Encuentros con las novedades: cruzando las barreras de la reproducción en mamíferos: realidad y retos futuros

¿Por qué los mamíferos necesitan el sexo para la reproducción? ¿Cuáles son las barreras que impiden la reproducción entre individuos del mismo sexo? ¿Qué reglas es necesario romper para conseguir crías viables a partir de dos individuos del mismo sexo? Estas son algunas de las preguntas que se hacían Li y colaborado- res, investigadores de la Academia de Ciencias de China, cuando comenzaron el estudio publicado el pasado 11 de octubre de 2018 en la revista Cell Stem Cell, en el que conseguían, por primera vez en la historia, obtener crías viables de ratón a partir de dos progenitores del mismo sexo utilizando tecnologías de edición genética y células madre. La reproducción es fundamental para todas las formas de vida existentes, pero hay una gran variedad de métodos reproductivos entre las distintas especies.&nbsp

Maternal physiological changes at rest induced by exercise during pregnancy: A randomized controlled trial.

Objective: to analyse maternal physiological changes in several areas (cardiovascular, metabolic, renal and hepatic) related to the regular practice of a supervised exercise program. Methods: This is an unplanned secondary analysis from a randomized controlled trial carried out in a single maternity unit in Madrid, Spain (NCT 02,756,143). From November 2014 to June 2015, 92 women were randomly assigned to perform a mild-moderate supervised exercise program during pregnancy (Intervention group, IG) or to continue with their routine pregnancy care (control group, CG). For the purpose of this study we collected clinical and analytical data (heart blood pressure, weight, blood glucose, AST, ALT, blood Creatinine and blood Uric acid) available from all obstetric visits and examined the differences between groups. Results: We did not find any differences in: pregnancy weight (IG: 11.4 ± 4.4 Kg vs. CG: 10.1 ± 5.3 Kg; p = 0.173); fasting glucose at 10+0–12+6 weeks (IG: 78.48±8.34 vs. CG: 76±13.26, p = 0.305) or at 34+0–36+4 weeks (IG: 73.25±10.27 vs CG: 73.45± 8.29,p = 0.920), and 50 gs glucose tolerance at 24+4–26+6weeks (IG: 116.23±35.07 vs CG: 116.36±25.98, p = 0.984); Aspartate-amino-transferase at 10+0–12+6 weeks (IG: 15.38±4.17 vs CG: 17.33±7.05, p = 0.124) and at 34+0–36+4 weeks (IG: 21.65±5.25 vs CG: 19.53±8.32, p = 0.165) or Alanine-amino- transferase at 10+0–12+6 weeks (IG: 27.50±10.63 vs CG: 28.27±11.77, p = 0.746) or at 34+0–36+4 weeks (IG: 22.93±9.23 vs CG: 20.84±13.49, p = 0.407); blood Creatinine concentrations at 34+0–36+4 weeks (IG: 0.595±0.401 vs CG: 0.575±0.100, p = 0.757) and blood uric acid concentrations at 34+0–36+4 weeks (IG: 3.526 ± 0.787 vs CG: 3.262±0.672, p = 0.218). Heart blood pressure was similar between groups except at 27+0–28+6 weeks, where systolic blood pressure was significantly lower in the CG in comparison to the IG (116.31±10.8 mmHg vs. 120.22 ± 10.3 mmHg, p = 0.010). Conclusion: Regular supervised exercise during pregnancy does not alter normal maternal physiologypre-print609 K

Investigating prehistoric diet and lifeways of early farmers in central northern Spain (3000-1500 CAL BC) using stable isotope techniques

This work focuses on reconstructing past diets and animal management during Prehistory in Central Northern Spain, spanning the NE area of the Old Castilian Plateau to the Cantabrian coast, from c. 3000-1500 BCE. During this time, early farming communities made changes in their models of production and social reproduction that crystallised in the emergence of social complexity. To investigate these changes, we reconstructed the past diet of these early farming populations by using stable isotope analysis (?13C, ?15N, ?34S) of human and animal remains from the recently excavated sites of Abrigo de la Castañera in Cantabria and Arroyal I, El Hornazo, Fuente Celada and Ferrocarril-La Dehesa in Burgos. The human remains derived from a range of burial contexts including pit graves, megalithic monuments and burial caves. To provide initial insights into animal management during this timeframe, associated faunal remains were also studied as a baseline. In total, 52 samples were analysed, including 17 human burials and 35 animal specimens (cattle, sheep, pig, red deer and dog). Results show that humans in these sites consumed relatively similar diets, comprising of a predominantly C3 diet including animal protein. Animal management patterns indicate a wider use of the landscape for herbivore grazing. The differing diets of dogs at El Hornazo provide insights into the relationship that they had with humans and tentatively suggests differences in the diet of working animals versus household pets. The ?34S values of two individuals from Arroyal I indicate that they came from different regions, implying a level of inland mobility during the Chalcolithic

