Socioeconomic differences in COVID-19 infection, hospitalisation and mortality in urban areas in a region in the South of Europe

Background: To analyse differences in confirmed cases, hospitalisations and deaths due to COVID-19 related to census section socioeconomic variables. METHODS: Ecological study in the 12 largest municipalities in Andalusia (Spain) during the first three epidemic waves of the COVID-19 (02/26/20-03/31/21), covering 2,246 census sections (unit of analysis) and 3,027,000 inhabitants. Incidence was calculated, standardised by age and sex, for infection, hospitalisation and deaths based on average gross income per household (AGI) for the census tracts in each urban area. Association studied using a Poisson Bayesian regression model with random effects for spatial smoothing. Results: There were 140,743 cases of COVID-19, of which 12,585 were hospitalised and 2,255 died. 95.2% of cases were attributed to the second and third waves, which were jointly analysed. We observed a protective effect of income for infection in 3/12 cities. Almeria had the largest protective effect (smoothed relative risk (SRR) = 0.84 (0.75-0.94 CI 95%). This relationship reappeared with greater magnitude in 10/12 cities for hospitalisation, lowest risk in Algeciras SRR = 0.41 (0.29-0.56). The pattern was repeated for deaths in all urban areas and reached statistical significance in 8 cities. Lowest risk in Dos Hermanas SRR = 0.35 (0.15-0.81). Conclusions: Income inequalities by geographical area were found in the incidence of COVID-19. The strengths of the association increased when analysing the severe outcomes of hospitalisations and, above all, deaths.This work was supported by the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) under the project Fundación BBVA.DGVI 256/22 "COVID 19 Urban Atlas Spain".S

High temperatures behaviour of mortars with incorporation of phase change materials

In a society increasingly concerned with sustainability and good construction practices, it becomes urgent to develop and study the behaviour of the materials when submitted to the unfavourable conditions. Mortars are extensively used in building. The mortars with incorporation of phase change materials (PCM) have the ability to regulate the temperature inside buildings, contributing to the thermal comfort and reduction the use of heating and cooling equipment, using only the energy supplied by the sun. Currently, it emerges the need to develop functional mortars that can contribute to the energy efficiency. However, it is important that they present a good behaviour when subjected to aggressive conditions, such as high temperatures. The main purpose of this study was the behaviour at high temperatures of mortars with PCM, based in different binders. The binders studied were aerial lime, hydraulic lime, gypsum and cement. For each type of binder, different mortars were developed with different content of PCM. The proportion of PCM studied was 0% and 40% of the mass of the sand. It was possible to observe that the exposure to high temperatures, generally leads to a decrease in the mechanical properties of the studied mortars

Optical nanothermometer based on the calibration of the Stokes and upconverted green emissions of Er3+ ions in Y3Ga5O12 nano-garnets

The temperature-dependent green luminescence of Y3Ga5O12 nano-garnets doped with different concentrations of Er3+ ions has been measured from 300 to 850 K and, in more detail, in the biological range from 292 to 335 K. The green emissions were obtained by excitation under 488 nm blue or 800 nm near-infrared laser radiations. Both excitations give rise to bright green luminescence that can be seen by the naked eye, and which can be associated either with Stokes processes, i.e. multiphonon relaxations followed by green spontaneous emission, in the former case or with infrared-to-visible upconversion processes in the latter. The temperature-induced changes in the Er3+ green emissions have been calibrated for both excitations and results point to a strong dependence on the concentration of optically active Er3+ ions. The maximum value of the thermal sensitivity, 64 × 10−4 K−1 at 547 K, has been obtained for the nano-garnets doped with the lowest concentration of Er3+ ions, which is one of the highest values found in the literature. These results allow to conclude that a relatively low concentration of optically active ions is advisable and the changes induced by temperature on the green emissions are independent of the laser excitation radiation used, which is necessary to calibrate the temperature of the immediate environment of the Er3+-doped Y3Ga5O12 nano-garnets.This work have been partially supported by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad de España (MINECO) under The National Program of Materials (MAT2010-21270-C04-02/-03, and MAT2013-46649-C4-3-P/-4-P), The Consolider-Ingenio 2010 Program (MALTA CSD2007-00045), and the Indo- Spanish Joint Programme of Cooperation in Science and Technology (PRI-PIBIN-2011-1153/DST-INT-Spain-P-38-11), and by the EU-FEDER funds. V. Venkatramu is also grateful to Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi for the sanction of major research project (No. 03(1229)/12/EMR-II, dated: 16th April, 2012). V. Monteseguro wishes to thank MICINN for the FPI grant (BES-2011- 044596)

