El Sistema Alimentario Global: estudio de la percepción social en Cataluña

The conceptual model on the Global Food System (GFS) formulated by Clotet and others (2013), is articulated around four axes: Availability, Economy, Politics and Knowledge (knowledge, social behavior and culture). In this model, each of these axes has the same significance or weighting and for the quantitative study of results, concepts and methods of Compositional Data Analysis are applied (Jarauta-Bragulat et al., 2018). The purpose of this paper is to study and characterize the social perception in Catalonia of the relative importance (weighting) of each of the four axes of the aforementioned model. The study is carried out through the statistical analysis of the results of a survey completed by people who make up a random sample within the territory of Catalonia. The results of this survey are intended to analyze whether the equal balancing of the model axis is adequate or, on the contrary, the weights should be modified in that territory and, in this way, apply a more refined and representative weighting of reality. Several aspects are exposed and commented on: the design of the questionnaire, the data collection, the application of statistical sampling techniques (stratification by quotas and weighting of the strata), polish debugging techniques, as well as profiling techniques to differentiate groups between the variables of the food system and the sociodemographic characteristics that determine them. Based on the results, conclusions are stated. Main conclusions are: adequacy of the theoretical framework of the global food system to articulate the study (Colomer and Jarauta-Bragulat, 2016); adequacy of cluster analysis as a tool and obtaining four differentiated groups; obtaining a relative weight on the axes of the food system model; valuing availability and economy above the other two axes and, lastly, the need for greater food training for citizens for the collective benefit and for each of its members.El modelo conceptual sobre el Sistema Alimentario Global (SAG) formulado por Clotet y otros (2013), se articula en torno a cuatro ejes: disponibilidad, economía, política y saber (conocimiento, comportamiento social y cultura). En este modelo cada uno de estos ejes tiene la misma significación o ponderación, y para el estudio cuantitativo de resultados se aplican conceptos y métodos del Análisis de Datos Composicionales (Jarauta-Bragulat y otros, 2018). El presente trabajo tiene por objeto estudiar y caracterizar la percepción social en Cataluña de la importancia relativa (ponderación) de cada uno de los cuatro ejes del referido modelo. El estudio se lleva a cabo mediante el análisis estadístico de los resultados de una encuesta cumplimentada por personas que componen una muestra aleatoria dentro del territorio de Cataluña. Con los resultados de esta encuesta se pretende analizar si la igual ponderación inicial de los ejes en el modelo de SAG es adecuada o, por el contrario, los pesos deben modificarse en esta comunidad autónoma y, de este modo, aplicar una ponderación más afinada y representativa de la realidad social de Cataluña. Se exponen y comentan diversos aspectos: el diseño del cuestionario, la recopilación de los datos, la aplicación de técnicas estadísticas de muestreo (estratificación por cuotas y ponderación de los estratos), técnicas de depuración de encuestas, así como técnicas de profiling para diferenciar grupos entre las variables del sistema alimentario y las características sociodemográficas que los determinan. A partir de los resultados se formulan las conclusiones del trabajo, entre las que cabe destacar: adecuación del marco teórico del SAG (Colomer y Jarauta-Bragulat, 2016) para articular el estudio, adecuación del análisis clúster como herramienta y obtención de cuatro grupos diferenciados, obtención de una ponderación relativa en los ejes del modelo de sistema alimentario, valoración de la disponibilidad y la economía por encima de los otros dos ejes y, por último, necesidad de una mayor formación alimentaria de la ciudadanía para beneficio colectivo y de cada uno de sus miembros

Nonsense-mediated mRNA decay controls the changes in yeast ribosomal protein pre-mRNAs levels upon osmotic stress

The expression of ribosomal protein (RP) genes requires a substantial part of cellular transcription, processing and translation resources. Thus, the RP expression must be tightly regulated in response to conditions that compromise cell survival. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells, regulation of the RP gene expression at the transcriptional, mature mRNA stability and translational levels during the response to osmotic stress has been reported. Reprogramming global protein synthesis upon osmotic shock includes the movement of ribosomes from RP transcripts to stress-induced mRNAs. Using tiling arrays, we show that osmotic stress yields a drop in the levels of RP pre-mRNAs in S. cerevisiae cells. An analysis of the tiling array data, together with transcription rates data, shows a poor correlation, indicating that the drop in the RP pre-mRNA levels is not merely a result of the lowered RP transcription rates. A kinetic study using quantitative RT-PCR confirmed the decrease in the levels of several RP-unspliced transcripts during the first 15 minutes of osmotic stress, which seems independent of MAP kinase Hog1. Moreover, we found that the mutations in the components of the nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD), Upf1, Upf2, Upf3 or in exonuclease Xrn1, eliminate the osmotic stress-induced drop in RP pre-mRNAs. Altogether, our results indicate that the degradation of yeast RP unspliced transcripts by NMD increases during osmotic stress, and suggest that this might be another mechanism to control RP synthesis during the stress response

