Seed germination and seedling allogamy in Rosmarinus officinalis: the costs of inbreeding

1) Self-pollination by geitonogamy is likely in self-compatible plants that simultaneously expose large numbers of flowers to pollinators. However, the progeny of these plants is often highly allogamous. Although mechanisms to increase cross-pollination have been identified and studied, their relative importance has rarely been addressed simultaneously in plant populations. (2) We used Rosmarinus officinalis to explore the factors that influence the probability of self-fertilization due to geitonogamy or that purge its consequences, focusing on their effect on seed germination and allogamy rate. For doing this, we experimentally tested the effects of geitonogamy on the proportion of filled seeds and how it influences germination rates. Then during two field seasons, we studied how life-history and flowering traits of individuals influence seed germination and allogamy rates of their progeny in wild populations at the extremes of the altitudinal range. The traits considered were plant size, population density, duration of the flowering season, number of open flowers, flowering synchrony among individuals within populations, and the proportion of male-sterile flowers. (3) We found that most seeds obtained experimentally from self-pollinations were apparently healthy but in fact empty, and that the presence of filled seeds drove the differences in germination rates between self- and cross-pollination experiments. Plants from wild populations consistently showed low germination rates and high rates of allogamy as determined with microsatellites. Germination rates related positively to the length of the flowering season, flowering synchrony and the rate of male-sterile flowers whereas the rate of allogamous seedlings was positively related only to the rate of male-sterile flowers. (4) Rosemary plants purge most of the inbreeding caused by its pollination system by aborting seeds. This study showed that the rates of seed germination and of the resulting allogamy are a function of a complex combination of factors that vary in space and time. Male sterility of flowers, length of the flowering season and flowering synchrony of individuals within populations all favor high rates of cross-pollination, therefore increasing germination and allogamy rates. These flowering traits appear to be highly plastic and respond to local and seasonal environmental conditions

Anxiety towards Statistics and Its Relationship with Students' Attitudes and Learning Approach

[EN] Many university students have difficulties when facing statistics related tasks, leading to an increase in their levels of anxiety and poor performance. Researchers have identified negative attitudes towards statistics, which have been shaped through students' secondary education experience, as a major driver for their failure. In this study we want to uncover the causal recipes of attitudes leading to high and low levels of anxiety in secondary education students, and the role that the learning approach plays in these relationships. We used fuzzy sets comparative qualitative analysis (fsQCA) in a sample of 325 students surveyed on the multifactorial scale of attitudes toward statistics (MSATS) and the revised two factor study process questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F). The results indicate that, respectively, a high or a low level of self-confidence is the most important and a sufficient condition by itself for achieving a low or a high level of anxiety, while the learning approaches and other attitudes are only present in other causal combinations that represent a small number of cases.Peiró Signes, A.; Trull, O.; Segarra-Oña, M.; García-Díaz, JC. (2021). Anxiety towards Statistics and Its Relationship with Students' Attitudes and Learning Approach. Behavioral Sciences. 11(3):1-13. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs11030032S11311

