Understanding the two-dimensional ionization structure in luminous infrared galaxies. A near-IR integral field spectroscopy perspective

We investigate the 2D excitation structure of the ISM in a sample of LIRGs and Seyferts using near-IR IFS. This study extends to the near-IR the well-known optical and mid-IR emission line diagnostics used to classify activity in galaxies. Based on the spatially resolved spectroscopy of prototypes, we identify in the [FeII]1.64/Br$\gamma$ - H_2 1-0S(1)/Br$\gamma$ plane regions dominated by the different heating sources, i.e. AGNs, young MS massive stars, and evolved stars i.e. supernovae. The ISM in LIRGs occupy a wide region in the near-IR diagnostic plane from -0.6 to +1.5 and from -1.2 to +0.8 (in log units) for the [FeII]/Br$\gamma$ and H_2/Br$\gamma$ line ratios, respectively. The corresponding median(mode) ratios are +0.18(0.16) and +0.02(-0.04). Seyferts show on average larger values by factors ~2.5 and ~1.4 for the [FeII]/Br$\gamma$ and H_2/Br$\gamma$ ratios, respectively. New areas and relations in the near-IR diagnostic plane are defined for the compact, high surface brightness regions dominated by AGN, young ionizing stars, and SNe explosions, respectively. In addition, the diffuse regions affected by the AGN radiation field cover an area similar to that of Seyferts, but with high values in [FeII]/Br$\gamma$ that are not as extreme. The extended, non-AGN diffuse regions cover a wide area in the diagnostic diagram that overlaps that of individual excitation mechanisms (i.e. AGN, young stars, and SNe), but with its mode value to that of the young SF clumps. This indicates that the excitation conditions of the diffuse ISM are likely due to a mixture of the different ionization sources. The integrated line ratios in LIRGs show higher excitation conditions i.e. towards AGNs, than those measured by the spatially resolved spectroscopy. If this behaviour is representative, it would have clear consequences when classifying high-z, SF galaxies based on their near-IR integrated spectra.Comment: 18 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Differences between CO- and calcium triplet-derived velocity dispersions in spiral galaxies: evidence for central star formation?

We examine the stellar velocity dispersions (sigma) of a sample of 48 galaxies, 35 of which are spirals, from the Palomar nearby galaxy survey. It is known that for ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) and merger remnants thesigma derived from the near-infrared CO band-heads is smaller than that measured from optical lines, while no discrepancy between these measurements is found for early-type galaxies. No such studies are available for spiral galaxies - the subject of this paper. We used cross-dispersed spectroscopic data obtained with the Gemini Near-Infrared Spectrograph (GNIRS), with spectral coverage from 0.85 to 2.5um, to obtain sigma measurements from the 2.29 $\mu$m CO band-heads (sigma_{CO}), and the 0.85 um calcium triplet (sigma_{CaT}). For the spiral galaxies in the sample, we found that sigma_{CO} is smaller than sigma_{CaT}, with a mean fractional difference of 14.3%. The best fit to the data is given by sigma_{opt} = (46.0+/-18.1) + (0.85+/-0.12)sigma_{CO}. This "sigma discrepancy" may be related to the presence of warm dust, as suggested by a slight correlation between the discrepancy and the infrared luminosity. This is consistent with studies that have found no sigma-discrepancy in dust-poor early-type galaxies, and a much larger discrepancy in dusty merger remnants and ULIRGs. That sigma_{CO}$ is lower than sigma_{opt} may also indicate the presence of a dynamically cold stellar population component. This would agree with the spatial correspondence between low sigma_{CO} and young/intermediate-age stellar populations that has been observed in spatially-resolved spectroscopy of a handful of galaxies.Comment: Published in MNRAS, 446, 282

Inhaled Methoxyflurane Provides Greater Analgesia and Faster Onset of Action Versus Standard Analgesia in Patients With Trauma Pain: InMEDIATE: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Emergency Departments

