Frequency spectra characterization of noncoding human genomic sequences

O. Paredes,Rebeca Romo‑Vázquez,Israel Román‑Godínez,Hugo Vélez‑Pérez,Ricardo A. Salido‑Ruiz,J. Alejandro Morales 한국유전학회 2020 Genes & Genomics Vol.42 No.10

Background Noncoding sequences have been demonstrated to possess regulatory functions. Its classifcation is challenging because they do not show well-defned nucleotide patterns that can correlate with their biological functions. Genomic signal processing techniques like Fourier transform have been employed to characterize coding and noncoding sequences. This transformation in a systematic whole-genome noncoding library, such as the ENCODE database, can provide evidence of a periodic behaviour in the noncoding sequences that correlates with their regulatory functions. Objective The objective of this study was to classify diferent noncoding regulatory regions through their frequency spectra. Methods We computed machine learning algorithms to classify the noncoding regulatory sequences frequency spectra. Results The sequences from diferent regulatory regions, cell lines, and chromosomes possessed distinct frequency spectra, and that machine learning classifers (such as those of the support vector machine type) could successfully discriminate among regulatory regions, thus correlating the frequency spectra with their biological functions Conclusion Our work supports the idea that there are patterns in the noncoding sequences of the genome.

Rivers of Memory and Oceans of Difference in the Lumad World of Mindanao

Oona Paredes 서강대학교 동아연구소 2016 TRaNS(Trans –Regional and –National Studies of Sou Vol.4 No.2

This article explores the relevance ofwater in the cultural traditions ofindigenous Lumad peoples of Mindanao island in the southern Philippines. Historically, Lumad identities and networks (whether political, social, or economic) were conceptualised according to the rivers on which people dwelt. Important ties stretched from the coast to the interior (i.e., between upriver and downriver communities), with water providing the path of least resistance in rough terrain. This stands in contrast to the present-day cultural and political divide between the uplands and lowlands, which are now dominated by mainstream ‘Filipino’ settlers, referred to locally as dumagat or ‘sea-people’. Given that Lumad ties to the land are profoundly visualised according to rivers, the saltwater origins of dumagats locate these interlopers at, or more often, beyond the moral boundaries of the Lumad universe. Meanwhile, in Lumad oral traditions, the movements of people across one generation to the next are traced according to river systems they have occupied, with proximity to water often equated with degree of civilization and cultural purity. Despite the passage of time, and decreased linear proximity from the original rivers, these primal riverine origins remain significant in the present day, as Lumads continue to socially prioritise the genealogies and networks oftraditional political authority that are upstreamed from these oral traditions. Focusing on field data from the Higaunon ethnic group ofnorthern Mindanao, this article analyses five examples ofwater being employed as a hermeneutic for how Lumads locate themselves in relation to other ethnic groups, the state, modern Filipino society, and their own cultural traditions.

Paralelismos y Diferencias en la Práctica Ecuménica

Alejandro Paredes 한국라틴아메리카학회 2013 라틴아메리카연구 Vol.26 No.2

This article describes my reconstruction of the relationship between Latin America and East and South Asia which I have carried out based upon collective publications involving a Latin American ecumenical activist named Mauricio Lopez. Ecumenism is a religious movement that seeks unity among Christian churches. In the 1960s and 1970s in Latin America, ecumenism was linked strongly to social protest movements, while in Asia it grew out of commitments to the process of decolonization. The Argentinean philosopher and theologian Mauricio Lopez was a leader of this movement. He held important positions in American and global ecumenical organizations : Leader of the Latin American Christian Student Movement (1955-1963), co-founder of Church and Society in Latin America (ISAL) in 1961, and serving as deputy secretary of the Department of Church and Society of the World Council of Churches (1963-1968). Between 1973 and 1976 he was rector of the Universidad Nacional de San Luis (Argentina), but in 1977 he disappeared as a result of being kidnapped by the Argentinean military dictatorship. This paper begins with an investigation of Latin American ecumenism in the 1960s and 1970s and then advances to analysis of the writings of Lopez as he sought contact with Asian authors. For this analysis we employ the methodology of social network analysis, specifically the reconstruction of co-authorship networks. In a third stage, we follow up with examination of the life histories of the Asian authors who corresponded with Lopez. In conclusion, we find many parallels between Lopez and the Asian authors with whom he corresponded, but there were also and the differences with Lopez’s ecumenical practice.

