Chlorophyll Detection and Mapping of Shallow Water Impoundments Using Image Spectrometry

There exists a common perception that chlorophyll a concentrations in tidal coastal waters are unsuitable to be captured by remote sensing techniques because of high water turbidity. In this study, we use band index measurements to separate active chlorophyll pigments from other constituents in the water. Published single- and multiband spectral indices are used to establish a relationship between algal chlorophyll concentration and reflectance data. We find an index which is suitable to map chlorophyll gradients in the impoundments, ditches, and associated waterways of the Hackensack Meadowlands (NJ, USA). The resulting images clearly depict the spatial distribution of plant pigments and their relationship with the biological conditions of the waters in the estuary. Since these biological conditions are often determined by land usage, the methods in this paper provide a simple tool to address water quality management issues in fragmented urban estuaries

A modified McCabe score for stratification of patients after intensive care unit discharge: the Sabadell score

INTRODUCTION: Mortality in the ward after an intensive care unit (ICU) stay is considered a quality parameter, and is described as a source of avoidable mortality. Additionally, the attending intensivist frequently anticipates fatal outcome after ICU discharge. Our objective was to test the ability of a new score to stratify patients according to ward mortality after ICU discharge. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was performed in the general ICU of a university-affiliated hospital. In 2003 and 2004 we prospectively recorded the attending intensivist's subjective prognosis at ICU discharge about the hospital outcome for each patient admitted to the ICU (the Sabadell score), which was later compared with the real hospital outcome. RESULTS: We studied 1,521 patients with a mean age of 60.2 ± 17.8 years. The median (25–75% percentile) ICU stay was five (three to nine) days. The ICU mortality was 23.8%, with 1,156 patients being discharged to the ward. Post-ICU ward mortality was 9.6%, mainly observed in patients with a Sabadell score of 3 (81.3%) or a score of 2 (41.1%), whereas lower mortality was observed in patients scoring 1 (17.2%) and scoring 0 (1.7%). Multivariate analysis selected age and the Sabadell score as the only variables associated with ward mortality, with an area under the receiver operating curve of 0.88 (95% CI 0.84–0.93) for the Sabadell score. CONCLUSION: The Sabadell score at ICU discharge works effectively to stratify patients according to hospital outcome

Seasonal Gradient Patterns of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Particulate Matter Concentrations near a Highway

Close proximity to roadways has been associated with higher exposure to traffic-related air pollutants. However, analyses of the effects of season and meteorological parameters on horizontal gradient patterns of traffic-generated air pollutants still need to be elucidated. Our objectives were to: (1) determine effects of season on horizontal gradient patterns of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), total suspended particles (TSP), and PM2.5 near a heavily trafficked highway; and (2) examine the effect of day-of-the-week variations (weekday versus weekend) associated with traffic counts on measured airborne-contaminant levels. PAHs (Σ8PAHs [MW 228–278]; gas + particulate), TSP and PM2.5 were monitored at nominal distances (50, 100, and 150 m) from the New Jersey Turnpike every 6 days for periods of 24 h, between September 2007 and September 2008. Seasonal variations in the horizontal gradient patterns of Σ8PAHs were observed. In the summer, Σ8PAHs declined significantly between 50–100 m from the highway (23% decrease), but not between the furthermost distances (100–150 m). An inverse pattern was observed in the winter: Σ8PAHs declined between 100–150 m (26% decrease), but not between the closest distances. Σ8PAHs and TSP, but not PM2.5, concentrations measured on weekends were 12–37% lower than those on weekdays, respectively, corresponding to lower diesel traffic volume. This study suggests that people living in the close proximity to highways may be exposed to varying levels of Σ8PAHs, TSP, and PM2.5 depending on distance to highway, season, and day-of-the-week variations

Monumento funerario

He aquí una bella muestra de arquitectura aplicada al tema del "Monumento Conmemorativo". Pero, además, al difícil monumento funerario, que tan desastrosos ejemplos de mal gusto ofrece a la vista de cualquier visitante de panteones en el mundo y, muy especialmente, en el mundo latino. La vanidad humana, llevada más allá de la muerte, se plasma en pequeños templos barrocos, neoclásicos y hasta aztecas, negación de todo sentido de proporción arquitectónica y un motivo más para amar la vida y temer la muerte

Levels of conservation and habitat degradation in the ecosystems of a high biodiversity basin in northeastern Mexico.

