Conservation status and updated census of Patella ferruginea (Gastropoda, Patellidae) in Ceuta: distribution patterns and new evidence of the effects of environmental parameters on population structure

The Strait of Gibraltar has important populations of the highly endangered patellid limpet Patella ferruginea. Between 2006 and 2010, an exhaustive census was carried out in Ceuta. The total coastline was divided into 17 sectors. The coast of each sector was examined by using 10 m transects. For the case of those sectors composed of breakwaters, jetties or islets, no transects were used, and instead, the total number of individuals was recorded. Each individual was measured to the nearest millimetre using a calliper. Moreover, the complete rocky shore length where the species could potentially be present was calculated, and an estimation of the total number of individuals that each sector could host was made. Results indicate that Ceuta could be home to around 44,000 individuals. The species found in Point Benzú, its westernmost limit of distribution on the North African coasts. The largest populations were recorded on the South Bay, with higher Mediterranean influence. Our results indicate that substrate roughness (topographic heterogeneity) and the area’s accessibility highly influence the abundance and population structure. Those populations located on high topographic heterogeneity substrates show higher recruitment rates and lower percentages of larger individuals, while medium to low rugosity surfaces presented the opposite pattern. Additionally, easily accessible areas (and frequented by humans) presented smaller average shell sizes. Implications of the results for conservation purposes are discussed

El acceso a los servicios de salud bucodental para la población adulta mayor en la red hospitalaria pública de Medellín (Colombia)

Antecedentes/Objetivos: La población adulta mayor es un grupo poblacional significativo teniendo en cuenta los cambios demográficos de las últimas décadas. En el país y en la ciudad de Medellín, este grupo presenta alta vulnerabilidad social, así mismo se observan necesidades en salud bucal, descritas en los estudios nacionales y regionales en el tema. Aunque se han realizado investigaciones que tratan de identificar determinantes que afectan el acceso y la utilización de los servicios de salud, los estudios en salud bucal son más escasos y en especial en la población adulta mayor. Objetivo: identificar barreras y facilitadores de acceso a los servicios de salud bucal en población adulta mayor atendida en la red hospitalaria pública de Medellín desde la perspectiva del personal de salud. Métodos: Estudio cualitativo. Se realizaron 34 entrevistas semiestructuradas en personal que presta servicios de salud en la red Metrosalud de Medellín. Se identificaron barreras y facilitadores según el modelo de Tanahashi sobre cobertura en los servicios de salud a través de 4 categorías: disponibilidad (D), accesibilidad (A), aceptabilidad (P) y contacto con el servicio (C). Se utilizó la herramienta informática AtlasTi. Resultados: Se identificaron barreras relacionadas con: dificultades en la implementación de políticas sociales debido a que la salud bucal no es una prioridad; se han priorizado otras poblaciones para dar atención en salud bucal y existe insuficiente recurso humano para prestar los servicios de salud (D); la situación de discapacidad de los adultos mayores (A); aspectos educativos, culturales y de género (P); y la crisis del sector salud como una barrera estructural del sistema (C). En cuanto a los facilitadores se mencionan: la existencia de programas que facilitan la demanda inducida a programas de salud bucal y de mecanismos para hacer valer los derechos en salud a través de instancias gubernamentales y otras (D); la ubicación de las unidades y centros de salud en zonas de fácil acceso (A); la capacidad de los profesionales para atender esta población (P) y la articulación de la odontología con otras áreas (C). Conclusiones: Se identificaron determinantes que afectan el acceso a servicios sanitarios en la población adulta mayor, por lo que se requieren estrategias para mejorar la calidad de la atención en salud bucal en este grupo socialmente vulnerable.E.S.E Metrosalud. Medellín (Código: C02-E11-L3-01)

Proper cytoskeleton α‐tubulin distribution is concomitant to tyrosine phosphorylation during in vitro capacitation and acrosomal reaction in human spermatozoa

