Publications

Abstract The present work describes a statistical model to account for sequencing information of SARS-CoV-2 variants in wastewater samples. The model expresses the joint probability distribution of the number of genomic reads corresponding to mutations and non-mutations in every locus in terms of the variant proportions and the joint mutation distribution within every variant. Since the variant joint mutation distribution can be estimated using GISAID data, the only unknown parameters in the model are the variant proportions. These are estimated using maximum likelihood. The method is applied to monitor the evolution of variant proportions using genomic data coming from wastewater samples collected in A Coruña (NW Spain) in the period May 2021 – March 2022. Although the procedure is applied assuming independence among the number of reads along the genome, it is also extended to account for Markovian dependence of counts along loci in the aggregated information coming from wastewater samples.

<title>Abstract</title> Cannabidiol (CBD), a medically active component of hemp, is a popular ingredient in healthcare and personal-care products. The increasing demand for CBD and the legalization of hemp growth may promote chronic exposure of non-target organisms and animals to CBD. In the present study, the reproductive toxicity of CBD was investigated using zebrafish as a model organism. With CBD treatment, parent female zebrafish spawned less with higher natural mortality and malformation rates, showed a decreased gonadosomatic index with an increased percentage of pre-mature oocytes and sperm and had an increased hepatosomatic index. The value of estrogen/testosterone (E2/T) decreased in female zebrafish and increased in male zebrafish. Vitellogenin content was decreased in both female and male zebrafish. Reproductive-related genes were downregulated in the zebrafish brain and liver, whereas <italic>esr-α</italic>, <italic>esr-β</italic>, and <italic>ar</italic> were downregulated in ovaries and upregulated in testicles. Sex hormone synthesis genes were downregulated in ovaries and upregulated in testicles, except for <italic>cyp11a</italic>, in contrast to the other genes. Apoptosis-related genes were upregulated in the zebrafish brain, gonad, and liver. These results show that CBD might damage the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad-liver axis function by inducing an apoptotic response, further inhibiting zebrafish reproductive ability in a sex-dependent manner.

Abstract Plant tannins are a unique class of polyphenols with relatively high molecular weights. Within the ellagitannins group, agrimoniin––dimeric ellagitannin––is one of the most representative compounds found in many plant materials belonging to the Rosaceae family. Agrimoniin was first isolated in 1982 from roots of Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb. (Rosaceae), a plant traditionally used in Japan and China as an antidiarrheal, hemostatic, and antiparasitic agent. Agrimoniin is a constituent of medicinal plants, which are often applied orally in the form of infusions, decoctions, or tinctures. It is also present in commonly consumed food products, such as strawberries and raspberries. It is metabolized by human gut microbiota into a series of low‐molecular‐weight urolithins with proven anti‐inflammatory and anticancer in vivo and in vitro bioactivities. The compound has received widespread interest owing to some interesting biological effects and therapeutic activities, which we elaborate in the present review. Additionally, we present an overview of the techniques used for the analysis, isolation, and separation of agrimoniin from the practical perspective.

The transport of quantum states without loss of "coherence" is extremely important for realizing quantum information systems. Quantum effects have been demonstrated in exotic systems, such as cold atoms suspended in magnetic fields, but these systems are extremely challenging to realise. In this work we will translate this work into the chemical domain, using thin films of "J-aggregates". These J-aggregates are quantum many-body systems characterized by the sharing of excitonic states over two or more molecules. This novel organic quantum soft-matter platform can confine the light at the nanoscale taking the advantages of supramolecular chemistry to design properties on demand.

Sterculia foetida, also known as jangli badam in Bangladesh, is a traditionally used plant that has pharmacological activities. A qualitative phytochemical analysis was performed to assess the metabolites in a methanolic extract of S. foetida seeds (MESF), and the cytotoxic, thrombolytic, anti-arthritics, analgesic, and antipyretic activities were examined using in vitro, in vivo, and in silico experiments. Quantitative studies were performed through gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis. The brine shrimp lethality bioassays and clot lysis were performed to investigate the cytotoxic and thrombolytic activities, respectively. The anti-arthritics activity was assessed using the albumin denaturation assay. Analgesic activity was determined using the acetic acid-induced writhing test and the formalin-induced paw-licking test. A molecular docking study was performed, and an online tool was used to perform ADME/T (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion/toxicity) and PASS (Prediction of Activity Spectra for Substances). GC-MS analysis identified 29 compounds in MESF, consisting primarily of phenols, terpenoids, esters, and other organic compounds. MESF showed moderate cytotoxic activity against brine shrimp and significant thrombolytic and anti-arthritics activities compared with the relative standards. The extract also showed a dose-dependent and significant analgesic and antipyretic activities. Docking studies showed that 1-azuleneethanol, acetate returned the best scores for the tested enzymes. These findings suggested that MESF represents a potent source of thrombolytic, anti-arthritic, analgesic, antipyretic agents with moderate cytotoxic effects.

Castiñeira, M. C.1; Moya, A.2; Perez de Lis, J.3; Pousa, L.3; Salgado, J. L.3; Hernaiz, S.3; Mojon, A.4; Fernandez, J. R.4; Hermida, R. C.4 on behalf of Hygia Project InvestigatorsAuthor Information

In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effects of three soybean isoflavones and two soybean phytosterols on the formation of 3-chloropropane-1,2-diol fatty acid esters (3-MCPDE) and aldehydes in heated soybean oil model. 0.4 mM of genistin, genistein, daidzein, stigmasterol, and β-sitosterol significantly reduced 3-MCPDE formation by 25.7, 51.4, 21.4, 61.6, and 55.7%, and total aldehydes formation by 42.03, 43.94, 28.36, 54.74, and 39.23%, respectively. Further study showed that stigmasterol reduced the content of glycidyl esters (GEs) and glycidol, two key intermediates of 3-MCPDE, and prevented fatty acids degradation in the oils. Moreover, the effects of continuous frying time on the content of stigmasterol and the migration of stigmasterol were evaluated in the fried dough sticks model system. The content of stigmasterol in soybean oil was found to be significantly decreased with prolonged heating time. The concentrations of stigmasterol in fried dough sticks and the migration rates of stigmasterol from soybean oil to fried dough sticks decreased with repeated frying sessions. In addition, stigmasterol undergoes oxidative changes during heat treatment, and the oxidation products including 5,6α-epoxystigmasterol, 5,6β-epoxystigmasterol, 7α-hydroxystigmasterol, 7β-hydroxystigmasterol, stigmasterlol-3β,5α,6β-triol, and 7-ketostigmasterol were identified in the frying oils but not in the fried dough sticks. Overall, stigmasterol could be added to soybean oil to reduce 3-MCPDE and aldehydes formation, and reacting with GEs/glycidol and protection of lipid acids from oxidation may be the mechanism of action of stigmasterol.