Attitudes towards statistics in secondary education: Findings from fsQCA

[EN] Students report a high degree of anxiety and reduced self-confidence when facing statistical subjects, especially in secondary education. This anxiety turns into poor academic performance. Most studies have used linear models for studying the interrelation between different attitudes and proving their impact on performance or related variables. This study uses a different approach to explain and better understand the causal patterns of factors stimulating lower levels of anxiety in students when facing statistics in secondary education. We employed the Multi-factorial Scale of Attitudes Toward Statistics (MSATS) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) on a sample of 95 secondary school students in Spain. We identified the recipes or causal combination of factors, leading to low and high levels of anxiety. The results indicate that self-confidence and motivation are important factors in these recipes, but there is no single necessary condition that ensures lower levels of anxiety.Peiró Signes, A.; Trull, Ó.; Segarra-Oña, M.; García-Díaz, JC. (2020). Attitudes towards statistics in secondary education: Findings from fsQCA. Mathematics. 8(5):1-17. https://doi.org/10.3390/math8050804S11785Gal, I., & Ginsburg, L. (1994). The Role of Beliefs and Attitudes in Learning Statistics: Towards an Assessment Framework. Journal of Statistics Education, 2(2). doi:10.1080/10691898.1994.11910471Cashin, S. E., & Elmore, P. B. (2005). The Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics Scale: A Construct Validity Study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 65(3), 509-524. doi:10.1177/0013164404272488Garfield, J., & Ben-Zvi, D. (2007). How Students Learn Statistics Revisited: A Current Review of Research on Teaching and Learning Statistics. International Statistical Review, 75(3), 372-396. doi:10.1111/j.1751-5823.2007.00029.xChiesi, F., & Primi, C. (2009). Assessing statistics attitudes among college students: Psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Survey of Attitudes toward Statistics (SATS). Learning and Individual Differences, 19(2), 309-313. doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2008.10.008Beins, B. (1985). Teaching the Relevance of Statistics through Consumer-Oriented Research. Teaching of Psychology, 12(3), 168-169. doi:10.1207/s15328023top1203_16Rojo Robas, V., Madariaga, J. M., & Villarroel, J. D. (2020). Secondary Education Students’ Beliefs about Mathematics and Their Repercussions on Motivation. Mathematics, 8(3), 368. doi:10.3390/math8030368Roberts, D. M., & Bilderback, E. W. (1980). Reliability and Validity of a Statistics Attitude Survey. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 40(1), 235-238. doi:10.1177/001316448004000138Wise, S. L. (1985). The Development and Validation of a Scale Measuring Attitudes toward Statistics. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 45(2), 401-405. doi:10.1177/001316448504500226Schau, C., Stevens, J., Dauphinee, T. L., & Vecchio, A. D. (1995). The Development and Validation of the Survey of Antitudes toward Statistics. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 55(5), 868-875. doi:10.1177/0013164495055005022Roberts, D. M., & Saxe, J. E. (1982). Validity of a Statistics Attitude Survey: A Follow-Up Study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 42(3), 907-912. doi:10.1177/001316448204200326ZEIDNER, M. (1991). STATISTICS AND MATHEMATICS ANXIETY IN SOCIAL SCIENCE STUDENTS: SOME INTERESTING PARALLELS. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 61(3), 319-328. doi:10.1111/j.2044-8279.1991.tb00989.xBaloğlu, M. (2003). Individual differences in statistics anxiety among college students. Personality and Individual Differences, 34(5), 855-865. doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(02)00076-4Schram, C. M. (1996). 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A model of the relationships among measures of affect, aptitude, and performance in introductory statistics. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science / Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, 32(1), 40-48. doi:10.1037/h0087099Hardy, L., & Hagtvet, K. A. (1996). Anxiety and performance: Measurement and modelling issues. Anxiety, Stress & Coping, 9(1), v-viii. doi:10.1080/10615809608249388King, N. J., Ollendick, T. H., & Gullone, E. (1991). Test anxiety in children and adolescents. Australian Psychologist, 26(1), 25-32. doi:10.1080/00050069108258829Seipp, B. (1991). Anxiety and academic performance: A meta-analysis of findings. Anxiety Research, 4(1), 27-41. doi:10.1080/08917779108248762Sesé, A., Jiménez, R., Montaño, J. J., & Palmer, A. (2015). Can Attitudes toward Statistics and Statistics Anxiety Explain Students’ Performance? // ¿Pueden las actitudes hacia la estadística y la ansiedad estadística explicar el rendimiento de los estudiantes? Revista de Psicodidactica / Journal of Psychodidactics, 20(2), 285-304. doi:10.1387/revpsicodidact.13080Mondéjar-Jiménez, J., & Vargas-Vargas, M. (2010). Determinant factors of attitude towards quantitative subjects: Differences between sexes. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 688-693. doi:10.1016/j.tate.2009.10.004Nasser, F. M. (2004). Structural Model of the Effects of Cognitive and Affective Factors on the Achievement of Arabic-Speaking Pre-service Teachers in Introductory Statistics. Journal of Statistics Education, 12(1). doi:10.1080/10691898.2004.11910717Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2003). Modeling Statistics Achievement among Graduate Students. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 63(6), 1020-1038. doi:10.1177/0013164402250989Lalonde, R. N., & Gardner, R. C. (1993). Statistics as a second language? A model for predicting performance in psychology students. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science/Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, 25(1), 108-125. doi:10.1037/h0078792Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2000). Statistics Anxiety and the Role of Self-Perceptions. The Journal of Educational Research, 93(5), 323-330. doi:10.1080/00220670009598724Katz, B. M., & Tomazic, T. J. (1988). Changing Students’ Attitudes toward Statistics through a Nonquantitative Approach. Psychological Reports, 62(2), 658-658. doi:10.2466/pr0.1988.62.2.658Vanhoof, S., Castro Sotos, A. E., Onghena, P., Verschaffel, L., Van Dooren, W., & Van den Noortgate, W. (2006). Attitudes Toward Statistics and Their Relationship with Short- and Long-Term Exam Results. Journal of Statistics Education, 14(3). doi:10.1080/10691898.2006.11910588Bandalos, D. L., Finney, S. J., & Geske, J. A. (2003). A model of statistics performance based on achievement goal theory. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(3), 604-616. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.95.3.604Bandalos, D. 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Individual differences in statistics anxiety: the roles of perfectionism, procrastination and trait anxiety. Personality and Individual Differences, 33(2), 239-251. doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(01)00148-9Ribes Giner, G., Perelló Marín, M. R., & Pantoja Díaz, O. (2017). Revisión sistemática de literatura de las variables clave del proceso de co-creación en las instituciones de educación superior. Literature review of the key variables of the co-creation process in higher education institutions. TEC Empresarial, 11(3), 41. doi:10.18845/te.v11i3.3365Müller-Merbach, H. (2008). Knowledge management: a program for education and leadership. Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 6(4), 350-356. doi:10.1057/kmrp.2008.25Carnell, L. J. (2008). The Effect of a Student-Designed Data Collection Project on Attitudes Toward Statistics. Journal of Statistics Education, 16(1). doi:10.1080/10691898.2008.11889551Slootmaeckers, K., Kerremans, B., & Adriaensen, J. (2013). Too Afraid to Learn: Attitudes towards Statistics as a Barrier to Learning Statistics and to Acquiring Quantitative Skills. Politics, 34(2), 191-200. doi:10.1111/1467-9256.12042Elmore, P. B., & Vasu, E. S. (1986). A Model of Statistics Achievement Using Spatial Ability, Feminist Attitudes and Mathematics-Related Variables as Predictors. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 46(1), 215-222. doi:10.1177/0013164486461025Fiss, P. C. (2011). Building Better Causal Theories: A Fuzzy Set Approach to Typologies in Organization Research. Academy of Management Journal, 54(2), 393-420. doi:10.5465/amj.2011.60263120Fiss, P. C. (2007). A set-theoretic approach to organizational configurations. Academy of Management Review, 32(4), 1180-1198. doi:10.5465/amr.2007.26586092Braumoeller, B. F. (2004). Hypothesis Testing and Multiplicative Interaction Terms. International Organization, 58(04). doi:10.1017/s0020818304040251Rihoux, B. (2006). Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) and Related Systematic Comparative Methods. International Sociology, 21(5), 679-706. doi:10.1177/0268580906067836Woodside, A. G. (2013). Moving beyond multiple regression analysis to algorithms: Calling for adoption of a paradigm shift from symmetric to asymmetric thinking in data analysis and crafting theory. Journal of Business Research, 66(4), 463-472. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2012.12.021Liu, Y., Mezei, J., Kostakos, V., & Li, H. (2015). Applying configurational analysis to IS behavioural research: a methodological alternative for modelling combinatorial complexities. Information Systems Journal, 27(1), 59-89. doi:10.1111/isj.12094Betti, G., D’Agostino, A., & Neri, L. (2010). Educational Mismatch of Graduates: a Multidimensional and Fuzzy Indicator. Social Indicators Research, 103(3), 465-480. doi:10.1007/s11205-010-9712-6Tho, N. D., & Trang, N. T. M. (2015). Can knowledge be transferred from business schools to business organizations through in-service training students? SEM and fsQCA findings. Journal of Business Research, 68(6), 1332-1340. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2014.12.003Palacios-Marqués, D., Roig-Dobón, S., & Comeig, I. (2016). Background factors to innovation performance: results of an empirical study using fsQCA methodology. Quality & Quantity, 51(5), 1939-1953. doi:10.1007/s11135-016-0414-2Ordanini, A., Parasuraman, A., & Rubera, G. (2013). When the Recipe Is More Important Than the Ingredients. Journal of Service Research, 17(2), 134-149. doi:10.1177/1094670513513337Pappas, I. O., Kourouthanassis, P. E., Giannakos, M. N., & Chrissikopoulos, V. (2016). Explaining online shopping behavior with fsQCA: The role of cognitive and affective perceptions. Journal of Business Research, 69(2), 794-803. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2015.07.010Dul, J. (2016). Identifying single necessary conditions with NCA and fsQCA. 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Modelling rates of ecosystem recovery after fires by using Landsat TM data