Programa Intergeneracional de coaprendizaje: transmisión de valores en la etapa infantil a través de varias generaciones

Memoria ID12-0210. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2012-2013

Herramienta bioinformática para la identificación de motivos conservados en promotores bacterianos

Los factores de transcripción (FTs) son proteínas que se unen a secuencias específicas de ADN llamadas elementos reguladores, que se encuentran generalmente en las regiones promotoras de los genes. Al unirse a estos elementos, pueden activar o reprimir la transcripción génica. En el caso de FTs de amplio espectro, la identificación bioinformática de sus secuencias de unión en los promotores de un genoma permite predecir el conjunto de genes cuya regulación esté relacionada. Recientemente hemos desarrollado una herramienta bioinformática que permite el análisis y la búsqueda de motivos conservados en las regiones promotoras de los genes desregulados (DEGs) que se obtienen al llevar a cabo técnicas transcriptómicas como el RNAseq. Se trata de un flujo (pipeline) de scripts encadenados capaces de ejecutarse sucesivamente y de manera automatizada, gracias a un gestor de flujos desarrollado en la Unidad de Bioinformática de la Universidad de Málaga. El flujo usa como entrada listas de DEGs provenientes de experimentos llevados a cabo en una cepa bacteriana cuyo genoma esté secuenciado. El trabajo se ejecuta de forma paralela para cada una de las listas de DEGs. El primer paso consiste en la generación de un archivo de anotación de los genes de la lista a partir de un archivo de anotación del genoma de la bacteria. A partir del archivo de anotación, se obtiene otro archivo con las coordenadas genómicas de cada uno de los genes y se genera un archivo con las coordenadas de sus promotores, que sirven para obtener las secuencias de los genes y sus promotores en un archivo multifasta. A continuación, el flujo busca en las secuencias promotoras motivos almacenados en una base de datos de la propia plataforma. También permite la búsqueda de motivos de forma dirigida usando un archivo con matrices. Esta herramienta bioinformática está resultando de gran utilidad para la búsqueda de dominios conservados.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec

Evolution soil microbial biodiversity under green cover crops management.

This research has been carried out within the international LIVINGRO® project (Syngenta), and is based on the application of ecological best management practices such as the multifunctional inter-row cover crop in different cropping systems, with the objective to optimize environmental sustainability and reducing the negative impact of intensive conventional agriculture. The study was carried out on selected several plots of stone fruit in different locations in Spain. Soil samples were collected during three years and the effect the inter-row vegetation cover crop can have on microbial biodiversity was studied. The alpha- and beta-diversity analysis was performed at the Prokaryotic (mainly bacteria) and Eukaryotic (fungi) level, and putative microbial indicators of specific vegetation cover management soil were proposed. The results indicate that the evolution of alpha diversity values decreases at the bacterial level and increases at the fungal level over time, while no differences were observed between the ecological and control treatments. The beta diversity results show that in general there is compositional differentiation of populations by sampling time, both at the prokaryotic and eukaryotic levels. And we observed that in each sampling the vegetation cover has an effect on the composition of the bacterial and fungal populations, enriching specific microbial groups that could potentially have a beneficial role for soil and plants.Convenio 8206/631.6286 Syngenta-UMA Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Assessment of Nutritional Status and Its Influence on Ovarian Reserve: A Systematic Review

