Potential distribution of a climate sensitive species, the White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis in Europe

The White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis nivalis is assumed to be highly threatened by climate change, but this high elevation species has been little studied and the current breeding distribution is accurately known only for a minor portion of its range. Here, we provide a detailed and spatially explicit identification of the potentially suitable breeding areas for the Snowfinch. We modelled suitable areas in Europe and compared them with the currently known distribution. We built a distribution model using 14,574 records obtained during the breeding period that integrated climatic, topographic and land-cover variables, working at a 2-km spatial resolution with MaxEnt. The model performed well and was very robust; average annual temperature was the most important occurrence predictor (optimum between c.-3°C and 0°; unsuitable conditions below -10° and above 5°). The current European breeding range estimated by BirdLife International was almost three times greater than that classified as potentially suitable by our model. Discrepancies between our model and the distribution estimated by BirdLife International were particularly evident in eastern Europe, where the species is poorly monitored. Southern populations are likely more isolated and at major risk because of global warming. These differences have important implications for the supposed national responsibility for conservation of the species and highlight the need for new investigations on the species in the eastern part of its European range

Spatio-temporal variation in the wintering associations of an alpine bird

Many animals make behavioural changes to cope with winter conditions, being gregariousness a common strategy. Several factors have been invoked to explain why gregariousness may evolve during winter, with individuals coming together and separating as they trade off the different costs and benefits of living in groups. These trade-offs may, however, change over space and time as a response to varying environmental conditions. Despite its importance, little is known about the factors triggering gregarious behaviour during winter and its change in response to variation in weather conditions is poorly documented. Here, we aimed at quantifying large-scale patterns in wintering associations over 23 years of the white-winged snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis nivalis. We found that individuals gather in larger groups at sites with harsh wintering conditions. Individuals at colder sites reunite later and separate earlier in the season than at warmer sites. However, the magnitude and phenology of wintering associations are ruled by changes in weather conditions. When the temperature increased or the levels of precipitation decreased, group size substantially decreased, and individuals stayed united in groups for a shorter time. These results shed light on factors driving gregariousness and points to shifting winter climate as an important factor influencing this behaviour

Manejo de la inmunosupresión en pacientes trasplantados de riñón con COVID19. Estudio multicéntrico nacional derivado del registro COVID de la Sociedad Española de Nefrología

Introduction: SARS CoV2 infection has had a major impact on renal transplant patients with a high mortality in the first months of the pandemic. Intentional reduction of immunosuppressive therapy has been postulated as one of the cornerstone in the management of the infection in the absence of targeted antiviral treatment. This has been modified according to the patient`s clinical situation and its effect on renal function or anti-HLA antibodies in the medium term has not been evaluated.Objectives: Evaluate the management of immunosuppressive therapy made during SARS-CoV2 infection, as well as renal function and anti-HLA antibodies in kidney transplant patients 6 months after COVID19 diagnosis.Material and methods: Retrospective, national multicentre, retrospective study (30 centres) of kidney transplant recipients with COVID19 from 01/02/20 to 31/12/20. Clinical variables were collected from medical records and included in an anonymised database. SPSS statistical software was used for data analysis.Results: renal transplant recipients with COVID19 were included (62.6% male), with a mean age of 57.5 years. The predominant immunosuppressive treatment prior to COVID19 was triple therapy with prednisone, tacrolimus and mycophenolic acid (54.6%) followed by m-TOR inhibitor regimens (18.6%). After diagnosis of infection, mycophenolic acid was discontinued in 73.8% of patients, m-TOR inhibitor in 41.4%, tacrolimus in 10.5% and cyclosporin A in 10%. In turn, 26.9% received dexamethasone and 50.9% were started on or had their baseline prednisone dose increased. Mean creatinine before diagnosis of COVID19, at diagnosis and at 6 months was: 1.7 +/- 0.8, 2.1 +/- 1.2 and 1.8 +/- 1 mg/dl respectively (p < 0.001). 56.9% of the patients (N = 350) were monitored for anti-HLA antibodies. 94% (N = 329) had no anti-HLA changes, while 6% (N = 21) had positive anti-HLA antibodies. Among the patients with donor-specific antibodies post-COVID19 (N = 9), 7 patients (3.1%) had one immunosuppressant discontinued (5 patients had mycophenolic acid and 2 had tacrolimus), 1 patient had both immunosuppressants discontinued (3.4%) and 1 patient had no change in immunosuppression (1.1%), these differences were not significant.Conclusions: The management of immunosuppressive therapy after diagnosis of COVID19 was primarily based on discontinuation of mycophenolic acid with very discrete reductions or discontinuations of calcineurin inhibitors. This immunosuppression management did not influence renal function or changes in anti-HLA antibodies 6 months after diagnosis

Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Hepatits C Virus Coinfection in Spain: Elimination Is Feasible, but the Burden of Residual Cirrhosis Will Be Significant

