La diversidad funcional en comunidades animales: una revisión que hace énfasis en los vertebrados

La diversidad funcional es la variedad de funciones que desempeñan las especies en los ecosistemas. Su estudio en comunidades animales todavía es incipiente y, por ello, el objetivo de esta revisión es aportar información de referencia sobre los conceptos básicos relativos a la cuantificación de la diversidad funcional y sus aplicaciones en vertebrados, así como los avances realizados al respecto. Los peces y las aves, seguidos de los mamíferos, han sido los grupos más estudiados. Los anfibios y los reptiles han recibido menos atención, aun cuando tienen un alto potencial para el estudio de la diversidad funcional. Existen protocolos para la medición directa y estandarizada de los rasgos funcionales en aves, anfibios y peces dulceacuícolas. Con respecto a los mamíferos y los reptiles, no existen guías a seguir y los rasgos funcionales generalmente se toman de la literatura. Para complementar y promover la medición de rasgos funcionales en vertebrados, se presenta una lista de rasgos que se podrían utilizar para analizar la diversidad funcional en diferentes subgrupos de mamíferos y en reptiles.Functional diversity in animal communities: a review with emphasis on vertebrates Functional diversity is the variety of functional roles that species have in ecosystems. As its study in animal communities is still emerging, the aim of this review is to provide an informative reference on the basic concepts and advances in the quantification of functional diversity and its applications to vertebrates. The most studied groups to date are fish and birds, followed by mammals. Amphibians and reptiles have received less attention despite their high potential for the study of functional diversity. Protocols are available for the direct and standardized measure of functional traits in birds, amphibians and freshwater fish. No guides are yet available, however, for mammals and reptiles and functional traits are usually taken from the literature. To complement and to promote the measurement of functional traits in vertebrates, we provide a list of potential traits for the analysis of functional diversity in different subgroups of mammals and in reptiles.La diversidad funcional es la variedad de funciones que desempeñan las especies en los ecosistemas. Su estudio en comunidades animales todavía es incipiente y, por ello, el objetivo de esta revisión es aportar información de referencia sobre los conceptos básicos relativos a la cuantificación de la diversidad funcional y sus aplicaciones en vertebrados, así como los avances realizados al respecto. Los peces y las aves, seguidos de los mamíferos, han sido los grupos más estudiados. Los anfibios y los reptiles han recibido menos atención, aun cuando tienen un alto potencial para el estudio de la diversidad funcional. Existen protocolos para la medición directa y estandarizada de los rasgos funcionales en aves, anfibios y peces dulceacuícolas. Con respecto a los mamíferos y los reptiles, no existen guías a seguir y los rasgos funcionales generalmente se toman de la literatura. Para complementar y promover la medición de rasgos funcionales en vertebrados, se presenta una lista de rasgos que se podrían utilizar para analizar la diversidad funcional en diferentes subgrupos de mamíferos y en reptiles

El trabajador social como asesor familiar

Se plantea la necesidad social que las familias tienen de recibir asesoramiento sobre sus problemas, en los diferentes momentos por los que pasan en su ciclo vital, y la oportunidad de la figura del trabajador social para desarrollar tareas encaminadas a proporcionar dicho asesoramiento familiar

Synchronizability determined by coupling strengths and topology on Complex Networks

We investigate in depth the synchronization of coupled oscillators on top of complex networks with different degrees of heterogeneity within the context of the Kuramoto model. In a previous paper [Phys. Rev. Lett. 98, 034101 (2007)], we unveiled how for fixed coupling strengths local patterns of synchronization emerge differently in homogeneous and heterogeneous complex networks. Here, we provide more evidence on this phenomenon extending the previous work to networks that interpolate between homogeneous and heterogeneous topologies. We also present new details on the path towards synchronization for the evolution of clustering in the synchronized patterns. Finally, we investigate the synchronization of networks with modular structure and conclude that, in these cases, local synchronization is first attained at the most internal level of organization of modules, progressively evolving to the outer levels as the coupling constant is increased. The present work introduces new parameters that are proved to be useful for the characterization of synchronization phenomena in complex networks.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures and 1 table. APS forma

Diffusion dynamics on multiplex networks

We study the time scales associated to diffusion processes that take place on multiplex networks, i.e. on a set of networks linked through interconnected layers. To this end, we propose the construction of a supra-Laplacian matrix, which consists of a dimensional lifting of the Laplacian matrix of each layer of the multiplex network. We use perturbative analysis to reveal analytically the structure of eigenvectors and eigenvalues of the complete network in terms of the spectral properties of the individual layers. The spectrum of the supra-Laplacian allows us to understand the physics of diffusion-like processes on top of multiplex networks.Comment: 6 Pages including supplemental material. To appear in Physical Review Letter

El trabajador social como asesor familiar.

Sin resume

An Ambient Assisted Living Technology Platform for Informal Carers of the Elderly - iCarer

For most families with elderly relatives, care within their own home is by far the most preferred option -both for the elderly and their carers. However, frequently these carers are the partners of the person with long-term care needs, and themselves are elderly and in need of support to cope with the burdens and stress associated with these duties. When it becomes too much for them, they may have to rely on professional care services, or even use residential care for a respite. In order to support the carers as well as the elderly person, an ambient assisted living platform has been developed. The system records information about the activities of daily living using unobtrusive sensors within the home, and allows the carers to record their own wellbeing state. By providing facilities to schedule and monitor the activities of daily care, and providing orientation and advice to improve the care given and their own wellbeing, the system helps to reduce the burden on the informal carers

Paths to Synchronization on Complex Networks

The understanding of emergent collective phenomena in natural and social systems has driven the interest of scientists from different disciplines during decades. Among these phenomena, the synchronization of a set of interacting individuals or units has been intensively studied because of its ubiquity in the natural world. In this paper, we show how for fixed coupling strengths local patterns of synchronization emerge differently in homogeneous and heterogeneous complex networks, driving the process towards a certain global synchronization degree following different paths. The dependence of the dynamics on the coupling strength and on the topology is unveiled. This study provides a new perspective and tools to understand this emerging phenomena.Comment: Final version published in Physical Review Letter

An efficient method for enzyme immobilization evidenced by atomic force microscopy

Immobilization of proteins in a functionally active form and proper orientation is fundamental for effective surface-based protein analysis. A new method is presented for the controlled and oriented immobilization of ordered monolayers of enzymes whose interaction site had been protected using the protein ligand. The utility of this method was demonstrated by analyzing the interactions between the enzyme ferredoxin-NADP+ reductase (FNR) and its redox partner ferredoxin (Fd). The quality of the procedure was deeply evaluated through enzymatic assays and atomic force microscopy. Single-molecule force spectroscopy revealed that site-specifically targeted FNR samples increased the ratio of recognition events 4-fold with regard to the standard randomly modified FNR samples. The results were corroborated using the cytochrome c reductase activity that gave an increase on surface between 6 and 12 times for the site-specifically targeted FNR samples. The activity in solution for the enzyme labeled from the complex was similar to that exhibited by wild-type FNR while FNR randomly tagged showed a 3-fold decrease. This indicates that random targeting protocols affect not only the efficiency of immobilized proteins to recognize their ligands but also their general functionality. The present methodology is expected to find wide applications in surface-based protein–protein interactions biosensors, single-molecule analysis, bioelectronics or drug screening