Study objective: The objective of the InMEDIATE study was to evaluate the change in intensity of traumatic pain over the first 20 min in adult patients treated with methoxyflurane versus standard analgesic treatment in Spain. This the first randomized, active-controlled, multicenter trial of methoxyflurane in the emergency setting in Europe. Methods: This was a randomized, controlled study that enrolled adult patients with acute moderate to severe (score >= 4 on the 11-point Numeric Rating Scale) trauma-associated pain in 14 Spanish emergency departments. Patients were randomized 1:1 to methoxyflurane (up to 2x3 mL) or standard analgesic treatment. Coprimary endpoints were the change from baseline in Numeric Rating Scale pain intensity score during the first 20 minutes of treatment and time to first pain relief. Results: Three hundred five patients were randomized (methoxyflurane 156; standard analgesic treatment 149). Most patients in the standard analgesic treatment group (70%) received intravenous first-step analgesics and 9.4% of patients were treated with opioids. Mean decrease from baseline in Numeric Rating Scale pain intensity score was greater for methoxyflurane than standard analgesic treatment at all points, with a significant treatment difference overall up to 20 minutes (repeated-measures model 2.47 versus 1.39; treatment difference 1.00; 95% confidence interval 0.84 to 1.32). Median time to first pain relief was significantly shorter for methoxyflurane than standard analgesic treatment (3 versus 10 minutes). Methoxyflurane achieved better patient and clinician ratings for pain control and comfort of treatment than standard analgesic treatment and exceeded patient and clinician expectations of treatment in, respectively, 77% and 72% of cases compared with 38% and 19% for standard analgesic treatment. Conclusion: These results support consideration of methoxyflurane as a nonnarcotic, easy-to-administer, rapid-acting, first-line alternative to currently available analgesic treatments for trauma pain

Classification of follicular-patterned thyroid lesions using a minimal set of epigenetic biomarkers

[Objective]: The minimally invasive fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is the current gold standard for the diagnosis of thyroid nodule malignancy. However, the correct discrimination of follicular neoplasia often requires more invasive diagnostic techniques. The lack of suitable immunohistochemical markers to distinguish between follicular thyroid carcinoma and other types of follicular-derived lesions complicates diagnosis, and despite most of these tumours being surgically resected, only a small number will test positive for malignancy. As such, the development of new orthogonal diagnostic approaches may improve the accuracy of diagnosing thyroid nodules.[Design]: This study includes a retrospective, multi-centre training cohort including 54 fresh-frozen follicular-patterned thyroid samples and two independent, multi-centre validation cohorts of 103 snap-frozen biopsies and 33 FNAC samples, respectively.[Methods]: We performed a genome-wide genetic and epigenetic profiling of 54 fresh-frozen follicular-patterned thyroid samples using exome sequencing and the Illumina Human DNA Methylation EPIC platform. An extensive validation was performed using the bisulfite pyrosequencing technique.[Results]: Using a random forest approach, we developed a three-CpG marker-based diagnostic model that was subsequently validated using bisulfite pyrosequencing experiments. According to the validation cohort, this cost-effective method discriminates between benign and malignant nodules with a sensitivity and specificity of 97 and 88%, respectively (positive predictive value (PPV): 0.85, negative predictive value (NPV): 0.98).[Conclusions]: Our classification system based on a minimal set of epigenetic biomarkers can complement the potential of the diagnostic techniques currently available and would prioritize a considerable number of surgical interventions that are often performed due to uncertain cytology.[Significance statement]: In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the number of people diagnosed with thyroid nodules. The current challenge is their etiological diagnosis to discount malignancy without resorting to thyroidectomy. The method proposed here, based on DNA pyrosequencing assays, has high sensitivity (0.97) and specificity (0.88) for the identification of malignant thyroid nodules. This simple and cost-effective approach can complement expert pathologist evaluation to prioritize the classification of difficult-to-diagnose follicular-patterned thyroid lesions and track tumor evolution, including real-time monitoring of treatment efficacy, thereby stimulating adherence to health promotion programs.Peer reviewe

Pelvic hemangiopericytoma: an unusual location of a vascular tumor

Background: The hemangiopericytoma is an uncommon vascular tumour. We report a case of interest because of its rarity, size and location. Case report: We present the case of a 63-year-old woman who consulted for abdominal pain. TAC, MRI and arteriography showed a pelvic mass occupying Douglas' space, displacing the uterus, bladder and sigma, with vascularisation relative to the inferior mesenteric artery and both hypogastric arteries. The vascularity of the tumour itself was selectively embolised before the mass was resected. There were no intra- or postoperative complications. Pathology confirmed the diagnosis of hemangiopericitoma. The patient is being monitored as an outpatient, with no signs of recurrence to date. Discussion: The hemangiopericytoma is a tumour of the pericyte cells so it can occur in any location. The pelvic location is exceptional. The tumour may appear as nonspecific abdominal pain, show signs of compression of adjacent organs or occasionally be associated with paraneoplastic syndromes. The diagnosis is suspected via CT and angiography findings, but confirmation is only made by analysing the surgical specimen. The treatment of choice is surgery, in some cases after preoperative embolisation of the vascularisation of the mass. There is no agreement on chemo/radiotherapy as the primary treatment for hemangiopericytoma, although adjuvant radiation therapy has been found to improve local control and reduce recurrences. The prognosis is good if complete resection is achieved, with five- and 10-year survival rates between 70 and 80%, depending on the series

