Analysis of the mechanical properties of wood attacked by Xylotrechus arvicola (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) larvae, and its influence on the structural properties of the plant

Xylotrechus arvicola is an invasive insect on Vitis vinifera in the main wine-producing regions of the Iberian Peninsula. X. arvicola larvae bore into the grapevine wood and make galleries, which cause structural damages to the plant. The aim of this study was to investigate how grapevine wood infested by larvae affects the mechanical properties of the plant in comparation with those of uninfested wood. Samples of grapevine wood uninfested and infested by larvae were collected from vineyards. Compression and flexural strengths as well as simulated structures of grapevine wood in field, in relation to harvest weight by variety, were used to quantify the wood mechanical properties. Infested wood endured a lower strength and normal tension, and exhibited a reduction in the structural capacities in the simulation of harvest weight of 'Cabernet-Sauvignon' variety (up to 62.0 %). 'Tempranillo' (despite its high mechanical slenderness values) and 'Cabernet-Sauvignon', were the varieties that showed a higher resistance on trunks and branches, respectively. A lower bending moment was observed on the infested branches of all varieties. Changes in the mechanical properties of infested wood suggest a decrease in mechanical resistance of wood attacked by larvae that could contribute to the rupture of the infested grapevine over time. Grapevine wood attacked by X. arvicola larvae could be more sensitive to mechanical external factors in vineyards such as strong winds, harvest weight and vibration exerted by harvesting machines

Death, dying and informatics: misrepresenting religion on MedLine

BACKGROUND: The globalization of medical science carries for doctors worldwide a correlative duty to deepen their understanding of patients' cultural contexts and religious backgrounds, in order to satisfy each as a unique individual. To become better informed, practitioners may turn to MedLine, but it is unclear whether the information found there is an accurate representation of culture and religion. To test MedLine's representation of this field, we chose the topic of death and dying in the three major monotheistic religions. METHODS: We searched MedLine using PubMed in order to retrieve and thematically analyze full-length scholarly journal papers or case reports dealing with religious traditions and end-of-life care. Our search consisted of a string of words that included the most common denominations of the three religions, the standard heading terms used by the National Reference Center for Bioethics Literature (NRCBL), and the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) used by the National Library of Medicine. Eligible articles were limited to English-language papers with an abstract. RESULTS: We found that while a bibliographic search in MedLine on this topic produced instant results and some valuable literature, the aggregate reflected a selection bias. American writers were over-represented given the global prevalence of these religious traditions. Denominationally affiliated authors predominated in representing the Christian traditions. The Islamic tradition was under-represented. CONCLUSION: MedLine's capability to identify the most current, reliable and accurate information about purely scientific topics should not be assumed to be the same case when considering the interface of religion, culture and end-of-life care

Mujeres en Bioquímica

We are pleased to present in the magazine "Encounters in Biology" the series of profiles published online in the «Portrait Gallery of Women in Biochemistry» on the SEBBM website, which began in 2011, with the centenary of the Nobel Prize awarded to Marie Curie, International Year of Chemistry. During the celebration of the 22nd IUBMB - 37th FEBS Congress and XXXV Congress of the SEBBM that took place in Seville from September 4 to 9, 2012, a traveling exhibition was inaugurated with this information in panel format.Tenemos el placer de presentar en la revista "Encuentros en la Biología" la serie de perfiles publicados on-li- ne en la «Galería de retratos de Mujeres en Bioquímica» de la web de la SEBBM, que comenzó en 2011, con el centenario del premio Nobel otorgado a Marie Curie, Año Internacional de la Química. Durante la celebra- ción del 22nd IUBMB - 37th FEBS Congress y XXXV Congreso de la SEBBM que tuvo lugar en Sevilla del 4 al 9 de septiembre de 2012 se inauguró una exposición itinerante con esta información en formato de paneles

