Prevalence of potentially thermophilic microorganisms in biofilms from greenhouse-enclosed drip irrigation systems

Drip irrigation systems using reclaimed water often present clogging events of biological origin. Microbial communities in biofilms from microirrigation systems of an experimental greenhouse in Almería, SE Spain, which used two different qualities of water (treated wastewater and reclaimed water), were analyzed by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and subsequent sequencing of amplified 16S rRNA gene bands. The most remarkable feature of all biofilms was that regardless of water origin, sequences belonging to Firmicutes were prevalent (53.5 % of total mean band intensity) and that almost all sequences recovered had some similarity (between 80.2 and 97 %) to thermophilic microorganisms. Mainly, sequences were closely related to potentially spore-forming organisms, suggesting that microbial communities able to grow at high temperatures were selected from the microbiota present in the incoming water. These pioneer results may contribute to improve management strategies to minimize the problems associated to biofouling in irrigation systems

Institutional Adaptation to Changing Risk of Water Scarcity in the Lower Guadalquivir Basin

Historically, the Spanish water management model's predominate goal has been resource augmentation. This mindset has had important consequences for the system's capacity to cope with droughts. It has impacted the system's overall vulnerability, the discourse of scarcity, the conceptualisation of risk and the stakeholders' interests and their approach to risk. The aim of this article is to present the traditional hydraulic paradigm, its current crisis and implications for present and future risk management, and to explore stakeholder and institutional reactions and adaptation to changing risk scenarios. The adaptation process will be framed within the wider context of macro-trends, such as marketisation and re-scaling of institutions and global warming

Promotion of physical activity after hospitalization for COPD exacerbation: A randomized control trial

COPD exacerbation; Hospitalization; Physical activityExacerbació de la MPOC; Hospitalització; Activitat físicaExacerbación de la EPOC; Hospitalización; Actividad físicaBackground and Objective Physical activity worsens during exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and notably after hospitalizations. Pedometer-based interventions are useful to increase physical activity in stable patients with COPD. However, there is little information concerning the implementation of such programs following severe exacerbation. This study assessed the efficacy of a physical activity program after hospitalization for a COPD exacerbation. Methods We performed a prospective, 12-week, parallel group, assessor-blinded, randomized control trial in COPD patients hospitalized for an exacerbation. After discharge, physical activity and other secondary variables were assessed. Patients were allocated (1:1) to a physical activity promotion program (intervention group, IG) or usual care (control group, CG). Based on a motivational interview and accelerometer physical activity assessment, a patient-tailored, pedometer-based, progressive and target-driven program was designed. Linear mixed effect models were used to analyse between-group differences. Results Forty-six out of 61 patients recruited were randomized and 43 (IG = 20, CG = 23) completed the study. In-hospital and baseline characteristics were similar in both groups. After 12 weeks of intervention, the mean steps difference between groups was 2093 steps/day, p = 0.018, 95% CI 376–4012, favouring the IG. Only the IG significantly increased the number of steps/day compared to baseline (mean difference [95% CI] 2932 [1069–4795] steps; p = 0.004). There were no other between-group differences. Conclusion After hospitalization for a COPD exacerbation, a patient-tailored physical activity program based on a motivational interview and the use of pedometers, with progressive and customized targets, improved the number of steps/day.Sociedad Española de Neumología y Cirugía Torácica (SEPAR), Grant/Award Number: 125-2015; Fundació Catalana de Pneumolgia (FUCAP), Grant/Award Number: SILVIA2017-202

Compliance to Multidisciplinary Lifestyle Intervention Decreases Blood Pressure in Patients with Resistant Hypertension: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study

