Revision of the Barremian fern Coniopteris laciniata from Las Hoyas and El Montsec (Spain): Highlighting its importance in the evolution of vegetation during the Early Cretaceous

The species Coniopteris laciniata and Sphenopteris wonnacottii are heterophyllous ferns recovered from two Spanish Barremian localities, Las Hoyas and El Montsec respectively. The similarities between these species, observed in a study of a total of 66 hand specimens from both localities, indicate that they are conspecific. Following the rule of priority in botanical nomenclature, and because there are doubts about the assignment of this species to a higher taxonomic rank, the name Coniopteris is maintained. Characters of this fern and additional characters of other species of Coniopteris would support a diversification of polypod ferns during the Early Cretaceous. Metric architecture analyses suggest that the heterophylly of the plant was probably caused by the submersion of the apical part of fronds in water during their development, which would be consistent with the taphonomy of the remains in both localitiesWe would like to thank El Montsec housed at the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris, France), which was visited with support of a grant from the SYNTHESYS Project (http://www.synthesys.info/), financed by the European Community Research Infrastructure Action under the FP7 Integrating Activities Program. Candela Blanco-Moreno is supported by a Margarita Salas Postdoc CA1/RSUE/2021-00703 scholarship funded by the Spanish Ministry of Universities and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. This work is part of the project PID2019-105546GB-I00 of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universitie

Taxonomic revision and palaeoecological interpretation of the plant assemblage of Bernissart (Barremian, Belgium)

peer reviewedThe Lower Cretaceous plant assemblage of Bernissart (Mons Basin, Belgium) was studied in detail during the 1900s, but no recent revisions have been performed. The taxonomy of plant taxa recovered from this site is updated, which includes one undetermined “aquatic plant” taxon, nine fern taxa (Cladophlebis sp., Hausmannia dichotoma, Phlebopteris dunkeri, Matoniaceae indet., Ruffordia goeppertii, Onychiopsis psilotoides, Coniopteris sp., Korallipteris sp., and Weichselia reticulata), aff. genus Taeniopteris (of unknown affinity), and five undetermined conifer organs (one stem, two types of seed, one cone, and a dispersed bract). Two lithologies are identified, both consisting of grey clays, one with a smooth surface while the other is more irregular. The large number of available specimens has permitted the study of the species richness and relative abundance of the locality and both lithologies. The taphonomical analysis of the specimens including the preservation of the remains, fragment size, and associations between taxa, together with the diversity analyses, results in four assemblages: “algae” in the water column of the lake; a vegetation composed of Weichselia and Phlebopteris closest to the lake margin; Hausmannia, Onychiopsis and the other ferns further away from the margin; and Matoniaceae indet., conifers and aff. Taeniopteris even further away from the depositional site. In general, the plant assemblage at Bernissart consists of open vegetation, which probably belonged to an early successional stage that was burnt frequently by wildfires

Quantitative plant taphonomy: the cosmopolitan Mesozoic fern Weichselia reticulata as a case study

A quantitative approach to plant taphonomy focusing on preservation type and fragment size is tested by comparing 3338 Weichselia reticulata fragments from 25 Lower Cretaceous localities of different ages and depositional environments. Moreover, palaeobiological insights are also obtained from the taphonomic analyses. In the case of the specimens of Weichselia reticulata included in this work, charred remains are the most frequent preservation type, and are the smallest and most homogeneous in size, probably due to the fragmentation of the fronds while burning and to the fact that burnt fragments are more fragile and break easily during the initial abrasion and attrition produced by transport. The size of charred fragments varies depending on the depositional environment, suggesting that biostratinomic processes, and not fire temperature, are the main cause for size differences, and providing valuable insight into the distance the remains might have travelled from production to final deposition. The taphonomic analysis suggests that Weichselia reticulata is allochthonous in all the localities analysed, and that its habitat would have been prone to fire and not far from freshwater systems. This case study shows promising results that can be implemented on different plant groups and chronostratigraphic ages, allowing for the proposal of a taphonomic modelWe would like to thank to the support of three grants awarded to CB-M by the SYNTHESYS Project http:// www.synthesys.info/ financed by the European Community Research Infrastructure Action under the FP7 Integrating Activities Program: BE-TAF-6350, FR-TAF-6323, GB-TAF6933. CB-M is supported by a Margarita Salas CA1/RSUE/2021–00703 scholarship from the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid and Ministerio de Universi- dades de Espana. This work is part of the project PID2019- 105546GB-I00 of the Ministerio de Ciencia e Inovación de Españ

