L'Assaig sobre l'origen del llenguatge de J.G. Herder

This article analyzes Herder's conception of language through the Essay on the origin of language. Human beings have developed at the same time awareness and language in order to fill the gap that the loss of natural instinct leaves. To explain this process Herder defends a kind of naturalistic position against both arbitrary and divine origin of language. One of his main points is the influence of signals in symbols. On one hand, thanks to signals we can grasp and keep what is at the heart of the experience. On the other hand, human nature is a mixture of sense and reason so that signals have a close relation with symbols which are, in spite of that, freely chosen. From this peculiar choice derives the idiosyncrasy of every language. Through this process each culture has built up its language in a particular way of thinking their reality, arranging the meaning of words to guide the speakers

Transcriptome of the dead: characterisation of immune genes and marker development from necropsy samples in a free-ranging marine mammal

Background Transcriptomes are powerful resources, providing a window on the expressed portion of the genome that can be generated rapidly and at low cost for virtually any organism. However, because many genes have tissue-specific expression patterns, developing a complete transcriptome usually requires a 'discovery pool' of individuals to be sacrificed in order to harvest mRNA from as many different types of tissue as possible. This hinders transcriptome development in large, charismatic and endangered species, many of which stand the most to gain from such approaches. To circumvent this problem in a model pinniped species, we 454 sequenced cDNA from testis, heart, spleen, intestine, kidney and lung tissues obtained from nine adult male Antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) that died of natural causes at Bird Island, South Georgia. Results After applying stringent quality control criteria based on length and annotation, we obtained 12,397 contigs which, in combination with 454 data previously obtained from skin, gave a total of 23,096 unique contigs. Homology was found to 77.0% of dog (Canis lupus familiaris) transcripts, suggesting that the combined assembly represents a substantial proportion of this species' transcriptome. Moreover, only 0.5% of transcripts revealed sequence similarity to bacteria, implying minimal contamination, and the percentage of transcripts involved in cell death was low at 2.6%. Transcripts with immune-related annotations were almost five-fold enriched relative to skin and represented 13.2% of all spleen-specific contigs. By reference to the dog, we also identified transcripts revealing homology to five class I, ten class II and three class III genes of the Major Histocompatibility Complex and derived the putative genomic distribution of 17,121 contigs, 2,119 in silico mined microsatellites and 9,382 single nucleotide polymorphisms. Conclusions Our findings suggest that transcriptome development based on samples collected post mortem may greatly facilitate genomic studies, not only of marine mammals but also more generally of species that are of conservation concern

Avaluació de la població de llagostes (Palinurus elephas) de les Illes Medes. Exercici 1995

Podeu consultar l'Informe complet a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/2466

Meta-analysis of the efficacy of melatonin implants for improving reproductive performance in sheep

To evaluate the efficacy of melatonin implants on increasing the production of lambs, a meta-analysis was performed based on the results of 139 experiments carried out in Spain and published in 56 scientific publications or conference proceedings. To assess the effects on fertility, the relative risk (RR) was calculated and, in the case of prolificacy and fecundity, the analysis was based on raw mean difference (D) and the standardized difference between means (d) and their corresponding confidence intervals. In addition, the experiments were stratified by the productive aptitude of the flocks, breed, time of year, and age. For fertility, the mean RR was 1.29, which indicated that the treatment with melatonin increased significantly (by 29%) the probability of pregnancy. For prolificacy, overall D was 0.08 (d = 0.9089); i.e., the groups treated with melatonin increased their litter size by 0.08 lambs/lambing relative to the control groups. Ultimately, treatment with melatonin increased fecundity significantly (0.25 extra lambs/ewe treated) (d = 6.3188), and this trend was evident in all of the stratified datasets. In all cases, there was significant (p < 0.001) heterogeneity and bias. In conclusion, in Spain, melatonin implants had a significant effect on the probability that a ewe became pregnant, increased the number of lambs born per lambing, which ultimately increased the number of lambs born per treated ewe. In addition to confirm the results of previous descriptive reviews in the scientific literature, the metaanalysis made use of a statistical tool that synthesizes and estimates more precisely the effect of this hormone on sheep reproduction. Se ha realizado un meta-análisis sobre la eficacia del uso de implantes de melatonina en ovino en España, analizando los resultados de 139 experiencias publicadas en 56 publicaciones o comunicaciones. Para la fertilidad se han calculado los riesgos relativos (RR) y para la prolificidad y fecundidad se han calculado la diferencia no estandarizada o bruta entre medias (D) y la diferencia estandarizada entre medias (d). Los resultados se han estratificado por aptitud productiva de los rebaños, raza, época del año y edad. Se han calculado los estadísticos de heterogeneidad y el posible sesgo entre publicaciones. Para la fertilidad, el RR medio fue 1,29, lo que significa que la melatonina incrementó de manera significativa las posibilidades de parto un 29%. Para la prolificidad, la D global fue 0,08 (d = 0,9089), es decir, los grupos tratados incrementaron su prolificidad 0,08 corderos/parto. El tratamiento con melatonina aumentó de manera significativa la fecundidad, con 0,25 corderos extra producidos/oveja tratada (d = 6,3188). En todos los casos, la heterogeneidad y el sesgo calculados fueron significativos (p < 0,001). En conclusión, el metaanálisis realizado ha revelado un efecto significativo de la melatonina en España sobre la posibilidad de que una oveja quede gestante, además de elevar el número de corderos nacidos por parto, lo que al final incrementa el número de corderos nacidos por oveja tratada. Esto no ha hecho sino confirmar lo revisado previamente en la literatura de manera narrativa, mediante una herramienta estadística, que sintetiza y estima de manera más precisa el efecto de esta hormona