Medio físico y corredores naturales: notas sobre el poblamiento paleolítico del País Valenciano

Aquest treball pretén ser una reflexió sobre les relacions entre el medi físic i el poblament humà del País Valencia anterior a la implantació del neolític (ca. 500.000 - 7.000 BP). A partir de les seues característiques físiques i estructurals, s'analitzen els eixos regionals, comarcals i locals que han pogut vertebrar la comunicació regional i extraregional dels grups cagadors-recol•lectors prehistòrics. Incorporar a aquesta discussió les característiques dels jaciments i els conjunts faunístics associats, permet de valorar les seues variacions diacròniques en retació amb l'ocupació de diferents entorns.This piece of research is intended to be a reflection on the relations between the physical medium and the human settlement in the Valencian Country, previous to the introduction of Neolithic (circa 500.000-7.000 BP). In accordance with their physical and structural features, we analyze the regional, district area and local axes which have made it possible to link the regional and extraregional communication of the groups of prehistoric hunters and gatherers. The addition of the characteristics of the archaeological sites and their associated faunal whole to the present discussion enable us to value their diachronic variations as related to the ocupation of different environmentsEste trabajo pretende ser una reflexión sobre las relaciones entre el medio físico y el poblamiento humano del País Valenciano anterior a la implantación del Neolítico (ca. 500.000 - 7.000 BP). A partir de sus características físicas y estructurales se analizan aquellos ejes regionales, comarcales y locales que han podido vertebrar la comunicación regional y extraregional de los grupos cazadores-recolectores prehistóricos. La incorporación a esta discusión de las características de los yacimientos y de los conjuntos faunísticos asociados, permiten valorar sus variaciones diacrónicas en relación con la ocupación de diferentes entomos

El Paleolítico Medio en el territorio valenciano y la variabilidad tecno-económica de la Cova del Bolomor

En el presente artículo se exponen las principales características de las industrias líticas del Paleolítico Medio en el territorio valenciano. Se hace especial hincapié en la variabilidad tecno-económica observada en la secuencia estratigráfica de la Cova del Bolomor. Con dicho análisis se pretende contribuir al establecimiento de los rasgos evolutivos de las industrias asociadas a los grupos de neandertales. En este sentido, el estudio pone de manifiesto que en estas sociedades se produjo, en los momentos finales, cierto progreso tecnológico, en un contexto arqueológico en el que es difícil precisar si hubo, o no, influencia externa o aculturación por parte de las poblaciones de cromañones en el territorio valenciano.En el present article s'exposen les principals característiques de les indústries lítiques del Paleolític Mitjà en el territori valencià. Es posa especial atenció a la variabilitat tecno-econòmica observada en la seqüència estratigràfica de la Cova del Bolomor. Amb aquesta anàlisi es pretén contribuir a l'establiment dels trets evolutius de les indústries associades als grups de neandertals. En aquest sentit, l'estudi posa de manifest que en aquestes societats es va produir, en els moments finals, un cert progrés tecnològic, en un context arqueològic en el qual és difícil precisar si va haver-hi, o no, influència externa o aculturació per part de les poblacions de cromanyons en el territori valencià.Dans l'article ci-dessous, s'exposent les principales caractéristiques des industries lithiques du Paléolithique Moyen dans le territoire valencien. On veut mettre en relief la variabilité techno-économique observée dans la séquence stratigraphique de la Cova del Bolomor. Avec cette analyse, on cherche à établir les traits évolutifs des industries associées aux groupes néandertaliens. Dans ce sens, l'étude met en relief que ces sociétés ont probablement connu, dans un dernier temps, un certain progrès technologique, dans un contexte archéologique où il est difficile de préciser s'il y a eu ou pas une influence externe ou une acculturation venue des populations cromagnones dans la région de Valence.In this paper main characteristics of the Middle Palaeolithic lithic industries from the territory of Valencia are presented. Particular attention is paid to the techno-economical variability of the archaeological record in Cova del Bolomor. This study aims to discuss the evolutionary features of Neanderthal industries; our analysis shows that there was some technological progress at the end of the Middle Palaeolithic, in an archaeological context in which it is uncertain whether or not there was external influence or acculturation from Cro-Magnon populations in the valencian territory

Design and validation of the INCUE questionnaire: assessment of primary healthcare nurses’ basic training needs in palliative care

Many instruments have been created to measure knowledge and attitudes in palliative care. However, not only is it important to acquire knowledge, but also that this knowledge should reach patients and their relatives through application in clinical practice. This study aimed to develop and psychometrically test the INCUE questionnaire (Investigación Cuidados Enfermeros/Investigation into Nurses’ Care Understanding of End-of-Life) to assess the basic training needs of primary or home healthcare nurses in palliative care. A questionnaire was developed based on the classical theory of tests and factor analysis models. Initially, 18 experts developed 67 items in two blocks and determined content validity by two rounds of expert panels. Exploratory factor analysis and reliability testing were conducted with a non-probabilistic sample of 370 nurses. Some items were observed to have very low homogeneity indices or presented convergence problems and were eliminated. Questionnaire reliability was 0.700 in the theoretical block (KR20 Index) and 0.941 in the practical block (Cronbach’s alpha). The model converges and shows an adequate fit, specifically CFI = 0.977, TLI = 0.977 and RMSEA = 0.05. The correlation between the two factors in the model is ρ = 0.63. The questionnaire objectively evaluates primary or home healthcare nurses’ knowledge of palliative care and its practical application, thereby facilitating more efficient training plans

Paediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder and depressive symptoms: clinical correlates and CBT treatment outcomes.