Spermatozoa motility is a key parameter during the fertilization process. In this context, spermatozoa tyrosine protein phosphorylation and an appropriate cytoskeleton α‐tubulin distribution are some of the most important physiological events involved in motility. However, the relationship between these two biomarkers remains poorly defined. Here, we characterized simultaneously by immunocytochemistry the α‐tubulin (TUBA4A) distribution and the tyrosine phosphorylation at flagellum before capacitation, during different capacitation times (1 and 4 hr), and after acrosome reaction induction in human spermatozoa. We found that the absence of spermatozoa phosphorylation in tyrosine residues positively and significantly correlated (p < 0.05) with the terminal piece α‐tubulin flagellar distribution in all physiological conditions. Conversely, we observed a positive significant correlation (p < 0.01) between phosphorylated spermatozoa and continuous α‐tubulin distribution in spermatozoa flagellum, independently of the physiological condition. Similarly, the subpopulation of spermatozoa with tyrosine phosphorylated and continuous α‐tubulin increases with longer capacitation times and after the acrosome reaction induction. Overall, these findings provide novel insights into the post‐transcriptional physiological events associated to α‐tubulin and the tyrosine phosphorylation during fertilization, which present potential implications for the improvement of spermatozoa selection methods.This research was supported by Human Fertility Cathedra of the University of Alicante, VIOGROB-186, and the project of the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness AGL2015-70159-P

The effects of male social environment on sperm phenotype and genome integrity

Sperm function and quality are primary determinants of male reproductive performance and hence fitness. The presence of rival males has been shown to affect ejaculate and sperm traits in a wide range of taxa. However, male physiological conditions may not only affect sperm phenotypic traits but also their genetic and epigenetic signatures, affecting the fitness of the resulting offspring. We investigated the effects of male-male competition on sperm quality using TUNEL assays and geometric morphometrics in the zebrafish, Danio rerio. We found that the sperm produced by males exposed to high male-male competition had smaller heads but larger midpiece and flagellum than sperm produced by males under low competition. Head and flagella also appeared less sensitive to the osmotic stress induced by activation with water. In addition, more sperm showed signals of DNA damage in ejaculates of males under high competition. These findings suggest that the presence of a rival male may have positive effects on phenotypic traits but negative effects on DNA integrity. Overall, males facing the presence of rival males may produce faster swimming and more competitive sperm but this may come at a cost for the next generation. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

The deep inferior epigastric artery perforator flap: a review

Breast cancer is recognized worldwide as a major health problem among women due to its high incidence and high mortality and morbidity rates. Breast reconstruction is an approach of great value for those patients who underwent mastectomy, impacting their quality of life and psychological stress. The deep inferior epigastric artery perforator (DIEP) flap was described as the preferred graft for breast reconstruction with an autologous flap by surgeons because it represented a decrease in complications for the time and obtained better results. DIEP flap reconstruction requires microsurgical skills as well as continuous monitoring of the patient to identify and resolve possible associated complications.

CONOCIMIENTO QUE TIENEN SOBRE EL CLIMATERIO MUJERES ENTRE 40-64 AÑOS USUARIAS DE ATENCIÓN PRIMARIA

Objetivo: Determinar el grado de conocimiento de la fase del climaterio y su relación con el nivel de instrucción que tiene un grupo de mujeres de 40-64 años usuarias de atención primaria. Método: La muestra de tipo probabilística compuesta por 150 mujeres de 40 a 64 años, a quienes se aplicó una encuesta validada de preguntas de alternativas múltiples, puntuadas para su evaluación. Las variables estudiadas fueron divididas en tres grupos: a) aquellas que definen el perfil sociodemográfico de las mujeres; b) variables relacionadas con el grado de conocimientos de causas, síntomas, tratamientos, cuidados, cambios en la salud y calidad de vida de la etapa climatérica; c) fuentes de información del conocimiento. El análisis de estas variables se realizó a través de la determinación de medidas de tendencia central y la prueba de Kruskal-Wallis, con un p<0,05. Resultados: El perfil de las mujeres en este estudio fue: edad promedio 51,89 ± 7,35 años, 52% casadas, 52% previsión FONASA-A (pobreza e indigencia) y 60% con educación media incompleta. Solo el 11% de la población encuestada refirió haber asistido a talleres del tema, y un 40% refirió haber recibido información de médicos y/o matronas. En relación al conocimiento general de la población sobre la etapa climatérica, un 72% tiene un nivel medio y un 2% nivel bajo de conocimiento, respectivamente. Conclusiones: No existe relación estadísticamente significativa entre el grado de conocimiento sobre la etapa climatérica y la edad de las mujeres en el estudio, así como tampoco por la adquisición de información de fuentes válidas, pero sí con el nivel educacional de las misma

The correlation between immune subtypes and consensus molecular subtypes in colorectal cancer identifies novel tumour microenvironment profiles, with prognostic and therapeutic implications

