798 research outputs found
Influence of the soil water content and distribution on both the hydraulic and transpiration performance of 'Manzanilla' olive trees
8 páginas, 4 figuras, 20 referencias.-- VI International Symposium on Irrigation of Horticultural Crops, celebrado del 2-6 de noviembre de 2006 en Viña del Mar, Chile.-- [email protected] work was made with mature 'Manzanilla' olive trees in an orchard of a semi-arid area in southern Spain. Three water treatments were considered: Rainfed, in which the trees had rainfall as the only source of water supply; FAO, in which the trees were under localized irrigation to replace the crop water demand, with some roots left in drying soil; Pond, in which the whole rootzones of the trees were maintained under non-limiting soil water conditions for the whole dry season. Our aim was to obtain information on the mechanisms behind the reduction of transpiration (Ep) in the FAO trees, as compared to the Pond trees. Our results show a near-isohydric behaviour of the FAO trees, i.e. those trees under localized irrigation in which some roots are left in drying showed lower stomatal conductance than the Pond trees in which all roots were in wetted soil. This helped the FAO trees to maintain similar leaf water potentials than the Pond trees. In addition, the FAO trees maintained a constant difference between the water potential of the canopy and that in the soil. This has been described as an isohydrodynamic behaviour, and it is thought to be an improvement over a typically anisohydric behaviour. These mechanisms were behind the similar values of tree hydraulic conductance (K p) found in the FAO and Pond treatments. The Rainfed trees showed lower Kp values because of the low Ep values of those trees, due to the low soil water availability in that treatment. Our results show, however, that the Rainfed trees were able to maintain similar values of Kp all throughout the dry season, which shows that the hydraulic efficiency of the xylem of those trees was little affected by embolism, despite of the high demanding conditions in the area.This work has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science,
research project No.AGL2006-04666/AGR, and by the EU, research project ref. STREP 023120.Peer Reviewe
Functional and biochemical analysis of the N-terminal domain of phytochrome A
Phytochrome A (phyA) is a versatile plant photoreceptor that mediates responses to brief light exposures (very low fluence responses, VLFR) as well as to prolonged irradiation (high irradiance responses, HIR). We identified the phyA-303 mutant allele of Arabidopsis thaliana bearing an R384K substitution in the GAF subdomain of the N-terminal half of phyA. phyA-303 showed reduced phyA spectral activity, almost normal VLFR, and severely impaired HIR. Recombinant N-terminal half oat of PHYA bearing the phyA-303 mutation showed poor incorporation of chromophore in vitro, despite the predicted relatively long distance (>13 Å) between the mutation and the closest ring of the chromophore. Fusion proteins bearing the N-terminal domain of oat phyA, β-glucuronidase, green fluorescent protein, and a nuclear localization signal showed physiological activity in darkness and mediated VLFR but not HIR. At equal protein levels, the phyA-303 mutation caused slightly less activity than the fusions containing the wild-type sequence. Taken together, these studies highlight the role of the N-terminal domain of phyA in signaling and of distant residues of the GAF subdomain in the regulation of phytochrome bilin-lyase activity.Fil: Mateos, Julieta Lisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Institut Max Planck fuer Bioanorganische Chemie; Alemania. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Luppi, Juan Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Ogorodnikova, Ouliana B.. Lomonosov Moscow State University; RusiaFil: Sineshchekov, Vitaly A.. Lomonosov Moscow State University; RusiaFil: Yanovsky, Marcelo Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Braslavsky, Silvia E.. Institut Max Planck fuer Bioanorganische Chemie; AlemaniaFil: Gärtner, Wolfgang. Institut Max Planck fuer Bioanorganische Chemie; AlemaniaFil: Casal, Jorge José. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; Argentin
Landscape evolution and geodynamic controls in the Gulf of Cadiz (Huelva coast, SW Spain) during the Late Quaternary
The coastal evolution of the El Abalario area (Huelva, southern Spain) during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene is reinterpreted after a refinement of the available geochronology by means of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. New data come from the analysis of soft sediment deformation, palaeosols, geomorphological mapping, and published seismic surveys on the onshore and offshore Gulf of Cadiz. The present structure of El Abalario dome resulted from the complex interaction of littoral-catchment processes and sea-level changes upon an emergent coastal plain, conditioned by the upwarping of the underlying Pliocene - Pleistocene prograding deltaic sequence. Upwarping is probably related to escape of over-pressurized fluids, accompanied by dewatering, prior to (?) and during OIS (Oxygen Isotopic Stage) 5. Continued upwarping produced the large NW - SE gravitational fault of Torre del Loro (TLF) in the southwestern flank of the dome, roughly parallel to the present