Soil-plant relationship in Calluna heathlands after experimental burning and nitrogen fertilization, studies from NW Spain

We studied changes in the relationship between soil nutrient content and plant species richness in Calluna heathlands after seven years of experimental burning (B) and nitrogen fertilization (NF). Our results indicate that both the treatments (B, NF, B+NF) and modification of several soil characteristics (total N, available Na, and C:N ratio) reflected in a significant increase in plant species richness

Los patrones alimentarios y carencias sociales ponen en riesgo de desnutrición a los preescolares de zonas rurales

Infant malnutrition is an ongoing multi-causal problem with serious consequences for individual and public health worldwide. Preschool children in rural areas represent the most vulnerable group; however, there is no research focused on micro-regions to provide accurate information about their nutritional status and underlying causes. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of infant malnutrition in Tochimilco, Puebla, and to specify the factors that influence nutritional status, both internal and external. A nutritional evaluation based on anthropometry and clinical and dietary history was carried out on 61 preschoolers; a semi-structured questionnaire was applied to 38 children from this population to analyze social and environmental variables that referred to descriptive and multivariate statistics. It was found that 51% are at risk of malnutrition, 48% manifest height/age deficit and 35% are underweight. Furthermore, the type of rural/urban locality influenced nutritional status; government support also related to weight/height and weight/age, with particular reference to the scholarship program. Eating patterns provide sufficient energy and macronutrients, but of very poor quality. In conclusion, the infant population of Tochimilco is at greater risk of malnutrition than reported and the most efficient strategy to eradicate this is not only to improve living conditions and social deficiencies, but to include the component of nutritional education.La desnutrición infantil es un problema actual multicausal y con consecuencias graves en la salud individual y pública a nivel mundial. Los niños preescolares de zonas, rurales son el grupo más vulnerable; sin embargo, no existen investigaciones enfocadas en microrregiones que aporten información veraz sobre su estado nutricional y las causas subyacentes. El objetivo de este estudio, fue determinar la prevalencia de desnutrición infantil en Tochimilco, Puebla, y precisar los determinantes que influyen en el estado nutricional, tanto internos como externos. Se realizó una evaluación nutricional con antropometría, historia clínica y dietética a 61 preescolares; se aplicó un cuestionario semiestructurado a 38 niños de esta población, para analizar variables sociales y ambientales con estadística descriptiva y multivariada. Se encontró que 51% se encuentran en riesgo de desnutrición, 48% presentan déficit de talla/edad y 35% padece bajo peso. Además, el tipo de localidad rural/urbana influyó en el estado nutricional; el apoyo gubernamental, también se asoció con el peso/talla y peso/ edad, especialmente el programa de becas. Los patrones de alimentación, aportan energía y macronutrimentos suficientes, pero de muy mala calidad. En conclusión, la población infantil de Tochimilco está en riesgo de desnutrición mayor al reportado y la estrategia más eficiente para erradicarla, no sólo es mejorar las condiciones de vida y carencias sociales, sino incluir el componente de educación para la alimentación

Soil-plant relationship in Calluna heathlands after experimental burning and nitrogen fertilization, studies from NW Spain

[EN] We studied changes in the relationship between soil nutrient content and plant species richness in Calluna heathlands after seven years of experimental burning (B) and nitrogen fertilization (NF). Our results indicate that both the treatments (B, NF, B+NF) and modification of several soil characteristics (total N, available Na, and C:N ratio) reflected in a significant increase in plant species richnessS

Disruption of trophic interactions involving the heather beetle by atmospheric nitrogen deposition

P. 436-445Elevated nitrogen (N) deposition impacts the structure and functioning of heathland ecosystems across Europe. Calluna plants under high N-inputs are very sensitive to secondary stress factors, including defoliation attacks by the heather beetle. These attacks result in serious damage or death of Calluna, its rapid replacement by grasses, and the subsequent loss of heathland. We know very little about the mechanisms that control the populations and trigger outbreaks of the heather beetle, impeding proper management measures to mitigate the damage. We investigated the effects of N deposition on the relationships between the heather beetle, its host plant, and two arthropod predators at building (rejuvenated through fire) and mature heathlands. The study combines field manipulation experiments simulating a range of N deposition rates (0, 1, 2, 5 g N m−2 year−1 for 2 years, and 5.6 g N m−2 year−1 for 10 years), and food-choice laboratory experiments testing the preferences of adults and larvae of the heather beetle for N-treated Calluna plants, and the preferences of predators for larvae grown on plants with different N-content. The larvae of the heather beetle achieved the highest abundances after the long-term (10-year) addition of N at mature Calluna plots in the field. Contrary to the adults, the larvae foraged preferentially on the most N-rich Calluna shoots under laboratory conditions. Predators showed no aggregative numerical responses to the accumulation of heather beetle larvae at high N-input experimental plots. During the feeding trials, predators consumed a small number of larvae, both in total and per individual, and systematically avoided eating the larvae reared on high-N Calluna shoots. Our study showed that the most severe defoliation damage by the heather beetle is inflicted at the larval stage under prolonged availability of high-N inputs, and that arthropod predators might not act as effective regulators of the beetle's populations.S

The role of prescribed fire in the provision of regulating ecosystem services of Spanish heathlands

We provide a synthesis of evidence of the effects of burning and N deposition on the provision of regulating ecosystem services of Cantabrian heathlands (NW Spain). We quantified carbon sequestration in litter, above and belowground biomass, root and soil compartments in heathlands after burning and burning plus N fertilization

