Aplicación de un modelo hidrológico espacialmente distribuido en dos cuencas costeras de la Región de La Araucanía (Chile)

Spatially distributed hydrological models have been a powerful tool for indirect survey information of a watershed. In this study, the hydrological behavior of two basins located on the coastal edge of the Araucanía region is characterized. The method is based on a process of spatially distributed hydrological modeling with WARPHydro and ArcHydro softwares. The results showed differences in behavior between the two hydrological basins attributed to the shape of the water supply, altitude and surface runoff. We conclude that when there is a lack of field data and costs limit the use of other methods, hydrologic modeling generates information base for decision-making on water management.Los modelos hidrológicos espacialmente distribuidos han sido una potente herramienta para el levantamiento indirecto de información de una cuenca hidrográfica. En este estudio, se caracteriza el comportamiento hidrológico de dos cuencas localizadas en el borde costero de la región de La Araucanía. El método se basó en un proceso de modelación hidrológica espacialmente distribuida con los softwares ArcHydro y WARPHydro. Los resultados mostraron diferencias en el comportamiento hidrológico entre ambas cuencas atribuidas a la forma de la red hídrica, altitud y escorrentía superficial. Se concluye que cuando existe carencia de datos de terreno y los costos limitan el uso de otros métodos, la modelación hidrológica genera información de base para la toma de decisiones para el manejo del agua

A new methodology to quantify structural landscape impacts of land use/land cover change using moving window metrics: a case study in a Chilean coastal basin

Land use and land cover changes (LULC) result in alterations to landscape structure, with particularly significant consequences in the landscapes of coastal basins due to their unique characteristics and special sensitivity. The aim of this work was to introduce a new methodology to assess the impacts of LULC transitions on landscape structure in a coastal basin of the Los Ríos Region in Chile. Changes in landscape patterns were assessed by analysing systematic transitions in conjunction with moving windows landscape metrics and spatial cluster analysis. An index measuring the impact of transitions on landscape structure change (ITSC) was calculated to assess the degree to which each systematic transition contributed to the spatial cluster of landscape change. The proposed method showed that transitions resulting from the replacement of native forest and especially those which involve its transformation into forestry plantations, have the greatest potential impact on landscape structure in the basin. Therefore, planning and management measures must be established to prevent such transitions, so avoiding a massive change in landscape structure.Comunidad de MadridFondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico (Chile

Intervention model for detection, prevention and control of COVID-19 in community pharmacy

The announcement by the WHO of the characterization of the new Coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID-19) as a pandemic, entails an adaptation by the community pharmacy in carrying out its care activity in general, with particular emphasis on ”Minor Ailments Service” in particular. The measures taken by the different health administrations in which patient telephone care by primary care offices is prioritized have left more consultations on symptoms in the community pharmacist health-related problems as pharmacies are the closest health facilities to the patient. The similarity between the symptomatology caused by the new Coronavirus with that of some Enteroviruses that cause mild respiratory and gastrointestinal tables (dry cough, fever, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea, etc.) makes community pharmacies highly capable places for contagion detection and prevention. A model of protocolized intervention is needed to facilitate the pharmacist’s work in discriminating during the indication between minor symptoms and symptoms of referral for possible cases of COVID-19 so that in conjunction with the rest of the staff we help control the disease and make better use of primary care consultations

Shrub diversity in Mediterranean shrublands: Rescuer or victim of productivity?

[ENG]Aims: Unravelling the most prevalent causal direction between diversity and function in naturally recovered plant assemblages can greatly improve our understanding of the functional significance of diversity and its applications under the ongoing envi- ronmental changes. In this study, we apply a structural equation model framework to unravel the most plausible causal direction in the diversity–productivity relationship in subseral Mediterranean shrub-dominated communities. Methods: Total shrub cover (as a proxy of productivity when controlled by the time since land use cessation or the last wildfire), the number of species, and the number of functional types based on the dominant life forms (phanerophytes vs. chamaephytes), and the dominant foliar syndromes (deciduous vs. evergreen, needled vs. broad- leaved), were sampled in 195 circular plots distributed along an elevation gradient ranging from 400 to 1400 m a.s.l. in the Central Iberian Peninsula. We first explored the distribution of functional types along the elevation gradient using a non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). Secondly, a structural equation model (SEM) frame- work using mixed-effects models was defined to unveil the prevalent causal direction between diversity (species and functional types) and productivity at the landscape scale. Results: Model selection using the Fisher's C information criterion supported a causal direction from total shrub cover to diversity in this landscape. Interestingly, the best supported model also supported a positive relationship between species richness and the number of functional types, which in turn is driven by the total shrub cover along the elevation gradient. Conclusions: Our results suggest that more species might not necessarily boost pro- ductivity. On the contrary, ongoing warming temperatures and aridity, which are characteristic of low elevations compared to highlands, might significantly reduce the number of species (victim rather than rescuer) through deleterious effects on productivity

