The relative dependence of Spanish landscape pattern on environmental and geographical variables over time

The analysis of the dependence of landscape patterns on environment was carried out in order to investigate the landscape structure evolution of Spain. The underlying concept was that the dependence between landscape spatial structure and environmental factors could be gradually decreasing over time. Land cover data were recorded from aerial photo interpretation of 206 4 x 4 km(2) samples from three different years: 1956, 1984 and 1998. Geographical variables were taken into consideration together with the purely environmental ones. General Linear Models of repeated measures were then used to segregate environmental from geographical effects on the pattern of the land cover patches of the samples. Aridity, lithology and topography were the environmental factors used to analyse structural indices of landscape. Landscape composition has a higher dependence on environment than configuration. Environmental variables showed higher correlations with landscape composition and configuration than geographical variables. Ail-long them, overall the climatic aridity and topography significantly accounted for more variation than did lithology. There was a high degree of stability in land cover composition over time, with some significant exceptions. Nevertheless, the registered increase of fragmentation over time has demonstrated that configuration measures are needed to fully assess landscape change

Knowledge and beliefs on vaccines among a sample of Italian pregnant women: results from the NAVIDAD study

BACKGROUND: Vaccine hesitancy is an emerging phenomenon in European countries and leads to decreasing trends in infant vaccine coverage. The aim of this study was to analyze the level of confidence and correct awareness about immunizations, which are crucial for the success of vaccination programmes. METHODS: As part of the NAVIDAD multicentre study, we examined vaccination confidence and complacency among a sample of 1820 pregnant women from 14 Italian cities. The questionnaire assessed the interviewee's knowledge, beliefs and misconceptions, as well as their socioeconomic status, information sources about vaccines and confidence in the Italian National Healthcare Service. RESULTS: Only 9% of women completely believed to the efficacy, necessity and safety of vaccinations. Almost 20% of them had misconceptions on most of the themes. There was a significant difference in the level of knowledge considering educational level: women with a high educational level have less probability of obtaining a low knowledge score (odds ratio (OR) 0.43 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.34-0.54]). The level of knowledge was also influenced by the sources of information: women who received information from their general practitioner (GP) and from institutional websites had a significantly lower chance of having misconceptions (OR 0.74 [95% CI 0.58-0.96]; OR 0.59 [95% CI 0.46-0.74]). Finally, the results underlined the influence of trust in healthcare professional information on the likelihood of having misconceptions (OR 0.49 [95% CI 0.27-0.89]). CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest the efficacy of GPs and institutional websites as a source of information to contrast misconceptions and underline the importance of confidence in the healthcare system to increase complacency and confidence in vaccines

Lymphovascular and perineural invasion as selection criteria for adjuvant therapy in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: a multi-institution analysis

AbstractObjectivesCriteria for the selection of patients for adjuvant chemotherapy in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (IHCC) are lacking. Some authors advocate treating patients with lymph node (LN) involvement; however, nodal assessment is often inadequate or not performed. This study aimed to identify surrogate criteria based on characteristics of the primary tumour.MethodsA total of 58 patients who underwent resection for IHCC between January 2000 and January 2010 at any of three institutions were identified. Primary outcome was overall survival (OS).ResultsMedian OS was 23.0months. Median tumour size was 6.5cm and the median number of lesions was one. Overall, 16% of patients had positive margins, 38% had perineural invasion (PNI), 40% had lymphovascular invasion (LVI) and 22% had LN involvement. A median of two LNs were removed and a median of zero were positive. Lymph nodes were not sampled in 34% of patients. Lymphovascular and perineural invasion were associated with reduced OS [9.6months vs. 32.7months (P= 0.020) and 10.7months vs. 32.7months (P= 0.008), respectively]. Lymph node involvement indicated a trend towards reduced OS (10.7months vs. 30.0months; P= 0.063). The presence of either LVI or PNI in node-negative patients was associated with a reduction in OS similar to that in node-positive patients (12.1months vs. 10.7months; P= 0.541). After accounting for adverse tumour factors, only LVI and PNI remained associated with decreased OS on multivariate analysis (hazard ratio4.07, 95% confidence interval 1.60–10.40; P= 0.003).ConclusionsLymphovascular and perineural invasion are separately associated with a reduction in OS similar to that in patients with LN-positive disease. As nodal dissection is often not performed and the number of nodes retrieved is frequently inadequate, these tumour-specific factors should be considered as criteria for selection for adjuvant chemotherapy

Author correction : roadmap for naming uncultivated archaea and bacteria

Correction to: Nature Microbiology https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-020-0733-x , published online 8 June 2020. In the version of this Consensus Statement originally published, Pablo Yarza was mistakenly not included in the author list. Also, in Supplementary Table 1, Alexander Jaffe was missing from the list of endorsees. These errors have now been corrected and the updated Supplementary Table 1 is available online

Roadmap for naming uncultivated Archaea and Bacteria

The assembly of single-amplified genomes (SAGs) and metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) has led to a surge in genome-based discoveries of members affiliated with Archaea and Bacteria, bringing with it a need to develop guidelines for nomenclature of uncultivated microorganisms. The International Code of Nomenclature of Prokaryotes (ICNP) only recognizes cultures as ‘type material’, thereby preventing the naming of uncultivated organisms. In this Consensus Statement, we propose two potential paths to solve this nomenclatural conundrum. One option is the adoption of previously proposed modifications to the ICNP to recognize DNA sequences as acceptable type material; the other option creates a nomenclatural code for uncultivated Archaea and Bacteria that could eventually be merged with the ICNP in the future. Regardless of the path taken, we believe that action is needed now within the scientific community to develop consistent rules for nomenclature of uncultivated taxa in order to provide clarity and stability, and to effectively communicate microbial diversity