Los ecosistemas con flujos de servicios ambientales óptimos ofrecen una adecuada calidad en sus hábitats que coadyuvan a mantener su biodiversidad. Esta calidad puede reducirse por los factores de mayor intensidad y cercanía al hábitat, lo que puede estudiarse con herramientas geoespaciales. Este trabajo evaluó los niveles de degradación relativa de hábitat en la cuenca Guayalejo-Tamesí (Tamaulipas, México), respecto a los factores adyacentes que amenazan su calidad, usando el modelador Habitat Quality del Toolbox InVest 1.005beta para ArcGis-9.2. Los ecosistemas con menor amenaza a su hábitat (degradación nula o menor a 20 %) y con mejores oportunidades de conservación, representan el 77,3 % de la superficie de la cuenca. Particularmente, los hábitats montañosos (bosques templados y mesófilo) son los mejor conservados, pues más del 80 % de su superficie se encuentra libre de degradación; destaca el bosque mesófilo de montaña, con un 94 % de su superficie no degradada, debido a su escasa exposición a factores amenazantes. Se concluye que, a pesar del uso intensivo del territorio de la cuenca, existen ecosistemas bien conservados, especialmente en zonas aisladas; la mayoría de ellas carecen de protección legal, por lo que se encuentran expuestas a la ampliación y agravamiento de las amenazas antropogénicas estudiadas.Ecosystems with optimal environmental service flows offer adequate quality in their habitats to maintain their biodiversity. Anthropogenic factors of higher intensity and proximity to the habitat can reduce this quality, and we can study this degradation with geospatial tools. This work evaluated the levels of relative degradation of habitat in the Guayalejo-Tamesí basin (Tamaulipas, Mexico), concerning the adjacent factors that threaten its quality. We used the geospatial tool Habitat Quality of the Toolbox InVest 1.005beta for ArcGis-9.2. The ecosystems with less threat to their habitat (zero degradation or less than 20%) and with better conservation opportunities, represent 77,3% of the surface of the basin. Mountainous habitats (temperate and cloud forests) are the best-preserved since more than 80% of their surface is free of degradation. The mountain cloud forest, with 94% of its surface not degraded, due to its low exposure to threatening factors. In conclusion, in spite of the intensive use of the territory of the basin, there are well-conserved ecosystems, especially in isolated areas. The lack of legal protection at the majority of these sites exposes it to enlargement and aggravation of the anthropogenic threats

Sodium flux ratio in Na/K pump-channels opened by palytoxin

© 2007 Rakowski et al. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. The definitive version was published in Journal of General Physiology 130 (2007): 41-54, doi:10.1085/jgp.200709770.Palytoxin binds to Na+/K+ pumps in the plasma membrane of animal cells and opens an electrodiffusive cation pathway through the pumps. We investigated properties of the palytoxin-opened channels by recording macroscopic and microscopic currents in cell bodies of neurons from the giant fiber lobe, and by simultaneously measuring net current and 22Na+ efflux in voltage-clamped, internally dialyzed giant axons of the squid Loligo pealei. The conductance of single palytoxin-bound "pump-channels" in outside-out patches was ~7 pS in symmetrical 500 mM [Na+], comparable to findings in other cells. In these high-[Na+], K+-free solutions, with 5 mM cytoplasmic [ATP], the K0.5 for palytoxin action was ~70 pM. The pump-channels were ~40–50 times less permeable to N-methyl-D-glucamine (NMG+) than to Na+. The reversal potential of palytoxin-elicited current under biionic conditions, with the same concentration of a different permeant cation on each side of the membrane, was independent of the concentration of those ions over the range 55–550 mM. In giant axons, the Ussing flux ratio exponent (n') for Na+ movements through palytoxin-bound pump-channels, over a 100–400 mM range of external [Na+] and 0 to –40 mV range of membrane potentials, averaged 1.05 ± 0.02 (n = 28). These findings are consistent with occupancy of palytoxin-bound Na+/K+ pump-channels either by a single Na+ ion or by two Na+ ions as might be anticipated from other work; idiosyncratic constraints are needed if the two Na+ ions occupy a single-file pore, but not if they occupy side-by-side binding sites, as observed in related structures, and if only one of the sites is readily accessible from both sides of the membrane.This work was supported by NIH grants NS22979, NS11223, and HL36783, and National Science Foundation grant CCF- 0622158. This research was also partially funded by the Intra mural Research Program of the NIH, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

The cyanobacterial ribosomal-associated protein LrtA from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 is an oligomeric protein in solution with chameleonic sequence properties

