CARACTERIZACIÓN Y MEJORA DE SUELOS MARGINALES EN OBRA CIVIL

El presente trabajo de fin de grado se centra en el estudio del comportamiento de los residuos de grano fino procedentes del machaqueo de hormigón para su uso en tratamientos de mejora de suelos arcillosos-limosos con problemas de plasticidad, que son caracterizados como suelos marginales. Las características técnicas de estos suelos los hacen complicados para la realización de determinadas estructuras constructivas, especialmente en aquellas en las que se requiere compactar el suelo; esto es debido a que estos materiales presentan un comportamiento plástico en condiciones de humedad que dificulta su compactación. El trabajo con estos materiales se realiza con maquinaria especializada y además, requiere un tiempo de ejecución más largo, lo que aumenta considerablemente los costes económicos del proyecto. Este trabajo se centra en el análisis geotécnico de la posibilidad de mejorar los suelos marginales mediante el uso de residuos de hormigón de tamaño arena, procedentes de plantas de reciclaje de residuos de construcción y demolición (RCD), y concretamente en la mejora de la trabajabilidad y de las características geotécnicas del suelo de cara a su puesta en obra

Comparative analysis of the fecal microbiota from different species of domesticated and wild suids

Most of the microorganisms living in a symbiotic relationship in different animal body sites (microbiota) reside in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Several studies have shown that the microbiota is involved in host susceptibilities to pathogens. The fecal microbiota of domestic and wild suids was analyzed. Bacterial communities were determined from feces obtained from domestic pigs (Sus scrofa) raised under different conditions: specific-pathogen-free (SPF) pigs and domestic pigs from the same bred, and indigenous domestic pigs from a backyard farm in Kenya. Secondly, the fecal microbiota composition of the African swine fever (ASF) resistant warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) from Africa and a European zoo was determined. African swine fever (ASF) is a devastating disease for domestic pigs. African animals showed the highest microbial diversity while the SPF pigs the lowest. Analysis of the core microbiota from warthogs (resistant to ASF) and pigs (susceptible to ASF) showed 45 shared OTUs, while 6 OTUs were exclusively present in resistant animals. These six OTUs were members of the Moraxellaceae family, Pseudomonadales order and Paludibacter, Anaeroplasma, Petrimonas, and Moraxella genera. Further characterization of these microbial communities should be performed to determine the potential involvement in ASF resistance.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Clonal chromosomal mosaicism and loss of chromosome Y in elderly men increase vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) had an estimated overall case fatality ratio of 1.38% (pre-vaccination), being 53% higher in males and increasing exponentially with age. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, we found 133 cases (1.42%) with detectable clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations (mCA) and 226 males (5.08%) with acquired loss of chromosome Y (LOY). Individuals with clonal mosaic events (mCA and/or LOY) showed a 54% increase in the risk of COVID-19 lethality. LOY is associated with transcriptomic biomarkers of immune dysfunction, pro-coagulation activity and cardiovascular risk. Interferon-induced genes involved in the initial immune response to SARS-CoV-2 are also down-regulated in LOY. Thus, mCA and LOY underlie at least part of the sex-biased severity and mortality of COVID-19 in aging patients. Given its potential therapeutic and prognostic relevance, evaluation of clonal mosaicism should be implemented as biomarker of COVID-19 severity in elderly people. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, individuals with clonal mosaic events (clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations and/or loss of chromosome Y) showed an increased risk of COVID-19 lethality

Diverse Large HIV-1 Non-subtype B Clusters Are Spreading Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Spain

In Western Europe, the HIV-1 epidemic among men who have sex with men (MSM) is dominated by subtype B. However, recently, other genetic forms have been reported to circulate in this population, as evidenced by their grouping in clusters predominantly comprising European individuals. Here we describe four large HIV-1 non-subtype B clusters spreading among MSM in Spain. Samples were collected in 9 regions. A pol fragment was amplified from plasma RNA or blood-extracted DNA. Phylogenetic analyses were performed via maximum likelihood, including database sequences of the same genetic forms as the identified clusters. Times and locations of the most recent common ancestors (MRCA) of clusters were estimated with a Bayesian method. Five large non-subtype B clusters associated with MSM were identified. The largest one, of F1 subtype, was reported previously. The other four were of CRF02_AG (CRF02_1; n = 115) and subtypes A1 (A1_1; n = 66), F1 (F1_3; n = 36), and C (C_7; n = 17). Most individuals belonging to them had been diagnosed of HIV-1 infection in the last 10 years. Each cluster comprised viruses from 3 to 8 Spanish regions and also comprised or was related to viruses from other countries: CRF02_1 comprised a Japanese subcluster and viruses from 8 other countries from Western Europe, Asia, and South America; A1_1 comprised viruses from Portugal, United Kingom, and United States, and was related to the A1 strain circulating in Greece, Albania and Cyprus; F1_3 was related to viruses from Romania; and C_7 comprised viruses from Portugal and was related to a virus from Mozambique. A subcluster within CRF02_1 was associated with heterosexual transmission. Near full-length genomes of each cluster were of uniform genetic form. Times of MRCAs of CRF02_1, A1_1, F1_3, and C_7 were estimated around 1986, 1989, 2013, and 1983, respectively. MRCA locations for CRF02_1 and A1_1 were uncertain (however initial expansions in Spain in Madrid and Vigo, respectively, were estimated) and were most probable in Bilbao, Spain, for F1_3 and Portugal for C_7. These results show that the HIV-1 epidemic among MSM in Spain is becoming increasingly diverse through the expansion of diverse non-subtype B clusters, comprising or related to viruses circulating in other countries

