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In the search to enhance ergonomic risk assessments for upper limb work-related activities, this study introduced and validated the efficiency of an inertial motion capture system, paired with a specialized platform that digitalized the OCRA index. Conducted in a semi-controlled environment, the proposed methodology was compared to traditional risk classification techniques using both inertial and optical motion capture systems. The inertial method encompassed 18 units in a Bluetooth Low Energy tree topology network for activity recording, subsequently analyzed for risk using the platform. Principal outcomes emphasized the optical system’s preeminence, aligning closely with the conventional technique. The optical system’s superiority was further evident in its alignment with the traditional method. Meanwhile, the inertial system followed closely, with an error margin of just ±0.098 compared to the optical system. Risk classification was consistent across all systems. The inertial system demonstrated strong performance metrics, achieving F1-scores of 0.97 and 1 for “risk” and “no risk” classifications, respectively. Its distinct advantage of portability was reinforced by participants’ feedback on its user-friendliness. The results highlight the inertial system’s potential, mirroring the precision of both traditional and optical methods and achieving a 65% reduction in risk assessment time. This advancement mitigates the need for intricate video setups, emphasizing its potential in ergonomic assessments.

Assessing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in the workplace is vital for improving worker health and safety, reducing costs, and increasing productivity. Traditional hazard identification methods are often inefficient, particularly in detecting complex risks, which may compromise risk management. This study introduces a semi-automatic platform using two motion capture systems—an optical system (OptiTrack®) and a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)-based system with inertial measurement units (IMUs), developed at the Biomedical Engineering Laboratory, Universidad de Concepción, Chile. These systems, tested on 20 participants (10 women and 10 men, aged 30 ± 9 years without MSDs), facilitate risk assessments via the digitized NIOSH Index method. Analysis of ergonomically significant variables (H, V, A, D) and calculation of the RWL and LI showed both systems aligned with expected ergonomic standards, although significant differences were observed in vertical displacement (V), horizontal displacement (H), and trunk rotation (A), indicating areas for improvement, especially for the BLE system. The BLE Inertial MoCap system recorded mean heights of 33.87 cm (SD = 4.46) and vertical displacements of 13.17 cm (SD = 4.75), while OptiTrack® recorded mean heights of 30.12 cm (SD = 2.91) and vertical displacements of 15.67 cm (SD = 2.63). Despite the greater variability observed in BLE system measurements, both systems accurately captured vertical vertical absolute displacement (D), with means of 32.05 cm (SD = 7.36) for BLE and 31.80 cm (SD = 3.25) for OptiTrack®. Performance analysis showed high precision for both systems, with BLE and OptiTrack® achieving precision rates of 98.5%. Sensitivity, however, was lower for BLE (97.5%) compared to OptiTrack® (98.7%). The BLE system’s F1 score was 97.9%, while OptiTrack® scored 98.6%, indicating both systems can reliably assess ergonomic risk. These findings demonstrate the potential of using BLE-based IMUs for workplace ergonomics, though further improvements in measurement accuracy are needed. The user-friendly BLE-based system and semi-automatic platform significantly enhance risk assessment efficiency across various workplace environments.

Background Current recommendations support guiding fluid resuscitation through the assessment of fluid responsiveness. Recently, the concept of fluid tolerance and the prevention of venous congestion (VC) have emerged as relevant aspects to be considered to avoid potentially deleterious side effects of fluid resuscitation. However, there is paucity of data on the relationship of fluid responsiveness and VC. This study aims to compare the prevalence of venous congestion in fluid responsive and fluid unresponsive critically ill patients after intensive care (ICU) admission. Methods Multicenter, prospective cross-sectional observational study conducted in three medical–surgical ICUs in Chile. Consecutive mechanically ventilated patients that required vasopressors and admitted < 24 h to ICU were included between November 2022 and June 2023. Patients were assessed simultaneously for fluid responsiveness and VC at a single timepoint. Fluid responsiveness status, VC signals such as central venous pressure, estimation of left ventricular filling pressures, lung, and abdominal ultrasound congestion indexes and relevant clinical data were collected. Results Ninety patients were included. Median age was 63 [45–71] years old, and median SOFA score was 9 [7–11]. Thirty-eight percent of the patients were fluid responsive (FR+), while 62% were fluid unresponsive (FR−). The most prevalent diagnosis was sepsis (41%) followed by respiratory failure (22%). The prevalence of at least one VC signal was not significantly different between FR+ and FR− groups (53% vs. 57%, p  = 0.69), as well as the proportion of patients with 2 or 3 VC signals (15% vs. 21%, p  = 0.4). We found no association between fluid balance, CRT status, or diagnostic group and the presence of VC signals. Conclusions Venous congestion signals were prevalent in both fluid responsive and unresponsive critically ill patients. The presence of venous congestion was not associated with fluid balance or diagnostic group. Further studies should assess the clinical relevance of these results and their potential impact on resuscitation and monitoring practices.