The Exceptional Fossil Site of Las Hoyas (SPAIN) from an Educational Perspective

The paleontological heritage of the fossil site of Las Hoyas (Early Cretaceous of Cuenca, Spain) is becoming a relevant part of the sociocultural identity of Castilla-La Mancha autonomous community in general, and of Cuenca province in particular. The most recent scientific advances, including several fossil findings that have had high scientific impact, have made Las Hoyas to regularly be the center of attention in the local, national, and international media, especially since the reinterpretation of the paleoecosystem represented by the locality published in 2010. These results have led to a renaissance of the interest of the society for this unique site. As a consequence, Las Hoyas has been declared Site of Cultural Interest by the regional government, in the form of paleontological zone. This recognition, which grants the locality with the highest level of protection, sets a legal framework for the educative initiatives developed at this locality, which can be categorized as non-formal education, formal education, and Social Paleontology.Unidad de Paleontología, Departamento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, EspañaJURASSICA Museum, SuizaDepartment of Geosciences, University of Fribourg, SuizaMuseo Geominero, Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, EspañaDepartamento de Estratigrafía, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, EspañaGéosciences Rennes Unité Mixte de Recherche, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, FranciaDepartamento de Ecología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, EspañaLaboratoire de Géologie de Lyon: Terre, Planètes, Environnement, Unité Mixte de Recherche, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Franci

El Castru (Vigaña, Balmonte de Miranda, Asturias): un pequeño poblado fortificado de las montañas occidentales cantábricas durante la Edad del Hierro

p. 211-237Este artículo presenta los datos arqueológicos recuperados en las excavaciones del poblado castreño de El Castru, en Vigaña (Balmonte de Miranda, Asturias) realizadas en 2012 y 2013. Dicho yacimiento constituye un buen ejemplo de los pequeños castros de la Edad del Hierro en las montañas del área occidental cantábrica. Por ello, el análisis de las informaciones obtenidas y su contextualización a escala regional ofrecen interesantes aportaciones al debate sobre las formas de poblamiento y subsistencia adoptadas por las comunidades del I milenio a.C. en el Noroeste ibérico.S

Modifiable risk factors associated with prediabetes in men and women: A cross-sectional analysis of the cohort study in primary health care on the evolution of patients with prediabetes

Background: Prediabetes is a high-risk state for diabetes development, but little is known about the factors associated with this state. The aim of the study was to identify modifiable risk factors associated with the presence of prediabetes in men and women. Methods: Cohort Study in Primary Health Care on the Evolution of Patients with Prediabetes (PREDAPS-Study) is a prospective study on a cohort of 1184 subjects with prediabetes and another cohort of 838 subjects without glucose metabolism disorders. It is being conducted by 125 general practitioners in Spain. Data for this analysis were collected during the baseline stage in 2012. The modifiable risk factors included were: smoking habit, alcohol consumption, low physical activity, inadequate diet, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and obesity. To assess independent association between each factor and prediabetes, odds ratios (ORs) were estimated using logistic regression models. Results: Abdominal obesity, low plasma levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-cholesterol), and hypertension were independently associated with the presence of prediabetes in both men and women. After adjusting for all factors, the respective ORs (95% Confidence Intervals) were 1.98 (1.41-2.79), 1.88 (1.23-2.88) and 1.86 (1.39-2.51) for men, and 1.89 (1.36-2.62), 1.58 (1.12-2.23) and 1.44 (1.07-1.92) for women. Also, general obesity was a risk factor in both sexes but did not reach statistical significance among men, after adjusting for all factors. Risky alcohol consumption was a risk factor for prediabetes in men, OR 1.49 (1.00-2.24). Conclusions: Obesity, low HDL-cholesterol levels, and hypertension were modifiable risk factors independently related to the presence of prediabetes in both sexes. The magnitudes of the associations were stronger for men than women. Abdominal obesity in both men and women displayed the strongest association with prediabetes. The findings suggest that there are some differences between men and women, which should be taken into account when implementing specific recommendations to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes in adult population