Pancreatic cancer

Cáncer de páncreasCàncer de pàncreesPancreatic cancerThe need for a common education and training track in surgical oncology across Europe has been emphasized. ESSO provides several hands-on courses for skills training and face-to-face discussions. The core curriculum provides a framework for the overall theoretical requirements in surgical oncology. The UEMS/EBSQ fellowship exam is designed to test core competencies in the candidate's core knowledge in their prespecified area of expertise. A core set of points for each cancer type is lacking. Hence, a condensed outline of themed expected to be covered in the curriculum and relevant to an optimal practice in surgical oncology is provided. This article outlines pancreatic cancer

Plant and vegetation functional responses to cumulative high nitrogen deposition in rear-edge heathlands

P. 980-990Elevated atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition is a major driver of change, altering the structure/functioning of nutrient-poor Calluna vulgaris-heathlands over Europe. These effects amply proven for north-western/central heathlands may, however, vary across the ecosystem's distribution, especially at the range limits, as heathlands are highly vulnerable to land-use changes combined with present climate change. This is an often overlooked and greatly understudied aspect of the ecology of heathlands facing global change. We investigated the effects of five N-fertilisation treatments simulating a range of N deposition rates (0, 10, 20, and 50 kg N ha−1 yr−1 for 1 year; and 56 kg N ha−1 yr−1 for 9 years) on the Calluna-plants, the plant functional groups, species composition and richness of two life-cycle stages (building/young- and mature-phase) of Calluna-heathlands at their rear-edge limit. Our findings revealed a dose-related response of the shoot length and number of flowers of young and mature Calluna-plants to the addition of N, adhering to the findings from other heathland locations. However, cumulative high-N loading reduced the annual growth and flowering of young plants, showing early signs of N saturation. The different plant functional groups showed contrasting responses to the cumulative addition of N: annual/perennial forbs and annual graminoids increased with quite low values; perennial graminoids were rather abundant in young heathlands but only slightly augmented in mature ones; while bryophytes and lichens strongly declined at the two heathland life-cycle stages. Meanwhile there were no significant N-driven changes in plant species composition and richness. Our results demonstrated that Calluna-heathlands at their low-latitude distribution limit are moderately resistant to cumulative high-N loading. As north-western/central European heathlands under high-N inputs broadly experienced the loss of plant diversity and pronounced changes in plant species dominance, rear-edge locations may be of critical importance to unravel the mechanisms of heathland resilience to future global change.S

Interactions between large high-severity fires and salvage logging on a short return interval reduce the regrowth of fire-prone serotinous forests

P. 54-63New fire disturbance regimes under accelerating global environmental change can have unprecedented consequences for ecosystem resilience, lessening ecosystem natural regeneration. In the Mediterranean Basin, fire-dependent obligate seeder forests that are prone to increasingly frequent stand-replacing fires and then salvaged logged repeatedly can be vulnerable to additional disturbances for decades. In this study, we investigated, for the first time, the cumulative and interactive effects of two large high-severity fires at a short (<15-year) return interval and the subsequent burned timber harvesting with biomass removal on the post-disturbance recovery of such forests. We further assessed the type and amount of the material legacies (deadwood) that persisted through the different post-disturbance successional trajectories, as well as the influence of these legacies on forest regeneration. The early recovery of the studied forests after two consecutive large fires and post-fire logging was, in the first place, driven by fire repetition, which led to reduced seedling recruitment and enhanced regrowth of resprouter shrubs. Despite no interactive effects between fire and logging were detected after a single large fire event, two repeated fires followed by salvage harvesting had a greater negative impact than two fires alone (synergistic effects) on seedling establishment; while a lower positive impact (subadditive effects) on the recovery of resprouter shrubs. There was also an interaction modification effect in which fire repetition worsened the per-unit impact of salvage logging on forest regeneration. Nonetheless, the residual legacies, i.e., fine and coarse woody debris (unburned needles, downed branches, pieces of deadwood, and burned pine cones) that remained after the manual harvesting of the burned trees, aided seedling re-establishment and hindered the regrowth of the shrubby understorey. These findings indicate that high-intensity salvage logging after two large high-severity fires at a short return interval is inadvisable in fire-prone serotinous pine forests, unless it explicitly retains the key material legacies that help tree natural regeneration and enhance ecosystem resilience to the next disturbance.S

Programa Seguridad Basada en el Comportamiento y su Relación con la Salud Ocupacional en el Personal del Proyecto Water Line – Quellaveco de la Empresa Santo Domingo Contratistas Generales, Moquegua - 2017

La presente investigación tiene como propósito identificar la relación entre el programa seguridad basada en el comportamiento y la salud ocupacional en el personal del Proyecto Water Line – Quellaveco de la Empresa Santo Domingo Contratistas Generales, Moquegua – 2017. El estudio es de tipo descriptivo y sigue el diseño descriptivo correlacional, se trabajó con una muestra de 110 trabajadores, los instrumentos aplicados fueron el cuestionario para evaluar el programa seguridad basado en el comportamiento y el cuestionario para evaluar la salud ocupacional. Los resultados evidencian que existe una correlación positiva regular entre las variables de estudio: Programa de seguridad basado en el comportamiento y Salud ocupacional r = 0,526, que demuestra a un buen nivel de desarrollo del programa seguridad basado en el comportamiento le corresponde un alto nivel de salud ocupacional; a un deficiente nivel de desarrollo del programa de seguridad basado en el comportamiento le corresponde un bajo nivel de salud ocupacional. Palabras clave: Programa Seguridad Basada en el Comportamiento, salud ocupacional.Tesi