Depression frequently co-occurs with paediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), yet the clinical correlates and impact of depression on CBT outcomes remain unclear. The prevalence and clinical correlates of depression were examined in a paediatric specialist OCD-clinic sample (N = 295; Mean = 15 [7 - 18] years, 42 % female), using both dimensional (Beck Depression Inventory-youth; n = 261) and diagnostic (Development and Wellbeing Assessment; n = 127) measures of depression. The impact of depressive symptoms and suspected disorders on post-treatment OCD severity was examined in a sub-sample who received CBT, with or without SSRI medication (N = 100). Fifty-one per-cent of patients reported moderately or extremely elevated depressive symptoms and 26 % (95 % CI: 18 - 34) met criteria for a suspected depressive disorder. Depressive symptoms and depressive disorders were associated with worse OCD symptom severity and global functioning prior to CBT. Individuals with depression were more likely to be female, have had a psychiatric inpatient admission and less likely to be attending school (ps < 0.01). OCD and depressive symptom severity significantly decreased after CBT. Depressive symptoms and depressive disorders predicted worse post-treatment OCD severity (βs = 0.19 and 0.26, ps < 0.05) but became non-significant when controlling for pre-treatment OCD severity (βs = 0.05 and 0.13, ns). Depression is common in paediatric OCD and is associated with more severe OCD and poorer functioning. However, depression severity decreases over the course of CBT for OCD and is not independently associated with worse outcomes, supporting the recommendation for treatment as usual in the presence of depressive symptoms

Contribution of CSF biomarkers to early-onset Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia neuroimaging signatures

Prior studies have described distinct patterns of brain gray matter and white matter alterations in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), as well as differences in their cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers profiles. We aim to investigate the relationship between early‐onset AD (EOAD) and FTLD structural alterations and CSF biomarker levels. We included 138 subjects (64 EOAD, 26 FTLD, and 48 controls), all of them with a 3T MRI brain scan and CSF biomarkers available (the 42 amino acid‐long form of the amyloid‐beta protein [Aβ42], total‐tau protein [T‐tau], neurofilament light chain [NfL], neurogranin [Ng], and 14‐3‐3 levels). We used FreeSurfer and FSL to obtain cortical thickness (CTh) and fraction anisotropy (FA) maps. We studied group differences in CTh and FA and described the “AD signature” and “FTLD signature.” We tested multiple regression models to find which CSF‐biomarkers better explained each disease neuroimaging signature. CTh and FA maps corresponding to the AD and FTLD signatures were in accordance with previous literature. Multiple regression analyses showed that the biomarkers that better explained CTh values within the AD signature were Aβ and 14‐3‐3; whereas NfL and 14‐3‐3 levels explained CTh values within the FTLD signature. Similarly, NfL levels explained FA values in the FTLD signature. Ng levels were not predictive in any of the models. Biochemical markers contribute differently to structural (CTh and FA) changes typical of AD and FTLD

Recorded dispersal of wild boar (sus scrofa) in northeast Spain : implications for disease-monitoring programs

The wild boar population in Spain has increased in recent decades due to a number of factors, including increased food availability, the abandonment of crops, as well as through hybridization with the domestic pig. Studying dispersal is useful for understanding the ecology of a species and the spread of diseases in wildlife. In the case of the wild boar (Sus scrofa), its dispersal depends on environmental changes, food availability, population density, and hunting pressure. The goal of this study was to describe the dispersal of wild boars captured with cage-traps, anesthetized and marked with ear tags between 2008 and 2012 in Catalonia (northeast Spain). Six of 40 wild boars (16 males and 24 females) were recaptured at a mean linear distance of 45.8 km (min. 30, max. 89.8) from their origin. Surprisingly, females dispersed more than males, 57.7 km on average, a distance 1.7 times greater than females in other parts of the world. These dispersal patterns can be partially explained by the need for new territories. This mammal has experienced a huge increase in both distribution range and status throughout the Iberian Peninsula, probably due to an increase in vegetation cover and a lack of predators. Hence, any information about its dispersal patterns is of special interest to specific management plans. Despite to our moderate sample size, it is clear that the impressive dispersal ability of wild boar should be taken into account in the design of health surveillance programs of wildlife diseases

Desarrollo de una plataforma computacional para el modelado metabólico de microorganismos

