Electrochemical Determination of Uric Acid Using a Nanocomposite Electrode with Molybdenum Disulfide/Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes (MoS2@MWCNT).

This paper presents an application for a molybdenum disulfide nanomaterial with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MoS2@MWCNT/E) in a modified electrode substrate for the detection of uric acid (UA). The modified electrode generates a substantial three-fold increase in the anodic peak current for UA compared to the unmodified MWCNT electrode (MWCNT/E). The MoS2@MWCNT/E surface was characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The achieved detection limit stood at 0.04 µmol/L, with a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 2.0% (n = 10). The method's accuracy, assessed through relative error and percent recovery, was validated using a urine standard solution spiked with known quantities of UA.

An innovative aluminium foil electrode modified with Al nanoparticles and EDTA for lead detection in biological samples.

This study presents a novel Aluminium foil-based electrode characterized by its affordability, flexibility, and ease of modification with carboxylic moiety-containing organic molecules. Upon foil modification with Aluminium nanoparticles and EDTA (AlNP-EDTA/AlE), the modified electrode exhibits remarkable activity in the oxidation of lead at potentials around -0.4 V. The lead signal is derived from the oxidation of lead deposited on the electrode surface using anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV). The addition of EDTA to AlNP/AlE increased the anodic peak current of lead by more than 500 %. The surface characterization of the electrode was performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and infrared spectroscopy (IR), while its electroactive properties were evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Optimal operating parameters include pH 2.1, square-wave voltammetry (SWV) with an accumulation time of 60 s and an accumulation potential of -0.8 V. A low detection limit of 0.20 µmol/L and a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 3.0 % were achieved using five different electrodes. The effectiveness of AlNP-EDTA/AlE was further demonstrated with consistent results in biological samples spiked with Pb.

Evacuation of Refugees from Afghanistan: Health Control at the Spanish Border in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Following the announcement of the retreat of troops from Afghanistan, the Spanish Government organised the so-called "Antigone Operation" for the evacuation of Afghan collaborators. The most relevant ministries were involved in the response. The Ministry of Health, through the Foreign Health Department, performed the health control on arrival. The whole operation was conducted at an air base. It included the health control of refugees composed of temperature measurement, a basic visual control and a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) rapid antigen test for those over 12 years of age; the assessment of their basic needs (food and hygiene); identification and security procedures; and the initial administrative processing. The refugees were accommodated in a temporary facility at the base, where they waited to be transferred to their final destinations. Between 19 and 27 August 2021, 2168 refugees arrived on 17 flights; 680 of them were children under 12 years of age. One thousand four hundred and ninety-nine rapid antigen tests were performed, with one positive result. "Antigone Operation" is unprecedented in Spain and is one of the most complex operations carried out in recent years. The COVID-19 pandemic required the establishment of a health control system on arrival, performed by Foreign Health, which contributed significantly to the overall success of the operation.

Biological characteristics of a sub-population of cancer stem cells from two triple-negative breast tumour cell lines.

Triple-negative breast tumours (TNBTs) make up 15-20% of all breast tumours. There is no treatment for them, and the role that cancer stem cells (CSCs) have in carcinogenesis is still unclear, so finding markers and therapeutic targets in CSC exosomes requires these cells to exist as a homogeneous cell population. The objective of this work was to determine differences in ultrastructural morphology, proliferative capacity, and mouse-xenotransplantation characteristics of the MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-436 TNBT cell lines with the CD44 high /CD24 low phenotype in order to study their exosomes. The results show that the CD44 high /CD24 low MBA-MB-231 cells had a population doubling time of 41.56 h, compared to 44.79 h in the MDA-MB-436 cell line. After magnetic immunoseparation, 18.75% and 14.56% of the stem cell population of the MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-436 cell lines, respectively, were of the CD44 high /CD24 low phenotype, which were expanded to reach purities of 80.4% and 87.6%. The same expanded lineage in both cell lines was shown to possess the pluripotency markers Nanog and Oct4. Under a scanning electron microscope, the CD44 high /CD24 low lineage of the MBA-MD-231 cell line formed groups of more interconnected cells than this lineage of the MBA-MD-436 line. A total of 16% of the mice inoculated with the CD44 high /CD24 low lineage of either cell line presented tumours of the breast, lung, and submandibular ganglia, in whose tissues variable numbers of inoculated cells were found 30 days post-inoculation. By magnetic immunoselection, it was possible to isolate in similar quantities and characterize, expand, and xenotransplant the CD44 high /CD24 low lineage of the MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-436 cell lines. The former cell line has greater proliferative capacity, the two lines differ under scanning electron microscopy in how they intercommunicate, and both cell lines induce new tumours in mice and persist at least 30 days post-inoculation in the transplanted animal so their exosomes would also be different.