CRECIMIENTO Y CONTENIDO TOTAL DE CAROTENOIDES EN CUATRO CEPAS CHILENAS DE HAEMATOCOCCUS PLUVIALIS FLOTOW, BAJO CONDICIONES DE LABORATORIO

Haematococcus pluvialis is a unicellular green microalga cultivated on a large scale as a natural source of astaxanthin, aketocarotenoid of high commercial value due to its colorant and antioxidant properties. The aim of this study was tocompare growth and total carotenoids among four strains of H. pluvialis isolated from different microhabitats in twogeographical locations in Chile. Growth was carried out under autotrophic and mixotrophic conditions and under twophoton flux densities (PFD) (20 and 85 µmol m-2s -1). Total carotenoid content was estimated on day 45. Most of thestrains grew better under the autotrophic conditions; the highest exponential growth rates were exhibited at the high PFDin all the strains (ranging from 0.73 to 1.20 div day-1) with the exception of CCM-UDEC 023 which showed the sameexponential growth rate with either PFD (0.73 div day-1). However, the cell density estimated on day 14 was higher at thelow PFD in CCM-UDEC 022 and CCM-UDEC 023 (4.4 x 105 and 8.9 x 104 cells ml-1, respectively). The mixotrophiccondition slightly improved the growth rate of the strain CCM-UDEC 021 at the high PFD (from 1.04 div day-1 atautotrophic condition to 1.25 and 1.14 div day-1 at 2mMand 10mM sodium acetate, respectively). The algal dry weightestimated on day 14 was not significantly correlated with the cell density, but it was, to a certain extent, related to theproportion and size of the different cell types quantified on that day. The strain with the highest dry weight at the endof the experimental period and under all the assayed conditions was CCM-UDEC 023. It was also the strain thatproduced the highest total carotenoid content under both autotrophic (5.6 mg l-1 and 95.6 pg cell-1 at the high PFD) andmixotrophic (with 2mM acetate) conditions (10.8 mg l-1 and 297 pg cell-1 at the high PFD). A high intraspecific variabilityin the physiological attributes analyzed existed among the strains under study. Even though the mixotrophic conditionassayed did not substantially improve the growth rate of any strain, it did improve the total carotenoid yield in the strainCCM-UDEC 023.Haematococcus pluvialis es una microalga unicelular verde cultivada masivamente como fuente natural de astaxantina,un cetocarotenoide de alto valor comercial debido a sus propiedades como colorante y antioxidante. El objetivo de esteestudio fue comparar el crecimiento y el contenido de carotenoides totales en 4 cepas de H. pluvialis aisladas dediferentes microhabitats de dos regiones geográficas de Chile. El crecimiento se llevó a cabo en condiciones autotróficasy mixotróficas a dos densidades de flujo fotónico (DFF) (20 y 85 µmol m-2s -1). El contenido de carotenoides totales seestimó el día 45. La mayoría de las cepas crecieron mejor en condiciones autotróficas; las más altas tasas de crecimientoexponencial se presentaron a la mayor DFF en todas las cepas (fluctuó entre 0,73 y 1,20 div día-1) a excepción de lacepa CCM-UDEC 023 la cual mostró la misma tasa de crecimiento exponencial a cualquier DFF (0,73 div día-1). Sinembargo, la densidad celular estimada el día 14 fue mayor a la menor DFF en CCM-UDEC 022 y CCM-UDEC 023(4,4 x 105 y 8,9 x 104 céls ml-1, respectivamente). La condición mixotrófica mejoró levemente la tasa de crecimiento dela cepa CCM-UDEC 021 a la mayor DFF (de 1,04 div día-1 en condición autotrófica a 1,25 y 1,14 div día-1 a 2mM y10mM de acetato de sodio, respectivamente). El peso seco algal estimado el día 14 no mostró correlación significativa con la densidad celular, pero sí, en un cierto sentido, con la proporción y el tamaño de los diferentes tipos celulares a esedía. La cepa que presentó el mayor peso seco al final del periodo experimental y bajo todas las condiciones ensayadas fueCCM-UDEC 023. Esta fue también la cepa que produjo la cantidad de carotenoides totales más alta, tanto en condicionesautotróficas (5,6 mg l-1 y 95,6 pg cél-1 a la mayor DFF) como mixotróficas (con 2mM acetato) (10,8 mg l-1 y 297 pg cél-1 a lamayor DFF). Las cepas en estudio presentaron una alta variabilidad intraespecífica en los atributos fisiológicos analizados.Aún cuando las condiciones mixotróficas ensayadas no aumentaron sustancialmente las tasas de crecimiento de alguna de lascepas (CCM-UDEC 020, CCM-UDEC 022), esta condición sí mejoró la producción de carotenoides totales en la cepaCCM-UDEC 023

