6,803 research outputs found
Biopolymers and biomacromolecules solvent dynamics
No full textBiomacromolecules in solution modify the structure and the dynamics of the bulk water at the solute-solvent interface. The ordering effects of biomolecules, in particular proteins, are extended for several angstroms. The role of the hydration shells around a protein has yet to be completely understood. Hydrated proteins maintain more dynamic flexibility with respect to the dried system, which is an important property in protein-protein and/or protein-ligand recognition processes. In this paper we propose a method for analyzing the dynamical properties of the water molecules present in the hydration shells of proteins. The approach is based on analysis of the effects of protein-solvent interactions on water protons NMR relaxation parameters. The water proton spin-lattice relaxation rate in protein solution is analyzed considering all possible dipolar contributions from coupled protons environments. The analysis of both selective and non-selective water spin-lattice relaxation rates allowed the calculation of the average effective correlation time for the water molecules at the protein interface and the evaluation of the long range ordering effect of the protein surface. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
Biophysical approach to chronic kidney disease management in older patients
No full textChronic kidney disease (CKD) and its clinical progression are a critical issue in an aging population. Therefore, strategies aimed at preventing and managing the decline of renal function are warranted. Recent evidence has provided encouraging results for the improvement of renal function achieved through an integrated biophysical approach, but prospective studies on the clinical efficacy of this strategy are still lacking. This was an open-label prospective pilot study to investigate the effect of electromagnetic information transfer through the aqueous system on kidney function of older patients affected by stage 1 or 2 CKD.
Patients received biophysical therapy every 3 months over a 1-year period. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) values were calculated using the CKD–Epidemiology Collaboration formula, and were recorded at baseline and at the end of treatment. Overall, 58 patients (mean age 74.8 ± 3.7 years) were included in the study.
At baseline, mean eGFR was 64.6 ± 15.5 mL/min, and it significantly increased to 69.9 ± 15.8 mL/min after 1 year (+5.2 ± 10 mL/min, p<0.0002). The same trend was observed among men (+5.7 ± 10.2 mL/min, p<0.0064) and women (+4.7 ± 9.9 mL/min, p<0.014). When results were analyzed by sex, no difference was found between the 2 groups.
Although further and larger prospective studies are needed, our findings suggest that an integrated biophysical approach may be feasible in the management of older patients with early-stage CKD, to reduce and prevent the decline of renal function due to aging or comorbidities
[Poesia] Três poemas de Alberto Secama
No full textThree poems by Alberto Secama. About the author: Alberto Secama is an Angolan poet who has poems published on many websites and on facebook:https://www.facebook.com/Xungurra/abouthttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/africa-em-verso-rio-kwanza-por-alberto-secamahttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/africa-em-verso-zong-por-alberto-secamahttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/coluna-africa-em-verso-o-sol-la-fora-por-alberto-secamaTres poemas de Alberto Secama. Sobre el autor: Alberto Secama es un poeta angoleño que tiene poemas publicados en varios sitios y en el facebook:https://www.facebook.com/Xungurra/abouthttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/africa-em-verso-rio-kwanza-por-alberto-secamahttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/africa-em-verso-zong-por-alberto-secamahttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/coluna-africa-em-verso-o-sol-la-fora-por-alberto-secamaTrês poemas de Alberto Secama. Sobre o autor: Alberto Secama é um poeta angolano que possui poemas publicados em vários sites e no facebook:https://www.facebook.com/Xungurra/abouthttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/africa-em-verso-rio-kwanza-por-alberto-secamahttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/africa-em-verso-zong-por-alberto-secamahttp://www.pordentrodaafrica.com/cultura/coluna-africa-em-verso-o-sol-la-fora-por-alberto-secam
Orizzonti mantovani. Spunti e dinamiche paesaggistiche ne L'Illustrissimo di Alberto Cantoni
No full textIn the literary production of Alberto Cantoni, short story writer and novelist between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the novel L'Illustrissimo is highly important both because it is the last publication of the author, from Pomponesco, a small town a few kilometers south of Mantua, both because it summarizes in a single text the different nuances and different directions that his writing has taken over the course of his literary career, also due to a writing and processing time that embraces the entire span of years of his career itself. In the foreground, in addition to the numerous and brilliant characters, one of the protagonists is the Mantuan landscape which, not a simple background, becomes a true literary parameter which in different and significant ways affects the purposes and mechanisms of the novel
Biophysical integrated approach for the management of early stages of CKD in elderly patients: a 12-month controlled study
No full textBackground: Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and its clinical evolution are an emerging issue, due to an increasingly aging population. Consequently, the evaluation of integrative strategies to manage the decline in renal function is warranted. The previous evidence indicates that a biophysical integrated approach can significantly improve renal function. Nevertheless, controlled trials assessing the clinical efficacy of this strategy are still needed. Methods: A 12-month controlled study was designed to assess the clinical outcome of a group of elderly patients affected by stage II/IIIa CKD randomly assigned to either control or biophysical treatment. In addition to the standard treatment with renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system inhibitors, the biophysical group underwent electromagnetic information transfer through aqueous system procedure every 3 months. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), according to CKD–epidemiology collaboration formula, was calculated at baseline and every 3 months. Results: A total of 238 patients were included in the study, 118 (73.9 ± 3.8 years) in the biophysical therapy group and 120 (74.6 ± 4.2 years) in the control group. At baseline, mean eGFR was 69 ± 11.8 ml/min in the biophysical group and 70.7 ± 11.5 ml/min in the control group. After 1 year, eGFR was 74.1 ± 12.3 ml/min in the biophysical group, compared to 66.3 ± 11.9 ml/min in the control group, with a statistically significant difference between groups (p < 0.0001). The observed improvement in eGFR in the biophysical group was independent of age, gender, and antihypertensive treatment. Conclusion: This study shows a potential contribution of a biophysical integrated strategy to support renal function against its natural decline in the elderly, warranting further clinical evaluation
Plenary Session: Luis Alberto Urrea
No full texta) Plenary Session: Luis Alberto Urrea, Mexican American Chicago Writer
Luis Alberto Urrea is a 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for non-fiction and member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame. He is a prolific and acclaimed writer who has used his dual-culture life border experiences to explore the complex and interconnected Mexican-US American reality. The critically acclaimed and best-selling Mexican-born author of 13 books, Urrea has won numerous awards for his poetry, fiction and essays.