Salt loading in canola oil fed SHRSP rats induces endothelial dysfunction

This study aimed to determine if 50 days of canola oil intake in the absence or presence of salt loading affects: (1) antioxidant and oxidative stress markers, (2) aortic mRNA of NADPH oxidase (NOX) subunits and superoxide dismutase (SOD) isoforms and (3) endothelial function in SHRSP rats. SHRSP rats were fed a diet containing 10 wt/wt% soybean oil or 10 wt/wt% canola oil, and given tap water or water containing 1% NaCl for 50 days. Without salt, canola oil significantly increased RBC SOD, plasma cholesterol and triglycerides, aortic p22phox, NOX2 and CuZn-SOD mRNA, and decreased RBC glutathione peroxidase activity. With salt, canola oil reduced RBC SOD and catalase activity, LDL-C, and p22phox mRNA compared with canola oil alone, whereas plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) was reduced and RBC MDA and LDL-C were higher. With salt, the canola oil group had significantly reduced endothelium-dependent vasodilating responses to ACh and contractile responses to norepinephrine compared with the canola oil group without salt and to the WKY rats. These results indicate that ingestion of canola oil increases O2 - generation, and that canola oil ingestion in combination with salt leads to endothelial dysfunction in the SHRSP model

Toksikološka svojstva citrinina

Citrinin (CTN) is a nephrotoxic mycotoxin produced by several fungal strains belonging to the genera Penicillium, Aspergillus, and Monascus. It contaminates various commodities of plant origin, cereals in particular, and is usually found together with another nephrotoxic mycotoxin, ochratoxin A (OTA). These two mycotoxins are believed to be involved in the aetiology of endemic nephropathy. In addition to nephrotoxicity, CTN is also embryocidal and fetotoxic. The genotoxic properties of CTN have been demonstrated with the micronuleus test (MN), but not with single-cell gel electrophoresis. The mechanism of CTN toxicity is not fully understood, especially not whether CTN toxicity and genotoxicity are the consequence of oxidative stress or of increased permeability of mitochondrial membranes. CTN requires complex cellular biotransformation to exert mutagenicity. Compared with other mycotoxins, CTN contamination of food and feed is rather scarce. However, it is reasonable to believe that humans are much more frequently exposed to CTN than generally accepted, because it is produced by the same moulds as OTA, which is a common contaminant of human food all over the world. At present, there are no specifi c regulations either in Croatia or in the European Union concerning CTN in any kind of commodity.Citrinin (CTN) nefrotoksičan je mikotoksin koji proizvode različiti sojevi plijesni iz rodova Penicillium, Aspergillus i Monascus. CTN se može naći u različitim namirnicama biljnog podrijetla, osobito u žitaricama i obično se nalazi zajedno s drugim nefrotoksičnim mikotoksinom, okratoksinom A (OTA). Pretpostavlja se da je izloženost ovim mikotoksinima povezana s nastankom endemske nefropatije. Osim što je nefrotoksičan, CTN je još i embricidan i fetotoksičan. Na genotoksičnost citrinina upućuje pozitivan mikronukleusni test na različitim vrstama staničnih kultura, iako je kometski test negativan. Mutagenost CTN-a očituje se na različitim vrstama stanica samo ako se pridodaju stanični aktivatori kao npr. S9-mix. Mehanizam toksičnosti CTN-a nije potpuno razjašnjen pa još uvijek traje znanstvena rasprava je li njegova toksičnost i genotoksičnost posljedica oksidacijskog stresa ili povećane permeabilnosti mitohondrijskih membrana. U dostupnoj literaturi podaci o kontaminiranosti hrane i krmiva ovim mikotoksinom mnogo su rjeđi od onih za druge mikotoksine. Može se pretpostaviti da su ljudi često izloženi ovom mikotoksinu zato što ga proizvode iste plijesni koje proizvode i OTA, a one kontaminiraju hranu po cijelom svijetu. U Hrvatskoj i u zemljama Europske Unije ne postoje zakonske odredbe o dopuštenim granicama CTN-a u bilo kojoj vrsti hrane

