Tasas netas de acreción de carbonato de calcio en el complejo de ecosistemas marinos-costeros de la Ensenada Rancho Luna, Cienfuegos, Cuba

Debido a las emisiones cada vez mayores de dióxido de carbono a la atmósfera, la absorción de este gas por el océano se realiza a gran velocidad, provocando un aumento en la acidez del agua de mar. Este proceso, conocido como acidificación oceánica, conlleva a que en muchos organismos calcificadores se reduzca la capacidad de formar sus estructuras de carbonato de calcio. El objetivo de esta investigación fue determinar las tasas netas de acreción de carbonato de calcio (g CaCO3 cm-2 año-1) de taxones de sucesión temprana, en el complejo de ecosistemas marinos-costeros de la Ensenada Rancho Luna, Cienfuegos. Para la cuantificación de la tasas netas de acreción de carbonato de calcio se construyeron 12 dispositivos de muestreo basados en la metodología Vargas-Ángel et al. en el 2015, posicionándose seis de ellos en cada ecosistema estudiado (manglar y arrecife). Los valores medios de netas de acreción de carbonato de calcio fueron de 0.87 ± 0.19 g CaCO3 cm-2 año-1 en el arrecife y 0.59 ± 0.05 g CaCO3 cm-2 año-1 en el manglar. Se identificaron siete taxones, correspondientes a cuatro grupos funcionales de sucesión temprana, el césped (turf), el CaCO3 /sedimento, el grupo funcional Sin Calcio y las algas coralinas costrosas. Estas últimas fueron las principales aportadoras de CaCO3, encontrándose principalmente en el arrecife. Se determinó a la magnesita como forma cristalina de CaCO3 dominante, y las algas coralinas costrosas, el grupo de mayor vulnerabilidad ante el efecto de la acidificación oceánica.   Recibido: 23.09.2022 Aceptado: 06.09.2023 Editor: Susana Perera Valderram

Selection of nature-based solutions to improve comfort in schools during heat waves

Climate change impacts particularly affect vulnerable populations such as children. Therefore, addressing the adaptation of educational buildings is crucial in avoiding these negative effects on school performance. In this paper, three educational buildings, located in Badajoz (Spain), Evora (Portugal) and Porto (Portugal), serve as pilot samples to study the suitability of nature-based solutions (NBS), chosen for each one of three climatic zones. The NBS selected include green roofs, vertical structures with vegetation to shade holes, outdoor trees and free-cooling ventilation. The scenarios of the different NBS implemented in the three models were simulated with the software EnergyPlus, which allows optimising the appropriate decision before renovation operations begin. The results obtained from the simulations suggest energy performance improvements after applying the most adequate NBS selection to each one of the three buildings tested. Particularly, a reduction in radiation on both roofs and facades is required in the case of Evora and Badajoz, where both climate zones have similar features, that is, warm and dry. While in Porto, milder and more humid than the former ones, it is very effective to operate mainly on the roof, complemented by small ventilation operations.The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of this work by the LIFE+ Programme under the responsibility of the Directorate General for the Environment of the European Commission through the agreement LIFE17 CCA/ES/00088, LIFE myBUILDINGisGREEN

As povoações ancandoradas e a arquitetura tradicional do Mediterrâneo

Notícia do II congresso de arquitectura tradicional no Mediterrâneo que teve lugar em Mértola em setembro de 202

El aprendizaje de la teoría jurídica del delito a través del sistema de casos

El documento recoge la memoria del Proyecto de Innovación "El aprendizaje de la teoría jurídica del delito a través del sistema de casos" (PI nº 151). El método del caso es una de las técnicas que favorece el aprendizaje por descubrimiento. Este tipo de aprendizaje anima al alumno a hacer preguntas en el aula y formular sus propias respuestas, así como a deducir principios de ejemplos prácticos o experiencias

Net contribution and predictive ability of the CUN-BAE body fatness index in relation to cardiometabolic conditions