El Paleolítico Medio en el Valle del Arlanza (Burgos). Los sitios de La Ermita, Millán y La Mina

Se revisan los sitios clásicos del Paleolítico medio, La Ermita y Millán, añadiendo la información del cercano yacimiento La Mina, todos en el valle del Arlanza (Hortigüela, Burgos). Se realizan nuevas dataciones, se prospecta y analizan las materias primas con ICP-MS, se realiza un estudio zooarqueológico y describimos los productos líticos, incluyendo los cantos no tallados y el conjunto inédito de Millán superficie. Las dataciones demuestran una larga ocupación del valle en las fases templadas del EIO 3 por parte de grupos humanos que usan las cuevas como campamentos de corta duración, generalmente estacional. El aprovisionamiento de materias líticas es local, con uso exhaustivo del sílex. Se realiza una caza de amplio espectro en todos los biotopos aledaños, con una particular búsqueda de las pieles y cueros de los animales. Se infiere una explotación radial e intensa sobre el valle del Arlanza.Two classic Middle Palaeolithic sites, La Ermita and Millán were revised, together with additional information from the nearby La Mina site, all in the Arlanza River valley (Hortigüela, Burgos, Spain). New dating and prospecting work was done, raw materials were studied using ICP-MS, a zooarchaeological study was conducted and we describe the stone products, including unworked stones and the unpublished Millán surface assemblage. The datings indicate long-term occupation of the valley in the temperate phases of OIS by human groups that used the caves as short-term campsites (usually seasonal). Stone material supplies were local, with exhaustive use of flint. Broad spectrum hunting was done in all the surrounding biotopes, including specific searches for animal skins and hides. We infer intense, radial exploitation of the Arlanza Valley.Agradecemos el trabajo e ideas aportadas por los editores y revisores de este volumen. Trabajo enmarcado en el proyecto “Gestión del territorio en el Paleolítico medio del área centroriental de Castilla y León por medio del estudio de fuentes y productos líticos” de la Consejería de Educación de la Junta de Castilla y León, con ayudas del Proyecto CGL2006-13532-C03/BTE. R.A. es becario de la Fundación Siglo para las Artesen Castilla y León y M.N. es becaria de la Cátedra Atapuerca (Fundación Duques de Soria y Fundación Atapuerca). Agradecemos al personal del MAN y del Museo de Salas de los Infantes los permisos y atenciones dispensadas

El Paleolítico medio en el Valle del Arlanza (Burgos). Los sitios de la Ermita, Millán y La Mina = Middle Palaeolithic in the Arlanza valley. The sites of La Ermita, Millán and La Mina.

Se revisan los sitios clásicos del Paleolítico medio, La Ermita y Millán, añadiendo la información del cercano yacimiento La Mina, todos en el valle del Arlanza (Hortigüela, Burgos). Se realizan nuevas dataciones, se prospecta y analizan las materias primas con ICP-MS, se realiza un estudio zooarqueológico y describimos los productos líticos, incluyendo los cantos no tallados y el conjunto inédito de Millán superficie. Las dataciones demuestran una larga ocupación del valle en las fases templadas del EIO 3 por parte de grupos humanos que usan las cuevas como campamentos de corta duración, generalmente estacional. El aprovisionamiento de materias líticas es local, con uso exhaustivo del sílex. Se realiza una caza de amplio espectro en todos los biotopos aledaños, con una particular búsqueda de las pieles y cueros de los animales. Se infiere una explotación radial e intensa sobre el valle del Arlanza. Two classic Middle Palaeolithic sites, La Ermita and Millán were revised, together with additional information from the nearby La Mina site, all in the Arlanza River valley (Hortigüela, Burgos, Spain). New dating and prospecting work was done, raw materials were studied using ICP-MS, a zooarchaeological study was conducted and we describe the stone products, including unworked stones and the unpublished Millán surface assemblage. The dat ings indicate long-term occupation of the valley in the temperate phases of OIS by human groups that used the caves as short-term campsites (usually seasonal). Stone material supplies were local, with exhaustive use of flint. Broad spectrum hunting was done in all the surrounding biotopes, including specific searches for animal skins and hides. We infer intense, radial exploitation of the Arlanza Valle