Articulación agroecológica: estrategias para la reconversión a escala territorial

Entre los principales argumentos que pretenden descalificar una agricultura sustentable están sus bajos rendimientos y elevados costos. Además, se argumenta una limitada aplicabilidad (solo a escala de pequeñas fincas). Esta polémica se halla presente en la Cuba actual, urgida de soluciones a corto plazo para la alimentación de toda su población. Por ello, se necesita disponer de estrategias y modelos de desarrollo que respondan a los requerimientos actuales, asumiendo el reto de diseñar una agricultura sostenible sobre bases agroecológicas, productiva y eficiente, aplicable a diferentes condiciones y escalas productivas. Este fue reto del proyecto “Articulación agroecológica; diseño de alternativas sostenibles para la seguridad alimentaria local” promovido por la Asociación Cubana de Técnicos Agrícolas y Forestales (ACTAF) y la ONG Holandesa HIVOS. Esta acción se viene ejecutando desde hace 4 años (2011-2015) en 5 municipios cubanos, con apoyo financiero de la Unión Europea, de la Colaboración Suiza para el Desarrollo (COSUDE) y del Ministerio de la Agricultura de Cuba (MINAG). Se partió de la hipótesis de que el desarrollo agrario sostenible sobre bases agroecológicas tiene que diseñarse y conducirse localmente (escala municipal). Para ello, se planteó como objetivo, “contribuir al incremento y la sostenibilidad de la seguridad alimentaria cubana, facilitando la adopción de alternativas de articulación agroecológica en las estrategias de desarrollo agrario municipal”. Para el logro de este objetivo se planteó la necesidad de crear y fortalecer capacidades locales de desarrollo agrario, a partir de instituciones existentes y en coherencia con los programas oficiales de la agricultura local y los intereses y necesidades sentidas de los agricultores. Se trabajó desde un Equipo de Proyecto apoyado por un Equipo Técnico conformado por especialistas de diferentes entidades científicas y docentes nacionales. A nivel local se conformaron Equipos de Articulación Local (EAL) con integrantes designados por cada municipio. Estos EAL constituyeron el principal ente implementador del proyecto y se concibieron como el germen inicial de lo que debía ser el Equipo Municipal de Desarrollo Agrario de cada territorio. Alrededor de estos EAL se articularon las principales instituciones locales vinculadas a la agricultura y se seleccionó una cooperativa para demostrar la pertinencia de la reconversión agroecológica a escala superior a la pequeña finca. Se pudo comprobar que lograr el involucramiento de decisores importantes de la localidad es del todo imprescindible para un proceso de reconversión agroecológica a escala territorial, pues este debe ser visto como contribuyente al logro de los objetivos de las instituciones locales para la seguridad alimentaria de la población y minimizar la dependencia externa al territorio para el desarrollo de toda la cadena productiva. Disponer de servicios técnicos locales que puedan contribuir con insumos alternativos, asesoría y capacitación, aporta a la reconversión capacidad de contextualización de conocimientos y tradiciones campesinas y establece puentes con instituciones científicas especializadas para su complementación con los avances de la ciencia y la técnica.Eje: B2 Paisajes, territorios y agroecología (Relatos de experiencias)Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestale

Autologous stem cell transplantation may be curative for patients with follicular lymphoma with early therapy failure without the need for immunotherapy

Objective/Background: Patients with follicular lymphoma (FL) with early therapy failure (ETF) within 2 years of frontline therapy have poor overall survival (OS). We recently reported the results of autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in patients from the Grupo Español de Linfomas y Trasplantes de Médula Ósea (GELTAMO) registry treated with rituximab prior to ASCT and with ETF after first-line immunochemotherapy, leading to 81% 5-year OS since ASCT. We explored whether ASCT is also an effective option in the pre-rituximab era—that is, in patients treated in induction and rescued only with chemotherapy. Methods: ETF was defined as relapse/progression within 2 years of starting first-line therapy. We identified two groups: the ETF cohort (n = 87) and the non-ETF cohort (n = 47 patients receiving ASCT but not experiencing ETF following first-line therapy). Results: There was a significant difference in 5-year progression-free survival between the ETF and non-ETF cohorts (43% vs. 57%, respectively; p = .048). Nevertheless, in patients with ETF with an interval from first relapse after primary treatment to ASCT of <1 year, no differences were observed in 5-year progression-free survival (48% vs. 66%, respectively; p = .44) or in 5-year OS (69% vs. 77%, p = .4). Patients in the ETF cohort transplanted in complete remission showed a plateau in the OS curves, at 56%, beyond 13.7 years of follow-up. Conclusion: ASCT may be a curative option for ETF in patients who respond to rescue chemotherapy, without the need for immunotherapy or other therapies, and should be considered as an early consolidation, especially in patients with difficult access to rituximab