Estudio preliminar de las mineralizaciones de la mina de oro romana de Llamas de Cabrera (Leon, NO de España)

The mine of Llamas de Cabrera (Leon, Spain) is a gold deposit operated during the Roman Empire, in which primary and secondary gold ores coexist. The primary gold ores were hosted mainly in the upper layers of the Armorican Quartzite. They are lodes, being very abundant those hosted in N180°E/70-85°E tensional fractures and rare the ones associated to N70°E and N125°E fractures. They are formed by quartz and arsenopyrite very dominant over pyrite, galena, gold, chalcopyrite, bismuthinite, tetrahedrite and covellite. The accompanying hydrothermal alteration is silicification, sericitization and chloritization. The determined supergene minerals are scorodite, goethite and anglesite. The operated gold is free gold located generally in microfractures in arsenopyrite or quartz. Its content in silver varies from 1,99 to 7,62%, whereas the copper content is very low, remaining below the limit of instrumental detection. This study shows the existence of two phases of mineralization, deposited during two hydrothermal events of hercinian age, in addition to the supergenic phase. The secondary gold ores, operated in alluvial and colluvial sediments, were deployed by the action of the exogenous cycle on the primary gold deposits. We consider that the total volume of material moved at roman time ascended to 2 Mm3.La mina de Llamas de Cabrera (León, España) es un yacimiento de oro explotado en época romana, en el que coexisten mineralizaciones de oro primario y de oro secundario. Las mineralizaciones de oro primario arman sobre todo en los tramos superiores de la Cuarcita Armoricana. Se trata de mineralizaciones filonianas, siendo muy abundantes las que encajan en fracturas tensionales de dirección N180°E/70-85°E y ocasionales las asociadas a fracturas de direcciones N70°E y N125°E. Están formadas por cuarzo y arsenopirita muy dominante sobre pirita, galena, oro, calcopirita, bismutina, tetraedrita y covellina. Las alteraciones hidrotermales acompañantes son silicificaciones, sericitizaciones y cloritizaciones. Los minerales supergénicos determinados son escorodita, goethita y anglesita. El oro explotado es oro libre dispuesto generalmente en microfisuras en arsenopirita o cuarzo. Su contenido en plata varía desde 1,99 a 7,62%, mientras que el contenido en cobre es muy bajo, permaneciendo por debajo del límite de detección instrumental. El estudio realizado pone de manifiesto la existencia de dos fases de mineralización, producidas durante dos eventos hidrotermales de edad hercínica, además de la fase supergénica. Las mineralizaciones de oro secundario, explotadas en sedimentos aluviales y coluviales, se produjeron por la actuación del ciclo exógeno sobre los yacimientos de oro primario. Se estima que el volumen total de material movido en época romana ascendió a 2 Mm3

Escala de evaluación de habilidades tecnológicas para futuros docentes con alumnos con necesidades educativas especiales

En los últimos años ha habido un desarrollo importante de las nuevas tecnologías en nuestra sociedad: aparición de software y hardware para PC, programas de estimulación cognitiva, dispositivos táctiles, etc. que han permitido los alumnos que presentan necesidades educativas especiales pueda acceder al mundo de la información. Del mismo modo, los profesionales de la educación se han validado de estas nuevas tecnologías como elemento motivador para estimular diferentes habilidades en el alumno. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar las diferencias en habilidades tecnológicas de una muestra de alumnos con necesidades educativas especiales tras implantar un programa para el aprendizaje de habilidades informáticas. Para la evaluación de estas capacidades ideamos una escala de Evaluación de las habilidades informáticas que será muy útil a los docentes. Dicha escala fue cumplimentada por el tutor antes y después de implementar el programa. La escala permite obtener una puntuación global y de dos sub-escalas: habilidades en el dominio del PC y habilidades relacionadas con el dominio de Internet. Futuros estudios tendrán que estudiar las propiedades psicométricas de esta escala con una muestra mayor de alumnos

New echinocandin susceptibility patterns for nosocomial Candida albicans in Bogotá, Colombia, in ten tertiary care centres: An observational study

