para generar cambios necesarios, particularmente en un país con una geografía desafiante como Chile.

The transplant rate in Chile is low compared to other countries. Although significant advances have been made to increase this number, there is little clarity regarding safety protocols for organ procurement teams. Internationally, various tragedies have marked this work, the most famous being the one that occurred in Michigan, where a medical team lost their lives when they crashed into a lake during transport for a lung transplant. Years after the tragedy, repeated complaints by medical personnel came to light concerning the lack of safety during transfers. Although organ procurement inherently carries associated risks, these should be kept to a minimum. In 2020, a safety guide was created to make progress with participation from the most crucial transplant organizations in the United States. Recommendations were issued regulating air and ground transportation, insurance, and the future of transplant activity. In Chile, technical guidelines that regulate procurement need to specify crucial safety metrics, and there is no publicly available information or recommendations, leaving safety to the discretion of local institutions. While it is essential to recognize the national effort to improve the number of transplants year after year, it is necessary to advance in improving the safety of procurement teams and not wait for a tragedy to occur to generate the required changes, particularly in a country with challenging geography like Chile.

RESUMO

Measuring the size distribution of aerosols typically requires processing a sample, specifically to adjust the particle concentration to an adequate level. Unfortunately, this manipulation can significantly alter the native composition of some aerosols, which can lead to unreliable or even unusable measurements. We demonstrate that coherence-gated dynamic light scattering is suitable to measure the size distribution of native aerosols without the need for sample processing. Another novel aspect of the present work is the first demonstration of these type of localized light-scattering-based measurements in aerial media. Measuring the size distribution reliably in optically dense aerosols is possible thanks to the interferometric amplification of single scattering in an optically isolated, picolitre-sized coherence volume. We carried out proof-of-concept experiments in aerosols from electronic cigarettes, which poses a challenge mainly due to their high concentration, volatility, and hygroscopicity. We generated aerosols using two common moisturizers, propylene glycol and glycerol, and measured their particle size distribution as a function of the burning power. The aerosols generated in the presence of glycerol are more polydisperse and have larger particles with increasing burning power. This unique characterization of native aerosols can provide valuable information for dosimetry and hosting sites in the respiratory system.

RESUMO

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the work-family interface dynamics in some families. For couples who kept earning a double income during the pandemic, their family demands may entail a loss of psychological resources that affect the work domain. This study explored the intra-individual and inter-individual (crossover) direct and indirect effects of family-to-work conflict (FtoWC) on psychological distress and job satisfaction in a non-probabilistic sample of 860 different-sex dual-earner parents with adolescent children from Temuco and Rancagua, Chile. Mothers and fathers answered an online questionnaire measuring FtoWC, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale, and the Overall Job Satisfaction Scale. The data were analyzed using the actor-partner interdependence model with structural equation modeling. Results showed that a higher FtoWC is linked to greater psychological distress and lower job satisfaction in both parents. In contrast, psychological distress is directly linked to lower job satisfaction in fathers. In both fathers and mothers, they and their partners' FtoWC were indirectly linked to lower job satisfaction via the fathers' psychological distress. These findings indicate the need for gender-sensitive social and labor policies aimed at reducing the conflict between family and work to increase job satisfaction in both parents and reduce psychological distress, particularly in fathers.

RESUMO

Anthropogenic Marine Litter (AML) accumulating on beaches causes damage to coastal ecosystems and high costs to local communities. Volunteers sampled AML on 130 beaches along the central and southern East Pacific coasts, with AML densities ranging from 0.46 to 2.26 items m-2 in the different countries. AML composition was dominated by plastics and cigarette butts, the latter especially in Mexico and Chile. The accumulation of AML in the upper zones of the beaches and substantial proportions of cigarette butts, glass and metal pointed mainly to local sources. Statistical modelling of litter sources on continental beaches revealed that tourism, access and related infrastructure (e.g. parking lots) best explained AML densities, while plastic densities were also influenced by the distance from river mouths and national Gross Domestic Product. Large-scale monitoring can be a useful tool to evaluate the effectiveness of public policies that should primarily focus on land sources.

Assuntos

RESUMO

We report on the fabrication and testing of a fiber optics sensor based on multimodal interference effects, which aims at the detection of different types of sweeteners dissolved in water. The device, which has a simple structure, commonly known as the SMS configuration, is built by splicing a segment of commercial-grade, coreless multimode fiber (NC-MMF) between two standard single-mode fibers (SMFs). In this configuration, the evanescent field traveling outside the core of the NC-MMF allows the sensing of the refractive index of the surrounding media, making it possible to detect different levels of sugar concentration. The optical sensor was tested with aqueous solutions of glucose, fructose, and sucrose in the concentration range from 0 wt% to 20 wt% at room temperature. The proposed device exhibits a linear response with a sensitivity of 0.1835 nm/wt% for sucrose, 0.1687 nm/wt% for fructose, and 0.1694 nm/wt% for glucose, respectively, with a sensing resolution of around 0.5 wt%. Finally, we show that, despite having similar concentration behavior, some degree of discrimination between the different sugars can be achieved by assessing their thermo-optical response.