Healthcare workers hospitalized due to COVID-19 have no higher risk of death than general population. Data from the Spanish SEMI-COVID-19 Registry

Aim To determine whether healthcare workers (HCW) hospitalized in Spain due to COVID-19 have a worse prognosis than non-healthcare workers (NHCW). Methods Observational cohort study based on the SEMI-COVID-19 Registry, a nationwide registry that collects sociodemographic, clinical, laboratory, and treatment data on patients hospitalised with COVID-19 in Spain. Patients aged 20-65 years were selected. A multivariate logistic regression model was performed to identify factors associated with mortality. Results As of 22 May 2020, 4393 patients were included, of whom 419 (9.5%) were HCW. Median (interquartile range) age of HCW was 52 (15) years and 62.4% were women. Prevalence of comorbidities and severe radiological findings upon admission were less frequent in HCW. There were no difference in need of respiratory support and admission to intensive care unit, but occurrence of sepsis and in-hospital mortality was lower in HCW (1.7% vs. 3.9%; p = 0.024 and 0.7% vs. 4.8%; p<0.001 respectively). Age, male sex and comorbidity, were independently associated with higher in-hospital mortality and healthcare working with lower mortality (OR 0.211, 95%CI 0.067-0.667, p = 0.008). 30-days survival was higher in HCW (0.968 vs. 0.851 p<0.001). Conclusions Hospitalized COVID-19 HCW had fewer comorbidities and a better prognosis than NHCW. Our results suggest that professional exposure to COVID-19 in HCW does not carry more clinical severity nor mortality

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Evaluation of appendicitis risk prediction models in adults with suspected appendicitis

Background Appendicitis is the most common general surgical emergency worldwide, but its diagnosis remains challenging. The aim of this study was to determine whether existing risk prediction models can reliably identify patients presenting to hospital in the UK with acute right iliac fossa (RIF) pain who are at low risk of appendicitis. Methods A systematic search was completed to identify all existing appendicitis risk prediction models. Models were validated using UK data from an international prospective cohort study that captured consecutive patients aged 16–45 years presenting to hospital with acute RIF in March to June 2017. The main outcome was best achievable model specificity (proportion of patients who did not have appendicitis correctly classified as low risk) whilst maintaining a failure rate below 5 per cent (proportion of patients identified as low risk who actually had appendicitis). Results Some 5345 patients across 154 UK hospitals were identified, of which two‐thirds (3613 of 5345, 67·6 per cent) were women. Women were more than twice as likely to undergo surgery with removal of a histologically normal appendix (272 of 964, 28·2 per cent) than men (120 of 993, 12·1 per cent) (relative risk 2·33, 95 per cent c.i. 1·92 to 2·84; P < 0·001). Of 15 validated risk prediction models, the Adult Appendicitis Score performed best (cut‐off score 8 or less, specificity 63·1 per cent, failure rate 3·7 per cent). The Appendicitis Inflammatory Response Score performed best for men (cut‐off score 2 or less, specificity 24·7 per cent, failure rate 2·4 per cent). Conclusion Women in the UK had a disproportionate risk of admission without surgical intervention and had high rates of normal appendicectomy. Risk prediction models to support shared decision‐making by identifying adults in the UK at low risk of appendicitis were identified