Hypertension; Therapeutics; Weight managementHipertensió; Terapèutica; Gestió del pesHipertensión; Terapéutica; Control de pesoHypertension is a common chronic medical condition. Treatment is not satisfactory in a significant proportion of patients with primary hypertension, despite the concurrent use of three or more medications with different mechanisms of action. Such treatment-resistant hypertension is a clinical challenge associated with poor prognosis and needs further investigation. The efficacy of lifestyle changes has not been established yet in patients with resistant hypertension, and educational efforts appear clinically irrelevant in patients who must achieve behavioral changes without supervision. A 6-month multidisciplinary pilot intervention enrolled 50 patients with established resistant hypertension. The aims were: (1) to examine whether intensive and supervised lifestyle changes contribute to decreasing blood pressure in this condition, and (2) to identify which components affect compliance and feasibility. The program provided intensive changes in nutrition, physical exercise, and control of sleep disturbances supervised by nutritionists, physiotherapists, and psychologists. Nurses and pharmacists followed up on adherence to the antihypertensive medication. The primary outcome was 24 h blood pressure control. Data in patients with full compliance (n = 30) indicate that lifestyle modifications in resistant hypertension significantly reduced 24 h both systolic and diastolic blood pressure (p < 0.01), body mass index (p < 0.01), medication burden (p = 0.04), improving physical fitness, and cardiovascular risk markers such as heart rate (p = 0.01) and augmentation index (p = 0.02). The adherence to the intervention was moderate, with an attrition rate of 12%. A modified version reducing visits and explorations will likely improve compliance and can be used to assess the long-term maintenance of these benefits in managing resistant hypertension by diverse healthcare providers.The program against Resistant Hypertension was supported, in part, by the Hospital Vall d’Hebron, the Menarini Foundation, and the Instituto de Salud Carlos III grant (PI21/00510) co-funded by the Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional. H.C. is a recipient of a fellowship of the Department of Health of Catalonia (Government of Catalonia) “Pla Estratègic de Recerca i Innovació en Salut” (PERIS-SLT017/3501/2020)

Formación de profesionales para una ciudadanía planetaria. La educación para el desarrollo sostenible en los títulos de grado de la Facultad de Educación de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid

This research work has been developed within the framework of the Project Detection of standards and quality criteria for sustainable development and its incorporation into internal systems Quality assurance in the Faculty of Education (Innova-Docencia Projects 2017/2018 de the Complutense University of Madrid) whose objective focuses on trying to answer the following questions: are graduates and graduates of the Faculty of Education of the UCM competent to respond to the different challenges, social and environmental needs that arise each day on our planet? Is education for sustainable development considered as a quality criterion? From a qualitative methodology, a mapping has been constructed based on a selection of educational records and ANECA memories of the different degrees taught in the Faculty of Education: Degree of Primary Teacher, Degree of Infant Teacher, Degree in Social Education and Degree in Pedagogy to identify the strengths and weaknesses in the formation of the different professional profiles. For the collection of data and subsequent analysis, a matrix was designed taking as reference the Sustainable Development Goals, the competences developed by UNECE and UNESCO as indicators of analysis. Although sustainable development is present in the competences, objectives, etc. of some of the subjects analyzed, the results point to the need to introduce improvements related to sustainability in the degrees taught at the Faculty of Education of the UCM in compliance with the objectives and goals of the 2030 Agenda, to incorporate the Education dimension for Sustainable Development in each of the professional profiles. Keywords: Sustainable Development Education, Sustainable Development Goals, curricular sustainability, planetary citizenshipResumen: El presente trabajo de investigación se ha desarrollado en el marco del Proyecto Detección de estándares y criterios de calidad para el desarrollo sostenible y su incorporación a los sistemas internos Garantía de calidad en la Facultad de Educación (Proyectos Innova-Docencia 2017/2018 de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid) cuyo objetivo centra su foco en tratar de dar respuesta a las siguientes cuestiones: ¿son competentes los egresados y egresadas de la Facultad de Educación de la UCM para responder a los diferentes retos, necesidades sociales y ambientales que surgen cada día en nuestro planeta? ¿Desde la propia educación se considera la Educación para el Desarrollo Sostenible como criterio de calidad? Desde una metodología cualitativa, se ha realizado un mapeo en base a una selección de fichas docentes y memorias ANECA de las diferentes titulaciones impartidas en la Facultad de Educación: Grado de Maestro Primaria, Grado de Maestro Infantil, Grado de Educación Social y Grado de Pedagogía para identificar las fortalezas y debilidades en la formación de los distintos perfiles profesionales. Para la recogida de datos y posterior análisis se diseñó una matriz tomando como referencia los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible, las competencias desarrolladas por la UNECE y la UNESCO como indicadores de análisis. Aunque el desarrollo sostenible se muestra presente en las competencias, objetivos, etc. de algunas de las asignaturas analizadas, los resultados apuntan a la necesidad de introducir mejoras relacionadas con la sostenibilidad en las titulaciones impartidas en la Facultad de Educación de la UCM en cumplimiento de los objetivos y metas de la Agenda 2030, para incorporar la dimensión Educación para el Desarrollo Sostenible en cada uno de los perfiles profesionales. Palabras clave: Educación Desarrollo Sostenible, Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible, Sostenibilización curricular, Ciudadanía planetaria Formation of professionals for a planetary citizenship. Education for sustainable development in the graduate degrees of the Faculty of Education of the Complutense University of Madrid Abstract: This research work has been developed within the framework of the Project Detection of standards and quality criteria for sustainable development and its incorporation into internal systems Quality assurance in the Faculty of Education (Innova-Docencia Projects 2017/2018 de the Complutense University of Madrid) whose objective focuses on trying to answer the following questions: are graduates and graduates of the Faculty of Education of the UCM competent to respond to the different challenges, social and environmental needs that arise each day on our planet? Is education for sustainable development considered as a quality criterion? From a qualitative methodology, a mapping has been constructed based on a selection of educational records and ANECA memories of the different degrees taught in the Faculty of Education: Degree of Primary Teacher, Degree of Infant Teacher, Degree in Social Education and Degree in Pedagogy to identify the strengths and weaknesses in the formation of the different professional profiles. For the collection of data and subsequent analysis, a matrix was designed taking as reference the Sustainable Development Goals, the competences developed by UNECE and UNESCO as indicators of analysis. Although sustainable development is present in the competences, objectives, etc. of some of the subjects analyzed, the results point to the need to introduce improvements related to sustainability in the degrees taught at the Faculty of Education of the UCM in compliance with the objectives and goals of the 2030 Agenda, to incorporate the Education dimension for Sustainable Development in each of the professional profiles. Keywords: Sustainable Development Education, Sustainable Development Goals, Curricular sustainability, Planetary citizenshi

Near-normal aerobic capacity in long-term survivors after lung transplantation

Lung transplant; Survivors; Aerobic capacityTrasplantaments de pulmó; Supervivents; Capacitat aeròbicaTrasplantes de pulmón; Supervivientes; Capacidad aeróbicaThe clinical course of lung transplantation (LT) is diverse: some patients present chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD) and progressive decline in pulmonary function, but others maintain normal spirometric values and active lives. Objectives The aim of this study was to elucidate whether long-term LT survivors with normal spirometry achieve normal exercise capacity, and to identify predictive factors of exercise capacity. Methods This was a cross-sectional multicentre study, where bilateral LT recipients who survived at least 10 years after LT, with normal spirometry, no diagnosis of CLAD and modified Medical Research Council dyspnoea degree ≤2 underwent cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET). Results 28 LT recipients were included with a mean±sd age of 48.7±13.6 years. Oxygen uptake (V′O2) had a mean±sd value of 21.49±6.68 mL·kg−1·min−1 (75.24±15.6%) and the anaerobic threshold was reached at 48.6±10.1% of the V′O2max predicted. The mean±sd heart rate reserve at peak exercise was 17.56±13.6%. The oxygen pulse increased during exercise and was within normal values at 90.5±19.4%. The respiratory exchange ratio exceeded 1.19 at maximum exercise. The median (25–75th percentile) EuroQol-5D score was 1 (0.95–1), indicating a good quality of life. The median (25–75th percentile) International Physical Activity Questionnaire score was 5497 (4007–9832) MET-min·week−1 with 89% of patients reporting more than 1500 MET-min·week−1. In the multivariate regression models, age, sex and diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide remained significantly associated with V′O2max (mL·kg−1·min−1); haemoglobin and forced expiratory volume in 1 s were significantly associated with maximum work rate (watts), after adjusting for confounders. Conclusion We report for the first time near-normal peak V′O2 values during CPET and normal exercise capacity in long-term LT recipients without CLAD.Support statement: This study was financed by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI13/01076); the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), FUCAP, Astellas, Novartis and Chiesi. Funding information for this article has been deposited with the Crossref Funder Registry.Ojanguren is a researcher supported by the “Pla Estratègic de Recerca i Innovació en Salut (PERIS)” 2016–2020 (SLT008/18/00108;G60594009)

