Exploring spatial–temporal dynamics of fire regime features in mainland Spain

This paper explores spatial–temporal dynamics in fire regime features, such as fire frequency, burnt area, large fires and natural- and human-caused fires, as an essential part of fire regime characterization. Changes in fire features are analysed at different spatial – regional and provincial/NUTS3 – levels, together with summer and winter temporal scales, using historical fire data from Spain for the period 1974–2013. Temporal shifts in fire features are investigated by means of change point detection procedures – Pettitt test, AMOC (at most one change), PELT (pruned exact linear time) and BinSeg (binary segmentation) – at a regional level to identify changes in the time series of the features. A trend analysis was conducted using the Mann–Kendall and Sen's slope tests at both the regional and NUTS3 level. Finally, we applied a principal component analysis (PCA) and varimax rotation to trend outputs – mainly Sen's slope values – to summarize overall temporal behaviour and to explore potential links in the evolution of fire features. Our results suggest that most fire features show remarkable shifts between the late 1980s and the first half of the 1990s. Mann–Kendall outputs revealed negative trends in the Mediterranean region. Results from Sen's slope suggest high spatial and intra-annual variability across the study area. Fire activity related to human sources seems to be experiencing an overall decrease in the northwestern provinces, particularly pronounced during summer. Similarly, the Hinterland and the Mediterranean coast are gradually becoming less fire affected. Finally, PCA enabled trends to be synthesized into four main components: winter fire frequency (PC1), summer burnt area (PC2), large fires (PC3) and natural fires (PC4)

Understanding wildfires in mainland Spain. A comprehensive analysis of fire regime features in a climate-human context

Understanding fire regime is a crucial step towards better knowledge of the wildfire phenomenon. However, the concept itself, in spite of its widespread use, still lacks a clear, widely accepted definition and there is no general agreement on which features define it best. In this paper we provide an in-depth characterization and description of fire regimes in three regions – Northwest, Hinterland and Mediterranean – comprising the whole of mainland Spain, to identify their key features. Data on number of fires, burned area, fire season and cause are retrieved from historical fire records for the period 1974–2010. Specifically, fire frequency, burned area, number of natural/human-caused fires, burned area from natural/human-caused fires, number of large fires (=500 ha), and burned area from large fires were examined for each region and fire season. We used a multi-group Principal Components Analysis approach to determine the importance of each fire regime feature. Next, climate and socioeconomic variables were explored using Multidimensional Scatterplots and Generalized Additive Models to find the extent to which fire regimes are controlled by either environmental, human, or both factors. Results revealed differences among regions and seasons in terms of the characteristics of their respective fire regimes. However, several common features have been identified as key components of fire regimes, regardless of region or fire season: fire frequency, number of large fires, and burned area from natural fires. In addition, results confirm that fire regime in the Northwest area mainly depends on human activity, especially during winter, in contrast to the Mediterranean region

EoE CONNECT, the European Registry of Clinical, Environmental, and Genetic Determinants in Eosinophilic Esophagitis:rationale, design, and study protocol of a large-scale epidemiological study in Europe

BACKGROUND: The growing prevalence of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) represents a considerable burden to patients and health care systems. Optimizing cost-effective management and identifying mechanisms for disease onset and progression are required. However, the paucity of large patient cohorts and heterogeneity of practice hinder the defining of optimal management of EoE. METHODS: EoE CONNECT is an ongoing, prospective registry study initiated in 2016 and currently managed by EUREOS, the European Consortium for Eosinophilic Diseases of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Patients are managed and treated by their responsible specialists independently. Data recorded using a web-based system include demographic and clinical variables; patient allergies; environmental, intrapartum, and early life exposures; and family background. Symptoms are structurally assessed at every visit; endoscopic features and histological findings are recorded for each examination. Prospective treatment data are registered sequentially, with new sequences created each time a different treatment (active principle, formulation, or dose) is administered to a patient. EoE CONNECT database is actively monitored to ensure the highest data accuracy and the highest scientific and ethical standards. RESULTS: EoE CONNECT is currently being conducted at 39 centers in Europe and enrolls patients of all ages with EoE. In its aim to increase knowledge, to date EoE CONNECT has provided evidence on the effectiveness of first- and second-line therapies for EoE in clinical practice, the ability of proton pump inhibitors to induce disease remission, and factors associated with improved response. Drug effects to reverse fibrous remodeling and endoscopic features of fibrosis in EoE have also been assessed. CONCLUSION: This prospective registry study will provide important information on the epidemiological and clinical aspects of EoE and evidence as to the real-world and long-term effectiveness and safety of therapy. These data will potentially be a vital benchmark for planning future EoE health care services in Europe