coastline during OIS 5 - OIS 4. The resulting escarpment favoured the accumulation of aeolian sand dunes (units U1, U2, and U3) from OIS 5 to early OIS 1. Unit U1 (OIS 5) ends upwards in a supersurface with a thick weathering profile that suggests moist and temperate climatic conditions. Unit U2 accumulated mainly during OIS 4 and OIS 3 with prevailing W/E winds. The supersurface between U2 and U3 records a part of OIS 2, with relative low sea level. Sedimentation of unit U3 took place during the Last Deglaciation (radiocarbon and OSL ages) with prevailing W/SW winds, under a temperate moist climate, that became more arid towards the top (Holocene). A major supersurface with an iron crust-like layer (SsFe) developed during the Holocene Climatic Optimum (OIS 1) under wetter and more temperate conditions than before, fossilizing the TLF. The supersurface is covered by younger aeolian dunes (U4, U5, U6, and U7) transported by W - SW winds since the Late Neolithic - Chalcolithic cultural period (̃5.0 ky cal BP).Financial support from Spanish Projects BTE2002-1065 and BTE2002-1691. This is a contribution to IGCP 495 and to the INQUA “Coastal and Marine Processes Commission”
Análisis arqueosismológico del conjunto arqueológico romano de Mulva- Munigua (Sevilla, España). Resultados preliminares
El conjunto arqueológico romano de Mulva-Munigua (Sevilla, España) presenta daños en las edificaciones
que pueden ser interpretadas como resultado de la ocurrencia de un evento sísmico (Efectos Arqueológicos de los
Terremotos: EAEs) a finales del siglo III A.D., fecha coincidente con el inicio del periodo de declive económico de este
asentamiento romano. Para intentar establecer el posible origen sísmico de las deformaciones, se ha procedido al
inventario y análisis de las estructuras deformadas presentes en el yacimiento. No obstante, algunas de estas
deformaciones también se pueden interpretar como resultado de procesos gravitaciones asociados a la ladera Este de la
colina sobre la que se sitúa parte del yacimiento. Las direcciones de máxima deformación (ey) obtenidas del análisis de
EAEs indica dos direcciones preferentes de la deformación (o movimiento preferente del terreno): NNO-SSE y ENEOSO.
Aunque los datos presentan una dispersión importante, se puede establecer que la orientación principal NNO-SSE
es compatible con un evento sísmico situado en el borde norte del Valle del Guadalquivir. La orientación ENE-OSO
podría relacionarse con un evento posterior, o más seguramente con procesos de ladera de carácter cosísmico o no.The Roman archaeological site of Mulva-Munigua (Sevilla, Spain) displays building damage features
suggesting a seismic origin (Earthquake Archaeological Effects: EAEs). The proposed seismic event could be
tentatively dated in the late 3rd century AD, coinciding with the beginning of the economic fall of the Roman Empire at
Iberia. However, some of the recorded EAEs can be also interpreted as a result of intervening slope movements in the
eastern hillslope of this roman site. The inventory and analysis of the proposed EAEs make possible to discern between
seismic oriented damage and other causes. In spite of the data show a significant dispersion, their analysis result in two
different orientations of maximum deformation (ey) or preferential ground movement: NNW-SSE and ENE-WSW. The
main ey orientation (NNW-SSE) can be tentatively related to a seismic event occurred in the environs of the northern
border of the Guadalquivir Depression. The secondary orientation (ENE-WSW) can be interpreted as a consequence of
latter slope movements triggered (or not) by other ancient earthquakes
High Protein Binding and Cidal Activity against Penicillin-Resistant S. pneumoniae: A Cefditoren In Vitro Pharmacodynamic Simulation
BACKGROUND: Although protein binding is a reversible phenomenon, it is assumed that antibacterial activity is exclusively exerted by the free (unbound) fraction of antibiotics. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Activity of cefditoren, a highly protein bound 3(rd) generation cephalosporin, over 24h after an oral 400 mg cefditoren-pivoxil bid regimen was studied against six S. pneumoniae strains (penicillin/cefditoren MICs; microg/ml): S1 (0.12/0.25), S2 (0.25/0.25), S3 and S4 (0.5/0.5), S5 (1/0.5) and S6 (4/0.5). A computerized pharmacodynamic simulation with media consisting in 75% human serum and 25% broth (mean albumin concentrations = 4.85+/-0.12 g/dL) was performed. Protein binding was measured. The cumulative percentage of a 24h-period that drug concentrations exceeded the MIC for total (T > MIC) and unbound concentrations (fT > MIC), expressed as percentage of the dosing interval, were determined. Protein binding was 87.1%. Bactericidal activity (> or = 99.9% initial inocula reduction) was obtained against strains S1 and S2 at 24h (T > MIC = 77.6%, fT > MIC = 23.7%). With T > MIC of 61.6% (fT > MIC = 1.7%), reductions against S3 and S4 ranged from 90% to 97% at 12h and 24h; against S5, reduction was 45.1% at 12h and up to 85.0% at 24h; and against S6, reduction was 91.8% at 12h, but due to regrowth of 52.9% at 24h. Cefditoren physiological concentrations exerted antibacterial activity against strains exhibiting MICs of 0.25 and 0.5 microg/ml under protein binding conditions similar to those in humans. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The results of this study suggest that, from the pharmacodynamic perspective, the presence of physiological albumin concentrations may not preclude antipneumococcal activity of highly bound cephalosporins as cefditoren