The aim of this work consists of monitoring the recovery process after fire by means of satellite imagery. The objectives are to assess` the regrowth pathways followed by different species populations after a disturbance, to analyze the speed of recovery in the years following fire, and, finally, to estimate rates of regrowth. The test area is located in the north of the province of Alicante, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. This area, especially prone to finest fires, shows a remarkable land-use history and human pressure. The test areas belong to different microclimatic zones, show diverse vegetation communities, and have different degrees of stoniness; so we attempted to discover their postfire behaviors according to their bioaeographical conditions. To accomplish these objectives, we used nine Landsat .5 thematic mapper images from 1984 to 1994 to which geometric and radioneetrie corrections were applied. Once the comparability between images was guaranteed, we generated a normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for each date. First, we demonstrated that the differences between (NDVI) images were suitable for mapping burned areas. Second, we undertook a nonlinear regression. analysis between NDVI values and the time elapsed since the fire to assess the recovery processes. The exponential adjustment between NDVI and three wa.s in. accord with the asymptotic behavior observed when the -recovery process is complete. The parameters supplied by the proposed method are helpful in quantifying the effects of fire on different ecosystein processes

YKT6 expression, exosome release, and survival in non-small cell lung cancer

BACKGROUND: Cancer-derived exosomes are involved in metastasis. YKT6 is a SNARE protein that participates in the regulation of exosome production and release, but its role in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has not been examined. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ultracentrifugation-purified exosomes from the A549 cell line were studied by CRYO-TEM, nanoparticle tracking analysis and western blot (TSG101 marker). YKT6 was inhibited using a DsiRNA and selected pre-microRNAs. MicroRNAs targeting YKT6 were validated by Renilla/Luciferase assay and western blot. YKT6 expression and its prognostic impact were analyzed in 98 tissue specimens from resected NSCLC patients. RESULTS: Membranous nanosized vesicles (mode size: 128nm) with TSG101 protein were purified from A549 cells. YKT6 inhibition reduced exosome release by 80.9%. We validated miR-134 and miR-135b as miRNAs targeting YKT6, and transfection with the pre-miRNAs also produced a significant reduction in exosome release. The analysis of YKT6 in tumor samples showed that patients with high levels had shorter disease-free and overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: YKT6 is a key molecule in the regulation of exosome release in lung cancer cells and is in turn precisely regulated by miR-134 and miR-135b. Moreover, YKT6 levels impact prognosis of resected NSCLC patients

