Organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst assemblages in surface sediments of the Ría de Vigo (Atlantic margin of NW Iberia) in relation to environmental gradients

Organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst assemblages were analysed in 31 surface sediment samples from the Ría de Vigo (NW Iberia) to obtain supporting evidence for the interpretation of past environmental signals from sediment cores. Complementarily, the totals of pollen (and pollen from riparian taxa), foraminiferal linings and freshwater algae were also considered to test their value as (palaeo)environmental indicators in fluvio-marine sedimentary environments. Abundances of foraminiferal linings gradually increased towards the ría's mouth, which supports its use as a proxy to infer the degree of marine influence in the sediment record. The ratio of dinoflagellate cysts to pollen and spores (D/P) increased with distance to the main river's mouth (and water depth) in the inner ( 20 m) parts of the ría. Total pollen concentrations decreased with water depth in the outer part but did not show any clear trend in the rest of the ría. No clear pattern in the distributions of pollen from riparian plants and spores from freshwater microalgae was detected. Multivariate analyses (clustering and RDA) performed on dinoflagellate cyst records and environmental data reflected a marked inshore-offshore distribution pattern mainly controlled by a fluvio-marine environmental gradient. Increasing abundances of cysts of Gymnodinium species and heterotrophic cysts as well as higher cyst diversity characterised the deeper environments of the outer ría. These observations suggest a relationship with increased shelf influence and are compatible with the heterotroph upwelling signal described in previous works. A very different cyst association with a predominance of autotrophic cysts characterised the intermediate and inner parts of ría, where exceptionally high cyst abundances of Lingulodinium polyedra (∼ 56–99% and ∼ 200–114,000 cysts.g−1) were reported. Abundances of cysts of L. polyedra positively correlated with shallower and higher river-influenced environments characterised by higher sea-surface temperature. Our results agree with previous studies and reinforce the value of this species as an indicator of warmer and stratified conditions. Moreover, cysts of L. polyedra positively correlated with winter sea-surface nitrate contents, which is compatible with the nutrient enrichment signal (natural or anthropogenic) that has already been described in other deep and stratified estuarine environments and is consistent with historical cyst records obtained in the Ría de Vigo. However, further research is needed to disentangle the nutrient enrichment signal from the influence of other environmental factors.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia | Ref. CGL2012-33584Xunta de Galicia | Ref. GRC 2015/020Xunta de Galicia | Ref. ED431C 2019/28Xunta de Galicia | Ref. ED481B-2019-074Universidade de Vigo/CISU

Membrane-disrupting iridium(III) oligocationic organometallopeptides

NOTICE: This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Salvadó, I, Gamba, I, Montenegro J, Martínez-Costas J, Brea JM, Loza MI, Vázquez López M, Vázquez M.E. Membrane-disrupting iridium(III) oligocationic organometallopeptides. Chem. Commun., 2016,52, 11008-11011. DOI: 10.1039/C6CC05537K. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with RSC Terms and Conditions for self-archivingA series of oligoarginine peptide derivatives containing cyclometallated iridium(III) units display remarkable cytotoxicity, comparable to that of cisplatin. In vitro studies with unilamellar vesicles support a membrane-disrupting mechanism of actionWe are thankful for the support given by the Spanish grants SAF2013-41943-R, CTQ2015-70698-R, CTQ2013-49317-EXP,CTQ2014-59646-R, and BFU2013-43513-R, and the Xunta de Galicia GRC2013-041. Support from COST Action CM1105 and the orfeo-cinqa network (CTQ2014-51912-REDC) is kindly acknowledgedS

Selective G-quadruplex binding by oligoarginine-Ru(dppz) metallopeptides

A set of Ru(II) metallopeptides containing the dppz ligand has been synthesized using SPPS methods. Fluorescence titration studies show that those metallopeptides featuring an octaarginine tail display a large binding preference for DNA G-quadruplex structures over those lacking it, and also that the interplay between the octoarginine functionalization and the ancillary ligand in the complex has an essential role in the recognition process. Furthermore, the oligoarginine metallopeptides are also efficiently internalized, causing cell death with signs of apoptosisFinancial support from the Spanish grants CTQ2015-70698-R, BFU2013-43513-R and SAF2014-56763-R, the Xunta de Galicia Centro Singular de Investigacion de Galicia accreditation 2016–2019.CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials, POCI-01-0145-FEDER007679 (UID/CTM/50011/2013), the UE ERDF and the Fundación AECC (IDEAS197VAZQ-Singulares 2014), are acknowledgedS

Custom‐Fit Ruthenium(II) Metallopeptides: A New Twist to DNA Binding With Coordination Compounds

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Gamba, I., Salvadó, I., Rama, G., Bertazzon, M., Sánchez, M. I., Sánchez‐Pedregal, V. M., Martínez‐Costas, J. , Brissos, R. F., Gamez , P., Mascareñas, J. L., Vázquez López, M. and Vázquez, M. E. (2013), Custom‐Fit Ruthenium(II) Metallopeptides: A New Twist to DNA Binding With Coordination Compounds. Chem. Eur. J., 19: 13369-13375, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.201301629. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived VersionsUnknown funding agency. Grant Numbers: SAF2010–20822‐C02, CTQ2012–31341, CTQ2009–14431, CTQ2011–27929‐C02–01, SAF2007–61015 Xunta de Galicia. Grant Numbers: INCITE09 209 084PR, GRC2010/12, PGIDIT08CSA‐047209PR COST Action. Grant Number: CM1105 Fundación José Otero–Carmela Martínez Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology European Nanotechnology Laboratory (ENL)S

Novel coumarin-pyridazine hybrids as selective MAO-B inhibitors for the Parkinson\u2019s disease therapy

The 3-pyridazinylcoumarin scaffold was previously reported as an efficient core for the discovery of reversible and selective inhibitors of MAO-B, a validated drug target for PD therapy which also plays an important role in the AD progress. Looking for its structural optimization, novel compounds of hybrid structure coumarin-pyridazine, differing in polarizability and lipophilicity properties, were synthesized and tested against the two MAO isoforms, MAO-A and MAO-B (compounds 17a-f and 18a-f). All the designed compounds selectively inhibited the MAO-B isoenzyme, exhibiting many of them IC50 values ranging from sub-micromolar to nanomolar grade and lacking neuronal toxicity. The 7-bromo-3-(6-bromopyridazin-3-yl)coumarin (18c), the most potent compound of these series (IC50 = 60 nM), was subjected to further in vivo studies in a reserpine-induced mouse PD model. The obtained results suggest a promising potential for 18c as antiparkinsonian agent. Molecular modeling studies also provided valuable information about the enzyme-drug interactions and the potential pharmacokinetic profile of the novel compounds

Iberian Manifest On Art Necessity

Este manifiesto es fruto de la treintena de tesis doctorales que se están elaborando por graduados espanoles y portugueses en el grupo de investigación "Modos de conocimiento artístico" con sede en la Facultad de Bellas Artes de la Universidad de Vigo. El supuesto que fundamenta este manifiesto es precisamente la convicción de la necesidad misma de cada uno de los temas que se exploran y de cuyo análisis resultará en los próximos anos un conjunto de respuestas que aquí se exponen en extracto desde una perspectiva Radical y Libre.Vicerrectorado de Investigación de la Universidad de Vig