Ion Beam Experiments to Emulate Nuclear Fusion Environment on Structural Materials at CMAM

One of the major problems not only in nuclear fusion but in all the fields that have to face irradiation damage is to predict the microstructural evolution of all the features that are involved in the good response of the material. In the case of nuclear fusion, it is well known that structural materials that will be a fundamental piece in the future reactor must withstand severe neutron irradiation damage, high temperatures, and cyclic stresses which will result in a reduction of the lifetime of the component. For that reason, a big effort is being done for the scientific community in order to understand the complex mechanisms that lie in the relationship between irradiation damage, microstructure, temperature, stresses, etc. However, neutron irradiation brings inherently transmutation and nuclear activation, which makes extremely hard to study those samples. Therefore, the scientific community is using since long time ago ion beam facilities to emulate the neutron damage, without the worst inconvenience. In this chapter, the authors described briefly the facility located at Centro de MicroAnálisis de Materiales (CMAM), Madrid, and presented afterward some examples of experiments that Spanish Nuclear Fusion Laboratory at CIEMAT has been carrying out related to this matter

Effect of the mother tree age and acorn weight in the regenerative characteristics of Quercus faginea

[EN] The establishment of oak trees is often a slow and difficult process. Hence, it is necessary to determine the characteristics that can lead to improving their regeneration. In this genus, seed size is highly variable both at the interspecific and intraspecific levels, and the effects of intrapopulation variability are not well understood, being even less so for Quercus faginea. In this study, the effects of the age of the mother tree, seed weight and the interaction between these two factors on seed germination, emergence and growth (biomass) were analysed. For this purpose, 16 trees—8 young and 8 old—were selected with the intent to cover the entire range of acorn weights produced in this population. Among the main results, it should be noted that: (1) in older trees, it is easier to find larger acorns; (2) the percentage and the speed of germination of the acorns of young trees is greater than that of old trees; (3) the percentage and the speed of seedling emergence of young trees is greater than that of old trees; and (4) cotyledon weight is the variable that most influences biomass, quite often in a positive way. Therefore, maintaining intrapopulation variability seems to be an approach that most favours the persistence of these populations

A Bayesian model for brain tumor classification using clinical-based features

Proceedings of: IEEE International Conference on Image Processing (ICIP 2014). Paris, October 27-30, 2014.This paper tackles the problem of automatic brain tumor classification from Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) where, traditionally, general-purpose texture and shape features extracted from the Region of Interest (tumor) have become the usual parameterization of the problem. Two main contributions are made in this context. First, a novel set of clinical-based features that intend to model intuitions and expert knowledge of physicians is suggested. Second, a system is proposed that is able to fuse multiple individual scores (based on a particular MRI sequence and a pathological indicator present in that sequence) by using a Bayesian model that produces a global system decision. This approximation provides a quite flexible solution able to handle missing data, which becomes a very likely case in a realistic scenario where the number clinical tests varies from one patient to another. Furthermore, the Bayesian model provides extra information concerning the uncertainty of the final decision. Our experimental results prove that the use of clinical-based feature leads to a significant increment of performance in terms of Area Under the Curve (AUC) when compared to a state-of-the art reference. Furthermore, the proposed Bayesian fusion model clearly outperforms other fusion schemes, especially when few diagnostic tests are available.Publicad

High-resolution anoscopy in HIV-infected men: Assessment of the learning curve and factors that improve the performance