Barriers to ecological restoration in Europe: expert perspectives

Ecological restoration is key to counteracting anthropogenic degradation of biodiversity and to reducing disaster risk. However, there is limited knowledge of barriers hindering the wider implementation of restoration practices, despite high-level political priority to halt the loss of biodiversity. In Europe, progress on ecological restoration has been slow and insufficient to meet international agreements and comply with European Union Nature Directives. We assessed European restoration experts' perceptions on barriers to restoration in Europe, and their relative importance, through a multiple expert consultation using a Delphi process. We found that experts share a common multi-dimensional concept of ecological restoration. Experts identified a large number of barriers (33) to the advancement of ecological restoration in Europe. Major barriers pertained to the socio-economic, not the environmental, domain. The three most important being insufficient funding, conflicting interests among different stakeholders, and low political priority given to restoration. Our results emphasize the need to increase political commitment at all levels, comply with existing nature laws, and optimize the use of financial resources by increasing funds for ecological restoration and eradicate environmentally harmful subsidies. The experts also call for the integration of ecological restoration into land-use planning and facilitating stakeholders' collaboration. Our study identifies key barriers, discusses ways to overcome the main barriers to ER in Europe, and contributes knowledge to support the implementation of the European Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, and the EU 2030 Restoration Plan in particular. © 2021 The Authors. Restoration Ecology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. on behalf of Society for Ecological Restoration.We are particularly thankful to experts participating in the Delphi process for their generosity in sharing their time and knowledge, and the European Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration (SERE), Réseau d'Échanges et de Valorisation en Écologie de la Restauration (REVER), Finnish Board on Ecological Restoration (FBER), Working Group on Ecological Restoration of the Spanish Association for Terrestrial Ecology (ER-AEET), Dutch Knowledge Network for Restoration and Management of Nature (OBN), German Restoration Network (GRN), UK Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM), Portuguese Network of Ecological Restoration (RPRE), Iberian Center for River Restoration (CIREF), and European Federation of Soil Bioengineering (EFIB) for suggesting candidates to the consulting process. We appreciate the support given by BiodivERsA (project funded under the EU Horizon 2020 ERA-NET COFUND scheme), and the EKLIPSE project (European Union Horizon 2020 grant agreement 690474), and particularly by Juliette C. Young. JCS research is financially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Education and Universities and European Regional Development Funds (FEDER; project COSTERA, RTI2018-095954-B-I00). PMRG research is funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through FCT Investigator Program grant number IF/00059/2015, and Centro de Estudos Florestais is supported by FCT grants UID/AGR/00239/2019 and UIDB/00239/2020

Aula invertida para la mejora del aprendizaje en la asignatura de Transferencia de Calor y Materia [Flip Teaching for the improvement of learning in the subject of Heat and Mass Transfer]

Se ha desarrollado y aplicado la metodología Flip Teaching (aula invertida) en la asignatura obligatoria “Transferencia de Calor y Materia” de 2º curso del grado de Ingeniero de la Energía en la ETSI de Ingenieros de Minas de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. Se tienen dos grupos, uno de control y otro experimental. El material que dispone el alumno preparado por el profesor para ambos grupos es: presentaciones de power point, el libro de texto y repositorio de problemas. El grupo experimental, además dispone de vídeos cortos colgados en Youtube y cuestionarios en Moodle. Estas actividades se integran en el aula con la explicación por parte del profesor de los errores detectados en los cuestionarios, y además los alumnos realizan ejercicios de aplicación de lo estudiado en casa. El efecto de la metodología se mide en el impacto del aprendizaje en los exámenes parciales de dos bloques de la asignatura (conducción y convección) que suponen el 66% de la misma. El resultado de la comparación es que las notas medias del grupo experimental son ligeramente mayores que el grupo de control. Así mismo, la dispersión de las notas es menor asegurando un mayor nivel del alumnado. [A Flip Teaching methodology has been developed and applied into an obligatory subject of the 2nd curse titled “Heat and Mass transfer” of the Energetic Engineering Bachelor at the School of Mines and Energy at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. There are two groups, the control and the experimental one. To do that, both groups has a material prepared by the teacher such as power point presentations, a textbook, and problem repository. The experimental group, also has short videos on Youtube, and short tests on Moodle. These activities are integrated in the class with the explanation by the teacher of the errors detected in the tests, and the students made exercises of application. The effect of the methodology is measured in the learning impact through the partial exams of two parts (conduction and convection) of the subject which account for the 66% of it. The result is that the mean value of the grades are higher for the group that has this methodology than the control group. Also, the dispersion of the notes is less ensuring a better level of students.