3D Geological Model of the Touro Cu Deposit, A World-Class Mafic-Siliciclastic VMS Deposit in the NW of the Iberian Peninsula

The Touro volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposit is located in the NW of the Iberian Variscan massif in the Galicia-Trás-os-Montes Zone, an amalgamation of several allochthonous terrains. The Órdenes complex is the most extensive of the allochthone complexes, and amphibolites and paragneisses host the deposit, characterized as being massive or semimassive (stringers) sulfides, mostly made up of pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite. The total resources are 103 Mt, containing 0.41% copper. A 3D model of the different orebodies and host rocks was generated using data from 1090 drill core logs. The model revealed that the structure of the area is a N–S-trending antiform. The orebodies crop out in the limbs and in the hinge zone. The mineralized structures are mostly tabular, up to 100 m in thickness and subhorizontal. Based on the petrography, geochemistry and the 3D model, the Touro deposit is classified as a VMS of the mafic-siliciclastic type formed in an Ordovician back-arc setting, which was buried and metamorphosed in Middle Devonian

3D Geological Model of the Touro Cu Deposit, A World-Class Mafic-Siliciclastic VMS Deposit in the NW of the Iberian Peninsula

The Touro volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposit is located in the NW of the Iberian Variscan massif in the Galicia-Trás-os-Montes Zone, an amalgamation of several allochthonous terrains. The Órdenes complex is the most extensive of the allochthone complexes, and amphibolites and paragneisses host the deposit, characterized as being massive or semimassive (stringers) sulfides, mostly made up of pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite. The total resources are 103 Mt, containing 0.41% copper. A 3D model of the different orebodies and host rocks was generated using data from 1090 drill core logs. The model revealed that the structure of the area is a N–S-trending antiform. The orebodies crop out in the limbs and in the hinge zone. The mineralized structures are mostly tabular, up to 100 m in thickness and subhorizontal. Based on the petrography, geochemistry and the 3D model, the Touro deposit is classified as a VMS of the mafic-siliciclastic type formed in an Ordovician back-arc setting, which was buried and metamorphosed in Middle Devonian

Comparative analysis of the fecal microbiota from different species of domesticated and wild suids

Most of the microorganisms living in a symbiotic relationship in different animal body sites (microbiota) reside in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Several studies have shown that the microbiota is involved in host susceptibilities to pathogens. The fecal microbiota of domestic and wild suids was analyzed. Bacterial communities were determined from feces obtained from domestic pigs ( Sus scrofa ) raised under different conditions: specific-pathogen-free (SPF) pigs and domestic pigs from the same bred, and indigenous domestic pigs from a backyard farm in Kenya. Secondly, the fecal microbiota composition of the African swine fever (ASF) resistant warthogs ( Phacochoerus africanus ) from Africa and a European zoo was determined. African swine fever (ASF) is a devastating disease for domestic pigs. African animals showed the highest microbial diversity while the SPF pigs the lowest. Analysis of the core microbiota from warthogs (resistant to ASF) and pigs (susceptible to ASF) showed 45 shared OTUs, while 6 OTUs were exclusively present in resistant animals. These six OTUs were members of the Moraxellaceae family, Pseudomonadales order and Paludibacter , Anaeroplasma , Petrimonas , and Moraxella genera. Further characterization of these microbial communities should be performed to determine the potential involvement in ASF resistance

Didactic strategies to promote competencies in sustainability

Higher education is a principal agent for addressing the sustainable development goals proposed by the 2030 Agenda, because of its key mission of knowledge generation, teaching and social innovation for sustainability. In order to achieve this, higher education needs to integrate transversally the values of sustainability in the way of developing the field of management, as well as research, university life and, of course, teaching. This paper focuses on teaching, and more specifically on the didactic strategies considered most relevant for training in sustainability competencies in college students, according to the guidelines commonly accepted by the international academic community. Through collaborative work among experts from six Spanish universities taking part in the EDINSOST project (education and social innovation for sustainability), funded by the Spanish R&D+i Program, in this paper the role of five active learning strategies (service learning, problem-based learning, project-oriented learning, simulation games and case studies) in education for sustainability are reviewed, and a systematic approach of their implementation in higher education settings is presented. The results provide a synthesis of their objectives, foundations, and stages of application (planning, implementation, and learning assessment), which can be used as valuable guidelines for teachers.Peer Reviewe

Feather mite abundance constraints

<p>Data and code for analyses for a study on the allometry of symbiont abundance by investigating feather mites (Acariformes: Analgoidea, Pterolichoidea) on 26,604 individual birds from 106 European passerine species. We parameterized metabolic theory equations to predict how bird species' body size and the mean body size of their feather mite species relate to feather mite abundance according to potential energy (uropygial gland size, microbial abundance) and space constraints <span>(wing area, total length of barbs, and number of feather barbs). </span>We compared these theoretical predictions with the empirical allometry of feather mite abundance across bird species (using phylogenetic modelling and quantile regression).</p><p>Only R software is required to run the script using the datasets.</p><p>Methods are described in related papers.</p&gt