Sweet cherry behaviour in the climatic conditions of the Region of Murcia

[SPA] En este trabajo se expone la influencia que ejercen los patrones Adara, Mariana 2624, Mayor, MaxMa 14, Santa Lucia 64, Gisela 5, Gisela 6, Pikú 1, Pikú 3 y Pikú 4 sobre la variedad de cerezo “Newstar”, y se han evaluado 69 variedades de cerezo injertadas sobre Mariana 2624 con intermediario de Adara. Ambos ensayos se han realizado en un suelo pesado, calcáreo y con alto contenido en arcilla ubicado en el término municipal de Jumilla. Se han encontrado diferencias significativas entre patrones para parámetros como el vigor, la producción, el tamaño del fruto, el contenido en solidos solubles y la firmeza. Mariana 2624 con intermediario de Adara es el patrón recomendado para la zona de cultivo. Los patrones Gisela 5, Gisela 6, SL 64, Mayor y Pikú 1 han presentado un mayor porcentaje de mortandad, lo que hace desaconsejable su uso. Por otro lado, se han determinado aquellas 20 variedades que mejor adaptadas están a la zona del ensayo, y que podrían ser más interesantes por su productividad y calidad de fruto. Sin embargo, no se han encontrado variedades extra-tempranas que puedan ser de interés. [ENG] The influence of Adara, Mariana 2624, Mayor, MaxMa 14, Saint Lucie GF 64 (SL 64), Gisela 5, Gisela 6, Pikú 1, Pikú 3 and Pikú 4 rootstocks onto vegetative growth, yield and fruit quality of “Newstar” sweet cherry cultivar was studied. Also, 69 sweet cherry cultivars grafted in Mariana 2624 with Adara, as interstock, was studied. Both trials were performed in Jumilla, on a heavy and calcareous soil. Significant differences in parameters such as vigour, yield, fruit size, soluble solids content (SSC) and fruit firmness were examined among rootstocks. Mariana 2624 with Adara, as interstock, was the rootstock with better agronomic performance. In general, Gisela 5, Gisela 6, SL 64, Mayor and Pikú 1 presented the highest mortality rate, that advice not to use in our conditions. On the other hand, the results of this investigation showed 20 cultivars that are better adapted and could be considered to introduce this crop in this area for their productivity and fruit quality. However, not early cultivars were found in our study.A los componentes del Grupo Cerezo I+D. Este trabajo forma parte del proyecto INIA RTA:2006-00057-00-00 y ha sido cofinanciado por el proyecto PO07-027. Este trabajo ha sido realizado en el marco de la Acción Cost FA 1104

Development and criterion validity of the COVID-19 anxiety and fear assessment scale: a cross sectional study

Background: The emergence of the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, which causes COVID-19 disease, has been a major public health challenge and an increase in the feeling of uncertainty of the population, who is also experiencing an increase in levels of anx iety and fear regarding the COVID-19 disease. Objective: The objective of the study was the construct and criterion validation of the Escala de evaluación de la Ansiedad y MIedo a COVID-19 (AMICO, for its acronym in Spanish) to measure both constructs in the general Spanish population Methods: Descriptive study of psychometric validation. A field study was carried out to execute univariate and bivariate analyses, in addition to the exploratory and confirmatory factorial analysis of the scale. For the criteria validity study, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and sensitivity and specificity values were calculated. Results: The study sample was composed of 1036 subjects over 18 years of age, who resided in Spain, where 56.3% were women with a mean age of 48.11 years (SD =15.13). The study of con struct validity reported two factors and 16 items, with a Cronbach’s alpha value of 0.92. The scale was concurrently valid with the used gold standard and obtained sensitivity values of 90.48% and specificity values of 76%. Conclusions: The AMICO scale is valid and reliable for assessing the level of anxiety and fear of COVID-19 in the adult Spanish population and is highly sensitive

Women, negative work-home interaction and stress: Impact of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic on spanish general and healthcare workers

The COVID-19 pandemic has come to stay, at least for a while. The initial bewilderment and restrictive measures have given way to the population's mental decay and increased stress on workers facing work and family demands in a difficult-to-manage situation. For this reason, this descriptive cross-sectional study sought to analyze stress levels in a sample of 263 general and healthcare workers (from 24 to 67 years of age) and their relationship with negative work-home interaction (WHI) and with gender in the second wave of contagions and deaths caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain (October-December 2020). The results showed that having a higher level of WHI, the presence of work overload, health concerns, economic concerns, and lower-income were predictors of stress among these workers. Age and health-related occupations were contributing factors to work overload and health-related concerns. In addition, the relationship between being a woman and suffering from higher stress levels was mediated by income level, economic concern, and the WHI. Other variables such as having children or dependents, marital status, concern for the health of others, and teleworking were not associated with the stress levels detected in the sample. This research pays attention to the health state of workers beyond the initial stage of the pandemic, where most studies on this issue have concentrated. Thus, this study provides evidence of the uneven impact this crisis has on women and men, contributing to clarifying the relationship between gender, the WHI, and stress