Revista de Vertebrados de la Estación Biológica de Doñana

Clave preliminar de las escamas de los peces de agua dulce de España, a nivel de familiaExito reproductor del Buitre leonado (Gyps fulvus) en NavarraAlimentación del Gavilán (Accipiter nisus) en la Isla de TenerifeEl Verdecillo (Serinus serinus): Tendencias en la estación de nidificación, en el tamaño del huevo y en la supervivencia.las batidas como método de censo en especiesde caza mayor: aplicación al caso del Jabalí (Sus scrofa L.) en la provincia de Burgos (Norte de España)La adquisición de madurez sexual en el camaleón común (Chamaeleo chamaeleon)Nuevas citas de Hemidactylus turcicus en la provincia de CáceresLa focha común (Fulica atra) en la isla de Gran Canaria: nueva especie nidificante en el archipiélago CanarioTraslado de huevos en incubación por la urraca (Pica pica)Predación de Falco peregrinus sobre Oryctolagus cuniculusCuatro nuevas especies de aves para Bolivia.Sobre la utilización de nidos de golondrina común abandonados.Parasitismo múltiple del críalo (Clamator glandarius)Predación del topo de rio (Galemys pyrenaicus, Geoffroy 1811) por parte de la lechuza común (Tyto alba, Scopoli 1769)Predación del zorro (Vulpes vulpes) sobre un pollo de buitre leonado (Gyps fulvus).Vulpes vulpes L. criando en una colonia de marmota (Marmota marmota L.) en el pirineo de LéridaObservaciones sobre la incidencia de Rattus (Fischer, 1803) en los cultivos ibéricos de caña de azúcaSituación actual de la jutiita de la tierra Capromys sanfelipensis (Rodentia, Mammalia)Notas sobre la intraducción y expansión de la ardilla común en Sierra Nevada, sureste de EspañaPeer reviewe

Accurate and timely diagnosis of Eosinophilic Esophagitis improves over time in Europe. An analysis of the EoE CONNECT Registry

BACKGROUND: Poor adherence to clinical practice guidelines for eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) has been described and the diagnostic delay of the disease continues to be unacceptable in many settings. OBJECTIVE: To analyze the impact of improved knowledge provided by the successive international clinical practice guidelines on reducing diagnostic delay and improving the diagnostic process for European patients with EoE. METHODS: Cross‐sectional analysis of the EoE CONNECT registry based on clinical practice. Time periods defined by the publication dates of four major sets of guidelines over 10 years were considered. Patients were grouped per time period according to date of symptom onset. RESULTS: Data from 1,132 patients was analyzed and median (IQR) diagnostic delay in the whole series was 2.1 (0.7‐6.2) years. This gradually decreased over time with subsequent release of new guidelines (p < 0.001), from 12.7 years up to 2007 to 0.7 years after 2017. The proportion of patients with stricturing of mixed phenotypes at the point of EoE diagnosis also decreased over time (41.3% vs. 16%; p < 0.001), as did EREFS scores. The fibrotic sub‐score decreased from a median (IQR) of 2 (1‐2) to 0 (0‐1) when patients whose symptoms started up to 2007 and after 2017 were compared (p < 0.001). In parallel, symptoms measured with the Dysphagia Symptoms Score reduced significantly when patients with symptoms starting before 2007 and after 2012 were compared. A reduction in the number of endoscopies patients underwent before the one that achieved an EoE diagnosis, and the use of allergy testing as part of the diagnostic workout of EoE, also reduced significantly over time (p = 0.010 and p < 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: The diagnostic work‐up of EoE patients improved substantially over time at the European sites contributing to EoE CONNECT, with a dramatic reduction in diagnostic delay

Oral Anticoagulation and Risk of Symptomatic Hemorrhagic Transformation in Stroke Patients Treated With Mechanical Thrombectomy: Data From the Nordictus Registry