To determine the required learning time for high-resolution anoscopy (HRA)-guided biopsy to detect histological high-risk squamous intraepithelial lesions (hHSIL) and to identify factors that impact on the training process. Methods: All HIV-infected, screening-naïve men-who-have-sex-with-men who underwent HRA conducted by one single observer from 2010 to 2017 in a Spanish HIV-outpatient clinic were analysed. Results: Eighty-five (14.7%) of the 581 patients included presented hHSIL. The factors associated with the capacity to detect hHSIL [adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 95% confidence interval (95%CI)] were the presence of cytological HSIL (3.04, 1.78–5.21; p < 0.001), infection with high-risk human papilloma virus (HR-HPV) (2.89, 1.38–6.05; p=0.005), the number of biopsies taken/HRA (aOR: 1.28, 1.07–1.52; p=0.006) and tobacco smoking (1.75; 1.12–2.73; p=0.014). Two events independently augmented the detection rate of hHSIL: one single experienced pathologist interpreted biopsies after 409 HRA (2.80, 1.74–4.48; p=0.035) and the anoscopist underwent an additional training after 536 HRA (2.57, 1.07–6.16; p=0.035). A learning process could be observed throughout the whole study with stable HR-HPV prevalence. Conclusion: The data support the growing evidence that the proposed training volume of 50–200 performances is underestimated. Extensive training of both anoscopist and pathologist is warranted and the development of tools to support the diagnostic performance may be considered.Plan Nacional R+D+I y Red de Investigación en SIDA RD16/0025/0020-ISCIII-FEDMiguel Servet research grant, Instituto de Salud Carlos III CPII18/0003

Brief Report: CYP27B1 rs10877012 T Allele Was Linked to Non-AIDS Progression in ART-Naïve HIV-Infected Patients: A Retrospective Study.

HIV/AIDS progression is linked to vitamin D, which is regulated by several key cytochromes P450 (CYP). Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in CYP genes influence vitamin D metabolism and serum levels. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between CYP SNPs and the clinical AIDS progression in antiretroviral treatment (ART)-naïve HIV-infected patients. We performed a retrospective study in 661 ART-naïve HIV-infected patients who were stratified by their AIDS progression pattern [181 long-term nonprogressors (LTNPs), 332 moderate progressors, and 148 rapid progressors (RPs)]. Four CYP SNPs (CYP2R1 rs10500804, CYP2R1 rs1993116, CYP27B1 rs10877012, and CYP24A1 rs6013897) were genotyped using Agena Bioscience's MassARRAY platform. Correction for multiple testing was performed using the false discovery rate (Benjamini-Hochberg procedure). The adjusted regression showed a significant association only for CYP27B1 rs10877012 SNP. When analyzing all HIV patients, the rs10877012 T allele was protective against AIDS progression (ordinal outcome) under the dominant [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 0.69; P = 0.021) and additive (aOR) = 0.75; P = 0.025] inheritance models. When analyzing LTNPs versus RPs, the rs10877012 T allele also showed a significant protective association under the dominant (aOR = 0.45; P = 0.004) and additive (aOR = 0.54; P = 0.008) inheritance models. P values remained significant after correcting by multiple comparisons only for the comparison of LTNPs versus RPs (extreme phenotypes). The CYP27B1 rs10877012 T allele was linked to non-AIDS progression in ART-naïve HIV-infected patients. The rs10877012 SNP seems to have an impact on the clinical AIDS progression, possibly modifying vitamin D levels, which could be relevant for the pathogenesis of HIV infection.This work has been (partially) funded by the RD16/0025/0019 and RD16CIII/0002/0002, projects as part of Acción Estratégica en Salud, Plan Nacional de Investigación Científica, Desarrollo e Innovación Tecnológica (2013-2016) and cofinanced by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII-Subdirección General de Evaluación) and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER), RETIC PT17/0015/0042, Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria (FIS) (grant number PI16/01863, PI17/01115, PI17CIII/00003), EPIICAL Project and Comunidad de Madrid (B2017/BMD-3703). CIBER-BBN is an initiative funded by the VINational R&D&i Plan 2008-2011, Iniciativa Ingenio 2010, the Consolider Program, and CIBER Actions and financed by ISCIII with assistance from the European Regional Development Fund. This work has been supported partially by a EUROPARTNER: Strengthening and spreading international partnership activities of the Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection for interdisciplinary research and innovation of the University of Lodz Programme: NAWA International Academic Partnership Programme. This article/publication is based upon work from COST Action CA 17140 "Cancer Nanomedicine from the Bench to the Bedside" supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). AFR and MAJS are supported by “Instituto de Salud Carlos III” [grant number CP14/0010and CP17CIII/00007, respectivelly].Programa de Investigación de la Consejería de Sanidad de la Comunidad de Madrid to JLJ.S