El «pueblo» bogotano en la revolución del 20 de julio de 1810

The Santa Fe de Bogotá Revolution of the 20th of July of 1810, was planned, driven and carried out by a relatively small group of neogranadine patricians and some spaniards. Nonetheless, without the action of the agitators (called «chisperos») on the 20th of July and following weeks, possibly the beginning of the political transformation in the Nueva Granada would have failed. This article aims at a prosopographic aproximation of who the sparklers were, how they were organized, and who their main leaders were during the days between the 20th of July and the 13th of August of 1810. Twentyfive eyewitness written testimonials are the main source used to undertake this study.La revolución santafereña del 20 de julio de 1810 fue pensada, dirigida y realizada por un grupo relativamente pequeño de patricios neogranadinos y algunos peninsulares. Sin embargo, sin la actuación de los llamados «chisperos» el viernes 20 de julio y las semanas sucesivas, posiblemente hubiera fracasado el inicio de la transformación política en Nueva Granada. En este artículo se pretende llevar a cabo una aproximación prosopográfica sobre quiénes eran los chisperos, cómo estaban organizados, y quiénes eran sus principales dirigentes durante las jornadas del 20 de julio al 13 de agosto de 1810. Para llevar a cabo esta tarea se han utilizado principalmente veinticinco testimonios redactados por testigos oculares de esas jornadas

Metabolic and mitochondria alterations induced by SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins ORF3a, ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10

1 p.Antiviral signaling, immune response and cell metabolism in human body are dysregulated by SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19. However, the impacts of individual accessory proteins on host cell metabolic pathways are unknown.Here, SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins ORF3a, ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10 were individually transduced into A549 lung carcinoma cells. Furthermore, by combining transcriptomic analysis with functional and metabolic data in accessory protein-specific GSMMs, several alterations were identified that may point to a putative target for investigating novel therapies. In this study, we showed that these accessory proteins induced a significant mitochondrial and metabolic reprogramming in A549 lung epithelial cells. ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10 induced largely overlapping transcriptomes. In contrast, ORF3a induced a distinct transcriptome, including the downregulation of numerous genes with critical role in mitochondria function and morphology. On the other hand, while all four ORFs altered mitochondrial dynamics and function, only ORF3a and ORF9c induced a marked structural alteration in mitochondrial cristae. Genome-Scale Metabolic Models identified both metabolic flux reprogramming features shared across all accessory proteins and specific ones for each accessory protein. Notably, a downregulated amino acid metabolism was observed in ORF9b, ORF9c and ORF10, while an upregulated lipid metabolism was distinctly induced by ORF3a. Next, qMTA identified gene knock downs (KDs) that would have the potential to revert the metabolic reprogramming induced by each individual accessory protein, especially in ORF3a and ORF10. These findings reveal metabolic dependencies and vulnerabilities prompted by SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins that may be exploited to identify new targets for intervention.Peer reviewe