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Current climate and weather changes urged the scientific community to find ways to observe and understand the relatively rapid land-atmosphere processes related to the water cycle. The HydroSoil project, funded by the European Space Agency, was proposed to experimentally assess the use of Synthetic Aperture Radar in future short revisit time missions based on Geosynchronous Orbital platforms. This paper describes the HydroSoil facility providing continuous monitoring of an agricultural field with a 10-minute temporal resolution and a spatial resolution in the order of 1m2. Gathered data from the full Pol Ground-Based SAR are being used to investigate the capability of Geosynchronous SAR missions to retrieve soil moisture and to measure vegetation parameters. To achieve the project's objectives, intensive procurement of ground truth data encompassing continuous acquisition of relevant meteorological parameters like air humidity, temperature, precipitation wind speed and direction, pressure, and solar irradiation together with other vegetation characteristics under study has been mandatory. The different densities, sizes, and water content of two different crops, barley and corn, together with the data generated, will enable the assessment of the missions' ability to extract essential scene characteristics, such as soil moisture and crop water content, for use in future geostationary missions.

The small-molecule iododiflunisal (IDIF) is a transthyretin (TTR) tetramer stabilizer and acts as a chaperone of the TTR-Amyloid beta interaction. Oral administration of IDIF improves Alzheimer's Disease (AD)-like pathology in mice, although the mechanism of action and pharmacokinetics remain unknown. Radiolabeling IDIF with positron or gamma emitters may aid in the in vivo evaluation of IDIF using non-invasive nuclear imaging techniques. In this work, we report an isotopic exchange reaction to obtain IDIF radiolabeled with 18F. [19F/18F]exchange reaction over IDIF in dimethyl sulfoxide at 160 °C resulted in the formation of [18F]IDIF in 7 ± 3% radiochemical yield in a 20 min reaction time, with a final radiochemical purity of >99%. Biodistribution studies after intravenous administration of [18F]IDIF in wild-type mice using positron emission tomography (PET) imaging showed capacity to cross the blood-brain barrier (ca. 1% of injected dose per gram of tissue in the brain at t > 10 min post administration), rapid accumulation in the liver, long circulation time, and progressive elimination via urine. Our results open opportunities for future studies in larger animal species or human subjects.

The influence of toll-like receptor 4 on neurogenesis and inflammation has been scarcely explored so far by using neuroimaging techniques. For this purpose, we performed magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography with 3'-deoxy-3'-[(18)F]fluorothymidine and [(11)C]PK11195 at 2, 7, and 14 days following cerebral ischemia in TLR4(+/+)and TLR4(-/-)mice. MRI showed similar infarction volumes in both groups. Despite this, positron emission tomography with 3'-deoxy-3'-[(18)F]fluorothymidine and [(11)C]PK11195 evidenced an increase of neurogenesis and a decrease of inflammation in TLR4(-/-)mice after ischemia. These results evidence the versatility of neuroimaging techniques to monitor the role of toll-like receptor 4 after cerebral ischemia., Depto. de Farmacología y Toxicología, Fac. de Medicina, TRUE, pub

Micro/nanomotors are useful tools for several biomedical applications, including targeted drug delivery and minimally invasive microsurgeries. However, major challenges such as in vivo imaging need to be addressed before they can be safely applied on a living body. Here, we show that positron emission tomography (PET), a molecular imaging technique widely used in medical imaging, can also be used to track a large population of tubular Au/PEDOT/Pt micromotors. Chemisorption of an iodine isotope onto the micromotor’s Au surface rendered them detectable by PET, and we could track their movements in a tubular phantom over time frames of up to 15 min. In a second set of experiments, micromotors and the bubbles released during self-propulsion were optically tracked by video imaging and bright-field microscopy. The results from direct optical tracking agreed with those from PET tracking, demonstrating that PET is a suitable technique for the imaging of large populations of active micromotors in opaque environments, thus opening opportunities for the use of this mature imaging technology for the in vivo localization of artificial swimmers., European Research Council (ERC), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Basque Regional Government, Depto. de Química Analítica, Fac. de Ciencias Químicas, TRUE, pub