[EN] Synthetic biology focuses on the design and construction of artificial genetic systems that are capable of carrying out a specific function after being inserted into a living system. With the development of synthetic biology a new generation of bioengineers has appeared who develop complex, highly integrated genetic biological pathways. Te improvement of this scientific discipline aims to establish a computational and conceptual framework that will support the development of modular artificial biological systems based on an engineering and systematic methodology. To achieve this, it will be necessary to provide new integrated computational tools in a common environment for the analysis of metabolic phenotypes, the design of new complex genetic pathways and the visualisation of metabolic maps to the next generation of designers in synthetic biology and future biotechnologists and biological engineers. A result of this research is the Hydra platform (Hybrid Draw and Routes Analysis) that integrates various tools for the design, analysis, and visualisation of metabolic networks.[ES] La Biología Sintética (BS) se centra en el diseño y la construcción de sistemas genéticos artificiales, capaces de desarrollar una función específica después de haber sido introducidos en un sistema vivo. Con el desarrollo de la BS, se observa una nueva generación de bioingenieros que desarrollan complejos circuitos biológicos genéticos con un alto nivel de integración. La mejora de esta disciplina científica tiene por objeto establecer un marco computacional y conceptual que dé asistencia al desarrollo de sistemas biológicos artificiales modulares basándose en una metodología ingenieril y sistemática, para lo que se necesita proveer a la próxima generación de diseñadores en Biología Sintética y a los futuros biotecnólogos e ingenieros biológicos de nuevas herramientas computacionales integradas en un entorno común para el análisis de fenotipos metabólicos, el diseño de nuevos circuitos genéticos complejos y la visualización de mapas metabólicos. Como resultado de esta investigación se obtiene la plataforma Hydra (Hybrid Draw and Routes Analysis), que integra diversas herramientas para el diseño, análisis y visualización de las redes metabólicas.Los autores desean agradecer el soporte financiero recibido por el Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación a través de la concesión TIN2009- 12359; la Conselleria de Inmigración y Ciudadanía de la Generalitat Valenciana (concesión 3012/2009) y la Comisión Europea (Proyecto TARPOL FP7 EU KBBE 212894).Reyes, R.; Garrido, J.; Jaime, RA.; Córdova, V.; Triana, J.; Villar, L.; Castro, JC.... (2011). Desarrollo de una plataforma computacional para el modelado metabólico de microorganismos. Nereis. Revista Iberoamericana Interdisciplinar de Métodos, Modelización y Simulación. (3):25-31. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/91952S2531

Fire and brief human occupations in Iberia during MIS 4: Evidence from Abric del Pastor (Alcoy, Spain)

There is a relatively low amount of Middle Paleolithic sites in Europe dating to MIS 4. Of the few that exist, several of them lack evidence for anthropogenic fire, raising the question of how this period of global cooling may have affected the Neanderthal population. The Iberian Peninsula is a key area to explore this issue, as it has been considered as a glacial refugium during critical periods of the Neanderthal timeline and might therefore yield archaeological contexts in which we can explore possible changes in the behaviour and settlement patterns of Neanderthal groups during MIS 4. Here we report recent data from Abric del Pastor, a small rock shelter in Alcoy (Alicante, Spain) with a stratified deposit containing Middle Palaeolithic remains. We present absolute dates that frame the sequence within MIS 4 and multi-proxy geoarchaeological evidence of in situ anthropogenic fire, including microscopic evidence of in situ combustion residues and thermally altered sediment. We also present archaeostratigraphic evidence of recurrent, functionally diverse, brief human occupation of the rock shelter. Our results suggest that Neanderthals occupied the Central Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula during MIS 4, that these Neanderthals were not undergoing climatic stress and they were habitual fire users.This research was funded by a Leakey Foundation General Grant, Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities Projects HAR2008-06117/HIST and HAR2015-68321-P, Junta de Castilla y León-FEDER Project BU235P18, the LabEx Sciences Archéologiques de Bordeaux (LaScArBx ANR-10-LABX-52) and ERC Consolidator Grant ERC-CoG-2014. Archaeological excavations at Abric del Pastor are supported by the Archaeological Museum of Alcoy and the Government of Valencia Cultural Heritage Department

Search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu decay channel, where l = e or mu, in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV is presented. The data were collected at the LHC, with the CMS detector, and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 inverse femtobarns. No significant excess is observed above the background expectation, and upper limits are set on the Higgs boson production cross section. The presence of the standard model Higgs boson with a mass in the 270-440 GeV range is excluded at 95% confidence level.Comment: Submitted to JHE

Search for New Physics with Jets and Missing Transverse Momentum in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A search for new physics is presented based on an event signature of at least three jets accompanied by large missing transverse momentum, using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36 inverse picobarns collected in proton--proton collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV with the CMS detector at the LHC. No excess of events is observed above the expected standard model backgrounds, which are all estimated from the data. Exclusion limits are presented for the constrained minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard model. Cross section limits are also presented using simplified models with new particles decaying to an undetected particle and one or two jets