Anisotropy studies around the galactic centre at EeV energies with the Auger Observatory

Data from the Pierre Auger Observatory are analyzed to search for anisotropies near the direction of the Galactic Centre at EeV energies. The exposure of the surface array in this part of the sky is already significantly larger than that of the fore-runner experiments. Our results do not support previous findings of localized excesses in the AGASA and SUGAR data. We set an upper bound on a point-like flux of cosmic rays arriving from the Galactic Centre which excludes several scenarios predicting sources of EeV neutrons from Sagittarius $A$. Also the events detected simultaneously by the surface and fluorescence detectors (the `hybrid' data set), which have better pointing accuracy but are less numerous than those of the surface array alone, do not show any significant localized excess from this direction.Comment: Matches published versio

SARS-CoV-2 viral load in nasopharyngeal swabs is not an independent predictor of unfavorable outcome

The aim was to assess the ability of nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 viral load at first patient’s hospital evaluation to predict unfavorable outcomes. We conducted a prospective cohort study including 321 adult patients with confirmed COVID-19 through RT-PCR in nasopharyngeal swabs. Quantitative Synthetic SARS-CoV-2 RNA cycle threshold values were used to calculate the viral load in log10 copies/mL. Disease severity at the end of follow up was categorized into mild, moderate, and severe. Primary endpoint was a composite of intensive care unit (ICU) admission and/or death (n = 85, 26.4%). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed. Nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 viral load over the second quartile (≥ 7.35 log10 copies/mL, p = 0.003) and second tertile (≥ 8.27 log10 copies/mL, p = 0.01) were associated to unfavorable outcome in the unadjusted logistic regression analysis. However, in the final multivariable analysis, viral load was not independently associated with an unfavorable outcome. Five predictors were independently associated with increased odds of ICU admission and/or death: age ≥ 70 years, SpO2, neutrophils > 7.5 × 103/µL, lactate dehydrogenase ≥ 300 U/L, and C-reactive protein ≥ 100 mg/L. In summary, nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 viral load on admission is generally high in patients with COVID-19, regardless of illness severity, but it cannot be used as an independent predictor of unfavorable clinical outcome

Dendritic cell deficiencies persist seven months after SARS-CoV-2 infection

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (SARS-CoV)-2 infection induces an exacerbated inflammation driven by innate immunity components. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a key role in the defense against viral infections, for instance plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs), have the capacity to produce vast amounts of interferon-alpha (IFN-α). In COVID-19 there is a deficit in DC numbers and IFN-α production, which has been associated with disease severity. In this work, we described that in addition to the DC deficiency, several DC activation and homing markers were altered in acute COVID-19 patients, which were associated with multiple inflammatory markers. Remarkably, previously hospitalized and nonhospitalized patients remained with decreased numbers of CD1c+ myeloid DCs and pDCs seven months after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, the expression of DC markers such as CD86 and CD4 were only restored in previously nonhospitalized patients, while no restoration of integrin β7 and indoleamine 2,3-dyoxigenase (IDO) levels were observed. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the immunological sequelae of COVID-19

Management and Outcome of Cardiac and Endovascular Cystic Echinococcosis

Cardiac and vascular involvement are infrequent in classical cystic echinococcosis (CE), but when they occur they tend to present earlier and are associated with complications that may be life threatening. Cardiovascular CE usually requires complex surgery, so in low-income countries the outcome is frequently fatal. This case series describes the characteristics of cardiovascular CE in patients diagnosed and treated at a Tropical Medicine & Clinical Parasitology Center in Spain. A retrospective case series of 11 patients with cardiac and/or endovascular CE, followed-up over a period of 15 years (1995–2009) is reported. The main clinical manifestations included thoracic pain or dyspnea, although 2 patients were asymptomatic. The clinical picture and complications vary according to cyst location. Isolated cardiac CE may be cured after surgery, while endovascular extracardiac involvement is associated with severe chronic complications. CE should be included in the differential diagnosis of cardiovascular disease in patients from endemic areas. CE is a neglected disease and further studies are necessary in order to make more definite management recommendations for this rare and severe form of the disease. The authors propose a general approach based on cyst location: exclusively cardiac, endovascular or both

An upper limit to the photon fraction in cosmic rays above 10^19 eV from the Pierre Auger Observatory

An upper limit of 16% (at 95% c.l.) is derived for the photon fraction in cosmic rays with energies above 10^19 eV, based on observations of the depth of shower maximum performed with the hybrid detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory. This is the first such limit on photons obtained by observing the fluorescence light profile of air showers. This upper limit confirms and improves on previous results from the Haverah Park and AGASA surface arrays. Additional data recorded with the Auger surface detectors for a subset of the event sample, support the conclusion that a photon origin of the observed events is not favoured