Use of the anaphase-telophase test to detect aneugenic compounds : Effects of propionaldehyde and cadmium chloride

Aneuploidy is a numerical chromosomal disorder originated from nondisjunction during cell division (Dellarco 1985). Aneuploid cells exhibit altered chromosome numbers varying from nulisomy (absence of a chromosome pair), monosomy (only one member of a chromosome pair), trisomy (three homologous chromosomes instead of two), tetrasomy (four homologous chromosomes instead of two), etc. In an aneuploid complement, one or more chromosome pairs can be involved. In human beings aneuploidy is the main cause of pregnant loss, congenital malformation and mental retard (Hook 1983; Epstein 1988). Although the consequences of meiotic non-disjunction are clear, the relation between mitotic non-disjunction and neoplastic transformation susbsists uncertain despite there is increased evidence indicating that it is a significant factor during somatic malignancy development (Kondo 1984; Tsutsui 1983; Cavenee 1983). In addition, aneuploidy is frequently associated with infertility and abortion in domestic livestock (Halnan 1989). (Párrafo extraído del texto a modo de resumen)Instituto de Genética Veterinari

Paleobiogeography of non-mamaliaform cynodonts: telling a mainly Triassic history from the southern hemisphere

We present herein the first paleobiogeographic analysis of non-mammaliaform cynodonts through the Reconstruct Ancestral State in Phylogenies (RASP) v4 software. The study is based in a composite phylogenetic tree of 118 taxa, eight from the Late Permian, 85 from the Triassic and 25 from the Jurassic. The tree was temporally calibrated using the PaleoTree package in an R interface. A Bayesian Binary Markov Chain Monte Carlo (BBM) analysis of 100,000 cycles and 100 chains was performed, including 12 a priori determined areas of provenance and allowing the maximum number of areas per node. The results indicate that the paleobiogeographic history of non-mammaliaform cynodonts was dominated by dispersions (62 events), followed by vicariances (43 events), and only a few extinctions (5 events). Cynodontia originated in South Africa, a fact supported by the vast majority of Late Permian cynodonts being represented in that area, with only two exceptions: Dvinia prima (Russia) and Nshimbodon muchingaensis (Tanzania-Zambia) and with Procynosuchus being the first cosmopolitan cynodont, represented in Africa and Eurasia. Our analysis suggests that Epicynodontia and Eucynodontia were also originated in South Africa; Cynognathia in an area consisting of South Africa, Tanzania-Zambia, Namibia, and Argentina; and Gomphodontia was restricted to the Africa in a common area conformed by South Africa, Tanzania-Zambia, and Namibia. Traversodontidae had South Africa as the most likely ancestral area, whereas the speciose clades Massetognathinae and Gomphodontosuchinae most probably originated in Brazil. Probainognathia had its origin in South Africa but soon dispersed towards Argentina, where the chiniquodontids and allies originated. More derived probainognathians are interpreted to have had their center of diversification and dispersal in Brazil, with later dispersions to South Africa, where Chalimininae originated, and to China, with the impressive diversification of Tritylodontidae at the Early Jurassic. Finally, Brazil is identified as the ancestral area of hypothetical ancestor of Brasilodon + Botucaraitherium, the sister group of Mammaliaformes. Our results show that the vast majority of non-mammaliaform cynodont clades had ancestral areas in the Southern Hemisphere, with the sole exception of Tritylodontidae. Likewise, although the origin of Cynodontia dates back to the Permian, the origin of the main non-mamaliaform cynodont lineages (i.e., Eucynodontia, Cynognathia, and Probainognathia) took place during Triassic.Fil: Seoane, Federico Damián. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Estudios Andinos "Don Pablo Groeber". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Estudios Andinos "Don Pablo Groeber"; ArgentinaFil: Gaetano, Leandro Carlos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Estudios Andinos "Don Pablo Groeber". Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Estudios Andinos "Don Pablo Groeber"; ArgentinaFil: Abdala, Fernando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; ArgentinaXII Congreso de la Asociación Paleontológica ArgentinaArgentinaAsociación Paleontológica Argentin

Evolución de la osteopenia y la osteoporosis a lo largo de 5 años en pacientes con enfermedad inflamatoria intestinal

Tesis doctoral inédita leída en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Medicina, Departamento de Medicina. Fecha de lectura: 08-04-201