Background: Candida albicans remains as the first cause of nosocomial fungal infections in hospitals worldwide and its susceptibility pattern should be better described in our tertiary care hospitals. Methods: This study aimed at identifying the caspofungin susceptibility pattern regarding nosocomial Candida albicans infection in ten tertiary care hospitals using the methodology proposed by CLSI M27-A3 and CLSI M27-S4, and its association with risk factors and clinical outcome. The approach involved descriptive research concerning the diagnosis of nosocomial infection during a 7-month period in 10 hospitals in Bogotá, Colombia. Associations were established using exact non-parametric statistical tests having a high statistical power (>95%), suitable for small samples. The exact Mann Whitney test or Kruskall-Wallis non-parametric ANOVA tests were used for distributions which were different to normal or ordinal variables when comparing three or more groups. Multivariate analysis involved using binomial, multinomial and ordinal exact logistical regression models (hierarchical) and discrimination power was evaluated using area under the ROC curve. Results: 101 nosocomial infections were found in 82,967 discharges, for a Candida spp. infection rate of 12.2 per 10,000 discharges, 30.7% caused by C. albicans, 22.8% by C. tropicalis, 20.8% by C. parapsilosis, 19.8% by other Candida, 3% by C. krusei and 3% by C. glabrata. Statistically significant associations between mortality rate and the absence of parenteral nutrition were found in multivariate analysis (OR = 39.746: 1.794-880.593 95% CI: p = 0.020). The model's predictive power was 83.9%, having an 85.9% significant prediction area (69.5%-100 95% CI; p = 0.001). Conclusions: Significant differences were found regarding susceptibility results when comparing CLSI M27-A3 to CLSI M27-S4 when shifting clinical break-point values. However, one nosocomial strain was consistent in having reduced susceptibility when using both guidelines without having been directly exposed to echinocandins beforehand and no mutations were found in the FKS1 gene for hot spot 1 and/or hot spot 2 regions, thereby highlighting selective pressure regarding widespread antifungal use in tertiary healthcare centres. Nutritional conditions and low family income were seen to have a negative effect on survival rates. © 2015 Rodríguez-Leguizamón et al.; licensee BioMed Central

Detecting Nonvolatile Life- and Nonlife-Derived Organics in a Carbonaceous Chondrite Analogue with a New Multiplex Immunoassay and Its Relevance for Planetary Exploration

Potential martian molecular targets include those supplied by meteoritic carbonaceous chondrites such as amino acids and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and true biomarkers stemming from any hypothetical martian biota (organic architectures that can be directly related to once-living organisms). Heat extraction and pyrolysis-based methods currently used in planetary exploration are highly aggressive and very often modify the target molecules, making their identification a cumbersome task. We have developed and validated a mild, nondestructive, multiplex inhibitory microarray immunoassay and demonstrated its implementation in the SOLID (Signs of Life Detector) instrument for simultaneous detection of several nonvolatile life- and nonlife-derived organic molecules relevant in planetary exploration and environmental monitoring. By utilizing a set of highly specific antibodies that recognize D- or L-aromatic amino acids (Phe, Tyr, Trp), benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P), pentachlorophenol, and sulfone-containing aromatic compounds, respectively, the assay was validated in the SOLID instrument for the analysis of carbon-rich samples used as analogues of the organic material in carbonaceous chondrites or even Mars samples. Most of the antibodies enabled sensitivities at the 1–10 ppb level and some even at the part-per-trillion level. The multiplex immunoassay allowed the detection of B[a]P as well as aromatic sulfones in a water/methanol extract of an Early Cretaceous lignite sample (ca. 140 Ma) representing type IV kerogen. No L- or D-aromatic amino acids were detected, reflecting the advanced diagenetic stage and the fossil nature of the sample. The results demonstrate the ability of the liquid extraction by ultrasonication and the versatility of the multiplex inhibitory immunoassays in the SOLID instrument to discriminate between organic matter derived from life and nonlife processes, an essential step toward life detection outside EarthThis work was supported by granted projects AYA2011-24803, ESP2014-51989-P, and ESP2015-69540-R, from the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) of Spain, and by Grant No. ST/N000803/1 (United Kingdom). A. G-C was a fellow of ‘‘Plan de Formación from INTA.Peer reviewe

Detecting Nonvolatile Life- and Nonlife-Derived Organics in a Carbonaceous Chondrite Analogue with a New Multiplex Immunoassay and Its Relevance for Planetary Exploration