Introduction: We aimed to evaluate if prior oral anticoagulation (OAC) and its type determines a greater risk of symptomatic hemorrhagic transformation in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) subjected to mechanical thrombectomy. Materials and Methods: Consecutive patients with AIS included in the prospective reperfusion registry NORDICTUS, a network of tertiary stroke centers in Northern Spain, from January 2017 to December 2019 were included. Prior use of oral anticoagulants, baseline variables, and international normalized ratio (INR) on admission were recorded. Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) was the primary outcome measure. Secondary outcome was the relation between INR and sICH, and we evaluated mortality and functional outcome at 3 months by modified Rankin scale. We compared patients with and without previous OAC and also considered the type of oral anticoagulants. Results: About 1.455 AIS patients were included, of whom 274 (19%) were on OAC, 193 (70%) on vitamin K antagonists (VKA), and 81 (30%) on direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs). Anticoagulated patients were older and had more comorbidities. Eighty-one (5.6%) developed sICH, which was more frequent in the VKA group, but not in DOAC group. OAC with VKA emerged as a predictor of sICH in a multivariate regression model (OR, 1.89 [95% CI, 1.01–3.51], p = 0.04) and was not related to INR level on admission. Prior VKA use was not associated with worse outcome in the multivariate regression model nor with mortality at 3 months. Conclusions: OAC with VKA, but not with DOACs, was an independent predictor of sICH after mechanical thrombectomy. This excess risk was associated neither with INR value by the time thrombectomy was performed, nor with a worse functional outcome or mortality at 3 months

EoE CONNECT, the European Registry of Clinical, Environmental, and Genetic Determinants in Eosinophilic Esophagitis: rationale, design, and study protocol of a large-scale epidemiological study in Europe

Background: The growing prevalence of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) represents a considerable burden to patients and health care systems. Optimizing cost-effective management and identifying mechanisms for disease onset and progression are required. However, the paucity of large patient cohorts and heterogeneity of practice hinder the defining of optimal management of EoE. Methods: EoE CONNECT is an ongoing, prospective registry study initiated in 2016 and currently managed by EUREOS, the European Consortium for Eosinophilic Diseases of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Patients are managed and treated by their responsible specialists independently. Data recorded using a web-based system include demographic and clinical variables; patient allergies; environmental, intrapartum, and early life exposures; and family background. Symptoms are structurally assessed at every visit; endoscopic features and histological findings are recorded for each examination. Prospective treatment data are registered sequentially, with new sequences created each time a different treatment (active principle, formulation, or dose) is administered to a patient. EoE CONNECT database is actively monitored to ensure the highest data accuracy and the highest scientific and ethical standards. Results: EoE CONNECT is currently being conducted at 39 centers in Europe and enrolls patients of all ages with EoE. In its aim to increase knowledge, to date EoE CONNECT has provided evidence on the effectiveness of first- and second-line therapies for EoE in clinical practice, the ability of proton pump inhibitors to induce disease remission, and factors associated with improved response. Drug effects to reverse fibrous remodeling and endoscopic features of fibrosis in EoE have also been assessed. Conclusion: This prospective registry study will provide important information on the epidemiological and clinical aspects of EoE and evidence as to the real-world and long-term effectiveness and safety of therapy. These data will potentially be a vital benchmark for planning future EoE health care services in Europe

Doñana. Acta vertebrata. vol 12(2)

Nuevos datos sobre la reproducción de Lacerta monticola (Lacertidae, Reptilia) en España centralCrecimiento de los pollos de gorrión molinero (Passer montanus, L.)Descripción de la comunidad de limícolas invernante en el Delta del Ebro.Etograma de la perdiz roja (Alectoris rufa) en libertadLa alimentación del Gorrión Moruno (Passer hispaniolensis) en áreas de cultivo de regadío extremeñaAlgunos datos sobre el comportamiento de alimentación y la dieta del petirrojo (Erithacus rubecula en un bosque cantábrico de montaña.Estructura temporal del comportamiento de gacela dorcas (Gazella dorcas)Murciélagos (Mammalia, Chiroptera) de las Islas CanariasNota sobre la presencia del tritón alpino (triturus alpestris) en el centro de la Península IbéricaLocalidades nuevas o poco conocidas de anfibios y reptiles de la España continental.Variaciones merísticas y de diseño en dos poblaciones de lajartija italiana (P. sicula) en iberiaProducción de sonidos en Blanus cinereusUna nueva localidad para Lacerta viridis en Soria: el macizo del MoncayoPrimeras citas de la culebrilla ciega (Blanus cinereus Vandelli, 1797) en GaliciaPosible competencia entre Parus ater y P. cristatus por el lugar de nidificaciónNote on the distribution of the Geoffroy's bat Myotis emarginatus (Geoffroy, 1806) in the Iberian PeninsulaCaptura de un quiróptero por un tritón gris (Glis glis)Peer reviewe

