COVID-19 outbreaks in a transmission control scenario: challenges posed by social and leisure activities, and for workers in vulnerable conditions, Spain, early summer 2020

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 community-wide transmission declined in Spain by early May 2020, being replaced by outbreaks and sporadic cases. From mid-June to 2 August, excluding single household outbreaks, 673 outbreaks were notified nationally, 551 active (>6,200 cases) at the time. More than half of these outbreaks and cases coincided with: (i) social (family/friends’ gatherings or leisure venues) and (ii) occupational (mainly involving workers in vulnerable conditions) settings. Control measures were accordingly applied

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<scp>ReSurveyEurope</scp>: A database of resurveyed vegetation plots in Europe

AbstractAimsWe introduce ReSurveyEurope — a new data source of resurveyed vegetation plots in Europe, compiled by a collaborative network of vegetation scientists. We describe the scope of this initiative, provide an overview of currently available data, governance, data contribution rules, and accessibility. In addition, we outline further steps, including potential research questions.ResultsReSurveyEurope includes resurveyed vegetation plots from all habitats. Version 1.0 of ReSurveyEurope contains 283,135 observations (i.e., individual surveys of each plot) from 79,190 plots sampled in 449 independent resurvey projects. Of these, 62,139 (78%) are permanent plots, that is, marked in situ, or located with GPS, which allow for high spatial accuracy in resurvey. The remaining 17,051 (22%) plots are from studies in which plots from the initial survey could not be exactly relocated. Four data sets, which together account for 28,470 (36%) plots, provide only presence/absence information on plant species, while the remaining 50,720 (64%) plots contain abundance information (e.g., percentage cover or cover–abundance classes such as variants of the Braun‐Blanquet scale). The oldest plots were sampled in 1911 in the Swiss Alps, while most plots were sampled between 1950 and 2020.ConclusionsReSurveyEurope is a new resource to address a wide range of research questions on fine‐scale changes in European vegetation. The initiative is devoted to an inclusive and transparent governance and data usage approach, based on slightly adapted rules of the well‐established European Vegetation Archive (EVA). ReSurveyEurope data are ready for use, and proposals for analyses of the data set can be submitted at any time to the coordinators. Still, further data contributions are highly welcome.</jats:sec

Inflammation and oxidation: predictive and/or causative factors

RESUMEN En el envejecimiento cerebral ocurren una serie de cambios que conllevan la disminución de los procesos de adaptación y respuesta. Estas transformaciones pueden finalizar en el padecimiento de deterioro cognitivo y/o demencia. Aunque el origen de estas modificaciones es diverso, la inflamación y el estrés oxidativo explican parte de los mecanismos fisiopatológicos de dichas anomalías del funcionamiento cerebral. La neuroinflamación desencadena daño a nivel neuronal mediante la presencia de citocinas inflamatorias y la activación de la microglía, a través de receptores de membrana y factores de activación nuclear. Este fenómeno neuroinflamatorio también afecta la plasticidad neuronal, alterando la génesis y el mantenimiento de la potenciación a largo plazo ocasionando deterioro en la memoria dependiente del hipocampo. El estrés oxidativo y a la producción de radicales libres de oxígeno, también originan efectos tóxicos en los cerebros envejecidos, en gran parte debido a la peroxidación lipídica y daños en el ADN. La identificación de los mecanismos moleculares implicados en la patogénesis de estos sucesos puede arrojar nueva luz sobre posibles dianas terapéuticas y ofrecer estrategias para la prevención de las patologías relacionadas con el envejecimiento cerebral, el deterioro cognitivo y la demencia.ABSTRACT Brain ageing leads to a series of changes that reduce the processes of adaptation and response. These transformations can end in cognitive impairment and/or dementia. Although the cause of these changes is diverse, inflammation and oxidative stress explain some of the pathophysiological mechanisms of these anomalies of brain functioning. Neuroinflammation triggers neuronal injury through the presence of inflammatory cytokines and the activation of microglia through membrane receptors and nuclear activation factors. This neuroinflammatory phenomenon also affects neuron plasticity, altering the genesis and maintenance of long-term potentiation, leading to impairment of hippocampus-dependent memory. Oxidative stress and the production of free oxygen radicals also cause toxic effects in aged brains, largely due to lipid peroxidation and DNA damage. The identification of the molecular mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of these events could shed new light on possible therapeutic targets and offer strategies for the prevention of diseases related to brain ageing, cognitive impairment and dementia