Background: We assessed the prevalence of antibodies against hepatitis C virus (HCV-Abs) and active HCV infection in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Spain in 2016 and compared the results with those of similar studies performed in 2002, 2009, and 2015. Methods: The study was performed in 43 centers during October-November 2016. The sample was estimated for an accuracy of 2% and selected by proportional allocation and simple random sampling. During 2016, criteria for therapy based on direct-acting antiviral agents (DAA) were at least significant liver fibrosis, severe extrahepatic manifestations of HCV, and high risk of HCV transmissibility. Results: The reference population and the sample size were 38904 and 1588 patients, respectively. The prevalence of HCV-Abs in 2002, 2009, 2015, and 2016 was 60.8%, 50.2%, 37.7%, and 34.6%, respectively (P trend <.001, from 2002 to 2015). The prevalence of active HCV in 2002, 2009, 2015, and 2016 was 54.0%, 34.0%, 22.1%, and 11.7%, respectively (P trend <.001). The anti-HCV treatment uptake in 2002, 2009, 2015, and 2016 was 23.0%, 48.0%, 59.3%, and 74.7%, respectively (P trend <.001). In 2016, HCV-related cirrhosis was present in 7.6% of all HIV-infected individuals, 15.0% of patients with active HCV, and 31.5% of patients who cleared HCV after anti-HCV therapy. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that with universal access to DAA-based therapy and continued efforts in prevention and screening, it will be possible to eliminate active HCV among HIV-infected individuals in Spain in the short term. However, the burden of HCV-related cirrhosis will continue to be significant among HIV-infected individuals.This work was funded by grant Ref. no. GLD14-00279 from the GILEAD Fellowship Programme (Spain) and by the Spanish AIDS Research Network (RD16/0025/0017, RD16/0025/0018) that is included in the Spanish I+D+I Plan and is co-financed by ISCIII-Subdirección General de Evaluacion and European Funding for Regional Development (FEDER).S

Epidemiological trends of HIV/HCV coinfection in Spain, 2015-2019

Altres ajuts: Spanish AIDS Research Network; European Funding for Regional Development (FEDER).Objectives: We assessed the prevalence of anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibodies and active HCV infection (HCV-RNA-positive) in people living with HIV (PLWH) in Spain in 2019 and compared the results with those of four similar studies performed during 2015-2018. Methods: The study was performed in 41 centres. Sample size was estimated for an accuracy of 1%. Patients were selected by random sampling with proportional allocation. Results: The reference population comprised 41 973 PLWH, and the sample size was 1325. HCV serostatus was known in 1316 PLWH (99.3%), of whom 376 (28.6%) were HCV antibody (Ab)-positive (78.7% were prior injection drug users); 29 were HCV-RNA-positive (2.2%). Of the 29 HCV-RNA-positive PLWH, infection was chronic in 24, it was acute/recent in one, and it was of unknown duration in four. Cirrhosis was present in 71 (5.4%) PLWH overall, three (10.3%) HCV-RNA-positive patients and 68 (23.4%) of those who cleared HCV after anti-HCV therapy (p = 0.04). The prevalence of anti-HCV antibodies decreased steadily from 37.7% in 2015 to 28.6% in 2019 (p < 0.001); the prevalence of active HCV infection decreased from 22.1% in 2015 to 2.2% in 2019 (p < 0.001). Uptake of anti-HCV treatment increased from 53.9% in 2015 to 95.0% in 2019 (p < 0.001). Conclusions: In Spain, the prevalence of active HCV infection among PLWH at the end of 2019 was 2.2%, i.e. 90.0% lower than in 2015. Increased exposure to DAAs was probably the main reason for this sharp reduction. Despite the high coverage of treatment with direct-acting antiviral agents, HCV-related cirrhosis remains significant in this population

HTLV-1 infection in solid organ transplant donors and recipients in Spain

HTLV-1 infection is a neglected disease, despite infecting 10-15 million people worldwide and severe illnesses develop in 10% of carriers lifelong. Acknowledging a greater risk for developing HTLV-1 associated illnesses due to immunosuppression, screening is being widely considered in the transplantation setting. Herein, we report the experience with universal HTLV testing of donors and recipients of solid organ transplants in a survey conducted in Spain. All hospitals belonging to the Spanish HTLV network were invited to participate in the study. Briefly, HTLV antibody screening was performed retrospectively in all specimens collected from solid organ donors and recipients attended since the year 2008. A total of 5751 individuals were tested for HTLV antibodies at 8 sites. Donors represented 2312 (42.2%), of whom 17 (0.3%) were living kidney donors. The remaining 3439 (59.8%) were recipients. Spaniards represented nearly 80%. Overall, 9 individuals (0.16%) were initially reactive for HTLV antibodies. Six were donors and 3 were recipients. Using confirmatory tests, HTLV-1 could be confirmed in only two donors, one Spaniard and another from Colombia. Both kidneys of the Spaniard were inadvertently transplanted. Subacute myelopathy developed within 1 year in one recipient. The second recipient seroconverted for HTLV-1 but the kidney had to be removed soon due to rejection. Immunosuppression was stopped and 3 years later the patient remains in dialysis but otherwise asymptomatic. The rate of HTLV-1 is low but not negligible in donors/recipients of solid organ transplants in Spain. Universal HTLV screening should be recommended in all donor and recipients of solid organ transplantation in Spain. Evidence is overwhelming for very high virus transmission and increased risk along with the rapid development of subacute myelopathy

The NOMAD experiment at the CERN SPS

The NOMAD experiment is a short base-line search for $\nu_{\mu}\rightarrow \nu_{\tau}$ oscillations in the CERN neutrino beam. The $\nu_{\tau}$'s are searched for through their charged-current interactions followed by the observation of the resulting $\tau^{-}$ through its electronic, muonic or hadronic decays. These decays are recognized using kinematical criteria necessitating the use of a light target which enables the reconstruction of individual particles produced in the neutrino interactions. This paper describes the various components of the NOMAD detector: the target and muon drift chambers, the electromagnetic and hadronic calorimeters, the preshower and transition radiation detectors, and the veto and trigger scintillation counters. The beam and data acquisition system are also described. The quality of the reconstruction of individual particles is demonstrated through the ability of NOMAD to observe K$^0_{\rm s}$'s, $\Lambda^0$'s and $\pi^0$'s. Finally, the observation of $\tau^{-}$ through its electronic decay being one of the most promising channels in the search, the identification of electrons in NOMAD is discussed