Addressing quality and usability of surface water bodies in semi-arid regions with mining influences

Water resources management has considerable importance, specifically in the context of climate change. This subject has introduced new challenges in semi-arid regions with water quality problems, such as the Iberian Pyrite Belt, which is one of the largest metallogenetic provinces in the world and one of the driest regions in Europe. Positioned in the Mediterranean context, the region has a high density of polymetallic sulphide mines that promote the degradation of water systems. The present study aims to assess the water quality in the Pyrite Belt, considering a total of 34 surface water bodies, including constructed reservoirs, permanent and ephemeral streams, and mining facilities with accumulated water (e.g., pit lakes and mining dams). The water samples were analysed for physico-chemical properties, including field parameters (pH, electrical conductivity), alkalinity/acidity, hardness, anions, and potential toxic elements. The results were used for hydrochemical classifications and the assessment of suitability for public uses. Statistical methods, such as hierarchical cluster analysis and nearest centroid classifier, were used for grouping and evaluating the similarity between water bodies. Two groups were generated from the analysis: i) constructed lakes with alkaline and sodium signatures; and ii) waters suffering from the influence of mining wastes, e.g., showing high acidity, sulphate and metal contents. Therefore, the loss of water quality in the vicinity of mines reflects the impact of acid mine drainage. The methodological approach used may be applied to the integrated management of water resources in regions with mining influences and where it is necessary to combat drought and water scarcity scenarios.Patricia Gomes acknowledge FCT (Science and Technology Foundation, Portugal) by the research fellowship under the POCH (Programa Operacional Capital Humano) supported by the European Social Fund and National Funds of MCTES (Ministerio da Ciencia, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior) with reference SFRH/BD/108887/2015. This work was co-funded by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund, based on COMPETE 2020 (Programa Operacional da Competitividade e Internacionalizacao) - project ICT (UID/GEO/04683/2013) with reference POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007690 and project Nano-MINENV number 029259

Dog filariosis in the Lazio region (Central Italy): first report on the presence of Dirofilaria repens

BACKGROUND: Epidemiological investigations were carried out in the Lazio Region to assess the status of canine filariosis and to evaluate the actual risk for veterinary and medical public health. METHODS: Since August 2001 to June 2003, a total of 972 canine blood samples, collected in public kennels and from private owners animals of the 5 Provinces of the Region, were tested. The presence of filarial parasites was evaluated by microscopy and bio-molecular techniques; the species identification was performed by means of the same diagnostic tools. RESULTS: A total of 17/972 (1.75%; 95%CI 1.06%–2.85%) blood samples were parasitized by D. repens,13 out them drawn by dogs resident in the Province of Roma, and 4 in the other provinces. Multivariate analysis was performed in order to evaluate the association between filariosis and risk factors. The origin from coastal territories seems to be a significant risk factor to acquire the infection. CONCLUSION: This is the first report of canine filariosis in the Lazio Region, where D. repens was before reported only in foxes. The risk of human zoonotic infection is stressed, and the absence of other filarial species is discusse

O modelo bioético principialista aplicado no manejo da dor

Trata-se de revisão integrativa da literatura, com o objetivo de analisar a produção científica referente às relações entre a dor e os princípios da bioética: autonomia, beneficência, não maleficência e justiça. Foram utilizados descritores controlados em três bases de dados internacionais (LILACS, SciELO, MEDLINE), em abril de 2012, resultando em 14 publicações, distribuídas nas categorias Dor e autonomia, Dor e beneficência, Dor e não maleficência, Dor e justiça. O alívio adequado da dor é um direito humano e uma questão moral que se relaciona diretamente com a bioética principialista. Entretanto, muitos profissionais negligenciam a dor de seus pacientes, desconsiderando seu papel ético frente ao sofrimento. Concluiu-se que o principialismo tem sido negligenciado no atendimento aos pacientes com dor, evidenciando a necessidade de novas práticas para mudança desse panorama

The impact of transposable element activity on therapeutically relevant human stem cells

Human stem cells harbor significant potential for basic and clinical translational research as well as regenerative medicine. Currently ~ 3000 adult and ~ 30 pluripotent stem cell-based, interventional clinical trials are ongoing worldwide, and numbers are increasing continuously. Although stem cells are promising cell sources to treat a wide range of human diseases, there are also concerns regarding potential risks associated with their clinical use, including genomic instability and tumorigenesis concerns. Thus, a deeper understanding of the factors and molecular mechanisms contributing to stem cell genome stability are a prerequisite to harnessing their therapeutic potential for degenerative diseases. Chemical and physical factors are known to influence the stability of stem cell genomes, together with random mutations and Copy Number Variants (CNVs) that accumulated in cultured human stem cells. Here we review the activity of endogenous transposable elements (TEs) in human multipotent and pluripotent stem cells, and the consequences of their mobility for genomic integrity and host gene expression. We describe transcriptional and post-transcriptional mechanisms antagonizing the spread of TEs in the human genome, and highlight those that are more prevalent in multipotent and pluripotent stem cells. Notably, TEs do not only represent a source of mutations/CNVs in genomes, but are also often harnessed as tools to engineer the stem cell genome; thus, we also describe and discuss the most widely applied transposon-based tools and highlight the most relevant areas of their biomedical applications in stem cells. Taken together, this review will contribute to the assessment of the risk that endogenous TE activity and the application of genetically engineered TEs constitute for the biosafety of stem cells to be used for substitutive and regenerative cell therapiesS.R.H. and P.T.R. are funded by the Government of Spain (MINECO, RYC-2016- 21395 and SAF2015–71589-P [S.R.H.]; PEJ-2014-A-31985 and SAF2015–71589- P [P.T.R.]). GGS is supported by a grant from the Ministry of Health of the Federal Republic of Germany (FKZ2518FSB403)

Sequence recombination and conservation of Varroa destructor virus-1 and deformed wing virus in field collected honey bees (Apis mellifera)

We sequenced small (s)RNAs from field collected honeybees (Apis mellifera) and bumblebees (Bombus pascuorum) using the Illumina technology. The sRNA reads were assembled and resulting contigs were used to search for virus homologues in GenBank. Matches with Varroa destructor virus-1 (VDV1) and Deformed wing virus (DWV) genomic sequences were obtained for A. mellifera but not B. pascuorum. Further analyses suggested that the prevalent virus population was composed of VDV-1 and a chimera of 5’-DWV-VDV1-DWV-3’. The recombination junctions in the chimera genomes were confirmed by using RT-PCR, cDNA cloning and Sanger sequencing. We then focused on conserved short fragments (CSF, size > 25 nt) in the virus genomes by using GenBank sequences and the deep sequencing data obtained in this study. The majority of CSF sites confirmed conservation at both between-species (GenBank sequences) and within-population (dataset of this study) levels. However, conserved nucleotide positions in the GenBank sequences might be variable at the within-population level. High mutation rates (Pi>10%) were observed at a number of sites using the deep sequencing data, suggesting that sequence conservation might not always be maintained at the population level. Virus-host interactions and strategies for developing RNAi treatments against VDV1/DWV infections are discussed