Background: Metabolic syndrome refers to the coexistence of several known cardiovascular risk factors, including insulin resistance, obesity, atherogenic dyslipidemia, and hypertension. These conditions are interrelated and share underlying mediators, mechanisms, and pathways. Improvement in dietary habits has been shown to improve metabolic parameters in patients undergoing treatment with different diets. Methods: A systematic search in different databases was realized using the keywords “Metabolic syndrome”, “X syndrome”, “Dash dietary” and “Dash diet”. Finally, six studies were included in this meta-analysis. Results: All articles comparing the DASH diet vs. other diet modalities reported significant differences in favor of the DASH diet on Systolic blood pressure (SBP) (standardized mean difference [SMD] = −8.06, confidence interval [CI] = −9.89 to −7.32, and p < 0.00001), Diastolic blood pressure (SMD = −6.38, CI = −7.62 to −5.14, and p < 0.00001), Cholesterol HDL (SMD = 0.70, CI = 0.53 to 0.88, and p < 0.00001) and Cholesterol LDL (SMD = −1.29, CI = −1.73 to −0.85, and p < 0.00001) scales. Conclusions: The DASH diet has been shown to be beneficial in altered parameters in patients with MS, and the resulting improvements can significantly affect the daily health of these patients. We therefore recommend that professionals who manage these pathologies promote the use of the DASH diet for the management of specific symptoms.

Nitrogen (N) is one of the main limiting nutrients for plant growth and crop yield. It is well documented that changes in nitrate availability, the main N source found in agricultural soils, influences a myriad of developmental programs and processes including the plant defense response. Indeed, many agronomical reports indicate that the plant N nutritional status influences their ability to respond effectively when challenged by different pathogens. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in N-modulation of plant susceptibility to pathogens are poorly characterized. In this work, we show that Solanum lycopersicum defense response to the necrotrophic fungus Botrytis cinerea is affected by plant N availability, with higher susceptibility in nitrate-limiting conditions. Global gene expression responses of tomato against B. cinerea under contrasting nitrate conditions reveals that plant primary metabolism is affected by the fungal infection regardless of N regimes. This result suggests that differential susceptibility to pathogen attack under contrasting N conditions is not only explained by a metabolic alteration. We used a systems biology approach to identify the transcriptional regulatory network implicated in plant response to the fungus infection under contrasting nitrate conditions. Interestingly, hub genes in this network are known key transcription factors involved in ethylene and jasmonic acid signaling. This result positions these hormones as key integrators of nitrate and defense against B. cinerea in tomato plants. Our results provide insights into potential crosstalk mechanisms between necrotrophic defense response and N status in plants.

Background Norepinephrine (NE) is a cornerstone drug in the management of septic shock, with its dose being used clinically as a marker of disease severity and as mortality predictor. However, variations in NE dose reporting either as salt formulations or base molecule may lead to misinterpretation of mortality risks and hinder the process of care. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of the MIMIC-IV database to assess the impact of NE dose reporting heterogeneity on mortality prediction in a cohort of septic shock patients. NE doses were converted from the base molecule to equivalent salt doses, and their ability to predict 28-day mortality at common severity dose cut-offs was compared. Results 4086 eligible patients with septic shock were identified, with a median age of 68 [57–78] years, an admission SOFA score of 7 [6–10], and lactate at diagnosis of 3.2 [2.4–5.1] mmol/L. Median peak NE dose at day 1 was 0.24 [0.12–0.42] μg/kg/min, with a 28-day mortality of 39.3%. The NE dose showed significant heterogeneity in mortality prediction depending on which formulation was reported, with doses reported as bitartrate and tartrate presenting 65 (95% CI 79–43)% and 67 (95% CI 80–47)% lower ORs than base molecule, respectively. This divergence in prediction widened at increasing NE doses. When using a 1 μg/kg/min threshold, predicted mortality was 54 (95% CI 52–56)% and 83 (95% CI 80–87)% for tartrate formulation and base molecule, respectively. Conclusions Heterogeneous reporting of NE doses significantly affects mortality prediction in septic shock. Standardizing NE dose reporting as base molecule could enhance risk stratification and improve processes of care. These findings underscore the importance of consistent NE dose reporting practices in critical care settings.