Mechanical behaviour of grapevine wood affected by Xylotrechus arvicola

The cerambycid insect Xylotrechus arvicola is considered a pest that affects the wood of the grapevine (Vitis vinifera) in the major wine areas of the Iberian Peninsula. The larva of this insect perforates the grapevine wood, resulting in structural and biomechanical failure of the vine plants. Vine samples from wood damaged by Xylotrechus arvicola larvae were picked up from different vineyards and grape varieties. Compressive and flexural tests were performed in order to assess the mechanical behaviour of the wood samples. Total length of the cracks in wood samples (TLCWS) that appeared on the surface of the grapevine wood samples after the mechanical tests was measured. Compressive strength (CS) and flexural strength (FS) decreased with the increase of the cross-sectional area (CSA) of both branches and trunks, regardless of damage condition or water content. Moreover, the resistance was lower in damaged wood. In addition, this was verified through the linear regression coefficients of the interaction CS x CSA and FS x CSA. TLCWS in branches and trunks of damaged samples was greater that in undamaged samples. Also, TLCWS within the same damage condition and part of the plant was higher in dry samples than in fresh samples. The damaged wood would show a higher vulnerability to common mechanical stress suffered by the grapevines in the field including heavy winds, fruit overweight or harvesting machines shaking (when mechanically collected). Larvae of this insect altered the mechanical behaviour of the trunk and branches of grapevine wood. The mechanical strength of wood was more negatively affected when the CSA of the branches and trunks increased. Longer TLCWS was found in affected wood.of an emerging grape pest, Xylotrechus arvicola (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae

Comparative study on the clinical-nutritional status of obese postmenopausal women on a weight loss programme based on prepared dishes

Comparative Study; English Abstract; Journal Article;INTRODUCTION Few studies have evaluated the efficacy and reliability of weight loss-focussed prepared food dishes in obese post-menopausal women. OBJECTIVE To compare the efficacy of a weight loss programme based on a balanced hypocaloric diet using prepared dishes* with that of a similar programme based on standard commercially available foods and with a non-intervened control group. A further aim was to evaluate the subjectivity of participants in the preparation of the diet-adjusted dishes based on usually consumed products. SUBJECTS Obese post-menopausal women aged between 55 and 65 years. DESIGN Controlled longitudinal interventional study. METHOD The sample of 75 female volunteers were divided into three groups of 25 women: a control group, who continued to consume their usual non-dietary adjusted meals (CG), an intervened group, treated with a diet adjusted to their individual requirements and based on standard commercially available food (SG), and another intervened group, treated with a similarly adjusted diet but based on prepared dishes (PG). Data were gathered on anthropometric variables, consumption habits and physical activity levels, and clinical-nutritional controls were conducted at the start and every two weeks to the end of the 8-week study in order to evaluate biochemical changes. RESULTS The weight loss was slightly higher in the prepared-dishes group (PG) than in the standard food diet group (SG), but the difference was not statistically significant, whereas it was considerably higher in both groups than in the non-dietary adjusted control group (CG) and this difference was highly significant (losses of 7.60 kg in PG and 7.01 kg in SG versus 2.10 kg in CG (p < 0.01). However, the PG showed a significantly higher (p < 0.01) loss of fatty mass and abdominal circumference versus the SG women. CONCLUSION More weight was lost by the two groups treated with a diet based on prepared dishes or usual food items in comparison to untreated controls, but the diet based on prepared dishes obtained more reliable and higher quality outcomes, achieving a positive change at fatty compartment level and in the abdominal circumference.El presente proyecto ha sido financiado por la empresa Deliline® S. A.YesIntroducción: Son escasos los estudios que hayan evaluado la eficacia y la fiabilidad de los platos de comidas preparadas* enfocadas a la pérdida de peso en la mujer posmenopáusica obesa. Objetivo: Evaluar la eficiencia de un programa de pérdida de peso basado en una ingesta hipocalórica equilibrada, a partir de platos preparados* comparando con otra basada en alimentos de consumo habitual en el mercado y con un grupo control no intervenido. En el presente estudio se pretende, además, valorar la subjetividad de la participante a la hora de preparar los platos ajustados a la dieta de restricción basada en productos de consumo habitual. Sujetos de estudio: mujeres posmenopáusicas obesas, con edad comprendida entre 55-65 años. Diseño del estudio: Estudio longitudinal de intervención y controlado. Metodología: La muestra de 75 mujeres voluntarias se divide en tres grupos de 25 mujeres; uno con alimentación habitual, sin dieta ajustada (GC), otro intervenido mediante tratamiento con una dieta ajustada a los requerimientos individuales, pero con productos de consumo habitual en mercado (GE) y un tercero intervenido con dieta ajustada del mismo modo al anterior, pero con platos preparados (GD). Se registraron datos antropométricos, hábitos de consumo y nivel de actividad física. También se realizaron controles clínico-nutricionales para evaluar cambios bioquímicos al inicio del estudio, cada 2 semanas y al final del estudio, durante 8 semanas. Resultados: El grupo basado en platos preparados GD muestra resultados de pérdida de peso ligeramente mayores, aunque no estadísticamente significativos, al grupo de dieta estándar GE, mostrando, sin embargo, ambos, descensos muy significativos respecto al grupo no ajustado GC (con una pérdida de 7,60 kg en GD, 7,01 kg en el grupo GE y 2,10 kg en GC). Sin embargo, éste grupo de mujeres alimentadas con dieta hipocalórica basada en platos preparados GD, presenta (p < 0,01) una mayor pérdida significativa, tanto de masa grasa como de perímetro abdominal. Conclusión: Las mujeres tratadas con dieta basada en platos preparados GD y las tratadas con dieta ajustada habitual GE presentan una mayor pérdida de peso, pero el grupo GD mostró unos resultados más fiables y de calidad, dado el cambio positivo encontrado a nivel de compartimento graso y en el perímetro abdominal de las participantes del grupo objeto del estudio