Improvement of customer baselines for the evaluation of demand response through the use of physically-based load models

Demand Response (DR) is an opportunity and a concern for markets as well as power system flexibility. The deployment of DR depends on both knowledge on its performance and how to measure it effectively to provide adequate economic feedback. DR verification requires a baseline reference. This paper introduces a new baseline that provides an evaluation of response based on simple adjustment factors through physically-based models, tools which are also used in DR. The approach includes the detection of licit and gaming responses before and after DR. Results show that errors decrease by 10–15% with respect to conventional approaches.This work was supported by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (projects ENE-2016-78509-C3-2 P, RED2018-102618-T and ENE-2016-78509-C3-3P/AEI/10.13039/ 501100011033); the Ministerio de Educación (Spanish Government) under grant FPU17/02753, and EU-ERDF funds

Psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic in the population of Argentina

In addition to the implications that this pandemic has had on physical health, there are other circumstances that threaten the mental health of the population, such as lockdown measures to prevent the spread of the virus, uncertainty, and the increase in infections and deaths. For this reason, this study explored indicators of psychological distress in the Argentine population, as well as its relationship with sociodemographic and health variables. Cross-sectional observational study, with data collection from May to August 2020. A total of 1112 people over the age of 18 who responded to various measurement instruments through an online questionnaire participated. A bivariate analysis and logistic regression were carried out in order to determine predictive factors of psychological distress. The data revealed that 60.9% of the sample presented psychological distress. A greater number with this condition was observed in women, apart from younger people, with a greater number of symptoms associated with the disease and with worse self-perceived health. There was no evidence of association between psychological distress and contact with people infected with coronavirus disease 2019 or with material suspicious of being infected. This research provided an overview of the mental health status of a significant population sample in Argentina, months after the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. These findings complement those found in other national and international studies, allowing the accumulation of evidence that states the need to demand to draw attention to the mental health of the population, especially the most vulnerable groups, on behalf of the public authoritie

Comportamiento de patrones de cerezo en las condiciones edafoclimáticas de la Región de Murcia

En este trabajo se expone la influencia que ejercen los patrones Adara, Mariana 2624, Mayor, MaxMa 14, Santa Lucia GF 64, Gisela 5, Gisela 6, Piku 1, Piku 3 y Piku4 en el crecimiento vegetativo, producción y calidad del fruto de la variedad de cerezo NewStar. Este ensayo se ha realizado en un suelo pesado, calcáreo y con alto contenido en arcilla ubicado en el término municipal de Jumilla. Se han encontrado diferencias significativas para parámetros como el vigor, producción, tamaño del fruto, contenido en solidos solubles y firmeza. Las mayores producciones acumuladas fueron para patrones vigorosos como son Mariana 2624, Mayor y Adara. Los patrones de menor vigor como Gisela 5 y Piku 1, presentaron una tendencia excesiva al enanismo. Aquellos patrones peor adaptados a las condiciones edafoclimáticas del ensayo como Gisela 5, Gisela 6, SL 64, Mayor y Piku 1 presentaron mayor porcentaje de mortandad.A los componentes del Grupo Cerezo I+D. Este trabajo forma parte del proyecto INIA RTA:2006‐ 00057‐00‐00 y ha sido cofinanciado por el proyecto PO07‐027. Este trabajo ha sido realizado en el marco de la Acción Cost FA 1104

Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mental Health in Peru: Psychological Distress

This pandemic has been classified as a “psychological pandemic” that produces anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and sleep disorders. As the mental health effects of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by SARS-CoV-2, continue to unfold, there are still large knowledge gaps about the variables that predispose individuals to, or protect individuals against the disease. However, there are few publications on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of citizens in Latin American countries. In this study, the effects that COVID-19 had on citizens of Peru have been described. For this, 1699 questionnaires, collected between 2 April and 2 September 2020, were analyzed. Descriptive, bivariate analysis was performed with odds ratio (OR) calculations and a data mining methodology. Sociodemographic variables (from the General Health Questionnaire), health conditions and perception, symptoms, and variables related to contact and preventive measures regarding COVID-19 were analyzed. As compared to other countries, less affectation of mental health and increased use of preventive measures were observed. It has been suggested that the country’s precarious health system and poverty rates prior to the pandemic may justify higher mortality figures in Peru than in other Latin American countries, despite prompt action for its containment and compliance with the protective measures. Psychological distress had a greater incidence in women, young people, people without a partner, and people without university studies. The most significant conditioning variables were self-perceived health status, headache or muscle pain over the past 14 days, level of studies, and age. The extensive use of preventive measures against COVID-19 is in line with the strict legislative measures taken, and this is, in turn, in line with other countries when looking at the lower effect on mental health, but contrary when focusing on the high lethality identified. The need to include the economy or availability and quality of healthcare in future studies arises, as well as the suitability to analyze the cause for differences between countries