Background Solid tumour growth is the consequence of a complex interplay between cancer cells and their microenvironment. Recently, a new global transcriptomic immune classification of solid tumours has identified six immune subtypes (ISs) (C1–C6). Our aim was to specifically characterise ISs in colorectal cancer (CRC) and assess their interplay with the consensus molecular subtypes (CMSs). Methods Clinical and molecular information, including CMSs and ISs, were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) (N = 625). Immune cell populations, differential gene expression and gene set enrichment analysis were performed to characterise ISs in the global CRC population by using CMSs. Results Only 5 ISs were identified in CRC, predominantly C1 wound healing (77%) and C2 IFN-γ dominant (17%). CMS1 showed the highest proportion of C2 (53%), whereas C1 was particularly dominant in CMS2 (91%). CMS3 had the highest representation of C3 inflammatory (7%) and C4 lymphocyte depleted ISs (4%), whereas all C6 TGF-β dominant cases belonged to CMS4 (2.3%). Prognostic relevance of ISs in CRC substantially differed from that reported for the global TCGA, and ISs had a greater ability to stratify the prognosis of CRC patients than CMS classification. C2 had higher densities of CD8, CD4 activated, follicular helper T cells, regulatory T cells and neutrophils and the highest M1/M2 polarisation. C2 had a heightened activation of pathways related to the immune system, apoptosis and DNA repair, mTOR signalling and oxidative phosphorylation, whereas C1 was more dependent of metabolic pathways. Conclusions The correlation of IS and CMS allows a more precise categorisation of patients with relevant clinical and biological implications, which may be valuable tools to improve tailored therapeutic interventions in CRC patients.This work was funded by projects DTS15/00157 , PI16/01827 and CIBER-ONC CB16/12/00442 from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III ( Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness, Spain ) and cofunded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF, European Union), and approved by the Ethics Committee or our Institution. BS is funded by AECC (Spain). MCR is funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III and SEOM (Spain) CCP and BRC are funded by CAM (Programa de Empleo Juvenil (YEI)

Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma of the appendix stump: a case report

Primary lymphomas of the appendix occur in 0.015% of all gastrointestinal lymphomas. The most common manifestation is acute appendicitis secondary to luminal obstruction. The most common is immunophenotype B low-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma. A 53-year-old male, with a previous three-week surgical history due to acute appendicitis, histopathological report of acute appendicitis and lymphoid hyperplasia. Later, he was admitted, with abdominal pain in the right iliac fossa, an abdominal ultrasound and simple abdominal tomography were performed, with suspicion of residual abscess. Surgical intervention is decided, observing paracecal tumor in the emergency site of the appendix, the tumor is removed. Pathological study that reports an appendicular base infiltrated by mucosa-associated lymphoma. The diagnosis of appendicular tumors is mostly, intraoperatively incidental. It is necessary to have the diagnostic possibility when performing an appendectomy, since it changes the prognosis and treatment of the patient

Solar energetic electron events measured by MESSENGER and Solar Orbiter. Peak intensity and energy spectrum radial dependences: statistical analysis

Context/Aims: We present a list of 61 solar energetic electron (SEE) events measured by the MESSENGER mission and the radial dependences of the electron peak intensity and the peak-intensity energy spectrum. The analysis comprises the period from 2010 to 2015, when MESSENGER heliocentric distance varied between 0.31 and 0.47 au. We also show the radial dependencies for a shorter list of 12 SEE events measured in February and March 2022 by spacecraft near 1 au and by Solar Orbiter around its first close perihelion at 0.32 au. Results: Due to the elevated background intensity level of the particle instrument on board MESSENGER, the SEE events measured by this mission are necessarily large and intense; most of them accompanied by a CME-driven shock, being widespread in heliolongitude, and displaying relativistic ($\sim$1 MeV) electron intensity enhancements. The two main conclusions derived from the analysis of the large SEE events measured by MESSENGER, which are generally supported by Solar Orbiter's data results, are: (1) There is a wide variability in the radial dependence of the electron peak intensity between $\sim$0.3 au and $\sim$1 au, but the peak intensities of the energetic electrons decrease with radial distance from the Sun in 27 out of 28 events. On average and within the uncertainties, we find a radial dependence consistent with $R^{-3}$. (2) The electron spectral index found in the energy range around 200 keV ($\delta$200) of the backward-scattered population near 0.3 au measured by MESSENGER is harder in 19 out of 20 (15 out of 18) events by a median factor of $\sim$20% ($\sim$10%) when comparing to the anti-sunward propagating beam (backward-scattered population) near 1 au.Comment: 20 pages, 13 figure