4D Reconstruction and Visualization of Cultural Heritage: Analysing our Legacy Through Time

Temporal analyses and multi-temporal 3D reconstruction are fundamental for the preservation and maintenance of all forms of Cultural Heritage (CH) and are the basis for decisions related to interventions and promotion. Introducing the fourth dimension of time into three-dimensional geometric modelling of real data allows the creation of a multi-temporal representation of a site. In this way, scholars from various disciplines (surveyors, geologists, archaeologists, architects, philologists, etc.) are provided with a new set of tools and working methods to support the study of the evolution of heritage sites, both to develop hypotheses about the past and to model likely future developments. The capacity to “see” the dynamic evolution of CH assets across different spatial scales (e.g. building, site, city or territory) compressed in diachronic model, affords the possibility to better understand the present status of CH according to its history. However, there are numerous challenges in order to carry out 4D modelling and the requisite multi-data source integration. It is necessary to identify the specifications, needs and requirements of the CH community to understand the required levels of 4D model information. In this way, it is possible to determine the optimum material and technologies to be utilised at different CH scales, as well as the data management and visualization requirements. This manuscript aims to provide a comprehensive approach for CH time-varying representations, analysis and visualization across different working scales and environments: rural landscape, urban landscape and architectural scales. Within this aim, the different available metric data sources are systemized and evaluated in terms of their suitability

Seasonal climate predictions in support of water reservoirs management in Spain

Póster presentado en: 1st Climateurope festival celebrado en Valencia, del 5 al 7 de abril de 2017.This work has been partially funded by the FP7 EUPORIAS projec

Management of Patients with Suspected or Confirmed Antibiotic Allergy. Executive Summary of Guidance from the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC), the Spanish Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (SEAIC), the Spanish Society of Hospital Pharmacy (SEFH) and the Spanish Society of Intensive Medicine and Coronary Care Units (SEMICYUC)

Suspected or confirmed antibiotic allergy is a frequent clinical circumstance that influences antimicrobial prescription and often leads to the avoidable use of less efficacious and/or more toxic or costly drugs than first-line antimicrobials. Optimizing antimicrobial therapy in patients with antibiotic allergy labels has become one of the priorities of antimicrobial stewardship programs in several countries. These guidelines aim to make recommendations for the systematic approach to patients with suspected or confirmed antibiotic allergy based on current evidence. An expert panel (11 members of various scientific societies) formulated questions about the management of patients with suspected or confirmed antibiotic allergy. A systematic literature review was performed by a medical librarian. The questions were distributed among panel members who selected the most relevant references, summarized the evidence, and formulated graded recommendations when possible. The answers to all the questions were finally reviewed by all panel members. A systematic approach to patients with suspected or confirmed antibiotic allergy was recommended to improve antibiotic selection and, consequently, clinical outcomes. A clinically oriented, 3-category risk-stratification strategy was recommended for patients with suspected antibiotic allergy. Complementary assessments should consider both clinical risk category and preferred antibiotic agent. Empirical therapy recommendations for the most relevant clinical syndromes in patients with suspected or confirmed ss-lactam allergy were formulated, as were recommendations on the implementation and monitoring of the impact of the guidelines. Antimicrobial stewardship programs and allergists should design and implement activities that facilitate the most appropriate use of antibiotics in these patients