Valvular Aortic Stenosis: A Proteomic Insight

Calcified aortic valve disease is a slowly progressive disorder that ranges from mild valve thickening with no obstruction of blood flow, known as aortic sclerosis, to severe calcification with impaired leaflet motion or aortic stenosis. In the present work we describe a rapid, reproducible and effective method to carry out proteomic analysis of stenotic human valves by conventional 2-DE and 2D-DIGE, minimizing the interference due to high calcium concentrations. Furthermore, the protocol permits the aortic stenosis proteome to be analysed, advancing our knowledge in this area

Psychosocial and biological predictors of resident physician burnout

Background A high proportion of health professionals in training suffer from work-related stress and may develop a burnout syndrome. Objectives To study the incidence of burnout after the first year of residency in a teaching hospital and to identify baseline psychological, psychosocial work conditions, and biological risk factors. Methodology We assessed the following in a prospective cohort of residents at baseline (first month residence) and after 1 year: background factors (socio-demographics, psychiatric history), perceived stress score (Perceived Stress Scale), Maslach Burnout Inventory score, and psychosocial factors (Job Content Questionnaire). Blood samples were obtained to study serum cortisol, IL-6, and TNF-a concentrations. The cumulative incidence was modelled by multivariate log-binomial regression analysis. Results We included 71 participants with a female majority (64.8%), age 26.4 (2.65) years, psychiatric history in 20%, and burnout in 13%. Among those without burnout initially (N = 59), it had developed by 1 year in 22% of residents. Increased job demand (RR = 1.259, 95%CI = 1.019–1.556, p = 0.033) and decreased cortisol levels (RR = 0.877, 95%CI = 0.778–0.989, p = 0.032) predicted burnout after 1 year of residency among medical trainees. Conclusion Burnout syndrome develops in 22% of residents by 1 year of training and can be predicted by increased work demands and decreased cortisol levels.This research was carried out, in part, thanks to grants from PREVENT XI (DN040611; VO and RN)Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Pre-vaccination prevalence of anogenital and oral human papillomavirus in young HIV-infected men who have sex with men.

The aims of this study were to: 1) determine prevalence of anogenital and oral HPV, 2) determine concordance between HPV at anal, perianal, scrotal/penile, and oral sites; and 3) describe factors associated with anogenital HPV types targeted by the 9-valent vaccine. Data were collected from 2012 to 2015 among men who have sex with men 18-26 years of age enrolled in a vaccine trial (N = 145). Penile/scrotal, perianal, anal, and oral samples were tested for 61 HPV types. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with types in the 9-valent vaccine. Participants' mean age was 23.0 years, 55.2% were African-American, and 26.2% were Hispanic; 93% had anal, 40% penile, and 6% oral HPV. Among those with anogenital infection, 18% had HPV16. Concordance was low between anogenital and oral sites. Factors independently associated with a 9-valent vaccine-type HPV were: race (African-American vs. White, OR=2.67, 95% CI=1.11-6.42), current smoking (yes vs. no, OR=2.37, 95% CI=1.03-5.48), and number of recent receptive anal sex partners (2+ vs. 0, OR=3.47, 95% CI=1.16-10.4). Most MSM were not infected with HPV16 or HPV18, suggesting that they may still benefit from HPV vaccination, but anogenital HPV was very common, highlighting the importance of vaccinating men before sexual initiation. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: NCT01209325