Enhanced recovery in colorectal surgery: a multicentre study
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Major colorectal surgery usually requires a hospital stay of more than 12 days. Inadequate pain management, intestinal dysfunction and immobilisation are the main factors associated with delay in recovery. The present work assesses the short and medium term results achieved by an enhanced recovery program based on previously published protocols.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This prospective study, performed at 12 Spanish hospitals in 2008 and 2009, involved 300 patients. All patients underwent elective colorectal resection for cancer following an enhanced recovery program. The main elements of this program were: preoperative advice, no colon preparation, provision of carbohydrate-rich drinks one day prior and on the morning of surgery, goal directed fluid administration, body temperature control during surgery, avoiding drainages and nasogastric tubes, early mobilisation, and the taking of oral fluids in the early postoperative period. Perioperative morbidity and mortality data were collected and the length of hospital stay and protocol compliance recorded.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The median age of the patients was 68 years. Fifty-two % of the patients were women. The distribution of patients by ASA class was: I 10%, II 50% and III 40%. Sixty-four % of interventions were laparoscopic; 15% required conversion to laparotomy. The majority of patients underwent sigmoidectomy or right hemicolectomy. The overall compliance to protocol was approximately 65%, but varied widely in its different components. The median length of postoperative hospital stay was 6 days. Some 3% of patients were readmitted to hospital after discharge; some 7% required repeat surgery during their initial hospitalisation or after readmission. The most common complications were surgical (24%), followed by septic (11%) or other medical complications (10%). Three patients (1%) died during follow-up. Some 31% of patients suffered symptoms that delayed their discharge, the most common being vomiting or nausea (12%), dyspnoea (7%) and fever (5%).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The following of this enhanced recovery program posed no risk to patients in terms of morbidity, mortality and shortened the length of their hospital stay. Overall compliance to protocol was 65%. The following of this program was of benefit to patients and reduces costs by shortening the length of hospital stay. The implantation of such programmes is therefore highly recommended.</p
Proteomic analysis of low-grade, early-stage endometrial carcinoma reveals new dysregulated pathways associated with cell death and cell signaling
Low-grade, early-stage endometrial carcinoma (EC) is the most frequent malignant tumor of the uterine corpus. However, the molecular alterations that underlie these tumors are far from being fully understood. The purpose of this study is to describe dysregulated molecular pathways from EC patients. Sixteen samples of tumor tissue and paired healthy controls were collected and both were subjected to mass spectrometry (MS)/MS proteomic analysis. Gene ontology and pathway analysis was performed to discover dysregulated pathways and/or proteins using different databases and bioinformatic tools. Dysregulated pathways were cross-validated in an independent external cohort. Cell signaling, immune response, and cell death-associated pathways were robustly identified. The SLIT/ROBO signaling pathway demonstrated dysregulation at the proteomic and transcriptomic level. Necroptosis and ferroptosis were cell death-associated processes aberrantly regulated, in addition to apoptosis. Immune response-associated pathways showed a dominance of innate immune responses. Tumor immune infiltrates measured by immunofluorescence demonstrated diverse lymphoid and myeloid populations. Our results suggest a role of SLIT/ROBO, necroptosis, and ferroptosis, as well as a prominent role of innate immune response in low-grade, early-stage EC. These results could guide future research in this group of tumorsThis research was funded by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) (PI17/01723), cofinanced
by the European Development Regional Fund “A way to achieve Europe” (FEDER
El complejo eólico de El Abalario (Huelva)
El área de El Abalario (Huelva) situada en la cuenca Neógena del Guadalquivir
e incluida en parte dentro del Parque Natural de Doñana (Fig.1),
constituye el sector litoral con el mayor y “más completo” registro de materiales
eólicos aflorantes desarrollados desde el Pleistoceno Superior hasta la
actualidad en la Península Ibérica. Numerosos trabajos han sido publicados
desde los años setenta cuando Caratini y Viguier (1973) consideraron todos
los depósitos aflorantes a lo largo del acantilado de El Asperillo (sector costero
de El Abalario) como sedimentos eólicos de edad Holocena, en base a
datos polínicos. Posteriormente, Zazo et al. (1981) distinguen próximos a
la Torre del Loro, sedimentos fluviales y marinos en la base del acantilado y
realizan las primeras dataciones de radiocarbono en los sedimentos fluviales.