Moderator: Dr. Héctor García, Loyola University Chicag
Water-Protein Interactions: The Secret of Protein Dynamics
No full textWater-protein interactions help to maintain flexible conformation conditions which are required for multifunctional protein recognition processes. The intimate relationship between the protein surface and hydration water can be analyzed by studying experimental water properties measured in protein systems in solution. In particular, proteins in solution modify the structure and the dynamics of the bulk water at the solute-solvent interface. The ordering effects of proteins on hydration water are extended for several angstroms. In this paper we propose a method for analyzing the dynamical properties of the water molecules present in the hydration shells of proteins. The approach is based on the analysis of the effects of protein-solvent interactions on water protons NMR relaxation parameters. NMR relaxation parameters, especially the nonselective (R1NS ) and selective (R1SE ) spin-lattice relaxation rates of water protons, are useful for investigating the solvent dynamics at the macromolecule-solvent interfaces as well as the perturbation effects caused by the water-macromolecule interactions on the solvent dynamical properties. In this paper we demonstrate that Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy can be used to determine the dynamical contributions of proteins to the water molecules belonging to their hydration shells
O duplo significado do sentir e do pensar nas obras de Alberto Caeiro e Descartes
No full textDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Comunicação e Expressão. Programa de Pós-Graduação em LiteraturaA pretensão desta dissertação intitulada O duplo significado do sentir e do pensar nas obras de Alberto Caeiro e Descartes é investigar a relação entre o sentir e o puro pensar, usando como referência a poesia O Guardador de Rebanhos, de Alberto Caeiro, que apresenta de forma evidente o tema; e como este assunto é tratado nas Meditações Metafísicas de René Descartes, também de forma claramente visível. Podemos perceber em ambos os autores, uma diplopia, uma espécie de duplo olhar sobre a relação sentir e puro pensar. No primeiro capítulo vou falar sobre a tese do duplo olhar de Descartes, a respeito da relação sentir e puro pensar na leitura de Merleau-Ponty, salientando a visão de natureza. No segundo capítulo, parto da leitura das três primeiras Meditações Metafísicas para caracterizar a tensão que se pode verificar entre Descartes e Alberto Caeiro quando se referem ao puro pensar. O foco principal de Descartes, nas três primeiras Meditações, é o pensar puro, e neste ponto Alberto Caeiro critica o pensar puro. No terceiro capítulo, analisando as três últimas Meditações, percebe-se que há uma virada no pensamento de Descartes, no qual o autor inverte seu ponto de vista, aproximando-se da idéia de Alberto Caeiro. No quarto capítulo, mostrarei a leitura que outros autores fazem acerca do sentir e do pensar na obra de Alberto Caeiro, mostrando que assim como Descartes, este também ostenta uma diplopia, não do sentir, mas do pensar. The pretension of this work entitled O duplo significado do sentir e do pensar nas obras de Alberto Caeiro e Descartes is to investigate the relationship between the feeling and the pure thinking, using as reference the poetry O Guardador de Rebanhos, by Alberto Caeiro, that presents in an evident way this theme; and as this subject is treated in René Descartes' Metaphysical Meditations, also in a clearly visible way. It is possible to notice in both authors, the diplopy, a sort of double look about the relationship between feeling and pure thinking. The thesis about Descartes'double look regarding the relation of feeling and pure thinking, in Merleau-Ponty reading, pointing out the nature vision, will be treated in the first chapter. In the second chapter, I start from the reading of the first three Metaphysical Meditations to characterize the tension that can be verified between Descartes and Alberto Caeiro when they refer to the pure thinking. Descartes' main focus in the first three Meditations is pure thinking and, in this point, Alberto Caeiro criticizes pure thinking. In the third chapter, analyzing the last three Meditations, it is possible to notice that there is an alteration in Descartes' thought, in which the author inverts his point of view, approaching of Alberto Caeiro's idea. In the fourth chapter, I will show the reading that other authors do concerning feeling and thinking in Alberto Caeiro's work, showing that as well as Descartes, this also shows a diplopy, not of feeling, but of thinking
Is it Well-being or Wellbeing?
No full textRecent technological advances in the use of the Internet, worlwideweb and video technologies have greatly impacted the provision of clinical services as well as how the training of healthcare staff and therapists may be conducted. The proper use of technology and multidimensional conceptual clarity are fundamental to create and boost outstanding clinical and telepractice results. Briefly, we recollect some of the fundamental principles that govern how human beings know their world to survive and how they bio-process their information from which they derive their knowledge to grow and prosper. Our approach explains what is being proposed into a systemic concept of principles organizing nature for successful wellbeing management. They can represent a new extended systemic embracing worldview paradigm and translate it to our practical everyday activities.
As a matter of fact their applicability range is so viable, wide and articulated that they can be conveniently and successfully extended to many other HRO and business application areas, with no performance or economic penalty. This approach can be applied at any system scale: from single quantum system application development to full system governance strategic assessment policies and beyond. Our operational framework is a relevant contribute towards a post-Bertalanffy new General Theory of Systems to show how homeostatic equilibria can emerge out of an anticipatory self-organizing landscape of self-structuring attractor points
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