Gene signatures of early response to anti-TNF drugs in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease

T. Around a 20–30% of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients are diagnosed before they are 18 years old. Anti-TNF drugs can induce and maintain remission in IBD, however, up to 30% of patients do not respond. The aim of the work was to identify markers that would predict an early response to anti-TNF drugs in pediatric patients with IBD. The study population included 43 patients aged <18 years with IBD who started treatment with infliximab or adalimumab. Patients were classified into primary responders (n = 27) and non-responders to anti-TNF therapy (n = 6). Response to treatment could not be analyzed in 10 patients. Response was defined as a decrease in over 15 points in the disease activity indexes from week 0 to week 10 of infliximab treatment or from week 0 to week 26 of adalimumab treatment. The expression profiles of nine genes in total RNA isolated from the whole-blood of pediatric IBD patients taken before biologic administration and after 2 weeks were analyzed using qPCR and the 2−∆∆Ct method. Before initiation and after 2 weeks of treatment the expression of SMAD7 was decreased in patients who were considered as non-responders (p value < 0.05). Changes in expression were also observed for TLR2 at T0 and T2, although that did not reach the level of statistical significance. In addition, the expression of DEFA5 decreased 1.75-fold during the first 2 weeks of anti-TNF treatment in responders, whereas no changes were observed in non-responders. Expression of the SMAD7 gene is a pharmacogenomic biomarker of early response to anti-TNF agents in pediatric IBD. TLR2 and DEFA5 need to be validated in larger studies.This work was funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (grants numbers PI16/00559 and PI19/00792), Consejería de Educación y Deporte de la Comunidad de Madrid (grant number PEJ16/MED/AI-1260), and by the Gregorio Marañón Health Research Institute (grant number PRE-2018-2), The study was cofunded by ERDF Funds (FEDER) from the European Commission, “A way of making Europe

Review of interventions to encourage SMEs to make environmental improvements

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are an important part of the world economy but they are thought to be responsible for around 60% of all carbon dioxide emissions and 70% of all pollution. SMEs often have major problems with limited resources, limited knowledge, and limited technical capabilities to deal with their own negative environmental impact. SMEs exhibit widely differing characteristics and commitment where environmental issues are concerned. Yet under these conditions they are all expected to engage in environmental improvement. Interventions that encourage environmental improvement are often polarised between regulation and legislation at one extreme and voluntary environmental agreement at the other. It is clear that a holistic mixture of interventions is necessary to achieve maximum engagement and environmental improvement by all SMEs. In this paper we categorise the different levels of environmental commitment observed in SMEs and develop a selection or &lsquo;toolkit&rsquo; of intervention strategies that might be deployed within each category of SME.<br /

Prospective study of asbestos-related diseases incidence cases in primary health care in an area of Barcelona province

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Asbestos related diseases include a number of conditions due to inhalation of asbestos fibres at work, at home or in the environment, such as pleural mesothelioma, asbestosis and calcified pleural plaques. Few epidemiological studies have established the incidence of asbestos related diseases in our area. The present proposal is based on a retrospective study externally funded in 2005 that is currently taking place in the same area and largely carried out by the same research team.</p> <p>The aim of the study is to achieve a comprehensive and coordinated detection of all new cases of Asbestos Related Diseases presenting to primary care practitioners.</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>This is a multicentre, multidisciplinary and pluri-institutional prospective study.</p> <p><b>Setting</b></p> <p>12 municipalities in the Barcelona province within the catchment area of the health facilities that participate in the study.</p> <p><b>Sample</b></p> <p>This is a population based study, of all patients presenting with diseases caused by asbestos in the study area.</p> <p><b>Measurements</b></p> <p>A clinical and epidemiological questionnaire will be filled in by the trained researchers after interviewing the patients and examining their clinical reports.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Data on the incidence of the different Asbestos Related Diseases in this area will be obtained and the most plausible exposure source and space-time-patient profile will be described. The study will also improve the standardization of patient management, the coordination between health care institutions and the development of preventive activities related with asbestos exposure and disease.</p