Longitudinal analysis of nutrition parameters in a cohort of elderly people with and without dementia

Introducción La evaluación nutricional longitudinal, debido a sus frecuentes alteraciones, es especialmente relevante en al anciano con deterioro cognitivo. El objetivo del presente estudio es valorar a lo largo del tiempo el efecto y la posible interacción del deterioro cognitivo y del envejecimiento en los parámetros nutricionales. Material y métodos Estudio longitudinal prospectivo de 2 años de seguimiento en 301 ancianos (233 mujeres y 68 varones) en el medio residencial, 51 de los cuales tienen criterios de demencia. Los parámetros antropométricos y bioquímicos se obtuvieron según técnicas normalizadas. Resultados Los ancianos con demencia presentan, en todos los parámetros estudiados, valores inferiores respecto a los ancianos sin demencia. En los pacientes con deterioro cognitivo los valores medios de los parámetros nutricionales permanecen estables y sin diferencias significativas tras 2 años de seguimiento: índice de masa corporal 24,5 ± 4,9 vs 24,2 ± 4,1; pliegue tricipital 15,0 ± 6,0 vs 14,7 ± 6,9; circunferencia braquial 25,9 ± 3,3 vs 25,7 ± 3,5, y albúmina 3,7 ± 0,3 vs 3,7 ± 0,3. En los pacientes sin deterioro cognitivo los valores al final del estudio han descendido respecto a los valores basales, excepto el pliegue bicipital y los triglicéridos. Conclusiones Tras 2 años de seguimiento no se observa descenso de los parámetros nutricionales estudiados en los ancianos con demencia; sin embargo, sí aparece un descenso en los ancianos sin deterioro cognitivo. Las causas de estas diferencias pueden ser múltiples. Son necesarios más estudios, con mayor número de ancianos y un mayor periodo de seguimiento, para validar estos hallazgos.Introduction It is important to assess longitudinal nutritional parameters during the ageing process in order to determine body composition changes. This procedure is more relevant when dealing with institutionalised geriatric patients suffering from cognitive impairment. The aim of this study was to assess the interactions, if any, between mental status and several nutritional parameters in a cohort of elderly people. Material and methods A longitudinal prospective two years follow-up evaluation was performed on 301 elderly residents (233 females and 68 males) in a nursing home, of whom 51 of them fulfilled the clinical criteria for dementia. Both anthropometric and biochemical parameters were obtained annually, according to standard procedures. Results The dementia group had lower values when compared to the non-dementia group. Furthermore, nutritional values remained constant in the group with cognitive impairment (no significant differences were observed throughout the study period). BMI 24.5 ± 4.9 vs 24.2 ± 4.1; tricipital skinfold 15.0 ± 6.0 vs 14.7 ± 6.9; brachial circumference 25.9 ± 3.3 vs 25.7 ± 3.5, and albumin 3.7 ± 0.3 vs 3.7 ± 0.3. At the end of the study, the group without cognitive impairment showed lower values in all the parameters analysed when compared to the baseline ones, except for bicipital fold and plasma triglycerides. Conclusions Our study shows that there are no variations in the elderly with cognitive impairment, as regards the nutritional, anthropometric and biochemist parameters analysed. On the contrary, the group with normal cognitive status showed a reduction in most of the parameters. Further studies analysing larger populations of elderly people and over longer periods of time will provide more information to improve our knowledge on this important issue