Molecular Mechanisms Generating and Stabilizing Terminal 22q13 Deletions in 44 Subjects with Phelan/McDermid Syndrome

In this study, we used deletions at 22q13, which represent a substantial source of human pathology (Phelan/McDermid syndrome), as a model for investigating the molecular mechanisms of terminal deletions that are currently poorly understood. We characterized at the molecular level the genomic rearrangement in 44 unrelated patients with 22q13 monosomy resulting from simple terminal deletions (72%), ring chromosomes (14%), and unbalanced translocations (7%). We also discovered interstitial deletions between 17–74 kb in 9% of the patients. Haploinsufficiency of the SHANK3 gene, confirmed in all rearrangements, is very likely the cause of the major neurological features associated with PMS. SHANK3 mutations can also result in language and/or social interaction disabilities. We determined the breakpoint junctions in 29 cases, providing a realistic snapshot of the variety of mechanisms driving non-recurrent deletion and repair at chromosome ends. De novo telomere synthesis and telomere capture are used to repair terminal deletions; non-homologous end-joining or microhomology-mediated break-induced replication is probably involved in ring 22 formation and translocations; non-homologous end-joining and fork stalling and template switching prevail in cases with interstitial 22q13.3. For the first time, we also demonstrated that distinct stabilizing events of the same terminal deletion can occur in different early embryonic cells, proving that terminal deletions can be repaired by multistep healing events and supporting the recent hypothesis that rare pathogenic germline rearrangements may have mitotic origin. Finally, the progressive clinical deterioration observed throughout the longitudinal medical history of three subjects over forty years supports the hypothesis of a role for SHANK3 haploinsufficiency in neurological deterioration, in addition to its involvement in the neurobehavioral phenotype of PMS

Exploring the link between MORF4L1 and risk of breast cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Proteins encoded by Fanconi anemia (FA) and/or breast cancer (BrCa) susceptibility genes cooperate in a common DNA damage repair signaling pathway. To gain deeper insight into this pathway and its influence on cancer risk, we searched for novel components through protein physical interaction screens. METHODS: Protein physical interactions were screened using the yeast two-hybrid system. Co-affinity purifications and endogenous co-immunoprecipitation assays were performed to corroborate interactions. Biochemical and functional assays in human, mouse and Caenorhabditis elegans models were carried out to characterize pathway components. Thirteen FANCD2-monoubiquitinylation-positive FA cell lines excluded for genetic defects in the downstream pathway components and 300 familial BrCa patients negative for BRCA1/2 mutations were analyzed for genetic mutations. Common genetic variants were genotyped in 9,573 BRCA1/2 mutation carriers for associations with BrCa risk. RESULTS: A previously identified co-purifying protein with PALB2 was identified, MRG15 (MORF4L1 gene). Results in human, mouse and C. elegans models delineate molecular and functional relationships with BRCA2, PALB2, RAD51 and RPA1 that suggest a role for MRG15 in the repair of DNA double-strand breaks. Mrg15-deficient murine embryonic fibroblasts showed moderate sensitivity to γ-irradiation relative to controls and reduced formation of Rad51 nuclear foci. Examination of mutants of MRG15 and BRCA2 C. elegans orthologs revealed phenocopy by accumulation of RPA-1 (human RPA1) nuclear foci and aberrant chromosomal compactions in meiotic cells. However, no alterations or mutations were identified for MRG15/MORF4L1 in unclassified FA patients and BrCa familial cases. Finally, no significant associations between common MORF4L1 variants and BrCa risk for BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation carriers were identified: rs7164529, Ptrend = 0.45 and 0.05, P2df = 0.51 and 0.14, respectively; and rs10519219, Ptrend = 0.92 and 0.72, P2df = 0.76 and 0.07, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: While the present study expands on the role of MRG15 in the control of genomic stability, weak associations cannot be ruled out for potential low-penetrance variants at MORF4L1 and BrCa risk among BRCA2 mutation carriers.RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are