[BOOK REVIEW] Gender and law in the Japanese Imperium

Judel PAREDES 이화여자대학교 아시아여성학센터 2016 Asian Journal of Women's Studies(AJWS) Vol.22 No.1

Pattern of microimplant displacement during maxillary skeletal expander treatment: A cone-beam computed tomography study

Ney Paredes,Ausama Gargoum,Ramon Dominguez-Mompell,Ozge Colak,Tam Duong,Maya Giannetti,Fernanda Silva,Kendra Brooks,Won Moon 대한치과교정학회 2023 대한치과교정학회지 Vol.53 No.5

Objective: To analyze the microimplant (MI) displacement pattern on treatment with a maxillary skeletal expander (MSE) using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). Methods: Thirty-nine participants (12 males and 27 females; mean age, 18.2 ± 4.2 years) were treated successfully with the MSE II appliance. Their pre- and post-expansion CBCT data were superimposed. The pre- and post-expansion anterior and posterior inter-MI angles, neck and apical inter-MI distance, plate angle, palatal bone thickness at the MI positions, and suture opening at the MI positions were measured and compared. Results: The jackscrew plate was slightly bent in both anterior and posterior areas. There was no significant difference in the extent of suture opening between the anterior and posterior MIs (P > 0.05). The posterior MI to hemiplate line was greater than that anteriorly (P < 0.05). The apical distance between the posterior MIs was greater than that anteriorly (P < 0.05). The palatal thickness at the anterior MIs was significantly greater than that posteriorly (P > 0.01). Conclusions: In the coronal plane, the angulation between the anterior MIs in relation to the jackscrew plate was greater than that between the posterior MIs owing to the differential palatal bone thickness.

Microplastics from degradation of tires in sewer networks of the city of Riobamba, Ecuador

Marcel Paredes,Rafaela Viteri,Tito Castillo,Cristian Caminos,Christian Ebere Enyoh 대한환경공학회 2021 Environmental Engineering Research Vol.26 No.5

Microplastics are small synthetic particles that come from petroleum derivatives, are difficult to degrade and their origin is found in industrial activity and domestic consumption, even in tires. The presence of small particles (0.1 μm to < 5 mm) of plasticizer Bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and synthetic rubber, which due to their size and origin are called microplastics. The friction occurs between the asphalt in contact with the tires of cars generate the detachment of small residues of it, these residues come to contain a DEHP element. Simple residual water samples were carried out in the different sewage collectors in Riobamba city, 250 mL of each of these samples were filtered using vacuum suction equipment, to then examine the filters with a visual microscope. Obtaining as a result that 80% of the samples taken and analyzed in the laboratory contain the clear presence of DEHP plasticizer from the friction of tires (confirmed by the Principal Component Analysis) with the asphalting of the streets of the city of Riobamba, and that only 20% of the samples analyzed do not present DEHP plasticizer of this type, generating a medium risk for the health of humans and aquatic animals in the sector.

Intestinal ultrasonography and fecal calprotectin for monitoring inflammation of ileal Crohn’s disease: two complementary tests

José María Paredes,Tomás Ripollés,Ángela Algarra,Rafael Diaz,Nadia Moreno,Patricia Latorre,María Jesús Martínez,Pilar Llopis,Antonio López,Eduardo Moreno-Osset 대한장연구학회 2022 Intestinal Research Vol.20 No.3

Background/Aims: Tight control of inflammation and adjustment of treatment if activity persists is the current strategy for the management of Crohn’s disease (CD). The usefulness of fecal calprotectin (FC) in isolated involvement of the small intestine in CD is controversial. To assess the usefulness of FC to determine the inflammatory activity detected by intestinal ultrasonography (IUS) in ileal CD. Methods: Patients with exclusively ileal involvement CD who underwent IUS and an FC were prospectively included. Simple ultrasound index was used to determine inflammatory activity. The usual statistical tests for comparison of diagnostic techniques were used. Results: One hundred and five patients were included, IUS showed inflammatory activity in 59% of patients and complications in 18.1%. FC showed a significant correlation with IUS in the weak range (Spearman coefficient <i>r</i>=0.502; <i>P</i><0.001); the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.79 (95% confidence interval, 0.70–0.88; <i>P</i><0.001). The FC value that best reflected the activity in IUS was 100 μg/g with sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of 73.0%, 71.4%, 79.3% and 63.8%, respectively. There were no differences in FC concentration between patients with or without transmural complications. The addition of serum C-reactive protein to FC did not improve the ability to assess IUS activity.Conclusions: FC has a significant correlation with IUS to monitor ileal CD activity. This correlation is weak and it does not allow assessing the presence of CD complications. Both tests should be used in conjunction for tight control of ileal CD. More studies on noninvasive tests in this location are needed.