Fertilization is essential for optimizing soil productivity and meeting the global food demand. However, the growing reliance on synthetic fertilizers, such as urea, has raised both environmental and economic concerns. This dependence can lead to water source pollution, soil degradation, and a high carbon footprint due to its production and distribution. To address these issues, organic fertilizers, sourced from plants or excrement, emerge as an alternative. Not only are they more environmentally friendly, but they also enhance soil health. Transitioning to this more sustainable alternative is presented as an urgent need to ensure a more balanced and earth-respecting agriculture. This study compares the field distribution of a conventional fertilizer (urea) with a new organic pellet fertilizer, in its efficient application in a projection fertilizer spreader. This is based on the most relevant characteristics of the three solid fertilizers tested (size, density, hardness...), the associated standard (ISO 5690/1) with its modifications, and the most crucial statistical parameters to estimate application quality through the evaluation of distribution profiles and their subsequent processing in software using collection boxes., La fertilització és fonamental per optimitzar la productivitat dels sòls i satisfer la demanda alimentària global. Tot i això, la creixent dependència de fertilitzants sintètics, com la urea, ha generat preocupacions tant ambientals com econòmiques. Aquesta dependència pot provocar contaminació de fonts d'aigua, degradació del sòl i una elevada empremta de carboni degut a la seva producció i distribució. Per combatre aquests problemes, els fertilitzants orgànics, obtinguts de plantes o excrements, emergeixen com a alternativa. Aquests no solament són més respectuosos amb l'ambient, sinó que també enriqueixen la salut del sòl. La transició cap a aquesta alternativa més sostenible es presenta com una necessitat imminent per assegurar una agricultura més equilibrada i respectuosa amb el planeta. Aquest treball compara la distribució en camp d'un fertilitzant convencional (la urea) amb un nou fertilitzant orgànic amb forma de pellet, en la seva aplicació eficient en una abonadora de projecció. Això es basa en les característiques més rellevants dels tres fertilitzants sòlids provats (mida, densitat, duresa...), la norma associada (ISO 5690/1) amb les seves modificacions, i els paràmetres estadístics més crucials per estimar la qualitat d'aplicació mitjançant l'avaluació dels perfils de distribució i el seu posterior processament en un software utilitzant caixes recol·lectores., La fertilización es fundamental para optimizar la productividad de los suelos y satisfacer la demanda alimentaria global. Sin embargo, la creciente dependencia de fertilizantes sintéticos, como la urea, ha generado preocupaciones tanto ambientales como económicas. Esta dependencia puede provocar contaminación de fuentes de agua, degradación del suelo y una elevada huella de carbono debido a su producción y distribución. Para combatir estos problemas, los fertilizantes orgánicos, obtenidos de plantas o excrementos, emergen como alternativa. Estos no solo son más respetuosos con el ambiente, sino que también enriquecen la salud del suelo. La transición hacia esta alternativa más sostenible se presenta como una necesidad inminente para asegurar una agricultura más equilibrada y respetuosa con el planeta. Este trabajo compara la distribución en campo de un fertilizante convencional (la urea) con un nuevo fertilizante orgánico en forma de pellet, en su aplicación eficiente en una abonadora de proyección. Esto se basa en las características más relevantes de los tres fertilizantes sólidos probados (tamaño, densidad, dureza...), la norma asociada (ISO 5690/1) con sus modificaciones, y los parámetros estadísticos más cruciales para estimar la calidad de aplicación mediante la evaluación de los perfiles de distribución y su posterior procesamiento en un software utilizando cajas recolectoras.

Plasma lipid transport and metabolism are essential to ensure correct cellular function throughout the body. Dynamically regulated in time and space, the well-characterized mechanisms underpinning plasma lipid transport and metabolism offers an enticing, but as yet underexplored, rationale to design synthetic lipid nanoparticles with inherent cell/tissue selectivity. Herein, a systemically administered liposome formulation, composed of just two lipids, that is capable of hijacking a triglyceride lipase-mediated lipid transport pathway resulting in liposome recognition and uptake within specific endothelial cell subsets is described. In the absence of targeting ligands, liposome-lipase interactions are mediated by a unique, phase-separated (“parachute”) liposome morphology. Within the embryonic zebrafish, selective liposome accumulation is observed at the developing blood-brain barrier. In mice, extensive liposome accumulation within the liver and spleen – which is reduced, but not eliminated, following small molecule lipase inhibition – supports a role for endothelial lipase but highlights these liposomes are also subject to significant “off-target” by reticuloendothelial system organs. Overall, these compositionally simplistic liposomes offer new insights into the discovery and design of lipid-based nanoparticles that can exploit endogenous lipid transport and metabolism pathways to achieve cell selective targeting in vivo.