BACKGROUND: The CUN-BAE (Clínica Universidad de Navarra-Body adiposity estimator) index is an anthropometric index based on age, sex and body mass index (BMI) for a refined prediction of body fatness in adults. CUN-BAE may help detect metabolically unhealthy individuals with otherwise normal weight according to BMI or waist circumference (WC). The aim of this study was to evaluate whether CUN-BAE, independent of its components (BMI, age and sex), was associated with cardiometabolic conditions including arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome (MetS). METHODS: The ENRICA study was based on a cross-sectional sample of non-institutionalized men and women representative of the adult Spanish population. Body weight, height, and WC were measured in all participants. The residual of CUN-BAE (rCUN-BAE), i.e. the part of the index not explained by its components, was calculated. The associations of CUN-BAE, rCUN-BAE, BMI and WC with hypertension, diabetes and MetS were analysed by multivariate logistic regression, and the Akaike information criterion (AIC) was calculated. RESULTS: The sample included 12,122 individuals. rCUN-BAE was associated with hypertension (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.07-1.21) and MetS (OR 1.48, 1.37-1.60), but not with diabetes (OR 1.05, 0.94-1.16). In subjects with a BMI?<?25 kg/m2, CUN-BAE was significantly associated with all three outcome variables. CUN-BAE was more strongly associated with the cardiometabolic conditions than BMI and WC and fit similar AICs. CONCLUSIONS: The CUN-BAE index for body fatness was positively associated with hypertension, diabetes and MetS in adults independent of BMI or WC. CUN-BAE may help to identify individuals with cardiometabolic conditions beyond BMI, but this needs to be confirmed in prospective settings.Funding: The ENRICA study was funded and financed by Sanofi-Aventis. Specific funding for this analysis came from the governmental Spain FIS PI12/1166 and PI11/01379 projects and from the “UAM Chair in Epidemiology and Control of Cardiovascular Risk”

IgA vasculitis: influence of CD40, BLK and BANK1 gene polymorphisms

CD40, BLK and BANK1 genes involved in the development and signaling of B-cells are identified as susceptibility loci for numerous inflammatory diseases. Accordingly, we assessed the potential influence of CD40, BLK and BANK1 on the pathogenesis of immunoglobulin-A vasculitis (IgAV), predominantly a B-lymphocyte inflammatory condition. Three genetic variants within CD40 (rs1883832, rs1535045, rs4813003) and BLK (rs2254546, rs2736340, rs2618476) as well as two BANK1 polymorphisms (rs10516487, rs3733197), previously associated with inflammatory diseases, were genotyped in 382 Caucasian patients with IgAV and 955 sex- and ethnically matched healthy controls. No statistically significant differences were observed in the genotype and allele frequencies of CD40, BLK and BANK1 when IgAV patients and healthy controls were compared. Similar results were found when CD40, BLK and BANK1 genotypes or alleles frequencies were compared between patients with IgAV stratified according to the age at disease onset or to the presence/absence of gastrointestinal or renal manifestations. Moreover, no CD40, BLK and BANK1 haplotype differences were disclosed between patients with IgAV and healthy controls and between patients with IgAV stratified according to the clinical characteristics mentioned above. Our findings indicate that CD40, BLK and BANK1 do not contribute to the genetic background of IgAV.Funding: This study was supported by European Union FEDER funds and “Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias” (grants PI18/00042 and PI21/00042) from “Instituto de Salud Carlos III” (ISCIII, Health Ministry, Spain). D.P.-P. is a recipient of a Río Hortega program fellowship from the ISCIII, co-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF, “Investing in your future”) (grant number CM20/00006). F.G. is supported by funds of the RICORS Program from ISCIII, co-funded by the European Union (grant number RD21/0002/0025). V.P.-C. is supported by funds of PI18/00042. S.R.-M. is supported by funds of the RETICS Program (RD16/0012/0009) (ISCIII, co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)). O.G. is a staff member of Xunta de Galicia (Servizo Galego de Saude (SERGAS)) through a research-staff stabilization contract (ISCIII/SERGAS) and his work is funded by ISCIII and the European Union FEDER fund (grant numbers RD16/0012/0014 (RIER) and PI17/00409). He is a beneficiary of project funds from the Research Executive Agency (REA) of the European Union in the framework of MSCA-RISE Action of the H2020 Program, project 734899—Olive-Net. R.L.-M. is a recipient of a Miguel Servet type II program fellowship from the ISCIII, co-funded by ESF (“Investing in your future”) (grant number CPII21/00004). Acknowledgments: We are indebted to the patients and healthy controls for their essential collaboration on this study. We also thank the National DNA Bank Repository (Salamanca) for supplying part of the control samples

Mucosal Immune Defence Gene Polymorphisms as Relevant Players in the Pathogenesis of IgA Vasculitis?