Provision of Health Care Services in Canada: Challenges and Opportunities

The Canadian health care system provides comprehensive coverage of hospital and outpatient care, including therapeutic, diagnostic and preventive services. The level of coverage of services varies across the country. This study examines the key characteristics of the Canadian health and long-term care systems; presents a structured analysis of the insurance, financing and provision of health and long-term care services in Canada; describes the main challenges of the Canadian health and long-term care systems; and concludes with feasible opportunities for the Canadian health policy. Main challenges to the Canadian system are related to population ageing; prevalence of avoidable diseases caused by poor health habits; coverage and financing of long-term care services; financing of expensive new technologies and pharmaceuticals; and the shortage and unbalanced geographic distribution of health care professionals. Opportunities for the Canadian health policy are: strengthening public health policy, continuing shifting care to the ambulatory level; improving the coordination between primary care and specialist services; implementing a system-wide national human resources planning; and integrating home-based care as part of overall primary health care

Mechanisms involved in the induction of aneuploidy: The significance of chromosome loss

The induction of aneuploidy by physical and chemical agents using different test systems was evaluated. The effect of X-rays, caffeine, acetaldehyde, ethanol, diethylstilbestrol, propionaldehyde, and chloral hydrate was studied by chromosome counting in Chinese hamster embryonic diploid cells. Aneugenic ability of cadmium chloride, cadmium sulfate, potassium dichromate, chromium chloride, nickel chloride, and nickel sulfate was assessed by means of anaphase-telophase analysis in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Chromosome counting in human fibroblasts (MRC-5 cell line) was employed to evaluate the effect of cacodilic acid, cadmium chloride, cadmium sulfate, and potassium dichromate. Finally, the induction of kinetochore-positive and kinetochore negative micronuclei by cadmium chloride, cadmium sulfate, potassium dichromate, chromium chloride, and nickel chloride was studied using CREST antibodies. When the effect of different agents was determined by chromosome counting, an increase of hypoploid but not of hyperploid cells was observed. Anaphase-telophase analysis showed that metal salts increased the frequency of lagging chromosomes. This finding has been confirmed by the increment of kinetochore-positive micronuclei using CREST antibodies. Therefore, chromosome loss could be considered as the main cause of induced aneuploidy.Facultad de Ciencias VeterinariasInstituto de Genética Veterinari

Confidence: dependencies and their critical role in fostering user acceptance in pervasive applications

Pervasive computing offers new scenarios where users are surrounded by invisible and proactive technology making smart spaces. Although the utility and power of solutions developed using this computer paradigm are proved, there are unresolved problems that hinder their acceptance and inclusion in our private life. Users have problems understanding the operations of a pervasive computing solution, and therefore they should trust that the solution works properly and according to their expectations. Nevertheless, the concept of trust is already framed in a specific use within the ecosystem of applications that can populate a smart space. To take this concept of trust to the whole space, we propose to study and define the concept of confidence. In contrast to the concept of trust, confidence has deeper psychological implications

Local genetic structure on breeding grounds of a long-distance migrant passerine: the bluethroat (Luscinia svecica) in Spain

Breeding site fidelity can be determined by environmental features, which depending on their heterogeneous distribution may shape the genetic landscape of a population. We used 10 microsatellite loci to study the genetic variation of 83 bluethroats (Luscinia svecica azuricollis) across 14 localities within the Spanish breeding population and assess the relative influence of different habitat characteristics (physiography and vegetation) on genetic differentiation. Based on the genetic variation of this population, we identified 3 geographically consistent genetic clusters that on average showed a higher genetic differentiation than among other north European populations, even those belonging to different subspecies. The inferred genetic clusters occurred in geographic areas that significantly differed in elevation. The highest genetic differentiation was observed between sites at different mountain ranges, as well as between the highest altitude sites in the northeastern locale, whereas vegetation type did not explain a significant percentage of genetic variation. The lack of correlation between geographic and genetic distances suggests that this pattern of genetic structure cannot be explained as a consequence of isolation by distance. Finally, we discuss the importance of preserving areas encompassing high environmental and genetic variation as a means of preserving evolutionary processes and adaptive potential.University of León (2009/00131/00); CSIC/MICINN Proyecto Intramural Especial-PIE (201030I019).Peer Reviewe

Interaction patterns for smart spaces: a confident interaction design solution for pervasive sensitive IoT services

Smart spaces represent a powerful tool for deploying the new pervasive sensitive services based on Internet of Things products and developed in current Information Society close to users. Researchers have focused their efforts on new techniques to improve systems and products in this area but neglecting the human factors related to psychological aspects of the user and their psycho-social relationship with the deployment space where they live. This research proposes to take into account these cognitive features in early stages of the design of smart spaces by defining a set of interaction patterns. By using this set of interaction patterns it is possible to influence over the confidence that users can develop during the use of IoT products and services based on them. An evaluative verification has been carried out to assess how this design engineering approach provide a real impact on the generation of confidence in the users of this kind of technology