[EN] Potential martian molecular targets include those supplied by meteoritic carbonaceous chondrites such as amino acids and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and true biomarkers stemming from any hypothetical martian biota (organic architectures that can be directly related to once living organisms). Heat extraction and pyrolysis-based methods currently used in planetary exploration are highly aggressive and very often modify the target molecules making their identification a cumbersome task. We have developed and validated a mild, nondestructive, multiplex inhibitory microarray immunoassay and demonstrated its implementation in the SOLID (Signs of Life Detector) instrument for simultaneous detection of several nonvolatile life- and nonlife-derived organic molecules relevant in planetary exploration and environmental monitoring. By utilizing a set of highly specific antibodies that recognize D- or L- aromatic amino acids (Phe, Tyr, Trp), benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P), pentachlorophenol, and sulfone-containing aromatic compounds, respectively, the assay was validated in the SOLID instrument for the analysis of carbon-rich samples used as analogues of the organic material in carbonaceous chondrites or even Mars samples. Most of the antibodies enabled sensitivities at the 1-10ppb level and some even at the ppt level. The multiplex immunoassay allowed the detection of B[a]P as well as aromatic sulfones in a water/methanol extract of an Early Cretaceous lignite sample (c.a., 140 Ma) representing type IV kerogen. No L- or D-aromatic amino acids were detected, reflecting the advanced diagenetic stage and the fossil nature of the sample. The results demonstrate the ability of the liquid extraction by ultrasonication and the versatility of the multiplex inhibitory immunoassays in the SOLID instrument to discriminate between organic matter derived from life and nonlife processes, an essential step toward life detection outside Earth.This work was supported by granted projects AYA2011-24803, ESP2014-51989-P, and ESP2015-69540-R, from the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) of Spain, and by Grant No. ST/N000803/1 (United Kingdom). A. G-C was a fellow of Plan de Formación from INTA.Moreno-Paz, M.; Gómez-Cifuentes, A.; Ruiz-Bermejo, M.; Hofstetter, O.; Maquieira Catala, A.; Manchado, JM.; Morais, S.... (2018). Detecting Nonvolatile Life- and Nonlife-Derived Organics in a Carbonaceous Chondrite Analogue with a New Multiplex Immunoassay and Its Relevance for Planetary Exploration. Astrobiology. 18(8):1041-1056. https://doi.org/10.1089/ast.2017.1747S1041105618

Motion of CMS detector and mechanical structures during Magnet Cycles and Stability Periods from 2008 to 2013 as observed by the Link Alignment System

Magnet Cycles and Stability Periods of the CMS Experiment are studied with the Alignment Link System data recorded along the 2008-2013 years of operation. The motions of the mechanical structures due to the magnetic field forces are studied and the mechanical stability of the detector during the physics data taking periods is verified.Peer Reviewe

Inventario de Daños y Efectos Geológicos Co y/o Post-Sísmicos del Sismo Ocurrido el 18 de mayo de 1875, en la Frontera entre Colombia y Venezuela

On the border between Colombia and Venezuela, have occurred seismic events with important records of damage in both countries. In this paper, we study the historical earthquake that took place on May 18, 1875 between 11.15 and 11.30 in the morning (the time was the same for communities in both countries since there was no time zone difference), which is catalogued as a border earthquake due to the report of damages in the cities of both nations. The community of San José de Cúcuta, current capital of the Northern State of Santander, Colombia, registered the greatest number of deaths and damage to buildings. An inventory of the geological damage and co -seismic and postseismic effects was created based on information of previous studies and data obtained from archival primary sources from Colombia and Venezuela. The result is a bi-national database, which includes the summaries of historical descriptions with the effects in the persons and objects, the geological damages and effects observed during the seismic event. These data has led to the creation of a table of MM and EMS-98 intensities, which enables the identification and delimitation of the regions of greater damages. The maximum level intensity is I=10 in the cities of San José de Cúcuta, Villa del Rosario, Pueblo de Cúcuta (San Luis) in Colombia and San Antonio, San Juan de Ureña in Venezuela. Moreover, we formulated a table of intensities using the ESI-2007 INQUA scale, based on the information of geological observations described in historical documents. These data are related to the epicentral zone with an approximate radius of 30 km.Published105-2635T. Sismologia, geofisica e geologia per l'ingegneria sismicaN/A or not JC

Performance of photon reconstruction and identification with the CMS detector in proton-proton collisions at √s = 8 TeV

et al.A description is provided of the performance of the CMS detector for photon reconstruction and identification in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV at the CERN LHC. Details are given on the reconstruction of photons from energy deposits in the electromagnetic calorimeter (ECAL) and the extraction of photon energy estimates. The reconstruction of electron tracks from photons that convert to electrons in the CMS tracker is also described, as is the optimization of the photon energy reconstruction and its accurate modelling in simulation, in the analysis of the Higgs boson decay into two photons. In the barrel section of the ECAL, an energy resolution of about 1% is achieved for unconverted or late-converting photons from H→γγ decays. Different photon identification methods are discussed and their corresponding selection efficiencies in data are compared with those found in simulated events.Individuals have received support from the Marie-Curie programme and the European Research Council and EPLANET (European Union); the Leventis Foundation; the A. P. Sloan Foundation; the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation; the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office; the Fonds pour la Formation a la Recherche dans l’Industrie et dans l’Agriculture (FRIA-Belgium); the Agentschap voor Innovatie door Wetenschap en Technologie (IWT-Belgium); the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS) of the Czech Republic; the Council of Science and Industrial Research, India; the HOMING PLUS programme of Foundation for Polish Science, cofinanced from European Union, Regional Development Fund; the Compagnia di San Paolo (Torino); the Consorzio per la Fisica (Trieste); MIUR project 20108T4XTM (Italy); the Thalis and Aristeia programmes cofinanced by EU-ESF and the Greek NSRF; and the National Priorities Research Program by Qatar National Research Fund.Peer Reviewe