Stability of the Scalar Potential and Symmetry Breaking in the Economical 3-3-1 Model

A detailed study of the criteria for stability of the scalar potential and the proper electroweak symmetry breaking pattern in the economical 3-3-1 model, is presented. For the analysis we use, and improve, a method previously developed to study the scalar potential in the two-Higgs-doublet extension of the standard model. A new theorem related to the stability of the potential is stated. As a consequence of this study, the consistency of the economical 3-3-1 model emerges.Comment: to be published in EPJ C, 13 page

The biota of the Upper Cretaceous site of Lo Hueco (Cuenca, Spain)

The Late Cretaceous (Campanian-Maastrichtian) fossil site of Lo Hueco was recently discovered close to the village of Fuentes (Cuenca, Spain) during the cutting of a little hill for installation of the railway of the Madrid-Levante high-speed train. To date, it has yielded a rich collection of well-preserved Cretaceous macrofossils, including plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates. The recovered fossil assemblage is mainly composed of plants, molluscs (bivalves and gastropods), actinopterygians and teleosteans fishes, amphibians, panpleurodiran (bothremydids) and pancryptodiran turtles, squamate lizards, eusuchian crocodyliforms, rhabdodontid ornithopods, theropods (mainly dromaeosaurids), and titanosaur sauropods. This assemblage was deposited in a near-coast continental muddy floodplain crossed by distributary sandy channels, exposed intermittently to brackish or marine and freshwater flooding as well as to partial or total desiccation events.The Konzentrat-Lagerstatt of Lo Hueco constitutes a singular accumulation of fossils representing individuals of some particular lineages of continental tetrapods, especially titanosaurs, eusuchians and bothremydid turtles. In the case of the titanosaurs, the site has yielded multiple partial skeletons in anatomical connection or with a low dispersion of their skeletal elements. A combination of new taxa, new records of taxa previously known in the Iberian Peninsula, and relatively common taxa in the European record compose the Lo Hueco biota. The particular conditions of the fossil site of Lo Hueco and the preliminary results indicate that the analysis of the geological context, the floral and faunal content, and the taphonomical features of the site provide elements that will be especially useful for reassess the evolutionary history of some lineages of European Late Cretaceous reptiles.Peer reviewe

Neurocranial osteology and neuroanatomy of a late Cretaceous Titanosaurian Sauropod from Spain (Ampelosaurus sp.)

Titanosaurians were a flourishing group of sauropod dinosaurs during Cretaceous times. Fossils of titanosaurians have been found on all continents and their remains are abundant in a number of Late Cretaceous sites. Nonetheless, the cranial anatomy of titanosaurians is still very poorly known. The Spanish latest Cretaceous locality of "Lo Hueco" yielded a relatively well preserved, titanosaurian braincase, which shares a number of phylogenetically restricted characters with Ampelosaurus atacis from France such as a flat occipital region. However, it appears to differ from A. atacis in some traits such as the greater degree of dorsoventral compression and the presence of proatlas facets. The specimen is, therefore, provisionally identified as Ampelosaurus sp. It was CT scanned, and 3D renderings of the cranial endocast and inner-ear system were generated. Our investigation highlights that, although titanosaurs were derived sauropods with a successful evolutionary history, they present a remarkably modest level of paleoneurological organization. Compared with the condition in the basal titanosauriform Giraffatitan brancai, the labyrinth of Ampelosaurus sp. shows a reduced morphology. The latter feature is possibly related to a restricted range of head-turning movementsThis is a contribution to the research project CGL2009-12143 (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Madrid), of which FK, who is currently supported by the Ramón y Cajal Program, is Principal Investigator. LMW and RCR acknowledge funding support from the United States National Science Foundation (IBN-9601174, IBN-0343744, IOB-0517257, IOS-1050154) and the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. The Ohio Supercomputing Center also provided suppor