Evolution of Antimicrobial Resistance Levels of ESKAPE Microorganisms in a Peruvian IV-Level Hospital

Wilfredo Flores-Paredes,Nestor Luque,Roger Albornoz,Nayade Rojas,Manuel Espinoza,Maria J. Pons,Joaquim Ruiz 대한감염학회 2021 Infection and Chemotherapy Vol.53 No.3

Backgound: The members of the so-called ESKAPE group (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter spp.) are a frequent cause of severe infection, ranking among the most relevant causes of hospital infections. In Peru, few studies, often focused in a single ESKAPE microorganism, have been performed, but none providing an overall and comprehensive long-time analysis of the antibiotic resistance of ESKAPE microorganisms. In the present study, the evolution of antimicrobial resistance levels of ESKAPE microorganisms isolated during 2009 - 2010 (Period 1) and 2012 - 2014 (Period 2) in a IV-level hospital in Lima was analyzed. Materials and Methods: ESKAPE microorganisms were isolated from inpatients clinical samples. Bacterial identification, as well as antimicrobial susceptibility levels for up to 29 antimicrobial agents and presence of Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamases (only established in K. pneumoniae) were determined using automatic methods. Results: Of 9,918 clinical isolates, 1,917/3,777 (50.8%) [JAN/2009-JUN/2010 (Period 1)] and 4764/6141 (46.4%) [JAN/2012-DEC/2014 (Period 2)] belonged to the ESKAPE group (P <0.0001). ESKAPE were more frequent in the intensive care unit (ICU) (P <0.0001). E. faecium decreased from 5.1% to 4.1% (P <0.5), S. aureus from 10.5% to 7.0% (P <0.05), and P. aeruginosa from 12.9% to 11.6% (P <0.05), while, A. baumannii increased from 5.0% to 6.7% (P <0.05), mainly related to an increase in ICU isolates (8.4% vs. 17.1%; P <0.05). Overall, high levels of antimicrobial resistance were detected, but with few exceptions (e.g. vancomycin in E. faecium), antibiotic resistance levels remained stable or lower in Period 2. Contrarily, A. baumannii showed significantly increased resistance to different cephalosporins, carbapenems and amoxicillin plus sulbactam. Conclusion: The introduction of a successful extensively drug-resistant A. baumannii clone in the ICU is suspected. The isolation of ESKAPE and levels of antibiotic resistance levels have reduced over time.

Biosorption of Heavy Metals from Acid Mine Drainage onto Biopolymers (Chitin and α (1,3) β-D-glucan) from Industrial Biowaste Exhausted Brewer’s Yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisiae L.)

Fernando I. Ramírez-Paredes,Teresa Manzano-Muñoz,Juan C. Garcia-Prieto,Galina G. Zhadan,Valery L. Shnyrov,John F. Kennedy,Manuel G. Roig 한국생물공학회 2011 Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering Vol.16 No.6

A biosorption process has been developed for the bioremediation of heavy metal-contaminated acid drainages from Merladet and Faith open-cast mines,located in western Spain. The process is based on the physico-chemical properties for the adsorption, ion exchange, and complexation of metal ions by biopolymers (chitin and α (1,3) β-D-glucan) from industrial biowaste exhausted brewer's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae L.). Firstly, the chemical composition (U, Mn, Al, Fe, Cu, Zn,and Ni) and the physico-chemical and ecological states of these acid mine drainages were characterised. Furthermore,the selectivity for Zn, Cu, Mn, Ni, and Al the first order kinetics and the performance of the metals biosorption process by exhausted brewer's yeast were evaluated with polluted acid synthetic waters and mine drainages. The biosorption equilibria were reached in 10 ~ 15 min following Langmuir type isotherms with higher affinity constants for metal-biosorbent binding for synthetic waters than for acid mine drainages. The efficiency of the process with real water samples was markedly lower for the case of Mn, and zero for Zn and Al. An antagonistic interference on the biosorption of a metal due to the presence of other metals is proposed. Finally, the ecotoxicity of the acid mine drainage was removed when it was incubated with brewer’s yeast trapped in polyurethane foam.

Energy optimization of a Sulfur-Iodine thermochemical nuclear hydrogen production cycle

Juarez-Martinez, L.C.,Espinosa-Paredes, G.,Vazquez-Rodriguez, A.,Romero-Paredes, H. Korean Nuclear Society 2021 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.53 No.6

The use of nuclear reactors is a large studied possible solution for thermochemical water splitting cycles. Nevertheless, there are several problems that have to be solved. One of them is to increase the efficiency of the cycles. Hence, in this paper, a thermal energy optimization of a Sulfur-Iodine nuclear hydrogen production cycle was performed by means a heuristic method with the aim of minimizing the energy targets of the heat exchanger network at different minimum temperature differences. With this method, four different heat exchanger networks are proposed. A reduction of the energy requirements for cooling ranges between 58.9-59.8% and 52.6-53.3% heating, compared to the reference design with no heat exchanger network. With this reduction, the thermal efficiency of the cycle increased in about 10% in average compared to the reference efficiency. This improves the use of thermal energy of the cycle.