The LrtA protein of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 intervenes in cyanobacterial post-stress survival and in stabilizing 70S ribosomal particles. It belongs to the hibernating promoting factor (HPF) family of proteins, involved in protein synthesis. In this work, we studied the conformational preferences and stability of isolated LrtA in solution. At physiological conditions, as shown by hydrodynamic techniques, LrtA was involved in a self-association equilibrium. As indicated by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence, the protein acquired a folded, native-like conformation between pH 6.0 and 9.0. However, that conformation was not very stable, as suggested by thermal and chemical denaturations followed by CD and fluorescence. Theoretical studies of its highly-charged sequence suggest that LrtA had a Janus sequence, with a context-dependent fold. Our modelling and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations indicate that the protein adopted the same fold observed in other members of the HPF family ( - - - - - ) at its N-terminal region (residues 1–100), whereas the C terminus (residues 100–197) appeared disordered and collapsed, supporting the overall percentage of overall secondary structure obtained by CD deconvolution. Then, LrtA has a chameleonic sequence and it is the first member of the HPF family involved in a self-association equilibrium, when isolated in solution.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad CTQ2015-64445-RMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad BIO2016-78020-RMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad FIS2014-52212-RMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad BIO2016-75634-PFundación Séneca 19353/PI/1

Extracellular calcium promotes bone formation from bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells by amplifying the effects of BMP-2 on SMAD signalling

Understanding the molecular events that regulate osteoblast differentiation is essential for the development of effective approaches to bone regeneration. In this study, we analysed the osteoinductive properties of extracellular calcium in bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (BM-MSC) differentiation. We cultured BM-MSCs in 3D gelatin scaffolds with Ca2+ and BMP-2 as osteoinductive agents. Early and late osteogenic gene expression and bone regeneration in a calvarial critical-size defect model demonstrate that extracellular Ca2+ enhances the effects of BMP-2 on Osteocalcin, Runx2 and Osterix expression and promotes bone regeneration in vivo. Moreover, we analysed the molecular mechanisms involved and observed an antagonistic effect between Ca2+ and BMP-2 on SMAD1/5, ERK and S6K signalling after 24 hours. More importantly, a cooperative effect between Ca2+ and BMP-2 on the phosphorylation of SMAD1/5, S6, GSK3 and total levels of β-CATENIN was observed at a later differentiation time (10 days). Furthermore, Ca2+ alone favoured the phosphorylation of SMAD1, which correlates with the induction of Bmp2 and Bmp4 gene expression. These data suggest that Ca2+ and BMP-2 cooperate and promote an autocrine/paracrine osteogenic feed-forward loop. On the whole, these results demonstrate the usefulness of calcium-based bone grafts or the addition of exogenous Ca2+ in bone tissue engineering

PyCOMPSs as an instrument for translational computer science

With the advent of distributed computing, the need for frameworks that facilitate its programming and management has also appeared. These tools have typically been used to support the research on application areas that require them. This poses good initial conditions for translational computer science (TCS), although this does not always occur. This article describes our experience with the PyCOMPSs project, a programming model for distributed computing. While it is a research instrument for our team, it has also been applied in multiple real use cases under the umbrella of European Funded projects, or as part of internal projects between various departments at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center. This article illustrates how the authors have engaged in TCS as an underlying research methodology, collecting experiences from three European projects.This work was supported in part by Spanish Government under Contract TIN2015-65316-P, in part by the Generalitat de Catalunya under Contract 2014-SGR-1051, and in part by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 Framework program through BioExcel Center of Excellence under Contract 823830 and Contract 675728, in part by the ExaQUte Project under Contract 800898, in part by the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (JU) under Grant 955558, in part by the MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, and in part by the European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Soil processes in the Aeolian Litoral Sheet of Doñana National Park (Huelva, SW Spain): the catena of Colón small-lake ecosystem

The wetlands on the quartz sands aeolian sheet make up one of the ecosystems most recognized and important of the Doñana National Park and Doñana Biological Reserve (South Spain). More than 650 temporal small-lakes have been surveyed in the abundant sand depressions of the aeolian sheet, the most are a hydro-geomorphological dune-small-lake system. This paper studies the pedological processes around Colón small-lake ecosystem wetland (COL), one of the more interesting temporal small-lakes. The movement of fine particles through sand dunes ("sand washing") and their subsequent accumulation in depth is the process responsible for the formation of a large part of the small and medium small-lakes in the Eolian Litoral Sheet of Doñana. Their bodies of water are supported by these clay layers generated corresponding sometimes to ancient soil horizons formed under previous different ecological conditions. The vegetation, the soil morphology and the evolution of the physical-chemical processes studied in this geosystem small-lake of Colón allow understand this phenomenon of chronologies very recent