Background: Nowadays, there is a growing interest in the relationship among lifestyle, reproductive health, and fertility. Recent investigations highlight the influence of environmental and lifestyle factors such as stress, diet, and nutritional status on reproductive health. The aim of this review was to determine the influence of nutritional status on ovarian reserve in order to improve the reproductive health of women of childbearing age. Methods: A systematic literature review was carried out following the PRISMA method. The quality of the studies was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias tool. Data were extracted, and the results were summarized into two blocks: according to the technique used to assess ovarian reserve and nutritional status; according to the results found in the relationship between ovarian reserve and nutritional status. Results: A total of 22 articles involving 5929 women were included. In 12 of the included articles (54.5%), a relationship between nutritional status and ovarian reserve was demonstrated. In seven publications (31.8%), the increased body mass index (BMI) led to a decrease in ovarian reserve, two of them (0.9%) in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome, showing a decrease only if BMI > 25. In two articles (0.9%), there was a negative relationship between ovarian reserve and waist-to-hip ratio, and in one (0.45%), a positive relationship was shown between ovarian reserve and testosterone levels, the latter being related to body mass index. In five articles (22.7%), body mass index was used as a confounder and was negatively related to ovarian reserve, and in another four (18%), no correlation was found. Conclusions: Ovarian reserve appears to be influenced by nutritional status. A high body mass index has a negative impact on the ovary, decreasing antral follicle count and anti-Müllerian hormone. Oocyte quality is compromised, increasing the rate of reproductive problems and the demand for assisted reproductive techniques. Further studies are needed to understand which dietary factors have the greatest effect on ovarian reserve in order to promote reproductive health

Impacts of a hydroinfiltrator rainwater harvesting system on soil moisture regime and groundwater distribution for olive groves in semi-arid Mediterranean regions

Dry periods in semi-arid regions constitute one of the greatest hazardous features that agriculture faces. This study investigates the effects of using a new device called ‘Hydroinfiltrator Rainwater Harvesting System (HRHS) on the water balance of soils. It was designed for arid and semi-arid zones affected by long periods of drought punctuated by heavy rainstorms. The new hydroinfiltrator consists of a net-like shell filled mainly with biochar. It is cylindrical in shape, is placed vertically and is half-buried in the soil around the crop tree to facilitate the infiltration of rainwater, irrigation or runoff water deep into the soil. The experimental plot is located in Baena (Córdoba, southern Spain) in an olive grove where the hydroinfiltrator was installed in 90 olive trees while 10 were left as a control group. In the xeric climate (bordering on arid), typical of the region, soils without a hydroinfiltrator have had a low infiltration rate, which reduces the effectiveness of precipitation and significantly increases the risk of water erosion. The effects of infiltration assisted by the device were analysed by simulating a torrential rain in which 600 L of water were passed through the hydroinfiltrator on an olive tree which had been installed 3 years previously. Geophysical methods (electrical resistivity tomography, ERT), direct analyses of soil samples, both in situ and in the laboratory, and theoretical flow models indicated a very significant increase in soil moisture (which nearly tripled in respect to the control group) because water was absorbed into the soil quickly, preventing runoff and water erosion. The soil moisture at 20 cm depth was 2.97 times higher with the HRHS than in the control plots. In addition, olive production increased by 211% and was higher in fat yield by 177%. Moreover, the resistivity profiles, taken by ERT showed that the water that entered the soil accumulated in the root zone of the olive tree, encouraged by the preferential pathways created by the roots and away from the surface, which prevented rapid evaporation during the high temperatures of spring and summer. Here we show for the first time that the use of the hydroinfiltrator rainwater harvesting system represents a significant improvement in the use of scarce water resources caused by climate change, providing agronomic and environmental benefits for rainfed, Mediterranean agricultural systems

Influence of the Mediterranean diet on seminal quality—a systematic review

Currently, there is a growing interest in the study of fertility because fertility-related problems affect up to 15% of the world’s population. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of the Mediterranean diet on seminal quality in men of reproductive age. For this purpose, a systematic review of the literature was carried out following the PRISMA method. Electronic searches were carried out in the international databases PubMed, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. In total, 10 articles with 2032 men were included. As inclusion criteria, articles published between 2012 and 2022 were selected, including those that included men aged between 18 and 55 years. Nutritional status was assessed through weight, height, and BMI. Dietary habits were evaluated through different indexes and food frequency questionnaires, and finally, semen quality was evaluated by measuring sperm concentration and motility (progressive and non-progressive). In six (60%) of the included articles, a positive relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and semen quality was demonstrated; in two (20%) of the articles, no association was found; and finally, in two (20%) of the included articles, the relationship between dietary patterns typical of DM and semen quality was evaluated. Dietary habits influence semen quality. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet can improve male reproductive health, as it is a diet with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. This is the first systematic review about the influence of the Mediterranean diet on semen quality, and the results are positive. These findings may allow us to provide better advice to our patients and to establish interventions with the aim of improving the results of assisted reproduction techniques