ITGAM&ndash;ITGAX (rs11150612, rs11574637), VAV3 rs17019602, CARD9 rs4077515, DEFA (rs2738048, rs10086568), and HORMAD2 rs2412971 are mucosal immune defence polymorphisms, that have an impact on IgA production, described as risk loci for IgA nephropathy (IgAN). Since IgAN and Immunoglobulin-A vasculitis (IgAV) share molecular mechanisms, with the aberrant deposit of IgA1 being the main pathophysiologic feature of both entities, we assessed the potential influence of the seven abovementioned polymorphisms on IgAV pathogenesis. These seven variants were genotyped in 381 Caucasian IgAV patients and 997 matched healthy controls. No statistically significant differences were observed in the genotype and allele frequencies of these seven polymorphisms when the whole cohort of IgAV patients and those with nephritis were compared to controls. Similar genotype and allele frequencies of all polymorphisms were disclosed when IgAV patients were stratified according to the age at disease onset or the presence/absence of gastrointestinal or renal manifestations. Likewise, no ITGAM&ndash;ITGAX and DEFA haplotype differences were observed when the whole cohort of IgAV patients, along with those with nephritis and controls, as well as IgAV patients, stratified according to the abovementioned clinical characteristics, were compared. Our results suggest that mucosal immune defence polymorphisms do not represent novel genetic risk factors for IgAV pathogenesis

Comparison of body mass index (BMI) with the CUN-BAE body adiposity estimator in the prediction of hypertension and type 2 diabetes

Background Obesity is a world-wide epidemic whose prevalence is underestimated by BMI measurements, but CUN-BAE (Clínica Universidad de Navarra - Body Adiposity Estimator) estimates the percentage of body fat (BF) while incorporating information on sex and age, thus giving a better match. Our aim is to compare the BMI and CUN-BAE in determining the population attributable fraction (AFp) for obesity as a cause of chronic diseases. Methods We calculated the Pearson correlation coefficient between BMI and CUN-BAE, the Kappa index and the internal validity of the BMI. The risks of arterial hypertension (AHT) and diabetes mellitus (DM) and the AFp for obesity were assessed using both the BMI and CUN-BAE. Results 3888 white subjects were investigated. The overall correlation between BMI and CUN-BAE was R2 = 0.48, which improved when sex and age were taken into account (R2 > 0.90). The Kappa coefficient for diagnosis of obesity was low (28.7 %). The AFp was 50 % higher for DM and double for AHT when CUN-BAE was used. Conclusions The overall correlation between BMI and CUN-BAE was not good. The AFp of obesity for AHT and DM may be underestimated if assessed using the BMI, as may the prevalence of obesity when estimated from the percentage of BF

IgA Vasculitis: Influence of CD40, BLK and BANK1 Gene Polymorphisms

CD40, BLK and BANK1 genes involved in the development and signaling of B-cells are identified as susceptibility loci for numerous inflammatory diseases. Accordingly, we assessed the potential influence of CD40, BLK and BANK1 on the pathogenesis of immunoglobulin-A vasculitis (IgAV), predominantly a B-lymphocyte inflammatory condition. Three genetic variants within CD40 (rs1883832, rs1535045, rs4813003) and BLK (rs2254546, rs2736340, rs2618476) as well as two BANK1 polymorphisms (rs10516487, rs3733197), previously associated with inflammatory diseases, were genotyped in 382 Caucasian patients with IgAV and 955 sex- and ethnically matched healthy controls. No statistically significant differences were observed in the genotype and allele frequencies of CD40, BLK and BANK1 when IgAV patients and healthy controls were compared. Similar results were found when CD40, BLK and BANK1 genotypes or alleles frequencies were compared between patients with IgAV stratified according to the age at disease onset or to the presence/absence of gastrointestinal or renal manifestations. Moreover, no CD40, BLK and BANK1 haplotype differences were disclosed between patients with IgAV and healthy controls and between patients with IgAV stratified according to the clinical characteristics mentioned above. Our findings indicate that CD40, BLK and BANK1 do not contribute to the genetic background of IgAV