El estudio geomorfológico junto con la interpretación de numerosos sondeos
llevados a cabo por el IGME en el área del Abalario llevan a Goy et al. (1994)
a considerar esta área como una zona inestable sometida a una tectónica activa
durante el Cuaternario.Este trabajo ha sido financiado por los Proyectos CGL2008-04000,
CGL2008-3998, OAPN-036/2008 y GRACCIE-CSD-2007-00067. Es una
contribución al IGCP495 (Quaternary Land Ocean Interactions: Driving Mechanisms
and Coastal Responses); al Proyecto 0911-INQUA-CMP (Decoding the
Last Interglacial in Western Mediterranean) y al Grupo de Trabajo de la UCM-
910198.Peer reviewe
Paleogeografía y Paleosismicidad: El caso de estudio Bajo Segura, SE España
Trabajo presentado en la XIV Reunión Nacional de Cuaternario, celebrada en Granada (España), del 30 de junio al 2 de julio de 2015El presente trabajo aborda el análisis paleogeográfico de la Depresión del Bajo Segura donde se ubicaba la antigua bahía Ibero-Romana del Sinus ilicitanus. Se confrontan datos de reconstrucciones paleogeográficas, documentos históricos con el análisis geomorfológico del sistema de acequias, azudes y canales de la zona y su desarrollo en diferentes periodos. Se concluye que durante la época musulmana la zona afectada por el terremoto en las inmediaciones de Orihuela era un sistema deltáico palmeado 1048 AD se relacionan con fracturación del terreno y procesos de licuefacción, así como un relevante cambio del curso del rí Segura y abandono del sistema deltaico.This work has been funded by the Spanish research projects CGL2012 (QTECTBETICA -USAL), CGL2012-33430 (CSIC) and CGL2013-42847-R (UNED) and W. G. QTECT-AEQUAPeer reviewe
Stab Injury to the Preauricular Region With Laceration of the External Carotid Artery Without Involvement of the Facial Nerve: a Case Report
BACKGROUND:
Open injuries to the face involving the external carotid artery are uncommon. These injuries are normally associated with laceration of the facial nerve because this nerve is more superficial than the external carotid artery. Hence, external carotid artery lesions are usually associated with facial nerve dysfunction. We present an unusual case report in which the patient had an injury to this artery with no facial nerve compromise.
CASE PRESENTATION:
A 25-year-old Portuguese man sustained a stab wound injury to his right preauricular region with a broken glass. Immediate profuse bleeding ensued. Provisory tamponade of the wound was achieved at the place of aggression by two off-duty doctors. He was initially transferred to a district hospital, where a large arterial bleeding was observed and a temporary compressive dressing was applied. Subsequently, the patient was transferred to a tertiary hospital. At admission in the emergency room, he presented a pulsating lesion in the right preauricular region and slight weakness in the territory of the inferior buccal branch of the facial nerve. The physical examination suggested an arterial lesion superficial to the facial nerve. However, in the operating theater, a section of the posterior and lateral flanks of the external carotid artery inside the parotid gland was identified. No lesion of the facial nerve was observed, and the external carotid artery was repaired. To better understand the anatomical rationale of this uncommon clinical case, we dissected the preauricular region of six cadavers previously injected with colored latex solutions in the vascular system. A small triangular space between the two main branches of division of the facial nerve in which the external carotid artery was not covered by the facial nerve was observed bilaterally in all cases.
CONCLUSIONS:
This clinical case illustrates that, in a preauricular wound, the external carotid artery can be injured without facial nerve damage. However, no similar description was found in the reviewed literature, which suggests that this must be a very rare occurrence. According to the dissection study performed, this is due to the existence of a triangular space between the cervicofacial and temporofacial nerve trunks in which the external carotid artery is not covered by the facial nerve or its branches.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
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