El sistema alimentario global: I-Definicion de un espacio

Los autores desarrollan su modelos de sistema alimentario global, pesentado conceptualmente en anteriores publicaciones, basado en cuatro ejes basicos (disonibilidad, economia, politica y saber) dandole una estructura compresnbile, abierta y en la que se la plica una metodologia matematica que permite conocer la evolucion de los parametros y su prospectiva. Para ello, en el presente trabajo se pasa de los conceptos cualitativos a los cuantitativos. Cada eje se descompine, en tres subejes dando un total de 12, que identifican aspectos especificos de los pirimarios y que definen en este espacio las actividades y conceptos fundmentales del sistema agroalimentario y de tal forma que puedan seguir desarrollandose sus contenidos en aspectos de aun mas detalle, en un desarrollo fractal de base tetraedica. Para cada subeje se propone un primer parametro de evaluacion en base a valores en unidades, obtenibles en unidades de tiempo, habitualmente anos, de datos fiables publicados y compatibles con el modelo de estudios evolutivos y prospectivos presentados en el que se propone una variable vectorial para cada eje que toma valores en el simplex de tres partes y ajuste a un modelo lineal en coordenadas ILR (isometric logratio transformation). El modelo normaliza una estructura que da relieve al espacio agroalimentario global y perminte realizar estrategias propsectivas sobre el mismo en cada parametro y entre ellos. The authors develop their model of global food system, presented conceptually ine arlier publications, based on four basic axes (availability, economy, politics and knowledge) to give it an understandable open structure, and applying a mathematical methodology to it to enable the evolution of the parameters and its prospects to be known. To this end, this current study goes beyond the qualitative concepts to the quantitative ones. Each axis is broken down into three sub-axes giving a total of 12, that identify specific aspects of the primary ones and define the fundamental activities and concepts of the agri-food system in this space and in such a way that their contents can be developed further in even greater detail, in a fractal development on a tetrahedral base. A first evaluation parameter is proposed for each sub-axis based on values in units, that can be obtained, time units, years usually, from reliable published data and compatible with the model of evolutionary and prospective studies presented in which a variable vector for each axis is proposed that takes values in the simplex of three parts and adjusted to a lineal model in ILR ( isometric logratio transformation) coordinates. The model standardises a structure that highlights the global agri-food area and allows prospective strategies to be carried out the same subject, on each parameter or between them

Analysis of patient flow in the emergency department and the effect of an extensive reorganisation

Objectives: To evaluate the different internal factors influencing patient flow, effectiveness, and overcrowding in the emergency department (ED), as well as the effects of ED reorganisation on these indicators. Methods: The study compared measurements at regular intervals of three hours of patient arrivals and patient flow between two comparable periods (from 10 February to 2 March) of 1999 and 2000. In between, a structural and staff reorganisation of ED was undertaken. The main reason for each patient remaining in ED was recorded and allocated to one of four groups: (1) factors related to ED itself ; (2) factors related to ED-hospital interrelation; (3) factors related to hospital itself; and (4) factors related to neither ED nor hospital. The study measured the number of patients waiting to be seen and the waiting time to be seen as effectiveness markers, as well as the percentage of time that ED was overcrowded, as judged by numerical and functional criteria. Results: Effectiveness of ED was closely related with some ED related and hospital related factors. After the reorganisation, patients who remained in ED because of hospital related or non-ED-non-hospital related factors decreased. ED reorganisation reduced the number of patients waiting to be seen from 5.8 to 2.5 (p<0.001) and waiting time from 87 to 24 minutes (p<0.001). Before the reorganisation, 31% and 48% of the time was considered to be overcrowded in numerical and functional terms respectively. After the reorganisation, these figures were reduced to 8% and 15% respectively (p<0.001 for both). Conclusions: ED effectiveness and overcrowding are not only determined by external pressure, but also by internal factors. Measurement of patient flow across ED has proved useful in detecting these factors and in being used to plan an ED reorganisation