RESUMO

The Theory of Evolution (TE) is the backbone of biology and is the best way to explain the diversity of species that exist on the planet. However, despite all the supporting evidence, TE remains poorly understood and accepted. In this study, the levels of acceptance and understanding of TE were measured, respectively, using the Inventory of Student Evolution Acceptance (I-SEA) and Knowledge of Evolution Exam (KEE) questionnaires, in high school students in Monterrey, Mexico (N = 370). The results show that the acceptance of TE ranges from moderate (90.3 out of 120) to high (3.7 out of 5), depending on the scale with which it is measured, while the level of comprehension is low (4.5 out of 10). Statistical analysis of the data collected reveals that there is a positive relationship between acceptance and understanding of TE (r = 0.34). In addition, the proportions of I-SEA and KEE were evaluated based on several factors, such as religion and educational level of the parents, among others. It was found that the level of education of the parents positively affects the understanding of the basic concepts of TE, while religion is the main factor of negative influence on both acceptance and understanding. Finally, the low comprehension shown in this study suggests a revision and readjustment of the contents that are taught in the upper secondary education curriculum.

Assuntos

RESUMO

This paper reports on the refractometric detection of water-adulterated milk using an optical fiber sensor whose principle of operation is based on multimode interference (MMI). The device is manufactured in a simple way by splicing a segment of coreless multimode fiber (NC-MMF) between two single-mode fibers (SMFs); neither functionalization nor deposition of a sensing material is required. MMI takes place in the NC-MMF and, when fed with a broadband spectrum, a transmission peak appears at the output of the MMI device due to its inherent filter-like response, whose position depends on the effective refractive index (RI) of the medium surrounding the NC-MMF. Therefore, when the sensor is immersed in different milk−water mixtures, the peak wavelength shifts according to the RI of the mixture. In this way, adulterated milk can be detected from the wavelength shift of the transmission peak. The system was tested with two commercial brands of milk, and adulterations were clearly distinguished in both cases. In the range of interest, from no dilution up to 50% dilution, the sensor exhibits a linear response with a sensitivity of −0.04251 and −0.03291 nm/%, respectively, for the two samples tested. The measurement protocol is repeatable and allows for locating the peak wavelength within <0.34 nm over several repetitions using different samples with the same concentration. A thermal sensitivity of 0.85 nm/°C was obtained, which suggests that the temperature needs to be maintained as fixed during the measurements. The approach presented can be extended to other scenarios as a quality control tool in beverages for human consumption, showing the advantages of simple construction, high sensitivity, and the potential for real-time monitoring.

RESUMO

Abstract Materialism has been recognized as an important variable in postmodern societies; however, most of the studies on this concept have focused on the adult population. The aim of the present study is to determine the possible association between materialism and life satisfaction, and the possible mediating role of attitudes towards money and peer influence in this association, in a sample of Chilean adolescents. A sample of 1325 Chilean secondary school students completed a questionnaire measuring materialism, attitudes in regards with money, susceptibility to peer influence, and satisfaction with life. First, a confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to validate the scalers. Secondly, a theoretical model was tested using Hayes (2013) SPSS macro, PROCESS. The theoretical model included materialism as the predictor variable, satisfaction with life as the predicted variable, and attitudes towards money and susceptibility to peer influence as mediator variables. Results indicate that materialistic attitudes regarding money strengthens a negative relation between materialism and satisfaction with life. This tendency is not observed in susceptibility to peer influence despite being positively associated with materialism and attitudes regarding money. These findings suggest that the variables materialism and attitudes regarding money play a relevant role in the life satisfaction of Chilean adolescents.

Resumen El materialismo se ha reconocido como una variable importante en sociedades posmodernas, sin embargo, la mayor parte de los estudios respecto a este concepto se han centrado en población adulta. El objetivo del presente estudio es determinar la posible asociación entre materialismo y satisfacción con la vida, y el posible rol mediador de las actitudes hacia el dinero y la influencia de pares en dicha asociación, en una muestra de adolescentes chilenos 1325 estudiantes de secundaria completaron un cuestionario que media materialismo, actitudes hacia el dinero, susceptibilidad a la influencia de pares, y satisfacción con la vida. En primer lugar, se realizó un análisis factorial confirmatorio para validar las escalas utilizadas. En segundo lugar, se probó un modelo teórico utilizando la macro PROCESS de SPSS de Hayes (2013). El modelo teórico consideró materialismo como variable predictora, satisfacción con la vida como variable predicha, y actitudes hacia el dinero, y susceptibilidad a la influencia de pares como variables mediadoras. Los resultados indican que actitudes materialistas hacia el dinero fortalecen una asociación negativa entre materialismo y satisfacción con la vida. Esta tendencia no se observa en susceptibilidad a la influencia de pares a pesar de estar asociada positivamente con materialismo y actitudes hacia el dinero. Estos Hallazgos sugieren que las variables materialismo y actitudes hacia el dinero juegan un rol relevante en la satisfacción con la vida de adolescentes chilenos.