The aim of this study was to examine the salivary microbiome in healthy peri-implant sites and those with peri-implantitis. Saliva samples were collected from 21 participants with healthy peri-implant sites and 21 participants with peri-implantitis. The V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene was sequenced using the Ion Torrent PGM System (Ion 318™ Chip v2 400). The NGS analysis and composition of the salivary microbiome were determined by taxonomy assignment. Downstream bioinformatic analyses were performed in QIIME (v 1.9.1). Clinical differences according to peri-implant condition status were found. Alpha diversity metrics revealed that the bacterial communities of participants with healthy peri-implant sites tended to have a richer microbial composition than individuals with peri-implantitis. In terms of beta diversity, bleeding on probing (BoP) may influence the microbial diversity. However, no clear partitioning was noted between the salivary microbiome of volunteers with healthy peri-implant sites or volunteers with peri-implantitis. The highest relative abundance of , and genus, and , , , , and was found in participants with peri-implantitis when compared with those with healthy peri-implant sites. Differences in salivary microbiome composition were observed between patients with healthy peri-implant sites and those with peri-implantitis. BoP could affect the diversity (beta diversity) of the salivary microbiome.

The neurulation process is regulated by a large amount of genetic and environmental factors that determine the establishment, folding, and fusion of the neural plate to form the neural tube, which develops into the main structure of the central nervous system. A recently described factor involved in this process is glutamate. Through NMDA ionotropic receptor, glutamate modifies intracellular Ca dynamics allowing the oriented cell migration and proliferation, essentials processes in neurulation. Glutamate synthesis depends on the mitochondrial enzyme known as glutaminase 1 (GLS1) that is widely expressed in brain and kidney. The participation of GLS 1 in prenatal neurogenic processes and in the adult brain has been experimentally established, however, its participation in early stages of embryonic development has not been described. The present investigation describes for the first time the presence and functionality of GLS1 in embryos during neurulation. Although protein expression levels remains constant, the catalytic activity of GLS1 increases significantly (~66%) between early (stage 12) and middle to late (stages 14-19) neurulation process. Additionally, the use of 6-diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine (L-DON, competitive inhibitor of glutamine-depend enzymes), reduced significantly the GLS1 specific activity during neurulation (~36%) and induce the occurrence of neural tube defects involving its possible participation in the neural tube closure in embryos.

We present high-cadence photometric and spectroscopic observations of supernova (SN) 2024ggi, a Type II SN with flash spectroscopy features which exploded in the nearby galaxy NGC 3621 at \\(\\sim\\)7 Mpc. The light-curve evolution over the first 30 hours can be fit by two power law indices with a break after 22 hours, rising from \\(M_V \\approx -12.95\\) mag at +0.66 days to \\(M_V \\approx -17.91\\) mag after 7 days. In addition, the densely sampled color curve shows a strong blueward evolution over the first few days and then behaves as a normal SN II with a redward evolution as the ejecta cool. Such deviations could be due to interaction with circumstellar material (CSM). Early high- and low-resolution spectra clearly show high-ionization flash features from the first spectrum to +3.42 days after the explosion. From the high-resolution spectra, we calculate the CSM velocity to be 37 \\(\\pm~4~\\mathrm{km\\,s^{-1}} \\). We also see the line strength evolve rapidly from 1.22 to 1.49 days in the earliest high-resolution spectra. Comparison of the low-resolution spectra with CMFGEN models suggests that the pre-explosion mass-loss rate of SN 2024ggi falls in a range of \\(10^{-3}\\) to \\(10^{-2}\\) M\\(_{\\odot}\\) yr\\(^{-1}\\), which is similar to that derived for SN 2023ixf. However, the rapid temporal evolution of the narrow lines in the spectra of SN 2024ggi (\\(R_\\mathrm{CSM} \\sim 2.7 \\times 10^{14} \\mathrm{cm}\\)) could indicate a smaller spatial extent of the CSM than in SN 2023ixf (\\(R_\\mathrm{CSM} \\sim 5.4 \\times 10^{14} \\mathrm{cm}\\)) which in turn implies lower total CSM mass for SN 2024ggi.