Assessment of possibilities for demand response resources identification in small and medium customer segments

The objective of this research is to show the capacity of Self-Organizing Maps to classify customer and their response potential from electrical demand databases with the help of Non-Parametric Estimation and Physically Load Based modelling as support tools. The searching of customer suitability is focussed to real time products, whose interest is growing in developed countries. In this way customer demand and response have been tested and compared with energy price curves extracting patterns from these curves. Results show the capability of this approach to improve data management and select coherent policies to accomplish cleared demand offers amongst different prices scenarios in an easy way.This work was supported by Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (Spain) and by EU Sixth Framework Program (research project EU-DEEP SES6-CT-2003-503516)

Diseño de un genosensor electroquímico para la detección indirecta de gluten en alimentos

A new electrochemical genosensor has been developed for the detection of a specific DNA sequence that encodes for an immunogenic fragment of α-2-gliadin, protein of gluten wheat that plays an important role in celiac disease. The genosensor is based on a mixed self-assembled monolayer consisting on a capture probe and a diluent molecule, mercaptohexanol, both immobilized on screen-printed gold electrodes. A sandwich-type hybridization assay was selected, using a signaling-DNA probe labeled with biotin and streptavidin-alkaline phosphatase as a reporter molecule. Detection of DNA gluten is based on the measurement of the oxidization current of 1-naphthol, product formed by α-naphthyl phosphate enzymatic hydrolysis, by differential pulse voltammetry. Parameters involved in the sensing phase were investigated and optimized by cyclic voltammetry. The optimal capture probe to mercaptohexanol ratio was found to be 2 µM:9 mM. In order to minimize unspecific adsorptions, both signaling probe and enzyme-streptavidin conjugate concentrations (measurement phase parameters) were optimized (1 µM and 1.075·10-3 g/L respectively). A linear response from 20 nM to 250 nM is obtained with the proposed genosensor.Se propone un nuevo genosensor electroquímico para la detección de una secuencia específica de ADN que codifica un fragmento inmunogénico de la α-2-gliadina, proteína del gluten de trigo responsable de la celiaquía.. El diseño del genosensor se basa en la formación de una monocapa autoensamblada de sonda de captura y un agente bloqueante, mercaptohexanol, sobre electrodos de oro serigrafiados. Se eligió un ensayo tipo sándwich, utilizando una sonda indicadora marcada con biotina y el conjugado estreptavidina-fosfatasa alcalina como molécula de marcaje. La detección del analito se basó en la medida de la corriente de oxidación del 1-naftol, producto formado por la hidrólisis enzimática del 1-naftil-fosfato, mediante voltamperometría de pulso diferencial. Se investigaron y optimizaron los parámetros implicados en la composición de la fase sensora mediante voltametría cíclica, encontrándose como relación óptima sonda de captura:mercaptohexanol 2 µM:9 mM. Con el objetivo de minimizar las adsorciones inespecíficas, se optimizaron las concentraciones de sonda indicadora y conjugado enzima-estreptavidina, especies involucradas en la fase de medida, obteniéndose como valores óptimos 1 µM and 1,075x10-3 g/L respectivamente. El genosensor propuesto presentó una respuesta lineal entre 20 y 250 nM

The role of ultrasound as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool in experimental animal models of stroke: A review

Ultrasound is a noninvasive technique that provides real-time imaging with excellent resolution, and several studies demonstrated the potential of ultrasound in acute ischemic stroke monitoring. However, only a few studies were performed using animal models, of which many showed ultrasound to be a safe and effective tool also in therapeutic applications. The full potential of ultrasound application in experimental stroke is yet to be explored to further determine the limitations of this technique and to ensure the accuracy of translational research. This review covers the current status of ultrasound applied to monitoring and treatment in experimental animal models of stroke and examines the safety, limitations, and future perspectives.This research was funded by the Carlos III Health Institute Health Care Research Fund grant number FIS PI16/01052 and cofunded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)–Miguel Servet (CP15/00069, CPII20/00002 to María Gutiérrez–Fernández; CP20/00024 to Laura Otero–Ortega) and predoctoral fellowship (FI17/00188 to Mari Carmen Gómez–de Frutos, FI18/00026 to Fernando Laso–García) and the INVICTUS PLUS Spanish Network (RD16/0019/0005) of the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII)